I'm pretty sure he hates me. Most definitely sure.
Harry's been staring at me all through lunch and every time I see him. I'm starting to feel very uncomfortable and insecure. Jack and Emma haven't noticed and I don't want to tell them.
Since yesterday, I feel like he's everywhere. When I look around the corner, there he is. When I glance through a window, he's there. I wonder if he's doing it on purpose....
I nervously turn my head around again at the lunch table and I meet his glare. He holds my eyes with such force that heat rushes to my cheeks and I quickly spin back around. Yep, definitely doing it on purpose.
Sam finally notices my discomfort and asks, "hey, what's up?"
"Harry's looking at me," I mumble quietly so only he can hear. I feel guilty about dobbing Harry in, after all, he wasn't the one who came over uninvited and concerned himself with other people's problems. Sam turns to look at Harry behind him and slips his arm around my hunched shoulders.
"Freak," he says and I wince slightly at the derogatory term directed at Harry. "Hey, I'll pick you up at nine to tonight." Sam faces me, changing the subject.
"Oh, yeah. The party." I sigh my disappointment.
Sam laughs, "oh yeah, the party? I thought you wanted to go."
"I do," I lie. I had actually forgotten all about the party and my date with Sam tonight. I was looking forward to not doing anything and just lying about and watching cliché movies and eating tons of chocolate. But now I have to dress up in degrading clothes and hang around and follow Sam everywhere he goes because I don't actually know anyone.
Great.
Sam kisses me on the cheek and relaxes back in his chair. I rub the heels of my palms into my eyes, trying to get all the sleep out. Once again, I had trouble getting to rest last night. I felt horrible and embarrassed. Still do in fact and Harry's not really helping.
His constant nearness to me but not actually beingnear me, is exhausting. I want to apologise again but I get one look at him and I feel like wanting to run for the hills. My inner conscious is always telling me to grow some lady balls and to go up to him and say that I'm sorry, but yeah. I have massive lack of will power.
The bell rings and Sam accompanies me back to my class. Before I know it, school's over and I'm walking up my stairs to my front door.
White patches of cloud are swirling in the blue sky. The sun's beaming down but it's cooler then it was yesterday. The weather's finally starting to cool down as we are nearing autumn. The heat's finally ending and can't be anymore glad. No more sweating excessively for me!
I unlock the front door and step in. I dump my bag and shut the door before racing upstairs to take a quick shower.
The warm water runs over my body and I close my eyes. I don't know what to do about Harry, things will eventually cool down though and I think he'll forgive me. Maybe.
I sign as I wash my body and hair. I didn't know things with him could possibly be this complicated. Harry used to want me, now it's me wanting him. I can still remember when we were just kids. Just me and him.
We would play all day in his backyard, hiding behind the big bushes and climbing the trees. When he started going to school he always came back and proudly told me what he had learnt and tried to teach it to me. I wasn't too bright though back then. I remember making Harry frustrated all the time.
I never used to get along with all the other little girls my age. I was too small and odd. My interests included boys cartoons and toy trucks and the colours red and blue. Absolutely no dresses or skirts. Barbies and pink clothes were just too girly. Harry was the only one that got me, the other boys didn't want anything to do with a me, a girl, either.
Then something happened, I don't remember what. Harry and his family left not too long after my fifth birthday. They had ran out of money to pay for the expensive bills for the big house. Which is strange because I later found out that both of Harry's parents had excellent, well paying jobs and they had originally built the house themselves.
Now Harry's back with the house. He owns and can mange to pay for it all. By himself. Granted, he does have other people staying with him every now and again, but I doubt that they're renting.
When he moved away I had no one. Luckily school had started for me and I met Jack. Also not being able to escape the constant presence of the girls in my class had me learning to become one. Emma was my first real friend that was a girl though. It was an awkward change.
Turning off the water, I wrap a towel around my body and step out of the shower. I dry myself and slide into my underwear before heading to my room and search through my clothes. It's around 4 in the afternoon and Sam is picking me up at nine.
I choose out a pair of skin tight jeans and a small black midriff that is nowhere near skanky but isn't totally saint-like either, in fact, it looks more like a plain cutoff black t-shirt then an actual midriff.
A shrill tone of ringing cuts through the silence in the air and I jump in fright. The home phone set up next to my bed is ringing, the mobile device flashing red to let me know that someone's calling.
