#harry styles imagine

[eveningepiphany]

far from sober | H.S

my masterlist

summary: you’re incredibly drunk, and when you are it comes with you having an obscene lack of a filter. harry being the sweetheart he is, is trying to get you back into your hotel room in one piece. he was not ready for you to be so touchy.

warnings: alcohol consumption, drunk people (including close family members), fluff, sexual tension, brothers best friend, drunk crying lol

a/n: sorry I haven’t posted properly in a while! here’s a shorter piece while I work on some more stuff <3 plenty to come x

———

Saying you were a bit drunk was a drastic understatement.

You were stumbling all over the place, heels becoming impractical now you were so intoxicated.

Harry, who knew you were going out with some of your family and friends tonight at the bar, had no idea what he was coming back to.

You don’t remember actually intending to get this drunk, but your Aunty had been egging the group on to do some shots, and before you know it you’re well past tipsy. Even your mum was getting drunker than you’d seen in years.

So all the other boys who’d gone out— including Harry— walk into the hotel bar. It was as chic as the lobby, just adorning some more neon signs and rustic bar stools.

Harry had gone out with them to look at a heap of shit that you and your female family members had little interest in. They’d insisted you all stay and just have a couple cocktails, since it was a holiday after all.

It was to their surprise when your same eager aunt bounded up to them when they popped through the door to the bar. They had expected tipsy, but not hammered.

“Oh my god!! You guys will not believe how good the cocktails are here!” She swooned, and they all glanced at each other with an amused chuckle.

“I think I just might believe it.” One of the boys piped up.

Most of them dispersed to find their significant others, family or friends amidst the bar, and see how much chaos was being caused.

But you’d b-lined straight for Harry, regardless of whether he was seeking you out.

His brows shot up when you collided with his side, “Harry!”

Your arms wrap around his middle and you end up latching onto him, practically using him to keep yourself upright.

“Oh!” He speaks in surprise, hands jumping up to brace around your lower back.

“Are you absolutely hammered too, love?” He chuckles and you bury your face into his chest.

“Yeaaaaa…” you drawl, a smile spreading onto your face.

“Everyone else is rounding up their partners. Suppose I’m in charge of you, yea?” He suggests, rubbing your back.

“Wanna—“ you hiccup, “have a drink with me?”

He shakes his head with amusement, “I think you’ve had plenty, sweetheart. We should get you back to your room.”

Most of your drunk family were getting escorted out by their respective people, being taken up to their hotel room before they can drink themselves any sillier.

This included your brother, Leon, who had his longtime girlfriend pulled into his side, holding her half up and laughing a little at her drunken slur.

He came to a stop when he seen both of you, eyes flitting between your two figures. A small twitch of his brows suggested he wasn’t sure of how he felt about the sight.

“You got her?” He asks, a protective edge to his voice. One that drunken you missed easily as you stayed plastered against him— which is something sober you would not do in general, let alone in front of your brother.

Harry nodded straight away, understanding his defensiveness over you since he feels the same about Gemma. He said softly, “Of course, I’ve got her mate. I’ll take her up to her room.”

Leon glanced at you again. Harry and him met when they were 9, and they’ve been best friends since then. He trusts Harry with his own life, and knows he’d never ever do anything that would hurt you, but his protective side is still flaring up.

Only when his girlfriend, Brie, complains of feeling nauseous he curtly nods, and continues heading for the door.

You are again, oblivious to all this, running your fingers along the tattoos exposed on his forearm— his sleeves rolled up to his elbows— putting his gorgeous skin out on display for you.

“I loveee your arms.” You slur, and his eyes shoot from the door back down to you.

He rarely sees you this drunk, and you’re suddenly very close— making comments that for many reasons are bringing a flush to his face.

“Y/N, Jesus you’re hammered.” He shakes his head, still smiling.

He slowly starts walking, “Cmon, let’s go. Y’brother is expecting me to get you back to your room in one piece.”

“You definitely won’t have a drink with me?” You whine, taking a few steps backwards trying to tug him in the direction of the bar instead of the door.

“Nope. Maybe tomorrow if you can even stomach alcohol.” He pushes the doors from the dimly lit bar open, and leads you into the back of the lobby that it’s connected to.

You squint at the dramatic change in lighting, which is hardly helping your sense of perception, or lack thereof, from the alcohol.

Harry’s hand has taken yours though, leading you to an elevator.

You noticed how warm it was, smooth against yours, aside from the rougher pads of his fingers from the years of playing guitar.

Being so off it, you could not keep that thought to yourself.

“Your hands are so soft, H. Like silk.” You say as you walk into the first elevator to open, squeezing his hand.

“First time anyone’s ever told me they feel like silk. I’m flattered.” He smiles, squeezing back.

“what floor are y’on, by the way? D’ya even remember— or are we a bit too wasted for numbers?” A teasing lilt is in his voice.

You half-laugh half-hiccup, “it’s… 7…?”

“You hardly sound certain about that.” He nudges you with a laugh, “It’s 12, we’re on the same one, remember.”

You laugh much harder than any sober person would, which makes it funnier to him. Since it was a mediocre joke at best.

You’re still laughing as you touch his chest with your palm, “you’re not funny.”

His gaze travels down to it, and he’s shocked at how touchy you are. You never do shit like this when you’re sober. His own amusement quickly takes the back seat, even though you’re still giggling.

However your face falls shortly after, laced with a curious gaze as you slide the neck of his long sleeve to the side, in search for the swallows inked onto his collar bones.

He watches as your eyes wander the small expanse of skin there, and how your fingers brush the tattoos.

“Having fun?” He asks, trying to joke again, but really he’s undeniably a little worked up.

“Yah, heaps.” You snap your gaze back up to him as you enthusiastically nod.

He hates the fact he’s blushing so hard right now over this, since you’re drunk and not completely in control, but he at the end of the day is a man with a very pretty girl— which happened to be you— pulling at his top like she wants it off him.

You hum to yourself, “Have such a pretty neck.” And you trail your hand up it, running a finger over his adams apple.

The elevator door opens like a blessing, and he quickly moves to make distance between the two of you.

“Can you remember your room number, darling? That’s one thing I actually don’t know.” He looks to you as you follow him out with clumsy moments.

“Uh… I dunno— wait I think the keycard is in my purse.”

He laughs at this— wondering if it will come to you in time once you sober up.

“Fuckkk.” You groan. “My purse is in Molly’s big handbag.”

The groan soon turns into a whine, because drunk and being slightly inconvenienced is not a good pair.

“It’s ok!” He amends quickly, trying to keep from having a drunken meltdown on his hands, “We’ll just got back to mine, only if you’re comfortable?”

He quickly prepares for you to not want that, “otherwise— I’ll call her, she didn’t seem too wasted, I’m sure she can—“

He’s interrupted by you, “I don’t mind going back with you.”

You say it with a confused look on you face, a tiny pout on your lips.

“Why would I be uncomfortable going with you?”

“Because… well— I’m not sure. I just wanted to leave you with other options.”

It’s not like you haven’t spent time alone together before— you’ve actually spent plenty, but just never with you drunk.

And so touchy.

“No. It’s ok. I love being with you!” You chuckle.

He leads you down the hall, pulling the keycard from his back pocket once he reaches his room, 3313.

The door clicks open, and he holds it open for you, following you in shortly after.

You’re still unstable on your feet, and one look at those heels, he’s surprised you haven’t ended up on the floor in the last ten minutes

They’re practically a health and safety issue. He can not imagine you getting them off right now— which is exactly what you’re about to bend over and attempt.

Before you can throw off your centre of gravity, he quickly says, “Go sit on the bed.”

You glance back over your shoulder, face only lit by the light from the lamp in the corner of the room.

“That’s a little forward, don’t you think, Harry?”

He toes off his own shoes, shaking his head immediately at your drunken misconception of what he asked.

“So I can take your shoes off.”

You make the few steps left to the bed safely, and you sit at the edge of it, still giggling as you say, “just my shoes, huh?”

“Yes.” He walks over, kneeling down on one knee, pulling your heeled foot up onto the strength of his thigh.

He fiddles momentarily with the laced up string, warm hands splayed on your calf, and choosing to ignore the way your dress is riding up your thighs.

Christ. This is harder than he thought.

“I forget how hot you are sometimes.” You deadpan, and his jaw goes a little lax.

You’re usually playful, yes, but never do you breach into territory like this.

It was only others, like those at a family gathering, or your close friends, that would push to get stuff like that out of you like they were matchmakers.

There were many times that barbecues or some kind of event held at yours, Leon would invite Harry over. And if the two of you even interacted for just a second, someone in your family circle would tease you. Especially your own damn brother— it was a constant streamline of snarky comments from him.

“You are so drunk.” He mumble while pulling up your other foot.

You ignore his statement, thinking back to when he was a boy to now. He was cute— always was— but the way he looks now is just unmatchable.

“Have you always looked so… like… this?”

He chuckles, almost nervous, “what does question that even mean?”

“So pretty.” You clarify after a moment of trying to find the word.

“Ah, you’re only saying that because you’re plastered up the walls.” He laughs, and a dimple popped on his cheek, and your hand jumped into action before you could even think about it.

“Noooo, sober me thinks that too. She thinks you’re more than pretty.” You say, cupping his jaw, gently tracing the dimple that popped up.

He doesn’t know how to interpret any of this. His heart is jumping in his chest, and he’s trying to reason its genuinely just the alcohol in your system.

He holds eye contact as he slips off your other shoe, placing in neatly next to the other.

He stays there for a moment, unprepared for your next question.

“Can I kiss you?”

She’s drunk, she’s drunk, she’s drunk…

“You’re drunk, sweetheart.” He says, and it’s painful— because he wants to, so fucking bad, but you’re not in a state to consent to literally anything at the moment.

And especially not in the mind frame to be making decisions like this.

You lean forward anyway, before he has a chance to avoid it, managing to meet his lips on your own terms.

He caved for a brief flash of time, and allows a second for himself to feel it, no longer than that though. Just a mere moment to take in the warm, soft feeling of your lips on his. It takes so much strength for him to not kiss you back, he has to focus on the task at hand— sobering you up and getting you safely asleep.

He pulls back after that single moment, leaving his forehead against yours, “baby, I know, I really…” he cuts himself off.

A deep inhale and he stands up, “Not tonight. Cmon, let’s get you out of your dress. You can wear something of mine.”

He walks over to his suitcase, anything to remove you from his sight for a moment, to reset his thought process. He pulls out a tshirt and pair of gym shorts, hoping they won’t be too big on you.

Turning back around, he convinces himself he’s fine. Placing the clothes from his bag on the bed beside you, his hands come under your arms, helping you stand up on flat feet for the first time in hours.

You lean into the touch, turning around so he can undo the back of your dress.

The feeling of his fingers brushing your back have you going wild, and the way they gently slide the zipper of your dress down.

His eyes lock with the back of your lacy bralette and he chooses not to follow your skin any further down.

You use your hands to slip the straps off your shoulders— and very quickly the dress is pooling at your feet.

A shaky inhale passes through his nose as now you stand in just your underwear and a seemingly very pretty bralette.

He reaches and picks up his shirt from the foot of the bed.

“Do you want to… take this off before…?” He gestures to your bralette when he catches your eyes.

You nod, reaching behind you to undo the clasp and allowing it to slip from your shoulders to the floor.

Harry puts all his focus on getting the tshirt over your head to cover you up.

Once it’s over your whole frame, you can’t help but smile.

He’s so nervy and cute around you.

“Thanks, Harry.” You smile, suddenly feeling an overwhelming amount of adoration for him hit you.

It inflated up in your chest, and bubbled deep into the pit of your stomach.

It killed Harry to watch it happen, and although he had no idea what kind of thoughts were going on in your head, just seeing you light up like that…

You wrapped your arms around his middle again, just like you did when you ran up to him in the bar.

He placed his hands in your hair this time, taking in your scent— which was mixing with his own now that your were in his shirt.

“Love, if you were sober right now. God.” He confesses.

“Im sober enough.” You beg, even though it’s such a lie.

He still shakes his head against you, “‘M not gonna be that guy, Y/N. I have waited years just to have you. I can wait another night. Or week. Or a whole ‘nother year if that’s what it takes.”

This hits you hard.

And it felt like your 15 year old self could hear it up in the confines of your head it rung through you that loudly.

She loved him then, more than she’d ever admit. And sure, you’ve grown up from 15, but yet never once did you grow out of him.

As noted early, being drunk and inconvenienced is not a good pair. But being drunk and having someone say or do something sentimental like that is another level.

Tears immediately start to fall from your eyes, and he feels your chest shake at the sudden outburst of emotion.

He pulls back, thinking he’s done something wrong, or said the wrong thing, and an apology was immediately on the tip of his tongue.

But relief thrums through him as you tug him right back into the hug, “that’s— that’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

“The nicest thing a boys ever told me.”

“Sweetheart.” He coos as you cry, his own voice wobbly with emotion.

He feels like he’s on a roller coaster. 5 minutes ago it seemed all he could think about was the unspeakable things wanted to do to you, and now he just wants to lay you down and hold you until you fall asleep.

He forgets the shorts on the foot of the bed, shuffling the two of you up to where the head of it is— which was still unmade from last night when he’d slept in it.

He tugs you into it, pulling you tightly too his chest as your heads hit the pillows.

And he just hugs you.

Eventually, your crying subsides off, and you enter an indescribably calm state.

“I love you. I don’t even know if you’re going to remember this in the morning.” He sighs, “but fuck, I love you.”

“I love you too, Harry.” You whisper, before your eyes begin to fall heavy, and those words were the last to leave your lips before you fell asleep.

———

a/n pt2:

back again guys, hello!

this is like an extended a/n, but I have a lil update. I saw harry for the very first time live 3 weeks ago. it was so so incredible, and the experience was by far the best time of my life. I miss harry so much i just feel sick ugh. he is perfect. auslot was amazing, he absolutely gave us his all.

that’s why I’ve been so absent on here, literally coping with my pcd a day at a time. I’ve written heaps but nothing I’m 100% happy with haha.

but anyways I just thought I’d share, thank you so much for your continued support and know there is plenty in the works x

all my love, <3

[goldengalore]

Rough Day

Summary: For Harry, nothing makes up for a bad day better than rough sex. Luckily, he has his friend Y/N to help out with that.

Word count: 2.1k

Warnings: smut (friends with benefits, mean dom!harry, degradation, bondage, spanking w hands and belt, choking, oral, anal, use of ball gag and butt plug)

***

Harry slams the door behind him as he enters Y/N’s apartment. He texted her earlier to ask if he could come over. His message alluded to the possibility of rough play, which Y/N could hardly ever refuse. As soon as he arrives, she can sense the irritability radiating off of him. It shouldn’t excite her this much—her friend being in a crappy mood—but it does.

“Hey,” she greets him, sitting up on the couch where she’s been indulging in some online shopping for the past hour.

He just hums in response and drops his duffle bag on the floor before removing his shoes, coat, and gloves.

“Rough day?” she asks, studying him.

“You have no idea,” he mutters.

“Wanna talk about it?”

“Not really.”

Of course he doesn’t. Harry doesn’t like to talk at the end of a bad day. He likes to fuck. Without holding back.

Glancing at her, he says, “Wait there.” Then he picks up his bag and heads into her bedroom. A minute later, he emerges from the room without the bag and strides over to her.

“Up,” he says, as if he were instructing a dog.

“Okay.” She sighs and takes her time getting off the couch to avoid seeming too eager, even though on the inside, she’s ready to do just about anything he tells her.

Once she’s on her feet, he simply says, “Clothes off.”

Again, she dawdles while pulling her sweatshirt off and fumbles with the waistband of her shorts, lazily inching them down her legs. Harry releases an impatient sigh.

“Today, Y/N.”

“Okay, okay!” She quickly removes the rest of her clothes.

The path his eyes take as they trail down her bare body sends the blood rushing between her legs. He steps closer and places his mouth over hers. His hands rest on her hips for a mere second before sliding to her backside. He squeezes it firmly, his fingers digging into the flesh of her round cheeks and pulling her body upward. She rises up on her toes and clutches his shoulders for balance. His teeth bite into her bottom lip. He tugs her even closer until her naked body is flush against his clothed one.

The kiss ends abruptly, leaving her wanting more. All of a sudden, he lifts her off the ground and slings her over his shoulder like she weighs nothing at all. Her upper body hangs behind him, her ass in the air.

“What are you—?” she starts, but he lands a swift smack to her rear, ordering her to be quiet.

He carries her to the bedroom and tosses her on the bed, not bothering with gentleness, then flips her onto her stomach. While she finds her bearings, he bends down to grab something from his bag, which is sitting on the floor next to the bed.

A moment later, her wrists are pulled behind her back and cuffed together. His hands wrap around her ankles and yank her towards him until she’s bent over the edge of the bed with her feet on the floor. She hears the clink of his belt buckle behind her.

