I TRAIL MY FINGERS along the rows of books in the non-fiction aisle, squinting my eyes and trying to find the book i'd been looking for. i turn the corner, keeping my eyes set on the higher shelves before I feel myself run into a body.
"oh my god, im so sorry!" I say adjusting my scarf, looking up to the unfortunate person i'd bumped into, doing a double take as my eyes meet a pair of green ones.
of course.
"its all good" harry laughs, making my stomach does a somersault as he looks me up and down, how is he so goddamn fine.
"also i meant to ask you, i have a work thing later tonight, and I was wondering if you could watch gem for a few hours? i know its late notice and i get if you can't or even if you don't want to-" harry rambles.
"harry I'd be more than happy to" i laugh, placing my hand on his arm, before pulling away as if shocked. "i'm only working from 2-5 today so ill be available after then."
"cool, um, i need to leave at 6:45 and i probably won't be back until 10, so if you could come over at 6:30ish that would be good." he says, as i use all of my willpower trying to stop myself from staring at him like an idiot.
"6:30 sounds great" i say, nodding my head. "speaking of gemma, where is she?"
harry turns around and nods his head towards the kids section of the library, where gemma happily sat, finding amusement in the pictures of a large book. she looked a lot like harry, despite being 15 years younger.
"so," i look up to see harry staring at me in amusement "what are you looking for" he says, a hint of a joke in his voice. i smile at the floor before gesturing the the shelves of books behind me.
"im trying to find a cookbook to give to my boss as a christmas present." gina may be an interesting boss, to say the least, but i was going to feel bad if i didn't get her anything for christmas.
and a pay raise was looking pretty appealing at the moment, if i'm being honest.
"well unless your boss is looking for the recipes they used during the second world war, i believe you might be in the wrong section." harry smirks as he gestures to the non-fiction books behind me. i playfully roll my eyes as we both move into the cookbook section a row over.
"now, speaking from personal experience, if your boss is a bit of a hard-ass, buying a vegan cookbook is the best christmas present you can buy, because they will most likely feel guilty about how they react when they open it in front of you, and then you can ask if they like it in a few months, making them feel guilty about the fact they sold it at a garage sale for 50 cents." he hands me an overly expensive cookbook, with a very enthusiastic looking woman surrounded by vegetables printed on the front cover.
"sounds like a very personal experience to me," i giggle as i put the book back on the shelf, "unfortunately my boss would probably make us change the whole restaurant to vegan to prove she's an 'open minded person', and even if she didn't theres no way i'm going to spend $40 on a book that will be resold for that much less." harry looks at me with a twinkle in my eye after i finish my rant, as my breathing begins to slow.
"is your boss a hardass?" he asks.
"she's more of a bitch, but in the nicest way possible, if that makes any sense."
"it really doesn't, but ill take it."
harry and i continue to flip through cookbooks together, until we find a classic desserts book being resold for $3.
"my god, its perfect" harry dramatically gasps, causing me to laugh obnoxiously and the elderly women next to me glare at us, and wonder off muttering under her breath. after buying the book, we walk back to our apartment building together, as i try to ignore the fluttering feeling in my chest.
"didn't know you were into fairytales." i laugh, referencing the large book he held in one hand. he blushes slightly before turning away, not helping my rapid heartbeat.
"its for gemma, i don't own much kids stuff and got late notice about her coming to stay." harry replies, referencing the young girl skipping happily in the snow next to him.
"so, you work at a restaurant?" he slyly asks, smiling at gemma who began to kick pieces of snow along the pavement.
"yeah, i work at gina's restaurant, about a block or so away from here." harry frowns at my response, before clearing his throat. "um, venus, gina is my mom."
my heart drops as i stop walking. holy shit.
i just called his mum a bitch.
"harry i'm so sorry, i'm sure your mum is really nice and just doesn't like me or something-" i begin to say, before I realise that harry is doubled over in the snow, laughing at me. i frown as i put my hands on my hips. "gina isn't your mom is she."
he shakes his head as he continues laughing, still holding on to gemma's hand. "i just wanted to see the look on your face."
i playfully nudge his shoulder as we finish the short walk back to our apartment, him still laughing slightly as gemma happily skips ahead. i find myself disappointed that the walk isn't longer when we make it back to the building, and wish that we could spend more time together.
"so, i guess i'll see you at 6:30." he smirks, before taking gemma back into the apartment as she waves at me over his shoulder.
"yeah, ill see you then." i say to his closed apartment door, smiling like an idiot.
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venus {h.s}
Fanfictionsoulmate /ˈsəʊlmeɪt/ noun a person ideally suited to another as a close friend or romantic partner. harry and venus thought they were just platonic, just someone they could turn to when in need, someone that would laugh at their corny jokes they kne...
