#perform again and fucked it up so badly it’ll give her problems for the rest of her life. one of my best friends was having a weird mystery

[experiencingpenguinshockey]

:/

[xofanfics]

String - Part VII

Prologue | Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV | Part V | Part VI | Part VII | Part VIII

Genre: angst, fluff

Pairing: Baekhyun x Female Reader x Sehun

Word Count: 4.3k

Summary: You find yourself in a friends-with-benefits situation with your best friend. You have no business falling for him, but your heart begs to differ.

You took extra care with your outfit tonight. Not that you wouldn’t take extra care anyway, being that you were going on a date. Conveniently, you’d see Baekhyun too. 

You ended up pushing your date with Sehun back to nine instead of seven. He didn’t seem to have an issue with it, thankfully. He said, “Go support your friends. The jazz bar isn’t going anywhere.”

“Thanks for understanding,” you said. “He asked me to come at the last minute.”

“It’ll be fun. Just save a little bit of energy for me,” he said, chuckling. 

“What’s that supposed to mean, hm? Why do I need energy?”

“So you don’t fall asleep mid drink, you little perv.”

The two of you burst into laughter. For someone who wasn’t actively trying to have sex with you, he did enjoy making dirty jokes. You didn’t mind. It reminded you of the stupid, slick comments Baekhyun used to make when you’d wear short skirts. He’d whisper, “Are you going to let me eat you out later? I think my head fits perfectly between your legs,” while your friends weren’t paying attention. You smiled at the distant memory but then you shook it off, bringing yourself back to a Baekhyun-less reality. 

You felt bad pursuing Sehun when you still sort of had these unresolved feelings for Baekhyun but you needed to move on. It wasn’t that you were using Sehun. You actually liked him a lot and you could see this going somewhere. He was a good guy and, to be honest, it seemed like you had more in common with him than with Baekhyun. But still, for reasons you had yet to discover, it felt like your heart would burst out of your chest and jump on Baekhyun if it could. 

You looked in the mirror. You were wearing a long sleeved maroon colored dress, a few inches above your knees. It was long enough to cover your butt and short enough to show off your legs. The dress hung off both of your shoulders, showing off some skin. You wore a pair of stud earrings and a simple necklace that wasn’t too dressy. Your date was at a jazz bar and you figured you’d dress up a bit. You admitted to yourself that you had a double agenda, hoping that Baekhyun noticed you and even more so, delusionally hoping that he’d want you back. 

You slid on your black booties and put your bag over your shoulder. You checked for your phone, keys, and wallet before heading out of the door. Excitement ran through you and so did anxiety. Tonight could go very good, very badly, or very neutrally. Could you handle it?

*

People were piling into the auditorium as you arrived a bit later than expected. Sadie and Evie told you they’d saved you a seat and were waiting for you somewhere on the right side. You’d find them eventually. Since the lights were still on, you found your friends easily. You squeezed past other people, making your way to the middle of the row. 

“Hey guys,” you said, plopping down next to Daren.

“Well, well, well,” said Daren. “Look who finally decided to show up.”

You smiled, giving him a quick hug before sitting down. You waved to Sadie and Evie on the other side of him. “I’m sorry I’ve been MIA…”

“Yeah and, uh, I…”

You shook your head. “You don’t have to feel bad for me or anything. I’m fine.”

Relief washed over your friend and the lights dimmed. The host went onto the stage, taking the microphone in his hands. “Hey, hey, hey! I know we’re all super excited to be here this evening. I’m your host Kalled…”

You started tuning him out, thinking again of how the night would go. Would you be able to speak if Baekhyun stood in front of you? What kinds of things would you say? Part of you wanted to be mean, to hurt his feelings like he did to you. But the other part wasn’t sure.

“The first group to compete in the Battle of the Orgs: Dance Edition is…”

To be honest, you weren’t quite paying attention. You knew that KSA was going last and you had no interest in the Bollywood dancing or the Chinese fan dance or the hip-hop or the ballet. You even found yourself dozing off. Daren nudged you as the host announced the group you actually cared about. 

You rubbed sleep from your eyes as the first song came on: Under Cover by A.C.E. You watched the group’s sharp movements and, if you didn’t know them, you’d think that they might be professionals. Baekhyun liked to dance but you had no idea that he could pull this off. You watched the way his body moved in his black shirt and joggers. You watched as his body twisted and turned. He looked concentrated and, knowing the person Baekhyun was, you knew that he could be a bit of a perfectionist when it came to things like this. 

You sighed to yourself as they started performing Sha La La by Pentagon. You wondered what this girlfriend of his was like and if she was here. Did she get him flowers or something to congratulate him on his performance? Was she here right now, in this crowd? You didn’t know anything about this girl so far and that was part of what killed you. And you supposed it was better off not knowing because then you’d find yourself comparing and contrasting.

Before you knew it, they performed Regular by NCT 127 and their performance was over. As the crowd roared and people put in their votes, you tuned it all out. All you could think about was Baekhyun. Why did this have to be so hard? Why was it so hard to move on when Baekhyun already let you know that you weren’t the person he wanted? Shouldn’t it be easy? Shouldn’t you think, “Fuck him!” Why was it that your heart still clinging onto those feelings?

As predicted, KSA’s dance team won the competition and the crowd roared again. Your friends jumped up and down next to you, yelling and shouting for your friends. You clapped but you didn’t jump. Right about now, you couldn’t bring yourself to feel excited. You didn’t want to feel like this but you couldn’t help yourself. You wanted to leave. You didn’t want to face Baekhyun but you also knew that you couldn’t hide from him forever. Eventually, you’d cross paths again and you’d have to act like a reasonable adult. 

The auditorium started to empty out and you led the way out into the hallway. You excused yourself to the bathroom so that you could gain your bearings. You went to the bathroom and washed your hands. You turned the water off and dried your hands. You took a deep breath, looking in the mirror to make sure you didn’t look as distressed as you felt. For now, you could pull it off. Chill out, Y/N, you told yourself as you walked out of the bathroom and back into the hallway where you left your friends. 

Before you could even search for them yourself, you found them standing with a man whose face you knew all too well. You knew it wasn’t their fault that Baekhyun was there because it was no one’s job to protect your feelings. After all, they were still friends with Baekhyun even if your relationship with him was up in the air.

You took a deep breath, as you’d been spotted not only by Baekhyun but by Drew. It was too late to run in the opposite direction so you did your best and made your way over to your friends. 

“Y/N, hey,” said Evie, attempting to break the ice that had formed between you and Baekhyun. You stood a safe distance away from Baekhyun, choosing to stand next to Sadie instead of next to Daren which would bring you dangerously close to Baekhyun. 

