Beneath Your Perfect

I glanced towards the doors to my left before looking at the same black doors that were placed in front of me. I was trying to run over the directions the receptionist had given me. There were about ten lefts I was sure I had taken before reaching what was hopefully Liam’s recording room.

Biting my lip I decided to take the door to my left feeling like it was more likely. I glanced down at my phone one more time hoping Liam had answered my text or calls but he hadn’t. Sighing I reached forward and slowly pushed against the dark door before taking step forward and sticking my head into the room.

My eyes instantly met with familiar bright blue eyes.

“Hey Jade! Liam said you would be coming.” Niall’s Irish accent shouted cheerily over towards me as I stepped into the room fully before shutting the door behind me. I shot Niall a smile in greeting before noticing Zayn, Louis and Harry in here but no Liam.

“Liam’s in there recording.” Louis said pointing his thumb over his shoulder. I glanced in the direction that went into another room I couldn’t really see into.

“Oh okay. Is it okay for me to be in here?” I questioned them all.

“Of course. We were expecting you anyway, you should have messaged us when you got here, we would have came out and got you.” Harry smiled at me before joining Niall on the couch. I shrugged at him in return.

“Your receptionist gave me instructions. I think she recognized me from magazines probably.” I shrugged at the boys as I awkwardly stood in front of them holding my bag.

“Do you want to come in and see Liam?” Zayn asked me walking over towards me. I glanced towards the direction Louis had said Liam was.

“Am I allowed to?”

“Of course.” Zayn laughed before grabbing my hand and tugging me in the direction of the doors. We entered a small room with a lot of expensive looking equipment placed everywhere. Two people were sitting in the room that nodded in acknowledgement at Zayn and I before turning their attention towards the window in front of them. Zayn guided me forward so I could look through the window too.

My eyes widened slightly seeing Liam standing through the glass in front of a microphone. But not the stage microphones but the round ones used in recording boots that I knew nothing about. His eyes were closed as his lips moved but I couldn’t hear anything. Before I could question why, one of the men in the room removed his headphones and pressed a button allowing Liam’s voice to fill the room.

His voice was soft and sweet but still full of emotion. I took an unknowing step forward as his voice carried through the room and straight through me. The lyrics he was singing didn’t even matter. The way his voice sounded is what mattered and the passion that flittered across his face. He looked so comfortable and confident in that room. He knew what he was doing and he was damn good at it. I have never seen him more at home in my life.

I stood there listening intently with Zayn by my side while Liam continued to sing. I didn’t want it to end, I knew that I could probably listen to him forever and be perfectly okay with that. There was just something about his voice, the peaceful fluidity of it all that just seemed to pull you in.

Eventually Liam was finished and he made his way out of the recording room. He smile once his eyes found mine, instantly walking over and pressing a small kiss to my lips, one that I barely had time to reciprocate.

“You boys can take a break, we have to go over these tracks.” One of the sound guys said as Liam and Zayn nodded in response before leaving the room with me trailing.

“Liam, there’s something I need to talk to you about.” I told him tugging on his hand as Zayn announced to everyone that they were having a break. Liam looked at me curiously as his eyebrows drew together.

“Is everything okay?” He asked me softly, worried. I nodded instantly.

“Of course, I just really need to talk to you about something, privately.” I told him, glancing towards the other boys in the room. I glanced back to see Liam’s face hard and emotionless as he stared at me. I instantly realized how he had taken my words.

“I’m not leaving Liam, I’m not leaving you.” I glared at him pressing a small kiss to his lips. His face softened instantly as I pulled away.

“Oi you two! None of that.” Niall said loudly appearing by our sides and making me jump. “You two want to come and get lunch?”

I glanced towards Liam who eyed Niall for a moment before looking at me. I realized that for the first time in a long time, Liam actually wanted to go out with his friends. He wasn’t thinking of an excuse or saying no, he actually wanted to have lunch with them. I felt my chest swell at the improvements he had made.

“Well Jade actually wanted to…” Liam began before I cut him off.

“Doesn’t matter. It can wait until later. You go eat with the boys.” I said quickly, letting go of Liam’s hand and motioning towards the others.

“You’re invited too Jade.” Louis said loudly at me.

“Thanks but I actually have a few things I have to do today. But I’ll see you later.” I added the last part towards Liam. He looked at me worriedly and nodded. Niall had the tact to step away as the other boys pretended to be busy.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” He asked me. I nodded at him instantly.

“Of course. You go have fun with the boys. I can always talk to you later.” I assured him. He smiled hesitantly at me in return. “Go have fun with them Liam. It’s been a while.”

I reached up and pressed a kiss to his cheek before starting to step away. Liam had other plans however as he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back towards him. His lips were on mine instantly working a bit harder against mine. I relaxed into the kiss and allowed him to take control before pulling back, slightly breathless.

