Niall's POV

I'd watched her all night. I'd watched how she'd drank too much, and was oblivious to my staring. The lads had tried to get me to have some fun but it felt impossible. I had really liked Chelsea, and I'd really screwed it up. I had hoped that after talking to her she'd understand, but she hadn't. I still needed to talk to Barbara tomorrow about how I really felt, but for now I was stuck watching Chelsea drown her feelings in alcohol. I wanted so bad to try to talk to her again, but I had a bad feeling that it'd only upset her more, and I didn't want that either. I watched as she leaned closer to Jesse and they talked. I felt a nudge on my shoulder and turned to look at Louis who looked worried. “Are you sure you're alright mate, do you want to go home?” I shook my head slightly, my hand wrapped tightly around the neck of a beer bottle. The rest of the fellas were now looking at me too, but movement from Chelsea's booth stole my attention. I watched as she attempted to stand, but fell and was grabbed up by Jesse. The smirk on his face made my very blood boil with anger. They exchanged a few more words before they began to walk towards the stairs.

I tried to ignore the hurt in my heart as I watched her arms draped loosely and drunkenly around his waist. His arms wrapped securely around hers as he led her away; but I couldn't. I was about to look away when Jesse looked over at me and grinned. It was condescending, and his eyes were full of victory. I could have let it go there, he was just trying to be an ass. But when his hands moved down a little farther on her waist and he winked at me I lost all control. Before I even knew what I was doing I'd launched myself out of my seat and towards him. I truly hadn't intended on causing a fight but I was so angry it was like I'd lost all control over what I would do. It didn't help that I'd also had a little too much to drink. In the scramble to get a hold of him I'd ended up knocking Chelsea out of his arms and sending her tumbling to the VIP floor. I had his collar in my fists, the fabric pressed tightly against my skin as I held onto him for dear life as he struggled. “What the hell man?!” I watched in satisfaction as fear crossed his eyes, even if it was only for a moment.

Louis' hands were on my wrists in an instant, trying to yank them off of Jesse's collar. But as I growled at him in anger I knew Louis would have one hell of a time, because I wasn't letting go just yet. “Don't act like ya don't know ya piece of crap! Whatever ya got planned for tonight isn't gonna happen! I'll take her home!” Just the thought of him taking her home, and taking advantage of her drunken state made me sick and beyond pissed all at one time. I wanted to be the guy who she could trust to take her home; to get her there safe and make sure she's alright before calling it a night. I wouldn't dare lay a hand on her. “Get the hell off me, you psycho! She asked me to take her home!” He was obviously angry as he continued to struggle under my grip, but it was no use. I didn't care whether she'd asked him or not, because I wouldn't let him take her home. I knew the way his mind worked, he was only in this for one thing and I wouldn't allow him to get it from Chelsea. I knew right then and there he'd planned this, he'd only winked to get me riled up and it had worked.

I had played right into this little game of his, and although I regretted it slightly, I was too far in to back out now. In that moment of realization I had faltered and Louis yanked my right hand off of Jesse's collar, which had loosened in the moment. Jesse shoved with both of his hands hard up against my chest, but I barely fell back an inch before regaining my composure. “Oh right! And ya didn't have anything planned other than takin' her home and tuckin' her in, right?! Ya liar!” I couldn't stand the smirk on his face which told me basically everything that I needed to know. I had been right. From the moment he'd picked her up to take her home he'd had a plan in his head. He began to fix his collar in a condescending manner. “What I do with her is none of your business anymore, you fucked that up all on your own.” As he said this it was more anger at myself than anything but I couldn't help it. I lunged at him, using the full force of my body weight but was pulled back all too quickly by two strong pairs of arms. I could only assume two of the guys had stopped me, but I wasn't in the mood.

As I watched him take a step closer to a rather confused looking Chelsea I only felt my anger boiling even more. I felt bad for causing a scene but I felt even worse at the fact that in her eyes I was probably still the bad guy here. She wouldn't understand that Jesse had goaded me into this because she was not only drunk, but in some way still trusted him. He was the caring ex-boyfriend who was taking care of her and I was just the asshole who'd practically cheated on her right as our relationship even began and had betrayed her. I could understand now that there was no way I was coming out of this on top. “Ya son of a bitch! You touch her and I'll hurt ya! I swear that to ya!” I was so angry at the fact that he'd pushed me into this and still won. I pointed a finger at him as I threatened him but watched as a look of satisfaction crossed his face when Chelsea grabbed his arm and began pulling him away. They only got a couple of steps before he turned back around to me with a sheepish grin on his stupid face. “I'll touch her, but only if she asks. I think you forget she was begging for me to touch her long before you came around!” It was like a shock to my system. Even the thought of Chelsea with him angered me past the point of understanding.

