Stall

Chapter 10.

"Your dad had probably warned you bout' guys like me
But I'm the coolest motherfucker you'll ever meet
But do keep this in mind
That I could fuck up your life"

****

Harry's shoulders relax, and I place my hands over his, removing them from my face to try and create some distance.

I can deal with all the gnawing questions I want to ask Harry later, even though there's not a hope in hell that I'll get an answer out of him.

I think for now I just want to make sure he's at least stable? Is that the word? Maybe it's safe.

There's something dark brooding inside of him, that looks like its plaguing and torturing every part of him and I can't help that phrase running around in my head.

"I'm not that lucky"

Hearing that mixed with the self destructive train wreck I walked in on tonight has me grief stricken.

Never in a million years would I have thought something like that would come from the usually stoic and confident man I had spent time with.

I don't know how to help him, nor do I know what he needs help from, but it's apparent from tonight that he needs it none the less, and if the best I can do right now is my own company then I guess that's what I'll do.

I just have to figure out how I'm going to survive spending the night with him, because even when he's an absolute unhinged wreck - he's wrecks me with how breathtaking he is.

"Go sit down, I'll get you some water" I say, giving his hands a reassuring squeeze as I let them go.

"Water?" he asks, looking at me like I just offered him dish soap.

"Yes, water, you need to sober up" I say sternly, looking to the bottle of whisky and back to his face with my brows raised.

His lips quirk as he regards me "Water isn't going to sober me up from coke and valium sweetheart"

I press my lips together flatly "Well I don't know anything about that other stuff, but water is better then what you've been doing"

Harry shrugs his brows "Touche"

If you had told me 3 years ago that one day I'd be standing there offering the man I met in that dingy club a glass of water, after he'd been on a drug and alcohol binge, with his vices displayed in front of me on his kitchen counter I would have told you, that you were insane.

How the tables have turned, now I'm the insane one.

I'm quite shocked if I'm honest how unaffected Harry seems, granted I've never been around anyone that's taken these sort of things, but he doesn't seem high? Whatever high is supposed to look like, I have no idea.

He doesn't even really seem drunk, I know he can hold his liquor, but I don't know how full that bottle was when he started drinking it.

Maybe he's not even human, it'd explain a lot.

"Go sit down" I repeat, pointing towards his leather sofa.

He gives me a smile that's almost proud "You've gotten bossy over the years"

His mood has one eightied, from the moment I agreed to stay the tension and distress in him has disappeared, and I'm finding it hard to keep up with how quickly his mood fluctuates.

"Only when it comes to you" I quip back "Now to sit"

"I don't like being told what to do" he reminds me stubbornly, but there's a playful tone to his voice.