Here We Are
Chapter Three
“Ev, you’ve been in there for a long time. Are you alright?” Harry asked from outside the bathroom door.
I cringed when he called me Ev. Only people I’m close with called me that, and we weren’t close. All I knew about him was that he was in a group called One Direction, that he was from London, and that he had a big dick.
“I’m fine,” I lied. “Can you just meet me in the car?”
“Yeah, sure,” he answered. As I heard him exit the flat, I called Adrian.
“Hello, Ev. Thanks for hanging up on me last night. You know, when you do that, I just –“
“Adrian, I just had sex with someone.”
The other side of the line went quiet. I felt tears building up “Please say something, Adrian!”
“Who was it?” he asked.
“His name is Harry Styles … and –“
“That One Direction guy? Seriously, Evelyn? Did you even want to do it with him or was it because he’s famous?”
“It just sort of happened, Adrian. And, no, I actually don’t like him…he just…he looked good, and I haven’t had sex in over a year, and –“
“You just met this guy and you fucked him. Where is the Evelyn that I know at? Call me when you find her.” He then hung up the phone. I started sobbing, but I needed to go to lunch with the guys like I told Harry I would. I stopped crying and fixed myself back up, headed outside, and got in Harry’s car.
“You okay?” he asked. I could tell he was looking at me, but I was staring out the window so he couldn’t see my eyes.
“Yes.”
“Okay then. You know, I meant to tell you, when I was in Atlanta one time, I went to this restaurant that was-“
“Harry, what the fuck did we just do?” I interrupted him. I looked over at his face and he seemed a little confused.
“We … just had sex?” he answered.
“Why, though? We barely know each other and we just fucked like we were long lost lovers.”
“I was coming to knock on your door to ask if you minded if I used your restroom, but when I saw you standing there, I just couldn’t help myself to stare. I’ve never seen someone look as flawless as you do, you know.” He was beaming a smile.
I just stayed silent. I didn’t know if I should say something about Niall or not. I’m afraid if I didn’t, though, Harry would mention something about it to his mates later. “Harry, Niall asked me on a date yesterday.”
He kept his eyes on the road the whole time. His smile faded away. It took him a minute to say anything back to me. “Did you say yes?”
“Yes, I did.”
Harry pulled the car over and looked at me. “Then why the hell didn’t you stop me?”
“Because I didn’t want you to stop! A man has never made me feel like you did when we were fooling around... and it’s been so long since I’ve had any contact with a man, you know? It just felt so fucking good.”
“Then cancel on Niall. I can make you feel good all the time.”
“That is one of your best friends you are talking about, Harry! And for your information, even after what just happened, I still want to date him. He didn’t call me a loser the first time I met him.”
I let out a huge sigh. “I fucking told you I was sorry!”
“Well, Harry, unlike you, he actually got to know me before he asked me out. You just looked at my body and decided you wanted me. I should have never had sex with you.”
I kept my eyes fixed out my window for the remainder of the ride to wherever we were going for lunch. I wanted Harry and I to at least be friends, but if I didn’t stop talking, it wasn’t going to be like that. As soon as we pulled up to the restaurant we were eating at, I started to open my car door. Before I could get out, Harry grabbed my wrist.
“I’m not giving up on you,” he muttered. He then let go and I made my way out of the car.
As soon as I got inside, I was stopped by a security guard. “Sorry, ma’am, but this place is closed for a private event.” I was about to just turn around but I heard a scream from the back.
“Evelyn! Hey!” Both the security guard and I looked back to see Niall waving at me. The guard let me past and I made my way to their table. I sat down In between Niall and some guy with little hair on his head. Besides Harry and Niall, there were three other people here I didn’t recognized, but I could only assume they were the rest of the members of One Direction.
Niall pointed to everyone in the group and introduced them. “This is Liam, Zayn, Louis, and Harry, which I’m guessing you already know?”
“He came to the coffee shop to apologize then brought me here,” I replied. I looked over at Harry who kept his gaze locked onto his phone.
“She really is more beautiful in person,” Liam said.
“Seriously! Are you a model or something?” Louis asked.
