Breathe

Liv and I were tidying up the flat since Saturday was our designated clean up day. It was Liv’s idea because she liked to keep everything clean. I didn’t enjoy it much and eventually found myself taking a rest every five minutes while Liv took turns cleaning the kitchen and the bathrooms. I felt guilty at times when she gave me the easy stuff to do, such as vacuuming and dusting, while she took care of the heavier stuff, but I was always hopeless when it came to cleaning or doing any sort of strenuous work. It’s a good thing Liv enjoyed cleaning.

“You’re so lazy,” she remarked, looking at me lounging on my love seat in my bedroom after having vacuumed my room.

“I’m taking a break,” I told her as she walked into my bathroom. I was looking at all my social networks to see if anything else updated since I last checked ten minutes ago.

“You rested, like, ten minutes ago.”

“Whatever, you muppet.”

I went back to browsing my phone and decided to check Instagram, liking the selfie that Layla posted before heading over to ours. She had texted me saying she was here and had just dropped by to get some coffee for all of us.  

A few minutes later, after I managed to get up and move to Liv’s room to vacuum, the doorbell rang and I dropped the vacuum in excitement. “Layla’s here!” I yelled, running towards the door. I opened it, screaming and jumping up and down as Layla laughed and walked inside, holding a tray of three coffees.

“You’re here, I’m so happy,” I said, hugging her as soon as she put the coffees down.

“Happy to be here,” she said, smiling and putting her bag down as well.

“Welcome to my new place,” I said, standing back and spreading my arms wide in a dramatic way.

“It’s really nice,” she said, looking around and peeking into the different rooms. “Way better than living in a dorm with six other girls. I’m so jealous.”

“You have a suite dorm, so it’s not so bad,” I shrugged.

“I hate those girls, though. They’re all so manky and barmy. Did I tell you how one of them masturbates at night when we’re all in the room with her?”

Before I could react, Liv ran out of the bathroom and ran towards us. “Layla! Baby!”

Layla screamed and picked Liv up off the ground, hugging her. I bent over laughing because Liv looked like a little Annie, with her shorts and tank and hair in a bun with a sponge in hand. Proper maid and all.

“You smell like Clorox,” Layla said, setting Liv down and wrinkling her nose.

“Sorry,” Liv laughed. “I was cleaning.” She put the sponge down by her bucket and looked at the tray of coffee. “Ooo, which one is mine?”

“Has our names on it,” Layla told her, picking up the one with Liv’s name and handing it to her and then handing the other one to me. We took our coffees and sat down in the living room. “I have a story for you guys.”

“What’s up?” Liv asked, propping her feet up on the coffee table and getting relaxed. I loved times like these when I could just kick back with my girlfriends and talk. With the three of us together, things could get pretty bad as far as gossiping went. We were also probably very annoying to everyone who had the unfortunate luck of hanging out with us together because we found the same, stupid things funny and we just meshed better with each other than others. If someone were to sit down with us, they’d probably feel like they were intruding because we created a bubble within us.

Layla crossed her legs and got comfortable as well, playing with her hair, like she obsessively does everyday. I scooted back on the couch to face them and tucked my knees together, sipping on my coffee. “I went to your local campus coffee shop, right?”

“Right,” Liv nodded. “Cuppa. It’s the one Harry and Blair run off to every night.”

“Actually,” I said, suddenly getting defensive. “Harry and I don’t go to Cuppa. That place isn’t open 24 hours. We go to another one farther down.”

Liv looked unimpressed and bored. She was still against my bad sleeping habits, but I secretly think she just wanted to join in and felt left out. She was also extremely anal about going to sleep at a proper time. She hated staying up all night unless it was for a party. Sleeping past three AM on a school night for her was like taboo.

“As I was saying,” Layla continued, not questioning what Liv just said. I wondered if they were talking about me behind my back. “I went to Cuppa and I’m on the queue, waiting, when this bloke.” She let out an exasperated groan. “He’s standing there with his friends or whatever. I hear him say and I quote and that lads, is how you know that God exists. If that wasn’t the case, then that arse wouldn’t exist on that body.”

“Ew,” Liv wrinkled her nose. “He actually said that?”

Layla nodded her head. “I was appalled. And I could hear all of his dumb friends laughing, talking about popping bottles and tossing quarters. So, I turn around and say excuse me? They all stop laughing and the one who made the comment about my ass in the first place just looked shell shocked. His mouth was hanging open as though he was surprised I said anything at all.”

