Burn (A Niall Horan Fanfic)

Nine ~ Niall

My princess. My princess.

I look down at her beautiful, sleeping face. Her eyes flutter as she dreams, her warm breath against my neck.

I can't help but stare at her small facial features. She's got a small nose that has a silver ring in one nostril. Her cheeks always seem to have a light blush with tiny freckles playing across the skin. Eyelashes long and dark, make her blue eyes pop when open. The brown bangs that cover her forehead lay sprawled and askew on her milky white skin.

I look at her closed eyes again and notice the purple bags beneath them. I never noticed them before but now they're all I see. I'm a bit concerned for her health seeing that.

Just because I'm curious and a bit snoopy, I slowly move her hand up to my face and turn it to look at her exposed wrist. I gasp and my stomach churns.

Her wrist has scars. They're faded, but still. They're scars. To increase the sickness I'm feeling, I count them. One, two, three... eleven. I feel my eyes prickle with tears so I wipe them.

She can't know I know.

God. I can't believe I just met this beautiful girl today and now she's sleeping in my arms. It doesn't sound right, I know. Especially after seeing these, I don't think I'll ever be able to let go of her now.

I run a finger over the light scars and kiss each one. I set her arm down and wrap her in my arms again.

I can't keep my eyes open for much longer so I let the darkness of sleep take me.

Hours later, I wake up to see it's still a bit dark out and I'm cold. The warmth from Quinn's body is gone. I sit up quickly and look around in confusion.

I see a tiny light coming from the hallway, I can barely see it, but I get up to see what it is. I walk as slowly and as quiet as possible to the source. A door is ajar, but the light isn't from the room itself, but from beyond it.

I silently open the door more and walk in to see the window open. The window has a balcony off it and someone is sitting out there. I squint my eyes trying my best to see with the poor lighting. I realize who it is and slip out the window to sit down beside them.

"What're you doing out here?" I ask in a whisper. The body flinches, but turns a bit hesitantly towards me.

"Um, nothing, I mean I'm just sitting here," she says.

"Quinn," I say a bit suspiciously.

She sighs, turns completely towards me, and throws a package of something on the ground. I pick it up and read it.

Cigarettes.

I look back up at her to see her taking a drag of her cigarette. That's the light I saw earlier.

"It kills you. You know that, right?" I tell her.

"Your point? We all die anyways. It's bound to happen sooner or later..." She sighs.

"Yeah, well I'd rather die later. I'd rather you not die any sooner than you have to." I say, pulling the cigarette out from between her fingers. She watches as I slowly take it and put it out.

"Why do you care?" She asks, voice cracking, after a long silence. "We literally, literally just met. Oh my god, I'm crazy... Why am I even here?" She turns to look at me, exasperated.

"Why am I here?" She repeats pressing a hand to her forehead, groaning.

"To answer all you're questions in one word, fate." I say, completely serious.