Climbing the Walls (a Niall Horan love story)

Chapter 4

Chapter 4







You know that moment of complete and utter confusion when you wake up at a sleepover or on vacation and you have absolutely no idea where you are? Well that's what I experienced when I woke up the next day. I sat up in a daze, not a clue where I was, until I remembered: I didn't live in New Jersey anymore. I lived in England now. Aware of my surroundings, I relaxed back into the irresistible comfort of my new bed. Damn it was comfortable. I cuddled into the soft, fluffy pillow and deeply inhaled the crisp scent of clean linen and dryer sheets. I exhaled slowly and repeated the process a few times before remembering how jet-lagged I must've been. I frantically checked the clock. 2:17 PM. Shit. Just then I noticed a piece of notepad paper that was left on my bedside table.



Hey Halez!

Morning! Or afternoon, rather. I tried to wake you, but you were pretty much dead to the world. Anyway, we're going to the gym, we'll be back around 3. If you're even awake by then :) See ya, sleeping beauty!

-Harry

P.S. you're cute when you're sleeping! :D xLouis




I smiled at Louis' playful addition to the note and stretched out my legs before I attempted to stand on them. Once I was properly loosened up, I got out of bed and walked across the room into the bathroom. I looked into the mirror, and wasn't surprised to see a mess staring back at me. My hair was a nightmare, my eyes were half closed, and my face drooped like a dead flower with fatigue. I quickly scrubbed my teeth, washed my face, and brushed out my hair. That helped, but I still wasn't happy with my hair, so I just tied it up in some pigtails. I considered showering, but I've always had a fear of showering when no one else was home. Must've been a horror movie I saw once.

I crossed the room to the other black door and entered my dream closet. I looked around, and since it was warm again I swapped my polka-dot shorts for jean ones and my purple tank top for a light pink one. (Which fit me properly.) Although it was warm, I still felt the need to wear a sweatshirt. I approached my sweatshirt shelf and selected my dark blue one that I had gotten from a bar mitzvah in seventh grade. It was huge, and longer than my shorts, so it looked like I wasn't wearing pants, but I didn't care. I was comfortable.

I still had about fifteen minutes until the boys got back, so I wandered downstairs. I surprisingly wasn't that hungry, so I wasn't sure what to do. I stood in the middle of the living room and looked out the giant sliding glass doors that exposed a glorious back yard. I walked across the glossy hardwood and slid open the door, but not with ease. (I'm not exactly what you'd call "strong".) Once it finally opened, I stepped out onto the patio and embraced the scenery. There was a huge pool with a mini waterfall, a slide, and a hot tub, then behind it was an enormously vast field of bright green grass with a slight incline. There was a barbeque to my left and a long picnic table to my right. Dew dampened the blades of emerald, and moisture still hung in the air from last night's storm, but the sun still shined through the clouds. It was warm, but there was a slight breeze, which made me glad I wore a sweatshirt.

I stopped admiring the beautiful afternoon after a few minutes and went back inside. The boys would be back any minute. I plopped down on the couch, sinking into the red cushions. I flipped through the channels until I found an interior design show. I'm not sure why I love these so much, but I do. The credits started playing at the bottom of the screen as the couple talked about how happy they were with their new kitchen when five boys walked through the front door. Five sweaty boys.

"HONEY, WE'RE HOOOOME!" Louis yelled in an obnoxious, yet funny way. They all entered the living room, drenched in perspiration. "Aww, she's awake!" he complained, "I wanted to scare you. Oh well." The stench of body odor was too much to handle. I stuffed my nose and mouth into my sweatshirt, taking deep inhalations of my perfume.

"Ugh, five showers, now," I ordered, pointing to the stairs. The same expression he wore right before the tickle attack reappeared on Louis' face, and I immediately knew I was in trouble. "Don't you dare," I warned, back away as he slowly advanced towards me.

"You know Haleybear, you look like you need a hug," he said evilly, spreading his arms out wide.

"A GROUP HUG!" Zayn edited. Now they were all wearing that same creepy smile and approaching me as I back away. I grabbed the knob of what I thought might be the downstairs bathroom, twisted it, and jumped into what was actually the coat closet. I didn't care; I slammed the door shut anyway. I was surrounded by the scents of the boys' various colognes and shampoos, which was a welcome change of smell.

"You'll have to come out eventually!" Harry's muffled voice came from the other side of the door.

