IV

Part 24

"Oh. Hey Mike." I said as he stood before me.
"Hi. Harry told me to keep an eye on you. He told me everything." He replied, looking up at me.
"Come on in then. I was just doing some homework. You can watch TV or do anything you like." I smiled, walking back to my spot on the couch.
He sat on an armchair, looking at his phone. I looked over at him from my notes.
"Mike, the sound won't bother me. Turn on the television, unless you don't want to, of course." I insisted.
He sighed as he picked up the remote. Lexi's face was on the screen as another woman's voice read the highlights of her interview. Mike did his best to change the channel as fast as he could, but I still saw her. He looked at me with a frown.
"It's no big deal. I'm fine." I lied, concentrating on my homework.
"You know what you need?" Mike asked me, approaching the couch.
I shook my head.
"Some fresh air. Let's go to the balcony." He suggested.
I followed him there, just as he made sure it was safe. We sat down and I left my notebook on the table.
"I don't know how much longer I'll be able to take this. Lexi just seems to be targeting me all the time. I thought it was just for the fame, but." I stopped myself to look up at him. 
"But what?" He asked, stepping closer to me.
Curiosity got the best of him. I bit my lip as a tear rolled down my cheek.
"She's making the world hate me." I shrugged.
It was obvious. She wanted to make me look like the bad guy. Mike sat down to hug me. The sun was setting and slowly, the sky was turning darker hues. He held me as I cried my fear, my stress and my annoyance away.
"I feel like she wants to get back at me. Maybe because of what she said today about Harry." I sobbed into his chest.
He patted my back to calm me down, but I couldn't control it. Tears kept flooding my eyes. Through the blur, I saw a flicker coming from the sky. I looked up, trying to find the source.
"Did you see that?" I asked Mike, taking a step closer to the railing.
"See what?" He replied, confused.
"I don't know. It was lightning or something." I sniffled, drying my cheeks with my sleeves.
Mike didn't respond, he was also looking for it.
"It doesn't look like it's going to rain though. I wouldn't give it any importance. It could be anything." Mike said, looking up at the sky.
"Yeah, but. It was like a white light. That could only be lightning or." I stopped myself in midthought and ran inside.

"How did they even know?" I questioned, frustrated.
I quickly closed the curtains, hiding the paparazzi from seeing any more. I huffed, thinking about how they probably got a great shot of me crying and most importantly, without make up. That would be their headline. Harry's new love with no make up on. They didn't care about me. They didn't care that I was being backstabbed by my best friend. They would just point out how ugly I looked. Another tool Lexi had to use against me.
Mike's hug shook me out of my thoughts.
"I'm sorry that happened. I didn't think they'd know." He said softly.
"It's alright. We just have to be more careful from now on. Harry's always in the spotlight. And anything related to him will be too." I reminded both of us.
I took a deep breath and said goodbye to Mike. It was late and Harry would be on his way.
I went to bed, thinking that my face would be everywhere the next morning. I sighed. I had to be prepared. The hate would start soon. And what had happened moments ago would only fan the flames. And I would just have to accept it. I held onto that thought until I drifted off to sleep.

A thud and a curse woke me up.
"Harry? Is that you?" I said into the darkness.
"Yeah." Harry grunted.
I turned on the light to find him standing on his side of the bed, holding his foot in pain.
"What happened?" I asked, fully awake.
He shook his head, sitting down.
"I didn't want to wake you. But I did the exact opposite." He laughed, laying next to me.
"It's okay. Just get in bed. I missed you." I told him, getting closer to him.
I hugged him and he held me, not saying a word.
"What's wrong?" He asked suddenly.
He knew. He always sensed things when they happened.
"Today. Today, paparazzi got me and Mike out on the balcony." I confessed.
It was hard to tell him. I didn't want him get mad at Mike.
"Don't worry about it. I'll do anything I can to stop them. Why isn't Mike more careful?" He replied, the last part maybe to himself.
"But he checked. Before I went out. He made sure nobody was there." I defended.
He smiled at me.
"What?" I asked.
"You always see the good in people." He said, putting my hair behind my ear.
I shrugged.
"And you. You make everything better. I was upset with everything today. Lexi, the paparazzi, my exam." I sighed.
"Y/N. It hurts me to say this but I have to tell you." He announced, closing his eyes.