✓ lights /styles au/

26 Tire

we work right together.

Harry rubbed at his eyes when he made a halt in front of the front door where a person on the other end was still knocking. He felt soft clawing at his ankles and nudged the dog to the side before opening the door and allowing a gust of wind to give him goosebumps.

He'd been wrapped up in blankets receiving body heat from Joey's tangled limbs and now he was standing in front of the open door. He wished he hadn't gotten up. Wished he'd woken Jo up instead so he could just rely on the heat still trapped inside of the blankets.

"Harold," a tight voice addressed him curtly. He made a face at the sudden connection. It was definitely Joey's mother and he didn't have the energy to deal with her. Especially since last time he was around her she had her palm against her daughter's face. The last time they were together was during Jo's dad's funeral and this woman needed to leave before Jo woke up and went looking for him.

"That's not my name," he started, fighting the urge to rub at his eyes. He kept them wide open, though he wasn't sure if he knew it looked like he was looking at her. He wondered if she knew he was blind, and then shrugged it off. "You need to go."

"Where is my daughter?"

The clawing at his ankle started again and Harry hung his head. "She's sleeping. You should really go."

"I need to talk to her."

He made a face, not quite sure if she heard him correctly. "She's sleeping, Missus Small."

He heard her moment of hesitation. The awkward shift of her high heel-clad feet on the white tiles. "Don't call me that."

Harry wanted to close the door. "Can I just relay a message?"

"You will not keep me from talking to my daughter, so if you would just step aside-" she nudged closer to him and Harry frowned, blocking the entrance.

Behind him, small footsteps could be heard from down the corridor. He was beginning to feel nervous, skin burning with the inevitable danger that was arriving. He was too tired to babysit a grown woman and he had no doubt that Joey was too tired to watch herself around somebody she shouldn't have to. "You need to go. You need to go now."

"Let me through."

"Harry?" Jo's voice made him pull back a little, hand clapping onto her and releasing the doorknob just as her mother pushed through. He felt useless, dropping his hold from his girlfriend's wrist to her waist, pushing her back just a little. "Mom?"

"Something has been bothering me." Rachel's voice was irritating to his ears. Loud and condescending. He held tightly onto Jo when he felt her take a step back away from the older woman.

"What is it?"

"Can your...friend leave us to talk?"

Harry's head dropped to his right shoulder as he waited for Joey's response. He would do whatever she asked him to do, though he really didn't want to leave her alone.

"No," her answer was quick. "What is it?"

"You've been ignoring my calls."

Joey cleared her throat and took two steps forward. Harry went with her, sure to give her some space, but not enough for Rachel to think she could make a move like last time. "I have nothing to say to you, mom. I got your messages and-"

"And you chose to disrespect me by not answering."

"It wasn't like that."

Harry's eyelids dropped downward a little as the heaviness in his head grew. He was so tired. He didn't know why the last few weeks made him feel tired. It was a new feeling to him and he had yet to bring it up in any of his weekly visits with his doctor. Tire was associated with many things and he couldn't choose what he'd be more likely to have.

In front of him, Jo and her mother were still talking. The conversation had somehow flared into something a bit more aggressive. Harry tried to shake any thoughts of sleep from his head as he reared back into focusing on what and how things were being said.

"Talk to me like that again and I'll-"

"Nope," he interrupted, waving a finger in the air. A threat? "None of that."

"You stay out of it," Rachel hisses aloud.

Harry rolled his eyes. They felt like they were swimming and he imagined how it used to be to see lights. It was a fresh memory that he still had access to. He imagined the shaded outlines of the people around him and the bright white that clouded around them. He remembered the way they moved when he was in motion. Harry still had dreams of the green light from when he first went out with Jo. The way it had reached his sensory nerves so perfectly and then passed his sight just to come back was still so pretty.It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen and remembered.

He didn't know for how long he'd been standing beside Joey daydreaming, but when he felt a wave of air slide past him, his hand went up to catch whatever was headed toward the girl next to him. His fingers locked around a thin wrist that was covered by cold chains.

With wide and narrowed eyes, Harry dropped it with little force and gently pushed Jo behind him, stepping closer to the older woman who now had him wide awake and worked up. He knew Joey could defend herself. Of course she could, but standing up to her mother was something he knew she wasn't going to do. There was some kind of block that kept her from doing it, but he didn't think it affected him in any way.

He leaned over until his lips hovered over the side of Rachel's ear. "Try that again," he whispered, knuckles burning from holding on tightly to the side of the door. "And you won't ever see her again. I'll make sure of it." He hoped it wasn't an empty threat.

"Y-you can't-"

He stepped back and shut the door. Neither he nor Joey heard whatever she was going to say.

Jo stood silent against the wall. Harry reached out for her arm and pulled her into his chest. "Jo."

She didn't say anything.

"Baby, listen to me."

He leaned over, forehead pressing against hers. "Hm?"

"You know you're not wrong, right?"

No answer.

He bent his legs forward so he was closer to her height. "She's wrong. She'll always be wrong for that."

"She tried to hit me again."

"When people get older they-"

"What did I do?" She asked quietly, head up and breath tickling his neck and jaw. She was still warm but now she was shaking. Her hands were locked on his shirt, nails brushing his skin.

"You did nothing, Jo. She needs to work on herself and until then, you should give her some space. Let her think, you know?"

She pushed gently at his chest and walked away. Harry ignored the clawing at his feet and laid his hand against the wall to lead himself where she was going.

When they were both back in the bedroom and under the covers facing each other, Harry held onto her waist and pulled her closer. "You're a good person. One of the best I know."

He felt her nod. "Thank you."

"It's true."

"Go to sleep, Harry."

He nodded at her words. Didn't fight it because he was already being lulled into unconsciousness. "Wake me up if anything happens, okay?" He wasn't quite sure what that meant, but it was something he wasn't going to take back.

Joey was going to go to bed angry or sad or regretful and if she wasn't going to go to bed at all, the least Harry could do was stay up with her.

(A/n: Have a nice day, guys! Also, please excuse errors.)