“Hey guys,” you said, as a general greeting just so that Baekhyun didn’t assume you were speaking to him directly. You could feel his eyes on you like glue. “The performance was really good. Good job…”

“Thanks,” said Drew and Baekhyun at the same time. 

Baekhyun let out a nervous laugh before Evie cleared her throat. “So, is anyone up for a party tonight?”

“I’m down,” said Baekhyun.

Drew looked at Daren. “We’re not doing anything tonight.”

“Whose party?”

“One of the girls was saying that there’s an Airbnb party tonight. Whoever’s throwing the party must be rich. I heard his dad is a diplomat from Ethiopia. It’s some place that’s not too far. A little further uptown. I followed her on Instagram. She posted the address on her story,” Evie explained. 

“Y/N, are you coming?”

You shook your head. “I actually have plans tonight.”

Sadie said, “Just bring him with you!”

Before you could say anything else, someone crashed into Baekhyun and wrapped their arms around him. She said, “You did amazing, babe.”

Baekhyun smiled back at her. “Thank you.” He planted a kiss on her forehead, just like he used to do to you.

There she was, in all her fucking glory. Miss Kira had blessed you with her presence after all this time. Not only did you have to have a run-in with Baekhyun but with his new girlfriend, too. This was the cherry on top of all of your problems. Kira looked up and greeted the rest of your friends. She said, “I’m Kira. I don’t think we’ve met.”

Baekhyun said, “Kira, Y/N. Y/N, this is my girlfriend Kira.”

If everyone was being honest, you’d admit that you wanted to punch her in her pretty face. You’d admit that you wanted to pull her stupid long, bone straight hair. You’d admit that you wanted to rip her jacket in two. But you didn’t admit any of those things. And you definitely weren’t being honest. 

She smiled at you as she reached out her hand. Mustering the fakest smile you could, you smiled back and shook the bitch’s hand. You felt bad referring to her as a bitch, even in your thoughts. But it’s what your brain did automatically. When you thought of the name Kira, you couldn’t help but think of the word bitch to go along with it.

Kira the bitch. 

Bitchy ass Kira. 

The bitch-who-stole-Baekhyun Kira. 

What sucked for you is that she didn’t seem like the type of girl to be a bitch. Hating her would be a lot easier if she had her nose up in the air as if she was better than you or if she was acting standoffish. But meeting her face to face tonight, she seemed excited to meet you, another one of Baekhyun’s friends. 

“Nice to meet you,” you said even though you didn’t mean it.

You cleared your throat and turned to Sadie. “I’ll ask him. He just said he’s outside.”

*

You weaved in and out of clusters of students, the post-performance buzz had spilled out onto the sidewalks. You heard the chatter of your classmates, with most of them trying to figure out plans for the night. Just like you, you had no idea what the plan was for tonight. You didn’t even know if Sehun would agree. Your mind was pretty much a jumble after dealing with seeing Baekhyun and meeting Kira for the first time ever. 

You found Sehun standing across the street, on the corner. You jogged across the street once the road was clear to cross. He smiled upon your arrival and pulled you into a quick hug. “Wow. You look good.”

You smiled as you pulled away from his hug. “Thanks.”

“Are you ready to head out?”

“I was actually wondering if you wanted to go to this party instead,” you said. 

“What kind of party?”

“There’s just this rich kid who rented out an airbnb a little further uptown. A lot of people are trying to go.” You cleared your throat. “My friends asked if I wanted to go and said that I should bring you. But don’t feel pressured to go. We already made plans but I just wanted—”

“Let’s go,” he said, much to your surprise.

“Really?”

He shrugged. “Yeah. I haven’t been to a college party in a couple years. I’m down to relive college for a night.”

“Are you sure?”

“As long as I get to hang out with you, I’m happy.”

You smiled. “Thanks. Plus, I think my friends kinda wanna meet you.”

He returned your smile. “I’m great with friends.”

You liked this about Sehun too. Even though he seemed more reserved, he was still very open and friendly. You had no doubts that your friends would like him. Hell, you figured Drew and Daren would probably like him, too. Sehun was the ideal man and you knew that. You just wished that your heart would keep that in mind, too. You were trying to forget about Baekhyun but your heart was holding you back. You had to push him out to make room for Sehun, because you deserved better.

Your friends spotted you before you spotted them. Sehun looked past you and nodded behind you. “Are these your friends?”

You turned around and found Sadie and Evie walking toward you. “Heeeeeeyyy,” sang Evie. “There you are.” Sadie wrapped her arm around your shoulder as your face turned a little red with embarrassment.

With a sigh, you said, “Well looks like they found us. These are my friends Evie and Sadie.”

They shook hands with him and Sehun said, “My name’s Sehun.”

“So you’re the guy that’s been stealing our friend away the past couple weekends,” said Sadie.

“Nice to meet you,” said Evie.

Sehun said, “So I heard there’s a party?”

“Yeah,” Evie answered. “You’re coming right? I figured we should pregame or something.”

“My place isn’t too far. We could go there. I have a couple bottles of something or another,” Sehun said.

And that was that. The four of you headed to Sehun’s house in Chelsea. To be honest, you’d never been there. You had no idea what his house looked like. And to be honest another time, you realized that you assumed that he lived in Brooklyn like you. But tonight was full of surprises, clearly.

*

The four of you walked into a luxury building that was a thousand times better than the third floor walk up you lived in. As you walked into the lobby, the concierge said, “Good evening.” Sehun nodded and led you and your friends toward the elevators. The gray floors were so shiny that you could almost see yourself in them. You gawked at the grand chandelier hanging above you as you waited for the elevator.

As the elevator arrived, Sehun held his arm out and let you and your friends on first. Evie whispered in your ear, “What a gentleman...” 

You smiled to yourself as the four of you got out on the nineteenth floor. Sehun led you down a long hallway, ending up at the end of the hallway. He took out his key and let everyone inside. He flipped the light switch and put his keys down on the kitchen counter. 

“Make yourselves at home,” he said. “I’m gonna see what we have. My roommate had some leftover bottles from a get together we had a couple weeks ago.”

You nodded and sat on the couch, sandwiched between your friends. You watched as Sehun rummaged through the mahogany kitchen cabinets. He looked so concentrated and you couldn’t help but notice how he raised his eyebrow at the bottle holding the brown liquid in question. He held up two half full, half empty bottles. One was clear and one was dark. 

Sauntering into the living room, Sehun held up the two bottles. “Light or dark?”

“Light,” the three of you said.

“You’re scared of dark liquor huh?”

“It always gives me a hangover,” said Evie.

Sadie nodded in agreement. “Do you have some juice or something to chase it with?”

