"Do you and Harry get along?"
I stiff behind Gigi. Her question made me momentarily stop my hands from spreading the sunscreen on her back.
"Um," I clear my throat and continue what I was doing. "Well, I met him less than a day ago so-"
"Okay, but didn't you guys just go to the store together?" She asks me this but I can tell she knew the answer. "Did you get a chance to get to know each other better?"
I was glad she was facing the other way or else she would have seen my blushed cheeks at the mention of what happened not too long ago.
"Yeah.." I trail off, stumbling to find the right words. "He seems like a cool guy." I roll my eyes at my answer. I sound like an idiot.
"Okay, cool." She sounds relived.
"Why do you ask?" I question out loud when she turns and notices my confused expression.
"You're my best friend and he's my brother. I'd rather you two get along than hate each other," she says with a soft laugh. Her expression hardens as she leans in closer. "But not too much, if you know what I mean."
I don't have a chance to react to her final words as she gets called over by one of the guys. I stand there alone on the warm sand, feeling a light breeze on my skin, the sound of waves crashing in my ears.
"But not too much, if you know what I mean."
Her words played over and over in my head as I try to pin down what she really means. Did she really think that something would happen between Harry and I? I mean, he's a very good looking guy and so far, he's been nice. There has been no red flags from him and I get stupid butterflies in my stomach whenever I'm near him. Who wouldn't want to be with someone like him?
But I couldn't do that to Gigi. It was now growing obvious to me that she wouldn't be fond of that. Even if she gave me her blessing to be with him, I'd still feel weird.
I let out a sigh, stopping my endless thoughts about it. I sit down on my sprawled out towel and look out at the wide ocean in front of me. The sun was sparkling on top of the water, creating this beautiful, dancing effect.
"Lace." I hear a voice say besides me.
"What's up?" I say after clearing my throat, snapping out of my gaze. Liam sits down next to me, spreading his legs out and his arms behind him. He looks at me with a bit of concern in his eyes.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, why?"
He shrugs. "You just seem very deep in thought."
I mimic his position, except I bent my knees instead of spreading them out. I lick my lips, knowing he isn't going to stop pestering me until I gave him an answer. I debating on whether or not I should tell him what I was really thinking. He knew Gigi as well as I did. Maybe he'd surprise me with some insight on the whole situation.
"The frown on your face is going to stay there forever unless you talk." His eyebrows are raised as he waits for me to talk. I let out a sigh as I look away.
Then again, Harry and I are just becoming friends. That's it. Friends.
"I'm just thinking about this whole situation."
I couldn't say what I was actually thinking about. If I even talk about Harry a little with him, I fear it might get out and reach Gigi's ears and she'd kill me, even if I just talk about him in a platonic sense.
"Feeling guilty?"
I nod in response. I did feel bad about lying to my mom about my summer plans. I just wasn't thinking about this ten seconds ago.
"The way I see it is you took an opportunity that might as well have come out of a unicorn's ass."
I burst out in laughter and look at him. "What?"
"Allow me to finish." He fights a grin.
"Sorry, go ahead." I nod, stifling giggles as I let him continue.
"Your mom would want you to have fun after working your ass off these past four years. Would she have let you come here if you told her? Maybe.. maybe not." I slowly nod, looking out at the ocean as he talks, squinting at how bright the sun is. "But you were given an opportunity to have fun with all your friends in a fucking beach house. I don't know anyone who wouldn't take it." I turn my head over and look at him, looking into his warm brown eyes as he talks. "You're growing up. We all are. You should see this as a first step in taking decisions on your own and being independent. Your mom will understand. In time."
My lips slowly curl up in a giant grin. I shake my head at him, finding it funny that this guy telling me all this wise advice is the same guy who leaves the toilet seat up all the time and can burp the entire alphabet.
"Thanks, Liam," I sincerely tell him then decide to joke around with him. "That reminds me. When's your next Ted Talk?"
He chuckles, rolling his eyes while he nudges me. "You're just bitter that I'm more smarter than you."
"It's just 'smarter.'" I laugh. "You don't need the 'more.'"
"Huh?"
"You don't have to say-" I stop myself, not wanting to get into this now when there's a beautiful, big ocean right in front of us. "Never mind. I'll race you to the water."
He smirks and nods in agreement. "Loser has to jump in the pool with nothing on."
"No fair!" I scoff at him. "You ran track in high school."
"What's the matter?" He smirks. "Scared you're going to lose?"
I glare at him and without thinking, I open my mouth. "Fine. On the count of three."
We both stand, glaring at each other and trying to intimidate the other.
"One."
"Two."
He quickly runs off before saying the next number. He's not even arms length when I hear him shout 'three.' My jaw drops. I react quick, determined not to let him cheat and get away with it. I focus on making my legs move as fast as possible. I feel invincible once I get to him before he could reach the water. I had just barely made it.
"You cheated!" I yell at him.
