Talk Is Cheap

Sage’s and Nicole’s flat was a mess. Clothes were everywhere. The pair had basically removed every dress, skirt, and flowery top from their closets in order for Nicole to find something to wear to dinner with Niall. He told her to wear something between casual and formal. What is that even supposed to mean? Sage insisted he meant to dress like a slag going to a club, but Nicole begged to differ. She wanted to make a good first impression on the people he worked with, while also not looking like a complete stiff. She wanted an outfit somewhere between sexy and conservative, and so far between her closet and Sage’s she wasn’t having any luck.

“Sweet baby Jesus,” Sage exclaimed from somewhere in her closet. “I think I found the dress.”

Nicole was reluctant, but stumbled into her mate’s bedroom nonetheless, tripping over piles of clothes wherever she walked. She watched the silvery purple-haired girl climb out of her closet, nearly tripping over a pair of shoes and falling on her face. Sage was carrying some form of red fabric hanging from a wire hanger. The color immediately made Nicole conscious. She didn’t usually wear red. Red got people’s attention, lots and lots of attention.

“I dunno, Sage.” Nicole said, scratching the back of her dripping wet head with her index finger. She’d already taken a shower, shaved her legs, and painted her nails. She had just under an hour before Niall was supposed to pick her up, and choosing her outfit was taking a lot longer than expected.

“You haven’t even seen it properly yet.” She exclaimed, ripping the dress from the hanger and holding it out, in front of Nicole’s face. “I haven’t worn this since my classy club days, when I was trying to fuck all those older, rich men.”

“Back when you had standards.” Nicole corrected her, a smug smirk on her lips. Sage flipped her off before shuffling around quickly to place the dress against Nicole’s torso in order to get a better feel for how the dress would look on the smaller girl. Nicole bit her lip, staring apprehensively in the floor length mirror hanging from the closet door. The dress was cute, and seemed to fit somewhere in the broad group ‘between sexy and conservative’.

As far as conservative, the dress was not low cut and it was skater style, so it would fall roughly 15 centimeters above her knees. For sexy, the dress had a mesh insert down the middle to just below her navel, and the back was completely mesh until just above her bum. Overall, she’d show some leg and lots of side cleavage, but in a classy way. The dress really was perfect.

“I love it,” Nicole said honestly, bringing a wide grin to Sage’s face. “But it’ll probably look rubbish on me.”
“Stop fishing for compliments, and try the damn dress on.” Sage insisted, causing Nicole to furrow her brows. She was not fishing for compliments. Nicole was truly insecure about her body, especially in comparison to her long-legged, modelesque best mate.

With a frustrated sigh, Nicole pulled her clothes off before slipping in the dress. She avoided looking at herself in the mirror as she fidgeted with the fabric, pulling at it until it fit comfortably over her small frame. Besides the mesh making her breasts itch, she liked the way the dress felt on.

“I have some nipple covers and bra tape you can use to hold it all in place.” Sage said, scrutinizing Nicole with her grey eyes. “Your boobs actually look decent , considering you barely have any, and your arse! If this doesn’t get Niall hard I will put on a strap-on and fuck you myself.”

“Sage!”

“I’m being honest, Nicole. You look bloody fit.”

“Good,” Nicole said, smiling slightly. She wanted to impress Niall. They’d been texting non-stop for the past couple days, and she was truly beginning to fancy him. It was fun to get all dressed up for a guy again. “Now, help me with my hair.”

Time seemed to speed by as Nicole finished getting ready. She decided against wearing much makeup and went for a mostly natural look, focusing mainly on mascara and blush. Of course, she had to play-up her lips; she seriously considered them to be her best asset. They were pink and plump, similar to Angelina Jolie’s, and tonight she decided to wear bright red lipstick, making them look extra kissable. She wore her hair down, parted down the middle, and loosely curled so the strands fell just below her breasts. For shoes, she wore light pink heels with dome studs down the back. She looked hot. It was rare for her to actually feel good about himself. A smile pulled at her lips as she took one last look in the mirror before grabbing her clutch and leaving her bedroom.

“Why don’t you dress this way more often, Nick?” Sage asked from the living room, she was sitting on the couch watching reruns of some stupid, reality T.V. show. Her knees were pulled against her chest, her chin resting between her legs, and her hair was in a nearly perfect ballet bun.

“What’re you trying to say?”

“Usually, you look ugly.”

“Thanks,” Nicole spat, fidgeting in front of a mirror near the front door. She was so worried about not looking perfect, it was driving her mental. She reached in her clutch, and checked the time on her phone while shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

“Don’t be nervous. You’re an uptight twat when you’re nervous.”

