Rules: Write the first ten songs that come up on shuffle (no skipping!) and quote your favorite lyric from each song, then tag 10 people. i was tagged by @flummoxedfics (thanks Erica ily and imy) <b>one - get stoned // hinder</b> <i> let's go home and get stoned, we could end up making love instead of misery go home and get stoned, because the sex is so much better when you're mad at me <b>two - rumor has it // adele</b> <i>she she ain't real, she ain't gonna be able to love you like i will she is a stranger, you and i have history or don't you remember? sure she's got it all, but baby is that really what you want? <b>three - safety pin // 5 seconds summer</b> <i>maybe this time, oh but this time, two wrongs make it right we'll safety pin the pieces of our broken hearts back together patching up all the holes until we both feel much better</i> <b>four - castle // halsey</b> <i>oh, all of these minutes passing, sick of feeling used if you wanna break these walls down, you're gonna get bruised</i> <b>five - change your ticket // one direction</b> <i>don't play innocent i knew what you meant when you said you'd come over aren't we way past that? playing hard to get. we did that when we were younger</i> <b>six - the mighty fall // fall out boy feat. big sean</b> <i>yeah, hello? yeah, I know you said not to call unless im dying well im driving and I can't stop staring at my eyelids but even though my eyes closed, I still see you i just hope when you see me im not see through</i> <b> seven - beat it // sean kingston ft. chris brown & whiz khalifa <b> eight - my baby // zendaya</b> <i>whose in our business? everybody. but it's alright cause im still living, like 2 chainz baby 'I'm different' come here now, let me tell you a little something else, something you might not know about me I don't play no games, baby listen, baby if you love me then come show me <b>nine - d.d. // the weeknd</b> <i>she said i have to go home, cause im real tired you see but i hate sleeping alone, why don't you come with me? i said my baby's at home, she's probably worried tonight i didn't call on the phone to say that im alright diana walked up to me, said 'i'm all yours tonight' at that I ran to the phone sayin’ baby, I’m alright I said unlock the door, because I forgot the key she said he’s not coming back, because he’s sleeping with me</i> <b>ten - break up with him // old dominion</b> <i>hey girl, what's up? i know it's late, but i know you'd pick it up. nah, i ain't drunk. okay maybe I do have a little buzz but, that song came on and I thought what harm could come from one little call?</i> i tag @thatblondebitchfics @whisperedexplosions and @booksncoffee and anyone who else wants to do this!!
Niall Horan knew that everyone liked him, except for Olivia Parker, who hated him more than she hated cold coffee, more than she hated waking up early in the morning and most of all, she hated him more than she had ever hated anyone that walked on this planet earth.
The story of trying to make something that’s almost impossible from happening.
word count: 4846
warnings: language, minor sexual content
main pairing: Niall/OFC
i.
There were a number of good reasons why everyone that had gotten the chance to know him called him a little ray of sunshine. One of those reasons was, of course, because of his golden hair that was the colour of the bright sun. Another reason was because of his larger than life personality that attracted people like a moth to a flame.
If you asked anyone, they would say that it was impossible to hate Niall, for his smile was contagious and his laughter was therapeutic. Some would also go to such extent for the boy and say that he lighted up a room when he walked in and he made everything better when he’s around.
And the aforementioned boy, Niall Horan knew that. Knew that everyone around liked him, knew that no one could hate him regardless how much of a jerk he could be sometimes; in his defence, he was merely being honest – one of the many qualities of himself that he was proud of, if he had to be honest – and he wasn’t afraid to say out loud what he really felt or what he had in his mind.
Niall Horan knew that everyone liked him. Some even loved him.
But that’s where he was wrong.
Out of all those people, Olivia Parker was the one person who had the complete opposite thoughts about him despite the fact that she hardly knew him. If it weren’t because of the universe punishing her for something that she did in the past and putting her in the same class as Niall, she wouldn’t have known the boy. Wouldn’t have known that he was a jerk that couldn’t keep his mouth shut even if his life depended on it.
Least to say, Olivia hated him more than she hated cold coffee, more than she hated waking up early in the morning and most of all, she hated him more than she had ever hated anyone that walked on this planet earth.
Therefore, her face instantly contorted into one that displayed utter disgust as soon as her eyes landed on that boy who had just walked into the restaurant, blue eyes looking lost as they wandered around the rather big and crowded place. The moment their eyes met one another and the corners of his lips were pulled upwards, she knew that she should’ve listened to her instinct, should’ve just stayed at home instead of allowing her flatmate, Emma to drag her ass out on a double date which she promised would be a great one unlike the ones that she’d dragged her to before.
“Tell me he’s not my date,” Olivia muttered under her breath, glaring at Emma as she not so patiently waited for her friend to tell her what she really wanted to hear. Needed to hear.
Emma’s big brown eyes darted from Olivia to the boy that was making his way to their table and she chewed on her bottom lip as she tried to think of something to say. But she didn’t have to, for her date decided to take it upon him to introduce the two girls with him to the boy that Olivia very much disliked.
“Olivia, this is Niall,” Emma’s date said, a huge smirk adorning his lips as though he knew something that no one in the room knew, “Niall, this is Olivia.”
“Fuck me,” the boy whistled quietly as a knowing smirk slowly took over his feature, the skin around his eyes crinkling in amusement when Olivia rolled her eyes at him. He ran his fingers through his golden hair, shaking his head at the girl who was glaring at him. “Hi, Ollie.”
“It’s Olivia,” she hissed at him, eyes narrowing so quickly. If there was another thing that she hated so much apart from the boy grinning at her, it was the nickname Ollie. There was no definite reason as to why she hated it, she just did, much like the way she hated the boy standing in front of her right now.
The boy – Niall – simply nodded his head as he occupied the only empty spot left which was, unfortunately, next to Olivia who wanted so badly to wipe the smirk off of his stupid, stupid face since the second she saw him.
Whilst Emma and her date – Liam – began to get to know each other well over the meal they ordered earlier, Olivia was left with nothing to do but to poke at her vegetables. She let out a huff every five seconds to let her friend know that she was more than ready to leave and each time she did that, Niall would give her a look and Emma would ignore her as though she didn’t hear the huff.
She did; she just refused to acknowledge it.
The sound of the spoon clanking against the plate caught Olivia’s attention and the boy smirked as it was in his intention to make her look at him, “So, Ollie-“
“-Olivia-”
“-Ollie,” he repeated, dropping his left eyelid into a wink and Olivia let out a grunt, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “Have you always been this grumpy?”
Brows furrowing, she shot a glare at Niall and if the look she was giving at the moment could kill, she was certain that he would be bleeding on the floor by now. But it couldn’t and now she was having a staring competition with the golden haired boy. “’m not grumpy.”
“Mhmm,” he nodded half-heartedly whilst his bottom lip jutted out into a faux pout. Olivia made a mistake by staring at it a beat longer because with the smirk returning now, she was 100% positive that he thought she must have been thinking about his lips. It didn’t help that she quickly looked away, colours blooming her cheeks at the thought of being caught staring at his rather thin lips. “So, Ollie, are you always grumpy?”
She pursed her lips together, “Stop calling me Ollie.”
“Never.”
ii.
Olivia didn’t give the stupid boy with the golden hair another thought until Wednesday eventually came and she had to go to the class where both her and Niall shared the same professor.
Though normally she didn’t pay any attention to the boy whenever she came into the class, today was not one of those days. Not when he was sitting in her seat, his feet up on the chair in front of him, his blue eyes fixed on the book he was reading. She’d always seen him with a book – if he wasn’t with his friends, that is – and if she didn’t know him better, she’d say he’s a bookworm. Or a nerd.