"Never!" I shouted back into the wood that separated us. No way I was going to allow myself to be engulfed by those gross, sweaty bodies. Uh uh. Not happening. Or at least that's what I thought before the doorknob started twisting. I screamed bloody murder and tried to run to the back door, but I was out-numbered. I was enveloped by five repulsive-smelling hugs all at once, the foul fumes suffocating me. I whimpered and fell to the floor, wrapped up in a ball as they finally freed me of their sweaty embrace. I felt hand on my shoulder.

"Aww, we're sorry," Niall laughed, clearly still amused.

"No you're not," I countered, my voice muffled since my head was tucked into my knees due to my position.

"Yeahh, that was pretty funny," he chuckled. I lifted my head from my knees, looking up into his moist face, which was closer to mine than I had expected. I smacked him on the knee. "Ooh, feisty." He lifted his eyebrows and giggled at me again. I rolled my eyes.

"Go shower. All of you," I demanded. They obeyed this time, but Liam stayed to help me off of the floor before he headed upstairs.

"Thanks. Again," I said, adjusting my hair and my sweatshirt.

"No problem," he smiled and turned around. He quickly turned back and pointed at my legs. "Are you wearing pants...?" he questioned, raising one eyebrow. I wished I could do that. I laughed and nodded.

"Yes, don't worry. Now go shower like all the other good little boys," I instructed.

"Yes, mommy," he obliged in a childish voice. I smiled.

"I thought you were Daddy Direction," I responded. He just laughed and went upstairs to shower. I followed him. "Don't use all the hot water!" I yelled so that my voice was heard in every room.

"Yes, mother!" five accents called back to me. Great. Now I was their mommy. I smiled and walked into my bathroom, getting my Aveeno body wash and Tresseme climate control shampoo and conditioner out of my bag and placing them on shelves in the shower. There was a black towel hanging on a golden towel rack, so I was set. I let the water warm up as I folded my clothes and set them down neatly on my bed.

I stepped into the shower, the hot water soaking my long brown hair. I can't shower with just the sound of running water, so I started singing the song that was stuck in my head, Take Me Away by Dear Juliet. I started belting out the chorus as I squeezed a glob of shampoo into my hand and started working it through my hair. "There's a girl out on the coast of California. There's a world out there and it's waiting for you. And I can hear them calling my name." Once I had sung through that, I Fell In Love Once, and his cover of I Will Follow You Into the Dark, I stepped out of the shower into the steamy room. I wrapped the heavy, luxuriously soft towel around my body as I wiped the steam off of the mirror. I dried off, got dressed, then brushed my hair and scrunched it so that it hung in chocolate brown ringlets. Lastly, I applied a coat of mascara to my eyelashes.

I walked downstairs, without my sweatshirt on now, so you could see my pants. Niall, Zayn, and Louis were watching sports on TV, and Niall and I smiled at each other as I passed. Memories of the night before flashed through my mind and I blushed. Louis looked at me, then Niall, then me, then the TV again. Zayn barely noticed I had walked through the room. I found Harry, Liam, and a tall honey blonde girl in the kitchen. "Hi," I said, walking over to Harry.

"Hey, Halez!" he greeted me with a smile as the girl turned around. "Haley, this is Liam's girlyfriend, Sydney. Sydney, this is my cousin, Haley," he introduced us. I smiled into Sydney's meadow green eyes, which seemed to sparkle from their own sunlight.

"Hi! It's nice to meet you," she greeted me with a sweet southern accent. Perfectly shaped rosy lips framed a radiant white smile and her petite nose was sprinkled with sun-splattered freckles. She was absolutely gorgeous. I mean this girl practically shined with beauty. She gracefully offered her hand and I shook it politely.

"You too," I replied, releasing her soft hand. Just by the way Liam looked at Sydney, it was clear how madly in love he was with her. You could see it in his eyes, how he stood next to her and smiled when she smiled. It was absolutely precious.

"Are you hungry?" she asked hospitably, her golden waves swaying as she turned toward the counter. She seemed so utterly flawless, with her sun-kissed skin and tall, dainty frame that fit Liam's perfectly. It seemed like they were literally made for each other. My scarred heart longed achingly for a relationship like that.

"Of course," I replied, my stomach growling at the sight of homemade cookies and brownies on a plate. I hadn't eaten anything since those Oreo's with Niall, so I was pretty hungry. "Do you need any help? I could take those into the other room for you," I offered, trying to be helpful. Sydney smiled at me warmly.

