Chapter 16
Harry’s POV
I sat bolt up right I have no idea what time it was but it had all hit me, how Alex got those scars, why she was never home, why she was so scared of her dad…. He beat her and not just once, it had been multiple times I’m not sure how many but some of those scars looked like they were years old, and there were scars upon scars, her whole back was covered in them, I also noticed a couple on her face and the bruises, also there were quite a few on her legs as well but anyone including me would have just assumed they were accidents from when she was a kid, bike accident maybe? It wasn’t until you saw her back and knew her and how she was that you could fit all the pieces together. I sat bolt upright like that for I don’t know how long, before I got up and realized Alex had gone to sleep in her room but I had watched her walk out onto the couch not having enough courage to go after her after I had upset her last night asking about the scars her scars. I went out into the lounge room and I saw Alex laying on my couch in my jumper and boxers asleep on her back but looking very uncomfortable on the couch, so I picked her up and cradled her in my arms and carried her to my bed and covering her with my quilt and she almost immediately rolled over onto her stomach comfortable, I leant down and kissed her lightly on the cheek, and then once on the back hoping it would make the scars go away, although I knew it wouldn’t. I watched her for just a second before finally glancing at my clock, it was 6am so I decided I would just get up seeing as I knew I wouldn’t get anymore sleep although I had only had 3 hours, I still couldn’t get over that someone could do that to their own child, something that is a part of them just hurt them so badly, then I thought of Alex’s little sister Sarah, I wonder if she had scars as well, I really hoped not, good innocent girls like Sarah and Alex didn’t deserve to be hurt like that no one did no matter how much of a bad person they were no one should be hurt by someone who they thought loved them. I sighed deeply leaving Alex to sleep peacefully for a while, while I cleaned the mess from last night, I got a plastic bag and picked up all the rubbish all the vodka bottles left everywhere and threw out all the food, I really wanted to vacuum my carpet but I knew that would be really unwelcome so I out the rubbish in the bin and grabbed my mop and bucket out of the cupboard and going to the bathroom where all the bubbles had spilled out of my bath last night, to my surprise the bubbles had gone but there was water all over the floor and still in the bath so I started working squeezing out the mop occasionally into the bucket so I would get all the liquid off of the floor, once i had finished that I poured the water into the bath before pulling the plug and putting the mop back in the laundry so it could dry properly, the other boys had all hired the maid service that the apartment building offers but I didn’t see the point because I was perfectly capable of cleaning my own home, although I was more domesticated than the other boys. I stood in my laundry not really sure of what to do for a while, but I decided I would make myself a cup of tea so I went to the kitchen and made it although I didn’t drink anything, I sat and thought about Alex and how she was so bubbly all the time and you hardly ever saw her down and when she was down the whole mood of the room was down, she was one of those people that you never wanted to be down around because you never wanted to see her light dimmed because her mood reflects on how the people closest to her feel, she is one of the greatest listeners I know and its impossible to stay mad at her, she always drags a smile out of you somehow, whether it be with her horrible jokes or her ‘bogan’ accents from all different parts of Australia or if it was just her staring at you trying not to laugh or smile because she is mad at you as well, she is one of those people you find yourself gravitating towards because she was so much, fun and you knew she would never hold a grudge against you and she didn’t care about labels, one of the reasons I found myself drawn to Alex in the first place and I think the rest of the boys appreciated this as well is that from the first time I met her and ever talked to her back at the arena in Adelaide it seems like only yesterday but its been 6 months and she has never once treated me like Harry Styles from One Direction to her it seems like she knew me well before like she knew me from back home in Cheshire and to her I was Harry her dopy friend who worked in the bakery, but no she met me three years into my career when I was 19 years old yet she still treated me like that and that was why I loved her, but I don’t understand how someone who shone so brightly let herself get hurt so bad, maybe it’s been going on for so long she expects it? Or she doesn’t know any different that it has been going on so long in her life? Or maybe she really did fall off a swing and hurt her back, I really hoped it was that last one, I prayed it was that last one because I don’t know what I would do if I found out that the girl I was in love with was being beaten by her own father.