It all happens so fast. One moment, he’s rubbing the tip of his cock over her entrance, and the next, his entire length is inside her. No warning. No preamble. A strangled moan escapes her mouth.

“So fucking wet,” he growls, grabbing on to her hips. “You like being manhandled and tossed around like a ragdoll?”

He doesn’t wait for her to answer before ramming his cock into her again. Usually, he’ll start slow and build up to a hard and fast pace, but today, he seems overcome by a primal desperation—one that has probably been festering inside him all day. She can barely keep up, but that makes it all the more exhilarating.

One hand pins her bound wrists to her lower back, keeping her in place, while the other grips her hair and yanks her head backwards, forcing her to arch her back. He finishes fast, emptying deep inside of her cunt, grunting and moaning with relief. She looks over her shoulder at him.

“That’s it? I didn’t even come,” she says just to egg him on.

He grabs a fistful of her hair again and speaks lowly into her ear, “What makes you think I give a fuck about your pleasure, hm? Sluts like you don’t deserve to come.”

He releases her hair and pulls out. Some of his come leaks down her inner thigh. Through the corner of her eye, she sees him reach down towards his bag. And then something cool and hard pokes between her legs. He presses the object into her slit, twisting it around, dousing it in her arousal and his come. It’s a plug, she realizes. A rather large one.

Once it’s covered in a mix of their fluids, he uses his free hand to spread apart her cheeks and starts inserting the plug into her tightest hole. He doesn’t really take his time. The rounded tip goes in, then the rest of it is hastily crammed into her. They’ve been doing this long enough that it slides in easily, but she still squirms and whines at the discomfort.

“Oh, stop whining,” he snaps. “It’s not even that big. You’ve had bigger things in your ass before.”

She scowls at him over her shoulder. “Well, if you think it’s so easy, why don’t you try shoving one up your own ass?”

He retaliates with a harsh spank.

“Ow!”

“Bold of you to talk back to me from the extremely vulnerable position you’re in right now,” he threatens, and the effects of his words are felt right between her legs.

He grabs something else from his bag, then tells her to open her mouth before shoving a ball gag in there. He secures the leather strap behind her head.

“That’s better,” he says. “Should’ve done that ten minutes ago. Only thing your mouth is good for is sucking me off anyway. Isn’t that right?”

All she can do is glare at him with the gag in her mouth.

“Glad you agree, love,” he says with a cocky smirk.

A soft, plushy object is placed in her hand—the squeaky toy they use in place of the safeword when she’s bound and gagged. Then he folds his belt in half and gently glides the cool leather over her bum. As soon as he raises the belt, she tenses and screws her eyes shut, bracing herself for the first strike. When it doesn’t come, she relaxes a bit and opens one eye, falling for the same trick he’s used on her countless times.

The belt smacks against her ass. She cries out. A second smack makes her knees buckle, dragging her down a bit.

“Stay still,” he orders.

It’s a good thing she’s gagged because she definitely would’ve answered back with a snarky comment and made things worse for herself.

He whips her with the belt several times in a row. Her ass clenches around the plug each time. He pauses only briefly to run his hands over the bright red marks now decorating her backside, like an artist proudly inspecting his work. And then he’s back to belting her, occasionally aiming for the backs of her thighs. There’s no doubt that sitting will be a challenge tomorrow.

Tears stain the sheets beneath her while her cunt drips with arousal, the pain cathartic and excruciating at the same time. She comes somewhere between the punishing blows, too lost in the pleasure to keep count.

He eventually stops and tosses the belt aside, telling her to get up on the bed. It’s a little awkward with her hands cuffed behind her, but she manages anyway. Once again, he yanks her around like a doll until he has her in his desired position: lying on her back with her head hanging off the edge of the bed. Her hands are trapped under her but still free enough to squeak the toy if needed. He removes the gag from her mouth and instantly replaces it with his hard cock.

“Let’s put that whore mouth to good use,” he says as he begins fucking her mouth the same way he fucked her pussy earlier.

His tip connects with the back of her throat over and over, his large hands clawing at her breasts. He pinches and tugs at her nipples hard enough to make her body arch off the bed. Then he brings a hand to the front of her neck, squeezing it while his hips continue thrusting into her mouth. She presses her thighs together tightly.

Just when she thinks he’s going to come down her throat, he pulls out. She gasps for air. Finally, he takes off his own clothes and joins her on the bed, flipping her over onto her stomach. He uncuffs her wrists and cuffs them above her head instead, then lifts her up onto her knees and forearms.

She feels him tug on the base of the butt plug, fucking her with it a little before taking it out. He squirts a generous amount of lube between her cheeks and begins driving his cock into her ass but doesn’t get further than a couple inches. She’s too tense. It always seems to happen despite how many times they’ve done this.

“Gonna have to relax for me, love,” he says in the softest tone she’s heard him use all night. His hand caresses her lower back. He can be a dick sometimes, but he’s shockingly aware of when she needs a gentle touch.

“Give me a minute,” she says, steadying her breathing before telling him to continue.

He pushes in a bit more, then draws back and pushes in again, going a little deeper every time. Once the tightness in her muscles eases, he slides all the way in and holds himself there.

“Fuck,” she groans. “Fuck me.”

“Beg.”

Her mind is so muddled by the intense sensation of her hole stretching around his cock that she almost doesn’t hear the word.

“Huh?”

“Beg me to fuck your ass,” he demands.

That bastard.

“Fuck you,” she replies, though it comes out as more of a whine than an insult.

“I’m not moving an inch until you beg.” He grips her hips tightly to ensure that she can’t move either.

She doesn’t want to give in so quickly, doesn’t want to give him the satisfaction. But as much as she hates to admit it, Harry’s dick makes her weak. And the worst part is he knows it too.

“Please, H, please fuck me. Your cock feels so good in my ass. I need you to fuck me hard and not hold back. Just— Fuck! Just use me for your pleasure. Please.”

Finally, Harry’s hips start moving. He retracts them, then thrusts forward sharply. She cries out in surprise and relief. He starts pounding into her. Quick, sharp thrusts. One after another. With little pause in between. She would reach down and rub her clit if her wrists weren’t bound together. Fortunately, Harry has the same thought. His hand finds her clit, rubbing it in fast circles to speed up her orgasm.

She feels it crash over her moments later, igniting in her core and spreading outward to her limbs. Harry continues fucking her through it, not slowing down for a second. He tells her he’s going to come in her ass, calling her his good little cumslut and his perfect little fucktoy and every filthy word in the book, becoming more and more incoherent until he finally lets go with a deep groan.

Rolling over onto the bed, he frees her wrists and tosses the cuffs to the side, not caring where they land. Y/N lets her knees give out under her and falls onto her stomach with a soft thud. She closes her eyes. A while later, his fingertips graze the back of her shoulder.

“Hey,” he says softly, “you good?”

She opens her eyes and grins. “Yup.”

“Wasn’t too rough, was I?”

“You know that’s how I like it.”

A pleased sigh leaves his lips. He runs a hand through his hair, pushing the stray curls off his damp forehead.

“Thanks for letting me come over,” he says. “I really needed that.”

“Aww, you needed me?” she teases, knowing how much he despises the idea of “needing” anyone.

He scoffs and looks away, but not before Y/N can notice the blush creeping into his cheeks.

“You wish,” he grumbles.

“Whatever you say, tough guy.”

***

Thank you for reading!  MASTERLIST

[avatar-anna]

Better Man

just a little angst about better man (taylor's version)!

Sometimes in the middle of the night I can feel you again, but I just miss you and I just wish you were a better man.

You knew letting him past the front door was a bad idea, but you didn't always have the strongest resolve, especially when it came to your ex.

Harry was laying on the other side of your bed, his back turned to you as he slept soundly on familiar sheets. You should've been asleep, but it didn't come. So you stayed awake, staring at Harry's back as it rose and fell. You admired his broad shoulders, the constellation of freckles all over, the birthmark. It was a familiar canvas, but it wasn't yours anymore. Him being here didn't change that.

"I can feel you staring," Harry mumbled, words pushed together like he was still half asleep.

"Sorry," you said before turning over.

There were only a few beats of silence before you heard sheets rustling as Harry shifted and draped an arm across you. The scent of his cologne was dizzying as he pressed a kiss to the crown of your head.

"Out with it then," he said, sounding a little more awake.

"I don't know what you mean."

"I know you, Y/n. You sleep like the dead unless something is on your mind."

He was right, of course, but that was part of the problem. He knew you too well.

"I just…miss you, that's all."

And God did you miss him. Harry was…well, you thought he was everything. For years, the two of you were inseparable, so incredibly in sync with each other. Harry brought out the best in you, made you comfortable in your own skin. He made you feel seen and taken care of and loved.

Until he didn't.

Breaking up with Harry was the hardest thing you'd ever done. It was messy, he didn't see it coming—which was another problem of its own—there were periods where you would somehow end up sleeping in each other's homes for days at a time afterwards, and the periods when those days ended felt soul crushing. Losing him felt like losing a part of yourself. Harry loved you, that was never a question. He just…he wasn't what you needed anymore.

"I miss you too. Constantly," he said. "But you don't have to, you know. Miss me. I've always been right here."

You kissed his arm. "I know, but we broke up for a reason, Harry."

He sighed, because he never could grasp why things ended, he couldn't figure out why you would ever want to leave him. As much as you loved each other, you were on different pages, wanted different things, became different people—or rather, he changed and you stayed the same. Harry was at a point in his career where the whole world was at his fingertips, and he wanted it too, wanted to reach and reach and reach. You didn't blame him for that, he was good at what he did, out of this world. But he'd made promises before, when he was just yours. When the world called, he changed his mind, and he wanted you to change yours with him.

Part of you knew that perhaps he'd made those promises out of fear of losing you, that he wasn't the type to believe in a simple kind of love. It always had to be more with Harry. And perhaps he wasn't aware, but you knew it was because he was afraid of love, of letting people see the worst parts of him along with the best. You knew that and fell in love with him anyway. He would be the one to break your heart but you let him do it happily.

"I love you. Can't that be enough?"

You did your best to hide a sniffle. "I wish it was, but something has always held you back from me," you said, your thumb running along his arm. "I won't settle for anything less than what I deserve."

"Then why keep letting me in?"

"Because you're a hard man to say no to, Harry Styles," you laughed, but it was more sad than humorous. Even as you talked about being apart, all you wanted to do was pull him even closer. In a lot of ways, Harry still felt like home. You were safe right there in bed wrapped up in him. "And despite my best efforts, I'm still in love with you."

Harry sighed and pulled you closer to his chest. "I want you. I can't even think about anyone else. It makes no sense for us to be broken up when we both want the same thing."

"But we don't," you said. "You want me on the sidelines cheering you on with no ambitions of my own."

"That's not—"

"You want me to watch while others throw themselves at you and pretend like it's fine because it's all for show. You want me to be another trophy in your collection, Harry, and I—I'm so much more than that."

You twisted around to face him, only to find that there were tears lining his eyes. You hated seeing him cry. It always twisted your gut into a tight knot.

"Is that really what you think of me?" he asked, sounding hurt, betrayed.

"You told me you loved me, that you wanted me in your life, but I was never a part of it," you said.

Harry had promised that nothing would ever change, that he only wanted to take on the world if he had you by his side. And you believed him at first, but somehow you'd fallen to the wayside. He left you to fend for yourself at parties with people you didn't know, took on more opportunities and projects that kept him and you apart for longer periods of time, going out almost every night and sleeping through the day, leaving you such little time alone with him. Sometimes it felt like the only way to see him was in an interview or music video.

And the moments when you had him all to yourself were perfect. He was completely and totally yours. He doted on you, took you on dates, made you breakfast in bed. He made you feel like the luckiest girl in the world, and in those moments, you knew he loved you, that he would never be tempted by anyone else. Harry really was yours, you could feel it with every cell of your body.

But those moments were fleeting. He was gone for longer periods of time, and you didn't know how to make him understand that you needed him to stay longer than the few days off he got while touring. For a long time, those stolen moments were enough, until they weren't anymore. Harry stayed away longer, and you felt him slipping. The hand you had wasn't a winning one, so you folded before he could break your heart. Well, more than breaking up with him did.

This wasn't a life together, it was just his, and you were along for the ride.

"I wanted to build a life for us. I wanted to make myself into someone you would be proud of," he said.

Your smile was sad as you threaded a hand through his hair. "I've never not been proud of you. You've always been enough, H, I don't know why you've never seen it."

To say Harry was complicated was an understatement. Even when you met he had his fair share of demons. But everyone did, and you loved him as he was. As he began to gain notoriety, he began reinventing himself, to be someone that was loved by everyone. You knew who he was was enough, but you couldn't get through to him, he needed validation from the world. Once you realized how deep that insecurity was rooted, you knew you couldn't fix him, he needed to do it himself. And you deserved someone who wasn't so obsessed with seeking approval from others that they overlooked the people that loved them most.

"All I ever wanted was to give you the world," he whispered, his gaze trained on where your hand was still on his cheek.

"All I ever needed was you," you replied, moving your hand to rest it over his heart. "I'd like to believe that the man I met so many years ago is in there somewhere, but I can't count on waiting to see him again. I—I'm not going to put myself in a position to make you choose when I know what your choice would be."

You didn't really believe that fame was something that would ever change Harry, but it did. Or it preyed on his deepest insecurities, and he let it happen. You loved him, and it hurt to see him so broken, especially when he didn't even seem to realize it, but you couldn't hold his hand while he untangled his messes anymore.

"I love you," he said again. "I have never stopped loving you."

"I have seen every facet of who you are, and I've never loved you less, flaws and all," you said, and it was true. Despite everything, Harry was a hard person not to love, and there were moments where he made you feel like you were more important to him than anything else in his life. The secret smiles and stolen kisses and songs that were made just for you. He was the kind of person that burned so brightly, but that also meant he cast just as big a shadow, and those shadows could be all-consuming. "You're a good man, Harry. I just…I think I just deserve better than you."

Harry didn't argue with you about it. He didn't try to contradict you or give you a list of reasons why you should be together. He just hung his head and held you close, a shuddering breath escaping his lips. You let yourself rest your cheek against his chest, his skin warm and familiar. It felt so right to be there, you couldn't fathom anyone else feeling as good as Harry did. Maybe no one ever would.

Wrapped up like this, your eyes grew heavy, and it became harder and harder to stay awake. Harry hadn't fallen asleep yet, you could tell just by the erratic beat of his heart against your cheek. Moving your head just to the side, you kissed him right there, right where his heart laid beneath his chest. Your heart squeezed, as if it knew this was the last time you would be letting Harry through your front door.

Turning your head to the side once more, you let yourself fall asleep on his chest, a couple tears slipping past your tired eyes.

Still awake, Harry ran a hand through your hair, letting the silky soft strands fall through his fingers. "I can be better," he whispered. Not to you, but to himself. "I'll be better. I promise."

[kiwisugarhighs]

Raid The Closet

Summary: Harry being away is hard on his kids, so until he comes home, they develop a tradition every night he plays.

Warnings: fluff, dadrry, brief mentions of underwear/nudity

Word Count: 882

A/N: Sorry this took so long, I've been down in the dumps lately so my motivation to post anything has been low :(

masterlist

"Alright, everyone. Sit up straight for Daddy! He's calling soon!"

Your kids were buzzing with excitement as they waited patiently for the phone to ring. They were in their pajamas, ready for their concert tradition with Harry. They huddled around your laptop, holding their tea or stuffed animals as they discussed what Harry might have in store for them tonight.

The time change was difficult when he was on the other side of the world, but Harry always made time for the kids. If he had to call early in the morning, he would. If he had to call in the middle of a workout, he would. Harry took the moments he could spend with his family seriously, even if he was on the other side of the world.

You stood in the kitchen making some tea for yourself when your oldest shrieked: "He's calling Mummy!"

"Do you remember how to answer the phone?" You asked from around the corner.

"Yes!" They all responded.

"Okay, go ahead and answer. I'll be right there!"

There was a brief moment of eager silence when the kids picked up. You smiled to yourself and finished making your drink when you heard Harry's voice through the phone.

"Hi Daddy!" The kids said. "We miss you!"

"I miss you too! How is school?" He asked.

The kids rambled excitedly about science projects and book reports and choir performances and Harry listened enthusiastically to every word. He nodded eagerly and demanded pictures for every new accomplishment. When he watched you walk into frame, his already joyful face lit up even more.

"Hello, love." He said to you.

"Hi, baby. Where are you right now?"

"I'm backstage actually. Do you want to see?" he asked.

"Yes!" The kids watched intently as they got the tour of the small green room.

Harry showed them their drawings pinned on the wall and the teddy bear the picked out before he left sitting on the couch. When he set his phone up again, he was sitting on that same couch, holding the bear from his children.

