free run | h.s

three

It had been a week since Harry had first saw the girl he couldn't keep his eyes off of. Since that life-changing day, he had been rushing to the exact same school, desperate to reach it on time to see the girl enter. But alas, luck wasn't in his favour as whenever he arrived, the crowd was always diminishing through the doors into nothing.

Even a name would've been great to Harry. Just to give him peace of mind that she was real. Maybe he could get her number? He would be over the moon just for that to happen.

But how on Earth would he approach her?

He decided that his mind wouldn't be as free to think down in the murky, busy streets. So he did the one thing that he always instinctively did - he broke out into a sprint; skilfully hurdling over rusted and oxidised railings that sat in his path; running up a few weathered brick walls here and there to dodge the odd person; lifting up his built figure onto higher ground. It was all a blur - but it was a good kind of blur.

The blur that makes you feel superhuman and not dizzy, at all.

"You're asking me for... girl advice?" questioned Niall in disbelief, a damp cloth clutched in his left hand as he wiped over the tables scattered around the café. "We're best friends, Haz. Did you not realise that I absolutely suck at trying to talk to women?"

Harry rolled his eyes, "You're my only best friend, Niall. I don't have anybody else to go to other than you." It sounded sad when Harry put it that way. Although he didn't mind too much, he liked just having Niall. It saved hassle and Niall was bubbly and kind enough to make up for a whole group of friends, really.

"Well..." he trailed off, slinging the cloth over his shoulder and wiping his hands on his apron as he turned to his mate. "Why don't you follow her or something? Isn't that what detectives do to find out information about people?"

"You make me sound so Sherlock Holmes, Niall."

"I'm just giving you ideas. That seemed pretty good in my head."

Of course it did, Harry thought with a playful smile, "I guess that seems like the only way... I'm pretty sure I can't just go and talk to a sixteen year old girl and expect her to like me-"

"Hold on, she's fucking sixteen?! Harry, mate. You kinda forgot that tiny, little detail."

"Uh..." he scratched his head

"There's no way you can get with a sixteen year old girl, mate. Absolutely no way."

"And why not?"

"Because it's wrong! She's too young, you're technically from different generations, Haz. In case you're forgetting, you're a twenty-two year old man. That's six whole years apart, Harry!"

"I don't think that matters, really. But she's just so beautiful. I just wanna take her under my wing and look after her - protect her, you know?"

Niall shook his head in disbelief, "No. I don't know. Why don't you just find a girl your own age?"

Harry sighed and ran his large, weathered palms down his flustered face in despair. He just doesn't get it! Harry thought with a mental eye roll.

"It doesn't matter, Ni," Harry gave in, knowing he wouldn't convince his best friend to be on his side this time.

Now it was Niall's turn to sigh, "Look, Harry. I know you like this mysterious - and very underage, might I add - girl, but there's no changing my mind here. I'm not telling you who to date and who to fall in love with, but..." he paused for a second, placing a hand kindly on the brunette's shoulder, "I just don't want it to blow up into this massive problem, okay? She isn't old enough for love or anything like that. It will only end in heartbreak on your end of the stick. And I don't wanna see that happen to my best mate."

"It won't happen," Harry stated simply, with a curt nod. He was being evasive, he knew, but he didn't want to elaborate further into this subject with Niall, who was clearly feeling strong enough about this whole malarkey to lecture him about it for hours.

Niall began to speak, but Harry raised a hand to cease the words that were about to leave his lips. The gangly brunette just sighed and exited the café, approaching his front door up the spiralling staircase in the back room.

Once he was safely inside his humble abode, he made sure to lock the door again before stripping to nothing and taking a hot shower before he went to bed.

Although, most of his shower wasn't actually spent showering. He was just stood beneath the blasting jets hanging from above, letting the warm water slither down his body as he thought of the girl that wouldn't leave his mind. It was like the image of her was inscribed into Harry's mind, unable to escape from his thoughts.

And that thought was what he managed to fall asleep to that night. He was definitely going to get her - no matter what Niall said was right and what wasn't right.