part three - the one with mouse ears and turkey dinner
The transition from October to November wasn’t a difficult one.
Everyone was putting away their Halloween decorations and putting up the Thanksgiving ones. Everyone was out in stores buying their pumpkin flavor cookies and coffee creamers. Everyone was even going out of their way to get the pumpkin spice latte everyday from Starbucks.
Evie wasn’t into that whole trend, the everything has to be pumpkin spice. In fact, Evie didn’t even like the flavor of it, finding it too sweet for her liking. However, she ate pumpkin seeds like no other. Normally, she’d be making homemade, but this time it was store-bought.
The fall time was Evie’s favorite. She learned to love it when she was back in Seattle and when she moved to Chicago for school. She learned to love the colors and the cold felt like home. Not to mention all the outfits that fit that season, it was amazing.
Of course, in Los Angeles, there wasn’t much of a fall season. Sure, the weather was cooler, but it wasn’t as cool as it would be in Seattle or Chicago. To Evie, that was the biggest culture shock when she came to the hustling city. In fact, when she experienced her first fall and winter season in Los Angeles, she almost moved back to Chicago.
But, at the same time, the transition was difficult.
This whole month had been quiet without the presence of Niall. Her phone had gone off a few times a week, text messages talking about his plans for the following day and how much he had missed her. Evie wasn’t going to lie, she missed him too. Granted, she had only spent one night with him and that was over drinks. What she really missed was the smile and his laugh.
She hadn’t told him about her fight with Helena, because in her mind, she felt that he would back himself away from her. And that was the thing that Evie didn’t want to happen.
Niall called her a few nights too, and she would vent about work. Again, Evie didn’t mention the fight, because it was useless. But, Niall had seen the photos too, promising that when he got back to the States, they’d talk more about it.
Evie never asked how long until he came back. She was letting him do his thing like he had done so before. She didn’t want to intrude into his career, wanting him to come back when he had so much going on. If everyone had known better, they’d see that she was trying to be patient, despite her getting antsy as every day passed.
Evie had looked up from her desk, eyeing someone at her door. Evie leaned back in her seat, crossing her arms and gave a nod, signaling for them to come in.
“It’s late, why are you still here?”
“Because it’s a Friday night and I have to finish off this plan before the meeting tomorrow?” Evie mused, looking over at the clock as it read ten PM.
“Or is it because you’re trying to keep yourself busy from thinking about lover boy?”
“You guys have fun messing with me about this, don’t ya?” Both girls had giggled by then.
“We’ve never seen you with a guy, that’s why we do. When does he get back?”
“Guess we’ll know when he does by your expression that day.” The girl winked, causing Evie to scoff.
“Don’t you got to go home or something?” Evie teased.
“Yes…. But don’t stay late, yeah?” The girl spoke, standing up from her seat as she made her way to the door, leaving Evie behind.
“Have a good weekend too, hopefully your boyfriend comes home.”
“He’s not -.” But it was no use, the girl was gone already.
Evie huffed, moving her attention back over towards her desk, the swatches of paint colors and patterns sitting in front of her. On her left, she had three idea booklets prepared for her meeting tomorrow, and she was working on her fourth. On her right, she had two cups of coffee and take out from an hour ago.
While playing with color swatches again, her phone buzzed. Evie reached out, bringing the phone in front of her and smiled at the name. She slid her finger on the screen and brought the phone to her ear.
“Hello sweet girl.” Evie sighed in relief, setting the paint swatches down and leaned back in her chair.
“Hey… Isn’t it late over there?”
“No Evie Burke, it’s six AM here.” Niall mused.
“Oh…. so what are your plans for the day then?”
“Hanging with my cousin since its one of me last few days here.” She could only imagine him shrugging his shoulders right now.
“Guess you’ll have to tell me all about your trip when you get back.”
“So go on, tell me about your day, Evie Burke. I’m dying to hear it since I haven’t talked to ya in a little bit.” Evie snorted then.
“Let’s see, it’s Friday night and I’m still at work figuring out paint swatches that would match together. I’m on my third cup of coffee because I can’t figure out what goes well together. I don’t want to go home without this not planned…. Do you think gold and light grey go together?”
“Is this for a wedding? And if so what season?” Niall asked.
