Who Are You

"Stop it!" my voice came out as a strangled scream as my body shot up in bed. I hugged myself and wiped off the sheet of sweat that formed on my forehead. It was just another nightmare, that's it. Slowly my breathing became less rapid and I sulked back into my tousled covers. I craned my neck to look at my alarm clock. The red numbers glowed dimly. It was a quarter to seven, a little earlier than when the dreadful thing was supposed to go off. What a great start to a big day.

I groggily stumbled to my bathroom and started the shower. As I got in the cool droplets hit my back and I shivered. Today was my official first day in Seattle. A fresh start to my new life, or at least that's what I was pretending. My first boxing lesson began today, with my very cute instructor. Score! I also was getting feedback on whether or not I got a bartending job at the local pub Lucky's. If I got it, my first shift was tonight!

I got out of the shower and dressed myself in some Nike shorts and a black tank top. I swiftly gathered my wavy blonde hair into a high ponytail and grabbed my keys. Before I left, I glanced in the mirror one last time. Hopefully Seattle was my chance at a better life.

~

Ding!

A shrill bell went off as I stepped cautiously into the unfamiliar building. I had already been here to sign up for lessons, but I was still skeptical on how I was going to progress.

"What do you want?" a deep, raspy voice called out to me with a trace of annoyance.

My head whipped to the owner of the seductive voice. Damn, he was hot. His dark brown curly hair was held back with a white bandana, and he wore a tight black muscle top with baggy basketball shorts.

"Are you just going to gawk at me or are you going to answer my question?" He asked impatiently, his eyes raking down my figure. Ew, pig.

"I have a lesson with um," I scratched my head trying to remember my instructors name, "Carter," I finished. Even though this guy looked pretty tough I wasn't going to take his attitude.

His green eyes widened immensely, as if he was taken back that I was here for a lesson. Yeah I was more on the girly side, but I could still throw a mean punch if needed. I was a little offended that he obviously thought otherwise.

"Yeah, he usually takes people like you," his hungry eyes drifted down my body once again as he began to walk away.

He did not just say that.

"Excuse me, what do you mean people like me?" I said as rudely as possible. This guy was really harsh.

"Prissy girls who just want in his pants," he spoke casually, while still walking away from me.

"First of all, I'm not prissy and gross!" I said while stubbornly following him behind a heavy set of doors. Inside was a small hallway with two doors. One for the girls locker room and another for the boys.

"Yeah, whatever you say," he said with no emotion. I finally picked up his accent, just another sexy thing to add to his features. What? Stop it Lucy! His large hand pushed open the door to the boys locker room and he bellowed for Carter.

I glared at him as we waited. A few moments later a guy with a dorky smile plastered on his face poked his head out.

"Lucy! You're early," he said in a charming manner. Carter was fit and had short, spiked light brown hair.

"Yeah I just wanted to make sure I got here early," I explained, fiddling with my keys in my right hand. Carter was cute, but this other guy was just- Lucy, knock it off! You're supposed to be angry at him!

The other guy rolled his eyes and turned around, strutting back to the entrance of the building. What an asshole.

"Who is that?" I asked Carter curiously, my eyes watching as he pushed through the set of doors with ease and entered the lobby.

"Oh! That's Harry, he used to be a professional boxer, but now he's an instructor here," Carter explained with a smirk on his face. "I think he likes you a bit."

What? Carter was completely insane!

"Carter, he basically called me a bitch and then just left me here with you!" I stated a little dramatically. God, this day was turning into a complete disaster.

He just chuckled softly and continued smirking at me.

"Lucy, that's the nicest I've ever seen him act in a long time, he just takes some getting used to," He said while shrugging his shoulders.

"I will not be getting used to that," I said using hand gestures to emphasize my point, making Carter laugh even more.

"Okay, okay, I get the point. Now let's get to boxing! I'll meet you in the gym. Just put your stuff in a locker and enter the gym from the locker room," Carter told me with a smile.

"Fine, I'll see you in there," I said whilst smiling and pushing the door to the girls room open.

~

My first lesson was pretty boring, just Carter showing me the gym and teaching me some basic moves. There was a lot of equipment and room to practice. Carter himself was pretty cool, he even gave me a card so I could come work out anytime I wanted. We didn't actually start my training so we didn't stay long. I changed into some casual clothes to go to the bar. Afterwards I gathered my stuff from my locker and headed out into the lobby where I could hear a loud voice.

