don't call me that

10: Forgiving

Needless to say, once the idea of setting Niall and Jade up on a date blossomed into the minds of Harry and I, it wasn't going to go away. It was all I thought about. Where they'd go, what day it would be, how we'd break the news to Jade that she was going whether she wanted to or not.

So, Harry and I conspired against them. A few days after Harry's birthday, I invited Jade and Niall over for a night of bad food and video games, and yes Jade, maybe we'll have a bit to drink but it's Friday.

And so it goes. After a half bottle of cheap something or other had been poured into four separate Garfield glasses and drunk along with an entire bag of hint of lime Tostitos, Jade and I had given up on sharing the game controllers and were instead watching Harry and Niall engage in a fierce, intoxicated showdown of Just Dance 4.

Harry was singing distractedly along with the words to 'Call Me Maybe' as he waved his long arms around, Niall had surpassed laughing and tiny little choked-up cackles were echoing from his throat as he tried to do the moves and ended up tumbling into Harry.

Jade and I were in fits of giggles, a little tipsy, but hardly as drunk as the boys were that the lack of shame allowed them to pretend they could dance. Niall was quicker on his feet, his movements admittedly messy and full of laughter but at least on the beat.

Harry, on the other hand, poor Harry, was staring at the screen so intensely that I saw the little focus crease appear between his eyebrows. He slurred the lyrics every once and a while but his body was everywhere, off tempo and not even resembling the dancer on screen.

"How do you even be so bad?" I asked Jade, throwing my head back in giggles that I couldn't control. She erupted in laughter and shook her head.

"I don't know. He is pretty terrible."

"Are you guys talking about me?" Niall demanded, abandoning the screen and turning to face us. We shook our heads quickly, still giddy.

"No no," I explained. "It's Harry. He sucks."

Not even giving us one ounce of his genuine attention, Harry began to mumble incoherently. "I'll have you know...that I am the champion...of the Styles house."

Niall laughed and fell down on the couch beside Jade. "That's because Gemma had broken her leg that year and she'd play from the couch, H," he revealed.

I gasped, but no amount of oxygen could support how hard I was laughing. The song over, Harry turned around and scowled, but his hard features soon melted into a grin and he tumbled onto the couch on my other side.

"Shuddup," he slurred, then roughly put his lips to my ear. I could faintly smell the alcohol on his breath, but for some reason, it was endearing. "We should tell them about our idea." He hadn't whispered, and I dodged away from his loud voice.

"What idea?" Jade requested, sitting forward. Niall's head popped out from her other side, also curious.

Harry was stricken. "How'd you hear that?" he asked, his voice high and slow and silly. I giggled just at the sound of him.

"You said it loud," I informed him. Then I turned to the others. "We've decided a major life event for you, okay?" Jade raised one eyebrow, encouraging me to go on. "You and Niall are going on a date. On Valentine's. You can go get pizza, go sledding, see a play. This is non-debatable."