Any Other Heart

I couldn’t stop thinking about what Kristen and Louis were doing once they left. It was ridiculous, it really was, but I just kept running over scenarios in my head, every one worse than the one before.

I didn’t care that Louis was out on a date (or whatever you wanted to call it) but I did care that he was out with Kristen.

My food came eventually and I ate while stewing over Louis’s situation. I didn’t stop thinking about it until my phone buzzed from it’s spot beside me when I was finishing off my chips. It was a text from Niall.

Want to go out tonight?

I sighed reading over the message. Did I? No, not exactly. I still had a bit of a headache from the previous night and wasn’t sure I felt up to going out to drink yet again.

While I was mulling over my options, there was a knock at my door. With the way my day was going, it wouldn’t have surprised me if it was Loren and Harry. When I opened the door, there was Niall, grinning at me like his life depended on it. “Get my text?” he asked as he brushed by me and walked into my room.

I sighed and shut the door before I turned around and followed. “Just did. I don’t know if I feel like going out again tonight, Ni.”

“Aye, come on Mia. It’ll be all of us! Paul’s getting us a car and we have a reservation at some club.”

“You’re not helping your cause,” I muttered, falling onto the bed beside him while he devoured the rest of my food. “I don’t want to go out with everyone.”

“How come?” he asked around a mouthful of chips.

I grimaced. “Swallow first, yeah?” I sighed. “Just don’t feel like it, yeah?”

He shrugged. “Louis will be there.”

I glared at him while he smirked. “Don’t be a wanker. Speaking of though, you know how Lou’s been talking to Kristen again? They’re out right now.”

Niall shrugged. “He said something about it a bit ago, that she was gonna come to one of the London shows or something.”

I nodded. “They’re on a date right now. Or... something, I guess.”

“He didn’t say anything. Guess she’ll come out tonight too then, aye?”

I shrugged. I had no idea. I wasn’t entirely sure what was going on with anyone anymore.

“Come out tonight. You can drink with me, we’ll get pissed, then come back to the hotel. You can even sleep in my room again if you want! I just don’t want you sitting around moping, yeah?”

I didn’t want to go. I didn’t want to see Loren with Harry and I didn’t really feel like running into Kristen again. But Niall was right; there was no sense in sitting in my hotel room moping for the rest of the night.

“Fine, I’ll go,” I said finally.

“Aye! That’s the spirit! We’re leaving at nine, so I’ll come knock around then, yeah?”

I agreed and then he ruffled my hair before hurrying out the door.

That was how I ended up in my tightest pair of skinny jeans and a black vest that, in all honesty, made my boobs look rather great. I had my leather jacket slung over my arm and a pair of hot pink wedges on my feet; I may not have felt like going out, but at least my looks didn’t convey that message.

Niall came over right at nine, knocking frantically on my door. I hadn’t seen Louis and Kristen again, but I figured they would meet us at the club or something of that sort. “You look quite fit there Mia,” Niall said when I opened the door and stepped out into the hall.

I rolled my eyes. “Go big or go home, yeah?”

He just laughed.

We took a car that fit all of us--Niall, myself, Zayn, Liam, Harry, and Loren. Unfortunately for Zayn, Perrie was out on her own tour, and the same went for Danielle and Liam, but neither of the two boys seemed phased by it. They were happy to be out with their mates.

The club was some exclusive, members-only thing, and was apparently more publicity for the club than anything else. I suppose I understood it--if England’s biggest boy-band was seen in your place of business, it could do nothing but boost said business--but I thought it was a little ridiculous.

I went along with it of course, because it was actually a rather nice place--maybe a little bit “much” for my taste, but nice regardless. We had bottle service and an open tab, so the lads were determined to take advantage of this fact. I decided soon after we got to the club that I wasn’t going to get drunk, so I nursed a vodka cranberry and kept a bottle of water nearby while everyone else got pissed off their arse.

“Why aren’t you drinking?” Niall asked me, falling into the booth beside me, beer sloshing over his mug.

I rolled my eyes and scooted over to put some distance between us. “Don’t feel like having a hangover tomorrow morning. Problem?”

He shrugged. “More for me!”

Niall wasn’t the only one drinking like his life depended on it; Zayn was tossing back shots with Harry and Loren, Liam had a drink in his hand all night, and Louis and Kristen seemed to be going shot for shot as well.

Louis and Kristen had gotten to the club shortly after we did, finding us in the area roped off just for the lads with no problem. Louis greeted me with a sloppy kiss on the cheek, having tossed back a drink as soon as he arrived. Kristen was practically glued to his side, and it would have irritated me if I hadn’t chosen to ignore the fact that she was there in the first place. Louis was a big boy. He knew what he was doing.

Loren and Harry were keeping to themselves as well, staying away from me for the most part. The night was going fine.

