[Neither of them promised forever, yet it hurt all the same.]
River Hamilton cannot afford to fall for just anyone. To continue the legacy of her family the only way she can, she must eventually marry someone she may not want to spend the rest of he...
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R.HAMILTON
One thing that made River feel as though she was useless in a situation included the very moment, she found herself in. It wasn't a regular occurrence hence the surprise she felt and the inability she noted in her mind when she tried to deal with it. Considering that her best friend told her she needed time to process the loss she suffered when Mrs Forbes passed, River found herself on the outside lines. Now that Mila needed River, she wasn't sure how to go about it because she never experienced death in such close circles.
This difficulty led River to the one person who felt the most human to her, the one person who no doubt would have experience with grief and ways in which it can be aided. Hamilton practically needed Harry more than fresh air to regulate her thoughts and ease the tight feeling of anxiety in her chest. The emotion clogged up her rational thinking to the point where she could barely move as it took control of her muscles.
Some places felt odd to meet, but River couldn't very well drag the man out of his work at one-forty-five. If she learned one thing it was Harry's distaste for special treatment. Therefore, to accommodate his dislikes but still give herself an environment where she could talk freely, she grabbed two coffees and some pastries from the Clubhouse restaurant and chased Harry down to his office.
"No," he said the moment he laid eyes on River—washed blue high waisted jeans, a black top, khaki loose blazer, with black loafers and white socks—and the goods she held onto. River opened her mouth to defend her appearance but Harry went on to say, "I have work to do."
"I'm not going to stop you from getting work done," she promised like she had done over text. River pre-planned this and didn't just turn up in case Harry had meetings during the day but it turned out he only had admin. Although, as she took a better look at him, she wondered why he wore a nice blazer and shirt. "I need to talk to you."
"Talking will prevent me from getting work done."
River exhaled. "Perhaps it is time you work on your multi-tasking skills," she advised as she placed the coffee holder down on his desk and made space for the pastries. It was a fairly organised desk with a couple of black pen holders, a file rack that held neat piles of folders. There was a picture frame to River's left which always tickled her curiousness but never took a peek. "What I'm about to say is important."
"Important to you, you mean," Harry corrected, rightly so, and gave her a knowing look she couldn't fight against. As much as it was difficult to admit, Harry knew River as well as River knew Harry. Somewhere along the way, the realisation needed to hit Hamilton because the longer she kept it at arm's length, the worse it would slam into her.
It wasn't the words he said. It wasn't the tone he used. But it was the moment where River doubted herself for a second. Harry often made little comments that indicated he believed her to be self-serving with no mind to others around her, and it started to bother River the more he dressed these little digs as jokes.
