Rooftop Conversations

Niall had his guitar packed the trunk as well as a small duffel bag, and my backpack. I instructed the driver of where to take us, and I didn't even need the address. Yes, I know you are wondering - my grandparents own a huge vineyard right outside of Madrid and it is quite the tourist attraction as well as a wedding spot. I would come here every summer with my Tata and brother. Sometimes Michael and I would play hide and seek in between the vines for hours without end. Then eventually Tata or Mami or Papi would have to come and try to find us, because we got lost out there. I smiled at the memories. But it all stopped when Tata disappeared. We stopped coming to Spain, and now would be my first visit in two years.

"I really need to brush up on my spanish," Niall muttered beside me in the back seat. "Ha, well I can teach you some, since I am fluent," I offered. On the half hour ride there, I taught him how to say multiple phrases and asking for directions and such - the very basics. "Do your grandparents speak English?" He asked, a bit horrified.

"Yes, Niall," I laughed. "They have to for trade and such. Don't worry, they'll love you. Just they won't let you sleep in the same room as me because they're strict like that, I don't blame them, though." Niall pouted, "What about our midnight conversations?" 

I winked as I said, "Well they don't have to know if we are in the same room." You could a lit up house in the distance, and I reckoned we'd arrive in about five minutes. I pointed to the house, "That's where they live, and we are now passing the actual vineyard." Niall looked like a five year old pressing his face up against the glass. 

As soon as we arrived, I gave the taxi driver what we owed while Niall got our bags, as well as a small tip for the late night ride. He thanked us and went on his way. I went up to the iron gate in front of the house and rang in on the intercom. "Mami, Papi, estoy aquí!" I told them (this mean 'Mami, Papi, I'm here!'). The gates opened. When I was a little girl I always thought it looked like what would happen in a fairytale. I grabbed Niall's hand and pulled him behind me, getting more excited by the second.

I was home.

We went up the main entrance and Mami was already at the door. She pulled me into a hug and mumbled many things into my ear in a rush of joy. It always made me happy to see her this glad. Then she realized Niall was behind me. After letting me go, she asked in her thick Spanish accent, "Mama Mia! And is this a boyfriend?" she winked very noticeably at me then Niall. Niall had a coughing fit - which I'm sure was not accidentally at this time. "Um, no, he's just a close friend. He's never been to a vineyard before, so I thought I might as well bring him." Now Niall had stopped coughing, he said, "It's very nice to meet you, Ms. Pilla. My name is Niall." She nodded and not-so-subtly whispered in my ear, "He's a good catch, I like the accent!" I blushed furiously. Then louder, she said, "Call me Mami, Cariño." (Cariño is a nickname in Spanish for 'honey' or 'sweetie' or something. My best friend's grandma calls everyone cariño, so shootout to her for inspiring the character.)

"Mami, let's just go inside, it's getting chilly," I groaned, hoping she wouldn't make more comments. Knowing her, she would probably have a ball making fun of Niall and me. In the living room sat Papi, watching football as usual. He and Niall will probably have fun doing that together. Though if Derby goes against FC Barcelona, that might not end well. Papi looked over and saw us and jumped up (well, as much as a seventy year old man can) and wrapped me in a tight hug. "Who is this?" He asked me, nodding to Niall. I let Niall introduce himself again, and he made it clear that, no, we are not dating (though I wish we were). 

Mami led us to the dining room where she had prepared tonight's meal. It was Paella, one of my favourites. Before eating, being the very strict Catholic my family is, we prayed before dinner. We started eating right after, and Niall praised how amazing the food is. I nodded in agreement and Mami's face lit up. "Why thank you, cariño, you are too sweet. Now tell us a bit about yourself. How did you meet our lovely little granddaughter?" 

Niall wiped his mouth with a napkin and began, "Well, I was looking for a new guitar and I stumbled upon an instrument store where Rose happened to work with Michael." Mami nodded furiously, waiting for more details. "And we became friends and started to hang out more and more. It was hard at first because I'm in a fairly famous boy band you might have heard of, One Direction?" he semi-asked. Mami nodded again and said, "Oh, Rose just loved listening to your music on her iPod. She showed me pictures, that's why you seemed a bit familiar. She had a huge crush on-" I interrupted her, "Mami, please spare him the details of my summer here," I laughed nervously. Niall continued, "But, er, yeah, we're good friends now, and Rose is working on tour with us, so that's great. I'm happy to have the chance to meet more of her family."

I nodded. Papi then asked curiously, in his thick accent like Mami's, "Do you like football?" I laughed. Of course this is the first thing he asks, I knew it would be. Niall grinned, "I love football. I play too. What teams do you like, sir?" Papi grimaced, "No, don't call me sir. Call me Papi. I like FC Barcelona. Home turf." Niall sighed, "Oh then I hope there is no match against Derby, because I'm a hard core Derby fan." 

