Happier - a drabble series

#3

Your palm tingles.

You imagine Harry's cheek does as well, given how much force you had put into the slap. Not that you'd stuck around to find out.

No. You'd slapped him, gasped out when your hand connected with his cheek, then ran off in the other direction, oblivious to the sound of your name leaving his lips as you slipped through the masses.

When you reach your table, your face feels hot, and your palm still tingles. You look to your friend - Jason, whom you met in college and hadn't seen in almost a year - as angry moisture pools at the corner of your eyes.

"Jason, I'm sorry but," you have to pick up your drink and down the rest of it before you can finish your sentence. "Do you mind if we get out of here?"

His amused expression turns to one of concern. "Sure - any place you want to go next?"

You shake your head, clenching your hand into a fist for a moment. "Doesn't matter, just...not here."

Jason nods but doesn't push for more details. You two have been friends for long enough that he knows you'll tell him once you're good and ready. Instead he waves over the server and pays the bill while you try to avoid eye contact with everyone in the busy bar as you push through the crowd again, towards the exit.

It's a little easier to breathe once your outside.

You'd not been expecting to see him. Honestly, you'd been so good at dropping off the face of his earth and avoiding all his favourite haunts when he was back in London. It had thrown you off to see him. It had thrown you off to look into those green eyes and see the dejection and the sadness there.

It had certainly thrown you when he had the balls to ask if he made you happier than Harry did.

Instinct had kicked in then. You're not sure if you'd meant to slap him that hard, or in such a public place, but Harry had no right to do that to you. To your already fragile heart. To your already heightened emotions.

Maybe, Harry assumes you're with Jason and now he's trying to figure out if he's still in love with you, your conscience muses gently. Maybe you shouldn't have slapped him so hard.

"Jerk," you mutter to yourself, folding your arms over your chest. "Stupid, green eyed jerk."

Jason is only a minute more before he meets you out on the sidewalk, quirking a brow at your steely expression. "You alright there, short stuff?"

You huff at the nickname and reach out to playfully punch him in the shoulder. "M'fine," you lie easily, taking a deep breath in to calm your staccato heart. "Nothing a few more drinks and maybe a curry wont fix. You up for it?"

He snorts a laugh and slings an arm around your shoulder, turning you towards the road. "You had me at 'more drinks'," he teases, leading you across the street. "C'mon, lets go get Uni wasted and you can tell me all your problems."

You sigh, leaning into Jason's embrace. Getting drunk probably isn't the best idea, but if it makes you forget about the shocked look in Harry's eyes in that nanosecond after you'd slapped him, you'd take all the help you could get.