Imagines with Niall Horan

83. You need time (Bad Boy AU)

"Niall, leave me alone," you growled as your ex-boyfriend followed you down the school corridor.

"Not until you let me explain," Niall retorted, keeping up with your quick pace.

"Explain what?" You spun on your heel and glared at the boy in the leather jacket. Niall halted to an immediate stop, nearly falling off-balance at the suddenness. "Explain how I found texts from other girls on your phone?"

Niall blushed hard and stared back at the students who were trying to listen in, making them scurry away. It was an unusual sight for them, to see Mullingar's resident bad-boy uncomfortable rather than his cocky, confident self. "And the pictures, Niall." You whispered, trying to push the hurt back down into your chest before it came through in your voice.

"Hey, I never sent any!"

"That's not the point, Niall!" You threw your hands up in the air in despair; no matter how many times you spelt it out for him, Niall still didn't seem to understand that his flirtatious behaviour with other girls had wounded you and your self-esteem. "The point is that we were together, but you seemed more interested in what they had to offer." And with that you turned on your heel and continued down to corridor. You bit back the tears; you had to at least turn the corner at the end of the corridor before you let them fall. Niall's voice made you stop.

"You were the first person I ever made love to!" he declared down the halls, not caring who heard and turned to stare. Your entire body flared up in anger, embarrassment and memories that you had tried to keep down over the past few days. You turned back to Niall, your eyes stinging. You couldn't believe Niall was playing that card, playing the emotional side of their physical relationship.

"That's a lie," you sneered. "Everyone knows you're an outrageous flirt, Niall. I'm not the first girl you got into bed." Niall wavered for a second, giving a side-long glance to the students lining the halls.

"Okay," he sighed, "So I've fooled around with a couple of girls before and I wasn't exactly known for being faithful before we got together, BUT," he raised his voice to cut off his ex when you opened your mouth to retaliate. "But, they never meant anything. You meant something. You still do. Please, let me prove it to you. I-" He caught himself and stopped, looking down and tightening his grip on his bag strap. As hurt and angry as you were, you wanted to know what Niall had to say.

"You what?" Niall stared at you for a long time, an internal emotional battle raging in his dark blue eyes. He took a few hesitant steps forward so that he wouldn't have to say the next bit too loudly: it was the first time he was ever going to say it, and he wanted to make it as personal as he could in the given situation.

"I- I think... I'm in love with you." With the distance between them lessened, you could see the beginnings of tears in Niall's eyes. You knew that he meant it - you could feel that he meant it - but you couldn't just fall back into Niall's arms just like that. You still needed time. You walked towards Niall until you were less than a metre apart.

"I love you, too," you whispered, your own tears threatening to fall. Niall looked up at you hopefully, but deep down you knew he was defeated. "But I need time," you continued. Niall nodded; he was defeated. "You really hurt me, Niall, and even if I do love you, I still hate you for what you did to me." You lingered for a few more seconds before turning and proceeding on your way down the corridor. You held your head high and ignored the stage whispers of the other students around you.

You held your resolve even when you turned the corner, keeping it up until you reached the girls' restroom further down the hall. You made sure the coast was clear before you locked yourself in a stall and cried.