Remember When?
Closer?
Clary's POV
Honestly I don't even know what to think anymore. I called my mom earlier in the week, wondering if this was an okay weekend to visit. Her paintings have sold huge so she travels around Ireland and the UK a lot. And if it wasn't, then I was thinking about just staying at my grandparents ranch. But luckily she said that it was a great weekend for me to go. So it's Friday and I called off work since I am leaving to go back to Mullingar. Niall and I hung out one other time. I went over to his place to watch the Derby game. It was hard being close to him without wanting to curl up next to him but everyone seemed ecstatic over the fact that we were on talking terms. Nicole even wanted us to double with her and Liam, but I told her we were not and will not be dating. In which I just got an eye roll but she let it go after that. I think…sometimes I catch her or one of the boys staring at me, like they are just waiting for Niall and I to get back together. I was packing up a suitcase to take over. That's when I spotted the necklace box I took from that box of my things back at Niall's last weekend on my nightstand. I totally forgot I swiped it. I scoot on over and pluck it off of my nightstand. I am sitting on my floor since I was packing, but now I am deciding whether or not to open it. I hear a knock at the front door. Wow perfect timing…Penny is away at school so I get up off the floor to go see who the hell is bothering me. I open it to find Matt. Wow could this get any weirder. Matt is only 19…goes to university here in London…he's taken a liking to me…and not in the good way. Although I don't personally mind all that much but everyone else thinks its creepy. I just think its sorta cute on a twisted level. Niall was going on and on about how he was parked outside my building last Sunday. So what not like I would go for him anyways, his hair is too dark and his eyes are not blue but more hazel. "Uhh…Matt…what are you doing here?" He just smiles and hands me a rose. I take it and set it down on the table by the door.
"I didn't have class…want to go get food or something?" No I really don't want to. Matt is sweet but he's young. I sigh and run my hands through my hair. How the hell do I tell him hell no? My phone rings and I see that it is Niall. Oh right Niall is going back home with me, which meant he was calling to tell me he is here. "Uh I can't Matt…I'm actually going away for the weekend. Going back home. Um maybe some other time…but you should probably be studying or something right?" He just nods then leaves. I quickly called Niall back. "Hey sorry…yea come on up I'll leave the door open." I left the door slightly ajar while I went to grab my suitcase and double check to make sure I have everything I need. Niall comes barging in, I can tell because I hear the door slam. I'm still in my room, shit the necklace box…I grab it and throw it back into my purse, right when Niall storms into my room. "What the hell was Matt doing here? That's it! I'm hiring you a bodyguard!" I roll my eyes, out of all my friends, Niall is the most protective probably because he still likes me…I can see it in his eyes when I catch him looking at me.
"I don’t need one Niall! He's completely harmless. He just has a little crush that's all." Niall snorted at me while I walked out to the living room.
"Harmless?! You have got to be shitting me right now! He stalks you Clary!" I get to the kitchen and take a sticky note. I'm going to leave a note to Penny. We do this whenever one of us is away.
Penny-
See you in a few days…don't let Ryan eat all of my food…and no wild parties. Try to control yourself.
-Clarissa
PS-no sex on my couch. Love you!
"Okay I'm ready to go. Are you done ranting? Because if not I can always find another way to Mullingar." I grab my suitcase and look at him. He sighs but nods then hobbles after me, god why did I agree to let him come. At this rate it will take us almost an hour to get downstairs. Wait they fixed the elevator! Praise the lord. I press the button and wait for it to come up. "You look nice today Clary." I look at what I was wearing, which was just yoga pants and a baggy sweatshirt from senior year football.
"I guess…if you like the hobo look."
"I like whatever look you decide on for the day." The elevator opened and I hurried on in and waited for him to get in. I hate when he does that to me, says those subtle cute little things that make my heart flutter. This is going to be a long trip.
