Turning Pages (Niall Fanfic)

Chapter Forty-Eight

Danielle’s POV:

Niall must have put my cell phone under the pillow and my head because I woke up with a jolt; the sound and pulse of the vibration scared me. I checked the caller ID and saw it was him. I caught him just before it went to voicemail. “Hello?” I asked even though I knew it was him.

“Hey. I was trying t’ let ya sleep in, but it’s getting’ a little late… Look, I know you’re gonna yell or hit me the next time I see ya in person, but there’s somethin’ on the counter in the kitchen. Why don’t ya get up, make yourself a cup of coffee, and see what it is? Call me when you’re ready for the day and we’ll talk.” He chuckled to himself. “Bye babe.” Then he hung up.

I stayed in bed for a few more minutes but glanced at the clock every couple seconds; it reminded me that I slept over half of my day away. I pulled the covers off me and cracked my neck. I was actually kind of scared to go see what Niall had left me.

I ignored the counter on my way to the coffeepot. Niall had actually been thoughtful enough to turn it on for me. I poured myself a cup and stared at nothing, really. I had my back towards whatever he had left me.

I set my finished mug in the sink and rinsed it out. I sighed to his empty apartment and spun around. There on the countertop were two plane tickets to Hartford, Connecticut. My old house was only forty minutes away including traffic time.

I didn’t even pick up the tickets. I just stared at them. The date for takeoff read December twenty-third. The next date read early January.

I walked away from the counter and spent the next twenty minutes on the bottom of Niall’s tub. The hot water cascaded down my naked body and I held my legs up to my chest. I stared off into space and thought of nothing.

The water began to turn from hot to warm and then warm to cold and I decided to quickly scrub my body and finish washing my hair in the sink.

-

I finished getting ready but didn’t bother changing into jeans or any sort of nice shirt. I put on a pair of sweats and a heavy cardigan. I let my hair dry naturally and kept my face clean of any makeup. I curled back under the covers and called Niall.

“Jus’ a sec, babe.” I heard some background noise but it eventually faded. I heard him breathe loudly into the phone. “Ya saw them, right?” He asked. I was quiet. He waited for a response but finally figured out that I wasn’t giving one. “I knew you’d hate me… I just thought that maybe we could spend Christmas with your family so I could get to know them and they could get to know me, and then we could have New Years all to ourselves. I’ll get some champagne for you and a pack of beer for me. We’ll cozy up in a hotel room…” He trailed off and I could almost hear the wheels turning in his head. I still stayed silent. He breathed into the phone again. “I’d really like t’ meet them. Maybe while we’re there, you can patch things up…” He trailed off again.

“You really want to meet my family?” I asked. My tone of voice wasn’t very lovely.

“I really do.” He answered.

“Let me give my mother a call...” I replied.

“T’anks babe. Call me when you’re finished.” He hung up. He sounded happy.

My old house still had a landline; at least it did when I was there. My brain was able to retrieve it, and I eventually called.

It rang a few times and I could feel my heart beating faster. I was taking deep breaths to calm myself. Thank God it went to voicemail. I let the machine beep and then I started. “Hi, mom. It’s me. Your daughter…” I swallowed and tried to finish. “I was wondering if you were willing to have me and my boyfriend over for Christmas. Yeah. That’s it. Just call back this number when you get a chance.” I hung up and tossed my phone on the other side of the bed.