“Your full of encouragement tonight, aren’t ya?”

Sage groaned, reaching above her head to stretch before stumbling to her feet. She crossed the room to the front entrance to stand behind Nicole; she wrapped her arms around her mate’s waist and rested her chin on her shoulder.

“You look amazing, I promise.”

“Thank you,” Nicole muttered, just as the doorbell rang. Quickly, all the color rushed from her face and her palms became sweaty. This was it. He was here. “Go to your room!”

“Excuse me, Mum?” Sage asked, pulling herself away from the brunette girl.

“You’ll scare him. I’ll let you meet him another time, now go! Please.”

Sage rested her hands on her hips, unable to believe what she was hearing, but ultimately left the room while rolling her eyes. “Have fun, bitch.”

Nicole knew Sage wasn’t actually mad, or at least wouldn’t stay upset for long. Once making sure her mate was completely out of sight, Nicole opened the door, revealing a nicely dressed blonde lad caring a bouquet of roses.

“You look—amazing.” Niall said, looking her up and down before handing over the flowers. “These are for you.”

Nicole smiled, taking the roses and sitting them on the nearby kitchen counter. “They’re lovely, thank you. My flatmate will put them in water.”

Niall smiled before reaching to grab Nicole’s hand. She couldn’t keep her eyes off him. He looked incredibly fit in a white, button down top and black dress pants. She felt extremely lucky to get to spend the whole night with him.

He snaked his arm around her waist before leading her out the door. He rested his head in the crook of her neck before whispering, “are you ready for tonight?”

“Yes,” she purred, feeling herself blush profusely, hoping her cheeks weren’t the same color as her dress. Niall smiled brightly, and continued to hold her close as the pair made their way out of the flat complex and to the parking lot. Nicole became confused as he led her to a sleek, rather expensive looking car with two people already sitting in the front seats.

“This is my mate, Louis and his girlfriend, Eleanor. We’ll be riding with them to the restaurant, if that’s okay?” Niall said, opening the door for her. She hesitated a moment, quite nervous to be stuck in a car for however long with people she’d never met before. Nicole ran her teeth over her bottom lip, before nodding and ultimately deciding to get in the car and make the most of the situation. She didn’t want to be nervous. She didn’t want to be an ‘uptight twat’.

“Hello,” she said, finally after making herself comfortable. She pulled at the end of her dress before crossing her legs, making sure not to show anything. “I’m Nicole.”

“Oh, love. We already know.” Louis said, and his girlfriend nodded, agreeing with his statement. “Niall’s told us loads about you.”

“Really?” Nicole asked, eyeing the Irish lad suspiciously as he scooted into the seat next to her.

“Well, he told us your name—and what you looked like. He couldn’t stop talking about what you looked like.”

“He said you were beautiful, by the way.” Eleanor added, giving Louis a strange look.

“She is, isn’t she?” Niall demanded, reaching suddenly to hold Nicole’s hand. A warm feeling overwhelmed her body the instant his fingers brushed against her skin. She looked at him through the corner of her eye and noticed him grinning widely.

“Of course!” Eleanor exclaimed, turning around completely to look Nicole straight in the eyes. “You’re absolutely gorgeous, love. I’m dying to know where you got that dress!”

“It’s my mate’s actually, so I’m not sure.” Nicole was still a bit nervous, and she hoped she didn’t seem rude with her quick replies. Eleanor seemed like a sweet-heart and Nicole didn’t want to give the wrong impression. She felt a million times better when Eleanor gave her a warm smile before turning back around to face the road.

“The place we’re going is not too far away.” Niall insisted, rubbing circles with his thumb over the top of Nicole’s hand.

“What’s this dinner for, exactly?” Nicole asked, her curiosity getting the best of her. She knew it had to do with Niall’s job, but she didn’t really know what his job was. He’d been pretty vague about the details.

“It’s a kind of celebratory dinner.” Niall answered after a lingering pause.

“What’re we celebrating?”

“Well, Lou and I are in a band,” Niall began, and Nicole could have sworn she saw Louis make eyes with him through the rearview mirror, giving him an odd look. Niall cleared his throat nervously before continuing. “We just got home from a month on tour, so we’re just celebrating our success.”

“That’s exciting,” Nicole replied, a bit surprised. She had no idea Niall was actually in a band, or they were talented enough to go on tour. “You must be pretty popular, then.”