Sehun started walking back toward the kitchen. He opened the fridge. “Yeah. Looks like there’s some orange juice and if you guys want something different, I have some of that shitty lemonade mix. And there’s Sprite.”

“Vodka lemonade sounds good,” you said. “We can top it with sprite.”

Evie nudged you. “Go help him!”

You laughed and got up, heading into the kitchen to join him. “Need some help?”

He looked up, smiling. “I could always use some help. Apparently I’m a little heavy handed with adding sugar...” You started helping Sehun, grabbing measuring cups and the sugar jar as he washed the pitcher. 

He got four glasses and started pouring a little vodka in each. “How about a shot to get started?”

*

You were tipsy. Not too drunk but not too sober either. The drinks you and Sehun made were pretty good. There wasn’t much sprite left in the bottle so the four of you had to make it stretch a bit. And Sehun was right about being heavy handed because the first batch of lemonade ended up being sugar water rather than lemonade. Luckily, you had salvaged it, dumping some of the water in the sink and adding more water.

Sehun got more and more outgoing as the night went on. He told your friends about the night you met and how you stood out to him and how he felt like he had to talk to you. When you disappeared for a moment into the bathroom, you heard him say that he was starting to like you. This made you smile. It felt good to be wanted. It felt good to not have to question a man’s feelings for you. 

To be honest, you liked him too. You enjoyed his company and he made you feel like the only girl in the world. When he spoke to you, he only saw you. You could tell that he’d invested a lot in you so far. You didn’t have to wonder if he was entertaining other women. He told you that he wasn’t like that and you could tell that he was being genuine. Sehun was the most genuine guy that you’d met in a long time. He wasn’t about bullshit and pulling you around on a string for weeks, months, and so on only to drop you at the last minute. For the first time in a long time, you saw a clear path in front of you. There were no bumps or obstacles standing in your way. It was a straight shot.

When you came back in the living room, Sehun had turned some music on and he started singing “Diamonds” by Rihanna. You and your friends joined in on the song and started singing and dancing around the couch and coffee table, clutching your vodka soda lemonade drinks in your hands. It was going to be a good night, you thought.

Before you knew it, it was about to hit ten o’clock. Evie let everyone know that people were starting to head to the party. As you left Sehun’s apartment, Sadie added that Baekhyun was most likely coming too. But, at this moment, you didn’t care. You felt much better going to this party if Sehun was at your side. You felt better, more confident, with Sehun on your arm. This was a great way to show Baekhyun that you’d moved on after all. You didn’t need him anymore and, to be honest, you were through. Why were you even thinking of Baekhyun and all the bullshit you’d been through when you were walking next to a man that made you question nothing? When you were walking next to a man who openly admitted to liking you? He hadn’t told you directly and you knew that he probably had no idea if you heard what he said in the first place. Hell, he might even admit it to you if you just asked. Either way, you were in a much better place now. You were no longer hanging onto some string, with Baekhyun pulling you in all sorts of directions. You were free, free to let go of that fucking string and go after what you wanted. 

*

Baekhyun knew he had no right to feel hurt but he did. For some reason, he felt hurt that you’d possibly moved on. He knew that it was stupid and that none of it really made much sense but it was how he felt. Baekhyun had moved on. Hell, it seemed like you had moved on, too. 

Even with this beautiful girl standing in front of him, he felt jealous. Even though you weren’t his and he wasn’t yours, he still felt some type of way. He was so torn and confused by these feelings, so he started toward the kitchen for a drink. He needed something that would push his feelings to the back of his mind. Kira had walked off with a friend to fix her makeup in the bathroom, so he felt less guilty about leaving her on her own. 

As he walked into the kitchen, he spotted Drew taking a shot with a bunch of other guys he’d never met before. Drew slammed down his plastic shot glass and looked up at his friend. “Baek, take a shot with us!” 

He shrugged and figured why not? He grabbed the shot his friend had poured and downed it quickly. “Can I vent?”

Drew nodded, “Let’s go to the balcony.”

Baekhyun weaved in and out of the clusters of people scattered across the living room, his friend following behind him. He slid open the door, relieved that the balcony wasn’t crowded. There was a couple smoking a cigarette together on the other side. He sat down on one of the patio chairs and Drew sat across from him. 

“What’s up?” Drew said. 

Baekhyun sighed. “It’s Y/N...”

“What about her?” he asked. “Was it weird seeing her tonight?”

“Well, it was...but did you see the way she purposely didn’t stand near me? It’s like she doesn’t even wanna breathe my air. She barely acknowledged my presence. And that fucking sarcastic smile when Kira said hi to her? I bet she didn’t even listen to my voicemail either. And she’s already seeing someone new?”

Drew was perplexed by this situation between you and Baekhyun. This wasn’t the first time he went on a rant about you and how you weren’t answering any of his messages or when he pressed him for updates about you. He was always wondering what you were doing and why you weren’t answering and why things couldn’t be the way they used to be. 

Drew said, “I mean, you fucked her over. Did you expect her to just...forgive you?”

Baekhyun pouted. “Well, no but—”

“Think about it: She liked you a lot. And, I mean, I thought you did too…”

“I did, but—”

“Did or do? I know we’ve both been drinking and you’re probably in your feelings but you have to admit, you’re acting kinda crazy right now.”

“How am I acting crazy?”

“You started dating Kira! Can you blame Y/N for moving on? You’re saying you liked her, in past tense, but it sounds like maybe you still do.” Drew cleared his throat. “Look, what’s your problem exactly? Are you upset because she won’t forgive you or are you upset because you’re jealous that she’s moving on?”

Baekhyun was annoyed. He had come to Drew to vent and here he was psychoanalyzing him. Was Drew his friend or his goddamn therapist? 

Baekhyun let out a sigh, pushing those negative thoughts about his friend away. He knew Drew was right and that he was just trying to help him out. In a way, it was as if his friend knew him better that he knew himself. Drew was only giving him some things to think about. 

What was he even doing? Why was he obsessing over what you were doing when you’d clearly made up your mind that the two of you were no longer even friends? He, apparently, needed to move on, too. If he wanted a relationship with Kira, he needed to think less about you and more about her. Otherwise, it might go up in flames and blow up in Baekhyun’s face. 

“You’re right,” Baekhyun said, rolling his eyes. “I know you’re right.”

Drew said, “I’m not saying to break up with Kira and go to Y/N or the other way around but I think you need to take a step back to figure out what it is you want.” He threw his arm around Baekhyun. “Look, let’s just enjoy the party tonight and think about this complicated stuff later, okay?”

Baekhyun nodded. “Yeah. Deal.”

