In Other Words (Niall Fanfic)

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three 

Niall’s POV

“Damn.” I muttered, as Liam got the football past me, and ran after it, conscious of my open beer and the burrito I held in my other hand. He seemed to be dealing well with the break-up, but I could sense it was a bit weird for him, being here without Danielle; still looking around for her and realizing he’s a single man now. This could go one of two ways: He will gradually get over it, and maybe start dating again in a few months’ time, or he will go into full-on rebound mode. I made a mental note to try to keep him away from Harry as much as possible.

I think we were all dealing with the break-up in some way. Danielle was a part of our lives for a long time. I know that Eleanor’s keeping up with her. The “bro-code” makes that off-limits for me. I have to admit that Liam and Danielle calling it quits made me wonder if this thing with Roxy would ever work out. If Li and Dani couldn’t manage, how will we? I pushed the thought from my mind. 

Rox finally had the chance to meet Perrie, and they seemed to be getting on well. The three girls were sitting at the water’s edge, only the tops of their messy buns visible over the chair backs. “Ya need anything, girls?” I yelled in their direction. Roxy leaned around the side of her chair and shook her head no, giving the air a little kiss before turning back to her conversation.  I’m sure Eleanor is excited to have another intellectual type around.

Harry and Josh began setting up the volleyball net. Zayn has already fallen asleep on his towel. The others were floating on rafts in the water, soaking up the sun. I kicked the ball hard and it sailed past Liam and landed just on the other side of Zayn, but it didn’t startle him at all. “Timeout. I’m going to have one of those sandwiches.” Liam said. I threw my hat onto my towel and headed to convince a girl to take a swim.

Roxy’s POV

“Talking about me?” Niall said, plopping down on the wet sand in front of us. We were.

“You wish.” I said. The other girls’ silence probably gave the truth away. It was my first time meeting Perrie, so of course she was giving me the cursory Q&A about how I’d met Niall, why I am in London, et cetera. Just like Zayn, she was very low-key. She seemed a lovely girl, and I found her accent more amusing than the others’. Her skin was alabaster white, and I was concerned she would turn to dust in the noonday sun.

 He stood up and wiped the sand from his back side before extending his hand. “Let’s get in that water. I need to cool off.” He said.

We walked out about fifty feet before the depth of the water increased sharply, covering me from the chest down with the cool water. I skimmed my hands across the surface, and looked out onto the horizon. It looked as if the water went on forever.

“Having a good time, babe?” Niall said, leaning back into the water.

“Yeah. It’s a gorgeous day.” I said. “I should warn you that I’m terrible at volleyball, though.” Niall dragged his heels along the bottom, inching himself back toward me.

“That’s okay.” he said. “Louis is by far the worst I’ve ever seen. He always manages to hurt himself when we play. As long as we get you two on opposite teams, things should balance out.” He smiled and pulled me by the waist close to him. “So, I was wondering…” he started slowly. His eyes looked down into the water, and his hesitation made me nervous.

“Hmm?” I said.

“Have you told your parents about me?” he said.

“Yes.” I said. “I mean, I left out a few key details, but they know I’m seeing someone. And that the someone is pretty fantastic.”

“El’s advice?” he asked.

“Mmmhmm.” I said, wrapping my arms loosely around his neck. “I am not quite sure yet how or when I will bring them fully into the loop, but for now, it’s good.”

 He seemed to be searching for words. He laced his fingers with mine, and finally blurted. “I want you to meet my mum.”

“Ohhhkay.” I said, surprised by the suggestion.

“And I want to introduce you as my girlfriend.” He said. 

 My heart skipped, and then suddenly sunk. “Like your pretend girlfriend?” I said. Maybe Niall’s mom was nagging him and he wanted her off his back. That had to be what he meant, right?

“Pretend girlfriend?” He said between laughs.  “What the fuck is a pretend girlfriend?”

“I don’t know…” I said, embarrassed.  I swished my hands through the water, watching the ripples follow the pattern I made below the surface.  “It’s a thing, I think. Sometimes guys have them.”

“Yeah, closeted gay guys, Roxy.” He said.  “Let me say this a different way. Roxanne, I’d like you to be my girlfriend. And, sometime soon, I would like you to meet my mother.”

The words once again caught in my throat. Of course I wanted this. But, yet I hesitated. He sensed it. He pulled me in close, my chest on his torso. He leaned in and whispered “Don’t look, just leap.”

I felt a shudder down my spine.

Niall’s POV

I wasn’t nervous at all. It had been written all over her face for days, for weeks; she was mine. I couldn’t deny it anymore:  she had me as well. It felt good.

The slight wind had caused the waves to pick up, and she gripped my sides to steady herself. She finally spoke. “So, what will this change?”

“Well, it means you’ll have to cut loose all of those other guys you’ve been seeing.” I said, smiling down at her. She said ‘will’; She’s officially my girl.

“I’ll send a memo. Let them down gently.” She said, and pressed up on her toes giving me a kiss to seal the deal. I tangled my fingertips into her hair, and closed my eyes tightly, never wanting to forget the feel of this moment, or the taste of her salty lips.

Days spent in the sun seemed to be the most exhausting. Roxy packed up the left-over food and divided it up amongst the lads, and we piled into our cars and headed back to London just as the sun began to set.  Half an hour in, and Roxy was fast asleep, folded up in in the passenger seat. I felt myself begin to nod off as well, and decided to stop.

She stirred as I cut the engine. “Just stopping to grab something to munch on, babe. Be right back.” I said, undoing my safety belt.

“No, I will come in with you. There’s something I need to get.” She said, rubbing her face with her palms.

I weighed my options briefly before settling on Pringles and some sweets. I placed my items down on the counter, and the man read my total. I looked around for Roxy. “Just a second, mate.” I said to the man. She rounded the corner and tossed a toothbrush down along with my items.

“If this thing’s official, I’m getting a toothbrush to keep at your place.” She said with a smile, sliding her hand around my waist.

I looked down at the package. “Aww.” I said, noticing she’s picked a toothbrush with our logo on it. She was cheesy sometimes, and I loved it.  I handed the man my card before pausing. “Wait a second. Is that a Zayn one?”

“Yeah. What luck, huh?” she said.  “It’s the last one over there. All the rest are Niall ones.” She grinned widely at me.

“Can you believe this girl?” I said to the clerk. “Zayn.  She wants a Zayn toothbrush.”

“The only one my kids ever seem to talk about is Harry.” He said. Roxy choked back her loud laugh and squeezed my waist.

“Brilliant.” I said, taking the bag of items from the counter.