I could only hear his loud, evil laughs before I push my hands out to his back and shove him. I only wanted to make him lose his balance enough to slow down so I could have the advantage, but I think I pushed him too hard that it caught him completely off guard and his whole body tripped over the sand and he fell facedown. I let out loud laughter as I continue running, hearing Liam's groans and complaints as my feet touch the cold water. I squeal at the feeling, only going as far until my ankles are covered.
"You fucking cheater!" I hear Liam shout behind me.
"You cheated first!"
"I have sand in places where sand shouldn't be!"
"Good! You deserve it!"
I don't have enough time to react as he lunges at me and carelessly throws me over his bare shoulder. I start to swing my legs as he walks closer into the water.
"You feeling hot?" He shouts over the waves.
"No!" I quickly respond, already knowing what he was thinking of doing. He chuckles, grabbing my waist tightly with his hands.
"I think you are."
"Liam, I swear to god-"
I'm cut off by the shock of cold water radiating all over my body. I quickly find my way up before the waves take me. As I resurface, I cough out the salty, cold water that found its way into my mouth, my throat feeling gross after accidentally swallowing it. I move the wet locks that cover my face. I blink my eyes fast and quick, the water made them lightly sting.
Oh, he's dead now.
I look over to see Liam bending over with his eyes closed, loud laughter releasing from his mouth. I want to take advantage of him being distracted so I rush over to him and jump on him, attempting to make him fall over into the water. I'm a bit surprised as it works and his legs give out. He plops onto the wet sand with me still hanging onto him. I quickly get off as a wave comes in and it's big enough that it completely covers Liam. Now it's my turn to lose my breath from laughing so hard. He stumbles up, coughing out water, then sends me a hard glare. He takes a step forward and I immediately take one back.
I point my finger, warning him. "We're even!"
He lets out an exhale, shaking the water off his head before breaking out into a wide smile and laughs. "Fine."
We're call a truce, slightly shivering and wet now. We go back to join the others before we kill each other. They've already set up the foldable chairs and towels Harry and I bought earlier. There was a cooler out for everyone to use as well as a large beach umbrella. I glance at everyone here and notice only the siblings were missing.
"Hand me a beer, yeah?" Liam says to Maggie, who was sitting right next to the cooler.
"Say please next time, yeah?" She takes a glass bottle out and tosses it over to him.
"Aren't you the sweetest?" Liam playfully rolls his eyes.
"You guys put on quite a show," Bella tells Liam and I, giggling over our wet appearance. Just one dip in the ocean and I could feel sand everywhere. I was also covered in goosebumps with the cool wind drying me off. The worst part was that I was still wearing denim shorts that were covered in sand now and hugging my thighs tightly. Taking them off was not going to be fun.
"She started it," Liam says, now sitting on a chair. He sounded like a child.
"You did! You're the one who cheated," I scoff at him.
"But I'm not the one who initiated the damn race."
"No, but you're the one who made it a bet. All I wanted was a fun race with my friend."
"Well, you agree to it, didn't ya?!"
I roll my eyes in response. One of Liam's worst, but at times best, traits was that he couldn't let things go easily. He could be stubborn and hard to argue with. I could be pretty stubborn too but these was one of the arguments where I'm actually right and Liam knows it. He just likes getting under my skin.
I want to go and lay down to chill out for a bit. I was able to get my shorts down my legs after a few tugs. I put them aside so they can dry before I lay on my towel, wanting the warmth of the sun to both dry me and give me some color.
"What was the bet?" Louis asks, sipping a beer bottle, seemingly amused by all of this.
"The loser jumps in the pool naked," Liam answers.
"Who lost?" Adam eyes almost pop out then he starts laughing.
"Guess." I smirk, looking over Liam, who was sitting there with a sour face. They start to laugh as soon as they look at us and our different facial expressions, almost immediately realizing it was Liam who lost.
"Ew, gross!" Sierra snickers.
"Hope you brought your birthday suit, Liam," Beau says with a laugh as he walks over to the cooler.
"Liam, weren't you in track?" Bella asks him.
"Is that right?" Louis chuckles at the new information.
"Mate, what happened?" Zayn asks, shaking his head at Liam with a grin.
"Lacey is a fucking cheater," Liam mutters, taking a long chug of his beer after.
"You cheated first!" I was actually starting to get frustrated that he didn't understand this. Either that or he just really wanted to irk me.
Liam shifts, still with his pout, murmuring something under his breath but Adam changes the topic before Liam and I can go at it again.
"I brought the speaker. Any takers?"
"Me!" Liam immediately stands, his face lighting up like all his bitterness evaporated into thin air. "They don't call me DJ Payne Train for nothing."
"Who calls you that?" I hear Gigi's voice along with her laugh. "So I can kick their ass."
I glance back and see her and Harry joining us. My stomach flips just at the sight of him in only yellow shorts, sunglasses, and a black cap on backwards. I quickly turn away, suddenly feeling like I need to do something to distract me before I drool over the way his shorts make his skin look tanner and memorize his collection of tattoos and the ridges of his muscles on his chest and stomach.
