in the ring / harry styles

6- An Irresistible Force

The night had dissolved into a kaleidoscope of music, lights, and voices that filled every corner of the frat house, pulsing in time with the bass that shook the floor. The rooms were hazy, filled with laughter, clinking glasses, and the heavy scent of spilled alcohol mixed with lingering cologne. Around me, people swayed and stumbled, lost in the frenzy of the night, their laughter and conversations rising and falling like waves, nearly drowning out the thumping beat of the music.

Lynn's laughter rang out beside me, bright and unrestrained, her arm looping around my shoulders as she swayed, her face flushed with excitement. Emilia hovered close by, her sharp gaze darting over the crowd, watching us carefully as the energy in the room ebbed and flowed. We'd taken a break from dancing, gravitating toward one of the open windows where a cool draft whispered in, cutting through the thick, stale air.

I took a deep breath, letting the coolness settle over me as I tried to clear my head, the buzzing from my last drink still heavy in my limbs. The alcohol hummed through my veins, offering a fleeting sense of warmth and ease that softened the stress still lingering from Jake's confrontation. I held my cup, the liquid shimmering darkly as I downed what was left, feeling the burn slide down my throat, a warmth that chased away the knot of nerves in my chest, at least for the moment.

"This is exactly what you needed," Lynn said, slinging her arm over my shoulder and leaning close, her breath warm and faintly sweet with the smell of rum. Her words came out slightly slurred, but her excitement was clear, her eyes bright with exhilaration. "No ex-boyfriend drama, just fun."

I gave her a faint smile, nodding, though a part of me couldn't shake the tension still coiled tight within me. My eyes drifted over the room, the sea of moving bodies illuminated in flashes as the dim lights overhead pulsed in sync with the music, casting shadows that danced across the walls. I half-expected to see Jake again, his presence dark and demanding, pulling me into a conversation I wasn't ready for. But as I scanned the crowd, my gaze caught on someone else entirely, someone who made my heart skip a beat.

"Lucy," Emilia's voice whispered in my ear, tense with surprise and a hint of warning. "Isn't that... Harry?"

My breath hitched as I followed her gaze, and there he was—Harry, moving through the crowd with an effortless, confident stride. He seemed to cut through the noise and chaos around him, drawing eyes as he went, his figure backlit by the dim, pulsing lights that framed him in a faint, almost surreal glow. His dark curls were tousled, framing his face, and his green eyes were locked on me with an intensity that made the rest of the room fall away, leaving only the magnetic force of his gaze.

Harry.

The energy in the room shifted in an instant, as if he'd brought something unspoken and undeniable with him. His presence was electric, commanding, and yet he moved with a calm, understated confidence, blending in and yet standing out, like he was both a part of and separate from the crowd around him. Each step he took toward me made the air feel heavier, the sounds around us muffled, my heart pounding louder than the bass that shook the floor.

Finally, he stopped in front of me, his gaze never wavering, and the rest of the party faded into a blur of indistinct shapes and sounds, leaving us in a pocket of charged silence.

"Lucy," he murmured, his voice low, his tone laced with something that sent a shiver through me, something that seemed to resonate in the quiet between his words. The sound of my name on his lips cut through everything else, grounding me in the moment, making it feel as if the rest of the world had slipped away.

My breath came shallow, and I swallowed, trying to find my voice as I looked up at him, feeling every detail of his presence—the warmth radiating off him, the faint scent of cologne mingling with the room's stale air, the intense green of his eyes that seemed to see through everything. "Harry... what are you doing here?"