Even though he had visited Hollywood before, Niall had quite an experience when he found himself in the middle of the street as he'd left the Master of Fate. He had to scurry to the edge of the road to avoid being smashed by an incoming car, but he noticed the car spinning around as the driver noticed him.

The window of the vehicle was rolled down, and the Irish boy could see a woman sitting in the driver's seat with her mouth open in shock. Her eyes were bulging, and her finger rose shakily to point at him. "You- you're Niall. You're that boy my daughter loves... the one who died before she could meet him."

"I'm sorry?" Niall asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You and your band, my daughter loves you! She got tickets to your concert next month and was going to meet you, but you up and disappeared and left the world thinking you'd died. What were you thinking, breaking her poor heart like that?" she fumed, beckoning him toward the side of the car.

It was large and black, and in fact looked more like a combination of a truck and a van than an average car, but Niall had no choice but to obey her gesture. He didn't want to become the next piece of road-kill.

"I'm sorry, love. We never meant to upset our fans. The plane did crash, but we're all okay, at least for now. It would take too long for me to stand here and explain everything, and-" he lowered his voice, "I don't exactly want everyone to know. But if you could take me to your daughter, I'd be happy to explain."

The woman pondered the offer for a moment; her head resting on her tightly clenched knuckles. Finally, she glanced back at him and nodded. "I don't know if you're actually here or if I'm hallucinating that I almost ran over a pop star who's supposed to be dead, but either way I know she'd want to meet you. Come on then, mister, get in the car." There came the sound of a lock clicking.

Niall didn't know what he was expecting, but it definitely wasn't this. He'd thought he'd come back to cheering and shouting, and fans screaming in happiness that he was alive, but he hadn't known how the world would take the death of the most popular boy-band to exist. It seemed it had devastated their fans, and most likely the music market as well.

As they drove, Niall could hear music playing softly from the stereo. Listening closely, he detected faint traces of his own voice, and he was shocked to realize it was a song of their latest album. He hummed the words to "Over Again" and the woman looked back at him, shaking her head.

Soon they were pulling up to a large gated home. When the car stopped, Niall quickly unclipped his belt and got out, enjoying the feeling of fresh air. The woman and her daughter lived quite some way out of the main town, it would appear. As he was finishing stretching, he stood to find the woman standing on the doorstep and waiting for him.

Once inside, the two sat down in a comfortable-looking room stocked with a few couches and a television, as well as some gaming controls. "So, what do you have to say for yourself?"

Niall took a breath in, wondering how he could explain the random, unbelievable, yet utterly real circumstances by which he had lived and was now seated in a fan's living room, talking to her protective mother. "First, let me just say that none of this is my fault, and nothing that happened to us was intended. Also, no matter how strange it seems, everything I'm about to say is a hundred percent true. Can I continue?"

The woman nodded, so he told the story of the crash and his run-in with the Master of Fate, having no idea that his best mates were doing the same thing in different places around the world. He simply told his side of the story, only leaving out the fact that he had come back to find love. At least, that was how he had taken the Master's words.

"Get out," she said, eyes blazing.

"What?" Niall was confused. He had told her all his secrets, and she was just going to kick him out? "I have nowhere to go! I've got nothing now that everyone believes I'm dead, and no place to sleep or eat. I haven't even got money on me. Please, don't just kick me out," he pleaded, but there was no change in her expression.

"Niall Horan of One Direction died five days ago alongside his band mates. You are some sort of imposter, going around spinning a web of lies and trying to steal what used to be his fame. Nobody appreciates a lying beggar."

Niall gasped, offended. "How dare you say that? Of course I'm the real Niall, and I'm telling the truth! Do you even know what it took for me to trust you enough to tell you a secret this big? I don't even know if I was supposed to tell anyone!"

She shook her head, smirking. "You're right, I don't know what liars do to think of their lies." With that, she shoved him out her front door, slamming it on his back.

He slumped against the hard surface, feeling tired and drained from the shouting and storytelling. He knew his story was hard to think about, but did she really have to be so rude about her non-acceptance of the truth?

The disheartened boy slid off the front stoop, moving slowly around the side of the house and into the surrounding trees. He could see a light on from inside one of the upstairs rooms, but he didn't want to chance getting the attention of whoever may be up there. Instead, he flopped down just under the cover of the tree line, burying his head in his hands and curling into a ball to stop his body from uncontrollably shivering.

Niall felt himself at last beginning to lose consciousness, so he allowed his muscles to relax and the tension in his face to ease. He was on the very edge of sleep when he heard a strange noise, as if someone was hissing.

He listened closer and it sounded as if it was deliberate. "Psst," someone was calling out. He couldn't tell if they were talking to him or not from his current position, so he sat up and turned around to face the house of the cruel woman.

There was a figure on the side lawn, slowly moving toward him. Whoever it was obviously hadn't let their eyes adjust to the darkness; they were simply feeling their way along the ground in the direction of the intruding boy. He shrank back involuntarily; scared the woman had come for him.

"Psst," the voice called out again, "is anyone there? By the trees, I mean?"

Taking a closer inspection, Niall could tell this figure was not the woman and let out a sigh of relief. The voice sounded feminine, and the body was slimmer and slightly taller than the woman he'd first encountered. She was still moving toward him, and Niall stood and stepped out of the trees to allow her a better look.

When her eyes caught him, the girl froze. Her gaze roamed over him, closely examining his clothing attire, hair, eyes, and build. At last, she broke into a massive grin. "Can it be? Are you really... Niall Horan?"

This must have been the daughter, the One Direction fan. Niall grinned, knowing here was someone who wouldn't judge him. He felt his feet begin to move forward, carrying him to the figure that was now shivering from a slight breeze that had picked up.

When he reached the girl, Niall had already tugged his jacket off and tossed it over her shoulders. The girl accepted it graciously, smiling back at him. "Yeah, that would be me," he sighed.

"I heard your conversation with my mom," she responded sadly, confirming Niall's suspicions of her identity.

"You call that a conversation? More of a beg-and-shout, I'd say," he joked.

"I just wanted to say that she was being really harsh on you. I know you're the real thing; I'd know your look and voice anywhere. She's just a bit protective of me, ever since my brother died. She thought you were some prankster who was trying to get to me to do something bad. She couldn't see the real you, the heart behind your eyes and how beautiful you are inside."

Niall's eyes widened. "Deep words for a young girl," he commented. "How old are you, anyway?"

"I'm seventeen, close to eighteen, though. And you're nineteen."

This brought a smile to the Irish boy's face. "Hello there, seventeen, nice to meet you."

The girl gestured for him to follow along with her, and she snuck him past the dreaded living room and up the steps. The two passed an open door, and Niall could immediately tell this was the girl's room, and she had been the one with her light on. The thought made him pleasantly warm inside.

"Here you go," she slid open the door to another room beside hers. It was simple, but it had a bed and a bathroom, and that was all Niall craved in that moment.

"Thank you," he breathed, pulling her in for a hug. The clearly blue-eyed girl froze for a moment before wrapping her arms around the taller boy, enjoying his embrace. When they pulled away, Niall moved to enter the room she'd offered, but before he could shut it the girl stuck out her hand.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Horan." He shook it gently, shutting the door with a quiet click and immediately preparing to sleep. It had been a long day for the confusing pop star.

As he was about to dream, the girl once again interrupted his plans. It was just a quiet noise; one very easily missed by any ear other than his. Niall was starting to realize that his ears were more sensitive than they used to be, and he could hear extremely quiet sounds. He wondered if it was a special power of his, meant to help with his month-long mission.

"I'm Kym," the beautiful girl with the streaked hair whispered.