request for @charlottesydx :)
Summary - Harry is scared of the dark
For as long as Harry could remember he had been afraid of the dark. It was ok when he was young though, because people thought it was quite cute. He didn't have to justify falling asleep with the lights on or clinging to his mum when it was dark because it was perfectly reasonable that a small boy like him would be afraid.
His fear didn't decrease as he got older however, and people became less and less sympathetic. It was humiliating to Harry when he would ask timidly if the lights could be left on whilst at a sleepover, or when he would have to explain why he didn't want to go out after sunset. His friends teased him for this of course, until they saw him have a full blown panic attack for the first time and had absolutely no idea what to do.
He was still very much afraid of the dark when he reached his 20's, although he had sort of learned how to control his anxiety. Whenever he could feel himself start to panic, he would try to ground himself, normally by clinging on to someone, that someone being Simon more often than not. The first time it ever happened, Simon had no idea what he was doing, but he could see that Harry was shaking and so he tried his best to calm him down.
After this happened several other times, Simon connected the dots and finally figured out that he was scared of the dark. He realised that Harry hadn't told him because he was embarrassed. Simon knew that if Harry couldn't bring himself to confess his fear to him, there was no way that he was going to tell any of the other guys. And so after the same thing happened again and Tobi watched the whole incident, Simon explained to everyone when Harry was off elsewhere. They all thought that it was pretty adorable, although Simon made them promise they wouldn't bring it up because he knew Harry was ashamed.
Harry did start to suspect that all of the other guys knew when they were unusually nice before filming the latest video. Vik took the time to explain to him reassuringly how it was only going to be dark for a second in the intro, and Harry couldn't help but wonder why he felt the need to warn him when he had no idea about his secret fear. Then Harry realised that Simon must have figured out what he was scared of, and he would have certainly made sure to tell all the other guys so they would never accidentally upset him.
He should have known that as soon as Simon discovered something that scared him, he would have done everything he could to ensure Harry never has to encounter it. Everyone liked to constantly tell him how protective Simon was over him, and secretly he loved it. It was extremely nice to feel so cared for, and it made Harry feel extra special since he was the only one who got treated so fondly by Simon.
So when the lights were dimmed at the start of the video, Harry wasn't surprised to feel Simon gently squeeze his hand and give him a small smile. He knew better than anyone else that Simon would make sure he was ok.
Vik wasn't lying when he said it was only going to be dark for a second, much to Harrys relief. He managed to nail the intro first time as well and so the lights stayed on for the next 45 minutes. By the time they were half way through, Harry was rather enjoying himself. He was tied with Josh when they took a break for lunch.
Harry had quickly gone to fetch his drink when there was a loud noise and all of a sudden it went pitch black. He couldn't make out anything, and they were filming in a studio that they hadn't been to before, so he had no idea where he was in the building. He tried his hardest to remember how he had got here and where everyone else was, but he could feel himself starting to freak out.
This hadn't happened in a long time but it felt all too familiar. He could his heart rate increase, his palms start to get clammy, and it was getting harder to breath. He tried desperately to stop panicking, he tried everything he could. He tried to feel around for Simon, but he wasn't there. So he tried to feel around for anything, but there was nothing for him to grab a hold of. It felt as if the darkness was swallowing him, as if it was somehow entering his body and sucking him in. It was impossible for him to stay calm and so he simply curled up into a ball and rocked back and forth, hoping the light would come back soon.
Meanwhile, Simon had instantly thought of Harry when it went dark. The owner of the studio had let them know immediately that it was a power cut, they were fairly common apparently, but the power should be back in a few minutes. Simon wasn't sure that Harry would be ok by himself, downstairs and alone, even if only for a few minutes. Annoyingly, Vik had confiscated their phones before filming and hidden them so only he knew where they were. It wasn't a bad idea, since Ethan was notorious for checking his tinder every 5 minutes whether there was a camera on or not, but it meant that now Simon couldn't text Harry.
He whispered to Josh that he had to try and find Harry, who he knew would definitely be terrified. The studio owner however, didn't understand the urgency of the situation and told Simon it would be dangerous for him to move around in case he knocked any of the equipment. She said that if any of them could feel around and find a phone to use the torch, then she could let Simon go, although she kept chuckling at him, wondering why he needed to see the other boy so badly. She asked Tobi, and he simply answered that Harry was a bit fragile and Simon had dedicated his life to protecting him.
Simon managed to feel his way over to Vik, who was some how able to locate the confiscated phone pile in the pitch black. Simon was finally allowed to go and find Harry, although it took a painfully long time for him to manoeuvre around the set and reach the door.
It wasn't very hard to guess where Harry was since they were on a lunch break. He located him in the third room he looked in, sat on the floor and looking extremely glad to see Simon, who didn't hesitate before pulling him into a hug. They didn't speak for a few moments, Harry clinging on to Simon and beginning to breathe a little easier.
They sat together for a few minutes and Simon tried his hardest to continue calming Harry down by ruffling his hair and attempting to distract him. He was still fairly afraid and kept nestling closer and closer into Simon, but at least he wasn't alone.
And a few minutes later the lights were back on; Harry could finally relax. He gave Simon one last affectionate squeeze before jumping up and skipping back to the others. Simon followed behind him, grinning to himself at how Harry was humming happily.
