Misery Loves Company (H.Styles Fanfic)

Chapter 8

Chapter 8

I’m standing in front of the mirror in my new, fully furnished bedroom, in a pink floral dress that Harry purchased for me last week after the little episode in the bathroom, and my hair is down, slightly curled at the ends to make it more voluminous. Harry thinks I’m ready to meet his friends.

“I think you’re ready to meet my friends,” he told me last night at dinner. “And you should wear the dress I bought you, it fits you gorgeously.”

So I’m wearing the dress, and his friends are all sitting in the living room downstairs. I’m nervous because I know that if I say something Harry doesn’t approve of, I’ll be reprimanded, and that would simply lead to more hurting. What else do I have than play his game, anyway?

The voices are chattering all together; some screams are even shared every now and then, probably from fighting or soccer on TV, but I stay in the room, hiding myself from them. Harry knows I’m here and he knows what I’m doing, but he promised he’d let me get ready and that I could take all the time I needed.

“Don’t rush it and don’t do it for me. Elena, if you meet them for five minutes, then it’s just going to be five minutes. But I really want you to meet them.” He walked around the island in the kitchen and joined me by the sink where I was washing the dishes. His hand crept up the small of my back and he placed his lips on the side of my head. “Please, babe.”

Not wanting to enrage him as he seemed in a good mood, I nodded and agreed to it. But now, I want to bail. The dress looks too short, my hair seems off and my makeup is just not nice. The bruises on my arms are now pale yellow spots, hardly noticeable, and the pain has almost fully vanished. I pat the dress down and make sure it’s wrinkle free, even though I ironed it yesterday.

Twice.

There are three quiet knocks on the door and I turn around, startled. “Baby? Are you doing all right?” I open the door just a little bit in order for him to see me, and I smile and nod, because that’s what I do best. “You look beautiful.” He pushes the door just a little more and bends in to kiss my forehead. “Come down whenever you want.”

I let Harry close the door but I know he’s still standing on the other side, waiting for me to follow him. A sigh escapes his lips when he realizes that I’m not coming now and I hear his footsteps down the stairs.

A lock was installed on the window across the room, so I have really no way to escape. Even if I wanted to tiptoe to his bedroom, a lock was installed to every window, and it’s linked to the security system. So even if it’s summer soon, the only fresh air I can get is from the very small window/gap above my shower, which is only half a foot by three inches and it leads directly to the roof, or the air conditioning and fan. The gap above the shower only allows enough air to clear up the steam; I could hardly fit my entire arm through it. Everytime the front or the back door opens, there’s a loud bell in the house that indicates Harry’s arrival or departure. The entire security system is controlled by his phone.

I take a deep breath and open the bedroom door. The laughter and voices are clearer now, but for some reason it makes me flinch, and I close the door right away. With my hand still on the knob, I try again and this time, I don’t let myself get intimidated by the voices. I tiptoe to the stairs and glance down the rail, but I can’t see the living room from here. I hear female and male voices, both genders obviously enjoying themselves. Why does it have to be so embarrassing to go there? Clearly they know I’ve been hiding.

One step at a time, I head downstairs with an incredibly absent confidence and I stand before the entrance for the living room. I feel like a young girl in this dress, and the way I’m shy about meeting Harry’s friends. I’m not twelve, for Christ’s sake! It is a nice dress, though. All heads turn to me and I see two girls sitting on the sofas, a pretty blond one and a gorgeous brunette. All the guys are sitting on the floor with their bottle of beer.