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popculturebuffet · 4 years

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Analysis of X: Uncanny X-Men #159 “Night Screams!”

Happy Halloween! For our Halloween special, I take my first dive into Claremont’s classic X-Men Run proper, as Claremont’s future New Mutants partner Bill Sienkiewicz drops by just in time for the X-Men to battle Dracula for the soul of Storm! Get your stakes ready and join me after the cut.

Welcome everyone to my special Halloween Edition of Analysis of X. I love this holliday: Scary movies, adorable children in costume, more sugar than I probably need… it’s the best. And it’s on this sacred day I’ve decided to take a second look at one of my faviorite X-Men stories and see if it still holds up to me the second time around. I first heard about this story in the back of Wizard Magzine in this old beatup issue I got from my brother, and was blown away by the descrption of an event we’ll get to towards the end. When I finally read the issue years later thanks to an issue of Classic X-Men, it exceded my expectations, and hence here I am to see if it still holds up. And since the few bits of exposition needed can just be done as we go, let’s sink our teeth into “Night Screams”

We open on the Uncanny, the powerful, the misunderstood, the brave X-Men!... barging into someone’s apartment and being confused by the occupant. Naturally both parties are confused: The young lady because it’s her damn apartment and suddenly a blue elf, a smelly hairy Canadian, a metallic Russian, an African goddess and a masked teenager come rushing into her place. The X-Men are confused because this apartment belongs to their friend Misty Knight. Those of you who watched Netflix’s excellent Luke Cage series probably remember her from that. In the comics she’s not far off from where she ended up by the end of the Netflix/MCU partnership: a private eye who used to be a cop and has a robot arm, in the comics provided by Tony Stark because back in the 70’s and 80’s tony would make some sorta gadget for anyone who pulled a dump truck of money up to his house. As I mentioned in Excalibur, Chris Claremont never really forgot any character he ever had anything to do with, and since she was a major supporting character during his run on iron fist along with her partner in asskicking Colieen Wing, who you may remember as the best part of Iron Fist’s own Netflix series, he had the two pop up in his X-Men run during a time when they thought the professor and jean were dead, because no one bothered to pick up a fucking phone. As such Misty had apparently offered her place to the X-Men any time they were in the city proper… but herself didn’t pick up the damn phone and tell her in the past few months she got a roommate, so said roommate is understandably pissed off to find a bunch of strangers in her place.

As the above should make obvious, the young lady is Harmony Young, famous model and misty’s new roommate. At this time Mary Jo Duffy had taken over Luke Cage, at the time Power Man,’s book and, in an attempt to keep the book from being canceled, brought Iron Fist in as a second protagonist and made the book into a buddy picture with the two’s contrasting personalites and backgrounds playing off each other. Having read this run, it’s fantastic and well worth a read and is the backbone of later runs of Luke and Danny while creating one of the best friendships in all of Marvel. As for how the hell this relates to this story, Harmony is a supporting character from that run and at the time, Luke’s Girlfriend and thus moved in with Misty when Misty needed a roommate.

With the confusion cleared up the X-Men try to smooth things over, minus Logan who, now knowing he dosen’t have a fight on his hands is going to get drunk because logan frankly has three states: boning, drinking and killin, and Kurt’s already swooping in there, and while you’d think hitting on Luke Cage’s girlfriend would be dumb, Luke is not above a three way. I mean why do you think danny sleeps at his and jess’s place every other Sunday? Storm being the leader she is offers to leave, but Harmony, seeing three handsome young men and likely having an open relationship with Luke, decides what the hell and lets the X-Men stay. Kitty scoffs at her and.. oh god I’m going to have to talk about the Colossus and Kitty thing aren’t I? Fuck me…. Yeah for those of you who weren’t aware, Kitty had a crush on Colossus.. a grown man at the very least 6 years older than her. They eventually DID enter a relationsip, that THANK CHRIST, wasn’t sexual till Jim Shooter, in one of the few times he actually made sense as Marvel’s Editor in Chief outright told Chris to cut it out and broke the couple up himself by having Pitor fall for someone else. And while that whole romance was forced and rushed, it both ended an annoying subplot and gave us a DAMN good issue of Uncanny I’ll get to some day. We soon find out WHY the X-Men are in town in the first place:

I do like the story progression so far: it feels organic and the opening of the X-Men barging in on an apartment is a nice hook and the following pages quickly explain the situation without feeling too clunky about it. But yeah Kitty’s Parents want to see her and while as Ororo notes she dosen’t have anything to wear, Harmony being a true friend to this person she just met offers up her vast wardrobe which Kitty herself quickly gets herself a piece of. The two get dressed and head off to meet the Prydes. We then get a short scene of Cyclops, whose on vacation visitng his brother Alex alongside his space pirate dad. As you can tell i’m not really going that much into it as it’s only one page of the isssue and has nothing to do with the rest of the plot other than informing us Professor Xavier’s in a coma, which tells me why he wasn’t with the rest of the team. Back in NYC, Kurt is still flirting with Harmony when the team gets a call from Kitty... who wonders if Ororo got home okay. Kurt’s instantly put on alert because she’d told kitty she was heading straight back.. hours ago. And as we see bellow, she’s been attacked with two marks left on her neck... which can only mean one thing.. NEIL BREEN HAS KILLED AGAIN.. or you know vampires.

Storm is rushed to the hospital and Logan and PItor soon get the call thanks to Storm’s wallet to come get her. While the doctor wants to keep her overnight Storm is.. oddly calm, finding the night realixing and getting the feeling something’s watching her, but shaking it off. The fact she’s not CONCERNED about that or seems chipper after having her throat torn open just screams red flag don’t’ it? Storm returns home to rest , shooing the rest of the X-Men away and well. if you were wondering when the hell this turned into a vampire story besides the whole neck bites thing...

The scene is haunting and well done and Bill, since his last name is hard to spell and I’ve mangled enough names as is on this blog, does a fine job with it, portraying the horror of it as well as how entrhaled Ororo is well. IT’s this sort of moody atmospheric stuff that would serve him well when he became artist on New Mutants and thare’s damn good reason his run is where the book really starts to pick up steam. Kitty returns home.. and is greeted with the news Storm has turned ill. When kitty tries visting storm is afraid of the sunlight, has a mysterious scarf from an admierer with a large D on it, and flinches when Kitty’s star of david brushes up against her. Kitty, sensing the obvious heads off to do some errands. Later that night Ororo lets her her “lover” and the one behind all this...

Yup. I wasn’t lying or exaggerating in the teaser: The one behind all this is DRACULA. That Dracula, not some alien or some other vampire. The prince of Darkness himself has designs on Ororo. And if your wondering if this is just some one issue weirdness… NOPE. Around this time, Dracula had his own ongoing started in the 70’s, Tomb of Dracula and what I’ve read is excellent. As a result Dracula was a part of the Marvel Universe, had his own backstory and enimies, and fought the likes of Dr. Strange and Spider-Man and earlier this year was the center of a major plot in Jason Aaron’s Avengers run. But before he can turn her, help arrives..

IT’s kitty who got a nifty Van Helsing getup and a cross.. but in an intresting twist on the mythos the cross does nothing. But not for the by this point cliché reason of “we’re just not using that old chesnut”, no in the Marvel Universe one needs genuine faith for the religious symbols weakness to work… and as the star of david showed earlier, Kitty is Jewish .. but when Dracula tries to choke a bitch, it’s said star of David that saves her. Tragically, Storm is too brainwashed to run and leaves with Dracula, begging Kitty to forget her and leaving the poor child in tears as her surrogate older sister leaves with a monster, possibly forever and there’s nothing she can do to stop it. On a side note though nice entrance line. While it’s no “Begone monster you do not belong in this world!” it’s still pretty sweet.

The rest of the team burst in and Kitty explains what’s going on: that while she didn’t know it was DRACULA till now, she was supscious but rightly suspected the others wouldn’t belive her and Logan dosen’t, trying to write off the scarf as Harmony or Misty’s.. but Kurt shoots it down, stating that Kitty is no child and her word means as much as Logan’s own, with his own time in Bavaria telling him to not take vampires lightly.. ESPECIALLY Dracula. Even if Logan still isn’t buying it, Kitty does point out that wether she’s right or not, Ororo is too injured to leave out in the wild, let alone with some strange man who may or may not be Dracula. Given this is a superhero comic, a fight naturally breaks out, with Dracula summoning his wolves, where’d he purchase those, to fight while Kurt tries fighting the big man himself.. and quickly gets his fuzzy blue ass handed to him. Colossus and WOlverine take the wolves out and prepare for the big man himself.

As you can see Dracula is handing them their asses.. which is no surprise: not only are the X-Men two members short, and even if they weren’t Dracula would still be able to take them. It also helps ease him into this shared universe: the reason why he hasn’t been beaten for good with so many heroes out there is simple: besides having the cover of being so famous that most wouldn’t belive he’s real, he’s also really damn powerful and only one vampire hunter after him has any sort of powers, that being Blade who was introduced in Tomb of Dracula. And while he’s a vampire, he dosen’t have Drac’s broken number of extra powers.

With it now being clear given he fuck slammed Colossus that Dracula is out of their league Kurt suggests a straight up fight won’t work and they need plan B.. and with that we get the best scene in the issue, the one that made me want to read it in the first place.

Just as a recap, in a brilliant callback to a few pages ago, Wolverine tries, cleverly, to use his claws as a cross.. but as Dracula mocks him, it won’t work. Like Parappa the Rapper says you gotta belivie.. and unfortunately for Dracula, Kurt does in what is, to my suprise, the first time his religion comes up but it works well and adds a sizeable amount to his character. Sadly as fucking epic as this is, it only holds him off for a second and he soon sendds lightning after him because.. apparently he can do that now? I dunno. While this goes on Kitty runs into the castle which Dracula has morphed into his own kinda castle, and while Kitty dosen’t find dracula she does find an almost turned storm and readies a stake, though Ororo points out it won’t do much good.. and we get another powerful scene as Kitty decides she’s right.