“Yes and it’s to be determined. They want color schemes to help them choose. So for the springtime I have peach, gold and green. For the summertime I have navy, coral and gold. For fall, I have cranberry, orange and ivory - which is my favorite by the way. And i’m working on winter right now. Hence why I asked about grey and gold.” Evie sighed, running her free hand through her hair.
“Why not use copper or whats the word? Platinum? You have too much gold and oranges by the sound of it. Copper and uh…. Navy? Do they make such things? I’m not sure, Evie Burke. I’m guessing here.”
“I like the copper part…. I’ll go hunting for colors that match with copper. Thank you. I’m sorry you get to talk to me while i’m stressed like this.” Evie sighed, not liking how short this conversation was sounding.
“It’s kind of cute, to be honest. I’m imagining a frustrated scowl on your face and some hair strands out of place. But look, i’ll be home on Thursday and we’ll meet up then, okay?”
“That’s fine, I need to keep busy anyways. Thank you for letting me vent.”
“You’re welcome, sweet girl. Have a good night and I’ll see you soon.”
Once he had hung up, Evie sat her phone to the side again and went back looking through the paint. Copper, that was the main color that Evie was going to go with, but as for the other two, that was a different story.
She went through the reds, and yellows, and greens until she stopped at the blues. Niall had said something about navy, but what about a lighter color instead? Inbetween baby blue and sky blue, aqua was sitting right in front of her.
With determination on her face, Evie searched for another color to balance the copper and aqua. She went through the colors again, only this time she looked through the colors that no one else would think of. Meaning, that Evie went towards the browns and tans instead of the ideal colors. Throughout looking at the colors, the ultimate decision came down to mahogany. While it was unusual, Evie liked it the more she looked at it.
At the glance of the clock, Evie finished up the last booklet and packed her belongings. Her meeting was set up at a cafe, that way they could discuss and meet somewhere private. Evie cleaned up her desk and turned off the lights and locked her door.
Evie had looked up from the stack of papers on her desk. It had been a good week so far, she didn’t have to stay late at all these past few nights. And her clients loved the winter booklet that she created - of course with the help of Niall. Not that they didn’t like the others, but her clients loved the look of the colors together and how unique they were.
She sucked in a deep breath as Helena entered the room and closed the door behind her.
They hadn’t talked in a while after the tiff they had; the silence that Evie had felt in her life from not talking to Helena had been killing her. She knew that there had been no harm, but the attack wasn’t pleasing when it happened.
“Can we talk? I mean… Can we clear the air? Or whatever that should be said?”
Evie exhaled and folded her arms together. She had mentally agreed, they needed to talk and figure out the animosity that was here in her office.
“Look, I’m sorry I attacked you verbally. I was frustrated that you didn’t tell me ANYTHING. I was hoping that it would be you telling me rather than the news and Twitter.” Helena ran a hand through her hair.
“You know, I was going to tell you the following day.” Evie scoffed, standing up from her chair and moved around the desk until she leaned on it.
“But, you came to the attack and I didn’t like that at all. You listened to every news outlet for the truth, and yet you decided to trust them instead of waiting for me to tell you.”
“No, you don’t get that. Knowing that you believed some news outlet that isn’t always reliable isn’t the greatest feeling in the world. I cried, Helena. It sucked, because instead of letting me share the news, I had the world tell it. It felt so normal and so nice that I wasn’t even out with a popular musician, I was out with a down-to-earth guy.”
She wasn’t going to lie, it was honestly one of the best dates that she’d gone on. She couldn’t compare this to her dates from college or high school. But nothing was going to be able to beat what she had felt that night. She got to meet Niall Horan, the boy who enjoyed talking about music instead of the boybander that everyone knew.
There was the elephant in the room, both girls could sense and feel it. The silence was even louder, both of them unsure where to begin to speak.
“So… is he a good kisser?”
Evie’s stone-cold look on her face turned into a little smile and a shrug from her shoulders.
“He is! Oh my god, Evie!” Helena cried of joy.
“I don’t know, Helena! I only kissed his cheek!” Evie’s hands flew to her face, hiding the rosy color on her cheeks.
“How do you not kiss on the first date!? Did he text you after a day? Come on, Evie, time for the actual details!”
Evie moved from her spot, going back around towards her chair behind her desk. She moved the papers out of her way and brought the coffee cup up to her lips, only to set it down a second later.
“Because I don’t play that way. And no, not right away.” Evie laughed a bit.
“He was on a plane. He hasn’t been back here in a month or so. Off touring that song of his, but I’ve kept in contact with him.”
