Get Your Kicks

I had never felt so alone when I was with my group of friends. I knew I could go talk to Elle, Healey, or Tay, but they had their own things to worry about, and the only person I really wanted to talk to was Darcy.

I never meant to hurt her – she had to know that – and I felt awful about the things I said. In all the time I’d known her, I always claimed that I was just looking out for her. I insisted it was my job to protect her. I was doing my best, but in doing that, I only hurt her. I imagined what I did hurt worse than anything that boy would ever do, simply because I was supposed to be her friend.

Letting out a sigh, I pressed my back up against the wall, before sliding to the ground. My head fell to my hands, which were set comfortably on top of my knees. Anyone who walked by would clearly know that I was upset, and I wasn’t sure if that was what I had wanted. Knowing me, it probably was.

“Brenna?”

I pulled my head from my hands to look up, and was immediately met with Niall’s soft blue eyes. In the short time I had known him, I realized how caring he was. He was always the one who was looking out for everyone else. He was a lot like me, but he probably didn’t screw up as much as I did.

“Hey, Niall,” I said, as I quickly forced a smile to my face. “What’s up?”

“I was just about to head to bed,” he replied, while he scratched the top of his head. “Is everything alright?”

I bit my lip and nodded, but it was obvious that I wasn’t fooling him. His eyebrows furrowed, before he quickly sat next to me, pressing his back against the wall just as I was. Something about just being next to someone else was comforting in that moment, even though the person I really wanted to see was Darcy.

“It’s Darcy, isn’t it?” He twisted his head in my direction, and I couldn’t help but look back. He had those soft, sweet eyes that covered his face. There was no way I couldn’t confess all my secrets to him, and I wondered if he knew that about himself.

“She doesn’t hate you, you know?” Niall continued. His voice was soft and comforting, as though he’d given this advice a thousand times before. “She’s upset, but she doesn’t hate you.”

I let out a sigh. I wanted to trust Niall’s opinions, but he didn’t know for sure. The only way he could really know is if he heard it himself.

“I didn’t mean to hurt her,” I said, as I folded my hands on top of one another. “I just want to make sure Harry –”

I cut off midsentence, realizing that I shouldn’t say anything about his friend. He was probably just as defensive about Harry as I was about Darcy.

He looked back at me with his still soft eyes, and it was clear he had no idea why I stopped.

“You wanted to make sure Harry…” He rolled his hands, urging me to continue on. He didn’t seem like the type to get angry, but I really couldn’t be sure. After I paused for far too long, Niall finished the sentence for me. “You wanted to make sure Harry didn’t sleep with your friend?”

“No,” I said quickly, shaking my head, before looking back at him. He knew I was lying, so I shut my eyes and continued. “Well, yes.”

Niall chuckled. “Harry’s not all bad, you know? A lot of people think he is, but he’s not.”

I looked at Niall’s smiling face and wondered if he was right. I knew very little about Harry and everything I did know had been provided by tabloids with their own agendas. Of course, even guys who wanted so badly to be good occasionally acted bad around Darcy. It was part of her charm.

“Now, I’m not saying he won’t sleep with your friend,” Niall continued. “She’s rather fit, and Harry’s got a thing for girls like her. But, I promise his plan is not to hurt her.” Niall looked at me, with his lips pursed. “Right now, the only one hurting her is you.”

His words hit me like a ton of bricks, and I knew immediately that he was right. In my effort to protect her, I’d done the one thing I was protecting her from. I was a shitty friend, to say the least, but Darcy and I had been through thick and thin together.

I had to find a way to make it up to her and get her to forgive me, and with Niall’s help, I thought I could do just that.