Chapter 1:
“I am nothing special, of this I am sure. I am a common man with common thoughts and I've led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten, but I've loved another with all my heart and soul, and to me, this has always been enough...”
Why does Nicholas Sparks have to be so perfect? Argh. I wish I could write like him. Even though I’ve read The Notebook probably sixteen times, this little part always sparks tears in my eyes.
My legs swing back and forth, dangling over the counter. I’m sitting on the crumbling marble countertop in the back room of the old ice cream parlor. Even though the outside seems to sag, and the cheery paint is decaying, I can’t hate it, because this is the center of my childhood. The air is a tad too chilly even though the door stays open, the glass is desperately in need of a good wipe-down, the linoleum tile near the hot fudge squeaks if you don’t step with caution, and the corner of the bar always seems to snag my hip and make me double over in pain. The back is stale with the stench of strawberries and cigarettes, and the bathrooms need a new paint job. Yet, there isn’t one place on earth I would rather be working at.
The little shop has been family run for fifty years, and they proudly hang the old photos on the walls. I’ll trace my fingers over the ornate edges of the frames when the customers are scarce, or when I’m forced to restock the cones.
As I previously stated, this is the birthplace of my childhood. I’ve always been close with the owners, since I live down the street, and I can remember racing over here nearly every day during the summer. It’s like no matter what mood I was in, or what I had been doing, I needed to come to this place. So, of course, as soon as I was old enough to work, I applied for a job here. The pay isn’t too suckish, and the customers are nice for the most part.
There’s this old frail woman that comes in on Sundays and Wednesdays, her name’s Marabella, but she insists I call her Mara. She always sits at the bar- even though I know it’s a struggle for her to reach the seat- and he tells me the stories of her husband, Ackerley, and their undying love for one another. Some of the stories bring tears to my eyes, and I always look straight at her face when she tells them, because I can see traces of hope and love flare in her deep blue eyes, and it brings warmth to my heart. I want something like that. I want to be just like her. To not be scared of death, knowing my love will be waiting for me. To have a lifetime full of memories to replay once they’re gone. To love. To truly, deeply, wholly love someone who will love me back and give me more than I can ever ask for.
But what normal girl ever finds their true love in a modern day world? It all ends up in court, anyway. But a girl can dream, can’t she?
Back to reality, I’m chilling in the back, reading The Notebook, listening to some Ed Sheeran, with a spoon turned upside down in my mouth. My nose is scrunched together in focus until I hear the jingle of the door. I hesitantly put my book down and hop off the counter. I see two guys walk in, and one looks a little tipsy. Not full blown drunk, but not completely sober, either. What do you expect working at ten o’clock on Saturday, right?
“Welcome to Sweet Tooth, what would you like?” I ask cheerily, busying myself with the ice cream. After a moment, I look up, to be met by a dazzling pair of green eyes. Holy shit. Those eyes. I clear my throat, as if to say Out with it, man and he holds my gaze. He flashes me a smile, and his dimples make my knees weak. I would love to touch them. What? No. I would do no such thing. I’ve known him, what, all of three minutes- and it’s been spent quite awkwardly, may I add-, so therefore I am in no such position to sexually harass a cute boy’s face. That is no, Victoria. He parts his lips, as if to speak, but his tipsy friend speaks first.
“I’d like a cup of you, with a side of your sweet ass.” The drunken one slurred, giving me a sloppy wink, and I couldn’t help but notice his glazed blue eyes. They were gorgeous as well- what was it with men and their stunning eyes tonight? Did they want me to just drop dead? I couldn’t help but detect a strong Irish accent. I was slightly repulsed, but I knew to hold my tongue. Before I rephrased my question, his friend shouted at him.
“Niall! That’s no way to talk to a beautiful woman! Apologize!” I stared at him shocked of three things: one, he had just yelled at his friend and told him to apologize, even though this “Niall” was clearly in no state to do much but sleep right now, two, he was British, and three, he called me beautiful. D’aw. He was calling me beautiful while seconds before, I was deciding if I should molest his dimples. Classy.
