Effortless (h.s.)

Chapter THIRTY FIVE - the oof

hey if u could vote for this chapter that'd b kinda hot bc idk i just idk hehe

also did not proof read so oopsies sorry for the oopsies

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My fingernails clung to muddy dirt as my hands ran through the mulch surrounding the cafe. The dim lighting didn't make the quest any easier and Harry leaning over my shoulder only added to my nerves.

A quick 'dink' of metal hitting against my rings sent Harry and I into excitement, he crouched down next to me to join in the hunt, "You lot really hide this shit."

I suppressed a snicker, "Last time I buried it two feet under."

"Lucky us then," Harry kneeled back onto his feet, holding on tightly to the key between his index finger and thumb. The amber colored light bulb next to the back door gave the metal a radiating orange tint that seemed tiny compared to the size of Harry's hands.

He swiftly tossed the key over.
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I poured Harry a cup of coffee and placed the cream and sugar next to the freshly steaming mug. When I turned around to grab another mug I was faced with a picture of all the employees of Beachwood Cafe, all our smiling faces left me feeling dull.

Without missing a beat I reached for a mug and twirled back around to meet the gaze of a curious Harry. Harry squinted his eyes at me then looked around to find what I had been caught up on.

I knew he had laid his eyes on Joseph because he rolled his eyes, "Your boyfriend looks like a bloody centipede."

"Shut the fuck up," I retorted while pouring myself a cup of coffee.

Harry purses his lips and spined around on the stool.

I knew I needed to apologize to Harry for numerous things but at the moment I couldn't take a blow to my pride. After he explained verbatim of why I left him, embarrassment was an understatement of my current state of mind. Half of me dreaded going home to Joseph and resume on our everyday life of constant working and easy conversation.

The other half of me dreaded the uncomfortable things Harry and I needed to push through in order to reach a truce. I shook my head and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry for leaving," I ripped a sugar packet open and spilled the contents into my coffee.

"No you're not," Harry face scrunched up, "You haven't given any thought to it since you left."

My tense shoulders fell, "Harry, yes I am. I shouldn't have left and I definitely shouldn't have put the blame on you. It's not your fault you travel, I should've just accepted the offer and-"

"I thought about it every day," Harry intervened my bullshit apology.

It wasn't that I didn't feel bad, because I truly did. But the amount of anger I built up against Harry wasn't dying down any time soon. It felt good to know he hurt after I left. I pushed my lips together and brought myself to look at the singer leaning against the counter top.

"I know," I whispered.

"I wrote an entire album about you and you never even listened to it," Harry clapped his hands and laughed.

"I'm sorry," I repeated once more, "I'll listen to it when I'm ready."

"You're not?"

I pouted and took a sip of coffee, leaving the answer floating in the dense air.

Harry set his mug down gently, "Why do we bicker? Why can't we just talk like we used to when we first met?"

The sound of a car door shutting sent my body into hyper drive, Harry immediately stood up and turned the front light off.