Chapter 1 - New Neighbors

I woke up on the couch with my neck and back aching. I had fallen asleep on the couch while watching Titanic with my best friend Jessica, who I along with family and friends, call Jessie for short.

The TV was off and Jessie was nowhere in sight telling me that she, unfortunately for her, had finished the movie and went to bed. I, however, had fallen asleep in the middle of the movie thankfully.

I sit up with a groan and rub my neck. I crack it, along with my back. Even though it helped to crack my neck, it was still stiff. I'd have to get on Jessie's butt later for not making me go to bed in my room after the movie ended.

Just as I got up, the back door to our house that we shared swung open. I jumped and looked back to see Jessie herself in a bathing suit, dripping wet. She grins when she see's me and walks over to me.

“Good afternoon, sleepy head. Care to join me for a swim?” she says happily.

I raise an eyebrow. “How can you be swimming? It's the end of May. In Alaska, might I add. It can't be warm enough for a swim.”

She smirks and waves a finger at me. “That's where you're wrong. It's seventy degrees Fahrenheit outside right now. Beautiful swim weather!”

I bite my lip then sigh. It did usually get this hot by the end of the school year, which it was. Jessie and I had just graduated from high school a week ago, marking the end of our torture and our start to a free life. As a signature to our new lives, we moved in together.

“Fine. I'll go get a bathing suit on then meet you out there. Okay?” I say.

She grins. “Alright. I'll be outside. Oh! And apparently that house next to us got sold too. Get this: they're all guys that moved in.”

I raise an eyebrow. “So?”

“So … There's five of them!”

I shrug. “Maybe they're gay.”

Jessie stay silent for a moment, then gets that look on her face like she's thinking. She finally shrugs. “They certainly act that way.”

I chuckle then go to the stairs. “I'll be outside in a minute. And see if you can make friends with them. I want to get to know some of our neighbors around here.”

“Yeah sure! You probably just want some gay friends!” she yells up the stairs.

I laugh. “That too!”

I go into my room and pick out a blue bathing suit. I put a cover on over it then head back downstairs and out the door. Once I ran out, the heat of the sun hit me, stopping me in my tracks. I look up, only to get blinded by the sun. I look back at the built in pool and let the heat of the weather warm up my cold body before I decide to get in. After spending nine months of darkness and fifty below weather, I was itching and craving some sunlight and nice weather like this.

I look around to see if I can spot Jessie somewhere in the fairly large pool, but she's not anywhere in there. I look around the back yard, and eventually spot her standing up on the second wooden bar holding up the seven foot fence, looking over into the neighboring yard.

My eyes widen. “Jessica Renee! Get down from there before you hurt yourself!”

Jessie looks back in surprise then smiles. “Oh. Hey, Marnie. You scared me there a bit.” I heard talking on the other side but can't make out what they're saying. Jessie looks down at the neighboring yard while giggling. “No. That's not my mom. That's my friend Marnie. She lives here with me.”

I furrow my brow and walk over to her. I crane my neck to look up at her, then put my hands in front of my eyes to block the sun from trying to blind me again. “Who are you talking to?”

She pats a part of the fence next to her. “Come up here and see for yourself.”

I sigh and stupidly try to get up next to her to see over the fence, but once I stood up, I quickly realized that I was too short. I looked down at our feet to see that she was on her tip toes to see over the fence. I, being the shorter one of us, couldn't even see if I was standing on my tip toes.

I sighed again and got down. When I looked back at Jessie she was giving me a sympathetic look. I just crossed my arms and pout like a child.

“I'm too short.”

I hear someone on the other side whispering, and then a second later, five heads popped up in a line on the other side of the fence. Jessie jumped down when they appeared and walked over to stand next to me.

The five boys all looked at us and smiled.

“Marnie, Meet Edward, Samuel, James, Ethan, and William. They moved in last night.” Jessie introduced.

I wave once. “Hey. I'm Marnie-Rae. Call me Marnie though.”

They all either waved, smiled, or nodded.

