Prequelly Unique - Niam Horayne (Prequel to Uniquely Perfect)

Chapter 3

"Work. It's how I get paid and buy us food and such."

He nodded as though understanding me before turning thoughtful.

"I'll have to leave pretty early and I'll be back around 5,"

He looked at the clock and I got up to point to the clock. I pulled him with me and I pointed to the long hand.

"I'll be home when the long hand is on the 12," I pointed to the 12 then to the 5. "And the little hand is on the 5."

Niall nodded with a smile on his face.

"Wh-what is n-now?" He asked.

"What time is it now?" I clarified.

"What time is it now?" Niall repeated with a nod.

"It is about noon. Or about 12."

"Noon?"

"Yeah, it's what we call when it's 12 and during the day. When it's 12 and it's at night, it's called mid-night. Because it's the middle of the night."

Niall nodded and point to the 5.

"Five?" He asked and I nodded as he pointed to the 12. "12?"

"Good job. Want to learn the rest of the numbers?"

"Y-yes!" He said, excitedly.

I took the clock off the wall and went to go look at the numbers. We spent together for about half an hour as i taught him the numbers 1-12. I taught him how to write them, too. He seemed really excited to learn new things. We spent the next few hours, writing numbers and me teaching him how to say them. I began to worry what Louis would think of him. I pushed the worry to the back of my mind and decided that I needed to teach him more before he met Louis.

It soon began to grow late and I could tell Niall was growing tired from learning so many things. His eyelids were droopy and his voice had taken a octave lower.

"Why don't we go to sleep, Niall?"

The blond boy nodded his head as his tummy grumbled. He patted at his tummy as he looked up at me. I smiled and gave him some cereal before making him go to the couch. The second Niall's head hit the pillow, he was out. I smiled at how easily the boy could fall asleep. I headed off to my bed and set my alarm. My eyes quickly closed and the last thing I saw was Niall's wide smile.

"C'mon, Li!" A voice giggled loudly.

I looked around to see Niall beckoning me closer. I sprinted over to him and wrapped my arms around him. He melted into my arms and we stayed like that for what seemed like hours. Niall nuzzled into my neck and I scratched at his ears. A small sigh escaped his mouth and he leaned back to whisper.

"I love you, Liam."

"Love you, too, Niall."

I woke startled. Why would I dream something like that? I'd only known the boy for a week, did I like him more than I realized? I liked taking care of the boy because he seemed so innocent and helpless that I couldn't help but like him. I ran a hand through my hair. Maybe I did like Niall more than I had realized. I rolled over to glance at the time. I groaned as I shut it off and walked to the bathroom to shower. I didn't spend much time under the water and I quickly finished getting ready. I had to remember to be quiet in order not to wake Niall but when I walked into the front room, he was already awake.

"Niall, what are you doing up?" I asked as I walked into the kitchen.

When he didn't respond to me, I peeked my head around the corner to find him shivering. I quickly walked over to him and placed a blanket around him. I wrapped my arms around the shivering boy and he leaned into my touch. My heart skipped a bit as he nuzzled his way into my neck.