With trembling hands, I poured myself some Capri Sun that Lou had bought earlier at the store. It was just me in one of the empty hotel rooms on our floor, the boys weren't allowed to be with me. Paul said that it was for their safety, and knowing that safe for them meant away from me made me feel awful.
Of course, the boys all protested against Paul, but in the end, he had gotten his way and the boys were sent with a few security members into the main hotel room. I felt like a prisoner, sitting alone in my cell while Paul stood at attention at the door. It just didn't feel right.
The sun was finally beginning to fall slowly, and the crowd of people at the hotel's outdoor pool dwindled down until all that remained were the lifeguards. I felt like Katniss Everdeen, trapped in her room a few nights before going into the arena.
Only this was real. This was actually happening, to me.
The texts from Vanessa kept pouring in, but I didn't dare look at them. Paul didn't know about those texts, and I wasn't going to tell him. I was terrified beyond imaginable already, and I knew that those messages written to me would just make everything worse.
The boys had been trying to skype call me, but I didn't pick up. I had a massive lump in my throat that threatened to choke me every second, and I didn't want the boys to see me in this condition. Not now, not here.
I suppose some of the texts that came were from Harry, concerned about me and for my safety. But really, I was the one putting all of their lives in danger. Maybe if I hadn't called Harry two months ago he wouldn't be in this uncomfortable position, hiding away in a hotel room for his life. But then again, it wasn't his life they wanted.
It was mine.
Just knowing that someone wanted you dead was enough to send someone over the edge. But there was this whole mystery behind the story in front of me, such as why my parents were avoiding me, and what Vanessa wanted from me. What was really driving her to kill me?
These questions couldn't be answered, and knowing that was killing me inside. My head was buzzing with questions that I was afraid I would just lose it, that's how much was simultaneously popping into my brain.
But what remained in my head most, stuck there like a planted seed, was Harry. I wanted so badly to run to him and tell him that I was going be okay, although it was positive that wasn't going to be the outcome. I wanted to tell him how much I loved him one last time, because I was sure that Vanessa would get to me. Either that or I'd become so paranoid that itself would kill me.
I choked out a silent sob right before the door burst open and I scrambled out of Louis's unmade bed and jumped to my feet. My heart must have been racing a million miles per hour, but when I saw that it was Harry I felt like the weight of the world was lifted off of my shoulders.
"Darcy!" He exclaimed, running over to me like a little kid and crashing his lips against mine. I reacted a bit slowly, but within a few seconds I was kissing him back. It hadn't even dawned on me that Paul might be watching us and that this was PDA, but I could really care less.
After a few minutes of kissing, we were both smiling like idiots in each others arms, even though with the circumstances we should have been crying. This was the thing about love, it could brighten your day instantly, even in the middle of a crisis like this.
"Paul found her and places a tracking device on her. She's gone." Harry squealed, spinning me around but pretty much failing and nearly sending me into the cheap-o television. I screamed in excitement, or maybe it was just the rush of him kissing me, and we stood there in the hotel room jumping up and down in eachother's arms.
"You're joking. She's gone!?" I practically screamed. He nodded furiously and leaned in, giving me another kiss. This one was unfortunately short-lived, but it was sweet at the same time. I didn't know why Vanessa was gone, but she was. She had given up and everything was going to be okay.
"Niall and Paul went out to get fried chicken, and we're going to watch Mean Girls on Netflix to celebrate." Harry smiled, kissing the top of my forehead. It felt peculiar celebrating after someone who wants to murder you doesn't murder you, but I could care less. Things were going my way, for once, and I was determined to enjoy it.
"What a romantic date," I teased as his nose brushed against mine. He shrugged, a smirk plain as day on his face, trying to bite back his excited smile. "But as long as I'm with you that's all I need."
"I think I love you, Darcy Monroe." Harry whispered.
"Really?" I asked, serious now and over my giddiness. He'd never told me something like this before, we'd never been this serious. I knew deep down that I had loved Harry all along, but I never admitted it to myself or said anything on the surface. I felt a surge of energy run from my fingertips to my toes as we walked into the wide hallway.