“Was he cute? Describe him,” I asked.

“Fake blond hair…,” she remarked, trying to remember. “Blue eyes. Pretty tall, but not that much. The others were just all jocks. Probably on the footie team or summat. Anyways, one of them had the audacity to then say how it’s not fun anymore. He said and I quote oh, she’s a talker. These girls might be hot, but if they have a mouth on them, they’re no fun.”

“That’s disgusting,” I cried. “I can’t believe this. Please tell me you told them off or something.”

“Of course I did,” she said. “I put each and every one of them in their place. Yeah, it created a bit of a scene, but I was so angry.”

“You have every right to be,” Liv said. “I can’t believe our generation. It’s 2014 and boys still talk to and about girls like that.”

“Girls should definitely not tolerate it,” Layla tacked on. “We’ve got to all stand up against that. Anyway, enough about that. How are you guys?”

“Good,” I replied. “Busy with school and stuff.”

“Did she tell you about Harry yet?” Liv asked, bringing him up for the second time during this conversation.

“I’m going to punch you in the face,” I said, lunging towards Liv. Liv laughed, trying to fight me off.

“I’m only trying to catch her up!”

After I beat up Liv, I reassured Layla that there was nothing going on between Harry and I. I explained to her what it was that he and I did. She didn’t have much to say on it, so I was pretty much convinced Liv had told her before she came. I decided to ignore the subject and continued to catch up. Afterwards, the three of us gossiped about our old classmates and when we were done with our coffees, Layla helped us finish cleaning up. It went by a lot quicker that way. Once done, the three of us ordered Chinese takeaway for dinner and watched season three of Girls.

Over dinner, Liv and I gave Layla the run down on everyone she was going to be meeting tonight from the frat. She seemed genuinely excited and ready for a good time. Much like Liv, Layla was pretty good at maintaining good grades and going out for a party here or there.

“Wait,” Layla said, peeking out from my closet. “Is there a theme tonight? You mentioned they sometimes have themes.”

“I don’t think so,” I shook my head. “I think we can wear whatever we want.”

“So, what are you wearing?” she asked me, hip cocked out at as she bit her finger.

“My black mini, I think,” I said, before shaking my head. “I don’t know. Let’s go see what Liv is wearing.” We walked out of my room towards Liv’s where we saw her dressed in a pair of black shorts and a gold, sequined top. Her hair was up in a messy bun and she already had her makeup on.

“You look like a goddess,” Layla whimpered, staring at her. “Teach me how to be pretty like you.”

Liv laughed and walked over to us. “C’mon. I’ll help you two choose some clothes.”

“Are you trying to hook up with anyone tonight?” I asked her. “Like that guy whose name you don’t even remember?”

“Nope,” she replied, looking through my closet, and completely ignoring my suggestive tone. She pulled out a dress and handed it to me, before also picking out a fedora. “Wear this. And Layla...you should keep your tights and shorts with those boots, but wear this shirt.” She pulled out one of my shirts from the closet and handed it to her.

Layla looked at the shirt and looked astounded. “I’ve been standing in front of that closet for a long time and I couldn’t even figure out what to wear, but you just settled it within a minute.”

“I’m amazing,” Liv boasted, walking out of the room to let us change. “Hurry up. The boys are waiting.”



We walked to the frat house where the party was, and when we got there, we saw Zayn, Liam and Louis, standing outside and smoking. “Look who it is,” Louis said, grinning as he breathed out smoke from his mouth. “You guys look lovely.”

“Thank you,” Liv smiled, hugging Louis before saying hi to Zayn and Liam.

I held Layla’s hand and smiled, proudly, like I was showing off a favorite toy. “Guys, this is one of my best friends, Layla. Layla, this is Zayn, Liam and Louis.”

“Hi,” she smiled. “Heard some much about you lot.”

“Same,” Louis smiled, charmingly. “You’re as lovely as they said.”

Liam gave Louis a look, surprised he was already hitting on her. “Would you like something to drink?” Liam asked her, over stepping Louis.

“I’m fine for now, thank you,” she laughed.

I rolled my eyes at them and gave them quick hugs before tugging Layla inside. “I’m going to go introduce her to the others. I’ll see you boys later.”