I sit on the end of my bed as I pick it up and put it against my ear.
"Hello?" I ask, my tone polite.
"Who is this?" A creepy male's voice on the end of the other line breathes.
"Mia. Who's this?" I frown at the voice, trying to figure out if I know who it is.
The guy laughs lowly, like an sick chuckle that puts my hair on end.
"Where's your daddy, Mia?" My stomach begins to turn uncomfortably and I feel bile rise up my throat.
Who is this? My mind turns to the logical answer, prank callers.
"Excuse me? Who are you?" I ask the voice but I get no answer, the line is dead. He had hung up. I frown as I remove the phone from my ear and stare at it in confusion.
Okay, that wasn't creepy at all. What would anyone want to do with my dad anyway? Unless you were in your fifties and owned a bunch of companies and worked with him. But that voice sounded as if it belonged on a twenty or a few years younger guy.
I slowly put the phone back down in it's cradle. As soon as it touches down it vibrates in my hand as it again shrills loudly. I pick up quickly and rest it against my ear, expecting the voice again.
"Hello?" I ask sounding a lot less polite.
"Hi, it's me." I let out a sigh of relief, it's mum. My hammering heart slows as she tells me she's going to be late for dinner tonight and just to feed myself and then leave with Sam. She doesn't give me my curfew, she knows I'm responsible enough to get myself home by an appropriate time.
After she hangs up, I finish my homework and get dressed in my clothes, before going down to the kitchen to cook up something small for me to eat. I then race up stairs to do my hair and makeup. By the time I'm done, the doorbell rings.
I give myself a smile in the mirror for a confidence boost and I run down to meet Sam.
"Hey," I breath when I open the door to his expecting face.
"Hi. You look great." He smiles at me. I blush and thank him. I shut the and lock the door behind me and step out with him.
"The guy's name is James. He's a good mate of mine but he throws really full on parties, so when you're ready to leave just tell me," Sam says as we both swing into his expensive looking car. Inwardly I thank the Lord that Sam's a gentleman. I would be probably be leaving early tonight.

~~~

I'm going to throw up.
If I thought that Sam's party was chaotic then this party has to be terrifying.
There is so many people here that I can't even spread my arms out in front of me without smacking someone in the face. The music is so loud that I can feel it under my feet, vibrating all the way through my body. They're playing aggressive rap music, the kind that no one really likes listening to. Everyone is shouting over each other, sweaty bodies are pressed together. Dozens of couples getting it on in the corners and the air is so thick with smoke that I can barely breathe.
I'm trying to follow Sam, really trying. I've been here for about ten minutes and I already want to go home. We're pushing through the crowd, stopping every now and again because Sam is even more popular then fucking Regina George.
Oh god, what am even doing here?
I jump away with a squeak as two guys come toppling towards me. Their fists flying at each others face as the crowd cheers them on. I reach forward and grab onto Sam's hand in front of me, not letting him out of my sight. He looks back and smiles encouragingly at me and I just stare frightfully back.
I want to go home, I want to leave so much but we just got here and Sam's obviously enjoying himself. I don't like being rude, I suppose I can survive at least a hour or so before I tell him that I want to go.
Finally Sam tugs me out of the crowd and into more clear space around the kitchen. He pulls me towards a tall guy who I'm guessing is James. He's tall and very muscled by the looks of his arms and shoulders. His neck is thick and his jaw square. He has brown hair and black eyes that scare the fuck out of me.
All of James scares the fuck out of me.
He smiles when he sees Sam. He laughs and him and Sam do one of those man hugs where they smack the shit of each other on the back.
"Sammy! Didn't think you'd show, tosser," James says when he steps back and smiles, his teeth a blinding white.
Sam laughs and looks to me, smiling as he gestures, "this is Mia, my girlfriend."
I would have been blushing at Sam's term if I wasn't so utterly terrified of the scenery around me. I inch closer to Sam and my grip on his hand tightens as I force a smile at James. He and Sam share this odd look that gives me chills before James smiles back at me.
My skin breaks out in goose bumps- and not in the good way, when James leers at me.
"Mia," he drawls and I inwardly shudder at the sound of my name on his tongue. Sam's friends with this guy?
"How you liking my party?" He asks me an evil glint in his eye.
"It- it's uh, great!" I shout over the aggressive swearing in the music. James laughs again and nods his head at Sam, "enjoy yourselves," he says and pretty much dismisses us.