Niall's POV
Finally we are in Ireland and Clary was driving…she must've learned over in America because she honestly sucked at driving. She must've driven this a bunch of times over the course of her college career. I wonder how often she went home. Probably more than I have. I steal another look at her. Her red hair was pulled up into a pony tail, it was long like it usually was, still a bit curly. God I just wanted to reach out and play with one like how I used to. I went to looking back out the window. Everything was covered in snow still, considering it was almost February. We pass the Mullingar sign so we are almost home. We get to downtown and everything comes rushing back to me. The coffee shop where Clary and I would go on cold days, the bakery where she surprised me for my birthday senior year. The park were I would sit by her while she drew the most amazing pictures, and where we would practice football, where she and I would meet up at night to stargaze. The store where I bought her necklace, the movie theater where many heated make-out sessions happened. We walked these streets hand in hand. Now I'm lucky if I get a handshake for a greeting. I sigh and lean on my hand. "Hey you okay Niall? We are almost there like 5 minutes."
"I'm fine Clary…just fine." She glances over at me then doesn't say anything more. Just like most of our conversations now, short and not much to them, more like routine answers and phrases. I hurt me that she can act like this…how she can act like there is nothing, however she has always been good at hiding her feelings from me. We pull into her driveway and I get out. She grabs my suitcase for me since well I can't. Then we walk on over to my house. I see my mom come running over…aand she hugs Clary first. "Darling so good to see you! Oh Niall, come on you could catch a cold or something!"
"Mom I had surgery! I'm not that fragile! I only have to have these for two more weeks." Clary is trying not to laugh. While I just groan and follow my mom, she had always had a knack for embarrassing me. We get inside and Clary heads upstairs like this is normal for her. She must be putting my things in my room. She comes back down moments later. "Alright well I'm heading out. It was nice to see you Maura." She kisses my mom on the cheek.
"Don't be such a stranger sweetie! Oh you and Alex should come over for dinner tomorrow!" She smiles at Clary.
"Sure I'll talk to mom. See ya around Niall." Then she heads out the front door. My mom got a better goodbye than I did! I sigh and slam my head on the counter. My mom comes over and rubs my back.
"Oh darling…it will all work out. But on the brightside…Greg is coming tonight. So go clean up because you're helping me cook." I slide off of the stool and go the bathroom.
"Fine but I heard the crippled people are terrible cooks and YOU won't let me not wear these blasted things." I hear my mom laugh from the kitchen. Then a knock came. And I went as fast as one could with crutches to see my family. Theo came running over and hugged my leg. "Uncle Ni!! You have a booboo…did Gammy kiss it better?"
"No because she's not nice to me anymore!" That got me a slap on the shoulder from my mom.
"Don't tell him that! Come here ya little devil." Theo lets go and runs to my mom and she picks him up and kisses his cheek. Greg comes over and gives me a hug, so does Denise. Since they came early, I am off kitchen duty. So Greg, Theo and I were watching some rugby. This felt good, I'm glad that I talked Clary into letting me come. I hope she is having fun with her mom. I always remember them being pretty much the same person.
"Niall you suck at this." Clary was smiling at me while looking over my shoulder. We were both attempting to draw her mom drawing in the yard. It was a warm summer day during that first and last summer we were together. I look over at her she was wearing her painting gear, which was just a white shirt but it had paint all over it and a pair of shorts that had paint smudges on it too. "Well I think it looks just like what I was looking at."
"My mom does not look like a boulder or blob? What the hell is that?" She pointed at my picture and honestly I wasn't painting her mom, like we planned. I was watching Clary paint and that meant I wasn't watching what I was doing. "Umm…that is…"
"You were watching me again weren't you?!" Clary was smiling at me and she never looked prettier. Her hair was up in a bun and she had a bandana on, her fingers were stained with paint.
"That is ridiculous…I would never." Clary laughed and went back to her easel. Then I got splattered with green paint.
"Clarissa Diana Wolf!" I wiped it off and turned to look at her but she was already running across her yard, laughing. I ran after her and caught up then grabbed her. We fell on the ground laughing. I looked into her bright green eyes and I felt like I was on top of the world.
"You're thinking about her again." Greg's voice snapped me out of my daydream.
"What?" I looked at him, confused.
