Convenience | Niam

Twenty-Seven

"I can't believe you drink this crap."

Liam sets the coffee Niall had ordered back down on the table, admittedly playing up his disgust at the iced coffee-mocha-frappu-whatever combination Niall had ordered, but his dramatics make Niall laugh, even as he snatches his drink up and rolls his eyes in the way that Liam knows means Niall's calling him a heathen.

He takes a sip of his latte and leans back in his seat before asking, "Seriously, why?"

"Because I know you won't steal it." Niall jabs his straw at Liam for emphasis, ignoring the whipped cream he manages to fling onto the table with the gesture. "And it's like, a fuckload of sugar. Why not?"

Liam's repose is to roll his eyes in return, though he suspects on him, the gesture comes across as more fond than anything else. He'd been shooting for mock-exasperated, but he probably looks like the equivalent of the stupid heart eyes emoji. Either that or like he's got something in his eye.

Coffee had been Niall's idea; a break for Niall from album decisions and meetings and PR arrangements for the next model Niall's supposed to be seen with. Liam had picked him up at eleven and Niall had actually jumped into his car, which was all Liam really needed to know.

Starbuck's possibly hadn't been a wise choice of place, given its very public nature, but Niall had rationalised in the car that it was LA and if Anna Kendrick could get coffee then so could they. Apart from one sharp inhale from the barista when they'd walked in, they've yet to be bothered, and Liam might, if the frappucino bickering dies down, concede that Niall was, perhaps, right.

No one's asked either of them for a selfie yet, but it still means they're sitting on opposite dies of a table, Liam's seeing his hands to himself and he hasn't gotten to lean over the table and kiss Niall, not to shut him up, wipe the smile of his face, or even just because he wants to kiss Niall.

Which he does, so much.

Niall has yet to really leave Liam's place; a continuous stream of sleep versa means Liam's wardrobe has sort of become Niall's, not that either of them can wear collarless shirts outdoors at the moment.

Today, Niall has stolen a white shirt that Liam had been gifted by a designer, complete with net pocket and attached silver chain, though Niall sort of makes it work, whereas Liam had felt like a tit wearing it. Niall does, however, have whipped cream spotted alone the shoulder, and Liam wants to reach over.

He makes do with throwing napkins at Niall and doing his best to point him in the right direction, but the whole thing of it sticks with him.

It makes him lean across the table, just a bit, and ask, "What would even happen, if this ends up on Twitter, do you think?"

Niall shrugs, drinks about an inch of his coffee and shrugs again. "It's only coffee. It's not like anyone's seeing us doing that thing- You know, when we broke into the garden square in Kensington. We've gotten coffee before; I'm sure Twitter won't give a shit, and if does, even rivals get coffee sometime."

"I wasn't thinking about the rivals thing," Liam's not sure if he's imagining the suddenly cold look on Niall's face, though he's pretty sure he's not. Maybe it's just brain freeze, he reckons, before trying to lighten things anyway. "But are you sure you should be here? With the competition?"

"Maybe they'll think we're trying to poison each other?" Niall gives Liam a smile, but it's halfhearted at best and Liam knows. Niall picks up his drink and focuses on it, swirling the contents with his straw and pointedly not looking at Liam, and Liam's not sure how going for coffee has managed to cast a huge fucking rain cloud over everything. He sort of gets an answer when Niall asks, "What did you mean then, if you weren't on about us hating each other?"

Liam isn't actually prepared for the question, though he does know the answer. He knows what he meant, he's just not sure if answering Niall is actually wise. Liam hasn't really got a track record of making good decisions, however, so he swallows a mouthful of his latte before shrugging, "Well- I just- You know, how I'm out and since and you're having coffee with me..."

It sounds stupid, even to Liam, and that's reinforced when Niall lets out a burst of badly-suppressed laughter. "People get coffee together all the time, Liam, and your idea that people will see us getting coffee and instantly assume we're fucking is just the stupid idea that gay people can't have straight friends. And we're not friends, remember, and anyway, I'm not ga- I'm not out- As far as anyone knows, I've just been dumped by a model."

Liam stops himself from saying, "But we are fucking, more than fucking and we are friends and you are gay,' but biting his tongue is hard when Niall looks like he'd rather be anywhere but here. He doesn't manage to stop himself from gently kicking Niall under the table, trying his best to look apologetic at the same time. "Yeah, guess I got a bit carried away there..."

"More than a bit," Niall settles back in his seat, looking slightly less like he'd rather be set on fire than sat with Liam, and Liam decides to run with the shift in atmosphere, steeling Niall's coffee again.

He lets Niall squawk and kick him back, harder, though he's not quite paying him full attention. The- It's odd, Liam thinks. The darkness of Niall's tone when Liam had brought up the ever-present PR worry, their images, because he's never seen Niall like this before.

A small part of Liam, the part he's starting to think might have over inflated his sense of self-importance, just maybe, wonders if it's because Liam pointed out that it's Niall's image now, just Niall's, at risk. After all, as Liam had been trying to point out, he's not out and he's having coffee with Liam, Liam who's out and not quiet about it.

They're getting coffee, a date but not, and Niall's the one exposed here.

A harder kick to his ankle snaps Liam's attention back to Niall, his face betraying his train of thought, if Niall's expression is anything to go by. He reaches for Niall's hand without thinking, and for all Niall's bravado that there's no one to see, let alone care, Niall shifts his chair back by a foot, keeping out of Liam's reach. Liam nods, then, and he wants to apologise but he also sort of doesn't.

It's irrational and it's unfair and Liam knows that he ha no right to think this of Niall, but he wishes for a second Niall would join him in the real world for a moment. Niall and he are in the same boat, were in the same boat, that's what started this, sort of, and if he got out of his shitty contract, there's nothing stopping Niall. It's a line of thought that is, again, unfair and shitty, and Liam doesn't breathe a word of it to Niall, but something must give him away because Niall stands up, leaning over the table and hissing, "Just because you wanted the freedom and the fucking rainbows doesn't mean I did."

Liam nods then and purposefully keeps himself from reaching out for Niall, even as he shoves his chair back and walks out of Starbucks without a backwards glance. 

______________________

the lesser spotted update reappears, surprising scientistsi, who'd feared such creatures were extinct,,

for real, my bad, sorry this took a while,,

but it's up, and technically postend on the ninth anniversary of one direction, so i figured the timing makes up for the delay. 

and yeah, happy nine years of one direction.

nine years of one direction and i've been missing them for four years of that. 

wow. 

back of the topic of this  fic, though, there's like seven parts less, maybe more if i keep accidently writing extra chapters like i've already done to myself - ch.28 will be an example of this, it wasn't part of my plan but get ready for more of niall's angsty inner monologue,,

also i just want to thank everyone who's still around 'cause this fic is over a year old and whenever i see you guys vote and comment it actually makes my day,,

thoughts on the chapter?