PULSE [H.S]

117

"The trouble is, you think you have time." —Buddha

The banquet is in three days.

We all agreed that we should have one last bar night together in Seattle before it all goes down. We sit at Molly's in the same booth we sat in the very first time I hung out with them. I remember sitting across from Harry, who was shooting me daggers the entire time. Now he sits next to me, his hand resting on my thigh.

I say to him, "Remember how big of a dick you were the first time I came here?"

"Remember when you first saw how big of a dick I really have?" he fires back. I feel my cheeks tint, and I shake my head at him in disbelief. He says, "I think your reaction was somewhere along the lines of 'holy shit'."

"You're still a dick, you know that?" I say, glaring at him as he smirks at me. I want to slap that smirk off of his face, but he looks so cute. I mutter, "Jerk."

He mutters back, "Brat."

A smile breaks out on my face as I look up at him, feeling so completely in love with him. His eyes are bright and full of life tonight, and he's been in a playful mood all day. He leans down and gives me a short kiss, filling my mouth with the taste of his Manhattan drink.

I look around the booth, and everyone is laughing and chatting about random things. The first time I came here, I had no idea that these people were going to become so important to me. We were strangers then. We are family now.

Niall says, "So...anyone up for spin the bottle?"

"Give it up, Niall," Clove laughs as we all roll our eyes at him. She says, "You're lucky you saw it happen even once."

He argues, "Once is never enough."

I lean further into Harry, remembering when Clove and I kissed. It was such a great night, until it quickly turned into one of the worst nights of my life. Harry's hand tightens its grip on my thigh, and I wonder if his mind went to the same place.

Clove and Louis start kissing across the booth, and Zayn groans at the sight. He says, "Can you two get a fucking room before I throw up?"

"They just made out and no one had a problem with it," Clove says as she points to Harry and me.

Zayn says, "I'm not related to either of them, shitface."

My eyes fall on Niall, who is looking a little down tonight. I can tell he misses Pen, and I'm sure being around couples like this doesn't help. His eyes meet mine, and I give him a small smile that he returns.

Louis says, "If we got a room, it would probably mean we are doing more than—"

"Do you want me to punch you in your fucking face, mate?" Zayn says, but his voice isn't threatening at all.

Niall says, "Ooh let Kiz punch him again."

"Again?" Clove says, "Didn't she punch Harry?"

Niall states, "She's punched both of them."

"Louis was an accident," I chime in, remembering how bad I felt at the time.

Harry says, "Her hand hurt more than my face did after she punched me."

I do remember my hand hurting pretty bad after punching him. His face was a lot harder than I thought it would be, but he still had a bruised face the next day.

I glare at him. "Do you want me to do it again?"

"You could always stab me with a pen since you seem to like doing—" he stops talking when I elbow him in his side. He smirks at me.