Chapter One:
I took a sip of my hot coffee as I gazed out of the window on to the quiet streets of Primose Hill. It was Sunday afternoon and I was taking so time out after a busy week at work; just me, myself and the world enclosed in the pages that lay open in front of me.
Life was good. In fact, life was more than good. I'd secured a good job that I enjoyed and for the first time in months I had money to spend on myself, rather than solely on tedious bills and living essences. I was seeing the world in a different light. The skies were bluer then ever and I'd begun you notice the freshness of the air around me much more often than I have even done before. Primrose Hill was my London Nirvana, and it reminded me that city life wasn't just about sweaty overcrowded tubes and corporate affairs. I sighed contentedly, smiling to myself as my mind wandered back to the world of the book I'd become so engrossed within; eyes quick to find the place in which I'd left off.
Just as I settled and turned the page, the door to the small, intimate cafe flew open and banged shut, stunning the few people that I was sat amongst into silence. The figure stood there breathless; head completely covered up by a grey thick-knitted beanie that pushed a few wayward strands of chocolate hair across his temples and cheeks. His coat was pulled high around and neck and his shoulders were hunched, as if doing his very best to keep his identity hidden. He kept his head down, yet I could see a slight smirk playing on his lips; evidence of his amusement at the startled seen he'd caused. I watched him for a moment, curious about his abrupt entry, wondering what the cause for his sudden fluster and sharp rasps of breath. A few seconds dragged by before the room fell back into a relaxed murmur of chattering and I lowered my eyes onto the page once more.
"Sorry do you mind if I sit here?"
My eyes snapped upwards to meet the figure that had previously interrupted the stillness of the cafe. His fingers were already unbuttoning his heavy black trench coat and he'd pulled the chair outwards with his foot, ready for him to sit down. I looked around to see that all the other tables were occupied. I'd been too wrapped up in my book and daydreams to notice people entering.
"I guess I don't have a choice, do I?" I smiled watching him as he grinned down at me.
"Not really" he joked before slipping his coat from his arms and hanging it on the person in front of me; an unmistakable perfect grin matched with an unmistakable charming presence.
I could feel my eyes widen and jaw threading to drop, so took a hurried sip from the mug in front in an attempt to disguise my surprise. I wasn't sure wither he'd noticed or not, but I assume from the amused look on his face that he'd caught my expression. I rested the mug back on the table and cleared my throat.
"Dare I ask what the sudden entry was for?" I laughed, subconsciously circling the rim of my mug with my index finger.
"Paps." He rolled his eyes. "Can't escape them."
"Well that’s the price you p-"
"-Pay for being Harry Styles. Yeah, yeah, I know" he laughed "If I had a pound for every time somebody said that, I'd be rich" I couldn't help but laugh at his remark. "How about you?" he continued. "Oh you know, same."
He grinned reaching for his bag and pulling his wallet out. "Can I get you anything? As an apology for my unwelcome intrusion."
"No, no, I’m fine thank you. I replied coolly, even though I was almost out of coffee.
Harry returned a few minutes later with a try with 2 steaming mugs on and a plate of cake. I frowned up at him, but he interrupted before I could say anything.
"Well you were pretty much out of coffee and I wanted cake and refuse to eat myself. Have you seen how big it is?"
I laughed as he placed the tray on the table. He was right- it was probably the biggest slice of cake of chocolate cake I have ever seen in my life, covered in a rich brown icing with chocolate flakes on the top. It looked like a heart-attack on a plate.
"Thank you very much" I smiled, pushing aside my empty mug and taking the fresh cup from the tray. "You didn't have to."
He smiled warmly. "No I didn’t, but I wanted to."
The hot pink blush that I'd be resisting rose to my cheeks, burning the skin as I looked up at him from beneath my lashes; overcome with a mixture of flattery and embarrassment that I'd let his words affect me so easily. No wonder so many women had fallen to his charm.
30 minutes later or so passed and we’d cleared our mugs and the plate, filling out the time between bites and sips with random and mindless conversation.
“I guess I’d better be off.” I smiled, gathering my book and phone from the table and sliding then into my back. “Thank you for the drinks and cake, like I said, you didn’t have to.”
Harry stood up from his chair as I pushed mine out, smiling back at me. “And like I said, I wanted to.” We bother exchanged shocked glances as a hard rain suddenly began to lash violently against the window. I walked towards the door and pulled it open slightly peering out on to the wet grey pavement as water began to spill over the drains. Rain splattered against my face as I stood there, trying to work out the quickest route to the bus stop.
“Of all days for me to forget an umbrella.” I mumbled, shaking my head in disbelief. Harry appeared at my side.
“Well you can’t go out in this!” he laughed “you’ll drown!”
“And how else do you suppose that I get home?” he thought of a moment, twisting his mouth from side to side.
“My house is literally 5 minutes down the road. Why don’t you stay at mine until this has passed? It’ll probably only be a quick shower”
I looked at him, completely taken aback by his suggestion.
“I couldn’t do that. I’ll be fine, I’m sure.”
He looked down at me “No. I insist…” he took a sudden pause and furrowed his brow. “Wait, I didn’t even get your name. So he hadn’t.
“Emilia.”
He smiled thoughtfully. “Well Emilia, I insist that you stay at mine until this passes. No arguments. The end. Done.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at his stubborn persistence, and I caught him smirking in the corner of my eye as I sighed in defeat. I wasn’t exactly used to accepting kind favors from strangers, even if they pretty much were in every magazine and newspaper in the world right now.
“Okay, on three.”
“What are you doing?” I laughed.
“I’m giving us a countdown. I need to prepare.”
I could sense the joking tone in his voice as he reluctantly pushed the door open to the streets in front.
“One…”
The rain was beating down hard, bouncing back up off of the pavement as it hit the concrete; the sky a blank canvas behind the row of buildings opposite.
“Two… “
I felt his hand on my lower back as he edged me forwards, his lips kinking into a smirk as he gradually applied more pressure. Without hitting the third count, he gripped my arm and pulled me into the rain alongside him. I squealed as the cool droplets of water instantly began to seem through my clothes and drench my hair, following his lead as we raced through the bald streets.
(A/N): End of chapter one! My first fanfic, what do you think? Please comment and tell me what you think! x.