“Nice to meet you.” the guy with the brown, straight hair and a beanie on introduced. His name was Edward.

Oh my god.

He's British!

My eyes bulged. “You're British?!”

They all laughed softly.

“We all are, Love.” the guy with the military-style haircut and sunglasses on said; also in a British accent. This was William.

My eyes widened even more, making them laugh again.

“I'm guessing you like British people, then.” the guy with the black hair and brown eyes said a little glumly. This was Samuel. He, however, didn't sound British.

I furrow my brow and tilt my head to the side. “You're not British.”

He shakes his head. “Irish.”

Just as he said that, I heard something bang against the fence, and Samuel yelped in pain then disappeared. I jumped back in surprise. Then I gasped and put my hand to my mouth.

“Oh my gosh is he okay?!”

The guy with wide-framed glasses and a stubble on his chin rolled his eyes. His name was James. “He's fine.”

I could make out a distinct groan come from their side of the fence.

Jessie chuckled. “Are you sure he's okay?”

The guy with black hair, blue eyes, and was wearing a baseball cap shrugged. This was Ethan. “He will be eventually.”

I stared at Ethan for a moment then blushed when he stared back. I quickly look away and look at Jessie who was smiling at them.

Jessie suddenly gets a look in her eye that tell same she had an idea. She grins. “Hey, why don't you guys come on over? That way we can all get to know each other. If you want that is.”

They all look at each other for a minute. They give each other those looks like they know what each boy was thinking. I know those looks because Jessie and I give each other the very same look. If we don't feel like speaking aloud.

They all looked back at us with smiles. By this time, Samuel had gotten back up but he looked as if he was in extreme pain but was forcing himself to act like he wasn't in any pain at all.

“Sure. We'll be over after we get our trunks on.” William said.

Jessie seemed to blush, but she squealed and clapped. I knew she wasn't really usually this giddy. She was more of a laid-back type of person, so when her being all giddy like this happens, I instantly know that she knew she was blushing, but she was just trying to cover it up. “Well hurry up then!”

William grinned and was gone in a matter of seconds. The rest of the boys followed him.

Once they had disappeared, Jessie immediately stopped giggling and went to the pool. She walked in from the shallow side and swam to the other side.

I raised an eyebrow at her. I slowly smirk when I realized why she was acting so strange. I take my cover off to reveal my bathing suit. I walk over to the diving board – our pool was at least eight feet deep – and walk onto it. Jessie watches me from the sidelines like she usually does. I go to the edge and smirk at her.

“You like William.”

Her mouth dropped open in shock. For a moment I thought that she was silent because I was right. But those thoughts disappeared when she spoke.

“I do not. I mean, not in the way that you're probably thinking.” she started blushing again.

I smirk. “You can't lie to me. You like him.”

She shakes her head. “I just met him. I like him as a friend, but not in the other way.” we both hear a door slam and go silent. “Sh! I think they're coming!”

I shrug and go back to the steps of the diving board. I then run and go head first into the pool, diving. I make sure that I touch the bottom of the pool before surfacing. When I get to the surface, I see the boys fully clothed except for Samuel who was wearing green swim trunks. They clapped.

“I give you a ten on that dive.” William says.

I smile. “Thanks.”

“Are you on the swim team?” Samuel asks.

I shook my head and go to the sidelines. “No. We're not in school anymore. I used to be in the aquatic club but they kicked me off the team.” I say with a simple shrug.

Samuel raised his eyebrows. “Why?”

I shrug again. “Not really sure. They just told me to stop coming one day, which is strange, but I didn't like it very much anyway.” it was my turn to raise an eyebrow. “Now my question is why aren't you guys in your bathing suits except for Sam? Mind if I call you that?”

Sam puts his hands up in front of him and shakes his head with a smile. “Go ahead.”

I smile then look at the guys who looked kind of glum.

“We forgot out swim trunks back in the U.K.” James said.

I frowned. Before I could say anything, Jessie beats me to it.

“Well you're lucky summer just started. Old Navy will probably be putting out their summer collection, which means they'll have bathing suits out for an amazing deal.”

