Under My Skin

Brooklyn has never been to Ireland but thanks to Niall, she now knows which pub she must go to and which pub she must avoid at all costs if she were to step foot in that country in the future. She also knows how his house and his room look like, knows where he spends most of his time at if he goes back to Ireland.

Despite him being an open book, Brooklyn realises that there are things that Niall keeps sheltered from everyone else. Like his life back in Ireland. It’s something he hardly talks about - not out of shame, that’s for sure, because he’s proud of his Irish heritage – and it’s a mystery to almost everyone apart from Harry and now her.

He has chosen to share that part of his life with her and although he didn’t say it, she knows it’s kind of a big deal. So she let him know that she appreciated it and that she’d love to experience it all in person. The smile that he flashed to her, even though it’s a bit pixelated, was genuine and beautiful. And that night after they ended their video call, his face, his smile appeared in her dream. Some people believe that when you dream of someone, it means you miss them, and Brooklyn, against her better judgment, agrees.

On the day before Christmas eve, Niall took her, via video call, to his favourite tourist places, ones that he insists she must visit because the pictures on the Internet don’t do the place justice. And then before he had to meet up with his friends whom he hasn’t seen in a while later that afternoon, he took Brooklyn to the church where most of his cousins got married. The place was beautiful and she’s not surprised that everyone in his family chooses to tie the knots there. In fact, another one of his cousins will be getting married there next year.

Beck happened to catch Brooklyn and Niall’s video call when he showed her around the church and he teased her endlessly during the call and after the call ended. Which she was fine with because Beck wouldn’t be Beck if he didn’t tease her for a day, but things got a little out of hand when her father – who decided to celebrate Christmas with them this year – found out about Niall and started probing into her love life.

And since Oliver, Beck and Nadine swore that they aren’t seeing anyone at the moment, they’re free from the dreaded questions that none of them were willing to face.

As they sat in the living room, a series of flashbacks ran through her mind as she’s taken back to the times when she was asked to sit in front of her father and talked about the boys she was seeing. The only difference this time is that instead of lying about the status of her relationship, she told her father the truth. She told him that she and Niall are together, and that they’ve known each other for quite a while.

Luckily for Brooklyn, the conversation didn’t last long as they needed to get ready for dinner. But her father did bring it up again before he left, telling her that she has to bring Niall with her the next time she comes and visits him or he’ll be forced to make a surprise visit at their office. Not wanting that to happen because she can foresee him doing that, Brooklyn assured her father that he’ll be hearing from them soon, though their definition of soon might differ from each other. After all, this isn’t something that she can decide on her own because this is about Niall as much as it is about her.

Brooklyn isn’t as nervous about Niall meeting her father because there’s no way it could turn out as disastrous as it did when he met her mother. Besides, she has a feeling that her boyfriend could easily get on Andrew Cooper’s good side because he’s not one of those people who’s hard to be pleased. He’s nothing like his ex-wife who always sees the worst in other people. Her father is the complete opposite of her mother.

That being said, Brooklyn still hasn’t told Niall about it even though she had a chance to do so whilst they talked on the phone earlier as he waited for his flight. She figures this is something she should talk about in person and she can do that when he gets here in about thirty minutes or so. He texted her as soon as he landed and Brooklyn offered to pick him up, but he turned the offer down, not wanting to burden her.

Niall was supposed to come home a few days ago but since his uncle needed his help – something about needing an extra hand at planning his son’s wedding, though Niall’s not sure why his uncle needed his help because he has never planned a wedding before – so he had to stay and didn’t get to come home until New Year’s Eve.

Because of that, he misses several parties thrown by their office mates, which is devastating because he never missed them before. He’s worried about missing their office’s annual New Year’s Eve party as well but lucky for him, the universe is on his side – his flight’s not delayed, which hardly happens – and he’s back just in time to celebrate new year with her and everyone at the office.

“Hey,” Beck interrupts her train of thoughts as he pokes his head through her bedroom door. “I’m heading out now.”

“Bar hopping?”

“Yeah,” he nods. Bar hopping is a tradition that he and his group of friends from Uni came up with to celebrate New Year’s Eve. He didn’t join them last year and the year before that because he had to follow his ex-girlfriend to her friend’s party instead but now that he’s back in the market, he’s back to the old tradition. Brooklyn bets his friends are happy to have him back.

“Well, tell your friends I said hi. And tell Brendan he still owes me 10 pounds.” Brooklyn says as she distances herself from her reflection in the mirror. She needs to stop obsessing over her outfit. She looks fine, she thinks, but just to be sure she turns around to face her twin, waiting for a stamp of approval. Instead of voicing out his opinion, he leans against the doorframe and looks her up and down with a smirk on his face. “What?”