While that goes on, the rest of the team presses on but have no more luck and soon Dracula has them beat and Storm arrives seemingly having slain kitty.. only to shed her Dracula outfit for her uniform and start kicking Dracula’s ass, kicking off an awesome fight between the two.

She ends up slamming him into a party where Drac, being a sore looser, tries to force her to submit.. but she stays her ground and he gets desperat holding a hostage to try and get her to submit

But as seen she will not and refuses to.. and Dracula admits defeat, realizing he was genuinely attracted to her and he’d have to snuff out what made her worthy of being his queen to do so. Granted he’s still a creepy mind rapist, but it’s still a nice character touch. He books it out of there, and being good at evading people as his solo would show, tells Ororo following would be a fools errand and givne how beaten down her team is , even with her back to give them the edge, he’s right. So for now he escapes, but the X-Men have one the night and Ororo is free and back to being just a mutant again and tearfully reunited with kitty at misty’s place.

With that touching scene done, our heroes runite with Harmony, with Misty and Coleen now present and celebrate their narrow victory. There’s also a quick stinger with Moira MacTaggert telling the X-Men xavier’s condition has gotten worse, but for the most part, it’s a happy ending as our heroes, however narrowly have won the day and I thankfully got this done before Halloween ended.

Final Thoughts: This issue is every bit as good the second time around, if not more so now I know who Harmony is and have read some of Dracula’s own title, though it’s not a necessity as none of the stuff from Tomb is important here, and Harmony is introduced well enough. This issue is a masterpiece, having atompsheric moody horror, the drawings well done and there’s so much I didn’t show that’s just awesome and Bill would only get better from here. The character work is also great as most of the X-Men get moments to shine. While wolverine is mostly there for his usaul schtick as is Colosus, how easily dracula manhandles them shows just how strong he is without feeling forced. But the real stars are Kurt, who gets one of his finest moments here and even after that fails still presses on anyway, Storm whose transformation is truly horrifying and whose ultimate victory is made all the sweeter and Kitty, whose at her best with: her youthful naivity matching well with her refusal to give up as she stares down both Dracula and her big sister in equal amounts. The issue is a must read for what’s left of this Halloween and every one after it and a great little done in one. Even with the btis of other storylines, it’s still easy to read and understand on it’s own and is one of the best one and done issues i’ve ever read and still holds it’s position in my eyes as one of the best X-Men stories period, taking what should be a rediculous premise and owning the hell out of it. A must read if i’ve ever read one.

#uncanny x-men #x-men #storm #wolverine #colossus #kitty pryde #nightcrawler #dracula #tomb of dracula #marvel comics #harmony young #misty knight #vampires #horror #halloween.

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1dffexchange · 5 years

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Off the Grid

To: Morgan @redcalvinsharry

From: Hannah @primetimewritings

Summary: An OU where full time skincare blogger and facialist, Olivia James, finds herself in the middle of a Vogue party and runs into childhood friend, Liam Payne. The two rekindle their friendship that was P.O.D (Pre-One Direction) but their friendship is anything but easy. With her stubborn and independent nature, Olivia fails to see the best things in front of her...which includes Liam. A story about skincare, reconnecting, and discovering true feelings.

Author’s Note: Morgan, please enjoy! This was quite self indulgent for me but I thoroughly enjoyed writing it!

For a Tuesday morning, Oxford Street was eerily quiet. Pedestrians normally streamed out of Oxford Circus Station, pushing and shoving to get to their destinations. But that morning, Olivia James ascended the stairs out onto Oxford Street with Topshop appearing in front of her and few shoppers in sight. It was early enough still that people hadn’t made it out yet. Olivia only noticed when she realized she didn’t have to keep checking herself on the sidewalks out of paranoia that she was going to walk into someone.

She had her sights on Selfridges in the distance. The giant iconic department store stood like a commanding and inviting presence on the block. It was where Olivia got her start into skincare and where she loved to return to any chance she got. Selfridges demanded attention sheerly because of its grandiose exterior and the even more inviting temptation of every designer under the sun and levels of shopping inside.

Olivia paused at the curb, checking for oncoming cars before footing it across in her Chelsea boots. Although she loved to browse and wander down in the food hall in the bottom of Selfridges, she had to pop into the Beauty Hall first. She was helping out at the Kiehl’s counter that day where her best friend and flatmate, Frannie, worked. Olivia lended her expertise to skincare brands and stores across London because it was what she did.

She fell into the blogging world in Uni for an assignment set by her professor to start a blog and maintain it for a month. The month passed quickly, Olivia aced the assignment, and kept going with her blog. In the early days, she wrote about whatever she wanted. Mostly about what she bought and her thoughts on skincare and makeup. She spent too many days watching girls go out to the pub wearing five pounds of makeup only to watch it flake and rub off by the end of the night. Olivia eventually figured out it was due to lack of moisturizer which turned into her harping on Frannie to take her makeup off after a night out at the pub.

Like most bloggers shared on various platforms, Olivia never planned to blog full time. Somehow she got picked up by a small PR agency that held its ground with representing bloggers and swinging loads of free products for their clients. Along with blogging, she was a qualified aesthetician. She loved lending a hand to various spas and popping into skincare offices to give facials to their clients. She felt some weird high and passion when it came to massaging moisturizer into someone’s face. Even Frannie didn’t get it but damn if she didn’t love when Olivia would give her an at home facial.

Olivia breezed through the giant doors, smiling as she walked through the handbag department. Some of the employees gave her a friendly wave as she passed. Helping out in stores was like working in retail again but she got to avoid all of the bullshit that usually came with a retail job. Frannie made sure that she didn’t get too far away from her retail roots though by sharing all the crap she had to put up with at the Kiehl’s counter. Olivia would gladly humble Frannie’s moans by pointing out that it was thanks to Olivia that Frannie even had a job. She usually went mum after that.

She spotted Frannie cleaning out some dirt from under her fingernails while leaning over a counter with a Jo Malone rep chatting her up. Frannie laughed and rolled her eyes at whatever the bloke said, but her eyes were glassy. She was completely checked out and it made Olivia snort.

Frannie barely noticed Olivia walk up even though her boots made hell of alot of noise on the tile floor.

Olivia rolled her eyes, pulling her scarf off and stuffing it in her bag. She started to take in the products on the counter too, noting what was new and what had gone away.

At the sound of movement, her flatmate spun around, eyebrows raised at the sound.

“Oh, just you,” Frannie remarked, grinning cheekily.

“Oi, that’s a fine way to greet me.” Olivia hugged Frannie, pressing a cheek quickly to hers. “You seemed busy.”

Frannie rolled her eyes, pushing her hair over her shoulder. “Please, I just like to flirt. He’ll give me all the samples I could ever want if I just give him a bit of attention.”

Olivia shook her head, sorting through what the apothecary brand had on offer for the day. “Right, chat me up. Tell me what’s going on.”

She knew she needed to go ahead and get the work-y bits out of the way before she and Frannie delved into their usual string of gossip and utter nonsense that they usually fell into when they were together. Thankfully the Beauty Hall stayed quiet enough that Frannie could run through the newest products with Olivia without interruption. Even though they were there for customers, nothing was worse than being interrupted by a customer. That loss of concentration and emergence of irritation at the mere phrase of, “are you busy?” made Olivia’s skin crawl to the day.

After Olivia was chatted in, they ended up tag teaming some customers from Italy who spent around 300 pounds.

Grinning after her sale, Frannie rested her bony elbows on the counter. “Okay, so, what’ve you got going on tonight, Liv?”

Olivia was Olivia to her bosses, fellow bloggers, and her followers on Instagram but to Frannie, she was Liv, long time best friend from Uni and reliable flatmate who always hung her towel up after she used it.

Olivia blew a stray piece of hair out of her face from where she messed with it. “Well, I was gonna hang out here until early afternoon cos then I’ve got some conference calls I have to sit in on. Then I’ve got this party with Vogue tonight.”

Frannie twitched, making her stand up straight and her eyebrows flew into her hair. “Vogue?! What the bloody hell? You wait to tell me this!”

Liv jumped, surprised by her outburst. Frannie always thought the events Olivia went to were way cooler than they really were. Olivia was unbothered by the lavish party set up with guests schmoozing each other over what were normally overpriced cocktails. Olivia liked brand events the most out of her job, because they were usually more personal and intimate.

“Soz, I thought I had told you ‘cos I had a plus one.”

Frannie frowned, a fine line appeared between her perfectly brushed and filled in eyebrows. “No you didn’t. Fuck and I have a date with whatshisname from Bumble.”

Olivia glanced from her mobile screen that had just lit up to her best friend. “So? Cancel.”

“Nah, can’t. He’s fit as hell and said he’d take me to the Ivy for dinner. His dad’s got some sort of connection,” Frannie winked.

Olivia rolled her eyes, unamused. While Frannie was a known serial dater, swiping faster than Olivia could like a post on Instagram, Liv wasn’t bothered with the dating world. She’d had a serious boyfriend in high school but when he moved to Leeds for med school, Olivia broke up with him. She dated some after that but her work kept her busy enough and she got enough free dinners from brand events in the city.

Liv wasn’t jazzed about the event with Vogue anyways. She hadn’t a clue of who was going but she imagined it might be people who were way out of her league with actual talents like acting and singing. Frannie told her to stop being silly and make sure she set her makeup really well so she didn’t look like a goblin in the tabloids.

“Wow, cheers Fran,” Olivia replied.

Frannie smirked, wagging a finger in Olivia’s face. “Can’t be looking like Casper the Ghost with that flashback face, honey.”

