Crazy Little Thing Called Love

Surprise Visits Or A Shoulder To Cry On

Hi everyone, I hope you like this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. We're all only human after all... All the love, Summer xxx

I successfully managed to avoid One Direction for the next two weeks, which was a lot harder than it sounds when all four of them have your phone number and know where you live. The only one who hadn't been at my flat yet was Liam, but even he messaged me after I had successfully ignored everyone's texts to check up on me. I knew why Louis hadn't turned up at my house and Lily had told me that Niall was in Ireland for a couple of days, but it was weird that Harry hadn't turned up yet. My question was answered on a Friday night, two weeks after I had written my first song with Ed, when our door bell rang at half past eleven in the evening. 

Lily was out with some friends from work, so I got up from my place in front of my desk where I was putting the finishing touches to my dissertation. It had to be handed in by next Wednesday to my tutor who would go through it with me on Friday. When I opened the door, Harry stood in front of me. He was carrying two large bags and his face was pale, his hair pulled back into a messy bun. His green eyes seemed even greener than usual, maybe enhanced by the dark shadows underneath them. "Hey." I greeted him quietly, slightly surprised by his sudden appearance, and he dropped his bags and pulled me into a tight hug. "Hey, Harry, what's wrong?" I immediately, pulled him over the threshold and closed the door behind him. 

His strong arms were still tightly wrapped around me and I suddenly realised that he was crying. "Shhh, you're okay. I am here." Pulling him even closer, I just held him for a minute or so, while he cried into my shoulder. My hands were gently stroking his back and I felt him shift slightly in my tight embrace before he pulled back a bit. "Shit, I am sorry, Claire. I didn't mean to barge in here like that and then cry." He wiped his red eyes with  his sleeve and send me a weak smile. Standing up on my tiptoes, I gently cupped his face with my hands. "I am always here for you, just like you are always here for me, alright?" I told him seriously and he nodded. "Want to talk about it?" I asked him quietly and let go of him, but he shook his head. "Tea?" I offered instead and when he nodded, I gently took his hand and guided him into our kitchen where he sat down on a chair from where he watched me prepare two cups of tea. 

"How are you doing? I heard you and Ed wrote a song?" he croaked out and I looked up from the kettle. "I'm fine. My dissertation  is driving me nuts, but what can I do?" I pulled a face and he managed a weak chuckled. "And the song is fantastic, all thanks to him, of course, but that wow, what a great song writer!" I gushed and covered my cheeks with my hair when I felt them heat up with embarrassment again. "I am sure it is a fantastic song and not just because of Ed." Harry commented from the kitchen table and I smiled at him.  He gave me a grateful smile when I handed him his mug and then followed me to the sofa in the living room. "I'll play it to you some time, if you'd like to." I offered shyly and he smiled at me, before I saw his eyes tearing up again. 

Without saying a word, I simply slid closer to him and he instantly pulled me close to him, wordlessly resting his chin on my head, while I leaned against his chest. After a couple of seconds, he started to speak. "I, uh, I just spent ten days in L.A.. The film that I auditioned for, Dunkirk, wants me and they invited the whole cast to L.A. for first talks. Filming will start in a couple of weeks. Oh, and I will finally have to cut my hair." I couldn't see his face, but I could hear how proud he was in his voice. "Wow, that is so amazing, Harry. You should be very, very proud of yourself." I congratulated him quietly. "And I am sure you'll look just as handsome with short hair, as you do now." Realising what I had just said, I immediately wanted to slap myself, but he either hadn't really heard what I had said or chose to ignore it. "Thanks, love." he thanked me quietly and I felt him press a light kiss to my hair.

There was a short silence and Harry absentmindedly started playing with my fingers, before he spoke up again. "I was supposed to stay there for another four days, but I received a call from my mum this morning." His voice was shaky and I lightly squeezed his hand, as I felt him take a deep breath. "My granddad passed away last night. The funeral is tomorrow. I hadn't seen him since Christmas and I didn't even get to say goodbye." His voice broke and I felt my heart break in my chest, hurting for the man who was now crying next to me. "Harry, I am so, so sorry. I know that sorry doesn't bring him back, but I really am. Is there anything I can do for you?" I asked him and he looked up, tears running down his cheeks, and shook his head. "I just didn't know where to go." he whispered hoarsely and I turned around on the sofa and climbed onto his lab and wrapped my arms around him, letting him cry into my shoulder again.