I walk over to the cooler and shuffle through the drinks. There was either water or beer. A familiar Calvin Harris song starts playing when I pick up a water bottle and let the excess ice cold water drip before closing the cooler. I turn around and slightly jump once I see a tall figure right behind me.
"You're quite jumpy, aren't you?" Harry says with a small smirk.
"Maybe you're just scary," I stammer.
What the fuck did that mean anyway? I want to jump back into the ocean and never come back as soon as the words leave my mouth. My hands grip my water bottle as continues to look at me and chuckles, his dimples making an appearance.
"I wouldn't even hurt a fly, love," he says as if he was offended.
My stomach almost falls out of my ass. Love. That stupid nickname makes me melt into a thick puddle.
He walks around me and I can hear the cooler open. My feet are fast to walk away. I look to my right and see Gigi was looking in my direction. I couldn't tell if she was looking confused because she was squinting at the bright sun or because she was looking at Harry and I interacting. I nervously gulp my water before making my way back to my towel, not wanting to think my second theory was the right one.
"Everyone put on sunscreen?" Zoey asks, holding up the bottle.
"Yes, mom," Beau says with a smile.
"I think that's the tenth time I've heard you say the word 'sunscreen' today," Maggie adds.
"Hey, you'll all be thanking me once you don't die from skin cancer or look like a shriveled up prune when you're 30."
She has a point.
"Anyone up for some volleyball?" Niall asks, holding up a ball in his hands.
All of us agree, which I found surprising and amazing. It's rare that all of my friends are on the same page in such a short amount of time. It's why we have a hard time deciding what movie to watch or what restaurant to eat at. I guess we're all just dazzling with happiness here that we are up for anything. That made me smile.
We walk over to the sole volleyball net that was set up a couple feet away from where we were. It was a nice and convenient touch for this place. It's like it couldn't get any better.
"What are the teams going to be?" Adam asks after setting down the cooler that he and Liam carried here. He placed the speaker right on top of it.
"We could do eenie meenie miney moe?" Beau suggests.
"What the hell is that?" Niall asks with a bewildered expression.
"Was that even English?" Louis chuckles. All the British guys seemed so confused by her statement. I guess it was more known in America.
"How 'bout guys versus girls?" Harry suggests with a husky voice. "Classic setup."
"Oh, yeah, let's do that," Adam agrees.
"Woohoo," Niall exclaims, "lads!"
We all agree to his idea, which makes Harry smugly smirk. Before each of us can go off in their side of the net, Louis stops us. He has a devious expression plastered on his face, which frankly made me nervous.
"Why don't we make it a little more interesting?"
"Whadda ya mean?" Niall asks, still tossing the volleyball in his hands.
"Let's make a bet," he answers after glancing at Liam and I. Liam, to no surprise, is the first to agree.
"I already 'lost' to one," he makes air quotations at the word, which makes me roll my eyes. "But I'm down," he adds. "Lacey deserves something too and if the girls go down with her, then so be it."
I smile sweetly at him before flipping him off. He responds by blowing a kiss towards me, which I fake gag at.
"So, what's the bet going to be?" Gigi asks.
"How 'bout," Louis says, rubbing his hands together, "The winners pick their rooms first."
"Ooh," some of us said simultaneously while we exchanged looks. That means the winners of the game get the best rooms. The bed in the master bedroom of the house is enough motivation to try to win.
"But I was working on a system," Zoey says then sighs. "You know what, forget it. It's on."
I raise my eyebrows at her game face. I'm glad she's on my team. And slightly terrified of her now.
"Let's make it a bit saucier," Harry says, his eyes filled with a mischievous gleam. I was intrigued but also nervous.
"Yes," Beau cheers. "The saucier, the better."
Gigi nudges him and gives him a look while the rest of us laugh amongst ourselves.
"The person to make the winning point picks their room before everyone as well as whom they share it with."
"Oh, a twist!" Niall exclaims.
"I like it, Harold," Louis says. "We're a team yet we have to play for ourselves. It's close to pure genius."
I could practically see Harry's ego grow after everyone agrees to his idea for the second time in less than five minutes. He catches my eye and sends a wink at me. I feel like I could almost faint right on the spot.
"And as a bonus," Louis says, "the losers wash the dishes for a whole week."
I feel nervous as they continue adding to this bet but nonetheless, I'm ready to compete and win.
"And," Liam adds, "if the guys win, I don't have to go skinny dipping."
"No," I immediately say, "You lost fair and square."
"Yeah, dude," Adam jumps in.
"You did cheat," Bella adds.
"Sorry, mate." Louis turns to him. "It looks like you're going swimming tonight."
"Alright, alright." Liam lets out an exaggerated sigh. "I'll do it. Just stop attacking me."
"It's a bet then. Anyone here object?" Louis asks, looking around at all of us.
