Strictly Professional

39: Dirty Thirty

ELLE
King Of My Heart-Taylor Swift

"Make sure everything's ready. He's coming back in the car." I whispered to Bri through the phone, ending the call before she could answer. Pretending like everything was normal, I smiled at Niall through the window before he opened the door after he had gone to pay for the gas he had put in his car.

"Everything alright?" He asked, examining me with a raised eyebrow as I bounced my leg. Catching myself, I stopped and nodded, smiling at him.

"Yeah, just a bit cold." I lied, though the autumn weather had started kicking in.

"I'll turn the heat on then." He smiled as he pressed the start button, soon driving away from the petrol station. Though I seemed nervous, I wasn't. I was excited to get home. I just needed to come up with an excuse. He had picked me up from the office and we were supposed to go to dinner for his birthday, but I had other plans.

"Babe, do you mind if we stop at my place? I wanna change quickly before we go to the restaurant." I questioned, trying to seem completely natural. To my relief, it was working.

"What time is the reservation?" There's no reservation, but of course I didn't tell him that.

"In an hour, we have time. I won't take long." I reassured him and thankfully he agreed, driving us back to my place. I sent a text to Bri once we were nearing my place as subtly as I could, hoping he was too focused on the road to pay any attention to me. And once we managed to park near my house, I got out and closed the door before walking to his side.

"You can come along, you know. No reason for you to wait in the car." I attempted to sound unbothered, hoping I wouldn't have to find another excuse to make him come with me. With a quirked brow, he turned the car off and took his phone from the cup holder.

"How long are you planning on taking to change?" He teased as he got out of the sleek Audi and followed after me along the pavement, the window closing and the mirrors retracting automatically as the car locked once he was far enough.

"I wanna redo my makeup too, is that a crime?" I joked, taking his hand to pull him towards my building a bit quicker. I was beyond excited and he was taking too long. He didn't oppose any further as we got into the old building and took the lift to my floor. Trying to hide the fact that I was smiling, I unlocked the door as he stood next to me and pushed it open, making sure to not step in front of him. Once it was ajar, a light switch was flipped, revealing the crowd on the other side.

"Surprise!" They all yelled in unison enthusiastically. Niall stared at the sight in shock, staying out in his place. I placed a hand on his back and lightly pushed him forward into the room, following after him before closing the door behind me.

"What's going on? What is this?" He questioned in nothing but pure confusion, looking between me and the people here like he was lost. Taking a few steps towards us, Bri laughed and extended her arms.

"Your birthday party, silly goose! Happy birthday." She joked as she pulled Niall in for a hug. Still lost and in awe, he hugged her back as he looked at me over her shoulder. He opened his mouth ready to talk, but Liam cut him off before he could as he approached him.

"You're part of the group now. Consider this your initiation." He joked, being the next to hug Niall after Bri.

"Surprise parties are our thing. Happy birthday mate." He continued as they patted each other on the back. I was still getting used to seeing those two get along so well, but I've come to realise how similar they are in certain aspects. Just their celebrity lifestyle alone was enough of a subject they could connect on.