Inked Armor (Punk Niall)

Chapter 27

"We'll be staying at my cousin Leo's place," Zayn explained as we stepped off the train, bags hanging off our shoulders in a way that made it clear we jetted out of wherever we were before. "I reckon it'll give us more time to figure out what to do next."

Moments later I was met with a flash of vertigo and stumbled a bit on my feet, Niall reaching out to grab my arm and ask if I was okay. "I'm fine. Just a bit thrown off from the train." I insisted, but I could already see the smirk settling on his lips.

"I didn't know I was that good, babe." Niall commented before stealing a quick smack on my bum. Before I could retaliate Zayn was already groaning about how affectionate we were.

"Can you two keep off each other for two seconds? It's no big secret that you did the dirty on the train, the way you were grinning and your cheeks all flushed. I'm not that dumb." Zayn's voice was flat and blunt, like it would be if he was talking about the weather or how his day was, and it threw me off so much I couldn't fight back.

"We didn't 'do the dirty', Zayn." Niall stated shaking his head and leaving it at that, scooping my hand into his own and continuing to walk behind Zayn through the streets of...well I wasn't actually sure. I would ask in any other normal situation, but this wasn't normal, and I had a feeling we wouldn't be in this town for long.

And even if we were, I quite liked it. It was small and cozy with cobblestone roads and small shops on every corner. I could smell the salty air and it kept me company every time my mind wandered to Cale and Liam and how I was supposed to explain this situation to them, but there was something that gave a sense of familiarity and made me not so anxious.

Zayn's cousin lived in a small cottage nestled by all the other small town clichés- ice cream shops, general store, bakery with chipped siding and windows. It fit in with the whole atmosphere, but Leo, not so much.

The bloke looked like he was a part of Zayn's blood; dark features, lots of stubble, thick black hair parted and combed in a way that made him look a bit hipster, except his eyes were this extremely light blue that reminded me of a husky, and it looked really cool against his tan skin. Oh, and he was also covered in tattoos, even more than Zayn I reckon.

After the greetings and introductions we all went inside, Leo directing us to separate rooms he had set up and allowing us to settle in.

"Sorry, but I didn't know you were coming, Hadley. I only have two rooms set up." Leo apologized, scratching at his stubble. He had a nice voice, very friendly and welcoming. It reminded me of Liam.

"Don't sweat it." Niall interjected, holding up our intertwined hands. "She can stay in my room."

Leo nodded and said something about 'no funny business'. I had to laugh, because he was exactly like Zayn. A 30-something year old version of Zayn, add the contemporary artwork on the walls and modern furniture and they were basically a match.

"Trust me, they haven't kept their hands off each other the past century, it seems." Zayn joked and turned the opposite way down the hall into his assigned room.

The room Niall and I had was just like the rest of this place, cozy and simple. There was one big bed in the middle of the room, and I blushed thinking about getting to spend another night with Niall. And by the way he looked at me I could tell he was thinking the same thing.

"I'm going to shower." I suddenly declared grabbing my stuff and going into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. The bathroom was tiny, and I was just starting to get undressed when I heard a voice come from behind the door.

"Can I join?" Niall pleaded, and I could almost picture his pouted lips and puppy dog eyes that always got me.

I suppressed a giggle and responded with "I haven't showered in two days and I feel gross. Haven't you had enough of me today, Horan?" I wrapped my body in a towel I found hanging on the wall, and turned the shower on.