Imagines with Niall Horan

37. You play Scrabble

“Okay, who wants to play Scrabble? Huh? Anyone?” Y/N appears from behind the partition, carrying the box with the game.

“I’d much rather continue drinking,” Louis replies from where he’s half-sprawled on the couch and sipping champagne.

“I’ve never played Scrabble,” Harry provides, with a shrug.

“Let’s play! It’s so fun!” Niall comes closer from his spot over by the piano and takes the box from her hands.

At that, she smiles fondly. Some things never change. Niall has already had too many gingerbread cookies, and his sugar high is kicking in, making him even more adorable.

Y/N looks around to find Zayn already sleeping softly in the armchair. He has never been one to stay up late, not even on New Year’s Day, so Y/N covers him with a blanket, feeling as if she’s tucking in a sleepy kitten. Then she returns to the little table where Niall is already explaining the rules to Harry and Louis is helping place the board and the tiles with the letters. Y/N takes a sit on the floor.

“Okay, I’ll start! So Harry can understand what is going on!” Niall claps his hands excitedly, and immediately spells out the word B-U-T-T in the center of the board, making her snort. 

“It’s like a  goddess has given me a chance to prove myself,” Louis smirks, and reaches his hand to add four letters underneath Niall’s B. Y/N cranes her neck to read out the word B-O-O-B-S. She shakes her head, because using two O’s at once is not the wisest of choices.

Scribbling down Niall's and Louis' scores, Y/N takes a glance at Harry and notices his immense confusion.

“Harry, contrary to what you see, you don’t have to spell out what parts of the body you’re attracted the most to in a person, don’t worry,” she says, with a reassuring pat on his shoulder.

“Well, I certainly can’t spell out H-A-I-R, cause I don’t have an H…” Harry mumbles, looking hopelessly at his tiles, “Uhm, I can’t think of anything.”

Everyone immediately shuffles closer to see his letters.

“Are you kidding me, you have V-A-G, how can you not see that immediately?”

“You could’ve spelled S-O-L-O if you had an L,” Niall sighs, like it hurts his entire existence.

“HARRY! You have C-A-K-E, use that opportunity!”

“Where would I put it?” Harry seems to get more confused by the second.

 “I don’t know, but you need to save that C-A-K-E for later, the K gives you points,” Y/N remarks.

“Let me give you an L? You can help me too in times of need,” Niall  whispers loudly.

“Hey! That’s against the rules!” Louis shouts, urging Niall to take his L back.

“Wait, wait, I’m gonna think of something myself,” Harry interjects, eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

“It’s the first of January, who cares?” Niall shouts back at Louis.

“You’ve woken up Zayn,” Y/N hisses at them, and they all look over to the armchair, where Zayn stirs awake.

He blinks, getting aware of her surroundings, then smiles softly at everyone.

“Well, some things will never change,” Zayn gets up, taking his pillow and blanket to sit closer to them, “Give me some tiles, I wanna play too.”

Niall shuffles on the sofa to make Zayn sit more comfortably. And suddenly Y/N thinks that this is exactly how she wanted to spend the first hours of the New Year: in the company of the people she loves most, bickering over Scrabble and drinking cheap champagne.

“And Harry, you can totally spell S-T-A-R,” Zayn points out, making everyone groan.