Latch (A Harry Styles Fanfiction)

43. Genius

LISTEN TO JAMES BAY, IF YOU EVER WANNA BE IN LOVE AND ONE DIRECTION 18 NOW OK.
-C

We were driving through the streets of London, Harry was pointing out all the little places he liked to go and nice restaurants where he promised to take me. We'd been to breakfast and now he had to work, but he decided to take me with him.

"Are you sure I won't be in the way?" I said, worried I'd just be a spare wheel.

"For Gods sake Liv. No you wont. Honestly, all we do is mess about on the sofa anyway and talk. Write a few songs, nothing major. Ok Olivia?" He rubbed his thumb over my jeans soothingly.

"Ok." I sighed, still not convinced. He looked at me again and rolled his eyes.

"The guys like you, you know. Just because you got drunk and puked on Louis vans doesn't mean he hates you..." He shook his head.

"Oh Harry I didn't! Did I?!" I put my head in my hands and he laughed, hitting the steering wheel as he did so. I still barely remember that night.

"A little baby." he shrugged, biting his lip to stifle his laughter. His face changed quickly though. "I forgot to tell you never to do that again." he frowns. What?

"What?" I voiced my thoughts.

"I've never been so scared in my life. You were so pissed I thought you'd need your stomach pumped. Don't ever get that drunk again, you hear me?"

"Yeah I do, but do you hear yourself?" I snapped. Who the hell does he think he is? "You don't get to tell me what to do Harry. I can take care of myself." I looked out the window.

"Well, obviously you can't? Who the hell goes and gets drunk their first time in a new city with no way of getting home with no one with her?!" He scowled.

"Maybe you should've been there then!" I shouted and his fists clenched the wheel tightly.

"You know I couldn't. You didn't want me." he justified. He's right, I didn't want him. But he doesn't know that.

"You could've tried harder."

"Fuck sake Liv! Don't play this bullshit guilt trip with me." he growls.

"I think I'm owed a guilt trip or two! After everything you've done!" I spat at him.

"If this is gonna be thrown up in my face every time we fucking disagree I can't be arsed with this shit!" He says with such venom. His face falls after the words leave his lips but I don't care.

I turn back to look out the window as my vision blurs from the tears brimming in my eyes. How could he 'not be arsed with this' after all the begging he did to get me back? I feel like this is an endless circle of I'm sorries and I love yous that quickly turn into hurtful words from him.

"Liv." he moans, hitting his hand off his forehead in frustration. "I didn't mean that." he puts his hand back on my leg.

I don't even move it off or jerk away. I just stare out the window and ignore him until we pull up to the studio place and we walk inside. Only speaking when some guy says hi to us. His eyes stay with mine, remorse and sadness laced in his looks.

"Liv, why do you listen to all the bad things I say and not the good?" He made a pretty valid point but I held my ground.

"Hey it's the couple of the moment!" Louis rolled his eyes and waved us in.

Harry made one last look at me with pleading eyes before we walked in. The studio room was basically like a lads dream room, it had a sofa, a fridge and loads of instruments, CDs and records. Actually, it was Harrys dream room.

"Hiya guys." I waved shyly to all the lads who were sitting on the couch bickering about football.

"Olivia! How are you?" Liam smiled. He was definitely my favourite.

"Good, really good."

"So... are you and Harry-"

"Together? Yes we are." Harry interceded and took my hand rather roughly to sit beside him, moving Zayn and Liam up and Niall off the sofa entirely.

"Jeez Styles, take my seat why don't ya." Niall joked and I smiled at him.

"The lady needs to sit, Niall." He said a little too sharply.

"The lady, Harry, can speak for herself." I raised my brow as Louis made jeering noises and 'oohed'

He rolled his eyes but a glimmer of a smile traced his lips. I know I don't want to fight with Harry, but this state were in now, this reminds me of how we used to be. Two friends taking the piss out of one another, it's all sarcasm and... Well, and now love. And it's a reassuring and exciting state for me.

I felt Harry pull me onto his lap and I snapped my head round. "There's room for all of us." He motioned for Niall to squeeze between us and Zayn.

"So Harry, since this is the first time you've participated in work for the last three weeks," Louis began, I could tell her was just pulling Harrys arm but the thought of him not working made me uneasy. "I'll let Liam fill you in."

Harry playfully flipped him off and wrapped his arm around my waist, resting his head on my shoulder.

"So basically, we've been working on the same song all this time and were kinda swamped, but we don't wanna just abandon it. We have a tune and the chorus you wrote, but the verses are stumping us mate."

"You wrote it?" I turned to him and he nodded bashfully. "Let's hear it."

"Ok... Nialler, get the guitar."

"Play her the tune." harry instructed Niall. He nodded and began strumming. The melody was nice, really nice actually.

"Harry the chorus is on you." Zayn said.

He looked to be considering something in his head before he started to sing.

"I have loved you since we were 18. Long before we both thought the same thing. To be loved and to be in love. And all I can do is say that these arms were made for holding you. I wanna love like you made me feel, when we were 18."

I watched closely as he sang. The way he seemed to focus on some point in the room, yet he was looking nowhere at all. The way his finger hit off my leg to the beat of the song. And I especially loved the way he gritted his teeth with some words, crinkled his eyes and stretched his neck while singing.

"Wow," I looked to him, then to each of the boys. "that's amazing... Wait, play me the start again Niall."

"Yes ma'am." He said and harry began nudging me, making me blush as his words from the night before were reminded to me.

Harrys POV

She grabbed the notepad and pen that was sitting on Zayns lap and began to scribble, while listening intently to the melody Niall was playing.

I watched her and held her, doing the things I never thought I'd do again. I need to get my shit together for this girl.

"What, is she some sort of genius or something?" Louis asked me. I shrugged and smiled proudly at my girl.

"Well babe?" I asked when she stopped scribbling.

"Ok, I wrote a verse.. I don't know if you'll like it though." She fumbled and scratched a few words out and refilled them.

"Sing it for us then." Zayn smiled shyly at her.

"Me? No I can't sing." her cheeks turned red.

"Yes you can Liv, go on sing it!" I encouraged her.

She but her bottom lip, I made a mental note to someday day that for myself...

"Ok, uhm.."

"I've got a heart, and I got a soul. Believe me I will use them both. We made a start, be it a false one I know. Baby I don't want to be alone." she sang pretty perfectly. In a quiet and high tone that had all the men in the room under her spell.

"Well fuck." Louis hit his hands off his legs and stood up. "Harry your girlfriends and flipping genius."