Nothing was said for the next couple of minutes, but I felt him shaking underneath me, while he held onto me as if his life was depending on it. After a couple of seconds, he pulled away and took a shaky breath. "Shit, I am so sorry for bothering you with this. That's probably the last thing you need right now." Shaking my head, I hesitantly raised my hand and brushed a few curls out of his face which were sticking to his wet cheeks. "You really need to pay more attention when people tell you about friendship." I told him with a light smile. "Friends take care of their friends when they need someone and that definitely includes a shoulder to cry on." I assured him and he managed to return my smile. "Can I stay here tonight?" he asked, almost timidly and I nodded. "Thank you, Claire. I really didn't want to go to my empty house tonight. I'll leave tomorrow morning straight after breakfast for the funeral." 

I carefully climbed off his lap and then offered him a hand to pull him up which he immediately took. "How about you take a shower after the long flight?" I suggested and he nodded gratefully. "That would amazing, thank you." He followed me into the hallway where we stopped in front of the mirror where his bags were. After taking some clothes out, he disappeared into the bathroom, while I returned to my room  where I quickly put some clothes into my laundry bag and organised my desk while Harry was still in the shower. 

A light knock on my door make me jump and look up from my book a couple of minutes later. Harry was standing in my doorway, only wearing a par of pyjama pants with his wet hair pulled back. Forcing myself to keep my eyes on his face, I patted the spot next to me on the bed. "Um, would you, would you like to sleep here tonight? I mean, I don't, um... I just thought you maybe wouldn't want to be alone tonight." I stuttered and hid my cheek in embarrassment. "If you don't mind..." Harry's voice was still a bit shaky and when I looked up from my hands, I realised that he was just as shy about this whole situation as I was. Something had changed between the two of us when he had told me about his feelings for me and I wasn't sure if I liked it or not. With an inviting gesture towards my bed, I stood up and grabbed a pair of pyjamas, before disappearing into the bathroom. 

When I returned, Harry was already lying underneath the sheets with my book in my hands. He looked up when I entered the room and put the book down, before lifting up the duvet so that I could slip underneath it as well. "Thanks." I mumbled and shot him a small smile which he returned. His eyes were still a bit red, but his whole posture was a lot more relaxed than before the shower and his slightly wet curls were bouncing freely around his face. I turned off the light and felt him shift next to me. When my eyes had gotten used to the dark, I could see that he was lying on his back with his head turned in my direction, watching me intently.

"Will you miss your long hair?" I asked him quietly and heard him chuckle in the dark. "For sure, I have gotten so used to it over the past few years. But it will be fun to try something new. I have gotten an offer from Another Man's Magazine to do a photo shoot before and after the hair cut with an interview and everything and I am thinking of taking them up on their offer." he told me in a quiet voice and I smiled in the darkness. "That sounds amazing, you should totally do that." A hand sneaked into mine and gave it a light squeeze. "Thank you for being here for me." 

I returned the squeeze and felt his thumb lightly stroke the back of my hand. "You're welcome." There was a short silence, then I offered him something which I was sure he would never ask himself. "Would you like me to accompany you to the funeral tomorrow?" I asked him quietly and felt him move next to me. He had turned onto his side and run his free hand through his hair. "I... I wouldn't ask that much of you. Not after you just had your dad's funeral in January." His words said no, but his voice gave him away. "It's not a problem, Harry, really." I tried to assure him. He was silent for a couple of seconds, but then gave in. "Thank you." he thanked me again and I turned onto my side as well so that we were now facing each other. "Like I said, no problem." We smiled at each other in the darkness, before he couldn't hide a yawn anymore. 

"We should probably try to sleep now. When do we have to get up tomorrow?" I asked him and reached behind me to set my alarm clock. "We should leave around eight." Harry sighed and I set the alarm before turning back around to face him. "Good night, Harry." He gave my hand a light squeeze, before letting go. "Good night, Claire." I turned around and hesitantly moved a bit closer to him. Taking the hint, I felt him shift a little bit behind me, before a strong arm wrapped itself around my waist and Harry pulled me into his chest. "Thank you." were the last words I heard him whisper into my ear, before I drifted off into sleep.