*Niall's POV*
Natalie shyly poked her head into my office that Thursday morning a little bit too cheerful for my liking. Her brown curls fell towards the ground and her brown, boring eyes enlarged as her head poked through the gap in my office door at a 45 degree angle. I looked up at her without actually moving my head away from the prints on my desk. "Yes?" I asked.
Natalie's smile widened and she pushed my door open some more. "Just wanted to see how America was. I got you a little something while you were gone, too." Her voice spoke the most innocently I had ever heard it as she approached my desk. The small gift box in her hands grabbed my attention as I finally moved my head up from the prints.
"It was great. I was only gone for a week, you know?" I said with an amused chuckle as the small yet long gift was placed on my desk. "You didn't have to get me anything."
Natalie shrugged and nudged the gift closer to me. "Just open it." Her smile looked like her face was about ready to break. To be honest, it was freaking me out a little bit, but I hesitantly grabbed the box anyways. It fit the size of my hand almost perfectly. The navy blue sparkles against the black case shined brightly as it was then under my desk lamp.
I sighed when I caught sight of Natalie excitedly bouncing out of the corner of my eye. Whatever it was, I was just praying it wasn't a love letter to me or something. I was kind of surprised that she wasn't already clinging all over me and suggesting a welcome back celebration under my desk. At the same time, though, I wasn't complaining with how surprising calm she was- you know, for Natalie anyways.
I pulled the sparkly lid off of the box and pulled back the tissue paper which covered a purple stick no longer than a pencil. My heart stopped beating when the sight of two pink lines on the stick came into view and I realized what it was. "What the-"
"I'm pregnant!" She shouted while jumping up and down again. I stared at the stick for a few seconds longer and then finally looked up at her. Taken back by my dead pan face that did not at all match her excited one, her face quickly fell too. "Oh! It's not yours." All at once I began to breathe again as my weight collapsed on my desk, knocking over a framed picture of me and the guys in the process. "Yeah, my hot neighbor from, like, three flats down totally busted early. His pull-out game kind of sucks," she laughed like she wasn't now consequently pregnant because of that. "Besides, I've gotten my period since last time we messed around which really hasn't been since the last time you came back from America."
Once all of the lost oxygen was again restored to my lungs and my blood, I sat up and gave Natalie a small smile. "That's relieving to hear. Congrats, Nat. I'm happy for you."
Her smile fell to a more natural and relaxed looking one. "Thanks, Niall. I'm happy for you and that American girl." I furrowed my brow in confusion. I hadn't mentioned Alyssa to anyone here. My confusion resulted in a smile and a small giggle from Natalie. "Oh come on, Niall." She laughed some more. "You go to America and suddenly we go from messing around a few times a week to not at all? I knew you had a romantic side you were saving for someone- either that or you had some life-altering experience and you converted to a more holy lifestyle." I let out a smile of my own and even threw in a chuckle. While it always bugged me that Natalie was good at reading people (more specifically: me), I was finding comfort in the fact that I didn't have to verbally express all the mushy things I was feeling to talk to someone about it. "She's a lucky girl, Ni. And I'm sure your mum will be excited to hear all about her on line 2."
All again, my heart beat stopped and the oxygen quit flowing. I wasn't sure which I wanted more between Natalie scaring me with the pregnancy or the news of my mum trying to get ahold of me. How she even found out any contact information for me was beyond my level of thinking. I couldn't understand how she would accidentally stumble across a London photographer studio when she still lived in Ireland.
"W-what?" I asked slowly while melting back into my big, comfy chair. My eyes drifted towards the phone and I visibly shivered at the sight of a blinking blue button next to the words "Line 2". I looked back up to Natalie. "What does she want?"
Natalie shrugged. "Didn't really say. She's just been asking for you every day and I've been telling her you were out on vacation. She would ask when you would be back and I would just tell her I didn't know. But she called back today and is thrilled you're here." Natalie was smiling but I was panicking. How she didn't pick up on that, I didn't know. She could always pick up what I was feeling. "Does she not have your cell phone number?" I didn't answer. I just stared at the blue blinking light on the phone that seemed to be mocking me. "Niall, you don't look so good."