Sam doesn't seem to mind that much, he's already pulling me away from the kitchen and towards one of the many buckets of ice and beer. He lets go of my clammy hand to lift up two dripping wet, cold cans. He winks as he hands one to me.
He opens his and throws it back. With my drink in my hand I watch him as his Adam's apple bobs up and down as he sculls the drink. He lowers the can and looks at me, "What time do you have to be back tonight?"
I blink, so over this already. "Twelve," I lie, fighting the urge to snap it out. It isn't his fault that this party stinks. Sam smiles at me again and takes my hand and leads me to the living room where couches have been pushed against the walls to leave space for people to dance.
I feel like I've just stepped into something between Dirty Dancing and bloody Girls Gone Wild, no one is dancing, they all look like they're having dry butt sex. Most of the girl's shirts are off and they're dancing in their bras whilst guys have their crutches rubbing against their asses. The low heavy bass in the rap music is keeping everything seeming animalistic as I watch everyday humans in their most primal state.
I frown in disgust, hoping to God that Sam is not going to drag me in there. Luckily he stops talk to yet another person that he so happens to know really well. I sigh my relief as I know that no one can hear me. I look to who Sam is talking to and I realise that it's that red haired kid that fought with Harry.
I can't really hear their conversation but I can pick up the red haired kid's name; Ryan. He and Sam seem to talk forever. I roll my eyes in annoyance as I sit down on the back of the couch. I sip at my beer out of boredom, not because I am actually enjoy drinking it.
My eyes search around the room as I sit here doing nothing. I spy on a couple whispering in each others ears in a dark corner of the room, I look away when they start making out. I glance at a young girl sitting on the stairs. My gaze lingers as she looks to be around fourteen years old.
She's small and skinny. Her pale blonde hair and creamy skin in contrast to her pink lips and haunted greeny-blue eyes. A boy sitting on the stairs in front of her has much darker black hair and looks to be my age. He covers his mouth as he lights up a cigarette.
Both of them look incredibly bored. And so completely out of place.
The young girl meets my gaze and we exchange a mutual bored look.
I turn away when Sam takes my hand again, he's smiling at me and Ryan's gone. I return his smile halfheartedly and stand up from the couch as he leads me into the grinding bodies.
"Let's dance," he says and I gulp down bile and the urge to vomit again. I place my drink down on a side table as his arms snake around my waist. My hands awkwardly wrap around his neck. By now I'm incredibly tired. I want to leave, but I won't say anything.
Sam starts to move, pressing me against him as his hips grind into mine. I inwardly cringe and try to move in a way that I think he expects me to. I don't get any reaction from him saying that I'm doing to right thing. He's not even looking at me, he's staring down at my body and the thin line of the skin of my stomach that my tight midriff is allowing to be seen.
He's forcing myself onto me and I'm starting to feel very claustrophobic. This isn't how I pictured a first date to go. After about five minutes of 'dancing' Sam starts really grinding his crotch into mine and I finally decide that I've had enough.
I step away and hold my hands up.
"No. Stop," I tell him firmly.
"What's wrong?" Sam shouts over the music and I raise my hand to wipe away the sweat collecting on my forehead.
"I'm sorry," I shout, "I've had enough. I'm going to go get some air." And with that I break away from him and push my way out of the crowd.
My head is ringing and I feel like I'm going to puke. Plus the air in here is fucking disgusting! Who the hell can breathe in here!?
I walk past James in the kitchen and as I do, I notice that he's yelling. I stop to look and my stomach drops to my feet. About ten people are surrounding James and and another group of people. They're all yelling, shouting to be heard. Over the top of different guys heads I spy a mop of curly dark curls.
Harry, my mind screams out.
I'm standing a little way away but I can still see him, chest to chest with James. Both of them yelling loudly in each other's faces. Louis and Zayn are there too. Standing right behind Harry and adding in their raised voices too.
I can't move, I'm standing frozen at the spot. James looks Harry in the eyes and says something in a low voice and suddenly, without any warning, Harry snaps. In a lighting quick movement he steps back and his fist goes flying forward into James' nose.
Some chick screams loudly as they both go crashing down together. Someone jumps on Zayn and Louis as well and then everyone's fists are flying. A gasp rips from my lips as my hands fly to my mouth.
Shit! I charge towards Harry just as he's rolling around with James, his clenched hands hammering into James' face over and over again. A scary, completely dark look of fury covering Harry's face.
