Summer Love
twenty-one.
That next morning, the day that seeing all of the guys and Doniya would bring Mae to uncontrollable tears, Mae opened her eyes to the blinding sun streaming through the blinds of the room she wouldn’t see for another year. She sighed quietly to herself before realizing that someone was at the end of her bed. She flipped onto her side to see Niall sitting on the edge of her bed, a tiny smile on his face, and a stuffed teddy bear in his hand. Mae couldn’t help her wide smile as she sat up.
“How’d you get in here?” she asked quietly, before she let out a yawn. It was just nearing 8:00 am and she was surprised that Niall was even awake.
“Your mom let me in and told me you were up here,” he said. He handed her the pink, stuffed teddy bear and smiled. “I know this is stupid and cheesy, but Louis and I went out this morning and I saw this and thought of you.”
Grinning, Mae took the teddy bear and hugged it to her chest as if she were a little girl again. “Thank you.”
“So,” Niall asked, clearing his throat, knowing that he didn’t want to ask this question, but he needed to know. “What time are you and your family leaving?”
“Around ten,” Mae responded, her eyes already tearing up and her heart sinking.
Niall nodded and sighed softly. He stood up and kissed Mae’s forehead. “Get showered and ready. I can help you pack and get your things together. We’re not leaving until noon; our flight doesn’t go out until 3:15.”
Mae just nodded as she slid out of bed, before grabbing some clothes and walking into the bathroom. After she shut the door behind her, uncontrollable tears began to pour down her face. She turned on the shower to drown out her sniffles and soft sobs, before stripping down and getting into the shower.
Knowing she needed to hurry up so she could spend her last couple hours with Niall, she got through her shower in five minutes. After putting her new set of clothes on, she brushed her teeth and combed out her hair before walking out of the bathroom. Niall was still sitting on the edge of her bed and he was looking down at the ground, as if he were thinking about something.
“What?” Mae asked him as she walked over and sat down next to him. Niall took her hand in his and sighed to himself, before he shook his head.
“This is just bullshit,” he mumbled, before looking at Mae. “This summer went so fast.”
Mae nodded in agreement, before replying, her voice quiet and shaky. “I know.”
Niall wrapped his arm around Mae tightly and pulled her closer, knowing that at any moment she was going to explode into a fit of tears. He rubbed her back comfortingly as she let more tears escape her eyes, and he kissed her hair, inhaling her strawberry shampoo scent one last time.
“Maybe I can come back next summer and see you,” he said quietly. “Maybe I can even come back when you have a break from school.”
“That won’t be for a long time,” Mae cried into his chest. “By then you’ll just forget about me.”
“I won’t,” Niall whispered as he squeezed Mae tightly. “I wouldn’t just forget about you.”
A knock on Mae’s door caused her tears to instantly dry up because she knew it was her mom or dad, and those were two people she never cried in front of. She wiped her eyes and let out a deep breath.
“Yes?”
Mae’s mother poked her head in the door and smiled at Niall and her daughter. “Breakfast is on the table if you two are wanting to eat. We’re leaving at ten, so be ready.”
Mae just nodded, before her mom closed the door, leaving Niall and Mae alone again. Mae slid off the bed and grabbed her suitcase and started to pull clothes out of the closet. Niall stood up and walked over to his girlfriend and took the clothes she was holding out of her hands.
“Love, go get something to eat,” he said. “You can’t go home on an empty stomach; that’s way too long of a drive.”
“I really can’t eat right now,” she said quietly, feeling more tears prick at her eyes. “I can’t eat, Niall. I just want to get this packing done. I want to stop thinking about leaving and I can’t, and if I can’t then I can’t eat; I can’t do anything.”
Niall didn’t say anything as he kneeled down on the floor and started to fold up some of Mae’s clothes and place them in her suitcase. He watched Mae as she aggressively yanked t-shirts and tank tops out of the closet, and he not dare say anything, knowing that if he did she would start crying again. And he hated seeing Mae in tears. He just quietly folded up her clothes that she threw on the ground and hoped that they all fit, knowing that he didn’t try to neatly fold them for nothing.
After all of the clothes were out of the closet, Mae dropped to the floor and let her tears fall as she helped Niall fold. Niall watched as Mae’s tears streamed down her face, and he wasn’t sure if he’s ever seen so many tears fall in such little time. He placed his hand over Mae’s, causing her to look up at him.
“I’ll write you and call you,” he promised her. “We can chat on Facebook, and we can Skype. There are so many things we can do Mae that’ll make us feel like we’re together.”
“But it won’t be the same,” she cried, looking down at her lap. “Nothing will be the same.”
