Drowning || niall horan au

four

For a table fitting two people, the amount of dishes presented looked like it would be for a table of five. Some of the plates from previous courses were removed, and the couple was able to navigate their orders better.

"Is there anything else I can get you?" The waitress with dark red hair asked. Her ponytail was swept over to one shoulder neatly.

"It's perfect. Thank you."

The sound of dinner forks and knives clanking against the plate drowned out the uncomfortable silence. It's been a struggle to hold a conversation sitting down at the table. A majority of the talking was due to ordering their meals, Niall asking her what she would like. The answers were short and choppy, but she gave her best fake smile at her date and waitress. While waiting for it to arrive, he couldn't get the slightest thing out of her mouth no matter what the question was. His palms were clammy as he kept rubbing them together under the table out of nervousness. She, on the other hand, observed her surroundings with both of her hands supporting her chin.

Niall cut through his meat a bit too rough, receiving a loud screech of the knife scratching the plate. He winced and noticed Hannah jumped in her seat. She looked up at him startled.

"Sorry." He gave an apologetic smile.

She nodded. "It's alright."

The agonizing silence continued. Niall grew antsy, shaking his leg up and down while throwing Hannah occasional glances. He licked his lips many times, preparing to say something that he knew would be shot down with a short response. The background noises were beginning to aggravate him since it was all he could hear. People chattering at the tables around them and kitchen utensils being clanked bothered him, but nothing like hearing the sound of his own chewing set him off more.  He almost shut himself up out loud until he remembered he was in public. It was odd enough he had a random girl out with him; there was no need to cause any more of a scene.

After another bite of the steak, Niall set his fork down. It hit the edge of the plate that made Hannah look at him again. She raised an eyebrow with a neutral expression.

"Are we really not goin' to talk the entire time?" He asked abruptly. She stared at him blankly. "It's almost like were an old couple in a big argument."

Hannah wasn't playing around. She made it obvious when she didn't chuckle with him.

"We are not a couple."

Niall leaned back in his chair and rolled his eyes. "I know that, but would it kill ya to give me some communication? I'm fallin' asleep over here."

"That's great." She smirked, fake happiness read clear across her face. "I didn't get any communication while waiting for you for forty five minutes."

He let out an exasperated sigh, a hand running through the front of his quiff. Maybe it was more peaceful when she kept her mouth shut.  She brought the glass of wine to her lips, an eyebrow narrowing for a response.

"So, I'm getting the silent treatment as payback? Fair enough," He commented with a laugh. His hand reached over the table, leaving Hannah looking perplexed. "Let me see your phone."

"What? No, why?"

"If you want to resolve the communication issue, then I suggest you let me give you my number."

The blonde shook her head. She was being an absolute hypocrite by complaining about the lack of communication from earlier and didn't want to be a part of fixing the problem. Niall knew it was going to take more than just asking head on for her number. He knew she wasn't that easy.

"Many girls would kill for this." He wiggled his eyebrows, a smirk plastered across his face, trying to put his Irish charm in action that already works for millions of girls around the globe.