Loud sounds of multiple laughters overlapped each other as everyone made their way onto the bus.
David stood nearby, taking a head count as the group bounced by him, making sure all those he was responsible for were accounted for. He found himself slightly surprised to find Sienna and Calum with the group and not lagging behind somewhere still in the arena. He let out a relieved breath.
Sienna took a seat on the sofa, Niall quickly joining her as the rest of the lads scattered themselves around the common area of the bus.
This part of the bus held a new place in Calum's heart. It had been the spot where Sienna had told him she loved him. He couldn't walk into this space without reliving that moment, without her words replaying over and over in his mind. It always brought a small smile to his lips.
The laughter that had filled the air moments ago began to fade. The lads had been extremely amused by Niall's commentary on their cover choice of the night.
The song they had chosen to do a cover of for the show had been Midnight Memories as a farewell tribute to Niall.
Sienna didn't think she would ever forget the look on Niall's face as he watched them play the song for him, the amusement and adoration he felt for his friends shown plainly on his face.
Niall's joking criticism had sparked dozens of jokes amongst the lads before they even made it to the tour bus.
Wait 'til Louis finds out you messed up his solo, Niall had warned, there'll be hell to pay.
"You know," Luke spoke up as everyone settled in. "Things won't be the same around here without you, mate."
Niall gave a quick sad look to Sienna before taking a deep breath. He would miss being on the road with these lads, with Sienna. Being without her would feel alien and uncomfortable after being by her side for so long. Only weeks ago, she'd needed to be on his chest in order to sleep. He worried once again how she would cope to his absence.
"I need to thank you lads." Niall said. "For letting me show up unannounced and stay as long as I have. This time has been very precious to me and I cannot thank you enough."
"You're always welcome." Calum was the one to promise Niall this. It brought Niall great comfort to see how far they'd come since his arrival.
While Niall was comforted, the others were surprised by Calum's words. However, none showed this surprise. They only pondered it for a moment as they each turned their attention to Calum. Calum had been so tense and hostile since Niall had joined them, until recently that is. None of them expected him to encourage Niall back after the way he'd acted before. Although, it set a peaceful tone over the atmosphere and brought a smile to Luke's features.
"We hate to see you go, mate." Michael admitted. "Dibs on being Enna's new best friend!" He shouted only moments after.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Calum quickly contended, throwing a hand out in Michael's direction in a gesture that told him to stop what he was doing. "Wait just a damn minute, why do you-"
"Lads, it's no use." Niall told them with a chuckle. "None of you can replace me."
"Well," Calum began with a shrug. "You never know-"
"No, he's right." Sienna said nonchalantly, pulling her hair into a bun as she cuddled closer to Niall.
Calum put a hurt expression on his features, knowing it would make Sienna smile. When the playful smile he had been expecting grew on her lips, he couldn't help but return it.
He glanced at her hair, now tied up in a bun on top of her head. A few blonde strands trickled down in soft curls around the back of her neck. His eyes focused there for a moment, on the curve of her neck where he liked to hide his face when they lied in bed at night tangled around each other. Each day he found himself looking forward to going to bed each night, eager to hold Sienna close to him.
What did I ever do, he wondered, to deserve to be the one who gets to hold her at night?
He smiled.
~~~~~~
The lot of them spent hours talking and trying to enjoy the last bit of time they had with Niall. Eventually, however, each of them had grown so tired they could barely string words together to form sentences. This eventually resulted in Sienna ordering them to bed.
Luke, Michael, and Ashton had followed her orders without hesitation, but Calum hung around to wait for Sienna to join him.
Calum looked to Sienna for a moment from where he stood. He wasn't sure exactly how, but he could tell there were things between her and Niall that needed to be said.
"I'll wait up for you, yeah?" He said, followed by a yawn.
Sienna gave him a soft smile and a nod.
Calum made his way to her, pressed a quick kiss to the top of her head, and made his way to his bunk.
Sienna watched him slide into his bunk and draw the curtain shut. She turned her attention back to Niall. She found him tugging at his fingers, his shoulders tensed and his jaw clenched.
"Say it." She told him.
Niall looked to her quickly with a curious expression.
"Say what?"
"Whatever it is you're so nervous about." She said calmly. "It's me, Ni. Just say it."
"I'm..." Niall searched for the words. "I'm just nervous about leaving. That's all."
"Don't worry. I'm sure Louis won't give you too much trouble for leaving." Sienna said with an amused tone.
"I'm serious, Enna." Niall said despite his chuckle. When he composed himself, he continued. "I'm nervous about leaving you." He admitted. "Are you sure you're going to be alright without me?"
She met his eyes. She saw what it was that he wanted to know, needed to be sure of, before he could leave.
"You're worried about my mental health." She noted. "Ni, this is the best place mentally that I've ever been. Sure, I'll have my bad days, and when I do I'll talk to you about it." She assured him. "I will miss you terribly, but I will be okay. You need not worry yourself like this over me."
"It's my job to worry about you." Niall told her. "I know you're doing well, babe. You're doing unbelievably well really, but..." He took a breath. "I just needed to be sure."
His eyes flicked to her wrist for a brief, almost unnoticeable moment. He tried to think of a way to ask her his questions without offending her.
As he thought he'd been unseen, Sienna turned her wrists outward toward him.
"When I look at my scars, you wanna' know what I see?" She asked him. "I see this." She shook her wrist lightly, the familiar jingle of her charm bracelet filling the air. "I see this shamrock, my little piece of my favorite Irishman," She said with a soft smile, earning a quiet chuckle from Niall. "and I remember that if I ever turned back, I'd be hurting my best friend a million times worse than I'd be hurting myself." She explained. "So, if not for myself, I could never bring myself to do that to you, Niall."
Niall held her gaze for a moment before throwing his arms around her.
The sudden embrace shocked her slightly as she fell into his strong grasp. She wound her arms around her best friend, feeling the tension fade from his features as she held him.
"I know you're strong." Niall spoke up. "You can handle anything, Enna, but I just..." He tightened his grip on her. "I want to protect you. It's hard to do that from the other side of the world."
"I'll see you soon." Sienna promised him. "We'll talk everyday. Just like before. Until we see each other again."
"God, I miss you already."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N
GUYS!!!!!! WE HIT 8K!!!!!
I cannot thank all my readers enough for the support this story has gotten! It still seems so unreal!!
Thanks so much for all the love!! I hope you keep reading and enjoy the story as much as I enjoy writing it!!
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