In Other Words (Niall Fanfic)

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen 

Niall’s POV

A single ray of sunlight lands directly upon my face, having squeezed past the edge of the drawn blinds. I suck a breath in and let it out before getting my bearings. It must be early, and I can feel her breathing beside me in a slow, steady rhythm. The clock on the bedside is just out of sight, so I post up on my elbow slightly to have a look. 7:00. With a sigh, my head’s back down on the pillow. “Roxy?” I whisper, not sure if I’ve woken her. “Yeah?” She whispers back. Her morning voice is deeper, and is slightly sexy to me for some reason.  “How is it that I fell asleep with you in my arms, but now we’re arse-to-arse?”

She giggled as I felt her bring her hand to her face and clear the sleep from her eyes. She turned over toward me, pulling the covers up to her chin. She wrapped her arm around my waist and weaved her legs in with mine. “Don’t fart, please.” She said, her face snuggled into my back.

I scooted back toward her, wanting no space between our bodies. I closed my eyes and tried to get back to sleep, but my mind was preoccupied thinking of this girl, the fun we’ve been having, and what it all means. There was a moment last night in the car, when she had finished telling an embarrassing story that had us both teary-eyed from laughter. As we sat there catching our breaths, the light from the passing street lamps illuminated her face, and I realized how strongly I feel for her. I really, really like her.  What was the next step? For ordinary people this was an awkward but fun milestone. For me, I knew it would be complicated.

“How do you like being the little spoon, Ni?” She asked, thankfully interrupting my thoughts.

“Makes it less awkward if I get a stiffie.” I said.

“Perv.” She said, her face still pressed between her pillow and my shirt.

“It’s perfectly natural!” I said, turning over to my back. “Especially given the company.” I pulled her arm, rolling her toward me, tickling her sides and pulling her up onto my stomach. She sat up, her knees falling to either side of my body. I looked up at her straddling me. She pushed her wild morning-hair out of her face and smiled. I let my fingertips graze the exposed skin at her hips. The tension began to grow, but  she tried not to show it. “You’re perfect.” I said.

“Not even close.” She replied, unimpressed with my compliment.

“I love that you don’t try.” I said.  My stomach growled from beneath her. She looked down at it and back to my face.

“What did you just say?” she said to my abdomen, climbing off me, lifting my shirt and pressing her ear to my stomach for a better listen. I felt her breath on my bare skin, and I was unable to move. She touched her lips to me gently, as I tried like hell to think about football, or video games, or anything to prevent the inevitable rise in blood flow at my boxers. In a moment of weakness, I glanced downward to see a coy smile across her lips. She knew exactly what she was doing.

“I’m hungry, too.” She said, sitting up on the edge of the bed. “Let’s go for breakfast.”

I watched her as she leaned over the dresser, checking her reflection in the mirror. She was beautiful, even in the morning. “I need a shower first.” She said, and headed into the bathroom, the door clicking shut behind her. I waited to hear her start the water before picking up the hotel room phone and dialing the front desk.

Roxy’s POV

There were three soft knocks before I heard the bathroom door creek open. My skin tingled. Uh oh, I thought. I just meant to toy with him a little bit, a tease in good fun. “Hey Rox, can I brush my teeth?”