"Yeah, and my mum said that she'd love to see you sometime. So maybe before we go on tour in the summer you can see her again." He suggested.
"And we could go to that playground again, where you got stuck in the slide." I laughed at the memory. We had been sixteen, only two days after our big auditions at the X Factor. He was practicing his song and singing it to me for the millionth time, and he had slid down the slide and I had to pull him out.
"I had a big butt back then. Now it's all muscle, though." He wiggled his eyebrows as we entered the bigger one of our rooms, where the rest of the boys were lounging around watching a game of football. Louis was into the game the most, sitting right before the screen and staring at it like a puppy.
"Darcy!" Zayn shouted, coming at me with outstretched arms and a goofy grin on his face. The Zayn that I was used to seeing, silent and mysterious, was not this guy. But I didn't hesitate or back away when he scooped me up and paraded me around the sleek black couch in front of the television.
"Be quiet! Rafael was about to make a goal and I need to concentrate!" Louis screamed. It seemed like our whole entire floor was infected with this poison that made us bubbly and cheerful, and I really didn't mind it. Most of the memories Harry and I made together were all sad, and for once it seemed like everyone was in a good mood.
"You can take my spot, if you want. I was just about to call my mum." Liam said, getting my attention by waving a hand in front of my face. It hadn't occurred to me that I had been spacing out, but Liam and the sound of a shrill ringing noise snapped me out of my trance.
I held up my finger at him, signaling for him to wait, as I checked the caller I.D. When I looked at the name flashing ebfore my on the screen, my heart rate quickened and I felt myself go pale. Luckily, the room was dark and my sudden change of color wasn't noticeable for anyone.
I glanced around the room, the boys had all filed in and were either chatting or, like Louis, watching intensely at the game. I was going to have to face them sometime. I couldn't just ignore them forever, and I had to make things right. It was better sooner than later, because who knows if the'd give me a chance later?
"I'll, um, be right back." I mumbled, slipping out of the dark room and sprinting down the long hallway into the bathroom beside my room that didn't have the hot water. Before my phone went to a voice machine, I flipped it open without even knowing what to say.
"H-hello?" I asked hesitantly. Nobody answered on the other line, sending me into a panicking frenzy. What if my parents didn't even want to talk to me? How sad and absolutely pathetic would it be for your own mother to be ignoring you?
"Mom? Dad?" I tried again. I could hear someone shifting on the other line, but I wasn't sure who it was. Suppose it wasn't them? Was this some kind of a joke?
Finally, though, I heard my Dad familiarly clear his throat. He had done this many times at home before he'd practice different presentation that he would have to give in front of their work board. I had never really paid close attention to what came after it, because I was young and things like that were a bore to me.
"Darcy Mae Monroe, we are extremely disappointed in you." My father said. It felt strange and somewhat reassuring to hear his voice, even though it had never really given me a sense of comfort before. You might wonder why this was reassuring, when it obviously wasn't him praising me or even saying a nice hello after not speaking for years, but just hearing him and his voice brought me back to when I was little.
Finally, I managed to think up something to say
"I'm confused." I stammered. "Why?"
"Don't try and be smart with me, young lady. You and I both know here what you did." He spat, confusing me beyond recognition. Either I had missed out on something, or all of those migraine pills were getting to him.
"Dad, I'm not being smart. I don't even know what I did. Could you, um, tell me?" I squeaked. Suddenly I felt a million times smaller, like when I was five and he always told me that I was too little to do most of the things I wanted to do.
"Don't, Darcy. You've caused us enough pain." Dad said, and before I could even blink the other line was dead, leaving me sitting in a heap on the tiled bathroom floor a confused mess. Something here was not right. Someone must have told my parents false information, because that was the only thing that made sense right now.
And maybe, just maybe it was Vanessa, or Nathan.
Nathan.