“Sorry.” He mumbled, and then staggered off to a back table and threw himself into a booth.
“I apologize…ah…” He squinted at my chest, and I felt odd. Was he just going to openly stare at my chest? Wow. I thought he was a gentleman.
“…Victoria…what a lovely name.” He smiled at me, and I felt bad for thinking he was a pervert.
“Thanks.” I replied meekly, suddenly noticing my shoes. They were red, and had an obvious stain. I need to get a new pair of shoes. What if my shoes grew wings and just flew away? That would really suck. I like these shoes.
“You’re welcome. And that would suck.” I stared at him. What the hell? Where did that come from? I think he noticed my confusion, and he chuckled. I noted the way his brown curls shook slightly when he did that.
“I heard you. Talking about your shoes. That would suck if they really did fly away.” I blushed. Had I really said that out loud? Damn. That would’ve been cool if he could read minds.
“Sorry about that. What would you like me to get for you?”
“What do you recommend?”
“Um…Fudge Ripple or Pecan Pie? I don’t know.”
“Could I get two of each, please?”
“Yeah, sure.”
I dug my arm deep into the freezer, and goose bumps infected my arm on the way.
“I’m Harry.” My neck snapped up. I held his gaze for a short second, and then I looked down before he could notice me blushing.
“Nice to meet you, Harry. So, what’s a guy like you doing at an ice cream shop at ten on a Saturday?”
“Wanting to get this drunkard home, you know? Not much fun partying if you have to worry about your friend the whole night. Thought we’d turn in early. I convinced him it was five in the morning, time to head home. On the way, he complained about a monster that was eating his insides if he didn’t get some ice cream. And here we are. I’m sorry about him. He usually isn’t like this.”
I handed the ice cream over to him, and made sure to avoid accidentally coming in contact with his finger.
"Anything else?”
“Yeah, can I have a glass of water? Then that’ll be it, thank you.”
I bustled over to the small fridge and retrieved a water, tossing it over to him. He smiled, slightly caught off guard I wasn’t all professional and handing it to him. Please. I work in a store with clowns on the walls and tacky pink chandeliers hanging from the neon rainbow ceiling. He was lucky I didn’t have cherubs shooting out of my ass.
“My pleasure.”
I heard the drunken bastard sit up suddenly, even though I had forgotten about him being there.
“Harry! You naughty cucumber! We’ve barely been in Candyland for a few minutes, and you’ve already got Princess Lolly on your lollipop, pleasuring you! How scandalous!” He slurred, and I saw Harry blush rapidly. I couldn’t hold back my laugh, and soon, tears were streaming down my cheeks and I was clutching my stomach. I guess I shouldn’t have eaten that cup of Espresso Ice Cream. Whoops.
“So you’re not angry at his AWFUL BEHAVIOR?” Harry shot the last part at Niall, who was pretending his fingers were dinosaurs and having a dance competition for the last Hot Pocket.
“Not at all. It was quite funny actually. You two have spiced up my night! Thanks.”
“No problem. So how much will it be?”
“On the house.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Yes!”
“Blueberry Muffins!” Niall shouted, cracking me up once more. I turned my attention back to Harry. His brow was furrowed in determination.
“No. I’m paying or else I’m sicking the foolish lad on you. I’ll tell him you have blueberry muffins in your pants, and he’ll chase you all night until I tell him to stop. Three.”
I eyed him suspiciously. He wouldn’t dare.
“Two.”
Oh, like I’m four and I have to listen to this bullshit. I can tell you, this won’t work on me.
“One.”
He was bluffing. Definitely. Then he threw a cocky smirk my way. Damn it. He wasn’t kidding.
“Nia-“ I cut him off before he could get any further.
“Alright! Fine! Uh, twelve even for everything!”
“Nope. That’s not the price. I owe you 18 dollars.”