"Okay, now that Mummy's here, I need your help deciding what to wear."

Harry rifled through his tour closet through jumpsuits, leather pants, and t-shirts. He showed the kids every single one, listening closely to their approval or disapproval. He loved this tradition with his family. It made them feel closer to him than they really were. He could connect with his kids consistently through this practice.

After a few minutes of searching, Harry set out the top three choices.

"Okay, which one out of all these?" The kids turned to you and huddled close.

"I like the teddy bear t-shirt." Your youngest said.

"Me too!" Said the oldest.

"I like the pink pants." Offered the middle child.

"I think that's a perfect outfit! Are you ready to tell Daddy what you think?" The kids nodded to you and turned around again to face Harry.

"Okay, baby. The kids have made their choice!"

"Alrighty, lay it on me!" He shouted dramatically, making the kids giggle.

"We want the teddy bear t-shirt and the pink pants!" Said the youngest. The kids all had their hands folded in anticipation while Harry set out their choice.

"Hmm." He pretended to think. "Let me try it on for you."

Harry disappeared off camera for a minute before coming back to grab his clothes. He tossed his old shirt across the camera, putting on a show for the kids. His pants went flying off next, and your youngest couldn't contain the laughter falling from their lips.

"Daddy's naked Mummy!" They all shrieked, laughing harder than before.

"Just in my underwear! But not for long!" Harry shouted distantly off camera.

After a moment of silence, Harry poked his head back into the frame. He smiled brightly at you and the kids.

"Alright, are you ready to see it?" He asked.

"Yes!" You all responded.

Harry disappeared for a second and walked back into frame wearing the outfit his kids picked out for him.

"What do you think?" He asked you all, doing a spin and pose.

"You look very handsome." You smiled.

"Ew, they're in love." Your oldest cringed.

Harry was beaming at your praise. He watched as the kids smiled at him and finished their drinks. He did a small dance and showed them his shoes before checking the time.

"Alright, I've got to run. Are you being good for Mummy?" He asked.

"Yes." Your kids responded.

"Are you being good to each other?" He asked again.

"Yes." They replied.

"Good. Line up and give me kisses before I sing!"

One by one, you all lined up and blew Harry a good luck and good night kiss. He caught every single one and threw them back. When everyone was finished, he waved goodbye and sent one final kiss your way before ending the call.

"Okay, everyone, up to bed you go!"

The kids groaned and slowly dragged their feet up the stairs. You tucked each of them into bed and just as you were turning in for the night yourself, you noticed a message from Harry.

Thank you for doing this every night. I miss you all so so much! I'll be home before you know it! xx Dad

[darlingdesire]

Can u do one where y/n loves kissing harry every second she gets. And loves to just suck on his lips and he thinks its so adorable??

Of course!! Thank you so much for this lovely little request. And just a little reminder, you can send in a request through my ask box on my profile 🫶

THE ONE WHERE Y/N JUST LOVES KISSING HARRY

A fluffy little blurb about how much Y/N loves kissing Harry.

Y/N loves kissing Harry. She loves the way his lips feel against hers, the way his stubble tickles her chin, the way he tastes of mint. She loves everything about kissing him. Harry thinks it's the most adorable thing ever. He can't help but smile every time she leans in for a kiss.

Y/N loves kissing Harry when he least expects it. Like when he's lost in thought, typing away at his computer or reading a book. She'll sneak up behind him and plant a soft kiss on the back of his neck. Harry will jump a little, startled at first, but then he'll turn around and pull her into a warm embrace, kissing her back with equal fervor.

Y/N loves kissing Harry in public. She loves the way people stare, slightly taken aback by their unabashed displays of affection. She doesn't care though, she's happy to show the world how much she loves her husband. Harry loves it too, he's proud to be her husband and he loves seeing her happy.

Y/N loves kissing Harry when he's sad. She knows that a kiss can't solve all their problems, but it's a start. She'll cup his face in her hands and press her lips to his forehead, his cheeks, his lips, until he starts to feel a little better. Harry loves how much she cares for him, and how much her kisses can make him forget about everything else.

Y/N loves kissing Harry when they're alone at home. She'll pull him into a tight embrace and kiss him passionately, running her fingers through his hair. Harry loves how much she desires him, and how much he desires her. They'll spend hours lost in each other's kisses, wrapped up in each other's love.

Y/N loves kissing Harry before he leaves for work in the morning. She knows he has a long day ahead of him, and she wants to start it off on a good note. She'll wrap her arms around his neck and kiss him goodbye, making sure he knows how much she loves him. Harry loves how much she supports him, and how much he can rely on her.

Y/N loves kissing Harry every second she gets. She loves how he makes her feel, how he fills her heart with joy and love. Harry loves kissing Y/N just as much, and he knows he'll never get tired of it. They'll spend the rest of their lives kissing each other, and they wouldn't have it any other way.

Y/N couldn't help but smile as she looked at her Harry. She felt a rush of warmth and love in her heart and leaned in to give him a gentle kiss on the lips. Harry smiled back at her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

Harry loved how adorable Y/N was when she kissed him. He loved the way she leaned in, the way her eyes sparkled with happiness, and the way she always made him feel so special. He cherished every kiss they shared, knowing that it was a sign of their deep love and connection.

As they continued to kiss, they lost themselves in the moment, forgetting about the world around them. They were lost in their own little bubble of love, and nothing else mattered. It was just the two of them, sharing a moment of pure love and affection.

Finally, they pulled away, their eyes locked in a loving gaze. They knew that they had something special, something that couldn't be explained or understood. It was just the love they shared, the bond that had grown stronger over the years.

"I love you," Y/N whispered, her voice filled with emotion.

"I love you more," Harry replied, his eyes shining with love and adoration.

And with that, they shared another kiss, sealing their love and commitment to each other. It was a moment that they would cherish forever, a moment that would remind them of the love they shared every time they kissed.

[freedomfireflies]

hey! if you're up for it...could we get an update on mr. and mrs. hey soul sister? i miss them and i wanna know what they're up to 😭

“Harry…put it down.”

“No.”

“Harry…put the goddamn remote down.”

“Nope.”

Your blood boils as you huff a stray piece of hair from your eye. “Harry…I’m giving you two seconds to either put the remote down or turn the video off before I take action.”

Unphased but exceedingly amused, Harry’s brow raises as he regards you from his hiding spot in the kitchen. “Yeah? And what are you gonna do, hm?”

Already equipped for a fight, you reach into your back pocket to slip your last resort free.

Harry’s eyes widen once he realizes what you’re holding, and you watch him visibly swallow. “Lovie…don’t.”

But you’ve already got a finger underneath the flap of the envelope, ready to pop it free and investigate the contents inside. “Put the remote down…and I won’t.”

He hesitates, focus flicking between the weapon in your hand and the horrific video he’s got pulled up on the television. “I…but I…”

“Okay…I’m opening it,” you warn, sliding your nail even further along the sticky glue. 

“Wait!” He’s breathing heavier now, face flushing as he weighs his options. “Okay, wait—wait. Let’s just…let’s compromise, yeah? Just…just watch the beginning with me, and then I’ll turn it off—”

“Eh. Wrong answer,” you interject, shaking the envelope fervently. “Last chance, buddy. Drop it or I look inside.”

A glare begins to settle onto his expression as he presses his palms into the kitchen island to brace himself. “Lovie…don’t do this.”

“And why not?”

His lips purse. “Because…if you do…no more midnight ice cream runs.”

You gasp. “You wouldn’t.”

“Wouldn’t I?”

You debate this. You like to imagine you know your husband pretty well, but these past few weeks have slowly introduced a new man into your life.

One you aren’t quite sure you can trust yet.

“Drop the remote and we’ll be fine,” you argue instead.

With narrowed eyes, he lifts the clicker into the air, aims it at the TV…and hits, “Play.”

The video begins again, the wretched sounds sending a chill down your spine as you gasp. 

He called your bluff.

The fucking asshat.

Furious, you bring your bargaining chip closer, and wrench the lip back to peer inside the small sleeve.

“Lovie…” Harry attempts to warn, now slipping around the counter to approach you cautiously. 

But it’s too late. You’ve already seen it.

Your skin flushes as you reach inside to retrieve the small photo, pulling it out so you can get a better look.

Warily, Harry regards you from across the room, slowing to a stop as he attempts to gauge your reaction.

You don’t speak for at least a minute, the silence filling with the dreadful sounds still blaring from the speakers.

Your heart is pounding inside your chest. A hundred and one thoughts swimming around in your head as you attempt to pull yourself back to the present. To understand this impossible to understand new reality.

“Well?” Harry’s timid voice slips through the cracks of your trance, forcing your head up.

You blink. “It’s…”

He takes another step, and you can see the curiosity paint itself across his face. “What?”

You swallow. “It’s a girl.”

He practically glitches, stilling right where he stands as he looks at you.

You wonder if he heard you. “Har…?”

He sucks in a sharp breath. “It’s…it’s a…it’s a girl?”

“Yeah,” you whisper, lip between your teeth as you turn the photo around for him to see. “Yeah, it’s a girl.”

The moment his eyes land on his future daughter, you watch his entire world change.

He strides the rest of the way to you, plucking the photo out of your hand to give it a quick once over before he looks at you.

“Holy shit,” he murmurs, and you laugh as future tears begin to crawl up the back of your throat.

“Yeah,” you agree. “Holy shi—”

But he’s already putting his mouth on yours and pulling you into your arms before you can even finish your sentence. Your feet leave the floor as he spins you around, and you can’t help but laugh as he plants sweet, excited kisses all across your face.

Once he finally concedes to setting you back down, you put a hand over your heart. “I can’t believe we’re having a baby.”

“Oh, I can,” he retorts. “Knew it the moment I met you in the bar that night. I knew you’d be my future baby-mama.”

You can’t help but snort as you shove at his chest. “Ha. Very funny.”

“Speaking of which…this baby is gonna have the absolute best introduction to music,” he continues, reaching out to brush some hair behind your ear. “She’ll have my perfect pitch, and your tone-deaf taste—”

“All right,” you huff, shoving at him again as he laughs. “I will raise this baby by myself if I have to.”

“You wouldn’t dare.”

“Wouldn’t I?”

He responds to your challenging glare with a kiss. Sweeter this time around. Purposeful. He’s not always good with words, but you can feel everything that he wants to say in this kiss.

You know.

It’s you two against the world.

Well…you three, now.

“I love you,” he says after a moment, forehead pressed to yours as if desperate to be close to you forever.

“I love you, Mr. Hey Soul Sister,” you tease, feeling rather proud of the way he grins. “Now…can you please turn that god-awful video off?”

He glances over his shoulder toward the woman giving birth on your television. “But why? It’s informational—”

“It’s graphic,” you argue for the hundredth time, brushing past him to find the remote. “Yeah, yeah, miracle of life and all that, but we are never having sex again, I’m just telling you that right now. Never, ever, ever, ever, eve—”

Your spiel is cut short by a pair of large arms wrapping around your waist to lift you back up into the air and drag you out of the kitchen right before you can reach the clicker. 

“Har…Harry!” you gasp as he carries you to the bedroom. “What are you doing?”

“We can start the no-more-sex rule tomorrow,” he says simply before you’re being—gently—dropped onto the bed. “Until then, celebration is in order.”

You laugh as he begins pressing kisses down your chest. “Harry—”

“I believe it’s Daddy…to you,” he smirks, and despite yourself, you feel a hitch in your breath.

Nerves aside, you tangle your fingers in his hair to bring him closer. You wouldn’t want to be doing this with anybody else, and you’re so grateful he burned those divorce papers all those years ago.

And even more grateful he married you that fateful night.

Who would have thought you two would find yourselves here? 

“Okay, Daddy,” you purr, pleased with the look on his face. “Let’s celebrate.”

And that’s all he needs to hear.

I wanted to write this in a way that lets you decide if they're pregnant, have a surrogate, or if they're adopting, and hopefully you feel free to imagine whatever form of pregnancy you want to! Each is beautiful, special, and so unique, especially to these two💞

~ More Harry Blurbs

~ Full Masterlist

[readers101]

Harry Styles and Y/N L/N expecting a baby

Y/N L/N (34) is going to be a mother again!. It appears the actress is expecting a child with fiance Harry Styles (29). "We’re already so in love with him and he’s not even here yet" she captioned the post on Instagram.

The Oscar winning actress revealed this Friday she was pregnant again by posting a picture on instagram. In the picture, Y/N is standing on a green meadow. Lifting up the white shirt, a growing belly peeks out. According to People, it was Harry who took the picture of his fiancé.

Among those congratulating in the comments section are some of Harry’s and Y/N’s peers. And it appears the couple aren’t revealing exactly when their baby is due or how far along Y/N is.

It’s unclear when and how the couple met, the bottom line is that Harry and Y/N have known each other through mutual friends since 2018 but got together sometime in January of 2021.

The pair made their first red carpet debut together on September 2022 at the 79th Venice international film festival And they looked, to say the least, in love

This is Harry’s first child together with the actress, who he proposed to secretly last November, after dating for nearly two years.

This isn’t Y/N’s first child however, as she already has two sons, D’Angelo (10) and Xavier (7) from a previous relationship with a non-famous man.

The couple have kept any plans for the wedding date a secret but according to some of our sources they will tie the knot sometime in late 2023.

[planethallie]

Partied a Lil’ Too Hard

⭐️

"Alright big guy," Niall wheezed as an unstable Harry began drooping from his drunken grip, "lean on me, that's it, buddy."

They were both drunk; Harry more on the plastered side. Tonight was Niall’s birthday celebration and he'd been drinking like it was his 21st birthday party and not Niall's. The said birthday boy was holding up Harry's entire body weight on his right side as they stumbled down his friend's lamppost-lighten street.

"Here we are, H." The blonde pushed Harry into his front garden when they arrived at his and Lucille's house and had him lean against the frame of the front door. Before knocking, Niall fished his phone out from his pocket; it was about to hit two A.M on the dot and he winced. The likelihood of Lucille being awake at this hour was far from high.

Despite his doubt, Niall rapped two of his knuckles on the oak and stepped back while pursing his lips. He scanned the house for any lights or sign of life inside and breathed a sigh of relief when the hallway light beamed through the glass on the front door. Rustling of keys was heard on the other side.

Niall's drunk eyes wandered over to Harry who's body was slumped and looked like it was about to kneel over. His chest hitched with a drunk hiccup.

"Mate, brush your teeth when you get in; for Lucille's sake if not yours." Niall grimaced at the putrid stench of booze practically radiating off his friend.

"Shu'thefuckup. ." Was what Harry slurred back and swallowed warily afterwards with a hand placed on his chest.

Lucille eventually opened the door, revealing herself wrapped up in her short, silk dressing gown. Her hair was falling out of its plait and she was squinting with tiredness and confusion under the warm hallway light.

"Hey, Luce." Niall started. He eyed Harry's fiancé carefully as he helped Harry stand straighter. "Sorry for waking you; he's absolutely hammered."

"I can. .see that. . ." She stepped back and allowed Niall to nudge Harry inside. "Did he forget it was your birthday party and not his?"

"Ello, m'lovie." Harry slurred. Lucille could only attempt a smile but it turned into more of a grimace as she stared down her fiancé; he was shirtless, sweaty and his jeans were low and showing his boxers.

"Niall, where's his shirt?" She was passed Harry's t-shirt which was clearly congealed with a portion of last night's dinner and drinks down its front. She sighed and draped it over the stair banister. "Well, thanks for bringing him back. Guess I'm on babysitting duty for tonight." Lucille folded her arms.

"Well he's your fiancé!" Niall sarcastically saluted as he backed out of the house. Lucille shoved his chest and pushed her front door shut, leaving her and Harry alone.

Now that Niall had left, she unwrapped her dressing gown and draped it across the banister on top of Harry's soiled shirt. She was left in a see-through white tank top that was bunched up around her waist from sleep and a pair of plain black panties. She was braless which meant her nipples were poking at the thin material.

Harry cheekily cupped one of her boobs and smirked.

"Y'look so pretty, Baby. . ." Harry pulled her into his chest and kissed her hair. He'd always been a real cuddly person when he'd get drunk.

Lucille rubbed his bare back with a dry laugh but quickly froze and grimaced when he suppressed a burp into her hair. Her eyes widened and she pulled back, staring up at Harry, who only looked back at her innocently.

"Gross, H!" She chuckled and pulled away, "it's bed time for you.

"M'not tired, Luce!" He whined, "jus' wanna kiss you all over, Baby. . . my pretty girl."

Lucille gently took his hands from her chest, "No chance, Mister. Sleep. Now."

Harry eventually trudged up the wooden hill and stripped his jeans off and climbed into bed. He'd actually fallen twice while trying to actually clamber onto the mattress but finally got settled with Lucille's help. She too climbed in and tried tucking him under the duvet,

"No, 's too hot." He pouted and rolled over onto his side, his back facing Lucille.