Edward scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Oh, well that's, um, good.”

I furrow my brow when he speaks. I stare at all of them for a moment. They all eventually stare back at me, all looking shocked. I swim away towards Jessie who was still at the other end. I whisper to her ear while staring at the guys with a confused expression.

“I have a suspicion.” I whisper.

“Yeah? And what's that?” she whispers back.

I hesitate before I tell her: “I think One Direction is one our property.”

Zayns POV

Marnie swam to Jessie and whispered something in her ear while staring at us. Jessie blinked in surprise then busted out laughing. The boys and I all stared, shocked.

“You're so funny, Marnie. Please, do tell me another joke.” she said with obvious sarcasm.

Marnie blushes then turned away from her. She hopped out of the pool. My world all of a sudden stopped when she did.

Marnie. Is. Beautiful.

Her long black hair soaked with water glistened in the sun. Her pale skin was bright and beautiful. She was skinny, but not so skinny that she looked anorexic. She wasn't skinny at the same time, however. She was perfect.

As she got closer to us, I noticed something.

Tattoo's.

She has tattoo's.

She didn't have a whole lot. She didn't have so many that she had turned herself into a human canvas. She had a few.

I hadn't realized I was staring until she stopped just five feet from me. I looked into her beautiful blue eyes and felt a blush start to surface on my cheeks.

“Take a picture,” she says. “It lasts longer.”

I blink in surprise before she grabs a towel and wraps herself in it. She grabs her cover and walks inside. I watch her the entire time.

“What was that all about?” Louis says, making me turn back around to see Jessie swimming over to where Niall was. He was the only one able to go in the water because he didn't have any tattoo's that possible fans could easily identify him by. Louis, Liam, Harry and I did. He had lied when we said we had forgotten our swim trunks. We just didn't want to be recognized.

She sighs when she's next to Niall, who was looking at her curiously. “Marnie just jumps to conclusions really fast. Sometimes too fast.”

Liam raises his eyebrow. “Was that what all that was about? Was she jumping to a conclusion about something?”

She nods. “Most definitely. An unlikely conclusion at that.”

“What was said conclusion?” Louis asked.

Jessie stared at him for a moment and blushed. Then she smiled. “Don't worry about it. It's not important.” then she sighed. “So since you four can't swim at the moment, why don't we just have a cookout?”

“Yeah, that sounds like fun. Lads? What do you think?” Louis said, turning to us. He was a little quick to answer.

I nod. “I'm game.” as long as I could spend time and get to know Marnie...

“Of course I'm in. There's going to be free food.” Niall said happily.

Jessie chuckled then stopped herself. She furrowed her brow and looked at him for a moment before shaking her head.

What was that all about?

Liam shrugged. “Might as well.”

Harry just nodded.

Jessie smiled and hopped out of the pool herself. I could have swore I heard Louis intake a sharp breath, but I convince myself that I just imagined it. Jessie walked over to a chair and grabbed a towel. She wrapped herself up in it while Niall got out of the pool but sat on the edge, letting his legs dangle in the water.

“I'll go and get some food and the grill and we'll start the cookout. Sound fun?” Jessie says as she walks to the door. “Sound okay, Marnie?!” she yells.

“Yeah! Whatever!” Marnie's voice yelled from above.

We all look up to see Marnie learning out of a window. Her bedroom window, I'm guessing.

We locked eyes again and she smirked. She held a red camera out the window as far as she could.

“Hey, Ethan! … Catch.”

It took me a moment to realize that she was talking to me. Ethan was the fake name I had agreed on using. Although I would have preferred using something else, something cooler, that would have been too obvious.

More obvious than Louis being William, Liam being James and Harry being Edward.

I run up and catch the camera that she dropped with both of my hands just before it hits the ground. I look at her, only to see her smirking. She closed her window and disappeared.

I turn the camera over and look at the picture displayed on the screen. I was shocked to see a selfie of Marnie there. It looked like she had taken the picture not five minutes ago because she was wet and in her bathing suit, which in a picture, made her seem gorgeous.

