Wish I Knew You Sooner

chapter fourteen

Harry's POV

"Dude," Mitch called out to me from a few feet behind. "You've gotta tell her."

"Mitch, shut the hell up." I quietly scold. "I got it figured out. Plus we aren't even dating, so I don't have to tell her." I snap back.

Sarah gives me a concerning look, but doesn't say anything. They both meet up with me as we almost make it up the driveway. Oakland invited us over, and I am glad to hear from her after a few days of silence. I don't know where she has been, but I reached out to let her know that I was here for her. She seemed upset after being together that morning when I took her to the lookout to watch the sunrise, and I could sense that something was wrong, but I couldn't figure out what. Maybe I did something to upset her, or maybe I crossed an unknown boundary.

Mitch put his hand on my shoulder to signal me to stop as we were almost at the stairs that reached her front door. "You may not be dating, but there is something between you two, so it would be best to tell her before it gets out in a way that could hurt the both of you." He advises.

I look down at our feet, contemplating his opinion, wondering if it was smart to keep this from her, or to just come out with it today. I nodded slowly, still thinking of what to do.

I fucked up. I know I did, but it already happened so there isn't much I can do now. This could go one of two ways. Either she gets angry, and leaves me in the dust, or she doesn't care and brushes it off. I'm hoping for the ladder, but I completely deserve the first one.

"I'm hoping you'll make the right choice, Harry." Sarah warns, as she begins to march up the steps.

We reach the front door, and I reach out to hit the doorbell. I could hear the chime from out here, and footsteps quickly following. The door swung open, revealing her sister, grinning ear to ear. Sarah walks in, as if she owns the place, cheering out.

"The party's here!" she yelled, walking in to go straight in for a hug with Byerly. Mitch followed in behind her, leaving me standing there until my eyes fell on the beauty. She was holding the door open, watching the two of them with a soft smile sprawled across her face. Just seeing her made me smile myself, and all the stress from the conversation I had on the way up here washed away.

Her eyes met mine, catching me staring at her. Her smile grew a bit as she opened her arm and I walked in, going straight towards her. I instantly wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her into a much needed hug, kissing the top of her head, the smell of her coconut shampoo filling my senses.

"Hello beautiful." I whispered so that only she could hear. She melted into my hug, gripping my shirt a bit tighter than I expected, as if she didn't want me to go. I didn't want to let go either. It felt safe with her in my arms. It just felt right, and I think she felt the same way.

She quickly pulled back, a look as if she was pushing away the feeling we just shared. She averted her eyes away from mine as I looked down at her. We both dropped our arms down, and she looked around to see where the rest of our friends went. They moved into the kitchen, chatting it up, and Oakland made her way over there, still acting a bit off.

I want to dive into her head just to see what she is thinking.

I stand there for a second, racking my brain for any idea of what is up with her, but I follow behind her slowly as we meet the rest of them at the kitchen island. I lean my elbows on the counter, trying to insert myself into the conversation. They're talking about nonsense, so I couldn't quite pick up on the discussion, also because I was subconsciously keeping my attention on the girl next to me. She was also listening in on the conversation, but simultaneously picking at her nails. She seems anxious.