"Thank you, sweetie!" she said appreciatively, handing me the platter of baked goods. "I can't trust these boys to take them out, they'll polish 'em off themselves within ten seconds, easy," she joked, whispering loudly so Liam and Harry could hear.

"Well it's your fault for making such delicious food," Liam playfully blamed her, snaking his arms around her waist and kissing her on the forehead. I smiled and mentally Aww'd. Realizing I was probably being awkward again, I headed into the living room with the tray of cookies and brownies in my hands.

"COOKIES!" Zayn, Niall, and Louis shouted in unison as I entered the room, diving for the sweets as I set them down on the table. Louis and Zayn each took a cookie and a brownie, but Niall was just stuffing his face. I smacked his hands playfully and he looked up at me with an expression a five-year-old would wear after being caught sneaking cookies before dinner.

"Sydney warned me about this. Save some for the rest of us," I reprimanded him jokingly. He attempted to mumble an apology through the baked goods in his mouth, making me giggle. Then Louis started stealing some more. "Hey, you too, sailor boy," I said with a smile.

"Sailor boy?" he replied with a full mouth. I giggled again because it came out more like "Shaya oi" instead. Then Harry, Liam, and Sydney joined us, the couple entering with their fingers intertwined. Liam sat down in the chair with Sydney in his lap. Aww.

"They didn't finish them yet, did they?" she asked teasingly. Louis and Niall shook their heads, mouths still full, like little children. I have to admit, it was pretty adorable actually. Sydney and I laughed, taking sweets along with Harry and Liam. Niall got up to use the restroom and Harry immediately snagged his seat next to Louis. I smiled to myself. Oh, Larry.

I plopped down on the comfy loveseat, biting into pure magic. Sweet perfection danced across my taste buds. "These are amazing!" I exclaimed, taking another bite.

"Aww, thank you," Sydney replied sincerely, even though she had probably received that compliment about a million times before. I tried to watch the game that was playing on the TV, but gave up on trying to figure out what was going on after about fifteen seconds. Niall walked out of the bathroom, and when he noticed Harry was occupying his seat he came over and sat next to me.

I was sitting in a ball sort of position, with my knees pulled up to my chest. He didn't put his arm around me exactly, but he rested it on the back of the sofa, and even that was enough to make my heart beat just a tad bit faster. Which I was not happy about. Liking people led to very bad things, and I would not allow myself to be attracted to Niall. I knew he wasn't a guy like Chase, he'd never do anything like that to a girl, but Chase wrecked my hope in love. Still, that didn't mean Niall and I couldn't be close. "Hi there," I smiled at him.

"Oh, hello," he smiled back, making me blush, which annoyed me. "So... Do you like Oreo's?" he asked, making my smile grow even bigger than it already was.

"Little bit," I replied. We smiled at each other, and I noticed Louis eyeing us kind of curiously, so I turned back to the TV, which I did not understand. Louis was still looking at us, so I turned toward him and waved obnoxiously. "HI, LOUIS!" I yelled across the room, smiling like an idiot.

"HI, HALEY!" he shouted back, making his voice crack purposefully. "HOW ARE YOU?" I giggle.

"I'M WONDERFUL, H-"

"SHUT UP!" Harry interrupted, making me laugh.

"I'm sorry, pumpkin," Louis said guiltily, giving Harry the puppy dog eyes. Harry accepted his apology and they hugged it out. I smiled, shaking my head at them. I heard Niall chuckling from beside me, but when I turned to face him I realized that he was laughing at me.'

"What?" I demanded.

"Your curls," he chuckled, "They bounce when you shake your head!" I smiled at him and shook my head again, making him laugh more. He took one of my curls, stretched it out straight, and absolutely died when it sprung right back into its original curly form. I laughed, amused at how easily entertained this boy was. I didn't even care that Louis was looking at us again.

"Having fun?" I giggled, noticing the laughter tears in his eyes.'

"Yes, very much," he answered, still laughing and boinging my curls. I smiled. He was too cute. I was kind of annoyed at him, actually. He was making it very hard to not fall for him. But I couldn't like him, there are no happy endings for Haley. I just get hurt. Hurt beyond repair, hurt in a way no one knew, not even Niall or Harry. Hurt in a way that rid me of trust in my heart, mind, and relationships. No, I didn't have feelings for Niall, I couldn't. He was an attractive guy that I was growing close to. That's all.



