Chasing Pavements - A Niall Horan Fanfic

Chapter 9: Cookie Breath

Niall laid in his bunk, staring at the ceiling and listening to what was going on around him. His bandmates were either snoring happily after talking to their girlfriend or whispering to their girlfriends on the phone or typing to their girlfriends. Niall didn’t have a girlfriend so his night was spent talking to his mother. He loved Maura, but she was obviously a far cry from a girlfriend, even if he had asked her to be his at one point. Zayn had gotten off the phone with Perrie, and he was the one snoring like a buzzsaw in the bunk across from him. Louis was beneath him, typing furiously on the computer. Eleanor was probably on screen, but instead of just talking to her aloud, they used the chat function of Skype while making silly faces at one another. Niall didn’t understand it, though it was their way. Liam chuckled in his bunk at something Danielle was telling him over the phone. Lastly, he could hear Harry in the back lounge of the bus talking to Bree. If there was ever a time that Niall felt lonely, it was then. Everyone had someone except for him.

Maybe that wasn’t entirely true. He had Becca, but she went to bed early. She and Bree went to Louisiana to visit Becca’s family. Some time during the show, Becca texted Niall to tell him she might be going to bed early. While he was talking to his mother on Skype, he got another text telling him goodnight. His face must have dropped after reading that one because his mother asked him what was wrong. He just shrugged. She knew little things about Becca but nothing to give away he was falling for the girl. The last thing he needed was his mom getting his hopes up that he might have finally found someone. Maura wanted so badly for Niall to find a girl that made him happy.

Any sound from the back of the bus had stopped. Normally, Niall would give Harry his alone time with Bree. He didn’t know firsthand how hard it was to maintain a relationship, but from watching the boys, he knew things got tough. He remembered a time when Eleanor felt like Louis wasn’t giving her the time she deserves. Of course, they just happened to be crazy busy with other things. Louis made it up to her by surprising her with a car that took her to the airport so she could visit him in the States. Niall remembered how happy she was when they picked her up from the airport, how Louis scooped her up into a hug. It sucked because all Niall wanted was for someone to be that happy to just see him.

Niall slid out of his bunk. He closed the curtains to Zayn’s bunk quietly, figuring the boy would be grateful for it in the morning. Louis’ curtain was closed, but he heard the older boy snicker at something as he passed. Liam was quiet, though Niall could hear Danielle on the other end of the phone. Opening the door to the back lounge, he found Harry sitting with his head resting on the back of the couch and his eyes closed. Harry’s foot was propped up on the collapsible coffee table next to his laptop, which was shut. Niall shut the door and made his way over to the couch across from Harry.

“Bree pass out again?” Niall asked with a chuckle. It wasn’t uncommon for the blonde girl to fall asleep while talking to Harry. Niall figured she probably got comfortable in bed and just went to sleep.

Harry shook his head but didn’t open his eyes. “Nah. She was about to so I told her to just go to bed. Don’t want her sleeping through her visit to Becca’s.”

The Irish boy smiled at the sound of Becca’s name but wiped it away as he sat back on the couch. “I would have called Becca, but Mum just kept talking. Did…did you see Becca?”

Harry stretched before finally opening his eyes and smiling at Niall. It was no secret to anyone anymore that Niall was completely smitten with the redhead. They’d all noticed the small smile that followed her name or how Niall asked about her. They were all in touch, and when Niall couldn’t talk to her but one of them could, he’d ask a hundred questions until he was satisfied. None of them really knew why Niall tried to pretend he was just being a good friend. Everyone knew better.

He decided to answer Niall. “She did.” He stifled a yawn. “How’s Maura?”

Niall gave a short shrug as he got up to go over to one of the cabinets. He pulled out a bag of chips. Sitting back down, he opened the bag and popped one in his mouth. “She’s alright I guess. Ready for tour to be over so I can come home, y’know.”

“Mum’s the same way,” Harry nodded.

