Existence Of Love [Harry Styles Fanfiction/A Mermaid Tale]

16. Shampoo

I pulled away the moment after our lips met, his soft and gentle on mine.

I stepped away, his arms letting me go and I watched his face. His eyes stayed closed and his bottom lip was caught between his teeth, his head dipped slightly and eyebrows were pulled together.

"Travis?"

"I got caught up." He answered, turning away.

"In what?"

He shook his head, moving to lay down on his stomach on the bed, bringing a pillow to his face. "My family isn't a family anymore, my dad hit my mom, I hit my dad, my ex girlfriend hates me more now, I beat up my ex friend. His face is so bruised.." Travis trailed off, sighing softly. I seated myself down next to him and patted his back. "I thought that maybe I could have one good thing going for me, but your hooks are set into Harry.. Why him? You barely know him," He sat up slightly, just enough to look at me. "You know me."

"I can't explain it, Travis. Harry is just.... He started something in me and I can't describe it. It's like bubbles tickling me from the inside. Like he has a pull coming from him for me."

"You and every other girl in the world." Travis mumbled, turning to bury his face back in the pillows.

"Travis, don't be like that." I sighed, pulling my hand back and locking my fingers together.

"Be like what? You don't have a future with him, Evanjaline. You never had a chance! He obviously can't know you're a mermaid because the moment he does, the whole world will, too! Sometimes I think that just because you're something other than human, you think you can have him, but life sucks. You can't always get what you want."

Why was he being this way with me? My chest ached the way it did when father told me that he would rather me die than be with a human.

"Maybe things will turn out. Love makes-" I started, only to be cut off.

"Love doesn't exist! You've witnessed that countless of times while being on land!" His voice started to shake. "Your father was right."

"No, he wasn't." I closed my eyes and started to pace, shaking my head slowly from side to side. "He was wrong and so are you! You let all of this cloud your mind but you will not break me down!" My eyes started to sting and water pooled in my vision. What is this? I didn't care right now. Travis sat up and stared at me. "Love exists and love is the only way I can finally live my own life. My life," I scoffed. "My life has already been planned out and if love doesn't exist then I will marry someone of my fathers choice and I willed be damned if I will be unhappy for the rest of my life like my father. He'd rather see me dead- his own daughter dead!- than have me be happy with someone who I actually love." I wiped my hand against my cheek, something tickling my skin as the water from my eyes fell. "And what the hell is this?!"

"Evanjaline, calm down.. I'm sorry." Travis said, his hand reaching out for mine.

I pulled away from his grip. "I thought you were the one person who believed in me. Not even Xya believes I can find love in Harry. I thought I could count on you."

"You can. I didn't mean what I said and I'm sorry."

"You did mean it because it seemed to me that you were burying all of that inside. And you just exploded."

"It's just my thoughts, thoughts that I discarded because I could see how important all of this was to you. Evanjaline, I promised to help you and I won't go back on my word. I was angry and upset. Don't take any of those words I said before to heart, please."

"Do you like me?"

"As a frien-?"

"No."

"Yes."