I almost don't want to approach him, but I'm not thinking right now and my feet won't cease moving. I stop a few feet away from them, my stare on him. The muscles under his skin move and contract with every move and force in his arm. His dark curls are untamed and wild. People are either yelling at them to stop or urging them on.
"Harry!" I call out over the voices, "Harry stop!" He looks up, my voice the only one getting through to him. His gaze is at first shocked at me being there and then it turns back to being furious. He jumps up onto his feet swiftly before James can get another punch into him.
He holds my gaze as he barks at Zayn and Louis to stop fighting. Louis has no trouble untangling himself from his opponent, he jumps up next to Harry and glares down at James. Zayn also tries to stand up only to be pulled viciously back down by his guy. Harry rips his gaze away from me and steps forward and savagely kicks Zayn's attacker in the face, sending him sprawling onto his back on the ground.
My heart pounds in my chest as I watch Harry angrily stare down James on the ground. His clenched fists are by his side and they're dotted with blood. His chest is heaving with and he looks terrifying.
Harry bobs down in front James who is still laying on the ground. He makes no effort to get up as Harry speaks, "don't fucking get involved with this." His eyes are dark and threatening but James just glares right on back.
"He ruined my life too Styles. We get as much as a chance at her as you do." James spits a wad of salvia into Harry's eyes and Harry just laughs darkly before wiping it away. In a fluid quick motion he punches James in the face for the second time. I gasp again, I have never seen Harry like this before. So completely frightening and angry. Sam and his punch on at school seems so small compared to this.
Zayn and Louis are holding back the guys who are trying to get at Harry for punching James. I don't even know why there here, what they're doing and what they've got against James. And who the hell are they talking about?
Harry stands and he and Zayn and Louis make their leave. No one stops them as they make their way to the front door. The crowd parts and we all watch them go. James stands up and two of the guys start to make their way after them.
"No," James stop them, "let them go." He waves a hand dismissively in their direction and raises his other hand to his bleeding nose. His black gaze finds me and he glares.
A chill runs down my spine. What the fuck did I do? But then I forget all about Sam and his being here. All I want to do is go after Harry, and so I do. Without looking back at James, I tear out of the crowd and after Harry.
I open the door to the cool night air. I sprint out of the house and down the road. My eyes on the trio of laughing guys in front of me.
"Harry!" I cry after them, halting as they all look back. I can see Harry frown a distance away as he looks at me. My mouth opens and nothing comes out. I'm struggling to find the right words to say to him, after all the last time we spoke he was kicking me out of his house.
"I'm- I'm sorry," I finally say and he looks at me. Zayn and Louis don't say anything, they're all waiting for me to say more. The only light is the light coming from a street lamp. We're alone in the dark street and I'm starting to feel very insecure and scared. I don't want to go back to the party to go find Sam and tell him to take me home. Even though Harry just beat the shit out of James, to be honest, I kinda feel a lot more comfortable with him then I do with Sam.
I'm crazy.
"I was here with Sam-" I begin but Harry cuts me off.
"Then go back to him." He's glaring at me now probably wondering what I'm doing, talking to him. He swings onto his bike and so do the others. They look like they're going to leave and so I start stammering, thinking of anything I can say to make them stay long enough for them to take me.
"I don't want to go back. I want to go home," I say, distress clear in my voice, "please can you take me?"
Harry just looks at me and I start panicking, he's not going to leave me here is he?
"Please, Harry. I'm sick," my voice breaks on the word and I feel more confident in my little act.
"You're really gonna let me take you home, a guy that just beat up another guy? Even when your boyfriend is just inside that house?" Harry asks me, pointing back at James' house, disbelief in his voice.
I then say something that I don't think I will ever again say again to Harry's face, "I trust you. You wouldn't just beat up anyone for no reason. You're really not as bad as a person as you think. You won't hurt me."
Zayn and Louis laugh quietly at my comment about Harry. They slide their helmets over their heads and turn on their bikes. The engines revving and humming loudly. Harry chuckles also and smiles- the type of smile that shows embarrassment because you've just been complemented.
Harry starts his engine and his bike roars to life. I hesitantly take a step forward, afraid that he will leave.
"Harry, Please?" I almost whisper. He turns his green eyes on me and without a word, hands out his helmet to me.
"Climb on," he says.

Notes

All credit goes to doily