Life On The Flip Side [Harry Styles AU]

t h r e e

A sense of relief floods my senses as I step into the locker room. With the roof over my head and the walls separating me from potential danger, I no longer feel as if there is a big red target on my chest.

My feat of embarrassment during lunch has taken a toll on me; it left me feeling emotionally drained, while cross country practice has forced me into the weakening state that is physical exhaustion.

In the matter of a day, everything has seemed to flip upside down, leaving me in a confused state where I no longer had control of what happened. My emotions are all over the place, my composure is crippled, and here I am, nothing but an empty shell.

As I make my way down the aisle in search of my locker row, I begin to feel sluggish, and somewhat dizzy. My feet feel as if there are weights tied to them, and I find myself dragging them in a lousy attempt to walk. The commotion surrounding me seems to have been put on mute, a ringing sound being the only audible thing existing throughout my ears.

I attempt to grab onto the wall next to me for support, only to be met with air. My breathing begins to slow. As I look around, I realize that the locker room has is now empty, leaving me totally screwed.

My hearing returns for a split second, which I take as an opportunity to cry out for help. But instead of actually uttering decipherable words, I only manage to produce an animal-like gargle from the base of my throat. Before I can attempt at it again, I fall over and faint.

Darkness.

----

"Christina? Wake up! Christina, seriously, wake up already." I open my eyes to see Ava worriedly looking down at me, her hair partially covering her face. She sighs with relief when she realizes that I am awake.

"Hey, are you okay?" She asks in a soft voice. With the little strength I have, I manage to muster a head shake. "I'm going to try helping you sit up, okay?" I nod softly, and let Ava grasp me by the armpits before hoisting me up against the wall.

The sudden buildup of bile in my throat causes my eyes to widen. And before I can warn her, I find myself vomiting into my lap, ruining my new pair of Nike running shorts, as well as my shoes.

Alarmed, Ava jumps away from me, obviously disgusted. She rises a hand to her mouth and begin to gag, the sight of me being too much to handle. I hear her screech out a muffled "I'll be back," before making a mad dash for a toilet stall, where I can hear her dry heave into the toilet.

I sigh and hit my head against the wall. All I really want right now is this day to be over so I can go to sleep.

The locker room suddenly fell quiet. Any indication of Ava's presence has diminished, and I was faced with complete silence. I look back down into my lap, and realize that not only was the vomit gone, but I'm wearing entirely different clothing.

What the hell is going on?

"Ava?" I call out. I'm greeted back with the echo of my own voice bouncing off the walls of the locker room. I look down at my wrist, only to discover that my watch, the same one that I never take off, is gone.

When did I loose it?

The more alert I become, the more I began to panic. I shoot up from where I'm sitting, desperate to search for an escape.

I take one last look around before exiting the locker room, thinking that maybe, just maybe, everything would turn back to normal once I departed. After all, this is all just a dream, right?

Maybe I just passed out again, and I'm on my way to the hospital. Yeah, I'll go with that.

----

The hallway outside the locker room is surprisingly dark, which gives me a gut feeling that something is very, very wrong.

But by the time my flight mode kicks in, I suddenly find it impossible to move. No matter how hard I try, my feet seem to be planted to the ground.

Suddenly, my vision sharpens, and I'm able to see through the darkness.

That's when I see him. Those daunting brown eyes, and now, I realize, his blonde hair styled in a slight quiff. I shiver with fear as I watch him look me up and down.

A sense of knowing comes to me, and somehow I know he is the reason I'm in this compromising position. And he seems to be taking full advantage of it.

"What - what the fuck is happening?" I choke out in a small voice. The sound of fear in my voice is evident, causing me to uncontrollably shake.

He smiles before reaching into a bag is residing on the floor next to him. "You don't have to worry - " He pauses to dangle a watch limply from his fingers. It takes me a second to realize it was mine, the same one that went missing. "You'll see with time, and it will all make sense then."

I shake my head. "This is crazy," I mumble. The shaking continues. "This is FUCKING crazy! I want to go home!" Tears spring at the corners of my eyes, and I violently begin to fan at my face with my hands. Now was not the time to show emotion.

He nods in comprehension. "I know you do. But you'll see with time - " Anger seems to suddenly overcome me as I once again shake my head. "No, no. Shut the fuck up!" I press my hands to my ears in an attempt to block him out.

"Shut up, shut up! Stop telling me the same thing! Let me go home already!" A single tear drop rolls out of my eye, which I wipe at with the back of my hand.

His eyes narrow. "Fine. Suit yourself, then. But just know that you're ruining all of your chances." My eyes widened at his words, and I watched as he turned around to walk away.

"Wait," He turns back towards me, raising an eyebrow. I gulp before continuing. "Don't go, please. I don't know where I am and my biggest fear is being alone."

He nods solemnly. "I know. And I just wanted to let you know that you have a chance here. But the thing is, are you willing to take that chance, and many others, to get the one thing you desire?"

My eyebrows scrunch together in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

He chuckles. "You know exactly what I'm talking about - " he pauses to attempt his best imitation of a girl, which I assume is supposed to be me "Oh sigh, how I would love to be the girlfriend of Harry Styles. But, I also hate my home life, and I just want some freedom for once!"

The blood drains from my face. "How did you know that?"

He shrugs. "I know a lot of things. Yet after all this time, you still don't know one thing."

"And what is that?"

"My name."

"So what is your - " And just like that, he is gone. I run my fingers through my hair, looking around at my surroundings, trying to piece together what just happened in my brain.

But most importantly, where am I?

----
A/N:
     This chapter was a bitch to edit, but I think I'm finally satisfied with the outcome. I hope it doesn't seem as if the book is going too fast, but things will start to make sense in the chapters to come. :)

-Olivia.