So Long
twenty-seven.
Claire sighs and refreshes the webpage. She’s spent the past seven hours sat on the couch, scrolling through job-listings sites in hopes of finding something that stands out to her, while Niall’s gone off with Mully and Paul to do whatever they had planned. The house has been too quiet without the guys - even listening to Pandora hasn’t helped ease the weird, stifling silence.
She knows she can text her brother and Deirdre for any help in finding a new job. Deirdre is oddly connected with random places all over the city, and Tim has been adamant about moving mountains for his little sister. But the last thing she wants to do is rely on anyone else, especially considering she got - and subsequently lost - the gig working for Niall because of her brother.
Dee’s texts had finally stopped last night after an hour of nonstop buzzing, none of them making sense after the GIFs she sent. Claire eventually set her phone to silent just to make the vibrating stop and was promptly distracted by Niall. They’d wasted away the rest of the evening doing nothing more than cuddling together on the sofa as Peaky Blinders played on the television, going largely ignored, and sharing lazy kisses until Niall’s stomach growled and reminded them they hadn’t eaten dinner yet.
Reading the description for another position that isn’t really enticing, Claire groans but clicks the link to apply. She moves to the kitchen as the page loads, searches for something to eat since it’s obvious that she’s going to be the only one here for dinner. Sandwich it is, she thinks grimly when nothing sounds appealing - she doesn’t feel like cooking tonight since it’s just her, and the leftovers are suspect. She can’t remember exactly when they had Chinese.
“Lucy, we’re home!”
Claire snorts a laugh but doesn’t look away from her task of updating her CV. Niall drops a kiss to the crown of her skull on his way to the fridge. Mully sits in the seat across from her, flicking the casing to her laptop. She sticks her tongue out at him and decides to finish later. Her fingers pick at the crust from her sandwich while she listens to the guys talk about their days.
Evidently, they’d gone to 40 Love and lost track of time; Niall stops speaking abruptly then ducks his head, apologising on a low murmur for leaving her alone for so long. Claire rolls her eyes, pushes at his shoulder. Though he doesn’t seem appeased by her assurance that it’s fine, he does drop the subject.
Mully is the first to go to bed, poking the tip of her nose on his way out of the kitchen, and Claire squeaks and scrunches up her face, nose wiggling. She freezes and slowly turns to see Niall attempting to stifle his laughter.
“Don’t you dare say a word, mister.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” He leans in to rest his forehead on her shoulder, turning his head to look at the computer screen. “What are you doing?”
“Hunting for a new job since my last boss decided to be a dick and fire me just so he could be able to kiss me whenever he wanted.”
Niall laughs, shoulders shaking as he struggles to regain control of himself. “Listen, I won’t apologise for that. Kissing you is a pretty big highlight of my days.”
“Aw, so sweet. I quite enjoy it as well, so I suppose it’s worked for the best.”
“Maybe Lou has a need for a PA? Or babysitter when he has Freddie?” He pulls away with his brows furrowed; his gaze goes faraway, vacant, for a second. “Rhi could probably hire you for her bakery.”
“Okay, first off, as much as I adore Freddie, I really don’t want to be a babysitter again. I did that shit in high school, and kids are tiring. Stressful little buggers, really. And second, I can’t just ask either of them to just give me a job.”
“You are utterly impossible.”
Claire just shrugs in response, shifting in her seat so she can finish filling out the application. Neither of them speaks as she types out her name, birthdate, and address - her parents’, of course; anyone who knows how to use the internet probably knows how to reverse-search an address, and using Niall’s doesn’t seem like a good thing to do unless she wants to start a new job being inundated with questions about him. It will happen anyway since their relationship was made as public as Niall will allow, but why add fuel to the fire?
Niall’s voice startles her, the silence of the room shattering unexpectedly as he announces, “There, I asked her for you.”
“Niall! Why -?”
Her phone vibrates across the tabletop, and she glances down at the screen to see a text message notification. With a warning to Niall that this conversation isn’t over, Claire reluctantly picks up the device and unlocks it. Rhiannon’s text contains a link. A new message appears before she
>> Fill out the application. Yes, I know you, so it’s mostly for legality and appearances, but it’s also because I wanna make you jump through hoops after the shit you pulled. Love youuuu!
<< You’re evil. Doctor Doofenshmirtz has nothing on you. I’ll do it in the a.m.
Still laughing, Claire sends off a dozen heart and kissy-face emojis then sets her phone aside. Niall’s grinning smugly, every bit the cat that ate the canary, when she looks at him. She huffs and hooks a finger in the collar of his shirt, tugs him closer to kiss the smirk off his lips.
“Have I told you that you’re an ass?” she murmurs before kissing him again. “Thanks.”
“I just wanted to do something nice for you after firing you so cruelly for my own selfish reasons. Now, c’mon, it’s late, and you’ve been up since four this morning. Yes, I know you lied to me when I woke up at eight.” He closes her laptop against her protests and pulls her phone away. “No, you don’t need any more social media, let’s go.”
Claire pouts playfully but allows him to guide her to the stairs, his hands firm yet gentle as he propels her forward. Her head swims when his lips cover hers, the walls pressing painfully against her shoulderblades, his body warm and solid in front of her. Her heart pounds under her ribs, blood thrumming with want as she loses herself in the taste and feel of him. He pulls back after a long moment but far too soon.
“Goodnight, love.”
“Ye-yeah, uh, goodnight. Ass,” she calls out softly as he walks away, then she cocks her head to the side and stares unabashedly. “On second, though, keep walkin’. I quite like the view.”