The girls and I exchange looks. We didn't have the advantage of being tall as hell like the guys did. I was the tallest out of all of us but not by that much. None of us played in a professional volleyball team, except for Gigi. Sierra has repeatedly said that she has the "athletic ability of a sock." Bella has butter fingers. Zoey joined three sports team last year but quit all of them within two weeks. Maggie doesn't even like walking to her car from her house.
We were all worried at these facts but we were going to throw it all in and try our best to win. There was no way in hell I wanted to lose this bet. I was certain the girls didn't want to either.
"Very well. Let us shake hands to make it official."
We all shuffled around shaking hands with everyone. The guys didn't seem to be worried as I feel inside. But the girls had an undeniable fire in their eyes.
Game on.
-
The score was 19-22, the guys leading. We weren't giving up. The winning score was 25 points so we still had a chance to catch up. It was currently our serve. Gigi was the one serving because she was the best one. She is the one with actual experience and professional training. She expertly serves the ball over to Liam. He hits it and it heads towards Zoey. She hits it over to Zayn's direction. I grow nervous when he hits it and it aims towards me but I smoothly hit it back. It goes towards Liam again and he hits it back.
"Oh, I love this song!" Maggie exclaims and loses her focus for just a second, but it was enough for the ball to hit her right in the middle of her forehead.
"Oh, shit!" Liam exclaims, holding in a laugh with his hand.
"Ow! What the hell was that?!" She shouts, touching the spot where she was hit.
"Mags, are you okay?" Beau shouts. "We gotta get some ice on that, baby, it's going to swell and we're supposed to take pictures later!" He runs off to the cooler.
"My bad! But you weren't paying attention, it's not completely my fault!" Liam says with his hands up in defense.
"You know what?" She fumes, striding closer to the net. "I'm going to shove that ball right up your hairy-"
"Timeout!" Gigi calls out before she can finish that sentence and possibly kill Liam. The game is now paused as the girls and I go off to the side. Maggie continues to groan in pain. A bright red spot quickly forms on her pale skin.
"It looks like it's a small bump," Sierra says after she inspects it. "Does it hurt badly?" She lightly grazes her fingers on the spot and Maggie yells in pain. "I'm going to take that as a yes."
"Can you still play?" Bella asks.
"I don't know," Maggie grits. "Why don't you ask my throbbing forehead that's growing it's very own hill?!"
"Damn, girl," Bella says under her breath, taking a step back.
"Sorry," she sighs, "it's the pain speaking."
"Here, Mags," Beau says as he runs up to us and gives her ice cubes wrapped in a bunch of napkins. "I'm gonna go yell at Liam now."
"Thanks, hon." She takes it and holds it against her bump, letting out a breath as it soothes her irritated skin.
"We can't lose a player," Zoey states after Beau walks off. "They're so close to winning."
"We can't lose," Gigi says shaking her head. "I went to nationals. Do you know how embarrassing it would be for me if we lost?"
"You guys I don't want to end up sleeping in a bathtub!" Bella pouts.
"Boys are disgusting with their food!" Maggie squeals out. "I don't want to wash their boy-germ ridden plates."
"Yeah, same," Zoey agrees.
"Guys, come on. We can do this," I say, not even completely sure of it myself. "Just focus on the prize and don't let them get in your head."
"I can play," Maggie sighs, softly rubbing her forehead. "I just need someone to be near me to take a hit if I can't see due to a large bump in front of my eyes."
We nod and figure out how we were going to reorganize our spots to give us a better shot at winning. Gigi was going to stay in the back with Maggie and Zoey. I was going to be right in the front with Bella while Sierra was right in the middle.
"We can do this," I repeat. "As soon as we catch up, it'll be easier from there."
We nod and high five each other, a fire burning in our souls to win now. We take a few more seconds to ourselves and drink water so we can be fully in the zone for the rest of the game.
"Ready!" Gigi calls out as the girls and I go walk back.
"Listen, the guys and I talked," Liam says, as he goes towards the net.
"I had nothing to do with it!" Beau quickly says, "I'm with you Maggie!"
Liam huffs at him and continues talking. "We technically won that point so it's our ball."
"Your hand is on the net!" Sierra suddenly exclaims, jumping up and down. "We get a point now!"
I smirk at her, happy she noticed that. I had little knowledge on the rules of volleyball but I know you're not supposed to touch the net.
"Dammit!" Liam scowls and quickly takes his hand off.
"Oi, Liam!" Louis groans. "The phrase 'get your head in the game' is not meant to be taken literally!"
"That's karma, baby!" Beau whistles.
"You with us or them, Beau?" Liam asks him. "'Cause if you want to switch places, go right ahead!"
"Can I? I can't take anymore of your crazy ass testosterone!"
"Hey, wait, we're on a timeout!" Adam annoyingly points out. "Doesn't count."
"As soon as we stepped back on the court, the play was on," Sierra retorts.
