Chapter 24 ― Meeting the lads 

Phebs, Belle and I slept in my brother’s house and Niall went back to the hotel in the rental car. It was weird sleeping in a complete different place without having them in the room next door. I kinda missed them. But I wasn’t going to tell them that because it was going to blow their egos to the stratosphere.  We were going to meet with them the next day though, because I was going to take my brother to the venue where they were performing that day so Ethan would meet the other boys.

I stayed up until very late, just talking to Ethan about everything and nothing. It was good to have my brother next to me again. I always missed him but I just realised how much I did when I saw him again. We fell asleep together whilst Phebs and Belle were in the guest rooms. They loved Ethan too as they knew him since they were five and he was always close to us, looking after us. He was our private bodyguard.

The next day we woke up when two loud girls came running into Ethan’s room and jumped over us. They were laughing hysterically and this brought so many memories back. All those sleepovers when we were little girls, when we bothered Ethan all the time trying to make him dance and play with us.

“Wake up! We have a tea party to attend!” Belle exclaimed very, very loudly, almost screaming into Ethan’s ear.

“NOOO!” He jumped on his bed almost throwing away the black-haired girl. “No tea parties! I thought we got over that phase!” he shouted and I burst out laughing. And so did my friends.

“Relax, it’s just breakfast. We wanted to wake you up like in the old times. That’s all,” Phebs explained still laughing.

Ethan looked at the girls with hatred in his eyes, but soon it disappeared when the word breakfast reached him, just then his face lit up. As I loved food with all my soul, so did my brother. As I said, we had the same DNA after all.

We had breakfast together and stayed in the house having a good time. We played Pictionary and, of course, I paired with my brother because I was competitive and I wanted to win. It was so funny trying to guess what the drawing was. As Ethan started to draw, I shouted all kind of things trying to guess from the very beginning. Sometimes I shouted ‘potato’ when he was trying to draw a unicorn. By the end of the game we not only won, but I also was sore from so much laughing.

After lunch we got into Ethan’s car and he drove to the venue. We didn’t have any problem to get in as we had VIP passes and we knew Paul pretty much. I even introduced him to my brother. We soon got to the dressing room where the lads were hanging out.

“Did you miss me?” I said popping up in the room. Five boys turned their heads around and smiled brightly.

“Wife!!” Louis shouted running towards me and I could see the confused look on Ethan’s face. “Yes, yes, I missed you so much!!” He added as the other boys approached hugging Belle and Phebs. When Louis finally let me go, the other boys hugged me and Niall waited until the end. He kissed my lips softly and for a few second and remained there, his arm around my waist. “Lads, this is my brother Ethan. Ethan, these are Louis, Harry, his boyfriend, Liam and Zayn.” Ethan shook their hands but he seemed so confused. The girls and I just laughed at him.

“I thought Niall was your boyfriend. Why did he call you wife?” Ethan asked pointing at Louis who was smiling proudly. I sighed.

“He fell in love with my food and since then he calls me wife. I’ve tried to make him sign the papers for the divorce, but he refuses.”

“And I will never sign! We’ll be together till death do us apart!” I rolled my eyes and my brother laughed.

“Ignore him. He acts like when I’m high, but he does that all the time. You’ll get used, though.” Ethan laughed again and so did the others.

“Oi!” Louis protested and I stuck my tongue out at him.

“Hey, did you do the sound-check yet? I want to show everything to my brother!” Niall shook his head as a response. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go! Ethan needs to see all this!”

We soon made our way out of the dressing room and started a tour. The lads chatted with Ethan without problem and replied to all his questions so nicely. I could see that he liked them and was having fun, laughing at all the things they told him. I was walking a few feet behind them with Niall holding my hand. I couldn’t stop smiling, I just felt so happy I couldn’t believe all this was happening.

“I like when you smile like this,” Niall said grinning and squeezing my hand gently. I looked up at him and stop for a moment just to steal a kiss from his lips.

“I really love to have my brother here. I’ve missed him so much,” I told him as we resumed our way to the rest of the group.

“I can see that. It’s obvious you mean the world to him and the other way around.” I nodded at his words. “You two are very close.”

“Yeah, since we were little it has always been like this. Of course, we fought a lot, too! But every time I ended up crying for something he did, Ethan came back with a chocolate and a flower to apologise. I hugged him and forgot everything and went playing again. Those were easier times.” I remembered smiling as images of my past flashed before my eyes. “We had an amazing childhood.”

