labyrinth Δ harry styles

Door Twenty-Five: Two's Company

FOR SOME REASON, it felt different.

Not different in terms of the weather which had changed since they last saw each other earlier in the day, nor different in terms of taking another route to get to his house to avoid strange nightly traffic.

No.

Because as soon as she had stepped foot onto the elevator, she felt odd nerves start to kick in. She laughed mentally about the thought of it being naughty; It was far from it!

Why does this feel so weird?!

Maybe it was because things were different now. Natasha was pissed at Indira for whatever reason still unknown, so the need to go to chez Harry was partially out of spite.

And the most obvious of differences was Harry and Indira's agreement—of the sorts. Perhaps that was the nerve that was kicking in. Sure she had been to his house a handful of times, but this time felt more unpredictable than the rest. Back then, she knew it was going to be dinner and small talk, but now? What was to come? Was it going to be anything like before?

With her hands inside her jacket pockets, she silently cracked her knuckles before knocking on the door.

"It's open!" He yelled.

She thought back to the last time he had spoken those words, him expecting another guest, and her trying to find a way to apologize for treating him so harshly at first. She even thought back to the time they spent in the garden while Harry had his photoshoot, and how he was so different than what he had been putting off since that moment.

So much has changed, but the bruise of it all remained, the color still a deep purple color with black edges, a reminder that while all was well at first, there was always something to ruin it.

Indira turned the knob of the unlocked door and entered into the penthouse with a gasp escaping from the base of her throat. The space wasn't dark, but it wasn't bright either. The lights were surely dimmed more significantly than she liked, and the only true light source came from the brightness of the flatscreen in the living room. Everything was as spotless as she last remembered it, the pots and pans hung in their place, the grey marble counter top without a scratch, and each seat of the bar and dining table tucked in tightly. The only thing different was a box of popcorn that wasn't even opened yet, and a white bag filled with other items she couldn't see.

A noise pulled her away from her observations, so she followed it until it brought her to the living room, the tv looking exceptionally brighter than usual.

Did I mention that already?

When she walked past the wall that covered the dining area, she saw Harry stood in front of the tv trying to toggle with it's settings.

"You okay there?" She asked, a smile creeping on her lips.

His head turned so swiftly, that a loose curl from the top of his head fell across his face. She noted that his hair was getting longer.

Harry let out a breath that sounded like a small laugh, "Just setting something up." He turned his head back around towards the tv while she took off her shoes and shimmied herself under the down blanket that looked like it was placed there just for her.

"I would say get comfortable, but something tells me you're already under the..." He turned his head, and from his peripheral he could already see her holding it close. "Blanket." He smiled wide, hiding his teeth, then turned back around to finish setting up what he was doing earlier.

Is it really that cold in here?

"So what's on the agenda?"

"I, uh, thought we could watch a movie. But if you're opposed to—"