Use Somebody

I don’t know what I was thinking, taking off like that. I just knew that I got far enough that I couldn’t afford to turn back now. Red buses and taxicabs rushed past me in blurs, people walking at me at impossible paces telling me to ‘get the hell out of the way’. Apparently, I wasn’t walking fast enough to their liking. And then I felt a droplet on my forehead which turned into more droplets until a downpour finally descended on the streets of London.

“No effing way...” I muttered to myself, letting out one hard, humorless laugh. My luck couldn’t get any worse. But before I knew it, a taxicab skidded on the side of the pavement, splashing a bucket load of water on me, soaking my clothes through. Let me correct myself. My luck could’ve gotten worse, and it just did. I groaned, moving faster down the sidewalk in indignation, my dark hair falling all around me in unruly waves.

Where I was headed, I did not know. All I knew was that I had to get out of here and some place far far away where Zayn wouldn’t find me, not that I expected him to come out looking for me because I doubt he would.. I couldn’t let him know how much his words hurt me, nor could he know that I was eavesdropping on their conversation, scratch that -- his rant. I couldn’t fathom what I’d done to anger him so, I didn’t remember him being so upset over little things when we were children but then again, that was a long time ago.

If he remembered it, he wouldn’t be treating me so badly. I figured that knowing he didn’t want anything to do with me, his parents probably made him take me in but he hadn’t even done that. His friends were willing to and he couldn’t even muster up enough empathy to do so himself. Maybe it was his new rockstar life that made him so standoffish, thinking he was better than everyone else. Did he forget that it wasn’t that long ago that he was just a nobody like me? I’d relish the chance to tell him exactly how I felt about him, too, if I ever saw his face again.

In my blind rage thinking of all the things I would say to Zayn I didn’t realize how quickly the afternoon turned to evening, and then night. I found myself far outside downtown London and in a more deserted area of the city. Where the hell was I? I looked around from side to side, trying to spot some kind of map or street name but there were none. I rubbed my hands up my arms in an attempt to get warm. Not only was it night time, but it had gotten cold, too.

The rain had subsided, thank goodness, but a strong gust of wind took its place and since I had been so lucky to get soaked through my blouse and skirt, I was colder than I’d ever been in my life. It never got this cold back in Pakistan. I sighed, trembling slightly as I walked on, my teeth chattering together. “Lost, little girl?” A dark voice spoke, piercing the silent air. I turned around, finding a guy who looked around twenty-five or so standing in front of me, a sly smile on his lips. I moved a step back subconsciously, not liking the look of him.

Even though he was giving me a similar look that the boys gave me earlier on today, I knew they were just harmless and friendly. I didn’t know this guy but I could already sense something more sinister coming from him. “Who are you? What do you want?” I tried to sound firm but it came out worried, tense. He laughed, a sinister twinkle in his eyes. “Don’t sound so scared, little girl. I’m no big, bad wolf. I am, however, someone who wants to help those in need and from what I can see, you’re in need.”

I scoffed, standing strong. “Spare me the innocent, selfless act and get away from me. I don’t need help and certainly not from the likes of you.” I began to walk away, proud with how I handled things when I felt a hand reach out and grasp my wrist, forcing me back into them. My heart thudded fast against my ribcage. My temporary strong front was gone. I was truly scared now.

“Aw come on, princess,” he laughed, holding me with one arm and brushing away a strand of hair that was matted to my forehead with the other. “I said I wouldn’t bite and I won’t. I just want you to be out of the cold and into something warm, right? My sister’s staying with me and she can lend you a few things. I’m certain she won’t mind.” I narrowed my eyebrows at him in suspicion. Wasn’t this the time in the movie where the creepy stalkers take the girl into the alleyway and rape her?

I didn’t trust him in the slightest but it wasn’t like I could get out of his vice-like grip around my wrist. And a part of me really liked the idea of getting into something warm and cozy. Before I knew it we were at his flat where a girl I assumed to be his sister was laying down on the couch watching telly. She turned to us, eying me strangely. I rolled my eyes. It was her brother he should be looking at like that, not me. “Oli...you are aware that there is a girl following you, right?”

