~ Edited ~

Recap:

The door was open and I spotted my phone on the dresser. I picked it up and scrolled through my messages, jumping when the sound of a door opening hit my ears. Stunned, I spun on my heel, only to come face to face with a girl. Not just any girl, though.

"Charlotte?" I asked, wide-eyed as I stared at the brunette and the damp clothes in her hand. I blinked several times, not believing my eyes. A strange wave of happiness surged through me, along with a tinge of nervousness.

"Hi Louis," she smiled weakly.

*Charlotte's POV*

"Are you..." Louis trailed off, his eyes narrowed in confusion. He glanced down at his cellphone and back up at me, his prominent shock not coming as much of a surprise. He was dressed in a simple light blue t-shirt and sweatpants, which somehow made him look much younger than a few days ago, when he was dressed formally.

"Danielle's friend? Yeah," I smiled lightly and set aside the damp clothes that were in my hand. Seeing Louis again brought me a sense of joy, it was really unexplainable. I played with the rings on my fingers, not sure whether or not I should say something. Louis looked stunned, which began to worry me. Was he not happy to see me? Had I done something wrong?

Just when Louis opened his mouth to speak, he was interrupted by Danielle, who showed up at Liam's bedroom door. 

"Charlotte! I see you met Louis," she said, smiling as she rushed over and threw her arms around me in a hug. I nodded numbly and pulled away, seeing confusion written all over Danielle's face when she saw my flushed expression. 

Louis smiled amusingly and said, "Actually Danielle, Charlotte and I have met before." 

I gulped inaudibly, wondering if he knew about my parents and who they were. I knew it wasn't very likely to believe that he didn't, but the little flicker or hope failed to die out. Almost everyone living in the UK knew of my family and the fact that Louis and his band-mates themselves were famous only made it more likely that they knew who I was. But the way that Louis treated me at the party only made my suspicions grow. Did he know that my parents were the hosts of the party? I didn't recognize him. Was it so wrong to hope that he didn't recognize me?

"How?" Danielle asked.

"We met at my parents' party," I said, not wanting to see the shocked expression on Louis's face when he found out that I was the daughter of the McVerrys. Now he would know how I was treated in my own home. How my parents, my own family didn't come to my aid when I was being embarrassed.

"You mea--" Louis began to speak once again, but I interrupted him. Sure, I felt bad, but I wasn't in the mood for an explanation right now.

"Hey, I want to meet the rest of your friends! Let's go," I said quickly, grabbing Danielle's arm and pulling her into the living room. I don't know what I had expected to see upon arriving into the lounge room. Maybe four guys sitting on the couches, chatting, while a movie played on the television. But no expectation could have prepared me for what I did see. There were two boys beating Liam with pillows, ignoring his cries in protest. The two attackers were laughing loudly, bickering with Liam. I stifled a laugh and watched the mischief, not wanting to ruin it. There was another boy, one whose name I could not remember from when Liam told me. He was slumped against the couch with his head resting against the wall, his eyes were closed and his lips were set firmly a straight line. Not knowing how to react, I began laughing at boys that were hitting Liam. All four pairs of eyes turned on me, making my mind pool with regret.

"Guys, this is Charlotte. Charlotte, the boys," Liam said and straightened up, nodding towards me and back at the boys. The two guys standing on either side of Liam dropped the pillows and rubbed the back of their necks sheepishly.

"Hey guys. You're not gonna hit me, too are you?" I laughed nervously. I wanted to smack myself for allowing that sentence to slip out of my mouth, but decided to do that later when the two guys began walking towards me. 

"I'm Niall," the blonde one spoke and smiled widely. I returned the gesture and shook his hand. He had striking blue eyes that made it difficult to tear my gaze away accompanied by a thick Irish accent, words spoken through teeth lined with braces.

"And I'm Zayn," the second boy said. He was dangerously attractive, but his smile was warm -- welcoming. His hair was styled up into a quiff with a blonde streak cutting the front middle. I shook his hand just as I had done Niall's and everyone's eyes turned to the third boy, as we were all waiting for him to introduce himself. Liam cleared his throat, making the rude curly-haired boy roll his eyes.