After a brief two hours at home where Olivia blitzed her room before it dissolved into utter disaster, she headed back into central London but thankfully not on the tube. Instead, a black Mercedes came to pick her up. She felt out of her element in the back of the car that probably cost several years of her rent, but at least she looked good. The October weather was starting to turn with a chill in the air, particularly at night. Playing it safe, Olivia chose a pair of light wash high waisted boy jeans and a black lace silk camisole she had tucked into her trousers. She got away with layering her leather jacket over it since it was warmer than it seemed.

Olivia knew of a couple bloggers going to the Vogue event that night which made her feel less of a total loser. Experience taught her that explaining her job and what she did was tricky for people to understand usually. They always gave her a nod like they got it but walked away scratching their heads. Olivia even wondered sometimes how what she did was actual work. She got to talk about skincare with strangers all day. She loved doing that, so was it really work?

This thought constantly followed her but thankfully she couldn’t let it fester any longer since the car had pulled up to the hotel where the party was taking place. She could already tell from the hotel exterior that Vogue had pulled out all the stops to celebrate the new editor in chief and the new era he would bring in. Not only was it a celebration for the editor but it was also to kick off award season in the fashion world. Olivia really didn’t get how fashion awards had a whole season or let alone how many fashion award shows existed but she appreciated the invites when they came in.

Following the trails of gold balloons lining the walkway into the hotel and through the lobby, Olivia trailed behind some other party guests ahead of her, looking exquisitely posh and out of her league. Olivia giggled to herself out of disbelief that she’d landed here.

If the lobby was decked out, it was nothing compared to the top floor where a giant hall had been transformed for all of Vogue and its party guests. There was an underlying yet painfully obvious theme of gold throughout the room. Gold balloons continued through the room, but delicately dispersed so one would forget they existed until they turned a corner and found balloons strung along the walls, floating on the ceiling, and tied up around the room. The bartenders and servers wore tasteful black outfits and gold ties. Olivia even noticed the women working the party had gold highlighter dusted along their cheekbones and temples.

The hall as jammed with people of all kinds. Olivia held her breath when Alexa Chung passed by, wearing an outfit similar to Liv’s but she was looked loads better in hers. Women were tastefully dressed in clothes that were carefully put together for the right Instagram. One would think they just had incredible taste but Olivia knew it was all for the ‘gram.

High off her Alexa Chung sighting, Olivia sought out the bar and soon ran into a fellow fashion blogger she first met at a Jo Malone event years ago. They latched onto one another, giggling behind their cocktails over how unbelievably silly it was that they were there. Drinks in hand, Olivia joined a few more people who were experts at socializing. Unlike most parties that felt forced, Olivia felt the energy in the room inviting. She was moving from conversation to conversation, barely noticing when her drink was empty and a flute of champagne ended up in her hand. It was a bubbly gold of course.

A couple hours later, Olivia’s glass was empty and she wasn’t sure how many champagnes had been rotated through her hand. Excusing herself from a conversation between the head of the British Fashion Council and Made in Chelsea’s Frankie Gaff, Olivia snuck into the crowd in search of a glass of water. She accidentally stepped on someone’s toes at some point and when she turned back to apologize, the person was gone.

Olivia shrugged, turned around, and starred ahead. She blinked a few times, wondering if she was seeing things.

Liam Payne stood three feet away from her, drink in hand and eyebrows raised as he said something to some tall man that resembled a football player from Man United.

Impossible. In what world would he be here? Olivia wondered, still rooted to the spot. She didn’t even feel someone knock her in the shoulder, sloping part of their drink on her boot.

In her next breath, Liam looked her way. He did a double take like Olivia had, eyebrows furrowed in disbelief similar to Liv’s.

“Shit,” Olivia cursed.

She didn’t give him a chance to get another look because she took off in a span of two seconds. Easier said than done, she wove her way through, by passing niceties and just shoving her way out. She breathed a sigh of relief once she reached one of the golden bars set up near a wall.

The bartender in his gold tie eyed her as she popped out between three business suit clad men. “Can I get you something?”

A water. Get a glass of water. “Champagne, please.”

“Olivia? Olivia James, is that you?”

With a voice like honey with a touch of poshness, Olivia could still hear the Wolverhampton accent in his tone. Olivia resisted the urge to smile out of nervousness and looking like an idiot.

Fuck.

“Hi Liam, how are you?” She asked, feeling like an idiot as the words left her mouth. The hell do you know? He’s not even your friend! He’s mister big singer now or whatever!

Liam laughed, eyes crinkling at the corners like they always did. Somewhere in her chest, she felt a vibration. She saw the sixteen year old boy she knew before staring back at her but also a fit, rugged man with hair perfectly messed up and jeans that hugged him in all the right places.

He moved in quickly for a hug, embracing her like an old friend. Technically, they were old friends from the same circle in school. Olivia noticed how good he smelled too. Something significantly woody and a touch of spice. Undoubtedly manly and sophisticated. She tried to place it from all her hours in beauty halls across London.

“Miss, here’s your champagne.” The bartender broke whatever trance she was in, snapping her back to reality.

She blushed, taking the glass carefully so her slightly shaking hand didn’t spill it all over the floor.

“Who’re you here with? Can’t believe I didn’t see you before,” Liam asked, talking quickly and moving closer as some fashion bloggers Olivia didn’t know but recognized shuffled past. She picked up on the glances they threw over their shoulders towards Liam.

“Myself. I was invited,” she said lamely, lifting her glass to her lips.

Liam’s eyebrows went up. “Score Olivia, that’s amazing. What are you doing now?”

Olivia laughed then, suddenly she felt like she was at a high school reunion rather than one of the biggest parties in all of London. “I work in skincare. I manage relationships between brands and stores. I also recently became a licensed esthetician.”

“No shit, that’s amazing. Do you like it?” Liam asked. He kept having to move closer since people kept jostling around them, forcing them to inch nearer.

“Love it. I just sort of,” she shrugged, “fell into it I guess. But that’s how it happens sometimes, isn’t it?”

Liam nodded, sipping on his drink. Raising his hand, Olivia got a close look at the tattoo on his hand, it was so incredibly detailed that she wanted to reach out and examine it in hers. Good call on the champagne, she thought.

They stood rooted to their spots near the bar before someone almost toppled Olivia over into Liam. He suggested they move out of the fray and Olivia found herself removed from the party, perched on a lounger where she could observe the party rather than being caught in the middle of it. Liam sat next to her, his long legs bent towards her so he could hear better over the din of the music.

She and Liam went to school together back before he left for X Factor and never came back. The few friends he had were friends with Olivia’s friends. Olivia remembered Liam wasn’t that social or popular while they were in school but he was always invited to the same things as Olivia. Talking to him made her remember how he said once somewhere that he couldn’t get anyone to come to his sixteenth birthday party. That broke her heart at the time because Olivia remembered the invitation but she’d been on holiday with her family at the time, forcing her to miss it. She couldn’t even remember if she’d given him anything in the end. They weren’t good friends so probably not.

“This is still so crazy I’ve run into you here. I hear things from time to time from my mum, I don’t know if you remember her,” Liam said, pausing to sip his drink. “She might have mentioned once that you’d moved to London but I don’t remember.”

Olivia nodded, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear out of nervousness. “Do you get to talk to your mum often? I’m sure it’s hard to keep up with her. Or, I guess her with you.”

Liam shrugged humbly. “I mean, yes and no. Since I’m always travelling, I’m the one to call her ‘cos I know when I can reach her because she doesn’t always know where I am.” He chuckled at the end of his sentence. “It’s like I’m still a kid and I’ve snuck out and my parents don’t know where I’ve gone. It’s a lot like that.”

“God, that would drive me crazy,” Olivia shook her head.

“Believe me, it drives her nuts. She never knows what country I’m in or where I’ve gone to next.” Liam paused. “To be fair I hardly know myself. But, I want to hear about you. How many years has it been?”

Olivia shrugged, glancing towards the ceiling in thought. “Like, eight? Nine? Dunno, whenever you left to go off and be in the band on X Factor.” She smiled, noticing the way his lips perked automatically into a grin.

He shrugged. “Go on. What made you move to London from Wolverhampton?”

Olivia shrugged again. She told him how she started her blog in uni for a class and kept writing it even after the class was done. Once she graduated with a degree in Communications, she moved to London because Frannie needed a flatmate and Liv had no desire to return home right after uni.

“I moved out a couple months after I got my degree and I haven’t lived there since. Obvs I go home for like, Christmas holidays and stuff but that’s about it. I’m too busy now to go home as much as I’d like.” Olivia loved her mum and dad, her home, and the parks of Wolverhampton but London had her heart and her attention. She loved living in London where everything was just minutes away compared to how rural Wolverhampton could be.

Liam nodded, the soft mood lighting catching his eyes and offsetting the golden tones in his brown eyes. Olivia leaned further into the chaise.

They sat there catching up for a couple more hours while people milled around them. Occasionally someone would come by to say hi to Liam or Olivia (mostly Liam) and they’d exchange an awkward explanation about how they knew each other. Olivia made it awkward out of paranoia of people thinking they were something they weren’t.

At some point, a journalist came by to borrow Liam for a photo op. Claiming they needed photos before everyone who mattered left, Liam squeezed Olivia’s hand, promising to come back as soon as he could.

She watched him go, his tall stature cut through the crowd as he followed the journalist. Sighing to herself, she drained the last bits of her champagne and deposited it on a nearby table. She left the party easily, muttering a few goodbyes to those left that she knew, and slid back into a sleek towncar to take her back to her flat.

A week passed since the party and other than rehashing the whole thing to a very excitable Frannie, Olivia hadn’t thought about Liam again since. She rummaged through the goodie bag she was given when she left, sorted through it to find what she wanted, and gave the rest to Frannie.

Frannie kept asking Olivia if she’d heard from Liam again periodically. Olivia eventually snapped one Thursday night in their flat.

“No, I haven’t heard from him and why would I? He’s probably forgotten he even saw me in the first place,” Olivia retorted with a wave of her hand.

