Chapter 19 - You Bloody Tease

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The next morning, Niall and I’s happiness level dipped a bit as we realized that we had yet to inform our families of our relationship. Though we knew how supportive they’d been of the other boys being together, I couldn’t help but worry that it would be different for them to find out that their own sons were together.

“We do have to call them at some point, you know,” I tried to reason with Niall. “Doing it now will only speed up the process.”

He shook his head. “It may speed up the process, but what if that’s the process of disowning?”

“Hey, stop that. Your mum and dad love you, and Greg, and I’m sure they’ll be fine with us. For all we know, they could see it before we did,” I reassured him, but Niall was frantic.

“What if it makes them stop talking again? Bobby and Maura have only just started talking again since the band forced them to come together to support me. What if one of them is okay with it and one of them shuns us? I could ruin my entire family!”

Well, he had me there. I wasn’t sure how to reply directly to his worries, but I could still attempt to calm his nerves. “It doesn’t matter what they say,” I began.

“How can you say that?”

“No matter what they may do, we can still be together. The boys and management have approved of us, and we’ve got that interview set tomorrow for us to tell the world. There are so many fans that ship us together; they’ll love it. If one or two people aren’t okay with it, who cares? There are billions of people in the world, Ni, not just a handful.”

His eyes stopped darting around to focus on mine. “They may only be three people, but they’re some of the handful that matter the most,” he replied quietly.

I was out of ideas so I simply pulled him into my chest and let him snuggle closer, using me as his shield against the world. We sat there comfortable until I could tell he was no longer immediately concerned with his family’s reaction, and then I shifted back slightly so I could see his face.

“Why don’t we call my family first?” I suggested softly, and he hesitated to consider it. I was already dialing my home number before he nodded his approval.

“LIAM!” There was a massive screeching sound from the other end of the phone to accompany the shouting of my name.

“I assume mum didn’t pick up, then?” I joked as Niall moved closer to me.

“It’s Nicola and Ruth,” they confirmed. “She’s out to do the shopping. She’ll be so upset when she hears that you finally called!”

I hit the ‘speaker’ button and rested my phone on the back of the couch, both Niall and I turning to face it so we could both hear what was being said and reply.

Niall took a shuddering breath before speaking up for the first time. “Hey, girls,” he muttered.

“Ooh, Niall’s there,” Ruth teased.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?” I demanded.

“Nothing,” they responded in unison. Ruth continued, “It’s just that whenever we call, you always have to go talk to Niall, or go do something with Niall, or he needs your help, and now he’s even there with you.”

I smiled, sensing the perfect lead-in. “Actually, that’s what we called to talk about. How soon will mum be getting back? Is dad there?”

“Hey, Liam.” I could tell he was grinning even though I couldn’t see his face, and the girls giggled. “I’ve been here the whole time, you just didn’t ask. I almost thought you forgot about me,” he fake-sobbed.

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