Beautifully Flawed | Harry Styles [One Direction]

Chapter 9

It was awkward – to say the least – to be sitting and chatting away with Harry now that I knew he was a world known celebrity. Nothing should have changed, particularly because there was nothing going on between us. Still, I couldn’t help but going over and over again the fact that not only there was a big age gap between us, but also that he was one of the most famous people in the world, with millions of girls (and maybe even women) who died to go out with him. But he was sitting right there next to me as if it was the most normal thing, talking to us about this and that.

I eyed him as he had a sip from his water and a guy approached him, asking him for a picture. Harry smiled and stood up, posing with the guy as he took a selfie of them both. They exchanged a few words and laughs and Harry patted this man’s back before he returned to take a seat beside me. Lara excused herself to go to the bathroom and Harry poked me slightly on my arm.

“Hey, what’s going on? You’re too quiet.”

“I’m--- I’m not. I was just thinking about this whole thing…” I made a sign with my hand, pointing at him and me in turns. “It’s nothing, though.” I tried to give him a reassuring smile but knowing I had failed terribly, I kept speaking. “I’m sorry, it’s just--- I honestly can’t stop thinking about the fact that you’re a celebrity and I’m a Jane Doe so why would you even be interested in hanging out with me and my friend when we’re just boring normal people who have boring office jobs and do nothing interesting like all the people I’m pretty sure you know?” I asked breathlessly and noticed that Harry was trying not to laugh. Again. He did seem to do that quite a lot whenever I spoke. “And you just won’t stop laughing at me!”

After that last sentence, Harry let a loud laugh out and he leaned back on his chair, throwing his head back laughing. I watched him with a frown until he calmed down from that laughing fit. “You’re really cute, did you know that?” he added with a small smile. “I enjoy your company, that’s why I’m here. And I smile and laugh because I like you. I thought you already knew that.” He stated matter-of-factly.

“Hm.” I frowned and contemplated what I could possibly tell him. If I said that I had realized he liked me I was going to sound too smug and I didn’t want him to think I was like that. “Why do you like me? You don’t even know me…”

“Here we go again,” he rolled his eyes at me and I gasped. “I don’t know you because you don’t let me know you.”

I opened my mouth to get back at him with some sassy remark but I couldn’t think of anything, so I just pursed my lips and shook my head. “It’s not that.” I winced.

“If you stopped over thinking and giving me silly excuses, then I’d get to know you. Now, if you want to keep using the ‘You don’t even know me…’ line, just carry on acting like this.” He said sounding all cocky. “I’ll still want to hang out with you, mind you.”

“How---” I started off and stopped. What am I even going to say? He was clearly just trying to wind me up. And he was actually succeeding. “You don’t give up easily, don’t you?”

“Nope, and I won’t give up on you either.” He threatened pointing at me with his index as he took his glass of water in his hands. “So what do you say? Are you going to open up and let me know you better?”

“Only if you stop annoying me.”

“Oh, I can’t promise that. You see, one of my many talents is being annoying.”

Resting my elbows on the table, I looked straight into his eyes and shook my head. “One of your many talents is annoying me.”

“I would like to change that, if you let me of course.” He replied, leaning in towards me. “The last thing I want is to annoy such a beautiful woman.”