Always & Forever (A Niall Horan Love Story)

9. "All About the Food and the Band"

Okay, so this was quick. But quick for a reason. Hopefully I'll be able to edit this and repost... though I don't know when. But I just HAD to post something. :) So good luck, lovely fans! :)

Enjoy!

xD

Chapter 9- “All About the Food and the Band”

            Niall-

            “Ni, we gotta hurry up, you know. Maybe you should chill on the-” Louis came around the corner into my dressing room and gave me a weird look. “Make-up,” he finished.

            “Got it,” I allowed, trying to squirm out of my make-up artist’s reach. It was of no use. Apparently, my second face was only half done. Yes, it was weird, but hey, even we lads needed to be prepped up for our concert. I was ecstatic about meeting all the backstage guests; Lizzy, Bethany, her mother, and two of Lizzy’s friends were going to be there. I was becoming more nervous by the second, and though I’d never really had that problem before, I took it as a good thing. It meant I wasn’t growing soft in my old band days.

            Regardless, the joy in my heart was overwhelming. All of the loneliness and heartbreak at home, all the memories missed with my family… somehow it was always worth it just to perform on stage like this. Feeling the rush of the fans’ screams; you’d think it would defeat the solitude, and to some people, it did. But to me it added to the rush and to the knowledge that I was something special. I never wanted to sound conceited by thinking about it that way, and I definitely didn’t want to take my fans for granted. I was blessed.

            “The backstage guests are waiting,” Louis said forcefully. “Seriously. Get your bum out here!”

            “Okay. I’m coming!” I finally got courage enough to shoo the make-up lady away and stand from my seat to look in the mirror. I had to admit it: I looked virtually identical to my picture in the magazines. My green shirt fit loosely around my ribs; blue skinny jeans complimented them in a strange way. I grabbed my hat and put it on, ruffling my hair a bit underneath. I hoped it didn’t ruin the image the producers had going. But I never really knew with those things. Producers were picky.

            I wanted to whistle as I skipped out of the dressing room. Liam and Harry were already out visiting with the guests; Louis was probably practically screaming at Zayn to quit his primping. I’d never met a boy that was so bad about that. I saw Bethany, Lizzy, Mrs. Hannold, and two other girls standing across the way, far from me. The stage directors, the producer, and tons of stagehands were bustling around behind the curtains. I could hear the rumble of the thousands of fans that had already gathered in the stadium. Before meeting Bethany, I had to chat with a few of the other guests, and they were more than likely screaming fans. I signed a few of their autographs and passed a genuine hello to them, my mind already skipping ahead to seeing little Rapunzel with her eyes so bright.

            My arms instinctively flew out in my signature pose when I saw her; I’d seen several tumblr posts of me with this strange walk. My pants felt low, but I chose not to pull them up, suspecting that it added to the hilarious effect of my walk. Bethany’s eyes met mine and I said, “There’s my Rapunzel!” Bethany mumbled a greeting as I hugged her tiny frame. I nodded easily to the two who I assumed were Lizzy’s friends. Both were rather short; the taller of the two looked familiar for some reason, but I passed that off to be a coincidence. Maybe someone I’d met before looked like her. “Who are your friends?”

            Both of the girls looked like they would wet their pants, a familiar look of awe glossed over them. I wanted to laugh, but instead I smiled and gave the taller girl a half-hug. A Horan hug, as some might call it. The shorter girl handed me a notebook quietly. “This is Leah,” Bethany pointed to the taller of the two girls, “and that’s Brittany!”