After two and a half hours, twenty one rounds of lazy river, and impossibly knotted hair that would cost me an hour in the bathroom and loads of Dove conditioner, although Louis insisted it looked gorgeous. He was definitely fazed, his eyes were droopy and he didn't speak much. And as for Harry, well, he seemed fine, although he insisted on spending time with me.

  "This music is so loud!" Louis groaned, raising a finger and pointing it at the speakers that generated the music in the water park, although it was anything but loud. Harry gave me a lopsided smile, holding on to me and Lou's hand tightly as people screamed around us, the sight rather overwhelming. Of course, I wouldn't admit that to Harry.

  "Excuse me!" Harry called out to the paps and randoms standing in front of the door to get out. I guess that meant an entirely different thing in their mind, because they swarmed up to us and got in our faces, and then umber of times a camera flashed at my face made me have to stop and rub my eyes.

  "Peasants, move aside!" Louis commanded as a few girls rushed to his side and began to scream. I couldn't help it, my face was a bit horrified as a number of girls yanked my hand away from Harry and all I could see were people and expensive camera equipment drown him out.

  "I'm sorry, please leave me alone." I begged, trying to duck out of their way, but it was as if they were a wall blocking me from leaving. The humidity in the air rose in a matter of seconds with the swarms of people like mosqutos hovering over me.

  "You and Harry, eh?"

  "Is it true you're 25?"

  "Are you Liam Payne's sister?"

  "How's it like being One Direction's little pet?"

  "Are you going to join the band?"

  "Are you aware of all of the media attention you get?"

  "Do you have a Twitter?"

  "Darcy!"

  "Darcy!"

  "Darcy!"

  I raised my hands to my ears and squeezed my eyes tight as all of the people in my face got closer and closer, if that was possible. My eyes quickly scanned the crowd for Harry or Louis, but I was alone, it appeared. I was lost in a sea of strangers that reeked of desperation, willing me to speak a measly word to them. I felt as if any moment I would break down into tears, the walls of people were becoming so tight it was nearly intoxicating.

  "Please, let me leave. I have to go." I demanded, breaking through a wall of cameras and smiling in satisfactory to myself, only to be bombarded with a million more cameras. Where was Harry? Did he really just leave me?

  "Just answer one question, Darcy!" Someone screamed in my ear. I glared at them fiercely and knocked the heavy camera away with the back of my hand, which was probably going to bruise by tomorrow. I didn't even care, I just wanted to get out.

  "Stop it! All of you, get away!" A voice screamed. It was funny how I could pick out this particular voice among all of the others, which seemed like a low hum. But it was his voice, my Harry's voice, that rang clear through my mind like a Christmas bell. My head snapped to the side as I caught a glimpse of it, and soon he had charged through the people and grabbed my hand, holding on tightly and not letting go any time soon.

  "... so sorry, I'm so so so sorry Darcy, I'm so..." I could hear him murmuring as we broke through the crowd, finally swinging the doors open and emerging into the fancy decorated hallway that had a cheap red carpet drenched in water. I couldn't really take in my surroundings, because soon we were breaking out into a sprint and spinning around corner after corner, away from the chaos we left behind.

  "Where's Lou?" I demanded as we hung a sharp left and began to climb a stairwell. Harry didn't answer me, he just kept climbing the stairs two-at-a-time and panting like a dog. We were in this moment where all you could really do was run, and that burst of adrenaline forced your mind to think only about that.

  It was weird how bodies react in moments of danger. I remember feeling this surge of strength when that white van appeared next to me on September 23rd, and having that feeling of not being fast enough. I remember sweating so much I thought that I would pass out as they tacked me to the ground, and...

  "Darcy, stop." Harry demanded. My eyes snapped up to me, and I realized that we were already on our floor. I hadn't been been concentrating on what was going around us, but here we were; floor 12B, with the most lavish and decked-out furniture in the whole building.

  "I'm sorry." I said quickly, looking behind me nervously. I did not want to relive what happened in the ballroom, with me crying and him having to act like some parent and tell me everything was going to be okay. I just needed my space, I needed to be alone.

  Suddenly the air in the room seemed like it was choking me, and all I could do was glance up at Harry before I tore off to my bedroom half heatedly, hot tears slipping off of my face and landing on the carpet somewhere behind until finally I got to my room and thrust the door open.

