Softer Side

Chapter twenty-one

I smile softly as I walk out of the bedroom, rubbing my eyes in the process as I pad down the hallway. The satin feeling of my pyjama shorts rubbing over my body as I hear clattering of plates and things in the bedroom. I raise my eyebrows when I step into the kitchen, seeing my best friend running around the room trying to make up breakfast. "Becky... how did you get into my house?" I say quietly, raising my eyebrow as she spins to look at me. Her figure was clear in her skin tight jeans and cropped shirt as she sheepishly grinned.

"Surprise!" She grins before continuing to run around. "It doesn't matter how, it's the fact I'm here!" She beams before running over with a tight hug. "Happy birthday!" She beams, kissing my cheek before leading me to the sofa, sitting me down with my hands in hers.

"Becky i feel like you have bad news..." I mumble as she shakes her head quickly at me, assuring me that is not what it was at all.

"No, no, no" she says quickly before giving me a small smile. "I got you a present" she says softly, handing me a small box. I raise my eyebrow at her, lifting the lid to find a red collar.

"Becky I don't know what you think I do in the bedroom but-" I start as she begins to cackle with laughter.

"Oh my god Soph" she laughs shaking her head at me with a smile. "No, Soph this is one part of your present" she says softly as I take the collar into my hands. "This is a bit of a joint present that should be here any second now..." she says softly as I hear the door knock. "Go!" She grins as I raise my eyebrows at her. I slowly head to the door, opening it up to find the back I knew all too well from seeing it bare with marks down it. He turns around, a wide grin on his face as he wishes me a happy birthday. There before me in Nialls arms was the sweetest Labrador puppy I had ever seen. I feel tears fill my eyes as he holds the puppy out to me, my hands shakily taking them into my arms to receive a lick to my cheek.

"What?" I say quietly, looking up at Niall with tears in my eyes as he touches my arm gently, looking over at Becky as she walks over, touching my other arm. I felt Nialls thumb rub up and down slightly, knowing Becky couldn't see his gentle movements. "What?" I repeat, holding the puppy close to me.

"Well, with Niall going on tour soon and myself building the business and having lots of new meetings, we thought you needed somebody to keep you company when we aren't around all the time" she says softly, laying her head on my shoulder as I feel a tear slip down my cheek.

"You guys are the best" I say softly, kissing the small fluffy head gently. "Welcome home" I say quietly, slowly heading to the living room.

~~~~~~~

"Niall where are we going?" I giggle softly, looking at the scenery around us as we drove down the streets out of London. Luckily Becky had agreed to look after the puppy and Ariella for a few hours tonight while I went out for dinner with a friend. Well, that's what I had told her anyway. "Please tell me" I giggle, placing my hand on his knee as he shakes his head quickly.

"Nope, you'll see soon because we're very nearly there" he smiles as I raise my eyebrows, seeing the ocean come into view. I squeeze his knee gently as he turns down a quiet road, parking beside a hut that was situated in front of the sand. "We're here" he says softly as I raise my eyebrow.

"A hut?" I question as he shakes his head with a smile. "Come see" he says softly as I climb out of the car. He pulled a small silver key from his pocket, unlocking the small beach hut with a soft smile. I felt tears prick my eyes at the sight before me. "Surprise" he says quietly in my ear with his hand in my waist as I bite my lower lip.

"Niall this is just... wow" I whisper, taking a deep breath as he smiles, leading me inside. Before me the hut was decorated with fairy lights all over the place and a blanket on the floor. Pillows were scattered around the blanket to make it even more comfortable, and there was also a large pepperoni pizza and a bottle of champagne with two glasses. I smile widely, turning around in front of him to press my lips gently to his.

The kiss was full of love as he smiled widely, closing the doors behind us and sitting on the floor. He patted the spot beside him, opening up his MacBook and placing it on the blanket with a Disney logo visible. I smile softly when I see the beginning of tangled, my all time favourite Disney film. "A princess film, for my princess" he says quietly, kissing my temple as I lay my head on his chest, enjoying every single moment of this. Every moment with Niall was filled with love and adoration, and nothing ever felt forced.

I link my little finger with his, pouting when he pulls away from me to grab the bottle of champagne. He opens the cap, before popping the cork with a grin on my face. He proceeded to pour two glasses, smiling softly as he clinks the glass with mine once the bottle was placed down. "Happy birthday darlin', you deserve a magical day for being so strong and simply incredible" he whispers, pressing his lips lightly to mine as I giggle softly against them.

I hum softly, grabbing a slice of pizza and bringing it to my lips as he smiles down at me. I hold it up to his lips, humming when he takes a bite with a content sigh. "I couldn't think of a better birthday" I say quietly as he nods with a smile.

"See, we don't have to be in the public eye to have some of the greatest days" he says softly as I nod happily. He was right, I just hated the sneaking about all of the time, but I knew it would be worth it when we finally came out to everybody. "Come on, snuggle in" he says softly as I do as he said, laying my head on his chest to watch the film with him, slipping my arm around his waist, feeling him sigh happily.

~~~~~~~

"Niall it's pitch black" I giggle as he shrugs, taking my hand into his with a wide smile. "We might fall over or something" I laugh as he steps onto the sad in front of the hut.

"I'll catch you" he says softly, smiling down at me in the moonlight as we slowly walk along the sand. He sighs happily, leaning down to kiss my head gently, squeezing my hand before letting go. I look up to him when he lets go, pouting at the loss of contact. A chuckle left his lips as he slid his arm around my shoulders, walking beside me with his right hand in his pocket.

"Thank you" I say quietly as he nods, looking at the ocean once we stopped walking. He pulls me into his side, leaning his head sideways to lay on top of mine as we stood silently, watching the waves of the ocean under the moonlight. I shiver slightly as a cold breeze runs past us, my body trying to move closer to his as he chuckles.

I lift my head to look at him, seeing his eyes pouring out onto the dark ocean. He looked even more remarkable in this light, with his skin glowing and his jawline looking even clearer. His eyes sparkled under the moonlight and you could clearly see the happiness in his eyes. He must have sensed me watching him because he looked down at me. "You cold?" He whispers as I shrug.

"A little" I say quietly, moving my eyes to look out at the wide ocean, wondering where it began and ended. The beach had always been one of my favourite spots, especially since I used to come to the beach with my parents all of the time to have a family day together so it always held a special place to me.

"Come on, let's get you home" he says softly as I smile softly at him, nodding slightly. Ariella was bound to be in bed by this point but I know she would have fussed, wanting to stay up with the puppy. To say she was excited about him was an understatement. I had let her name him, with her settling for Teddy in the end. She was smitten with him, never wanting to leave him alone.

Once we had packed up and climbed into the car, Niall began to drive. His hand linked with mine since his car was automatic. "Thank you for today" I say softly as he squeezes my hand softly. "Thank you for the puppy" I say softly as he smiles widely, lifting my hand to kiss it gently.

"That was Beckys idea... but you won't have me to cuddle so you'll need somebody to give you attention" he says quietly as I smile widely.

"I love you" I whisper, sighing when I see my flat come into view.

"I love you too" He says softly as I look at my hands. "Give me a message later when it's clear to come over yeah?" He says softly as my smile returns. I nod, climbing out of the car with a smile and a small wave towards him. I slowly walk up the stairs, opening the door with a smile seeing my best friend sat on the sofa. I giggle, lifting Teddy into my arms to receive licks to my cheeks.

"Nice time?" She smiles as I nod happily, plopping down on the sofa.

"The best birthday ever" I mumble, smiling at the puppy on my lap happily.