One More Night (Niall Horan)

Chapter Seventeen: Stylist

I found myself at Tamia’s flat on Monday, which was interesting because I hadn’t even really imagined her having a flat. I guess that's because from the moment I met her, she was with Harry. I guess my subconscious had imagined that they'd always lived together. It was cute, small and everything you could imagine Tamia’s flat to be. It was modest, with just a sofa and small Television set. Only two doors which obviously went to the bathroom and her bedroom, and a kitchenette in the corner of the flat. Tamia apologised when she answered the door in her pyjamas, and didn’t mention why she was here instead of Harry’s flat, and I didn’t ask.

“Cute.” I murmur to myself, pulling a picture into my hand from a shelf full of pictures. I could easily guess that the small girl with dark black hair was Tamia, and it was easy to understand that the two smiling people were her parents, her father’s arm around her mother’s shoulder. There was also a boy next to Tamia, he didn’t look too much older than her, and there were many similarities between them. Not only did they both have the same darker skin, but he also had the same brown eyes.

“That’s my brother.” Tamia tells me from behind after I’d picked up yet another picture of Tamia with the same boy. “Nathan. I… I haven’t seen him for a few years.”

“Why?” I ask immediately, my curiosity peaked at the mystery and she shrugs, looking down to the floor, “I’m sorry I didn’t-“ She shakes her head, cutting off my immediate apology.

“My dad left my family and I for another woman. I haven’t seen him since the day he left, he has another daughter. The affair was going on for years.” She chuckles darkly. “Then my brother left as soon as he turned 18. Harry was all I had left, then I lost him too.”

“You have him back now though.” I comfort her, putting the picture back down and walking closer towards her, she looked pained at the memories and mentioning them to me. “Why-why did you and Harry lose touch? It wasn’t just because he got famous was it?”

“I dated his best friend.” She tells me, walking past me and grabbing yet another picture, yet this time it was of Tamia with a different boy. She seemed happy, extremely happy, in the picture. She was pouting, her lips near the boy’s cheek, who was smiling towards the camera. They both looked happy, but still… what would that have to do with her friendship with Harry? “Matt and I, we never really spoke before and then one party Harry had ditched me and Matt had come to see that I was alright. One thing led to another and we were kissing, then he asked me out. When we started dating Harry said it was just to make him jealous by making him feel like a third wheel, and to give him the feeling like he was being replaced. But I loved Matt, I mean, I fancied Harry back then but this was different, Matt and I worked well together, and then we moved to London together and everything was the same but completely different, we just… moved away from each other.” Reminds me of me and someone else. “It was as if the move had completely changed the dynamics of our relationship and the fight to keep us together just wasn’t worth it anymore. I was stressed, he was stressed, we just… didn’t know what to do.”

“So you gave up?” I ask, “Do you regret that?” She shakes her head, looking back down at the picture.

“It was time to move on.” She nods, putting the picture back onto the shelf. “It was time to admit that we were two completely different people than we were back when we were back then.”

“Sounds similar to someone else I know.” I mutter and she raises her eyebrows in surprise which was then replaced my a questioning expression.

“Niall… he said I was too different to what I was before. We argued, I don’t know where we stand anymore. Sort of reminds me of you and Matt.” I admit, offering her a smile to silently tell her I was fine. If things aren’t taking a different road for Niall and I then I’ll just have to follow and see what happens.