As soon Baekhyun closed the balcony door behind him and turned back toward the party, he saw you walk in, in all your glory. The worst part of it all was that you had your arms wrapped around some douchebag in a bomber jacket. Actually, he lied. The worst part of it all was the fact that not only did you have your arms wrapped around that douchebag’s arm, but that you were smiling harder than he’d seen you smile, like you were having the time of your life. 

The way his heart dropped and the way his blood began to simmer in his veins, he knew what Drew said was right. 

This was going to be a rough night.

***

Thank you for reading, as always and please let me know if you’d like to be added to the tag list for STRING!

Tag List: @shesdreaminginoverdose​ @multistania​ @jeonchan26​ @myonlyaurora​ @keloiu​ @xxluckydreamsxx​ @multifandomeras​ @blanknearvana​ @jddcfc-blog​ @jummyjammy​ @mintaemark​ @kokobyunee​ @fortheloveofinfinite​ @littleflowercrown13​ @wayvexo​ @to-all-the-stories-i-love​ @ggaayyyong​ @hyuniebaby​ @giriboyshogu​ @xyukheix​ @jekylluv​ @forbyun​ @endzii23​ @puppyeoliepop​ @aa-ronpa​ @jessverdin @princemicorazon​ @sjkings​ @marimsun​ @baekhypnotized​ @cynthbee​ @xuyiyangstan​ @justmitchie​ @minseoksnz​

[inkdrinkershadowsinger]

All Roads Lead Here Part 4

This will be a ten part fan fic. I don't own Niall or One Direction, yet. This is just for fun. Thanks for reading. If you want to read the whole thing in advance you can at authormitchel on ao3. Thanks.

    For once he woke up before she did. It rarely happened, the trip yesterday must have worn her out more than he thought. Now, Niall knew his cooking skills weren’t the greatest…..well, actually, they were shit, but he did his best. Shit as they were, that didn’t mean that he couldn’t make toast. He was bad, but he wasn’t that bad.

            The toast was in the toaster, and the water was on, ready to boil. Ana was still asleep and everything was going great until the phone rang.

            “What do you want Ollie?”

“Ouch,” said Ollie. “Is that any way for you to talk to your best friend?”

            Niall sighed, pulling the kettle off before it screamed so loud it woke the Queen up all the way back in London.

            “Come out with us tonight.”

“No,” Niall was stern.

            “Yes,” countered Ollie.

“Come on Horan, you have to come.”

            “Ollie, I’m really…I can’t, you know…”

Ollie cut in. “Come on Ni, don’t you want to introduce us to your new girl.”

            Niall ground his teeth. Ollie always was a nosy fucker.

“She’s just a friend.”

            “Good,” Ollie answered. “Cause she’s hot.”

Niall nearly dropped the tea cups he was holding. His grandmother would not have been happy, they were a gift. “No and no. You will stay far away from Alex.”

            “Oh, so you do like her.”

“You’re an idiot,” Niall said instead of giving Ollie a real answer. “How do you even know about her?”

            “OI, YOU ARSEHOLE!!!” Ollie yelled into the phone causing Niall to stumble with the toast in hand.

            “Ollie!” scolded Niall. He really didn’t have time for this.

“Sorry, mate, darn guy on a bike nearly ran me off the sidewalk, the cunt. My aunt Molly saw you as you drove into town. She was already to go to the paper and tell them that you were engaged before I stopped her. You should be thanking me, Horan. Look Ni, I’ve got to go, but we’ll be expecting you tonight at Geysers, okay?”

            Niall huffed in exasperation. “Fine, damn it.”

“You’ll come?”

            “I said fine,” huffed Niall. He didn’t like to be pushed into things.

“Okay,” Ollie said, clearly pleased with himself.

            “See you later Princess.”

“OLLIE!!,” Niall yells into the phone, but all he gets is a dial tone.

            “YOU BASTARD! Fucking unrea…..”

“Niall.”

            Niall had been hoping for a sleep sated Alex and a decent breakfast to present her with. Instead he had burnt toast, jelly on his forehead, and as far as Alex knew he had just called his mom a bastard.

            “That was Ollie,” Niall explained quickly as Allie walked over and scooped up a piece of toast.

            “And that is?” she asked.

Niall blushed. “Just a friend, a very annoying, horrible friend.”

            Alex pulls a chair out, and sits. She pulls her leg up, her black stretch pants not long enough to cover her toes though she tries once. Maybe he should turn down the air, people always complained that he kept it to cool. Niall sighed.

            He knew Ollie, and he also knew that if he didn’t come out after Ollie expressly mentioned it that Niall would pay. Ollie was an evil genius, and his revenge always left scorch marks.

            “They want us to go out tonight?”

“Your friends?” Alex perked up at that.

            “Yeah,” stuttered Niall. “I mean, if you want to, just for a drink or two, nothing big you know….” Niall was rambling. He felt like an idiot, and he’s pretty sure he still had jelly on his forehead. He rubs his hand across it self-consciously. Alex smiles at him, clearly amused.

            “Okay,” she agrees.

“Okay?”

            “Yeah, could be fun,” Alex agreed.

Niall took a bite out of his toast. “Okay then, I’ll call them and let them know we’ll be there.”

            It’ll be fine, Niall told himself. It was just drinks with a few people. People Niall actually liked, his friends.

            Yeah, everything would be okay.

  &&&

            Everything was not okay. Yeah, remember those people Niall likes, his good friends who he has actually been looking forward to seeing. Yeah, not anymore. Niall went to school with Tom and his wife Maggie, who Alex had instantly clicked with. Ollie was there with his current flavor. Niall thought her name was Sara, but honestly he couldn’t remember. That left Colby, a guy who worked at one of the arenas he and the guys had performed at a few times, he and Niall had gotten along instantly. Niall always called him up to get a drink whenever he knew he would be in town. The problem though, was with who Colby brought along. Declan.

            More specifically the way Declan couldn’t keep his mouth shut or his eyes off of Alex. Tall and built he was everything Niall wasn’t. He was even a real blonde, not that Niall ever thought Alex would go for such a tool. He was just concerned for her, as a friend. She was too smart to fall for stupid Declan and his stupid radioactively white smile and his stupid compliments. Niall had made sure to warn everyone not to mention what Ollie so delicately dubbed as the Italian situation. Alex was going through something right now, and she didn’t need to be reminded of it when she was trying to have a good time.

            Niall bristled as Declan leaned over to whisper something to Alex making her laugh. And he was about to flip. “So, Alex,” started Maggie. “What do you do for a living?”

            “I’m a travel nurse.”

“That’s amazing,” Sara said, pulling herself away from Ollie long enough to comment.

            Declan smirked. “I’d let you patch me up any day.” The fucker.

Niall spoke up. “She’s a nurse not a vet.”

            And okay, maybe that was a little dickish, but Declan was unfazed.

