Emily pulled away after a minute. Her mitten-covered hands ran along the bottom lid of her eyes, wiping away a few remaining tears. She looked down at the concrete, “Sorry.”
“There’s no need to be sorry,” I told her, “What did they say to you, Emily?” I asked in a soothing tone.
“Well, it started out on the internet. They would insult me on every account I had. They told me how much they hated me. Then, I would go out and fans would see me and then just insult me! The worst part was when the death threats came into play… I’m not even dating you! Why won’t they stop?”
“I’m so sorry about this… I shouldn’t have said anything at the interview. I should’ve just said that I didn’t know an Emily,” I apologized. Why did I even say anything about her? It would be so much easier if I didn’t at all.
Emily quickly shook her head, “No, it’s not your fault!” she quickly exclaimed.
“Then, why did you come here, if it wasn’t my fault?” I questioned. Emily sighed, “No, you have it wrong, Niall. Normally, I would’ve gone to Vanessa to talk about this, but she hasn’t been talking to me anymore…”
“Is she getting hate, too?” I asked. Emily shrugged, “I don’t know, but I can’t figure out why she is ignoring me. We didn’t even get in a fight or did anything to get each other mad.”
“That’s weird… did you ever figure out what happened between Vanessa and Harry?” I asked. Emily shook her head, “No, she never told me in the end… I feel like she’s pushing herself away from me, and I just can’t figure out why.”
I felt a cold breeze brush through my hair, “Hey, let’s go inside, it’s getting cold out,” I said. Emily nodded, so I unlocked the front door and motioned for Emily to go in first. I walked in behind her, closing the door after us.
I stripped off my coat and hat and threw them beside the door. Emily followed my example, doing the same. I adjusted the heat on the thermostat and then walked further into my flat. I heard Emily silently following behind me.
I ended up leading us to the kitchen. I walked over to the island and leaned against it, my weight balanced against my forearms. Emily did the same, but stood on the other side of the counter.
I pulled out my phone, “I could try and use the power of the Internet to try and stop some of the hate?” I suggested.
“You don’t have to,” Emily quietly said. She now seemed embarrassed that she told me. I’m glad she did, people shouldn’t have to deal with that type of hate along. I know how extreme the fans get.
“I want to,” I answered, typing up the tweet. I sent it and stuff it back in my pocket, “I’m really sorry about all of this, Emily,” I apologized, “If you ever need someone to talk to or anything, just come to me.”
Emily weakly smiled, “Thanks Niall. Same with you,” she said.
Now that I think about it, Emily might know me better than Jo. I couldn’t tell Jo my secrets, because, well, she is my secret. I don’t know why I was able to tell Emily. I guess it was because I felt like I was going to break. So much was held in, that I had to let a little bit out.
“So, do you want some coffee?” I suggested, trying to be a hospitable host. Emily nodded, “Sure, that would be nice.”
I started up the coffee maker, as she glanced at her phone, “Thanks for helping me,” Emily said. I turned around to see her brown eyes locked with mine. I felt butterflies in my stomach as her eyes were locked on mine.
I grinned, “No problem,” I replied. Emily gave me a small smile in reply. I quickly worked on making two cups of coffee again.
I wonder what Emily’s thoughts are of me… what if she is in love with me? What in the world am I saying? I rejected her, and now I’m thinking about her? It’s probably because I’m feeling bad. I was the one that mentioned her in an interview and she came here and cried in my arms.
I finished the coffee and poured it into two separate cups. I turned around, “Do you want anything in your coffee?” I asked. Emily shook my head, “No, black is fine.”
I nodded and handed her the cup of hot coffee. Emily blew on the top of it and took a tiny sip. I grabbed my cup and walked back over to her. I took a sip of the hot coffee, resisting the urge to spit the scalding coffee back into the cup.
Emily laughed, “Burned your tongue, didn’t you?” she joked. I laughed, “Possibly.”
The room fell silent. I was used to just talking normally around Emily… why was it so awkward now. I glanced over at Emily to see she was looking at me. We both instantly looked in opposite directions. I brought my cup back up to my lips and carefully took a sip of the coffee, which had started to cool.
“You really are one of the most caring people I know, Niall,” Emily told me. I looked up and my eyes immediately met hers. I was surprised by her sudden statement. I really wasn’t expecting her to say that.
