book club

ten || just girls

"Let me win." Harry whines.

I have won five consecutive games of Mario Cart. Liam quit two games ago, throwing his control into the wall and then rolling face down into the carpet.

"Not a chance." I laughed.

I win again and Harry slumps down in the couch and softly bangs his head on the wall.

"You lost to a girl." Liam chuckles.

Harry looks up and glares at him. He looks so adorable, like a stubborn child.

"You lost to a girl too. Shut up." Harry mutters.

I playfully kick Harry in the side and hit him over the head with a pillow. "Don't be such a sore loser." I grin.

He grabs my foot and tickles my heel, laughing when I twist on the couch.

"I swear to god I will kick you in the face." I warn, trying not to let laughter escape because I know that's what he wants.

"Quit being mushy gushy and put a new game in." Liam says.

Harry drops my foot and walks over to the tall shelf of games. My gaze starts at his feet, which are pushed into a pair of dusty brown boots. His legs are encased in a ridiculously tight pair of black jeans, and he's wearing a green and blue flannel, halfway buttoned up with no shirt underneath. His messy hair is pushed up from his face, and there are rings on his fingers.

"Stop staring at my ass, Lea." He calls, turning to smirk at me.

I glance away with flushed cheeks as Liam laughs quietly. "I wasn't staring." I mumble.

"Yeah, yeah," Harry waves me off, "What game, Liam?"

Liam takes a drink from the brown bottle in his hand and shrugs. "I don't know, something that a girl can't beat us at." He says in reply.

I roll my eyes and cross my legs under my dress. "I'll probably still win." I sigh.

Liam runs a hand through his hair and nods. "Yeah, you probably will. Hey, I'm gonna go see if my mom left for work yet, be back in minute."

Once he's gone, Harry sits on the floor in front of me and turns around.

"Have you started the book yet?" I ask.

He shakes his head and pops an unlit Marlboro in his mouth. "No, not yet. Haven't quite had the time."

I shift in the leather couch and then slide down to the ground next to him. "What do you even do in your free time?" I ask.

He looks at me and then shrugs. "I think about girls." He says.

"Girls?"

"Just girls."

"What girls?" I ask.

"Well, only one girl." He replies.

Before I can open my mouth Liam lumbers down the stairs and sits next to me.

"She's gone, give me a cigarette." He sighs.

Harry tosses the pack, right over my head, and hands him a lighter.

"I thought your mom had the nose of a bloodhound." I say.

He nods and blows the smoke into the air. "She does, but she never comes down here, plus, I put a towel up there under the door." He replies.

I nod and stretch my legs out, pin straight. "You guys are gonna die." I chime.

They both roll their eyes and Harry shrugs. "Aren't we all going to die anyways?"

Oh.

"Yeah, I guess. Give me one." I say.

Liam shakes his head. "No, don't give her one."

"Sorry Lea, your mom would kill me." Harry says.

I frown and reach for the pack in his lap. "Come on, that's not fair." I gripe.

Harry chuckles and hands me his, that's already lit. "Breath in your nose, don't swallow the smoke. You'll choke. Just hold it and then blow it out, yeah?"

I do as he instructed, but I cough anyway. It's horrible, my throat feels dry and ashy and my eyes water.

"No. Nope, that's disgusting. Ugh, god, why do you guys do that?" I cough, taking a drink from the bottle that's in Liam's hand.

"You get used to it," Harry says, "Here, chew this gum so your mom won't smell it on your breath."

He winks when he says gum, a silent reminder of last Wednesday. My cheeks flush at the thought, I believed that he was going to kiss me.

"Yeah, thanks. You sure you don't have any watermelon gum?" I ask, pulling his own signature wink bit on him.

His eyes grow wide and he shakes his head. "Using my own moves against me, I see."

"I feel like I'm missing something here." Liam says.

Harry doesn't pull his eyes away from mine, in fact is gaze grows more intense and I'm sure my pupils are more than likely blown up in size.

"That's because you are."