"You get a weird look on your face when you think about her. But hey you guys are talking now right? That's good…getting closer to getting her back then." Greg was still looking at me, apparently my love life is more interesting than the rugby match right now.
"I guess…its just like polite chit chat though…I don't know its just hard because she acts like that year meant nothing to her, while it meant the world to me." Then my mom yelled that it was time for dinner. Theo went running in and Greg followed. I slowly got up and hobbled in. Theo was giggling at me, I'm glad someone found this amusing.
Clary's POV
I was reclining on the couch while my mom was finishing up dinner. She insisted that I don’t help her. Not much has changed around this house, my studio looked untouched, while my mom's looked like a tornado hit it. But the rest of the house was the usual. I got up and went to the kitchen and sat down at the table. "So you and Niall?" Great…not this again. My mom is so keen on me getting back with him its not even funny.
"We are just friends mom. I don't want a boyfriend right now. Maybe a dog though. You still owe me one." She just smiled and shook her head.
"No I don’t. That was a deal you struck up with your father not me. Besides you don't live here anymore." She looked up at me. I felt a pang of guilt. I always felt like I have abandoned her. She's all by herself, sure Nana and Papa still lived here and her brother was still here as well. But this house was empty. "It will keep you company then! Come on mom…you would love having something to baby again." Her just chuckled.
"You are so like him…fine tomorrow we will go puppy shopping. But I get to pick it since I have to deal with the runt." I smiled then ran over and hugged her.
"You are the best mom ever!" She just shot me a look and wiggled out of my hug.
"Yea yea I know that. Now go wash your hands…its dinner time." I did what I was told and then hurried back to the kitchen. We ate and shared stories. My mom has a lot from her traveling while I retold the whole One Direction fiasco. Which she thought was hilarious. I rolled my eyes at her and stuck my tongue out. We did up dishes then popped in our favorite movie.
"I really love having you back home Clarissa." I snuggled into her more. Honestly I loved going home. I did miss it here, everything was so quaint, it was lovely. It was a nice place to come when I needed a break from the city, granted the reason I wanted to come this weekend was because of Niall but no he had to come with. The little ass. My mom fell asleep so I woke her up and she kissed my head then disappeared upstairs. I went out to my deck and peeked over at Niall's house. He was in the kitchen laughing with his family. I smiled and went back inside, then I remembered the necklace box. I scrambled up the stairs and straight into my room. I got to my purse and took it out along with my phone. I had a few texts but they can wait. I sat there with it in my hands…what if it wasn't even meant for me? I felt like I was going to be sick but I opened it. I gasped and dropped it. I picked it up soon after though. I looked at it closer. It was a simple necklace…a metal guitar pick with a date on it, May 20th. That was the day we found out my dad died…but that was also the day Niall asked me to be his girlfriend…that was our anniversary. We broke up that weekend before our one year. This was what he was going to give me. I just started to cry, silently because my mom was right down the hall. I know I act distant around him now, but if I don’t…I remember too much. Like driving through town felt like someone stabbed my in the heart. I remember everything…some days I don't mind but sometimes its too much for me. I wipe my tears and close the necklace box, I put it back into my purse. I check my phone after I calmed down.
Penny: Nice note…I miss you already. But I hope you have fun…tell your mom hi for me.
Coley: MY BOOK IS FINISHED!! I have a copy for you…I sent on to your mom. Going out to celebrate with Liam…maybe he will finally kiss me…I mean come on.
Coley: HE KISSED ME!! HIS LIPS ARE SO SOFT! I'M DYING…I NEED LIFE ALERT.
I laugh at Nicole's and decide to call her tomorrow. My mom is treating me to lunch tomorrow. I get up and got ready for bed. I crawled into it and tried to get comfortable. I miss having Niall laying next to me now more than ever, knowing that he was just a couple feet away.