"Too hot for cuddles?"

Harry's ears seemed to perk up and he rolled back over and spooned his fiancé. She giggled softly and stroked his cheek.

"Did y'have fun tonight?" Lucille whispered softly, breathing in his cologne and alcohol-mixed scent. The answer she received was a soft snore. Her face was gobsmacked and she rolled over with a joking scoff, squirming into Harry's big spoon and drifted off to sleep.

When Harry woke up later on the same morning, he was met with a face full of sunshine coming through the window. He groaned and squinted while shakily covering his eyes with his hands.

Lucille was already awake and sat up against the headboard on her laptop when her hungover fiancé aroused from his post-drunk slumber. She set the computer aside and stroked Harry's hair back.

"Hey. . . how're you feeling?" Her voice cooed quietly. The reply she got was another grumble and her fingers pinched her reading glasses to rest them on the top of her bed head.

"The sun? Wha'the fuck?"

"Sorry, I opened the curtains; thought it would be good for you to have some vitamin-D." She shrugged slightly, "I can close them if you like?"

"Yes, please." Harry mumbled. Lucille padded over to the window and drew the curtains shut before climbing back into bed. "Sleep well? It's nearly one in the afternoon!"

Harry slouched himself against the headboard and rubbed the sleep from his eye as he recollected his thoughts. "Not bad; threw-up at some point though.."

Lucille frowned and worry crossed her features. She shifted slightly so that she could fully face Harry; she couldn't help the flow of concerned questions that rambled out her mouth.

"You did? Where? Are you still feeling sick?"

"In the bucket." Harry simply replied with a yawn tailing. Lucille's frown only deepened; what bucket?

"What bucket, Harry?" She began subtly glancing around their bedroom for a puddle of stomach contents soaked into their carpet.

"The bucket you left out for me, Lucille." Harry shortly snapped, his hand flopping to from his face to his side in frustration. He looked up at his fiancé and was slightly frightened at the complete confusion written on her face. "Lucille. The bucket at the end of the bed!"

"Babe, I didn't—" Lucille paused and crawled a little to peer over the edge of the bed.

She had been correct; Lucille hadn't left a bucket out for Harry that night which meant that the said 'bucket' was actually their round laundry basket with a pile of freshly-folded and clean clothes inside. "Fuck, Harry!"

Lucille rounded the bed and picked up her basket as Harry swung his legs of the edge of the bed and sat up. She had a look of disgust and horror on her face as she shoved her clean clothes under Harry's chin. His eyes widened.

"Shi-i-i-it. . ." He drew out and scratched his forehead shamefully, "God, I'm so sorry." Crusty, half-dried vomit soaked into the t-shirt on top of the folded pile and Harry had to swallow a gag from erupting while he stared at his mess.

"Luce, I'm really sorry but can you please—" He swallowed cautiously and pushed the plastic washing basket away, "—get it away; it's making me feel weird."

Lucille sighed and dropped the basket to the floor and sat on the edge of the bed next time him, running her hand through his hair. He leaned into her touch and shut his eyes momentarily. "Fancy some breakfast then?” She offered softly but she knew the answer she was going to get.

"I'm good."

"I was thinking pancakes? . ."

"No—seriously I'm good."

"With thick maple syrup drizzled on top. ." Harry gagged (ever so slightly) at the description of Lucille's ideal breakfast, earning a laugh from her.

"Alright, alright; I'll stop." She glanced at Harry's features. His face was an uncomfortable grey colour and his hair was suddenly plastered with sweat to his forehead, making it look like he had some kind of bowl haircut. "Hey. . .You 'kay?"

Her hand slowly began rubbing up and down his bare back while Harry slowly swallowed with a weary shake of his head.

He felt her lean across him and opened his eyes, only to be greeted by a glass of foggy water. She told him to take a sip. Before he could decline, Harry realised how dry and stale his mouth and throat felt and took the glass in both hands.

The water slid down his throat; it felt good and refreshing so he took another two sips before placing the glass back down on his bedside table.

"Ergh—god. . ." Harry grimaced, his green eyes blinked slowly as he stared at a spot of the carpet intensely. The water wasn't feeling good in his stomach as it did going down his throat.

"What's wrong?" Lucille questioned, tickling the back of his neck softly.

"The water. ." His throat bobbed and Lucille watched the grey fade into green in his complexion. "it's hit my stomach like a rock."

Lucille hesitated before opening her mouth to suggest laying back down. That was then Harry quickly stood up and slowed his walking pace when he began heading for the bedroom door.

"Where're you going?!"

An incoherent reply drew quiet when Harry walked down the landing and swiftly shut the bathroom close behind him. Lucille stayed seated, twiddling her engagement ring while listening for Harry to come back from the bathroom.

The agonising retch from down the hall had her standing up and bounding into the bathroom. Harry was knelt in front of the toilet with his head hanging just above the bowl; his mouth was hanging open and his shoulders rolled back as he heaved up his second bout.

Lucille swore under her breath and bent down to smooth back Harry's sweat-soaked hair from his face. With her own hair in her eyes, she scanned the bathroom counter for Harry's mini claw clip and briskly pinned back his fringe. She knelt down behind him and rubbed the nape of his neck while Harry panted over the toilet. He moaned and shifted closer to his safe-haven, holding his head in one of his propped-up arms on the toilet seat.

"Shhh, you're okay. ." Lucille cooed to her fiancé. Harry barely felt her kiss and rest her forehead on his bare, sweaty back before he rocked forward with another dire retch.

"Lucille." Harry called for her between bouts of projectile vomiting and her heart broke; she'd never heard Harry sound so vulnerable before. She watched in pity as he reached down and began rubbing his bare stomach while profusely spitting into his mess in the water.

"I know, Baby; just get it all up and you'll feel so much better. . ."

"'S all jus' alcohol—no food." Harry breathily burped at the swirling sight of his sick in the toilet. Lucille reached up and flushed away last night's mistakes before pulling Harry into her lap and tucking his head into her chest.

"Do you feel any better?" She whispered, stroking his hairline. He gulped and nodded, his warm breath fanning her collarbone. Lucille smiled to herself and rubbed slow, firm circles alone his back.

The two sat for a few minutes in comfortable silence, Lucille rocking them both side to side ever so slightly.

Harry pulled away from her touch and sat up after a while and Lucille was on high alert, thinking he was going to be sick again. Her panic settled when he cracked his cheeky smile and tucked her hair behind her ear,

"Lucille, I think I'm ready to stomach those pancakes of yours."

⭐️

[harrysonlylover]

Mechanic H Sneaky

Harry has been inside his garage for the past 35 minutes, at first you were worried and he had asked of you to not follow him, so you respected his boundaries.

Your worry slowly fled away when you smelled it, the scent of tomato sauce and the unmistakable scent of meat, you assumed that your mind was playing tricks on you and it was your hunger that made you imagine things.

But as more time passed you knew that you were not a lunatic and that Harry really is cooking. So you were right then, maybe he was making food because he got hungry and refused to take yours. In moments like these you could see that Harry is just a tender boy at heart, in your opinion everyone is.

We get mistreated a lot that we lose sense of who we are, but the real and soft version of us, the one touched by angels and untouched by demons remains hidden and comes out discreetly but in the most beautiful ways one could imagine. It was kind of your favorite hobby, to see when it shows up , but to get to observe it, you have to know one’s weakness at first then watch them do the exact opposite.

With Harry it’s taking you more time to observe, tender things need more patience.

You got excited at the idea of Harry eating with you, you got used to eating alone, as the only person close to a friend you have is Kitty and maybe Harry but you don’t want to put your hopes up.

You were wrapping up the sandwich again so that it stays edible, before Harry walked out with two plates in his hand, he was still shirtless and the heat from the oven reflected on his sweaty body, he had a chef’s bonnet to avoid getting his hair in the food and the sight of him strolling lazily with his jeans low on his waist and holding food that he made was a sight that will be engraved in your mind for a long time.

He balanced the two plates in one hand effortlessly, and grabbed a chair nearby fixing it next to yours as he set the food in front of you which you figured out is a Tagliatelle alla Bolognese.

“Fancy some pasta?”

[hstyleshoney]

Loves Me Loves Me Not - five.

“You said you were feeling a bit poorly today and I… Well, I thought maybe you could use one of those.” “Thank you. You didn’t have to.”  “I know."

AU fake-dating, bartenderry // Harry is a bartender and new in town. A joke with her friends turns into reality after too much tequila, but nothing goes according to plan.

And what the hell is going on? 

word count: 9.5K // language, a little bit of angst, consumption of alcohol 

🐶 Ficpage 💜 ask 🌼 masterlist

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Y/N had been distracted lately. Her plan to make Reece fall in love with her was somehow getting further and further down on her to-do list.

And she needed to get back on track.

It had been two weeks since her Sunday with Harry. Two weeks since she told him about her family’s tragic history. Somewhere between texting the grumpy man silly little updates about her days and dealing with Arlos teasing comments about how much she was looking at her phone - Y/N had kind of forgotten about Reece and her plan.

So much so that when the blond hunk of her dreams came stumbling into the salon, his skin glowing and glistening from sweat due to working outside in the spring sun, she was completely stunned. Not because he looked absolutely gorgeous, but because the jitters running through her reminded her of his existence. He had bought her another cup of coffee, and for the first time, it was exactly how she liked it.

She needed to get back on track.

As soon as Reece left she had texted Harry to tell him about the brief encounter, to let him know that the plan needed to keep going. To which he simply replied, “you’re insane.”

She told herself that Reece must be jealous because she hadn’t paid him much attention lately. She had been more focused on Harry and it made Reece jealous enough to finally get her a cup of coffee she could drink.

Unintentionally, her plan had been working.

Because texting Harry silly little updates hadn’t been a part of her original plan. After their day together, eating croissants and brownies, she truly felt like he was starting to open up to her and wasn’t completely opposed to the idea of being friends.

Perhaps calling them friends was a bit strong, but he always replied and had made no indication that he wanted her to stop. His replies were usually short, which was not really a surprise. While he seemingly refused to use any other emoji than the thumbs up, he never ignored her and her excessive use of different emojis. He always made sure to send her a reply, no matter how pointless her text had been.

However, something that very much took her by surprise was when Harry showed up at BLOOM, looking a little uncomfortable and holding a paper bag with Pebble’s logo printed across the front.

Y/N was busy finishing up with a client by the cash register when she heard the bell above the door chime. As soon as she looked up and saw his familiar frame her brain was scrambled. Arlo and Margot’s eyes burning gaze on her definitely didn’t help either. Her cheeks felt hot as she tried to focus on the client in front of her and make sure she put in the right amount they needed to pay for their appointment. 

Harry stood awkwardly by the entrance, scratching the back of his neck while he waited for her to be done. His brown locks were a mess from the wind outside and he was dressed in the same black outfit he usually wore for work.

Suddenly the room felt a lot smaller than it had been just moments ago. Harry’s presence in the salon was astonishingly noticeable, his dark clothing and broody demeanor stood out amongst the soft colorful interior around him. Y/N had to triple-check that she hadn’t messed up on the computer in front of her. She was used to being startled by Reece while at work, but seeing Harry come in was not something she had ever expected. He had never given her the impression that he would willingly put himself in that situation. 

And trying to work while he was right there, his eyes examining her every move was nerve-wracking. It was like her first day at work all over again. When the client was done paying Y/N was nearly exhausted. 

But as the client was leaving, Harry finally moved forward and came up to the front desk, giving her a tight-lipped smile while greeting her with a small nod. 

“Harry,” she tried to not sound as startled as she actually was. Texting him and getting short replies in return wasn’t as daunting as being around him. She found herself being less nervous when his piercing green eyes weren’t right on her. 

Harry showing up unannounced at her work was something else entirely. Something she hadn’t prepared for, especially not when both Arlo and Margot were so close and could eavesdrop on the entire thing. 

Then the memory of his comforting hand on her knee as she told him about her family pushed itself to the center of her mind. It dawned on her that she hadn’t actually seen him since, and she didn’t know what to say. Ideally, her two friends, who knew nothing of her scheme, wouldn’t have been right behind them when she saw him again. 

Y/N leaned forward against the counter in an attempt to act casual and cool. Behind her she could hear her two friends giggling and sniggering between themselves, their eyes still clearly focused on her and the interaction that was about to take place. “Hi, what are you doing here?” 

“Hey,” he spoke with a low, almost reluctant, tone. Y/N watched as the muscles in his throat moved when he paused and swallowed harshly. Her eyes followed the contour of his sharp jawline up to his face and noticed his cheeks flushed in a light color of pink. “I brought you this.” 

He handed her the paper bag over the counter and Y/N raised an eyebrow questioningly as she took it from him. A smile immediately tugged at her lips as she looked inside and saw a single brownie wrapped up in a small plastic container. Harry cleared his throat before speaking again. “You said you were feeling a bit poorly today and I…” he trailed off, scrunching up his nose a little, looking for the right words before speaking again. “Well, I thought maybe you could use one of those.”

Behind her, Margot let out a not-so-subtle squeak. Y/N threw her friends a quick glare over her shoulder to shut them up before turning to Harry again.

“Thank you,” she gave him a small smile. “You didn’t have to.”

“I know,” he mumbled and shrugged lightly. “I was just passing by and got myself something, so...“

A silence fell between them and Harry diverted his eyes away from hers. He had his regular White Deer t-shirt and black trousers on. An outfit she had gotten used to seeing him in behind the bar and associated with his stoic frown, yet, there was a notable difference about him. He came across as far less intimidating in the bright lights of the salon. The way he continued to uncomfortably shift his weight from one foot to the other, not knowing where to put his hands, was a side of him she hadn’t seen before.

Before Y/N could dwell on it though she watched as Harry suddenly tensed up, his gaze landing on something over her shoulder, and without looking back she knew exactly what was happening.

“Aw, look at you two little lovebirds,” Arlo’s sweet voice rang out between the four of them and Y/N felt his arm fall around her shoulders as he squeezed up next to her. “Aren’t you just the cutest.”

“Arlo,” Y/N warned quietly and shoved a light elbow into her friend.

“What?” he said, his body shaking with laughter next to hers. Y/N rolled her eyes.

“Hiya! I’m Margot,” her more sensible friend cut in cheerfully and put her hand out towards Harry to shake. “I don’t think I've had the chance to introduce myself to you yet.”

Harry stood frozen for a bit before eventually reaching out to shake Margot’s hand.

“Harry,” he mumbled and Y/N watched as he took a subtle step back after shaking Margot’s hand.

“It‘s so nice to finally meet you properly,” Margot continued excitedly, not having noticed Harry moving away from them slightly. “It’s always so busy at the pub and I’ve heard so much about you from both Ruby and Y/N!”

Harry glanced at Y/N with a wary look, his green eyes already showing signs of regret about coming into the salon.

And even though his visit had brought her a brownie; a part of her wished he hadn’t shown up either. Harry being in the salon was the first time she would have to fake it right in front of her friends. They had only seen the two of them talk from a distance before. How was she supposed to keep up her scheme without a plan of action?

With no time to prepare it was bound to be a disaster.

“Have you now?” Arlo spoke up again before Y/N could protest the claim being made. “Because this one,” he squeezed Y/N closer to himself. “Won’t say a bloody thing to me. You’d think she made it all up with how secretive she’s being.”

“Well, I’ve only heard good things,” Margot argued and childishly stuck her tongue out. “Maybe if you weren’t so cheeky all the time people would actually tell you things.”

”Okay you two, please stop,” Y/N seized the opportunity to interrupt and shot Harry an apologetic look.

Being alone with Harry and texting him was one thing. They were friends, kind of, when it was only the two of them, and she could be herself. Now she had to play the role she had given herself as his potential girlfriend. Sharing the cramped bed in his flat had been less nerve-wracking than putting up an act right in front of her closest friends. They (Arlo) would see right through her if she acted even slightly suspiciously. “Harry only stopped by to bring me a brownie, not to hear you two bickering and making up lies.”

“Aw, you got her a brownie?” Margot pouted and looked at Harry with big eyes. “That’s so sweet of you! She loves those!”

“Yeah, hopefully she’ll be a bit nicer now,” Arlo started with a teasing tone and chuckled. “She can be a monster at this time of the month. You better get used to it, H-man, if you're planning on sticking around.”

“Arlo!” Y/N hissed, her cheeks getting hotter, as she pushed her friend away from her. “Could you not?”

“Only giving him a heads up Y/N. You’ve been in a grumpy mood all day,” he turned to look at Harry again. “I swear, she makes the evil step-sisters from Cinderella look nice when it’s that time of the month, but chocolate is the way to her heart. Write that down if you wanna live.”

“You’re such a prat.”