The next morning, Olivia was back on Oxford Street with plans to help out in Liberty’s Beauty Hall for a few hours before treating herself to mooch around in the upper levels of the iconic store. Her mobile buzzed in her bag. An unfamiliar number was on the screen, and like any normal person, Olivia would usually ignore it but since she was so close to Liberty, she worried the caller was someone telling her to cancel or plans had changed.

“Hello, this is Olivia James,” she answered in her best grown up business voice.

“Olivia, it’s Liam,” a voice replied on the other end.

Olivia stopped in her tracks like she had at the party almost two weeks ago. A man grumbled behind her at her sudden stop. Ignoring him, she pieced together a reply.

“Oh my God, what?” She replied rudely, instantly grimacing. “I mean, sorry, who?”

Liam laughed. “It’s Liam Payne. We went to school together? We ran into each other at that party a while back?”

Olivia wanted to slap herself on the forehead for answering. “Hi, ‘course I know who you are. I guess I’m just surprised you have my mobile number.”

“Uh, I may have gotten it from the party. For some reason people want to give me what I ask for. Although my mum says I’m stupid if I buy a life size Jurassic Park dinosaur for my backyard.”

“That would be stupid,” Olivia agreed. Great, insult him why don’t you?! God, kill me now.

“Hmm, guess I should cancel my dino order then from Amazon,” Liam suggested casually.

“Oh God, you’ve already gone and done it, haven’t you?” Olivia asked, moving out of the way of other pedestrians. It was Friday morning and Oxford Street was buzzing.

Liam laughed, sending ripples through Olivia. “No, no that would be stupid. But I’ve ordered stuff drunk off Amazon before. Those were some wild deliveries, let me tell you.”

“Please, spare me. It’ll probably just stress me out,” Olivia said. She hated when her PR boxes and other parcels piled up before she could get a grip on them.

“Why? Have you got some beef with Amazon?”

Olivia laughed. “Definitely not. They’ve come through when I need them most. I can’t stand the disorganization though. There’s too many cardboard boxes at my house right now.”

“Why don’t you get rid of them? Or are you trying to tell me you live in a cardboard box?” Liam joked.

“Yeah, that’s my secret. I’ve built a flat out of cardboard,” she answered with a shake of the head.

“No, that doesn’t make sense, because how does a girl like you get an invite to a party for Vogue. They must have thought you were pretty or something,” Liam wondered, his tone switched from joking to genuine. “You did look really pretty that night. Hope that’s okay I say that.”

Olivia blushed and touched her cheek. “Yeah, that’s, uh, fine. Thanks. I hate to do this, but I’ve got to go. I’m about to walk into work.”

“Oh right, I’m so sorry. I just wanted to say that I haven’t stopped thinking about you since I ran into you at the party that night,” Liam explained. His voice shook nervously, like he was carefully thinking over what he wanted to say. “I was just wondering if you’d want to have dinner with me sometime soon?”

Olivia paused, watching the traffic roll down Regent Street. “Yes, love to.”

Going on a date with Liam was a lot harder than Olivia thought it’d be. It wasn’t the date itself, it was making plans for the date. Liam’s calendar was so packed that he was barely in London through the rest of October. When he happened to be back in the city, Olivia had a full day of meetings, popping into whatever SpaceNK called her name, and staying glued to her phone for conference calls.

They finally had their first date two days before Halloween. Olivia dressed carefully in all black but smart in her black skinnies that made her butt look good. Even though she had on her amazing jeans, she wasn’t sure how she felt about Liam. Being with him still felt like they’re were kids in school. But when he looked at her, she knew something was different.

Throughout their date, he was observant and cheeky. He kept Olivia laughing and smiling as they rehashed stories of their childhoods. Olivia was glued to his stories about travelling with One Direction and travelling solo. They covered so many topics that wove themselves around Liam and Olivia, it was impossible to tell where one started and the other ended.

By the end of the night, they’d ended up at a bar Liam liked to go to because it was hidden amongst its competitors with a posh London crowd. Olivia noticed how relaxed he was when they were sat close in a round both, tucked away from bystanders. She realized once she got home that Liam didn't make her nervous like most dates did. Her shoulders usually shook from the anxiousness of a first date and figuring out the right thing to say. With Liam, she was tuned into him with her hand cupping the side of her face.

Their date ended by Liam dropping her at her flat and gave her a quick kiss good night, which left her with more questions than she had woken up with that morning.

October turned into November, leaving the cold weather hanging over London. It’s inhabitants bundled up in their coats, noses tucked behind scarves while they hurried wherever the tube took them. Two weeks passed before Olivia saw Liam again. She was jealous of his trip down to Australia where he was in shorts and t-shirts. Since their date, they talked once a day. The time zones were a bitch, making their conversations even more sporadic on top of all the work they were both swamped with.

However busy they were, Olivia started to getting excited whenever her phone went off with a message from Liam. Even though she was dying to jump up and down, she internalized her excitement and stayed focused on her work. While Liam was singing his way through Australia, Olivia was making appearances, talking skincare, and documenting her skin routines nightly on Instagram. Her Oyster card holder was starting to look worse for wear from how many times she slammed it down on the button.

Performing facials kept her mind off what was going on outside. She zoned in on cleansing her client’s skin, extracting and purifying god knows what toxins out. Olivia got to know her clients in their hour together, something they loved about her. She loved them for letting her tap, massage, and work products into their skin while massaging out any tension she had built up inside.

One afternoon, she’d just finished with a client and had another right behind. Her mobile started buzzing while she cleaned up her products and prepared for her next appointment.

“Hey Frannie, hate to rush you but I’ve got an appointment coming in in about ten minutes.”

“Bollocks, I was hoping you were free,” Frannie replied, the background noise so loud it made Olivia wince.

“Why? What’s up?” Olivia tucked the phone between her ear and shoulder, moving on around the room.

“‘S nothing, just wanted to go into The White Company and be talked out of buying five of their Christmas candles. Oh, work gave me the holiday bits they sent out to the bloggers. You’ll die, the whole Calendula range is in here too,” Frannie said, her tone fill with excitement like Christmas had come early.

“Oh my God, if the mask is in there, can I please, please have it? I’ll be your flatmate forever,” Olivia pleaded, chuckling to herself.

“‘Course. But Liv, tell me not to go to The White Company-”

Olivia stopped listening when someone cleared their throat by the door, making her spin around from where she was standing. Liam looked back at her, a small grin on his face.

“Surprise,” he said, his grin growing by the second.

Olivia’s heart pounded, caught somewhere between surprise and confusion. “Frannie, I got to go.” She hung up quickly, cutting off her best friend. “What...what are you doing here?”

“I’m your last appointment, thought you’d be happy to do a friend. I mean, uh, give me a facial,” Liam explained, blushing.

Olivia stifled a giggle behind her hand, her mind still reeling over Liam’s sudden appearance and how she felt about the whole thing. However foggy her brain was, she still knew she had to treat Liam like a client and take care of him like she would anyone else. But this time, she was more gradual and broke out of her calm, monotone-like voice.

As Liam settled into the massage chair, Olivia tugged on her top and ruffled her hair.

Why didn’t I think to wear more eyeliner today?

“So, how was Australia?” Olivia asked, stepping up behind Liam and running her hands over his skin. It was surprisingly soft with minimal texture until she got to his line of scruff. She let him talk while she felt his skin, murmuring when she needed to, assessing his skin along the way.

“Right,” she said a few minutes later once she’d made her decision about what she wanted to use on him. She could smell his cologne on him the minute her fingers touched his face, enveloping her so powerfully she forgot where serums went in a routine. “I’m going to cleanse your face, use this oxygenating facial machine, suck all the guck out of your face, pat in a serum, then moisturizer, and then we’re done.”

“Hold on, you’re going to do what with a what machine?” Liam asked incredulously, trying to sit up but Olivia forced him right back down.

“Pull all the crap out from flying and travelling and God knows what you come in contact with in this city. Now, sit back and let me do this,” she prodded his shoulder again with her fingers. She ignored his wince and dampened his skin, getting right to work.

She found her rhythm, even though Liam’s voice, face, and presence kept getting in her way. He talked and so did she, but when she did, she tripped over her words. Liam’s presence was making her heart race mildly and all he was doing was laying in a chair with her hands on his face.

While she powered on the oxygenating machine, she told Liam about her life for the past two weeks. She couldn’t tell if she was boring him with the details of what she’d done day to day but her focus on the machine made her forget about it.

They moved through the rest of the facial easily, an easy flow ebbed between them. Olivia was particularly proud of how radiant Liam’s skin looked when she was done. She’d pulled so much dirt out of his face that she was thinking about making him get facials monthly.

“So, I want to ask you something,” she stated, taking a seat on the rolling chair near him. Her heart was hammering in her chest but she ignored it.

“Shoot.”

“Why’d you come here today? Of all places after a 20-something hour flight from Australia,” she asked, crossing her legs. The question had been burning in her mind somewhere back during his facial and she still couldn’t figure it out. Why?

The corner of Liam’s mouth twitched, she could tell he was trying to think. “‘Cos I wanted to see you. Heard you were gonna be here today, so I just worked my way in as your last appointment.”

He wanted to see her. He wanted to see her. He could have just Facetimed her at any point but no, he chose to show up and let her run her hands all over his face for an hour and a half. He was either really stupid or just a really nice guy. Olivia hoped it was the last one.

“Well, I’m glad you came. At least you didn’t whine during the oxygenating part. Some people tear up at the pressure, big babies,” she responded with a nod. Slapping her knees, she got off the seat and started to clean up.

“My skin feels amazing. Holy shit, I should have gotten one of these years ago. Thanks OP, you’re the greatest.” He ran his hands over his face, admiring himself in the mirror on the wall.

Olivia snickered when she glanced over her shoulder. She started cleaning up and clearing away the products she used. She had four bottles in her arms when Liam came around the corner and gave her a hug.

