| To Hide No More |
| By �isl�ng |
| Kian, Shane and I were hanging out on the set of their new video. We were standing on the balcony of the hotel used in video and looking down at all the models brought in to play the part of lads girlfriends. I was joking around with Kian and Shane, picking out which girl should be with whom and why. "So, do you get a girl of your own or do you have to share?" I asked laughing. Kian looked at me with a strange look and replied "We get our own I would think". He pulled me into him and added "Too bad I can't have my real girl playing the part for me". Shane had this "I've got a naughty thought on my mind and I'm gonna say it" look about him and then he spoke "Ya, if Ash was gonna be in the video, I'd request we share, Ki". Of course we all knew it was meant as a joke - the three of us were very close, but not that close. "Ya whatever Shay. I'm not into that, thanks!!" I laughed. After a very long day on the set and the video was finally completed, Kian and Shane went to change into their casual clothes. I hung around outside waiting for them to finish and man, were they taking forever. Kian had given me his mobile to hold and said if it rang just to answer it. So, that's what I did when it rang, just seconds after Kian had left. "Hello, Kian's phone" I said. "Who's this?" the voice on the other end asked. "Aisling, and you are?". "This is Louie. Where's Kian?". Oh my god, I'm talking to Louie Walsh. "He's just getting changed after finishing up the video and I'm just hanging onto his phone for him" I answered. You see, Kian and I had only been dating a few months and it was not apparent to everyone that Kian even had a girlfriend. It was something that he and I had discussed after deciding to take a stab at a serious relationship. We both agreed that for now we would keep a low profile - no holding hands, no kissing, really no affection in public at all. If it was noticed that I was around a lot, it was because I was part of the Westlife "entourage". There was always stories in the papers about me and one of the lads, but it was always justified as just a rumour. My being Kian's girlfriend was also kept quiet from Louie. That was probably the hardest thing to do because you'd think being the lads manager he'd know everyone who was working for them. Kian, with the help of Shane and Nicky, had Louie convinced that I was working with the record company and he seemed to be alright with the fact that I was around....a lot!! Louie asked me to get Kian to ring him when he was ready and then hung up the phone. I said I would and that was that. Kian finally emerged from changing about 20 minutes after all the other lads had left. "Louie wants you to ring him" I told Kian. I also mentioned Louie was surprised that I'd answered the phone, but Kian didn't seemed too bothered by it. That night, Kian and I stayed at his place, sharing a quiet evening together after the long day we'd just had. We sat in front of a roaring fire, Kian sitting on the floor, leaning against the couch, his arms around me, in front of him between his legs. That's exactly how we fell asleep - in each other's arms. Kian and I didn't live together, but we would spend at least 5 out of 7 nights at either his place or mine. It wasn't very often we didn't wake up next to each other. The next morning, Kian had to be at a press conference for the lads upcoming tour. He asked me to meet him there at lunch time and we would go grab a bite to eat. There was something different about Kian that morning though - he had a different sparkle in his eye than usual. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it didn't concern me - it was definitely a good sparkle. I arrived at the hotel where the press conference was being held just as it was ending. Kian spotted me immediately and motioned me to go over where Louie was standing. Reluctantly, I did. Louie looked at me quickly at first but then turned to take a second glance. He smiled, extended his hand and said "Aisling, it's nice to finally meet you". "You know who I am?" I asked. "Yes, of course I do. I had called Kian last night to tell him I needed to talk to him about his behaviour lately. He's been in such a great mood every day and that includes the days we start early in the morning. I was concerned and needed to find out if anything was wrong, because it wasn't like Kian to be that way" Louie explained. "Then, this morning he told me all about you. I've never seen Kians face light up as much as it does whenever he mentions your name". Kian came over at that moment, took my hand in his and said "Great Louie, you've finally met her". "You're a lucky lad" Louie smiled, patted Kian on the back and left to take care of some business. The photographers were still taking pictures of the lads and suddenly the flashes were coming in our direction. One of them had spotted Kian with a girl and it was ample opportunity for the pictures to make the morning paper. Usually at this point, I would have stepped back out of the way, but Kian would not let go of my hand. I looked at him with confusion and he returned that look with a smile. "It's time the world knew all about you" he said. He pulled me close to him and kissed me right there in front of all those photographers. Kian had made the decision that he wasn't going to be afraid of people knowing the truth. From that moment on, we would hide no more. |