Ever Since New York [h.s au]

06

"You bought it for me, it's only fitting you get to be the one to put it on my shelf." I handed Harry the copy of Women by Charles Bukowski.

He held the book tightly, staring at the shelves in front of him. "Are you sure, what if I put it in the wrong place?"

"Third shelf is fiction, and it's alphabetical by last name. So it will go after Brontë and before Byron."

I watched Harry bend down, pouring over the variety of volumes on the third shelf. Carefully he pushed the books apart, creating a space. "Here?"

I looked at the two books that had been separated, "Perfect."

He placed my new book on the shelf then straighten. I put my hand on his shoulder, "See, I told you it was easy."

He nodded and we walked out of my room and into the small living room. "Devyn?" He asked.

I leaned against the wall, "At Treys."

He looked at the tv then the couch, "Wanna watch a movie? Or do you only read?"

I pushed myself off the wall, walked over to him, and pushed him onto the couch. "Of course, I watch movies, Harry. I have to read a book, then watch the horrible movie version and complain about why the book is better."

I plopped down next to Harry, he already had the remote in his hand. "Alright, movie hater. What genre?"

I looked at the variety of streaming services Devyn and I pooled together. Somehow neither of us actually paid for any of them. Hulu was her ex-boyfriend's. Netflix was my uncle's and HBOmax was my cousin's. I honestly wasn't sure who's Disney Plus account we were signed into.

"Should we just search romantic comedies on Netflix and then see what we find?" I asked.

"Romantic Comedies?" Harry was already at the search bar on Netflix. "Seems fitting, for a self-proclaimed hopeless romantic."

We scrolled through a few movies, none of which caught either of our attention.

"Oh, The Notebook!" Harry nearly squealed.

I rolled my eyes, "Ugh no, anything but that one."

"What is wrong with The Notebook?" He mused.

I shrugged, "It's my least favorite Nicholas Sparks book, and I've read all the Nicholas Sparks books."

"You've read all the Nicholas Sparks books? I didn't see any of them on your shelves."

"I don't have room for all of my books here, so I left some of them back in New York. I didn't think I'd be rereading any of his books anytime soon." I explained.

Harry nodded, "Well The Notebook is my favorite romantic comedy, even if it isn't much of a comedy. And seeing as I am your guest, I get to pick. So The Notebook it is. Let me set the scene really quick. The year is 1940, Noah lives in Carolina. Working-"

"Carolina?"

"Uh, that's what I said, isn't it."

I shook my head, "Harry, there's two Carolinas . If my memory serves me right, I think this takes place in South Carolina."

He lifted the remote to press play, "I'm from England, New York. I don't need to know the different states in your country."

I grabbed a pillow and shoved my face in it before groaning dramatically loud.

Harry pulled the pillow away from my face, "Watch the movie, Lauren. Please."

I saw the eagerness in his eyes. I had no idea why, but this movie was special to him. So I leaned back into the couch cushions, rested my head on Harry's shoulder, and watched as a silhouette rowed on a lake.