The Darings

“So you’re saying he’s terrible in bed?” Finn asked Tera, looking at the brunette with interested eyes. Finn was always interested to hear the things girl’s had to say about people. She strong believed that listening could get you far in life. Especially if it was listening to Tera, who often said more than she should. “What a shame, for such an attractive face.”

Leaning back in the booth, Finn licked her lips, still tasting the salt that had been dusted around the rim of her margarita. Surround by girls, Finn listened intently, eyes flicking from one girl to the next, listening to the gossip.

Coming from Manchester, Finn had become an absolute pro in being in big cities, big schools and big groups of girls. Surrounded by constant chatter from everyone, one learned to listen more than one spoke. Listening was the key to everything.

University, it seemed, was an element made for Finnley Watz. It was filled with crowds, throngs of people constantly buzzing like her home city, and it had drinking. Drinking was good. Finn strongly believed drinking was the perfect ice breaker for any situation.

Turning her attention back to Tera, she listened as Tera spoke about the hottest of the hottest men at UCL. It had the typical names on as she went down the list, names that Finn had heard over an over. Finn wanted to hear different names for once.

Finishing her drink, she let her eyes wander around the diner. It was filled with college students, playing pool or at the bar. It was a place within walking distance of campus, and was filled every night. That’s what Finn liked about it.

Being from a large city, she had learned to be come adapt to things being busy around her. Finn herself was not much of a busy body, being relaxed and letting her coy smile do most of talking for her. But being surrounded by people, and noise was something that made her feel at home.

Home! Home was a place that Finn loved just as much as she loved being in London. It was where she grew up, the youngest of three siblings and the only girl. Her two older brothers, Brandon and Xander, twins of the age 23, had grown up with her, toughening her up by beating her to a pulp and cutting the hair off her dolls.

A big city, with lots of life and lots of noise was home. And Finn was glad that London and University offered that same sort of feeling. The parties were fun, the drinks were plentiful, and the clubs were hypnotizing. It was brilliant.

And yet she found herself bored of the conversation, green eyes still scanning for something interest, something different. Though Finn considered herself a relaxed person who tended to do crazy things every so often, she wanted something more. She had some sort of crave, welling up inside of her for something to be different.

Mind wandering, it fell back to Ashley Hughes. She had seen her floor mate just as their group was leaving. Ash, was her nickname, and what most called her by. Ash, who was polite and always said hello, but rarely went anywhere with them. Not because she was not liked or do not like them in return. But simply because… she did not.

That made Finn wonder.

“Don’t your brother’s attend King’s College?” the question made Finn glance up, her gaze cutting back to Tera. The girl looked at her expectantly, and Finn nodded, keeping her gaze level on Tera. “Our team plays them soon.”

Finn raised an eyebrow. “They do.”

“I wonder if that means Niall will be at the pitch all weekend…” Tera trailed off, her voice washed over by another conversation started up by the other girls. But Finn kept her eyes trained on Tera, watching as the girl thought about it. “Maybe he’ll go, though.”

“Why do you care where Niall goes?” The conversation at the table came to a pause. It did that, sometimes, when Finn spoke. It was not that she had a commanding voice, or that she was threatening. It was that when Finn spoke, it sounded like it had purpose. “Or if he’s practicing?”

Tera blushed. Ah. She fancied the blonde, snapback wearing athlete. Many girls on campus did. Finn could at least appreciate his good looks, but she saw nothing particularly awing about him. He was a friend. “I was just wondering if the party this weekend would be big enough to get even him to stop practicing.”

Finn smiled, thin and coy, again. “I suppose it should. Everyone is talking about going. And he asked me to go.”

That was absolutely true. She had seen both Niall and his mate Harry that day, leaving class as she walked onto campus, in absolutely no hurry to go to mathematics. She was horrid at the subject, and found excuses to walk in late. Which may have been why she was horrid.

Niall, the friendly boy that he was, had told her about a large party that some kid was throwing. He of course, extended the invitation, always glad to have Finn as a partner in crime with him. The two had become drinking buddies at a party early on in the year, and kept in touch ever since.

And yet, Finn had not decided if she wanted to go. She told the boy she would, and she assumed she would have to fulfill that promise. But the thought of going to another party, with the same group of girls ogling over the same group of boys made her curl her lip in distaste.

As if thinking the curl of her lip was appointed to her, Tera paled lightly. Finn felt slightly bad, but remained silent as the brunette said, “Well y’know. He’s fit, and he’s so nice.”

“Nice to look at,” Joanne, the blonde to Finn’s left giggled, bumping the red head’s shoulder as if they were sharing an inside joke. Finn smiled that same smile again, the unnerving one that no one could figure out. “Admit it, Tera. You fancy him.”

Tera blushed, and another round of gossip and expressing how wonderful Niall Horan was echoed around the table. It was like a never ending circle, and it made Finn lean back once again, bringing her tongue across her lips.

A flash of hair caught her eyes and she glanced across the diner. Niall’s ears must have been ringing, because the lad walked in, other boys at his side as he stood at the hostess stand, his eyes scanning the crowd filling the place.

Blue eyes caught Finn’s and she smirked, raising her hand and moving her fingers in a delicate wave. He grinned and gave her a nod of the head in return, winking at her as if to promise to talk to her later. Of course, he would. Niall liked to talk.

“That was a really good head nod,” Joanne said, bringing Finn’s attention back to the table. The entire table of girl’s had their eyes on her, seeing the exchange. She raised her brows, not saying a word. “Like, the kind that best mates get.”

Having no answer, Finn lifted a single shoulder in response. Talk about what was defined as a ‘good head nod’ took over then, all because Finn’s exchanged. She began to listen again, and saw that Tera was no longer looking at her. Her jaw worked, and Finn could swear there was jealousy.

Yes… Finn needed something different. She had an idea where to start