Enemies with Benefits (Harry Styles)

Chapter Nineteen

*three years earlier*

Harry's POV

I walk into the school as usual. I'm always bored with nothing fun to do in school, so to be honest, I don't want to come here.

I go to where my locker is. As soon as I open it, the piles of textbooks and papers collapse, one after another, out of the locker.

Damn...

But there's a paper that caught my eye. It's folded in two, so I unfold it and look at it.

It's a physics exam on which I got a perfect score.

I look at it, smiling like an idiot. I'll never forget the moment I first saw this grade, I was too happy to think about other subjects' terrible grades.

"Oh, Athena! Welcome back!" I hear a student say.

"Hey, Athena!" I hear another say.

I soon look at where I hear those voices. Athena is there. She's finally back!

She looks good and healthy, I feel very safe.

I smile at her, knowing that she won't be able to reach me directly, since I'm a little far away from her.

I wish I could be the first one to run to her right now, but there is one person who runs to her before me. "Baby, you're finally here! I missed you so so much!" I hear Brad says, and he hugs her.

I'm watching them from a few meters away. Brad looks so happy, hugging his gurly friend very tightly. And right after, he crashes his lips to Athena's.

"No, thank you," I mutter in my mind.

I run to where they are. "Fuck it," I say, pushing Brad away lightly. I take Athena's face in my hands and kiss her, hard, in front of Brad.

I'm kissing her.

In front of her boyfriend.

"Wha- what are you doing you stupid Harry Styles?!" Brad shouts.

I don't care much about him. I just want Athena to be mine.

"You know nothing about her," I say. "I'm the one who held her well when she was feeling low. I'm the one who comforted her when she needed someone. I'm the one who encouraged her when she wanted some hope. But you, you can only show people you're in a relationship with this most popular pretty girl, you don't even know how she really feels."

Athena says nothing, but she seems to be on my side.

"What are you saying?" Brad seems still doesn't understand what's happening right now. He holds Athena's hand very tightly, pulling her closer to himself, trying to avoid her from me.

"No, Brad, please stop," Athena says, letting go of his hand.

Brad looks at her as he's wondering why she's covering for me. After a while, he appears to have had an epiphany, then starts to glare at me, and Athena. "You guys have been setting this up from the beginning, haven't you, Athena?"

"No," she says. "We haven't, Brad. But all Harry said is true. I want someone who needs me, cares about me, and holds me when I'm feeling down."

Brad looks down and can't say anything.

"I'm sorry," she says.

He takes his things and walks away, like being frustrated after losing a battle.

・・・

"Jealous?"

I feel her smirking a little. I shake my head and say, "No."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

I nod with a straight face, acting cool.

"Okay, I'm going back to Brad's then."

"Wait what?! NO."

"Why would you care?"

She's teasing me. I can tell by the way she looks.

"Okay, okay. I was jealous, so damn jealous." I no longer care if I stutter or if I'm blushing. "I was jealous like never before."

She's smirking, again. "Knew it," she says, then puts her hand on my shoulder. "Good boy."

I take her hand which is on my shoulder, squeezing it tightly. "Not really," I say, before kissing her.