They waved as the three of us walked inside and into the front room where everyone was dancing and talking. The bass was thumping with a rap song, and Layla and I bopped our heads together and walked by, laughing. We walked to another room where the drinks were placed up against a wall on a table. Harry and Ed were standing over there, making drinks and chatting when we walked up to them.  

“Hey,” I smiled, nudging Harry before shooting a grin to Ed as well, who popped a kiss on my cheek.  

Harry turned to me and smiled. “Hey, you,” he said. “Just got here?”

I nodded. “This is Layla. Layla, this is Ed and Harry.”

“Oh,” Layla said, her eyes widening as she took in Harry. “You’re Harry?”

“That’s him,” Liv supplied from where she was grabbing a drink from Ed, giving Layla a look, which what the fuck?

I shot them both a glare as Harry stared at them in confusion. “Ignore them,” I told him. “How are you?”

“Good,” he nodded. “You?”

“I’m alright. I need to ask you about the other night,” I said, slyly, in reference to his weekend with Darcy. I wiggled my eyebrows at him suggestively, making him chuckle and blush under the insinuation.

“I’ll tell you when we’re alone,” Harry said.

“I’ll hold you to it,” I said. “I’ll see you guys in a bit. Going to walk around a bit more.”

“Alright, see ya,” Ed said as Harry gave us a nod. Liv decided to stay back since Ed asked her about the new Game of Thrones episode, meaning she was going to stand there for another ten minutes straight talking about that. Layla and I walked further into the house as I introduced her to a few more people and talked about which boys we found cute. My type and Layla’s type were completely different. We never fought over a guy except once when we were fifteen years old. The guy ended up choosing neither and even if we did, we would never cross that barrier. We were standing in the middle of the corridor, chatting, when I remembered something.

“What have you and Liv been talking about behind my back?” I asked Layla.

Her eyes widened as she shook her head in confusion. “Nothing, I swear.”

“Then why were you doing that thing when we introduced you to Harry?”

She laughed when she realized what I was referring to and shrugged. “Just wondering if you’re a thing.”

“He has a girlfriend,” I replied, crossing my arms. “Plus, why can’t a guy and a girl just be pals?”

“It’s literally impossible,” she said.

“No, it’s not. I’m not into him.”

“Okay, okay,” she said. “I’ll believe you. Don’t be mad, babe.”

“Not mad,” I replied. “Just trying to set the record straight.”

“Blair!” I heard from behind Layla. I looked past her head and saw Niall walking over with Josh and waved to them.

“Hey guys,” I grinned, as I leaned back against the wall. Layla moved aside to let them through and her face blanched at the sight of Niall, who missed her completely when he hugged me. I looked at her concerned as I hugged Niall back. “You okay?”

Niall pulled away and turned to look at who I was talking to and his expression went from confused to amused. I looked between them and turned to Josh, who seemed just as confused.

I laughed nervously as I looked between the two. “Do you two know each other?” I asked.

“So well,” Niall replied with a shit eating grin on his face.

Layla looked disgusted as she crossed her arms. “He’s the one from the coffee shop. The one who made that first comment.”

“The one from the coffee shop?” Niall asked her. “You talking about me to people, babe?”

“First of all,” Layla said, before I could even assess the situation. “Don’t call me babe. Second of all, don’t talk to me at all. Did you not learn anything from what I said earlier?”

“A bit hard to concentrate when a girl as pretty as you is in front of me,” Niall said, still grinning.

“Hold on,” I said, before Layla could cut me off and beat Niall up. She had a murderous look on her face and I needed to control her or else she’d probably choke him to death. “Niall is the one you met at the coffee shop who said that thing about your arse?”

She looked at me and nodded her head. “Don’t tell me you’re friends with this duffer.”

“We’re best friends, aren’t we, B?” Niall asked, putting his arm around me.

Layla looked at me with a frown and I started to laugh. “It’s true. Niall’s one of the guys I’ve been telling you about. I can’t believe he’s the one who you yelled at in the coffee shop, Layla.”

“I don’t find it very funny,” she said.

“Don’t be such a spoil sport, Layla,” Niall smirked.

“Don’t say my name like that,” she frowned.

“Like what?” he asked, looking taken aback.

“Like the way you just said it.”

Niall looked confused, like he was going to say something else, but I smacked him on the arm. “What you said to her at the coffee shop was very rude. I didn’t expect that from you.”