Finally getting a little suspicious, I could tell Natalie had then found out something was wrong. As I looked back up at her, it was obvious she was suspicious. "I can't talk to her right now. You need to tell her that I'll call her back later."
Natalie smiled and rolled her eyes. "Oh good God. Whatever you did or said to her you gotta deal with. Don't be such a baby. This is your mum. She's been trying to get ahold of you for a while now. Just man up and answer the phone." With that, Natalie tossed her chocolate curls over her shoulder and walked out looking accomplished. I jumped when my office door accidentally slammed shut. It would always do that when I had my window behind me open on a warmer day.
I stared at the light for a few moments more and allowed it to mock me. I knew Natalie could see the same blinking light on her desk phone meaning she knew Maura was still on hold. I closed my eyes and counted to three a few times in my head- every time telling myself I would answer on three. I never did though. After attempting to answer a few more times and even trying to count backwards from three with no luck, I opened my eyes and stared at the blinking blue light. With another deep breath, I counted aloud. "One," I said, this time hovering my right hand over the blinking button. "Two." My left hand rested on the phone. Another deep breath and, "Three." My right hand came down to press the blinking blue light while my left hand gripped the phone and brought it up to my ear.
Silence on the other end.
She had to have known I picked up as there was no more hold music playing. I took another deep breath to hold my breakfast down. Then, I spoke. "Horan," I tried to say as confidently as I could. Still silence on the other end. Confused, I checked the screen on the phone's dock. I was indeed connected to another line. "Hello?"
I heard what sounded like a sniffle and then a tired sounding voice ask, "Is this Niall Horan?" Her voice, which I initially thought I had forgotten the sound of, sounded so familiar. I knew it and I knew I could still pick it out in a room full of conversing people.
I took a moment to stop myself from showing too much emotion and went for the I'm-professional-and-not-going-to-act-like-anything-special-is-going-on approach. "This is he." I remained bold sounding. "How may I help you?"
Another sniffle. "Uh, my... my grandson just turned a year old and..." My heartbeat sped up and my breathing became uneasy. Greg had a kid? I was an uncle? I had been an uncle for an entire year? It didn't feel real. It didn't feel like I was really talking to her- my mum- but I knew I was. Things were happening so fast. "We were just wanting to get a family photo shoot." I said nothing. I sat there in silence not believing my ears. I couldn't tell if she found me by coincidence while looking for a place to get photos taken or if this was just her way to get to me after searching for me. Either way I was at a loss for words. I didn't want to be found, but at the same time it hurt thinking they only found me by coincidence.
"Niall?" Her soft voice echoed through the speaker after I didn't say anything. I continued with my silence. "Your nephew would like to meet you." I didn't even realize how broken down this was making me until I felt a cold drop of water fall down my face. "If you do this for anyone, do it for him. Please. We can make whatever day you have work for us. Just... please, Niall."
It was my turn to sniff. With my right hand, I wiped away the water on my face and then grabbed the phone from my left hand so I could look at the schedule on my computer screen. After opening it up, I nearly blinded myself with all the empty, white spaces I had for the next month. Most of the work I had been doing was editing and printing photos because I had the free time to do so. "Uh, we-I have a pretty busy schedule next week-"
"Niall," she begged.
"-but I do have four hours open in the afternoon that following Thursday." I cringed at the idea of actually doing this. I changed my mind about giving her a date in the distant future half way through and I couldn't figure out why or if I was pleased or displeased with myself for it. It also would have been so easy to assign them to someone else's schedule, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I didn't want a reunion like this if I had one at all, but Maura was right. I should at least do this for my nephew. "How does three sound?"
I could hear her choking up but I said nothing as if I didn't notice. "Three sounds perfect. Thank you, Niall."
I paused as the sincerity in her voice sunk into my brain. "Just doing my job," I sighed after a moment or two.