“Oh shut up. If you’re friends with my sister you know how I am.”
“Your sister talks about you all the time when we see her. It is so awesome to finally meet you,” Zayn spoke.
All of these guys were so fucking cute. I know my pop culture knowledge was very limited, but how did I never know about them before? I looked over at Harry again, who was still on his phone. Why did I keep looking at him? He wasn’t the one I was interested in. I redirected my view to Niall, who was smiling at me. He was so adorable.
For the next few hours, all we did was talk about us. We all exchanged what our hobbies were, what music we liked, and we just all really got to know each other. Well, everyone except Harry, who didn’t say a word to any of us. The only time he spoke up was to order something or for a refill on his drink. I really liked these guys, especially Niall, and I hope Harry didn’t ruin that for me.
The boys had already paid and we were about to leave when Liam spoke up. “Harry, are you alright? You haven’t said a word since we’ve been here.”
He just kept his eyes on his phone, like he had been doing all day. “Yep.”
“You’re not even looking at us, mate. Something is up,” Louis chimed in.
“I said I’m fine.”
“Hey, if you don’t want to-“
“Leave me alone! I said I was fucking fine!” He then stormed out of the restaurant. I looked around at all the guys to see that all of their expressions were the same. They had no idea what the hell was going on. I wish I didn’t.
HARRY’S POV
I hopped in my car and started to drive back to my home. I could have just said right then and there that I fucked her. I could have ruined her chances with Niall. But I respect him and he is one of my best friends. It just made me hurt to see her sitting there to happily like she just didn’t drop a bomb on me earlier in the day.
I don’t know why thinking about her being with Niall made upset. I mean, I had only known her for a day, and we mainly have said bad things to each other. Maybe it was the way she’d look at me with her deep brown eyes that seemed to glisten just perfectly when the light would catch on them. Or maybe it was how when she smiled, she could light up the night sky brighter than the stars ever could. It could have been her silky skin that was smooth to the touch.
But that’s just it. That’s all I really knew about her – that she was gorgeous … and that she was good in bed. How could I feel like this towards someone I barely know? There was something about her that stood out, and I was going to figure out what it was.
EVELYN’S POV
When the boys returned me home back to my flat and gave me their numbers, they told me they would keep in touch and ask me to hang out later. Niall said he’d text me about our date and gave me another kiss on the cheek. He was a true gentleman.
When I walked into my flat, I was startled to see Madelyn waiting by the door for me. She had her laptop in her hand and a concerned look on her face.
“Evelyn, what is this about?” she asked, showing me the computer screen. It was a picture of Harry and I entering my apartment holding hands. I began to read the article.
HARRY STYLES HAS A NEW LOVER?
Our star photographer Lorenzo Hernandez caught these two going into what we think is her apartment hand in hand. He said there was magic going on in there!
“You could hear moaning come from inside the place. It only started once they went in there and it stopped when Harry came back out!”
Harry’s new lover is said to be Madelyn Baker’s younger sister, Evelyn. She works at a local coffee shop in London.
I felt the color fade from my face. “I … I need to sit down,” I murmured and I groggily made my way to our couch. “There was no one around when we got here!”
“They hide anywhere and everywhere. But really, Ev? Harry? I thought you’d at least go for Zayn.”
I snapped at her. “That isn’t the point! I should have never fucking let him drive me home…” I focused my attention on the floor. “I have a fucking date with Niall tomorrow. He’s going to see this and never want to take me out.”
“Why did you do it?”
“No man has ever touched me like he has. I haven’t even been touched by a man in over a year. It was a mistake. I need to see Niall.” I pulled out my phone and called him.
“Hi Ev!” he answered. He sounded cheerful so I guess he hadn’t seen the pictures yet.
“Can we … meet up somewhere? I need to talk to you,” I said.
“Oh … yeah, I’m actually close to your flat. If it’s okay, I’ll just come over.”
“That works. Thank you.”
“See you soon!” He then hung up. I pulled my hair into a ponytail then made my way for outside the flat to wait for Niall to pull up. I didnt’t think I was ready for this.
