iMate

Pushing her hair behind her ear, Eden followed behind one of the boys’ bodyguards, who she hadn’t caught the name of, down a long hallway. Even though there were a series of concrete walls separating them and the stage, Eden could still hear the fans screaming the boys’ names. They had become a worldwide sensation overnight – or at least it seemed that way to Eden.

One minute Harry had been her best friend, working at a bakery and spending weekends with her at parties. The next minute, he was a pop star, with girls falling at his feet and doing anything to get in his pants. Okay, so it really wasn’t that different from high school. Girls had always been screaming Harry’s name, now he was just a lot busier than before.

After turning one final corner, the bodyguard stuck a key into the last door on the left and pushed it open. Waving his arm, he motioned for Eden to step through the door, before closing it behind her.

Her gaze shifted around the large room, which was covered with the boys’ clothes and shoes. A row of mirrors sat on one end, and a rack of clothes on the other. There were a few large sofas placed in the center of the room, presumably so the boys could relax before the show. The entire dressing room was decorated to the nines with all of the boys’ favorite things, even though they would only be doing three shows at the venue.

Despite being friends with Harry for as long as she could remember, and going to a countless number of his shows, she had never been in the dressing room before and she didn’t know what was off limits. Eden’s eyes fell upon the sofa once more and she made an executive decision to sit on it. Surely, the boys wouldn’t mind her using the sofa until they got back. She could only hope they wouldn’t, and if they did, Harry would stand up for her. She hoped.

An itch fell behind her ear, reminding her again of the small chip located behind it. It had only itched three or four times in the weeks since it had been implanted, and that itch was the only reminder that it was even there. She hadn’t gotten any reaction out of it – had gotten that pulse that the people from Apple had told her about – and she was thankful for it. She wasn’t quite ready to accept her fate.

Eden crashed against the sofa and had only been sitting for a few moments when the knob on the door began to turn. A smile fell to her lips immediately, just at the simple thought that her best friend would be walking through it at any second. It had been nearly a month since the last time she’d seen him.

His hair was a curly mess as usual, and her thoughts raced to the thousands of times she’d heard girls gush about it. Even in high school, his hair had been his claim to fame and it was one of the many reasons he never had trouble getting girls.

“Eden,” Harry said, a large grin on his face. He shouted her name from the doorway, with sweat pooled around his face. The other boys entered the room as well, each of them sending her a smile and a quick hello. As if on cue, they all began taking off their clothes at once.

Eden pressed her hands to her eyes immediately. They were constantly undressing around her – one of the many perks of being tossed in the friend zone. Along with the privilege of setting Harry up with all of her friends, Eden was lucky enough to be deemed okay to get naked around. She was so far in the friend zone she was hanging out with Ron Stoppable. Not that she minded.

She would happily sit on Harry’s ‘friend bench’ as long as it meant she got to see Liam. He’d shown pretty much no interest in her, and was constantly tossing jokes her way, just like the other boys, but she couldn’t help but have a space in her heart for him. There was something about him that just sent her body racing and she couldn’t help it. She’d never tell Harry that, though. He’d never let her hear the end of it.

With her hand still over her eye, she separated her fingers just a little bit, and peeked over at Liam. He was pulling a fresh shirt over his head, and she caught a small glimpse of his perfect abs. His body was like something out of magazine, so flawless that it looked photo-shopped. If she hadn’t seen it for herself, she would think it was. He was perfect like a freshly cut diamond.

Yes, she loved her comfortable place in the friend zone and the perks that came with it – the many, many perks.

“When did you get into the city?” Harry asked, as he took a few quick steps towards her and slammed against the sofa. She took it as her cue to remove her hand, and turned her gaze to him. His feet were raised on one end, while his head rested against the other.

Eden smiled at him, debating whether or not to toss his feet to the floor. “Just a while ago. I haven’t been here long.”

“Did you have enough time to snoop through our things?” Louis asked, shooting her a cheeky grin. She had thought about it her whole ride over, but it was their first week back in the UK and she didn’t imagine they’d have anything good stashed away yet. ‘Anything good’ referring to the odd things that girls tossed on stage. One of Eden’s favorite things to do was sift through it and laugh.

Letting out a laugh, Eden shook her head. “I thought I’d wait for you guys to do that.”

“Good plan,” Liam said, moving to take a seat on the other sofa. Eden silently cursed Harry for taking up the entire sofa and not leaving Liam a place to sit next to her. He didn’t know any better, but he’d still done it.

The moment she received the iMate, Eden knew she had to touch Liam the next time she saw him. She needed to know if the boy she’d been watching from afar since Harry had joined X Factor was the same boy she was destined to be with. She hoped that he was. She wanted the validation that her constant pining hadn’t been for nothing.

“I think Paul’s off to pick it all up once the venue clears out. Tonight’s haul is sure to be at least an hour’s worth of entertainment.”

With any luck, Liam would be right, and they’d have all the entertainment they’d need for the evening. Louis would probably leave to spend some time with Eleanor, but the rest of them could occupy themselves with the interesting ploys of the fan girls.

Pushing his feet back down to the floor, Harry stood up from his place next to Eden. He moved over to the small refrigerator in the corner, and after pulling a Pepsi from it, moved back over to the sofa.

When he passed by Eden again, he smiled down at her. “Missed you.”

“Missed you, too,” Eden said, sharing his same smile. It was the same odd one they’d given each other since they were kids, the smile that was shared only between them.

His hand moved to her hair, fluffing it around until it was a tangled mess that would be nearly impossible to deal with.

That one touch sent a flare throughout her whole body. It went from the top of her head to the tip of her toes, as if it was a wave that coursed through her. The strange pulse was like nothing she’d ever felt before. It felt good, and happy, and unnatural all at the same time. She didn’t even have to think about it.

Eden knew immediately that the strange feeling still ringing throughout her body was her iMate signaling to her that Harry – the boy she’d known since primary school, the one she’d set up with countless of her friends, the one she’d never had a single romantic feeling for in her life – was the boy she was destined to be with forever.