Terrible Little Things
Chapter One
June 15th 2037
London, England
5:30 PM
I stared into the mirror thanking my lucky stars that I haven’t gotten a gray hair yet. 45 years old and I have no need to dye my hair. I was getting ready for my 20 year anniversary dinner when my 15 year old son came in the room. I smiled at him, “Hey Malik. What’s up?”
He sat on my bed and smiled at me. My son and I had such a great relationship. Especially for his age. He tells me everything and comes to me for help. “I was looking for some old pictures of dad’s old band to show my girlfriend when I found this picture.” He handed me the picture and my stomach knotted. I knew this day would come, but not this soon.
He was about to ask me a question when my daughter walked in holding my old guitar. “When were you going to tell me that you were world famous?” I raised an eyebrow and my husband walked in. “You knew. I told you, last Christmas, I think.”
She shook her head, “You told me that dad and our god fathers were in a band…Two Directions?”
“One Direction,” Het father corrected. “But no one told me that mom was the Elizabeth Hanover,” Darcy said. We all squinted her eyes at her. “Darcy, her name is Elizabeth Hanover. How could you not piece together that her name is the same…” Malik trailed off.
“You know what, forget it. Mom, I wanna know the story behind this guitar, what’s with the writing all over it? And WHOA IS THAT WHO I THINK IT IS!” She shouted grabbing the picture from her brother.
“Isn’t that Uncle Niall?” He questioned. I looked at the picture of me and Niall on a Ferris wheel, our faces turned smiling lovingly at each other. It was my favorite picture of us.
“Yeah, that’s your godfather. We were together for a year before he proposed to me. 6 months after that in January he left me. We were so in love. Your father knows all about this. He was my best friend.” I remembered that time like it was yesterday. He looked at me and smiled sadly.
“Can you tell me the story?” Malik asked kindly. I looked up at my husband and he nodded. They all sat down on the huge bed and looked at me expectantly.
“It all started on the 10:36 am flight from Tampa to London June 20th 2012…” I began the story instantly being transported to that time.
June 20th 2012
Tampa International Airport, Florida
9:30 AM
"Be good Elizabeth. Have fun. I'll see you at Christmas," My brother hugged me tight. I let the tears fall silently down my cheeks. "Hey, don’t cry. We can skype and call and text."
"I know but it's still hard. I love visiting but it gets harder to leave every time. I love you, Sebass." I said.
"I love you too, Lizzie. Bye," He hugged me once more. We smiled weakly at each other and I turned to walk towards the trolley that takes me to the security checkpoint in Concourse B.
Every summer I visit my older brother in Tampa, Florida. Then every Christmas he comes to London to visit me. He's 27 and I'm newly 20 years old. We've been doing this for 5 years now. He got accepted to University of Tampa then became a big shot doctor and I'm a photographer in London. Sebastian and I are like best friends.
The tears were falling faster now as I handed the TSA officer my boarding pass. She smiled kindly at me. Before boarding the train I turned and waved at my brother. We smiled weakly at each other. I took a deep breath and stepped on board.
My vision was blurry and I was looking down at my shoes so I didn’t notice a person standing in front of me. I ran right into them. "I'm so sorry," I apologized.
"It's fine, don't worry about it." An Irish accent replied. I sat on the bench and looked out the back window watching as the Terminal grew smaller, until I couldn't see the silhouette of my brother. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out.
Miss you already!! :(
I smiled through my tears and replied to Sebatian. The train stopped and I hoped off stuffing my phone in my backpack. I walked to security and quickly passed through. I grabbed breakfast at Starbucks and waited at my gate. There were some people sitting near me, talking with heavily accented voices making me smile thinly. It reminded me of home.
I’ve always loved my accent. My friend, Catherine, moved to London from Boston always tells me to talk in my awesome accent.
I then heard a familiar Irish accent float to my ears. The guy on the train. There was something about his voice that made me smile. I put my headphones in just as they called first class to board. I stood up and walked over, handing my boarding pass to the TSA man and stepped on the jetway. Each step harder than the last. I sat in my first class seat vaguely wondering who was going to sit next to me.
I was staring out the window when someone sat down in the seat next to me. I had turned the volume on my music in case they said something, which I doubted.
I was right; they didn't say anything to me so I settled down in my seat, tears still slipping down my face. I was leaving my only family.
My parents died in a fire when I was 14. I lived with my brother until he went to med school after my 15th birthday. Then, I stayed with a friend until I was 17 and I got my own flat in downtown London.
I wiped away my tears when someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned and was greeted by kind ocean blue eyes. “Are you okay?” His Irish accent hitting me in the face. The same voice I heard on the train. I smiled at him.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Leaving here is hard though because I’m so close to my brother.” I spoke.
“OHMYGOD IS THAT A DONCASTER ACCENT!?” Someone shouted. A boy with messy brown hair and blue-green eyes poked his head from behind our seat. Then I realized who I was talking to and my eyes widened. “You’re One Direction!” I whispered.
“Yes, yes we are,” 5 voices responded.
