Italy In The Spring [h.s]

26

Harry's P.O.V

Fuck, this is terrible.

With the combination of Sierra and Timothée being here, I'm actually going to lose my fucking mind. But at least I have my Rora.

Except she's sat right beside Timothée and right across from me. So close, but so far away. And I need her right beside me to ease the tension in my shoulders. Because Sierra is on my left and Liam is on my right. The absolute worst place I could be right now.

"I can't believe you were that scared over a spider, Aurora," her mom chuckles as she brings her wine glass up to her lips.

"Hm?" Rora hums and moves her eyes away from mine. "Oh, well it was pretty big. And you know how I am about spiders."

I cover my mouth with my hand to hide my smile, gently nudging her foot with mine underneath the table. The only way I can communicate with her right now not being nearly enough.

"Good thing Harry was there to kill it for me," she adds and sends me a sweet, innocent smile. "It took him multiple tries to kill it though. Around four, I think?"

I nod my head while trying to hold back my knowing smirk, "Almost took me five tries. Honestly didn't think I'd ever kill it. Aurora kept scaring it with all of her screaming and moving around." Her cheeks flush a soft pink as she chokes back a laugh, softly kicking my calf.

Timothée looks between us with a weird look on his face, almost as if he knows what really went on. I wouldn't doubt it if he did know. It's not like it's rocket science. Hell, anyone with a pair of eyes could see how Aurora and I are staring at each other right now. Sneaking in lovesick smiles and eyes filled with longing and lust. She's practically glowing, and knowing I'm the reason for that makes me happier than I've ever been before.

This time around feels... different. Like I'm more in love with her than I thought I could ever be. The energy between us has shifted and grown into something I never thought could exist or be real.

"So, any cold feet yet?" Gemma grins from her spot beside Aurora, glancing between Liam and Louis. "I was shitting my pants around this time before my wedding."

Liam and Louis exchange a glance with a small smile. "No cold feet here," Louis says and grabs Liam's hand. "I'm as ready as ever."

I resist the urge to roll my eyes at the innocent facade Liam puts on. I still hate that guy.

But I won't ruin this for Louis. I won't ruin it for him like Liam ruined it for Aurora. I'm not that kind of best friend. Unlike him.

Rora softly nudges my foot with hers and I glance back over at her, knowing she saw the frown on my face before I had the chance to wipe it away. A sympathetic look fills her eyes and I long to reach out and touch her.

This is one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. Pretend like I'm not completely and utterly obsessed with the love of my life in front of people. Having to hide the glances and touches. Not being able to talk to her without every eye in the room watching... waiting for an outburst of yelling because that's what exes do. They hate each other.

But I don't hate her. I love her. I've never hated Aurora, not even for a second. It's impossible to hate your soulmate. At least, for me it is.

"So, how has Paris been, Harry?" Sierra asks in a hushed tone beside me, subtly scooting closer to me.

"Just peachy," I mutter without looking her way. "Really loved the personal space that came with being alone."

Sierra and I's relationship is... in the past. Not that there ever really was a relationship to start with. She just so happened to walk into one of my art exhibitions and I could've sworn that it had been Aurora. At the time, her hair had been brown, not blonde like it is now. Which, by the way, does not suit her at all. And her eyes, while they were green, did not compare to Aurora's. Everything about Sierra is so bland compared to Aurora. But, for the time being, I would take anything I got.