Beck looks amused, like he knows something she doesn’t, and that unnerves her.

“Spit it out.”

“Nothing,” he says with a shake of his head. The look is still there so Brooklyn doesn’t believe him, but before she can further interrogate him, he makes his way to the front door. “Have fun at the party!” He shouts. “Oh and be safe!”

Then, she hears the front door being closed and she’s left alone in her flat. She picks up her mobile phone to check if she has any unread messages, but there’s nothing. She opens her messages thread with Niall to text him and ask him where he’s at right now when she hears a knock on the door. Thinking that Beck must’ve left something, she clicks the send button before she huffs and makes her way to open the door.

But it’s not Beck who’s standing in front of her. It’s Niall.

“Hi,” he looks like he’s out of breath. Brooklyn kinks an eyebrow at him when she notices his luggage next to his feet. He chuckles. “I told the driver to drop me off here so I don’t have to go back and forth and—nevermind.” He stops talking suddenly and crashes his lips against Brooklyn’s.

Though taken by surprise, it doesn’t take long for her to kiss him back and wrap her arms around his neck, pulling him in close. A moment later, he reluctantly pulls away and she notices a smile on his lips. “Your lips are so warm.” He chuckles before he leans in and kisses her again, his hands sliding down her back.

Brooklyn pulls back a little so her lips are out of reach. A pout adorns his mouth. “Is that why you’re kissing me?”

“Mhmm,” he nods as he tries to kiss her again, but is unsuccessful when she places two fingers on his lips. “And also because I miss you and have thought about kissing you all week.”

Brooklyn rolls her eyes, but removes her fingers from his mouth so he could kiss her again. She thought about kissing him a lot too but unlike him, she’s not bold enough to voice it out. What she is bold enough to do is to deepen his kiss. Actions speak louder than words, after all.

Niall cups her face, his fingers fanning across her cheekbones before curving around the back of her neck. “You look amazing,” he murmurs against her lips when they pull away to catch a breath.

“Thank you,” she replies. Seems like she’s chosen the right outfit to wear so she can stop worrying about having to change into something else.

Brooklyn steps aside to let Niall in and he rolls his luggage inside, leaving it by the door as he follows her to the living room. He looks around. “Beck’s not here?”

“Nope.” She stops by the couch and leans her hip against the back of it. “Do you want something to drink?”

He shakes his head. “I’m good,” he answers as he takes off his jacket, hangs it on the back of her couch and rolls the sleeves of his light blue shirt. Standing a few inches away from him and watching him does all that, Brooklyn feels something in her chest stir. It’s been doing that often lately – almost each time she looks at him, actually – but she tries not to think too much about it. “I can feel you staring, Cooper.”

Brooklyn coughs into her fist to hide the embarrassment tainting her cheeks. Of course he can feel her eyes on him because if someone were to stare at her, she could feel it too. Why she thought it wouldn’t be the same with Niall and thought that she could get away with it, she hadn’t a clue.

“It’s okay to admit that you miss me, you know?” He grins as he steps closer to her, their hands that are on the back of the couch almost touching. All it takes is for either one of them to take one step forward to close the distance between them, but neither moves. He tilts his head and adds, “The world won’t end if you do.”

She knows he’s just teasing her but he’s right; it’s okay to admit what she feels but because if there’s one thing she learns this year, it’s that there are things in life that you can’t fight simply because it’s impossible, inevitable. But since it’s become both a habit and a defence mechanism, she often finds herself biting her tongue, stopping herself from letting words slip past her mouth.

Brooklyn knows she’d lose more than she would’ve had if she doesn’t hold herself back so instead of swallowing the words that sit heavy on the tip of her tongue like she usually does, she voices them out. “I’ve missed you. So much.”

The look on Niall’s face tells her that he can’t believe what he’s hearing. A smile almost splits his face into two as he tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Double that and you’ll get how much I miss you.”

Brooklyn swallows the lump in her throat. It’s almost unreal that someone would feel that way for her. Something that she once thought unrealistic turns out to be realistic after all.

“Wait, before I forget…” Niall trails off as he suddenly takes a few steps back and makes his way to his luggage. He unzips it and takes out a box wrapped in a bright red wrapper.

It’s then Brooklyn remembers his present, the one that’s in her closet. She spent hours figuring out what to get for him until eventually she settled on that. It took her a long time to wrap it because it’s quite big and she generally sucks at wrapping presents.