“Thanks again, I had fun,” Liam muttered into her hair. She felt his chin rest on the top of her head, her heart was racing against her chest and she wiggled away from Liam, worried he might have felt it too.

“No problem at all. Thanks for letting me run my hands all over your face,” she grinned, looking up at Liam.

“So I’ll see you soon? I should be around for a few weeks before December, let’s do something, yeah?” Liam asked, gathering up his mobile and wallet.

Olivia nodded, already moving on. “Sure.”

She turned back to her products, clearing away the goods as Liam excused himself.

If Olivia thought Liam was going to move on and forget about her, she was wrong. He texted and called once or twice after his facial. Once was to thank her again for what she’d done to his face and the second was to get a list of the products she’d used on his face. Frannie’d been up her ass about locking him down and saying hysterical things like Liam was in love with her.

Olivia started to ignore Liam’s calls and texts, telling herself it was because of how busy she was. When she did reply, it was a half-assed apology about how hard she’d been working lately. Thankfully Liam was a good person who also had a demanding career and completely understood. His understanding was like a knife in Olivia’s heart that followed her around, nagging her with the recurring reminder of what an awful person she was.

She liked Liam. She enjoyed spending time with him. He reminded her of a simpler time, when they were kids and Liam aspired to be a singer and Olivia just wanted to pass her GCSEs one day. She’d become too independent since her last boyfriend. She couldn’t hop around from guy to guy like Frannie seemed to do every week. Olivia had too much pride to just let herself give into a boy and risk losing her independence.

Two weeks before December, Liam was sitting in Olivia’s living room. She’d been busy all day typing up a massive post for Black Friday and in her frenzy, she’d invited Liam over instead of going out for a drink with him. She’d quickly changed out of the joggers she’d had on all day and brushed her hair before Liam showed up. Of course he looked perfect and soft in some way in his jumper and jeans.

Liam followed Olivia through her flat, leaning against her countertop once they reached the kitchen.

“So, I did a massive order from Wagamama ‘cos one I didn’t know what you liked so I just basically ordered half the menu and two someone gifted me a voucher and I couldn't use it by myself. Cool?” She didn’t really care if he disagreed because either way, she was going to eat her weight in Wagamama.

Liam nodded, stretching his arms above his head. “Good with me. I’ve been eating like shit on the road so what’s another night?”

Olivia smirked. She took in Liam’s appearance properly while he looked around her tiny kitchen. Other than his outfit, he looked tired. Olivia could tell travelling had gotten to him by the look of the shadowy purple tones under his eyes and there were a few dry patches on his cheeks. He needed some moisturizer and probably a lot of sleep.

“How long have you lived here?” he asked, observing the photos and nicknacks on the fridge.

“Erm, maybe almost a year? Before Frances, my flatmate, and I used to live in this absolute cupboard over a pub for a year. It was awful. We were dead lucky to find this place though ‘cos it just sort of fell into our laps.” Olivia gestured towards the large window that took up a corner of the kitchen. “We even lucked out for a window. I never realized how important natural lighting is until I lived alone.”

Liam laughed, glancing her way and making her heart melt inside her chest. Just one look was all it took for some strange lovey dovey feeling to come alive in her chest. The feeling and thoughts alone made her swallow and push down any of those warm emotions.

“So, where is it all?” Liam asked a few seconds later, glancing around the flat.

Olivia’s eyebrows went up. “Where’s what?”

Liam nodded towards her. “You know...all your...stuff. The skincare. Where do you keep it?”

Olivia’s face relaxed and she let out a breathy laugh. “God, I had no idea what you were talking about. But I keep most of it in my bedroom. Do you really care to see?”

Liam nodded eagerly. “Oh you bet.”

She ended up giving him a tour of the flat on the way. Not that it took long to get to her room down the hall. She pointed out the living room where there was a large sectional sofa, the biggest Olivia and Frannie could fit, and a dining table set up in front of the windows. They had another squishy armchair next to the sofa with a coffee table in front. Along the wall was another piece of furniture that held decorative knick knacks carefully arranged by the girls along with photos of themselves, friends, and family over the years.

Olivia said a prayer for cleaning her room the day before because the state of it would have embarrassed her right out her front door. Her hands shook slightly when Liam followed her into her room, anticipation making her fingertips twitch.

“So, there’s my desk where I sit for hours typing emails and debating how fast I could fall to my death out my window,” she pointed towards a white desk from Ikea that took her three hours to build with zero help from Frannie, who was more of a peanut gallery of mocking. It was carefully arranged and organized down to the tiny plate Olivia found at Anthropologie that held a hand cream, lip balm, another lip balm, a couple hair ties, and a tiny Jo Malone hand & body cream. She had a telly set up against the wall facing her bed with her dresser underneath where she kept t-shirts, pajamas, and other bits she could fold up into drawers.

On either side of her bed were wardrobes that nearly reached the ceiling. They were the selling point of Liv’s room and Frannie practically forced her to take the room because of them. Olivia had to agree that they were an asset when it came to her job.

“And over here….is where I keep everything,” Olivia explained, crossing the room quickly to the wardrobe on the right and throwing open the doors. She chose the wardrobe on the right for easier access for a product if she was typing up a post at her desk. Occasionally she got a wild hair and pulled everything out of the wardrobe, spread it around her room, and organized it all over again.

“Holy….shit....OJ,” Liam breathed, his eyes scanning the shelves full of products. Meticulously organized and arranged, Liv had a place for everything. Liam noticed in the corner of each shelf was some tape with words written on them to let Olivia know what was stored on each of them. There was more organization from bins, trays, boxes, and mini drawer sets for Olivia to keep track of everything.

Liam was speechless. He didn’t have a clue where to look or what he was even seeing. “Olivia, this is wild.”

Her eyebrows went up, a slight frown appeared on her face.

“What I mean is, this is incredible. I don’t think I’ve ever seen something so organized and neat.” Liam scratched the back of his head. “I mean, I don’t really have the foggiest about what I’m looking at.”

She laughed, holding her hands behind her back. “I try to keep it all together...or else it gets really out of hand real fast. Let me show you part of it.”

She explained how she kept the wardrobe of skincare organized and the different areas of each shelf. Through her explanation, Liam creeped closer towards her out of instinct to follow her every move. He was mesmerized by her, even when she was talking about some eye cream with Vitamin C. He thought Vitamin C was only in orange juice.

When the doorbell went, they both jumped. Olivia turned her head and found herself inches from Liam’s ear. She sucked in a breath while staring at the back of Liam’s head when he glanced towards the sound of the noise.

“Oh, guess we should get that then,” Liam commented, turning back towards Olivia.

They were almost nose to nose, Olivia’s height made her a couple inches shorter than Liam but close enough to brush his skin. She could see every pore on his cheeks, the softness of his scruff and the fullness of his pink lips. “Yeah, I guess we should,” she agreed, glancing at his mouth. Swiftly, she moved around him and left him standing in front of her wall of skincare.

“Don’t you have a flatmate? Where is she?” Liam asked once they hauled in three giant bags of food from the takeaway guy. They stood side by side, unpacking and surveying what Olivia picked.

“Yeah, she’s out with her flavor of the week,” Olivia said with a snort. She turned away from Liam to pull some plates out of the cabinet.

Turning back, Liam faced her with his hand outstretched. “Did you just say ‘flavor of the week?’” His eyebrows furrowed as he took the plates from her.

Olivia leaned against the counter, palms supporting her. “Yep, she hops from guy to guy typically. Tries them out and if they get too clingy, she ghosts them.”

Frannie was a major serial dater. Olivia knew she always had been but as long as she didn’t try to bring some skivvy guy back to their flat, Liv let her live.

“What about you?” Liam asked pointedly, his back still to her. “Do you hop from guy to guy?”

Olivia paused, observing the way Liam’s t-shirt hung off his back, hugging each muscle like it was made for him. “No, can’t say I care that much.”

Liam turned around, a slight smirk on his lips. “Hm, I see. Why don’t you care?”

She shrugged, waving a hand through the air. “I’ve got better things to do than mess with relationships. A date once in a while is nice but I can’t be bothered with the faff in relationships. Anyways, should we eat?”

They ended up moving all their takeaway containers into the living room, spread out across Olivia’s coffee table like a massive plastic container feast. Olivia and Liam spent ten minutes arguing over what to watch before she whacked him with the remote and ended up putting on Crazy, Stupid, Love. He removed his jumper at some point, Olivia’s flat was awfully cozy compared to the chilly December night outside.

Olivia was torn between wanting to watch the movie and talking to Liam. She cared too much about Ryan Gosling on screen to listen to Liam but once Liam caught her eye she forgot about Ryan completely. There was something about Liam that Olivia kept trying to pin down. She had a feeling it had to do with how confidently he carried himself while still being so down to earth and humble. She noticed the dimples in his cheeks when he smiled and laughed when she shushed him for talking.

“Hey, I’ve been using all that stuff you told me to buy after my facial,” Liam whispered carefully, trying not to get shushed again.

Olivia’s eyebrows went up, intrigue in her eyes. “Yeah?! Do you like it?”

“Absolutely! I don’t always use that cream but I like washing my face. I feel so clean after,” he put his hands on his cheeks. “So fresh.”

Olivia leaned over, abandoning her plate. “Lemme see that skin of yours.”

“‘S all yours,” he replied with a grin.

She leaned over, observing his skin. Only the dialogue on the telly filled the silence but they didn’t notice. Olivia forgot what she was doing and how her hand was on Liam’s thigh so she could steady herself.

“Sorry,” Olivia breathed, lifting her hand and returning it to her lap.

Liam cleared his throat, adjusting himself. “Don’t be. Y’know...you could stay.”

Olivia cocked an eyebrow and her heart thumped in her ears. Liam wanted her to sit by him? Why? What did this mean? Why did she suddenly want to so badly?

“Maybe then I’ll focus on the movie rather than staring at you every two seconds,” Liam admitted, scratching his nose.

