Afflicted (Harry Styles) [book 1 in FAME]

Chapter 5

Chapter 5

      As I walked towards the small boutique Tatiana's aunt owned, I spotted my friend by the door, tapping her heels and eyes glued to her phone. What does she even do on that phone anyway? With her horrible personality, attitude, and fashion taste, I would think that she didn't have any friends (maybe that's why she agreed to get paid to be my friend).

      When I approached her, I coughed lightly to make my presence known.

    Tatiana glanced up from her phone. “Good, you're here. Let's go shop downtown.”

      I nodded. “Yeah, get in.”

      I held open the door of the passenger seat to my Hyundai Elantra. Tatiana slid in, her fingers still glued to her phone. Some part of me wondered if she ever let go of that thing, or if she slept with it cradled to her chest as I closed her door, heading to the driver's side. I started the car, feeling the quiet purr through my feet.

      I made my way throughout Los Angelos, trying to avoid all the heavy traffic, though it was impossible. You can never avoid traffic in L.A. And no doubt, Tatiana was complaining the whole time we were in traffic. I tried to ignore her, and pretend she wasn't there, but the woman was really irritating today.

      Once we arrived in downtown LA, we started walking around. My thoughts weren't on the public today. Instead, they were on how much I wanted to smack Tatiana. She was just gabbing on and on about that party we went a few weeks ago. She said that she saw the One Direction boys there, and was able to talk to the Irish one – I'm not sure if his name was Nick, or something or the other, I wasn't paying much attention – and even managed to get him to buy her a drink (though she was perfectly fine on getting her own drink as she's twenty-one).

      Personally, I could have cared less about Nick, and his number. I could have cared less about the band altogether, but Tatiana was talking about them and if I wasn't listening, she'd tell on me. That woman would find any excuse to get me in trouble; she's done it before, and that's how I learned the hard way.

      “And, oh my god, his accent is so adorable when he wakes up. Talk about cute!”

      If his accent is oh-so-adorable, maybe you can shove it up his Irish asshole, I thought sarcastically.

      “In here! Let's go in here,” Tatiana suddenly pulled on my arm and dragged me into a store I didn't recognize. Maybe it was new.

      The store looked vintage, already making my nose scrunch. Vintage clothing was not my style, yet it was all Tatiana wore. Regardless, I forced the grimace off my face, and put on a front. I followed Tatiana throughout the store, keeping my mouth shut most of the time. She asked for my opinion a few times when she wasn't quite sure of what to get, and I spared myself for future punishment and told her the nicest things possible (of course, I was lying through my teeth).

      When we left that store (with my hands empty, and her's with a bag in it), I was relieved. I absolutely loathed vintage stores, but didn't argue whenever I was shopping with Tatiana. Trust me, it was best to just go along with whatever she said.

      We passed multiple boutiques before we came across one that I liked and forced Tatiana into the store – she didn't mind much, she seemed to be curious about a few purses she wanted to look at. In that store, I found myself a gorgeous skirt that I could possibly wear tonight for my mother's dinner.

      An hour passed and Tatiana and I both had one arm filled with shopping bags. We had eventually walked back to my car so I could put them in the trunk until we were both finished. We then walked back down the streets to shop a bit more.