**********
I had just gotten into my car, and was about to start the ignition. I put my foot on the brake and turned the key as my phone buzzed again from the passenger seat of the car. I quickly grabbed the phone to see that Harry had texted me again, and my breaths started coming in short gasps. It was funny that his messages still did that to me. I thought I would've gotten used to it already.
From: Harry
How about Watson's coffee shop in fifteen minutes:) I'll see you there. x
Watson's coffee shop. It didn't sound familiar to me, and I wasn't sure that I'd ever been there. I was starting to get nervous. I pulled down the sun visor and looked in the mirror. my makeup was okay, but needed a little bit of touching up, and my hair's curls were beginning to lose their hold. I was supposed to meet him in fifteen minutes, and I didn't want to be late. Knowing the traffic in this town, I wouldn't have time to get all the way back to my house to freshen up. The few bits of makeup that I kept in car's console would have to do. I opened the console and grabbed the small tube of light pink lip gloss out. I carefully rubbed some on my finger before dabbing it on my lips, and then picked up the black eyeliner. I refreshed the lines around my eyes before opening the Maps app on my phone, and heading to Watson's.
**********
I grabbed a taxi as I was heading out of the arena. The driver didn't seem surprised to see a celebrity in the back of his car, which I found interesting. Back home, a taxi driver would have fangirled if I got into the back of the car, before I passed my driver's test at least.
"Where do you need to go?" the man asked gruffly. He looked up in his rear-view mirror as he spoke.
"I'm headed to Watson's coffee shop," I replied. "I'm meeting a friend." I smiled as the memory of Rae popped into my mind. The taxi started up, and pulled away from the curb as I was driven to the shop. Passing through the city was amazing. Many shiny skyscrapers towered overhead, as we continued through the heart of downtown L.A. I caught myself daydreaming about new song lyrics inspired by the city.
My heart's been bound,
in this city, to the ground.
L.A., U.S.A.
I found myself, new beginnings in this town.
I started humming a little tune to myself as I rode along in the car. Finally, the taxi slowed to a stop. I quickly handed the driver a fifty dollar bill and told him to keep the change, as he started to protest me overpaying. Directly across the narrow street was a small storefront with bright orange shades over it's windows. The words Watson's was stamped on them in big blue and white lettering. Stepping down into the street behind the taxi I quickly crossed and stepped up on the opposite curb. I rubbed a big hand through my messy curls before swiping them to the side and opening the door. The inside of the shop was very contemporary. Many brightly colored stools stood littered around several high top tables. Along the far wall, there was a counter where the barista's were, and next to that there was a muffin bar. Literally a buffet, with all different kinds of muffins sat in trays. I immediately thought of Niall, and made a mental note to make sure he stopped in here before we left town. I picked a table with green and purple stools and sat down to wait for Rae.
**********
I drove through downtown, making abrupt turns as my GPS kept rerouting me. Traffic was starting to get heavy, as workers rushed out for late lunch. Finally I noticed the bright orange shades with the words Watson's stamped on them. I pulled my little blue Mazda over to an empty space along the curb and parked. After inserting several quarters into the parking meter, I crossed the street. As I entered the shop, the smell of roasting coffee hit me like a train. I glanced around the room taking in the bright colors of the walls and furniture. There he was. Harry, sitting on a green stool with his back pressed up against the wall checking his phone, his curls hanging low over his eyes. I took a deep breath, as I worked up the nerve to walk over there. He must have noticed me standing there, as he looked up and immediately perked up in his seat. There's no turning back now, I thought to myself.
"Hello, gorgeous," Harry said, his voice smoother than melted chocolate as I approached the table. I could feel myself blush deeply at the sound of his voice.
"Hey, Harry," I replied. Harry ruffled a large hand through his curls. I sat down on the purple stool and crossed my legs. "Sorry I ran late. The traffic was starting to get bad, and that's why I look like this." I said gesturing to my messy hair and fading makeup. I looked down and started fidgeting with my hands in my lap. Harry stared at me, agape.
