The Switch

Chapter 20 | Pick Up The Pieces

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p i c k  u p  t h e  p i e c e s

NIALL.

I walked into Harry's flat to find him and Louis arguing. Not wanting to get in the middle of it, I strode past them and was about to go into the kitchen when I heard Louis raise his voice. "You can't just go and carelessly hurt the people around you, Harry!" I froze, and instinctively walked into the room where they were arguing. Harry looked down at the ground, avoiding all of our eyes. "I was just being friendly."

"Being 'friendly' doesn't include kissing her, right in front of Olivia," Louis sighed.

My eyes immediately went back to Harry. "Olivia? The girl you hurt was Olivia?" He stayed silent, which provided the answer I expected. Frustrated, I walked back towards the door to leave. "Harry, you can't keep breaking hearts. Now, if you excuse me, I need to go pick up the pieces."

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LIV.

Piper had come back to the hotel room to find me bawling, my mascara smeared and dripping down my face. She had wiped the mascara from my eyes and hugged me, saying we were going to have a girl's night. It would involve junk food, ice cream, nail polish, mushy romance movies, and talking it out. She also threatened to go kick Harry's butt as soon as she got the chance. Piper had left to go get some groceries and supplies for girl's night, when I got a text from her.
"Hey, Liv. Traffic is really terrible so I won't be back for another hour or so. I'm sorry, babe."

I sighed and sniffled as I sat on the couch, wrapped in a blanket and staring at the TV. By now, I had changed into sweats. Suddenly, there was a quiet knock on the door. Tired, I looked over at the door and considered just not answering. Deciding against it, I got up, pulled the blanket over my shoulders, and shuffled towards the door.

I opened it, and to my total surprise, there stood Niall. I must of looked pretty bad, as his eyes widened when he saw me. I had puffy eyes, mangled hair, red cheeks, and a sweatshirt damp from crying. "You come here say I told you so?" I asked bitterly.

Instead of answering, he simply stepped into the room and closed the distance between us, wrapping his arms around me in an embrace. I started crying again, the hug such a sweet yet simple gesture. He was comforting, and I felt safe as he hugged me. I felt something else too, but couldn't pinpoint the feeling. We stood there for awhile, not saying anything, me crying and his arms holding me tightly.

"Why are you here?" I asked, barely audible with my face against his chest. "Because I care about you," he said simply. "That's why."

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you about Harry," I murmured. "You were right, and I was a jerk to you."

He looked down at me and frowned, gently wiping away the tears on my cheeks. "No, I'm sorry. I didn't tell you earlier and I was being too pushy."

I laughed. "You were not."

"Hey, do you want to watch a movie or something? I brought ice cream," Niall said with grin.

"You brought ice cream?" I asked in shock. "Really?"

"Yeah," he said. "You like chocolate?"

"Love it."

I led him over to the couch, where we both plopped down next to each other. Niall picked Catching Fire, and before I knew it, I was laying with my head resting on his chest as we watched the movie. For a moment, I took a shaky breath and nearly started crying, but was comforted as Niall reached for my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "It will all be okay," he murmured as he begin to stroke my hair. It made me sleepy, and I felt my eyelids get heavier and heavier, until I fell asleep.

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PIPER.

Sighing in exhaustion, I opened the hotel room door and dropped the bags of groceries on the counter. It had taken forever to get there and back.

I walked into the sitting room to check on Olivia. To my surprise, I found not only Olivia but Niall. They were both laying on the couch, cuddled up next to each other, asleep. I noticed the credits rolling for Catching Fire on the TV. Laughing quietly to myself, I realized that they must of fallen asleep during the movie.

Not able to resist, I quickly took out my phone and snapped a picture of the two of them. Giggling, I texted the picture to Louis, along with a message:
"Look who I found on my couch!"

He replied a few minutes later.
"Are you there all by yourself with the two sleepyheads?"

"Yes I am haha"

There was no response for about ten minutes, until my phone buzzed with another text.
"Can you meet my down outside your hotel?"

Intrigued, I texted "yes" and exited the room and into the elevator. I made my way down to the lobby, where I walked out onto the street. I scanned the many pedestrians until I saw Louis, who was standing a few feet away from me.

"Hey!" I greeted him with a smile and a hug. "Why'd you want to meet?"

He looked at me, his blue eyes shining. "I need to tell you something. I didn't get a chance to tell you earlier today, and it's important."

"Okay," I smiled. "What is it?"

He shuffled back and forth, looking nervous. Suddenly, he blurted, "I like you. As in, I like-like you. As more than a friend."

Shocked, I didn't say anything right away, and just looked at him in awe.

He took my reaction the wrong way, and stammered, "Oh. Sorry, I shouldn't of done that. I just made you feel so uncomfortable and I'm sor-"

I cut him off as I pulled him towards me and planted a kiss on his lips.

After a few seconds, he pulled back and looked at me, an affectionate expression playing his features. "So, does that mean you feel the same way?"