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Looking back, Niall probably should've expected it, what with Liam spending more time in his own bunk whilst they toured and his kisses getting shorter and shorter, but he was completely oblivious. So when Liam came into their five way dressing room, a tall brunette hanging off his arm and a casual, "Guys, this is Sophia. My girlfriend." thrown in, Niall heart shattered.
Niall didnt say a word to anyone that night.
***
"How could you!?"
"Niall... Please, just listen--"
"Listen? Listen?! No you fucking listen!" He spat through gritted teeth, shoving Liam in the chest causing the other boys took a step toward them, "You broke my fucking heart, Li. You didn't even fucking tell me 'nd I thought we were-- Fuck, okay. Just... I loved you and you just... fuck."
Niall's shoulders slumped in defeat and his head hung to avoid everyone seeing the tears falling from his eyes, breathing coming in soft pants as the fight left his body. Liam took a step forward but Louis cut him off with a glare.
"You've done enough. " He growled, putting his arm around the broken Irish lad in front of him who buried his face in his friends shoulder. Liam just watched, heart stuttering pathetically as he watched Niall cry.
"Niall..." He whispered helplessly.
"Just go, Li... Just... Get... Get out." came the sobbed reply and he did, turned on his heels and left the hotel room, cutting off the sobs with a slam of the door.
***
"How's Niall doing?" Zayn asked as they sat around the bus, Perrie nestled in his side, looking just as apprehensive as her fiancé.
Louis merely shrugged, fingers tangling in Harry's hair, whose head lay perched in his lap.
"Not great. Harry tried to get him to talk about it yesterday but he just shut the curtains mumbling something about 'stupid Sophiam.' So... You know."
It was silent for a moment, each face echoing the same concern before Perrie spoke softly,
"They'll get through this... right?"
***
"You didn't tell me she was gonna be 'ere." Niall mumbled, taking a swig from his beer, eying Liam and Sophia from across the room of their after party. He wasn't in a very partying mood. He missed his ice cream and sweats.
"What did you expect, bro?" Harry shrugged, tearing his eyes away from where Louis and Eleanor were dancing to follow Niall's gaze.
"I dunno. S'just... Like, he's rubbing me face init, in'he?"
Harry shrugged.
"I doubt it, Mate. He's just trying to be happy, you know?"
"Yeah, I just... wanted 'im to be happy wit'me, I 'spose."
Harry sighed, hand on Niall's shoulder.
"Look--"
"Harry, Niall, come take pictures with us!" Eleanor chirped, cutting off Harry's words and they both looked at the blonde boy sulking beside them.
"M'not really feelin' it, but you go, mate. One of us should 'ave fun tonight."
"Sure?"
Niall gave a nod and half smile as they hugged him, taking a moment to watch Harry run off giggling with Eleanor toward the photo booth before looking back to Liam.
This party sucked.
***
"Hey Niall." Came the soft voice, causing him to look around and regret it instantly.
Bloody Sophia.
"Hi." He mumbled, taking a gulp of his beer as he turned back to look out over the quiet city.
"Thought I'd find you here."
He just grunted in reply, body tensing slightly as she stood beside him, a heavy silence falling over them.
"Why do you hate me?" She asked after a minute, god it felt like much longer, and took him by surprise.
"What? I... I don't..." He spluttered, awkwardly patting his chest as he choked on the drink.
"Come on, Niall, I'm not stupid."
He sighed.
"Look S'not... Not you, yeah?'
"Then what is it?"
"S'me. S'all me. M'sorry."
The silence that fell over them was heavy than before, Sophia sighing when she realised that was all she was going to get out of him, and suddenly he felt like he couldn't breath. It was too hot and everything was hitting him all over again.
It wasn't her.
It wasn't him.
It was Liam.
It was all fucking Liam and his stupid fucking puppy dog eyes and nice lips and stupidly hot body and strong arms and his warmth.
And fuck. It was everything. It was love and now it was gone and he couldn't... He just couldn't.
"M'sorry."
He choked, leaving his beer abandoned as he fled the balcony, pushed through the crowds of people dancing and exited the party through the back.
***
"Niall?"
He ignored the knocking on his hotel door, turning up the TV a few more notches to drown out the noise.
"Can you just answer me, please?"
Came the desperate response but Niall couldn't, wouldn't, move. Wouldn't give in to him.
"I spoke to Sophia, Niall... She told me about you running away..."
He choked on his breath, letting out a soft whimper, heels of his hands pressed to his eyes.
"...She said you looked like you were gonna pass out or something...."
Nothing but the sound of the TV played for a moment.
"Please?"
It was softer than before but still he didn't move.
Eventually, he heard a hand drag down the door and footsteps leading away from the room. He was free to cry.
***
"So, Niall, what's this I hear about you and a red head getting close in a club?"
The interviewer asked and Niall let out a laugh, casual and airy, ignoring Liam's wide eyed gaze.
"Just a friend, I 'spose." He smirked, a wink shot in the interviewerd direction and a heavy emphasis put on friend.
"Oh, really? because that's not what the pictures say."
Niall shrugged, smirk still pulling at his lips. Ah, yes, the pictures. The ones showing him pressed against the model on the dance floor, then again with her pressed to the wall, and more with his lips on her neck. Those pictures.
"What can I say? Women can't resist the Nialler." He joked, missing the way Liam's hands cured into fists.
***
"What the fuck was that?"
Liam stressed as he barged into Niall's hotel room, body oozing tension that quickly filled up the small space.
Niall brushed him off, grabbing a water from the mini fridge.
"What was what?"
"You know what." He growled, advancing on Niall shoving him against the wall, "Is this just a game to you?! Who can get the upper hand?! A way to show me that you're over me and us?! A fucking game?!" Liam's voice raised with each question and Niall eyes flashed dangerously, giving him a hard glare.
"How I feel about you has never been a game, Liam! Not to me! Not one minute of it!" He shouted in response, slicing through the hard air.
There was a beat of silence and just heavy breathing before Niall spoke again, voice loosing it;s hardened edge.
"I never... You never told me what I did wrong... You just... Left me. Didn't even tell me it was over, just introduced us to your girlfriend and it killed me, Li. Killed me t'see you with her and knowing it would never be me.."
"Niall..." He sighed, pressing the blonde further into the wall as the smaller boy looked away.
"I just needed t'feel somthin', you know? Somethin' more than pain and she was there and I was drunk and I was so.. so mad at you. It was all too much, Liam, I just didn't want t'love you, anymore."
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you, or let you down easy. It was just too hard, and I knew how hard you'd take it. We were just... getting so deep into what we had, it was getting more than just stress relief and fun and I ran away because that's not what I wanted." A beat, Niall's heart was falling apart again. "I love you... I'm just not in love with you."
"Do you-- Are you in love wit'her?" He breathed out past the lump in his throat.
"I will, eventually."
"Right."
He felt Liam nod and then release him, the pressure leaving his body making him feel cold, and then he was watching him walk to the door and Niall was breaking with each step, tears falling with no restraint.
"Don't leave me." He sobbed, begged, pleaded over and over with the taller boy but his cries went ignored and the door shut him out. Out of Liam's life.
Niall crumbled to the floor.