* * * * *



The rest of the day we just kind of hung out. Harry made some seriously delicious spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, and we had ice cream for dessert. After dinner, Liam went to Sydney's house and the rest of the boys were watching more sports, so I just went up to my room and put my headphones in. Weirdly enough, I was listening to Louis' cover of Look After You. I found it on Youtube one day and absolutely fell in love with it. His voice was truly beautiful, and it just flowed so melodically. It made me smile, and it was a good song to think to. I put it on replay, and about an hour or two later Niall entered my room.

I didn't even notice him until I felt the bed sink as he sat down next to me. My heart leapt, caught off guard. I paused my music and put my IPod on the bedside table. "Whatchya listening to?" he asked, his priceless accent making me smile as always.

"Music," I answered vaguely. I thought it might be kind of weird to admit that I was listening to Louis. I sat cross-legged and Niall did the same, facing me. "So what's up with you?" I asked.

"The game ended," he shrugged. "I got bored, so I decided to come talk to you." That made me smile, and he smiled back. His smile did something weird to my heart, something I hadn't felt in over three years. Something I refused to feel.

"Well, here I am. What do you wanna talk about?" I replied lamely.
"Hmmm... Do you wanna play 20 Questions?" he suggested. I smiled. I was a big fan of this game. The questions always got so weird, funny, and... interesting by the end. It was always very entertaining.

"Yes! I'll go first, since you technically just asked a question," I joked with a wink. We started off with normal, stupid questions like favorite color and stuff, but by question twelve I decided to go a bit deeper. "How old were you when you had your first kiss?" I asked him.

"Eleven," he replied matter-of-factly. I gaped at him.

"Eleven?"

"Yup. I liked a girl and she liked me, so I kissed her," he answered simply with a smile. "Have you ever kissed anyone?" he asked. I felt a pain in my heart at the horrific memory of that terrible day, but I tried to hide it.

"Eh, I wouldn't count it. I didn't really want to kiss him," I shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant. That was an understatement.

"So you've never had a real kiss?" he asked, not seeming to believe me. I shook my head, looking down at my lap and blushing. He didn't laugh at my bouncing curls that time. "What would your ideal first real kiss be like then?" The rose color of my cheeks deepened, though I wasn't quite sure why.

"I don't wanna dump my cheesy teenage girl fantasies on you," I joked with a smile. He urged me to continue, insisting that he didn't mind. And he honestly did seem genuinely intrigued. I sighed, and started to explain my fantasy first kiss. "Well, I'd really love for it to be in the rain, in a dark alley. I know most girls would probably say like a sunny beach, or a breezy meadow, But I'm not normal," I explained with a smile. "And I want it to be gentle, not forced or rough. And I want to want it," I finished, forcing my voice to not shake.

"Well, then I'll have to find you an alley," he smiled. I smiled back and rolled my eyes.

"You'll have to find me a guy, first," I scoffed. "Good luck with that." I'm not sure, but I thought I saw him blush. And then I realized that I was blushing like a tomato. I looked up and caught Louis smiling smugly at us through the crack in my slightly ajar bedroom door as he passed through the hallway. Someone was weird. Not that I didn't understand. I braced myself for a talk with him tomorrow.

Niall yawned and we both looked at the clock. It was a little past midnight. "I should probably go to bed now," he said, getting up. "Nighty night, Haley." He leaned over and kissed the top of my head. "Sweet dreams." He turned the lamp on for me and started walking towards the door.

"Night, Niall," I said back, watching him walk away and wishing he had stayed just a little bit longer. "Don't let the bed bugs bite," I added. He switched the ceiling lights off, smiling at me from the doorway.

"I won't," he promised. I smiled at him and he left, his silhouette disappearing into his room across the hall. Even though it was only a bit past seven for my body, I was strangely tired. Plus, I needed to adjust to the time zone. So I got into my plaid Paul Frank pajama shorts and large black "RENT" tee shirt and climbed under the sheets. I put my headphones back in and let Louis sing me to sleep.






A/N***

Hiya! So here's chapter 4! I'm going to post one chapter each day so tomorrow chap 5 will be up. Yay!


okay the Haley-Niall moment in her bedroom is just so cute! Ugh!



So how do you like it so far? Let me know!

COMMENT...VOTE...FOLLOW !!!

Love,
Z. 🌼