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Niall lived by himself in a house that was too big for one man to live in, and he was always lonely. To drown out the annoying dull ache he felt in his heart, he had friends over as often as he could.
Tonight, he called you. Your heart pounded in your chest as you talked on the phone with him, saying you were more than happy to come and you'd be over in about ten minutes, since you didn't live that far away from him.
Moments with you and Niall alone together made feel like you were at home. He was such a relaxed person, making you laugh and feel like you were someone special in his life, although you knew in your gut that you weren't very special to him. You liked him, more than you let yourself believe.
You weren't sure if he liked you back the same, or even if he liked you like that at all. The way he acted around you was the same way he acted around everyone else.
Little did you know, Niall had a deep affection for you, it made his heart clench and his stomach flutter with butterflies. He loved you. He loved everything about you—how your cheeks reddened when you laughed really hard, the way you'd hide your hands in your sleeves, and how your giggle was such a beautiful sound.
He believed you were the most angelic person he had ever encountered. So many times he wanted to have you, tell you how he really felt, wether he'd be sober or drunk. But Niall knew better, he knew he couldn't do that. He was a stupid man, unsure of how you felt about him. It was better to stay safe than to sacrifice something as amazing as your friendship.
Just as you promised, ten minutes later you were knocking on Niall's front door.
He greeted you with a loving hug, squeezing you and rocking back and forth on his feet, asking how you were doing. It felt natural in the moment for him to press a kiss on your lips, but he resisted the urge. He shut the door with his foot and walked you to the living room.
You two didn't do much for the rest of the night. You did normal things friends did, like watch TV and catch up on each other's lives, though there wasn't much to catch up on since you saw each other almost every day. Niall laughed at your stupid jokes, throwing his head back with his usual laugh (that made you want to melt into a puddle of nothing.)
You just wanted to grab his cheeks and kiss him everywhere on his face—and body.
Dinner rolled around and Niall whipped out his cookbook like he always did when his friends came over. He chose the most complicated dish, hoping to impress you with his culinary skills.
The amount of times Niall had thought about cooking a romantic dinner for you, or a nice breakfast in bed, was unfathomable. He wanted to take care of you so badly. No matter how many times you've told him you could take care of yourself, he still wanted to provide for you.
As soon as Niall had announced that dinner was done, the TV and the lights and the humming of his heater shut off, leaving the house quiet and dark. You paused, you could barely see a thing.
"Th' fuck?" Niall mumbled.
That's when you noticed the heavy pitter patter of rain on the roof and the faint growling of thunder. A bolt of lightning lit the house and then disappeared, giving you mere seconds to look around the kitchen.
"Where are you?" You said, your arms out of front of you searching for Niall.
"Here." He replied, grabbing your hand in his. He squeezed it tightly in reassurance, knowing you weren't too fond of being completely in the dark. His hands were warm and clammy with sweat, very different compared to your cold fingers. You held yourself back from kissing his knuckles.
With the help of the flashlight from Niall's phone, he found some emergency candles and lit them, placing them on the four corners of the counter. The kitchen looked far more romantic than it needed to be.
You sat across from Niall as both of you ate, chatting among yourselves about anything and everything that came to mind.
You and Niall's dreams had come true.
This wasn't necessarily a date per say, but it was close to it as both of you thought it could ever get. Niall's blue eyes stood out from the tint of his face, the candlelight flickering on one portion of his face. He was the most handsome man you ever laid eyes on. He hadn't shaved in a few days, which didn't bother you at all, and he hadn't brushed his hair today either. He was a natural mess, and it turned you on.
Your hand was resting in the center of the counter as you stabbed at your chicken, talking on and on. Niall couldn't concentrate on a word you were saying, his own thoughts wondering in his mind.
How long could he keep up with this secret game to ably his feelings for you?
He could tell you right now, the setting and mood seemed to be about right. His hand itched to take yours into his, look you dead in the eyes, and tell you how he really felt about you. But he couldn't gather the courage. He felt so small all of a sudden, like he was wasn't good enough for you.
Hours after dinner was over, you decided to wait until the store blew over. It didn't. The power hadn't turned back on yet and the house was freezing. Niall was throwing logs into the fireplace when he heard your keys in your hands jingle.
"I think I should head home before the store gets even worse." You groaned, pulling your hood over your head.
"Uh-uh!" Nial tutted. "It's rainin' hell outside, you're staying here. We can have ourselves a little sleepover."
Your heart pounded in your ears at the offer, you'd never slept over at Nialls house for one night. You were honestly speechless. About a thousand things you had imagined doing with Niall were flashing quickly in your eyes. You agreed to stay, shrugging off your jacket and hanging it on the banister.
-
"You tired?" Niall asked, noticing that you were rubbing your eyes. He had thrown pillows and blankets on the floor, moving the coffee table aside and relaxing on the floor in front of the roaring fireplace. You nodded lazily.
Niall stood and scooped you up in his arms, like a romantic fairy tale you hadn't even contemplated. Your arms wrapped around his neck as he carried you up the stairs. You've hugged Niall plenty of times, but you've never felt this close to him before.
You never noticed until how his heartbeat was louder than it should be, and how he held you close to him like a warm blanket on a cold night. Then suddenly you knew that his feelings for you were mutual. Too tired to actually think about it logically, you rested your head on his shoulder as he pushed his bedroom door open with the other.
His bed was warm, but not as warm as the feeling of his body heat. Niall curled up next to you, covering your bodies with his duvet. You could barely keep your eyes open anymore when you tried to stare back at Niall as he eyed you. You were right, by the look in his eyes you knew that he more than liked you, and you hoped that he could see your feelings for him in your tired eyes.
"You warm?" Niall asked, you nodded against the pillow with a yawn. Now he was holding back a yawn and you laughed a little as he said, "Look yer makin' me yawn now!" With a stretch, he relaxed his muscles.
Suddenly he felt brave, leaning his face into you and pressing his forehead against yours. His breath fanned over your face, your heart stopping at his sudden contact.
When his lips accidentally brushed against yours, he pulled back, shying away a few inches as he cleared his throat awkwardly.
"Yer okay with sleepin' in the same bed as me, right?" He asked hopefully.
"Yeah, I don't mind." You answered. You curled up next to him, his arm wrapped around your shoulder. All of this felt comfortable, like it was meant to be. The nice dinner, relaxing and doing nothing all night, in bed basically cuddling together, this was so right.
"Alright." He whispered in your ear. "G'night, then." Nialls eyes fluttered closed, now he felt exhausted.
"Goodnight." You meekly said back, relaxing against his body.
If only it was like this all the time.
...
Credit: niallsmighty
