"To be fair, when we make tents, I'm normally the one who just pretends to be busy the whole time." ― Louis Tomlinson


"There's no bears here, right guys?" Liam asked as we followed the path to our camping destination.

"Of course there are. We're in a national park! How thick are you, Liam?" Niall laughed, adjusting the strap of his large bag. I laughed along with the Irishman, walking next to Harry. The four boys had decided to go on a camping trip, seeing as they had more free time now because of their break. Harry had requested that I come along because he wanted to spend as much time with me as possible. I agreed when I had found out that the other boys wanted me to come just as bad. So here I was, the only female amongst four of the biggest idiots I had ever met in my life.

"We'll be safe, Liam." I said.

"How do you know, Mel?" I smiled when he called me by my nickname.

"As Niall said, it's a national park. And the place where we are setting up camp is protected so no large predators will come and kill us. No need to fret." I reassured the whole group, not just Liam.

"There's my nature girl." Harry grinned, kissing my head. He would've wrapped an arm around my waist or shoulders but both of his hands were full, holding essential for our camping trip. Harry and I had been dating for almost a year now and it had been amazing so far. His love was like nothing else I had ever experienced and he made me so happy every single day. I felt like the luckiest girl in the world.

"Here we are!" Louis yelled triumphantly, dropping all of his bags and holding his arms out, smiling like a goof. Our area was filled with tall spiralling trees as the sun streamed down in bright beams of gold through the branches, the green leaves catching the light. I had been camping many times before with my family when I was younger and I always loved it. I loved nature so being in it without the business of civilisation was a perfect stress-reliever.

"Right. Time to get to work." Harry said, pushing his large backpack off followed by our esky and a bag full of torches.

We had already given each other jobs before we arrived so we didn't have to worry about figuring that out now. Harry and Niall were assigned to put up the tents, Liam and Louis needed to go and get some logs for a fire tonight and my job was to unpack everyone's bags when the tents were up. I felt bad sitting there, watching all the boys work. I felt bad so I got up and offered to help putting up the tents.

"No, you don't have to, baby." Harry said as I pulled out the instructions.

"I want to. I can't not help." I fought back and started to work on constructing a tent. I had done it before so it wasn't that hard. Harry and Niall were about halfway through putting theirs when I finished my first one. As I started on my second one, Louis and Liam returned with the logs.

"Well, looky here, Melissa's an expert at all this. She's better than you, Harold." Liam laughed, helping Louis place the logs in the centre of our campsite. I smiled at Harry who rolled his eyes and continued to help Niall with putting up their tent. We only bought four of them with us because Harry and I would share one. It'd be easier than bringing an extra one and for us, it would feel like sleeping in separate bedrooms so the two of us in one tent sounded much more appealing.

Louis collapsed into a camp chair, running his hand through his hair. He looked exhausted from carrying the logs and a sheen of sweat covered the top of his chest, his loose shirt clinging to his frame.

"You're such a baby, Louis." I laughed, tossing my ponytail behind my shoulder.

"Baby? I am 25!" He gasped.

"Need I remind you that I am older than all four of you?"

Louis opened his mouth to speak but realised he had been defeated. I bit back a smile as I completed my second tent. There was one more to go and my arms were starting to get a little tired. I noticed Liam was gone, probably to get more logs, and Harry and Niall had almost finished their first tent. The only person I could ask for help was Louis.

"Up you get, Tomlinson." I demanded, walking over to him and patting him on the shoulders.

"Why?" He groaned.

"You're going to help me set up the last tent."

"Can't you see that I am tired?" Louis stared up at me in surprise.

"Like I said, you're a baby. Now help me please." You stated and lifted the tent material off the forest floor, trying to find one end of it.

"You try carrying fucking heavy logs for a fair distance. Not fun, Mel." Louis said, getting up from the chair and standing opposite me, finding the other end of the tent. I didn't blame him actually. Getting logs was something I had never done nor would I ever do. It seemed more of a manly job to me.