"Sierra, for crying out loud," Liam says. "You know more about your damn cuticles than the rules of volleyball!"
"Just give 'em the point," Harry jumps in. "It won't make a difference."
Low "ooh's" we emitted from the boys side, making us roll our eyes. Harry just stood there with a wide smirk playing on his stupid pink lips.
"Pity point for the girls," Liam adds with a snicker.
"Screw you, Liam," Maggie barks. "We don't need your damn point since we're going to catch up before you can injure another girl."
Another rumble of exclaims are heard but they're louder this time. The score was now 19-23. But not for long.
Gigi serves and it makes it all the way in the back to Adam. He hits it with both hands and just barely makes it across. Bella reacts quickly and practically launches herself to hit it. We were all surprised when none of the boys were able to return the ball. We exclaim and high five her for the point she just won us.
"Why didn't you hit it?" Harry shouts at Niall. They were both in the front of the net.
"I thought you had it!" Niall says to which Harry responds by rolling his eyes.
Gigi gets the ball back and serves it. It goes over to the middle right at Liam. He hits it with a force hard enough that it hit the top of the net, never making it over. The ball falls straight down on their side, giving us another point.
"Jesus, Liam!" Beau shouts at him. "Are you allergic to the ball all of a sudden or does Maggie's face need to be in front of you for you to be able to hit it?"
"No, but your face might do the trick!"
We got an easy point when Gigi served it and Adam tried so hard to get it that he literally bent his body backwards but he was only able to lightly tap it before falling on his back. We were able to secure yet another point when a seagull flew over and pooped on Louis' shoulder, coincidently when the ball went over to him.
"What the bloody fuck!" Louis groans loudly, cringing at the site of white substance on his bare shoulder. "Fuckin' 'ell!"
The guys burst out laughing by the bizarre incident that just happened. The girls and I tried holding in our laughter and wanted to be sensitive to Louis as we watch him gag at the sight of his shoulder. We couldn't help ourselves and we burst out into small bits of laughter.
"Mate, you could've hit the ball back-"
"No, Neil," he grits, "I couldn't considering this fucking shit present the bird gave me!"
"You know," Zayn says as he walks over to him, trying so hard to hold in his laughter. "That's considered good luck."
"That's a load of shit!" Louis fumes back.
"Literally." Harry snickers.
"Timeout! I need to clean this shit off me."
The guys haven't stopped laughing about it. I suppressed a smile as I look over at Harry, who's holding his stomach as he bends over, loud crackles of laughter emitting from his mouth. His eyes are squeezed shut and his dimples are very prominent. It was quite a sight. Louis comes back shortly with a clean shoulder and a scowl on his face.
"We are never speaking of this."
I set my water bottle back down and walk back with the girls. I could hear the guys teasing Louis and making jokes while he just tells them all to shut up in a not so nice way. Reluctantly, we all get situated again.
"Just to recap, we're tied!" Gigi shouts before we begin.
"Yeah, we can do the fucking math," Liam grits through clenched teeth.
"Aw, is someone a sore loser?" I mockingly pout at him.
"Screw off, Winters. This isn't over yet."
I stifle a snicker at his intense competitiveness. Gigi takes a second to recompose herself and then hits the ball. It makes it over to the back. Beau hits it, passing it over to Zoey. She hits it with a grunt and a determination in her eyes. It goes over to Niall and he literally flops onto his stomach trying to hit it over but it doesn't work. The girls and I cheer and high five each other. We're now in the lead. We can practically hear the sweet sound of the boys whining and groaning as they wash all of our dishes.
"One more point," Gigi says within our square, "and victory is ours."
"Let's take it home, girls," Bella tells us with a wink.
We get into position as Gigi sets herself up to serve. I glance over the boys. They looked a bit defeated but it was heavily masked with the last bit of fieriness and confidence they had. Except for Harry. He's staring right at me with a small smirk and a mischievous gleam in his eyes. I gulp. That look was enough to make my palms start to sweat and my heartbeat quicken. I quickly look away once I hear the sound of the ball being thrown.
Louis grunts as he jumps and hits it. It goes towards the front and Bella quickly murmurs that she can get it. She moves over to hit it but slightly stumbles, only being able to lightly tap it up. I quickly react and hit it over to the other side of the net, barely making it. Any relieved feelings are taken away from me as Harry seemingly comes out of nowhere and spikes the ball. I can feel my jaw drop. The girls and I are silent when we see the ball on the sand of our side of the net. None of us were able to see that coming. The guys erupt in cheers, patting Harry on the back and giving him a high five.
The score is 24-24. It's anyone's game.
"Timeout!" Zoey calls out before Adam can serve it.
"Why?" Liam is quick to disagree. "We're about to school you girls."
"Timeout," she bites back, "Mags needs a second because her head hurts. Did you forget that you hit her with the fucking ball?"