“Well, I have been called a jackass once or twice.” The group laughed, the tension Niall had created vanished in a flash. Niall huffed a breath and stood from the table.

            “I’m getting another drink,”

Niall was fucked. He had known it for a while, but Declan had settled it.

 Completely. Niall was in love with his best friend’s ex-girlfriend, and at the back of his mind, he knows he has been since the day he first met her. He rubs a hand over his face, and orders another pint. He’s a sip in when the beer he’s paid way too much for gets sloshed all over his shirt.

            “What the hell?” he curses the idiot who just bumped him. He fans out his shirt only looking up when the dick doesn’t immediately offer up an explanation. “Alex?”

            “What’d you do that for?” he asks when he realizes it’s her.

“You know why Niall, what’s your problem?”

            “My problem?” countered Niall. “What’s yours?” And help him, he falters when she looks so confused. That’s because she was only flirting with him in your imagination, his subconscious offers.

            Niall gets closer to her like he’s telling her some sort of secret, like she should be ashamed, but really he’s only ashamed that he can’t squelch his feelings for this girl.

            “Don’t you think you’re getting a little familiar over there?”

“What?” she asks confused. “With Declan?” she asks, recognition dawning. She huffs. “You’ve got to be kidding me….”

            “It’s been what, not even a week, but watch out everyone Alex is ready for a new…..”

And she slapped him. Hard.

            His nerves registered the pain, but that didn’t hurt as badly as watching her hand move back to her side, it was shaking. He was an idiot. And a jerk. But he still chased her as she left the bar.

            “Where are you going?” he yelled at her as he followed her down the street. His place was in the opposite direction, but she didn’t seem to care.

            “Far away from you,” she yelled. Good, Niall thought, at least she was talking to him. “I didn’t mean it,” Niall yelled at her.

            “You’ve never lied to me before Niall, don’t do it now,” she replied. Niall runs to catch up with her. Never a fan of heels, she was moving as fast as she could to get away from him, but Niall wasn’t letting her go.

            “I’M AN IDIOT!!!!” he screamed at the top of his lungs. People on the street turned to stare at him, and Alex stopped dead.

            “I’M A MASSIVE FUCKBOY! I’M A TOOL AND MY DEAR FRIEND ALEX IS A GODDESS WHOSE FRIENDSHIP I DON’T DESERVE!!!!!!!!!”

            Alex turned to face him, face stoic. People had gathered round them now, watching the scene unfold, a few eagerly reaching for their cell phones. Now, that wouldn’t do, Niall thought, and thankfully Alex seemed to have the same idea.

            She turned and grabbed his hand, pulling him away from the gathering crowd and into a small alleyway.

            “And you’re an idiot,” she supplied when she was sure it was just the two of them.

“Yes, one hundred and fifteen thousand percent, and I honestly didn’t mean what I said. It’s just I don’t trust that guy,” he said, not proud that he couldn’t say Declan’s name out loud.

            She was very interested in the wall by Niall’s head.

“Look at me, Alex. I promise you that I didn’t mean it,” Niall said again. She had to believe him. This was quickly becoming the place that Alex became herself again. She was laughing, and the periods of time where she was solemn and quiet were growing few and far between. Niall only wanted that to continue. He wanted things to be like they were before, and now, he had possibly fucked that all up just because he couldn’t keep his own jealousies or insecurities in check.

            “I’ll do whatever you want. I’m sorry for being a dick, and I’ll even go back in there and apologize to….Declan, if you want me too.”

            Alex shook her head, finally meeting his gaze.

She smiled.

            “That sounds like a perfect idea.”

“What?” Niall asked, not seriously thinking that she would take him up on that.

            “Yeah,” she said, and as Niall took his place on the bar’s stage he remembered just why Liam and Alex hardly ever fought. Alex Ballerini was an evil, evil woman.

  &&&

“I’m so, so, shocked,” Declan said as he took his place on the stool his friends had so graciously placed on the stage for him.

            The D.J was cueing up the song, and since Niall was a hometown boy, yes that meant that they had all of them. Now, which song was she going to choose? Spotting her over at the speakers, he watched as all his friends and the rest of the bar’s patrons gathered at the front of the stage all chanting, “Doran!!! Doran!!!” Declan and Horan, apparently, her revenge meant that Niall was getting engaged tonight.

            “Not quite,” she had told them when they got back to the bar. “but you will cause quite the sensation on the internet.”         

            “Phones to the ready….” She called over the bar’s loud speakers, and Declan, the fucker, who Niall still did not like looked up at Niall and winked at him as “Nobody Compares” starts playing over the speakers.

                          Alex was still laughing as they walked through the front door, several drinks in and a serenade already making its rounds on the internet, Niall was beat and humiliated, but altogether happy that whatever bridge could have sprang up between them had been covered before it got too late.

            It was two weeks of fun and relaxing and hanging out with Niall’s friends, yes, even Declan and with everyday Alex was getting better. And Niall was falling harder. It was getting harder for him to ignore the feeling that he got when he saw her every morning fresh out of bed and making them breakfast, or to pretend that he wasn’t looking at her every second or counting them down until he could look at her again.

            It was downright domestic, they would go to the store together and Niall would take her to all the places that he went as a kid, all his “hangouts” as she called them. They would hang out with his friends, and they would talk, and on nights when she couldn’t do anything but cry Niall would hold her until she felt like talking or until they fell asleep.

            They were friends, and for the first time Niall actually felt like he had earned that title.

“No way, I can’t believe he did that,” said Alex.

            “I’m telling you, Louis is a flipping machine,” said Niall.

Late one night, after a few rounds with the guys, Niall was telling her some stories about their tour exploits, carefully leaving out any that directly mentioned Liam. He didn’t know if she wanted him to do that or not, but he tried not to think too much about it.

            “There is no way,” she said, situating herself again on the couch, this time on her knees as she listened to his story. “That Louis Flipping Tomlinson jumped from three stories soccer ball in hand, shot it in a hoop then landed in the pool without breaking his neck. I know Louis, and I know for a fact that he has shit luck, and that if that story were true you would be one sick fucker for telling that story cause he’d be dead.”   

            “I swear,” said Niall, laughing through his tears. They had been up for hours after they got back from the bar, she hadn’t bothered to change out of her dress, and Niall still hadn’t kicked his shoes off, but they had been bull shitting for hours.

            “Wait until I tell you the bra story….”

“Tomlinson and a bra?” she asked, hiding her red face behind her hands. Niall didn’t know if it was the alcohol or the stories, but he knew that he had rarely seen her so lovely as when she had been laughing like this.  

            She grabbed Niall’s hand and his heart stopped. She turned his wrist and looked at his watch.

