Enchanted N.H

Chapter 26

It's been a week since Niall left for L.A.
A week spent missing the brunette man by my side and spending countless hours thinking about him.
My mother is still here and to be honest I don't mind it as much as I thought I would.
We haven't really fought just the occasional bickering and some minor misunderstandings.
Both of us don't talk about my father or Niall or any man in our lives and to some extent it helps me to not miss Niall as much.
While I am at work my mother is usually out shopping, mostly for herself but occasionally she brings me a piece of decoration for the house.
In the evenings we have found a routine of either going out for dinner or staying inside and watching crime shows on TV, one of the few things that we both have in common.
Niall and me have barely spoken in the past few days.
The last time I heard his voice through the phone was three days ago and he has stopped sending me playlists two days after he had left for L.A.
Still I text him everyday and ask him how his day was, I send him pictures whenever my mother had brought a new trinket for our house and I bite my tongue whenever Lia or Elise ask me how our relationship is going.
I know he is busy with his music and giving interviews and I shouldn't be upset that he can't find the time to talk to me.
But I feel myself longing for any kind of contact with the man I love.
On my way back from work I walk slower than usual not wanting to come back into his house without him being there, I wear his shirts just to pretend that he is here, holding me close to him.
It's a little pathetic, totally over dramatic. We haven't broken up and he isn't dead, just in a different time zone.
Again my mother interrupts my chain of thoughts by knocking on the door frame before entering the bedroom where I am sat on the king sized bed, holding my phone in my hand while scrolling through Nialls Twitterpage.
"Why don't we go out for a drink tonight?"
It sounds more like a demand than a question and I agree reluctantly after shortly evaluating my other options.
I could lay in bed and overthink Niall and my relationship or go out and at least try to have a little bit of fun with my mother.
"Yeah, sure sounds like a good idea", I smile up at her and she claps her hands.
"Great because I have invited some friends to come along with us".
I take a deep breath before asking her how she knows people here in London and why she invited them out for drinks.
Turns out one of her ex boyfriends from when I was a teenager was from London and during their relationship she made some friends that still live in London.
"You can invite friends too", she proposes sweetly, knowing well enough that I don't really have friends here in London.
If I would, I don't think I would spend every minute of my free time with my mother.
"Sure, I will ask some, text me the address of the bar and the time", I reply with a small sigh.
The only person I want to come with me right now is miles and miles away from me and probably enjoying their time.
After my mother left to get ready I text Lia if she wants to come and because I am feeling a little bold and I want to prove, not necessarily to my mother but more to myself, that I am not completely friend-less here in London, I text Lewis.
Technically Lewis is more Nialls friend than mine but he enjoys a good beer and talking to him is always fun.
Eleanor and Louis are out of town visiting family so I don't even bother to ask them.
To my surprise both Lia and Lewis are down for some drinks, maybe I forgot to mention that we would be hanging out with my mother and her friends.
I am dressed in one of my new dresses that my mother gifted me, only because I couldn't be bothered to do laundry and most of my clothes are dirty.
"You look gorgeous", was my mothers comment when we met downstairs.
She is wearing a pretty dress with sequins that sparkle in the bright light of the kitchen, she doesn't really look like my mother she looks young.
"Thank you for letting me stay with you, I am really enjoying myself", she smiles and I know that she speaks the truth.
"I like having you here", I admit and we hug briefly, before we hurry outside to catch our taxi.
The bar is located at the top floor in an unimpressive office building.
Walking into the bar my mother talks to the waitress about the table she reserved and I look around.
As unimpressive as the building looks from the outside the more impressive is the bar.
All the furniture is in a teal blue colour, plants are hanging from the ceiling and it feels like as if you were outdoors.
Everything is dimly lit and through the big windows you can see the city with its thousands of lights.
We don't have to wait too long before I spot Lia coming through the door, looking surprised and overwhelmed at the same time.
I wave her over to me and my mother and introduce her.
"Sorry I wasn't sure if you wanna come when my mom is here", I whisper quietly when my mother is busy greeting her friends that arrived shortly after Lia.
She chuckles slightly and shakes her head. "Are you kidding Vicky? This place is awesome I wouldn't even mind being here with you and Niall as the third wheel".
At the mention of Niall my heart sinks a little but I quickly pull myself together before my thoughts start to spiral.
Lia and me are engaged in a conversation and I jump when someone suddenly wraps their arms around me from behind.
"Lewis", I exclaim after hearing the Scottish accent and the familiar giggle.
He squeezes himself between me and one of my mothers friends and reaches a hand out for Lia to take.
All three of us spend the evening laughing over Lewis silly jokes, Lia and my stories from work and occasionally about my mothers friends who drink a lot more than they probably should.
When the night comes to an end Lewis takes out his phone to call a taxi but his face whitens at the sight of his screen.
Before I can ask him what's wrong he shoves his phone to Lia and now she looks at me with a worried look on her face.
"Guys what's going on?", I ask slowly while trying to see what made them so upset.
"Please don't freak out", Lewis gently speaks and wraps an arm around my shoulders and Lia hands me his phone.
It's a tweet, a picture of Niall and a girl.
Both are laughing and he has his arm wrapped around her waist while she snuggles into his side.
My heart drops a thousand feet and I slump down in my seat not being able to hold myself up anymore.
Now I know why he hasn't replied to my messages or why he stopped calling me.
The worst case scenario came true, he had found someone new in the span of only a week and I was a fool for waiting for his calls.