Songbird [H.S]

NINE

The rich smell of coffee filled the air as Harry gently tapped his fingers against the wooden table, anxiously waiting for Marley to walk through the coffee shop doors. The teenager had called Harry earlier that morning just as he was leaving for school, asking if they could talk later that day. The lad instantly picked up on how different Marley was acting and knew something had happened, so obviously, he agreed to meet her as soon as he could. All day he'd been worrying about the girl, hoping things weren't as serious as they sounded - everybody knew Marley had a knack for being over-dramatic.

He was seated in a secluded corner at a single table with only a few older couples dotted around the place. It wasn't somewhere he'd actively choose to hang out after school but perhaps that was the point. No one their age was in the small shop so it would be much easier to talk without fear of rumours being spread around the school tomorrow. Harry felt a little awkward while he waited, feeling the occasional nosy stare thrown in his direction from people probably wondering what he was doing there.

With an impatient sigh, Harry glanced at his watch and noticed that Marley was nearly half an hour late. Had she forgotten about him?

All this waiting around was starting to make Harry anxious, his mind began to create all sorts of scenarios that Marley must be wanting to talk to him about. He knew she'd been feeling a little off the past month but perhaps it was something a lot more serious then they all thought. Was she about to tell him she was really sick? The lad couldn't help but scoff at how stupid he was being. She was probably just joking around, trying to worry Harry when all she really wanted to do was to complain to the boy about her sister.

Recently, Marley had been spending a lot of time grumbling about the amount of time Rain was spending time with Niall over the past few weeks. Apparently, there had been many occasions where the girl had walked into a random room in her house and unexpectedly bumped into Harry's half-brother who had snuck in through the window to see her.

They weren't exactly dating but Rain was adamant they were exclusive so until they figured it out, Niall was determined to keep it a secret from Louis. Harry knew they'd end up together soon having seen how smitten his brother was - finding any excuse to go and see her. He was practically a lovesick teenager in the way he could barely go a day without talking to her. While Harry found their relationship sweet, Marley found it incredibly annoying.

Another fifteen minutes had passed and Harry was beginning to think the blonde wasn't going to show. If there was one thing he'd learnt being friends with Marley was that she did everything in her own time, you never knew whether she was actually going to turn up or not. It depended on the day.

Just as Harry was about to put on his jacket and leave, the small bell above the door jingled quietly to announce the arrival of a very pale, very exhausted looking Marley. Concern laced Harry's features as he took in the girl's appearance, noticing her pale cheek also showed signs of dried-up tears. Without even thinking, the lad wrapped his arms around her weak body - desperate to let her know he was there for her. He could tell it was serious, the girl was acting completely different to her usual lively self and that was something very unsettling. He'd never seen her like this before.

"I'm so sorry, Harry. I didn't mean to be so late but there was something important I had to do and it took way longer than I thought it would. Thanks for waiting." She apologised, throwing him a weak smile. As she took a seat Harry noticed she was wearing a very thick cardigan as if it was cold outside. She was definitely sick, she never felt cold.

"Are you alright? You look like hell." The lad blurted out. As soon as the words left his mouth, he realised his mistake. As usual, he didn't think before he spoke.