Midnight Memories (Niall Horan)

Chapter 2

Chapter 2 - Sam is 16, Niall is 18

Memory #1

Sam wasn't used to sneaking out late at night. In fact, the thought scared her so much that she looked around every ten minutes in case she was being followed by one of her dad's guards or Martin, their butler. Having been there all the way back to when Sam was but a little girl, Martin made it is his personal business to see to it that neither scar nor bruise marked her perfect skin. And that she was safe and sound around the clock. Sam generally didn't mind, save for the times Niall involved her in things that could possibly get her into trouble.  

"I don't know how you can manage to sneak out every week. It's scary." She said under her breath as they made a left in the corner, and the familiar bakery came into view.

The Cozy Cottage had always been her and Niall's favourite bakery to go to every Friday afternoon, right after the bell rang to signal the end of classes. There, they would either talk about Sam's new favourite book or listen to another original song Niall recorded on his iPhone over cups of freshly-brewed coffee and a shared plate of cinnamon rolls. But this time, they were headed there not for their usual activities but because Niall had a sudden craving for their best-seller chocolate chips.

And when he had called Sam at eleven in the evening, grumbling on and on about how he wouldn't be able to sleep without satisfying his craving, she dismissed him at once, said it could wait until the morning and threatened to delete his number from her phone.

In the end, Niall charmed his way through the situation and got her to climb out of bed, much to her dismay. Getting changed into winter clothes was easy, stumbling and tripping aside. Getting out of the house undetected was the challenge—the Reid family's housemaids stayed up to watch soap operas at the living room until midnight—but thanks to Niall's expertise, Sam managed to leave without them noticing partly because she had finally stopped dragging her feet whenever she walked and partly because they were too busy drooling over the Latino male lead.

Niall's laugh brought her back to the present, and the cool December air made swirls appear with his every breath. "You're always so innocent. You're like this fragile little kitten I have to protect all the time."

"Nobody asked you to protect me, you know." She pointed out matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, but I want to."

His words made her cheeks flush. She lowered her head, robbing him of the chance to see the pink tint growing. Niall unknowingly always said a great amount of things that made her turn a dark crimson shade, but he didn't know that. Of course, he didn't.

Because how could he?

Sam had never been the type to open up about feelings. More so, she knew Niall would only look at her as his best friend, as that childhood friend who was always the heaven to his earth, the pressed dresses to his muddy shorts. So, why bother confessing? It's not like he'll ever feel the same way, she thought. Plus, hasn't he told her much too many times that he had his eye on Carlie Williams, a girl they went to school with? And didn't she admit to Sam she found Niall cute?

They got to the bakery and the chimes twinkled when Niall opened the door. He let her step in first, staying true to his reputation as the 'neighbourhood gentleman.' For Sam, no words could ever describe the pride she felt whenever they were out together and people saw the overall good guy that he was. And though showing off had always been an activity she deemed pointless, she couldn't help it when it came to Niall.

"Ah, there you both are! It's so great to see you again!" Gracie, the seventy-two year-old baker they had become close friends with, exclaimed when they arrived.