But he was neither of those.
Looking at the boy sitting in her seat, it seemed to her that he was completely engrossed in the story, for he didn’t even realise that someone was looming over him, shooting daggers at the top of his head.
Hence, Olivia decided to clear her throat to the get the boy’s attention and as if he knew it was her who did so, he looked up with a friendly smile curved on his lips. The friendly smile that she didn’t like at all.
“’ello, Ollie,” he greeted, voice a little rasp but overall, cheery – too cheery – and annoying. Olivia always found herself cringing whenever he opened his mouth to speak because she hated his voice, hated the Irish lilt that accompanied each of his words. “How can I help ya this mornin’?”
Pointing at the seat he was sitting on, Olivia frowned, “This is my seat.”
He closed the book and looked at the back of the chair, “I don’t see your name on this chair, petal.”
“Don’t be smart. You know I always sit here.”
“You do?” He kinked an eyebrow at her, to which she replied with a scoff.
“Get up,” she snapped, tapping her foot against the floor as she waited for him to get up and find another seat. But luck wasn’t on her side this morning – she had known this since the moment her hair straightener refused to work, leaving her with the option of pulling her hair into a ponytail – because instead of doing exactly what he was told to do, Niall remain seated on the chair. Then, he completely disregarded Olivia who was still glaring at him by opening the book he was holding earlier and continued reading it.
Furious that the boy pretended as if she wasn’t standing in front of him, Olivia opened her mouth to throw a string of expletives his way, but the professor walked in and greeted the two of them as he made his way to the front of the class. He gave Olivia a look that told her to sit down before he started the lecture but she wouldn’t – refused to – do so unless she got her seat.
“Get up,” she told him once more, but this time with more urgency.
“Can’t do that, petal,” he shook his head and to Olivia Parker, that was the last straw. Not only was he sitting on her seat, he was also ignoring her, making her look like a fool as she stood in front of him, waiting for him to do something that he didn’t want to do.
Without thinking twice and without giving anyone any warning, Olivia put her bag down on the floor and sat on his lap, surprising him with her unexpected and bold move. He squirmed under her, a quiet grunt leaving his lips and though she felt uncomfortable, she needed her seat and she didn’t care if she had to sit on him or if he thought that she was heavy. Or if she was making him uncomfortable too.
This was the only way she could think of to mark her territory. To let him know that he should never ever sit here again.
“Jesus what’re ya doing?” He asked and upon hearing his strained voice, a smirk sketched her lips.
Glancing through her shoulder, she looked at Niall who had a frown fixed on his forehead to match the tension she – and he – could feel building up between the two of them. “Sitting on my seat?”
The boy kinked an eyebrow at her, a trace of smug grin gracing his peachy thin lips before he opened them to speak, “So, my lap’s your seat now, eh? Is it more comfortable, petal?”
Jaw dropped open, she gave him the bird. Granted, she didn’t make a move to another seat because she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of winning that easily.
“S’true, yeah?”
“Sod off.”
Fortunately for Olivia, the golden haired boy relented and told her to get up so he could change his seat but unfortunately for Olivia, he didn’t move much further. Out of all the empty chairs that existed in the lecture hall that he could choose from, he decided to occupy the seat next to her that no one had ever occupied before.
Ignoring him wouldn’t be a problem for Olivia, but when he couldn’t keep his mouth shut – repeating every word the professor spoke up front and answering every question being asked in class – she found it difficult to do so. Especially when he kept brushing his arm against hers whenever he moved and each time she looked up at him to scowl, a small smirk would touch his lips, making it almost impossible to ignore him.
In fact, she couldn’t ignore him at all or rather, the way goose bumps would form on her skin when his skin brushed against hers which reminded her why she preferred to sit alone.
Nevertheless, she managed to do so once the professor announced that the class was over and that they were free to leave. Olivia quickly gathered her things and headed straight to the exit, ignoring every word and question that came out of his mouth, following her even when she was already out of his sight.
iii.
Friday night meant a night out with Emma – and sometimes with some girls or guys that Emma chose to take with her – to the pub ten minutes away from their flat. It was also the one night Olivia looked forward to every week, for it was the night where she got to drink without constraint.
Tonight, she didn’t have to worry about the stack of assignments waiting for her back at her flat, or the nagging voice inside of her head that was always telling her to study. She didn’t have to worry about anything because tonight, she was free.
And that explained the huge smile she had fixed on her face since she returned home from her last lecture of the week. Whilst Emma made her way to the bar to get their usual drinks, Olivia claimed a spot at the empty booth and texted her friend about it.
Looking around the pub, she noticed that she could name the familiar faces that she often saw on a Friday night – some of them were students from the university she went to whereas some of them were regulars. Although both Olivia and Emma weren’t much of a drinker, they were considered as the regulars too and because of that, Emma returned to their booth with four shots glasses that were on the house.
She would’ve been ecstatic about it had she not seen another two people trailing behind her friend. Two people whom she’d never seen coming here before and whom she’d rather not see at all tonight.
“Shit,” escaped her lips automatically at the sight of those two boys and she felt her face fell when the one boy whom she wished hadn’t come to ruin her night caught her eyes. Despite the dim lights, the blue of his eyes was still as bright and Olivia hated that. Hated how beautiful his eyes were because someone as shitty as him didn’t deserve those eyes.
“Hi, Ollie,” he smirked at her, sliding into the booth until the side of his body was pressed up against her side.
Instead of saying something to the boy, Olivia turned to Emma and quirked an eyebrow at her, giving her a look that only she could understand. The girl smiled sheepishly and shrugged before she slid into the booth, followed by her boyfriend – they decided to make it official about a week ago – and pushed the shot glass to Olivia.
“So, what’re we celebrating?” Niall asked as he took the shot glass once it was slid his way and inspected it as if he’d never seen or drank one. That would be impossible, of course, because one: he didn’t seem like someone who didn’t drink everyday and two: he’s Irish. Olivia was pretty sure he could tolerate alcohol better than the three of them.
“My misfortune,” Olivia muttered under her breath and beside her, the boy chuckled, his body vibrating as he tried to contain the laughter that was bubbling up inside of him because of course what she said didn’t go unnoticed by him. And Niall being Niall, it was difficult for him to hold back the laughter. Therefore, peals of laughter escaped his throat and both Emma and Liam turned to look at him, brows furrowing in confusion.
“Everything alright, mate?” Liam questioned, eyes darting from his friend to Olivia who shrugged her shoulders, for much like everyone she had no clue as to why he suddenly laughed.
“Yeh,” the boy answered though the skin around his eyes was still crinkling and he was still smiling as though someone had just told him a joke. Ignoring the questioning looks he was receiving, he raised the shot glass, eyes moving around the booth, “Here’s to a good night.”
Even though no one believed him in the first place – because he was shit at lying, Olivia noticed – they chose to raise their shot glasses and throw their heads back as they down the clear liquid in one gulp.
Whilst Emma and Liam were relishing the burning sensation that they felt hitting the back of their throats, Niall turned to the girl sitting beside her, a telling smile curving his lips. “That one was for my fortune.”
Instead of asking him what he meant, Olivia simply scoffed and rolled her eyes, choosing to ignore him like she always did.
iv.
This afternoon marked the fifth time Olivia walked in on Emma and Liam in the midst of undressing each other on the couch in the living room and she was beginning to think that perhaps she needed to move out if she didn’t want to keep walking in on them. Emma, of course, didn’t approve of that decision. Said Olivia just happened to have a bad timing.
“Jesus Christ, again?” Olivia groaned as she covered her eyes with her hand, shoulders curving forward in exhaustion.