With Louis's help, I got the fourth tent up, so they formed a circle around our campsite. A selection of logs lay in the centre, thick ones and thin ones, pieces of bark peeling off. I chuckled as the boys tried to build some kind of pyre but failed miserably when all the logs came crashing down onto the grass. They shouted at each other and the name-calling started with Liam calling Louis an idiot to which he shouted back with a smart remark of, "As if you could do any better, you dolt!" Niall was just laughing his head off, echoing off the trees that became a fortress around us. Harry came up beside me and took my hand.

"Want to go for a walk?" He suggested. I nodded and let him lead me into the forest, leaving the three boys to bicker amongst themselves.

Birds tweeted in the trees and the rustles of bushes made me smile. This was the world how it was supposed to be. Not buildings everywhere with cars and trains and buses where the light blocked out the shining stars. The real world was where the sun could shine down on forests and sparkle across lakes and oceans, where animals could be free from danger and where flowers could bloom in the four seasons.

"You know, I think I can still hear Niall laughing." Harry giggled, looking over his shoulder. I smiled and gripped his arm with my other hand, squeezing his fingers with my own.

"His laugh is a force of nature itself." I explained with a joking way. Niall's laugh was pure joy if I was being honest. It was infectious. Whenever he laughed, there was at least one person who laughed too. But it wasn't Niall's laugh that I had fallen in love with. It was Harry's. So cute and high like that of a little boy's because Harry was a kid at heart. Full of spirt and playfulness. I didn't know how he was 23. He was more like 8. But I wouldn't have him any other way.

The trees cleared around us to reveal a shining lake. Mountains stood tall on the other side and the blue water glittered under the streaming sunlight. The sky was blue with no cloud in sight. The only sounds were the animals that remained hidden and the water lapping up onto the grey stones. It was a beautiful sight and it made me never want to leave. No-one else was staying here because the boys had told the manager of the national park that we would like to be left alone for a couple of nights.

"Wow." Was all I could say. Harry wrapped his arm around my waist and kissed my temple.

"You're the "wow" factor here, Melissa."

"How can you say that when there's this view?!" I asked him in disbelief.

"Because no view is better than my gorgeous girlfriend." Harry said with a wide grin, flashing his pearly whites. His smile was going to be death of me one day. Just a single smile from him could light up my day. Then, his arm was gone from my waist, and I saw that he was taking his T-shirt off.

"What are you doing?"

"Let's go in." He said cheekily, taking his boots and socks off before unbuttoning his jeans.

"In the lake? It'll be freezing!" I opened my mouth in shock as he took his jeans off so he was only in his boxers.

"Come on, baby, it'll be fun! Don't make me drag you in."

I frowned at him and sighed. He smiled when I opened the buttons of my denim shirt, taking it off along with my jacket. I shed my shoes, socks and jeans so I was just in my bra and panties. Harry didn't give me any warning and threw me over his shoulder like a ragdoll. I squealed when he slapped my butt as he ran into the water.

Yep, it was freezing but it didn't matter because Harry's laughing made it so fun. He threw me into the water and my entire body went under. I resurfaced to see him with an expression of glee on his face, his long wet curls turning shades darker. We acted like teenagers, splashing water at each other and pushing each other around. Harry grabbed me and pulled me to his chest, crashing his mouth down on mine. I slid my soaked arms around his neck and tangled my fingers in his hair, titling my head to the side to intensify the kiss. We didn't have to worry about anything and anyone. Right here, right now, we were together without the prying eyes of the media on us. I smiled against his lips and he pecked the tip of my nose.

"You two are revolting!"

Both Harry and I looked at the shore to see the other boys walking out of the trees. Louis had his hands on his hips, acting all macho. Of course it was him that had shouted at us. He wasn't one for PDA so whenever Harry and I kissed, he would complain. Too bad for him. We were in love so Louis would just have to suck it up.

