#ribsc7

[cherryyharryy]

Chapter 7: Coastal Cartilage

 And I've never felt more alone

The pounding in Harry’s head was the only greeting he received, the only indicator that he was no longer asleep, and the only warning of a day he wasn’t ready to face just yet.

He dragged his heavy body away from the bed, wincing with each step on the cold floor as he struggled to make it to the faded black coffee pot in the corner of the room. As the brew trickled down into the carafe he rested his weight against the waist-high dresser, digging his palms into his eyes and letting out a strangled groan.

His dream that night had been of Addy. He hadn’t had many involving her, but each occasion he awoke with a bashful smile on his face and the increased desire to see her as soon as possible.

But while last night’s dream had been a good one, full of a happy and giggling Addy, it made waking up alone and cold all the more straining.

The choked gurgling of the final drops of watered-down coffee had Harry jumping in place and out of his momentary lapse. He yanked a sweatshirt over his head before pouring an excessive amount of Splenda packets into the paper cup half full of the dark liquid.

It’d only been about ten minutes since he woke, and the courage to turn his phone back on still hadn’t manifested like he’d hoped. With a reluctant gulp of the syrup in his hand he yanked his phone off the charger and waited for his and Adeline’s faces to appear.

And if he thought the fear of what he’d find once his lock screen had settled was bad, then the slap of being hit with no missed calls or unread texts was downright devastating.

***

“Shit, Addy.”

Harry ended the voicemail prompt for the hundredth time, opting to send yet another text, begging her to answer him.

“One cheeseburger with fries.” The waitress set his food down and refilled his water. “Anything else y’need?”

“No thanks,” he mumbled, nudging the plate away.

He naïvely assumed she’d be waiting on bated breath for his call, prepared with a drawn-out apology that he’d string out for just a little bit, because he was still mad, still so pissed he could hardly see straight, but he missed her, and the only thing overshadowing the anger still brewing inside him was that he didn’t get to wake up in her arms.

She ruined that, too.

Just as the boiling in his veins was stirring up again, and the sight and God-awful smell of the greasy diner food was becoming too much for his senses, his phone lit up, her name searing into his eyes.

“Thanks for calling,” he spit. “S’not like I’ve been trying to reach you all damn day.”

“Harry—”

“No, I’m not done. I haven’t even started yet.” He sucked in a deep breath, getting a heaping dose of salt and the stale perfume still lingering from his waitress into his lungs. “I don’t wanna do this over the phone. I’m at a motel off the main highway. I’ll send you the address.”

***

His bag was packed and the bed he tried not to think about sleeping in was made. The buzz of a rerun had been turned off half an hour ago, too much for his frazzled, throbbing head at the moment. His stomach was churning and the only thing he could be greatful for was the untouched lunch he had left on the sticky diner table.

He heard her car pulling in on the gravel and yet her knocking still startled him. He pushed himself from the chair in the corner of the room and swung open the door.

“Hey.”

“S’cold, come on.”

Adeline shrugged off her coat, eyes running over the room as the hatred she had for herself intensified.

“Um, I know it won’t mean anything, and you don’t wanna hear it...but I am sorry.” Her voice was shaky and her eyes were desperate, looking up at him as she wrung her hands together.

“I know. And uh, I’m sorry too.” His voice was just as quiet. “Shouldn’t of left like that.”

Adeline nodded, sucking in a breath before continuing. “I’m sorry I never told you about Morgan, I mean, that he was a guy.”

“Why though? I still don’t understand why you couldn’t tell me something like that? Did you think I would’ve gone off the handle or accused you of cheating?”

“No, I...I’m not sure. I guess I just didn’t want to chance it. I wasn’t doing anything with him, and I convinced myself that by not telling you I was keeping the peace.”

Harry was leant against the closed door, arms crossed over his chest with his head tilted to the side.

“I didn’t think you’d be jealous,” she added. “It was just, well it was just stupid, okay? What I did was plain stupid.”

She plopped down on the edge of the bed, her head falling into her hands as her shoulders began to shake.

“Hey,” Harry whispered. He pushed off the door and sat beside her, pulling her into his side. “Addy, s’alright, I’m not mad. It’s was stupid, yeah, but it was a mistake.”

He wiped the tears off her cheek once she looked up.

