Even Angels Fall (Harry Styles)

Chapter 10

Even Angels Fall ~ Chapter 10

I hauled the last of the boxes out onto the landing before the stairs, dusting my hands on the sides of my shorts. For such a short time I really did have quite some junk stashed away in this place. I heaved a sigh, the thought of leaving my small apartment still trying to settle in amongst my cloud of thoughts. For what it was worth, despite the leaky tap in the bathroom, the loose floorboard behind the three-seater sofa and the speckled laundry windows, it was still a place I called home. It was my place.

Until that bitch came along

I brushed the thought away, already in a sour-enough mood without thoughts of that little thing replacing me. My best guess was she was having an affair with Jim. It was the only reasonable answer for her to be hired so quickly and now living in my flat.

Her flat now

Clenching my fists, I pushed down the ever-rising anger, closing the door for the last time.

I was living with Harry now.

The thought terrified me and excited me all at once. The prospect of living with the curly-haired devil aroused strange spirits within me. I couldn’t deny the initial shock when he said to Jim I’d move in with him, as if it had already been discussed and decided. I wasn’t sure whether to be relieved that I wasn’t out living on the streets or worried about what was to come. Nevertheless, I’d convinced myself it’d only be until I found somewhere else to go, it couldn’t take that long. Popstar and I only got along occasionally; this was going to be interesting.

I twirled the keys around my finger as I skipped down the steps, into the front door of the little café, past the tables peppered with the last trickle of evening customers and into the back of the shop. I could hear Jim’s voice as I made my way into the back kitchen where all the baking was done, cracking out orders, reprimanding a worker or two. But as I weaved my way through the last of the evening shift I spotted a familiar mop of curls, leaning effortlessly on one elbow against the wall while a certain blonde twirled a strand of her hair, smiling innocently up at him.

Despite having no reason to, my ugly green monster of jealousy reared its hideous head. First she takes my job, then my house and now she wants my man. The thought slipped through before I could censor it, another fresh wave of anger rising at my own confusion in emotion. He wasn’t my man, but she sure as hell didn’t know that. With a new sense of determination in my stride, I pushed my way further into the back until I stopped beside Harry. I let one of my hands snake around his waist, bringing his hip down next to mine. Harry’s head turned to meet mine and, despite the confusion I could see swimming in his jade depths, he didn’t protest at my actions.

I shot Mandy a tight smile, my other hand creeping along his chest until I had both hooked around his neck. I stood up on my tiptoes before him, his hands now supporting my waist, whispering softly into his ear. “Everything’s packed.” I hummed, trailing my nose softly against his jaw. His fingers tightened against my hips as he nuzzled closer to me. “We should go then,” placing a chaste kiss to my lips, he spun me to the side, one hand still hooked around my waist.

“It was nice meeting you,” He nodded to Mandy, who now had a deflated look plastered to her face. My inner goddess grinned triumphantly. “Yeah, you too.” She replied, her lips forming a soft pout. I had to resist the urge to flash my middle finger and run off dragging Harry behind me screaming, “No bitch, he’s mine.” She’d taken enough from me this past twenty four hours, even if she didn’t actually know it.

I gave her one last icy look as Harry I made our way back out to the front of the shop. We’d only gone a few meters when I spun around quickly. “I almost forgot,” I called back to her, “You’ll probably be needing these.” I tossed her the set of keys, not bothering to wait and see if she caught them or not. Instead, I intertwined Harry’s fingers with mine and lead us out of the store.

We trudged back up the stairs, grabbing a couple boxes each and putting them in the boot of his Jeep with the rest of them. Harry jumped into the driver’s side and I gave one last glance to the small set of stairs that I once called mine. Sighing, I pulled myself into the passenger side, wordlessly strapping myself in and leaning my head against the window as Harry pulled away from the curb, the store and my stairs slowly disappearing from sight.

In my mind it began to rain, torturously slow drops made their silent journey down the tinted glass windows and a soft song of melancholy began to filter through the mask of silence. You’d think I was overreacting, maybe I was. My conscience seemed to think so, she sat there arms folded, one leg crossed over the other and tapping her long nails against the desk, telling me to wake up and smell the goddamn flowers. I was in the car with one of the world’s most wanted pop stars, whom I was son to be living with. Not to mention our unforgotten moment of heat back in my apartment. Yet here I was moping about losing a one-bedroom apartment and a lousy job at an old café? I shook my head at the thought.

My period must be coming on, I’m never this melodramatic.

I looked across to Harry, his eyes trained on the road in front of him, knuckles almost white against the steering wheel. Carefully, I reached out, one hand stroking against the rise and dip of his knuckles, easing the tension in his hands. As his fingers eased on their grip, I moved my hand to his forehead, smoothing out the creases of his frown, my finger slightly brushing against a few curly locks that hung against his forehead.

“What are you doing?” He said softly his eyes never once leaving the road. I shrugged, not too sure with myself what it was I was doing. Whatever it was, I felt a strange impulse to continue doing so, the soft, slow touches of my skin against his visibly calming him and sending me into an oddly hypnotizing lapse of comfort. He stopped at a red light, his eyes turning to meet mine.

I wanted to turn away, every instinct in my body screaming, pleading with me to break the gaze before I drowned in a forest-green sea. But he had me fixed, his hooks nestled so deep inside of me that I feared he’d tear me apart had he tried to pull them out. His face inched closer to mine, his nose brushing against mine in seconds. “Rose…” He said softly, his breath whispering against my lips. Before either of us could move further a loud honk sounded from behind us, sending us both jolting backwards. I shook my head as Harry’s eyes returned to the road, the light had turned green and we hadn’t even noticed, lost in a world of our own.

I could feel the heat rise to my cheeks at the thought of what would’ve happened had we not been interrupted. It’s not like we hadn’t kissed before but the moment seemed different, tender. And if you were close enough to the curly-haired popstar to know him, you’d know tender was something incredibly rare.