Queen of my Heart

03

I HATED BEING A GROWN-UP.

The trip to their floor was short and in every way awkward. I didn't know whether it was my unusual sour mood or the fact that we just met at the wrong place at the wrong time that we couldn't form a worthwhile conversation.

Despite of this, I had managed to stay calm and not act as nervous as I felt.

It was just Shane, I reminded myself, my former best friend. No need to be all weird at all.

But it was hard. I mean, I couldn't just possibly ignore the pain in my heart, you know. This . . . This gaping hole in my chest that has been ever-so-present since he left.

"Hey, are you alright?"

I blinked a good few times before meeting his hazel-green eyes. "Wha—? I mean, yeah. Yeah, of course."

Shane held my hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. "They'll like you, I promise."

"Sure," was my weak reply.

Not long after, we entered a normal-looking suite and this was what I saw:

Four guys sitting in the sofa, playing video games. There was a cute guy with blond hair, whom I knew was Nicky Byrne. He noticed us first.

He said, "Oh. We have company."

As if on cue, everybody froze to look at us. Suddenly, I felt self-conscious with my still damp arse.

I knew this was a very bad idea.

"Who is she? Your girlfriend?" Bryan McFadden, another blond, asked cheekily.

Shane chuckled as he shook his head while I stood there, blushing. "Piss off, Bryan. You know I have Gillian," he replied curtly, a slight edge to his tone.

I decided to ignore the tiny pang of jealousy inside me.

"Meet my best friend," he added stonily, avoiding my eyes.

If he'll just act as if he were embarrassed of me, then why bother introduce me to new people at all?

Anyway, the remaining two unfroze and stood up. Introductions were made ("I'm Kian Egan," "Hi, the name's Mark," "Nicky," "Yo, I'm Bryan McFadden.") and I almost forgot to be anxious. Almost.

Waving my hand a little, I said, "Hi, guys. I'm Juliet."

"So, you're one of our fans?" Kian asked right away.

"Gee, what gave me away?" I replied wryly.

All of them laughed and patted me on the back, getting that I wasn't too die hard.

"Come on, let's settle down," Nicky invited.

We all sat down while Shane volunteered to prepare something to drink. Next thing I knew, I was sitting between Bryan and Nicky who were playing video games. Eventually, Nicky lost and Bryan dared me to play with him. I was surprised of myself when I didn't even blink and accepted.