“I am sorry,” she choked out.

“I know, darling. C’mere.” He opened his arms and she curled up against his chest, his hands wrapping around her. “S’alright, Addy. Hey…” His fingers slipped under her chin to lift her head up, his thumb gently tracing her jaw. “It’s over, yeah? Forgive you.”

She nodded as he rid her cheeks of the last of her tears. “Okay,” she weakly agreed.

“Come ‘ere.”

“M’right here.” The corners of her lips finally twitched up, her words mixed with a soft giggle.

“I know, want you closer though. Missed you.” The hand that hadn’t left her face trailed up to tuck her hair behind her ear. His eyes were hooded with a soft, lazy gleam sparkling in them, a small but confident smile matching their desire. “Missed you so fuckin’ much, angel.”

Once his words had met the air between them he dropped his head to smooth his lips over hers. The softest of moans released deep in his throat, and before it could bubble up into the point of no return, he broke off of her, inhaling the stale air and swallowing back his own protest. “Is Nicole at work?”

“Yeah, yeah till three,” she squeaked.

“Let’s go.”

***

What Harry had imagined as a frantic frenzy of biting and scratching, ripped clothes and a chaotic search for a condom in his pocket, new vulgarity introduced between the two of them and a high neither of them had experienced yet, was playing out much differently in reality.

“God, I knew I’d miss you, but I didn’t expect it to actually fucking hurt.” He hovered his lips over hers, barely grazing her chapped skin that her teeth had done a number on. His legs were wobbly as he moved, sinking into the mattress while encouraging Adeline to slide onto his lap.

“I know,” she assured, “I just wanted to go back in time. Never thought I’d miss high school.”

Adeline drug her mouth across his cheek, humming in tune to the slow sigh he exhaled against her ear.

“You really missed sneakin’ around your parents? Waitin’ for my mom to go to the store?” His hands slid up her arms, rounding her shoulders to glide up her soft neck and hold her head still, eyes boring into hers. “Or d’you just miss the chance of gettin’ caught? Missed actin’ like you were too shy to hold my hand when anyone else was around.”

Her jaw flexed in his grip, her face barely moving to nod in response.

“Then we’ll go slow,” he breathed out. “‘Cause we always had to rush, didn’t we? Now we’ve got all the time—until three.”

His stone-hard serious expression broke into a smile, eyes crinkling at the corners with his dimple carving into his cheek.

Adeline laughed in his grip. “We’re not much better off.”

“Then we better get started.”

Harry pulled her impossibly closer, joining their heated mouths together while they both released strained sighs. Her hands slid up to tangle in his hair, tugging against the resistance he fought for to keep their tongues connected.

Within seconds their entire bodies were fidgeting. Too many clothes and not enough patience. As soon as Adeline gave her first thrust forward, her chest grazing his, Harry popped off with a harsh intake of air.

“C’mere.” He nudged her to slip off his lap, waiting for her silent nod to start revealing her soft skin with every inch of her shirt disappearing until he could see the goosebumps trickling under his breath and her breasts pulse just that much closer with each rapid inhale into her lungs. “You’re so beautiful. Most prettiest eyes, most prettiest everything, petal.”

If it wasn’t for the crimson stain coating his cheeks that had accompanied his declaration, she might have lost the courage to keep their eye contact. But instead she slipped her bottom lip under her teeth and watched his throat throb. “So are you.”

His mouth was back on her, only her neck this time after pulling her back to straddle him, taking his time to etch his love onto her skin. Her fingers tugged at the hem of his sweater, pushing it up his taught sides after he begged her to take it off against his bite.

Harry smoothed his thumb over his work, catching the twinkle in her eye as she watched him. “Next, right?”

She followed his gaze down to where his thumb was pulling on her belt loop, breathing out a soft yeah.

They were separated once again, only flushing their bodies back together once both their jeans were piled on the floor. Harry coaxed her to sink into the pillows, following close behind with his hair draping around his head as he peered down at her.

“What?” She laughed.

“What do you mean?”

“That...look.”

He settled his weight onto his elbows, brushing their cores together with a strangled restraint. “Think we forgot somethin’.”