"Oh, just piss off!" Harry yelled and guided me in his arms deeper into the lake.

"Why do you look angry?" I asked, massaging his wet curls.

"Louis always has to interrupt us, I don't like it. I can never kiss you without him making a comment." Harry growled, meshing his lips with mine. I moaned into the kiss, my body craving more of his flavour. I ran my fingernails down his chest, breaking away from him.

"Let's just have some fun, babe. Forget about it." I told him, waving my hands around the surface of the water to keep myself afloat. But before Harry could respond, he was pushed underwater from a one Niall Horan who looked very pleased with himself.

"Niall! Why did yo- Hey!" I screamed as a pair of arms went around my waist, lifting me up. It definitely wasn't Harry and I quickly discovered who it was as a deep English voice started to chuckle.

"Liam James Payne, let me go this instant!" I laughed. His arms released me and I turned around, giving him a face full of water. He cried out as he wiped his eyes and I said it was payback for scaring the shit out of me.

A large water fight blew up, the boys attacking each other, shouting and laughing. These weren't the megastars that people knew. These were the true boys of One Direction. Silly but perfect just the way they were. I loved all four of them so much and was thankful to have them be a part of my life. As of now, I wouldn't know where I would be without them.

0*0

The fire burned, bright orange flames licking the logs as small embers flew into the air. We sat around it in a circle, Harry on my left and Niall on my right. I waved my stick at the fire, toasting my marshmallows.

"It's so quiet." Niall said.

"We're in a forest, dimwit." Louis retorted with a chortle.

"How about you guys sing something?"

All four boys looked at me and I gulped deeply, shrugging my shoulders.

"Only if you want to." I added, my eyes moving to Harry. His hand glided across my knee and he turned to look at the boys.

"What do you think, lads? Bit of a sing song?"

They all agreed to it and Harry started off, his gentle voice music to my ears.

"I wanna write you a song.
One as beautiful as you are sweet.
With just a hint of pain
For the feeling that I get when you are gone.
I wanna write you a song."

Hearing the song in acapella was a treat. With no music to accompany the lyrics, it made Harry's voice sound much more raw. I could really appreciate his tone. I looked over at Liam as it was his turn to sing.

"I wanna lend you my coat.
One that's as soft as your cheek.
So when the world is cold
You'll have a hiding place you can go.
I wanna lend you my coat."

Then it was Louis's voice to pierce the silence.

"Oooh, everything I need I get from you.
Oooh, giving back is all I wanna do."

The boys harmonised during the "oooh's" as well as on the "you" and the "do". Without no guitar, no music, no beats, they showed their true talent. Their gentle voices that held vulnerability and emotion. I wondered if Harry would ever write a song for me one day. But I knew that if he did, he wouldn't tell me. He would let me figure it out on my own.


"I'm so sleepy." I yawned against Harry's shoulder.

"Time for bed then. Night, lads." Harry said, pulling me to my feet.

"Night, boys." I said and they chorused back with "Good night" and "See you in the morning, Melissa." As Harry unzipped our tent, we heard Louis say "No fornicating in the tent please." His statement made the two of us laugh, falling into the tent together.

We stripped down to our undergarments and slipped into one sleeping bag, Harry's arms locked around me so I was a prisoner in his cacoon. Heat radiated off his body as I traced his swallow tattoos with my fingertips.

"Thank you for bringing me along, Harry."

"My pleasure, baby. The lads wanted you to come too. Enjoy the world as it is." He breathed aganist my forehead. I rested my cheek on his chest and closed my eyes, welcoming the first moments of sleep. Just as I had drifted off, a loud voice shook the quiet area.

"My marshmallows are burnt!"

"Oh, for God's sake, Niall!" Louis shouted and I heard Liam laugh. Harry pulled me closer and kissed my head. Three more days of this. Oh, what fun!

Notes

Hope you liked this, Melissa! It was quite fun to write :)

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