“I’ll call you later okay?” He whispered into my hair as he pulled me into a hug. I smiled as Liam placed a kiss to my forehead before I stepped back and winked at him, causing a smile to light up his face. I waved to the other boys before heading out of the studio.

Liam was finally hanging out with his band mates. Now was not the time to tell him something that could potentially make him angry.

-

“You didn’t tell him?” Sarah groaned at me from her position across the table. I shook my head at her and continuously ate the ice cream I had sympathetically given myself. “Jade!”

“I know okay! But you should have seen him! He actually went and had lunch with the other boys. He wanted to go have lunch with them. Do you know how much of an improvement that is? I couldn’t ruin that.” I whined at her before stuffing more chocolate ice cream into my mouth.

“Well he’s going to be angry when he finds out about your book either way!” Aria said coming from the kitchen carrying two bowls of ice cream for her and Sarah.

“I know and I don’t know what to do.” I cried out to them.

“Don’t publish the book.” Sarah said shrugging at me. I bit my lip and sighed, staring down into the ice cream.

“My agent called today. She’s got a publisher lined up for my book.” I admitted to them. “The Scholastic publishing company wants to publish my book. Do you know how amazing that is? They are one of the top publishing companies in the world.”

“That’s great Jade. It really is. But I think you need to decide what is more important to you right now. This could make your career.” Aria nodded at me encouragingly.

“And in the process it will probably hurt Liam.” Sarah added as Aria shot her a glare. I sighed and dropped my spoon back into my empty bowl.

“I really like Liam. But I have worked so hard for this. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do, he’ll understand right? I mean it’s not fully about him.” I pleaded with both girls who exchanged glances between them.

“I don’t know Jade. I think you might have to choose.” Sarah said softly as I shook my head at her.

“I think you’re being a bit drastic about this.” I bit my lip and eyed the table nervously. Liam would be okay with this, he would be happy for me. This is an amazing opportunity for me. This was my dream.

There was a knock at the door pulling all our attention away from the table.

“I’ll get it.” Aria announced, standing up and heading towards the door. I leaned back in my chair curiously as Aria greeted whoever was at the door before standing to the side and let them in.

My mouth fell open as Liam walked through the door, smiling happily.

“I hope I’m not interrupting girl time. I can come back?” Liam asked politely, pointing backwards towards the door.

“No, don’t be silly. Aria and I were just leaving.” Sarah said happily. Pressing a kiss to my cheek before heading over to Aria.

“Yes, you two have heaps to talk about!” Aria said loudly as I shot her a glare in return before Sarah pushed her out of the apartment.

“There’s that talk work again.” Liam smiled at me hesitantly. My eyes met his as I smiled at him gently.

“Hey you.” I said softly, patting the seat next to me. Liam smiled and walked over, pressing a soft kiss to my lips. Lingering there enough for my cheeks to blush lightly. “How was your lunch with the boys?”

“It was good. I haven’t had a lunch like that in a long time.” He smiled at me, genuinely happy. “Now what is it you wanted to talk to me about? I assume that’s what Aria was talking about? Although I try not to assume to much with her.”

I laughed at him lightly before debating in my head what to tell him. I pushed the ice cream bowl away from myself before my eyes met his curious ones again. I had to tell him the truth.

“My book is getting published.” I blurted out to him. A smile lit up his face creating crinkles in the corner of his eyes.

“Really? That’s amazing Jade.” He laughed happily before reaching over and pulling me into a hug. In doing this, he pulled me out of my chair and into his lap. I laughed and wrapped my arms around his neck to steady myself. “Why didn’t you tell me this sooner!”

“I didn’t know how to tell you.” I shrugged at him, looking down into his warm brown eyes that comforted me. He shook his head at me in disbelief before leaning up and pressing a kiss to my lips, this one more passionate then the last. His arms tightened around my waist as my own hands got tangled within his hair.

“We should really celebrate.” Liam said softly, pulling back and nudging his nose with mine. I giggled and nudged his nose back gently, enjoying the close feeling of his body to mine.

“We really don’t have to.” I whispered back. He pulled his head further away to look into my eyes properly. I jokingly pouted at him.

“Of course we do. Jade, this is amazing. You’ve been working so hard on this book and it’s going to be published.”

“I really don’t feel like going out Liam.” I shrugged at him. He frowned at me slightly before a small smile replaced it.

“Then how about I make you dinner, here. I’ll raid your cupboards and cook you the best meal you have ever had.” I could tell by the way his face was lit up that there was no way I could get out of this, so I agreed.

“Great!” He stood up instantly and placed me on my feet, before pressing another soft kiss to my lips. “You know you’re going to have to let me read it now that it’s getting published.”

I bit my lip and didn’t respond as I busied myself with collecting the empty ice cream bowls from the table. I tried to ignore the sick feeling in my stomach. Liam was happy for me and he would still be happy for me when he found out he was the main idea for my book.

I just seemed to be having a lot of trouble believing that.