Diana

Ten
Diana’s P.O.V.
Nervous? Yes. Excited? Yes. Scared? Out of my mind.
“Okay,” Niall said into the phone. “We’re ready.” He held me in a one armed hug. There was a sigh from the other end of the line. “Okay, her name is Neala Hanrahan.” Neala. There was no stopping the grin spreading across my face. My name was Neala! I repeated it over and over in my head. Neala, Neala, Nee-la. The woman continued, “She is 16 years old. Her birthday is August 11th. She’s from Grant County, West Virginia.” I was older than anyone thought and American! And I’d just had my birthday the other day! It was all a lot to take in for someone who recently had absolutely no memories. But there was even more too absorb, “Her parents are Dr. Samuel Hanrahan and Marilyn Hanrahan.” My dad was a doctor! “That’s all the information I’m authorized to give you.” She gave Niall the number of a police station that we could contact for more info, and, even though we asked for it, she wouldn’t tell us anything else. As soon as we hung up Niall threw his arms around me, in a famous Horan Hug. “Neala…” I loved the way he said it. It sounded like it was meant to be spoken in an Irish accent. He laughed, “You know that’s the girl version of Niall…? You really are my other half!”

When we got back to the hotel we looked up my name and where I was from on his laptop. As he’d said, my name was the feminine version of Niall. It meant ‘Champion’. It turns out my last name is the original version of Horan. Don’t ask how Hanrahan got to be Horan. I have no idea. But it was still pretty cool.
Then we looked up ‘Grant County, West Virginia’. “Dian- Uh… Neala,” Niall fumbled with my real name, “…We found you in Baltimore Maryland!” I didn’t see what he was so shocked about. He googled the distance between the two, “Almost two hundred miles!” Something about the page he’d clicked on rang a bell. I’d been to this site before. “I biked it,” I mumbled. Niall looked even more shocked, and, hence, more cute. “You what it?” I remembered it a bit clearer now. I’d wanted to go to the concert but I didn’t have a way to get there so I’d found out how far it was to bike. I had almost no sense of distance and thought I could make it on my bike. “Yeah, I biked it.” I said again. Niall found out how long it was to bike. He looked astonished. “12 and a half hours,” He read. I remembered more when I heard that. I told him everything I could remember. How I’d run away two week ago and just wondered at first. Then I’d started to make my way to Baltimore for the concert. I’d almost passed out from exhaustion on the side of the highway and had to hitchhike a few miles until I felt well enough to ride again. I’d been robbed of anything I had of value and almost kidnapped in the outskirts of the city. I had intended to buy tickets from someone with that money. So when I could no longer go to the concert, I’d waited overnight outside the hotel, in hopes it would be the one they were going to be staying at.
When I was finished Niall looked astonished. He wrapped me in another Horan Hug. “Best fans in the world!” He whispered, “That is dedication!” He laughed, “….And also maybe slightly crazy!” It was my turn to laugh now, “We’re not crazy! We’re just excited!” Niall looked at me like I had three heads. “What?” I asked. “You just practically quoted our movie, Diana… Neala I mean.” “You can still call me Diana if you want,” I assured him. “You have a movie?” Niall smiled, “Okay. And yes, we have a movie,” He said proudly, “Want to go watch it?” I smiled softly, “How about after we call that police station?” Niall nodded and picked up is phone to dial the number. It was answered on the third ring by a man, “Grant County police station, deputy Allman speaking. If you have an emergency please call 911. Otherwise, how my I help you?” “Uh, hello,” Niall spoke after he saw that I was too nervous to say anything. “I’m calling about Dian- Neala! About Neala Hanrahan.” The man took a moment to respond, “She’s currently filed as a missing person. Do you know her whereabouts?” I almost started laughing. I remembered leaving a note saying I was fine and I’d be back soon! My parents must be worriers. Niall tried to ignore me and replied, “Yes, she’s here with me. We-“But he was cut off by the man, “We don’t take kindly to kidnapping and ransom you know.” I lost it. They thought Niall had kidnapped me! While I laughed, Niall looked confused. “What? I didn’t kidnap her. She’s here with me. She’s fine. She’s actually laughing right now. It took deputy Allman a long time to respond, “If you’re joking, it’s not funny… If you’re not… Well, I hate to be the one to tell you this but Neala only has her cousins to come back to. Her parents were killed in a car accident three days ago.” The blood in my veins no longer gave me warmth. My mouth hung slightly open in shock. I no longer felt like laughing, or even smiling, or doing anything. I couldn’t cry. My eyes were open but I no longer registered anything. I heard Niall as though through a thick window. His warm touch did nothing to warm me. It was as though I wasn’t really there. I was only aware of my irregular shallow breathing in my tight chest. I vaguely heard Niall’s exchange with the man on the phone. My head spun. Niall must have hung up at some point. “Diana, it’s going to be okay,” His words barely reached me.

Niall’s P.O.V.
I was having a great time with Diana. I was excited for her to find out more about her family. I just wish what we found out could have been different. I didn’t want her to have to go through that. As soon as we’d heard about their death her eyes changed. It was almost as if she’d died. Her eyes no longer looked playful and fun, but dead. That was really the only really was to describe it. I hugged her shaking form and told her over and over again that everything would be alright, even though I knew it was useless, she couldn’t hear me. I found out as much as I could from the police officer. The names the hospital gave us were correct. Her parents had been killed in a car crash caused by a drunk driver. Their funeral was in a week. When I hung up I put all my energy into comforting Diana. I lifted her onto the bed and got her some tea. I held her and did my best to comfort her until she fell asleep. “Oh, Diana,” I whispered, “You don’t deserve any of this awful mess.”

Notes