I Wish (Niall Horan)

Chapter NIne

Nine

That weekend, the boys decided it was time for a night out.  They’d noticed that I had been a bit quiet since they found out that I liked Sophie, and they recommended we get my mind off it.

I stood in front of the mirror, straightening the collar of my plaid shirt when Harry tapped on my door.  He came in then, smiling.  “You ready for some fun tonight?”

I tried to smile back a bit.  “Yeah.” 

“So the boys and I were talking, you know, about… her,” He didn’t say her name as if she’d died or something.  I don’t know why, but it bothered me.  I didn’t want them to worry about me.  “And I thought I’d get you a date for tonight!” he said cheerfully. “A date?” I asked, a bit nervous.  I hadn’t been on a date in a long time.  Longer than I could remember.  It might have even been before the X Factor since my last one.  The thought of it after such a long time intimidated me. 

“Yeah, but hey, you don’t have to be nervous mate.  It’s a girl I met a while back and I thought you two would be great for each other!  She’s funny, and sweet, and really, really hot,” he said, attempting to reassure me.

“Thanks, man.  You didn’t have to though!” I said.  I felt awkward that they were trying so hard to take care of me.  Was it that bad?  I didn’t really see what the big problem was.

“Not a problem, Niall.  You need to put yourself out there some more.” 

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We met up at the club at around nine.  Liam was with Danielle, Louis was with a new girl he’d been seeing called Eleanor, Zayn was with a girl named Claire, and Harry was on the prowl for a new girl, as per usual. 

The girl Harry had set me up with was called Anna.  She wore a dark purple mini dress and had shoulder-length blonde hair.  She wore a lot of makeup and had a huge chest.  She was really curvy, and quite pretty, without a doubt, but not the same kind of pretty that Sophie was.  Anna’s pretty seemed forced and feigned.  Sophia’s beauty was natural.  I shook the thoughts of Sophia out of my brain, remembering that this night was meant to get her off my mind.

After a couple of drinks, I had gotten warmed up to Anna, and was feeling a little more comfortable.  She took my hand and led me out to one of the balconies then, a little more private so we could carry on with our conversation. 

“You must meet a lot of girls, being in a band,” she said, watching me.

“Actually, not at the moment.  This is the first date I’ve had in a long time,” I said.  “It gets pretty busy sometimes, and there isn’t much time for that sort of thing.”

She moved a little closer, blinking her fake eyelashes at me and putting her hand on my leg.  “Wow,” she said. “That must get… stressful,” she was either trying to be seductive, or was really drunk.  Either way, she was flirting, a lot.  Her hand inched up my leg a bit more and her fingers played around my belt loops.  

She pulled me closer to her and put her hands on my jaw, and started kissing me.  He kisses were sloppy and wet.  She slid her tongue into my mouth and I tried to kiss her back the way she was, but I honestly just wasn’t feeling it with her.  She moved my hand to her waist, giving me permission to something I didn’t want.  Her messy kisses moved hastily from my lips down my neck and she purred in my ear, “How about we take this to the restroom?”

“Uhh, I just,” I stood up, pushing her off my lap.  “I uh, I have to go.” I said.  Running my fingers through my hair, I make my way back to the front of the club, where I found Liam with Danielle.  She was sitting on his lap on a couch, and they were smiling and whispering in each other’s ears.  I didn’t want to disturb them, but just as I began to walk away, Liam noticed me and said, “Hey mate, how’s your date going?” 

I exhaled deeply, running my hands over my head again.  Liam read my expression immediately, and said to Danielle, “Do you mind?” 

“Yeah, no problem.  I have to use the bathroom anyway,” she said. 

“It’ll only be a minute,” he crooned, giving her a kiss on the cheek.  She turned her head and playfully kissed him on the mouth instead.  They kissed for a while longer, and I felt kind of awkward just standing there.  Finally, they stopped kissing and she got up.  Danielle smiled sweetly at me and put her hand on my shoulder as she walked by. 

Liam motioned for me to sit down but I shook my head.  “I think I’m just gonna head out,” I said. 

His brow furrowed.  He looked concerned and said, “Uh, alright. What happened with your date?” 

I just sort of shook my head.  What was wrong with me?  Just two minutes ago, an incredibly hot girl was willingly sucking on my face and I just left?  And I couldn’t stop thinking about Sophia.  This was supposed to be my night away from it all.  

“Are you sure you’re alright, Niall?” his brow furrowed and he looked a bit concerned.  I guess I looked pretty screwed up.

“Uh, yeah… she just wasn’t my type.”  I tried to make it sound convincing, but I mostly just sounded confused.  “If the lads ask, tell them where I am.  See you later,” 

Liam looked as if he was about to protest, but I walked away before he could speak.