"Yeah I'm sorry I didn't call you, I've been really busy Lizzy! Shit, I meant to say Laura. Hello? Hello!" The guy from earlier shouted into his cellphone. "Fuck," he whispered as he put his phone away in his back pocket. I knew he was a pig, it was probably a random girl he had hooked up with and never called back. Cliche.

Suddenly his green orbs spotted me and narrowed.

"What the hell are you staring at?" He spat at me.

My nose crinkled in disgust at his tone, and Carter actually thought he liked me?

"Nothing, jeez," I replied quickly and almost sprinted out the door. Great! It was raining, typical Seattle. It was June, and in Minnesota it would be warming up after its cold winter. I fumbled with my keys for a second before unlocking my car and crawling inside. Today wasn't going very well, but hopefully I had gotten the job at the pub. Next stop, Lucky's.

~

"Here you go!" I said cheerily as I served another customer. I got the job and was a natural at it. My boss, Rick, was an old man who had been running the place for years. He was patient with me and had walked through everything I needed to learn with kindness, I was going to love it here.

Time rushed by and before I knew it, the pub had cleared out and it was closing time. I helped Rick stack chairs and clean off countertops. I had received a number of generous tips and was pretty excited about my income. Rick told me I would be working nights for awhile by myself, but I didn't mind. We said our goodbyes and I went out into the night. It was still damp from the earlier rain, but not as bad.

My phone read one in the morning, I couldn't believe I spent half my day there and it went by that quick. I drifted off into thoughts about tomorrow, or actually today! As I was about to turn the corner to the parking lot, I was shoved forcefully up against the brick wall of the pub.

"Well aren't you a pretty thing," a guy around his forties said to me while his body help me captive against the brick. His breath reeked of alcohol, and I let out a scream.

His dirty hand immediately covered my mouth and muffled my frantic cries.

"Oh, there's no need for that honey," he said while his other hand began groping my body. I still couldn't move due to his legs blocking me with heavy weight I couldn't overcome.

I started to flashback to that horrible night, this couldn't be happening again.

Out of nowhere the guy was thrown off of me and I felt as if I could breathe again.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" The guy who had saved me yelled at the drunk man. "You think taking advantage of a girl is alright?" He bellowed while throwing the man to the ground. Finally he turned to face me. It was Harry! His usual light eyes were dark and alert.

He turned back to the man and kicked him in the gut.

"I swear if you ever touch or come back here again you'll regret it!" He spoke with so much venom in his voice it would've scared anyone to death.

The drunk crawled away and dragged himself up before disappearing into a dark alley.

Then Harry was at my side and had gently grabbed my arm. A shock sent through my body at the place our bodies met. Weird.

"Are you okay?" He asked sincerely, a huge change from his previous mood. I shook off his arm, too stubborn to show him how I was really feeling right now.

"Yeah I'm fine, I just need to get home," I said and started to walk off to the parking lot. I needed to get out of here before I broke down in front of him.

"Lucy, you almost just got-" he stopped before the horrible word could slip from his mouth. Even though it was dark I could see him lick his lips and bow his head. "What are you even doing around here?" He decided to ask instead.

Why did he even care? How did he know my name? I desperately wanted to leave this area.

"I could ask you the same thing!" I replied a bit too harsh, I mean he did just save me from that awful man, "I'm sorry, I just need to be alone," I tried to convince him.

His eyes flashed with a hidden emotion, but in a beat, returned to normal again.

"Yeah, okay," he simply stated before stalking off in the opposite direction, but I could hear him whisper, "I'm glad you're okay."

I stood there for a moment trying to decipher exactly what his words meant. Did he just worry about my overall safety or was it something more like Carter had hinted at? Still shaken from the earlier events, I decided to get in my car and go home. My mind racing the whole way back.

~

I fell onto my bed and was surprised when no tears came. No, that was the old me. I was stronger now and determined to prove it. My eyes fluttered and I could feel the fatigue my body was going through. My eyes drooped close as I drifted into sleep. Seven o'clock was going to come all too soon, but I needed to learn some self defense sooner than later.

So much for a fresh start

Notes

Hi guys! I love Harry Styles, obviously, and am so excited to start this book. I think lots of fans will enjoy it.

If if you like it please, please, please, comment and vote!

~lex~