SO LONG || NIALL HORAN || #Wattys2019

FIVE

Something about sleeping on the bus made Niall always wake up really early- even if he had a concert the night before. It could be the constant bounce over speed bumps or the sound of traffic right outside his window, that consistently made his tired blue eye flutter open but he didn't really know for sure. A small groan emitted from his lips, his face buried in his pillow as he reached out to pull Haleigh closer to him. Ever since he had convinced her to permanently stay with him on his bus for the rest of the tour, his sleeping habits had improved greatly. She was like his own teddy bear that he loved to hug while he slept. He frowned when his hand felt nothing but blankets, making him sit his head up slightly.

Not seeing her beside him, he sat up fully and rubbed his eyes with a small yawn before he scanned the space around him. He chuckled once he saw her at the little table, her forehead resting on the wood with her laptop open. She was still in her clothes from last night, meaning she had completely disregarded his warning about staying up too late. When he had collapsed in exhaustion on the sofa bed, her eyebrows were furrowed in concentration as she edited photos. He must've dozed off while he was waiting for her. Luckily it was only five, so the girl could easily get a proper sleep if she moved somewhere comfortable.

Niall slowly forced himself to stand and walked over to her figure, stretching his arms above his head before he crouched down. In a swift motion, he lifted Haleigh off the chair by tucking one arm under her knees, the other against her back. She barely stirred until he gently set her on the sofa bed, her  eyes squinting in the darkness while incoherent mumbles fell from her lips. "You're okay," Niall soothed in her ear, and leaned down to place a brief kiss on her cheek. "I just moved you from the desk."

Haleigh involuntarily shivered from the contact and whispered while he walked around to the other side, "I-It's freezing in here."

He climbed into the makeshift bed, pulling a few covers over their legs. Then, lying on his back, he raised his right arm which allowed her to cuddle close to his side while his hand rested on the curve of her hip. "Better?" he asked softly, his blue eyes fluttering closed again.

"Much," Haleigh breathed out contently, lazily tossing her arm over his torso and resting her head against his chest so she could listen to the steady beating of his heart as if it was a lullaby. She didn't really remember falling asleep; she just knew his embrace was exactly where she should be.

*^*^*^*

When she woke up later, it was to the lovely sound of Niall singing along to random songs playing from his phone while he searched for something to eat in the cabinets. They were on their way to Kansas City and had only about an hour left before they'd reach the Starlight Theatre. She slowly climbed out of the sofa bed and walked across the small bus to see what he was up to. His back was facing her as he wiggled his hips slightly to the beat, which caused her to muffle her giggles in her sleeve. He hadn't noticed that she was now awake, completely zoned out in his own little world. Haleigh sneakily grabbed her phone that was on the small table and opened up her Instagram to catch his 'performance' on camera.

Immediately thousands of people tuned into her live stream, blowing up a storm in the comments from hearing him sing completely on his own. Ironically, the song playing was Liam's newest hit, Familiar, sending all the girls watching into a frenzy. Haleigh couldn't keep her laughter hidden any longer as he almost slipped in his socks, making his head quickly snap towards her. "N-Nice dance moves," she stuttered out through her chuckles while he quickly straightened his back and nervously ran a hand through his light brown hair once he saw her phone in her hand.

An annoyed groan emitted from the back of his throat as he threw his head back, "You've got to be kidding me, love."

Haleigh looked up from the comments and sent him a smirk that made him feel slightly dizzy. "Go on, bub. The fans want more."