Page 14 of Christmas Sunrise
"Ah, so, youdon'twant another drink," Niall says.
"Feck off. Get me another pint of lager."
"Here, forgive me for being bold, but is your man over there with the red sweater single by any chance?" Niall leans towards me, nodding at Jake.
"Jesus Christ, Niall." Rob chuckles. "Give it a rest, will ya?"
"Let the man answer," Niall pushes back.
"He is single," I say thinking back to Jake's first conversation after we picked him up. "Very single."
"Isn't that interesting?" Niall asks Rob pointedly who is still shaking his head at his friend. "And what's he drinking?"
"Mulled wine but I just topped him up actually."
"So I can't buy him another?" Niall muses, more to himself. "Maybe I should just get him one more for when he's done. It is Christmas, after all."
"Let me go ask him," I offer. "Just to check he's happy with that."
"Why wouldn't he be happy about it? A handsome ginger giant like meself wanting to buy him a drink?"
"You are indeed a very handsome giant," I agree, and Rob laughs a little harder.
"Come on," I say to Niall. "I'll go introduce you and you can ask him yourself if he wants that drink."
"That sounds like a grand idea," Niall says then puts on a voice as he turns to Rob. "And don't worry Robbie, I'll be back with your pint. I won't forget you."
"Thank God," Rob mumbles after Niall before turning back to me. "Listen Marty. So good to see you. I’ll tell Ma and Da I saw you."
"Good to see you too, and really, best of luck to you and Hazel with the baby. Send your parents my love. I'll pop round in the new year too. And I'll be thinking of you all tomorrow."
Rob's face falls for the briefest moment, and, when his smile returns, I can see the effort in it. I push aside my reservations and grab hold of him and pull him into another hug. I don't let him go until I start getting strange looks from some of his other friends. I then say goodbye, unashamed of him seeing the tears in my eyes, and I walk back to my table.
Jenna stands up to greet me when I get there. Her hug is warm and solid and soft; exactly what I need. She is always exactly what I need when I have my moments of sadness like this. As I sit back at the table, I notice Maeve and Arabella are deep in conversation, both of them giggling, and Jake is busy doing something on his phone. I'm about to get his attention to advise him about Niall but the man himself steps up behind me and his voice bellows loudly enough to stop Maeve and Arabella's conversation.
"He's about to warn you about me and my advances," he calls out.
Jake blinks as he looks at Niall, then at me, and finally, at Jenna. When he notices Niall's eyes firmly on him, he just stares blankly back.
"Not much of a talker, are you," Niall says.
"Oh, you’re talking to me?" Jake asks.
"Who else is attractive enough for me to be this eager and direct?"
Jake sucks his cheeks into his mouth but it's not quick enough for me to miss the pink glow that lands in them.
"I'm Niall." His arm sticks out past my face and across the table.
Jake looks at his hand questioningly for a few moments before placing his own in it.
"Jake," he says in a voice that is uncharacteristically quiet.
"I wanted to buy you a drink, but Marty here said you'd be double parked, so I wanted to come tell you that it's fecking Christmas Eve and that's exactly what you should be."
Jake's eyes narrow on Niall and for a second I think he's going to refuse the offer, but then his face breaks out into a smile. "I agree with you, Niall. So go on. Double park me."
Maeve's snort is loud and that makes Arabella slip into a snickering fit, meanwhile Jenna and I swap bemused expressions.