“I’m only joking Y/N,” Arlo said, his voice less teasing than it had been when he noticed how she once again rolled her eyes and clenched her jaw tightly.

“Well, it’s not funny,” she huffed and tried her best to not let her annoyance show too much. It was a good thing she wasn’t actually dating Harry. Because had it been real, she did not need the guy she had just started dating to know that the gremlin inside her took over when lady red was on a visit.

It wasn’t like she cared if Harry knew she had her period, it was only natural. But it still got her flustered that Arlo had announced it so casually to him. She just hoped he wasn’t too uncomfortable to find out that was the reason she had texted him that morning. Y/N woke up with the worst cramp in her lower abdomen, feeling bloated and agitated. She had sent him a message telling him to forget everything she said about Thursdays being the best day because she felt like shit and hated the world.

However, after having a cup of tea and a shower she felt a little better and her day had been quite pleasant. Thursdays were still her favorite day.

And she knew Arlo had no ill intentions saying the stuff he did, sometimes she just wished he would think twice about what he said.

“Um, right,” Harry started and cleared his throat. “I better get back to the pub.”

“Oh, ignore Arlo, he is just being a brat,” Margot said in an attempt to keep him in the salon for a bit longer. “Stay and hang out for a while, let us get to know you.”

“I got work,” Harry told her flatly and slowly started backing towards the door to make his escape.

“Yeah, of course, duh,” Margot laughed lightly before letting out a small gasp. “Oh! Everyone is coming over to mine tomorrow night to celebrate our friend Finn’s birthday, you should come!”

Y/N felt her blood run cold at the suggestion coming out of her friend’s mouth. She quickly looked at Harry. As always, his face was set like stone, giving away no clue as to what was going on inside his head.

It felt like hours had passed by before he eventually spoke up.

“Nah, I wouldn’t wanna intrude.”

“You wouldn’t!” Margot argued. “It’ll be fun. The more the merrier!”

“I’m not really a party-person,” Harry told her and shot Y/N a discreet glare, silently pleading for her to step in and help him.

“Nonsense,” Margot continued and waved her hand around as she spoke. “Everyone will be thrilled to see you and get to know you better. You don’t have to be a party-person.”

“Mar,” Y/N spoke up slowly and racked her brain for something to say that would help Harry get out of the situation. “I don’t th-”

“C’mon Y/N,” Arlo interrupted her before she could finish. “Tell your boyfriend to come! It’ll be a blast. We need to get to know the man who have you staring at your phone all day.”

“I don’t do that!” She quickly defended herself firmly and looked at Harry with honest eyes, begging him to not believe her friends. Even if she was sending more texts than she usually would, she wasn’t staring at her phone all day waiting for Harry to reply. Her screen-time statistics were still the same. “It’s his choice whether he wants to come or not.”

Harry gave her a dirty look for her weak attempt to help him get out of Margot’s invitation.

“Harry, I promise you won’t be intruding,” the chirpy girl continued, blind to the tension in the grumpy man’s shoulders. Her dark curls fell across her forehead as she clasped her hands together and gave him a pleading look. “C’mon, it’ll be fun. You won’t have to mix any drinks for anyone and you can just have a good time and get to know some people.”

“Also, if it helps,” Arlo added and gave him a pointed look. “I can already imagine Reece’s face when he sees you show up and I promise you it’ll be worth it.”

Harry stayed quiet and looked between the three friends. Y/N felt a tingle in her stomach at the mention of Reece’s name and realized that, while she had been ambushed by the whole interaction between Harry and her friends, maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea for Harry to come. It could be the final push she needed for her plan to be completed.

“If you’re busy it’s okay,” Y/N still tried to give him another out. Even if a large part of her thought it would be a perfect opportunity to make Reece jealous - Y/N felt bad. Harry wouldn’t exactly be thrilled about the idea of having to spend a whole night with them. There was no doubt in her mind that he could be completely interrogated by her friends.

And she knew how he felt about that better than anyone. She had been both the interrogator and the subject of the interrogation, but she would be there to help him. There was no way she was just gonna throw him to the wolves on his own. “There is no pressure, but you’re more than welcome to join us.”

Harry let his eyes linger on hers for a bit. For a moment, it was as if he saw right through her and into her brain. He knew she thought it would be a golden opportunity for her plan, and judging by the flash of annoyance behind the green in his eyes he was less than impressed with the turn his little visit had taken.

He let out a harsh breath and gave his final answer.

“Alright, I’ll be there.”

Y/N pressed her lips together to restrain the victorious grin that was threatening to take over. Margot clapped her hands together and went into another ramble about how fun it was going to be. Harry’s eyes were still on Y/N though, and she could tell he wasn’t listening to a single word leaving Margot’s mouth.

“Thank you,” Y/N mouthed quietly to him. His face didn’t move as he continued to stare her down.

Suddenly, Margot’s voice was just a faint background noise to her as well. The only thing her brain could register was the deep green color of Harry’s eyes and the clash of emotions behind them. She couldn’t tell whether he was angry with her, upset, or just disappointed.

Either way, it left a sour taste in her mouth, because the way he kept looking at her made her feel like she had betrayed him.

She had to bite her tongue to stop herself from taking back the invitation and apologize. The hole she had dug for herself was already too deep. There was no going back because there was no way she could explain her backtracking without coming clean about the whole scheme.

And that was completely off the table.

“Talk to you later, Ducky,” Harry said eventually and broke the intense eye contact between them. Next to her, Margot let out a flicker of delight, something Harry undoubtedly heard as well, and quickly turned around to leave before getting roped into another question. Y/N opened her mouth to say something to him, but nothing came out.

Instead, she watched as he used his body weight to push the door open and slip out, leaving her feeling a little empty and dumbstruck.

On one hand, she was happy he had agreed to come. It would take her whole plan to another level, and hopefully, it would be the last push Reece needed.

On the other hand, she did not like the way he had looked at her and the hollow hole it left in the pit of her stomach.

The paper bag felt heavy in her hands as guilt started to creep up on her. From her fingertips up to her heart. Harry had, for the first time, been the one to approach her and do something nice for her. And she had only thought about her plan.

“Ducky!?” Margot exclaimed with big eyes after the door fell shut behind Harry. “Gosh, you two are so cute together!”

“Ehm, yeah,” Y/N said and laughed weakly. “He’s just being stupid... It’s just... just a joke we have.”

The guilt inside of her continued to grow, along with the confusion as to why she suddenly felt so stupid about using Harry to get to Reece.

“That’s so adorable,” Margot gushed. “Honestly, I was a bit confused by what you saw in him, but I can totally see it now.”

“How?” Arlo thought out loud. “We only saw him for like five minutes.”

“I know that. He just seems like the type of person who would do anything for the people he actually cares for, you know what I mean? Like once you get to know him. Like you have Y/N.”

“You got all that from that conversation?” Arlo laughed. “He hardly said a word and when he did he was trying to turn down your offer to come hang tomorrow.”

“Ah, don’t act so surprised. I’m good at reading people,” Margot shrugged smugly. “Also, he is absolutely gorgeous! If I didn’t have a girlfriend, one look into those lush eyes would’ve had me on my knees.”

“Jesus Christ,” Arlo burst out and his body shook with his loud laughter.

“Have you kissed him yet Y/N?”

Her eyes widened at the question directed toward her. She tried to mimic her friends and let out another weak laugh to play along with their excitement.

“No, not yet,” she told them.

“You’re telling me you spent the night at his place and nothing happened?” Arlo scoffed and bumped his hips into her. “C’mon, you expect us to believe that?”

“It’s true,” Y/N said and swallowed the lump in her throat, still trying to figure out why she felt so incredibly guilty. Harry had agreed to help her out. He knew the reason she had approached him was to spark Reece into asking her out.

So why did it all of a sudden feel like she was using him? “Um, I’ll be right back,” she muttered and swiftly turned to walk to the backroom of the salon without another word. Arlo called her name, but she ignored him.

Instead, she dumped the paper bag containing the brownie on the table and hastily pulled out her phone to send Harry a text. She had to talk to him. She wasn’t even sure of what to say, she just knew she had to talk to him.

But as she opened her conversation with Harry her breath got stuck in her throat. Because above the small keyboard on her phone were three small bubbles, indicating that he was already typing something for her.

“Hey, you okay?”

Y/N looked up with big eyes, feeling like a deer caught in the headlights, and saw Arlo standing by the doorway with a concerned frown.

“What?”

“Is everything okay?” Arlo repeated his question. She looked down at her phone again, the three bubbles still blinking on her screen sending a wave of nervous shivers down her spine.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” she said, locking her screen and looking up at Arlo again. She gave him a small smile. He studied her for a while before sighing lightly.

“Look, I’m sorry if I came on a little strong with Harry,” he apologized.  

“It’s fine,” Y/N shook her head and felt her phone vibrate in her sweaty hands. Harry had sent his message.

“I was a bit of a twat,” Arlo admitted. “I didn't mean to. I just figured you two were like solid now and I could take the piss a bit, but wasn't really fair on you.”

“Honestly, don’t worry about it,” Y/N told him and gave him another smile, wanting the conversation to be over so she could read what Harry had sent her. “Maybe just don’t mention I’m a monster when I’m on my period again.”

“You got it,” Arlo said and ran his fingers across his lips, pretending to lock them. She glanced down at her phone and the screen lit up again, the notification of Harry’s text looking back at her tauntingly.

He had brought her her favorite brownie and she had completely overlooked it and forced him into another part of her scheme. Could it be their growing friendship that made her feel a lot more treacherous about the whole thing than before? Was that the reason for the guilt spreading like wildfire inside her? “I’m happy for you by the way,” Arlo’s voice startled her out of her spiraling thoughts. “You've been happy lately. He seems like a good guy, even if he doesn’t really say much.”

“I-” she faltered and rattled her brain for an appropriate answer to Arlo’s comment. The guilt inside her instantly grew another branch. She had never lied to any of her friends before. The reality of what she was doing was slapping her in the face, and it wasn’t very nice. “...Thank you.”

“Anyways,” Arlo nodded. “I just came to tell you that your four o’clock client is here.”

“Oh, right!” She exhaled deeply as she was reminded of the fact that she was still at work. “Could you get them seated, please? I’ll be right out. Just gotta check something quick.”

Arlo simply nodded and gave her a thumbs-up before he spun around to get back out into the salon. Y/N looked down at her phone, swiping a finger across the screen to finally come face to face with the message Harry had sent her.

Harry Styles 3:59 pm Nothing bad ever happens on a Thursday yeh?

You owe me.

His words immediately added a new layer to her guilt, while simultaneously also lifting a weight off her shoulders, because at least he was still talking to her.

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“For fuck sake,” Harry muttered to himself as he glanced at the clock and realized Y/N was running late.

He never should’ve agreed to help her out. He should’ve known it was going to be a lot more than just one date. Ever since he first laid his eyes on her he knew that she was going to give him a headache. Something about Y/N kept pulling him back, even when he tried his best to keep his distance.  

The silly girl had cast a spell on him. Whether it was the way she would look at him with her big puppy eyes whenever she asked him for a favor or the fact that she seemed to be genuinely interested in getting to know him - Harry didn’t know.

He felt protective over her in a way he couldn’t explain, and he hated it. It only got worse after she told him about the passing of her dad and brother. She’d given him a small glance at who she really was behind that controlled smile and carefree attitude. Harry had let himself get captivated by her pure and innocent nature, and it needed to stop.  

It gnawed on his mind daily. How had he allowed himself to let her get so close? He was beyond frustrated, and yet, he still found himself picking up his phone as soon as he was alerted of a new text from her.

He really should’ve said no. Because one date had turned into letting her spend the night and now he was going to hang out with her friends. Something he had desperately been trying to avoid since arriving in the small town. He wasn’t there to make friends.

So why on earth had he agreed to help her?

Y/N had offered to meet up with him before so he wouldn’t have to arrive at Margot’s place alone. And as he stood waiting for her to show up, Harry decided he was done. He was going to tell her he no longer wanted to be a part of whatever was going on. If she wanted to be with Reece she was going to have to get him herself. The whole thing was ridiculous and he didn’t have the time nor the energy to engage in her stupid scheme anymore.

The whole thing was a mistake.

Perhaps Patrick had been right when he said Harry was a fool. He had a good life in London. A home most people could only dream of, a good job that paid more than enough, and a pretty decent future waiting for him. If he had stayed he would’ve been set for life; he never would’ve had to worry about money and whether he would afford to pay his rent.

London had everything he could ever need.

And yet, he left.

Because there was one thing that growing up in London had taught him; everyone would find a way to betray you. Even the people who were supposed to always have your back.

Any time his mother told him he was acting too much like his father he sank deeper and deeper into the dark he had first been exposed to from a young age.

Harry had never even met his real dad. He had no idea who he was or if he was even alive. As far as he knew, even to this day, his father was nothing but a scumbag. Denise had fallen pregnant with Harry at the age of 15 and his father, being a couple of years older, had left her to deal with it on her own.

His mom remarried when Harry was five and Patrick was the closest thing he had ever had to a father. Although, he couldn’t recall ever calling Patrick 'dad'.  

Patrick came from a different world. A world of privilege and wealth. He was set to take over the family company and inherit millions of pounds. It took a long time for Patrick's family to accept Denise, a young single mother working as a waitress, as their son’s wife.

The Lovell family was a well-known and respected name in the upper class in London. Patrick’s parents had expected him to marry someone from their circle of the world, someone with the same status and money as them.

Whereas they eventually warmed up to Denise, they never truly recognized Harry as a part of their family.

His mother took the name Lovell after getting married, but Harry still had her maiden name. He wasn’t Patrick’s real son, and all of them often liked to remind him of that as he grew up.

The twins were born a couple of years later, and while Harry was struggling to fit in, his siblings got everything handed to them on a silver platter. He did everything he could think of to finally get accepted into the Lovell family. He got the highest grades in school, always kept his room tidy, played tennis (even though he hated it - the Lovells loved it), and spent all his free time reading instead of playing video games.

Eventually, he went to university, got his degree, and started working for Patrick, hoping that would finally earn him the approval he had been chasing for so long.

And it worked, kind of, but in the end, Harry found out it meant nothing. He hated his job and all the pretentious people surrounding him. It was all about who had the biggest house or the fanciest car. He found himself faking it to make his mother proud. He turned into someone he didn’t recognize and slowly started to despite the reflection staring back at him in the mirror as he got ready for work.

Then Tamara came along and for a short while Harry thought he had finally found the love he had been yearning for all those years.

Unfortunately, like most things in his life, it turned out it was too good to be true.

“Harry!”

Y/N’s voice snapped him back to reality and he looked up to see her running towards him frantically. “I’m so sorry I’m late! I had a nap after work and didn’t realize what time it was. Then my bike had a flat tire and I couldn’t find the pump to fix it and I thought I was gonna have to walk all the way into town, but then I-”

“I could’ve picked you up,” He interrupted her rambling with a frown.

Fuck.

Why did he say that?

He couldn’t keep helping her.

“Well, I figured I was already making you do enough,” she said and bit the inside of her cheek. “I’m sorry for this whole thing. I didn’t know Margot was going to invite you.”

“You didn’t exactly stop her,” Harry scoffed, his annoyance about everything accidentally slipping through. He hadn’t meant for it to sound so harsh, and when he noticed the small smile on her lips falter he instantly felt bad.  

Fuck.

“I know,” she mumbled. “I’m really sorry. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

Harry sighed, running a hand over his face tiredly. She had that look on her again. The same one that had left a sour taste in his mouth at the restaurant during their “date”.

Before she showed up he had been fully determined to tell her it was the last time he would be helping her. The whole thing was starting to be too much. The quiet life he had pictured for himself did not involve helping some girl he had pretty much just met make another guy jealous.

The phrase ‘I’m done’ was on the tip of his tongue, but as she looked up at him through her dark lashes he couldn’t bring himself to say it. Y/N, with her stupid plan and bewitching smile, had gotten under his skin.

That was what bothered him the most. He had made a promise to himself and he was already failing. He never should’ve had dinner with her or let her stay the night, and he most certainly never should’ve bought her a brownie. What the fuck was he thinking?

“Don’t worry about it,” he ended up telling her and let a multitude of profanities soar through his head.

He had to end the plan.

He would end the plan.

“It’s just one night and there will be a lot of food and drinks and it’s all for free, you just need to pretend you’re having a good time... and maybe hold my hand or something.”

There was no way it could continue. It was stupid. The plan was so incredibly fucking stupid. The only thing stupider than her crush on Reece was Reece himself. Everything Harry had learned about the guy was against his will and he would pay good money to never hear that name ever again. It was hard to pinpoint exactly what it was that bothered him so much, but Reece frankly just reminded him far too much of the people he was trying to leave behind.