When I tried to lunge for him this time I was yanked back by more than two people and as I struggled against them I realized I would get no where. Jesse already had Chelsea halfway down the stairs, almost to the door. When I'd stopped struggling for a minute one of the pairs of arms that held me released me and then Louis came up in front of my face. “You alright, mate? Think we can let ya go?” I took deep breaths to calm myself before nodding. Very slowly they released me and I stretched slightly. I stared at the doors of the club and felt my heart shatter. I didn't even want to think about what would happen when they got back to her hotel room, and as I turned around it was probably apparent that I was distraught. The guys all looked worriedly at me, but I pushed past them and plopped back down at our table. I grabbed the beer off the table and shoved it against my lips, gulping down the bitter liquid as I closed my eyes tightly against the visions in my head.

When I'd finished my beer I opened my eyes to the table in front of me. Louis, Harry and Liam had taken their seats on the booth once more, while Zayn talked to a security guard who'd been alerted a little late of the brawl going on upstairs. I listened, barely able to understand what he was saying as Zayn assured the guard there would be no more troubles. I was grinding my teeth together when Harry cleared his throat and caught my attention. My eyes shifted to his and he gave me a small grimace. “What was that? I've never seen you get so riled up before.” I shrugged, trying to play it cool but knowing they'd see right through it. “I dunno. I just fucked everything up, and then he winked at me and I just went off! He doesn't deserve her and it kills me to think of what he's thinkin' about when he's alone with her! I can't stand him! I'm sorry I caused a scene and all but he was askin' for it!” Louis smiled slightly from across the table. “No one is saying he didn't deserve it, we were just sayin' we've never seen you get that worked up!”

I cracked a small smile but it was short-lived. “I honestly just want to go home. Do you lads mind?” They shook their head as I stood up and slapped a couple of bills on the table for the waitress and the beers I'd consumed. I headed out quickly, not waiting to see if any of them would follow. Once outside I pulled my jacket a little tighter to me as the cool night air hit my face. It felt good after being stuck in an over-crowded club all night long. I got in the cab that was waiting for club goers and told him the hotel's address. As I settled back and watched the city pass before me I wondered what Chelsea was doing. I hoped she wouldn't fall for Jesse's charms, although she didn't seem the type. Even as drunk as she'd allowed herself to get she didn't seem like the type to be taken advantage of. I laid my heated forehead against the cool cab window and shut my eyes. I was exhausted from the long day I'd had, and could only hope that tomorrow would be better; although I doubted it. Tomorrow, I had decided earlier, was the day I was going to sit Barbara down and talk to her. Although I wasn't sure we were dating, I hoped I wouldn't hurt her too much. Barbara and I hadn't been talking that long, but with how busy our schedules were we honestly never got to see each other anyway. Even if we were dating it wasn't very much of a set-up. We were always thousands of miles away from each other, and I often found her shallow whenever she was with me. She was always so concerned about what people thought, what the press would think. Everything she did was always thought out so that the most cameras would be around, or so she'd say the right thing to the press.

As the cab pulled to a stop in front of the hotel I pulled my wallet out and paid the cabbie. I wished him a goodnight as I got out and walked quickly into the hotel lobby. The lights shined too bright against my alcohol struck eyes. All I wanted right now was go to Chelsea's room and check up on her, but I didn't want to disturb her in case she'd already fallen asleep. So I pressed the elevator button and waited patiently as it made it's descent to pick me up. I got in and then pressed the 26th floor button, leaning against the back wall and humming along to the generic music playing from within the small four walls. With every floor that passed my eyes began to lull closed with the lure of sleep but I managed to fight it long enough to stay awake. The elevator dinged and then the doors opened just in time to see Jesse talking to a girl right outside of Chelsea's room. I watched silently as she handed him her phone and he took it, tapping at the screen quickly before handing it back. It was then I realized that he was giving her his number.

My eyes narrowed but I vowed to keep myself out of trouble tonight. I lifted my hood up and quickly walked past them; he didn't even notice me as I heard him compliment the overly fake brunette girl. I slipped wordlessly into my room and when the door was closed I leaned against it heavily. It sickened me to think that he honestly thought he was smooth. As if Chelsea hadn't realized his games long ago. I could only hope she wasn't blinded by my betrayal enough to fall back into his grasps. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed her number, my finger hovering over the send key. I wanted so badly to hear her voice, to tell her the things I'd seen and win her back. But I wanted to win her back without fighting dirty, or having to hurt her with Jesse's actions in order for her to see I was the guy for her. I deleted the numbers and groaned, walking over to the bed and laying down. I didn't care that I was fully dressed, all I wanted to do was go to sleep. I laid my phone over on the nightstand and curled up under the blankets to await sleep.