About ten minutes passed when Niall pulled up. As soon as he did, I started crying. He exited his vehicle quickly and came over to me, just see I was crying.
“Woah, what’s wrong, love?”
“I need to confess something to you, Niall.”
“Oh … what is it?”
“You’re going to hate me. And just know that this was a mistake, and I didn’t want to hurt you. I don’t want to. I need –“
“Evelyn, what is it?”
“I had sex with Harry right before we showed up for lunch.”
Niall’s face right at that moment could break the heart of anyone that looked at it. More tears just piled out of my eyes. It was about two minutes before he said anything. “It was a mistake?”
“Niall, never have I regretted something more in my life. He just started seducing me and I just fell for it. He also didn’t know about our date at the time, so please don’t be mad at him. Be mad at me. I really fucked up, and I’m sorry. I understand if you and the guys don’t ever want to talk to me again,” I muttered as I began to walk away from him, but he stopped me by grabbing onto my upper arm.
“We would never abandon you like that. I forgive you, as long as you promise to never do it again.” He flashed one of his adorable smiles at me, but it wasn’t genuine like the other ones were. You could tell he was hurt.
I pulled him in for a tight hug. “Thank you so much, Niall. Harry and I aren’t going to be more than friends. Ever.”
We pulled away from each other and he led me to his car. “How about we go on that date now?” I smiled and hopped in the passenger’s seat.
“So where are we going?” I asked once he turned away from my street.
“It’s a surprise. You’re not allowed to know until we get there.” It seemed like something he would say with a goofy smile on his face, but instead he seemed way more focused on the road, and didn’t even look at me. I really wanted to work it out of him, but his body language was suggesting otherwise. I decided to just wait it out and let him surprise me.
We rode in silence for a few minutes, as he started heading towards a part of town I never went to. He drove along the small winding street with an ease of someone who travelled around there quite often. I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he was taking me to wherever he lived.
“I live down that way, just past those trees,” he pointed down a street to our left, but didn’t turn, answering my question. I wasn’t sure that I myself could fill the silence, so I turned to the radio. Even though I had lived there for two months, I didn’t know what stations were worth listening to so I just mindlessly flipped through the stations, looking for anything catchy. When I finally found something semi-decent, Niall reached over and clicked the radio off. He took a couple turns, getting us further and further from town, and finally slid his car into a grassy field. I looked around in awe of this perfect sanctuary he’s found. There was a small creek leading into a large lake. In the midst of the lake was the most perfect little gazebo. A simple dock was built, but didn’t stretch all the way to the gazebo. Instead, there was a small boat that could fit maybe three people tied to it, with two oars sticking out. Examining the scene closer, I saw a small picnic set up in the gazebo. That brought me back to reality, that I was on a date with a guy whose best friend I had just slept with.
Niall, seeing my love of this place, grabbed my hand and started walking toward the dock. “So I take it you like it here, judging by how you just kind of stood there slack-jawed.”
“It’s … beautiful,” I stammered. The thing was, it reminded me so much of back in Georgia, when Dad would take me on a random weekend trip, just to wander around the streets and end up in parks not unlike the one I was currently standing in. We’d wander around with ice cream and just talk and admire the simple beauty of nature, glad to be out of the city for a while.
I was still admiring the scenery and flashing back when I realized we had made it to the dock and Niall was standing in the boat, still holding my hand and waiting for me to get in after him.
The boat ride was pleasant. Instead of rowing us straight to the gazebo, he paddled around the lake for a bit, obviously just as in love with it as I was, though he didn’t have to deal with the whole first-time-seeing-this-beauty thing. The awkwardness from the car ride seemed to have melted away as we rode along, his arms rowing us in one last large circle before heading to the gazebo.
“I take it that this place reminds you of home,” his blue eyes peering up at me. “It does me, too. I miss Ireland sometimes, though I wouldn’t trade this life for anything. That’s why I like to come here: it’s my own little escape. As long as I’ve been coming here, I’ve never seen a single soul. I haven’t told the guys about it either, though I’m sure at least Harry knows about it. He lives a few miles up the road, where we came from.”
