So Long
twenty-three.
A door closes down the hall, and Claire listens to the footsteps heading toward the staircase. She doesn’t want to move, though she knows she has to. She may have been fired not even twelve hours ago, but that has little bearing on the fact that she is meant to go with Niall to this radio interview - she can probably get out of it if she wants, but… she doesn’t. She quite enjoys watching him do his job. Besides, not going with him will only open the door for people to ask questions.
Sighing heavily, she makes her way to the closet to pull out a pair of skinny jeans and a golden-yellow blouse, pairing the top with a black blazer. Niall hasn’t come down from his room by the time Claire is dressed with her hair pulled back into a sleek bun. Mully raises his mug in greeting but doesn’t speak as she moves about to get her coffee. They sit at the table in silence for a few minutes - him focusing on eating his breakfast, her on her coffee - before the quiet is interrupted by the lock sliding out of place and the front door swinging open; Rhiannon’s voice echoes through the foyer a split second later, calling for Claire to get her butt ready to talk.
“Shout louder, Rhi, I think there might be a remote village in the furthest corners of Antarctica that hasn’t heard you.”
Rhiannon scrunches up her face but holds up a McDonald’s bag. Claire’s stomach rumbles at the mouthwatering aroma of greasy hashbrowns and sausage. Mully laughs quietly when she nearly trips over the chair in her rush to get to the food. She follows Rhi out to the back deck and plops into one of the loungers, making grabby hands at the bag. Rhiannon rolls her eyes and passes over a wrapped sandwich. The morning is already hot, the sun not even halfway into the sky. Claire frowns around the mouthful of biscuit and sausage, wonders if it was a smart idea to wear a dark jacket. She carefully shrugs out of it, draping it over the arm of her chair, then goes back to eating her sandwich.
“So obviously, I am beyond thrilled that you and Nialler are together - I’ve been wondering if he’d get his head out of his ass for a bit now.” Rhi snorts in amusement at Claire’s confused expression. “Look, I like to think I know Niall pretty well after being friends with him for so long, so I knew he was super into someone. Okay, actually, in all truth, Louis told me about Niall’s feelings for you because he was sick of listening to Niall make excuses as to why you two couldn’t be together. Anyway. I’m so, so, so glad you two stopped being such dumbasses and got together. But I swear, if you ever make me feel bad and freak out like that again, I will kick your ass.”
“Ow! Stop smacking me, damn. I’m sorry!”
Rhiannon lets her hand fall to her lap. “Seriously, though, I’m happy for you guys. Oh! You know what we should do?”
“Don’t say -”
“Double-date!”
Rhiannon giggles as Claire rolls her eyes. She adores Rhi - it’s hard not to, considering how much fun it is to be around the other woman, and Rhiannon has just the right kind of sense of humour that makes it easy to laugh whenever they talk - but a double-date has never been on the list of things Claire would ever prefer to do, especially not this soon into a relationship. Really, planning a date with the other couple only thirteen hours after starting the relationship? Not the best idea in the world. Rhi’s mischievous grin promises that she isn’t going to let this particular subject go.
Rhiannon has to leave after another twenty minutes, demanding that Claire pass the message to Niall that she expects a text or phone call as soon as he’s awake. Claire promises to tell him right before the front door shuts, and Mully’s chuckle fills the living room. She shrugs awkwardly before heading toward the stairs. It’s almost nine, and the interview is meant to start at eleven. Biting her lip, she lets herself do a happy little jig on the landing - making sure no one can see her, of course. Her lack of dancing skills isn’t something she is proud of.
Niall smiles brightly when they bump into each other just outside of his bedroom. His fingers brush over the curve of her cheek, then he leans in to press a gentle kiss to her lips. “Good morning, love.”
“Hi. You need to call or send Rhi a text asap, and we should probably head out now if you want to make it to the radio station on time.”
“You’re not my assistant any more,” he reminds her softly, though his lips twitch with amusement. “You don’t need to keep track of my schedule.”
“Hey, I have the next two weeks’ worth of crap memorised because I was your assistant, so you’re just gonna have to deal with it, Mister Horan.”
