"Order for Asiha? Asha?" The blonde-haired barista called out.
I immediately clenched my fists as I walked up to take my order. I fake smiled at her and grabbed my vanilla bean frappuccino with two pumps of raspberry syrup off of the counter.
I found it bizarre that despite being a regular for quite a few years, no one here could be bothered to remember my name. I let it go though as I had a lot of other things on my mind, especially today.
Holding my vanilla bean frappuccino with two pumps of raspberry syrup in one hand and my wallet in the other, I briskly walked over to the exit. As I pushed open the door, someone else tried to pull it open at the same time. I knocked into a hard body and my drink dropped out of my hand, spilling its content all over the floor.
"'Ello love" said the booming voice of the tall man standing before me.
"That's on me, I'm so sorry about that," he continued. I, however, remained unable to speak for a few seconds, mostly from frustration. Avoiding his gaze, I told him not to worry about it and quickly rushed over to the counter to grab napkins to clean up this mess.
This was just great, I thought to myself. I was already in a rush and this morning could not have been going worse. Thank God that the shop was nearly empty, I didn't want a bunch of people staring on top of that. I bent down to clean up the drink, and the man that was responsible for this mess knelt to the floor to help.
"Look, you don't need to he-" I looked up and immediately made eye contact, letting out a small gasp. I could recognize those piercing green orbs from a mile away. I tried to focus on cleaning up the spilled drink, but my heart was beating a million times faster than it was before.
"It's okay, really. It's my fault anyway." He continued to wipe away the mess with me. As we both walked over to dispose of the napkins, I struggled to come up with something to say.
"Thank you, you didn't have to do that. I'm sure you have a busy day ahead of you," I finally uttered. He shook his head and smiled.
"Actually, no, not really. It's sort of my day off," he replied. "I really am sorry though and would like to make it up to you if that's okay."
Before I could protest, he was already making his way to the counter. As much as I wanted to take him up on his offer, I quickly let him know that I needed to be at a seminar for a presentation in about 10 minutes and that I was fine.
"Oh, well, maybe some other time, perhaps?" he asked with that cheeky smile I had admired many times before.
"Sure." I nodded and tried to sound nonchalant. Inside, though, I was about ready to have a panic attack.
"Maybe I could get your number?" He asked, holding up his phone.
I reached my shaky hands to grab it and put down my name and number in his contacts as casually as I could. His soft hands brushed against mine as he took it back, making me flinch. He looked at me with a questioning look but didn't say anything. "I hope to see you soon, Aisha," he said with a slight chuckle. "I'm Harry by the way."
I was surprised that this man, who needed no introduction, was telling me his name. It took a lot out of me to keep composed and I wasn't sure how to leave without him feeling as if I was trying to escape him. I considered skipping my presentation altogether. "It's nice to meet you Harry," I said hurriedly before excusing myself and rushing out the door. I was so late.
As I lightly jogged over to the bus stand, I was finally able to process what had just happened back at the shop.
Did Harry Styles just ask for my number?
I accidentally let out a shriek, embarrassed, but then realized no one was around to hear it.
As the thoughts of Harry rushed through my mind, minutes felt like seconds when the bus finally pulled up. Getting in, I saw him once again, walking over to his car. This felt so surreal, and I found myself surprised when I made it to a seat before my mind just completely gave out.
The bus pulled away from the curb and I looked back at Harry driving away in the other direction. I smiled to myself and I knew I wouldn't be able to rest until his text popped up on my phone. All of a sudden, a thought popped up into my head. What if he found out about..?
I shook my head. No, I was only a child and was better than that now. I would never do something like that again. I am a grown adult and well educated.
But whatever it takes, I can't let him find out.
