zesty grapefruit [zarry] ✔️

29

"What's with you two?" Gemma asks, watching Zain poke at his pasta without looking up before turning to watch Harry frown into his wine. "You didn't hook up, did you?"

"No," Zain snaps. "Leave it, Gemma."

"Woah," Gemma says, holding up her hands.

"He wishes we did," Harry mutters, taking a bite of bread. "And now he's mad I got a boyfriend because he doesn't have his girlfriend to show off anymore."

"Woah," Gemma says again.

"In contrast to someone," Zain says cooly, glaring at Harry. "I actually liked her. And you only met her because Gemma invited her out and I could hardly say: no babe, don't meet your celebrity crush because I fucked him a couple of times and it might get awkward."

"Shut it!" Gemma says sharply to Harry before he can respond. "And you!" she adds to Zain in the same tone. "I warned you it would get awkward and who would have thought. Here I am, wanting to have a nice dinner and the two of you are what? Jealous?"

"Not everything is about you, Gemma," Harry says mulishly, drowning his glass of water. "Zain's being a jealous dick. And I'm perfectly happy with Max, I'm not gonna break up with him because Zain leers at me a bit."

Zain snorts and turns back to his pasta, spearing it viciously. "I was doing the leering, sure."

Harry bites into his aubergine, glaring at him.

He wants pizza. He doesn't care what his nutritionist says, he wants melted cheese and bread and also a buttload of alcohol so he can forget Zain and his stupid face and everything and Harry doesn't even know why he's stubborn. He could just break up with Max, who was nice-ish but boring and wasn't even all that great in bed, and try it out with Zain.

But he also doesn't want to give in, his competitiveness coming out at the stupidest times, making him stubborn.

"Perfectly happy with Max," Gemma says as well. "Sure. Ok. Whatever," she shakes her head, pouring herself more wine. "We're gonna have a pleasant dinner now and then we're dropping Harry off at his boyfriend's where he can be perfectly happy away from us and I don't have to listen to you fight."

"You're always taking his side," Harry frowns. "And you can't kick me out of my own house."

"What?" Zain says. "Don't wanna spend time with your perfect boyfriend?"

"Zain," Gemma says, squeezing his arm.

"You know what?" Harry says, pushing his plate away. It's not like he wants to eat it anyways. "I'm going right now. You have money, Gemma?"

"Yea," Gemma says, looking at him. "Call me later?"

"Sure," Harry says, ignoring Zain as he walks away.

He hails a cab and gives the driver Max's address, crossing his arm. He's exhausted and annoyed and not even sure where his head is.

"Stop at the drive-through, please," he directs the driver, ordering chips — fries — and a couple of burgers and milkshakes. The fatty smell fills the cab and he tips the driver generously when he lets him out in front of Max's apartment.

"I brought dinner," he smiles, holding of the greasy bags.

Max wrinkles his nose. "You shouldn't eat that," he says, letting Harry inside. "It's not good for you, you'll bloat. Don't you have your shoot in two days."

"Yea," Harry says, his arm dropping like lead. It's easy now that he stands in front of Max. Even when Zain was infuriating him like he had at the restaurant, Harry wants to touch him. When he teases Harry about his food choices and clothes, it's never with the derisive tone that Max now has.

"I need to break up with you," he says, like a weight falling off his shoulders.

"What?" Max says, looking a bit confused. "Because I won't eat your disgusting fast food?"

"No," Harry says, shaking his head, licking his lips. "Because I'm in love with someone. Someone else. I. I gotta go," he adds. "Sorry."

He's out the door and down the steps before he can reconsider and then he realises that he doesn't even have something at Max's, nothing to take with. And that Max has nothing at his place, except the toothbrush Harry had given him the first time he's stayed. He had thought he really liked Max, but apparently he hadn't even put in the smallest amount of commitment.

He walks downhill, one hand in the paper bag to eat the chips, and even now he has the urge to text Zain something ridiculous, something about "this un-LA-ish enough?"

He walks until he's nauseous with fat and salt and his bag is empty, then hails a cab. It was time to go home and maybe at least apologise to Gemma for catching her in the middle of this.

💟

y'all were mad last chapter I love it 😂
y'all gonna be mad now?