Opposite Directions (a One Direction fan fiction)

Chapter 2

      This time while she walked through the mansion she didn’t want to socialize, so she did not. Not a very hard feat when no one really knows or even cares who you are. That didn’t bother Caroline either. She wanted to be a writer, not an actress or a pop star. Her job was behind a keyboard, hidden away from the world. The words she bled from her fingertips touched the hearts and souls of people, not her personal image. She was perfectly fine being invisible. She didn’t have the looks for stardom anyways, but she had the literary skills for success.

            As much as Caroline wanted the party to be over, she knew it had pretty much only just begun. She stood up straight and accepted that fact, but before doing anything else she went for her purse and took her daily medications. Depression and Anxiety were terrible inner demons, but she could control them with help and dedication. She knew that her unease would subside in a short time.

            She still wanted to be outside, but this time she decided to go out to the backyard. She ignored the partyers on the porch and went right down the steps into the backyard. People seemed to be everywhere, but she ignored them. Walking down to the dock she pulled out her cell phone. One Direction was her friend Shaynas favorite band. She wished Shayna was here to meet them herself, but the best Caroline could do was snap a secret picture of the boys and send it to her friend back home. So she did.

            When she got to the end of the dock she sat at the edge and let her feet hang over the edge. She was short so her feet only skimmed the top of the water, so only the soles of her boots got wet. She smiled as she noticed that the British boys were having a good time. They had showed her more kindness than anyone else at this party, and they were the most famous. Some people were just genuinely kind regardless of fame, she realized. And that realization calmed the quivering in her soul.

            Harry was in the water, swimming out to the floating dock, the blonde Australian girl with the gap in her teeth following close behind and giggling. Harry and his girls, they loved that boy. His charm could tame the darkest of souls. Niall and Liam stood at the shore skipping rocks with a few girls. All young, all pretty, all fans. They ended up actually getting the attention they were so used to, and so rightfully deserved. Caroline was happy that they were having a good time. She didn’t even care about the publicity anymore. She just wanted to be home in her bed, with her boyfriend’s arms around her, and her friends right down the street. She let out a sigh and looked out over the lake to the horizon, where the sun was setting behind the trees and painting the sky with pastel pinks and purples.

            Caroline didn’t know how long she had been sitting out there, just staring out into the distance, when she felt someone’s presence beside her. She felt the dock rock a bit with the weight of the person sitting down, but she didn’t look away from the sunset. She was battling with her thoughts inside her head. She was still uncomfortable, she still felt like she didn’t belong.

            “Miss Caroline. It’s Liam, we met earlier.” His thick accent snapped Caroline out of her distant thoughts, but she still didn’t look at him.

            “Hi Liam. Just call me Caro. I know I’m old, but calling me Miss Caroline makes me feel, like, really old.”

            Liam let out a laugh. It was deep and smooth like honey and carried on the breeze like autumn leaves. Caroline snickered and kicked her feet to make ripples in the water.

            “So, Caro. Are you alright? You seem so down.”

            Caroline turned to the young man next to her with a bit of shock written on her face. Not once all night has anyone asked if she was okay. Even Sal had told her to deal with it, to pretty much get over it. No one had noticed her or her distress. Not one person cared. But this young thing, this young boy with everything in the world at his fingertips, had taken the time out of his day to just ask one simple question. Was she alright?