Broken Strings || Niall Horan [AU]

17 | chapped lips

❝He wasn't my first kiss, but the first kiss that mattered: the first kiss with someone who mattered.❞ ▬ Jay Asher.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Niall swaps the electric guitar for his own normal one -- which he must have brought to the pub beforehand -- and, from across the room, stares deeply into my eyes. Even from my position at the bar, I can see the twinkle swimming in his irises. He watches me and I watch him; whilst doing so, I cease to move. I stand frozen to the spot, mouth agape, my breath caught helplessly in my now-dry throat. 

Even when the song begins, and soft music rolls in waves over the hushed room, it still doesn't dawn on me that this is all actually happening. I watch, breathless, as Liam leans close to his microphone, his voice gentle as he begins to sing the first lines of the song. The words are quiet, hesitant, the tone of the song entirely different to that of their first performance, but the lyrics sink into my skin and fill me up with a blissful feeling only ever described as complete and utter happiness. You tell me that you're sad and lost your way, you tell me that your tears are here to stay, but I know you were only hiding, and I just wanna see you. 

I'm not paying attention to Liam, though. My entire everything is focused on Niall. He stands tall, proud, his eyes still fixed on mine as he softly strums his guitar. He no longer looks shy and nervous. Now, his expression is determined. His face is hard, eyebrows furrowed together. It's as if there's only one thing he wants, one thing he's firmly set on getting. That thing, I suppose, is me. And I already know that he's going to get exactly what he wants at the end of all this. 

I'd be imagining the warmth and comfort of his lips, the way his calloused hands would feel on different parts of my body, if I wasn't so utterly absorbed in the song. Niall steps forward to sing his solo, and the silence of the crowd is replaced by cheers. Don't burn out, even if you scream and shout; it'll come back to you, and I'll be here for you. And that's when he winks at me, his expression once again changing, this time to one with a goofy smile. My heart practically melts into a puddle, slipping to different parts of my body, filling me with nothing but joy and adulation. 

The chorus flows throughout the room and swirls around the air, the music loud and hopeful, the crowd a sweaty mass of bodies which sways somewhat messily to the sound. The boys sing of carrying a girl -- me, in fact, as crazy as that sounds -- over fire and water for her love; of holding her closer and hoping that her heart is strong enough. The final line of the chorus speaks to me the most: when the night is coming down on you, we will find a way through the dark.

I stand there rooted to the spot, mouth still open in shock and awe, my heart beating a wild rhythm beneath my chest. My mind is a crazy, beautiful mess; never, in a million years, did I ever expect something like this to happen, and there are a number of things that I can't comprehend. What did I do to deserve this? Is this all actually happening? Did Niall Horan, the boy who makes my heart flutter and who never fails to put a smile on my face, seriously write this amazing, heart-warming song for me? What's going to happen the moment the song finishes? Will it be awkward? Will something ruin this perfect evening? I just can't get to grips with it all. So, I push all thoughts to the back of my mind, and stare at Irish boy on stage, who plays his guitar like it's part of him, and sings like everything that matters in the world depends on just how well he performs tonight. 

Maybe, for him, it does.

The second chorus comes and goes, followed by the line: And you don't need, you don't need to run. And you will see, it's easy to be loved. I know you wanna be loved...