After the 2 hours group discussion she had at the library earlier, she was worn out and all she needed was a one-hour nap on her comfy bed before her next class started. But since luck wasn’t on her side – it hadn’t been on her side since Emma started dating Liam – it seemed that her plan was thrown out the window. It seemed like the only option she had was to return to the campus and take a nap in the library instead.
Sure she could sleep in her room but she’d rather not hear the sound of them moaning each other’s names the entire time she was napping. She had made the mistake of staying in her room before whilst they were having sex in the room next to hers and she could possibly say that it was the worst evening of her life. She didn’t think she’d want to go through that again.
“Sorry,” Emma apologised sheepishly as she ran her fingers through her dishevelled hair and picked up a pillow to cover her exposed chest.
“Here,” Liam said next as he fished out a set of keys from his pocket and threw it to Olivia who fortunately was a good catcher. “Go to my flat, it’s empty.”
“You sure?” Olivia questioned, kinking an eyebrow at the boy who wasn’t wearing a shirt anymore. By the third time she caught them, Olivia had grown immune to the sight ahead of her. “Is it really empty?”
A nod of his head was all the confirmation she needed before she turned around and walked out of her flat, making sure to lock the front door before she left. She couldn’t risk anyone else walking in on them and having to experience what she did.
The walk to Liam’s flat took about only five minutes and she was glad it didn’t take longer than that because her eyes were starting to droop, making them watery and she just really needed that nap. She was positive that she would’ve dropped on the ground if she didn’t get a nap. Therefore, a sigh of relief escaped Olivia’s lips when she stepped inside Liam’s rather warm flat and when her eyes caught sight of a comfortable looking couch.
Had she not heard movements coming from her left – which was from the kitchen – her head would’ve found the pillow already but that wasn’t what happened. Instead, panic was taking over her as she began to realise that perhaps she wasn’t alone after all.
Numerous possibilities ran through her mind, but there were only two possibilities that made sense to her: Liam lied to her about this flat being empty or she got into the wrong flat. And she wasn’t sure which one’s better.
Taking off her jacket and placing it on the back of the couch, Olivia cautiously made her way to the source of the sound, holding a pepper spray up as a defence. Luckily, she didn’t have to harm anyone because as she got to the kitchen, instead of seeing of someone that could possibly murder her, she saw someone that she wanted to murder.
Niall bloody Horan.
Stark naked in the middle of the kitchen with a sandwich in one hand and a bottle of beer on the other.
Upon hearing someone walking into the kitchen, his eyes widened, whereas his mouth formed an ‘o’ shape. Since his hands were fully occupied, he had no other option than to turn around and let her eyes drifted to his bare arse instead of his junk.
“Jesus fucking Christ!” Olivia exclaimed as she turned around as quickly as she possibly could, screwing her eyes shut whilst she tried to will the image of naked Niall Horan to leave her mind. “What the hell?!”
Right now, she wasn’t sure if the image of Liam and Emma undressing each other was worse than the image she currently had in her mind. What she was sure of, she didn’t like either of them.
“You!” He exclaimed back, voice slightly rasp, for he just woke up from his sleep. Lucky bastard got to sleep. “What the hell are you doing in my flat?!”
“Fuck,” was all she could say as realisation dawned on her. She should’ve known that Liam lived with Niall. In fact, Emma might or might not have mentioned this before in their conversation but Olivia had chosen to disregard that piece of information because why would she care about where or with whom Liam was living with. “Liam told me to come here.”
“Why?”
His accusative tone somewhat angered Olivia and thus, she glared at his rather glorious back, arms crossed in front of her chest. “Because he’s in my flat.”
“That bastard,” he chuckled, shaking his head as he took a sip of his beer. “No wonder he’s been fucking happy this lately.”
“’Cos he’s been laid.”
“Mhmm,” Niall nodded his head in agreement. Clearing his throat, he then glanced through his shoulder, “Could you maybe, uhm, close your eyes or summat? I need to get to my room so I could put something on.”
“Oh, uhm, okay,” Olivia stammered before she covered her eyes with both of her free hands, causing Niall to chuckle as he looked at her, walking past her to get to his room.
Once she heard the sound of the door being closed, she let out a heavy, weighted breath and opened her eyes before she made her way to the comfortable looking couch. Much to her surprise, the flat wasn’t as messy as she thought it would be. As a matter of fact, it was quite tidy except for the unwashed cups and plates in the sink. Other than that, the place was most likely as tidy as hers and Emma’s.
“You can sleep in my room if ya want,” his voice suddenly broke the silence in the flat, startling her and Olivia looked up to see him standing by his door, arms crossed in front of his chest. This time, luckily for her, he was wearing a pair of grey joggers and a white t-shirt. Though he was fully dressed at the moment, she still couldn’t get the image of him standing stark naked in front of her out of her bloody mind.
And she was beginning to think that he knew that too because a smirk tugged at the corners of his lips as he made his way to the couch, taking a seat next to her and making sure that his knee brushed against her. Perhaps it was the exhaustion or perhaps it was the close proximity, but Olivia could feel her cheeks warming up despite the goose bumps that erupted across her skin.
With him being so close to her, she could feel warmth radiating from his body and spreading to her and she could smell him, which was the scent of lemon, fresh mint and something that she couldn’t quite decipher. The smell was so intoxicating, so much so that her eyes almost drooped whilst she tried to determine what that scent was.
“You alright, Ollie?” He asked, quirking his eyebrows at the girl sitting next to him who was gradually getting closer to him.
She opened her mouth to answer his question, only to close it a second later because all of sudden, her throat was dry. It was as though she had just chucked a box of chalks.
Seeing that the girl was having trouble speaking, he took it upon him to speak. “Did you notice something, Ollie?”
“That you always call me Ollie even if I told you not to?”
“No, not that,” he answered rather seriously as he shook his head.
“Then?”
He rubbed his palms together, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth, chewing on it before he eventually started speaking again. “We always end up being stuck with each other when Liam and Emma are together. Don’t you think that’s something?”
Olivia didn’t see this coming. She hadn’t expected him to address this matter. Of course she noticed that she and Niall always ended up being each other’s company whenever Liam and Emma dragged them to some of their dates. That being said, she still didn’t think Niall would notice it.
“Yeah,” she nodded, eyes scanning his face that was void of emotions at the moment. “But what about it?”
“I don’t know,” he shrugged, suddenly looking so confused and lost as he ran his long fingers – she’d just noticed that few seconds ago – through his slightly wet hair. “I just think that it should, erm, mean something, yknow?”
Olivia couldn’t believe it, couldn’t believe that she had just made Niall Horan nervous. The one person she didn’t think was capable of feeling nervous or anything other than confident.
“Maybe,” she found herself saying and Niall’s blue eyes widened twice their sizes, as he hadn’t expected her to agree with him. She’d never agreed to whatever he had to say, after all. Especially in their class. “But I still don’t like you though.”
He scoffed. “Who says I like you?”
Despite the words leaving their lips, both Niall and Olivia were inching closer and closer to each other. It wasn’t until there was only an inch left between their faces that Olivia could make out the scent she thought was so intoxicating.
It was his scent.
“I really, really don’t like you,” Olivia whispered next, her eyes drifting down to his tongue that was poking out from his lips. She watched as he ran his tongue over his lips, wetting them and she found it difficult to avert her gaze to somewhere else. Bloody tongue. “Especially right now.”
“I know,” he said with a nod of his head whilst his eyes also drifted down to her slightly agape lips.