Olivia smiled, then she swiped a pillow nearby and hit him with it. “You’re so stupid. But smart too.”

She laid the pillow up against the cushions and moved over towards Liam. He lifted one arm, letting her squeeze in against him. She tried to ignore her heart racing in her chest that seemed to thump in her head too.

“What about you?” Olivia whispered as Steve Carell creeped around his backyard cutting the grass. Olivia kept having an argument in her head between wanting to ask about Liam’s dating life and leaving it alone. Either way she had every right to know. They were friends, right?

“What about me?” Liam replied, his lips close enough to her ear that she could feel the heat of his breath.

“Your dating life. Are you seeing anyone?” She asked, adjusting her position against his chest.

“I was a year or so ago but not anymore. But I’m not seeing anyone, no.” She felt his chest rise and fall beneath her, steady breaths while her heart picked up the pace.

They didn’t say much for the rest of the movie. They continued to watch Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone go back and forth on screen. While the two had obvious chemistry on screen, Olivia was moulding herself into Liam’s body, growing more comfortable by the second. Even though her eyes were getting heavy, she felt utterly relaxed and content against Liam’s torso. She let him wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her closer and her hand rested on his knee. Her eyes started to droop and she barely remembered seeing Steve Carrell and Ryan Gosling yelling on screen.

The next morning it took Olivia a few minutes of waking up and realizing she’d slept in her contacts before she realized that she was squished in the sofa between Liam’s elbow and the sofa cushions. When she came to, she jumped at the sight of Liam asleep on his back, mouth slightly ajar. She watched him sleep for a few seconds before extracting herself out of the sofa equation and practically rolled over the back of the sofa.

Down the hall, she shut herself in the toilet, a million thoughts racing in her head. As she tore off some toilet roll, she wondered Why did Liam stay? Washing her hands she pondered how she was going to get him out. Drying her hands and opening the door, part of her felt like she didn’t want him to leave. She was strangely okay with him being in her presence, her space that she worked so hard to perfect and make into a home for her and Frannie.

Waking him up wasn’t going to be a problem since he was sitting up when Liv walked back into the room. She jumped at the sight, pausing to watch him stretch his muscular tattooed arms over his head and ruffle his hair.

A floorboard creaked when Liv stepped on it and Liam looked around, a sleepy grin on his face. “Morning, soz I fell asleep.”

Liv shrugged, her heart melting at his puppy dog eyes and soft smile. “‘S okay. Dunno where Frannie is, she’s obvo not in her room.”

“Worried what she’d say if she found me?” Liam asked, peering at Olivia through tired eyes. His skin looked soft and plump this early in the morning. The morning light hit his cheekbone in just the right way that most skincare users died for.

“No, I don’t think so,” Liv sat down and shrugged. “She’d probably give me hell for it.”

Liam watched her laugh and run a hand haphazardly through her hair, attempting to look relaxed. He’d been around his sisters enough to know when they were putting on an act.

“Well, I’m starving and I’m guessing you are too because I’m sure I just heard your stomach growl,” Liam pointed out.

Olivia looked around with guilt, but he was right. God, she was starving. It was like she hadn’t ate her weight in Wagamama the night before. Her insides were jumping at the idea of having brunch with Liam which didn’t help the butterflies in her stomach.

“I’ve got the best place around the corner,” she said with a grin.

Twenty minutes later they were sat across from one another in the tiny cafe that served brunch all day, cold pressed juices, and fresh baked pastries. Olivia scratched at her arm, even though it really didn’t itch and glanced around the room to give her something to do. She already knew what she wanted, but she was giving Liam a chance to mull over the menu first.

“Do you know what you’re going to get?” He asked, glancing up at her.

“Pancakes. American style with blueberries.” Her stomach rumbled at the mention.

Liam hummed. “Tempting, I’m going more of the protein way. Eggs, bacon, maybe some toast.”

Olivia’s eyebrows went up. “Protein? Since when are you Mr. Fitness?”

He scoffed, “I work out. I go to the gym regularly.”

“Oh I know, I see your Insta stories,” Olivia mumbled, looking down at her menu nonchalantly. She flicked her gaze up to Liam’s face, surprised to find him with a small cheeky grin on his face.

“Do you follow me? Do you like what I post?” He was openly honest and curious, but the grin on his face showed how pleased he was to know Olivia followed him on Instagram. He was awful at the app himself. He only figured out how to follow people a few months ago.

Olivia shrugged. “Maybe. You’re a little heavy on the selfies but I like them.”

They continued to go back and forth about Instagram. Olivia kept giving him a hard time about what he posted and how he had no clue about how picky people were with their content. He joked that she took it too seriously and how he barely knew how to work the app alone. They placed their orders along the way, hurrying back to their conversation that made them laugh and exchange secret smiles that made them feel like they were the only ones in the restaurant.

The more Olivia explained what she did for work, the more Liam got an idea of how hard she worked. Even though it seemed like she was just on her phone all day, Olivia did way more research and reading of her statistics and numbers than Liam ever realized. He could only relate when it came to the sales behind his singles and all the records he put out with One Direction. He did still didn’t believe how well they did in the five years they were together.

They ate their food, Olivia and her pancakes and Liam with his plate of eggs and bacon. Once they paid the bill, which Liam slid his card into before Olivia could grab her wallet. From there, they started to wonder through the streets of Kensington. The conversation continued steadily, every once in a while Olivia felt an inexplicable wave past through her. It washed over her when Liam looked at her with a smile on his lips. She felt it again when they walked into a shop and he placed his hand on the small of her back as another couple passed by them.

She kept her hands stowed in the pockets of her coat since it was cold for the sunny December day. Olivia was thankful there was no wind today to mess up her hair and it end up in her mouth when she talked. She hated the wind, it always got her hair stuck in her lip gloss or half blind when her hair blew in her face.

They came upon Hyde Park after stopping in a local coffee shop Olivia loved. She was thankful for the heat from her oat milk latte since the wind had kicked up a bit once they hit the park. Liam was smart and dug a beanie out of his coat when they got to the shop. She loved how the ends of his hair stuck out beneath the edge.

“I like your hair long you know,” Olivia confessed, their arms bumping here and there.

“Really? I was worried I needed to shave it again,” Liam said, sipping on his cappuccino. Olivia questioned his coffee choice in the shop at first, making him explain that he didn’t like a lot of espresso in his lattes so then he changed to a cappuccino.

“No! You look good with a full head of hair.” Olivia ducked her head, trying to figure out why her cheeks felt so hot all of a sudden.

Liam smiled, “Thanks.”

Olivia smiled before changing the subject. “You know I’ve always loved parks. That’s something I miss about Wolverhampton. The loveliest parks were right in town, remember?”

He nodded, glancing around the surrounding trees and grassy fields. “Yeah, I used to spend hours there in the summer when I was a kid.”

“I’m glad I live close to Hyde Park. I like to come walk through here sometimes to get ideas for my blog or clear my head if I’ve been looking at a computer screen too long. There’s something about the vastness of a park and how it should seem so intimidating...but it’s more relaxing to know that this belongs to everyone y’know? And it’s something we all use for a different reason. I love that,” Olivia explained. She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear that escaped, sighing when they got to one of her favorite parts of the park.

One thing Olivia loved about Hyde Park was how the leaves fell and swirled around the park. They shifted once they fell and moved as people moved through the park day after day. The orange and brown tones of fallen leaves accented the matte black leather of her Chelsea boots, making Olivia feel like a walking aesthetic.

“Do you want a picture for your Instagram?” Liam asked a foot away. He stopped to watch Olivia admire the park, admiring her instead.

Olivia raised an eyebrow. “How’d you know that?”

Liam shrugged. “I could just tell. Plus, who doesn’t want a photo surrounded by all this?” He waved his arms, gesturing to the green surroundings and falling leaves.

“Okay, but take a few of me, will you? Make them good.” Olivia said, handing over her iPhone.

Ten minutes later, Liam laughed as Olivia scrolled through the pictures he took. Her faced was screwed up in concentration as she pinched and zoomed in before deleting the ones she didn’t like.

“Are they good? Do I need to take twenty more?” Liam asked dryly.

Liv rolled her eyes, glancing up at him from her mobile. “No, I like them just fine.”

He came towards her, grinning as he looked over her shoulder. She looked picture perfect against the dying leaves on the ground and the grassy field to the side. He nudged shoulders with hers. “I like them too.”

She looked up, surprised to find Liam’s face so close to hers. His eyes met hers, noticing how her eyes had flicks of gold and green against the brown irises. She bit her lip, scanning his face as her heart hammered in her ears.

“We should probably keep moving. It’s getting chilly,” she muttered, turning back to her phone and stepping away from Liam.

Olivia hadn’t talked to Liam in a week since they hung out in the park. The rest of their walk went fine. They started up their conversation again as they moved towards the edge of the park to head back to Olivia’s flat. Liam figured he needed to head home and quit overstaying his welcome. Olivia was grateful since she knew Frannie would probably return at any second and she dreaded explaining why Liam was still at hers at 3 o’clock on a Sunday.

Since then, Liam started texting her almost daily. He took off for a week in the States for some Christmas concerts but he sent her a text here and there to check in. While her schedule was busy too, her only excuse for icing Liam out, she sent half as many texts as Liam. She kept it short and friendly, not letting her emotions get the best of her and type out four messages like she normally did to Frannie.

Frannie found out Liam spent the night the next weekend when she discovered he’d left his jumper stuffed into their sofa. She resembled the Cheshire Cat when Liv chased her around the living room trying to take the jumper from her.

“When will you give him a chance? Liv, he’s obvo crazy about you,” Frannie tried to reason with Olivia but it was obvious that her best friend was seeing blind when it came to her love life. Frannie may have been a hot mess when it came to boys but at least she owned it. Olivia was precious and deserved someone who would treat her right. Frannie also knew Liv wasn’t some dainty flower to be admired, she needed someone to help her realize her own potential and how fuckign amazing she was.

