shorts || h.s.

5 days after

"Let's get out," Harry suggested, slumped down on the couch, seemingly zoned out.

"Of the apartment?" She asked him, confusion in her eyes.

"Out of here. This stupid town where everyone knows me and where I live. I can't enjoy you," he confessed.

"Like a road trip?" Hope sparked inside her.

"Yeah, just away from here. Away from everyone who's out to get me. I just want to be with you," he said.

"Where will we go?" She asked, watching him put his mustard-colored boots on.

"I've not been to a beach in a while," he shrugged, throwing an empty suggestion at the girl who was sliding a sweater over her sundress.

"You're going to get away from everything by going to a beach in California?" She monotoned, not sure she was all for the trip anymore.

"Oh, darling, we aren't staying in Cali," he smirked, grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the apartment at two in the morning.

The drove out of the city, out of the state, never taking a break (not until they needed gas of course), sleep never occurred to them. They spent every moment exchanging words and sentences. He held her hand and kissed her cheeks.

When the sun came up, she stuck her head out of the window and watched the sunrise, her hair behind her, flowing in the wind. It whipped against the car, and she could feel the sensation of air, cleansing her of all the pressure.

She got back inside and kissed his curls, and he put a hand on her knee.

She thrashed, kicking the invisible spirit away from her. She made sure to rid herself of his presence as she became awake.

"Connor?" Eleanor peeked her head inside the bedroom.

"Eleanor," Connor muttered, not completely back to life.

"You okay, love?" She asked, throwing her hand behind her, pushing the shadows away.

"Yes," she nodded, staring at the floor, lowering herself back into the pillow.

"Goodnight," Eleanor whispered, disappearing from the door frame.

He pulled his hand away from her knee to change the radio station, adjusting the background music to indie. She kept mumbling on about the sun, claiming how beautiful the sky was. He listened attentively, clinging to every word of hers.

"Harry," she muttered, resting against his shoulder.

"Connor," he mocked.

"I love you," she soothed, closing her eyes as she whispered it, making sure no one would hear it but him.

"I love you," he agreed, repeating it to her, making him feel fuzzy inside.

They half-cuddled for the rest of the trip, until he finally pulled into the driveway for the airport.

"Airport?" She screeched, secretly happy with him.

"We're getting out," he whispered calmly, staying in silence until they arrived in their seats for whatever flight they were on.

"Harry, where are we going?" She asked, trying to view him behind his hood and glasses. She always wondered why he kept the "Marcel Glasses" on him, and her question was silently answered at this moment in time.

"I'm not telling you. It wouldn't be special if I did," he smirked.

"If you weren't so lovable, this would be a lot harder," she muttered, sulking into her seat, leaning against his body.

They flew to whatever state they were going to, Harry silently thanking God that Connor's earphones were in when the flight attendant called out the name. He guided the sleepy girlfriend to the rental car and started driving to a hotel. He found a desolate one, just outside the skirts of town, not too run down. Harry slid the key into his pocket and kept driving, finally arriving at the whitest sand and bluest water. No one was around, leaving the space open to them so close to sunrise once again.

Connor never said anything, jumping out of the car and skipping to the water. The water hit the bottom of her white sundress, enveloping her feet in the cold, blue liquid.

He watched her dancing in the water, her sweater lying on a rock near to the shore. He placed his boots and pants alongside hers, and then soon getting too excited to even lay out his shirt that it ended up on the ground next to the rock.

He ran in after her, scooping her up and throwing her around. They played until sunset, when they eventually laid down together in the white sand, nested together.

"Styles!" The guard yelled, banging on the bars of the cell.

He slowly came back to earth, sitting up in a hazy state. "Sir?" Harry asked.

"You're mumbling, waking everyone up," he said, looking away from Harry, not able to view the sad look on his face, much less the fast-drying tears. Harry didn't even notice them.

"Yes sir," Harry muttered. He fell back onto his side, trying to go to sleep without seeing glimpses of her against the setting sun.

almost done with this book oh my god.

and

THANK YOU FOR 10K OH MY GOD LIKE WOW. THANK YOU. EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU DID THIS. I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH. THANK YOU!