Liam's eyes widen as well as mine and some of the girls, rarely hearing Zoey go off like that. She had a lot of patience so it was refreshing to see her break character. He nods and stutters out an 'okay.'
"Damn, Zoe," Bella tells her as the girls and I huddle up. "Remind me to never get on your bad side."
"Why'd you call a timeout?" Maggie asks her quietly. "I feel fine now."
"We're tied, y'all," Zoey explains, "We need a new strategy."
"I can go to the front," Gigi suggests. "Try to spike it."
"Does your brother play volleyball too?" Sierra asks.
"I don't think so. He probably just got lucky."
"Well, he must eat four leaf clovers for breakfast," I comment, still slightly stunned that Harry has turned out to be the best player in their side.
"Or it's in the genes," Bella says. "Did y'all see that hell of a spike? Crazy."
"They rarely hit the ball over to the back," I say after careful thinking.
"Three in the front, one in the middle, and two in the back," Zoey says after a few seconds of being quiet.
"Maggie and Sierra can stay in the back," Gigi adds and looks at them for their opinion. They nod in agreement.
"Who is the weakest player from the guys?" Bella asks. "Maybe we can try aiming the ball towards them."
"Yeah, I agree," Zoey exclaims, "but who?"
"Liam can definitely hit as well as Niall and Harry," Sierra says.
"Adam is okay," I say after glancing over all the boys.
"I haven't really seen Zayn or Beau hit it," Gigi says. "And Louis seems to lose attention quick."
"Aim it towards them and keep it away from the rest," Gigi says with a stern look. "We can't afford to lose. I refuse to."
"One more point," I say with a sigh. "We can do it."
We break off into our positions. The guys finish up their conversation and get into their spots. They all look much less gloomy than before. It was apparent they felt more confident they were going to win. Throughout this entire game, I've never felt as nervous as I do now.
It's quiet, only a pop song on the speakers playing can be heard as we anxiously wait for Louis to serve the ball. I can see him slowly exhale before throwing the ball up in the air and hitting it with his right fist. Sierra was quick hit it back when it went her way. Beau jumped to hit it and Zoey instantly hit it back. Zayn hit it up in the air on their side and Liam to hit it again over to us. I exhaled when Maggie almost didn't get the ball over the net.
"Whew," I hear her mutter under her breath.
Harry hit it over towards me and I hit it back with both hands, not being able to calculate who I aimed it towards to. Harry was prepared to hit it back. I held in a breath when it came over to me again. I hit it with a lighter touch than before. My goal was to make it just over the net so it's harder for them to hit back. I thought this was successfully done until Harry jumped up and hit it back hard. I was already right in front of the net with my arms up, ready to hit it again. My body moved before I could think as I was trying to spike the ball for the first time I. this entire game but Harry was too fast for me and was able to hit it back immediately. It went over to the middle of the court. I let out small pants as he looked at me with raised eyebrows and a small smirk curled up in his lips. Zoey hits it over towards Beau. He hits it once and Liam has to come in to pass it over to us.
"I got it!" Zoey exclaims before launching herself to hit it with her arms extended. She ended up lying on her stomach on the sand. It wasn't a hard enough hit to go over the net so I panicked and quickly hit it.
All I could see before hearing the sound of the ball being harshly hit was a big butterfly tattoo and toned abs jumping up in front of the net. I didn't have time to react to the ball being expertly spiked by no one other than Harry. But instead of spiking it down onto the warm sand below, it flew straight to my bare stomach with a loud thud. I immediately groan in pain as I bend over to clutch my stomach, feeling like my breath got taken away by the impact. My eyes briefly spot the ball sitting a few inches away from me, like it was mocking me. I can hear the boys celebrating their win as I let my knees sink into the sand. I feel hands on my back and see the girls by my side, overwhelming me with their questions of concern.
"Are you okay, Lacey?!" Bella asks as she softly squeezes my shoulder.
"Give me a sec," I wheeze out. I look down and see a bright red spot in the middle of my stomach. I tense when I lightly touch it. Large hands come into view and grab my arms.
"Are you alright?" Harry asks with a deep voice. I can clearly hear the concern in his tone. "Shit, Lacey, I didn't mean-"
I shake my head, not wanting him to feel bad over something that wasn't his intention. Accidents happen.
"I'm fine-" I was interrupted by my heart stopping when I look up and meet green eyes. They look into mine with worry before gazing down to my stomach. There was a shift in his face.
"Fuck, I'm so sorry," he mutters under his breath when he studies the red spot. I can tell he was hesitant to touch it so he kept his hands on my arms.
"Liam could never," I hear Beau mumble as stands a few feet away from us.
"Are you alright?" I hear a different British accent come in. Everyone is now huddled around me.
"Fine," I respond, my breath coming in short. "Just feels like my intestines are on fire." I chuckle at my joke but quickly stop and wince when the sharp pain comes back.
I start to stand, my knees beginning to hurt on resting top of the grains of sands, an imprint marking my red knees. I feel everyone's eyes on me. I was uncomfortable with that much attention, especially since it was mostly filled with pity.