“I’m glad you have each other.”

“I’m glad, too,” I agreed and leaned into him as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

We showed everything to Ethan: The stage, all the preparation behind the show, we introduced him to the whole crewmembers, he saw the sound-check and later we hung out at the dressing room. He even stayed to see the concert from backstage. He agreed that their music was very energetic and catchy and he was totally overwhelmed for the amount of screaming fans.

After the concert we decided to go to a party to celebrate and Ethan took us to the best club he knew. It was a not so popular club, very modern and with a great music selection. We all loved it. We asked for drinks and picked a table, but soon Harry took Belle’s hand and went to dance, the same did Phebs and Liam. My brother stayed with Zayn talking about comic books and I was tempted to stay with them, but Niall asked me to dance with him. Louis had asked to a random girl.

Niall led me to the dance floor, his fingers tangled with mine. The song was Bright Lights by Tinchy Stryder and Pixie Lott and soon we were moving to the rhythm of the song. I looked into his eyes all the time, I loved that deep and bright blue that made my heart skip a bit from the very beginning. I smiled as I remember that time when we met and what I thought about him at the beginning. Everything had changed so much and it seemed surreal, I would have never expected a turn like this in my life, but I was so grateful.

I didn’t know how much we were going to last together. Probably not too much because the end of summer was getting closer and I knew that was our deadline, but I was happy and I knew that even when all this ended, I was still going to be happy because I would have the best memories. To be with Niall had been one of the best decisions I’ve made and I would never regret it.

I ruffled my hands through his hair, loving the texture and how it felt between my fingers. I stood on my tiptoes and brushed my lips against his. I loved to do that, to temp him, to force him to finish what I started. He tightened his hold on my waist and pulled me closer to his body and leaned in to fully kiss me. I cocked my head a bit as our kiss grew more passionate. I would never have enough of him, of his kisses.

We broke the kiss and I looked into his eyes again, just feeling how the butterflies in my stomach fluttered like crazy. He kissed my forehead and I closed my eyes for those seconds his lips where on my skin.

“You know that losing that eating contest was the best thing that happened to me this summer?” he commented looking into my eyes. I bit my lower lip as I stroke his face slowly.

“Same here,” I told him not caring about being cheesy. He smiled brightly, that sweet and cute smile. Who would have thought that I was going to fall for a cute and nice guy? Certainly I wouldn’t, but I did and I didn’t regret it.

I was happy and I didn’t want to think of the clock ticking, whispering that our time was running out. I didn’t want to care yet, I wanted to love and enjoy the moment.

Feeling a sudden urge, I grabbed Niall by his neck and pulled him to another kiss letting myself forget about everything and everyone except the boy next to me.

* * *

“It was really nice to meet you,” Ethan said as we were saying goodbye to the boys. I was staying with him again and the girls were doing the same.

“We had fun! We have to do something else tomorrow,” Louis yelled quite drunk. He was hanging from the window of the van and Harry had a hold on him so he wouldn’t fall.

“You can bet on that!” Ethan promised and the boy cheered clapping and laughing. He was kind of cute in that state.

“Bye, everyone! Wifeeeee! I miss you already!” Louis shouted trying to reach me. I laughed, quite tipsy myself. “Miss me, too!” he asked and I nodded. “Bye!” he shouted again and in that occasion all the other boys joined him.

Niall blew me a kiss and so did I.

We got into the house and being close to four am, we went straight to bed. I was dead on my feet but despite my state, I had this horrible dream that ruined my good mood.

“You know it’s time, Alex,” Niall said and I felt my eyes burning for those contained tears. “You knew this since the beginning.”

“I know, I know! But that doesn’t make it less hurtful!” I complained trying to reach him but he stepped back. His face was expressionless and that was what it hurt the most, that he didn’t seem to care. “Maybe we can make it work, we have to try…” I trailed off but he shook his head.

“It’s useless and you know it. I have a life where you don’t fit in it. Sorry, Alex. It was nice while it lasted, but it’s over.”

“Niall,” I whined trying to reach him one more time, my heart falling into pieces to the floor. “Please, don’t do this.”

“I have to, Alex. We can’t be together anymore. It’s over.”

“But I– I– I–” I choked, incapable of uttering the words that might stop him.

“Bye, Alex.” And he started to walk away, far, far away from me. I wanted to reach him but I just couldn’t move. Just by when I couldn’t see him anymore I let the tears stream down my face.