Stardom: Niam

Chapter 5: Pursuit of Happiness

Niall's Pov.

Friday had arrived. I laid in bed, nerves taking over once again. Anxiously awaiting to see Liam and all I could do was think about all the screw ups I might make. What if my exuberant laugh is too much for his ears to bare? What if my shy antics cause me to become a bore and he finds me less interesting? I rolled onto my stomach, buried my head in my pillows and let out a loud grunt. I would hate to ruin this. It's rare for someone to come along, knowing my employment situation, but still find it worth while to ask me out on a date. Percy jumped on to the bed, purring and nuzzling up to me. "You think I'm appealing, right?" Then again, I talk to my cat; it doesn't get any more odd than that.

The time read 9:44 am. Usually, I'm up early, rehearsing for our next performance; however, I've had the past two days off and slept a little extra. I felt it would come in handy for today. Liam gave me the details on where we're going. The Contemporary Art Museum. Honestly, I've never been there, but I suddenly find myself in the mood to do so. He also said we would be going somewhere else after; but he wanted to keep that a surprise.

I got out of bed and went straight into the bathroom. The steam from the shower shrouded around the bathroom, fogging up the mirrors, slightly. The heated drops hit my body, splashing in different directions; I stood there, allowing the water to run over my hair and body. It gave me a sense of exhilaration. After standing there for a while, I commenced to actually cleaning myself. I got so caught in the moment that I forgot I had somewhere to be. I stepped out the shower and started on my daily routine of brushing my teeth, followed by the use of facial wash, and fixing my hair. I decided to relax it for the day; my signature quiff could wait until I went back to work.

I decided on black skinny jeans, a white dress-up shirt and a sweater vest. A pair of beige Vans as a finishing touch. I grabbed my phone and wallet, then headed out. "Bye, Percy!"

I walked the streets of Chicago; it's been a while since I've done so; but Liam thought it would be great if we took the train to each of our locations. Oddly enough, the thought of the scenario was romantic, to me anyway. He wanted me to meet him at the café by 11 am and I had half an hour to spare. The sun was shining brighter than usual; a few cars drove by and beeped their horn at me. I just smiled, waved, and continued working. Only one person would be receiving my time today. I blushed at the thought of him. I was beyond eager to see him, but had to constantly remind myself to keep my composure. Louis recommended we double dated - him inviting Harry - but he's getting ahead of himself; I would, at the least, have to make it past this date.

I reached the café. A bell chimed. I decided to get a muffin to hold me off for the rest of the morning. Upon reaching the counter, Laila jumped up from behind the register. "Niall!"

"Hi, Laila." She extended her arms, trying to give me a hug from the other side of the counter, but she could only reach slightly.

"I haven't seen you in a while. How's everything been going?"

"Great. I'm actually here waiting for someone. It's kind of a date." She gasped, then a smile spread across her face.

"Who's the lucky guy?"

"Well, his name is Liam."

"No way!" She shouted. Suddenly, she lowered her voice, after catching the attention of the customers. "No way." She repeated, in a much lower tone.

"Am I missing something here?"

"I know him. Well, he's been here twice. A friend of Harry's. I assume you met him at Late Night Special?"

"Yes, how did you know?"

"He told me about getting the job." She giggled.

"Ah. Well, I'm kind of running on empty. I'll take a blueberry muffin." Her eyes lit up at my request. "What?"