"D' you need help?" Harry asks but doesn't wait for my answer as his grip on me tightens and he practically lifts me up on my feet, making sure not to hurt me.
I look over at my stomach again. I cringe when I see it's still red but the middle of the spot was turning a dark purple color. I want suck it up as it's only a bruise, but it's hard when I literally can't suck in my breath because it hurts to.
"That looks painful," Adam comments.
Before I know it, I was pulled back into the house. I could barely keep up with Harry's long limbs as they make their way to the nearest bathroom.
"Sit," he demands but practically pushes me down on the toilet lid before I can do or say anything on my own.
"Harry, I'm fine-"
"D'you know if there's a first aid kit here?"
"I think there's one in the master bathroom," Gigi says, standing at the door. "I'll go get it."
I let out a sigh. I don't think this was that much of a big deal. I don't need immediate medical attention. The spot on my stomach turned into a mix of purple and red in a blink of an eye. It was just a tender bruise.
"I'm sorry," Harry still has a worried face, "I didn't mean to hurt you-"
"I know," I interrupt, looking up into his pale green eyes, almost getting lost in them. "It's fine. Really."
"Here it is." Gigi appears with a black medium-sized first-aid kit. She sets it on the counter then looks at me. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah." I nod and give her a small smile.
"Do you need anything?"
"Water, please," I respond, my voice slightly cracking. She nods then walks away.
"This should do the trick," Harry mutters, holding a long white tube with a lot of small lettering in his slender fingers. I immediately tense and slightly lean away when he comes closer to me. He looks almost amused by my reaction.
"What is that?" I ask, staring at the tube in his hand.
"It's an ointment. It helps with bruising."
"Oh." I lick my chapped lips and nod, not knowing why I got so nervous all of a sudden. He steps closer to me. I think he's why I got nervous. He hasn't stopped worrying about me and was helping me while shirtless and it was driving me crazy.
"May I?"
I look back up into his eyes and hesitate but nod my head, unsure if I could speak. I was feeling so many things: nervous about being in a small room alone with Harry, sore from the hit, hot from the sun, and still had an adrenaline rush from the game.
"Lacey," he breaks me out of my thoughts.
"Yeah?"
"I asked if you could stand," he says with slightly raised eyebrows, "so it could be easier for me to put this on."
"Oh," I squeak out, "you don't have to."
"I insist," he says, "it's the least I could do."
I inhale then nod my head. I slowly stand to allow him to put the ointment on me. He squeezes the tube, a light brown cream rests against his index and middle fingers. He clears his throat when he gets down on his knees, his face right in front of my bruised stomach.
"I'll try to be gentle." His hot breath fans over my skin, igniting goosebumps.
I try not to flinch when his fingers graze over my stomach, slowly spreading the ointment, a sudden minty smell in the air. I slightly shiver at how cold it felt against my hot skin but as Harry's fingers began to spread it around, it felt hotter. I had a million thoughts running in my head. The loudest one was hoping he would be done before Gigi came back with the water I asked for. This would be quite the position to walk into. I wince at a particular spot he covers, tensing my muscles and biting the inside of my cheek.
"M'sorry," I hear him mumble as he immediately stops his movements.
I look down for the first time at what he was doing. He glances up at me, waiting for me to let him know it was okay to continue. I inhale before nodding my head at him, hoping that was enough for him to know he can. His large hands felt so soft against my skin as he gets more ointment from the tube and spreads it all on my bruise. There's a knot in my stomach as I stare at his expression. His brows are furrowed and his eyes are narrowed as they follow his fingers. The tip of his tongue peeks out and his head is lightly tipped on one side. He was still wearing the black cap on his head. I couldn't hold back a giggle at his very concentrated face.
His eyes snap back into mine as soon as he hears the sound, his fingers stop in place. "What?"
"Nothing." I hold back a smile.
He doesn't seemed convinced by my answer and only gives me a small smirk then continues his work. His fingers felt so gentle, like he was trying so hard not to hurt me. It was hard to believe that his hands have these delicate movements against my skin are the same hands that hit the volleyball with a force of a thousand bulls. It's hard to believe that this, in general, was actually happening.
"Lacey?"
I snap out my thoughts, moving my gaze back to Harry, who was now standing right in front of me. "What?"
"I'm done." The small smirk hasn't left his face.
I look down at my stomach. You can still see the dark bruising but now it has a yellowish tint to it due to the color of the ointment he spread all over it.
"Thank you," I shyly tell him, feeling a tingly in my cheeks.
"'M put a bandaid on it," he says as he shuffles through the first-aid kit, "so nothing can touch the ointment."
"But wouldn't the bandaid be touching it?" My smart ass couldn't help to say.
He looked at me, holding back a smile while shaking his head. He looks away and continues looking for a bandaid big enough for my bruise while my heart accelerates at the thought of him wanting to smile at one of my lame jokes.
