Sensation (h.s)

Chapter Forty

✺ K A T E ' S ✺ P O V ✺

Around ten AM the next morning, Harry and I finally manage to pry our eyelids open and face the new day. He doesn't even have to say a word before I know he's hung over and nuzzling his face into my neck to block out the sunlight streaming through the windows. I hold him close and rub his back in hopes of comforting him further. He drank probably twice as much as I did last night and it was evident, meaning he probably feels twice as horrible as I do this morning.

Eventually I manage to talk him into getting out of bed. We're both completely naked and I watch him from the mattress as he walks tiredly around the room for minutes on end while attempting to get dressed. When we finally manage to make it out of the bedroom, he asks me about breakfast seconds before plopping down onto the couch with a tired sigh. I don't give his exhaustion much thought before taking it upon myself to start breakfast for the both of us. Fifteen minutes and four scrambled eggs later, we're cuddled up beside each other on the couch and mindlessly watching some game show on the tv. Harry still seems half asleep but I enjoy his cuddly mood as much as I can knowing it may be a while before I get to see this side of him again.

After breakfast we spend over twenty minutes in an oddly comfortable silence. The tv is so quiet it might as well be on mute but neither of us seem to mind. Harry occupies himself with rubbing my back while my own fingers trace the seemingly endless outlines of his tattoos. Simple moments like these certainly make me appreciate the fact that we have been able to get over our faults in the pass and connect with each other on a dating level. I certainly never thought this is where we'd end up months ago when I began his class.

Around one in the afternoon, all thoughts of being productive have been thrown out the window. We finally muster up the energy to get into the shower and spend ten minutes lazily undressing ourselves while waiting for the water to warm up. When we finally do get in, Harry silently rinses himself off while I stand to the side and watch him in amusement. I can tell he just wants to go back to sleep but is staying awake for my sake.

"So much for going on a hike today." He finally speaks up nearly ten minutes into our shower. He's finished wetting his hair and now is lathering shampoo through the locks while I wash my face.

"We can go tomorrow. We had fun last night so it was worth postponing our trip until tomorrow." I step over to where he's standing and smile up at him as I wrap my arms around his waist. He's still got shampoo in his hair but he's styled it so that it's not hanging in our faces.

"Yeah, last night was... Fun." He smirks back and we both giggle quietly. I lean up towards him with puckered lips and he happily obliges to ducking down into our kiss.

"Speaking of last night, how much of it do you remember? You were pretty drunk." I raise an eyebrow at him while wondering silently what direction this could go in. If he doesn't remember, should I remind him? I don't want to start a fight over something that could easily be prevented.

"I remember most of it. I certainly remember the best parts." His smirk widens a bit and we both grin again. His hand slips further down my waist and I giggle quietly while nuzzling my face against his chest. His skin is wet but the warm water splashing over our bodies makes up for the odd shower cuddling.

"If you're asking if I remember telling you that I love you, then the answer is yes. I do remember that." He runs his fingers through my hair and I lean back to look at him in surprise.

"You do?"

"Yeah, of course. I wasn't quite drunk enough to not remember that. I was drunk enough to say it though." He chuckles softly and all of my hope immediately deflates. The smile disappears from my lips and I step away from him with a sudden wave of humiliation crashing over me.