ellie's pov
I smile to myself as I walk pass Liam's room, where the lads are all crowded around Liam, talking and laughing loudly. I pretend - as his doctor - not to hear Niall ask if he can try doing tricks with Liam's wheelchair. I grip my lunch tightly as I walk pass the private waiting room that is so much quieter now that the boys aren't in there.
"Ellie!" I hear someone call my name, stopping me in my tracks. I turn around to see Mia rushing out of the waiting room, struggling to throw her shoes on her feet, "Wait up," She smiles at me.
I can feel myself growing nervous as Louis's girlfriend rushes to catch up with me. She's one of the prettiest and most confident girls I've ever met, and whenever I'm around her I feel like a complete troll. She attempts to tame her curly brown hair, tucking it behind her ear as she joins me.
"I'm just about to eat lunch, if you want to join me?" I offer, holding up my pathetic little princess lunch box, never feeling so stupid. I can't help but to cringe as she lets out a small laugh, smiling at my lunchbox.
"Perfect, I'm starving," She nods.
I can't help but to be a bit taken back by her friendliness. I haven't talked to her much, considering she and Louis are usually sleeping when I get home from work, and still sleeping when I get up to leave. Liam told me that she can be a bit intimidating at first, but once she warms up to you, she's very nice.
"They have vending machines in the break room, otherwise I'm not sure if you'll get alot of attention if you go to the cafeteria?" I bite my bottom lip nervously, ready to just give her my own lunch to impress her.
"The vending machine is perfectly fine," She assures me with a wave of her hand.
The two of us enter the abandoned break room - thankfully abandoned, I might add, considering dealing with the other nasty interns is the last thing I want to do in front of Mia. She's only known me for a few weeks, she doesn't need to see me cry already.
"Oh, god," Mia grumbles as we take our seat at the small, round table. I look up to see what she was groaning about, following her line of vision to the television, where it was showing one of those stupid media reports. Just as I look up, a picture of the boys appears, "What shit are they saying now?" She rolls her eyes.
I reach out with the remote, turning up the volume a few notches as my own curiosity peaks. Even if I hadn't met Liam, I probably would have tuned in to hear what it's about. I've always had a soft spot for the boybands, and all boybands in general really. Growing up I swore I was going to marry Justin Timberlake from N'Sync.
"One Direction fans are dying to know the reason behind the band cancelling the rest of their world tour. The boys have recently been on hiatus, not seen out and about, nor have they posted anything on social media," A man speaks over photos of the boys from their latest concert, "One theory that's going around is that the boys are all in a fued. Apparently tension has been running high in the boyband."
Mia scoffs as she shoves a few dollars in the vending machine, barely keeping her eyes off of the tv to pick out her food.
"There is always a new theory going around," Mia says bitterly, angrily punching numbers into the vending machine.
"Some wonder if it has anything to do with their girlfriends, for they are all known for getting themselves into antics. We all remember Zayn's incident with his now girlfriend Linley Jaxon at the Ragstock music festival this last summer, and of course Harry's girlfriend Olivia is touring right now with Ed Sheeran, but sources say that Harry and Olivia may be expecting a little baby any time now," They continue, causing Mia to burst out into loud laughter at the last story, "And Louis's girlfriend Mia is always getting herself into trouble when it comes to the paparazzi. It could be any of the girls, really."
I bite my bottom lip nervously as I watch Mia carefully as she slumps into the chair beside me. Though instead of an angry expression, she wears an amused little grin on her lips.
"You can't even be mad at these idiots, they're far too stupid to even waste our time," She explains with an effortless grin, clearly seeing my puzzled expression.
"Is it difficult? You know, dating someone so high profile?" I ask her, curiously. As a One Direction fan myself, I know how much Mia and the rest of the girls can get harassed. The fans are incredibly territorial of the boys, and will pick these girls apart down to every little detail.
Mia bends down to retrieve a bag of chips out of the machine as I unzip my lunch, diving into it myself.
"It's definitely not the easiest thing in the world," She begins, taking a seat opposite of me, glancing one last time up at the television where candid pictures of the boys travel across the screen with crude commentary over the top, "But after awhile, you get used to it."
I try to picture myself in front of the lens, getting harassed as I did mundane tasks such as grocery shopping, or taking out the trash. The mere thought of it makes me feel uneasy.
"You learn to completely ignore everything the media says, because 95% of the time, they have it completely wrong, and you know that in a weeks time, they'll be onto the next rumor and will completely forget about it," I can see the irritation behind her dark eyes as she explains, "But the boys have gotten really smart about it all. Their team knows how to hide you incredibly well - it's a little scary, actually. I definitely know who to go with if I need help hiding a dead body," She laughs, popping a chip into her mouth.