And just like before, Olivia blamed her exhaustion for the way she was acting at the moment but she also knew that this was bound to happen. Knew that the reason why Emma and Liam had been dragging them out to their dates was to get them together. She’d overheard their conversation before and had chosen to brush it off because it was a ridiculous idea trying to get two people who hated each other together.
But it wasn’t.
“What’d you do if I kiss you right now?” His breathy voice made it impossible for Olivia to reply; therefore she chose to shrug her shoulder. “Good, because I’m going to kiss you-“
Before he could finish his sentence, Olivia erased the distance between them by pressing her lips against his, catching him off guard by her bold move. Nonetheless, almost immediately, his hand found her shoulder and he gently pushed her backwards until her back met the pillow that was on the couch and until he was on top of her without taking his lips off of hers.
He kissed her like he might never do it again and it made Olivia’s head spun. She felt weightless as he deepened the kiss and she wound her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her. Her body felt like it was on fire with each touch of his mouth on hers and his hands running the length of her body sent tingles through her. He pulled back long enough to bend down and begin to kiss her neck, whispering words that neither of them could understand.
“Fucking finally,” a voice interrupted them and they didn’t have to turn around to know who was it that had just walked in on them. “Guess it worked then, huh?”
“Go away,” Niall groaned, throwing his head back in frustration due to the interruption.
“Jesus, fine, just wanna let you know that I won’t be coming home so,” the boy trailed off and shot a wink at Niall who then proceeded to giving his friend the middle finger.
Olivia looked at Niall who had colours blooming his cheeks and a grin appeared on her lips, “So, where were we?”
He kinked an eyebrow at her, “Do you still don’t like me?”
“Mhm,” she nodded her head as she made a move to wrap her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her, “Very much so.”
for: kate fixup-aheart
by: erica flummoxedfics
liam is trying to smoothly navigate married life. this party - and literally everything else - seems determined to make sure that doesn’t happen.
word count: 5,571
warnings: language
main pairing: liam/ofc
Mayhem. Absolute mayhem.
A bunny and a firefighter are having a contest to see who can down the most shots in the kitchen. Daenerys from Game of Thrones is wailing out the words to “Monster Mash” and dancing on the precariously shaking dining room table with Marilyn Monroe. And a very drunk Batman is turning up the volume of the music even further.
Wait - that last one’s actually Niall.
“Niall!” Liam weaves his way through the crowd in frantic desperation and grabs for BatNiall, but even though he’s trying to shout over the chorus of whatever mindless song is playing, his efforts are proving futile. Niall thankfully recognizes him and pulls him into a drunk hug, almost toppling both of them over onto the carpet.
“Liam, this is the best party ever,” Niall whispers into his ear gleefully. His words are slurred together. “We should have parties like this all the time.”
Liam untangles the two of them with a grimace. “Uh, no, no, we shouldn’t. Look, have you seen Renee? She’s gonna murder me when she sees all this.” Liam stops to contemplate this. Ree won’t just murder him. She’ll positively obliterate him. He makes a mental note to start removing sharp objects around the house before she gets back - if she’s not already back, that is. Oh, God.
“Would you stop worrying?” Niall throws his arm around Liam again - he’s an affectionate drunk, which would be fine if he didn’t stink of alcohol - and turns him to face the party. “Just live in the moment. Take in the beautiful sight of what you’ve created.”
Spider-Man stumbles past them, tripping over the couch and hollering some nonsense about “super Spidey powers.” Liam gulps.
This is not what he had planned for tonight.
+
Liam met her in the fall. The leaves were yellow and her hair was soft. He was walking to his first class of the day - he had fifteen minutes to spare and was taking in the beauty of the golden brown sheen of autumn, so he almost didn’t see her.
See, Renee’s from New York, and she’s since explained to Liam time and time again that New Yorkers have a certain way of walking. “We have places to go and deadlines to meet,” she’d insist, eyes wide and hand gestures aplenty. “All you people walk way too slow. You’ve gotta have a brisk pace”– here she’d snap her fingers twice to emphasize her point– “and for the love of God, stop swinging your arms everywhere. They’re just getting in everyone’s way.” (This would usually be the point where Liam would kiss her on the nose and tell her how cute she was when she got worked up.)
So Renee was taking her “brisk pace” to a socio lecture, and Liam was busy dawdling in front of the academic building, trying to decide if the leaves were more “crisp gold” or “butter yellow” and, well. You can probably guess what happened next.
Liam suddenly found himself on the steps with scraped elbows and someone else’s hair in his mouth, two hands that were not his digging into his hips.
He spat out the hair. Everything hurt. He glanced at the trees again in a daze, settling on “crisp gold.”
“God, would you watch where you’re going?” Her voice startled him, loud and unapologetic and American. The blonde girl pushed herself up with a huff and and checked her watch that was so large and heavy-looking, Liam was impressed she was able to lift her wrist. “Great, I’m never gonna make it now.”
Liam coughed, still sprawled on the concrete. “Er, sorry?”
She spared him a glance and blushed, seeming to realize her attitude. “Sorry,” she muttered. “Need help?”
He took the hand she offered and stood. The world spun in the wrong direction. Liam’s stomach clenched.
“Did I hit my head?” he murmured, but the words sounded slower than he intended.
“Yeah, think so.” She didn’t let go of his hand and pulled him along with her. “Come on. Let’s get you some help.”
As their hands remained intertwined, Liam thought briefly of his girlfriend Sandra, who would not be happy to see her boyfriend leaning on another girl. He shoved the thought away. It was giving him a headache, but then again, so did everything with Sandra.
“I’m Liam,” he told the girl instead. “The leaves are a crisp gold.”
She laughed. “Yeah, sure, buddy. I’m Renee.”
+
“Liam!” Liam turns to see a wide-eyed (and surprisingly sober) Louis wading through the crowd of costumed drunkards. When he finally gets to the other side, he’s breathing heavily and wiping a sheen of sweat off his lightning-scarred forehead.
“What’s up?” Liam asks, now that they can properly hear each other. Niall left him to his own devices a few minutes before, following after a scantily-clad police officer girl. “And why did you draw that on your face?” He gestures to the Sharpie scar.
“Walking in here was like parting the bloody Red Sea,” Louis quips, still catching his breath. “And, I mean, you didn’t tell me this was gonna be a costume party. I had to improvise.”
“But it’s not a costume party,” he moans. “That’s the whole problem.”
“I mean, all things considered, I’d say it’s a smashing success, mate.”
“All things considered?” Liam says. He’s still on edge after thinking about Renee turning up soon and seeing this whole mess.
“Right… we’ve got a bit of a situation.”
Liam’s about to hyperventilate.
“A situation? We don’t have time for a situation!” he hisses. Louis holds up his hands in protest. “We need to kick everyone out.”
“Yeah,” Louis replies vaguely, looking over Liam’s shoulder at something.
“What’s the situation?”
Louis grabs for Liam’s shoulders and turns him around to face the east wall of the house. Right before the staircase is a huge, gaping hole in the plaster. Louis grins sheepishly at Liam’s jaw drops.
“Harry and Zayn were joking around,” he tells Liam weakly. “Their roughhousing just got a bit… rough.”
“Oh my God.”
Liam’s phone buzzes. Unable to form any more words, he ignores Louis and pulls it out to see a new message from Renee: “Almost home, we better have ice cream in the freezer…”
He whimpers. “Please tell me we have ice cream in the freezer.”
Louis bites his lip. “Funny story - Zayn’s kind of a hungry drunk, and–”
Liam turns to look at the hole in the wall again. He should probably start choosing a quote for his epitaph.
