1+1 Makes 3 | Niam

Chapter 39

Niall's p.o.v

"Hey sweetie, how's my favourite son?"

Sighing as he opened the door, Niall already wanted the day to be over as let his mother in, wishing he had more on than one of Liam's shirts and a pair of boxers as she leaned into hug him, pulling back from her reach before he said "Mum. Nice of you to stop by. What are you doing here at... eight twenty seven in the morning?"

"I came to see you and my grandson, of course." Heading straight for the kitchen, Maura began to rearrange the stack of plates on the counter, shaking her head as she looked around.

Sighing again, Niall pulled Liam's shirt down further as he asked "But what are you doing here at eight thirty in the morning?"

Moving onto the cupboards, Maura shrugged as though it was obvious. "The early bird catches the worm. And Louis told me you had gone back to work. Shouldn't you be ready by now?"

Pinching his temple, Niall began to count from backwards from ten to one before saying "It's a Saturday, mum. I don't work on Saturdays. Why are you here today? You haven't visited for months, so why now?"

Looking up from the cupboard, Maura shook her head at Niall's tone, raising an eyebrow as she said "Because I thought a visit to see my son was overdue."

His gaze softening at his mothers words, Niall relaxed slightly, folding his arms and sighing as he remembered why he was only dressed in a shirt. "As nice as that is of you, maybe some forewarning next time? Because we were right in the middle of- .... actually, that's not important, but maybe next time, mum, don't drop by unannounced."

Ignoring Niall's inference and lack of clothing, Maura nodded, setting two mugs out and filling the kettle with water before saying "Of course darling, I'll try to remember that. Where is my grandson, anyway? And that boyfriend of yours?" Her smile fading slightly as she said the word boyfriend, Maura looked around, tutting at the state of the flat before turning back to face Niall.

"Right here." Entering the kitchen, Liam set a grumpy looking Kieran down into his highchair as he spoke, smirking at Niall before turning to face Maura.

Realising he was slightly underdressed in just his pyjama trousers, Liam gave her a tight smile, the one he tended to use on clients as he said "Mrs Gallagher, it's lovely to see you again."

Setting another mug out, Maura shook her head, making the three of them tea before saying "It's nice to see you too, Liam, you can call me Maura, you know."

Not answering, Liam set a bowl of cereal in front of Kieran, adding hot milk until the cereal began to dissolve and slowly starting to feed the eleven month old, doing his best to make Kieran smile as he tried to remember the last time he'd actually spoken to Niall's mother.

Drumming her fingers on the worktop, Maura tilted her head to the side, staring at Kieran before she turned to face Niall. "You weren't kidding, sweetie, when you told me Kieran had his eyes. How old is he now?"

Shaking his head, Niall took his eyes off of Liam and looked at Maura as he muttered "He's nearly one. You'd know that though, if you'd bothered to actually visit before now, like you promised."

Looking up, Liam set Kieran's empty bowl to one side, clearing his throat and trying not to stare at Niall as he said "Mrs Gallagher, Maura, I don't suppose you could do us a favour and watch Kieran for a moment whilst we go and get dressed?"

Both of them leaving the kitchen before Maura could answer, Liam linked his fingers through Niall's as they headed to their bedroom, kissing the shorter boy against the door and running his fingers through his hair before he pulled back, leaving them both breathless.

Leaning against the door, Niall shook his head at Liam, a smile playing on his lips as he said "We don't have time, Li. Not without her hearing. And I don't really wan to explain to my mother why she heard, saw or walked in on us..."

Nodding, Liam played with the bottom of Niall's shirt, pouting slightly before kissing him again. Pulling back, he kissed Niall's cheek before heading to their bathroom, appearing again a minute later in a pair of jeans and a sweater. "I can go talk to her, if you want?"

"Sure. But be nice."

*************

Sitting opposite Niall's mother, Liam took a sip of coffee, keeping his gaze on his son as Maura asked "So how are things with you two? You've been dating for over two years, have you not?"

"Umm... things are great." Trying to keep the look of confusion off his face, Liam smiled weakly at Maura, about to correct her when he remembered that Niall had told her they were already dating when Liam had first met his mother, shrugging slightly at the awkward pause before running his fingers through Kieran's hair.

Leaning forward, Maura clasped her fingers around her mug, her voice taking on an almost conspiring tone as she said "Two years is a long time... It's shows real commitment, not to mention you two have a child. It's real milestone."

Ignoring the guilt stabbing at him for the lie, Liam nodded, trying to keep a straight face as he guessed where Maura was going.

"Let me phrase it another way. What are your intentions towards my son? I know it seems kind of late to be asking that, but you two have been together for a while and I'm curious. You have a child together, you live together, you must know what I mean, Liam. Do you ever see yourself taking things further than simply 'living together'?" Raising an eyebrow, Maura stared at him expectantly, taking a sip of tea as she watched the thirty five year old squirm.

Choking on his tea, Liam glanced towards their bedroom, making sure that Niall was still in there and the door was still shut before saying "I love your son, Mrs Gallagher, really, I do. And I'm lucky enough to be able to say that he loves me back. But things between the two of us are complicated, and they always have been. However... if I ever wanted to take things further, and ask Niall- Would I have your blessing?"

Smiling across at Liam, Maura nodded, reaching out and squeezing his hand as she said "You would. Despite the age gap between the two of you, you make a lovely couple. And you seem to be a good guy. You make Niall happy and that's all that really matter. Despite things between me and Niall not always having been perfect, that's all I want for my son, and you seem to give him that. So yes, if you ever want to move forward, you have my permission."

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spoiler alert for the next chapter, it'll be february 11th....