stay forever; harry styles

4

"So, what is he? Like, your Greece boyfriend?" Ingrid asked Mabel after she shared the details of the night before. "Shut up. You know it's not like that." Mabel responded, giving her friend an annoyed look. She knew Ingrid was going to say something along those lines when she told her about Harry, it was just in her nature. "No judgment." Ingrid said, putting her hands up in defense. "Oh my god." Mabel said, getting off the bed the two of them were sitting on to get away from her.

"What? I'm playing!" Ingrid exclaimed, laughing as she pulled Mabel back down on the bed. They were getting ready to leave for the dock and Mabel felt it was necessary to catch Ingrid up on everything as she'd invited Harry to join them. She wasn't sure if he'd end up joining them but was also trying to not be cynical in the way he'd pointed out the day before. "It's not funny. I actually have a boyfriend." Mabel reminded her, and Ingrid rolled her eyes. "That you're thinking about breaking up with." Ingrid pointed out, causing Mabel to groan in frustration.

"Okay, no more jokes about your steamy infidelity." Ingrid said, and Mabel shook her head at her. "You are so annoying." She told her, and Ingrid laughed. "Okay, that was seriously the last one." She assured her. She knew Ingrid just liked to tease, but she didn't know how guilty Mabel actually felt. Though, admittedly, it wasn't guilty enough to actually stop speaking to him. She made herself feel better about it by thinking if Harry were a woman instead of a man, this wouldn't have even been a conversation.

After they finished getting ready, they met Jared outside and walked together towards the dock where there were several boats lined up for rent. Jared had done the justice of getting one for them for the afternoon, speaking with the worker shortly before leading them toward the one he'd rented. Mabel looked over her shoulder, wondering if Harry was going to make it before they hit the water. She knew she'd enjoy herself either way but she was still hopeful he'd be there to join them.

As they got on and settled onto the boat, Mabel noticed a driver hadn't joined them. "Have you ever drove a boat before?" She asked Jared as he got in front of the wheel. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing." He told her with a wink, causing her to not fully trust that was the truth. He and Ingrid liked to joke too much, she never knew when to take either of them seriously. She looked over to Ingrid who had already made herself comfortable, laying her head back and taking in the blazing sun that was coming down on them.

"Harry better hurry before we leave him stranded." Jared said, catching Mabel off guard. She supposed it shouldn't have been too much of a surprised they'd communicated about the plans, but still she hadn't expected him to know without her having to mention it. She was glad to hear he'd meant it when he said he would come though. Before she could say anything in response, she saw Harry walking up to them and gave him a wave. He waved back, smiling, as he climbed onto the boat to join them.

"You must be Ingrid, it's nice to meet you. I'm Harry." He introduced himself, and Ingrid smiled toward him. "It's nice to meet you, too. I've heard so much about you." She replied, receiving a dirty look from Mabel. She'd hoped that he'd assume it was from Jared and not that Mabel had been gushing over him behind his back. "Hopefully nothing too terrible." Harry joked, causing Jared and Ingrid to laugh. "Don't worry. I didn't tell her everything." Jared replied, making Mabel feel relieved he'd said something yet also curious to what he was insinuating to.

As the boat started moving, Mabel felt more confident in Jared's skills than before. She relaxed, looking onto the water and the town they were leaving behind as they got further into the water. There were others out enjoying the good weather as well, waving to them from across the body of water and Mabel waved back. When she looked back over, Ingrid had made herself comfortable on Jared's lap and had took the wheel. She smiled to herself, she was always happy to see them together even if they couldn't keep their hands off one another. It was good to see her best friend in a happy, successful marriage. Their passion for their love had never died out over the years like she'd witnessed in other people.