+
After their spectacular crash, Liam suddenly saw Renee everywhere. She was in the dining hall at meals, she went to the same clubs Niall dragged him to, she was always sat on the second floor of the library with her socio books taking up half the table space.
And they became friends. Really good friends. Apparently she’d been highly amused by his concussion-induced mumblings and, well, they just hit it off.
Of course, his girlfriend wasn’t a member of the Renee Fawcett Fan Club.
“I don’t think Sandra likes me very much,” Renee admitted to Liam on their nightly walk back from the library. “She was hanging out with the girls on my floor last night and she gave me the look.”
“Look?” Liam laughed. “What look?”
“Oh, come on, you know which one I’m talking about. The ‘he’s-my-property-so-back-off-bitch’ look.” She demonstrated and Liam shivered from the accuracy. It was a look he’d seen many a time before, toward pretty much every girl Sandra saw him with - even his sisters.
“You just gotta try to be friends with her, Ree,” he told her earnestly, pulling her to a stop with one hand so they didn’t get run over by the squirrel dashing across their path. “I want you guys to like each other.” He really, really did. Sandra was his girlfriend and Ree was his… friend. They had to like each other if he wanted to keep his sanity.
She sighed, ever the drama queen, but Liam could tell that was her way of giving in. “Fine,” she groaned. “But if she’s mean to me, I’m not gonna take her shit.”
Liam grimaced. “Well, sorry, ‘cos she’s kinda mean to everyone.”
“No kidding. Why are you dating her again?” Renee turned to him curiously and under the streetlight, her hair glowed lighter. Liam’s mouth ran dry.
“Uh,” he said. “I don’t really know.”
Renee frowned at that, but didn’t say anything. They kept walking.
He broke up with Sandra the next day. She ambushed him in his room that morning and he just did it. It was painful. There was screaming. Liam’s pretty sure the people who lived next door are still holding a grudge about the noise. But that was it. It was done, and Liam was finally headache-free. He wanted to tell someone. No, not someone. He wanted to tell Renee.
He was waiting on the steps where they met when she came out of her last class. She was walking fast again, and he had to shoot his arm out to stop her because she wouldn’t’ve seen him otherwise. She grinned at him.
“Hey, Li,” she said. “What’s up?”
“I did it,” he said breathlessly.
“Did what?”
“Broke up with Sandra,” he said impatiently, practically bouncing on his heels. It was a good day, he thought.
“You–” Renee paused for a moment, then launched herself into his arms so quick that he stumbled back to catch her. It caught Liam so off guard that it actually took him a moment to realize she was kissing him.
Oh. Today was a good day.
He hadn’t even thought about it, about him and Ree. They’d become pretty good friends, and sure, he couldn’t deny that she was beautiful and mature and all of that, but they’d been friends. Except now her lips were really soft and she smelled really good, and yeah. Maybe he could see this.
He was about to try kissing her back when she pulled away suddenly, untangling herself from his arms and straightening. She was blushing. Liam thought it was strange; he’d never seen smart, powerful Renee Fawcett look flustered before.
“Oh my God,” she said.
“Wow,” he said.
“I’m sorry–”
“Wow.”
“I didn’t mean - I just thought–”
“Renee.”
“You probably–”
“Renee!”
She shut up and looked at him in apprehension. Liam’s post-Sandra smile had been big, but now his cheeks were hurting with how wide his grin was. “Would you want to get coffee right now?”
Renee paused, then cleared her throat and smoothed her hair down, her face still tinged pink. “Yeah. Yeah, I would.”
And that was the beginning.
+
Liam’s halfway between the kitchen and the garage, trying to find something, anything to at least hide the stupid hole in the wall when, inexplicably, the doorbell rings. He stops in his tracks and looks around him like he’s waiting for someone else to answer it before remembering that this is his house and he’s not having some weird dream, so he goes to open it.
“Trick or treat!” The people accost him as soon the door opens more than a centimetre, and he suddenly realizes that Halloween means little children roaming the streets for candy. Candy that he doesn’t have, mind you.
“Uh, hello,” he stammers, taking in the Anna and Elsa pair who can’t be more than seven. A woman stands behind them, obviously exhausted.
“Do you have any Mars bars?” Elsa inquires with wide eyes.
The mother sighs. “Honey, you can’t be picky with candy. The man is nice enough to give you any at all–”
“Er,” Liam interrupts, rather awkwardly at that. “I might have ‘em, actually. Would you just - just give me one second, please, ma’am.” He means to walk away quickly, but in doing so he accidentally slams the door in their faces. Well. Manners are really the least of his issues tonight, he supposes.
Heading to the kitchen, he shooes out a couple of people rummaging the fridge and then yanks open the pantry and starts pulling out things left and right.
“You alright, mate?” Liam looks up in the middle of shoving aside a bag of crisps to see Harry leaning against the counter and regarding him curiously.
“No,” he answers honestly before returning to the task at hand. “I thought Ree bought chocolate the other day, but I can’t seem to - aha!” Liam grabs for the slightly smushed, single Mars bar at the bottom of pantry and holds it up.
“Got the munchies?” Harry sounds amused. This is definitely not the time to be amused.
“There are bloody trick-or-treaters banging down my door,” Liam grumbles, even though only one group had shown up. “And I’ve got nothing to give them besides this.”
Harry chuckles. “Want some help? You look like you could use a breather.”
Liam may faint from gratitude, though he’s sure that won’t help anyone. “Thank you, mate. I appreciate it.”
“No problem, but calm down a bit, would ya? It’s just a Halloween party. It’s like this marriage has aged you ten years.”
“I resent that.”
Harry begins breaking the bar into smaller, slightly melted pieces. Liam grimaces; he’s sure the mother won’t be too pleased, but fuck if he cares at this point. He leaves Harry standing by the front door where he can hear him giving out candy.
“Ooh, Elsa is my favorite princess. Two pieces for you - oh, don’t be sad, Anna, you can have some, too! Oh yes, of course we’ll be mindful about the music, ma’am, I’ll just tell my friend to keep it down - would you like some chocolate as well?”
+
They got married young. People act surprised when they hear about it, but Liam thinks that’s ridiculous, because they should’ve seen it coming. It was supposed to happen, supposed to be ReneeandLiam Forever since they first bumped into each other.
Toward the end of their final year in uni, his parents bought him a tiny two-bedroom house not far from London. His folks were pretty well off, so to them it hadn’t seemed like such a big deal, but every time Niall laments his awful roommate, or Harry skips plans to take up extra shifts at work so he can pay his rent for that month, Liam feels grateful. And, of course, it gave him and Renee a place to start raising their family.
Not that they’d talked about raising a family yet. He’s hopeful, though.
Anyway, it was like everything fell into place that June. He got his English degree, he had a home and an internship at a publishing company lined up in the city, and there was a diamond ring hiding at the bottom of his sock drawer.
Of course, things couldn’t always go as planned.
When Liam got home from the gym one night, he was exhausted and had been craving one of his mother’s infamous chocolate chip cookies all day, but his parents were away on some oldies cruise and Renee didn’t bake. He shut the front door gently behind him and trudged up the steps to his room, rolling his head to try and get the kinks out of his neck.
When he walked in, he was expecting to maybe see Renee watching the telly in her pajamas. He was not expecting her to be standing near his open dresser, jumping guiltily as he entered the room and clutching a box to her chest.
Liam’s heart seized up in his chest. This wasn’t supposed to go like this. He had a reservation planned at their favorite Italian place for next Friday, and he was supposed to wear his best suit, and she would be in some nice dress. They were supposed to come back to rose petals on the mattress and slow dance to a Sinatra song. She was not supposed to have found it on her own, and he was not supposed to have messy, sweaty hair and basketball shorts - or, oh God, what if he had pit stains?
