Typical [L.P. + N.H. + A.I.]

1.4 - Moving In - Luck

'Okay, well are you nervous now?' He asks me.

'Just a little bit.'

'Can you sing for me please?'

'Okay how about, you sing, and I'll sing along.'

'I guess I can work with that.'

He goes to the sitting room and takes his guitar out of its case.

'Why do you always have a guitar with you?' I ask.

'Well, whenever we're hanging out, whoever I'm with, we always end up jamming. And I like playing my own guitars.'

'But isn't it like heavy to carry around?'

'Not that much. Besides, I'm always either driving or driven, so it doesn't matter. Which song do you want us to sing.'

'Anything from your last album is good.'

He starts playing flicker and I can't help but smile. I just love this song so much! And the first couple of chords always give me chills. I wait till the chorus and then join in. He's smiling just as much as I am now. Good, he doesn't mind my singing. 

When the song ends I comment, 'You know, when you sing live, your accent is more noticeable than in the studio version. I like it more. You should consider letting your accent be more prominent in your songs' studio version. It's part of who you are after all.'

'Duly noted! Your voice is amazing by the way! You should be more confident. Don't be scared of singing in front of people, especially not in front of Liam and Louis. They love you, and they'll love your voice just as much as I do!'

'Thank you so much! It really means a lot to me!'

'Okay, this was easy, let's take it up a notch.'

He retunes his guitar and starts playing Shallow, I sigh shaking my head, but with a smile. I should've expected this. Lucky for me, I've been practising.

I wait for my cue, then I start singing calmly, sitting straight on the sofa. But just as the chorus kicks in, and the high note comes, I stand up and give it my all. He almost forgot to join in later. It's so overwhelmingly good, seeing someone as talented as Niall, speechless and amazed at little old me singing.

'Wow! Where did that come from! This was amazing! I didn't expect this! Jess! You're... Just wow! I can't even find my words. I'm completely speechless. And coming from me, it's something!'

'Thank you, Niall!'

I sit back down and he put the guitar away, then turn in his seat to face me.

'Liam told me you're writing a new book?'

'Well, trying. Nothing good is coming up. I'm supposed to be writing "The next bestseller" or whatever. I have till the end of summer to at least have something. A first draft or anything at all. I can't even get past a first chapter.'

'What's the problem? What's blocking you?'

'I just haven't found the story that I want to tell yet.'

'Well, I'm sorry to say it like this, but darling, of course, you're not gonna find your story cooped up inside those four walls. There's a whole world out there you're missing.'

'I did it before, and it worked well since its published and the world is reading it.'

'Okay, but where did you write it? You were in a small town where nothing ever happens. You were living in your dreams, you wrote about them. But, Jess, tell me this. Are you still dreaming? Since you're making it now, you're IN London, you have all those possibilities. But are you still dreaming?'

'No...'

'Are you taking your chances and try to explore all the possibilities that can actually come true?'

I shake my head looking down.

'What are you doing instead?'

I point at the TV not saying a word.

'Exactly. You sit here all afternoon, all night, watching TV. Being passive, literally not existing. The furthest you got outside your comfort zone is next door. The most adventurous thing you did, is meet the people next door. Sure it happened to be Liam and the guys and me. And yeah I guess that's pretty lucky since you're a fan and all. But still, if you forget about who we are out there. It's not that much of an achievement you did there. You have to get out. And London's beautiful! Why is it so hard for you to just get out?'

'London's... Quite big. You could get lost... It's scary out there!'

'You're being ridiculous! Alright, come on! I'm taking you out!'

He stands up, holding his hand out to pull me out of my seat.

'What, now? No! It's late! It's dark outside! And there's nothing to do!'

'You clearly don't know anything. But fine, be ready tomorrow at 5 I'll come to pick you up and you can't say no!'

'Fine! Where are we going?'

'Haven't decided yet. But we need to fix that writer's block of yours. I know how frustrating it is.'

'Alright, thank you!'

'And stop saying thank you! That's what friends are for.'

...

friends...

Friends???

Seriously!!

I mean, we did meet a few days ago...

These things take time...

'I'll try my best. It's getting late. I wake up very early to go to the restaurant where I work. I'm sorry. You should probably go. Liam might be back now.'

'Alright. Are you okay?'

'Great! Have a good night, Niall.'

'Okay... Goodnight, Jess.'

He hugs me tightly before he left and I locked the door behind him. I try not to let that one tear slip out because once it's out, you can't stop the river from flowing.

It's silly, I shouldn't be crying because of a guy.

I can't actually have believed Niall would be interested in a meaningless girl like me! God, I'm such an idiot sometimes!

I should just forget about it and go to sleep.