Chelsea's POV

As I slowly woke up the next morning I could already tell it would be a brutal day. My head was pounding so hard I could feel my heartbeat in my skull. I ached all over from falling last night, and I felt automatically nauseous without even having to move. As I laid on the bed trying to wish myself dead I knew that I would have to face the day. Every movement I made was slow and calculated. I rolled over slowly and then sat up, taking my time in case I got sick. But the nausea very slowly began to melt away, although I was positive that my headache wouldn't be so kind. I got up and made my way to the bathroom with sloth-like speed. I attempted to yank a brush through my ratted hair before realizing that the dried up hairspray in my hair would make it impossible. So I turned on the hot water in the shower and waited impatiently. I stripped from my pajamas and climbed into the shower, groaning in delight as the hot water hit my sore skin. I took my time shampooing and conditioning my hair before washing myself with my body wash.

When I was done I allowed myself to stand under the stream of hot water and think. I barely recalled the events of last night, although I faintly remembered a fight between Niall and Jesse. One I'm sure that Jesse had somehow started. I reached over and shut off the hot water, standing in the silence of the bathroom as the water dripped from my bare skin. I reached out and grabbed a towel, wrapping it around me securely before I stepped out of the shower. I walked over to the fogged up mirror and wiped a hand down it, leaving one long streak of clarity. My make-up had mostly come off in the shower, give or take a few mascara and eyeliner streaks underneath my eyes. I brushed through my silky hair and then sighed deeply rubbing my temples. My head felt like it was about to burst and I sorely regretted drinking so much last night. Jesse had been right about one thing. Although I had forgotten for the night, all my memories were still here today. The alcohol hadn't changed anything, and now I was stuck with a nasty hangover that would probably remain all day long. I popped a few aspirin in my mouth and downed then with some water from the tap. When I opened the bathroom door the hotel room was significantly cooler than the bathroom and I wrapped my arms around myself to keep me warm. Goosebumps rose on my skin as I walked across the room and to my suitcases. I grabbed a thong, a simple bra, a pair of jeans, and a t-shirt.

I pulled them on, not bothering to care if my still-dripping hair would get the tee wet. I ran a hand through my damp hair and looked around the room, trying to recall exactly why I'd chosen to get so drunk last night. I sighed very deeply when I heard a knock at the door and hoped it wasn't Liz. I know that I'd truly pissed her off the day before, and let her down. She had been right about me being irresponsible and it reminded me that I needed to apologize to her for my actions. I walked over sluggishly to the door and pulled it open, not bothering to check who it was first. I blinked in confusion when none other than Harry Styles stood before me, looking rather posh. He was dressed in skinny jeans, a blue t-shirt with a coat pulled over it, and a navy blue beanie on top of his curly, brunette locks of hair. He gave me a shy smile as I quickly glanced behind him to make sure he was alone. “I didn’t interrupt anything, did I?” I bit on my lip as my eyes connected with his once more and I shook my head wordlessly. It grew silent between the two of us and I was about to ask him why he'd come when he spoke up. “I wanted to ask if you'd come to breakfast with me......it's alright if you don't want to, but I wanted to talk to you. We'll be alone, of course, and you can pick where we go.......”

He got quiet, and he began to wring his hands together nervously the longer it took me to answer him. I was honestly still a little stunned he was even here in the first place. I wasn't sure what this was supposed to be, but I doubted Niall had sent him. If I knew Harry, he'd come on his own, and he'd come with a plan. If I didn't say yes to breakfast he'd just find something else to do. With Harry the plans may change but the outcome was always the same. Exhaling out of my nose I nodded, slowly at first but then when he looked a little puzzled more obviously. “Sure, just let me fix my hair and slip on a jacket and we'll go.......” I stepped away from the door slightly and pushed it open a little further. “W-Would you like to come in?” He glanced behind me, a strange look on his face as if he didn't expect me to be alone but he quickly nodded. “Sure.” I took a few steps backwards before turning around and heading into the bathroom. I blow dried my hair just enough that it wasn't damp and then pulled it up into a ponytail. I walked out into the main room and grabbed a jacket off of the top of one of my suitcases before turning to Harry. “Ready?” He gave me a smile and nodded to me.

We walked to the door after I grabbed my purse up and he opened it for me. We walked out silently and as we rode the elevator down to the lobby the awkward silence was almost deafening. We climbed out when the doors opened and headed towards the front doors which were surprisingly empty. We both pulled sunglasses on and walked out into the busy streets. “Where would you like to go?” I shrugged slightly walked towards the street and holding out my hand, hailing a cab. As one pulled over we climbed in and I cleared my throat. “The restaurant Thirty One please.” The driver nodded and took off. I patted my leg nervously and glanced over at Harry who looked equally as awkward. “It's been awhile since we've talked.......” I cracked a small smile as he said this and nodded. “Yeah well, our schedules don't exactly call for a lot of friends.” He gave me a grin and I could feel the awkwardness falling away, leaving behind something much more comfortable. This was how it was with Harry, it couldn't stay weird for long.