Which was another reason why the plan had to end. He had left London to get away from people like Reece and now he was suddenly going to spend an entire evening with him. If Y/N could just remove the rose-colored glasses she saw him through, and see his true colors, Harry would feel a lot better about quitting on her.

Maybe Y/N would give up on her own accord after tonight, Harry thought.

Maybe it was the last push she needed to see that her plan was pointless.

He could only hope.

If she did, Harry would have his hands clean. He wouldn’t have to see the disappointment in her eyes and he could continue pretending nothing had ever happened.

And if she didn’t, he would just tell her that he was done later.

One more night couldn’t hurt, he reassured himself. There was no reason to potentially upset her right before meeting up with her friends. No matter how much he hated the plan, he hated the idea of upsetting her even more.

So he walked with her to Margot’s flat, desperately trying to ignore the small boy inside him still longing for acceptance.

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Y/N’s brain was having a malfunction. Not a single coherent thought was running through her mind as she sat squished between Harry and Arlo on Margot’s small couch. Kiara had squeezed down next to Arlo on the other side, making Y/N scoot over and nearly end up in Harry’s lap. Everyone was talking loudly around her, but the only thing she could think about was the hard muscle of his thigh underneath hers.

To make things worse, Reece was sitting right across from her on a small plastic stool. His blue eyes made her head swirl ten times more whenever they landed on her. Despite wearing a skirt and a short-sleeved bodysuit, Y/N was burning up from the inside. Harry’s body was so hot next to hers.

And when Reece focused his eyes on her thigh resting on top of Harry’s, a flash of resentment flicking by behind the deep blue, Y/N nearly collapsed.

It wasn't until Arlo snapped his fingers in front of her face that she finally came back down to earth.

“Hello?” He mocked and lightly flicked her nose. “Are you in there?”

“What?” she flinched, accidentally jabbing her elbow into Harry’s side, causing him to let out a soft grunt. His hand unintentionally caught the arm that had dug into him. If Y/N hadn’t already been lost in thought, having Harry's long fingers wrapped around her wrist made her last brain cell vanish with the rest of them.

And the blue eyes glaring in their direction didn’t help bring any of them back to life.

“Well, Kiara here just asked you a question,” Arlo told her and nodded his head toward the dark-haired girl to his left. “Have you even been listening?”

“Of course,” she lied and chuckled lightly, hoping it would help her case. As soon as Kiara had sat down and Y/N was forced to mold her body into Harry’s she had stopped hearing a single thing anyone said.

To be fair, she couldn’t remember much from before that either.

On their way up the stairs to Margot’s flat her heart had been beating so fast she thought it was going to pop out of her chest. Everyone, besides Kiara, was already there so they had arrived to everyone staring at them. Most of them had looked at the pair with gaping mouths as if they had just seen a ghost when they noticed Harry hovering behind her.

Y/N tried her best to lighten the mood almost immediately, panic already rising inside her, by telling them all a joke. It didn’t work very well, but, thankfully, Margot’s enthusiastic spirit came to the rescue.

She was on her feet the moment she heard the front door open, welcoming them with open arms and repeating how happy she was that Harry had decided to come. Y/N still couldn’t believe that Harry had agreed to spend an entire evening with them, and as Margot threw herself at him to embrace him in a hug Y/N was sure he would turn right around and leave.

Harry didn’t necessarily hug Margot back. Y/N watched as the usual line between his brows appeared and how his jaw tightened. She had texted him back earlier, before tending to her client, and apologized profusely. She promised she'd meet up with him beforehand and that they wouldn’t have to stay long. Harry had only replied with a simple thumbs up, saying it didn’t matter, and the guilt running through her fizzled out for a moment. She just convinced herself that he wouldn’t have agreed if he truly didn’t want to.

Then she was late and saw him standing, waiting for her, with a tired face and slumped shoulders. The guilt flared back up almost immediately. He told her not to worry about it. She tried not to. But as the shock of Harry showing up had settled, everyone started blasting him with questions about his past life. Y/N felt so bad.

She did her best to change the topic and tell her friends to back off. They did eventually. Not because she attempted to help him though. It was more due to Harry being Harry. He didn’t really answer any of their questions. As soon as they realized he wasn’t interested in talking much, they quickly returned to whatever topic they had discussed before.

Nevertheless, Harry hadn’t pushed Margot away when she hugged him, and most importantly... he hadn’t left.

Instead, he sat squished next to her, quietly sipping his beer, and observed the group of friends as they got drunker by the minute.

“Uh-huh,” Arlo smirked. “Why don’t you go ahead and answer Kiara’s question then.”

“I...” Y/N started, quickly realizing there was no point in lying. She gave Kiara an apologetic smile. “Sorry, could you repeat that, please?”

Arlo laughed and raised his glass in triumph.

“I was just saying you two are quite the unexpected match,” Kiara told her and took a sip from the sparkling wine she was drinking, looking between Y/N and Harry. “I don’t think you ever told me how you two met. Was it at the pub?”

“Oh,” Y/N swallowed the lump in her throat. “Yeah... The pub, yeah.”

“I’m still impressed you’ve gotten enough out of him to go on a date,” Finn winked at Y/N and then shot Harry a quick look. “No offense, Bro.”

Harry only shook his head, completely unfazed by the birthday boy’s words.

“What can I say,” Y/N laughed nervously. “Sometimes it’s just easy.”

And she’s not sure what she was thinking, but the next thing she knew, she was reaching for Harry’s hand. He tried to resist, but Y/N ignored it as she gently lifted his hand from his lap and laced her fingers between his. Y/N didn’t dare to look at him, dreading whatever expression he had on his face. Despite resisting at first, his strong fingers wrapped around hers, warm and strong. The large ring on his index finger pressed firmly into her skin.

“You guys are honestly so adorable,” Margot cooed and cupped her cheeks, staring at the two of them lovingly. “I love Love.”

“God, M,” Reece cringed, rolling his eyes. “It’s not like they’re getting married.”

“Did you guys know he calls her Ducky?!” Margot continued, completely ignoring the comment thrown at her, and pointed a finger at the couple on the couch. “Adorable I say!”

“Alright babe,” Ruby laughed and gave her girlfriend a light pat on her thigh. “Maybe you should have some water.”  

The discussion quickly moved on after that, but Harry’s hand was still in hers. She couldn’t bring herself to let go. Mostly because she didn’t want it to look like she was only holding his hand to convince them they were dating.

The other reason they were still holding hands was more because Y/N felt like she could breathe again. Even with the deep blue eyes watching her closely.

And as the air was finally making it down to her lungs again Y/N found the courage to lift her gaze to the man sitting on the opposite side of the table, only to realize that the blue eyes were not on her.

Instead, blue was meeting green. Reece’s focus was solely on the man sitting next to her. The man whose hand was still currently resting delicately in hers.

Y/N carefully looked around the room to see if anyone else had noticed the two men staring each other down.

Fortunately, they were all busy chatting mindlessly about something new. The topic of her love life was completely left in the dust. Ruby had managed to get her girlfriend to drink a glass of water and was whispering something in her ear that made Margot giggle like a little schoolgirl.

No one had noticed the sneer on Reece’s lips and the way his chest suddenly puffed out. Holding her breath she found the courage to discreetly glance to her right and saw Harry staring back at the blonde man with the same narrowed eyes. Both men refused to accept defeat and be the first ones to look away first.

And Y/N regretted not being the one to run out.

For the first time, she looked at Reece and found herself feeling a little put-off. His usual charismatic demeanor was buried deep beneath the dark that had taken over his bright blue eyes. Harry, on the other hand, looked just like he always did. She had gotten so used to the stoic look on his face and the way his brows would knit together in a scowl. It didn’t surprise her to see him meeting Reece’s harsh glare and staring him down the same way.

The only thing that really took her off guard was the pressure on her hand. Whether it was intentional or not, Harry squeezed her hand in his.

It was Finn who eventually made the two men break.

“Alright, since it’s my birthday I think it’s time for some beer-pong!” The drunk man announced, slurring slightly and throwing his arms up in the air.

“Good luck sinking any of those cups, Mate,” Arlo laughed loudly. “Can you even see straight anymore?”

Finn raised his hand and middle finger.

“First of all, fuck you,” he said, chugging the rest of his beer. “Second, that’s why I’ll be the judge. It’s my birthday and that means I make the rules.”

“Aw, c’mon,” Ruby whined. “I’m not taking a shot every time I miss again. I want to make it home alive.”  

“Yeah, that was rough,” Kiara agreed. “I spent the entire day on the bathroom floor after that.”

“Make sure you don’t miss then,” Jack teased and Finn pointed at him with a large grin.

“Listen to Jacky ladies!”

“Nahh, I’m not playing if that is a rule,” Ruby argued and shrugged. “Sorry, not sorry.”

“Fine,” Finn pouted. “But just know there might be something worse waiting for you.”

“We doing teams of two as always?” Arlo asked and looked at Y/N with a mischievous grin, hoping to team up with his usual partner to protect their winning streak.

“Hmm,” Finn paused for a moment and looked between the two friends, undoubtedly catching the smug glance Arlo had given Y/N. “Yeah, teams of two, but Arlo and Y/N cannot play together.”

“What!?”

“I make the rules,” Finn smiled proudly. “You two are annoying.”

“Try working with them,” Margot giggled and Finn raised his beer, clinking it against her wine glass.

“You guys suck,” Arlo declared and sank further into the couch. “It’s not my fault you don’t know how to play.”

“Yeah yeah, go cry about it.”

“Angel, wanna team up?”

“What?” Y/N blurted out, looking back to the blonde man who had been shooting daggers at her ‘date’ just moments ago.

“Gotta make sure I get the best player when she’s available,” Reece winked at her, seemingly forgetting all about Harry and the staring contest. Y/N found herself not knowing what to say for the hundredth time that evening. It should’ve been an easy yes because it was exactly what she wanted. Reece wanted her to be on his team, just the two of them, playing together as one.

It should’ve been an easy yes, but the warm hand currently wrapped around hers made that yes get stuck in her throat on its way up.

When she didn’t immediately reply Reece continued. “C’mon, make me the happiest man in the room and say yes.”

Her heart skipped a beat. For a moment it was as if the whole room slowed down. Like it was only the two of them still there. She could feel herself getting flustered by his sweet words, her whole body growing hotter all over again.

Unknowingly Y/N let her lips curve into a bright smile.  

However, the warm feeling got an abrupt end when Harry suddenly released her hand. It was done smoothly, without anyone noticing, but she felt a cold shiver run through her as soon as he carefully slid his hand out of hers.

“This is unfair! You can’t just take my partner away from me like this. You all suck at this, how am I supposed to keep my beautiful winning streak with any of you on my team?!” Arlo sulked and shook his head in disbelief. Then his eyes widened, sparkling with enthusiasm, and he looked at the new addition to the group. “Harry, are you any good? I call dibs on the bartender!”

“Ohhhh, yes!” Finn burst out with a big grin and slammed his hand down against the table. A couple of empty bottles fell over. “The two champions against each other, let the game begin! Reece and Y/N against Arlo and Harry - let’s go!”

Y/N looked at Harry, her mouth falling open, ready to apologize for getting him involved in a stupid game of beer-pong. Nothing came out. Because how could she give him an apology in front of all her friends without making it weird?

Instead, she watched as Harry drank the last of his beer and got up to join Arlo, not sparing her a single glance.

Fuck.

“C’mon Angel, let’s go show them losers who are the true champions,” Reece said and stood up, reaching his hand out towards her to help her up.

Y/N stared at the large hand being offered to her before timidly reaching out and taking it. With the memory of Harry’s much softer hand still so vivid in her mind it was hard not to compare the two. Reece’s hand felt rough and cold in comparison to the one that had just been wrapped delicately around hers.

It was obvious Reece’s hand was a lot more calloused due to his tough occupation as a construction worker, and usually, it would light a flicker of arousal in her to have him so close. The only thing her body could pick up on now, as she took his hand in hers, was the lack of warmth.

What had she gotten herself into?

As she waited and watched her friends prepare for the game, Y/N tried to catch Harry’s attention. He kept himself busy by looking down at his phone, avoiding her gaze at all costs. Before she could get a clue as to what was running through his head Finn handed her the small ping-pong ball.

“Ladies first,” he announced and waved his arm towards the table. “Let’s go.”

Y/N really should’ve known that a game of beer-pong between two males who had just been staring each other down fiercely wouldn’t end well.

It started as any other game of the stupid drinking game. She threw the ball across the table and it landed right in the cup in the middle. Finn cheered loudly and announced his first rule; everyone not playing would have to drink as well when someone got the ball in a cup. Ruby protested and said it was unfair. Finn changed it and let everyone place bets on who was winning and had to drink when that team lost a cup.

The game continued and Arlo repeated what Y/N had done, letting the ball fly through the air and gracefully land in the cup in the middle. Reece missed his first shot. Harry too.

Y/N ended up missing her second attempt... and her third... and her fourth. She nearly got it on her fifth, but the ball ended up spinning out of the cup.

On her seventh attempt, she finally managed to score another cup, but it usually didn’t take her that long. She was far too unfocused. Reece was standing far too close behind her, his chest nearly pressing against her back, and whenever it was Arlo and Harry’s turn his hand would linger just beside her hip. Her head was in shambles.

Not only from Reece. No. There was a lot more adding to Little Y/N running around like a maniac inside her. The two men had picked up their staring contest and Reece took every chance he got to throw little digs at the other team, who were currently losing the game.  

“What’s with the frown Henry?” he snickered when Harry got up to take another shot. “Can’t handle losing? You didn’t play beer pong in the big city? Was it not posh enough for you?”

Harry rolled his eyes, it was subtle enough that no one picked up on it, apart from Y/N. It was enough to make her want to call it quits on the game and drag him out of there.

Harry raised his arm and threw the ball across the table and it landed right in one of the cups in the back row. Arlo jumped in excitement, pumping his fists in the air, while Finn and Jack let out a roar of laughter.

“Just trying to go easy on you, Mate,” Harry told him and shrugged casually. While everyone was preoccupied toasting to Harry’s comeback Y/N picked up on the, to her, very obvious hostile tone of his voice.

“Ah, that’s more like it,” Reece countered and clicked his tongue behind his teeth. “Why don’t we make this a little more interesting... how ‘bout a bet?”

“I’m good,” Harry scoffed lightly. Even with a table between them, Y/N could see the tension gradually growing in him.

“C’mon, don’t be a pussy,” Reece continued to taunt him, his chest puffed out and a smirk playing on his lips. “Loser gets the first round for everyone at the pub.”

“He works at the bloody pub,” Finn laughed at the bet. “He can probably get us a round for free!”

“Great, then he has nothing to worry about has he?” Reece replied and looked at Harry with raised brows, waiting for him to accept.

“I’m not playing for a bet,” Harry repeated firmly, the corner of his lips twitching slightly as the lower part of his jaw shifted forward.

“Who the hell put a stick up your arse?” Reece mocked. “Loosen up, Man. It’s only a bit of fun”

“Then play against someone else,” Harry replied coldly. Y/N shared a concerned glance with Arlo, who seemed to have picked up on the bitter direction the conversation was going. “Or are you just desperate to swing your dick around and show off to the new guy?”

“What the fuck did you say?” Reece retorted and pointed an accusing finger right at him after tossing the small ping-pong ball to the side. The playful smirk was long gone, replaced by an angry scowl. The sudden change in his demeanor seemed to alert the rest of the group that the mood between the two men had changed. They all stood by, watching awkwardly, as Harry let out a dry laugh and shook his head.

“What’s your problem, Mate?”

“It’s my boy Finn’s birthday,” Reece began and took a deep breath through his nose. His chest puffed out further as he straightened his posture, taking a step forward to get closer to where Harry was standing.

Ruby reached out to put a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to hold her brother back. Reece shrugged his sister's hand off of him and took another step forward. “I’m trying to have a good fucking night and you’re bumming everyone out and ruining the night. What’s your fucking problem?”

“Right now,” Harry started and mimicked Reece’s actions, getting closer. “You are.”

Arlo looked at Y/N again, eyes wide as he nodded his head towards the two men sizing each other up, silently telling her to step in and do something.

“O-okay,” Y/N interrupted with a shaky voice, her hand clutching the glass in her hand tightly. “Let’s just get back to playing, yeah? Like you said, Reece, it’s Finn’s birthday. Let’s just have some fun.”

Her head was swirling and she was sure her knees were going to give out if whatever was happening escalated any further. An awkward silence fell across the room, but Reece and Harry didn’t take a step back from each other.

She had known it was going to be a bit tricky having the two of them in the same room again. Harry had made it clear he wasn’t the biggest fan of the blonde man. Reece had also made it known he didn’t think very highly of the new bartender. She never could’ve imagined things would take the turn that they had. It was the most Harry had spoken all night, and she feared it would only get worse if she didn’t get them to back down.

