First Impression 2

Chapter 63

-Hayley's POV-

I bit my lip as I waited for Niall to show up, mentally cursing myself for having no self control. Matt had warned me, advised me to keep my distance from Niall. I knew he was right, I knew I needed it. We both did. How could anything change if neither of us changed the way we handled it?

I sat on the porch swing, the breeze circulating through the tree branches, rustling the leaves. It reminded me of the day Niall had first come out to my dad's. My dad tried to be intimidating but instead he became Niall's best friend.

My dad didn't have much of a backbone either.

Dad. It was still weird to think that the victim I had created in my mind wasn't exactly the victim I imagined him to be. Yes, he was still a victim to my mother's drunken anger, but he was a bigger victim to his own actions and choices. My life had been overrun with hatred and fighting because of his job and my mom's unstable grieving.

She was still grieving.

I tried to picture my mother being happy with a man. I had seen her laugh and smile at Ryan a few times, but they fought just as much as my own parents. The only difference was Ryan was the one to light the fuse and my mother wasn't going to go down without a fight. How did she act with Dad before she found out about his constant threat of life or death? Did she smile and get that warm fuzzy feeling that everyone mistook for love? Or did she tease them and laugh in a higher pitch like I do?

My mother wasn't one for teasing. She was serious almost all the time. She didn't even joke with Logan and I. The only time I had ever witnessed her tease someone was, well when I made the unexpected trip back home to meet with Jeffery Donner.

My brain was disrupted from its turning and processing when a car horn sounded, causing me to jolt. I lifted my head to see Niall standing on the opposite side of the black car. He had a big smile on his face, his hand resting on the roof of the car at a ninety degree angle. His hair was styled differently. Instead of it being straight up, it was mostly dark brown now with the front  fading into a blonde, a slight curve falling to the right.

I liked it. It was different.

He was wearing a white tee shirt, low enough to show the top of his chest hair, with a dark denim shirt over it. He closed his door and started to walk to my side of the car.

I got to my feet and started walking towards him. I pushed my curled hair out of my eyes. "Hi," I smiled as my feet reached the end of the walkway.

"Hello," He smiled down at me. I could easily wrap my arms around him and rest my head on his chest, which is what I wanted more than anything. His tongue darted out and wet his lips. The small portion of self control I still had was slipping further away.

I broke eye contact. "Are those skinny jeans?" I asked completely shocked.

Niall laughed, his cheeks turning red, his fingers wrapped around the blonde curve in his hair as if the wind would carry it away. "Uhm, yeah,"

I looked at the jeans one last time before smiling up at him. "I like them."

"And I like you," He said and I blushed. "Sorry, maybe a little too forward." He looked over my hair and crinkled his nose, scratching his head.

"No," My mouth spoke for me, "It's okay."

His smile returned, deeper than before. His dimple indenting into his cheek. My stomach flipped. We stood there, smiling at each other before Niall broke the silence and opened my door. "I guess we should go. There's boxes and shit in the back."

I laughed. "Okay. Thank you."

I watched as Niall jogged over to his side of the car, a smile over taking his features. "So how was your day?"