"This should do," he says after the longest ten seconds of my life. He rips the package it was wrapped in and comes closer to me. He hunches over to reach my stomach and hovers the large bandaid over my injury. The hairs on my arm stood up when I feel his breath on my skin again. He made sure to put the bandaid on slowly and carefully. I only wince slightly, any touch to my bruise affecting me.
"This needs to be changed in the morning," he says after he stands up straight, "but air it out for at least an hour before putting another one on. Oxygen helps." I nod but he can't see me because he's putting everything back into the kit. "You should ice it too," he adds, "and gentle massaging relieves pain and encourages blood flow."
I was sort of amazed and impressed how he knew much more than I did about how to treat a bruise. Usually when I get a bruise, I don't do anything to it and just let it do its thing. It's usually gone within a few days.
"How do you know so much about this?" I ask, watching his every move.
"About what?" He asks, glancing at me.
"How to treat this," I say, motioning to my stomach. "You really know what you're doing."
"Oh, uh," he says before looking away, "dunno. I just do." His tone changed. It grew colder and deeper than usual.
"Oh," I murmur, still awkwardly standing there.
He doesn't say anything else and leaves the room with the kit in his hands. I don't know why but I sensed a weird shift in the air. I can't explain it but it felt tense and weird all of a sudden. I shrug it away, hoping it was nothing. I leave the bathroom and head straight to put on a shirt and shorts since I was still in my bikini.
My mind shifts over the fact that Gigi never came back up with the water I asked for. I wondered if anything happened that prevented her from doing so or she just got distracted. I walk downstairs, towards the sound of people talking. I end up in the kitchen where everyone else was, except for Harry. I notice Gigi was there with a glass of water in her hand and a determined look on her face as she was talking with Liam. As soon they see me enter the open space, they cease their talking and look at me with sympathetic faces.
"Aw," Liam coos and walks over to me, swinging his arm over my shoulders, "how are you holding up, champ?"
"Fine."
"Need anything, hon?" Beau asks.
"Water," I say as I look over at Gigi with a smile. She sheepishly smiles and quickly comes over to me and hands me the glass.
"Sorry, I got distracted."
"It's fine," I quickly wave her off and take a long sip of the water.
"Is it too soon to talk about what just happened?" Liam asks me.
"What do you mean?" I felt a wave of panic, thinking he and everyone else knew Harry's actions towards me in the bathroom moments ago.
"The game," he clarifies, relieving me of worry.
"What about it?"
It was at this moment where I could see Harry enter the room from the corner of my eye. I didn't want to look because I still felt weird vibes from him over what happened before he left the bathroom.
"Well," Adam pops in, "we're trying to settle something.."
"What?"
"Who won," Louis answers, "we wanted your input."
I didn't really understand why they were trying to figure it out when it was obvious to me who won.
"Um, didn't you guys win?"
Liam quickly takes his arm off of me and smashes his lips on my cheeks before turning to cheer with the rest of the guys. "Yes, Lacey, thank you!"
"But Lacey," Gigi says from across the room and looks over at me with a frustrated expression, "don't you think that since you got hurt, it was a technical foul?"
"That's not a foul," Adam quickly says.
"Yeah, you're not a fucking referee," Liam adds.
"Neither are you guys," Sierra jumps in.
"The ball hit Lacey, not the floor first, so technically no point," Gigi says.
"When it touched her, it was in play," Louis counter-argues, "then it touched the floor, therefore, our point."
"Well said, mate," Zayn tells him while patting his back.
"Can't we just do a sudden death round or something?" Bella asks.
"Hell no," Adam says, "We won fair and square."
"You ladies would say the same thing if what happened to Lacey happened to one of us," Liam says.
"So hurting Lacey is the way you want to win?" Sierra says, trying to guilt them into letting us win.
"Look," Liam says, walking closer to the center of where everyone else was standing around in a circle. "It just so happened that Lacey got hurt at the same time when we needed one more point to win."
"Just like it just so happened that the bird took a shat on my shoulder at the same time the ball was passed over to me."
"Exactly. Shit happens, ladies."
"Literally," Harry says, which makes the guys snicker.
Oh, don't give me that BS,"Maggie sneers.
"Sweetheart, you didn't care that we got a point after you let the ball hit you on the head so why do you care now?"
"Hold the fuck up, sweetheart, I did not 'let' the ball hit me, you little shit."
"If you want my input.." I decide to put an end to this dispute, knowing the girls will be annoyed with me for what I'm about to say next. "The guys won."
The guys all whoop and cheer, Beau giving us a shrug and joins in with them while they girls' faces drop. I give them an apologetic look.
"You okay?" Bella asks me as she glances down at my stomach.
"Yeah."
"Good," Maggie comes up to us, "'cause we have dish washing duty."
"On second thought," I overly scrunch my face to express agony and slightly bend over, "I need to sit down."
The girls don't buy into my act but it was worth a try.