Above the Trees

It has been a week since Millie and I joined One Direction on their tour—and it has been the best week of my life. Everything has been perfect. Millie and I just hang out on the tour bus and we get to see the behind the scenes action for the concerts. I think the guys really enjoy having us around since they seem to get bored going on the road so much.

“Have you ever been to Schlitterbahn?” I ask Millie as I pull my long curls into a messy bun in the bathroom of our hotel room.

“No, I haven’t,” she answers, coming into the bathroom to grab her mascara.

“Well, it was voted the world’s best waterpark. I used to go every year when I would come down to visit my Granny in Texas.” I smile at her.

“Cool! Are there like rides and stuff?” Millie absolutely loves roller coasters.

“Of course,” I say. I pause for a moment, licking my lips, and say, “Can I be honest with you?”

“You know it! What’s wrong?” Millie frowns.

I sigh, annoyed with myself. “I’m really nervous about Liam seeing me without make-up. This will be the first time!” I lean on the counter in front of the sink. “I hate how insecure I can be,” I grumble.

“Oh, Ellie!” Millie says softly, putting her hands on my shoulders and rubbing them. “Liam is so crazy about you that I know he’ll think you’re beautiful because, you know what? You are beautiful.” She grins brightly. “And remember, we’re not allowed to talk bad about ourselves or the conversation ends, right?

“Right,” I whisper.

Just then, there is a knock at the door. Millie goes to open it to find Louis standing in his swim trunks and a V-neck tee.

“Ready to go, ladies?” I hear him ask.

“Sure, yeah, we’re ready,” Millie responds.

I exit the bathroom, bracing myself. I slide my feet in my gladiator sandals and I’m ready to go. I follow Millie and Louis down the hall to the guys’ rooms to meet up with the rest of our crew.

“Wow, you look…” Liam trails off when he sees me.

“Yes?” I ask, unsure and amused at his speechlessness.

“…Incredible!” He finishes.

“Thanks,” I answer, taking his hand and nudging his toned arm with my shoulder.

We all cram into a couple of vans to travel to Schlitterbahn. In one vehicle, it is Millie, Niall, Liam and me; in the other, Harry, Zayn and Louis.

“Are you nervous?” Liam murmurs in my ear as we exit the van in the parking lot of the water park.

“About what?” I question, oblivious.

“About being seen in public with me? I mean, are you nervous how the fans will perceive it?” He half-frowns.

“I guess I never thought about it and now that you mention it, I am a little nervous…” I bite my lip. Maybe I should have taken a Klonopin before we left the hotel. But then I feel Liam’s hand around my wrist.

“Don’t worry, love. You’ll be fine. I’ll protect you.” He winks.

“Oh, Liam Payne: my hero!” I exclaim in a mocking tone, bringing my gathered hands up to my chin.

“Hey, you better watch it!” Liam playfully warns, grabbing me by the waist and twisting me around. He attacks my neck with kisses, making me laugh uncontrollably.

“Stop, that tickles!” I giggle, bashing my fist into his arms.

“Would you guys stop messing around?” Niall scolds.

“Yeah, seriously,” Millie chimes in. “Get a room already!”

“Oh, shut up, Millie. We all know you and Niall are the ones that need to get a room!” I retort with a mischievous smile.

“You wanna go, son?” Millie steps forward, puffing out her chest. “I’ll kick your ass right here!” She tries her best to hold a straight face but then a smile peaks across her mouth. “Nah, you’re right!” Millie shrugs.

The seven of us make our way to the front of the waterpark. Liam grabs my hand, proud to show me off. People point and stare—and some younger girls even come up and ask for autographs and pictures. It is fine at first but it gets annoying after a while. I feel like I’m sharing my… boyfriend? With the world! Well, I guess I am. That’s what you get when you are dating a member of One Direction; might as well get used to it.

I step out of the shower in my hotel room, thinking about my day at the waterpark with Millie and One Direction. I spent most of my time in The Torrent, a massive wave river—but Liam got me on some rides.

I put on my bra and panties, hearing the door to the room shut. It must be Millie; she’s spending the night in Niall’s room and must have forgotten something.

“Hey, forget something—oh!” I say, opening the door. “I thought you were Millie…” I then blush, remembering I’m just in my bra and panties.

“That’s okay. I just thought I’d visit for a little while,” Liam responds, standing up from the bed.

“Today was a lot of fun,” I say, not knowing what to do.

“Yeah, it was.” Liam walks over to me, getting close and brushing his fingertips across my cheek. He kisses me softly, grazing his fingers across the skin on my hip, sending goose bumps throughout my body.

“What are you doing?” I ask, breaking the kiss. “Not that I’m not enjoying this. It’s just… what’s going on here?”

“I just want to have a little fun,” Liam murmurs, gripping my waist. He kisses my neck and I feel my insides do a flip-flop.

“Okay. We can have a little fun.” A rascally smile spreads across my face as I lightly push Liam back towards the bed closest to us.

Liam falls back on the mattress and I climb on top of him, straddling his waist. I kiss him deeply and quickly. I practically rip off Liam’s shirt and leave smooches all over his chest. I grip his shoulders and dig my fingernails into them.

“Agh! Careful…” Liam says through gritted teeth.

“Sorry,” I whisper, moving back up to his lips.

With a sudden heave, Liam lifts me up and flips me over, so that he is on top. I support myself on one arm and hold Liam’s cheek in the other hand. Liam goes for my bra clasp and then his hands travels down between my legs, massaging me through my panties.

Suddenly, my stomach drops as anxiety overcomes me. “Wait!” I practically shout.

“What? What’s wrong?” Liam immediately stops and looks me in the eye.

I bite my lip. “There’s… there’s something I need to tell you…”

“What?” There is worry scribbled across Liam’s face.

“I’m… I’m… a virgin…” I hang my head, ashamed that I’ve waited this long to tell him.

“What? You’re… you’re a virgin?” He tries his best to stifle a laugh.

My eyes darken and then I push him off of me. “Get out!” I shout at him.

“What? What did I do?”

“Just get out! If you think it’s funny that I’ve kept myself pure for this long, you can just get out! GET OUT!”

“Fine! If you’re not even going to let me explain, I will get out!” Liam yells, slamming the door behind him.

I plop down on the bed, tears spilling from my eyes. “I thought he was different from the rest… I thought he was going to be the one…”