Cherry Weekends

Chapter 18

There is no trigger warning for this chapter, it's actually very sweet (I think) but I did want to warn this is the first part of this chapter, the rest will include trigger warnings and is dark and emotional.  So, please enjoy a little bit of the light for now.
Love you so much for reading and hope you enjoy this next part as much as I do :)

When Niall first laid eyes on Nicole he thought she was beautiful. She wasn't the type he usually went after and, if he were honest with himself, he was surprised when they had begun dating. They had hung out as friends at first and got on well, things had been slow to progress, and he had been happy with that. His last relationship had been a while ago, and they had rushed everything, which he assumed is why it had ended just as suddenly. Nicole was a refreshing change of pace.

After months of dating this was the weekend when everything was going to change. He imagined they would spend a fun filled day on the beach, a romantic evening on the porch of the beach house where he would cook her dinner, and then the night would take them to the next level of their relationship, but things had obviously not gone according to plan.

Watching the way Harry and Nicole interacted since they first saw each other after all these years was eye opening, and after months of dating, he thought he knew almost everything about Nicole, but he was seeing a whole new side to her, one that he honestly felt suited her more when he really took the time to think it over. She was really herself around Harry, she seemed so at ease with him that when Niall really considered the times they had spent together, even just relaxing with friends or out to lunch, he was starting to notice the tension which had always been present in her.

At first, when Harry had crossed the room and thrown himself against Nicole, Niall was clearly not happy with the situation. In fact, he was fuming and imagined the absolute worst of them both. As the story went on, he had feared how well they appeared to know each other, how easily they communicated, how different Nicole had been with Harry compared to the two of them. Sure, it was tense, but it was real, and the heat between them was almost palpable at times.

Niall had been able to sense Nicole's nerves on different occasions, but assumed it was because they were still getting to know each other, and she just wasn't completely comfortable with him since everything was so new. Now he knew that she didn't even realize her own discomfort because she wasn't being herself. Then he saw the side of the story that he couldn't believe Harry and Nicole had never seen and wondered how two people could be so completely oblivious.

He had to admit he was envious of his friend. Niall had griped for years about not being able to find his perfect match while Harry had always laughed off the idea even being a possibility for him, claiming he was nowhere near settling down, but he wasn't as bad as he made himself out to be.

A lot of people assumed the worst of Harry when they saw him with different girls all the time, but Niall knew the truth. Harry couldn't talk to anyone really, he was always closed off, but found solace in spilling his guts to girls so drunk that Niall was certain they passed out completely before anything could ever happen, probably before Harry could even really open up to them as well. Niall was beginning to understand a lot more of his old friend as the walls of his past were being knocked down along with Nicole's.

Watching carefully, Niall nodded his head just slightly when Harry finally met his eyes, and though Harry was confused, he wrapped his arms just a little tighter around Nicole. He even pressed a kiss to her head before he took it upon himself to tell Niall about Candy and the meaning of 'Cherry'.

It was a bright sunny afternoon when Harry looked out his window and into the backyard of his cousin's house right next door. He saw his cousin Candice and mortal enemy Nicole, all of them just 7 years old. The girls were having a tea party, and Harry watched them laughing and baking pretend cakes. He didn't know why he watched for as long as he did before setting out to do as he had planned.

"You're so good at baking cakes," Candice spoke with complete sincerity of the imaginary pastry Nicole was currently pretending to serve.

"Aww, why thank you, you're so sweet... that's why we call you Candy," Nicole teased playfully, even though Harry knew on some level she really meant the words. Candice was one of the sweetest little girls anyone could ever imagine.

"Ugh," Candice grumbled as she rolled her eyes. "You're the one who's too sweet."

They both giggled at that, even Harry let out a chuckle. Candice was the complete stereotypical sweetheart little girl, the perfect little princess, but Nicole balanced her out as a very mischievous little troublemaker.

Harry and Nicole had always duked it out, playing pranks on each other and being downright horrible to one another, but they both had a soft spot for Candice. They would do anything for her, except keep their distance from one another and give up the constant bickering of course.

"Whatever Candy," Nicole brushed the comment away.

"I mean it, everyone knows that you are... well, except for when you're torturing Harry of course."

"Of course," Nicole confirmed though she rolled her eyes.

"It's true, you're the... the... cherry on top!" Candice dramatized with sheer excitement as though she had just thought of the most brilliant thing ever.

Nicole burst out into laughter, "What?"

"You heard me," Candice replied with a smirk. "You're the cherry on top. Like on one of your amazing cakes or an ice cream sundae. My mommy says that the cherry is the perfect little extra that makes it so sweet. That's you. Without you, my life would be incomplete," she meant the words sincerely though she spoke them quite dramatically. Nicole was the one who brought the fun and pushed Candice out of her shell.

Harry had slowly walked outside and approached the two girls and their tea party with a water balloon in hand, hidden behind his back. He quickly walked up behind Nicole, before Candice had a chance to give him away, and smashed the water balloon over Nicole's head.

Nicole stood up instinctively with a gasp and held her arms out to her sides. Harry had made a point of leaving the balloon in the freezer for about fifteen minutes before he went to smash it over her head, so it was quite cold and deserving of such a reaction.

"You jerk," she snapped at him, after all they were only seven.

Candice sighed, "Harry," she whined, "We were having such a lovely tea party. Everything was so sweet."

"Everything is always sweet to you, you're Candy," Harry joked, and Candice couldn't stay mad at her favorite cousin. She was concerned with taking care of her best friend though, who, at the moment, only seemed concerned with maintaining her glare upon the infuriating young boy standing before her with a mocking smirk.

"Oh, come on Cherry, let's get you dry," she pulled Nicole toward her house on the other side of the open backyards.

"Cherry?" Harry raised an eyebrow at this. He had heard a lot of their previous conversation but had missed the end and the explanation of this new supposed nickname.

"Mhmm," Candice nodded her head happily. "It's Nic's new nickname, because she's the cherry on top!"

"The cherry on top?" Harry repeated with a furrowed brow.

"Yup," Candice popped the 'p' at the end. "She's that perfect little extra that makes life sweet," she finished with a happy grin.

Nicole rolled her eyes and Harry snickered, "Yeah right," he followed by rolling his eyes as well.

"You're just jealous you don't have a Cherry," Candice stuck her nose up in defense of her friend and the new nickname she had thought up for her.

"Yeah, that's never gonna stick Candy," Nicole told her.

Candice shook her head and sighed, "You two are just impossible." Then she pulled her over to Nicole's house, which Candice knew just as well as her own. She proceeded to drag Nicole upstairs, and retrieved a towel as well as some clean, dry clothes, while Nicole rambled on about getting Harry back as soon as she could.

Author's Note: Just wanted to give you guys a little bit of sweetness before the next chapter; hope you enjoyed :)