“Wait,” she holds up her finger and hurries to her room where she retrieves the present. When she returns to the living room, she finds Niall sitting on the couch, inspecting the box in his hand. She takes a seat next to him. “So, who should go first?”

“Let’s open it at the same time.”

“Great idea,” Brooklyn comments as they exchange the present. Before Niall could start unwrapping the present, she says, “I hope you’ll like it. I, uh, didn’t know what to get for you because you have everything so—“

“I’m sure I’ll love it.”

Brooklyn holds up her crossed fingers and he lets out a chuckle. Then, they both unwrap their present, both finding a box under that wrapper. Before Brooklyn could open the box, Niall stops her.

“I’m starting to think that my present isn’t that clever,” he admits sheepishly.

“I’m sure it’s better than mine.”

“Doubt it. Yours is heavier.” Niall counters. “Okay, on the count of three?”

Brooklyn nods. “One…”

“Two…”

“Three…”

Brooklyn’s eyes widen when she sees what’s inside the box. “Oh my God.”

“It’s bad, isn’t it, and you hate it.”

“No,” she shakes her head. “I love it.”

He knows her damn well, she concludes, as she gapes at the notebooks, pens, pencils, paper clips, adhesive tapes and a candle all tucked inside the white box.

“I always take your pen so I figure I should get you new ones and I notice that your notebook is running out of empty pages,” he says. “And that candle reminds me of you so I thought I should throw it in that box.”

“I love it. I love it so much, thank you.” She wraps her arms around his neck and presses a kiss on his cheek. She notices that he still hasn’t opened his. “Oh God now my present’s nothing compared to this. Can I be in my room whilst you open it?”

“Don’t.” He places a hand on her thigh to prevent her from leaving. “I’m sure I’ll love it.”

Brooklyn closes her eyes as he opens the lid of the box. She cracks one eye open when she doesn’t hear him say anything for almost ten seconds.

“You hate it, don’t you? Or you already have one at home. I mean I didn’t know if people still use record player when you can just use a Bluetooth or find an aux—“

Niall shakes his head, cutting her midsentence when he kisses her. When he pulls away, there’s a huge smile on his lips. Brooklyn lets out a relieved sigh. “It’s perfect. You’re perfect.”

“So you don’t hate it?”

“Of course not, Bee. Now I can finally listen to the vinyl records I bought.”

“You bought vinyl records even though you didn’t have a record player?”

He shrugs. “What can I say? I had a feeling I’d get this for Christmas.” Brooklyn punches his arm. “I had one a long time ago but it’s broken and I kept telling myself that I’d get it fixed but never got round to it. So thank you. This is the best thing someone’s ever gotten for me. Now I feel stupid about my gift.”

“Don’t be,” she tells him. “You have no idea how happy I am to get stationeries. Something that I can use.”

“You’re such a dork and I’m so attracted to you.” Brooklyn rolls her eyes. “I hope you’d think of me each time you use it because you know I’ll be thinking of you each time I put on the record player.”

“Definitely.”

&&

The first thing that Brooklyn notices when she and Niall step out of the lift and into the office is that the place looks more lively than usual. Looking around, she’s certain it has something to do with the fact that her colleagues choose to stray away from the usual blacks, greys, whites and blues outfits. She sees bright colours everywhere she turns and right now there’s one making a beeline towards her and Niall. She knows who it is immediately when she hears his frantic voice.

“Excuse me, excuse me, please make way for Niall’s best mate, I need to see him—Niall!”

Although he announces his incoming, Niall’s taken aback when a pair of arms is thrown around him, squeezing him until his breath is knocked out of his lungs. His shock dissolves a second later when he returns the embrace, chuckling and patting his friend’s back.

“Hey, H.”

“I’ve missed you, mate.”

Brooklyn looks at the two of them and wonders if they’d notice her absence if she were to leave them alone. They’re obviously sharing a moment and she doesn’t want to interrupt them. Besides, she’s had her time with him earlier so Harry deserves a few minutes to catch up with his best friend whilst she catches up with their colleagues.

Her eyes land on the buffet table and Brooklyn’s about to make her way there and get herself something to drink and eat when Harry reluctantly lets Niall go and turns to her like he finally realises that she’s here too.

“You sure know how to make me feel special, Harry,” she teases him.

“Oh c’mere.” Harry pulls Brooklyn into his arms and squeezes her the same way he did with her boyfriend. He must’ve forgotten that unlike Niall, she doesn’t have muscles in her body so him hugging her tightly almost crushes her lungs. He lets go before the worst could happen. “You look great,” he remarks as he holds her at an arm’s length.

