Secrets

I move my head from side to side, cracking the bones to get rid of some of the stiffness that has settled from craning my neck to look at Molly for hours on end. I would have just turned my body to face her while she talked, but since Liam was sitting on my other side, I would have cut him out of the conversation completely. So I suffered, but I’m kind of regretting it now.

“You okay there, Harry?” Louis asks with an amused expression on his face.

“Fine,” I lie with a tight smile. “Just a little nervous for the show tonight.”

Zayn slaps a hand on my back reassuringly. “You’re gonna be fine, mate. I promise.”

“But we’re in Washington D.C.,” I remind him. “What if Obama’s here?”

Niall bursts out laughing while Liam turns to me and says, “Why the hell do you think Obama is a fan of ours? He’s a grown man, Harry.”

“He has daughters!” I defend. “Maybe they’re fans. And it’s not like he wouldn’t be able to afford the tickets.”

“Um…I’m pretty sure we could let Obama see our concert for free if he wanted to,” Niall speaks up with raised eyebrows.

“Good point,” I nod. “We wouldn’t want to get on his bad side.”

“Oh my God, you guys!” Zayn laughs. “Obama is not here. Just stop it.”

It’s quiet for a second before I grumble and say, “Now I kind of wish that Obama was here. That’d be awesome, if we could say that the president of America came to our concert.”

“But he could declare war on England if we’re really bad,” Louis points out.

“It doesn’t work like that…” Zayn trails off. “I’m pretty sure that there’s, like, a Parliament or something that has to approve of the war.”

“It’s called Congress,” Molly interjects from across the room. “It’s just like Parliament, though, I think. And Zayn’s right. They’re the only ones that can declare war.”

I crinkled up my nose. “That’s so dumb. What’s the point of the president, then?”

“Um…” Molly chuckles, “to keep the country from falling into anarchy, maybe? Plus, the president gets to request for war. It’s just that Congress has the final say.”

“Oh, okay,” I sigh. “So, if Obama were here, and we sucked, and he wanted to declare war on England, he’d have to ask first. And then maybe Congress would back him up.”

“I have a feeling Congress would find the suggestion a little ridiculous,” Liam tells me as seriously as he can.

“Oh my God, why are we discussing this?!” Zayn exclaims, snickering. “Obama isn't here, so this is all a moot point.”

I let out a dramatic sigh and put my hand on my hip, trying to act sassy. “Okay, so let’s say that, hypothetically, Obama is here. Do you think he’d wear a suit to keep up his appearances, or that he’d dress in a pair of jeans and an I Love Louis t-shirt?”

“YES!” Louis cheers, throwing his fist in the air. “I’m the president’s favorite!”

“Hypothetically,” I add.

“Right. Hypothetically,” Louis jokes.

“Hmmm…” Niall wonders aloud, his hand stroking his chin. “I’m thinking he’d wear the Louis t-shirt and jeans. He doesn’t want to stand out, right?”

“He’s going to stand out anyway,” Molly throws in. “His face is kind of famous. Not just his suits.”

“Good point,” Niall allows. “But still. He wants to blend. And I’m pretty sure he doesn’t wear suits twenty-four-seven.”

“Now I want to meet him and ask that question…” I express.

“Sorry for the wait, boys,” the stage manager apologizes as he finally appears, even though we were told he was coming ten minutes ago. “We couldn’t find the packs. But it’s all good now.”

We get hooked up to our packs and put the plugs in our ears, making sure that they work well enough to block out most of the noise and keep us on key.

“Good luck with your show!” one of the stagehands grants before she disappears around the corner.

“Uh…thank you!” Liam calls out, even though she’s already gone.

“Does it kill you a little bit inside when you don’t have a chance to be polite?” I tease him, bumping my hip against his.

“A little bit,” he sniffles, wiping away an imaginary tear. “My mother would be so disappointed in me if she found out.”

“Oh, please.” Louis shakes his head. “There’s no way she could. The bird ran away before you could say anything.”

“I’m just kidding, Louis.” Liam turned to his friend and stuck out his tongue.

The sound of the beginning notes of What Makes You Beautiful broke up our conversation, along with the sound of the roaring crowd.

The boys and I shot each other excited looks before I snuck a peek at Molly. She was sitting on the couch, very calmly.

When she caught me staring, she grinned and gave me a thumbs-up.

I smiled back at her and made a show of blowing her an obnoxious kiss. She rolled her eyes, but giggled anyway.

“You guys are so gross,” Louis muttered under his breath.

“Someone’s jealousss!” I sing-songed teasingly.

After glaring at me, we took our cues and ran onto the stage, the adrenaline already pumping through my veins.