“Alright. I’m sorry,” he said, seriously, his smile fading slowly as he looked at Layla. “If I offended you, I apologize. I was a bit out of line, however, you did yell at me in front of, like, the entire coffee shop.”

“I did that because you objectified me,” she said to him with a frown. “Can’t women go to get coffee without men coming on to them in such a disgusting manner?”

“Of course they can,” Niall cried, eyes bugging out. “I didn’t mean for you to be so upset.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asked him.

“I swear I didn’t mean for you to think that. I was only talking to my friends,” he said.

“He’s apologizing, Layla,” I said to her. “I’m sure he means it.”

She sighed and crossed her arms. “Okay, even if he’s your friend, that doesn’t make up for the fact that he is associated with a group of tossers.”

“I know that Jamie was out of line,” Niall said. “I wouldn't have said what he said. That’s not me nor how I think.”

“You started it, though,” she pointed out, before starting to walk away.

“Where are you going?” I called after her.

“To get a drink and get away from that arsehole!” she yelled back.

I raised my eyebrows and looked at Niall with wide eyes. “Damn, you pissed her off so bad. Why did you say that about her? I know you meant well, but what the hell, Ni?”

“I know,” Niall groaned. “You know how guys get when we’re all in a group. I wasn’t expecting her to hear me. I thought I was being quiet about it. I don’t know. I wasn’t really thinking.”

“Good going, Ni,” Josh laughed, after having been quiet the entire time.

“Do you think she’ll give me another chance,” Niall asked wistfully, still staring at where Layla walked away.

I shrugged. “Can’t tell with her.”

“She’s so pretty, Blair,” Niall reasoned. “I can’t believe the girl I was checking out earlier is your best friend. At first I saw her back, but when she turned around, I swear my tongue got stuck in my throat. I couldn’t believe she was real. This is literally destiny. She’s, like, my ideal girl.”

“Your ideal girl is someone who can’t stand you?” Josh asked.

“You won’t understand,” he shook his head, walking away and leaving us alone.

I laughed and looked at Josh. “This should be interesting.”

“Can’t wait to see how it plays out,” he agreed.

“Anyways, I think I’ll be going to go check on Layla. See if she’s okay. I’ll see you around, okay?”

“Yeah, actually,” Josh started to say. “Could we talk a little later?”

I nodded my head and smiled at him before going down the same hall Layla did. I found her sitting on a couch with Liv, Ed, and Louis. I looked at the couch beside them and spotted Harry sitting alone with his phone out. I walked over after grabbing myself a drink and sat down beside him.

“Hey texty texty,” I teased him.

Harry looked up at me and smiled, locking his phone and putting it in his pocket. “What’s up?”

“Did you know that Niall hit on Layla earlier today when she went to get coffee and she, like, hates him?”

Harry barked out a laugh. “I’m not shocked. Niall is a bit too much to handle for most people. I didn’t kind of know about this Layla thing, actually. He came home earlier, jabbering on about some fit bird he met at the coffee shop that was mental. I was only listening with one ear. Can’t believe it’s her. She seems nice, though. I talked to her a bit.”

“Yeah, she’s great,” I said.

“I’m glad I got to meet her. You talk about her a lot.”

“I have so many stories with her, how could I not share it with my night owl pal? Enough about me, though. What are you up to?” I sipped my drink and crossed my legs before facing my body towards him.

“I spoke to Darcy last time she was here…,” Harry said quietly, leaning in to me a bit to offer us some privacy.

“And?” I prodded.

“She kind of agrees about us, like, not being how we used to be.”

“That’s good,” I said. “So, it’s not just you being paranoid. Now you can work on it, right?”

“We said we’d try,” he smiled. “I was happy with that. And by the way, earlier you were making some suggestive looking faces at me asking me about that night. I hate to burst your bubble right now, but we didn’t do anything.”

“Really?” I asked, a bit shocked. “But it’s been so long. Most long distance couples would bone the first second they get a chance.”

Harry laughed at my bluntness. “I mean, I guess so, yeah. I don’t know. We talked a lot. And then we just watched a movie and went to bed.”

“You’re like an old couple.”

“I don’t mind,” he shrugged. “She said she’d come to my date night, so I have plenty of chances.”

“Yeah?” I asked. “That’s nice. I really hope you two have a good time.”

