Desolate - h.s. ✓

° six °

     Once I came out of the bathroom, Harry was fast asleep again in my bed. It was strange seeing him like this and I wondered why he hadn't left. Maybe there was something wrong at his house and that was why he came over so often. Honestly, I doubted that though. His mother was overly kind, and so was his father. They both were at any of the baseball games I attended, and his sister, Gemma, was usually there also. Of course, she had her own family, but I knew that she definitely visited his home often. Or, that's what I figured anyway. Just as I went to shut my bedroom door, I heard the front door open and close. It wasn't long before the person was climbing the stairs, my eyes focusing on the fact that the person was Ethan.

"Hey, E."

"Shit," he muttered, looking slightly horrified, but recovering. "Hey, Nikki."

"Where were you?"

"A friend's."

Nodding, I glanced over my shoulder, seeing Harry lying peacefully in my bed. A part of me wanted to yell at Ethan for not leaving whoever he had been with to help Harry, but I couldn't really do that. After all, when Jason and I had been dating, and Ethan needed me for one thing, I hadn't been there for him. Of course, I regretted it now, but I shook my head, glancing up at my brother. When I went to say something, the sound of a gentle snore became apparent, a few more following before the noise ceased.

"Is someone in your room?"

"Maybe."

"What the fuck?" he asked, pushing me aside gently. "Harry is in your room?"

"He needed to talk to someone last night," I shrugged, feeling less awkward than I thought I would. "You weren't here, so I let him hang out with me."

"If he touched you, I swear to —"

"Nothing happened. We just talked, and then went to sleep," I assured. "Really. Just let him sleep."

Ethan still looked angry, but grunted softly. It was clear he didn't believe me, but he said he needed to wake up Harry, knowing that if our father came home, or our mother saw, neither of them would be very pleased. After a minute, Ethan walked over to his friend, shaking the boy, and telling him to get up. Soon enough, his friend was up, Ethan heading toward his room. Harry grabbed his jacket off the floor, glancing me over briefly.

"This doesn't mean we're friends," he stated simply. "I hope you know that."

"I do."

"Thanks for letting me stay, but I still don't like you very much."

Nodding, he walked out of the room, shutting my door behind him. A part of me suddenly felt empty, uncertain how I could think that he wouldn't go back to his old self. Sure, we had spent the night together, or, a couple hours anyway, but I wasn't certain as to why I thought that would be enough to change the odd relationship Harry and I had with one another.

- - -

When my mother told me that Ethan wasn't coming to LA with us anymore, I was kind of disappointed. After all, the three of us spending time together last night was actually more fun than I imagined it could be. Ethan claimed he had a lot going on, but I knew it was simply because he wanted to hang out with Harry.

"So, I wanted to go to Milk, if that's okay with you?"

"Mom, you know that's perfectly fine with me."

She smiled, knowing that I never minded going. It was always the best, and while the line was usually rather long, I still enjoyed the place entirely. Overall, I wasn't positive as to why we were even going to LA today, but I was glad that my mother wanted to take me with her. Our ride there didn't take as long as it normally would, my mother parking in a parking garage several blocks from Milk. I figured we would go there later, getting out of the car with my mother. She locked the car, the two of us finding stairs. We headed down, the street filled with lots of people. It was a Saturday, so the city was busier than normal. Taking a deep breath, I smiled at my mother when she glanced at me.