"Harry," he finally uttered. Harry was wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants, looking effortlessly flawless. He walked to the kitchen, not bothering to glance my way. He grabbed a can of Pepsi from the fridge and walked to the corner of the room we were standing in and leaned against the wall, nonchalantly sipping his soda. I narrowed my eyes. What was his problem?

Liam spoke up, his voice cutting through the thick wall of tension that Harry had created in the room.

"Here, why don't we start the movies?" 

He walked over and placed his hand in Danielle's, who was right next to me. Danielle gazed up at Liam and smiled, following him into the living room.

"Are they always so.." I started saying as I watched the couple fight over which movie to watch.

"Lovey-dovey?" Zayn said, following my gaze.

"Flirty?" Niall completed while munching on chips.

"Annoying?" Harry rolled his eyes as he walked behind them into the living room, plopping down onto the couch.

I raised my eyebrows at his attitude and Niall and Zayn glanced at each other and then at Harry. I could tell they were ashamed of their friend's actions, but they should understand that it wasn't their fault he was acting this way.

"I was going to say cute," I finished, trying not to let Harry's attitude get to me. Harry scrunched his nose in disgust and averted his gaze, his long fingers indenting the aluminum can that was held in his hands.

"Don't mind Harry, he's not usually like this." I heard another voice say from behind me. I turned around to see Louis with his phone in his hand, his eyes meeting only mine.

I nodded in understanding, still not sure what to say to him, and walked my way into the living room where there were movies laid out on the coffee table.

I sat down on the smaller couch and looked at the titles, "The Last Exorcism," "The Bourne Ultimatum," and "The Shining" were a few that stood out, but nothing looked particularly interesting. I was thanking Liam for bringing out the movies, though. It meant less talking and more watching.

Niall and Zayn followed my lead and before Liam and Danielle could sit down, the two boys plopped down onto the sofa. Liam and Danielle glared at them before sitting on the floor with a blanket, leaning against the front of the couch. And Harry? Harry was sitting in the corner of the living room in a bean bag chair, looking bored out of his mind. It got me wondering. Was Harry always like this? Or did he just not like me?

 Louis, having no where to sit, sauntered over to where I was seated and sat down on the other end, shooting me a smile. For some reason, I was nervous. Whether it was the fact that I didn't know these people or just the way Louis smiled, I didn't know. Smiling back, my attention was drawn back to the movies by Zayn.

"Which movie? We'll let Charlotte choose," he said, getting up and handing me the three discs. I averted my eyes, not comfortable when all of the attention was turned to me.

"Umm let's watch this one," I said after little thought. I had picked a random film, just wanting everyone to revert their attention. 

"Are you sure? That one's pretty scary," Niall warned. I looked up to see I had picked the scariest movie in the box.

"I'm sure I can handle it." I smiled, sinking back into the couch. I heard Harry mumble something to himself, but ignored him. If he wanted to be rude and unwelcoming, so be it. Two could play that game and I, being the daughter of two ignorant parents, had mastered it a while ago.

Zayn glanced at Liam and shrugged, putting the disc in. I caught Danielle's gaze and smiled at her, letting her know I was doing fine. The beginning credits began rolling and I sank deep into the couch, pulling my knees to my chest.

A few minutes into the movie and my eyes began to droop. I cursed myself for making the horrible decision to stay up so late the night before, and sat up straight. The movie that was rolling had lost my attention as my eyes began wandering the room. They landed on Zayn, who also seemed to have grown bored of the film. Niall was munching on his snacks and Zayn kept sneaking one chip from the bag when Niall wasn't looking. I watched as Zayn reached for another one and before his hand could go in the bag, Niall grabbed it and bit into it. I involuntarily let out a laugh as I watched the two guys bicker. Thankfully, everyone was too engrossed in the movie to hear it.

"Ow! What the...?" Zayn yelped and retreated his hand, hugging it to his chest. Niall shrugged nonchalantly and returned to watching the movie. The friendship between these people seemed so strong, nothing less than the relationship of brothers'. The later it got into the night, the more my nerves diminished. Something about these guys told me that they wouldn't care who I was. After all, they themselves should know how it feels to be judged so easily.

