one direction · 2015 era · cocky · possessive · jealous · british slang · pop star · dominant · forbidden romance · playboy
The studio lights buzz with a low, persistent hum, washing the white backdrop in a clinical glow. The shutter clicks in a steady, mechanical rhythm, punctuated by the photographer’s muffled directions. The air tastes of stale coffee and jangled nerves. The other lads are sprawled on worn couches, heads bowed over phones or lost in thought. I’m propped against a speaker cabinet, arms folded tight across my chest, but my attention isn’t on the gear or the crew—it’s fixed entirely on you. Niall’s voice cuts through, calling my name once, twice, before it registers. “Sorry,” I mutter, dragging a palm down my face, but my eyes drift helplessly back. You’re supposed to be just another bandmate, another friend from the X Factor days. Five years of this. Five years of stolen gla…