Limitless

Chapter 13

"It was going so well! We basically got fucking BFF tattoos! I set up the kiss for him! What the hell Louis?" I shouted into the phone. Tears were streaming down my face. I was hurt.

"I honestly wish I could help you but I have no idea what happened. I was leaving when he showed up and then he just locked himself in his room. Liam and I tried to get him to talk but he just cranked up his music and shut us out!" Louis explained. I took a deep breath.

I had gotten home pretty late. I didn’t even bother coming in quietly because I knew I would get chewed out sooner or later by my father. He yelled at me about responsibility and respecting elders until my eyes glazed over but I wasn’t listening. I was too busy feeling bad for myself and wondering what the hell I did wrong. Maybe both Louis and I were reading the signs wrong. Maybe Harry was just like that best guy friend that every girl always wanted - protective, sexy, and flirty. Maybe I had just gotten friend-zoned.

"Please just try and talk to him tomorrow," Louis urged. I rubbed my forehead as I thought.

"Fine," I said as I took the bandage off of my tattoo. I hung up the phone and looked at it in the mirror, running my finger over the sensitive skin. "Stupid tattoo…" I muttered.

The next day at school, I showed up early and stood by my locker, holding it open so that it looked like I was actually doing something. I was keeping an eye out for Harry. The first bell rang and he still wasn’t there, so I turned and rushed to class, praying that he would be here by lunch.

But he wasn’t.

I frowned as I sat at the table and stared at my slop. Liam and Emma stared at me from across the table.

“Lou?” Emma asked.

"Hmm?" I broke my stare and looked over at her.

"Did you hear me?"

I blinked a few times and shook my head. “No, what?”

"I asked how your date was last night."

"Oh," I exhaled.

Liam and Emma both stared at me again. “Lou,” Emma said a little more concerned.

"Hmm?" I hummed, looking up tiredly at her.

She raised her eyebrows. “Are you going to tell us?”

"I’m sorry," I groaned and ran my fingers through my hair. "It was good. It was actually amazing until the end. He just shut down right when we got really close."

Liam laughed. Both Emma and I shot him a mix of angry and confused looks. He choked back his laughter and covered his face with his hand.

"Something funny, babe?" Emma inquired, putting an angry emphasis on the "babe."

Liam looked at me apologetically and shrugged. “I just think you scare him.”

I huffed. “He asked me on a date - his first real date I might add - and you’re saying I scare him? Talking to random girls and then banging them to kingdom come doesn’t scare him but kissing me on the lips does?”

Emma raised her eyebrows at Liam. “She has a point.”

"You do have a point but you’re also missing the point. It was his first date. He likes you enough not to take you home and bang you before he knows you. You scare him because he knows that if he messes this up he could hurt you and he might be scared that you could hurt him." Liam sat back in his chair, looking smug. "Checkmate."

I felt myself begin to look almost offended. The corners of my mouth began to turn down into a pout. “I wouldn’t hurt him though… He’s not just another boyfriend to me…” I whispered. “I think I’m just as scared as he is. I mean I’ve only known him for two weeks yet I feel like I’ve known him a lifetime. He just makes me feel… Weird. Good weird, you know? Like, a warm fuzzy weird. I’ve seen him fuck like 80 girls yet for some reason I still want to go after him. I can just feel that he’s an amazing person Underneath all of that angry playboy. I’ve seen little glimpses of it. I know he’s probably worth the plunge.”

I finally looked up at Emma and Liam, both of them staring at me with wide eyes. Emma began to pout. “That is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard.”

Liam didn’t take his eyes off me. “I feel like you’ve seen a side of him that we haven’t.”

I shrugged. “I mean, I feel like I start to see it and then he shuts down.”

Liam and Emma looked at each other, unsure of what to say. I stood and adjusted my skirt. “I gotta go home. I’m not feeling well.”

I turned around with my tray and slammed straight into Josh. Greasy food and slop from my tray splattered all over me. I gasped and dropped the rest of my tray as everyone in the lunchroom turned to look at the mess.

"Ohhhhhhh shit I am so sorry," Josh whispered as he looked at the lunch all over my uniform.

"It’s fine Josh, just…" This was the worst day ever. I grabbed my bag and hurried out of the school.

"Hey Red, wait up! I’m so sorry-"

"Josh," I interrupted him and whipped around to face him. "It’s fine. Please just let me go."

He looked back at the mess all down my shirt and skirt. “Look I just wanted to talk.” I rolled my eyes. When was he going to get it? “Can we please just got sit on the bleachers and talk or something?”

Reluctantly, I agreed. I didn’t want to be in school and was originally going to confront Harry at his apartment, but now I was covered in cafeteria slop. I didn’t want to go home either.

We walked and sat on the bottom bleacher. I carefully wiped some mashed peas off of my leg and flicked some mushy corn off of my shirt and onto the ground.

"Look I just wanted to apologize for being such an ass on our date." 

He looked sincere but I still didn’t like him. I know that he was also being sincere when he was being an ass to me in the restaurant. I nodded, acknowledging his apology.

We sat, awkwardly silent for a moment.

"Ooohkay so I’m going to go now." I stood up and watched more food fall off of my skirt.

"You’re leaving?" Josh asked.

"Uh, yeah."

"So that’s it? You’re not going to apologize too?"

I frowned and turned to face him. “Apologize for what?”

"For ruining the date? I may have been an ass but I didn’t completely embarrass you like you embarrassed me."

I couldn’t believe that I almost half-accepted his apology. He was a brat and he was making my bad day worse. Before I really realized what I was doing, I slapped his right across his face.

"Don’t ever talk to me again." I turned around. Before I got far, he grabbed my wrist tightly.

"You bitch-"

As I turned around to punch him, his firm hand came cutting across my face. The hard hit sent me straight to the ground. I clutched my cheek as the sting set into my skin and tears welled up in my eyes. I tensed up as Josh started to walk toward me, his hand raised again. My vision blurred as more tears began to stream down my face. Before Josh hit me again, however, a blurry body dove over me an tackled him to the ground. I heard grunting as the two bodies struggled around, but finally the larger and darker of the two bodies ended up on top. He pulled back his fist and punched over and over, harder and faster each time. Tears still ran down my face, mainly just because all of the stress of the day was finally mentally taking me down. I wanted a cigarette.

Eventually, Josh’s body went limp. Harry rose from the ground and brushed himself off as he kicked Josh in the leg and spit on him. He turned to me, and without hesitating, scooped me off of the ground and began to carry me toward his car.