“Fine, fine. Whatever.” I flip my hair over my shoulder and rush over to the cash register. I took the money in his hands and gave him the exact change. I felt as if my service was more than fair, but I was appalled that he put the two dollars away. Really cheapskate? Couldn’t spare two dollars for the girl that need new shoes because her others would fly away? Seriously? I watched as he pulled a crisp fifty out of his wallet and place it in the jar.
“Hey! Wait! I can’t take all of this!” I yelled as he turned away with his ice cream, but he completely ignored me. Harry gave Niall the water and he savagely drank the entire bottle, and then dug into his ice cream. I was pretty sure that if he didn't slow down soon enough, he was going to explode. Guys. Argh. I could take the fifty, really, but that was bad manners. Who tips a plain old ice cream girl fifty bucks? I jogged over to his table and put the money down.
“I can’t. Really. I have to actually earn it.” I stared him dead in the eye. Man, were his eyes gorgeous. I wanted eyes like that. I wonder what my mom would think if I asked for green eyes for my birthday.
“Then sit and talk with us. Keep us company. That’s earning it.”
“Sure, I guess.” I said, sounding more like I was trying to convince myself then reply to his question. I untied my apron and sat down at the table next to Niall. He was still infatuated with his ice cream. I chatted for five minutes with Harry, until I felt Niall staring at me. I turned to him, only noticing his eyes groping my chest. I mean yes, I was busty, and yes, I happened to be wearing a V-neck, but that gave him no permission to gawk. I mean, c’mon. Decency? I think not.
“Can I help you with something?” I asked, but sounded a little snotty. His hand reached for my shirt, and I slapped it away, disgusted.
“Who the hell do you think you are?”
His eyes looked slightly hurt, then outraged. If he was about to go off on me about how I wasn’t letting him feel me up, he was in for a surprise from the helpless ice cream girl. I’ll pop a cap in his ass, let me tell you.
“LOUIS!”
“Um, excuse me? My name’s Victoria.”
“Louis, that bastard. He lied to me. LIED TO ME!”
I was extremely, thoroughly, undoubtedly confused.
“Who is Louis? What did he do? What is going on?”
Niall’s eyes bored into mine, and I couldn’t tell if he was going to break something or burst in to tears.
“He told me there would be dogs in your shirt!”
“What?” I nearly screamed.
“Oh god, Niall, not now-“ Harry started, face palming, but was cut off by Niall.
“Louis told me that there would be dogs in your shirt! I love puppies! I was reaching for the puppies, but you slapped my hand away. At least, I think that means there aren't any puppies..."
“I can assure you, I don't have any sweater puppies that you're searching for. How about I take you tomorrow to see some puppies, at a pet store?"
His red eyes brightened and he shook his head. He grabbed my face and placed a slobbery kiss on my cheek.
“I THINK I LOVE YOU, VICTORIA!”
I giggled and blushed, and Niall laid down, placing his head on my lap and curling up on the booth seat.
“Goodnight, Victoria, Harry. Don’t get the ice cream too dirty, you sex-crazed ostriches, I want it for breakfast tomorrow morning. And for the love of all things innocent, Haz, don’t get your gravy in the hot fudge. I need to give it to Hinkle as an apology for stealing his pineapple. Night.”
He let out a big yawn, and I was bursting on the inside. This kid is HILARIOUS when he’s drunk! I snuck a peek at Harry, who was gawking at an already asleep Niall, and whose face was a deep shade of crimson. I started cackling, and Harry looked at me in shock.
"THIS KID! OH MY GOD!" I screeched in between bouts of laughter. I watched as Harry visually relaxed.
"Yeah…he, uh…he really is never like this. I’m going to bring it up tomorrow and he is going to be SO embarrassed that he acted that way. I’m so sorry.”
“No, don’t apologize. I wish I had videotaped the damn thing!"
I looked down at Niall, who was slumbering peacefully in my lap, and pat his hair.
“I guess you all better get going, then…” I trailed off, a little upset to see them go.
