Niall
TWO
"I'm warming up dinner," Meryl called over her shoulder. "You boys get settled. Your room's just the way you left it, Eli."
"Thanks, Mom." He turned to me with a gentle smile on his face. "C'mon."
I followed him down the hallway. Family photos covered one wall, school portraits, holidays and science fair ribbons, but one photo in particular caught my eye. A much younger Eli—missing his two front teeth—grinned at the camera while clutching an oversized pumpkin.
He caught me looking and blushed. "Oh, don't."
I pointed at it. "You were adorable."
"I was seven."
"You were adorable at seven."
He sighed dramatically. "I knew bringing you here was a mistake."
I laughed and followed him into his childhood bedroom. It looked... homey. Not like it had been frozen in time, just cared for. A bookshelf overflowed with novels. A guitar rested in the corner. Posters still hung on the walls and trophies were scattered across a shelf.
The bed had fresh Christmas-themed sheets, and someone had draped a green throw blanket neatly across the foot of the mattress. I could only assume that Meryl had changed the bedding very recently.
"Home sweet home."
I stood just inside the doorway, absorbing the scene in front of me. This was where he'd grown up, where he packed for Michigan. Where he'd probably dreamed about the future long before he knew I'd ever be part of it.
"You good?" Eli had probably been watching me the whole time.
I nodded, but then I shook my head. "I don't know."
He crossed the room until he was standing in front of me. "Hey." His hand settled against the back of my neck, warm, steady—grounding. “They like you. Like, genuinely.”
I chuckled quietly. "That's the weird part."
His eyebrows drew together. "Weird?"
"I've spent the whole flight worrying about saying the wrong thing."
"You?"
"I know."
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "They're just my family, Ni."
I glanced around the room again. "Yeah."
He stepped closer until our foreheads touched. "You’re used to proving yourself,” he said gently. “You don’t have to do that here. They're just happy you're here."
I didn’t say anything, only leaned into his chest and let his words absorb in my mind.