            “It’s late, Ni, I can’t believe you’ve been this irresponsible. A girl needs her sleep to know.”

            She let his hand go, and ran a hand through her hair.

“We need to go to bed.”        

            Niall swallowed his tongue.

“Bed? Right,” he said, remembering how to speak. “I’ll go with you, gladly, help you unzip, hand you a towel when you get out of the shower.”

            “Cheeky,” she said and moved in to pinch his cheek. Wow, she was drunker than he thought, and with that comment, Niall was too.

            He grabbed her hand when she went to pull back, his eyes studying the lines in her wrist, the blue lines in her skin; the smell of her perfume still vibrant. He could blame it on the alcohol in the morning if this went badly, but he had too.

            He lowered his head to her wrist and placed a small kiss where her arm met her hand. Niall didn’t hear the rush of breath that she took in at his action, his own heart was pounding too loudly for him to comprehend anything other than that.

            “Goodnight, Niall,” she said as his fingertips ghosted over her wrist releasing her. He listened as she walked up the stairs and opened the door to her bedroom door, but Niall never heard it shut.

[rogue-bard]

Avengers Star Trek AU

Steve and Carol are Captains of two Starfleet ships: The Avenger and the Sword. They may not be as famous as the Enterprise, but they love them nonetheless. The two of them have a good humoured competition going, on whose crew can find more alien stuff. Undiscovered plants give 5 points, animals 10, intelligent species and new languages 25, unknown moons 30, planets 50, galaxies 100. The Avenger's highest ranking medical officer, Dr. Banner, got a Pon Farr-like thing going; he's the quietest, most pacifistic person you'll meet. Probably because he's Acamarian, which is pretty unusual for Starfleet. To be more precise, he's the ONLY Acamarian to ever get (or want to get) into Starfleet. From what Steve knows from his file, he also didn't go through the usual Academy training but had a lateral entry thanks to saving an Admiral's life on a mission where Banner was originally to be evacuated from an imploding planet he had his lab on. It turned out, he was able to perform in-field-surgeries that even the surgeon on board was not able to do. In any case, he loves his peace and quiet, but sometimes, he'll lose his temper for one reason or another and then he legitimately smashes walls. Thor is a Klingon prince and sent with the ship as a diplomat as he tries to get to know Starfleet better to determine whether his father should consider them for an alliance or not. For a Klingon, he's a really positive guy who laughs and jokes a lot and gets along with most crew members. The problem is that he'll go out of his way to find a bar fight on any shore leave and doesn't understand that maybe that's not a good thing in the culture of the planet he is currently on. Steve has to send babysitters with him every time. It doesn't really help, other than that the engineers have to beam up SEVERAL fast moving targets from the pub instead of one. Their first officer is called Rhodey and is a good pilot but an even better tactician and cannoneer. Whenever they're in a space battle, the other ship better surrender before Rhodes makes it to the big guns' control board. He also tends to carry around the newest and most intimidating phaser-rifles on missions he's on, which earned him the nickname "warmachine". Clint is a Redshirt who is constantly sent on life threatening missions with the words "It'll be fiiiiine!" It never is. One time, on Budapest Nova II, klingons even brainwashed him and made him shoot at his friends. Good thing that was before he realized that the universe was out to get him, and he trained with the phasers on the shooting range until he never missed again. He's still a redshirt but Steve knows: if he needs a competent man who will look after the rest of the ground team, he can rely on Barton. His outing missions increase exponentially. Clint doesn't approve. Natasha is an elite recon unit who is trained in survival techniques inside and outside of the atmosphere, and in any climate and fauna you can possibly imagine. Nobody really knows just how high-ranking she actually is in the fleet. Only the new ships that have been built and sailed with the Enterprise, have a person with her area of expertise. They're fairly new in Starfleet and she uses it to scare people because who can tell if she's not actually a secret assassin in case Thor's dad decides he doesn't like humanity after all? The chief engineer is a genius but... Difficult. He's half Vulcan, half Romulan - and that's never a good combination, judging by his and Saavik's habit to frequently butt heads with crew members. Malicious gossip has it that he's actually a Borg drone, but then that's what they always say about Vulcans. The thing is, this guy does NOT behave Vulcan. He is snarky, sarcastic and arrogant (okay in that regard he might be very Vulcan) and though he tries to downplay any emotion with that, he very obviously has them. He does not in the least behave like he had the military background he must have had if he came to Starfleet through the Academy like he ought to. But more malicious rumour has it that his Vulcan father had a hand in his son being where he is now. That man is some bigwig to the Fleet since he designs and builds the ships. Nobody can pronounce his full name, so everybody calls him "Tony". While Rhodey is a decent pilot, he has nothing on the guy who usually mans the flight controls. Sam Wilson may be the "new guy" but he's definitely not new to the skies. Hell, one time they were fending off an attack on Yorktown and that guy followed the invaders *with the Avenger*. Not only is she not meant to be steered into any kind of atmosphere, Yorktown's clusterfuck of gravity-fields have even taxis crashing and burning regularly. Sam does not care, apparently. While everybody else on the bridge held onto what they could for dear life (and everybody not on the bridge was presumably hurled through hallways that had now turned to meter long pits of death), Sam had just let out a whistle that had sounded suspiciously like an exclamation of triumph and delight. Steve hadn't puked on an outing since his third year of the academy, when his room mate Bucky had dragged him to that hellish Kobayashimaru simulation and crashed (badly). That record was set back by 10 years, thanks to Ensign Wilson. On one rescue mission, evacuating a planet that was being sucked into a black hole, they rescued two siblings who are far too young to actually join Starfleet. But they have no one left and the whole crew adopts the teenagers, treats them like they're trainees and hides them from the authorities until they can formally apply. They are of a previously unknown (and now endangered) species and have weird powers that sometimes fuck up the ship's main computer. Or at least the girl has. The boy's powers just make him the perfect person to bring orders from the bridge to anywhere on the ship whenever his sister sneezed and accidentally cut off their communication. Their handlers and superior officers on the Starfleet Command Base are Admiral Fury and his goons Maria Hill and Phil Coulson plus team, who take care of the ships and sometimes planetary missions. And of course Admiral Carter who tries to talk Steve out of his job ever since he crashed his first ship and almost died in a suicide mission to save the command base. And then there's Miss Potts, obviously. She's there to keep an eye on them for Carter and Fury (and, apparently, also a certain Vulcan), so she often joins them on missions, makes sure everything is logged correctly and reminds them that safety regulations are in place for a reason. Since they have no high ranking communication's officer and she used to study that field in university, she usually takes over the comms desk.

[my-fanfic-soul]

Can you write a Niall imagine where he wakes you up in the middle of the night crying because he's feeling really ill and he's got a headache and his stomach hurts and he really wants his mum because he's used to her taking care of him whenever he's ill? Thanks !!