“Yeah, I guess so…here let me get Niall there for you…” He pulled Niall up and heaved him onto his shoulder. Damn, girl. Those muscles could get the hoes drooling.
“Wait, here.” I said and pulled out his forearm. I scribbled my number on his arm, and he looked up at me, confused.
“I can’t give Niall empty promises- I’ve gotta take him to the pet store tomorrow, remember?” I winked, and Harry chuckled.
“I guess so."
“Yep.” I said popping the p. We made our way behind the counter and I grabbed myself another cup of ice cream. I'm obviously going to take advantage of it since I work in an ice cream shop and all. I offered Harry some, but he declined since he already had a cup earlier. We made small talk for a little while until a frantic boy burst through the door, nearly taking out a table with him.
“HARRY! THE HELL MAN? WE’VE BEEN LOOKING EVERYWHERE FOR YOU!”
The guy was about Harry’s age, slick black hair that was styled to perfection, perfectly chiseled facial features, and some astounding coffee colored eyes. Another guy came rushing in behind him, clutching a wobbly guy that was on the verge of passing out. Is today my dream come true or has heaven decided to have a spasm and shit out five angels? I mean c’mon, this really isn’t fair.
“YEAH! WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN HARRY? WE’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU AND NIALL EVERYWHERE! LAST WE SAW YOU WAS TWO HOURS AGO!”
The one dragging the drunken guy yelled. He was hot, like really hot, as was the inebriated one. Dear lordy, it’s getting hot in here… and they’re all British? Okay mom, very funny, come out now, you see that your daughter won’t throw herself at some hot dudes. I passed the test!...hahaha...Mom?...Dad?...Hinkle?...fuck. It’s not an illusion.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa, there, mate, calm down-“
“DON’T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN! WE WERE CONVINCED YOU WERE KIDNAPPED OR SOME SHIT!”
“LIAM! I was actually attempting to be responsible-“
“RESPONSIBLE? RESPONSIBLE? YES, HARRY, RUNNING OFF WITH NIALL FOR TWO HOURS WITHOUT EVEN TELLING PAUL IS COMPLETELY RESPONSIBLE! I CAN’T BELIEVE-“
“SHUT UP! Seriously, you all need to calm your tits. You, Mr. Grumpy Gills, when life gets you down, you know what you gotta do?-“
“JUST KEEP SWIMMING!” I heard Niall screech from the backroom.
“YES! No, but seriously, let’s all sit down, with our inside voices, eat some ice cream, talk it through” Let me lick your abs…what? I didn’t say that! Unless it’s an open invitation… “How about it?”
The boys all took a seat at a booth, and I jogged back to get Niall. I saw him passed out using a bag of marshmallows as a pillow. Giggling, I nudged him awake and pulled him up, practically carrying him out to where the others were sitting. They stared at me in amazement as I dragged this full grown man out, and when they offered to help, I brushed them off. After a few moments, Niall was seated- lopsided, may I add- next to the other four boys. Huffing and puffing, I blew a piece of hair out of my face and breathed:
"Ice cream anyone?"
The boys all chuckled, though I recieved some skeptical looks, and I turned and grabbed four vanilla cones for them- I assumed the two sober ones would want one, grabbed one just in case for the drunken one, and Niall was complaining so I brought him one, too. I bustled over to the crowded table and handed out the ice cream.
"Okay, now that that’s all settled, I would love to hear this. First off, hi, my name’s Victoria Maple, I’m eighteen and live here in California. I’ve been working here at Sweet Tooth for the past three years, and I’m recently graduated from Millson County High School. And you?”
“You don’t know who we are?” The mysterious one asked, puzzled.
“No, sorry. Did you go to my high school- no, then you wouldn’t have an accent unless you were an exchange student…um, did you guys move here recently? Or- oh! I’ve got it! Are you guys like a local garage band or something?” They all eyed each other and busted out laughing, while I chuckled nervously. Did I have something in my teeth?
“So no to the garage band…”
“Sorta, kinda, close, but not really. What kind of music do you listen to?” The responsible one yelled.