"You don't know how much this will mean to your brother. You still haven't met your sister-in-law either." I didn't say anything. I agreed to see them for some reason and I just wanted her to stop talking about what it meant along with the whole family in general. "Your voice has gotten deeper since last we spoke," she continued. "I could still recognize it, though. After all, no matter what happens or happened you will always be my baby boy. I've wanted to tell you that for a long time."
Feeling myself start to get a little worked up, I cleared my throat and interjected. "Yeah, hey. I gotta go. I have clients to take care of and pictures to edit and print."
Another sniffle came from my speaker. "Oh, right. Sorry." Another sniff. "So I guess this means I'll see you in two weeks."
"Yup. See you in two weeks."
"At three."
"In two weeks at three. Yes."
"Okay," she paused and I was just getting ready to say bye and hang up the phone when I heard it. It ran a shiver down my spine and made me clench my fists to relieve the pressure I felt building up inside of me. Time came to a halt as it circled my brain for a timeless session. "I love you, Niall," she said.
I cleared my throat and sat up in my seat taller. Once I felt like I could enjoy the silence that came after her words, I spoke again. "Yup. See you in two weeks at three. Take care." And I hung up the phone. I was never into day drinking, but at that moment it seemed like a legitimate hobby I could catch myself up in.
It was sort of strange feeling like I was talking to a stranger on the phone when I knew I wasn't. It tripped me out to be completely honest and my head was pounding from it. I felt like I had tricked myself and I hadn't. Or maybe I had. I didn't even know. All I knew was that when I laid my head on my desk, I didn't pick it back up until a very loud buzzing and a familiar ring started to shake my whole desk.
My head snapped up with a jolt and pounded harder than before. My eyes felt cloudy and groggy as I anxiously searched my desk drawers for the spot I always put my phone in. When I finally yanked open my top left drawer and snatched my phone, my eyes squinted to see that a) it was almost noon already meaning I blacked out after the phone call with Maura and b) an unsaved number was calling.
"What the hell?" I groggily asked myself. Although I didn't know who it was, I answered anyways. "What?" I spat into the phone. I massaged the bridge of my nose with my right hand which was propped up on my desk in front of me.
"Well good morning to you too," the voice said sarcastically to me with a chuckle. I immediately groaned and clenched my eyes shut. "Isn't it almost noon over there? Aren't you at work?"
I rolled my eyes and reclined back in my chair. "What do you want, Max?" Why he was up at four in the morning was beyond me, but I didn't care enough to ask. Besides, if I played my cards right he would tell me anyways. He always had to tell me what he was doing and why as if I actually cared.
"Just to see how you were doing. Thought I'd catch up with you." I could hear his bullshit faced grin through the phone and rolled my eyes. I already knew Max didn't give a shit about anybody but himself and if he was asking about me, it was only because he wanted me to hear something about him.
"I'll ask again, what do you want, Max?" I spoke harsher this time. I had a headache and I was ready to go home and drink. I didn't need him playing games with me or beating around the bush.
"No, really. How's work going?" I could still hear his grin which I didn't like. If I closed my eyes I could see it: his teeth which appeared longer than most, his chin dropped just enough that there was a gap between his top and bottom teeth, and possibly even a blunt filling said gap.
I looked at my schedule with an eye roll and once again nearly blinded myself with the capacity it still held. "It's slow. Now what do you want?"
He chuckled and I didn't have to close my eyes to envision his face that time. I knew that chuckle a little too well. For whatever reason, it peeked my interest although I should have hung up on him then and there. "I want to offer you a deal of a lifetime, Horan."
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DUN DUN DUN.
You might be able to see where this is going 😉
Yay update that isn't a month late! Now both of our characters are stuck at a cliff hanger. Yaaaay!
Also for the sake of the plot line, Niall's parents are still going to be together. It'll fall together better that way 😁 so don't be up in the comments with "his parents are divorced" because I know and I also don't care. Here's your heads up now.
Stay sexy my beautiful readers!