Never Had ~ A Louis Tomlinson Love Story

Chapter 24: Unsure

"Oh this is fantastic. Even the smell is wonderful. Home is just so great, isn't it?" Niall smiles as we walk through the Dublin airport. A chorus of 'yeahs' and 'mhms' echo between the six of us behind him, even though this isn't our home. Also, it's early and it was almost impossible for me to sleep on the plane. Mainly because Louis could not sleep either and used me as entertainment the entire four hours. No, not an any sexual ways, thank you Marlee. But more like he continuously poked me, tickled me, repeated my name over and over, asked me dumb questions, and worst of all, attempted to make me sing show tunes with him. Yeah, it got that bad.

We got in a car waiting for us outside the terminal and began our drive to Mullingar, Niall's hometown where we would be staying the night so Niall could see his family. I sat with Marlee, attempting to escape Louis, but failed when he sat behind me and whispered in my ear, making me jump. I swatted his head and he laughed loudly as I slumped in my seat, sighing while looking out at the barely rising sun.

"So, what should we do today, Niall?" Harry asked from the seat next to Louis' in the far back of the van. Niall turned from the shotgun seat up front and smiled at us all, literally beaming with excitement. "Well, we can go into town. There's shops, restaurants, a park, golf course, all kinds of stuff. My parents already invited everyone over for dinner though, so don't make any plans." he looks over in my direction, eyes moving to Louis behind me. Wow, if that wasn't obvious then I don't know what is. And why are we the only ones ever being teased? Liam and Zayn both have girlfriends, and whether they're here or not, I always get made fun of. Maybe it's just because they like it when I make a good comeback, which happens quite often now that they're running out of insults.

The car ride later consists of everyone staying quiet, probably just because we were still pretty tired. When we arrived in Mullingar, Niall is the first to get out and rush towards his old home where his parents are waiting in the living room. The rest of us file out slowly, picking up the bags from the back of the van and carrying them up to the house. Niall's parents greet Marlee first in a hug, having met her a few months ago, as I had just come to know. The rest of the boys were also given hugs, but I hung back behind them all, obviously not knowing what to do.

"Ay, where's the little blondie?" Niall questioned and looked around the room, eyes finally landing on me as he smiled and pushed himself through the other boys. "Mum, dad, this is Emma. She's a good friend of ours and is dating Louis. She's been with us on tour for most of the past three months." he brought me up to his parents and I smiled, letting Niall do all the talking. "Oh well it's very nice to meet you, love. Please, come in everyone." Niall's mum moved out of the small crowded hallway and everyone followed her to the living room where two large couches were centered, facing a television mounted on the wall. "Would anyone like any breakfast?" she asked again as we all sat down. "No thanks mum, we ate before we left. But I'm sure we'll all be hungry for some home cooking by supper." he smiled and his mum laughed. Mummy's boy.

"So when does she break out the baby pictures?" I murmured to Marlee quietly. She giggled and whispered "It should happen by dinner, just wait. Remind me to have my camera out and ready when she does bring it up." I try hard not to laugh out loud as I don't want to draw attention to myself, especially in front of Niall's parents. Short conversations continue between the boys, Marlee, and Niall's parents. Occasionally I say something, but it's short and often skipped over. The fact that adults cannot even stand to listen to what I have to say worries me. Do people really think what I have to say is that unimportant that they shouldn't even acknowledge me? I start to feel invisible, as if the room and the people in front of me had just been a figment of my imagination. Or maybe I am here, which I can assume that I am, but instead, I am thought of as unimportant and unwanted; just another tag-along with the five most famous British boys of the decade. I felt the need to jump in at certain times in conversations, thinking of stories from high school that I found quite entertaining and connectable to the subject, but I keep my lips firmly shut. I don't want to expose myself to vulnerability, especially with all the people in here. If something went wrong and I let myself come out and speak all the thoughts I have running through my mind, he could get me.