Niall leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Mae’s lips, before pulling away and resting his forehead against hers. He sighed to himself. “I know, but we can at least try.”
But deep down he knew that Mae was right; nothing would be the same when they were both gone.
+
At 9:45, Mae and Niall were finished packing up Mae’s things and were finally heading downstairs to load up the car. Mae’s parents were sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee and having a conversation, and when they heard Mae and Niall come down the stairs, Tom stood up and walked over to Niall.
“Niall, it was really good meeting you,” he said as he shook Niall’s hand. “Thank you for being a good friend to Mae, and hopefully we’ll see you again.”
“It was a pleasure,” Niall said with a smile. “I hope we can arrange something.”
“It was nice getting to know you, Niall,” LeeAnn said from the table.
“Thank you for everything you did for me,” Niall said as he looked at her. “Thank you for the countless dinners.”
She smiled and nodded, before taking a sip of her coffee. Niall took Mae’s hand and walked outside, her suitcase in his other hand. Mae looked down at the ground as she felt a new batch of tears forming, and she sighed to herself wishing that all of this was easier. She knew that the last few minutes with Niall would be the worst and the most heartbreaking, and there was no way she could prepare herself for it.
“Mae!” Doniya shouted, causing Mae to look up. Doniya was running towards her while the rest of the guys stood back by Mae’s parent’s car. Mae let go of Niall’s hand before giving Doniya a tight hug.
“Thank you for being such a great friend over the summer,” Doniya said, squeezing Mae tightly, and she could tell that Doniya was trying to hold in her tears the best she could. “I couldn’t have asked for a better summer and a better friend. Promise me you’re going to talk to me as much as you can.”
“I promise,” Mae smiled as she pulled away and wiped her eyes. Doniya nodded and gave her another hug, before all of the guys walked over to Mae.
“It was great, Mae,” Zayn said with a smile as he gave Mae a hug. “Hopefully next summer we can come back.”
“I hope so,” Mae choked out as she hugged him back. “It won’t be the same coming back here and you all not being three houses down.”
He smiled as he pulled away from her. She gave Liam and Harry a hug and said goodbye to them, before Louis looked at Mae and gave her a smile. Mae smiled back at him as more tears began to fall, and she knew Louis would be one of the people she missed the most. She went over to him and gave him a tight hug, unable to control her quiet sobs.
“Mae, thank you for being such a great friend this summer,” he said into her hair. He squeezed her tightly and rocked her back and forth. “You and I definitely need to stay in touch, and you better tell me everything about college. You’ve become a very important person in my life this summer, and you better not leave it anytime soon.”
“I won’t,” Mae said, trying to force out a chuckle instead of a sob. Louis rubbed her back as he pulled away from her, and Mae wiped her eyes and sighed to herself.
“Sorry I’m such a mess, guys,” she mumbled. She looked over at Doniya who was wiping her red eyes and holding in sobs, then looked at all of the guys to see sad smiles on their faces, which broke her heart. Niall came up behind her and wrapped his arm around her as her parents came out of the house.
“Mae, we’re about to leave,” her dad said, before he got in the car. LeeAnn climbed into the passenger’s seat and waved to all of the guys and Doniya.
“See you soon,” Louis said to Mae, before he walked back towards the Malik’s house with everyone besides Niall. Mae waved to all of her friends, before turning to Niall and frowning. Niall tried to force a smile, before embracing her. He kissed her forehead and sighed to himself.
“I love you, Mae,” he said quietly, his voice getting weak. “I really, really hope I can see you soon. We’ll communicate in every way possible.”
Mae just nodded as she sobbed into Niall’s chest.
“You were mine for the summer,” he said, and Mae felt him smile into her hair. “And you better be mine still even though it’s over.”
Mae nodded again, smiling through her tears. She pulled away from Niall before kissing him passionately, not even caring if her parents were watching. She wouldn’t be able to see this man that changed her life for God knows how long, and not being able to come into any physical contact with him would be the hardest thing for her to deal with. She wanted him to know that even though she was leaving she still loved him just the same, and she didn’t think that would fade anytime soon.
After she pulled away from the kiss, Niall smiled wide before pecking her lips. “Call me when you’re home, and if I don’t answer, I’ll call you when we get home. Okay?”
Mae nodded and gave Niall one last hug, before she forced herself to pull away from him. He held her hand as he walked her to her parent’s car, and his heart broke piece by piece as he watched her climb into the car and shut the door. He backed away from the car as Tom put the car in reverse and pulled out of the driveway. Niall felt his eyes sting as Mae waved to him from the backseat, and he waved back to her wishing he could run straight to the car and beg them to take him with. As the car drove down the street, Niall watched it until it was completely out of sight.