Honestly I don't even know what to think anymore. I called my mom earlier in the week, wondering if this was an okay weekend to visit. Her paintings have sold huge so she travels around Ireland and the UK a lot. And if it wasn't, then I was thinking about just staying at my grandparents ranch. But luckily she said that it was a great weekend for me to go. So it's Friday and I called off work since I am leaving to go back to Mullingar. Niall and I hung out one other time. I went over to his place to watch the Derby game. It was hard being close to him without wanting to curl up next to him but everyone seemed ecstatic over the fact that we were on talking terms. Nicole even wanted us to double with her and Liam, but I told her we were not and will not be dating. In which I just got an eye roll but she let it go after that. I think…sometimes I catch her or one of the boys staring at me, like they are just waiting for Niall and I to get back together. I was packing up a suitcase to take over. That's when I spotted the necklace box I took from that box of my things back at Niall's last weekend on my nightstand. I totally forgot I swiped it. I scoot on over and pluck it off of my nightstand. I am sitting on my floor since I was packing, but now I am deciding whether or not to open it. I hear a knock at the front door. Wow perfect timing…Penny is away at school so I get up off the floor to go see who the hell is bothering me. I open it to find Matt. Wow could this get any weirder. Matt is only 19…goes to university here in London…he's taken a liking to me…and not in the good way. Although I don't personally mind all that much but everyone else thinks its creepy. I just think its sorta cute on a twisted level. Niall was going on and on about how he was parked outside my building last Sunday. So what not like I would go for him anyways, his hair is too dark and his eyes are not blue but more hazel. "Uhh…Matt…what are you doing here?" He just smiles and hands me a rose. I take it and set it down on the table by the door.
"I didn't have class…want to go get food or something?" No I really don't want to. Matt is sweet but he's young. I sigh and run my hands through my hair. How the hell do I tell him hell no? My phone rings and I see that it is Niall. Oh right Niall is going back home with me, which meant he was calling to tell me he is here. "Uh I can't Matt…I'm actually going away for the weekend. Going back home. Um maybe some other time…but you should probably be studying or something right?" He just nods then leaves. I quickly called Niall back. "Hey sorry…yea come on up I'll leave the door open." I left the door slightly ajar while I went to grab my suitcase and double check to make sure I have everything I need. Niall comes barging in, I can tell because I hear the door slam. I'm still in my room, shit the necklace box…I grab it and throw it back into my purse, right when Niall storms into my room. "What the hell was Matt doing here? That's it! I'm hiring you a bodyguard!" I roll my eyes, out of all my friends, Niall is the most protective probably because he still likes me…I can see it in his eyes when I catch him looking at me.
"I don’t need one Niall! He's completely harmless. He just has a little crush that's all." Niall snorted at me while I walked out to the living room.
"Harmless?! You have got to be shitting me right now! He stalks you Clary!" I get to the kitchen and take a sticky note. I'm going to leave a note to Penny. We do this whenever one of us is away.
Penny-
See you in a few days…don't let Ryan eat all of my food…and no wild parties. Try to control yourself.
-Clarissa
PS-no sex on my couch. Love you!
"Okay I'm ready to go. Are you done ranting? Because if not I can always find another way to Mullingar." I grab my suitcase and look at him. He sighs but nods then hobbles after me, god why did I agree to let him come. At this rate it will take us almost an hour to get downstairs. Wait they fixed the elevator! Praise the lord. I press the button and wait for it to come up. "You look nice today Clary." I look at what I was wearing, which was just yoga pants and a baggy sweatshirt from senior year football.
"I guess…if you like the hobo look."
"I like whatever look you decide on for the day." The elevator opened and I hurried on in and waited for him to get in. I hate when he does that to me, says those subtle cute little things that make my heart flutter. This is going to be a long trip.