“Sorry,” Ree exclaimed, dropping the box on the floor by accident. “I just - I don’t know, I was looking for a pair of your boxers to put on and then I went searching through and I just… I found that.” She pointed helplessly to the offending piece of jewelry. Liam’s mouth went dry.
“Um.” Coherent thought was coming much slower to his brain than it should’ve been.
“Liam?” The look on her face was unreadable and he knew she was waiting for him to ask. He wasn’t sure if she looked like a girl who would say yes. He knelt to the floor, never breaking eye contact with her, and grabbed the ring. He stayed on his knee.
Okay. Deep breath.
“Renee,” he began. “I know that we’re pretty young. And I know that people may not agree with this decision, but I love you.”
She nodded.
“So… will you–”
“Yes.” The answer shot out of her mouth before Liam even finished, sure and confident. “Yes, I will.”
“Really?” he asked dumbly. What had just happened?
“Yes.” She was grinning now, nodding like a maniac and he shot to his feet.
“Really?!” The weight of her answer suddenly hit him in the chest, but he felt fine. Great, even. He felt like he could fucking fly to the moon and back without stopping to take a breath.
“Yes!” she squealed. She reached for him and their lips collided, both of them giggling like teenagers too much to actually kiss.
“Oh my God, we’re getting married,” he whispered. “We’re getting married.”
The wedding was small, a short event at a local church. Their small group of friends tagged along, and Liam’s parents, too.
They haven’t talked to Renee’s parents since the engagement.
(Liam knows they disapprove of her getting married so young. And he knows that she misses them, knows that at the beginning, she cried at night when she thought he was asleep.
It makes him feel like he’s not doing the whole husband thing right.)
But that was that - Renee Fawcett became Renee Payne, and they didn’t have a honeymoon because they couldn’t afford to, so they spent the next day together at home and baked cookies and watched Disney movies together.
The next morning was Monday, though, so they woke up at six and got dressed for work and were suddenly thrown into married life, rings on their fingers only two days and barely twenty-three years of life behind them.
+
“Liam!”
He’s starting to learn that nothing good can come from someone yelling his name.
“Liam?” It’s Harry this time, Harry who’s thankfully not in some weird costume (or maybe he is, actually. Harry’s got a right wacky fashion sense. Liam can never tell). “Why are you hiding in Renee’s office?”
“Because it’s the one place that hasn’t been destroyed yet,” Liam replies. It’s true; Ree’s downstairs office is actually a closet with delusions of grandeur, so most people passed over it. There’s a desk and a folding chair and that’s about it, but Ree says she can focus better in here and Liam doesn’t question it. Harry steps inside, but there’s not a ton of room for more than one person and maybe a small child.
“Renee’s almost home,” Liam says miserably. Harry nods.
“Sorry about your wall,” he says. “I’m not really sober, to be honest.”
Liam laughs without humor. “That’s alright. I’m dead anyways. Can’t get much worse than this.”
“How did it even get this bad in the first place?”
“Renee’s birthday is on Halloween, you know that.” Harry nods in affirmation and Liam continues, “So I was gonna have a few people over to surprise her, nothing fancy. It wasn’t even gonna have anything to do with Halloween and then - well, Niall.”
Harry laughs. “It’s always Niall, isn’t it?”
“I told him about it and he must’ve misunderstood and thought it was a Halloween party or some big thing, and… word got out. Point is, I wanted to do something nice for Ree, y’know? She had to work on her birthday, and she’s probably really stressed, and the last thing she wants to come home to is all of this and her child husband.”
“You sound like you could use a beer.”
“No, I’d be in even more trouble.”
“Thought you were dead anyways.” Harry smirks. Liam lets out a laugh, but shakes his head again.
“D’you think you could help me get these people out of my house?” It’s worth a shot.
Harry snorts. “I’m already on candy duty, now you want me to do this, too?”
“You’re hardly on candy duty. You abandoned your post to come pester me,” Liam retorts.
Harry claps a hand on his back. “I’ll try my best, but no promises.” Liam sighs. His phone buzzes again.
“Yeah. Thanks anyway.”
This isn’t the first time Liam’s messed up - no, there was the time he forgot to lock the door when he got home from work and somebody broke in in the middle of the night, and there was the time he forgot to tell Ree his parents were popping by for a visit and they got caught doing… you know, and there was the time Sandra tried to get back together with him (they don’t talk about this one) - but he’s praying to every deity up there that this won’t be the last straw for Renee.
+
Setting up the party was supposed to be fun.
There were two party-size crisps bags, three bottles of wine, and a DVD copy of Insidious, which for some reason is Renee’s favorite movie (Liam doesn’t understand her affinity for horror movies, but it usually ends with them cuddling, so he really can’t complain). The boys and a few of their other uni friends were supposed to come over, and they would be classy and talk about work and the future and the past and whatever. And then they would all leave and he could snuggle up on the couch with Ree and watch horror movies, and then they’d go upstairs and… well, you know.
“Liam, where d’ya want this?” He was snapped out of his reverie by Louis, who was holding a tin of biscuits; Liam suspected Louis’ girlfriend had once again shown off her knack for baking.
“Coffee table’s fine,” he said genially, busying himself with fluffing up the pillows a bit. Zayn and Max, another uni alum, were attempting to hang a shiny “Happy Birthday” banner over the living room, but Max was a bit taller so they couldn’t get it quite straight.
“Ree has no idea yet, does she?” Lou asked.
Liam grinned like a little kid; he still couldn’t quite believe he’d managed to pull this off. “None at all. She’ll probably be proper tired when she gets off work, but once she sees all this, she’ll be so surprised she may fall over. In a good way, of course.”
Louis set down the biscuits on the island in the kitchen. “Hey, has Niall arrived yet? Said he was coming when I talked to him earlier today.”
“Um, I think–”
As if on cue, the door swung open dramatically - because Niall would never do anything in a mundane manner. And, oh yeah, he was dressed as Batman, so there was that, too.
“Oh, hey! How are you, mate?” Zayn called from the living room, as if it was not abnormal to see Niall dressed as a superhero - which to be fair, it probably wasn’t.
“M’good, you?” Niall grinned. Liam gaped at him for a moment before collecting himself.
“Er, Niall?”
“Yeah - ah, Liam!” Niall bounded over and pulled him into a hug, his cape covering the two of them. “You excited for tonight?”
“I mean… yeah, sure,” Liam responded hesitantly. “But why are you dressed like that?”
Niall looked down at his attire. “Why aren’t you dressed like this?” was his response.
“What are you talking about, mate?” Louis asked the question that seemed to be on everyone’s mind.
“Well… it’s a Halloween party.” Niall chuckled. “Generally, you wear costumes to those sorts of things.”
Liam’s eyes widened. “It’s not a Halloween party.”
“Sure it is, mate. At least, that’s what I’ve told everyone, so it will be.” The stupid smile was still on his face; Liam felt his blood freeze.
“Everyone?” he hissed. “What do you mean by ‘everyone’?”
Niall apparently started to get that he’d done something wrong. Liam was just understanding what was about to happen. He checked the clock. Ree would be home in maybe an hour. Somehow he felt that wouldn’t be enough time to clean up Niall’s mistake.
Niall opened his mouth right as the door banged open again. In walked two people Liam had never seen before; two rather large men dressed like the main characters from White Girls.
“Hey, we’re the first ones!” one of them said, carrying two six-packs of beer with him. “Let’s get this party started!”
Niall whooped and headed for the sound system Liam had set up when they first moved in. Louis raised an eyebrow and reached for a biscuit, offering one to Liam who chewed it numbly.