"I just can't imagine a life like that," I laugh, shaking my head.
I've always lived such a bland life. Growing up, I always did my homework, I followed the rules, I never lied, I was the dream child. That didn't change as I transitioned into a teen. My stuffed teddy bear changed into young romance novels, but I still spent Saturdays in.
Routines are intrinsic to who I am. I spend so much time here, I couldn't tell you the best places to hangout in downtown Chicago for the weekend. I go from the hospital, to home, and back again with no interruptions.
"Trust me, I couldn't either, but when you meet that person," She smiles, her features softening as her mind travels to think about Louis, romance dancing along the edges of her lips.
I can't help but to smile in return, seeing her transform into this whole other being by the mere thought of Louis.
"C'mon, describe to me your dream man," She encourages, sitting up straighter in her seat, nearly brimming to the top with excitement, so in-love with the idea of love.
My cheeks blush a shade of red as the topic shifts to me, and my love life, which is embarrassingly bare. Something I'm reminded of nearly every moment of my life, as I see anxious husbands waiting to hear of their sick wives, or elderly couples holding each other's hands during check-up.
The worst is whenever I'm on the phone with my mother, she never lets the topic go.
'When are you going to settle down?'
'There's got to be a single doctor in that hospital.'
'Have you considered online dating? It's what all the young kids are trying!'
"Idunno.." I mumble incoherently as I awkwardly tuck my hair behind my ear, looking down at my lunch, avoiding Mia's enthusiastic eyes.
"Oh come on, every girl has her dream guy," Mia rolls her eyes, sitting back in her chair, popping another chip in her mouth.
I chew on my bottom lip anxiously, allowing my thoughts to travel back to that guy I've fantasized about since I was about 12. When I planned my perfect wedding in my padlocked diary, it was him that I had pictured standing beside me at the altar.
I had pushed this dream man far in the back of my mind when I reached my late teens, knowing it was a lost cause.
"Well..." I start, a blush creeping onto my cheeks, "I always pictured him with charming brown eyes - very underrated - with one of those dazzling smiles, the kind that affect you the moment you meet him," I can't help but to chuckle, feeling ridiculous, "And I suppose in my head, he's always had neat, brown hair. I'm not the type for the messy-haired boys," I shrug, it all getting easier and easier to speak about as he comes back to my memory.
Mia stares at me with a wide grin across her face, listening earnestly.
"He's tall and a little muscular. I'm not really into the lanky, small boys," I laugh, causing Mia to join in, "But what really makes him the one," I can't help but to lower my voice, feeling silly, not wanting anyone to overhear, "Is that he's kind and gentile and genuine. He's got to be polite and friendly. I guess I always pictured him being great with kids, and someone who's not afraid to be sensitive."
I can feel myself falling deeper into the hopeless romantic hole; the same one I get into whenever I watch scenes of Jim and Pam from The Office. I get those silly little jitters in the pit of my stomach, making me want to bury my face into a pillow to hide my dopey grin.
"Humility is also another feature I admire, but still having confidence in himself. Oh, and someone who has a passion that drives him. I love being able to see someone's eyes light up when talking about the thing they love doing," I continue to just spew out traits that this man of my dream has.
My entire face flushes red as I realize how carried away I had gotten. I'm sure she just wanted to hear 'kind, doctor, and nice on the eyes', and instead I unloaded years and years of fantasy.
"God, I'm sorry," I shake my head, laughing, "It's been awhile since I have thought about my dream guy. Don't really have much time to even think about him lately, much less try to find him," I sheepishly admit, looking down at my sandwich in disappointment.
"No, that's so great," She assures me, "And don't worry, you'll find him soon. He's out there," She smiles at me with so much excitement, it's as if she knew it were a sure fact; as if she knew just the perfect man, and he was headed my way.
I discreetly look over my shoulder, just to be sure.
"And when you meet him, you'll be willing to put up with things as crazy as the paparazzi for him," She chuckles, getting to her feet, balling up the empty chip bag.
"We'll see," I mumble to myself, unable to keep the cynicism away.
I cast a final glance up at the tv, catching the boys smiling back at me, as if they were encouraging me as well. Before looking away, my eyes linger on Liam and his warm brown eyes.
mia's pov
Ellie and I take our time walking back down the hallway, heading back in the direction of the waiting room I've already gotten sick of being cooped up in. I can't imagine how the boys are feeling.