“Of course I am, Rachel” he said dumbly, looking at me with a smile. “I’m the one who invited her here. Mind if she borrows an outfit of yours? She’s soaked to the bone.” She glanced at me again, perhaps figuring out if I was a threat to her or not before shrugging, turning her attention back to the telly. “Fine. Let her take a shower first though before putting my clothes on. I don’t want her stinking them up.” I raised an eyebrow at her, offended. I wouldn’t be warming up to some random person I didn’t know but she could at least be polite, or even fake politeness. But this Oli person was already tugging me away further into the flat. “Appreciate it, Rach!” She mumbled a ‘whatever’ before we were out of sight. “So what kind of clothes are you into? Oh fuck...” I looked at him questioningly. He put an arm behind his head awkwardly. “I just realized I don’t even know your name.” I told him, figuring if he was going to do something he would’ve done it by now. No harm, no fowl. He smiled genuinely, dimples in his cheeks.

Somehow in a normal setting, he didn’t seem so sinister and creeper-like. Maybe I was imagining it, it was just the shadow cast over his face from the street lamp. “Nice. I’m Oliver or Oli, for short. But you already knew that. So what do you want to wear? You can have your pick from anything in her wardrobe. You look a tad bigger than Rach but I’m sure we can find something that will fit you...” I glared at him. “Thanks. Girls love hearing that.” When he realized I was being serious he cursed to himself, looking at me apologetically.

“Shit..that’s not what I meant, Eesha. I meant that you fill out the clothes more than my sister. Wow...I just realized how pervy that sounded. Sorry. I promise I’m not incestious.” I arched a single eyebrow at him. “So you’re hitting on me, then? I hope you realize how bad this looks, especially since it seems you pick up random girls on the street and take them to your flat and dress them on a daily basis.” He heaved a sigh, hanging his head low. “I’m not going to be getting on your good side anytime soon, am I?”

I couldn’t help but laugh at his dejected state. “Nope...” Except a part of me knew he would. There was something about his awkwardness that made him fun to be around. “Didn’t think so,” but the corner of his lip was upturned slightly. He pointed to a floral sort of blouse and a pair of black skinny jeans. “I think that’d look great on you, just my non-pervy and totally innocent opinion. But you can wear whatever you like. The shower is back that way and there should be a spare towel and washcloth in the cabinet. I’ll just be outside so shout if you need anything, yeah?”

I nodded, smiling a little to myself as he turned to leave. I never thought I’d spend the night with two complete strangers who could turn out to be axe murderers. I didn’t think they would; they didn’t seem like the type anymore. But I prayed to Allah as an extra precaution, just in case they did.



Zayn’s angry voice came through loud and clear.“What the fuck do you mean she’s not coming back?” All he could wonder was what game was she playing at. He didn’t think it was possible for her to find more ways to over dramatise his life but apparently she had. “It just says she’s leaving and not coming back,” Louis said for the upteenth time, looking at his mate wearily. “If she wanted to be found than she would’ve said where she was going.” Zayn snorted. “Please, Lou. You know she only did that to make things more complicated, get us all searching like complete idiots around the entire city. It’s just a game to her, a scheme. We should just let her be until she comes back when she realizes we’re not playing along.”

Harry looked at Zayn incredulously. “You’re joking, right? Please tell me you’re joking, mate. I probably spent more time with her than you did in your entire life and I can already tell she’s not that kind of girl. She needs us, man, and if you’re not going to go out and look for her than I will.” They stared each other down, the first time they’ve ever been this angry with each other. “Fine. Be her knight in shining armour, see if I give a crap. You’ll truly be stuck with her after this, I hope you know that. So don’t come crying to me when she drives you insane.”

“What the hell is wrong with you, Zayn?” Liam cut in, confusion written all over his face. Hell, it was on all of their faces. “Why do you hate her so much? She didn’t do a single thing to you. I’m really hoping it doesn’t come to this but if she was hurt, like really fucked up on some dirty street, are you telling me you wouldn’t give a damn at all? I really can’t believe anyone could hate someone that much.” They all waited for him to say something, anything.

Zayn was having an internal war with himself. Did he really hate her that much? The thought of her truly hurt like that upset him, more than he thought it would. But he didn’t honestly think she would get herself in that much trouble after less than twenty four hours in London. Then again, she didn’t know at all where she was headed so it was possible she had managed to get herself in a few bad areas of the city. He groaned, letting his head fall back. He knew what he had to do. He just couldn’t stand the looks of triumph on the boys’ faces.

