The first time Niall meets Meera, he's mesmerized.
He also happens to have blonde hair and is still going strong with the band, but that's besides the point. The truth is, he isn't planning to go out with the other boys that night, because frankly, he is exhausted. While he loves to go out when they can — late at night in clubs where it is so packed that if they keep their heads down and out of trouble, they can get away with being who they are — it's getting harder to do when they are all so tired after the shows.
Today is no exception, since they've just performed their last European show on this tour. They have time to rest after today, he tells himself, when the other boys come to his hotel door and convince him to come out. After tonight, he'll be on a plane home where he plans on sleeping for the next week straight. So he grabs a jacket and a baseball hat to hide his recognizable hair and follows them out.
When he sees her; the moment is a saving grace for Niall. As soon as they enter the bar, he feels like going right back to the hotel. To say it's packed doesn't even begin to describe the amount of people around them. The lights are flickering back and forth so quickly, he has to look away after a mere second. The music is so loud that the floor feels like it's going to collapse from right under them. It's all dizzying and overwhelming and on any other night Niall wouldn't be so on edge. It's unlike him to not be excited to go out, but all he wants to do is go home and wallow. He loves this life of his, cherishes the moments on stage and connecting with the fans more than he can ever explain, but walking away from everything he's ever known has led to him losing himself a little. Lately, he's been struggling with finding the balance between who he was and who he is now.
He won't admit it, but part of it has to do with the fact that Niall feels like he doesn't have a single stable relationship in his life right now. He talks to his mum and dad occasionally, but now even they are accustomed to his crazy schedule. The friends he had are all busy making their own careers. He hasn't had a girlfriend since the band started, but how can he expect to when he's halfway across the world from her for the majority of the year? He learned that lesson the hard way when his girlfriend of over a year dumped him the day they announced this tour.
Zayn and Louis head towards the DJ's area while Harry and Liam insist on scooping out a booth, Niall mumbles something about finding them some drinks and heads towards the bar with the hope he'll find some space where he can get a good breath in.
To his dismay, he sees that the entire bar is packed, too. All the seats are taken and there's people trying to get the attention of one of the four bartenders behind the long marble counter. He scans the area, illuminated by purple light. In a split instance he spots an opening, a man turning away while trying to balance the numerous pints in his hand. Niall's closer than others and squeezes into the spot, sighing with relief when he sees that a bar stool is available, too.
Now that he's at the front of the line, he's surprised to see five bartenders instead of four. One of them is parked right in front of him, leaning against the counter and absentmindedly dragging a rag back and forth on the marble to make it look like he's busy. Thirsty, drunk club-goers around him are glaring at the man but he doesn't seem to notice. His eyes are focused on the girl who's on Niall's right. Niall analyzes the bartender's gaze for a brief moment and realizes that it's sympathetic. He's not checking her out.
Not that it matters. It seems the bartender isn't able to get a single word in because she's blabbering away in an exasperated voice, slumped over on the bar with a neat row of drinks in front of her. "... and then he said that he could change my life in a week, even get me to lose some weight if I just ate where he did. He was talking about the wonders flax seed could do for our sex life when I was walking away. "
The bartender grimaces and reaches under the counter, coming back up with a cocktail glass. He's still focused on the girl as he pours her a drink, mixing the alcohol with the unspoken skill of a pro.
"He was horrible. After I left, I walked down the street to a pizza shop, ate a few slices, and was heading back to the hotel when I saw this place," the girl continues. She drums her hands against the counter, the purple light glinting off the rings that adorn her fingers. Nervously, she reaches up and tucks a lock of her brown hair behind her ear.
That's when Niall recognizes her. It's nothing he would ever voice aloud, but it's the way her fingers move against the counter that does it for him. There's something familiar about them; the way they stumble and tap the marble with a graceful flourish. The same fingers from the video Niall has watched a few times this week, yet this time, instead of plucking the strings of a beautiful guitar, they're doing a dance against a dingy bar top.
Niall isn't privy to much time to himself these days, and he doesn't like not being busy, but he's watched a few of her videos and interviews — enough to recognize her in the outrageously crowded Oberhausen pub. He'd discovered Meera's music while browsing through Youtube in between rehearsals one day and watched them all, including the earlier cover ones. Her EP, "Listen" just released the week before. Her voice is gentle but strong and her lyrics have been stuck in his head for quite some time now. She's new to the music industry, but she's already doing well.
When he finally glances up at her face, he's sure of it. It's unmistakable; the iridescent sparkle of her chestnut brown eyes under those fierce, determined brows. The slope of her nose, a set of full and currently pouting lips. She presses a hand against her cheek, tilting her head to the side and letting Niall take her entire face in. She spins around a paper umbrella in one of her previously drained drinks, letting out a deflated puff of air.
