Drowning || niall horan au

thirteen

Christmas didn't give Hannah enough time to think about her feelings towards Niall, so that meant New Year's Eve was definitely not enough time either. They saw each other almost every day since Christmas and acted completely normal, but her thought about kissing him bothered Hannah so much that it going to stress her out.

They hadn't even known each other for two months yet, and Hannah processed how much he knew about her in that short time span. He had seen her panic attack, her tempers, and her family at a faster rate than any other couple in the country. She should be more cautious around him or even cut all ties considering how close he was getting. The fact that she kept running back to him was not even something she could figure out for herself.

She had been around nice boys, plenty of them, in her lifetime. Some turned out to be nice. Others kept the act up until they got her right where they wanted her. And unfortunately, Hannah had to pick one of those men that has permanently scarred her for life.

Ever since Corey had visited the family for the first time in eight years, Hannah had begun to experience nightmares about the past whether they were dreams at night or hallucinations during the day. She sometimes felt she could see Bradley out of the corner of her eye, but it was only a shadow. Marisa could be unlocking the front door, and Hannah had to pretend to see her best friend like she wasn't just imagining it was her ex-boyfriend. She had cried about these instances numerous times, failing to tell Marisa, Niall, or even her mother because she didn't want them to worry.

The worst nightmares were the ones that flashbacked to the good memories. Those made her heart swell up with pride and was more than happy to call him hers. The first five months were heaven that she never thought she would experience hell.

_____

"I'm sorry I was such a dick all that time."

Hannah's arms were linked around Bradley's left one as the two walked casually throughout the town. His eyes were focused on the sidewalk in front of them. She glanced up at him, getting a perfect view of his jawline and his left hazel eye that was a piercing green that day.

"I was a little kid." The blonde laughed it off. "No high school boy wants a twelve-year old girl to hang around with, especially not my brother."

"I could have easily been nicer to you if I gave myself the chance." He said. "We all act cooler when we're around our friends."

"Well, I guess we were at the right place at the right time four years later."

Bradley had a small smirk on his mouth when he bent down to kiss Hannah on the cheek. The way he showed his affection for her made Hannah cling onto his arm tighter. Only one month into their relationship, and she claimed she never felt safer and more loved. He was her first boyfriend, so there wasn't much else she could compare him to.

When he was willing to meet her friends not much later, it was probably one of the best moments in their relationship. Hannah's girlfriends were very nosey about Bradley, and she was glad he behaved around them. He laughed at their inquiries, offered to pay for their drinks, and even started some of the conversation. He later told Hannah that this wasn't going to be an everyday thing, but he was pleased to meet the friends his girlfriend hung around with. Not to mention, a friend snapped a photo of them two on the other side of the table, his arm slung around her neck while she was going to playfully kiss him on the cheek. It was the one picture she could never burn.

_____

Hannah pondered at the idea that maybe Niall was lucky to stick around because he was famous as much as she hated to admit it. It was nice knowing there wasn't much of a surprise to his personality, most of it was shown through the media. Sure, there were some things that the camera didn't explain, but it wasn't that hard to figure out anyways. Niall lived for three things: his guitar, his fans, and his sleep. Two months wasn't a lot of time to know someone, but maybe for once, the world was finally giving Hannah a chance to live. And she was planning on taking advantage of that.