I couldn’t help but notice the way his tone changed when he mentioned Harry. He silently tied the boat to the gazebo, got out, and then helped me out. The little picnic he had set up was charming and perfect. In the middle of the gazebo was a blanket, laid out on it was grapes, crackers, string cheese, and a couple of rough-looking PB&Js. His guitar was leaning against one of the railings, along with a single daisy.
“It’s perfect!” I breathed. And it was; how he had known that he was going to take me on this date now instead of later, I had no idea. But it was fantastic. He handed me the daisy, which I tucked into my ponytail. We sat down and ate, just chatting aimlessly about nothing in particular. While in the middle of a discussion of weather creamy or crunchy peanut butter was better, he randomly got up and grabbed the guitar.
“I want to play you a little song I wrote about you,” he said as he started to play a fun little fast, quirky tune. He had that little smirk on his face, and it seemed as though he had forgotten everything that had already happened that day. We sat there for about a minute, him simply playing the guitar and me staring when his mouth opened and the most ridiculous song I’d ever heard came out:
“Oh Evelyn, how you make me smile for a while, and by the way my name is Niall.
I am Irish, and you are American, that would make our children Irican.
I need you to help me decorate my bathroom’s style, and choose the color or the tile.
Like when Bob the Builder asks, ‘Can you do it?!’ you’ll respond with ‘Yes I can!’”
He kept strumming but looked at me with the goofiest of all looks on his face, waiting for my response. Through my laughter, I yelled, “YES I CAN!” He chuckled, then went into the next verse:
“So now that we’ve got that sorted through, there’s something that I want you to do
Kind of like that song that we all sang as kids, the one with us in a tree
Nothing having to do with poo, the think I want right now is to kiss you
Since there’s nothing left of my song and I’m asking you please, why don’t you just kiss me?”
I sort of just sat there for a second, smiling like an idiot before I realized what he said. I leaned forward, closing my eyes as his slid shut too, and just as we were about to connect, an extremely loud and fake cough rang through the air from the direction of the deck. We both looked to see who it was, and I let out a gasp. Then he spoke.
“I told you I wasn’t giving up on you.”
I cringed when he called me Ev. Only people I’m close with called me that, and we weren’t close. All I knew about him was that he was in a group called One Direction, that he was from London, and that he had a big dick.
“I’m fine,” I lied. “Can you just meet me in the car?”
“Yeah, sure,” he answered. As I heard him exit the flat, I called Adrian.
“Hello, Ev. Thanks for hanging up on me last night. You know, when you do that, I just –“
“Adrian, I just had sex with someone.”
The other side of the line went quiet. I felt tears building up “Please say something, Adrian!”
“Who was it?” he asked.
“His name is Harry Styles … and –“
“That One Direction guy? Seriously, Evelyn? Did you even want to do it with him or was it because he’s famous?”
“It just sort of happened, Adrian. And, no, I actually don’t like him…he just…he looked good, and I haven’t had sex in over a year, and –“
“You just met this guy and you fucked him. Where is the Evelyn that I know at? Call me when you find her.” He then hung up the phone. I started sobbing, but I needed to go to lunch with the guys like I told Harry I would. I stopped crying and fixed myself back up, headed outside, and got in Harry’s car.
“You okay?” he asked. I could tell he was looking at me, but I was staring out the window so he couldn’t see my eyes.
“Yes.”
“Okay then. You know, I meant to tell you, when I was in Atlanta one time, I went to this restaurant that was-“
“Harry, what the fuck did we just do?” I interrupted him. I looked over at his face and he seemed a little confused.
“We … just had sex?” he answered.
“Why, though? We barely know each other and we just fucked like we were long lost lovers.”
“I was coming to knock on your door to ask if you minded if I used your restroom, but when I saw you standing there, I just couldn’t help myself to stare. I’ve never seen someone look as flawless as you do, you know.” He was beaming a smile.
I just stayed silent. I didn’t know if I should say something about Niall or not. I’m afraid if I didn’t, though, Harry would mention something about it to his mates later. “Harry, Niall asked me on a date yesterday.”
