Unexpected Love

Chapter Thirty Five

A whole month without Harry. Now that it was the Easter holiday, I finally had some time off. I had decided to go down to London and visit him for a few days. As I drove down south, I allowed my mind to drift to Harry. I was so excited to see him properly and be able to hold him and kiss him. I missed the smell of his hair and I missed running my hands through his curls. It took four hours to get to London and navigate my way through the city, eventually pulling up outside the address Harry had given me. I hadn't told him I was coming so I was hoping he would be happy to see me. I left my suitcase in the car and walked towards the front door, ringing the bell. Thirty seconds later, the door opened to reveal someone I had never seen before. He just looked at me, his eyes scanning my body, and I realised I hadn't said anything yet. "Does Harry live here?" I asked, quieter than I wanted it to be.

"And you are?" His dark eyes continued to look me up and down, and I felt rather intimidated by him. He was a large man, and his muscles stretched his black shirt, making it seem as though the buttons could pop off at any time. He was considerably taller than me, and I had to look up to talk to him.

"I'm Louis, am I at the right address?" I reiterated, trying not to look to scared.

"Oh, you must be the boyfriend. He's at work but should be finishing soon, would you like to wait?" he asked, his intimidating expression unwavering. I nodded, following him inside to the living room. He gestured for me to sit down so I did, looking around the room. It was quite small, just a sofa, a chair, a TV on the wall, a bookcase and a coffee table in the centre. A coffee mug sat on top of the small table that was littered with stains, TV magazines shoved underneath, and I noticed Harry's laptop on the floor, half open. "I'm Ryan, by the way," he said, interrupting my thoughts. I shook his hand, and he gripped harder than I thought was necessary. I looked at him properly, his black hair was short and spiky, and his arms were covered in tattoos. Everything about him made me uncomfortable. Neither of us said anything for a while, until I heard the front door open. Ryan jumped up, telling me to stay there and be quiet. He left the room, and I heard him say something to Harry, but I couldn't tell what. After a few minutes, Harry walked into the room and his face lit up, his eyes shining as he stared at me.

"Louis? What are you doing here? I've missed you so much!" he squealed, bounding towards me and pulling me towards him. I squeezed as tightly as I could. For the first time since I got to London, I felt safe.

"Surprise!" I laughed, reaching up to kiss him. As soon as our lips touched, he pulled away quickly, turning around to look at Ryan. He was looking directly at Harry, and as soon as he caught me looking, he turned around and walked away. "What's his problem?" I asked as Harry led me down the hallway to his room.

"Oh, Ryan? Nothing, just ignore him," he said, closing his bedroom door behind us. I looked around his room, noticing how small and cramped it was. He had a single bed pushed right up against the corner, a bed side table and a chest of drawers. I'd only ever seen it when we'd been video calling each other but it looks so much worse now that I was stood in it. We laid on the bed, pushed up against each other as he fiddled with my hair. "Where are you staying?" he asked, and I shrugged in response. I hadn't really thought about that. "Maybe we could get a hotel," Harry suggested, and I smiled at the idea. He stood up, walking over to the bottom drawer. He moved some of his clothes around, before sighing and standing up. "Where is it?" he mumbled, searching the room.

"What are you looking for?" I asked, standing up and wrapping my arms around his waist.

"My laptop, I could've sworn I put it back in the draw."

"I thought I saw it in the living room, on the floor?" I said, and I felt Harry tense slightly. He sighed again, leaving the room and closing the door behind him. After five minutes, I wondered what he was doing, so I opened the door and made my way down the hall. The living room door was mostly closed, but there was a small gap, and I could just about see Ryan stood in front of Harry. I went to push the door open, but when I heard Ryan's voice, I stopped myself.

"Why the fuck is he here?" Ryan snarled, and I noticed Harry looked so small in comparison.

"He came to surprise me, Ryan, that's what couples do!" Harry was quiet, his voice just above a whisper, but the room was so small I could hear everything.

"Get rid of him," Ryan stated, stepping towards Harry. Harry stepped back, banging his leg on the coffee table. He quickly nodded, grabbing his laptop and turning to face the door. I quickly made my way back to his room, closing the door quietly and sitting on his bed. Not even a second later, he walked in, closing the door again and grabbing his rucksack.

"Havea look for a hotel," he instructed, his voice shaking slightly. I nodded andtook the laptop, searching for a cheap enough place to stay. Once I'd foundsomewhere nearby, I reserved a room and closed it down, handing it back toHarry. Once he'd finished packing, he grabbed my hand without saying a word andled me out of the flat. As soon as we were outside, he let out a deep breathand ran his hand through his hair. "Where's your car?" he asked, and I pointedto the silver car a few meters down the road. He nodded, making his way to thepassenger side and waiting for me to unlock it. It was silent as we drove,apart from when he gave me directions and told me how to use the road properly.We found the hotel and parked in the carpark, grabbing our bags and making ourway inside. After checking in, we found our room and chucked our bags on thefloor. I sat on the bed, and Harry came over and straddled me. He bent down andkissed me hard, and without either of us saying a word we knew where this washeading.

What do we think of Ryan?