Her body moved on its own as she rushed past Reece and put a gentle hand on Harry’s chest to push him back. “Ignore him,” she mumbled only loud enough for him to hear. “Please.”

Harry dropped his gaze down to her, his eyes getting softer almost immediately.

When she felt his body relax under her touch her knees finally gave out from the relief running through her. She stumbled a little and Harry was quick to catch her, placing his large hand on her hip to keep her steady.

Instead of getting herself lost in the deep green eyes looking down at her, Y/N quickly spun around and forced a big smile to ease the tension. “First round is on me, everyone,” she announced and tried to stop her regret from shining through. “No need for a bet!”

“See! This is what I want to hear,” Finn boasted. “Y/N automatically wins this round on her own!”

And that was the end of it.

Everyone moved on as if nothing had happened.

Margot and Ruby got up to play against Kiara and Jack. Finn continued making up rules as the game went on and had everyone downing a shot of tequila when Margot and Ruby were crowned as the new champions.

But even though the stand-off between Harry and Reece had been declared over and dealt with by everyone else, Y/N didn’t miss the harsh glances still being exchanged between the two.

It was going to be a long night.

Fuck.  

.

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A/N: IM SORRY! It’s been forever I know!!! Life got in the way of writing unfortunately, but part five is finally here! I hope you liked it and is still interested to follow along on this journey! <3 I’m praying it won’t be as long until part six. Im gonna do my best to get it up soon, but I don’t want to rush anything either and post something I’m not happy with. 

Please do tell me your thoughts on this though! I’m actually so nervous because it’s been so long since I posted something and I’m scared. I hope you all enjoyed it, things are definitely changing with all of them. I can’t tell you enough how much your feedback means to me and your support is what gets me motivated to find time to write. And PLEASE share if you liked it. I LOVE YOU! 

Until next time, be safe and do things that make you happy<3 

💏 TAGLIST: @annesauriol  @boomitsallie1 @caramello-styles @tenaciousperfectionunknown @perfectywrong​ @behindmygreyeyes @carolina-kiwi  @jessitpwk @sunshinemoonsposts 

 let me know if you want to be added<3

[loversipod]

Star girl and Moon lover

Summary: Harry is a moon lover and y/n is a star girl. Their dates end at a blanket staring at the heavens, falling in love with each other more everyday.

Pairing: boyfriend!harry x reader

Wordcount: 717

Trigger warnings: none

It was a warm summer night with a cold gentle breeze. Her dress was blowing in the wind, so was his hair getting messy. They both love warm summer nights and hang out a lot. Harry gave her his warm sweater, he saw how y/n was freezing. His voice is always so soft when he talks to her and so it is today, “I knew you’ll forget yours.” He mumbled softly in the shell of her ear.

They have a soft spot for how the stars are visible on a cloudless night. The stars are glowing is her favourite thing and Harry adores the moon. The dark sky, the bugs are almost the only thing you can hear at night. The streets are almost empty. You hear one, two cars drive around the small city. The quiet music is coming from Harry’s phone. It was one of y/n all time favourite songs. He always plays them for her. It’s calm and gentle.

Harry knows y/n for a long time they were best friends, still are. Y/n and Harry have known each other their whole life. Her lover was always the quiet boy next door who never talks to anyone at all and she was the hopeless romantic with the Roses garden.

First they were childhood best friends, then they stopped talking. Somehow they started talking again and now they are finally more than that. It took them so long to talk to each other, all over again.

Harry laid his hand on hers, still watching the magical summer of the heavens, “are you okay? Do you want to go home? It's getting really cold.” He saw how her expression changed to a sad look. She doesn’t want the dead of night to end yet.

Her soft pink lips part, “it’s okay,” she said softly on the warm night. Her hair was all messy and due to the wind every time she wanted to fix it the breeze blew around their heads.

She had those lips, he wanted to kiss so bad, all summer.

She’s talking to him. Her voice tastes like warm and sweet honey. Her eyes sparkle like cold moonstones. Her lips seem so gentle like a flower in the summer breeze. Everytime Harry has the opportunity to take a seat next to her he smells a garden full of flowers. In his nose flew the smell of sweet strawberries.

“What is your favorite memory of us?” She asked him, and snuggled her shivering body closer to him.

He opens his mouth, through his mind goes every possible thing he could say, but he always lands on this memory. It didn't matter what beautiful memories he had. All are perfect in some way.

She laid her head on his warm shoulder, his head resting on top of hers. She always liked him, she liked how quiet he was around other people, only she knows he never shuts up.

“It would be wrong, if I have to choose only one, everything is so special when you’re around, bug.” Harry asked his girl a view times, if she’s ready to leave, but she wasn’t ready to go home and end their magical night.

Y/n legs are almost numb from the cold air. He had packed one of his fluffy blankets, y/n has always been honest with him. All the time.

She supported her head on his chest and the blanket sprawled over their body’s. “I found the fox,” he pointed at the dark, almost black sky. His star girl lifted her gaze back up to the delightful night sky to see it herself.

“It’s so hard to find,” a yawn came over her soft lips.

Time was forgotten, eyes became heavier and harder to keep open. The wind became colder, her head resting comfortably on his hard chest.

Before she disappeared in her dream world, he lifted her head barely and kissed her. Tasting her soft lips. It is so different, he always imagined how it would feel, but it’s better than that. The hint of strawberry on her lips and his rough fingertips against her cheek makes her smile. It was kind of messy considering neither the star girl or the moon lover kissed anyone before.

It was their first kiss.

[gurugirl]

She went there when she had her days off, or when things were particularly slow and she could take a longer break. She especially loved going there towards the end of the day, so she could enjoy her unobscured view of the majestic sunset.

And since she was alone and she knew none of her colleagues would be patrolling that area, and no hikers would walk in on her, she would skinny dip.

Walking into the water she slowly got deeper and sucked in a sharp breath when the water reached her waist. Holding her breath she bent her knees and ducked herself under the water to cover her head and then rose from the water quickly and laughed loudly. She loved the feeling of the cold water covering her limbs and shocking her system.

She waded deeper and began to swim, kicking her legs and propelling her arms as she glided in the water, already feeling her stress melt away.

She loved swimming, having grown up doing this as a pastime in her hometown, and ever since she moved to the big city she’d missed it.

She floated peacefully after doing her usual rounds, taking note of how the sky was beginning to change to her favorite hues of purple and orange as it was approaching sunset. She loved this part of the day the most but especially loved watching it all unfold while she was floating blissfully in the lake.

She was done for the day and was off-duty, so since she was heading back home after this, she could afford to get her hair wet and deal with it later. Whenever she would come there for short breaks in her schedule, she’d make sure not to get it wet though. She didn’t want her colleagues to find out about her little secret and accuse her of slacking on the job.

It was getting a bit chilly though, so she decided to get out of the water and watch the sun go down from ashore.

Turning in the water, she began to swim back in the direction she came from but paused with a jolt and gasped when she saw the man.

It was him.

He was right there, in front of her, his head barely visible atop the waterline, with only his eyes and nose breaking surface.

How long had he been standing there in the water? Watching her. Preying on her.

Did he know? That she’d been to his cabin. Did he know she was onto his secret? Was that why he was there? Was he going to harm her?

She couldn’t believe she hadn’t heard him get into the water. Or seen him, even. He must’ve done it while she was doing her laps.

Suddenly, she was reminded of her nakedness and she felt her whole body flush furiously in embarrassment, despite how chilly it was getting by the minute.

They kept staring at each other until she realized he was slowly making his way toward her in the water. It was barely noticeable that he was moving at all. This guy really gave her the creeps, but for some reason, she couldn’t look away. She could barely see half of his face but his eyes were mesmerizing, they had a strange hold on her. She just couldn’t look away.

She should’ve made a run for it while she still had the advantage, being close to the spot she’d dropped her belongings. She wasn’t armed, since she was off duty for the evening, but she did have her swiss knife and it was definitely better than her bare hands.

Her bare everything.

That was what was keeping her from doing just that - her state of undress. She knew he’d likely seen every bit of her, especially with the way she’d floated toward the end, but she couldn’t get herself to snap out of it. She was risking her life for the sake of her modesty, and even that was a thing of the past.

He eventually got within an arm’s length of her and began circling around her ever so slowly. He reminded her of crocodiles, with their eyes poking out of the water and the eerie, slow way in which they move before suddenly launching at their prey. She was expecting him to pounce on her in a similar fashion, drowning her maybe.

But she wasn’t gonna go down without a fight. She was going to stand her ground and use every tactic in the book she’d learned in military school to try and turn this around in her favor.

She wasn’t gonna show him how scared she was. She wasn’t gonna let him see how he intimidated her. She needed the upper hand. So she broke the silence as she watched him circle around her, making sure her voice didn’t waver.

“Why did you steal the pup back?”

She saw a glint of mischief in his eyes just before he pushed himself out of the water to his shoulders. Her eyes landed on that big, luscious mouth of his again, and sure enough, she saw the hint of a smirk there before his deep voice wiped it off his lips, “I’m sure I don’t know what you mean, officer.”

“I warned you that if you didn’t come to provide proof of ownership it’s considered a criminal offense. Not only did you not follow through, but you broke into the station and stole the pup back.”

“Am I under arrest then, officer?” He batted his eyelashes at her innocently and she fought the urge to roll her eyes. He was infuriating. Did he think this was funny?

“I have every right to arrest you. You’re breaking more laws than I can count, sir.”

“I’m sure you’re smarter than you give yourself credit.”

She squinted her eyes at him for that little jab, “I’m warning you.”

“Or else, what?” He came impossibly close, rising slightly above her in the water. She could now see he was inked. Quite heavily so. She couldn’t stop her eyes from roaming over his torso, water droplets chasing down his tattoos. Her eyes took a quick inventory of two swallows, one atop each of his pecs, small ones that she couldn’t decipher, and further down, the top of what she could only assume were butterfly wings. “Go ahead. Take me in.” He teased, his voice low.

The innuendo wasn’t lost on her, even in her state of panic. She willed her eyes off his body, but looking straight into his eyes wasn’t any easier. A strand of his slicked-back, long, wet hair was falling over his face, his eyes were piercing right through hers and his heavy panting was accentuating his masculine nose. Just everything about him made her feral. She couldn’t deny her body’s response to him, and it infuriated her to no end to know she was allowing herself to feel this way when her life was in literal danger.

“I know about the cabin.”

It was just a split second, but she didn’t miss the look of surprise on his face. He didn’t know, then, that she’d been there. He didn’t know about the microchip she’d planted into the pup. He couldn’t have known, she’d made sure not to leave any tracks, but then why was he here, stalking her like this, if he didn’t know?

He searched her eyes, probably in an effort to figure out somehow just how much she knew about his dirty little secret, but her shivering seemed to snap him out of his train of thought.

“The temperature is dropping fast; go put your clothes on. You’ll freeze to death.”

She stared at him, taken aback. She hadn’t expected that.

“I’ll do no such thing!”

“Nothing I haven’t already seen,” he raised an eyebrow at her and she furrowed hers.

“You get out first, and turn away.”

“Oh? So you can shoot me when I’m not looking? Not very heroic, is it, officer?”

“Don’t play dumb. I know you know I’m unarmed. Who knows how long you’ve been stalking me.”

He lowered his gaze in between them “Can’t promise the same for myself.” And with that, he proceeded to make his way out of the water. Stark naked, of course. She expected nothing less.

And when he made it to the shore and turned towards her, on full display, she bit her tongue. She definitely had expected less, as it turns out; nothing could’ve prepared her for that.

Whatever happened to cold water shrinkage?

“It’s not polite to stare.��

“Then put some bloody clothes on!” Her voice came off way higher than she’d intended it to.

The man shrugged and, to her dismay, he walked over to her pile of clothes and picked up her ranger hat, placing it on his head.

She couldn’t help but to let out an incredulous laugh.

“I meant, cover up!!”

Harry looked down at his crotch, seemingly completely unaffected by his state of undress. It was as if it was perfectly normal for him to just roam around naked like that in front of a literal stranger. He then grabbed the hat from atop his head and placed it over his groin, holding it there for a beat before letting it fall to the ground.

Y/N’s mouth fell agape, and then the man just shrugged again “Come out, and I’ll make it stay on this time. I promise you.”

Y/N was blushing profusely, so she turned around, more in an effort to keep him from seeing just how much he was affecting her than to give him privacy. “Sir!… Please!”

She heard him chuckle and waited a considerable amount of time for him to get dressed. When she thought it was safe to turn back around, she froze.

The man was gone.

She hadn’t heard him make his way through the greenery at all.

She looked around, but the coast was clear. If she couldn’t see him, it was very unlikely he could see her.

And just as he’d reminded her, it was nothing he hadn’t seen before.

She finally emerged from the lake and rushed to her clothes. Her swiss army knife was still there, nothing was missing.

Except for the mysterious man, who was now aware she knew about his secret. And that sent shivers down her spine, and not from how cold it was getting.

excerpt from Lupus Noctis- Chapter 2

this is a co-written fic by @fkinavocado and @gurugirl and you can read it on our joint account, @avocadoguru ❤️

we decided to post this excerpt from our separate blogs because sadly our joint blog isn't discoverable in search through tags yet :(

[heyyyharry]

PREVIEW: Hits Different (from the Flatmate series)

...in which Harry goes to the club while his flatmate goes on a blind date.

Here's the preview to a flatmate blurb inspired by Taylor Swift's unreleased song "Hits Different" :)

.

.

.

I washed my hands of us at the club You made a mess of me I pictured you with other girls in love Then threw up on the street Like waiting for a bus that never shows You just start walkin' on They say that if it's right, you know Each bar plays our song Nothing has ever felt so wrong

Unfortunately, Harry hated that song. It was the one Y/N had sent him earlier this week on Whatsapp, and he only listened to it because she loved it. Now they were playing it in this bar and it made him chug down more pints than he could count, and by the time he’d made it out of the club, his knees were wobbly and his head spinning.

Layla threw her big coat on, and Niall shivered in his trench coat, but Harry, with only his jumper on, couldn’t feel the October chill after having had so much to drink.

I wonder what Y/N is doing right now.

“Bet she’s having a better night than us,” Layla muttered, and Harry realised he’d said that aloud.

“Layla, don’t say that,” Niall said as he put an arm around Harry to help him stand. “Let’s get you home, Harry.”

“Can we pick up Y/N?”

“We don’t know where she is.”

“I’ll text her.”

“Don’t you dare.” Layla snatched his phone out of his hand before he could even unlock it. “The only night that Y/N gets to not be boring and you’re plotting to ruin it for her. Also, you’re being very selfish right now, mentioning her when you’re with us.”

Harry felt his stomach churn. “Do you think she’s having fun?”

“Well, obviously. She would have texted you if she wanted to leave the date. She might meet someone who’s perfect for her and fall in love and live happily ever after with him–”

Before Layla could finish painting that picture, Harry braced his hand on the wall beside him. He heard Layla scream as vomit pooled beneath him, staining his shoes, his stomach clenching in pain. Niall’s voice was muffled, though Harry could feel Niall’s hand rubbing his back.

While the taste of vomit passed down his tongue and filled him with shame and regret, the memory of this morning when Y/N was getting ready for her blind date stormed back into his head, and when he thought about another man touching her, the second torrent of sludge exited his mouth.

[avatar-anna]

I swear I could read prof y/n content all day longgg!

Could we get an angst moment? Love a bit of drama hahahaha 🤪😂

prof and h angstttt plsssss

enjoy! xx

The Professor Series

Harry knew Y/n. He knew her favorite authors and composers; he knew her favorite constellations, how she liked to sleep curled up into a ball when she had stomach cramps, and how she took her tea; he knew she wore mismatched socks, that her Southern accent returned when she was tired or tipsy, and that she had a little freckle on her hip; he knew she worked really hard but wanted to try to take herself less seriously sometimes; he knew the things that made her laugh and what she got excited about; he knew what places to kiss to make her blush and that she appreciated when he listened to her lectures before she gave them, even if he didn't quite understand.

It was safe to say Harry knew his love, inside and out.

But the person he was faced with now he almost didn't recognize.

It wasn't uncommon for Y/n to be asked to consult on particularly difficult cases that local police departments were struggling with. Y/n often looked over the case files and any other bits of information as it came in, gave her profile, and that was that. Each case lasted about a week, maybe more, but they always had successful outcomes.

Harry had been away on tour while Y/n was teaching in Cambridge. They missed each other obviously, but Harry started to worry when he didn't hear from her for almost two weeks. A few days wasn't out of the ordinary, mostly because Y/n forgot to respond to texts or answer a phone call, but she usually got back to him within a day or two; if she was working on a particularly difficult case, maybe more.