“You could say that,” Niall replied, and this time Nicole knew Louis gave his mate a peculiar look because he turned around sharply, taking his eyes completely off the road.

“Babe!” Eleanor squealed, causing her boyfriend to return his attention to the task at hand. “Watch what you’re doing.”

Nicole eyed the back of Louis’ head, wondering what on earth had gotten into him. She didn’t see why he felt the need to shoot Niall such bizarre looks, while driving nonetheless. She didn’t fret over Louis’ strange behavior for long, though, before asking, “And you’re the guitarist for the band?”

“Basically,” Niall muttered, his expression falling. He felt like he was lying to her, and that’s the last thing he wanted. He planned to tell Nicole about ‘One Direction’ tonight at dinner after she met all the lads. He knew it could be a bit overwhelming to know you’d be spending a whole dinner with the world’s most popular boy band, so he wanted to wait until they were already inside, sitting down, so she couldn’t have second thoughts.

“What do you do, Louis?” Nicole asked as he pulled up to a restaurant in the heart of London.

“I sing,” Louis replied, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

“It looks like we’re here!” Niall yelled, rushing to get out of the car before Nicole so he could open her door. Louis gave his information to the Valet before linking his arms with Eleanor and walking into the restaurant. Niall intertwined his fingers with Nicole’s before following after his mate.

“This place looks really nice.” Nicole commented, looking around at the old architecture, high ceilings, and expensive chandeliers.

“Only the best for you, babe.” Niall replied, making Nicole giggle. She leaned into him, latching onto his arm with her free hand before tilting her head up to quickly kiss his cheek. “I cannot wait for you to meet the other lads.”

“There’s more?” Nicole muttered under her breath, but Niall didn’t have the chance to reply before the couple arrived at the table. Nicole immediately felt light headed, as she looked around, her gaze meetings over two dozen pairs of eyes. There were so many people sitting around the table, Nicole didn’t know where to begin. Should she take a seat, or let Niall introduce her? She seriously had no idea what to do.

“Nicole, this is Liam and his girlfriend, Danielle.” Niall said, directing her towards one end of the table. She immediately felt relived; at least he knew how he wanted to approach the situation. She decided it would be best if Niall did all the talking, that way she wouldn’t get all tongue-tied and embarrass herself. Nicole extended her hand in order to shake Liam’s, but he completely ignored her and pulled her in for a bone-crunching hug.

“Nice to meet you!” he said loud enough so she could hear over the noisy chatter around them. Nicole smiled, not really able to form words; she had been completely caught off guard by everything that was happening. After Liam released her, Danielle gave her a warm smile and waved slightly. Nicole returned the gesture before turning to Niall to see who she would be meeting next.

“And this is Zayn.”

“Vas happening?” he asked before reaching around her shoulders and pulling her into a side hug. She toppled over; tripping in her tall heels, and almost fell on her face before Niall caught her, gripping her waist tightly to steady her balance.

“Thanks,” she whispered in his ear, laughing quietly to diffuse her embarrassment. He stared down at her, a large smile across his lips before joining in with her laughter, finding the whole situation amusing. He knew she had to be freaking out inside, but Nicole seemed completely at ease. Like she did this all the time. Niall considered her a pro at meeting outrageously large groups of people all at once. Ironically, Nicole felt like she was doing rubbish at it.

“I have one more person I’d like you to meet, everyone else doesn’t really matter.” Niall promised her, snaking an arm around her waist and holding her close against his chest. Her nose instantly fell in love with the smell of his cologne; a mixture of musk and mandarin. She nuzzled her face in his shirt, feeling like she could spend an entire night curled up with him, just taking in his scent, without getting bored. “Harry?”

The name stung Nicole’s ears, but she ignored the pain. It was inevitable she’d meet someone with that God-awful name again, so why not tonight when she was meeting a whole army of people. Slowly, she lifted her olive eyes from Niall’s chest, peering around uncertainly because she didn’t have a clue where to look or who she was looking for.

“Coley?”

There was no fucking way. Out of all the bands, out of all the Harrys— Niall had to be in ‘One Direction’ with that bloody wanker Harry Styles. It all made sense now.

“You two know each other?”

Nicole looked between Niall and Harry as all the color rushed from her face. She literally felt like throwing up, and she was almost certain that if Niall hadn’t been holding onto her, she would have toppled over to the floor. Her legs felt like jelly. She seriously did not think she could walk. Millions of thoughts, memories raced through her head. How could this happen? After all this time? After almost forgetting about him? He was back in her life again just as quickly as he’d left; bringing with him every retched emotion he’d ever made her feel.