And when he couldn’t see it anymore, he turned on his heel and walked towards the Malik’s house, alone and heartbroken.
“How’d you get in here?” she asked quietly, before she let out a yawn. It was just nearing 8:00 am and she was surprised that Niall was even awake.
“Your mom let me in and told me you were up here,” he said. He handed her the pink, stuffed teddy bear and smiled. “I know this is stupid and cheesy, but Louis and I went out this morning and I saw this and thought of you.”
Grinning, Mae took the teddy bear and hugged it to her chest as if she were a little girl again. “Thank you.”
“So,” Niall asked, clearing his throat, knowing that he didn’t want to ask this question, but he needed to know. “What time are you and your family leaving?”
“Around ten,” Mae responded, her eyes already tearing up and her heart sinking.
Niall nodded and sighed softly. He stood up and kissed Mae’s forehead. “Get showered and ready. I can help you pack and get your things together. We’re not leaving until noon; our flight doesn’t go out until 3:15.”
Mae just nodded as she slid out of bed, before grabbing some clothes and walking into the bathroom. After she shut the door behind her, uncontrollable tears began to pour down her face. She turned on the shower to drown out her sniffles and soft sobs, before stripping down and getting into the shower.
Knowing she needed to hurry up so she could spend her last couple hours with Niall, she got through her shower in five minutes. After putting her new set of clothes on, she brushed her teeth and combed out her hair before walking out of the bathroom. Niall was still sitting on the edge of her bed and he was looking down at the ground, as if he were thinking about something.
“What?” Mae asked him as she walked over and sat down next to him. Niall took her hand in his and sighed to himself, before he shook his head.
“This is just bullshit,” he mumbled, before looking at Mae. “This summer went so fast.”
Mae nodded in agreement, before replying, her voice quiet and shaky. “I know.”
Niall wrapped his arm around Mae tightly and pulled her closer, knowing that at any moment she was going to explode into a fit of tears. He rubbed her back comfortingly as she let more tears escape her eyes, and he kissed her hair, inhaling her strawberry shampoo scent one last time.
“Maybe I can come back next summer and see you,” he said quietly. “Maybe I can even come back when you have a break from school.”
“That won’t be for a long time,” Mae cried into his chest. “By then you’ll just forget about me.”
“I won’t,” Niall whispered as he squeezed Mae tightly. “I wouldn’t just forget about you.”
A knock on Mae’s door caused her tears to instantly dry up because she knew it was her mom or dad, and those were two people she never cried in front of. She wiped her eyes and let out a deep breath.
“Yes?”
Mae’s mother poked her head in the door and smiled at Niall and her daughter. “Breakfast is on the table if you two are wanting to eat. We’re leaving at ten, so be ready.”
Mae just nodded, before her mom closed the door, leaving Niall and Mae alone again. Mae slid off the bed and grabbed her suitcase and started to pull clothes out of the closet. Niall stood up and walked over to his girlfriend and took the clothes she was holding out of her hands.
“Love, go get something to eat,” he said. “You can’t go home on an empty stomach; that’s way too long of a drive.”
“I really can’t eat right now,” she said quietly, feeling more tears prick at her eyes. “I can’t eat, Niall. I just want to get this packing done. I want to stop thinking about leaving and I can’t, and if I can’t then I can’t eat; I can’t do anything.”
Niall didn’t say anything as he kneeled down on the floor and started to fold up some of Mae’s clothes and place them in her suitcase. He watched Mae as she aggressively yanked t-shirts and tank tops out of the closet, and he not dare say anything, knowing that if he did she would start crying again. And he hated seeing Mae in tears. He just quietly folded up her clothes that she threw on the ground and hoped that they all fit, knowing that he didn’t try to neatly fold them for nothing.
After all of the clothes were out of the closet, Mae dropped to the floor and let her tears fall as she helped Niall fold. Niall watched as Mae’s tears streamed down her face, and he wasn’t sure if he’s ever seen so many tears fall in such little time. He placed his hand over Mae’s, causing her to look up at him.
“I’ll write you and call you,” he promised her. “We can chat on Facebook, and we can Skype. There are so many things we can do Mae that’ll make us feel like we’re together.”
“But it won’t be the same,” she cried, looking down at her lap. “Nothing will be the same.”
Niall leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Mae’s lips, before pulling away and resting his forehead against hers. He sighed to himself. “I know, but we can at least try.”
But deep down he knew that Mae was right; nothing would be the same when they were both gone.