As we get closer, loud laughter from the boys echo, bringing me back to the times I spent with them on the tour bus, and that would be all I would hear. It's been awhile since I'd heard that, and I'd be lying if I said it wasn't a comforting sound.
"Sound like Liam's busy," Ellie says, a small smile on her lips, though I can't help but to notice a glimpse of disappointment behind her expressive blue eyes. I do my best to hide my cheesy grin, "I suppose I have lots of work to do, so I'll see you around," She masks her emotions well as she gives me a friendly smile before heading in the other direction.
I glance at her over my shoulder one last time, my cheeks starting to hurt from how much I've been smiling the past half hour. She shuffles down the hallway in her usual off-beat manner, being one of the quirkiest girls I've met in a long time.
The loud voice of Louis pulls me back in, keeping the smile on my face. With a light knock, I enter the waiting room. The boys are all seated around Liam, proud and incredibly happy smiles plastered on their faces. Liam's expression mirrors his as he wheels back and forth in his brand new wheelchair.
"Hey, Mia!" He turns and greets me enthusiastically.
Louis gets to his feet and wraps his arms around me, planting a soft kiss on my cheek.
I wave to them all before turning to face Louis, allowing the rest of them to go back to their loud conversation.
"I just had a nice lunch with Ellie," I whisper, a smirk playing on my lips as I know how obsessed Louis is with getting her with Liam.
His eyebrows raise in curiosity, as he takes a few steps away from the boys so we can have a bit more privacy. If Liam knew how much he were scheming, he would freak out.
"Did you get it out of her? Did she admit her feelings?" He hisses, looking me deep in my eyes to try to gage the whole situation.
"It wasn't a confessional," I can't help but to chuckle, "But she did describe to me her dream man, and it was a literal description of Liam," I whisper quietly, smiling as I recall how giddy I was when she went on and on about this 'hypothetical guy' who is so clearly Liam.
Louis lets out a breathy laugh, a smile breaking across his face. He nearly jumps up and down with excitement.
"Calm down," I place my hands on his waist, trying my hardest to suppress my laughter.
"Can't we just sit them down and be like, 'Hey, listen here, you two are perfect for each other and you both know it. Now date.'?" He pouts his lips as he toys with my hair between his fingers.
"Very romantic, Lou," I roll my eyes, shaking my head.
"Screw romance, it's killing me," He whines, causing me to laugh once again, burying his face into the crook of my neck.
"What are you two whispering about all secretively over there?" Niall calls out, ending our private conversation.
I look at Louis, waiting to see what kind of line he'll pull out. Knowing him all to well, I give his hand a squeeze, making sure he doesn't embarrass Liam or make him feel uncomfortable.
Liam is a sensitive soul, and if he knew how much the two of us wanted Ellie and him together, he would get all weird about it.
"Wouldn't you like to know, ya nosey feck," Louis says loudly in his horrible Irish accent, causing me to roll my eyes as we join the rest of the boys.
Of course that starts Niall up and within five seconds, the two of them are racing after each other, attempting to take each other to the ground in an aggressive battle.
I take a seat at Liam's side, stealing Niall's place as we all watch them with amusement.
"So, what are your plans for the rest of your big day?" I ask Liam, unable to help myself from smiling at how happy he looks.
Zayn and Harry's smiles mirror my own as they watch Liam happily, looking so genuinely proud of their friend.
"I dunno," Liam lets out a satisfied sigh, smiling back at us all, "I know I'm supposed to stay in this part of the hospital since it's top secret and all, but I'd like to just get a change of scenery," He admits, wearing a bashful expression.
I see the opportunity, and I don't waste any time taking it.
"I'm sure if you asked Ellie, she'd know exactly where to take you. She was explaining to me ways I can sneak around the hospital without attracting attention, just earlier today," I plant the idea in his head.
Zayn and Harry both smirk to each other, knowing exactly what's up my sleeve. I'm sure Louis has let them all in on his master plan.
Liam's smile grows in size with the mention of Ellie's name, and I have to bite my bottom lip from giving it all away with a dopey grin and excited laughter.
"That's not a bad idea," He nods, his mind clearly far off in Ellie-land.
The three of us all watch him, with no intentions of pulling him away from there.
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an: hello everyone! i bet you thought you saw the last of me.
school is insane, this semester especially. but only about five more weeks, then summer vacation! i'm on spring break now, and i'm hoping to get a lot of writing done. especially bc i'm getting to some of the more exciting chapters! jfal;fdsaldkdljsa;f
i hope you all enjoyed this! i was happy to be back writing as mia! i love her so much!
please, leave your thoughts! i'd love to hear them!
love always,
perksofbeingaweirdo