Something was about to go horribly, horribly wrong.
+
“Heyo!” someone says, then belches. Of course it’s Niall again. Liam sighs.
“What now?” He’s really dreading the answer.
“You gotta see this,” is his reply, an evil laugh bubbling up out of his throat.
“What now?” Liam repeats in a moan of despair. Isn’t he supposed to have a guardian angel or something? Isn’t that how it works in movies? Where’s Louis? He was sober earlier, right?
“Somebody puked all over your bathroom floor,” Niall yells over his shoulder as they barely avoid colliding with two Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. “It’s sick, all green and stuff.”
Liam can physically feel his hair turning grey.
BatNiall tugs on his arm with way too much excitement for someone who’s pulling him along to see a puddle of vomit. They rush up the stairs and they pass his room and - oh, god, are people on his bed? The one he set up all nice with fluffed pillows for later with Renee? But then the room passes in a flash and they’re about to head into the bathroom and–
“Liam?”
Everything freezes.
Everything freezes and that’s how he knows it’s her standing behind him, because she’s always had that effect. She’s always been able to slip herself into the spaces in his life and grab his world like it’s a spinning globe, like it’s that easy to just hold it in place and suspend time. She’s scary and beautiful like that and Liam turns to face her.
“Ree!” he blurts. “Hi, babe.”
“Liam, what is this?” she asks. She’s still dressed in her clothes from work, jacket folded neatly over her arm. Liam gapes at the party around them and turns to his side for support, but Niall’s scampered off somewhere again. Typical. Liam bitterly hopes the guy slips in the vomit-puddle.
“Happy birthday?” he tries weakly, holding up his hands. The door to their bedroom bangs open again and oh, look, it’s a flustered Elvis Presley and Katniss Everdeen. Great.
Renee’s eyes widen. Liam audibly gulps. Time for damage control.
“Okay, look, I can explain this!” he begins wildly, throwing out his arms to try and make her understand. “Just don’t be mad, alright? I-I’ll fix it, I swear! I just… I was gonna throw this party for your birthday but then Niall told people it was for Halloween and you weren’t supposed to see any of this, Ree, I just–” Liam cuts himself off, blushing like he’s a schoolboy caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Renee gets a look on her face, a strange one that he likens to her concentrated expression. But she also looks a little… hurt?
He’s not sure what it means, but he knows what her next action means. Renee abruptly turns on her heel and darts down the stairs and out the door.
Well, shit.
+
There’s a park at the corner, and although it’s much quieter than the house, the faint sound of pumping music can still be heard. Liam wonders if the neighbors will hate him even more for it after tonight, but he can’t be bothered to fix that right now. He kicks leaves out of his path and keeps walking, seeing her figure perched on the swingset next to the slide.
He knew she would come here. They pass the park on their morning jog every Sunday, and one night after a particularly nasty phone call with her mum, he’d found her here, half-asleep and shivering, but refusing to leave. It’s her new safe haven. But Liam’s heard that people can be safe havens, too. It pains him a bit that he can’t be hers, especially if she is his.
“Ree?” he calls out, stumbling as he enters and almost tripping into the fence. She looks up at her name and sighs when she sees him, slumping down further on the swing.
“Hi, Li.” She sounds tired. Looks it, too - her makeup is smudged and her eyelids drooping. He walks up in front of her and grabs the chains on each side so he can look down into her eyes.
They both start to speak. “I’m sorry.”
“What?” they both reply.
Liam shuts his mouth and Renee says, “Why’re you sorry?”
“Um.” He’s not quite sure how to go about this. “I thought… I mean, I threw a party that almost trashed the house. Inadvertently, but still. The damage is done.”
Renee opens her mouth and then Liam realizes he’s not finished. “And - there’s more - I’m sorry that I forget to set the table sometimes and I’m sorry I don’t like the music you listen to and I’m sorry I’m the reason you keep fighting with your parents and I’m sorry for all the things I keep doing and I’m sorry I’m a failure as a husband.”
“What?” she says. Whoa. It’s really out there. He really said it, all the fears he’s been curling up to his chest and pushing aside. It’s all out there.
“Liam,” Renee continues. She looks at him like he’s from Mars. “Li, you are the furthest thing from a failure. You know that, right?”
He sighs. “You don’t have to–”
“No, no, clearly I do.” She shakes her head and takes one of his hands so it’s sitting on her palms instead of wrapped around the chain. She holds it tight and her lip trembles. “I’m the one who’s sorry.”
He’s about to point out that, actually, she should be the least sorry person in the world, but she barrels on. “I’m sorry that I’m the failure here. I mean…” She hesitates. “No husband deserves to be scared of their wife. I’m sorry for that.”
Liam bends down so he’s eye level with her. “What are you talking about, Ree? I’m not scared of you. I love you.”
“I-I know, but you are. I mean, you were afraid I wouldn’t let you throw a party. You’re twenty-three, Liam. You’re supposed to be throwing parties and having fun and you feel tied down. I get it. And I don’t wanna do that to you. Maybe… maybe we were too young for this. I don’t know–”
“Are you… are you breaking up with me?” Liam’s knees are about to give out from under him. The earth is suddenly out of oxygen.
“Isn’t that what you want?” Renee cries.
“Wha– no!” He pulls back from the swing suddenly, looking at her like she’s gone crazy, which she really must’ve if she thinks Liam wants to get rid of her. “Ree, where did you even get that idea? I love you! I’m not scared of you, I’m scared of losing you!”
“Why do you think you’d lose me?” The way she’s looking at him, Liam’s beginning to think both of them crazy. Well, they can be crazy together. Hopefully. Unless she’s dumping him right now, which she better not be.
“I don’t know! It’s just something always in the back of my mind, I guess? I just… I keep messing up. You miss your family - which is my fault - and now I have to fill their shoes, and I want to make you happy, but every time I try, I fuck it up. And I don’t know what to do.”
“I know what to do.”
“What’s that?”
“Trust me. Trust that I’m not leaving.”
She stands and grabs him by the belt loops. He catches himself right before he falls on her, but they still crash together, her chest against his. His heart is beating so, so fast, the way it did when they first met.
He is so in love.
“You’re sure?” he whispers.
“Never been surer,” she whispers back. “Don’t worry about my family. They’ll come around. They always do.”
“Okay.”
She grins. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“And you won’t leave me?”
“I think you know the answer to that,” he says. Her smile grows, and he knows she knows.
They kiss. The leaves are yellow and her hair is soft. The party is still going on. Niall’s probably gonna be passed out on their couch all day tomorrow, and nobody will volunteer to clean up the vomit-puddle, but it doesn’t matter. They’ll deal with it like they deal with everything. Together.
ok meg i'm sending u the word "pool" bc i want a sneak peek of heavenfaced lmao
oooooh who says that i don’t have pool in any of my other wips???
hahaha i kid i kid this is from heavenfaced:
Except, as soon as her body submerges in the pool, she's immobile, not even able to flex her fingertips as she drifts down further and further, watching streams of bubbles escape from the corners of her mouth.