“When’s he coming back?” Helena raised an eyebrow.
“Tomorrow. I’m really excited actually. I’m thinking we might get together on Friday, because he’d need the day to recuperate from the jetlag.”
“And… you know the holiday is coming up. Why not invite him?”
Evie hadn’t thought about that. While it would mean nice time with him, it also meant weirdness with her family and the fact of him not celebrating the holiday.
But, she was nominated last year to have the family over this year. Everyone, except Britt, would be at her place and that was already something that was stressing over.
“He doesn’t celebrate an American holiday, Helena. Plus that whole idea of meeting the parents? No way.”
“But, he’s your friend and thats how you should put it.”
“But, my family has also seen the news like you and already put together that we’re together.”
“And are you two together?”
“I don’t know? You normally don’t get into a relationship after the first date. I mean, we’ve talked a lot about each other, but I don’t know? A better word ]is seeing each other.”
“Just, don’t do that stupid instagram official thing.” Evie laughed.
“Okay, enough boy talk, you got work to do, go on now!” Evie laughed more, pointing over at the door.
Helena got up from her seat, going around the desk and pulled Evie up for a hug. At first, it surprised Evie, but after a moment of realizing what this was for, Evie hugged her back. It was better for them to hug out what had happened and to move on with their lives.
“Just ask about Thanksgiving and make sure you two talk! Okay, bye.”
Despite him coming home on Thursday, Evie convinced him to meet up on Friday. That way he could sleep off the jetlag. While he had protested, he gave in.
Evie had taken the Friday off, claiming it was for her to focus upon her house and get herself mentally prepared for the holiday. Honestly, everyone knew that it was actually for Niall, but they let Evie believe the story that she made up.
When Evie was fighting him and his jetlag, she suggested places to go like the zoo or Universal Studios or whatever he wanted to head off too. Before their conversation had ended, Niall had agreed to Disney instead. That way they weren’t going to be bombarded by people wanting photos or gossip.
That’s where Evie was this morning, standing at the entrance at Disney. Being that it was November, it was cooler outside and there weren’t that many lines to get into the park or even the rides.
Evie had to look dumb standing there, her legs crossed as she looked around looking for him. Maybe he was already there, but not noticed. Or he was walking up and she didn’t see. Hell, he could already be inside and didn’t tell her anything.
While that kept her distracted, she didn’t realize that someone was sneaking up on her. That had all changed though when Evie felt a pair of arms wrapping around her. Evie yelped, jumping away from the arms and turned to find Niall chuckling, not noticing the look of panic on her face until it finally clicked.
“That wasn’t funny! Don’t do that!” She smacked his shoulder.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Niall apologized, reaching out for her hand.
She had a slight pout on her face, still reeling into the surprise attack. Niall, while still holding onto her hand, pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arms around her for a hug.
It was the sense of comfort that reminded Evie that she had missed him. From the way he tugged her with his hand on hers, and the scent of his cologne that reminded her of the two nights they were together. It made the whole idea of him being back in Los Angeles feel much more real.
“Missed ya like crazy, Evie Burke.” Niall admitted, letting her out of the hug but still held onto her hand.
“Doubt it, you had tons of fans and your family. I bet you hardly thought of me.”
“That doesn’t mean I didn’t miss ya. With a huge timezone change, it was horrible. Plus, I rarely got to talk to you so.”
Together they walked into the park, blending in with the crowd. Niall made sure he had sunglasses on, covering his face from people as Evie showed her face. No one was going to recognize a girl they’ve only seen once with him.
And that was okay with her, because she didn’t want people to notice them.
“The real question, is if you missed me, Evie Burke.”
“Ouch, sweet girl. That actually hurt.”
“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t.” Evie spoke, looking over at him with a grin. Without her even seeing, Niall smirked.
They weren’t smart when it came to getting fast passes, so they had to wait in lines. They were, however, lucky because the lines weren’t long and they were able to move quickly.
One by one, they did each ride that came into their view on the one side of the park. The crowds were moving smoothly, Evie not having to apologize every time she elbowed someone. Niall would chuckle, hearing Evie apologize when she would.
Evie stopped at one point, earning a look from Niall in confusion. Her eyes wandered the place, looking around until she spotted a restaurant. Niall, still with confusion on his face, looked towards where she was looking at, and then understood what she meant. She was hungry. And not to his surprise, so was he.