They continued to talk about football while Mami and I put away the dishes. When in the kitchen she turned to me and said sweetly, "Cariño, I can tell you like this boy very, very much." I blushed and nodded a little. "Yes, Mami, I do. He's really kind and understands me." "Well, he better. I like him. Wasn't he the one you wouldn't stop talking about last summer you came here? Tata thought you were insane sometimes." My tears welled up at the thought of my father. Mami saw it and pulled me into a soft hug. "Baby, sometimes people are taken away from us. My little cariño, your Tata, was taken. But we can only hope he's happy now." I sniffled a bit and she wiped my eyes. "Now, go, get your cariño, because Papi might steal him," she ordered me. "Oh, and you can stay in your room and Niall can stay in the guest one next to yours, the one that has the door in between it." I nodded and kissed her goodnight. 

I went into the dining room and saw that the two men had gotten into a very quiet conversation. It was calm, so  I decided to speak, "Niall, I'll show you where your room is." I went over to Papi as Niall grabbed his guitar case and bag. "Good night, Papi, I'll help you with the horses tomorrow, okay?" Papi nodded. He knew how much I loved getting the horses ready in the morning to ride. Who knows, maybe Niall likes horses and he could join us. Niall thanked both Papi and Mami and followed me. 

We went up the main staircase and headed to the hallway to the left. I pointed to the last room. "That one's mine, and you can stay in the one right before it. It has a bathroom connected to it in between your and mine which we share." I forgot what they call those bathrooms that had two entrances from two different rooms. Niall nodded and I opened the door for him revealing the small, but cozy room. He closed the door behind him and set his bags down on the bed. "Thank you so much for bringing me here, this is great," he said. I smile. Niall continued, "It's so nice to see culture at it's peak. Plus, did ya know your grandfather played football?"  I laughed, "Yeah, of course, he's the one who taught Michael and me to play."

Niall seemed shocked, "Wait... you play FOOTBALL?!" he got very excited. I put my hands on his shoulders and sat him down on the bed. I looked him in the eyes, "Yes, now be quiet because my grandparents are going to bed soon and I don't want them getting mad at us. You never want to see a Spanish grandmother angry." I shuddered at the thought. When I was seven and Michael was thirteen, we stayed up late and Mami... blew a short fuse, to say the least. 

I had a sudden idea. "Do you want to go sit out on the roof? I used to do it all the time." Niall looked at me weird and nodded slowly. "This better not get us killed."

I laughed and grabbed his hand, pulling him through the bathroom to my room. "Oh, yeah, and this is my room," I mentioned motioning to the room almost identical to his, only mine had a bit of 'Rose Flair' you could call it. before leading him onto the balcony, and to the makeshift ladder Tata had made when he found out I liked climbing on the roof, I grabbed an oversized blanket because it could get chilly up there. Tata and I didn't dare tell Mami or Papi, and I was just happy they didn't come into my room when I wasn't here. Tata had also built a little sitting area - just like a platform in a treehouse, small enough to not be noticed form the vineyard (the view of the vineyard was breathtaking). I sat towards the edge and motioned for Niall to come up. I rolled my eyes when he was reluctant, "Niall, I know we are three stories up, but I used to sit here all the time. You'll be fine." He sighed and got up and sat next to me, his arm wrapped around my shoulder. I put the blanket across our legs. He pulled me closer to him.

I pointed at the sky. "The sky is so clear from up here. I just love looking at the stars and thinking about how beautiful those burning balls of energy are." Niall looked down at me, confused, "And when did you get so poetic?" "Shut up," I muttered, "Cherish the moment." He chuckled and said, "I'd cherish the moment more if I could kiss you."

I cheekily remembered the first time we kissed and said, "Be my guest." Niall picked me up and put me in his lap and smashed his lips onto mine, and they moved in perfect sync. I could feel him smile into the kiss and I ran my hands through his hair, mumbling, "I think you liked that last time, right?" and he moaned a bit in response. He pulled away for th smallest bit of time to catch his breath and said, "Just give me that sin again," also referring to the first time we kissed. I stopped after a while and asked, "I can't believe I'm saying this, but is that going to be our 'always' or our 'okay'? Like in 'The Fault in Our Stars'." I blushed a bit at the thought. Niall shrugged. "It can be if you want it to be."

I grinned and we sat there together for a bit longer. I started getting drowsy at one point, so I said, "Well, I'm going to retire for tonight to my warm comfy bed," and I went down the little ladder. Niall followed and we entered my room. I asked him, "Tomorrow morning do you want to help with the horses? We have a few and Papi and I are going to go riding in the morning." Niall thought for a moment and said, "I've never been on a horse, so if you can teach me, I'd be happy to." I nodded, "Okay. Good night, Niall." 

He headed toward the door in between our rooms. But he turned back for a second and wrapped his arms around me in a big hug. "G'night, Rose," and then he left. I felt warm and giddy inside, and got ready to sleep. I set my alarm for six A.M., and I want to cherish the five and a half hours I can still sleep, so I buried myself under the covers. 

Hey you crazy mofos! Early update today, so there might just be a second one later ;)

So I'm not sure how long this book is going to be, as a few people have asked. We'll just see where is goes, eh? And sorry but I absolutely had to throw in the TFIOS thing - it's not a fanfiction without it! Don't worry, I haven't popped the p's yet... I might give in to that. Or Louis' obsession with carrots. What do you guys think? What do you want to see more of in general? Feel free to comment or PM me with suggestions, I don't bite.

Anyways, please vote, comment, and share! I'd really appreciate help with putting "Something Great" more out there for more people to see and read. Thanks!

All the love,

Juliet