He kept his eyes on the road the whole time. His smile faded away. It took him a minute to say anything back to me. “Did you say yes?”
“Yes, I did.”
Harry pulled the car over and looked at me. “Then why the hell didn’t you stop me?”
“Because I didn’t want you to stop! A man has never made me feel like you did when we were fooling around... and it’s been so long since I’ve had any contact with a man, you know? It just felt so fucking good.”
“Then cancel on Niall. I can make you feel good all the time.”
“That is one of your best friends you are talking about, Harry! And for your information, even after what just happened, I still want to date him. He didn’t call me a loser the first time I met him.”
I let out a huge sigh. “I fucking told you I was sorry!”
“Well, Harry, unlike you, he actually got to know me before he asked me out. You just looked at my body and decided you wanted me. I should have never had sex with you.”
I kept my eyes fixed out my window for the remainder of the ride to wherever we were going for lunch. I wanted Harry and I to at least be friends, but if I didn’t stop talking, it wasn’t going to be like that. As soon as we pulled up to the restaurant we were eating at, I started to open my car door. Before I could get out, Harry grabbed my wrist.
“I’m not giving up on you,” he muttered. He then let go and I made my way out of the car.
As soon as I got inside, I was stopped by a security guard. “Sorry, ma’am, but this place is closed for a private event.” I was about to just turn around but I heard a scream from the back.
“Evelyn! Hey!” Both the security guard and I looked back to see Niall waving at me. The guard let me past and I made my way to their table. I sat down In between Niall and some guy with little hair on his head. Besides Harry and Niall, there were three other people here I didn’t recognized, but I could only assume they were the rest of the members of One Direction.
Niall pointed to everyone in the group and introduced them. “This is Liam, Zayn, Louis, and Harry, which I’m guessing you already know?”
“He came to the coffee shop to apologize then brought me here,” I replied. I looked over at Harry who kept his gaze locked onto his phone.
“She really is more beautiful in person,” Liam said.
“Seriously! Are you a model or something?” Louis asked.
“Oh shut up. If you’re friends with my sister you know how I am.”
“Your sister talks about you all the time when we see her. It is so awesome to finally meet you,” Zayn spoke.
All of these guys were so fucking cute. I know my pop culture knowledge was very limited, but how did I never know about them before? I looked over at Harry again, who was still on his phone. Why did I keep looking at him? He wasn’t the one I was interested in. I redirected my view to Niall, who was smiling at me. He was so adorable.
For the next few hours, all we did was talk about us. We all exchanged what our hobbies were, what music we liked, and we just all really got to know each other. Well, everyone except Harry, who didn’t say a word to any of us. The only time he spoke up was to order something or for a refill on his drink. I really liked these guys, especially Niall, and I hope Harry didn’t ruin that for me.
The boys had already paid and we were about to leave when Liam spoke up. “Harry, are you alright? You haven’t said a word since we’ve been here.”
He just kept his eyes on his phone, like he had been doing all day. “Yep.”
“You’re not even looking at us, mate. Something is up,” Louis chimed in.
“I said I’m fine.”
“Hey, if you don’t want to-“
“Leave me alone! I said I was fucking fine!” He then stormed out of the restaurant. I looked around at all the guys to see that all of their expressions were the same. They had no idea what the hell was going on. I wish I didn’t.
HARRY’S POV
I hopped in my car and started to drive back to my home. I could have just said right then and there that I fucked her. I could have ruined her chances with Niall. But I respect him and he is one of my best friends. It just made me hurt to see her sitting there to happily like she just didn’t drop a bomb on me earlier in the day.
I don’t know why thinking about her being with Niall made upset. I mean, I had only known her for a day, and we mainly have said bad things to each other. Maybe it was the way she’d look at me with her deep brown eyes that seemed to glisten just perfectly when the light would catch on them. Or maybe it was how when she smiled, she could light up the night sky brighter than the stars ever could. It could have been her silky skin that was smooth to the touch.
But that’s just it. That’s all I really knew about her – that she was gorgeous … and that she was good in bed. How could I feel like this towards someone I barely know? There was something about her that stood out, and I was going to figure out what it was.
