SUMMER STORMS [h.s.]

twenty-nine

In literature period the seat next to me was empty, just the wooden chair laying there still and lifeless giving me the silence and peace I missed so much during English classes lately. A silence I should have been enjoying. But this time was different, this time I was nervous, a rapid constant tapping of my heart and foot came along with the nervousness. Harry hadn't replied to my messages, yet hadn't come to school. 

I listened carefully to Mr.Dashwood as I doodled in the margins of the sheet I had in front of me as I took vague notes. Today's lesson wasn't incredibly exciting to be honest and I couldn't stop wondering where could possibly be Harry's card. My mind had gotten in an infinite loop from which I couldn't get out. What if I start planning out ideas about this for the contest? 

Someone finds a memory card in the street and discovers an amazing secret from the government. 

Or maybe it's a code to unlock everyone's house alarms and get rich by robbing. 

There were multiple things, but anything I could imagine would not solve my real dilemma. God, I can't have lost it. 

The recess came an endless hour later. The boys except Harry and the three girls of us enjoyed a conversation outside, in the stairs of the front door. We spend a lot of time together in that spot while we're in the school, to be honest. It's like our spot. Some days Louis falls from them and robs one of Jo's carrots. Some days Liam gets all offended when I make jokes of his stupid phobias. Some days Hannah and I roast the shit out of Zayn and then Louis comes, insults him and they get wrapped in a clap fight. Every day is quite a different thing, but always entertaining. 

"Hey Ni, do you know why Harry hasn't come today?" I asked while I interrupted Liam who was speaking. 

"Don't you hate him?" I rolled my eyes. 

"I do, but..." I hesitated. 

"But what?" Liam said impatient because I had cut his speech.

"I might have lost his memory card from his camera" I said closing my eyes and shutting them strongly as I feared those words. "He doesn't reply to my messages" 

"I'll try to call him" Niall seriously said nodding and I thanked him. 

The rest watched how Niall and I got to a "solution" and then kept going with the conversation some seconds later. Liam got back to his speech as Hannah, Zayn and Louis listened. Jo was too busy lost in Niall's ocean eyes. 

I could see in Niall's face that since I had said the thing about the card his expression had changed. His throat seemed soarer, tighter and he even cleaned it in a cough. His hand traveled to his mouth as he bit the borders of his finger skin. Clearly, something was not okay. 

I might have fucked it up really badly. 

Niall's artificial hair got troubled up by the wind and he seemed to take advantage of that impulse to get his phone out of his pocket and get away from us. Like the wind giving him the courage enough to move his crusty knees and get on the labor of my favor.

 I watched as he glued the phone to his ear meters away from us and walked in circles. Kicking with the point of his trainers the little rocks of the parking lot pavement, rolling a lock of his hair with the fingers of the other free hand. That happened until someone seemed to answer the phone after the second attempt call. His head bobbed up in surprise and his walking got faster this time in a straight direction and not all around and around. After that, he passed the building's corner and I lost the sight of him.