During the last week of college before the Christmas break, it had been trying to snow, but up until today, Friday, we’d only had rain. Now at dinner we’re all huddled together in our usual spot in the canteen for dinner, watching the beautiful flakes of white drift and swirl and coat the ground in a pristine blanket.
Then, of course, Jason and his friends decide to have a snowball fight.
I stay inside, where it’s warm, scrolling through my messages on my phone.
There’s a lot from Ken, but each one is unopened. I don’t care what he has to say. Further down there are many from Elvie, which is when I happily explained what had happened to her and that Harry and I are back together. I told her not long after we left the gym that day.
I even got a message from Courtney, Louis girlfriend;
OMG Chaz are you OK? I can’t believe what I’ve been hearing! Louis told me you guys had split and I didn’t want to say anything to upset you, but he just told me your back together and Freya’s been fired…explain! X
I did explain, and it took a while, but I had to repeat that a dozen times. Mum wanted to know, so did my entire group of friends. Harry told his mum.
Courtney was pleased, though, with the final result. ‘I knew he wouldn’t cheat on you!’ she kept saying. ‘You were right about the models, though!’
I have messages from Harry there, too, of course. Him telling me how much he loves me, even some where he apologises for what happened! I keep trying to tell him that it’s all my fault, and if I hadn’t overreacted none of this would’ve happened, but he’s having none of it. In his eyes, he’s all to blame, and I can’t stand it.
“Um…Chazza?” someone says to me, and I have to draw myself away from Harry’s messages to find Ken standing over me.
“What?” I have to try not to hiss or grit my teeth at him, but I promise you, it’s difficult. That first week after Freya got fired, I didn’t even acknowledge Ken was there. He followed me around, even sat with me in art one lunchtime – he didn’t speak, he just sat there. After a couple of weeks, though, he got the message and left me alone. Now he seems to have forgotten that I hate him.
“Can we talk?” he says, and I instantly begin gathering up all my belongings. “No, no, please, don’t go! I need to explain things!”
I push past him, waving goodbyes to my friends over my shoulder. “Sorry, it’s my half day. I’m leaving.”
Ken will never understand that I don’t want him around. “Well…can I walk you to the bus stop, then?”
I hesitate for a moment. This could be interesting. “Fine.”
He falls in step beside me as I head to the car park. I have no intention of going to the bus stop, which I pass every day when I walk home, since today I’m getting a lift home. Ken just doesn’t know that yet.
“What do you want?”
“I want to say sorry. What I did was wrong, very wrong…I wish I hadn’t now.”
“Too late, isn’t it?” I say bitterly, angrily forcing a door open and letting it bang against the wall.
He sighs. “At least I can see that now. Freya’s a bit controlling. She wanted to be famous and she saw the path to that as stealing Harry from you…she just didn’t realise that the world doesn’t revolve around her.”
“Yeah I sort of got that impression…” I mumble. “Actually, I’m going this way,” I say as we leave college, steering Ken toward the car park around the back of the building.
“Oh, right, whatever,” Ken says dismissively, clearly not paying attention. “We’re not together any more, Freya and me. The night after she got fired she made me go visit her and she kept crying and crying and screaming at me…I just couldn’t be bothered. I dumped her and she started throwing things…” he shrugs. “And I’m moving,” he announces, “I was living with my Uncle so I could come to this college but I think I should go home to my parents.”
“That would be a wise idea.” At least he’s not a complete idiot. I look around the car park for the familiar car and steer towards it when I spot it. Ken still hasn’t sussed out where we are, or why.
“Yeah…” he rakes his hand through his hair. “It was a pretty big mistake.”
“Too right, it was,” Harry says, making Ken jump into the middle of the road. Harry’s in the driver seat of the car next to me, sticking his head out of the window and giggling at Ken’s reaction.
“Oh…Harry…” Ken mumbles, casually walking towards us. He looks absolutely terrified, which is exactly what I wanted to see, since I could only hear his reaction when I rang him from London that day.
“And you must be Freya’s little puppet,” Harry replies, now out of the car and leaning on the bonnet. He pulls me over and wraps an arm around me.
“Ken, actually…me and Freya broke up.”
“Good, good. Glad you saw just how much of a witch she is.” Harry speaks so casually it’s hard for me not to laugh, both at his tone and Ken’s reactions.
Ken tries laughing, to break tension, but it looks more like he’s choking. “So…how did the video shoot turn out? Without Frey?”
“Better. Changed the whole idea. Didn’t have any models in it this time, which even the managers thought best.” Harry squeezes my hand and I grin up at him. I guess he knew just how nervous I was when he told me they were taking the video in a different direction.
“Cool,” Ken says awkwardly, bouncing on his heels. “And you’re touring, right?”
“Have been. Got a break for Christmas, then more touring.”
“Ah, that’s nice,” Ken says, and again it’s difficult not to laugh. “Well…I think I should go, now.” And he leaves, not even saying goodbye, which I’m glad for. As I said, he’s not a complete idiot, it seems.
The moment Ken’s gone Harry starts fussing over me.
“Not been giving you trouble, has he?”
“No not really,” I shrug. I could tell him how annoying Ken’s been, but does it really matter? Ken’s gone, Freya’s gone, now Harry and I are back together, why keep bringing back this chapter? It doesn’t matter what Ken and Freya say now, they’re gone and I don’t care what they say. I’m just glad I have Harry back.
“Good,” he smiles, kissing me in front of the car. “C’mon, then,” he says when we pull apart, “Get in, it’s freezing and Rose promised chocolate cake!”
I laugh as I slide into the passenger seat. As Harry pulls on his seatbelt and checks everything else is in place, I lean over and plant a kiss on his cheek.
He turns to me and smiles, “What was that for?”
“Because I love you.”
He smiles even more and tells me the same, “I love you too. Always have.”
“Always will?” I ask smiling, remembering the first time Harry and I told each other ‘I love you’, last year at the X Factor final. He called me ‘soppy’ for saying that cheesy line, but it had become a private joke between the pair of us.
“Of course.”
THE END.
Well, that's the end :)
(I've never been very good with endings, so I hope this is OK)
Hope you liked it!
Comments on the whole thing would be lovely!
Thank you so so much for being so awesome and reading this!
Also, HAPPY NEW YEAR! :)
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After The X Factor (One Direction)
Fanfiction*Sequel to "During The X Factor"* Not much has changed for Chaz and Harry - Chaz is still at college, Harry is still a world-famous pop star. The only difference is that these two best friends are now a couple! Things are going swimmingly between th...