“Thanks, I’m really grateful that I can trust you,” I told her. I wonder if she still remembered what I told her on the date we went on together. My biggest secrets had been spilled out to a girl I barely knew. And, she told no one.
“I wouldn’t ruin someone’s life for a bit of money,” Emily told me. I smiled, “Thanks.”
Emily glanced at the clock behind me, “I probably should get going soon, I have a lot of homework to finish. Plus, I probably should try and talk with Vanessa tonight. She’s been avoiding me lately, but if I stay there the whole time, I should be able to run into her. Sorry I had to leave so quickly, I hope you don’t mind.”
“It’s fine,” I answered. I led Emily towards the door. She threw on her snow gear and we said our final goodbyes. Emily walked out the door and I closed it behind her.
*
“When was the last time you went to your parents house?” I asked Jo. Her legs hung over the side of my bed, as I sat on the floor, stuffing items of clothes into my suitcase.
“Um, well, they like to come over to my house and see me and Asher a lot. So, I think it was two years ago… Yeah, I haven’t been to Bradford in a while,” Jo replied, her brow furrowed together, as she tried to recall the memory.
“Have you ever tried fixing things between you and them?” I asked. Jo paused for a moment and shook her head, “No, I haven’t really. I don’t know, I just feel too nervous to do so. I’d rather not do it over the phone… maybe I can try the next time I see them.”
“That would be a good idea,” I replied. Jo looked down at my suitcase, which I was continuing to fill, “Niall, how are things with your family?”
I tensed up for a second, but quickly shook it off. I continued to put my items into the suitcase, “We’re fine, and there aren’t any problems. I just talked to my mom on the phone yesterday,” I lied.
“You sure?” Jo asked again. I nodded, “Everything’s fine, Jo.”
Sometimes I just want to pour everything out to Jo, but I know I can’t. I respect our friendship, and I can’t lose the only thing we have. I can’t live without her.
Jo had come over earlier just to hang out. I would be at my dad’s house for two weeks, and we wanted to hang out before I left. Jo had also broken her arm, so she didn’t have to go to practice for her movie.
“So, what are you and Asher planning on doing for Christmas?” I asked. I know that I’m gonna regret asking that, but it doesn’t hurt to try and make conversation. If it makes her happy, then it should make me happy… if only my mind could understand that.
“Well, we’ll just be hanging around the house. I think Asher is also having a few friends come over. He was going to have his parents, but then they decided to just let us have Christmas alone together, and we’ll celebrate it with his family next week.”
“How long have you and Asher lived together?” I really need to control what I say. Why in the world did I say that? I shouldn’t be meddling on their personal life.
“Over a year,” Jo told me. Wow, she was living with Jo when she was barely eighteen. That’s really surprising. Well, I guess she did have to grow up fast. She was a child star, so it kind of ruined her childhood.
Suddenly, Jo’s phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and answered it, “Hey Asher,” she said with a smile covering her face. Soon, she was involved in a conversation with Asher. I felt left out, like usual. I simply finished packing and then stared at my wall. I didn’t know what else to do.
After ten minutes, Jo finally spoke to me again; “Um, Asher and I are going to go on a date tonight, so I have to go Niall. Thanks for having me over.”
“No problem,” I replied, trying to push the sadness out of my voice. I got up and led Jo to the door, “Bye Jo. I’ll see you in two weeks.”
Jo smiled, “I’ll see you in two weeks, Ni,” she replied and wrapped her arms around me, enveloping me in a hug. I couldn’t help but feel my heart flutter with the simple gesture. I wrapped my arms around her, never wanting to let go.
Jo pulled away first and waved goodbye before walking out the door.
*
“NIALL!” I heard the fans screaming my name as I waited for my plane to get ready to board. Why must it be so long? I gave out a few autographs as I waited. It was nice to know that I could make some people happy. Meanwhile, I was dreading going to see my own family.
Finally, they called for me to board the plane. I said goodbye to the fans, filling the airport with cheers and screams. I smiled at them once more and got onto the plane.
I can’t believe it’s time. I’m actually going back to my town again, this was where I had the funeral for Greg.
Sorry, short, but I may update again later! Yay! Okay, comment, follow, and vote! Bye lovelies!
~Lydia ♥