Alex’s POV
I woke up looking around me dazed not sure where I was until it clicked that I was in Harry’s room, but I knew I had fallen asleep on the couch because Phe and Liam were fucking in my bed, yeah I’ll need to remember to wash those sheets later on. I stretched like I do every morning wiping the sleep out of my eyes before having a pang of guilt hit me, I had shut Harry out the one person I never wanted to faze out ever I had fazed him out I told him that my cuts and scars were from falling off a swing, I remember everything so clearly Harry getting mad about all the bubbles on the floor, then I turned around telling him to calm down, him telling me to get out of the bath, the other boys leaving, me finally getting out of the bath, him wrapping a towel high around my shoulders, me being grateful, him giving me his clothes to wear, me getting dressed in front of him, him asking about the scars, me getting mad and defensive, him asking me just to get into bed, and finally me leaving and going to the couch and crying. I sighed swinging my legs off of Harry’s bed thankful I didn’t ever get hangovers, and stood up going to the corner of Harry’s room where I had left my dripping wet panties and bra which were still dripping wet, I sighed going out to Harry’s balcony coming out from the laundry where his washing line was and hung my bra and panties up so they would dry. I sighed knowing I couldn’t avoid Harry all day I was in his apartment which wasn’t the biggest of places I would have to face him eventually, I quickly popped my head into my room where Liam and Phe were sleeping and I smiled at how her little body curled up into a ball fit perfectly with Liam’s large muscular one before shutting the door and walking into the kitchen, but I stopped just to admire Harry who was sitting shirtless his big hand around a mug and he was staring off into space with a look of shock on his face, I don’t know how long he had been sitting there for but I had a feeling it had been a while.
“Hey Ale you got a bit of drool,” Louis said coming in the apartment and scaring the crap of me I jumped a foot in the air and screamed.
“Louis! Don’t you know you shouldn’t sneak up on people like that?” I said clutching my chest.
“Well you had drool running down your chin while staring at my best mate,” he said wiping my chin.
“I did not, and I was not staring, he’s the one staring,” I said nodding my head over towards Harry.
“At what the toaster?” Louis asked standing behind me slightly watching Harry with me although he was wondering what Harry found so interesting, I was admiring his, body and how buff he was, his eyes how green they were, his hair and how bouncy and curly it was and lastly his lips and thought about how much I just wanted to kiss them, but I knew Harry wouldn’t want that.
“No, I think it’s the coffee maker,” I said finally remembering Louis’ question.
“How long has he been like that for?” and I shrugged strolling into the kitchen finally.
“Do you boys want a coffee?” I asked seeming to snap Harry out of his day dream.
“Yeah I’ll have one mine seems to have gone cold,” Harry said quietly with a look of sympathy, and this is what I didn’t want sympathy from anyone.
“Yeah I’ll have one too thanks Ale love, what was so interesting about the coffee maker Haz?” Louis asked sitting next to Harry at the kitchen table.
“Huh, na just had a realization that I was thinking about,” and I could feel Harry’s eyes burning holes not into my head but my back where the scars were, but focused maybe a little too hard on making the coffee switching my weight from one foot to another.
“Woah Ale that’s a fair scar on your leg how did you get that?” Louis asked meaning my biggest scar on my leg and I turned around to answer his question.
“Fell through a window when I was little and the scars sort of grown as I’ve grown,” Louis nodded and I caught a glimpse of Harry’s disappointed expression as I turned back around focusing on making coffee.
I spent the rest of the day at Harry’s cleaning up and watching Phe and Liam cuddling and being cute but it was time to go, and I hugged Harry tightly and he had his head resting on my shoulder and he was hugging me back tighter than usual.
“When he does it again I want you to come to me straight away,” he whispered into my ear and I nodded into his shoulder.
“I will,” I pulled him tighter for a second before letting him go and kissing him on the cheek then hugging Louis and Liam before leaving with Phe following slowly behind.
