Tug of War

After Danielle dismissed herself from Harry’s presence with the flimsy excuse that she had to wish Niall a happy birthday, she scanned the room for the boy Harry had been kind enough to introduce her to. She had been entranced immediately by Liam’s good looks and sweet smile, and her heart refused to stop pattering in her chest, urging her to get to know him better.

As he’d detailed earlier, he was standing next to Niall, patting the blonde boy on the shoulder as he said something that made the two of them smile.

Taking a breath, she urged her way through the crowd, trying not to bump into too many people, and caught up with them. She was thankful nobody else was speaking so she didn’t have to hesitate before saying in a cheery voice, “Happy birthday, Niall!”

He turned, a little confused until his eyes rested on Danielle’s face. “Oh, thank you!” he responded, reaching forward and hugging her quickly. “And thanks for coming! Harry said that you might not.”

“I didn’t want to miss it,” she insisted. “But this really is incredible.”

He smiled his thanks and gestured to Liam. “Have you two-?”

“Harry just introduced us, yeah,” Liam replied easily. “So we’re good.”

Niall laughed as someone Danielle didn’t recognize tapped him on the shoulder, and then the couple of strangers were left alone.

There was a short awkward silence as the two of them fished their brains for something charming or witty to say. Danielle felt her cheeks burn a little with embarrassment. Why was it that conversation was so easy for her with Harry or Kristen, but when it came to cute guys, she was totally brain dead?

“Okay, this is weird.” Liam laughed shortly, running a hand through his hair. “Do you want to get something to drink?”

Danielle shot a fast look over to where Harry was sitting and saw that he was too busy drinking to notice that the two of them weren’t returning immediately after chatting with Niall. “Yeah, that would be fine,” she agreed with a small smile.

Liam navigated the crowd of the party without too many issues, and Danielle was more than happy to follow close behind, following his steps exactly instead of paving her own path. She got bumped a few times, and out of habit, she rushed to apologize before anyone got irritated.

“You know,” Liam stated with a small laugh when they emerged from the bustling group, “you are ultra-polite. That guy almost crushed you under his huge foot, and you were the one who apologized.”

Danielle chuckled and ran a hand through her wild hair. “I’m not sure if that’s a bad thing or not, and I’m afraid to say thank you in case it is.”

He pondered that for a second. “I get what you mean. But being polite on any measure is better than being rude, right?”

“True!” She laughed as Liam turned around and ordered two beers for them, which were delivered almost immediately.

Danielle took a small sip, since she was more of a social drinker, while Liam more of a gulp, probably to ease his nerves. “So, Danielle,” he started with a smile, “what do you do for a living? Are you in university or…?”

“I’m a professional dancer,” she answered easily with a nod, like friendly adults were supposed to do. “If I ever run out of work, God forbid, I’d go back to university, but there’s not so much a need for it now, you know?”

“Oh, yeah,” he agreed. “And what a cool job! I wish I could dance, but I’m really rubbish at it.”

“I bet you’re not as bad as you think you are. Most people who can’t dance are just overanalyzing the way their bodies want to move to the music. If you just let go and forget your insecurities, then you might be really good.”

Liam blinked with shock at the girl standing in front of him before asking another question about her dancing, and then their conversation was flowing perfectly, void of any more awkward, weird silences where both parties were looking for a way out.

Time slipped away from Danielle the more she talked with the charming Liam Payne, and before she knew what was happening, Harry was stumbling over to the two of them, clearly drunk out of his mind.

As she settled down on Harry’s couch about a half hour later, once Harry was tucked into bed and no longer a danger to himself or any other London civilians, she couldn’t help but think about Liam. The more she thought about his sweet smile, his dark hair and eyes, the hint to definition present under his button-up shirt, his infectious laugh, the more attracted she became to him. He was just so incredibly nice, and she’d spent so much time around guys who were full of themselves that it felt fresh to speak with someone who actually wanted to get to know her.

Harry stirred in the other room, his bed creaking under his weight, and Danielle felt her whole body tense. She shouldn’t have waited around, thinking about Liam on her friend’s couch, and going home started to sound better and better.

Without another thought, she got to her feet and started toward the door, sending positive thoughts and attitudes toward Harry. She had a feeling the poor guy would be horribly sick in the morning, but he did somewhat deserve it from getting as drunk as he did.

Just before she was about to step outside, she remembered that she had to get Liam’s number so she could text him as promised. Grabbing Harry’s phone off the kitchen table, where she’d disposed of it when she’d half-carried him to his room, she texted Liam’s number to herself with a little wink face. The second she felt her phone go off in her handbag that rested against her torso, just to be sure she received it, she put Harry’s mobile back on the table and slipped out the door as quietly as she could to allow Harry to sleep in peace.