“I-” Olivia opened her mouth out of defense but snapped it shut when her iPhone lit up on the table with Liam’s name on it. “Fuck off.”

Frannie snorted, watching her phone buzz again with Liam’s name. “I hate to say I told you so,” she sang. “Call me when you finally bone!” With that blunt statement, she left and retreated to her room.

A week later, Olivia kept up the same charade much to Frannie’s disapproval. She wrote twice as many blog posts from the comfort of her room or coffee shop in town whenever she had free time. Olivia kept her mind off Liam and how her heart skipped a beat at the thought by focusing on her train and the stop she needed to get off at before she attended another event. She ignored the itch to text Liam about her frustration to find something to wear to the BAFTAs the next night, knowing he would relate to how she felt. She’d caught sight of his latest post on Instagram that morning, liking it quickly before scrolling further down.

By the next night, she’d completely forgotten Liam may be at the awards too. She was too preoccupied with her boobs not popping out of the navy blue floor length dress she’d ordered off ASOS at the last minute from their fancy dress section. The thin spaghetti straps kept threatening to slide off her shoulders if she didn’t stand up straight and her eye started to twitch every time the buckle on her strappy heels rubbed against her skin.

She could have been naked on the red carpet and completely unaware when she saw Liam. He was ten feet away in a black suit that hugged every muscle he worked so diligently for in the gym. She instantly spotted his tattoos on his hands poking out of the coat pockets, sending her heart into overdrive. Blinking, she snapped back to attention of the blokes taking her picture. She blushed, shaking her wavy hair back out and staring back at the camera. Olivia kept glancing over her shoulder in Liam’s direction, as if she had some sort of turrets that made her only look at him. She was grateful when the paps were done taking her picture and she could retreat inside the venue.

Inside the giant hall where the awards were being held, elaborately decorated round tables were scattered across the floor. Glasses of all sizes were arranged on the tabletops along with gold place cards and hefty gift bags in each seat. Guests and honorees were milling about inside, already buzzing from the champagne flutes that were floating through the crowd at the hand of various waiters.

Olivia grabbed a flute as soon as she could, draining in it three gulps and trading it for another. She moved into the middle of the room where she spotted some of her blogger friends, who looked like they’d walked out of a magazine spread. They gushed over Olivia’s dress and even more when they found out where she’d got it. Joking about linking her dress below, she felt considerably more relaxed than she had outside.

She caught sight of Liam once she sat down at her table full of bloggers. He was three tables away with the Editor in Chief of British Vogue, Jourdan Dunn, and Winnie Harlow. He was even more dashing in his suit with a flute of champagne in his hand. Olivia looked away when Liam glanced in her direction. Praying he didn’t see her and try to talk to her, she turned towards one of her friends and started babbling about how hungry she was and if it’d be rude to order Postmates in the middle of the awards.

The awards passed by quickly. Olivia switched from champagne to water once the hor devours arrived. She had started snacking on the Charbonnel chocolates inside her gift bag at one point. She applauded loudly when Winnie Harlow won model of the year, noticing how Liam stood up to clap for her too. She was at a loss for words when Lucy Williams stopped by their table to chat up another blogger sitting across from her. She begged her friend to introduce them at the afterparty.

For the afterparty, the guests relocated to a club down the road that was decorated the same as the awards hall. Olivia once again found herself in search of someone to talk to while sipping on champagne again.

“Hey, did I see you at the awards earlier or did you just come to the afterparty for the champagne?”

Olivia froze, glancing up at Liam slowly. Her heart sped up when her eyes landed on his, the corners wrinkled as he smiled down at her. “I go wherever there’s free champagne.”

“You look amazing OJ,” he said immediately, bypassing the casualties. He was relieved she was here. He wasn’t totally sure he’d seen her at the awards earlier in the same stunning, cleavage-baring gown she had on in front of him.

Olivia tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “Thanks. This is quite a change from jeans and a jumper,” she commented, observing his suit up close. She could see it had velvet lapels that created a bit of contrast against the fine material of his jacket.

He backed up, putting his hands on his hips. “How’d you like it? I’m hoping GQ will get in touch tonight.”

She laughed, throwing her head back. “Don’t know about GQ but I know they’ll be a bunch of wankers if you don’t make the best dressed list.” When he lit up, she waved a finger in his face. “Don’t be getting an inflated ego now. You look nice, that’s all.”

Liam shook his shoulders back and forth. “You think I look handsome. Just admit it.”

“I’m getting a champagne, cheers,” she said dismissively, waving him off. Her whole body felt hot and her heart quickened like she’d just sprinted a large field. Sports weren’t her thing but God she felt like she’d just raced Usain Bolt.

“If I find us a bottle, would you step away with me?” Liam asked lowly. He stepped closer, his lips hovering against her hairline.

Olivia stared ahead at nothing in particular, remembering how she turned away in the park. Swallowing her inhibitions, she looked up at him and nodded.

Not five minutes later, Olivia slid her hand into Liam’s and followed him along a hall. He swiped a champagne bottle after slipping a bartender a note. They wandered along a hall that was lined with expensive private lounges that were usually rented out by those only with black Amexs and a want for the most expensive champagne, stopping only when they found one unlocked.

Olivia adjusted herself in her dress and nervously messed with her hair while Liam opened the bottle of champagne. When the cork came out, it came with a mighty ‘pop!’ that sent them into hysterics. The music from the main room muffled the sound but still made them check the door nervously. One wall of their lounge had a large window that looked down into the main room, but with the curtains drawn, all Olivia and Liam could see was the glow of the lights below.

“God, I never imagined myself here,” Olivia remarked as she watched Liam pour her a generous flute.

He poured one for himself, sneaking a glance at her. He’d been in plenty of clubs, attended more parties than he could remember, but being at a party with Olivia was different from any other event he had been to. She watched everything with a wide eyed curiosity that she internalized cooly. He could tell she felt out of her element but she pulled it off spectacularly.

“Y’know, when I had to go to these sort of things when I started out in the band, I hated them. I absolutely felt like I was an outsider. Other than the fact I was like, seventeen or eighteen give a few, it wasn’t my scene,” he explained, resting against the back of a sofa nearby.

“How’d you deal with them? Don’t you like to party?” she asked, coming to rest next to him. The sofa was a short one that was more impractical than anything. It was meant for casual lounging in a club where no one was going to make themselves too comfortable.

Liam sighed. “I used to. In the band it was easy ‘cos I had nothing else to do when I wasn’t working or like, touring, y’know. The lads loved to go out too when we could. But once we went on hiatus, I kinda went to a bad place because I didn’t know what to do with my life next.” His fingers ran along his jawline where scruff was littered in a thick layer. “I just realized in the last year with making music again that I like writing with a clear head and not a hangover the next morning. It’s funny ‘cos people think my music paints me as a party boy or whatever but I’m not like that as much anymore.”

Olivia rested her hand on the back, her fingers grazing Liam’s. “That’s a lot to go through in a short amount of time. I still don’t know how you did all that in like, five years.”

“Yeah, yeah it was mad,” he said with a shake of his head. He said it with a tone of wistfulness, like he was seeing something Olivia couldn’t. She felt that passion and nostalgia sitting next to her, and it pulled her closer to him.

He turned towards her, sensing how she’d closed the distance between the two. He leaned in like they were magnets that were meant to be pulled together. As if he knew what to do next, he dropped his empty glass on the sofa and slid his fingers into her hair, drawing in her. Olivia kissed him, closing the gap and sending fireworks through her head.

She leaned into him, wanting his hands all over her. She loved how his large hands gripped her face and the curve of her waist. The strap of her dress started to slide down when she leaned forward to hold onto him. Liam’s hands were in her hair as he pressed further into her mouth, making it difficult to tell where she began and he ended.

Their kisses grow more intense with a steady rhythm, like they were meant to be doing this all along. Liam was breathing her name in her ear anytime they broke apart, sending her heart racing in her chest.

Suddenly, Olivia’s heart nearly stops. Her stomach dips when she breaks their kiss, breathing hard. Their foreheads touch and Olivia realizes Liam’s breathing nearly as hard as she has.

“God...God Liv you’re amazing...why’d...why’d you stop?” Liam asked, breaking their contact to stare at her. Her hair’s a bit wild from having his hands in it but her lips are dark pink from his kisses.

Olivia blinked, her eyes were starting to grow hot, fogging her vision. “I don’t...I don’t know. I’ve….I’ve got to go,” she said suddenly, straightening up and bunching her dress in her hand. “Liam, I’m sorry.”

She hurried out of the room, ignoring Liam’s calls behind her. Tears started to fall the minute she hit the hallway, making her rush even quicker towards the exit. No one paid the crying girl any mind as she rushed past the party where normal people were getting drunk and loving life. Instead, she walked away from it all and slid into the back of one of the various waiting cars outside. Wiping the back of her hand across her face, she mumbled her address and sat back in the cab and cried.

Liv, I hope you’re alright. Dunno what happened but if you want to talk to me, I’ll be home until New Year’s Eve. Liam xx

Hey, hope you’re alright, just checking in

Saw your blog post today, would love to talk to you before I go away for New Year’s

Happy New Year Olivia, thinking of you x

Olivia was in a state. She’d turned on her out of office reply on her inbox as soon as she finished her last project of the year. She’d queued up the rest of the year’s blog posts and shut herself off from social media. The only thing she was keeping up with was her skincare routine, but even that was suffering.

Frannie grew more concerned by the days leading up to Christmas. Olivia didn’t say much about the after party except that she wanted nothing to do with the gift bag that showed up at their door the next day because she’d left it at the club.

She still wasn’t sure of what had happened to Olivia when they left for Christmas but she figured it had to do with Liam since she’d caught sight of his name popping up on Liv’s phone from time to time. His messages went ignored and unanswered.