"You shouldn't apologize for being perfect the way that you are." I looked up at him, and watched as his big, green eyes grazed themselves over my figure. "Anyway," he continued, "I haven't been here that long, so it's not like you kept me waiting or anything." Now it was my turn to stare. A fresh wave of anxiety washed over me; this was real, and I was still having trouble comprehending it. "Do you want any coffee?" Harry started to stand up to go to the counter.
"I've never been here before," I said. "I don't know what's good."
"We're in the same boat then," Harry replied before walking off to the counter to buy drinks.
**********
I had just walked away from Rae. I didn't know what she would like; I didn't even know what I would like for that matter. As I approached the counter, I stared at the signs on the walls detailing their drink choices. I still couldn't decide.
"What can I get for you, sir?" The girl behind the counter looked to be about 17, her black hair tied back in a ponytail and pulled through an orange hat that had Watson's logo on it.
"I don't know," I replied. "I've never been here before, and I don't know what's good." The girl looked up at me, and a look crossed her face. Was is surprise? Shock? I couldn't tell.
"U-um," she stuttered, clearly recognizing who I was. "The nonfat caramel machiatto is pretty good here." I could see her hands starting to shake. She looked down at them, clearly self-conscious, and put them in the pockets of her apron.
"Okay, two of those then," I responded. I was trying to decide whether or not to try to calm her down. Right as I was about to say something about it, she noticeably calmed herself and turned around to make the drinks. I turned my back to the counter to watch Rae. She had a nervous look on her face, her sparkling blue eyes wide. Clearly I made a lot of girls nervous with my presence. The girl turned back around to hand me the coffees, and I paid for them before walking back to the table.
"The girl that works here recommended the caramel machiatto, so that's what I got," I said to Rae as I set the cups down on the table. "You look really upset," I commented. "What's up?"
"I'm not upset," Rae responded, making a conscious effort to cover up how she was feeling. Something was wrong; I never wanted her to feel uncomfortable around me just because of who I was.
"So then what's wrong?" I asked.
"Nothing," Rae said. "I'm just nervous, that's all." I didn't understand why. What had I done that would make her feel that way toward me? If it was something that I could fix, I would do it in a heartbeat. I just wanted her to feel good when she was with me.
"Why is that, Rae?" I asked, starting to get nervous myself. A large group of teenage girls had just entered the store, and although they were heading toward the counter, I was afraid they would soon spot me. I turned in my chair slightly to look out the window, hoping that they wouldn't notice me.
"Because you're Harry Styles," Rae responded, her voice a low whisper. Clearly she'd seen the group of girls too, and she didn't want to attract their attention either.
"I think we should go," I said, starting to stand up neglecting to grab the coffee that I'd bought. "I don't want them to see us. I wouldn't want anyone to get hurt trying to chase me down." Rae stood up out of her chair. The wooden stool screeched as it scraped against the floor. At once, all the girls turned to the sound, and spotted us. Many of their mouths dropped open and stared before they started screaming and running toward us. "Time to run," I said to Rae. Quickly I grabbed her small hand in my larger one, and pulled her along behind me as we starting running from the store. My heart pounded in my ears, and I struggled to keep pace. The girls were hard on our heels as we pounded down the sidewalk away from the shop. I rounded a corner and ran on, my hair blown back from my face by the breeze. I noticed myself starting to slow when Rae outpaced me. Now it was her turn to tug me along as she sprinted forward, her long brown hair flowing out behind her.
"Come on, Harry!" she shouted above the noise of the screaming girls behind us. Slowly we were starting to create a gap between us and the girls, as they started to tire out. "Keep going!" I started to look for places where we could duck into and hide as we continued passing store after store. Soon after rounding another corner, I saw an alley. I squeezed Rae's hand.
"Over there," I huffed out. "Go into the alley!" We both ducked into the alleyway and crouched behind some trashcans as the hoard of screaming girls rounded the corner we'd just come from and passed the alleyway. Rae and I sat in silence trying to catch our breath.
