PULSE [H.S]

028

"In the blink of an eye, everything can change, and we must learn to navigate the new terrain even when it's unfamiliar and frightening." — Cassandra Clare

Everyone's here.

Niall, Zayn, Louis, and Clove. They all arrived at Harry's early this morning, and everyone seems tense. They're definitely not here to just hang out. Something's up. We sit on the couches in the living room, waiting for Harry to get off a phone call that he took out on the balcony.

"What's going on?" I ask, losing my patience.

Zayn says, "Harry will explain."

"If he ever gets off the damn phone," Niall says. "Who is he even talking to anyway?"

We all turn our attention to Harry. He's pacing back and forth on the balcony, and it looks like he's yelling into the phone. His face is angry, and he's making wild hand gestures. I feel bad for whoever he is talking to.

Louis says, "Maybe he's ordering a pizza."

I laugh, finding Louis extremely funny. He always says funny things at the most unexpected times. I've started to appreciate his quiet nature.

Niall says, "No, you idiot, pizza places don't deliver at 10 in the morning."

"Yeah, Niall, that's the giveaway that he's not ordering pizza," Zayn says. "The pizza shop hours."

We all laugh, and Niall pulls the strings of Zayn's hoodie so the hood tightens around his face. Zayn smacks him, and they start fighting like they're little kids. They act like they are brothers, and they are always such an entertaining pair.

When Harry walks back in, everyone falls silent. His instant authority as he walks in the room is really fucking attractive, but it's also incredibly intimidating.

Harry says, "Kiz has been activated."

Everyone looks at me, and I'm confused. I say, "Activated?"

"Means you've been assigned to a job," Zayn clarifies, making my blood go cold.

I've been dreading this moment for a long time, and I knew it was coming, but I'm still not ready for it. I felt like I'd been sneaking by without having to actually do anything. I knew Elias would change that, but now that the moment is here, I'm stunned.

I look at Harry and realize this is why he's been so weird the last few days. He meets my gaze, looking almost sympathetic. This is why he was so angry. He was angry about me being activated and about whatever I have to do.

"Which mission is it?" Clove asks.

Harry stands in front of all of us. He crosses his arms, bringing one of his hands up to his face as he looks like he's thinking about something. He says, "White Quartz."

When everyone's eyes widen, I feel a knot of nerves forming in my stomach. That was not a good reaction to whatever Harry just said. I don't like seeing them all look panicked. It makes me uneasy.

"What?" Clove asks, her mouth slightly agape. Her eyebrows are pulled in. She says, "Why that one?"

My phone buzzes. I almost gasp at the sight of Aaron's name on my phone for the first time in a long time, but I keep my reaction quiet. The sight of it makes my blood boil. The anger that hits me is intense, and it's hard not to scream some profanity.

I open it, and it reads, Babe, we need to talk.

The timing of this is unbelievable. I feel like walls are closing in on me from all sides, and I am being suffocated. My eyes scan over the message again, almost blanching at the word 'babe.' He has absolutely no right to call me that anymore. I can't fucking believe his audacity.