Niall stops in his doorway and smirks back at her over his shoulder, shakes his ass. Claire rolls her eyes. She blows him a kiss then disappears into her room, reluctantly closing the door only after he’s shut himself into his own bedroom.
She knows she can text her brother and Deirdre for any help in finding a new job. Deirdre is oddly connected with random places all over the city, and Tim has been adamant about moving mountains for his little sister. But the last thing she wants to do is rely on anyone else, especially considering she got - and subsequently lost - the gig working for Niall because of her brother.
Dee’s texts had finally stopped last night after an hour of nonstop buzzing, none of them making sense after the GIFs she sent. Claire eventually set her phone to silent just to make the vibrating stop and was promptly distracted by Niall. They’d wasted away the rest of the evening doing nothing more than cuddling together on the sofa as Peaky Blinders played on the television, going largely ignored, and sharing lazy kisses until Niall’s stomach growled and reminded them they hadn’t eaten dinner yet.
Reading the description for another position that isn’t really enticing, Claire groans but clicks the link to apply. She moves to the kitchen as the page loads, searches for something to eat since it’s obvious that she’s going to be the only one here for dinner. Sandwich it is, she thinks grimly when nothing sounds appealing - she doesn’t feel like cooking tonight since it’s just her, and the leftovers are suspect. She can’t remember exactly when they had Chinese.
“Lucy, we’re home!”
Claire snorts a laugh but doesn’t look away from her task of updating her CV. Niall drops a kiss to the crown of her skull on his way to the fridge. Mully sits in the seat across from her, flicking the casing to her laptop. She sticks her tongue out at him and decides to finish later. Her fingers pick at the crust from her sandwich while she listens to the guys talk about their days.
Evidently, they’d gone to 40 Love and lost track of time; Niall stops speaking abruptly then ducks his head, apologising on a low murmur for leaving her alone for so long. Claire rolls her eyes, pushes at his shoulder. Though he doesn’t seem appeased by her assurance that it’s fine, he does drop the subject.
Mully is the first to go to bed, poking the tip of her nose on his way out of the kitchen, and Claire squeaks and scrunches up her face, nose wiggling. She freezes and slowly turns to see Niall attempting to stifle his laughter.
“Don’t you dare say a word, mister.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” He leans in to rest his forehead on her shoulder, turning his head to look at the computer screen. “What are you doing?”
“Hunting for a new job since my last boss decided to be a dick and fire me just so he could be able to kiss me whenever he wanted.”
Niall laughs, shoulders shaking as he struggles to regain control of himself. “Listen, I won’t apologise for that. Kissing you is a pretty big highlight of my days.”
“Aw, so sweet. I quite enjoy it as well, so I suppose it’s worked for the best.”
“Maybe Lou has a need for a PA? Or babysitter when he has Freddie?” He pulls away with his brows furrowed; his gaze goes faraway, vacant, for a second. “Rhi could probably hire you for her bakery.”
“Okay, first off, as much as I adore Freddie, I really don’t want to be a babysitter again. I did that shit in high school, and kids are tiring. Stressful little buggers, really. And second, I can’t just ask either of them to just give me a job.”
“You are utterly impossible.”
Claire just shrugs in response, shifting in her seat so she can finish filling out the application. Neither of them speaks as she types out her name, birthdate, and address - her parents’, of course; anyone who knows how to use the internet probably knows how to reverse-search an address, and using Niall’s doesn’t seem like a good thing to do unless she wants to start a new job being inundated with questions about him. It will happen anyway since their relationship was made as public as Niall will allow, but why add fuel to the fire?
Niall’s voice startles her, the silence of the room shattering unexpectedly as he announces, “There, I asked her for you.”
“Niall! Why -?”
Her phone vibrates across the tabletop, and she glances down at the screen to see a text message notification. With a warning to Niall that this conversation isn’t over, Claire reluctantly picks up the device and unlocks it. Rhiannon’s text contains a link. A new message appears before she
>> Fill out the application. Yes, I know you, so it’s mostly for legality and appearances, but it’s also because I wanna make you jump through hoops after the shit you pulled. Love youuuu!
<< You’re evil. Doctor Doofenshmirtz has nothing on you. I’ll do it in the a.m.
Still laughing, Claire sends off a dozen heart and kissy-face emojis then sets her phone aside. Niall’s grinning smugly, every bit the cat that ate the canary, when she looks at him. She huffs and hooks a finger in the collar of his shirt, tugs him closer to kiss the smirk off his lips.
“Have I told you that you’re an ass?” she murmurs before kissing him again. “Thanks.”
“I just wanted to do something nice for you after firing you so cruelly for my own selfish reasons. Now, c’mon, it’s late, and you’ve been up since four this morning. Yes, I know you lied to me when I woke up at eight.” He closes her laptop against her protests and pulls her phone away. “No, you don’t need any more social media, let’s go.”
Claire pouts playfully but allows him to guide her to the stairs, his hands firm yet gentle as he propels her forward. Her head swims when his lips cover hers, the walls pressing painfully against her shoulderblades, his body warm and solid in front of her. Her heart pounds under her ribs, blood thrumming with want as she loses herself in the taste and feel of him. He pulls back after a long moment but far too soon.
“Goodnight, love.”
“Ye-yeah, uh, goodnight. Ass,” she calls out softly as he walks away, then she cocks her head to the side and stares unabashedly. “On second, though, keep walkin’. I quite like the view.”
Niall stops in his doorway and smirks back at her over his shoulder, shakes his ass. Claire rolls her eyes. She blows him a kiss then disappears into her room, reluctantly closing the door only after he’s shut himself into his own bedroom.