But this was a whole two weeks. They’d never gone that long without talking to each other. There had been no fights or disagreements that would warrant a silent treatment from Y/n, so it couldn’t have been on purpose. But Harry couldn’t come up with a reason that was good enough for Y/n to not speak to him.

So, despite the pushback from his management team, Harry rescheduled a couple shows so he could fly home and see what was going on. They didn't want him to leave, but Harry couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong.

Harry arrived at Y/n’s townhouse late at night. The door was unlocked, which was almost as unusual as the mess he found in the front room when he came inside.

He'd never seen Y/n's home in such disarray before. Books were scattered everywhere, takeaway cartons and half finished mugs of tea and coffee littered every surface in her kitchen and living room, and all the curtains were drawn closed, casting the whole space in a stuffy gloom. Harry almost couldn't believe his eyes. Y/n scolded him when he didn't use a coaster, and now there was week-old food sitting on her coffee table.

Y/n was nowhere to be found, though, which meant she was in her bedroom. Harry worried about what he would find on the other side, but whatever was going on with her, she needed him.

She was sitting at her desk, her back to him as she bent over it and read something. She didn't even flinch or turn around when the door opened, like she hadn’t even heard Harry come in.

“Y/n, darling,” he said.

She turned, tired and unfocused eyes landing on Harry without much emotion. “Oh. You’re here. Did you call?”

Harry had never seen her so out of it before. He suddenly realized that Y/n wouldn’t have known what day it was let alone the last time they’d spoken. He felt completely out of his depth, but he tried his best to tread lightly.

“No. No, I wanted to surprise you. How—How are you?”

“Busy,” Y/n said immediately. “I have this really difficult case, so I can’t talk right now.”

He guessed as much, but even difficult cases Y/n had worked on in the past never reduced her to this. Her hair was a tangled mess at the nape of her neck, she only had one sock on, and he was pretty sure she hadn’t changed her clothes in days. Harry was suddenly glad he listened to his instincts and came here.

“I know it's important, love, but so is taking care of yourself,” he said. “Why don’t you take a break and clear your head? We can eat and watch a documentary or something.”

Harry rested his hand on her arm, but he quickly realized that was the wrong move. Y/n wrenched her arm away from him, her eyes lit with irritation.

“Take a break? I can’t take a break! There is no time for breaks,” she yelled. Harry was immediately stunned. Y/n had never raised her voice at him, or anyone else for that matter. “Young women, someone's wife or daughter or sister is dying, and they will continue to die if I can't figure this out, don't you understand that?”

“I know, that, Y/n. Of course I understand, but you’ll have a clearer head if you—”

“Don't baby me! I didn't ask you to be here, so just leave me alone. I need to work, I need to figure this out, I need...”

She ignored him after that, and Harry could tell that he'd been dismissed. He also knew there was no use reasoning with Y/n when she was this upset, so he left her to her own devices and left her alone like she'd asked.

Going back into the living room, Harry began to clean. He picked up and straightened stray books, folded blankets, threw out old food. He found comfort in doing something rather than just twiddling his thumbs while he thought of some way to reach Y/n like this.

Because the truth was as well as he knew her, he'd never seen her like this before, and he didn't know how to be there for her, or how to bring her out of this darkness she seemed to be in. He knew how much these cases meant to her, how much she valued helping people, but this was different. It seemed almost personal.

By the time Harry had swept the floors and washed all the dishes and fed the Emperor and Faye Winter, who had been lounging on their cat tree—they at least seemed unaffected by Y/n’s unusual behavior—Y/n still had yet to come out of her room. Harry knew then that she wouldn't be coming out at all, and that he should probably get comfortable on the couch.

All night he worried about her. Every couple hours or so, Harry would hear Y/n pacing her room or cursing quietly or throwing what sounded like sheets of paper around after crumpling them up. She was frustrated, that much was clear, but all Harry could do was lay on the couch and listen. In the morning, Harry decided to keep giving Y/n space and went about his day like he normally would when he stayed at the townhouse. He sat and read some emails while the cats cuddled him on either side, he went into town to restock Y/n’s fridge, and he kept cleaning up.

And nothing. Y/n didn’t make an appearance the whole day. Not to eat or acknowledge that he was there or say hello to the Emperor and Faye Winter. Harry could hear her shuffling around in her bedroom like she'd done all night, but she never came out. By the time the sun was going down, he started to worry more than he already had been.

The problem was he didn't know what to do. Harry had never dealt with anything like this before. He thought he had a grasp on reaching Y/n and understanding what she needed and how, but she shut him out so fast and lashed out so intensely. This obviously wasn't a typical case, something must've happened to make her react this way, but Y/n wasn't going to tell him anytime soon.

And there was no one who could give Harry insight either. For all intents and purposes, he was Y/n's family. She didn't have relatives she spoke to regularly, not many close friends, no one who might have ever seen her act like this way before. And her mother certainly wasn't an option; Harry didn't want to give her the satisfaction of having to call her at all, and he didn't think she would know anything about this anyway.

All night Harry stayed up brainstorming. He wracked his brain for someone who might know Y/n and how to help. And when he did, he went to work on tracking them down. Harry had decided on contacting one of her old professors after recalling Y/n speaking fondly of one a couple times. It took time figuring out where he was and how to get a hold of him, but he eventually did. Harry called every ten minutes and left message after message with some secretary until he eventually got through.

“This is Dr. Moore.”

He sounded old, but Harry didn’t take the time to wonder what this person looked like. “Hello. My name is Harry, and I believe you know a close friend of mine. Y/n L/n.”

“Ah yes,” Dr. Moore said. “I haven’t heard from Y/n since she only had one PhD. How is she?”

“N—Not great,” Harry said. He proceeded to word-vomit the whole situation, his stress and anxiety about his love's well-being pouring out of him over the phone. “I—I've never seen her like this before and I'm not really sure what to do. She won't talk to me or leave her room. I was just hoping you might know something or had seen her...behave like this before.”

The professor didn't say anything for a while, hopefully gathering his thoughts. “She's rather well-adjusted for someone who has seen and experienced so much,” he finally said. “But you have to understand that she's...different from the rest of us. She has a gift that no one else has or can really make sense of.”

“She’s more than her intelligence, Doctor—”

“I don’t mean it like that, Harry,” Dr. Moore said softly. “She's a genius, she's brilliant, but that doesn't come without its faults. Many brilliant minds suffer from a little madness, Y/n is no different.”

It was like Harry could hear what Dr. Moore was saying, but he didn't want to believe him. “Y/n isn't crazy.”

“I didn’t say she was. But she has a tendency to be obsessive, loses track of time, hyperfocuses on a singular subject. Surely you've noticed that.”

“Yeah, but...It’s never been this bad, I mean, this is extreme.”

Harry didn't like the professor's insinuations, or how helpless he was making him feel. Harry knew Y/n, he knew her. She wasn't mad, she wasn't sick, she just needed a little help.

“I realized quite early on that Y/n never took failure...lightly. For someone like her, being wrong is a tough pill to swallow. Perhaps start there?”

“Right, thanks,” Harry muttered. This phone call was a bust. All it gave him was more stress.

He was about to hang up the phone when Dr. Moore spoke again. “Harry, Y/n is exceptional, and that doesn't come without its own bevy of...adversities. But Y/n is strong, and she has a good head on her shoulders, even after everything she's been through. I imagine just showing that you're there for her will be enough. Don't crowd her, but be close enough to catch her when she falls, as you've already done. Her family was never patient enough to love her the way she needed, I hope you can be that for her.”

Harry hung up after that, not having anything to say to the professor. A glance at his phone told him it was three in the morning, but he got up from the couch and chanced going into Y/n's room anyway.

She was pacing and muttering to herself incoherently, but Harry didn't let that bother him. Y/n noticed him but said nothing, and neither did he. He just got into bed, picked up a book off her nightstand, and began to read.

Y/n was quiet for a moment, and Harry could feel her gaze on him, but he kept quiet, and she eventually went back to pacing. It wasn't easy, but Harry did his best to just ignore her, have his presence known without talking to her directly like Dr. Moore suggested. He hoped that Y/n would come to him in her own time.

His eyes burned, begging him to finally go to sleep, the words on the book in front of him blurred. He was exhausted, but he was determined not to lie down. Not until Y/n was in bed next to him.

“You know, sometimes I find it helpful if I talk about things out loud.”

An invitation to open up, a small one after about an hour of silence. He didn't really expect Y/n to take the bait, but she did, kind of.

“What do you mean?”

Setting his book down, he said, “Well, all your thoughts are swirling around in your head. It might be helpful to just say them out loud, like bouncing a ball against a wall.”

“O—Okay.”

She began to explain in loose terms what she was working on and what her thoughts were about the case. And once she started, it all came pouring out of her. “I—I failed. I gave a profile, they arrested someone, but it was the wrong person. I’m—I’m never wrong.”

“It’s not your job to make the arrests,” Harry said gently.

“People are relying on me! Women are continuing to die at the hands of some monster because I can’t—because I couldn’t—”

Y/n shook her head and went back to her desk, shuffling pages around. Harry sighed. He knew what the problem was, but now he knew for certain that Y/n wasn't going to rest until she fixed her mistake. He didn’t bother trying to convince her that this wasn’t her fault, that would be useless right now. But he had to do something.

Getting up from the bed, Harry trudged over to the desk. He rested his hands on either side of her and rested his cheek on top of her head. “Are you so sure that you were wrong and the police weren’t?” he asked.

“They would’ve found the right person if I was right. I must’ve missed something,” she said, shaking her head.

“More than one person can fit a profile, can’t they?”

Y/n exhaled harshly through her nose. “That’s what I tried to tell local police, but they wouldn’t listen. I’m—I���m missing something.”

Harry kissed the top of her head and began to knead the tension out of her shoulders. “Did you think you were right before?”

“Well, yes, but—”

“Give me a percentage.”

“Ninety four.”

Whistling, he said, “I’d take those odds.”

“These are people’s lives, Harry, not a craps table. Lives are being lost because—”

“Because terrible people exist,” Harry interrupted. “You didn’t kill those people, Y/n.”

She wiped at her eye harshly. “I can’t help but feel responsible,” she sniffled.

“I know,” he said. “But I believe in you. I believe you can figure this out. But not by running yourself ragged. You can’t work like this.”

“I can’t sleep,” she said, voice trembling. “I won’t. Not until—”

“Okay,” Harry said.

Harry made himself comfortable on the floor beside Y/n’s desk. He was exhausted, his back hurt from his night on the couch, but he couldn’t go to sleep. Not until she did.

“What are you doing?” Y/n asked him, brows furrowed curiously.

He tilted his head back and gave her a sleepy smile. “You stay up, I stay up.”

Y/n looked like she wanted to say more, but her focus was quickly pulled back to the papers on her desk.

Harry didn’t remember falling sleep, but one minute he was watching Y/n work at her desk and providing noncommittal hums as she bounced ideas off him, and the next he was blinking his eyes open, his body stretched out on the floor. There was a pillow under his head and a blanket strewn across his body, an extra pillow beside him. Y/n was sitting in front of him with her legs crossed, a mug in her hands as she watched Harry sleep.

“Wha—What happened—”

“You fell asleep around 5:15,” she said, taking a sip while Harry sat up. His back popped and strained, clearly not a fan of another sleep on something that wasn’t a bed. “I would’ve carried you to the bed, but you’re a bit heavy for me.”

As his head cleared, Harry noticed that Y/n’s hair was wet and her eyes were clearer. She was in a fresh set of clothes and her desk seemed relatively put together.

“Did you figure it out?” he asked, his voice still scratchy with sleep.

Y/n nodded. “A little while after you fell asleep. I got an email about an hour ago. They arrested the right person.”

“That’s good,” Harry said, squeezing her knee. “That’s good, right?”

“Yeah, I just, um, I just got a different email. From an old professor.”

“Oh.” Well, that didn’t take long. “What did he say?”

“That he had the most interesting conversation with a close friend of mine,” Y/n said. Setting her mug down, she tugged her knees to her chest. “I know what you’re thinking.”

Harry could barely focus on anything but his stiff neck, but he tried to shake his head. “I’m almost positive you don’t.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me,” she said. “I—I don’t need to be fixed.”

“That—That’s not what I’m thinking,” Harry said frowning. “I don’t think that at all, Y/n.”

“Then why did you call him?”

Harry rubbed at his face tiredly. “I wanted to help you. I didn’t know how, so I asked for some help of my own.”

“I don’t need to be handled like some child.”

“Two weeks, Y/n,” Harry said, voice sharpening the slightest bit. Because for a moment, Y/n had frightened him. Not because he thought she was crazy or mentally unwell, but because he didn’t know how to reach her, and he always knew how to get through to her. “I didn’t hear from you for two weeks, and I come back here and the house is a mess, you’re not eating, you’re driving yourself—”

“Don’t say it!” she blurted. “Don’t say that I’m crazy, Harry. I’m not. I just...get a little sidetracked. I’m not—I’m not crazy.”

Harry could see it in Y/n’s face, then. The fear. She didn’t want him believing what she already believed about herself to some degree. He wondered how many times someone had told her that she was, or implied it. Harry had a feeling no one had ever taught her how to fail, or accept failure. Y/n was exceptional, but she wasn’t perfect, no one was, but she’d been brought up believing her knowledge had no bounds. She was taught how to fly, but no one taught her how to fall, and when she did, they blamed her for not figuring it out herself.

“I don’t think you’re crazy, because you’re not,” he said. “But I do worry when I you don’t come out of your room for a few days. I’m allowed to worry.”

Y/n had been looking down at her lap, but when she finally looked at him, there were tears in her eyes. “I’m sorry.”

Harry let the corner of his mouth curve into a smile. “For making me sleep on the couch yesterday? Water under the bridge.”

Y/n’s responding grin was small, but it was there, and Harry found himself wanting to make it bigger.

Joining him on the floor, they both laid back down. Y/n rested her head on Harry’s chest while he wrapped his arms around her. For a few minutes, they didn’t say anything, but before he fell back asleep, he found himself saying, “You know, I know I’m not as smart as you or anything, but I do know a thing or two about work ethic. I can help you find a balance.”

Y/n gave no indication that she agreed or disagreed. For a moment, Harry thought she’d already fallen asleep when he felt her nod. “I’d like that. But I think...I think I need to take some time off. Maybe just focus on teaching for now.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. I want to,” Y/n yawned. “I want to scale back. Just teach, travel, maybe get a Master’s degree.”

Harry laughed. Only Y/n would think going back to school for another degree would be considered “scaling back.” But he couldn’t be prouder that she was taking the right steps to treat herself better.

“I think that’s a good idea,” he said. He kissed the top of her head as he waited for her to respond, but she didn’t. Y/n kept quiet, her breaths keeping time with his until he realized she was asleep. Breathing a sigh through his nose, Harry stared up at the ceiling and hoped she had a dreamless sleep.

[be-with-me-so-happily]

6k words done already for Chapter 4! I'm so excited for it to be finished so I can share it with you! So here's a tiny piece of it. No context, just part of their conversation. You know me...

"I wouldn't have come, but Gem dragged me here."

"Surprised you were willing to risk callusing those dainty, musician hands."

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Taglist Continued: @fdl305 @harryslover47

If your name is blue, I couldn't tag you

[darlingdesire]

ADMIRATION

Harry has such loving eyes.

Harry sat on the edge of their bed, his eyes fixed on his wife as she stood at her vanity table, getting ready for bed. He couldn't help but feel a rush of love as he watched her. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever set his eyes on, and he felt so lucky to be married to her.

As Y/N brushed her hair, she caught Harry's gaze in the mirror. She blushed, feeling shy under his intense stare. She had seen him look at her like that before, with so much love and admiration in his eyes. It was a look she knew all to well from him.

Harry smiled at her, the corners of his lips lifting up in a soft, tender expression. He felt so grateful for this moment, for the opportunity to just sit and admire his wife.

As Y/N finished getting ready, she turned to face Harry, feeling a warmth spread through her chest as she met his gaze. She could see the love and tenderness in his eyes, and it made her heart swell with love for him.

Without a word, Harry stood up and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. Y/N rested her head against his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart against her cheek.

They stood like that for a few moments, just holding each other, reveling in the warmth of their love. Harry knew that he would never tire of holding Y/N in his arms, of feeling the weight of her body against his.

As they pulled away from the embrace, Y/N looked up at Harry, feeling a rush of love and gratitude wash over her. She knew that they had something special, something that would last a lifetime.

“You’re so beautiful,” Harry’s voice was so soft and so gentle, and only for her. He leaned in and placed a soft kiss on her forehead, feeling the warmth of her skin against his lips.

He loved this woman more than anything in the world, and he knew that he would spend the rest of his life cherishing and adoring her.

As they climbed into bed, snuggling up together under the covers, Harry couldn't help but feel grateful for this moment. He had the love of his life by his side, and he knew that there was nothing that they couldn't face together.