“Wow.” I said, sinking back in my seat. I’m definitely a directioner.
“So are you from Doncaster?” Louis asked me.
“Born and raised. I moved to London 5 years ago.” I explained. Louis smiled and was about to say something when the flight attendant said to fasten our seatbelts for takeoff.
“So why did you move to London?” Niall asked.
I hesitated before answering, “5 years ago my parents died in a fire. My brother had already moved to Florida because he got accepted to Medical School. So I moved in with a friend when she moved to London. I stayed with her until I was 17 then got a job as an assistant to a photographer. I got my own flat then became a photographer in the studio I was working in.”
“Oh wow, I’m so sorry to hear about your parents,” He said as the plane lifted off the ground. “Do you have any other brothers or sisters?”
I shook my head, “Just me and Sebastian. My name’s Elizabeth, by the way.”
“Beautiful name,” Niall replied with a smile. I looked at him and blushed. I settled in my seat and looked out the window at Florida. It’s all water, only 7 feet above sea level. I smiled and remembered what Sebastian said when I first arrived 2 weeks ago. “It’s only 7 feet above sea level. If an 8 foot wave hits we’re all fucked.”
I exhaled sharply and leaned my head against the window, thinking about the fun I had these past 2 weeks.
We had been in the air for an hour when I spoke to Niall, “You know, I can feel you staring at me.” I turned to face him just in time to see him blush a deep shade of scarlet.
“Sorry, you’re just so beautiful,” He answered. I blushed again.
When his eyes met mine my heart fluttered. The sentence that came out next shocked the hell out of me, “I probably shouldn’t say it, but I can tell by your eyes that you like me.”
My eyes widened and I clamped my mouth shut. I really just said that, didn’t I? Wow, I’m bold. I was glad that he chuckled in response.
“You’re good at reading people, aren’t you, Elizabeth?” He asked me.
“Yeah I am. But I’m normally not this bold. I’m pretty shy.”
“Me too! I stutter and get all quiet.” He said. We laughed and talked the rest of the flight. Getting to know Niall was pretty amazing. To me he wasn’t Niall Horan from One Direction. He was Niall James Horan from Mullingar. I could care less if he was famous. He was sweet and funny and unique. He had an amazing personality and we had so much in common. He was a really beautiful person. I could already feel myself slowly falling for him, but by the end of the flight I had completely fallen head over heels for Niall. And I regretted nothing.
London, England
5:30 PM
I stared into the mirror thanking my lucky stars that I haven’t gotten a gray hair yet. 45 years old and I have no need to dye my hair. I was getting ready for my 20 year anniversary dinner when my 15 year old son came in the room. I smiled at him, “Hey Malik. What’s up?”
He sat on my bed and smiled at me. My son and I had such a great relationship. Especially for his age. He tells me everything and comes to me for help. “I was looking for some old pictures of dad’s old band to show my girlfriend when I found this picture.” He handed me the picture and my stomach knotted. I knew this day would come, but not this soon.
He was about to ask me a question when my daughter walked in holding my old guitar. “When were you going to tell me that you were world famous?” I raised an eyebrow and my husband walked in. “You knew. I told you, last Christmas, I think.”
She shook her head, “You told me that dad and our god fathers were in a band…Two Directions?”
“One Direction,” Het father corrected. “But no one told me that mom was the Elizabeth Hanover,” Darcy said. We all squinted her eyes at her. “Darcy, her name is Elizabeth Hanover. How could you not piece together that her name is the same…” Malik trailed off.
“You know what, forget it. Mom, I wanna know the story behind this guitar, what’s with the writing all over it? And WHOA IS THAT WHO I THINK IT IS!” She shouted grabbing the picture from her brother.
“Isn’t that Uncle Niall?” He questioned. I looked at the picture of me and Niall on a Ferris wheel, our faces turned smiling lovingly at each other. It was my favorite picture of us.
“Yeah, that’s your godfather. We were together for a year before he proposed to me. 6 months after that in January he left me. We were so in love. Your father knows all about this. He was my best friend.” I remembered that time like it was yesterday. He looked at me and smiled sadly.
“Can you tell me the story?” Malik asked kindly. I looked up at my husband and he nodded. They all sat down on the huge bed and looked at me expectantly.
“It all started on the 10:36 am flight from Tampa to London June 20th 2012…” I began the story instantly being transported to that time.
June 20th 2012
Tampa International Airport, Florida
9:30 AM
"Be good Elizabeth. Have fun. I'll see you at Christmas," My brother hugged me tight. I let the tears fall silently down my cheeks. "Hey, don’t cry. We can skype and call and text."
"I know but it's still hard. I love visiting but it gets harder to leave every time. I love you, Sebass." I said.
"I love you too, Lizzie. Bye," He hugged me once more. We smiled weakly at each other and I turned to walk towards the trolley that takes me to the security checkpoint in Concourse B.
Every summer I visit my older brother in Tampa, Florida. Then every Christmas he comes to London to visit me. He's 27 and I'm newly 20 years old. We've been doing this for 5 years now. He got accepted to University of Tampa then became a big shot doctor and I'm a photographer in London. Sebastian and I are like best friends.
