follow me// larry + ziam (and a side of niall)

15: Niall

"Okay so guess what?" Ava excitedly said once she plopped down on the couch next to Niall.

"What?" Niall replied with a mouthful of Chex mix.

"Me, Tucker, Jason, and Maia are starting a band!" Ava clapped.

"Oh my god seriously? Ava that's awesome!" Niall cheered and wrapped her in a hug. 

"Thanks! Yeah we're gonna try and compete in battle of the bands this year." She nodded.

"Harry and I watch that every year, it's super cool," Niall beamed, "Are you playing an instrument or singing?"

"Both, I play electric guitar and sing. Tucker is the other singer, Maia plays drums, and Jason is on keys and guitar when it's needed." Ava told him.

"Nice, I'm so proud of you babe." Niall rested his hand on her knee, and Ava smiled at the gesture. 

"I probably won't be around a whole lot the next few weeks, we gotta practice. But I'll come over when I can." Ava explained, but Niall's heart dropped a little bit. 

"Okay, yeah that's fine. I know you guys are gonna be great." He leaned forward and kissed Ava's forehead.

"Thanks for understanding Ni. Can I destroy you at Call of Duty now?"

"Absolutely not you cocky little shit." Niall sprung up and grabbed a controller.

"You kiss your mum with that mouth?" She laughed and playfully slapped his cheek before picking up a controller of her own.

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The bell on the door jingled when Niall stepped in. The thrift store smelled like old books and years of memories. 

"Hi welcome in!" A sweet old lady waved a hand at him from the cash register. 

"Thank you." He smiled and nodded back. "Where do you keep your cameras?" 

"In the back corner sweetie." She pointed a finger, and he gave her another mumbled thank you before heading that way. He ran his fingers over the spines of dusty books and beat up vinyls. There was one shelf full of electronic goods, the middle being cameras. 

Niall picked up one, feeling it's weight and looking over the design. The brand was Konica, one he knew was well trusted and loved. He inspected the details and decided it would be a worthwhile purchase. The vinyls were right next to the cameras and he decided to flip through them and see if there was anything good, a habit he got from Harry even though he doesn't even own a record player. His finger stopped on a brand new, still in the plastic, Stevie Wonder vinyl.

"Holy fuck, Harry would love this." He muttered to himself, and flipped it over to read through the songs. Niall tucked it under his arm before heading to the checkout. 

"Hello love, did you find everything okay?" The same little old lady asked him. 

"I did, thank you."

"You found a good camera here, Konicas are great." She told him while ringing it up.

"Have you used them before?" Niall asked out of curiousity.

"I have, I did my fair share of photography years ago. Actually used to do concert photography in the 70s and 80s." She nodded. 

"Seriously? Did you ever get to meet any cool people?" 

"Actually yes, I worked a couple David Bowie shows and one Dolly Parton. My favorite was Queen though." The lady told him casually, but Niall's jaw dropped.

"That is so cool! Oh my god, I would love to do that." Niall zoned out in thought for a moment. 

"There's no dream too far off, kid." She smiled and winked. Niall handed her a couple wrinkled bills. 

"Do you know where I could get some film for the camera?" He asked before walking away.

"I think there's a shop a couple doors down, but if not you might have to search one."

"Okay, thank you so much ma'am." Niall smiled and waved before walking out of the shop. The England air was cold but fresh and he enjoyed nonetheless. He walked down the sidewalk, skimming over the signs and trying to locate the film store. He stopped when he found "Cameras Plus", and opened the door with a heave. 

"Hi, I'm looking to buy a couple rolls of 35mm film." Niall told the man at the counter. 

"Any brand in particular?" He asked. 

"No, Kodak or Fujifilm is fine." Niall pulled out his wallet and set his credit card down.

"Alright, two rolls of Kodak okay?" The man grabbed two small cylinders from the display case. 

"Perfect." Niall handed the man his card and pocketed the rolls. 

"Have a great day." He handed Niall's card back and smiled. Niall was looking down at his wallet while pushing open the glass door, but someone was pressing it from the other side. 

"Oh I am so sorr--- Niall is that you?" 

"Oh, hi Anne! Sorry I almost whacked you with the door." Niall giggled and gave Harry's mum a side hug. 

"That's okay sweetie, what brings you here?" She asked with a bright smile. 

"Just picking up some film. What about you?"

"I didn't know you were into photography!" She beamed, and Niall just shyly shrugged, "I just came to get a new memory card for our vacation next week." 

"Vacation?" Niall asked. 

"Yeah, Harry didn't tell you? We're spending the week in the States!" Anne clapped. 

"You are? He didn't say anything." Niall bit his lip in disappointment. 

"Oh honey, I'm sure it just slipped his mind. He's been with that Louis kid a lot, do you know him? Seems like a sweetie. I'm glad he's making more friends!" She exclaimed. Niall internally rolled his eyes, Harry has plenty of "friends" she doesn't know about.

"I don't really know him, but I'm glad he's making more friends too." Niall gave Anne a weak smile, but his heart sunk at her words. 

"Maybe call him? You're welcome to stop by tonight too, I'm sure he's just packing." She offered.

"Yeah, maybe I'll do that on my way home. Thanks Anne, have a nice day." He waved before pushing the door back open.

"You too!" She called out from inside. Once he got in his car, Niall's emotions quickly went from sad to curious to angry. Harry was supposed to be his best friend, why wasn't he acting like it?

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A/N: Ohhhhh schnapppp! This chapter was kinda short haha oopsies. Anygays, hi shawties, how are you? Are you doing okay? How's your mental health? YOU are loved and YOU are appreciated, never forget that. You're here for a reason, sending so much love today <3 <3