You Still Remember (Harry Styles)

1. Last Year of High School

Hi! Thanks for choosing to read this. I hope you'll like it! Don't know how often I post chapters-guess I'll just be spontaneous :) Rated PG-13 mostly for swearing.

Alicia’s POV

I walked into the school hall, my bag slung carelessly over my shoulder. Everyone in the hall stopped what they were doing and looked at me. No one said anything. The only sounds heard were the soft tapping of my boots against the wooden floor, and the occasional whimper from school students as I walked past them.

I ruled this school. Everyone was afraid of me, even some of the teachers. All the bullying gangs were on my side. They didn’t dare touch me.

I walked over to my locker. There was a girl standing there, trying to smile. I glared at her, and she whimpered.

“H-Hi, Alicia. H-happy Birthday.” She stuttered.

I was a good two inches taller than this girl. I crossed my arms and leaned over her, and she shrunk down, looking terrified.

“Get lost.” I said threateningly.

She nodded gratefully and ran off. I took one last look at the people staring at me before turning my back to open my locker. Slowly, chatter rose up once again. I sniffed. I smelt a familiar smell. My friend Jessica Holmes’ perfume.

“You didn’t have to be so mean to that girl.” She said, leaning against her own locker, which was beside mine.

Jessica wasn’t the one you’d think to be my friend. She was girly and cheerful, but she was the only one who didn’t try to be my friend because she was scared of me, so I liked her. I became her only friend. Not that she was a loner though-loads of people wanted to be her friend, because her family was rich and well, she wasn’t ugly. But she refused them all and stuck with me. I appreciated her for that, but that didn’t change anything about my attitude.

“You’re not my mother.” I said casually, looking inside my locker and not at her.

“All she wanted to do was wish you a happy 18th.”

“Do I look like I want to be happy on my 18th?” I asked, glancing at her with no expression. Then I turned back to my locker.

“Well, I know that there’s someone who would like to see you happy on this day, and I don’t mean someone from your family.”

My grip on my locker door tightened. I inhaled sharply.

“Shut up, Jessica.” I snapped.

“Yeah, he turned 19 a little while ago.”

“JESSICA!” I slammed my locker shut and glared at her intensely. She didn’t even flinch.

That was the disadvantage of Jessica being my friend. She wasn’t scared of me like everyone else. Speaking of which, everyone was silent again. They were looking at us, and they all looked scared out of their wits. I ran outside to the front of the school, terrified that I would cry.

No-one could see me cry at school. No-one. Jessica followed me.

“It’s true though.”

“Shut your mouth, Goddammit!”

“Dare me to say his name, Alicia.”

“Don’t you fucking dare.”

“Harry.”

“SHUT THE FUCK UP!” I put my hands over my ears and fell to my knees on the ground.

I heard the bell ring. I moved my hands away slightly before removing them from my ears completely and standing up. Jessica just stood there, arms crossed.

“That was the bell. You coming?” She asked

“No. I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Suit yourself.” She turned around and then began to walk away, but then she turned back, suddenly looking guilty. “I’m sorry, Als.”

“Just…go to class.”

Hesitating, she went inside the school. I ran to the side of the building and sank right down to the ground. I hugged my knees and started to cry. Why Jessica, why? Why did you have to talk about Harry on my birthday? Tears spurted out from my eyes as I remembered the last time I saw him…

Flashback

I stood before the airport doors, holding my wheely suitcase in one hand.

“I wish you didn’t have to go.” A voice came from behind me.
I turned around and faced the boy before me. I let go of my suitcase and fell into his arms as I began to cry.

“Harry…” I tried to speak to him between my sobs.

“Shh…it’s OK. You don’t need to say anything.”

“I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too.”

“Why can’t we just run away? Like, now? I could live with you in your house and…”

“Alicia, don’t be daft.”

“I know it’s stupid but…” I let go of him and looked into his deep green eyes. “I don’t want to leave you.”

“Alicia. We have to go. Your sister’s getting impatient.” My mom put her hand on my shoulder. I looked at her.

“OK.” I whispered.

I turned back to Harry, who wrapped me tightly in one last hug before my mom pulled me away. I looked back at him one last time before our family went through the doors to the outgoing flights.

They were just doors but…I felt like they were a huge pair of scissors cutting through the bond between me and Harry-my best friend, my brother, my everything. I cried during the whole flight to California.

---

I was crying in the same way now. The sobs came out in short breaths, and tears mercilessly flowed out of my eyes. That was 5 years ago-when I was 13. So much happened since then. He became famous. He became Harry Styles from One Direction; and so many girls around the world fell madly in love with him. All the attention from these girls could’ve easily made him forget about me. Just the thought of someone reminding him of my name and then thinking of him going “Alicia who?” Made my heart twist around in pain.

That’s why I became this way-who I am now. I made my heart solid. Impenetrable. Except over this one subject. If I hear someone say stuff like “OMG Harry Styles this” and “OMG Harry Styles that”, I had to run. Run away from the sound of his name. Everyone thought I was the girl who no-one could hurt, who no-one could affect. But they were wrong. I was just a girl who made a new image of herself to make people think they couldn’t hurt her. I thought I’d be better off that way. To be able to feel nothing. It worked. I fooled everyone.

Speaking of which, it seemed about showtime. It took me 5 minutes to get my act together, and I strolled into History class, acting like I didn’t have a care in the world. Our teacher, Mr Williams, looked at me disapprovingly.

“Alicia, you’re 10 minutes late for class.” He scolded.

“Whatcha gonna do? Throw me in jail?” I snapped. I heard several “Ooohs” from the class.

“Sit down.” Mr Williams said firmly.

I rolled my eyes and slumped into my seat next to Jessica. As Mr Williams continued the class, I saw from the corner of my eye she was scribbling on a piece of paper. Then she passed it to me.

You alright?

I sighed in an annoyed tone and scrawled a message on the paper.

Don’t talk to me.

She wrote to me again.

I’m really sorry. I forgot how sensitive you actually are.

I looked at her. She did look really guilty so I nodded and wrote back one last message.

OK. I forgive you.

I watched her reaction to the message. She gave me a small smile. I usually never smiled at school, but I gave her a half-smile back. It didn’t really make a difference anyway. It’s been ages since the last time I actually smiled.

 In fact, it’s been five years.