“I wanna stay up all night and jump around until we see the sun, I wanna stay up all night and find a girl and tell her she's the one.” - Up All Night
FEBRUARY 14, 2012
2:15 A.M.
Niall wrapped his hands around his mug, enjoying the smell of the tea, the quiet hum of the lights above him, but mostly he liked people watching. They were fascinating, really. Especially the ones brave enough to walk the city streets in the middle of the night.
Whenever he couldn't sleep, he'd head over to Dolly's Diner. Cliché? Maybe. But it didn't change the fact that they had the best pie, tea and coffee he'd found so far in the city. He was just thinking he'd order another cup when the bell chimed, alerting patrons and staff that a new customer had arrived.
He looked up, bringing the cup to his lips. It was calculated and strategic, allowing him to assess the gorgeous girl who had just walked in without her giving him much notice. Or so he thought.
She cleared the length of the room quickly and before Niall could set the cup back on the table, he found her sliding into his booth. A fan maybe? He didn't run into them often, at a time like this, in a place like this, but that had to be the only reasonable explanation.
He smiled. “Can I help you?”
Her eyes narrowed and she stretched out her legs. “I believe in proper English that'd be 'May I help you?'”
He couldn't help it as his smile grew wider, “Aye. Perhaps. But in case you've missed it lass, I'm Irish.”
“'Oi-rish huh?”
He nodded thinking it was strange she'd approached him. She obviously knew who he was. Or she was dangerously friendly, he wasn't sure which.
“Well Oi-rish, I'm Emily.”
“Lovely to meet you Emily,” he said. “How may I help you?”
She waved the waitress over. “Coffee please. Black.” Crossing her arms over her chest, she shot him a deadly smile. “So, when I left the house I thought to myself, if only I could find a hot Irish guy to spend the evening with. And low and behold,” she swept her hands toward him, “here you are.”
Niall felt his insides warm as she took him by surprise. He liked her. Girl had spunk. He could deal with that. He grinned and held up his cup, “Here I am. And there you are.”
“So?” Emily asked. “Are you up for it?”
“What?”
“Spending the evening with me.” The waitress delivered her coffee and she took a sip and cringed. “Burn your mouth off hot.”
“Where exactly do you propose we spend the evening?”
Emily shrugged. “Does it matter? You. Me. We could have a lot of fun, Oi-rish.”
Niall nodded, thinking he could indeed have a lot of fun with this girl. “One condition.”
She took another long swig of her coffee. “And that would be?”
