Meet Me in the Hallway (HS AU)

forty one.

I hardly spoke to Harry that week. After Clem left my room on Sunday, I stayed in the room and only emerged when I was sure no one was out there. I didn't say goodbye to her on Monday morning, instead I waited until the very last moment to leave my room and drive myself to work.

The entire week I tried my hardest to ignore him and stay out of his way. My mind was still saturated with guilt from kissing him and I just couldn't shake it. I continued to remind myself that he was a willing participant but that still didn't ease my sense of coercion.

Friday night, I arrived at Harry's house after finishing work and made my way straight through to my room, as I had every night this week. I ignored Clem's calls from the kitchen as I powered past the doorway and into my cocoon of safety.

Ritualistically, I got into the clothes Harry had gotten for me. They had somehow changed from an item that caused me anxiety to one that eased my nerves. I would then sit in my bed until I heard the distant click of Harry's door closing, signalling he had gone to bed and I was free to go and eat.

Was it a flawless plan? Absolutely not. But it had worked for the past week and I was going to continue the routine until my head was in the right space to face him.

The hoodie was initially cold on my skin but soon warmed up and brought me the comfort I had been chasing all day. The tracksuit pants soon followed and as I pulled them up one leg - there were three hard knocks on my door that startled me enough to topple over, half pantless.

"Be in the car in 10 minutes. I'm not fucking around. I've had enough of this shit." Clem sounded pissed. She had obviously been talking to Harry this week about everything and after our discussion last weekend, I wouldn't be surprised if she was disappointed in me.

Disappointed in me for hurting her brother, disappointed in me for going against her advice and disappointed in me for hurting myself.

She was probably going to drop me off on the side of the road somewhere and make me find my way home as a punishment.

Wouldn't be the first time someone did that to me.

My ass was tender from my fall as I pulled the pants the rest of the way up and slid on some shoes. I was hesitant to open the door to the hallway and finally face my problems, understandably.

Breathe, Josephine.

The hallway seemed longer as I walked towards the front door and towards my inevitable doom- maybe doom wasn't the right word but it felt like I was being walked out of this house and out of their lives.

I could feel the cold air rushing into the space from under the door, sending a shiver up my body. It was going to be cold outside and I wasn't prepared for it. The rain was pounding down on the concrete outside, progressively getting louder as I approached the door. It was almost as loud as my heart hammering in my chest. Almost.

The temperature dropped dramatically as soon as I swung the front door open and I ran to the passenger seat of the car. My shivering, mixed with the hum of the engine was enough to distract my mind.

Hands. The hands on the steering wheel weren't Clems, they were huge and a rich caramel colour. Harry was sitting in the driver seat, hands clutching the wheel but his eyes were locked on me.

I wanted to throw up, the sheer nerves and anxiety I felt was overwhelming. My hands became clammy and my throat started drying up.

"Don't overthink it, we're just going for a drive." His voice was smooth as silk and the volume was barely above a whisper. He could tell I was shitting it.

He always knew. He always knew when I wasn't feeling right or comfortable and he knew exactly what to say or do to calm me down again. He always knew what I needed him to be in the moment, be it gentle or forceful. He always knew.

It was still insane for me to think that we had really only started spending time together outside staff meetings for a little over six weeks. Such a little amount of time together but he had still managed to infiltrate parts of my head and my heart that I didn't know existed.

The windscreen wipers were on top speed, working to combat the rain as he drove. The darkness of the sky lowered my visibility, I had absolutely no idea where we were or where we were going but Harry seemed confident in his ability to drive in this weather.

We continued on the road for about 20 minutes, the radio played softly in the background and Harry tapped his fingers against the wheel to the tune. He didn't look angry with me, he never seemed angry with me. He seemed no different to how we were a week ago, he was acting like the kiss and my avoidance hadn't happened. Part of me was thankful, the other felt ripped apart.

He was stunning, even in the dim light of the car. The street lights that intermittently illuminated the car cast shadows across his face. His skin seemed to glow under the fluorescent yellow lights and there was a red tinge to his cheeks which I put down to the warm heater pumping into the car.

Both his hands were resting on the steering wheel to safely manoeuvre the car over the wet road. His shoulders weren't tense at all, he looked rather calm. His curls were slightly damp due to the rain and stuck to the back of his neck and his forehead.

Instinctively, I reached out and brushed the hair away from his skin. My touch made him jump, but after the initial shock he relaxed back into my touch. His hair was so smooth between my fingers and I found myself continuing to run my fingers through his hair long after I should have let go.

He sighed contently and before I could say anything, the car came to a stop. I looked out the window to see where we had ended up and realised where we were.

We were parked in the parking bay overlooking the same lake we had screamed at not too long ago.

*****

Filler chapter, I apologise for the boringness haha.

I Love You All So Much x