A night in was just what the doctor ordered. Ok maybe not doctor ordered, but it should be. After the work week you had; you just wanted to hide away from everyone. No one to complain about aches, pains or anything else they could throw at you. No computer screens to stare at and no phones to curse under your breath.
Your friends had messaged you an hour before your shift ended with the invite to go to the bar for some drinks. You declined with the excuse of not feeling the best. You claimed to have a headache and just wanted to go home and go to bed.
So that was what you did; kind of. You went home, but not to bed. You changed into a vintage looking Tom Petty t-shirt that was taken from a friend's closet. Still smelled like him just a little. Slipped into a pair of gray and purple board shorts. You had just put on a Rolling Stones vinyl record and started dancing in your living room with a glass of rum and coke.
Every so often you could hear your phone alert that you had a message, but you chose to ignore it. You were on your second drink and third vinyl. This one was Hotel California. It along with the faint smell of Creed Aventus made you miss Niall even more than you already did.
You had forgotten about everything in that moment except Niall and his stupid little smirk. His crazy hair that he constantly ran his hands through. Those blue eyes that tried to drowned you in them each and every time you looked into them. Why? Why did you have to fall for him? You knew it wouldn't work out. The two of you in a relationship was a fantasy and you knew it. Deep down you knew it, but your heart didn't care about that.
While you belted out the lyrics to Hotel California along with Don Henley, you heard your name called out over the music. You jumped with a scream and nearly dropped your drink. You heard the familiar laugh behind you that seemed to drown out the music. Your eyes blinked on their own as if they didn't believe he was there.
“What are...why...Niall?” you couldn't form a coherent sentence at the moment. You blamed the alcohol and the near heart attack he had just caused.
“You alright there,” he asked as he gave a quick nod of his head at you. That cheeky grin he tried to hide had nearly taken over his entire face. He would never make a good poker player.
“No! You about gave me a heart attack. What the hell?” You placed your drink on the nearest flat surface you could find. “What are you doing here? How did you get in?” Both very valid questions you thought.
“Was worried about ya. Didn't answer me text or call. Matt said ya passed on drinks,” he shouted over the music.
You turned the volume down and told him you were fine. Just wanted some alone time. He gave you a mischievous look and asked what kind of alone time. He couldn't hold in the chuckle due to the look on your face. You let him know that you didn't mean that kind of alone time.
“Oi, is that mine,” he pointed at the shirt you had on. “Been looking for that thing for months. Even blamed Tara and Ellie for it being missing.”
“I might have borrowed it. Thought I might miss ya while you were out taking over the world one city at a time.” You felt a little heat in your cheeks. Not sure if it was the alcohol or embarrassment of that statement.
He took a step closer to you with a playful look on his face. He clicked his tongue as he looked you over. “Looks better on ya anyway,” he winked. “So ya missed me huh?”
Did you see what you thought you did? Did he wink at you? Did he say his shirt looked better on you? Did you slip into some alternate universe? You and Niall had always had a healthy friendship of good banter between the two of you. Some off the cuff flirting that never lead to anything more that giggles and eye rolls. What in the hell just happened?