Hey! Sorry it took me so long to get this written out and thanks for being patient with me. I went in a bit of a different direction than this for a few reasons and then it took on a mind of it’s own. I hope you still like it it!-- Meghan

Niallhates going to the doctor.

Imean, Niall hates going to the doctor.  As long as whatever illnesshe has doesn’t affect his ability to sing, he avoids the doctor at all costs. It doesn’t stop his whining, because on top of that he’s a horriblepatient, but after a while you learn to ignore it.  By “it” I mean, thewhining about being too hot, then being too cold.  The specific requestsfor noodles in his soup.  The declarations of his coming death.

Atleast he figured out pretty quickly that complaining about “That’s not how mymum did it!” wouldn’t fly much farther than a lead balloon.  His jaw hadsnapped shut and it was never brought up again when I told him he could go homeso Mommy could take care of him, then.

Wasit tough love?  Of course.  It’s not like I neglect him, but I workwith kids all day.  I don’t have time for a whiny man-child when I gethome.

Exceptthis time, even though he was just doing his general whining about not feelinggood and wanting to be waited on (he wasn’t), something told me there was anactual problem.  I might have ignored it, except a few hours after dinnerI saw him put his hand against his side and swear, “Fucking Christ, my stomachhurts.”

Somethingabout where he put his hand set off warning signals in my brain.  “Whereexactly does it hurt?” I asked him.

Niallpointed to the area of his belly button and said, “Around here.”

Afrown settled on my face.  “Maybe we should go to Urgent Care,” I suggest. “I don’t like where your pain is.”

Niallshook his head firmly.  “No doctors, I’m fine.  Just need somemedicine and my woman to take care of me.”

Rollingmy eyes, I picked my book up and kissed Niall on the forehead, thrown off by howwarm it felt.  “You’re cute, but that’s not happening.  There’s ablanket behind you.  I’ll be in the bath if you really need me.”

“Ialways need you,” he teased, his eyebrows wiggling as his eyes (and hands)zeroed in on my bum.

Isnorted as I straightened up.  “You must not be feeling too badly.”

Aswe got ready for bed that night, I noticed that Niall was looking pretty pale. When I asked about it, he said he was nauseous and his stomach was reallyhurting.  I tried to convince him to go to a doctor, but he still refused. I let it slide and eventually fell asleep, even with my mind racing inconcern.

At2 AM I woke up to the sound of Niall retching in the bathroom.  I was outof bed and beside him in the work of a moment.  Sweat was pouring off hisskin but what really threw me off were the tears streaming out of his eyes. Niall didn’t cry for no reason.  He wasn’t afraid of his emotions,but he never cried over spilled milk.  “Sweetheart,” I whispered, brushingmy hand against his forehead, feeling that he was blazing with fever. “How long have you been throwing up?”

“Idunno,” he whimpered, resting his head against my chest.  “My stomachhurts, my head hurts, and I can’t stop puking.”

Hewhimpered as I extricated myself from his hold and went to the sink to wet awashcloth.  When I came back, I wiped his mouth off and informed him, “Youno longer get a choice.  We’re going to the emergency room.”

Nialltried to shake his head and argued faintly, “No doctors.  I just need somemedici…” His words were cut off by his need to throw himself over the toiletagain to throw up.

“NiallJames Horan,” I said firmly.  “I think you have appendicitis.  Peptobismol and tylenol are not going to cut it this time.  Congratulations,you’ve finally turned me into a nursemaid.  I’m going to go find you ashirt and put on my shoes.  Just stay still for now, ok?”

GettingNiall out of the house and into the passenger seat of the car was an event inand of itself.  He cried out when I pulled his t-shirt on over his headand he cried as I slowly limped him to the car.  Every swear word he’sever learned, in multiple languages, fell out of his mouth.  He had tolean out of the car to vomit before I even got a chance to close his door.

WhenI handed him a ziplock bag, he managed to muster enough energy to sass me. “What the hell is this for?” he asked.  “We aren’t going on apicnic, woman.”

Irolled my eyes as I unzipped it for him.  “I know that, Niall.  Ibrought ziplock bags so you can puke into those and zip them up on the way tothe hospital.  It’ll be faster than pulling over and we’re less likely tobe papped while you’re on your deathbed.  Unless you want this onthe internet before we even get a chance to call your dad.”

Ifhe thought to argue or sass me some more, it was overridden by his queasiness. The entire trip to the hospital was spent with me muttering prayers undermy breath between making calls to everyone who would need to know-- hisbodyguard, his manager, his parents, and the hospital so they’d know they had apatient coming in with an increased need for privacy.  My gut was twistedlike a dishrag someone was trying to wring out.  My phone calls had beenmet with concern and even speculation that I was overreacting from Niall’smother.  She thought we should give it a few more hours at home before Irushed him off to the hospital for a stomach ache, but I knew with every fiberof my being that I was right to be worried.

WhenI pulled into the ambulance bay by request of the hospital staff over thephone, I was relieved to see two of Niall’s normal bodyguards standing therewith a nurse and a hospital official.  I gladly accepted a hug from one ofthem as I stepped out of the car and the other three started getting Niall intoa wheelchair.  “He doesn’t look good,” he said quietly as he took the keysfrom my hand.  “Stay with him, I’ll go park the car.  I think we’rein for a long night”

“Thankyou,” I whispered before I turned to follow Niall and his entourage into theprivate triage room.  I knew I was right to bring him here, but it feltnice to hear someone else who knows Niall when he’s well say it to me.

“Canyou tell us what’s wrong Niall?” a nurse asked him as she checked histemperature and pursed her lips.  I knew that look, it was never a good one.

Nialltook a deep breath and said, “My stomach, like on my side, is killing me and myhead is pounding.  I can’t see straight and I’m dizzy.”

“Theheadache and the dizziness are probably from dehydration.  How long haveyou been vomiting?” she asked as she switched to taking his blood pressure.

Ican tell they’re rushing around, trying to get him taken care of so we can bemoved to a room, but I feel like everything’s moving in slow motion.  Toofast and too slow at the same time.  It’s taking forever but before I knowit, we’re in a private room and Niall’s being hooked up to an IV for hisdehydration.  He’s asking for pain medication but they can’t give him anyuntil he’s seen by a doctor.

Thenthe doctor is in there and I’m cringing as the prod at Niall’s abdomen and hecries out in agony.  Normally I delight in being told I’m right, but Ifeel my stomach drop into my feet as the doctor tells us that I was right tobring him here, that he suspects it’s appendicitis.  That they still needto do a CT Scan and check his blood work before they can be 100% certain, buthe can’t see how it would be anything different.