"I can't believe that you have to deal with that all the time," Rae puffed. I shrugged as I tried to slow my heartbeat.
"Usually I don't," I let out a throaty laugh. "That's what I have security for." I looked into Rae's beautiful blue eyes. She let out a snort before smiling brightly.
"Well you should've brought some with you, Harry," she responded, and then smiled again. I could feel my heart involuntarily speed back up at the sight of her brilliant smile. I didn't ever want to leave this moment. I cautiously stood up, and held out my hand to help Rae.
"No, because then I would have had to share this moment with them," I responded as she stood up beside me. Rae looked up at my eyes, then at my lips, and back to my eyes. I knew exactly what she wanted, and I couldn't stop myself from obliging her.
**********
I don't know what happened to me when I was running. You know how they say that sometimes you just need to be in a crazy situation to know how you'd react? Well that was my crazy situation. Suddenly I wasn't nervous anymore. I felt like I didn't have anything to be nervous about. Even though I was crouched behind a trashcan in a dirty alleyway, this moment couldn't have been more perfect. As Harry helped me up, I stared deeply into his green eyes, before looking at his lips, and back to his eyes. I tried to do it with a sexy face, hoping not to be too creepy about it, and desperately praying that he wanted the same thing. Before I could really wrap my head around what was happening, Harry leaned forward to me, and pressed his lips to mine in a soft embrace. One of his hands went up into my hair and came to rest on the back of my neck, holding me in place while the other wrapped itself around my waist. My hands, which had been in front of me as I'd stood up, shimmied and climbed their way up his toned chest to his shoulders before entwining themselves behind his strong neck. Harry's soft smell lingered as he pulled away slightly, his nose still rubbing against mine. There was something about his embrace that was addictive. It was warm and wonderful; it felt safe. In that moment, the rest of the world seemed to melt away. It was like having a dream while being half awake. You could barely understand what was happening in the foreground, you didn't have time to try to understand the details.
"This could not be more perfect," he whispered. I just smiled in reply and let out a small laugh. Our foreheads rubbed together for a moment before we finally separated. Was it really this possible to feel this close to someone you didn't know that well?
"And we didn't even get to try the coffee," I responded finally. Harry laughed as he reached down and entwined his fingers with mine. We peered around before heading out of the alley and back towards Watson's. As we walked along, Harry hummed a sweet tune. "How are you getting back to the arena?" I asked eventually.
"I figure I'll call a taxi," he replied. "Why?" Harry glanced down at our hands and back up to my face.
"Just curious. I didn't know if you had a ride back already," I said. We rounded a corner and I spotted my car. Harry followed my eyes and saw the car. I could tell by the look on his face that he knew what I was thinking.
"Don't be silly," he responded. "I won't have you wasting your time chauffeuring me around." He shook his head before running his other hand through his hair.
"It's not wasting my time if I want to do it," I argued. "Honestly do you really want to wait for a taxi to come and retrieve you, or will you just come with me?" He furrowed his brows trying to think of a good excuse to not have me 'waste my time'.
"Well, I don't really want to wait, but I don't want you to think you have to drive me," he said finally before looking back at me, his eyes searching mine.
"You really shouldn't worry about it," I reassured him. I looked down at the ground as we stopped before crossing the street. Harry squeezed my hand.
"I will worry about it because you're the only girl that I've ever met that's made me feel the way you do," he said. "I wouldn't want to pressure you to like me, or give me special treatment just because I'm 'Harry Styles'." Harry made quotation marks in the air when he said his name. I couldn't think of a response, so I just smiled at him and nudged into his shoulder. "I know I'm a cheeseball," he finished.
"I'll make sure to remember that you said, 'no special treatment'," I teased him. I pulled the keys to my Mazda out of my pocket and clicked the unlock button. The lights flashed, and then I pulled the door open. "Get in, loser." Harry grinned and pulled open the passenger door.
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