He kisses her cocky smirk away then laces their fingers together. Claire lets him lead her down the stairs; a questioning noise comes from the living room, and she glances over her shoulder to see Mully staring at their entwined hands. When his gaze meets hers, he gives her a thumbs-up. Warmth flares to life, diffuses through her body - she knows how important he is to Niall, so for him to approve of the relationship… she is definitely thankful for that, considering if he didn’t, it would mean a chance of Niall breaking up with her before their relationship could even get off the ground.
Claire swivels in the chair, head bobbing to the beat of the song that’s playing on the air at the moment. It’s something poppy with a thumping rhythm, and her toes tap along. Niall catches her eye, grins at seeing her enjoying her time, and she knows her smile is softer than the situation calls for; she can’t help it, though. After almost a year of having this man in her life, she’s grown quite attached to him, and now that they have moved beyond employer/employee into something much more, much greater, Claire doesn’t want to pretend that he isn’t so important to her - or that she’s fallen further for him than she ever has for any other man.
Eventually, the interview is finished. The hosts shake hands with Niall, completely ignoring Claire in the corner, which works for her. She isn’t the focus of anything going on this morning, and if anyone looks at her right now, they’re going to be able to read her emotions as clearly as if she screamed them from the rooftops. So she gathers up her bag and fights to keep her expression as neutral as possible. She does, however, take the opportunity to stare at Niall’s ass as she follows him to the car. She’s only human, after all.
“What do you say to some lunch?” she asks once they’ve buckled up, and he frowns, chews on his lower lip. “Don’t worry, I know a place where we won’t be bothered. At least, not in the way you’re worried about.”
“I’m trusting you,” is all he says in response.
“Awful idea, really, but okay.”
Niall follows her directions to a T, without questioning their destination or voicing any of his concerns. Claire is thankful for that - she’s already doubting her decision. This could go so far ass over teakettle, but she wants to share this with him. They still do not know each other incredibly well, not past the stuff closest to the surface, no matter that they have been in each other’s life for going on ten months now. And this place is something she’s never shared with anyone else, not even Deirdre or her parents. So she sits back in her seat, wipes her sweaty palms along her thighs, and prays to every god that has ever been worshipped that she isn’t going to regret bringing Niall to Ma’s.
Sighing heavily, she makes her way to the closet to pull out a pair of skinny jeans and a golden-yellow blouse, pairing the top with a black blazer. Niall hasn’t come down from his room by the time Claire is dressed with her hair pulled back into a sleek bun. Mully raises his mug in greeting but doesn’t speak as she moves about to get her coffee. They sit at the table in silence for a few minutes - him focusing on eating his breakfast, her on her coffee - before the quiet is interrupted by the lock sliding out of place and the front door swinging open; Rhiannon’s voice echoes through the foyer a split second later, calling for Claire to get her butt ready to talk.
“Shout louder, Rhi, I think there might be a remote village in the furthest corners of Antarctica that hasn’t heard you.”
Rhiannon scrunches up her face but holds up a McDonald’s bag. Claire’s stomach rumbles at the mouthwatering aroma of greasy hashbrowns and sausage. Mully laughs quietly when she nearly trips over the chair in her rush to get to the food. She follows Rhi out to the back deck and plops into one of the loungers, making grabby hands at the bag. Rhiannon rolls her eyes and passes over a wrapped sandwich. The morning is already hot, the sun not even halfway into the sky. Claire frowns around the mouthful of biscuit and sausage, wonders if it was a smart idea to wear a dark jacket. She carefully shrugs out of it, draping it over the arm of her chair, then goes back to eating her sandwich.
“So obviously, I am beyond thrilled that you and Nialler are together - I’ve been wondering if he’d get his head out of his ass for a bit now.” Rhi snorts in amusement at Claire’s confused expression. “Look, I like to think I know Niall pretty well after being friends with him for so long, so I knew he was super into someone. Okay, actually, in all truth, Louis told me about Niall’s feelings for you because he was sick of listening to Niall make excuses as to why you two couldn’t be together. Anyway. I’m so, so, so glad you two stopped being such dumbasses and got together. But I swear, if you ever make me feel bad and freak out like that again, I will kick your ass.”