“You don’t look too bad yourself,” she replies, taking in the outfit he’s wearing. She has a feeling his shirt is new because she’s never seen him wear it before and her assumption is proven right when Harry tells her that he got that shirt for Christmas. Then, he drags Brooklyn and Niall to the buffet table, handing them both a drink.

With drinks in their hands, the three of them make their way to Brooklyn’s desk. Niall leans against his desk whilst Brooklyn does the same at hers. Their arms brush and they share a smile with each other, one that doesn’t go unnoticed by Harry.

“Look at you two,” he remarks with a whistle. Brooklyn turns to look at him and sees that his eyes are twinkling with mischief. “A year ago you’re pining for each other—“

“There’s no pining involved,” Brooklyn interjects.

The flush in her cheeks suggests that what Harry said is the truth. She wouldn’t say that she was pining for Niall last year, but she did spend an embarrassing amount of time watching him from across the room because she didn’t have the guts to join him and Harry. Instead she stayed by Suki’s side and hung out with people from the creative department, getting herself involved in a conversation that she wasn’t exactly interested in.

Harry ignores her. “—And this year you two show up to the party together. I’d say that’s growth.”

Beside her, Niall chuckles to himself and rolls his eyes. “I’m with Cooper on this, mate. There’s no pining involved.”

“Bullshit,” Harry spits out.

“What’s bullshit?” A smaller voice cuts in and Harry jumps at the interruption. When he realises that it’s Suki, he steps back a little to let her join their small group. She looks around the three of them. “What are you guys talking about?”

“Nothing,” Brooklyn answers, a bit too quickly.

And at the same time, Harry says, “Niall and Brooklyn.”

Given that Harry’s answers sounds more believable and obviously because it’s the truth, Suki turns to him and cocks an eyebrow. “What about them?”

“I was just telling them that a year ago they’re pining for each other and now here they are. Together.”

Brooklyn opens her mouth to let her friends know that no one was pining for anyone but when Suki shoots her a pointed look, she clamps her mouth shut. Okay maybe she did pine for Niall back then but only because the old her would have never thought that she and Niall could happen. She even made a list of reasons why BrooklynandNiall couldn’t happen, all of which centred on the fact that they work together. She went through that list each time she felt like there’s a crack on the wall she built to keep Niall out. The list worked until, suddenly, it doesn’t anymore.

“You’re right,” Suki agrees as she bumps Harry’s shoulder with hers. Now they’re both sharing the same look, lips pulled into a grin. “How’s that working out, by the way? Any plans to move in together or something? You know I’m so happy that I got to witness the two of you going from friends to lovers, feels like I’m a part of something big.”

Brooklyn throws her head back and lets out a groan. She wants to tell Suki to go away and leave her alone, but she remembers that this would be Suki’s last party. This time next year, she won’t be here with them. She’ll be celebrating New Year with her new colleagues and not with her, Niall and Harry. That thought suddenly puts a damper on her mood. She’s going to miss the gossip session she shares with Suki and more than anything, she’s going to miss having her friend around.

“Uh-oh, the silence is not good,” Suki points out. “What’re you thinking about, Brooklyn?”

Three pairs of eyes turn to Brooklyn as they wait for her to say something. “Uh, I was just thinking about how this time next year you won’t be with us and how much I’m going to miss you then.”

“Oh no, no, no.” Suki makes her way to Brooklyn and pulls her into her arms, rubbing her back up and down, up and down. “We’re not going to talk about that tonight. Tonight’s all about having fun.”

“Yeah,” Harry agrees weakly. She thinks she’s the only one who notices that. “Fun.”

“Besides, we’ll still be able to have lunch together or we could all meet up after work for a drink or two. My new office isn’t too far from here.”

With that settled, their conversation moves to something less depressing. They talk about their new year’s resolutions – Brooklyn’s is to make sure that her article will be featured in the special issue, Niall’s is to work out more, Harry hasn’t thought about his resolution yet and Suki’s is to shop less because her closet can no longer support the clothes she keeps on buying – and then they talk about what they did during the Christmas break.

They talk and talk and talk until Suki is summoned to the upper floor of the office. When she walks away, Brooklyn turns to Harry. “How’re you feeling?”

He raises an eyebrow. “Huh? I’m good.”

“I think what she means is… How’re you feeling about Suki leaving?” Niall rephrases the sentence for Brooklyn. It amazes her how they’re on the same wavelength. She can only hope things stay this way for as long as possible.

