Becket Drive - h.s.

Chapter 24

Harry

Peeling my eyes open to the sound of my alarm, I roll over in my bed to shut it off. Waking up early for a run is never what I want to do after getting home late but I didn't fucking expect it.

After Vera and I left the frat house last night it was already late, 11 pm. Luckily that ice cream place she likes is open past midnight so we had somewhere to go. But that meant getting home later than I wanted to.

Dragging myself out of bed right now is the last thing I want to do. I try to sleep early to avoid having this problem but sometimes it doesn't work out.

Sitting up, I let my feet hit the cold floor under me, helping me wake up. I rub my eyes in tiredness as I stand from my bed and make my way to my bathroom. The blinding lights in here help me wake up too, sending pain through my eyes once I turn them on.

Once I adjust to the light, I turn on the sink and grab my toothbrush, put toothpaste on it, and bring it to my mouth. I use the time it takes to brush my teeth to look at my face in the mirror, studying the circles under my eyes. Not as dark as I thought they would be.

Leaning down into the sink, I spit out the toothpaste, using the water to wipe the rest off the slides of my mouth. I splash some water onto my face to rinse it off before turning off the sink and grabbing a towel from the counter. Wiping down my face, I get the water off before tossing the towel back down and walking out of the bathroom.

Turning to my closet, I walk inside and grab running clothes. It's too cold now to leave without a shirt so I grab shorts and a black t-shirt. Once it gets even colder I'll probably switch to a long sleeve.

Pulling on my shoes, I head to my nightstand to grab the few things I need. My phone and keys find their place in my pocket as I step out of my room, heading to the kitchen. I fill up a glass of water as I look for something small to eat. Not in the mood to make anything, I grab a banana off the counter and peel it, eating it as I drink my water.

Once I finish my poor fucking excuse for breakfast, I head out the door and ride the elevator down to the lobby. The doorman nods as I pass, this being an everyday occurrence for us.

The freezing air of Chicago before sunrise hits me and I almost wish I had worn a long sleeve before I remember that I'm about to warm up. I start running in the direction of the Riverwalk, knowing it'll be empty since it's so early.

As I run, I let the anger I'm still holding from last night fuel me. I knew Ethan was a fucking brat but I didn't think he'd stoop down to this level.

When Vera let me read her texts from Lucas last night I didn't know what I was expecting. But it wasn't that Ethan was sitting at a frat party with another girl on his lap. My immediate reaction was wanting to punch him in the face. But that was taken over by concern when Vera got up and started trying to leave the house.

There was no way I was letting her drive when she wasn't even coherent enough to find a pair of shoes. I made her let me take her to the frat house.

When we got there her frantic state got worse when she heard that Ethan had moved on to kissing the girl that was on his lap. I followed her into the living room and I could feel the shock radiate from her when she saw the girl shoving her tongue down Ethan's throat.

They went outside to talk and I stayed in the living room, anxiously waiting for her to come back. I was picturing her coming back in tears and that sent a weird feeling through me. That feeling was followed by guilt because a selfish part of me was glad this was happening. Not even just for my sake but for Vera's. No one should have to endure that many stupid fights with their boyfriend who's shown how little effort he's willing to put into the relationship.