Let's Pretend It's Love

Her mind was fuzzy but she didn’t care as she continued to skip through the field. All around her, people played football or rugby. Their brightly colored jerseys shone in the sunlight of the midmorning light. Lola couldn’t help but smile as she felt the warmth on her skin.

In the distance, she heard birds singing back and forth to each other and though it was cold outside, they still sang as if spring was at the door. And that idea, the idea of spring in the winter, made Lola’s skin raise in anticipation. There was nothing she loved more than to be able to swim in the lakes or at the beach. Lola needed to be able to wear shorts and skirts again instead of being confined to the harsh stiffness of her denim trousers. Lola longed for the freedom of her great multitude of sun dresses and sandals. She wanted to pin her hair back and dance through the sprinklers of her parents’ yard.

Lola wanted freedom from the harsh chill of winter and autumn.

As she turned around in circles, dancing with her arms high above her head in graceful pirouettes, Lola felt freedom until her feed slipped on a sheet of hidden ice. She tried to steady herself, but gravity had other plans. She careened forward, her arms flying out beside her like a helpless and awkward bird would. She tried to straighten her knees out, but she couldn’t find the strength to.

She continued flying down the sidewalk until she felt her body collide with another body. Landing flat on her back, Lola stared up at the clear blue sky, blinking slowly as she tried to clear the fuzziness and dizziness from her vision. She swallowed hard as she propped herself up on her elbows. Lola looked around for whoever she had crashed into and immediately felt guilty.

Flat on his back, Niall laid, completely dazed and confused. She scrambled to her knees and crawled over to him, immediately pulling Niall’s head and shoulders onto her lap. “Oh my gosh, Niall! Are you alright?”

He blinked lethargically. “I think I’m alright. What on earth happened?”

Lola smiled guiltily. “I was dancing down the sidewalk and I slipped and I think I crashed into you. I’m so sorry. Are you alright? Did I hurt you at all?”

“I’m Irish,” Niall chuckled. “We Irishmen don’t get hurt easily. We’ve got a thick skin.”

“That’s good to hear because I think I ran into you pretty hard.” Lola brushed his hair away from his forehead. He smiled faintly before Lola sighed and hugged him tightly. “I honestly don’t know what I would have done if I’d hurt you. I probably would have died in shame and guilt.”

Niall reached up and touched her cheek. “Well, I’m not hurt so you don’t have to worry about that.”

“For all your pain and suffering, let me buy you some coffee, okay?” Lola asked as she let him help her up. His hands wrapped around hers to help her to her feet.

He kissed her cheek before nodding. “Sure thing. Right now?”

“Why not?” she said, grabbing hold of his hand and leading him down the sidewalk. “I’ve got no classes until tonight and I’ve got nowhere to be. There’s a place just down the street from here where I always go. It’s really nice there.”

Niall laughed as he followed her, jogging to keep up with the fast pace her short legs had set. He held her hand firmly, still reeling from the ice accident on the sidewalk in the park. His vision was still blurry and the fast pace didn’t help, but he tried his best to blink away the shadows in his eyes.

The pair neared the small cafe and was met with the jingling of bells as Lola opened the door. She sighed and wiped the dirt from the back of her trousers as she walked, or rather danced, to the counter. She spewed off some sort of complicated drink which Niall seconded before they both sat at a table in the far corner of the cafe. Niall sighed and folded his hands on top of the table, smiling and staring at the beautiful girl who sat across from him. “So, you told me you were dancing when you ran into me?”

Lola blushed and nodded. “Aye, I was dancing.”

“Is it rude to ask why?”

She smiled. “I was just thinking about how wonderful it would be if it were spring again. I miss all the blooming flowers and the singing birds. I miss the warm rain and the bright sun. It just seems so dead and cold when it’s snowing and icy the way it is.”

Niall pursed his lips and smiled back at her. “Sounds nice.”

Lola thought silently for a few minutes, chewing on her lower lip as she fought to ask him a question. Since their first meeting at the first party when he’d thrown her into the lake, Lola had an unspoken attraction for the blond haired Irish lad. He was sweeter than all of her previous boyfriends combined and he was very smart too. She wanted to know Niall Horan better, but she was afraid she might be too forward if she asked him what he thought about getting to know each other better.

He noticed her concentration and her absolute focus. Niall decided to clear his throat to regain her attention. “Is there something on your mind, Lola?”

Smiling in both embarrassment and at the fact that she loved the way he said her name, Lola met his blue eyes with her hazel ones. “There is, actually. I have a question to ask you but I don’t want to be too...brash or forward.”

“You don’t have to be worried about being forward with me,” Niall said with a bright smile. “I would prefer it if you were forward, actually.”

Lola’s smile dropped and she took in a very deep breath, feeling anxious as she contemplated the words she was about to say to him. “I’ve been thinking, Niall. We have quite a lot in common. We both love music and English, poetry in particular. We both love cooking and we laugh a lot. We get along and I think we’re spending a lot of time together.”

Niall’s smile disappeared. “Where are you going with this, Lola?”

She swallowed, almost painfully. “I really like you, Niall. And I think it would be really nice to get to know you better.”

“Are you suggesting that we go out on a date?”

She nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

“No,” he said sharply.

Lola frowned, her eyebrows furrowing in confusion. “I’m sorry?”

“I don’t want to go out on a date with you, Lola. I don’t want to get to know you better and I’m very sorry if it seemed like I was leading you on. I can’t go out with you,” Niall said. He stood up and turned away from her without another word, leaving.

Lola’s throat grew tight as she tried not to cry. He was just some silly boy she thought she could go out with. She thought maybe they would have gotten along better and gotten to know each other. Lola hoped she and Liam might become like Rhianne and Liam. She wanted to be in a relationship like that.

As she pulled out her cellphone and dialed Rhianne’s number, she couldn’t help but let the tears fall freely. Rhianne answered with the familiar cheery hello. “Hi, Lola!”

Lola swallowed. “Rhianne?”

“Lola? Lola, what’s wrong?” Rhianne’s voice came quick and worried.

“I need a hug,” Lola whispered into the speaker. “Are you busy?”

There was a pause. “Yes, but I can leave, it’s no big deal. Where are you, Lola?”

She wiped her eyes and looked around. “The cafe where we always go down the street. You don’t have to come if you’re busy.”

Rhianne tsk’ed. “I’ll be there in five minutes. Stay put.”

Lola hung up the phone and waited patiently, staring at the cup of coffee in front of her. It remained untouched and unconsumed as she had completely lost her thirst for the caffeinated beverage. Five minutes later like Rhianne had said, and she was there. She sat across from Lola, frowning. Her brow was creased with lines of worry. “Are you alright? Lola, what’s wrong?”

She wiped her eyes free of tears. “I was dancing on the sidewalk and I ran into Niall. We talked about going out to get some coffee and we talked a little bit. I’ve been thinking for a while about asking him if he wanted to get to know each other better and when I asked him, he said no. He said he didn’t want to go out with me or get to know me better and he was just really angry and rude about it. Did I do something wrong?”

Rhianne frowned and shook her head reassuringly. “No, you didn’t do anything wrong, Lola. You just thought maybe he was right for you. But if he was so rude about it, then he isn’t the right one for you, Lola. You’ll find someone better, alright?”

“I really liked him,” Lola said as she pouted.

“I know you did, Lola. I know you did,” Rhianne murmured as she hugged the other girl tightly. “Don’t even think about him anymore, alright? He’s not worth your time.”

Lola nodded and sighed. Another possible relationship was ruined.