“You’ll be there, won’t you?” he asked, frowning in confusion.

I shook my head. “No one asked me.”

“I thought Josh--didn’t he ask you yet?”

“Josh?” I asked, getting even more confused. That’s when I remembered he said he wanted to talk to me back in the hall. “Oh, wow. Josh wants to ask me?”

“Yeah,” Harry nodded, smiling sheepishly. “Sorry if I ruined the surprise.”

“It’s okay,” I replied, giggling softly. “I just--I’m still surprised, so.”

“I think he fancies you a bit,” Harry smiled, nudging me. “He’s a great guy.”

“No, I know,” I laughed. “I don’t know. I haven’t really thought about it. Josh isn’t really my type, but…”

“Even if he isn’t, you should give him a chance,” Harry said quickly. “You might be surprised. There’s more to people than meets the eye, right?”

“True,” I nodded.

“The only thing fit is gonna be my fist up your arse if you don’t shut the fuck up!”

Harry and I both jumped in our seats, startled by the screaming voice, and turned to see Niall and Layla face to face with Layla bunching up her fist in front of him.

“Oh, shit,” Harry muttered. “You think she means it? Is she really going to shove her fist up his arse?”

“I honestly can’t say,” I murmured back.

Niall laughed, like, he wanted to get himself killed or something. “You’re into that kinky stuff then?”

“Do you want to fucking die?” she asked him.

He put his hands up, surrendering and backing away. Layla groaned and turned to go back to her seat where Liam, Ed and Liv were laughing. I turned back to Harry who seemed a bit amused himself.

“I think they like each other in some fucked up way of theirs,” Harry grinned.

“You would like that, wouldn’t you,” I asked. “The hopeless romantic in you lifts me up, Styles.”

Harry laughed and slung his arm around me. He then proceeded to steal my drink and I tried getting it back for approximately two minutes before I gave up.



“So, you’re going to date night with Josh?” Liv asked me.

I nodded my head, propping my feet up on the banister. The three of us, Liv, Layla and me, had left the party an hour ago and came out to our balcony to relax and talk. It was a bit chilly so we all grabbed some blankets and Liv made us tea. “He asked me after I danced with Ed and I said okay. Harry told me about it before he did. Said that he thinks that Josh fancies me.”

“I think everyone thinks that,” Liv said. “He looks at you really weird. Like, you’re the only girl in the world.” She sang that last part like that Rihanna song.

“Do you like him?” Layla asked.

I shrugged, propping my feet up on the banister. “I think he’s alright,” I responded eventually. “Did you see his snap story? He took a picture of me and kind of told everyone he was taking me.” 



“That’s...a little weird,” Liv laughed.

I laughed, nodding my head in agreement. “Like, where is this all coming from? Since when does he like me so much?”

“Didn’t you kiss him?” Liv asked.

“You kissed him?” Layla asked, turning to look at me.

“A few weeks ago, yeah,” I nodded. “I was dancing and we were drunk. It wasn’t that big of a deal to me.”

“Well, if you don’t like him, best be honest,” Layla advised warningly.

I shrugged. “I’ll go to date night with him, see if it’s there for us. If not then I’ll just tell him.”

“You’re going with Ed, right?” Layla asked, turning to look at Liv.

Liv nodded at her. “But only as friends because I think he likes some girl in his Ethics course.” She then covered her mouth and started laughing. “Didn’t Niall ask you, Layla?”

“Yes,” Layla gritted out, not looking too happy about it. “He had the audacity to walk up to me and ask if I’d go to date night with him.”

“He was drunk when he did that,” Liv tacked on. “Not completely in his senses.”

“Drunk or not, I don’t like him.”

“He’s actually a really nice guy,” I told Layla. “He’s nice and funny and great to hang out with.”

“I threw my drink on him when he asked me,” she said, nonchalantly.

“Layla,” Liv cried, laughing and clutching her chest. “Oh my god, you’re too much. That’s so mean. Niall’s a baby.”

Layla shrugged, looking happy with the decisions she made. “Trust me, he’s not a baby. He’s a prick. Anyways, aside from him, I did have fun tonight. I’ll come by for more parties.”

“You should,” I smiled. “It was nice having you around. The guys all love you.”

“I liked them too with the exception of the Irish one.”

Liv spit out her tea and started to choke on it from laughing.