Ours | Haylor AU |

Ch. 1 / Stranger's Silence

No one's POV

It was a very chilly December morning in New York. At this time of the year, everyone was dressed in their winter outfits; layers of clothing were hidden underneath their coats to protect themselves from the cold weather. Twenty year old Taylor Swift carefully walked along the busy street of New York, holding a cup of coffee with one hand. From an outsider's view, you would see that she was just a typical young lady walking down the street. But what you didn't know, she was having a hard time as she took each step cautiously, encouraging herself that she could do it. She just wanted to go home.

Nineteen year old musician, Harry Styles, was busy talking to someone on his phone when he realized he bumped into someone.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I wasn't paying attention," Harry apologized as he gave attention to the lady in front of him. He eyed the damage he caused, and saw her coat and scarf stained with the coffee that fell and spilled on the ground in front of her.

"It's okay, I'm fine," Taylor replied nonchalantly, as she dabbed the wet parts of her outfit with her handkerchief.

"I'll buy you another drink," Harry offered.

Taylor lifted her head and shook it.

"No, it's okay, thank you," she said with a warm smile on her face.

Harry was confused as he observed her; she looked anxious and her eyes were focused on somewhere else but him. But then, that pair of eyes was the best and most beautiful ones he had ever seen. They were deep blue; so calm and peaceful just like the ocean.

"I'm okay, thank you. But can I ask you something?" she asked worriedly, her eyes still focused far away.

"Anything," he replied, mesmerized as he stared at the beautiful creature in front of him.

"Did I just pass by Eighth Avenue?

"No, still two streets away," he replied, shaking his head in confusion.

She sighed in gratitude, and then smiled at him.

"Thank you," she said as she carefully walked past him, making sure she was walking near the right side of the sidewalk.

He watched her for a while, out of curiosity.

"Hey, watch it!" A big grown man growled when she bumped into him. That's when Harry realized that she was visually impaired.

"I'm sorry!" she said in terror.

"Would you be more careful?" the man growled at her before Harry made his way in front of her to shield her protectively.

"Hey man, back off, don't talk like that to a lady," Harry scowled at him.

"She was blocking my way!" the guy complained.

"She can't see, man. Cut her some slack," Harry said angrily. The man just shrugged and walked away angrily without even saying another word. Harry turned around to look at the beautiful lady behind him to see if she was okay. "Hey, he's gone. You're going to be alright," he said, carefully touching her arm.

"Thank you. No stranger has ever defended me from anyone." A beautiful smile appeared on Taylor's face, and she couldn't help but feel glad that someone defended her from other strangers.

"It's fine, and I would really like to make it up to you for what happened earlier. If you may, let me buy you a drink. Let me make it up to you," he said, trying hard not to sound desperate. There was something about her that truly caught his interest.

"What you did for me was enough," she replied; kindness was evident in her voice, as she was beyond thankful for what he did. It was just hard for her to trust anyone, especially someone she just met, but yet she felt comfortable under his presence.

"Please?" he insisted.

She could sense from the sound of his voice that he was really sincere. It made her smile. He sounded like a good young man, so she just gave up. "Well, okay."

"I'm Harry, by the way," he said, holding out his hand.

Taylor took his hand and shook it. "I'm Taylor."

"Don't worry, I'm harmless. I'm not that kind of guy... So would you like me to, uhmmm... hold your hand? So I could, uhmm... lead you to Starbucks?" he asked shyly.

"Okay," she said, and giggled at his sudden shyness. She felt him hold her hand, making her bite her lip in delight. His hand was soft and smooth, and it felt foreign to her. They walked slowly as he held her hand tightly, so she wouldn't slip away from his grip.

Taylor heard a bell ring as he opened the door to Starbucks and he ushered her in.

"We're here," he muttered after a while. The smell of coffee filled her senses and she felt warmer inside the restaurant.

"What do you want to order?" he asked as they stood a few feet away from the counter.

"Same as yours," she answered shyly.

Harry creased his eyebrows as he felt a little bit confused. "How will I know if you'll like it?"

"Surprise me," she said confidently. In return, he chuckled and led her to a table. Pulling out a chair for her, he told her to sit down on it carefully.

"Wait here, okay?" he said to her. She nodded in return.

Harry walked back to the counter to order their food and drinks. He ended up ordering two tall cappuccinos and two chocolate chip cookies.

"Hey, are you with Taylor?" the young employee assigned on the claiming section asked Harry.

"Yeah," he answered, feeling a little bit confused.

The lady handed him a slightly long metal something and he didn't know what it was.

"A couple of jerks stole this from her a while ago," she said as she gave the item to Harry, who tucked it in the pocket of his coat..

"Oh, thank you. I'll give it back to her," he said nicely.

She smiled at him. "Thank you. Are you friends?"

"I just met her. I kinda spilled her coffee on her," he said with a chuckle.

"She's a wonderful person. You'll like her."

"Yeah, I think I will."

She then placed Harry's orders on the tray sitting at the upper table near the customer's reach. "Here's your order, Harry" she said politely.

"Thanks," he said as he grabbed the tray. He was about to turn around and go to their table but he called the lady again, who had the name 'Karlie' written over her name tag. "Wait, does she come here often?" he asked curiously.

Karlie grinned.

"Everyday nine a.m." he answered and winked at him.

Karlie laughed. "Thank you, Karlie," he muttered before walking back to where Taylor was sitting.

Harry and Taylor clicked right away. They talked and laughed together. Taylor told him a bit about her blindness, while Harry shared his passion for music. It was such a cold day in December, but it didn't prevent the spark of love from growing inside the hearts of the two young individuals who chatted away as time slowly passed by.