Different From The Rest (Niall Horan AU mature)

chapter 38

Charlotte P.O.V

I hold in my laugh as Niall pouts. The rest of the drive is quiet and I don't know how to feel. We were all so worried about Niall, but he was off having fun. I understand that he is upset with Harry and I, but he could have told Louis. When I pull into the driveway I am relieved. The smell coming off of Niall is making me sick. I don't know how much longer I could have handled it. I pull in the garage and Louis is standing by the door waiting.

We are all exhausted. It's four thirty in the morning and none of us have slept. I jump out of the car as soon as it's off. Niall stumbles out of the car as well.

"He reeks of alcohol and it's making me sick." I walk towards Louis.

"Alright Charlotte, don't be a bi-" Niall starts to talk, but Louis cuts him off.

"Hey Niall. How was your night?" Louis walks over to him. "Wow, you do reek. How about a shower and then pancakes?"

"Such a gentlemen, Louis." Niall and Louis laugh.

I don't catch the joke and they both look at me when I don't laugh.

"Niall joked that I was going to shower with him." Louis explains to me.

"Whatever. I'm going to make some coffee and pancakes. Hopefully that will help." I turn to walk away.

"Today is going to be real pleasant with her," Niall says sarcastically.

As I walk inside I slam the door behind me. I know that Niall has every right to be mad at me, but I didn't expect him to react this way. I thought he would get mad and yell. Say some mean things to me, but I thought we would get though it. I have no clue what he did last night. Will he even remember? What if he slept with another girl? Why does he have a black eye? These are all questions I need to ask him, but I don't want to even look at him.

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Niall P.O.V

I stumble into the bathroom and look in the mirror. I look a little rough. I see a bruise on the corner of my right eye. It takes a minute for me to remember how it got there. I laugh at the memory. Who trips and falls into a coffee table? I get in the shower and as I turn on the water I notice that I'm still dressed. I hurry to turn off the water. I only get a little wet. I strip down and then turn the water back on. I stand there while the hot water hits my body. I feel my mind become a little clearer, but not much. I take my time washing my hair and body. The longer I take in here, the longer I can postpone talking to Charlotte.

I still haven't decided if I'm going to forgive her or not. I know that we could have something special together. I know that we could go all the way. Fall in love, get married, and have kids. For that to happen we would both have to want that. Falling in love means becoming weak and I refuse to be weak. Just having feelings for Charlotte turned me into a wimp. Falling in love will give Charlotte more of an opportunity to hurt me.

The water turns cold so I turn it off and grab a towel to wrap around my waist. I walk into my bedroom and get dressed. I put on sweats and a t-shirt. I walk over to my bed and sit down. I rest my elbows on my knees and rest my head in my hands. As I close my eyes the door opens.

"Come on Niall. Charlotte made you some coffee and pancakes," Louis says.

"You guys realize that it's only," I pause and look at the clock. "It's only five thirty in the morning. None of us slept last night. Let me sleep."

"We are just trying to help with your hangover. Get food in your body to absorb some of that alcohol." Louis turns and walks away.

I hesitantly get up and follow him to the kitchen. When I enter the kitchen I see a stack of pancakes and a cup of coffee waiting for me at the kitchen island. Charlotte is by the sink cleaning some dishes. I go and take a seat by all the food. There is only one plate so I guess I'm the only one eating. I grab the syrup and dump it on my pancakes. I take a bite as Charlotte turns around.