Niall's POV
Finally we are in Ireland and Clary was driving…she must've learned over in America because she honestly sucked at driving. She must've driven this a bunch of times over the course of her college career. I wonder how often she went home. Probably more than I have. I steal another look at her. Her red hair was pulled up into a pony tail, it was long like it usually was, still a bit curly. God I just wanted to reach out and play with one like how I used to. I went to looking back out the window. Everything was covered in snow still, considering it was almost February. We pass the Mullingar sign so we are almost home. We get to downtown and everything comes rushing back to me. The coffee shop where Clary and I would go on cold days, the bakery where she surprised me for my birthday senior year. The park were I would sit by her while she drew the most amazing pictures, and where we would practice football, where she and I would meet up at night to stargaze. The store where I bought her necklace, the movie theater where many heated make-out sessions happened. We walked these streets hand in hand. Now I'm lucky if I get a handshake for a greeting. I sigh and lean on my hand. "Hey you okay Niall? We are almost there like 5 minutes."
"I'm fine Clary…just fine." She glances over at me then doesn't say anything more. Just like most of our conversations now, short and not much to them, more like routine answers and phrases. I hurt me that she can act like this…how she can act like there is nothing, however she has always been good at hiding her feelings from me. We pull into her driveway and I get out. She grabs my suitcase for me since well I can't. Then we walk on over to my house. I see my mom come running over…aand she hugs Clary first. "Darling so good to see you! Oh Niall, come on you could catch a cold or something!"
"Mom I had surgery! I'm not that fragile! I only have to have these for two more weeks." Clary is trying not to laugh. While I just groan and follow my mom, she had always had a knack for embarrassing me. We get inside and Clary heads upstairs like this is normal for her. She must be putting my things in my room. She comes back down moments later. "Alright well I'm heading out. It was nice to see you Maura." She kisses my mom on the cheek.
"Don't be such a stranger sweetie! Oh you and Alex should come over for dinner tomorrow!" She smiles at Clary.
"Sure I'll talk to mom. See ya around Niall." Then she heads out the front door. My mom got a better goodbye than I did! I sigh and slam my head on the counter. My mom comes over and rubs my back.
"Oh darling…it will all work out. But on the brightside…Greg is coming tonight. So go clean up because you're helping me cook." I slide off of the stool and go the bathroom.
"Fine but I heard the crippled people are terrible cooks and YOU won't let me not wear these blasted things." I hear my mom laugh from the kitchen. Then a knock came. And I went as fast as one could with crutches to see my family. Theo came running over and hugged my leg. "Uncle Ni!! You have a booboo…did Gammy kiss it better?"
"No because she's not nice to me anymore!" That got me a slap on the shoulder from my mom.
"Don't tell him that! Come here ya little devil." Theo lets go and runs to my mom and she picks him up and kisses his cheek. Greg comes over and gives me a hug, so does Denise. Since they came early, I am off kitchen duty. So Greg, Theo and I were watching some rugby. This felt good, I'm glad that I talked Clary into letting me come. I hope she is having fun with her mom. I always remember them being pretty much the same person.
"Niall you suck at this." Clary was smiling at me while looking over my shoulder. We were both attempting to draw her mom drawing in the yard. It was a warm summer day during that first and last summer we were together. I look over at her she was wearing her painting gear, which was just a white shirt but it had paint all over it and a pair of shorts that had paint smudges on it too. "Well I think it looks just like what I was looking at."
"My mom does not look like a boulder or blob? What the hell is that?" She pointed at my picture and honestly I wasn't painting her mom, like we planned. I was watching Clary paint and that meant I wasn't watching what I was doing. "Umm…that is…"
"You were watching me again weren't you?!" Clary was smiling at me and she never looked prettier. Her hair was up in a bun and she had a bandana on, her fingers were stained with paint.
"That is ridiculous…I would never." Clary laughed and went back to her easel. Then I got splattered with green paint.
"Clarissa Diana Wolf!" I wiped it off and turned to look at her but she was already running across her yard, laughing. I ran after her and caught up then grabbed her. We fell on the ground laughing. I looked into her bright green eyes and I felt like I was on top of the world.
"You're thinking about her again." Greg's voice snapped me out of my daydream.
"What?" I looked at him, confused.
"You get a weird look on your face when you think about her. But hey you guys are talking now right? That's good…getting closer to getting her back then." Greg was still looking at me, apparently my love life is more interesting than the rugby match right now.
