Delicate Hearts | Completed

34 || Delicate Hearts

make sure you vote and comment!! this chapter made me cry. or maybe it was the kdrama i was watching while writing. who knows, tbh. 
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I knew I was making a mistake. Again. But I was compelled to go. I couldn't ignore him, after all, he told me. I would be such a terrible person if I didn't go after he opened up to me. So here I was, standing inside Harley's mansion as he stood in front of me. The air is much tenser now compared to when our relationship was simpler.

Simpler meaning that all we would do was make out.

Things are more complicated now. I have a boyfriend. "Hi," I said, breaking the silence. "You wanted to see me?" I notice Harley's change in style. He usually wore preppy-style clothes, but now, he was wearing a black sweatshirt and black sweats.

"Do you want to watch a movie?" He asks, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just wanted to hang out. Nothing more." I smiled softly, nodding to his request. There's no way I would say no. After all the times he's said yes to my wild requests. Sometimes, I would pull up to his mansion, expecting him to be able to do sexual things with me.

Soon, we were both sitting in his private movie theater. His place had a different vibe than the fairytale house I was just in with Angel. His mansion was large. Plenty of room to distance yourself. To drift out. When you call out your names, it echoes. Plenty of space to disappear from each other's sight for a while.

There was a snack bar as well. Mainly sweet things. I remember when he mentioned that he had hypoglycemia. It makes sense that he has lots of sweet stuff to keep his blood sugar levels normal. I got myself a bag of popcorn, and we sat down to watch a horror movie after taking some time to decide. I was seated next to him on a really soft couch. I could melt into it and never come back up.

He munched on a chocolate bar while I ate the popcorn. I'm pretty sure I would finish the entire thing before the movie even started, but that's a me-problem.

— — —

Halfway through the movie, we were both sitting there, unfazed. I can't help but compare Harley to Angel. Angel was scared shitless when we watched a horror movie. Harley is just sitting there, watching someone's brain be removed while also enjoying his food.

"Do you play sports?" I ask out of the blue.

"I like to swim a lot. But it was never official," He answered.

"Are you good?"

"I like to think I am. I had a former Olympic champion coach me for twelve years." I raised my eyebrows, impressed.

"Why didn't you join a team then?"

His eyes stay glued to the movie, but he smiles. The same joyless smile he usually has. "I wasn't always like this, Madison. You're seeing me after three months of rehab and a little more than a year of therapy. Besides, no swim team would want an addict. Pretty sure it's against the rules too."

I wished I could suck all the sadness out of his life. And Angel's. And Aaron's. And mine. Suck it out and toss them into a black hole. But I can't. So we continue to suffer. We continue to heal and recover. However Harley was back then, he's definitely a lot better now. But the camera incident had clearly shaken him up.

He didn't show it, but it was clear from the bags under his eyes, his bandaged hand, and the lingering cuts on his face from the glass shattering everywhere.

"I heard that if you break a mirror, you get seven years of bad luck. I wonder when mine is about to start," He wonders out loud. Again, there's a ghostly smile on his face. The one that never reaches his eyes. He turns to look at me, and we lock eyes. I could barely ever read his expressions. He was kind of emo that way. They were always so blank, but this time, they carried a weight I didn't know. "I guess it's already started."