(i should also say that this is the fourth time i have written the word pool so far but i wanted to share this one especially)
flummoxedfics replied to your post “i don’t understand i’ve been doing so well and why must i feel this...”
i hope ur ok!! sending positive vibes ur way <3333
I’m so sorry I didn’t answer the other day but thank you so much for your sweet message :)))))) it really meant a lot! I’m doing much better now I promise <3
do u love me enough to do delta and luke (bc this IS a love triangle and we don't know who she'll chose haha) 😏
You’re pushing your luck, Erica, but sadly, I do love you enough to do Delta and Luke. Also, you’re right, we don’t know who she’ll choose so…here we go!
who would be the one to randomly adopt a puppy without consultation
Delta! And Luke wouldn’t even be able to be angry because Delta would just be so excited.
who would force the other to take aesthetic pictures of them
Delta again! Delta’s instagram is filled with aesthetic pictures of herself and her surroundings.
who would do stuff they think is stupid just to make the other one smile
Luke! He’s seen sides of her – especially after conversations with her mom – that make him sad because she is and he hates it and needs to see her smile.
who picks out the horror movies to watch just so the other will cling to them
Delta! Luke’s a chicken shit when it comes to scary movies.
who is constantly studying and who is constantly trying to distract them
I think they take turns! They both have work to worry about and whoever finishes something first goes and distracts the other one till they get what they want.
who initiates the facetime calls whenever they’re separated
Luke
who is more likely to storm out after a fight and who is more likely to cry when they do
Luke will storm out because he doesn’t want to fight anymore and it’s just getting worse and Delta will cry, which will make Luke feel even worse.
who stays up way too late bing-watching their favorite shows
Luke. His obsession with HIMYM is a bit too much and Delta really wants to cancel Netflix but then he’d just buy the DVD’s so it’s pointless honestly.
who bites the other’s ear when they’re feeling frisky
Luke. And the feel of his stubble against her face and neck when he does it makes Delta weak in the knees and pretty much putty in his hands.
who sprays the other with water when they’re washing the car
Luke! He’s a big kid.
who has more fun decorating the house during holidays
Delta starts out more excited, but Luke keeps the excitement going as it goes along!
who is more likely to give the silent treatment when they’re mad at the other
They both do. Luke more because he’s trying to figure out what to say and Delta because she holds grudges.
who plays with the others’ hair more
Delta
who is more likely to climb all over the other one when they’re bored
Luke. Again, he’s like a big kid and he’s a firm believer of “If I’m crushing you, you can’t ignore me.”
who tries to kiss the other as often as they can
Delta. She loves the feel of that lip ring against her mouth. It turns her on a bit too much, honestly.
who pouts when the other one tells them to shut the fuck up
Luke.
who initiates the sex and who walks away when the other is riled up
They’re pretty half and half on initiating, but Delta likes to tease because an annoyed Luke is a hot Luke, so she walks away and Luke sure as hell doesn’t let her get far.
who always forgets the umbrella and who holds it when they actually have it
Delta forgets and Luke always holds it.
who demands showering first thing in the mornings
Luke because it takes him way longer to wake up in the morning and he needs to be in a good mood when he heads into work.
who sneaks into the shower with the other one in the mornings
Delta. What makes for a better mood for work than a little sexy time in the shower before he leaves? Not always a given though! Sometimes, Delta just wants to cling to him.
who prefers riding the roller coasters and who prefers playing the games
Luke really enjoys the roller coasters and the games, so Delta indulges him on the games.
who will text the other one thirty times in a row until they respond
Delta
who always forgets to charge their phone overnight
Delta, but it might be more on purpose
who comes up behind the other and slide their hands into their back pockets
Delta!
who tries to get hugs from the other as often as they can
Luke! He loves how small she is and how she just fits against him.
who is louder and who constantly has to tell the other to be quiet
I just thought of something and that was is this question meant to be louder during sex? Because if yes, Delta’s louder and Luke’s trying to keep her quiet because he doesn’t want the neighbors to hear but it’s also an ego boost.
But in the non-sex context, Luke is louder and Delta doesn’t tell him to be quiet because she loves how boisterous he can be!
well here we are! Some things stayed the same, but some changed!!! Love you!!! <333
delta and calum for the fic meme bc i know it's not posted yet but hey, indulge me <3333333 love u big sis
You are SOOO lucky I love you because otherwise I wouldn’t indulge you at all but ok Delta and Calum. I’m going to use this as a character building thing :P
who would be the one to randomly adopt a puppy without consultation
HA. Calum no question.
who would force the other to take aesthetic pictures of them
Delta
who would do stuff they think is stupid just to make the other one smile
Delta. Calum doesn’t smile all the time which Delta thinks is RUDE because he has such a great smile so she wants to see it as much as she can.
who picks out the horror movies to watch just so the other will cling to them
Calum. Not gonna pass up a cuddling opportunity, no way no how!
who is constantly studying and who is constantly trying to distract them
They’re both out of school, but I feel like Delta probably works from home sometimes so Calum would try and get her to put the computer DOWN and pay attention to him because it is Saturday and that email can wait until Monday morning.
who initiates the facetime calls whenever they’re separated
Delta
who is more likely to storm out after a fight and who is more likely to cry when they do
Calum is more likely to storm out and Delta is more likely to cry.
who stays up way too late bing-watching their favorite shows
Calum
who bites the other’s ear when they’re feeling frisky
Calum and although Delta won’t admit it, it’s one of her favorite things.
who sprays the other with water when they’re washing the car
Delta for sure. Calum is in love with his car and loves washing it but it’s a waste of time for her so she’ll spray him with water in hopes that they can forget about washing the car and have some actual fun.
who has more fun decorating the house during holidays
I think they start out with the same enthusiasm but they both gradually lose interest and it’s a struggle to finish it all.
who is more likely to give the silent treatment when they’re mad at the other
Calum. Definitely.
who plays with the others’ hair more
Delta
who is more likely to climb all over the other one when they’re bored
Delta. She’s needy.
who tries to kiss the other as often as they can
Calum. He may not always be outwardly romantic, but he tries to show her he cares and that’s one way.
who pouts when the other one tells them to shut the fuck up
Delta
who initiates the sex and who walks away when the other is riled up
Calum would initiate and Delta would so walk away, but only because she likes to tease him.
who always forgets the umbrella and who holds it when they actually have it
Delta forgets and Calum holds it because he’s taller. Delta tries, but Calum ends up having to hunch down or he ends up wet.
who demands showering first thing in the mornings
Delta. She has to be at work earlier.
who sneaks into the shower with the other one in the mornings
Calum
who prefers riding the roller coasters and who prefers playing the games
Calum prefers riding the roller coasters and will drag Delta, but neither of them really enjoy the games.
who will text the other one thirty times in a row until they respond
Delta
who always forgets to charge their phone overnight
Delta, but it might be more on purpose
who comes up behind the other and slide their hands into their back pockets
Calum
who tries to get hugs from the other as often as they can
Delta
who is louder and who constantly has to tell the other to be quiet
Delta is louder!
I hope you enjoyed this!! Love you too lil sis <3333
I want you to know,” Ashton cuts in gently, “that being right and being happy are two different things, and I want both for you. Really, I want you to succeed and I want you to be the best damn student you can be and prove him wrong, or whatever. But we were happy together, don’t you think?” She does think, she truly does. “Can we please be happy again? I’ll help you study, I’ll help you do whatever, I’ll punch Josh in the face if you need me to–” A laugh bubbles up in her throat at that, and Crystal’s surprised but not upset at it, because it sounds good, pure, something she hasn’t felt in a while. “Will you let me?”
She’s got a heart of glass. It looks sharp and tough, sure. But if you hold in your hands like Ashton did (still does, if she’s honest), you’ll quickly find it’s heavy and hollow and beautiful and breakable, so, so breakable. Only, she’s the one who broke it, and she broke his, too. Glass doesn’t go back together quite the same way once it’s shattered, but maybe Ash can sew Crystal a new heart, one that can be stitched together again if need be. She likes the thought of that, and she likes his next words even more.
“You are the Crystal Zhao. The only girl for me. The one I want. The, italicized.
