Game Theory × NH

115 | ununpentium

× Mercury

The past six years had been dull and dry and generally absent, but somehow, when I looked at Niall, I was still able to burn.

He looked different, but I knew it was him from the moment our eyes locked. And I couldn't find it in myself to look away. His hair was completely removed of any blonde and was replaced with a lovely color of fallen leaves, brown and sleek with the first rain of autumn. It was short on the sides and longer on top, falling over his forehead with the perfect amount of tease. The stubble along his jaw had grown thick, not quite a beard, but no where near a 5 o'clock shadow. His black jeans weren't as skinny as I remember them to be, and instead a little loose and rolled up at the ankles. He wore a simple white T-shirt under an unbuttoned plaid shirt, the cuffs rolled up just far enough to show off a Rolex watch that cost more than my entire life. Another added accessory was a pair of Garamond glasses on the bridge of his nose and I wondered if they were a necessity or just for looks. His body filled out more, too. His shoulders were broad and his arms were bigger and he just looked very manly and thick.

But his eyes. His eyes still reminded me of the ocean at Santa Monica Beach.

There would always be that one person you'll never really get over. You could go days, weeks, months, years without thinking of them, but the second you see their face, your stomach drops and you feel like you could puke. How did this one person still garner this type of reaction from me?

"May I sit?" he asked, gesturing to the empty seat beside me.

I should have said no. I should have gotten up and left and saved the heartache that was sure to come, but his voice was so smooth and deep - the richness of his tones reverberated through my bones. But it was that Irish accent, luxurious and warm, that I found myself nodding.

Slowly, he took the seat beside me and I was quickly overwhelmed by his scent - it was that same woodsy smell I had slowly fallen in love with all those years ago.

Niall started fidgeting with a loose string on the sofa, something I had learned he did out of nervousness. I wondered if he remembered any of my little tics like I had remembered his.

"It's been a long time," he spoke, trying desperately to break the tension between us.

If this was six years ago, I probably would have responded with a sarcastic comment, but there was too much between us that I couldn't do anything but nod in agreement.

The bartender came back with two glasses of dark liquid and placed them down on the table in front of us.

"Thank you," I told her. She gave me a kind smile and walked away.

Niall took one of the glasses and looked at the content. "I see you're drinking now," he observed as he took a taste of the mystery liquid. "What is this? Rum?"

"Malibu," I confirmed. "With Dr. Pepper."

The silence between us grew thicker. I was glad there was a band playing as well as people talking around us because I didn't think I'd be able to bare the uncomfortable stillness between us.

How strange it was that after all that we'd been though, we were strangers again.

Setting the book that was in my lap on the coffee table; I picked up the glass left by the tender and cradled it in my hands, taking a small sip. I didn't much want to drink anymore now that I had surprising company. I learned how to control my liquor, but I didn't want to risk it, especially since the company was someone I once bore my heart to.