He fished his car keys out of his jeans pocket and shrugged on his leather jacket, pushing the front door open. “I’ll be back whenever. And yes, I’ll make sure she’s in the car with me, right?” They all shouted goodbye’s at him and corny things like ‘I knew you would do the right thing, mate!’ Zayn only shook his head at them, slamming the door behind him. “Jesus...”



“...So why were you wandering around this area anyhow? Do you know someone around here?” Oli was nice enough to make us some spaghetti, or rather me. His sister Rachel went out, saying something about needing a breath of fresh air. Apparently she couldn’t stand her brother being nice to a stranger. Oli said to ignore her, which was certainly fine with me. I lifted a forkful of spaghetti into my mouth and chewed and swallowed before answering. “Well, to be honest, you probably don’t want to know. It’s not all that interesting, really...”

He waved his hand, swallowing a huge mouthful of his own pasta. “No way. Tell me, I wanna hear all about it.” So I did. What was the harm in telling him? He didn’t seem like the type to let things go once they catch his attention anyhow. After I was done he whistled. “Wow, so you’re like from Pakistan? Or India? I’m still a little confused about that.” I laughed, turning back to my spaghetti. “Both, actually. My mum’s one hundred percent Indian and my father’s the one from Pakistan. We live in Pakistan, though and we occasionally vacation to India to see the rest of the family.”

He nodded in understanding. “Right. But wait, didn’t you say you had a friend from London or Bradford, rather? What was his name again? He sounded familiar.” I sighed, annoyed to have to bring his name up. “I did. His name’s Zayn.” Oli tensed slightly at his name, putting on an awkward half smile when I looked at him questioningly. “You know him?” Oli nodded, looking everywhere but at me. “Yeah, I sure fucking do. The guy’s a prick, Eesha. You should consider staying with someone else.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Believe me, I know he is. I don’t know what is problem is with me. The last time we saw each other was when we were practically toddlers. I don’t see how I could’ve left such a horrible impression on him at such a young age.” He laughed, relaxing up a bit from his earlier tenseness. “Yeah, I know what you mean. But seriously, since you know I’m not some rapist out to get you -- I have a place here if you want. We have a spare guest bedroom at the end of the hall. That is, if you’d be comfortable.”

I scrunched my nose up. “Are you sure dear Rachel would be fine with that? She doesn’t seem to have really taken a liking to me which wasn’t really possible seeing as I haven’t said more than two words to the girl.” Oli shrugged. “She’s not the most sociable person in the world. And she’s more of a guy’s girl, you know? She can hardly stand to be around her own gender.” I laughed, Oli grinning at me. “Well then, I will definitely consider your offer. I really don’t feel like dealing with being a burden at Zayn’s and his friends’ house. I really like the other boys but I don’t want to deal with constant nagging, you know?”

We laughed a little longer, talking about random things that had nothing to do with anything when a loud pounding on the front door could be heard. We ceased all sounds as Oli got up to open the door, stepping back when the figure emerged, storming inside as if he owned the place. “Zayn,” I rolled my eyes. “What are you doing here?” But Zayn didn’t do anything as much as look at me. He went straight in for Oli, shoving him up against the wall in anger. “What the fuck have you done to her, you worthless piece of shit? Huh? Tell me!”

My eyes widened as I got up, trying to intervene between the two. “He hasn’t done anything Zayn! He’s completely harmless! You’re the only one acting like a lunatic here!” He wasn’t phased by my words, practically growling he was so angry. He shoved Oli up against his wall several more times, surely leaving a bruise where Zayn was gripping his arms and on the back of his head as it collided with the wall.

“Shut it, Eesha! You have no idea what this guy is capable of! He’s good at worming his way into a girl’s heart and then just when you think he fancies you -- BAM! He dumps you on your arse. Do you want that to happen to you? Do you?” I looked between him and Oli, Zayn’s enraged face contrasting with Oli’s fearful one, though I could tell he was trying to put up a strong front.

I didn’t know what to believe. All I knew was that he was right about one thing. I didn’t know Oli nearly as well as I’d like to think I did; there was no way I could judge his character. After all, the boy nearly scared me half to death when he approached me out in the streets. He could be anything and everything Zayn said he was. I just found myself not wanting to believe it. He seemed so kind. But even though he was nice enough to invite me into his home and cook me dinner, even if he was a prick despite all that, he didn’t deserve what Zayn did to him next.