“So, what did you do with the guys and Doniya all day?” Mae asked Niall curiously as they sat down for dinner after shopping downtown for nearly two hours. Once Niall got home from going out with his friends he immediately picked Mae up, wanting to spend as much time as he could with her tonight.

“We went to McDonalds and went to some mall that was like a half hour away,” Niall responded, not thinking anything of the call from Steph he received earlier in the day. “And Doniya wanted to look around at a few of the shops that were by the mall, so we did that for a while and then ended up getting a small bite to eat.”

Mae nodded her head and smiled as a waiter came over to their table, and after taking their drink and food orders he walked off, leaving Niall and Mae alone again. Niall looked at Mae. “And what was your day like?”

“I laid outside for a bit and then went out with Louis,” Mae said with a soft sigh. “We got some lunch and went into the ocean and watched a couple of movies.”

“Louis?” Niall asked, a small smile appearing on his face. “My Louis?”

“Yes,” she chuckled. “You left him behind apparently, so we hung out.”

“He’s a nutcase,” Niall commented, causing Mae to laugh to herself, knowing he was right. After spending the day with Louis she realized that he had way too much energy and seemed to never stop moving. They were constantly doing something until Mae suggested that they settle down and watch a movie. But even if he was slightly hyper, she was able to have serious conversations with him about any question that he asked, whether it was about her family or Niall or Ohio, and she liked that he was so easy to confide in. She now knew why Niall talked about him so frequently when he and Mae were together, because he was such a fun person to be around.

+

After dinner, and after driving back to the rental houses, Mae and Niall sat on the porch stair of Mae’s house. Niall had his arm around her as she leaned against him, inhaling the scent of his cologne that he still wore every time they went somewhere (not that she was complaining). She shut her eyes and sighed to herself as she let the wind caress her face and comb through her hair. Niall looked down at Mae and smiled as he watched her rest against him.

Even if they wouldn’t be together in a month and a half, and they may not ever see each other again, Niall knew that he would never forget about the time that he had spent with Mae this summer. He wouldn’t forget anything about her, and his feelings towards her probably wouldn’t fade quickly. He never felt so strongly about someone this early in a relationship, and he didn’t think it was just because it was summer and it was something new for him to experience; he sincerely thought that there was something special about Mae that made him feel this way. And he loved that feeling more than anything.

A half an hour later, Mae yawned loudly and looked at Niall. “I should probably head inside. It’s almost midnight and my parents are probably going to wonder where I’m at.”

“Okay,” Niall said with a smile. He stood up and held out his hands to help Mae up. “I’ll see you tomorrow? Do you have anything you want to do in mind?”

“Anything as long as you’re involved,” Mae said, before looking up at Niall and laughing to herself. “That sounded so stupid…”

Niall laughed loudly, the laugh that Mae loved no matter how obnoxious and loud it was. He gave Mae a tight hug and kissed her head. “It was cute, so it’s alright. Do you want to hang out by the beach or something tomorrow morning and then decide what we want to do?”

“That sounds great,” Mae said, grinning. She stood up on her tip-tops and placed a soft kiss on Niall’s lips. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Niall replied, before giving Mae another kiss. “I’ll come by your house around 10ish?”

Mae nodded, before she gave Niall one last hug, squeezing him tightly. After pulling away she waved goodbye to him and headed into the house.

Niall sighed to himself as he headed back towards the Malik’s house, exhausted from everything that had gone on today. He had a great time with everyone, but he was just ready to go to bed. After he made his way into the Malik’s house, he saw everyone in the family room watching TV. Mr. and Mrs. Malik were sitting on the loveseat together, while Doniya, Zayn, and Liam were crammed on the couch, with Louis and Harry on the floor. He waved to everyone, before making his way upstairs so he could change and get ready for bed.

“Niall!” Niall heard someone call in a harsh whisper. Niall turned around to see Louis flying up the stairs behind him.

“Why the hell did you answer that damn phone when she called?” Louis questioned as he followed Niall into his bedroom. Niall walked over to his suitcase and pulled out a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, before changing, not bothered by Louis standing there as he waited for a response.

“You don’t know if I answered it or not,” Niall responded, not in the mood to have this conversation with his friend.

“Well, did you?” Louis shrugged.

“Yes. Sadly,” Niall sighed, before sitting down on his bed. “Can we have this conversation tomorrow? I’m kind of wanting to go to bed.”

“No,” Louis said. He took a seat on Harry’s bed and glared at his friend. “Why would you answer it?”

“Why didn’t you tell me you hung out with Mae?” Niall asked, even though it didn’t bother him that Louis and Mae spent the day together. He was never much of the jealous type when it came to his girlfriend spending time with his friends, especially because that was extremely rare (and he trusted Louis, of course).

“I’m serious,” Louis stated. “Don’t change the subject, Niall.”

“You act like I had a full-on conversation with her,” he mumbled. “I talked to her for like two seconds.”

Louis leaned back on the bed and supported himself with his elbows. “Do you still have feelings for Steph?”

“No,” Niall said. “I don’t think so… I haven’t seen her all summer, and I’m with Mae. Being friends again with her is possible, though.”

“I think you need some questions answered before you decide on being friends again,” Louis commented, and as if planned, Niall’s phone started going off. Niall reached for his jeans that were on the floor, and after digging his phone out of one of the back pockets he looked at the name flashing on the screen.

“It’s Steph,” Niall stated, as if he were slightly surprised.

“Of course it is,” Louis sighed. “I say don’t answer it. But if you do answer it, you need your questions answered. And she needs to know you’re seeing someone else now and to leave you alone. But we all know she’s going to want you because you’re off the market; that’s how women are, right? And I don’t even know why you haven’t told Mae about her yet.”

“Because I didn’t think I’d ever be talking to her again,” Niall responded, before looking back down at the name flashing on the screen of his phone. He wasn’t sure if he should even answer it; he did want his questions answered, but was right now a good time? He had a relationship that was going great, he had a girl that meant more to him than anyone ever had, and his best friend was giving him advice that he knew he should probably be taking.

Niall looked up at Louis, who was staring at him and waiting for his next move. Niall could tell that Louis didn’t want him to answer it, but he also knew it was because he didn’t really like Steph in the first place. Steph had a few complications with Louis because she was a little more possessive than other girls that Niall had been with, but Niall never thought anything of it when he changed plans with Louis to spend time with Steph.

And Louis couldn’t help but groan loudly as his friend pushed ‘ANSWER’ and put the phone to his ear.

“Hello?”

Notes

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