You had been insanely nervous ever since he'd ask you out, but now that it's actually happening, it feels nothing but natural. Yeah, the flutters in your stomach are more like man-eating moths than dainty butterflies, but aside from the usual first-date jitters you couldn't be having a more wonderful time, and Niall has been nothing short of a perfect gentlemen. He may seem loud and crazy and rough when he's chilling out and watching football, but he's proven tonight that he knows how he should treat a lady.. while still showing a good time. He's kept you in stitches pretty much the whole evening, all the way through dinner and a movie—during which you kept shushing him out of respect for everyone else there, but couldn't help but carry on giggling anyway. You've thoroughly enjoyed yourself and are reminded again of why you said yes to him in the first place.
Your playful banter and laughter continue as you stroll down a dimly lit street towards a little bar tucked away in the heart of the city—passed by many, but seen by few. He swears they have the best house brew of anywhere he's been and when he found out earlier in the evening that you'd never been, he insisted on you trying it before the night was over. His arm casually hangs around your shoulders, his chatter continues with a story from the other day. You look up to him as he cackles and you can't help but chortle along, his laughter itself enough to make you giggle incessantly.
The inside of the bar is much more beautiful than you had expected—the walls and floors made of rich, dark wood, intricate scroll work inlayed above the doorframes and down the side of the bar, rustic light fixtures and sconces hanging about the room— all setting a classy, but comfortable mood.
"Wow, I had no idea this place would be so gorgeous. How old is it?" you ask, looking around at the near empty establishment.
"I dunno.. like a thousand years or somethin'." Niall responds and your roll your eyes as he leads you up to the bar. Leaning his forearm on it, he speaks to the bartender.
"Two Billy Lickers, please, mate." He nods before returning his gaze to you. You slide onto one of the stools.
"You like stout, right?" he asks and you ease your clutch onto the bar counter.
"Uh.. is that the same thing as beer?" you ask, crinkling your nose, and he laughs.
"Well, kind of, yeah. Basically, eh, there are, eh, different... classifications of beer," he begins to explain, and you compliment his choice of word, which makes him laugh before he continues. "Yeah, so the two main ones are, ehm.. ale and lagers."
You nod. "So. Where exactly does stout come in?"
"Stout is a kind of ale.. the one we're about to have is a good, thick Irish stout." He grins, obviously excited, and you laugh.
"Irish stout. Of course." You chuckle.
"No one does beer like the Irish." He smirks, pride showing in his eyes.
"Well I'm sure it'll be fantastic." You smile back and the bartender places the two glasses of beer in front of you. For the next several hours you talk and laugh and enjoy each other's company, beginning at the bar with your drinks, but ending on a couch further towards the back of the room. You sigh and lean your head onto his shoulder, sleepy with from a long day and a few beers.
"Tonight's been really fun." You smile and peer up at him. He smiles back and nods.
"Yeah, it really has. We should do it again." He responds, lifting his arm up and putting it around you, letting you nestle in a little closer. You know you should head home so you can get some sleep, but with his warm body so close and comfortable and his breathing so slow and steady beside you, there's no way you're going to let this moment pass you by. So you snuggle in a little deeper still, and close your eyes, already imagining what more nights like this with Niall might be like.