  Being careful to lock the door behind me, my lip quivered tremendously as I ran to my big bed and slipped under the covers, letting the sound of my weeping drown out my thoughts. This was too much for a measly eighteen year old girl to handle; millions of people in your face, feeling the need to please people, wondering why your parents don't want you, and oh, yeah. Someone trying to murder you. Couldn't forget about that one.

  "Let me in!" Harry screamed from the hallway, banging his fist on the door so the painting of an odd fruit shook. I had never heard him so upset, and that scared me. It had nothing to do with being kidnapped, although I assured if people could hear what went on inside my head they'd assume so. I wonder if someone wrote a book about my life, or maybe a movie, what people would think of me as? Some weak girl who served as a boyband's pet? A girl who probably looked like she was severely PMSing, perhaps?

  I pulled the cold pillow over my head to block out Harry, even though what I really wanted right now was for him to come and comfort me, I had to show the world that I could be strong enough for myself. So many girls in movies are portrayed as weak and defenseless, and I didn't want to cower down to their level. That was not who I was, nor will I ever be.

  "Please," Harry croaked, his fist coming in contact with the door again, about ten times softer than the last. His hand must be killing him.

  What would a strong protagonist do in this situation? I asked myself. The answer was right in front of me, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to confront Harry looking the way I did.

  Did Katniss care what she looked like when she kissed Peeta in a cave?

  No. So I had to suck it up and find my inner Katniss Everdeen, I decided, throwing the covers off of me. Before I could make a snap decision and change my mind, I stomped right over to the door, unlocked it, and swung it open, only to be met with a pair of lips crashing against mine.

  His lips moved in sync with mine there in the doorway, his hands gripping my waist gently. I moved my hands to his hair and found myself smiling slightly as he kissed me back. It seemed like all I really needed in a tough time was a little kiss from Harry, and it was almost like a band-aid over my wound.

  "I'm so, so, so, so sorry Darcy. I wish I could fix this, all of this. I know you're hurting and it's alright to tell me. Please, just trust me." He begged.

  "I'm so scared, Harry. And I wish I wasn't. I'm even a little scared, even though I'm with you and I can't control it. She's out there to get me, and all of those people, and my parents don't want anything to do with me and I don't know why and you probably think that I'm some hormonal freak." I said, brushing back some of my hair that drooped in front of my eyes.

  Harry chuckled, kissing my forehead and lowering his head so that our noses touched.

  "You can trust me, Darcy. I will keep you safe no matter what, if my life depended on it. And I promise that. And like Rapunzel once said," He smirked, his cheek rising against mine, causing me to laugh and hope that my breath smelled like something nice, maybe a strawberry. "I never break my promises."

  And I really, truly trusted him.

  "I trust you, Harry Styles." I said, finally meeting his eyes. He kissed me softly once more, and I just hoped that we didn't have an audience, because the boys would be so immature right now I could almost picture the awkwardness unfold.

  "Oh, and about Louis. He met a Swedish reporter in the waterpark and told me that he was going to follow him around all day." Harry smirked. "That poor lad."

  "We should go put something in his bed. I'm thinking icecubes." I suggested, wiggling my eyebrows at him, causing him to break out into full-out laughter, dimples and all.

  "Now that's the Darcy I know." He said.

  "Hey Darcy, your phone has been ringing off the-woah. I can come back later..." Zayn said, stopping midway through a different door, holding my cheap-o phone in his one hand. Harry and I were laughing obnoxiously by now as Zayn's face turned a pink color.

  "That's okay, Zayn. Did they say who they were?" I asked, taking my phone from his hand and going to voice mail. Zayn shrugged beside me as I flipped my phone open and began listening to the message.

  "Thanks for the number, Darcy. Oh and I just want to send you an extra thanks for helping my dear, beloved grandmother out. You know, we should totally hang out sometime. I'm actually in the same hotel. What a coincidence, right? No. I'm here to get you once and for all and show my parents that I can do this. You've been warned, Darcy Monroe. You've been warned."

  She was here.

  Vanessa was here.

  A/N: Don't keel meeh! Haha, I felt like updating sooner rather than later. What do you think? Sorry for all the drama, but this story is going to pick up very quickly... so it will be very drama and action packed c:

  Comment, vote, fan, comment, comment, comment c:

  ~Delilah