Conceited [H.S.]

SIXTY

Chapter Songs:

Telephone by Vacations

Forrest Gump by Frank Ocean

Tonight You Are Mine by The Technicolors

...

ANDREA WILSON

I twist the small box between my fingers while my eyes stay glued to the clock on my phone to count down the minutes until it'll be safe for me to go to Harry's room.

We agreed that we'd wait ten minutes after the last light in the house turns off to avoid getting caught switching rooms.

To say that the energy has been off between Harry and me since earlier today would be a complete understatement.

He seemed to have paced my entire bedroom during the time that I was showering to rid myself of the utter embarrassment that I felt after my panic attack. I would be lying if I were to say that it helped me gain the entirety of my dignity back, but it only helped a small amount.

It isn't the panic attack itself that made me embarrassed; I've had a handful in the past, and I'm the first one to understand that they're normal, including the one I had today. It's just more the timing of this specific attack that has managed to put a dent in my confidence.

Just as my life is taking a turn for the best, and it seems as if I'm closer to being healed rather than hurt, Luke comes in to fuck it all up.

My confusion about Harry's sudden jealous behavior was still evident when the two of us decided to talk when his friends and family weren't possibly waiting for us. Whether or not they truly were is beyond me, but I was happily going to take the time to gather my explanation of what happened.

It wasn't until I opened my phone before heading downstairs that Harry's demeanor and words in that bathroom started to all make sense. I can't blame him, the messages he saw out of context look as if I was flirting with Oliver. Which would never happen.

Throughout the entire night, I had felt distracted while I worked my brain to its limits trying to get my words together, and it looked like Harry was doing the same.

He didn't even sit next to me when we finally got downstairs, and it felt like my heart had gotten ripped out and stomped on. I could see the deep fear in his eyes the moment I asked him to stop, but my ego couldn't help but take a blow to the distance afterward. His eyes never drifted away from me the entire night, so I tried to stay positive and tell myself that he didn't want to push any boundaries before we could talk about everything.

My eyes drift over to my phone screen to see that it still isn't considered "safe" for me to go over to his room, but I'm tired of anxiously waiting. I'm not going to have any skin on my fingers left if I wait any longer.

I transfer the miniature box in my hands to the pocket of my pants, and my mind goes over my explanation of how Oliver's texts connect to the meaningful birthday gift.

The uncomfortable, nauseating sensation floods my stomach as I walk over to my door, and as soon as I turn the handle I hear what I can only guess is Harry scrambling away. I can't help but grin as I open the door to see him in fact trying to get off the floor quickly and quietly, but he's failing completely at both.

"Hi," I say quietly while a chuckle escapes me.

He manages to stand up straight again and it's clear that he's been waiting for the designated time to come talk to me too. It does make me feel slightly better about everything that's happened. His hands pull down at the hem of his shirt before he sends me a nervous, almost unnoticeable smile.