The Story of My Life

“Niall…” Selena starts to say as we gather our things and leave the coffee shop. “You love me?” She was inquisitive, probably doubting that she heard the right thing.

“Yes, I love you.” I smile at her.

“Y-you do!” She smiles back, more at the ground than at me though.

“I do.” I take her hand and hold it as we walk silently, wordlessly. Suddenly, I notice that we are not headed towards the house.

“Where are we going, Selena?”

“Someplace special.” She smiles at me this time.

We walk for ages, but I never seem to get tired. The joy of being with someone so bubbly and cheerful gives me enough energy to last months. We stop at a beautiful rose garden with a tiny, white gazebo nearby. I follow Selena, who sits on the ivory bench in the gazebo. It seems so familiar, etched in my memory, but I don’t recall being here before.

“I remember the first time I came here. I was 10 years old and my parents had just divorced. I went here with my mom, who decided that she didn’t want to live in Ireland anymore because of all the memories.” She points to the house across the street. “That little white house is where all my memories, both good and bad, were made with my mom. Next to that house, this garden is the most memorable.” She smiles as she continues.

“This is where I met my best friend. He was 14 and I was 13 back in the day. He had dark curls and brown eyes, kind of like Liam’s but more dark chocolate than light. He looked like such a nerd and he was an introvert, but with me, he could be himself.” The way she zones out dreamily makes me kind of jealous of that guy, I’ve got to admit. Maybe it’s because of my belief that perhaps, she is talking about not only her best friend, but her first love.

“What did you like about him?” I ask, trying to mask my jealousy.

“I never said I had a crush on him.”

“Did you?”

“Never. I thought of him as a best friend, that’s all.” I gaze intently into her eyes, which are focused on mine.

“Did he fancy you?”

“No. He fancied a girl named Marla who had sky blue eyes and long black hair up to her bum. He met her at a bakeshop because she accidently bumped into him and she said ‘sorry’ really cutely. She looked up at him with her crystalline orbs and she was beautiful.” I stare at Selena, surprised. She is a dancer, a singer and has beautifully worded sentences-she could be a writer! She is so talented!

“Nice words,” I say.

“His words, not mine.”

“Do you remember his name?”

“You guess. Five letters, starts with a ‘N’ and ends with a ‘l’. The first name that I can think about that starts with a ‘N’ and ends with a ‘l’ is my own. It’s not me she’s describing, however. First of all, I lived in Mullingar until the X-factor and next of all, I don’t have dark curly hair and dark brown eyes.

Suddenly, I recall where I’ve seen this place before- in a picture that my classmate, Shawn had in an album. When I asked him why he had the picture, he said that his sister likes to send pictures. “This one’s one of the sweetest, most romantic pictures I’ve ever seen,” I recall him saying. “Surprisingly, she and Nigel weren’t in a relationship.”

“Do you have a brother who lived in Mullingar?” I ask.

“Yes, because he and my father transferred to Mullingar, since my father’s company was stationed there.”

“Your best friend, was his name Nigel?”

“Yes.” She smiles. “Now I’m one step closer to knowing that you really are the Irish Niall Horan.”

I raise an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“When my brother heard that I would be giving choreography lessons to One Direction, he told me to befriend the Irish one, because he’s not only the sweetest, but he’s been looking for his friend for ages.”

I suddenly remember that Shawn and I had become very close, only to be torn apart by one of the best things in my life. I told him I’d talk to him the first chance I got, but we never had that much conversation, probably because life in fame is quite a whirlwind. I told him that I was in a band, but I think that I must’ve forgotten to say the name of the band.

“How did he say you could tell it’s me?”

“He said that you would be able to answer the riddle if I told him about the my friend. Next of all, there is this question that only you, my brother and I know the answer to.” She gazes at me intently. “Why did I decide to become a dancer?”

Oh Nando’s. I can recall, very vividly the exact words of Shawn that dreary December day.

Notes

Hope you guys like this chapter XD!
~Topaz :)