Harry coughs into his fist before he runs his fingers through his hair. “It’s sad, yeah, that she’s leaving but I’m happy for her. It’s an amazing opportunity and she’s going to do great at the new place.”

“So, you and her?” Brooklyn doesn’t mean to pry but she has been wondering about this for a while.

“Not happening,” Harry shakes his head. Brooklyn pouts. “But it’s okay. Think it’s for the best anyway. We’re better off as friends.”

“Well, whatever it is, I think you’ll find someone next year,” Niall says as he pats Harry’s back. Harry kinks an eyebrow at him as if to ask ‘how would you know?’ and he grins. “Call it best mate’s intuition.”

Harry rolls his eyes seconds before laughter slips past his mouth and soon Brooklyn and Niall join. “I’m holding you to that. But for now—“ he pauses as he slings his arms on the couple, grinning from ear to ear, “—I’m good with being the third-wheeler.”

&&

After making the rounds around the office, Brooklyn and Niall meet each other back at their desk a couple of minutes before the countdown begins.

“Hi.”

“Hi, you.” Niall wraps his arm around her waist and pulls her closer to him, planting a kiss on her lips.

When they pull away, they both fashion the same expression because they’re thinking the same thing: how crazy it is that a year ago they’re just colleagues who secretly harbour feelings for each other. Brooklyn always thought a year isn’t a long time, but she learns that within those 365 days, a lot can happen. And to think that it all started with a bet.

“Thinking about how we got here?” Niall breaks her train of thought with a nudge. Brooklyn nods. “Same.”

“Crazy, isn’t it?”

“Oh yeah, definitely. I’m still trying to wrap my head around this whole thing. I can’t believe you like me.”

“Can’t believe it either,” she replies. “You’re the most annoying person I’ve ever met.”

“It’s part of the charm, Cooper.” Brooklyn shakes her head, but she can’t hide the smile on her lips. “I can’t remember if I’ve said this before but I just wanted to say that I’m really glad you told me how you felt back at the wedding. I was convinced that you didn’t feel the same way so to find out that you do like me… You had no idea how happy I was. Pretty sure I didn’t sleep at all that night.”

“Me too,” she admits. “But because I was worried you didn’t feel the same way.”

“I always thought my feeling for you is obvious.”

Brooklyn shrugs. She always thought she’s imagining it all.

Niall opens his mouth to say something, but he’s cut off by the sound of people starting the countdown.

Ten… Nine…

A smile touches his lips. “You ready for another crazy year?”

Eight… Seven…

“Hope it’s not too crazy,” she says. But who’s she kidding? Her days are bound to be crazy with Niall by her side – a good kind of crazy.

Six… Five…

“I’m so happy that I’m here with you,” his smile is almost blinding; it’s like trying to look at the sun directly.

Four… Three…

Niall closes the distance between them. Their lips are only an inch apart and all it takes is for him to move a little for them to touch. But he doesn’t move.

Two… One…

“I love you,” he says softly before he leans down and kisses her whilst everyone around them cheers and welcomes the New Year. It isn’t the loud cheer that shocks her, but rather, the quiet proclamation Niall’s just made before he takes her breath away with his kiss.

For a moment, she wonders if she imagined it. But her mind isn’t that cruel, it wouldn’t be making that up. So she pulls back and looks into his blue eyes. “Niall—“

“Happy New Year, Brooklyn.”

“Niall—“

“You didn’t have to say it back. I just thought—“

“Niall if you could just listen to me?” He presses his lips together and nods. “I love you.”

His smile, if possible, is more blinding than the one earlier. He kisses her again and again, and Brooklyn can only hope that he can’t feel her heart almost bursting out of her chest because they’re standing so close to each other.

“God, I love you.”

“I love you more,” Brooklyn says.

She’s never said that to anyone before. And she certainly has never experienced a moment where she finds it difficult to stop herself from smiling. Like right now. She fears her face might split into two soon if she doesn’t stop smiling. How do people live with this? How do people walk around and live normally when they’re in love? Because Brooklyn can feel her heart bursting each time she looks at him and she doesn’t know how it’s possible for her small heart to contain the strong feeling she has for Niall. It hurts her mind just trying to figure out answers for those questions.

“Nope. No way,” he shakes his head. She frowns, wondering if she’s said something wrong. “I love you more.”

Brooklyn kinks an eyebrow at him as a smug smile touches her lips. She holds out her palm, “Wanna bet?”

He grins as he looks down at her hand. “Remember, I never lose a bet before.”

This time, Brooklyn doesn’t mind if she wins or loses because whatever the outcome is, she still wins.