Afire Love (h.s)

two

The next few days pass by quickly, and I have a routine now. I get up in the morning, visit the gym, and then hunt for jobs and furniture. I have managed to purchase two sofas, a lamp and a wardrobe, which have all been delivered and look amazing, in my opinion. I have also secured an interview as a receptionist at the gym, as I asked the woman behind the desk on Wednesday morning. I've seen Harry too, wondering why he's always so cold towards me. We've spoken a few times, in the lift and at the gym, but he is nothing but horrible, so I don't give him much of my time.

It is now Friday evening, and I have been out to a bar with some friends I made at the gym, Bella and Olivia. The lift takes its usual time to get up to the third floor, and as the doors open, I see a figure lying on the ground, outside my apartment.

As I get closer to the apartment, I realise that it isn't only a person lying on the ground, but it is my neighbour, Harry. And he has a black eye, along with some cuts on his face, and seems to be falling in and out of consciousness.

"Harry?" I ask softly, as I kneel down to see him closer. His green eyes open slowly as he grunts, "Could you help me into my apartment?" he asks as his eyes silently plead for my help. 

I debate my options - help the neighbour I hate, or potentially let him die? I obviously help him, and ask him softly, "where are your keys?" He hands them to me and I unlock his apartment door, the smell of peppermint and aftershave filling my senses. I grab his arm and pull him up off the floor, which is followed by a grunt from him, ungrateful man, my mind adds. 

I enter his apartment, with him on my arm, and I try to find the nearest chair, as I sit him down on his sofa. "Where's your first aid kit?" I question as I walk into the kitchen to try and find it. I pick out the green box from his kitchen drawer, and walk back over to him. I tell him to be quiet as I take an antiseptic wipe and step in between his legs, wiping his lip and the dried blood over his face. This is such a weird situation - me, stood in between the neighbour I hate's legs, and helping him, when a few days ago he was so horrible to me. 

I help him bandage up his cuts and put a plaster on a deeper on on his jaw, and he winces a few times as I do so. When I'm finished, I stand there admiring my work, and his face, my subconscious teases me and I look down. "Thank you for that, you didn't have to do that," his raspy voice brings us out of our silence. I bring my eyes up to him, and smile at him, "you're welcome, I'm sure anyone would have done the same," he smiles back at me, "would you like a drink? I make a good cup of tea," "I'd love one!" I reply, hoping that maybe we can be friends after all. 

Harry walks into the kitchen and put the kettle on. "So, Liliana, where are you from?" he asks me, pulling out two mugs from the cupboard. I grimace at the name he gives me, "please don't call me that. I'm from Bath, but moved here for work, you?" I reply to him. "Why? And I'm from Cheshire", he replies almost straight away. I notice he avoids telling me why he moved, but I take a deep breath and reply, "it just hits a nerve thats all," I smile back, trying to hide the falter in my emotions. 

We sit down with our tea in Harry's living room, and he cracks a joke about how tea nowadays is not as good as it used to be. I laugh with him, and we start chatting about our lives, and what we enjoy. It turns out we have a lot of things in common - we both love watching Skins, eating Cadbury's chocolate and going to the gym everyday. He told me that he is in fact a boxer, and has a competition coming up, which is why he is in the gym more often than usual.

So thats how the rest of my evening is spent, sat in Harry's apartment, on Harry's sofa, drinking Harry's tea and laughing at his awful jokes. At around 1:30am, I put my empty mug on the table and stand up from the sofa. I thank Harry for the evening and he thanks me for helping him. He embraces me lightly at the door before bidding me goodnight, and I unlock my apartment door, kicking off my shoes and heading straight to bed. 

I lay awake most of that night, as I think about my past in Bath, and how I wish my old relationship was half as good as that night was. My mind thinks back to that relationship, and how it was such a dark time in my life. 

I finally drift off to sleep at around 3:30am, as I smell peppermint and aftershave on me from Harry's apartment. 

Short chapter I know! But I've spent my whole evening working on the beginning of this story, and I will post another shortly!!

- devil-styles xo