Blind // H.S.

sixteen

I suck in a sharp breath and as I exhale, a soft sob escapes my lips.

Harry runs his hand slowly up and down my back in comfort, a small but sweet gesture. But nothing could bring me comfort in this moment.

I wasn't able to make it through the story of my past without breaking into a million pieces. Having to recall the events of this tragedy almost hurt as much as when it happened. Every bit of the pain and heartache that I recall from those first days. Telling the story of a lost love and lover was too much. It was the first time I had shared this part of myself with anyone, really. The trauma, the pain, the guilt.

I catch my breath and sob again.

Harry reaches for my shoulders and our bodies crash together as he embraces me tightly. He hasn't said a word since I finished talking, but somehow the silence that surrounded us was comforting. His presence was one of consolation that needed no words.

We sat there for a moment embracing one another until suddenly I felt a grasp beneath my thighs, and in a quick swoop he picked me off of the bed and placed me on his lap so that we are face to face.

We lock eyes and he reaches to sweep a stray tear that is left on my cheek.

"You are so strong, Charlie," he says softly as he reaches to tuck my hair behind my ear.

Another tear escapes and slips down my cheek as I say "I don't want you to feel like I am pushing my past and my pain on you. I-I just wanted to be honest with you."

"You are not pushing anything on me," he says. "I want to know your heart, your pain, your past, whatever you want me to know. They make you the beautiful, wonderful person that you are."

"My heart is so scarred, Harry," I blurt out before he cuts me off again.

"A scarred heart is a product of one that lives. We win, we lose, we cry, and we love. It is all part of what makes us into the people we are meant to become. There will be pain, there will be loss, there will be things we will never understand but that is life. We are meant to live it to its fullest, even when it hurts."

He is the most beautiful person I have ever met. Inside and out.

I reach up to graze his cheek with my hand and flash him a soft smile through the tears that were still welling in my eyes.

"You are one of a kind, Harry Styles," I whisper to him.

In a moment his hand reaches to grab my cheek and pull me into a soft kiss. This one felt different than the others. This one felt like more than just a spark. It was deeper than anything I have felt in my life. The kind of kiss that makes your stomach drop like when you are on a roller coaster, the kind that makes your heart flutter with nerves, the kind that lets you see a future ten years down the line with someone.

For the first time in my life, I think I may have felt love.