I blushed and turned the camera off. I stuffed it into one of the oversized pockets of my pants.

Jessie appeared in the doorway leading into their house with a plate of raw meat in one hand, and a plate of meat, cheese, and crackers in the other. I didn't even realize that she had disappeared.

Louis instantly goes up to her and tries to help her, but she dodges him and simply says, “I got it.” Louis being the stubborn boy that he is, helps anyway by carrying the plate full of raw meat.

Jessie sets the plate of snacks down on a table while Louis sets the raw meat down on a tray attached to the grill. They turn towards each other.

“Thanks for the help, Will. I appreciate it.” she says with a blush.

Louis, or William, or Will, smiles. “It's not a problem.”

They stare at each other in the eyes for a moment. When the both start blushing a little, they turn their backs on each other nervously.

Huh. Weird.

Marnie came back out dressed in shorts and a tank top, and a radio was in her hand. She set it down on a chair and smiled.

“Music anyone?”

Before anyone could answer, she turned it on. She had turned it on in the middle of the song Radioactive by Imagine Dragons. She smiled slightly and turned it up. She flopped down onto a chair and started messing on what I'm guessing is her phone.

I look around and see everyone talking to at least one person except for Marnie. I smile and sit in the chair next to her. She instantly looks at me and gives me a small smile. My heart skips a beat.

“Hey.” I smile.

“Hi.”

I bite my lip to think of something to say. I quickly try to think of something. I eventually do, it just took a while.

“So uh, do I get to keep the camera or what?” I ask.

I smirk slightly when I see her face turning red. It disappears quickly though. She shrugs. “Yeah. I guess. I'm getting a new one anyway.”

I grin, just happy that I get a cute picture of her.

I soon realize that our short conversation had ended when a silence grew between us. I again try to think of something quickly to get back to talking to her.

“So … You have tattoo's?” I say casually.

Marnie chuckles and shrugs. “A few.”

I scratch the back of my neck. “Well … What are they?”

She rolls her wrist to show me a tattoo there on the inside of her wrist just below her palm that says “stay beautiful.” A little ways away from that there's another tattoo that says in all capital letters: “POSSESSED.”

She takes her hand away and moved her hand down to her ankle. She starts to lightly scratch it, but anyone could tell that she was faking it.

I raise an eyebrow. “Is that it?” I already know the answer to this.

She shrugs. “Don't make fun of me when I show you my next one, okay?”

I'm mentally shocked by this. “Why would I make fun of you?”

Marnie didn't smile, but instead rolled her ankle over to reveal a tattoo that surprised me.

“One Direction Infection.”

I stared at it for a moment then looked at her. “You're a fan of One Direction?”

She bit her lip, making my heart skip a beat. “Yeah. I'm not ashamed either. If you think I'm a freak for that, you're wasting your time time telling me that because I don't care. Those boys saved my life.”

My eyes widened.

I … I saved her life?

“O-oh.” I said nervously. “How um, did they save it?”

Marnie looked away. “I did some bad things in life and started causing trouble at school and at home. But then I got introduced to One Direction and I started focusing on them more instead of other stuff. They dragged me out of all the shit I was caught up in before things really got worse.”

I blinked a few times in surprise. I knew that they lads and I had saved lives; but we never knew how we did. Now I know. I'm glad it was Marnie's life that we … that I saved.

“Well that's enough about me. What about you? Do you have any tattoo's?” she asked casually while looking at me.

I start to panic and look away. “Uh … Yeah … A few.”

She smiles, making my heart pound. “What are they? Can I see?”

I wipe my sweaty forehead. “Uh … Maybe later. I'm going to go get a drink of water. It's burning hot out here. Do you want something?”

She shook her head. “No thanks.”

I reluctantly get up and walk away towards an outdoor table that had refreshments on them. I grabbed a water and sipped it as I stared at Marnie who was now leaning back in her chair with her eyes close, obviously sun bathing.

She looked damn fine.

 What is this girl doing to me?