“Ow! Stop smacking me, damn. I’m sorry!”
Rhiannon lets her hand fall to her lap. “Seriously, though, I’m happy for you guys. Oh! You know what we should do?”
“Don’t say -”
“Double-date!”
Rhiannon giggles as Claire rolls her eyes. She adores Rhi - it’s hard not to, considering how much fun it is to be around the other woman, and Rhiannon has just the right kind of sense of humour that makes it easy to laugh whenever they talk - but a double-date has never been on the list of things Claire would ever prefer to do, especially not this soon into a relationship. Really, planning a date with the other couple only thirteen hours after starting the relationship? Not the best idea in the world. Rhi’s mischievous grin promises that she isn’t going to let this particular subject go.
Rhiannon has to leave after another twenty minutes, demanding that Claire pass the message to Niall that she expects a text or phone call as soon as he’s awake. Claire promises to tell him right before the front door shuts, and Mully’s chuckle fills the living room. She shrugs awkwardly before heading toward the stairs. It’s almost nine, and the interview is meant to start at eleven. Biting her lip, she lets herself do a happy little jig on the landing - making sure no one can see her, of course. Her lack of dancing skills isn’t something she is proud of.
Niall smiles brightly when they bump into each other just outside of his bedroom. His fingers brush over the curve of her cheek, then he leans in to press a gentle kiss to her lips. “Good morning, love.”
“Hi. You need to call or send Rhi a text asap, and we should probably head out now if you want to make it to the radio station on time.”
“You’re not my assistant any more,” he reminds her softly, though his lips twitch with amusement. “You don’t need to keep track of my schedule.”
“Hey, I have the next two weeks’ worth of crap memorised because I was your assistant, so you’re just gonna have to deal with it, Mister Horan.”
He kisses her cocky smirk away then laces their fingers together. Claire lets him lead her down the stairs; a questioning noise comes from the living room, and she glances over her shoulder to see Mully staring at their entwined hands. When his gaze meets hers, he gives her a thumbs-up. Warmth flares to life, diffuses through her body - she knows how important he is to Niall, so for him to approve of the relationship… she is definitely thankful for that, considering if he didn’t, it would mean a chance of Niall breaking up with her before their relationship could even get off the ground.
Claire swivels in the chair, head bobbing to the beat of the song that’s playing on the air at the moment. It’s something poppy with a thumping rhythm, and her toes tap along. Niall catches her eye, grins at seeing her enjoying her time, and she knows her smile is softer than the situation calls for; she can’t help it, though. After almost a year of having this man in her life, she’s grown quite attached to him, and now that they have moved beyond employer/employee into something much more, much greater, Claire doesn’t want to pretend that he isn’t so important to her - or that she’s fallen further for him than she ever has for any other man.
Eventually, the interview is finished. The hosts shake hands with Niall, completely ignoring Claire in the corner, which works for her. She isn’t the focus of anything going on this morning, and if anyone looks at her right now, they’re going to be able to read her emotions as clearly as if she screamed them from the rooftops. So she gathers up her bag and fights to keep her expression as neutral as possible. She does, however, take the opportunity to stare at Niall’s ass as she follows him to the car. She’s only human, after all.
“What do you say to some lunch?” she asks once they’ve buckled up, and he frowns, chews on his lower lip. “Don’t worry, I know a place where we won’t be bothered. At least, not in the way you’re worried about.”
“I’m trusting you,” is all he says in response.
“Awful idea, really, but okay.”
Niall follows her directions to a T, without questioning their destination or voicing any of his concerns. Claire is thankful for that - she’s already doubting her decision. This could go so far ass over teakettle, but she wants to share this with him. They still do not know each other incredibly well, not past the stuff closest to the surface, no matter that they have been in each other’s life for going on ten months now. And this place is something she’s never shared with anyone else, not even Deirdre or her parents. So she sits back in her seat, wipes her sweaty palms along her thighs, and prays to every god that has ever been worshipped that she isn’t going to regret bringing Niall to Ma’s.