casual affair

Chapter 13

Etta was up early the next morning with Niall, they took Louis back to the airport for his flight.
I couldn't look at Niall at all that morning and neither could he.

I did some work in my office and avoided them both once they were back. Suddenly I couldn't face either of them.

Niall was leaving in about a week and I wasn't sure how I was gonna be able to make it that long. My whole body hurt thinking of him. Partly from guilt of how this whole situation is my fault, and the other part because he wasn't mine.

I emerged from my office around dinner time, relieved to find out Niall was out with Zayn somewhere.

"Harry could I talk to you?" Etta asked, she was sitting at the kitchen table drinking tea.

I nodded and sat across from her.

"What about love?" I smiled to her.

She set her mug down and took a deep breath, "Harry what's going on? with us? i mean i feel like we haven't been our usual selves with eachother" She said and I felt nerves shoot through my body.

"How do you mean?" I asked, faking my curiosity.

"You feel it too I know it, this past month has been so weird for us, I mean we barely speak to eachother or kiss eachother, and I couldn't tell you the last time you seemed interested in me at all" She explained, eyes slightly glossy.

I winced a bit at her words. I had never wanted Etta to feel like this. She was genuinely such a beautiful person I never wanted her to feel so discarded.

I nodded and looked at my hands for a moment before responding, "I know, i noticed it as well"

"So, why is that? like what do we do?" She asked.

I had never heard her voice with such desperation laced into it. She never got nervous or scared, she was always so confident.

"We just have to talk this out right? I mean come on it's us, we always figure it out" I said, trying to get this conversation to have a little bit of hope.

She shook her head sadly, "Harry I don't think you love me anymore, hell I don't even know if you like me" She said quietly.

My eyes went wide and I shook my head quickly, "No no Etta of course I love you, look I think we have both just been busy at work lately and having Niall here didn't give us alot of time to be alone" I said, trying to save at least one relationship in my life.

She looked at me for a moment, studying my face, looking for a sign of me lying.

I knew she didn't believe any of it.

"I think this started before Niall got here, I mean what do we even have in common Harry seriously? You hate all the art shows and wine tastings and shit i take us to, what even brought us together" She asked, sounding tired.

Everything she was saying was true. We got along great but we didn't have alot in common. We didn't really mesh aesthetically, she was so professional and pristine. I was just sort of casual I suppose. We never really had problems in our relationship because we both just let it go and would conveniently get over it because neither of us felt like fighting.

"I think we had fun together, you know, loved eachother" I commented.

I knew where this was going and for some reason, I wasn't trying to fight it.

"I do love you Harry but it's just different than the start, I feel like we are different people" She continued and I nodded.

My subconscious flashed an idea to tell Etta about me and Niall. That way, she wouldn't feel like this came out of nowhere and she wasn't crazy. My ego overpowered that thought.