+
At 9:45, Mae and Niall were finished packing up Mae’s things and were finally heading downstairs to load up the car. Mae’s parents were sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee and having a conversation, and when they heard Mae and Niall come down the stairs, Tom stood up and walked over to Niall.
“Niall, it was really good meeting you,” he said as he shook Niall’s hand. “Thank you for being a good friend to Mae, and hopefully we’ll see you again.”
“It was a pleasure,” Niall said with a smile. “I hope we can arrange something.”
“It was nice getting to know you, Niall,” LeeAnn said from the table.
“Thank you for everything you did for me,” Niall said as he looked at her. “Thank you for the countless dinners.”
She smiled and nodded, before taking a sip of her coffee. Niall took Mae’s hand and walked outside, her suitcase in his other hand. Mae looked down at the ground as she felt a new batch of tears forming, and she sighed to herself wishing that all of this was easier. She knew that the last few minutes with Niall would be the worst and the most heartbreaking, and there was no way she could prepare herself for it.
“Mae!” Doniya shouted, causing Mae to look up. Doniya was running towards her while the rest of the guys stood back by Mae’s parent’s car. Mae let go of Niall’s hand before giving Doniya a tight hug.
“Thank you for being such a great friend over the summer,” Doniya said, squeezing Mae tightly, and she could tell that Doniya was trying to hold in her tears the best she could. “I couldn’t have asked for a better summer and a better friend. Promise me you’re going to talk to me as much as you can.”
“I promise,” Mae smiled as she pulled away and wiped her eyes. Doniya nodded and gave her another hug, before all of the guys walked over to Mae.
“It was great, Mae,” Zayn said with a smile as he gave Mae a hug. “Hopefully next summer we can come back.”
“I hope so,” Mae choked out as she hugged him back. “It won’t be the same coming back here and you all not being three houses down.”
He smiled as he pulled away from her. She gave Liam and Harry a hug and said goodbye to them, before Louis looked at Mae and gave her a smile. Mae smiled back at him as more tears began to fall, and she knew Louis would be one of the people she missed the most. She went over to him and gave him a tight hug, unable to control her quiet sobs.
“Mae, thank you for being such a great friend this summer,” he said into her hair. He squeezed her tightly and rocked her back and forth. “You and I definitely need to stay in touch, and you better tell me everything about college. You’ve become a very important person in my life this summer, and you better not leave it anytime soon.”
“I won’t,” Mae said, trying to force out a chuckle instead of a sob. Louis rubbed her back as he pulled away from her, and Mae wiped her eyes and sighed to herself.
“Sorry I’m such a mess, guys,” she mumbled. She looked over at Doniya who was wiping her red eyes and holding in sobs, then looked at all of the guys to see sad smiles on their faces, which broke her heart. Niall came up behind her and wrapped his arm around her as her parents came out of the house.
“Mae, we’re about to leave,” her dad said, before he got in the car. LeeAnn climbed into the passenger’s seat and waved to all of the guys and Doniya.
“See you soon,” Louis said to Mae, before he walked back towards the Malik’s house with everyone besides Niall. Mae waved to all of her friends, before turning to Niall and frowning. Niall tried to force a smile, before embracing her. He kissed her forehead and sighed to himself.
“I love you, Mae,” he said quietly, his voice getting weak. “I really, really hope I can see you soon. We’ll communicate in every way possible.”
Mae just nodded as she sobbed into Niall’s chest.
“You were mine for the summer,” he said, and Mae felt him smile into her hair. “And you better be mine still even though it’s over.”
Mae nodded again, smiling through her tears. She pulled away from Niall before kissing him passionately, not even caring if her parents were watching. She wouldn’t be able to see this man that changed her life for God knows how long, and not being able to come into any physical contact with him would be the hardest thing for her to deal with. She wanted him to know that even though she was leaving she still loved him just the same, and she didn’t think that would fade anytime soon.
After she pulled away from the kiss, Niall smiled wide before pecking her lips. “Call me when you’re home, and if I don’t answer, I’ll call you when we get home. Okay?”
Mae nodded and gave Niall one last hug, before she forced herself to pull away from him. He held her hand as he walked her to her parent’s car, and his heart broke piece by piece as he watched her climb into the car and shut the door. He backed away from the car as Tom put the car in reverse and pulled out of the driveway. Niall felt his eyes sting as Mae waved to him from the backseat, and he waved back to her wishing he could run straight to the car and beg them to take him with. As the car drove down the street, Niall watched it until it was completely out of sight.
And when he couldn’t see it anymore, he turned on his heel and walked towards the Malik’s house, alone and heartbroken.
It can't just end like this!! Can I have your preamicion to make a story of what happens after???????
1/14/14