EVELYN’S POV
When the boys returned me home back to my flat and gave me their numbers, they told me they would keep in touch and ask me to hang out later. Niall said he’d text me about our date and gave me another kiss on the cheek. He was a true gentleman.
When I walked into my flat, I was startled to see Madelyn waiting by the door for me. She had her laptop in her hand and a concerned look on her face.
“Evelyn, what is this about?” she asked, showing me the computer screen. It was a picture of Harry and I entering my apartment holding hands. I began to read the article.
HARRY STYLES HAS A NEW LOVER?
Our star photographer Lorenzo Hernandez caught these two going into what we think is her apartment hand in hand. He said there was magic going on in there!
“You could hear moaning come from inside the place. It only started once they went in there and it stopped when Harry came back out!”
Harry’s new lover is said to be Madelyn Baker’s younger sister, Evelyn. She works at a local coffee shop in London.
I felt the color fade from my face. “I … I need to sit down,” I murmured and I groggily made my way to our couch. “There was no one around when we got here!”
“They hide anywhere and everywhere. But really, Ev? Harry? I thought you’d at least go for Zayn.”
I snapped at her. “That isn’t the point! I should have never fucking let him drive me home…” I focused my attention on the floor. “I have a fucking date with Niall tomorrow. He’s going to see this and never want to take me out.”
“Why did you do it?”
“No man has ever touched me like he has. I haven’t even been touched by a man in over a year. It was a mistake. I need to see Niall.” I pulled out my phone and called him.
“Hi Ev!” he answered. He sounded cheerful so I guess he hadn’t seen the pictures yet.
“Can we … meet up somewhere? I need to talk to you,” I said.
“Oh … yeah, I’m actually close to your flat. If it’s okay, I’ll just come over.”
“That works. Thank you.”
“See you soon!” He then hung up. I pulled my hair into a ponytail then made my way for outside the flat to wait for Niall to pull up. I didnt’t think I was ready for this.
About ten minutes passed when Niall pulled up. As soon as he did, I started crying. He exited his vehicle quickly and came over to me, just see I was crying.
“Woah, what’s wrong, love?”
“I need to confess something to you, Niall.”
“Oh … what is it?”
“You’re going to hate me. And just know that this was a mistake, and I didn’t want to hurt you. I don’t want to. I need –“
“Evelyn, what is it?”
“I had sex with Harry right before we showed up for lunch.”
Niall’s face right at that moment could break the heart of anyone that looked at it. More tears just piled out of my eyes. It was about two minutes before he said anything. “It was a mistake?”
“Niall, never have I regretted something more in my life. He just started seducing me and I just fell for it. He also didn’t know about our date at the time, so please don’t be mad at him. Be mad at me. I really fucked up, and I’m sorry. I understand if you and the guys don’t ever want to talk to me again,” I muttered as I began to walk away from him, but he stopped me by grabbing onto my upper arm.
“We would never abandon you like that. I forgive you, as long as you promise to never do it again.” He flashed one of his adorable smiles at me, but it wasn’t genuine like the other ones were. You could tell he was hurt.
I pulled him in for a tight hug. “Thank you so much, Niall. Harry and I aren’t going to be more than friends. Ever.”
We pulled away from each other and he led me to his car. “How about we go on that date now?” I smiled and hopped in the passenger’s seat.
“So where are we going?” I asked once he turned away from my street.
“It’s a surprise. You’re not allowed to know until we get there.” It seemed like something he would say with a goofy smile on his face, but instead he seemed way more focused on the road, and didn’t even look at me. I really wanted to work it out of him, but his body language was suggesting otherwise. I decided to just wait it out and let him surprise me.
We rode in silence for a few minutes, as he started heading towards a part of town I never went to. He drove along the small winding street with an ease of someone who travelled around there quite often. I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he was taking me to wherever he lived.