I scrambled to my feet and swung the door open, all in one instance. I wasn't ready for the scene before me. Standing in the hallway, directly ten feet in front of me, was Harry, Liam, Louis, and Zayn. This wouldn't have bothered me in any other situation, but the person standing with a gun pointed at their heads definitely alarmed me. Nathan had the gun aimed right at Harry.
"Darcy, so nice of you to join us." Nathan mocked. I felt pain pang through my body, like someone took a giant hand and just slapped me. My blood was boiling inside me, and I was filled with an adrenaline rush. But even that wasn't going to stop him.
"Don't hurt her," Harry croaked, making Nathan focus his attention back on the boys. Harry's eyes were light and blurred, and I knew that this was the end. I was going to be dead any minute now, and all he had to do was pull the trigger to end my life.
But instead, Nathan just strode over to me, slowly, with a grin on his face that I wanted to wipe off. Here was a boy who I had once trusted, a traitor. I should have known. I shouldn't have been so stupid.
"We've been waiting a long time for this, you know." He hissed in my ear as I got goosebumps on my arms. This was really, really bad. And I knew that something was going to happen to me or the boys, and if I could help it I would keep them safe.
"Please, don't hurt any of them." I whispered.
"We'll see. But you can't just expect me to leave without something, right?" He chuckled. I wanted to burst into tears and flee the room, but I knew that wasn't an option. I had to face him and I was going to face him.
"Please, don't hurt Harry. Don't hurt anyone, please just go. What do you want from me?" I pleaded.
"Well, I don't necessarily want something from you." He said, looking straight at me, his finger on the gun trigger. He was going to take my life, and he was gong to take it now. For some reason, instead of feeling fear wash over me, I felt serene. It was weird, I know, but it was as if I was preparing to die.
"Then what do you want?" I spat, suddenly feeling a surge of confidence rush through me. What would it even matter? I didn't want to leave this world a coward, I wanted to show my enemy that even though he appeared to have power over me, he didn't.
"We aren't killing you." Nathan said, surprising me. It was as if he had read my mind, but then again, you could probably read what I was thinking on my fae. I felt pity for the boys for them to see me now. I felt worse for Harry, though.
"You see, at first Vanessa wanted to kill you." He began. "But then we thought, what fun is that? And there was always that complication of where to... dispose you. And we wanted you to feel the pain you put our parents through. So either you let us kidnap you again, or... Harry, can you come here please?"
"No!" I screamed, trying to push past Nathan with all my might. But he was too strong for me, and I suddenly wished that I took more weight classes in high school. Harry slowly aproached us until he was standing a few feet away from me, with Nathan at the sidelines and the boys as our audience. Something was going to happen, and it was going to happen now.
"Or we kill Harry." Nathan uttered the words that I knew he was going to say, but wasn't going to will myself to believe that he would, when all along I knew that was coming. But I knew, as I looked into Harry's pain-stricken eyes, what I had to do.
I had to be brave.
I had to be fierce.
I had to save Harry's life, by letting Nathan take me.
I slowly turned my head to face Nathan and gave him a small nod. He knew what I meant, and the smirk on his face seemed as wide as the Joker's grin. A sick feeling erupted in me as Harry choked out a sob and Nathan grabbed my arm, trying to push me back.
I shook him off and ran to Harry one last time, crashing my lips against his and filling the space between us. I knew that at any moment Nathan would pull me away, and I had to be quick.
"If you love something, let it go. If it loves you, it'll come back." I whispered quiet enough for only him to hear. I felt Nathan pull my arm and I was being drug away, the world becoming a fuzz. The last thing I remember was hearing the boys shouting, and then I was surrounded by darkness.
A/N: Well, my friends, we have reached the climax of the story. Please, don't shoot me :o And I apologize for the long wait! Please vote, fan, and especially comment! I want to be receiving more comments on chapters, and I will randomly fan a few commenters, read a few commenters stories (not if you beg for me to, ew), and dedicate this chapter to a commenter.
Also, go check out my new Harry story!
http://www.wattpad.com/story/4084394-one-way-or-another
I love you all<3
~Delilah