The two returned their attention to the television, making my small form of entertainment vanish. I picked at my nails and hesitantly moved my gaze to Harry, who was already watching me with a blank expression. His brown ringlets were sprawled messily across his forehead, framing his dark green eyes. I raised my eyebrows, as to ask "what?" and immediately, his eyes shot back to his phone, which was clutched in his hand. He definitely wasn't going to be the one to ruin this night for me.

"Psst... Charlotte." Confused, I looked to my right and saw Louis waving his hands at me, trying to get my attention. I wanted to laugh at the way his eyes were widened and his mouth formed an "o."

"Yes, Louis?" 

"Were you friends with Danielle, you know, before you met me?" He asked. His sapphire eyes were filled with curiosity as he watched closely, anticipating my answer.

"Actually, no. I met her a few days after the party and I had no idea she was dating Liam Payne. I also had no idea that you were Louis Tomlinson, as in, from One Direction." I said, feeling a bit embarrassed about the last part.

Louis didn't look too surprised by my words as I had expected him to. "I kinda figured," he chuckled. He opened his mouth to continue, but was silenced when we heard the sounds coming from the movie come to a halt.

We both turned to see everyone staring at us. "We figured everyone's more in the mood for talking," Danielle admitted. Everyone (but Harry, of course) nodded in agreement and began their own little conversations. The chatter slowly died down as Liam turned to face me and began speaking.

"So, Charlotte, how are you liking it here in London?"

I bit on my lip and answered, "I like it a lot better than my old home, that's for sure." 

And that answer seemed like an invitation for the rest of the guys to ask questions, which were fired at me five at a time. I couldn't blame them for being curious and didn't mind answering their questions, which sometimes really made me think.

After telling Zayn about my favorite type of music, my phone began vibrating in my pocket.

"One second, guys," I excused myself before walking to the balcony and closing the door behind me. I heard them continue their conversation and took a deep breath before answering the call.

"Hi moth--"

"Charlotte? Where are you, Darcy's party begins in an hour and you're still not home!" She interrupted, not hesitating to yell into my ear. I had told her that I was going out shopping and would be back in time for the party. Originally, I had thought that I'd be clever enough to come up with an excuse for why I was late, but right this moment, there was nothing coming to mind.

"I'll be home in time for the party. Why can't I just meet you guys there?" I questioned, feeling like that was the logical solution.

"Where are you now?" My mother snapped, ignoring my idea completely.

"At a friend's house."

 My reply was short and indifferent as I reached for the pack of cigarettes in my back pocket but then remembered that I was still at Liam's flat. Sighing, I listened to her rant on about how I lied to her. A sole tear found its way down my cheek. Whether it was from the cold wind making me shiver or the fact that I knew this moment with these boys and Danielle couldn't last long, I didn't know. All I knew was that there was no way I could break down here.

"I'll be home in an hour mother, goodbye," I said before sitting down on the cold concrete. I wrapped my arms around myself and stared at the stars that didn't dare lose their shine. The cries of car horns around me filled my ears, as I watched the buildings that stood tall, cutting through the imperfect sky. For the thousandth time in my life, I watched and I watched. Still, I felt numb. I felt hopeless. My mother didn't care about me. My father didn't even know how old I was, or had never cared to ask how his only child was doing. All they cared about was their money and their business. Come to think of it, my existence was probably even some kind of wager or compromise.

It's what my whole life had been about from the start. Money. Never was I treated with love and nurture. I had to raise myself and all I wanted was for things to turn around.

"Hey, are you okay?" 

I jumped, startled as I turned my head to the right to see Danielle. She had a glass of water in her hand that she held out towards me and worry etched across her features.

Not bothering to wipe the freely falling tears from my face, I gently took the glass from her fingers, whispering a "thank you."

"Sorry, stupid question. Wanna talk?" I felt her sit down next to me, but looked the other way. I was embarrassed, ashamed. I was always one to let myself feel down easily, hence the tendency for the tears.