It continued to go fine up until the very end of it.

Everyone was drunk. Even Liam, even Kristen, even Loren. They were all pissed, except for me, and I was tired and ready to get out of there. I wasn’t leaving until the lads did though, so I just waited it out.

I was nursing a bottle of water when Louis came over to me, falling onto my lap practically. “Where are you staying?” he asked, almost rupturing my eardrum in the process.

“What do you mean?” I asked, carefully eyeing his glazed over look and sloppy motions.

“I mean,” he said exaggeratedly, “Are you staying with Nialler again?”

My eyebrows knitted together as I looked at him funny. “I only stayed there because I was too drunk to go back to our room.”

“What about tonight?”

“I plan on going back to our room. Why wouldn’t I?”

“Think you could stay with Nialler instead?”

My jaw dropped a little. “Excuse me?”

He sighed again, rolling his eyes a little in exaggeration. “Kristen’s pissed, I’m pissed, and I don’t think I could get her back to her flat in one piece. So unless you’re feeling up for a threesome...” he trailed off, shrugging. “Just for tonight. Please?”

I stood then, my jaw still hanging open in shock. “I will not leave my room because you’re too irresponsible to not get drunk and make sure your bloody girlfriend can get home in one piece. Absolutely not! That’s my room to begin with!”

He put his hands up in surrender and stood, stumbling slightly. “Just for tonight, Mia! Come on, love. I can’t very well send her home, can I?”

“Shag her in the fucking closet for all I care!” I hissed, giving his shoulder a little shove. “I’m sleeping in my bed tonight whether you like it or not.”

He stumbled from the shove, but recovered. He rolled his eyes. “I’m not--don’t be ridiculous!”

I glared at him. “Think you’re the one who’s ridiculous if you think I’m actually going to willingly let you shack up with your newfound girlfriend so you can have some drunken shag while I sleep with Niall, who bloody snores and talks in his sleep!”

Louis popped out his lower lip, pouting and looking overall completely ridiculous. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms in front of my chest. “Absolutely not.”

“Mia,” he said, stumbling forward slightly and touching my arm. “Please? She just needs a place to sleep.”

I wanted to yell at him more and tell him I didn’t bloody care where she ended up or why, as long as it wasn’t my room. But this was Louis, and he was giving me that stupid look, and somehow I felt myself giving in, even if it was the absolute last thing I wanted to do.

As if the universe was trying to tell me something, Niall came up to me then and slung an arm over my shoulder sloppily. “Paul’s saying last-call!”

I sighed and turned back to Louis. “Fine,” I said simply, not giving him anything more. “I don’t--whatever, just... fine.”

He grinned and nodded before planting another sloppy kiss on my cheek and stumbling away.

Kristen and Louis left before we did, and then the rest of us got rounded up and herded into the car. I was crushed between Zayn and Niall, which seemed to be happening more and more as of late. The ride back was quiet, the alcohol in everyone’s system taking full-effect.

I tried my best to help both Zayn and Niall back into the hotel, which was much more difficult than I was expecting. Zayn was more drunk than I’d thought, and Niall was, well... Niall. I did it though, and we made it to our floor in one piece. I left Zayn at his door with a quick kiss on the cheek as we said goodnight, and then I brought Niall to his room.

I dropped him on the bed with about as much grace as a newborn baby deer, and then got ready for bed myself. “I’m stealing a pair of your sweatpants and a t-shirt,” I informed him, but he just waved me off from his face-plant position on the middle of the bed.

I went into the bathroom and stripped out of my clothes before taking a quick shower. I was sweaty from the club and needed to rid the feeling that was on my skin that I couldn’t describe but hated anyways.

When I got out, I put on the stolen sweats and tee and then brushed my teeth with the hotel provided toothbrush. When I walked back out into the room, Niall was snoring softly into the pillow.

I chuckled and grabbed my clothes out of the bathroom, leaving them in a pile near the end of the bed before I crawled in beside Niall. I checked my phone quick; there were a few messages. One was from Matt, asking me to call him when I got the chance so I made a mental note to do so soon, and the other was Louis. I sighed and opened it.

I’m slrry for tonght xx

I didn’t bother responding and instead shut my phone off and turned the light off beside the bed.

“Mia?” I heard Niall say shortly after, his voice quiet and muddled.

I sighed. “Yeah?”

“Did you have fun tonight at least?”

Did I? No, not particularly. Sitting by while everyone else gets pissed isn’t nearly as much fun as getting pissed yourself, and then the night ended with Louis being Louis and me carrying Niall back to his room. So no, I hadn’t exactly had the best night. I didn’t say any of that to Niall though. “Yeah Ni, I did.”

“Good,” he mumbled, and after a few minutes of quiet I heard him snoring again.

I closed my eyes and hoped sleep would come just as easily for me.