Chapter 35:
- Niall’s POV –
Day 45:
- 10 minutes earlier -
I looked up at Liam and my eyes met his. There was something different about him though. For once he didn’t smile, he didn’t look away, he didn’t anything. I clenched my hand tighter around his shirt. I felt his breath on my lips and my eyes wandered down to his. They looked irresistible as they started to draw closer to mine.
Wait, what..?!
He tilted his head slightly and his eyes closed. He kept drawing closer. My body went numb as I watched his lips part when they were less than an inch from mine. I closed my eyes; waiting, longing.
*Ring riiing! Ring riiing! Ring riiing!*
My eyes shot wide open to see Liam already pulling away from me; his face now showing an emotion that I’d never seen him relate to me before.
He looked terrified.
He stood up and started backing away from me as he reached for his phone; that same look still plastered across his face. He ripped his phone from his pocket and stared back at me:
“E-Excuse me.” He mouthed. I scrunched my eyes shut for a second in disbelief and when I snapped them back open, I only caught a glimpse of his back as he fled the room.
My eyes were already wide and I could still feel his breath on my skin, his hand in mine, his arm around me; pulling me close. There was no doubt in my mind:
He’d been about to kiss me.
I jumped up from the couch and bolted for the staircase. My heart was going a million miles an hour. I pounded up the stairs; taking two steps at a time, and sprinted down the hallway towards Liam’s room. I heard his voice just before I was about to bust the door wide open and I froze.
“Before you called I was about to...” He murmured. My eyes widened.
He’d actually taken the call..? Who could he possibly be willing to talk to after what just happened..?
I pressed my ear to the door; eager to hear the words that I knew finished his sentence.
“I was about to kiss him.” He breathed. My heart exploded.
I knew it.
“...I don’t know... I panicked and ran...” He sighed. I remembered the terrified look that he’d had on his face and I started to get anxious.
Who the hell is he talking to about this..? Am I missing something..?
“I’m gonna tell him everything in two weeks...” He said. Wait, what? ‘everything’?
“Don’t you dare, I have enough trouble hiding my feelings as it is.” He groaned. My heart leapt into my throat.
...feelings? As in for me..?
“I can’t help it when he acts like that around me.” He said. I felt a smile spread across my entire face. I didn’t care if I was missing something, I was about to open the door and tackle him onto the bed. I reached for the handle but stopped when he spoke again:
“A-Ah... w-we were cuddled up on the couch... and I was holding his hand... Then he looked up at me and grabbed my shirt...” He murmured. My eyes widened. “I couldn’t stop myself...”
I felt a lump in my throat.
It sounds like he’s trying to defend himself to someone...
“Don’t say that, I won’t last sixteen days at this rate...” He groaned.
Sixteen days..? I’m definitely missing something here.
“No one could ever replace you, not even Niall.” He said. He started to laugh and I felt my heart ache.
Wait, what?
Oh look jealousy was back.
“What does that make me then..?” He joked. Oh and again.
“You always cheer me up.” He murmured. I felt my throat actually close up as the waves of jealousy ripped through me. He laughed again.
“Love you too.” He murmured. I heard his phone beep as he hung up and I panicked. I bolted down the hallway and into my bedroom; shutting the door as quietly as possible behind me. I collapsed against the door and slowly brought a hand up to cover my mouth as my eyes started to bulge out of my head.
Holy Shit.
I sunk down to the floor and grabbed at my hair as I tried to make sense of everything that I’d just heard. Liam had been about to kiss me; that I was sure of. I’d been so damn happy until I’d heard him start to talk about things that I had no idea of.
What the hell is going to happen in sixteen days? Did he mean me when he said that he was hiding feelings? What did he mean when he’d said that he was planning on telling me ‘everything’?
All of those questions circled around inside my head and I tried and failed to make sense of it all. There was one question, however, that had me ripping my hair out.
“No one could ever replace you, not even Niall.” “You always cheer me up.” “Love you too.”