"I broke my promise," I said quietly after minutes of reaping silence, "I told myself I wouldn't break down, not here. it's hard, Danielle. It's hard to know that my parents will never love me. They'll never be proud of me. They'll never stop comparing me to those other girls, the ones that are perfect in every damn way." 

I sniffed and laughed darkly, feeling pathetic. I had known Danielle for barely a full day and was already complaining to her about my screwed up life. And now, here I was, burdening her with my problems. 

"I knew who you were, Charlotte. The second I saw you, I recognized your face from the thousands of magazines and the tons of gossip news channels. You're supposed to be Charlotte McVerry, the glamorous daughter of the multi-millionaire couple. But you know what? The girl I saw the the park, the one who did what she loves, wasn't the girl portrayed in the media. She was the girl that wanted to be her own self. The girl that wanted nothing to do with her parents' lives." She paused for a second and then spoke again.

"Charlotte, why do you think I invited you here tonight? I just wanted to let you know that no matter how bad things get, you'll have someone who cares. These boys are the most thoughtful people ever. Even with all of their fame and fortune, they've managed to stay grounded to the important things. Please, just know that you can talk to me. Even if you're not comfortable around them yet, I'm here for you."

I sat there, speechless and astonished at how someone could be so kind as to treat me like this, especially since we had only met a week ago. I looked at Danielle and noticed that she was already watching, me, smiling.

"Thank you," I barely whispered before scooting over and giving her a hug. "This means more than you think." 

She pulled away and rested her hands on my shoulders.

"Anytime. You've got yourself a new friend, Charlotte. And she's here to stay," Danielle smiled at me and then winked.

I laughed and rolled my eyes. "She also seems like a total freak."

Danielle gasped mockingly before letting a smile break out onto her face, also. "Ready to go in?" She asked, lending me a hand. I nodded truthfully and took her hand, letting her pull me up.

"Sorry, about your clothes by the way.." I added and glanced down sheepishly, pulling at her shirt, which I was still wearing.

"It's no big deal, with these guys around, you'll have to expect these kinds of things..." She sighed and I could tell she was completely serious. She then laughed and pushed me towards the door. "C'mon, let's go."

I stepped inside to see the boys just as I had left them. Niall and Zayn were sprawled out on the couch, bantering loudly. Liam was on his phone and Harry was in the same spot he had been all night. I didn't pay much attention to him and instead looked around to find Louis, who was no where to be seen.

"Where's Louis?" Danielle asked, stepping in behind me and speaking my mind.

"Went out to talk on the phone," Liam stated and patted the seat next to him, motioning for Danielle to come over.

Danielle rolled her eyes and said, "I think I've spent enough time with you tonight." 

She narrowed her eyes and walked into the kitchen. I could tell she wasn't being serious and stifled a laugh. Liam glared at where she was standing before a smile broke out onto his face. He got up and followed Danielle into the kitchen.

I was about to sit down when my phone rang, indicating I had a text.

From: Mom

"Look what I found in the lounge room"

I tilted my head in confusion and opened the picture that was attached. My heart dropped when I saw that the picture was of my broken camera. Nearly dropping my phone, I grabbed my jacket and began putting my shoes on. My parents thought I gave up photography long ago and in fear that they would also find my albums, I had to get home. I had spent years building up my work and had 22 completed albums, ones I wasn't willing to lose.

"Where are you going?" Liam asked as he walked out of the kitchen. Danielle followed and immediately looked worried when she saw me stumbling over myself to get out.

"I... I have to go guys, it was really nice meeting you!" I grabbed my jacket and felt bad knowing I was leaving so rudely. I said goodbye once more to all of them and rushed out of the flat, bumping right into Louis who was walking my way.

"Hey Char... bye Char?" He looked confused when I dashed right past him. I turned my head around and yelled, "Bye Louis!"

 I wished I could stay longer with these people. I wished there was some way to make this my life. Shaking these thoughts from my head, I stepped out into the night and approached my car to go to the last place I ever wanted to be, my house.

***

(A/N) heeeelllo! :) thank you for reading! i'm loving the response I'm getting to this story and please continue commenting and voting if you like it!