the perks of nyc | h.s

chapter two

the sunshine beamed overhead, lighting up the most darkest parts of the city and giving everything a more lively feeling. today was one of those days when i treasured life, despite the hardships i've had to face. along with the beautiful day in front of me, i was performing one of my favourite songs.

'tell me if i'm wrong

tell me if i'm right

tell me if you need a loving hand.'

my fingers softly picked the strings of the guitar, accompanying my voice. as tourists walked by, they popped in a few coins. just enough for me to buy lunch in which i mentally celebrated.

i placed my guitar down after i finished singing, and crouched down beside my guitar case to count the money i made. the busy city was crowded with noise, making me lose concentration. the sound of heavy footsteps echoed from all around me and the honking of cars stuck in traffic was giving me a headache.

"eight, nine, te-"

a dark shadow loomed over me, i looked up and came across a pair of green eyes. i stood up, brushing myself off.

"what are you doing here?"

a few feet away stood a large, bulky man with his arms crossed. i was assuming he was his security guard.

"i came to see you perform."

he said with a cheeky grin.

i laughed at him while holding onto the coins tightly in my hand.

"don't you have anything better to do than watch some pathetic girl perform?"

he shrugged, running a hand into his wild curls.

"you know, you're sort of scaring me. it feels like you're stalking me."

harry raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"nothing like that. just exploring new york."

i nodded, packing up my guitar. my stomach grumbled at the smell of food. harry chuckles quite loudly, i then noticed a few young girls crowding around.

"hungry? i could buy you some lunch."

"excuse me? i just worked to buy some lunch."

i said raising my voice.

"why would i let you buy me lunch? i don't even know you."

i added, but harry grabbed my guitar and started to walk away with his rather scary-looking security guard trailing behind him.

"hey! what do you think you are doing?!"

i yelled, running after him. once i caught up to him, i grabbed his arm and glared.

"this is known as stealing."

"c'mon! let me just buy you lunch. one meal, please?"

i bit my lip and contemplated. i started to walk away. but to my dismay, heard no trace of him following me and turned around to be confirmed of my thoughts.

"aren't you coming? i thought you were gonna buy me some lunch."

i shouted behind me. harry just chuckled and walked beside me. a rather large group of girls trailed behind us. i rolled my eyes as they hassled harry for a picture and an autograph. the anxiety already building up as the murmuring grew louder, now shouting could be heard from behind me.

"is this what you deal with all the time?"

i said to him in a low tone. his expression turned sour, he whispered something to his security guard.

"c'mon, let's go in there."

harry grabbed my arm and pulled me into a restaurant, much to high class for me. i felt queasy, considering how i was dressed compared to his fans and everybody else in the restaurant.

"how many in your party?"

i watched as the hostess held a hard glare, obviously not amused by both of us occupying a restaurant of such high class. harry held up the number two with his slender fingers and the hostess gestured for us to follow.

i felt a hand being placed against my lower back, guiding me to our given table. i tried not to draw too much attention to myself but eyes were on me as soon as i walked in with someone so well known in this area.

we sat and the hostess brought our menus, i tried to hide my face behind my menu from all the eyes staring in my way. my eyes darted across the menu, skimming across the list of meals they served. i couldn't focus, my mind was all over the place.

why was harry annoyed when i mentioned the attention he received? i would've gladly loved it, well not too much and why the hell did i agree to eat lunch with him?

"you alright scar?"

i flickered my gaze onto harry, he looked back at me with a concern.

"yeah, i'm fine. you ready to order?"

harry's lips formed into a smile that made it's way up to his eyes too. it was something very few people possessed these days, a genuine smile. not even i had such a bright smile.

"what would you like to order?"

the waitress asked harry first, definitely lowering my confidence. but instead harry shook his head, offering that ladies should go first and nodded his head towards me.

"oh, im not hungry."

that was my answer. i was starving actually. but i couldn't let him treat me like a charity case any longer. i had money and after this little gathering i would go buy me a big mac. that was my plan, at least.

"we'll both have the chicken penne pasta."

the waitress nodded before walking off to put in our order. i was still in shock from him ordering for me. he couldn't just do that. could he?

"the pasta here is phenomenal."

"well im not hungry."

"oh please. you're stomach has been growling the whole way here. why didn't you order?"

"i have my own money harry."

"not enough. you need to keep that money and save it."

"who are you to tell me how to keep my money?"

"look, im not trying to be mean or anything. im just trying to help you. and plus you look like you need a friend."

"i have plenty of friends, okay?"

"so you're saying that you don't need me."

"are you saying that i need you because of your money? well you are damn wrong."

"look, i just want to be your friend and you're making it quite damn difficult."

i remained quiet. a few minutes passed and the smell of the delicious pasta wavered around my nose. my stomach grumbled loudly, causing a deep sigh to escape my lips.

"fine, let's start this over. shall we?"

harry smiled, wrinkles forming just beneath his eyes.

i had no idea why he wanted to be my friend but i had a feeling something good could come out of this. and now it was my job to find out just what that was.

// authors note //

thank you for reading. don't forget to vote! also comment on what you think the great thing will be from harry. we are interested in finding out what you think!!!

- cierra & tamee .xx