"Well, hey there, stranger." I felt a smile tug at the corners of my mouth as I struggled to keep a straight face. Harry’s grin widened before cupping his hands around my chin and placing a kiss on my nose. "Now, now, it’s worth the wait. Excited for the show..?" He attempted a nonchalant air but I saw through the act. He and Lou had acted just like giddy school boys ever since their first soundcheck. Obviously there was quite a night in store for the crowd. I giggled. "Of course I’m excited, Harry. Just don’t go leaving me for some fangirl, okay?" I arched an eyebrow, slipping my hand into his. "I kind of thought I was dating one?" He replied with a smirk. Shit.. I hope he never finds my Tumblr url. I waved it off and started walking us in Zak and Louis’ direction. We’d stopped to meet up for a coffee late that night since rehearsals took so long.
"Hiya, love." Lou smiled, walking over to me with arms open for a big bear hug. It made me think of how we’d first met and what a socialite he can be when he wants to. I let go of Harry’s hand to squeeze Lou back while Harry and Zak exchanged a handshake and side hug. Harry and Louis joked about not seeing each other in so long. Zak and I exchanged a knowing look. We loved watching them together. The four of us settled into a little table towards the back of the cafe but it was only a matter of time before the boys were recognized.
Zak was in the middle of telling a story about a man we saw in the grocery store the day before when a girl with white blonde hair and a very low-cut top walked up to the table demanding, “Is it really you, then?” I may be biased about hating her because she was clearly flirting with Harry but she didn’t impress me in the least and I hate when fans appear rude. It makes me wonder what runs through their heads- if you were to meet your idol would they respect you for being rude? No. Zak looked like he was about to hit a hoe so I reached for his hand under the table and squeezed. He relaxed visibly but still appeared slightly on edge. I was too. Harry cleared his throat, “Hi, yeah. Did you want us to sign something for you?” Louis flashed a superstar smile and added, “We’d be happy to take a photo or sign something but let’s be quick about it. We’d like to get back to our night too.”
The girl seemed sort of taken aback by how seemingly polite the boys seemed although it was clear to Zak and myself they were telling her to be quick and leave us alone. I felt slightly smug knowing we had top priority. In a matter of minutes the pictures, autographs and girl were out of my mind and finished. It couldn’t be a long night since the boys had the first tour date tomorrow so we decided to bring our coffees home to the flat. I vaguely noticed that Harry and I seemed much more coupley than the usually touchy feely Zouis (not the real Zayn and Louis combo but still applies here). We walked back and about halfway to the flat Louis stopped and said, “Think we’d rather detour to the park for a bit. Catch you back at the flat?” He shared a glance with me but I wasn’t sure what he was trying to tell me with his eyes. I looked to Zak who nodded eagerly. Clearly it was fine with him so I shrugged. “Sure, see you guys.” Harry slipped his hand back in mine and we headed back alone.
We settled down on my big comfy couch, laying on opposite ends with our legs intertwined as we finished our coffees. I was going to miss him terribly, I knew that, but seeing how excited he was even as he’s slightly sleep-deprived made me almost all the way okay with him leaving on tour. Harry loves his job and I love him. It’ll work out, I just have to keep reminding myself of the facts. If I plan to stick around in the future I can’t break like a piece of porcelain every time my boyfriend travels.
"Babe?" Harry asked quietly from the other end of the couch, and I turned my head to the side in response. "You know I’ll really miss you, right?" His green eyes were so somber it nearly broke my heart. I shifted my weight and body so that I was laying by his side with my head perched on his chest. "I know that, Harry. I’ll miss you too." I said into the soft cotton fabric. The last thing I felt was a slow kiss on the top of my head and strong arms wrapping around my torso, pulling me in closer to him.
In the middle of the night I woke up to a loud door slam to find I was alone on the couch. Zak was home. Stirring groggily I asked the darkness, “Zak, you okay?” He fell down on the couch seat next to me and replied, “Louis broke up with me.” I blinked. “What? What happened? Are you okay? Oh my God..” I was now fully awake and angry with myself for not reading that eye signal properly earlier in the night. Zak cleared his throat and replied, “I was very much caught off-guard. But. I think I’m okay. Really. Got all the crying out already at the park and he was right. It’s the wrong time to start a relationship. We still like each other and I’m sure as hell going to the concert tomorrow. We just need a break for the Summer.”
He even sounded okay. Maybe Zak wasn’t lying to me then. I tucked the conversation into the back of my mind to be continued later the next day. I pulled him up to cuddle me in the safety of the dark living room and said, “Okay, let’s get some sleep. I love you.”