The pair went to Harbour Gallery, grabbing some food while sitting near the back. It was by Niall’s request to sit back there, so that no one could see and look at them with wide eyes.
“Are you having fun, Evie Burke?”
“A lot of fun, actually.”
“Good. Told ya our next adventure would be fun.” Niall winked, causing Evie to let out a laugh.
“And what about the next one?” Evie asked.
“Would you like to go on another one? Even if it might be chilling at the house?”
“As long as I’m with you, anything is fun.”
“Guess i’ll have to figure something out then. Which reminds me, how did that meeting go?”
Evie wiped her face with the napkin, setting it aside before shrugging her shoulders like it was nothing.
“They liked every booklet I made. It was difficult for them to choose because I did an incredible job. Ultimately, they loved the winter booklet. Thank you again.” Evie smiled.
“You’re welcome… Was I right though? You had that frustrated look on your face? I would’ve killed to see it.”
“I did, just about cried had you not called.”
“I’m glad it all went well though, serves them right for choosing you and liking one of your options. They won’t be disappointed after what I’ve seen you pull off.”
Evie’s cheeks turned a few shades of pink, having to hide her face with her hands.
She wasn’t used to much compliments, the compliments of loving her stuff and that she was the best at what she did. Sure, she got them from her friends who helped her build the idea. But from Niall? That made her feel embarrassed - in a good way of course.
“Anyways, theres a few more things we need to do, sweet girl.”
She peeked through her fingers, blinking as she wondered what were the few other things they had to do. She knew of the teacups, because thats what she was excited for the most. Niall reached out for her hands, lowering them from her face and sat them down on the table, holding onto them and smiled at her.
“We need to find you some Mickey Ears and go on more rides.”
“I’ll get Mickey Ears if you get Mickey Ears.”
“Deal, now lets go Evie Burke.”
They left their spots, heading off to find more rides and whatever else they could get into. Along the way, Niall would stop and let Evie get in line to get her photo taken with whoever was walking around. She was such a child when it came to this, letting the inner child-like feelings come through. This was something she hardly got to express, but being in Disney of all places made her feel at peace.
She returned back to him, kissing his cheek as they went on. Evie had looked high and low for a shop that sold the Mickey Ears. When she did, she nudged her shoulder and pointed in the direction of the shop (“Evie Burke, hasn’t your mum ever told you not to point”).
Entering the shop, Niall found simple black pair, nothing with a bow on it or nothing too ridiculous looking. Evie, took her time looking at each one, playing eeny meeny miny moe to choose the right one.
In all honesty, Niall found this to be cute. He imagined this is what she looked like when she worked, playing the choosing game, the one to figure out what she liked more. The determination on her face was telling him that this wasn’t the first time she had that look.
“Okay, do you like this one? Or do you like this one?” Evie held up two different ones; one was an Alice in Wonderland themed as the other was the official Mickey Ears, but with sequins on the ears and the bow.
“If you’re trying to hint for the teacups, then the Alice… but, if we’re considering that I’ve got plain ears here, get the shiny one.”
Niall paid for them both, and helped Evie get her ears on straight. He laughed at the face she made, giving a short nod before continuing off on their day.
“You’ve got some fans eyeballing you.” Evie whispered.
“Theres some girls over there with their phones out, and one looks like they’re about to cry. Look.” Evie made a motion for Niall to look in the direction she was looking at.
Niall looked in the direction, making it seem like he was actually looking around the place with his eyes. He could see what Evie was on about, letting out a sigh before he looked at her.
“No, more like you got busted. You can go talk to them if you’d like. The line for the teacups is a bit long, so you know where to find me.” Evie squeezed his hand before she let go, heading off towards the teacups.
Evie pulled out her phone from her pocket, checking the time. She wasn’t the one for social media -aside from Instagram, so she didn’t have much of the updates to see. However, she did check her email for clients or if work needed her.
As fast as she checked her phone, she placed it back into her pocket. She looked around, spotting Niall walking back towards her, a small grin appearing out of his that had to be because he found her.
“So, how was that meeting thing?”
“Asked if you were the girl I was with weeks ago and if this was a date.”
“What did you say?” Evie asked, biting down her lip.
“Said yes to both. I asked them though to not post anything until tomorrow.”
Evie turned that nervous look on her face to a smile. She felt better knowing that he was considering this as a date and he asked to not post anything, for the fear he’d get bombarded some more.