Olivia didn’t know what happened either or why she ran away. She played it over and over in her mind when she laid in bed at night, wide awake with some inescapable knot sitting in her stomach. She knew it was her fault, she was at least sure of that. Guilt sat on her shoulders and followed her around when she glimpsed Liam’s unanswered texts in her messages app. She even opened their chat sometimes and typed out a reply or even an apology but then she’d erase it and welcome the pit of emptiness back in her stomach.

Christmas came and went and Olivia returned to London with her head up. She was coming to terms that she fucked up with Liam but accepted things happened for a reason. She’d get past it and cross into the New Year with a new outlook. She’d find that feeling Liam gave her elsewhere, hopefully in the new content she’d dreamed up on the train back to London from Wolverhampton. She and Frannie spent New Year’s together at a house party thrown by a friend of Frannie’s. She shared a kiss with some random bloke at midnight and swallowed down more champagne whenever she wished Liam was the one kissing her when the ball dropped.

One night however, she met her resolve. While cleaning out her closet one evening when Frannie was on her way home from work, Olivia dug out Liam’s forgotten jumper. She swallowed hard, remembering how she’d tossed it in her closet before she’d left for home. Part of her hoped it would have been buried under some PR package and forgotten until she moved out of the flat one day. Clearly fate had something else in mind as she clutched the soft material in her hands, the scent of Liam’s cologne wafting up and stirring up all the feelings Liv had spent days repressing.

Frannie came home thirty minutes later, grumbling about work aloud to the flat, but her arms weighed down with stuff from work. When she didn’t receive Olivia’s usual reassuring response, Frannie peered into the living room and found her best friend staring off into the distance with a Bake Off rerun on Channel 4.

“Liv, you okay?” she asked, stepping cautiously towards her. She noticed she was clutching something dark to her chest. “Liv, talk to me.”

Olivia shook her head, looking down at the jumper in her lap. A single tear rolled down her nose and hit the jumper. “It’s Liam’s. He left his jumper here and I fucked up. I didn’t get it back to him. I ran. I just forgot and I ran away.”

Frannie’s brow furrowed, piecing together whatever sense Olivia was trying to make. “Okay...you forgot to give Liam his jumper...no sweat. I’m sure he’s got loads more cashmere at home.”

Olivia snorted, although it was snottier than normal from her crying. “If only it was that easy.”

“Liv, please, can you tell me what happened between you two? Then maybe I’ll understand why you’re clutching a hundred pound jumper like it’s your lifeline.” Frannie turned down the telly, rubbing Olivia’s back.

Olivia looked at Frances, her eyes were red from crying and her cheeks blotchy. Her hair was twisted up into some sort of bun that resembled a bird’s nest from laying down for so long. She sighed and wiped her nose. “I fucked up Frannie. He was right there and I ran away.” She sniffled. “We ran into each other at the BAFTAs and eventually started talking at the afterparty. God, he was so fit. He invited me to one of those private lounges to talk or whatever,” she wiped her nose again.

“Everything was fine. We started talking about something to do with partying or some rubbish.” Olivia paused, recalling how the soft lighting of the lounge cast a warm glow over Liam’s skin. She was starting to become so proud of how Liam was taking care of his skin over the past couple weeks. “Then, I don’t know, I really wanted to snog him. Like, badly.”

“And did you?” Frannie asked, leaning towards her.

She nodded. “Yeah,” she smiled. “Yes and it was amazing. We were really getting into it and Frannie, my God, his hands. I hadn’t felt like that in ages.” She bit her lip, pausing her story. “But then, a part of me shut down. I didn’t want to be there anymore. I wanted to run away and get away from everything. It hurt me to leave and to know I left Liam high and dry behind me. And I just don’t know what to do now.”

Frannie sighed, patting her best friend’s sweatpant-clad knee. “Sounds like you’re in love. Not to be blunt but my love, you’ve got it. What you’ve found is something everyone searches for in life. That kind of love that pulls you together and you feel that pain when you’re apart.”

Olivia glared at her, tears silently rolling down her face.

“Glare at me all you want, but you know I’m right. I think you scared yourself straight and it made you bolt. I know you’re tough Liv, and independent as hell but you deserve to have someone love you the way Liam probably does. And it’s okay to be scared, this is the unknown for you.” Frannie leaned back against the sofa cushions, smirking victoriously.

“Why are you smirking like that? I’m a mess,” Olivia asked, wiping away under her eyes. She felt better from venting to Frannie but she was annoyed with how smug her best friend looked. She still felt like shit with no idea if she and Liam would ever come back from this.

“Because it’s fun to see you out of your element. Don’t get me wrong, I hate seeing you in this depressed, hollowed out state when I have all this skincare to show you and I don’t think you’ll care. But, you’re going to get through this. I know you.”

Frannie was right. Olivia was strong and independent as hell. She followed her own path and knew what was best for everyone. It was about time she learned what was meant for her. So, that night, after sorting through Frannie’s Kiehl’s haul, she went to sleep restless again. This time, she knew what she needed to do, but first she had to figure it out.

Liam, I’m really sorry for what happened last month. It was awful of me to do, especially to you. I want to explain. Will you meet me by the fountain in Hyde Park? Hopefully you know the one, I’ll be there before the sun goes down. OJ x

She hoped signing her name with the nickname she had back in Wolverhampton softened him up a bit. Her heart hammered in her chest as she waited for a reply. She fell back against her bed, staring up at the ceiling and trying to ignore her heartbeat in her ears. She wished Frannie was home to distract her and not doing her job.

Olivia continued to stare at the ceiling until her eyelids grew heavy. She started to give in when she stopped convincing herself that her phone was faux-vibrating.

She woke up when the light in her room was starting to turn from blue to brilliant reds, oranges, and purples. She glanced around her room, trying to remember why she was in bed. The disorienting feeling that naps gave her evaporated when her phone vibrated. She sat up bolt right in bed, clutching her phone in front of her.

A text from Liam looked back at her and she tried to steady her thumb before she opened it. He’d texted her three times, but she read the newest one.

Of course I know where to go. I’ll be there

Leaving my house now

Are you coming?

“Fuck!” She swore, launching herself out of bed and pulling on more layers to go outside. She hopped around, straightening her jumper and tugging on some old UGG boots she had stashed for cold winter evenings. She fiddled with her hair, tucking it and retucking it behind her ears before it inevitably came untucked from the mild wind outside.

She barely had her coat on when she hit the sidewalk, taking off towards Hyde Park. It was only a five minute walk but Olivia was worried and fueled with determination to find Liam before it was too late. She scrambled with everything she wanted to say before she found him, but it was all running together as she tried not to get hit by a car at the crosswalk.

The fountain was proper in the park, but not far enough that Olivia couldn’t make it out in the bright sunset setting over the park. Her eyes scanned the people around, trying to assume which one Liam might be.

Out of breath, she reached the outside of the fountain. Her eyes searched frantically for Liam’s familiar form, her heart crashing against her chest out of disappointment and exhaustion.

She was too late. She’d missed her chance to explain. To tell Liam she was in love with him.

“OJ! Olivia!”

Her heart leapt, revived with a familiar warmth that only Liam could make her feel. Spinning around, her eyes landed on him, standing on a nearby pathway.

She took off towards him, her coat flying out behind her. She could tell his eyes were smiling but he kept his mouth neutral. She didn’t care how he looked though, she was just relieved he was here. He wanted to give her a chance. Suddenly, everything was clear. She knew what she needed to do to show she was sorry.

Olivia collided with Liam seconds later, throwing her arms around his neck and praying he was as strong as he seemed. Her lips crashed against his, igniting the same fireworks in her head that she felt in the club. She was barely aware of his arms wrapping themselves around her waist and lifting her off the ground. She kissed him harder, pressing her tongue into his mouth. Her hands raked through the back of his hair, her body flush with his.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Liam,” she breathed. He lowered her to the ground, keeping her close to him. The light behind him was giving him an orange glow. “I shouldn’t have run away. I was stupid.”

Liam shook his head, his eyes searching hers. He was always looking for her, trying to figure her out and her next move. “Why did you?” He asked curiously.

Olivia sighed. “I was scared. Scared of accepting what I knew all along.”

Liam frowned, separating them a little. “What was that?”

She swallowed, glancing away before looking him right in the eye. “That I was in love with you. Ever since we ran into each other at that party, I wanted to kiss you but I was scared. I didn’t want to ruin our friendship. But I was scared of letting myself love someone else out of fear I’d fail.”

Her eyes grew hot as the words spilled out, but they were there. She had to accept her confession even if Liam didn’t. She couldn’t read Liam’s mind but she knew how she felt at least.

He sighed, his breath white against the cold air. “I was waiting for you to say that. God, I wanted to sweep you away the minute I found you by the bar. You were one of the only people who cared about me in high school and I still found that same person when we were at that party. Along the way, everything started to change and one morning I knew. Do you know when I knew?”

“Knew what?” Olivia asked, puzzled over his words. What was he talking about? She was only numbly aware that she couldn’t feel her fingers as the sun was going down.

“That I was in love with you too. That morning I woke up on your sofa and you were curled up around me like you belonged there. I realized before you left me that I wanted to wake up like that every morning.” He paused. “I love you, Olivia. I’ve waited to hear those words from you too.”

She pulled him back to her, letting his fingers slid up under her jumper. “I mean every word. I love you Liam, I always have.” She pressed a soft kiss to his lips, barely brushing them with hers. They shared a bubble of warmth as they made out in the park, the light fading fast behind them.

“Did you know you’re wearing my jumper? I was wondering where this went,” Liam noted, holding the material between his index and thumb.

Olivia looked down, realizing happily that the jumper she snatched in her room was the same one she’d cried into the night before. “You left it at my house...I guess I’ve been keeping it safe for you.”

Liam shook his head, ducking down to kiss her again. “It’s yours. I’m all yours.”

Olivia grinned, tipping her head back once more to kiss him. “Good, that’s all I’ve wanted.”

#1dff #exchanges

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