“I like the classics- Rolling Stones, Beatles..."
“Explains it…” Mumbled the drunken one.
“Okay, what’s going on?” I huffed.
“Well, let’s go in a circle, shall we? We got through Victoria, so now it’s my turn. I’m Harry. Harry Styles. I’m nineteen and am from Holmes Chapel, England.”
"Hi, Victoria, I’m Liam Payne. I’m nineteen, and I’m from Wolverhampton, England.”
“Niall Horan. Nineteen. From Mullingar, Ireland.”
“I’m Zayn Malik, I’m from Bradford, England, and I’m twenty years old.”
“Bringing up the rear, hello Victoria, beautiful, it’s quite nice to meet you. Quick question- did you and Harry lock Niall in the back room so you could-“
“LOUIS!” Harry screamed.
“KIDDING! Kidding! Gah! Who shit in your cornflakes? Anywhooo, love, I’m Channing Tatum." He winked at me, sending me into a fit of giggles, as Harry scoffed.
“For gods’ sakes, man- his name is Louis Tomlinson, he’s surprisingly the oldest- he’s twenty one- and he’s from Doncaster, England. Any questions?” Everyone shook their head and I said:
"So why did you come in here, screaming and yelling?"
"Wait, shit, I knew we forgot something-" Harry mumbled.
"HI, WE'RE ONE DIRECTION!" They all screamed in unison, throwing out jazz hands and spirit fingers, making me roll my eyes.
“Ok, well anyway, continue…” I urged.
“Oh, yeah, well, in the world where people don’t live under rocks- no offense Victoria- but we’re actually a huge deal. Don’t want to sound like an egotistical dickhead, but we’re internationally known. Anyway, we were at this party tonight, Niall had a few too many too early, and I decided to take him home. He complained about ice cream, I stopped, and I guess the boys here went looking for me. Then they found us and bada bing, here we are.”
After a few more minutes of chatting with the boys I yawned, and then I checked the time. It was already one in the morning- shit! If Zach is throwing another fucking party…
To elaborate, Zach is my sister’s boyfriend. I really don’t like him, I know he’s brought trouble and is bound to bring more, and since my parents are out of town vacationing, I know he’ll be over all of the time. He gets too crazy for my liking when he drinks, and what better a leisure activity than drinking on a Saturday night?
“Ah, boys, well, I better close up, it’s already tomorrow. Here let’s exchange numbers…” I trailed off and we passed our phones around- well I put my number into their phones and they put their numbers into mine. We walked out of the ice cream shop, and they were talking and turning left, but I had to take a right.
“So I guess this is goodbye. See ya, boys!” I bid cheerily.
“Haha, very funny Victoria, you know you’re not walking home alone. It’s dark and creepy-“
"Just let me-"
"No, Victoria, and that's final." Liam insisted. I crossed my arms before Harry came up behind me and picked me up, tossing him over his shoulder. Louis kept taking my flip flops off and tickling my feet, and we were all having a blast, until we turned down my street. Cars littered my front lawn, people were drunkenly stumbling about outside, the lights changed from vibrant hue to vibrant hue, and the bass of the music created a rumbling in my bones, all the way down the street.
“Didn’t know you were such a killer party host!” Zayn screamed over the thumping music.
“FUCKING ZACH!” I screeched, obviously pissed off.
“Who?” Harry yelled.
“My sister’s boyfriend, that controlling prick better not be wrecking my house again!” I hollered before running off, too angry to care if the boys followed me.
As soon as I stepped in, I knew that the house was going to take a few days to recover from this disaster. I stomped through the house and also watched to make sure that the boys didn’t confront any of Zach’s friends. I spotted Zach holding a Red Solo Cup, telling a story, surrounded by people, and I lost it. I barged through, grabbed his arm, and pulled him into the laundry room. There was a couple making out in the corner.
“Out. Now.”
They scrambled up and out, and I could already smell the alcohol rolling off of Zach’s tongue.