They spent the rest of the day doing different rides, from Evie screaming to Niall laughing at her. They stayed until it was after dark, watching the light show and everything glow throughout the park and in front of them. What Evie didn’t know, was that Niall had asked someone to get their photo taken from the behind, that way they couldn’t see their faces. Just as sneaky as Niall asked that, he got his phone back like nothing had happened.
“So, I know you don’t celebrate the holiday, but on the 24th would you like to come over for dinner?”
“Isn’t that a family thing? A family dinner thing?”
“Well yeah, but I thought… you know, if you wanted some dinner and company for a night, you can come over.”
“No, Evie Burke. The offer is nice and all, but I don’t celebrate an American holiday that isn’t even a good holiday and its a family thing more or less.”
“Alright, thought I’d ask.” Evie went quiet shortly after that.
“Now, do you need a ride home?”
“Henry?” Niall asked, looking at her weirdly.
Evie walked Niall towards her car. He was proclaiming it was to make her safe knowing she got there, but, Evie wanted to prove she had a car in the first place. She leaned against her car, smiling at him for the longest of time.
“Goodnight, Evie Burke. Drive home safely, yeah?”
“Yes, Dad.” She giggled, causing Niall to shake his head.
“I’ll talk to you soon, alright?”
Niall stayed in his spot as Evie got into her car and he watched her drive away. Content that she was on her way home, Niall went to his own vehicle and drove back his place. His mind pondered on the thought of what she had asked before, if he wanted to come over for Thanksgiving. He scoffed then, shaking the thought out of his mind and traveled home, dead silence in the car.
Evie’s house was in complete ruckus.
All three of her guest bedrooms were in use, her two bathrooms were filled with other peoples toothbrushes and other things Evie didn’t want to know. Her refrigerator was completely stocked up with different foods and drinks, and her drive way was completely packed. But most importantly, her mind has gone off its chain.
Her mom and dad were in one room, Dan and Tori were in one room, her grandparents were in the last guest bedroom and Mitch was on the couch. Ginny was in Evie’s room, luckily. And since everyone had came over, Ginny had stayed hidden, despite Evie calling her name.
At night, Evie, her brothers and Tori would go outside in her backyard and play volleyball while her parents and grandparents sat by the firepit. This was their fun for the holiday, and each of them complained about Britt not being there. And late at night, it was always Evie and Mitch talking about everything, because everyone else had that “im going to bed at 8 PM feel”.
No one had brought up Evie being in the news. She had taken that as a sign that no one noticed or even cared. The anxiety over having to explain that was out the window.
With her family, Evie was able to let go and act silly. Like she was with Niall at Disney, she was able to be childlike and bring out that sassy Evie like when she was younger. There was even one point that Mitch and her went to the store just to buy onesies and wear them. If she was being honest, Mitch was her favorite brother, because he was only a year older than her.
“Evie, enlighten me on something.”
“Yeah, Mitch?” She looked up from her phone, raising an eyebrow at him.
“I wasn’t going to bring this up around family, since we’re here for another four days, but what’s with that guy you’ve been seen with?”
“Just someone I’ve been seeing. No big deal.” It was, very much a big deal.
“He’s famous, from that boyband and he’s gone solo. It’s a big deal, Evie.” Mitch shrugged his shoulders.
“Just to know what’s going on.”
“Nothing, we’re just… seeing each other.” Evie made sure her voice was serious.
“Is he your boyfriend? C’mon, Evie, we havent talked like this in forever.” Mitch was pleading.
“No, and you’re sounding like my coworker, Helena. Why are we discussing me, anyways? What about you?”
“Oh no, don’t change the subject. I’m not in a relationship with a famous person.” Evie glared at him, to which he started laughing.
“So, when do we get to see him?”
“Never.” Evie crossed her arms.
“Oh come on. Not even for a hey?”
“No, now if you don’t mind, I’m going to bed. We’ve got a long day tomorrow and I’m not going to get yelled at for being cranky.”
Evie got up from the couch, smiling widely at her brother before chucking a pillow at him. After that, she made a mad dash towards her room, closing the door so she wasn’t in the attack zone.
“C’mon Ginny, time for bed.”
The cat climbed her way onto Evie’s bed and onto the pillow that was for her. With a sigh, Evie got into her bed, shut the light off and went to bed.
