Don't Look Back - A Niam Horayne Love Story

Chapter 19 - You Bloody Tease

“I always forget how dramatic you can be. Hi, dad. How have you been?”

“Fine. Now, was there something you needed to tell us? Your mother should be walking in the door any minute now.”

Niall and I shared a quick glance, him nodding to tell me silently that he was ready. I grinned, though my heart was pounding a little. “Yeah. Let me know when she gets in.”

“When who gets in?” A different familiar voice chimed.

“Okay, or I guess I can start now. Niall and I have, well, kind of… an announcement to make.”

I heard my family chuckling. “What kind of announcement would this be?” Nicola called out.

Niall continued, “An important one.”

They all laughed. “We’re together,” I blurted. Niall’s jaw dropped with shock as he gestured toward my mouth and then the phone, obviously wondering if I’d intended to say it so quickly. I smiled warmly back at him though it had been a slip of the tongue, since I didn’t want him to worry.

“No offense, Liam, but we kind of, sort of, maybe already guessed,” Ruth made fun of my earlier stuttering.

“How? We hid our relationship for the longest time, and actually ended up splitting up over it. How could you tell when nobody else could?” The pressure on my heart was eased as I noted their accepting tones.

“It’s not that hard. You two were always all over each other, hugging and sending special glances and touches. You walked around holding hands and spent as much time together as Louis and Harry. It was only natural that we thought you were together after they came out,” Dad explained.

Mum, always the concerned one, joined the conversation. “Have you talked to Maura yet, Niall?”

He gulped. “Not yet, but we were planning on calling her up next.”

“Well then, I best let you boys go,” she said warmly. “I’m proud of you, Liam. Niall, you take care of my boy. Make sure he’s not fussing over everything.”

“Mum!” I shouted, embarrassed. “Alright, that’s enough out of you. Bye, talk to you guys soon. And you might want to watch for a new interview tomorrow,” I hinted.

“Bye, Liam and Niall,” they chorused. “Love you!”

As I ended the call, I noticed Niall had tears in his eyes. “Nialler? What’s wrong, love?”

“They’re so nice and accepting,” he grinned wetly. “Thanks for going first, Li. I think I’m ready to call my mum now. Greg and Dad were supposed to be around her place this week, so we might be lucky enough to catch them all at once.”

I flicked through my contacts until I found the ‘M’ section, clicking the first name and hearing the dial tone. “Hello, you’ve reached Maura’s household. If you want to leave a message, listen for-“ It was cut off by the actual woman’s voice speaking.

“Hey, Liam! Sorry I took so long to pick up, I’m a bit busy,” she breathed heavily down the line.

“Did you just run to get the phone, mum?” Niall asked suspiciously.

“Of course, why else would I be having trouble breathing?” she wondered. “Never mind, don’t answer that. I don’t need to hear something from that dirty mouth of yours,” she warned. We both laughed, Niall relaxing into my arms as we leaned over my phone. “So, why’d you ring?”

Niall looked like he was about to choke himself or pass out, so I told her straight out what was going on in much the same way I’d blurted the words to my own mother.