Picking Up the Pieces: A Dark Niall Horan Fan Fiction

Home Bound

I still have Charlie tight in my grasp, but now she has turned over to face me. She looks so peaceful like this. The blanket covers the bottom half of her body, showing her stomach and chest. I tuck a piece of loose hair behind her ear, revealing her beautiful face. Each feature sends my head spinning. Her pink plump lip sit partly open, but she doesn't snore. A small freckle sits at the corner of her eye, I lift my thumb to her face, touching the small dot.

She lets out a yawn, waking up. She gives me a puzzled look, moving my hand from her face. "Why am I in this bed with you?" She looks down at her bare body. "Where are my clothes?"

I liked it better when she was sleeping, she wasn't mad at me then.

"You had a nightmare. So I brought you in here. You were drentched in sweat so I took off the shirt." She sits up in bed, wrapping the blanket around her body.

"I didn't need your help." She says looking anywhere but at me,

"You said last night that you never wanted me to let go. What happened to that?" I sit up as well, wrapping my arm around her waist pulling her close, luckily she doesn't resist.

"That was last night. I was half asleep." She tucks her hair behind her ear. "I didn't know what I was talking about." That one hurt.

"So you want me to leave, you don't want to be with me anymore." I know when the words escape my mouth they aren't true.

"No." She quickly replies. Good. "But you need to start telling me things Niall, I can't take all the secrets any longer."

"Do you really want to know what happened?" I scoot away from her to lay back against the head board.

"Yes. I really do." She finally turns to look at me. She sits with her legs crossed, the blanket only around her bottom half.

"When I went in to get Louis I got up to his room and he was with Liv."

Charlie's face goes pale.

"But it isn't how you think. They weren't doing anything. Liv promised."

"And you trust her?"

"Right now yes. She has been friends with Iris since school started. She would never hurt Iris like that." I shake my head.

"Liv is a bitch. I don't think I could ever trust her." Charlie gets up from the bed, going over to her dresser. She slips into a pair of yoga pants and my one, black sweat shirt. This gives me a sense of comfort that things aren't that bad between us. She comes over to the bed, sitting right in front of me.

"So what were you so upset about? You said you trust her for some odd reason."

"It's nothing." I say looking down at my lap.

Charlie places her small hand on my cheek, causing me to look back up at her. I met her big green eyes. "Niall, talk to me."

I take a deep breath, "It was what she said as she was leaving." I sigh.

"What did she tell you. We have been over this Niall, Liv is a bitch and we don't listen to her." Her eyes narrow at the thought of Liv.

"She told me that she could never hurt Iris like I have hurt you so many times."

She doesn't say a word. The hurt flashes in her eyes for a slip second.

I quickly get up from the bed, "God fucking dammit." I rage, punching the bed frame at the same spot I did last night. The wood splitters all the way, cracking. "Shit." I hold up the frame as Charlie scrabbles out from under it before it falls on top of the bed.

"Niall!" She looks at me wide eyed. "What did you do that for?"

"That bitch is fucking right." I start pacing, running my fingers through my hair. "I am just a storm destroying everything in my wake."

"Niall stop." Charlie nears me.

"No." I back away and she looks genuinely offended. "I need to leave, I should of left last night when I had a chance."

"Y-you were going to leave me." The tears brim in her eyes, it is almost as if they become more green as the tears spill.

"I am hurting you too much Charlie." I run my hand over my face. "You are better off without me."

"No." She starts to shake. "No!" She screams in my face, pushing at my chest. "You can't just leave me because you don't think you are good enough! You can't run from your problems Niall!"

"How can you say that." I am a little more calm then she is. "I am breaking you and you are just going to let me do that?"

"Stop saying that!" She pushes me again. "You are making me stronger Niall. When I am with you I feel safe because I know that you will do anything in your power to protect me." The tears stream down her cheeks.

"You were strong before I met you, you can be strong without me." I start to walk away but she grabs my arm.

"Where are you going?"

"Ireland." I say blankly.

"What?" She gasp for a breath.

"I need to get out of here. I need to give you space. I need to visit my brother anyway." I look anywhere but her face. Seeing her like that will just pull me back in.

"Are you breaking up with me?" She hiccups.

"No." I shake me head. "I fucking love you Charlie but I need you give you time to think about us. I need to think about us." I grab my phone and wallet and shove them in my pockets. I take my passport out of my desk drawer and shove that in my back pocket.

"Niall don't do this."

"I am still going to pay the rent when I am gone." I make my way over to the door with Charlie grabbing my hand. "I want you to stay here so I know you are safe. I should only be gone a few weeks."

I reach for the door knob but Charlie pushes her body in front of the door, "You can go." I wasn't expecting that. "I am not about to beg, I am not some hopeless little girl. But just know that I am not going to wait around for you to make up your mind." She moves away from the door and I just stare down at the knob.

"Goodbye Charlie." I sigh, opening the door. "I love you and I will be back."