The tears were falling faster now as I handed the TSA officer my boarding pass. She smiled kindly at me. Before boarding the train I turned and waved at my brother. We smiled weakly at each other. I took a deep breath and stepped on board.
My vision was blurry and I was looking down at my shoes so I didn’t notice a person standing in front of me. I ran right into them. "I'm so sorry," I apologized.
"It's fine, don't worry about it." An Irish accent replied. I sat on the bench and looked out the back window watching as the Terminal grew smaller, until I couldn't see the silhouette of my brother. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out.
Miss you already!! :(
I smiled through my tears and replied to Sebatian. The train stopped and I hoped off stuffing my phone in my backpack. I walked to security and quickly passed through. I grabbed breakfast at Starbucks and waited at my gate. There were some people sitting near me, talking with heavily accented voices making me smile thinly. It reminded me of home.
I’ve always loved my accent. My friend, Catherine, moved to London from Boston always tells me to talk in my awesome accent.
I then heard a familiar Irish accent float to my ears. The guy on the train. There was something about his voice that made me smile. I put my headphones in just as they called first class to board. I stood up and walked over, handing my boarding pass to the TSA man and stepped on the jetway. Each step harder than the last. I sat in my first class seat vaguely wondering who was going to sit next to me.
I was staring out the window when someone sat down in the seat next to me. I had turned the volume on my music in case they said something, which I doubted.
I was right; they didn't say anything to me so I settled down in my seat, tears still slipping down my face. I was leaving my only family.
My parents died in a fire when I was 14. I lived with my brother until he went to med school after my 15th birthday. Then, I stayed with a friend until I was 17 and I got my own flat in downtown London.
I wiped away my tears when someone tapped me on the shoulder. I turned and was greeted by kind ocean blue eyes. “Are you okay?” His Irish accent hitting me in the face. The same voice I heard on the train. I smiled at him.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Leaving here is hard though because I’m so close to my brother.” I spoke.
“OHMYGOD IS THAT A DONCASTER ACCENT!?” Someone shouted. A boy with messy brown hair and blue-green eyes poked his head from behind our seat. Then I realized who I was talking to and my eyes widened. “You’re One Direction!” I whispered.
“Yes, yes we are,” 5 voices responded.
“Wow.” I said, sinking back in my seat. I’m definitely a directioner.
“So are you from Doncaster?” Louis asked me.
“Born and raised. I moved to London 5 years ago.” I explained. Louis smiled and was about to say something when the flight attendant said to fasten our seatbelts for takeoff.
“So why did you move to London?” Niall asked.
I hesitated before answering, “5 years ago my parents died in a fire. My brother had already moved to Florida because he got accepted to Medical School. So I moved in with a friend when she moved to London. I stayed with her until I was 17 then got a job as an assistant to a photographer. I got my own flat then became a photographer in the studio I was working in.”
“Oh wow, I’m so sorry to hear about your parents,” He said as the plane lifted off the ground. “Do you have any other brothers or sisters?”
I shook my head, “Just me and Sebastian. My name’s Elizabeth, by the way.”
“Beautiful name,” Niall replied with a smile. I looked at him and blushed. I settled in my seat and looked out the window at Florida. It’s all water, only 7 feet above sea level. I smiled and remembered what Sebastian said when I first arrived 2 weeks ago. “It’s only 7 feet above sea level. If an 8 foot wave hits we’re all fucked.”
I exhaled sharply and leaned my head against the window, thinking about the fun I had these past 2 weeks.
We had been in the air for an hour when I spoke to Niall, “You know, I can feel you staring at me.” I turned to face him just in time to see him blush a deep shade of scarlet.
“Sorry, you’re just so beautiful,” He answered. I blushed again.
When his eyes met mine my heart fluttered. The sentence that came out next shocked the hell out of me, “I probably shouldn’t say it, but I can tell by your eyes that you like me.”
My eyes widened and I clamped my mouth shut. I really just said that, didn’t I? Wow, I’m bold. I was glad that he chuckled in response.
“You’re good at reading people, aren’t you, Elizabeth?” He asked me.
“Yeah I am. But I’m normally not this bold. I’m pretty shy.”
“Me too! I stutter and get all quiet.” He said. We laughed and talked the rest of the flight. Getting to know Niall was pretty amazing. To me he wasn’t Niall Horan from One Direction. He was Niall James Horan from Mullingar. I could care less if he was famous. He was sweet and funny and unique. He had an amazing personality and we had so much in common. He was a really beautiful person. I could already feel myself slowly falling for him, but by the end of the flight I had completely fallen head over heels for Niall. And I regretted nothing.
Notes
Okay, so this is a story that I posted on a different website, then I got deleted then posted on Wattpad but I wanted to post it here. Please please please, leave feedback.This particular story means so much to me, I'm so far into it and I have every little detail planned out. Even the sequel. I'd appreciate it if you spread the word and vote and subscribe.
Thank you so much.
I love you so so much!
Let me know what you think!!!
11/16/13