Holding On (A Harry Styles Love Story)

Twist

"So I heard Harry's coming to visit you in a few days?" Lila Chambers raved to me as she tried to keep up with my pace.

"Oh?" My voice piped up a few octaves higher, pretending to be interested while I navigated through the throng of people who'd shown up for the grand opening of the new music store downtown. Surprisingly, around 70 people showed up, maybe even more. For a store about the size of an average McDonald's, it was packed to its limit. I probably shouldn't have been surprised, however. Destin was filled with people who breathed music, and this place was rumored to have everything. Band tees, merch, and almost every CD thinkable since the '80s. Every shelf, every rack, row, and aisle was jammed with an overflowing abundance of albums. Jessica and I had planned to meet up around 8 o'clock to scope it out, and apparently some people from school had the same idea.

"Yeah, I saw it on Twitter." She nodded eagerly; her smile was so huge that it almost looked painful.

"Oh, that's cool." I murmured, although I was more excited to have found the Mumford and Sons CDs than I'd ever be talking to her. I fingered the albums, picked one out, and scanned the set list while she kept talking.

She tapped my arm impatiently so I'd look at her. I did, and with lips pressed together in annoyance, I tapped my foot at the girl who only talked to me if the subject involved a certain boy-band member. However, she was oblivious.

"Yeah, so I was thinking about having a party this weekend, and I was wondering if you and Harry would like to come? He could bring the rest of the boys, too, and-"

"Thanks," I looked back at the CDs and stuffed the one I was looking at back on the shelf, "But Harry is visiting on business. The fact that he'll be in Florida is just a happy coincidence." I looked back at her, sending her a silent message with my eyes that told her to leave.

The grin that was too big for her features gradually faded until she was left with an ugly look of disappointment. Her red nails found a loose string on the bottom of her white Peter-Pan collared shirt. It contrasted with her black jeans in the same way that almost everything about her contrasted with me.

She was straight-laced; I was unpredictable to even myself. She moved gracefully, I stumbled through my life. She was a porcelain doll; I was a sketchbook. She was a shallow pool of vainness, while I was an ocean of desire and ambition.

She loved beautiful things, while I believed that love could make anything beautiful.

"Oh, OK. Well...um, OK." She stuttered, and I found it almost amusing that she had no idea how to talk to me if Harry wasn't involved in some way. "I'll talk to you later, Charlotte." She turned away, lacking the enthusiasm she had possessed just seconds ago.

"Yeah, sure you will." I muttered under my breath before turning around to skim for the T-shirt section.

"I thought the boys were going to take three days off when they get here?" I could hear confusion in Jessica's voice as she followed behind me.

"They are," I nodded over my shoulder, still walking, "But she doesn't have to know that."

"Oh," She chuckled, "I see."

When we finally reached the table where all of the T-shirts were displayed, my eyes lit up like a seven-year-old on Christmas morning. Band Tees were my guilty pleasure. As a matter of fact, I was currently dressed in my favorite Ramones shirt.

"So, I've been talking to Josh-"

"Ooh, talking to Josh now, are we?" I jabbed at her, lifting up a Beatles T-shirt. She rolled her eyes, although I could see a small blush painting her cheeks.