“I live down that way, just past those trees,” he pointed down a street to our left, but didn’t turn, answering my question. I wasn’t sure that I myself could fill the silence, so I turned to the radio. Even though I had lived there for two months, I didn’t know what stations were worth listening to so I just mindlessly flipped through the stations, looking for anything catchy. When I finally found something semi-decent, Niall reached over and clicked the radio off. He took a couple turns, getting us further and further from town, and finally slid his car into a grassy field. I looked around in awe of this perfect sanctuary he’s found. There was a small creek leading into a large lake. In the midst of the lake was the most perfect little gazebo. A simple dock was built, but didn’t stretch all the way to the gazebo. Instead, there was a small boat that could fit maybe three people tied to it, with two oars sticking out. Examining the scene closer, I saw a small picnic set up in the gazebo. That brought me back to reality, that I was on a date with a guy whose best friend I had just slept with.
Niall, seeing my love of this place, grabbed my hand and started walking toward the dock. “So I take it you like it here, judging by how you just kind of stood there slack-jawed.”
“It’s … beautiful,” I stammered. The thing was, it reminded me so much of back in Georgia, when Dad would take me on a random weekend trip, just to wander around the streets and end up in parks not unlike the one I was currently standing in. We’d wander around with ice cream and just talk and admire the simple beauty of nature, glad to be out of the city for a while.
I was still admiring the scenery and flashing back when I realized we had made it to the dock and Niall was standing in the boat, still holding my hand and waiting for me to get in after him.
The boat ride was pleasant. Instead of rowing us straight to the gazebo, he paddled around the lake for a bit, obviously just as in love with it as I was, though he didn’t have to deal with the whole first-time-seeing-this-beauty thing. The awkwardness from the car ride seemed to have melted away as we rode along, his arms rowing us in one last large circle before heading to the gazebo.
“I take it that this place reminds you of home,” his blue eyes peering up at me. “It does me, too. I miss Ireland sometimes, though I wouldn’t trade this life for anything. That’s why I like to come here: it’s my own little escape. As long as I’ve been coming here, I’ve never seen a single soul. I haven’t told the guys about it either, though I’m sure at least Harry knows about it. He lives a few miles up the road, where we came from.”
I couldn’t help but notice the way his tone changed when he mentioned Harry. He silently tied the boat to the gazebo, got out, and then helped me out. The little picnic he had set up was charming and perfect. In the middle of the gazebo was a blanket, laid out on it was grapes, crackers, string cheese, and a couple of rough-looking PB&Js. His guitar was leaning against one of the railings, along with a single daisy.
“It’s perfect!” I breathed. And it was; how he had known that he was going to take me on this date now instead of later, I had no idea. But it was fantastic. He handed me the daisy, which I tucked into my ponytail. We sat down and ate, just chatting aimlessly about nothing in particular. While in the middle of a discussion of weather creamy or crunchy peanut butter was better, he randomly got up and grabbed the guitar.
“I want to play you a little song I wrote about you,” he said as he started to play a fun little fast, quirky tune. He had that little smirk on his face, and it seemed as though he had forgotten everything that had already happened that day. We sat there for about a minute, him simply playing the guitar and me staring when his mouth opened and the most ridiculous song I’d ever heard came out:
“Oh Evelyn, how you make me smile for a while, and by the way my name is Niall.
I am Irish, and you are American, that would make our children Irican.
I need you to help me decorate my bathroom’s style, and choose the color or the tile.
Like when Bob the Builder asks, ‘Can you do it?!’ you’ll respond with ‘Yes I can!’”
He kept strumming but looked at me with the goofiest of all looks on his face, waiting for my response. Through my laughter, I yelled, “YES I CAN!” He chuckled, then went into the next verse:
“So now that we’ve got that sorted through, there’s something that I want you to do
Kind of like that song that we all sang as kids, the one with us in a tree
Nothing having to do with poo, the think I want right now is to kiss you
Since there’s nothing left of my song and I’m asking you please, why don’t you just kiss me?”
I sort of just sat there for a second, smiling like an idiot before I realized what he said. I leaned forward, closing my eyes as his slid shut too, and just as we were about to connect, an extremely loud and fake cough rang through the air from the direction of the deck. We both looked to see who it was, and I let out a gasp. Then he spoke.
“I told you I wasn’t giving up on you.”
10/27/13