But by the morning, Evie was already hearing people scramble in the kitchen. She got up from the bed and made her way towards her bathroom, and from there into the kitchen. Everyone was in there, eating their breakfast and trying to get ahold of Britt.
Evie made herself a cup of coffee and sat moved around to make some toast. As much as she loved her spacious house, people seemed to cram into the kitchen and her dining room.
“Calm down, you guys, she could be in class.” Evie muttered, rolling her eyes.
“How would you know?” Her dad asked, turning to look at her.
“The Spanish doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving, Dad.”
“Someone’s chipper this morning.”
Evie rolled her eyes again, spreading the jam on her toast. She watched as everyone gave up on calling Britt, hoping that she’d call them later instead. One by one, Evie watched as they trailed to her living room, turning on the TV and gone straight away to football as some went to change. All of them had decided to not dress up, but to be more laid back and casual since they weren’t trying to impress anyone. That even meant Evie, changing into jeans and a t-shirt.
As the day dragged on with more football and snacks, Evie and the rest of the women stayed in the kitchen. Between the four of them, they were bustling around to make everything ready for dinner.
Her dad helped out with the turkey, because Evie refused to touch it (“Evie… its already dead… its not going to squawk at you.”).
“Mitch, can you help me set up the table, I’m going to stab myself at this rate of carrying all the knives.”
“That isn’t the answer to everything, Evie.” Mitch mocked, coming over to Evie to take the knives.
“And what is the answer to everything?” Evie asked, raising an eyebrow.
“What we talked about last night.” She glared as he smirked right at her.
“Never going to happen, Mitch.” Evie scowled while placing the plates on the table, Mitch following suit with the knives.
“You two are acting like you’re four and five again.” Dan leaned against the counter, watching the two of them.
“You’re acting like you’re eight again, being bossy as usual.” Mitch shot.
“Oldest is the bossiest, remember?” Dan teased.
“Here goes his ego.” Evie remarked, smirking at her brother.
“Watch it, Evie.” Dan warned as Evie stuck her tongue out.
“Calm down, you three. It’s time for dinner.”
“Yes, Mom.” All three of them said in unison.
Everyone bustled into Evie’s kitchen then, fighting over seats until they settled. One by one, Evie started bringing the food onto the table, giggling as her mom swatted everyone’s hands away. As soon as everything sat on the table and Evie sat in her seat to say Grace, her door knocked. Evie sighed as everyone questioned it.
“It’s probably Ms. Newby bringing over something for us. Hang on.”
The girl got up from her seat, setting the napkin down on the table and headed to the door.
“Hang on, Ms. Newby, I’m coming.” Evie yelled as she opened the door to not finding Ms. Newby, but Niall instead.
“No…. I’m not. That’s your neighbor, isn’t she?” Evie only nodded her head.
“What are you doing here? Not that its a bad thing, I … remember you saying no.”
“I did say no. But, I thought about it… You said something about free meal and company, so I just… gave in I guess.” Niall shrugged his shoulders.
“You could’ve told me, I could’ve gotten a plate ready for you… whats that your holding?”
“Uh, this is Toffee Pudding and Guinness because I know you probably have shit beer. So, is it okay to join you, then?”
Evie smiled then, moving out of the way for him to enter into the house. Niall followed behind her as she made her way to the kitchen to join everyone again.
“So… I… uh.. I invited Niall a couple of days ago to join us, and he agreed to accompany us. Family, this is Niall and Niall, this is family. Except Britt isn’t here, because -”
“She’s in Spain, I remember you saying that.”
Evie smiled, biting down on her lip before jumping onto her next thought.
“Okay, I’ll take those from ya and follow me to get a plate.” Evie took everything from Niall and set it on her counter, him following behind her as she reached out for a plate. From a side glance, Evie looked over at Niall and smiled, only for him to grin back at her.
“Alright alright, I have a big enough table for people to make extra space, no one bites here.” Evie brought the extra chair over, sitting it down next to hers. From a glance up, she could see the smirk growing on Mitch’s face, making Evie turn away quickly despite him seeing the rose color on her cheeks growing.
“Alright Dad, you can say Grace.” Evie looked over at her dad, a little nod thrown at him. Her Dad stood up, looking around at everyone before giving his own short nod.
Niall looked over at Evie, raising an eyebrow at her. Evie laughed, looking on as plates started flying past them.
“Dad’s never been the Grace type. Just always said it, really. But there’s turkey, mash, cranberry sauce, stuffing, rolls, corn, green bean casserole and whatever is for dessert on the counter. Grab and go.”
