Broken Strings || Niall Horan [AU]

● PART THREE: 18 | together

"Niall! Anna!" a familiar voice shouts, and seconds later, Harry emerges from the crowd. His forehead is coated with a sheen of sweat, which gleams beneath the hot pub lights, and his curly hair is dishevelled, but he somehow still manages to look good; Niall can't help but feel a pang of jealousy -- he feels a mess right now, presumably with a red, sweat-covered face and awful, mussed-up hair. 

"So, did you enjoy the song, Anna?" Harry says -- or rather, slurs, because he's clearly a little intoxicated himself -- in an over-enthusiastic manner. "Are you two together now?" 

"Um," Anna begins, and Niall is just about to answer yes, when Harry claps his hand a little too hard on the Irish lad's shoulder. 

"Listen, mate, me and Liam have something planned for you two. For afterwards," Harry informs him. "It's gonna be amazing, and if it doesn't get you two together, then I don't know what will."

"Actually, Harry, we're-" Niall begins, ready to tell Harry that they are in fact already together, but he stops short when he feels a tap on his shoulder. It's Zayn, who gives him a small, shy smile. Louis and Liam are there, too. And then the room falls silent. 

This is it. 

Niall turns towards the stage; he can just make out the man who introduced each band, waving at the audience. He grabs the microphone and starts talking about how tonight's performances have been some of the best in Band Battle history. Niall holds his breath, a lump forming in his throat. He knows it doesn't matter; he's already gotten what he wanted the most. But this feels so real, and he can only imagine how amazing it would be to win. It would put a great finish to an already-perfect night. It would be like having the cake and eating it too. 

"Now for the moment you've all been waiting for," the guy says. "But first, I just wanna say something. Music isn't just about the music. It's about the emotion; the feeling it gives you. You can't just listen to a song; you have to feel it. The judges have discussed the quality of tonight's bands in great detail, and they all agree that only a small handful of the bands have really made us feel the music in our hearts. And so, without further ado, the winner of 2013's Bournemouth Band Battle, a band who'll collect an impressive prize of £1000 and who will perform at next year's Band Battle, is..."

It's as if the whole world is holding its breath. In this last moment, Niall looks down at Anna, and she looks up at him. He looks into her beautiful blue eyes and realises that if they don't win, he won't care at all because she's here right now, and nothing else in the universe matters.

But they do win. 

He hears the guy onstage saying 'One Direction', but for some reason he can't comprehend what those two words actually mean; only when the lads start jumping around and screaming happily does he realise, startled, that they've actually won this thing. He's so shocked at first that he can't even celebrate; he simply stands there, dazed and grinning, as he's pulled into a six-way hug with Anna and the boys. Even when they're standing on the stage, posing for a photograph with their huge cheque, and even when Harry is telling the guy how incredible it feels to have won and how thankful they are, it still hasn't fully sunk in. 

The five stumble offstage, giddy with happiness, exchanging high-fives and messy hugs and mile-wide grins. Last year's winners are beginning to set up onstage. That will be us next year, Niall thinks happily, briefly glancing at the stage one last time as he weaves his way through the audience, back towards Anna. She throws her arms around his neck and he places his hands on her waist, and he's just about to lean in to kiss her when Harry appears just beside them.