Those sentences were the ones that were eating me up. It was obvious that Liam was really close to whomever he was talking to, considering that he’d been talking to them about almost kissing me, but what I couldn’t figure out was why he was defending his reasons for doing it.
It's almost as if he was feeling guil-
That terrified look on Liam’s face when he’d pulled away from me flashed through my mind. I felt my heart turn to ice.
Was that a look of guilt..?
Ugh... I don't even know.
I screamed out in frustration. That one question still had me ripping my hair out.
Who the hell was he talking to?!
I took a deep breath and sat there in silence for what felt like forever.
“Love you too.”
Those two words were now the only thing left in my mind. They played on repeat inside my head; over and over again until they suddenly triggered a flashback. A flashback back to that night at the restaurant:
“...So you’ve been in love before then..?” I’d asked. I remembered the heart breaking smile that he’d pulled and I winced.
“Once or twice.” He’d smirked back.
“O-Oh... anyone I know..?” I’d asked.
“Yep, you definitely know them.” He’d smirked back.
“...are you still in love with them now..?” I’d asked.
“More than ever.” He’d murmured.
My eyes widened.
Had he been talking about the same person as the one from the phone just now..?
I heard the door to Liam’s room open and I froze. I didn't move until I heard his footsteps fade as he walked back downstairs. I leant my head back against the door and closed my eyes. An image of Liam's face when his lips were about to meet mine flashed through my head and I realised that there was no point in my worrying and over thinking, the bottom line was that Liam was torn between me and someone else.
I clenched my fist as I felt a new found sense of determination surge through me.
I wasn’t going to let Liam slip through my fingers when I was this close to making him mine.
I had no idea what he’d meant by ‘two weeks’ or ‘sixteen days’ but I knew that something was going to happen then. Something big. And I wasn’t going to sit back and wait for it. I had to make Liam fall for me, and only me, before then.
I have no time to waste.
- Liam’s POV –
Day 45:
I came back downstairs after sitting on my bedroom floor for half an hour. I had to face Niall. I had to know if he'd noticed that I’d been about to kiss him. I came downstairs and found that the living room was empty. I started to panic.
Crap, did he notice and freak out? He hasn’t run off has he..? Shit, I’ve gone and fucked up big this ti-
“Hey Liam.” I heard Niall’s voice say from behind me; interrupting my thoughts. I breathed a sigh of relief as soon as I saw him. My relief was cut short though when I realised that just because he hadn’t ran off, didn’t mean that he hadn’t noticed. I forced a smile.
“Hey, what’s up?” I asked; hoping that my voice was level. He smiled a warm smile back at me and my heart skipped a beat.
“Can you come up to my room for a second..?” He asked.
Okay now my heart stopped.
What..?
“Uh s-sure...” I managed to choke out. He smiled back at me and turned around; heading for the stairs. We got to his bedroom door and he turned to face me:
“Wait out here for a second, I have to get it ready.” He smirked. My eyes grew wide yet again. My perverted mind was going into over drive. Niall disappeared into his room and I waited very impatiently outside. I heard some weird noises come from the other side of the door and I started to get anxious.
“Alright, come in!” He called. I jerked the handle down and opened the door.
The first thing that I noticed was that the lights were off. The second thing that I noticed was that Niall was sitting on his bed looking up at me. It took me a few seconds to stop gaping back at him and notice the giant chocolate birthday cake that was sitting in front of him. It had nineteen candles lit on top of it and the flames were the only thing lighting up the entire room. He bit his lip and looked up at me from the cake; a small smile growing in the corner of his mouth.
“Hey you.” He said softly. I stared back at him both mesmerised and confused.
Had he really not noticed..?
“Hey you.” I said back; my voice just as soft as his. I couldn’t help but smile back at him. He looked irresistible under candle light, as always. I walked over to him and sat down next to him on the bed; looking down at the cake. I suddenly felt his hand at the small of my back and his breath against my ear. I froze. He leant in close and pressed his lips to my ear and smiled as I flinched.
“Happy Birthday...” He murmured. “Make a wish...”