He'd always had this personality that shone through the darkest of times. He could always make you smile, even on your worst day. His smile and laugh was contagious, and he was a pro at lightening up the mood. The cab pulled up to the restaurant and I reached for my wallet but realized all too quickly that Harry had beaten me to it. He grinned at me once more and I pushed open the door. We made our way into the building and then rode the elevator to the 20th floor to the restaurant. The older host smiled at us, “Good morning!” I smiled back at him and then glanced around at the busy dining room. “We'd like your private floor please?” His smile never wavered as he picked up two menus and then told us to follow him. We followed him up a long flight up winding stairs and then arrived on the second level. There were couches everywhere, a fireplace, but the entire reason we'd come was for the balcony table. The doors were already opened and as we took our seats I took a look at the gorgeous city around us. Harry inhaled deeply and I rubbed my aching temples.

When our waitress came Harry ordered a coffee. I looked up at her and gave a smile that probably looked like a grimace. “I'll take a mimosa, please.” She gave me a smile and disappeared behind the glass doors back into the restaurant. When I looked over at Harry he looked amused. “Isn't it a little early to be drinking alcohol?” I sat back in my seat and shrugged, unphased by his judgments. “Not when you have a hangover.” He chuckled but it got quiet until the waitress came, left our drinks, and then took our orders. I just got sausage patties, and asked that they not hold back on the grease and Harry got a full plate of things. When she left I was biting on my lip, wondering why we were here. Harry finally leaned forward slightly and smiled at me. “I wanted to talk to you about some of the things that have gone on in the past few days.” I leaned back against my seat and stared him in the eyes. “Such as?”

He smiled at me, knowing fully I was just being difficult. “Well for instance, like the fight last night between Niall and Jesse.......” I nodded slowly and picked up the champagne glass full of mimosa. I took a long sip and then cleared my throat. “Mhm?” He gave me a toothy smile and leaned back. “Well, although I can admit that Niall was wrong in the way he handled his anger, he had a good reason......” I held onto the glass and stared at him over the rim. “He cares about you......a lot more than he'd probably like to admit. When he sees you with Jesse.....he gets angry. Which is understandable since your ex is kind of a huge douchebag.” I cracked a smile at him, because he was right. To people who didn't know Jesse he came off a little strong, and not in the good way. To hear Harry talk about Niall like this made me smile slightly. It was nice to hear that he cared about me, but I wondered if he was being completely truthful or just trying to cover for Niall. “What about his girlfriend?”

Harry took a drink of his coffee and then set it down gently, his face never changing. “I wouldn't honestly consider Barbara his girlfriend. They've only been out a few times, and they don't have much time to talk. They barely know each other, and she's sort of full of herself which isn't his type at all.” It was simple, and didn’t sound rehearsed at all. Harry sounded like he'd thought this all through, and knew exactly what he was talking about. I bit on my lip slightly, wondering where to go from here. “So you asked me to breakfast to tell me that the fight last night was a fluke?” He gave me a smile and shook his head. “No. I asked you to breakfast to tell you that Niall really cares about you, and that although I understand that he hurt you, I think you might want to consider giving him another chance. You obviously care about him. And Jesse isn't right for you, or you guys never would have broken up.”

I agreed with him, every word. He was right about Jesse, there wasn't much to think about. I could take as much time as I needed but the truth was we weren't right for each other, or we would have worked out long ago. Niall and I had something, and no matter how much him lying to me pissed me off I couldn't deny that. We had this chemistry, and we never had a dull moment when together. But I was scared, because caring about Niall so much is why him betraying me hurt so much in the first place. I didn't want to get hurt again. Harry watched me silently, allowing me to think. “I'll consider it......giving him another chance, I mean. But....I still need some time, and I don't want to jump into anything just yet. I need to be able to trust him again, and know that this is what we both want.” Harry grinned, as if he had won a great battle. He'd obviously accomplished what he'd come here for. “Good. Take your time, I know he's willing to wait. As long as he knows he stands a chance and that you don't hate him.” I smiled slightly at Harry and shook my head. “I never hated him, I was just hurt. I think when I get back to the hotel I'll go talk to him.” He grinned widely at me and chuckled just as the food was placed in front of us.

“Excellent!”

Notes

I hope you guys enjoy! Sorry for the long wait! :) Please leave a comment or message me and let me know what you think! -Caity