Niall Horan Imagines

Embarrassed

You heard a chorus of gasps and shrieks as nearly every girl the locker room scrambled to cover themselves. You had changed back into your jeans and had just pulled your gym t-shirt over your head when you caught sight of the reason behind everyone's outburst. Standing in a bra and jeans, your eyes settled on a boy with glasses and slicked down blond hair. You could see his eyes widening behind the thick lenses of his glasses. He paused in his spot and continued to stare at you. A blush crept across his features after he'd gotten an eyeful, and only now, did you think to cover yourself.

The still boy finally moved when a shirt came flying at him and hit him in the side of his head. He flinched as his frightened eyes were met with a sharp voice, "What are you doing? You're not allowed in here, get out!" The voice was high-pitched and screechy. He swallowed hard and reached up to adjust his glasses. Your eyes fell and you noticed a slip of paper in his shaky hands.

He inhaled sharply and dropped his eyes. His face was burning. Before anything else could happen, your gym teacher's office door whizzed open and she grabbed the boy by the collar of his shirt, aggressively tugging him into her office. Both of them disappeared when the wooden door slammed shut after them. Your eyebrows furrowed. She didn't have to treat him like that.

Voices returned and soon filled the room as girls complained about creepy boys sneaking into the girls' locker room. "He's not even cute," One of them snarled, while another commented, "He's like...one of those disgusting nerds. He probably lost his way or something." In reply to that comment, another girl laughed and growled, "Well, I don't care who he is. He's gross!"

You proceeded to change into your shirt before stuffing your gym clothes into your locker. After slinging your backpack over your shoulder, the bell rang and girls flooded out of the locker room, still mumbling about the incident. But you were curious. Of all people, you probably should have been the angriest. He did stare at your chest for a good minute. However, you weren't angry at all. If anything, you felt bad for the boy. You certainly had your share of embarrassing moments, so you understood what it felt like to be on that end of the situation.

You found a way to hang around the locker room after the bell, while managing to look busy. Finally, the office door swung open and the boy stumbled out, before the door slammed shut after him. He looked defeated. His face was still flushed. You watched as he kept his hands at his sides and walked with his head down. He wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible, before the next hour of gym students would file in. You followed after him, clutching the straps of your backpack.

The door that led out of the locker room almost shut in your face, as the boy let it close after him. He finally noticed you when he heard you catch the door with your foot. He stopped in his spot. He thought everyone was already gone. You watched his body tense as he closed his eyes and silently prayed that you wouldn't hurt him. He shyly turned to face you, and a look of terror crossed his face when he recognized you as the girl he'd been staring at. He wanted to run, but he felt as if his feet were cemented to the ground. He couldn't move them. His breaths quickened as he mumbled, "I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me, I wasn't-" He spoke so rapidly that his words sounded like a jumbled mess.

You interrupted him with a chuckle. "Are you kidding me?" You laughed before adding, "I would never hurt you, don't worry." His face softened, but he was still insanely embarrassed. "Why were you in there?" You curiously asked, finally pushing all the way through the door. It shut with a loud click behind you. Other girls were starting to gather, so you moved aside to let them in. But this boy was still glued to his spot. Girls rolled their eyes and growled at him, until one of them finally shoved him out of the way so they could get into the locker room. The boy stumbled a bit, but you grabbed his arm before he could fall. His eyes fell to your hand, which was wrapped around his arm. You awkwardly cleared your throat and dropped your hand from his arm. "So, uh, back to what I was saying..." You trailed off, waiting for his response.

He stared at you with clueless eyes until you raised your eyebrows at him, somehow bringing him back into reality. He shook his thoughts away and quietly explained, "The other gym teacher, Mr. J., asked me to deliver a note to Ms. R. I didn't—I didn't realize that meant I'd have to go in there." He glanced at the door to the locker room, as if the space behind it was a dangerous place to venture. Which, in cases like this; it probably wasn't the safest place for him to be.

"Oh," You simply said. It made sense now. There was silence between you two as he dropped his eyes to the floor. Neither of you even thought about the fact that class would be starting in just a minute. For some reason, neither of you felt a rush to get away from each other. "Listen, you shouldn't let people push you around like that," You spoke up, "I saw Ms. R. pull you into her office. That was just rude. Don't let people treat you that way."

He sheepishly smiled, still staring at his feet. You cared about him. That was a first. He was convinced that the only people in the world that cared about him were his family, and sometimes he even questioned that much. He reached up to push his glasses further up his nose. "What's your name?" You asked him, examining his slouched figure.

"What?" He squeaked, finally raising his eyes to you. He was in disbelief. You asked his name. That meant you wanted to talk to him, right? He wasn't just that nerd that everyone despised anymore.

You giggled. "Your name—what is it?" You repeated.

"Niall," He breathed, "My name is Niall."

With a smile on your face, you said, "Pleasure to meet you, Niall. I'm (Y/N)."

"You're not mad at me?" He questioned, scratching the back of his neck. "You're not mad at me for staring at you? I promise I didn't mean to. I was just—I was in there, and you were there and-" He was rambling again, but this time he was interrupted by the bell ringing. You were both surprised. His eyes widened and he looked at you. You were sure your face reflected the same frightened expression as his.

"Come on!" He exclaimed, grabbing your hand and pulling you down the hallway, "I have math this hour!"

**Can you tell how much I love nerdy Niall?!**