“Did you make any of this?”
“The cranberry sauce and the stuffing. Mom did the mash and casserole and gran did the desserts.”
“Don’t try it, she’s not the best.” Mitch teased.
“Yeah? And what did you make here? Your plate thats what you made.” Evie shot back, making her own plate.
One by one, each dish passed and each of them were eating. Some even went back for seconds. She couldn’t help the seconds that she’d glance at Mitch and he’d keep smirking at her, and she flipped him off a couple of times.
“Can I ask how you met Evie? Not that its our business or anything, but I’m curious.”
Evie’s eyes turned wide and she tried to hide her face as Niall started laughing. Wiping whatever remaining crumbs off his face, Niall looked over at Evie, a cocky grin forming on his face.
“Yeah, Evie Burke, how did I meet you?”
“I bumped into him… with a glass of wine… and ruined the suit.”
“How do you bump into someone, Evie?”
“By drinking not only yours, but Helena’s white wine. It wasn’t my proudest moment.” Evie sighed.
Evie got up from her seat then, starting to take some of the bigger dishes off of the table. Tori had helped her while her mom and gran helped set up the dessert with little plates on if anyone wanted something. Everyone dispersed after that, leaving Evie in the kitchen and Niall sitting on the counter.
“Is this how you normally spend after dinner?”
“What? Doing dishes while everyone else does their own thing? Most times, but it’s my place so I feel like I should clean up.” Evie spoke, turning to the side and looked at him.
“Did you want to try a bite of this? I called my mum all the way from Ireland for this recipe and the first thing she says is ‘Are ya tryin to impress a girl’.” Niall handed a spoonful of the dessert towards her, letting her take a bite.
“Tell your mom i’m impressed.” Evie laughed.
“But really, you guys do this sort of thing? Just sit for dinner and then disperse?”
“The boys and Tori do football, my mom and gran sit in the dining room and talk. Normally, Britt and I are outside, but since she isn’t here, I’m stuck being a lost girl.”
Evie wiped her hands off then, setting the towel down by the sink and moved closer towards him, jumping her own way to sit on the counter next to him.
“So.. does this count as our next adventure?” Evie asked.
“It does, actually. Guess i’m back onto the drawing board.”
“Did you wanna borrow one of mine? I have six of them, five at work and one here in case I bring work home.”
“Funny, sweet girl, funny.”
Evie and Niall stayed in the kitchen for a little while longer, talking about aimless stuff that was brought up. Evie had warned him not to plan anything for December. That this was the worst month at her job with all those Christmas events. Niall had made a face, agreeing to the terms since he had his own busy schedule in December before heading home for the holidays.
Her family had bid Niall a goodnight and that it was nice to meet him. Evie had walked him outside to his car, leaning against it with her arms folded and a smile on her face.
“I’m really happy you came tonight… You didn’t have too and yet.”
“Your family gave me some good laughs.” She made a face and he laughed, reaching out for her hands.
His hands moved from her hands towards her waist as he brought her closer to him. He turned the both of them so that he was leaning onto the car and she was still wrapped up by him.
This silence was likeable. Both of them made faces at each other, earning laughter from both of them. This had to be Evie’s favorite sound, his laugh. She wondered if he’d say the same about her, and knowing him, it was.
What Evie didn’t realize was that both of them were getting closer, so much that their breaths were shorter and their noses were ready to touch. Niall was the one to close the gap, going in for the kiss. It wasn’t sloppy or wet, but dry and had the mixture of a guinness and toffee taste. Evie’s arms wrapped around his neck, resting on his shoulders with his hands still on her waist. It wasn’t a long kiss, but it also wasn’t a short kiss either.
Evie was the one to pull back, shades of pink forming on her cheeks. She looked away for a few seconds, trying to regain her composure and her breathing. When she looked back at him, he had a small smile on his face.
“I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay.” Evie breathed, nodding her head at the same time.
The place that Niall was holding onto felt bare once he let go. Her eyes watched as he got into his car and he left. She stood outside for a few minutes, letting her mind figure out what the fuck had happened.
When Evie went back into the house, she was greeted by Mitch with a smirk on his face.
“Wasn’t ever going to meet him?”
Evie moved past him, sitting on the couch with everyone else. Her facial expression said she was paying attention, but her mind was somewhere in the clouds.