Her eyes shot open. “Well I don’t have any! Didn’t think you’d be showing up unannounced! Why didn’t you—”

“Sh, sh, no, love. S’not what I meant,” he laughed. “I meant...these.” The band of her panties snapped back against her hip, a devilish grin smirking above her.

“Then get to work.”

Harry’s brows shot up, his smirk turning more innocent. He shifted down her body, flicking his gaze up to hers for one more approving nod. He slid the black fabric down her legs, gulping as soon as her true desire was revealed.

“I—I want to, God I want to, but—”

“S’alright, don’t wanna wait either.”

Harry was off the bed and back on, his boxers now abandoned, in record speed. His smirk was back in full force as he watched her own eyes travel down between them.

“S’where you’re supposed to make a joke about me missin’ you.”

“Oh shut up!”

He trailed his fingers down her arms until their hands were clasped, bringing them up to rest above her head. “Alright then, I’ll do it.” He lowered his throbbing cock to meet her skin, reveling in the flinch of her body and the gasp she released. “See how much I missed you?”

“Could you please act like an adult?” Her eyes rolled but her reluctant grin was a dead giveaway.

“I think we’re doing exactly that, darling.”

He dropped his head to press their lips together, joining them together with soft moans exchanged into the other’s mouth, adjusting his weight over her body until he couldn’t stand it any longer and gently slid himself inside her, both their mouths falling open with harsh breaths of air released.

“Really missed you,” he moaned. Once he was buried inside her, the first few thrusts slowly reacquainting themselves, he released one of her hands to cradle her face. “So much, so much.”

His name slipped past her lips in a sweet sigh, eyes desperately trying to stay open so she wouldn’t miss a second, pushing the thought of him having to leave into the back of her mind.

He picked up his speed, pressing their foreheads together and indulging in the sparking electric buzz pulsating throughout him, his senses on overload with her nails digging into his back, feathery touches of her skin meeting his as she writhed beneath him, raspy words of delayed satisfaction coming in hushed sequences from her swollen lips.

“God, fuck, Harry.”

“I know, I know, baby. Doin’ so good, so good for me.”

Her legs wrapped around his waist as he ground into her. A strangled grunt shooting out from his mouth when her teeth sunk down onto his shoulder.

“So close,” he choked out. “You? Love, please—”

“Yes, I am, I am,” Adeline moaned, arching her back as her body stiffened. “I am.” She thrashed under his weight, body jolting as the overwhelming wave she hasn’t felt in so long beat against every bone in her body, filling up her heart and lungs and every nerve that Harry was obsessing over with his thumb down below with the sugariest euphoria she’s had yet. “Fuck, Harry, I am!”

Her own name came tumbling past his lips, a rhythmic chant of obscenities shortly after as he rode out the explosion of pure bliss racking his own body. “Shit, baby, s’good.”

It took her shaky hand on his wrist to cease his movements, which had already slowed to virgin touches before he pulled out, shocking her system with a new kind of sensitivity.

“You okay?” He asked.

“Mhmm. Very okay.” She sighed around a smile, dipping her chin down and darting her eyes away.

Harry rolled to her side, slipped the condom off and into the wastebasket before returning to press up against her lazily. “Why’re you bein’ so shy?” He slipped his hand under her chin and coaxed her to look at him. “Hm?”

“M’not.”

“Are too.”

“Harry…”

He nuzzled his face into her neck, nipping at her shoulder. “S’okay. Cute when you get all bashful anyway.”

***

Their breathing slowed down, as did the gentle grazes they performed on each other’s skin. Adeline was tucked into his side, the covers properly wrapped around them with his hand tracing patterns along her hip.

“Hated bein’ away from you.”

She looked up, her cheek still flush against his bare chest. “Me too. M’gonna miss you when you have to go back.”

“Still got a whole day together.”

“It’s gonna go too fast, then I’ll be all alone again.”

“Hey now,” he mirrored her pouting, bottom lip jutting out as he reached up to tap her chin, “still have Nicole.”

“I can’t even pretend like that’s funny.”

He chuckled and pulled her closer, pressing a soft kiss to her head and humming out a relaxed sigh. “Well then there’s only one thing t’do.”

“What’s that?”

He flipped her over, trapping her beneath his warm body as the duvet slipped off his hips, that damn smirk right back in its place. “Make the most of the time we’ve got left.”