She's the same but she's different too. If he ever expected to meet her in person, he wouldn't have thought of her as someone who was so open about her dating life. From the videos, she seemed soft spoken.
The bartender slides her a now finished, very pink drink with a sad smile, "I'm sorry, love. This one's on the house, yeah? Maybe don't let your mother set you up on any dates anymore."
Niall expects her to take offense to his tone, but instead, she lets out a twinkling laugh. She sips at her drink for a moment, "You're trying to tell me saying no to an Indian mother is something you've mastered in your twenty something years of life?"
This time the bartender falls silent and then he grins, "Touché, Talwar." He turns to face Niall, "Sorry mate, what can I get you?"
Niall opens his mouth to respond, but it closes when Meera turns in her stool, still sipping on her pink drink. She tilts her head at him for a second and he can see the flash of recognition pass through her eyes. They widen, which if he hadn't seen in person, he would be sure it wasn't possible. She has the biggest, most beautiful eyes he has ever seen.
She sets her drink down and even in the dark light, Niall can sense her cheeks are flushing.
"A pint," Niall says, nodding at the bartender. He tears his gaze away from her to glance down at the bar stool, "Is this seat taken?"
Meera grins at him, a lopsided lift of the corner of her mouth, "Oh, you mean by my health freak, mom approved date?"
A tidal wave of shame washes over Niall as he tries to muster an appropriate response to eavesdropping on her, although she was by no means talking quietly. Before he can get a decent thought out, she's laughing.
She pats the seat and smiles at him. "I'm only joking. Sit."
And he does.
It's so easy falling into conversation with Meera that he doesn't even realize it's happening until he's three pints in and is laughing so hard that his stomach is aching. There's no moment of "oh you know who I am" or "what's it like being in the biggest boyband in the world." He learns that Meera Talwar sent out "Listen" to music execs because she lost a dare with her brother. Meera learns that Niall wishes he spent more time playing guitar, but he likes the music the band is creating.
He also learns, much to his endearment, that her favorite album is FOUR and she is an avid fan.
While they talk about music, the industry, and Niall shares tips with her on how to juggle her new life — the conversation feels different. Light; effortless even. Something that Niall has been craving for longer than he'd like to admit, because it seems that everything he does these days requires every ounce of energy he possesses.
"You're really something, Meera," Niall admits finally. The club has simmered down considerably and they don't have to yell to hear each other now.
Meera purses her lips at him, curious, "Oh? Is that a compliment?"
Niall laughs, rubbing the back of his neck while he nods. It's refreshing, to see a celebrity so honest and authentic. Initially he thought she would act different now that they were introduced, but Meera is just the same as when he stumbled upon her an hour ago. It's naive, he knows, but he never wants her to change. He wants her to remain unguarded in this wild life, in this turbulent career path she's embarking on. While he has stayed true to his core, he knows how easy it is to lose yourself.
"Well," she concludes, smiling brightly. "You are too, Niall. Something."
***
They exchange phone numbers that night, both of them going back to their hotels feeling a little bit better. When Niall wakes up in the morning, he's greeted by a dog gif from Meera and then a screenshot of text messages between her and her date. He apologized for scaring her and promised they can start with something easier than flax seed.
Niall types back a simple response: RUN .
That's how their friendship forms, between rushed texts between performances and events. Late night calls when one of them is too tired to type. It evolves to facetime and skype before they know it.
It's only months later, after Niall hangs up on one of their facetime sessions because Meera's fallen asleep on the other end (despite avid protests that she wouldn't) that he comes to the realization. In the warm yellow glow of his hotel room that is suddenly pin-drop quiet because Meera's soft snores aren't reverberating throughout it.
She's his best friend.
When something happens on stage, the first person he wants to tell is her. When he's pissed off at one of the other lads or taken aback from what his life has become, it's her he needs to calm him down. The gentle demeanor of hers that lives behind her carefree behavior, something he has come to cherish because she doesn't show it to everyone as he's come to learn, grounds him. Most of all, he doesn't feel guilty about his career when he talks to her. She understands all of it.
When he goes to sleep that night, it's with the calming reassurance that Meera understands him; that she'll always be there for him — even if they're almost always half a world away from each other. He's finally found someone he's completely comfortable with, able to show his roughest edges and most daring dreams.
The best part of being friends with Meera is that she feels the exact same way about Niall. He knows this because she doesn't hesitate to share every aspect of her life with him. There's no filter; no shame. From the moment they met there's been an undeniable click between them. They get each other in a way that nobody else can, and in the world that they've chosen to live in, that's an important thing for a musician to have — someone to turn to; someone who always has their best interests at heart, and someone who loves them unconditionally.