Fire (A Harry Styles Fan Fiction)

Chapter 37

I was awoken by the dreary sounds of people rushing downstairs, doors opening and closing, the shower streaming, and all kinds of morning noises. The blinds had been pulled open, letting in unwanted light. I rolled over, expecting to find the firm chest of Harry, but I didn’t. I sat up quickly, flicking my vision to all the corners of the room, searching for him.

“Harry?” I asked quietly, my morning voice cracking at my attempt to speak. There was no reply; only the gentle drone of muffled voices downstairs. I got out of bed, pulling on the jumper I had on yesterday, and the pair of jogging bottoms Harry had neglected to put on last night. I pushed open the bedroom door, looking out into the corridor to see if anyone was around. No one. The voices became clearer downstairs, the clinking of bowls and spoons being heard as I made my way down the regal winding staircase.

“Oh, here she is.” I saw Niall point up to me with his spoon, a bowl in his left hand. His mouth was full of something, and his hair was ruffled on the top of his head. He didn’t wear a shirt, once again revealing his chest.

“Violet.” Harry hopped round the corner, also topless, a huge smile lighting up his face. He had pulled on a pair of jeans from yesterday, leaving me the joggers for today. I smiled back at the two boys and continued my descent down the stairs, giving Harry a good morning kiss as I reached him.

“How did you sleep?” He asked, his arms slinking around my waist. I looked up to him, noticing the bags that hung around his eyes and the morning sleep in the corner of his iris’s. Still in this state, he was close to perfection.

“Like a log.” I confirmed, placing another peck on his lips. Niall brushed behind me, his arm gently grazing my back as he made another repulsive noise that resembled someone throwing up. I stuck out my leg behind me, catching Niall’s shin, causing him to trip a little, some of the milk in his bowl spilling onto the marble floor beneath us. Harry chuckled and cuddled me as he saw what I did.

“That’s my girl.” He announced, gaining a smile off me, and a discerning glare off Niall.

“Niall, you’re messing up my house again…” Anne joked as she walked through the arch of the kitchen, wiping the floor with some paper towels. Niall’s mouth hung open, his finger pointed towards me. Anne ignored his action, just looking up at me and giving me a wink. Niall threw up his free hand in a dramatic way, sticking out his arse and walking into the kitchen like a diva. I noticed the fancy wall clock hung above the kitchen arch, it read 7:47.

“Oh, Harry, I better get dressed.” I said in a rush. I pulled out of Harry’s embrace and headed back up the stairs. Before I had a chance to make it past more than the first couple of steps, Harry had re-wrapped his arm around my waist, and pulled me into him, winding me slightly.

“Harry, I have to-“

“Not today.” Harry cut me off. His face holding a serious stare. I looked up at him, slightly confused.

“What about school?” I asked, my voice holding a subtle plea.

“School can wait.” He said. I noticed the side of Harry that scared me slightly, the demanding, over-protective side. I nodded while swallowing hard, trying to contain the shreds of fear that I felt within. He released me from his grip and hopped upstairs, disappearing from my sight.

I moved into the kitchen, sitting down on the counter next to Niall. He was eating some toast now, hunched over his small plate like a wild animal, his cheeks full of the food.

“Do you go to school?” I asked Niall sheepishly, while moving myself onto the barstool. He chewed his food a little bit more, before opening his now empty mouth to reply:

“No, I left last year.” I’d always had a thing for the Irish accent, the way it rolled off the tongue so easily, and it had always appealed to me in some way.

“Did you get good grades?” I asked, genuinely interested in what he ad to say, he took another bite out of his toast before answering my question.

“Not bad, I’m the smart one out of us lot.” He bragged pointing to himself and laughing a little, the toast almost flowing out of his mouth. I laughed with him, his aura was so childish, but also seemed so reliable.

“I bet you are.” I said, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear and turning to look out of the window where the morning sun was pouring in. It was yet to be completely light, the late autumn sun taking its time to rise. Niall broke the silence by continuing to take bites out of his toast, and then minutes later, going to put some more bread in the toaster.

***

“So, what are we doing today?” I asked meagrely as I strapped myself into Harry’s car. We’d said our goodbyes to Niall, Vic, Cass and Anne, and now we were going…well, I don’t know where we were going. Harry had intimidated me this morning, I think he knew it, and now I think he was trying to be as nice as possible.

“I don’t know…I just couldn’t bare to see you leave.” He claimed, taking my hand over the handbrake, squeezing it ever so slightly. I blushed a little, knowing that I too would have found it a challenge to say goodbye to him. We sat and thought for a few moments about where we wanted to go, Harry suggesting various places like the cinema, or the park.

“The park sounds good.” I smiled. Harry nodded and placed his hands on the wheel, turning on the ignition and starting our drive up the long driveway, over the hill, past the trees.

“You’re mum’s cool, and Niall too, oh my God…Niall is hilarious.” I chuckled. Harry remained silent along side me, simply offering a grunt in response. I looked at him sideways, confused as to why he was so unresponsive. This morning he was happy enough.

“Are you okay?” I asked, a slight inflection at the end of my question.

“Yes.” He said, his eyes remaining on the road, and his hands tightly gripping the steering wheel. I could tell he was pissed, although could not fathom a reasonable explanation as to why.

“You sure…” I asked tentatively. He smacked his left palm down onto the steering wheel and violently whipped his head around to face me.

“For God’s sake Violet, will you stop asking me questions!” He screamed, his voice cracking mid-sentence. I cowered back in my seat, my heartbeat racing as I saw his pupils dilate, and his iris’s darken to a deep black. I swallowed hard, pressing my back against the join of the door and window, hoping to put as much distance between Harry and me as possible. His eyes remained on me, his neck craning closer, the veins in his throat and forehead becoming more prominent. The movement of the car had ceased, and we were now sat stationary, just over the bow of the hill. He breathed in heavily through his nostrils, creating a lot of noise that I could barely hear the terrified whimpers over. My eyes teared slightly as Harry changed. He changed into an angry…monster that I had no recollection of. He sat back in his seat, resting his head on the window and closing his eyes.

After a few seconds, he opened them again, revealing to me, through my own hazy eyes, the crystal green I’d fallen in love with.

“Harry?” I asked. A tear welling in my eyes. He didn’t reply for a few seconds, but when he did, he whipped his head around, surprise and concern on his face.

“I’m sorry.” He said. His eyes still weren’t on mine; I feared that he didn’t feel worthy. I placed my hand on his knee, squeezing lightly.

“You don’t have to apologize to me.” I smiled, fear still deep within me, although I knew full well Harry wouldn’t hurt me. Harry nodded his head and placed hi hands back on the wheel, with a smile, we continued driving, and Harry’s sudden outburst of rage was gone, but not forgotten.