"I guess…its just like polite chit chat though…I don't know its just hard because she acts like that year meant nothing to her, while it meant the world to me." Then my mom yelled that it was time for dinner. Theo went running in and Greg followed. I slowly got up and hobbled in. Theo was giggling at me, I'm glad someone found this amusing.
Clary's POV
I was reclining on the couch while my mom was finishing up dinner. She insisted that I don’t help her. Not much has changed around this house, my studio looked untouched, while my mom's looked like a tornado hit it. But the rest of the house was the usual. I got up and went to the kitchen and sat down at the table. "So you and Niall?" Great…not this again. My mom is so keen on me getting back with him its not even funny.
"We are just friends mom. I don't want a boyfriend right now. Maybe a dog though. You still owe me one." She just smiled and shook her head.
"No I don’t. That was a deal you struck up with your father not me. Besides you don't live here anymore." She looked up at me. I felt a pang of guilt. I always felt like I have abandoned her. She's all by herself, sure Nana and Papa still lived here and her brother was still here as well. But this house was empty. "It will keep you company then! Come on mom…you would love having something to baby again." Her just chuckled.
"You are so like him…fine tomorrow we will go puppy shopping. But I get to pick it since I have to deal with the runt." I smiled then ran over and hugged her.
"You are the best mom ever!" She just shot me a look and wiggled out of my hug.
"Yea yea I know that. Now go wash your hands…its dinner time." I did what I was told and then hurried back to the kitchen. We ate and shared stories. My mom has a lot from her traveling while I retold the whole One Direction fiasco. Which she thought was hilarious. I rolled my eyes at her and stuck my tongue out. We did up dishes then popped in our favorite movie.
"I really love having you back home Clarissa." I snuggled into her more. Honestly I loved going home. I did miss it here, everything was so quaint, it was lovely. It was a nice place to come when I needed a break from the city, granted the reason I wanted to come this weekend was because of Niall but no he had to come with. The little ass. My mom fell asleep so I woke her up and she kissed my head then disappeared upstairs. I went out to my deck and peeked over at Niall's house. He was in the kitchen laughing with his family. I smiled and went back inside, then I remembered the necklace box. I scrambled up the stairs and straight into my room. I got to my purse and took it out along with my phone. I had a few texts but they can wait. I sat there with it in my hands…what if it wasn't even meant for me? I felt like I was going to be sick but I opened it. I gasped and dropped it. I picked it up soon after though. I looked at it closer. It was a simple necklace…a metal guitar pick with a date on it, May 20th. That was the day we found out my dad died…but that was also the day Niall asked me to be his girlfriend…that was our anniversary. We broke up that weekend before our one year. This was what he was going to give me. I just started to cry, silently because my mom was right down the hall. I know I act distant around him now, but if I don’t…I remember too much. Like driving through town felt like someone stabbed my in the heart. I remember everything…some days I don't mind but sometimes its too much for me. I wipe my tears and close the necklace box, I put it back into my purse. I check my phone after I calmed down.
Penny: Nice note…I miss you already. But I hope you have fun…tell your mom hi for me.
Coley: MY BOOK IS FINISHED!! I have a copy for you…I sent on to your mom. Going out to celebrate with Liam…maybe he will finally kiss me…I mean come on.
Coley: HE KISSED ME!! HIS LIPS ARE SO SOFT! I'M DYING…I NEED LIFE ALERT.
I laugh at Nicole's and decide to call her tomorrow. My mom is treating me to lunch tomorrow. I get up and got ready for bed. I crawled into it and tried to get comfortable. I miss having Niall laying next to me now more than ever, knowing that he was just a couple feet away.
Notes
Woohoo update!!! oh man she looked at the necklace...what is going to happen?
Questions: Dinner gone wrong? Run-in with an old friend?
Okay so today I get to hang out with my roommate and Eliza for Eliza's Birthday!!! I'm so excited. I finished all my yardwork so now I get to relax and watch the World Cup. Whoot whoot! Anyways hope you love the update!! :)
~A xxxxx
@redheadedbeauty
Yeah he is ... I wanted to save the picture that's why i asked but thanks
4/11/15