Idon’t know how much time passes before they’re wheeling Niall out of the roomto go get the scan done, all I know is he finally got some relief from the painmedicine and the nausea medicine.  While Niall’s gone his manager arrivesand I fill him in on what’s going on.  We agree to wait until we have adefinitive answer before we call his parents and worry them any more than theyalready are.  I’m grateful for the company in the cold room, since thebodyguard who stayed behind is standing outside the door.

WhenNiall gets back I can see that he’s scared.  Knee injuries and things ofthat nature don’t scare him: he knows what caused them and knows how they canbe fixed.  This is different though and all I can do to ease his worry ishold his hand and brush my fingers through his hair.  They up his painmedicine and he starts to get a little loopy, but he still looks at me like I’msome kind of prize, even though he’s laying on his back in a hospital room.

Itfeels like an eternity but the clock says it’s only an hour later that thedoctor comes in and tells us that between his physical exam, the blood work,and the CT scan, they can confirm that it’s appendicitis and that he has surgeryscheduled for later in the morning.  That they believe they’ll be able touse the less invasive procedure.

Iwas expecting to feel some kind of relief at the news, knowing exactly what’swrong and that it can be fixed.  Instead, anxiety washes over me. We’re assured that this is a normal procedure and that it’s one of themost common surgeries performed in the hospital, but I can’t control thefeeling of dread.  Any time someone goes under anesthesia it’s a risk, andthe love of my life is about to go under the knife.

Hismanager offers to make all of the phone calls to family so I can stay withNiall.  I’m appreciative of the privacy for a bit, just holding Niall’shand as I watch him sleep.  A nurse brings me a blanket and a pillow atsome point, despite my protests that there’s no way I can sleep right now.

Mybody had other ideas though, because at 8 AM I’m being shaken awake and my headis coming up off the bed where it has been resting on my arms.  I lookaround blurrily and see the doctors there to start on Niall’s pre-op work. I move out of the way and a cup of coffee is pushed into my hands. Looking up, I see Niall’s manager.  “Thanks,” I mutter as I takesip.

“Willie’son his way,” he said as we watched them work around a barely awake Niall. I swore quietly; I had forgotten that his cousins were in town.  Foronce they weren’t staying with us and they had slipped my mind.  “He knowsyou had other things on your mind.  He wanted to sober up some before heheaded this direction.  The others will make their way here once Niall’sout of surgery and more awake.  I know you don’t like the circus affect.”

“Hedoesn’t need it.  He needs to heal,” I sigh.  “I have to find thetoilet.  Don’t let them take Niall to surgery until I get back.”

WhenI came back in they were getting ready to wheel him away.  I went to hisside and brushed his hair back needlessly.  “I love you,” I whisper. “You’ll do great.  I’ll see you once you come out of recovery.”

“Getdown here and kiss me, woman, I’m not dying,” he grumbles and I hear chucklesfrom around the room as I pretend that his hand pulling on my is effective. I kiss him lightly and he holds me in place instead of letting me pullaway.  “I’ll be fine, pet.  It’s just an appendectomy.  I’ll beout of here in no time.”

“Youdidn’t even know what an appendectomy was until a few hours ago,” I remind him. “Isn’t it supposed to be me comforting you?  You’re thepatient.”

“Butyou’re the love of my life and I know you’re worried.”

Ifrowned and kissed him again before pulling out of his grip.  I squeezehis hand one last time and tell him, “See you on the other side, Horan.” Once he’s gone a nurse leads us to the room that will be his once he’sout of surgery.  Normally they would have us wait in a public waitingarea, but the waiting room is public and we can’t risk pictures getting out ofus down there.  It’s a risk to our privacy, but also the other familieswaiting on word of their loved ones who could very well be facing much riskiersurgeries,

“I’mkind of wishing I hadn’t watched those Grey’s Anatomy reruns with you,” I heardfrom the door and I let out a sigh of relief when I saw Willie standing there. “Knowing what can go wrong in standard surgeries isn’t as relaxing as onewould think.”

Igot up to hug him and replied, “You’re telling me.  Thanks for coming.”

Willieshrugged as he lowered himself into an empty seat.  “Of course.  Howis he?”

Glancingup at the clock I say, “He should be heading into surgery any moment now. They’ll let us know if something happens and they have to switch to adifferent approach, but other than that they’ll just let us know when he comesout.  He’ll stay in recovery for a while, they’ll let us see him once hewakes up, and then they’ll move him up here.”

We’requiet for a bit before I hear Willie speak up, “I know they give you shit fornot being as nurturing as his mum, especially when he’s sick, but if you hadtried to act like her this may have been a very different surgery.  Shewould have tried to take care of him at home until at least now.  But ifyou had kept him at home, his appendix may have burst before they could doanything about it.  It may have worked when he was a kid, but he’s agrownup now who turns into a whiny ass when he’s sick.  You don’t put upwith his shit, but you know when things are too serious for you to handle. You’re good for him.”

Ismiled gratefully at him.  “Thanks for saying that.”

Itfeels like an eternity before they’re bringing Niall back up to his room. We opted not to go down to recovery because it was already crowded andonly one of us would be able to go.  When Niall opened his eyes as he wasrolled into the room, I nearly cried out in happiness.

“Hey,beautiful girl,” he mumbled as I went to him.

“Heyyourself,” I whispered as I sat on the edge of his bed.  “Now you’ve gottwo battle scars to show off to all the ladies.”

Hegave me a small smile.  “Only lady I want to show it off to is you.”

Ibrushed a finger down the side of his cheek.  “We can wait awhile before Itake a gander at it, alright?”  He nodded and before long he was asleepagain.

Allday long there was a steady stream of people coming in and out of his room. I stayed parked by his side for most of it, only getting up to use therestroom and when Willie dragged me forcibly from the room for food with theaid of one of the bodyguards.  Niall had been in fairly good spirits whenhe wasn’t sleeping and it was good for me to see him doing as well as he couldbe.  We’d be here for the night so he could get more antibiotics via IVbecause they weren’t happy with his white cell count.

Latethat night, after everyone but me and one bodyguard had gone home, I wascrawling into the chair by his side with a blanket and a pillow when Niallreached out and squeezed my hand.  I was worried he needed somethingbefore he said, “You take care of me better than my mum does.”

Icoughed out a small laugh as I ran a thumb over the top of his hand.  There’sno way he’d ever say that when he wasn’t on some good pain meds.  “I don’t think she’ll like hearing thattomorrow when she gets here.”

“It’strue though,” he muttered before drifting back off to sleep.  I couldn’tkeep the smile off my lips as I settled down next to him, blocking out thesounds of hospital around us as I drifted off.

Master List