Pernicious|h.s

One

          Valerie

The stench of alcohol burned the insides of my nostrils as I entered the bar that was rather crowded, considering it was only a Tuesday night. Men in business suits flirting with girls who looked young enough to be their daughters were scattered throughout, some dancing together in a tangled mess while others were just simply trying to get some fun for the night. 

However, I was here for a complete opposite reason, if it weren't for this damn job interview that may I mention I was quite late for, I would of not even considered stepping foot in here.

I quickly made my way over to the bar, weaving my way through the intoxicated bodies to be greeted by an older woman who seemed fairly cheerful.

"Hi sweet-pea. What can I get for you?" She asked while preparing a drink. 

"Uh, I'm here for an interview" I explained as rested my arms on the marble bar-top.

"Ah yes, I was told be expecting someone. Wait here and I'll go get Mr. Horan" She said, kindly smiling at me. I watched her disappear up the stairs, then re-appeared moments later approaching me with who I assumed was Mr. Horan behind her. 

"Follow me" Mr. Horan said as he made his way back up the stairs and led me to his quite cozy office. 

"Valerie is it?" Mr. Horan questioned, an Irish accent clearly evident. I nodded my head in response. "Ah well thank you for coming in at such short notice Valerie, please take a seat" He said gesturing to the chairs opposite him, while reading through a copy of my resume.

"Thank you for giving me this opportunity sir, and my apologies for being late. I got lost on the way as I'm not very familiar with this area due to only just moving here."

"I was running quite late myself" Mr. Horan chuckled. "So where did you move from?"

"I've lived in Birmingham all my life, I finally thought it was time for a change of scenery. And since my brother was already moving to London I was like why not" I finally breathed after my long answer. "Was that too long, I'm sorry, I tend to ramble when I'm nervous" Mr. Horan chuckled.

"No need to apologise Valerie, I'm quite the chatter myself. I can see you already fitting in here perfectly." I let out a sigh of relief after hearing that. Man did I need this job, I've been looking for about three weeks straight and I had not had any success until this morning when Mr. Horan called asking if I was available for an interview tonight which I happily accepted. 

 Niall asked me various questions like if I have had any experience being a bartender before, if I knew how to handle an overly drunk person and why I applied for this job. Twenty minutes had quickly passed and Niall kindly led me to the entrance of the bar, telling me that he will contact me tomorrow to let me know whether I got the job or not. I thanked him and made my way out of the bar, letting the crisp winter air wisp at my already rosy cheeks.

I dug my phone out of the pocket of my coat and rang my brother asking him if were able to pick me up, which thank gosh he agreed to. I decided to sit down on the bench seat that was placed just outside the entrance of the bar, wrapping my arms around my waist trying to keep myself as warm as possible. 

It wasn't long before I saw Louis' black range rover pull up, as I went to get up I felt a pair of eyes watching me. I turned around to be met with a piercing pair of blood-shot emerald eyes burning into mine from afar, automatically sending shivers down my spine.

Brown curly hair perfectly framed his well structured face, his plump lips forming into a smirk as he noticed my stare, his cheeks slightly rosy from what I assumed was from the alcohol. His broad figure was dressed in all black, contrasting nicely against his olive skin, he was purely a work of art. He licked his lips, shoving his hands into the pockets of his coat and sent me a wink before disappearing off into the nightlife of London.

The beep of a horn ripped me out of my fantasy, dragging me back to reality. I hurriedly walked over to Louis' car and hopped into the passenger seat, the toasty warmth of the car engulfing me. 

"Hey kiddo, how'd it go" 

"It went better than expected, that's for sure."

          Harry

 Her long brown hair cascaded down her shoulders, her curvy, tan figure was dressed in black ripped jeans, a grey cable-knit sweater, a black coat, followed by a pair of black boots. I had never seen someone so innocent, so pure, so delicate, so intriguing. 

As I felt her blue almost grey eyes study my features, I felt a flame ignite deep inside me, something I had never felt before. But I was suddenly addicted, I needed more. I had to leave before I did something I couldn't control. 

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Hey there, welcome to Pernicious. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter and please vote and comment x :)