If Niall were being honest, he didn’t want to talk about him mother. He didn’t want to talk about anything other than Becca. He felt guilty that he hadn’t given her at least a little time out of his day so he took his phone out to text her goodnight again. Looking up at Harry, he watched his band mate lay back on the couch and rub his eyes while yawning. It had been a long day, and at that point, Harry was just fighting the sleep. “You should get some sleep,” Niall offered, but Harry shook his head. “So Becca joined in? I thought I heard you two bickering about something. She ask about me?”

Harry cut his eyes to Niall and let out an exasperated sigh. “She said that Bree is hers and I’m just lucky she’s letting me date her.” He paused and grinned, telling Niall exactly what he wanted to hear and what she said. “She also said to tell you hello so…hello from Becca. Y’know, she might actually still be awake. Not sure.” He tried not to yawn again, but he failed. “She mentioned something about you two not getting to talk much today.”

Niall wondered if the boys caught on to the day being not so good for him. It was something he had noticed since the show in New York. Talking to Becca was a major part of his day. Sometimes, it was the biggest part of his day. He hated missing her calls or having to wait hours to text her back. When they didn’t talk, Niall was just off. He was still happy, always smiling, always laughing Niall, but then he’d have moments where all he wanted to do was slow down and hide in a closet for an hour to just hear Becca’s slight Southern drawl. Looking down at his phone, he frowned. Harry was probably wrong. She probably was already asleep. He pictured her sleeping next to him again. Her long eyelashes draped over her cheek. Her bottom lip poked out even with her mouth slightly open. Her hair splayed over her back and pillow. The cute little noise she made that sounded a little like a puppy.

A smile crossed his face before Niall realized Harry was staring at him. “We didn’t get to talk much.” He sighed, popping another chip into his mouth. For once, he wasn’t even all that hungry. He set the bag of chips on the table. Niall didn’t want to complain about not getting to talk with Becca. They weren’t in a relationship. Harry was so he got complaining rights. Not that Harry complained about much. Still, long distance in any capacity was rough. He looked down at his phone again and gave up. He put it on the seat beside him. “Is it hard? Being in a relationship with all this, I mean? Is it actually worth it? I don’t…I don’t mean that it’s not worth it.”

Harry looked over at Niall again. The boys wasn’t just making conversation. He had a reason for asking. He was almost certain Niall was asking at Becca, but there was one person that always hung out in the background: Demi. When Niall wasn’t talking about Becca, he was talking about Demi. The boys sometimes got confused about who Niall really wanted. Did he want Becca? Did he want Demi? He wasn’t sure sometimes. None of them were. Niall’s little crush on Demi was a little more than a little crush. Most of the time, they didn’t question it was Becca he was crazy for. Then Demi would give Niall the time of day. She played cat and mouse with the Irish boy.

The curly haired boy thought for a second. “It’s a lot of work. I’m surprised Bree is as understanding as she is honestly. It makes things easier. Then again, it’s not like she knows any different.” He shrugged, laying back on the couch. “It is hard but definitely worth it when you get to see that person again. Like when we were in New York and surprised the girls. You can’t say seeing Becca’s face light up after not being around you for so long wasn’t worth it. I mean, you kissed her that night, didn’t you?”

Niall’s eyes widened. He didn’t tell the boys about kissing Becca, but he guessed Harry knew because of Bree. Maybe even Becca. Still, he wasn’t going to deny it happening. He shrugged it off. “Maybe. Should I not have?” Then he snorted. “Why am I even asking you? You kissed Bree the day after meeting her.”

Harry yawned again. “I think you should take a change. You won’t regret it.” He got up, stretching. “I’m going to bed. You should too, but I have a feeling Becca will text you back soon enough. Skype with her if you can.” He started to head for the door. “Don’t do anything gross.” Then he left.

Niall’s phone bumped his leg as it vibrated on the couch. He picked it up to see a new text from Becca asking if he wanted to talk. Smiling, he texted her back a yes with several exclamation marks. He hurried to grab his laptop from the front so he could sign onto Skype.