“WHAT THE FUCK, ZACH?” I bellowed. He looked taken aback at my tone, and then smirked.
“It’s just a party. Calm down, god, Victoria, you’re such an uptight bitch sometimes-“
“And I have the right to be when you stir up trouble-“
“You haven’t seen trouble, yet, Victoria-“
“Oh, bite me!”
I stared him down and felt his tall frame come closer.
“You know, you always have been sexier than your sister."
“Oh fuck off, dickweed, I’m not remotely interested in you. So why not just get the fuck out and crawl back to where you came from!”
I swatted his hand away, and he just brought himself on me further. His callused hand covered my mouth as I tried to scream, but only a muffled, strangled sounding noise came out.
“Just make this easier on the both of us, ‘kay, Vicky? You’re gonna be so great, I can tell you…” He trailed off, and I felt his other hand pulling off my shirt. He pulled it over my head and gaped at me. His hand slipped behind my back, unclipping my bra, while he sucked sloppily on my neck. I felt his hand pull off the only barrier I had from him, and I was just ashamed. I wanted to vomit, but just at that moment I heard the laundry door swing open.
Zach was feeling me up and I was crying with my hands trapped above my head. Once he heard the door open, his head snapped up and he growled:
“Dude, c’mon, can’t you see I’m a bit busy with this right now? Fuck off." He grumbled.
I felt too utterly disgusted to even look at the person who entered, but I heard them gasp. I started crying even harder.
“YOU FUCKING CUNT!” I heard a familiar voice, and looked just in time to see Harry lunging at Zach, throwing a good punch right in the eye. Soon enough, one by one, Zayn, Liam, Niall, and Louis piled in the room, some comforting me, some pulling an infuriated Harry off of an unconscious Zach. I felt arms slip under me and I flinched- after what had just happened, I’m surprised I didn’t scream.
I wasn’t even worried about being completely topless and only in my underwear, I just wanted to haul ass and get the hell out of there. Thank the lord for Harry Styles. I felt his arms tighten around me and I felt him heaving me up into his arms, which were so safe, cozy, secure and warm. He was whispering comforting things into my ear, and he pulled me upstairs. I noticed that my house was dead silent- I guess the boys had cleared the partiers.
Harry pulled me into a room and laid me down on a bed. He swiftly pulled off his shirt and gently pulled it over me, as if I were a piece of glass in his hands. He stroked my hair as I pulled him close to me. After a while of me sobbing and Harry comforting me, I pulled back and looked up at him with red and puffy eyes. He gave me a small comforting smile, and I gently kissed him on the cheek.
“Thank you, Harry. For everything.”
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Hey (Micky you so fine, you so fine you blow my mind, hey Micky! Hey! Hey! Hey Micky)
I have updated Chapter Uno. *cue national celebrations*
Just in case you were wondering, because I know you were, there will be smut scenes later. Every good fanfiction has a few smut scenes or so (and you're a liar if you say you don't enjoy them).
I just spent like thirty minutes editing that so I think I deserve some ice cream or something. I'm honestly so picky about what goes in and what comes out, I will change specific words if I don't like their placement.
So, yeah. That's all my news for ya. Tell people to read this, get interested, become involved in my virtual family *cue virtual hug*.
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Vote and Comment please! I suggest you vote for my intense editing sessions and you comment what days I should post.
BTW I HATE IT WHEN WRITERS POST AUTHORS NOTES OR ANNOUNCE CONTESTS I WILL ALWAYS DO IT IN THE ANNOUNCEMENTS (here) SECTIONS AND IF I DO BECOME NOT LAZY ENOUGH TO MAKE A CONTEST I WILL POST A CHAPTER BEFORE ANNOUNCING IT IN THE ANNOUNCEMENTS! BUT DONT EXPECT IT BC I AM ONE LAZY MOTHERFUCKER!
BAI! (picture that like Harry's deep, raspy "bye" and it makes it four bajillion times better)
xx Haleigh
(shoutout to Safa, my first read, and for nagging me to post this chapter. Love you!)