untitled |h.s|

sixteen

Harry

"Hey, Ni," I addressed him before the silence could linger, simultaneously hoping to draw any attention away from whatever just happened between me and Ari.

"Hi," Niall quietly responded in pure confusion, fixating his focus on his sister, who had plopped herself in the middle of the couch. "Wait, what? Ari?"

She wiggles her fingers at him in a cheesy wave, a smirk instantly forming on her face. I could tell she'd gotten her hopes up in surprising us, there was a look of mischievous joy plastered on her face as she silently greeted Niall, the same look she had when I first opened the door.

I still don't even know why she's here, the two of us not having had the chance to actually talk much since she showed up. Honestly, thank god she knocked on the door when she did. I'd regretted bringing Amber home almost as soon as we walked into the apartment, a pit suddenly forming in my stomach that instantly killed my mood. We made out for a little bit before that weird feeling became too much and I eventually pushed her away, but that didn't stop her from trying.

She managed to slip my shirt off right before there was a soft knock on the door, an unexpected guest who ultimately saved me from the embarrassment of having to reject the poor girl entirely. Ari was the last person I expected to see on the other side of the door, but her presence instantly drew me in in both surprise and gratitude.

I know she felt bad about it though, her guilt coming out as soon as she started rambling. I wanted to explain everything, but then, my world completely flipped.

I went from feeling tense and awkward while standing  in my own living room to finally feeling her lips against mine again after craving that sensation for weeks. I just hope I'll have the chance to steal her from Niall again before she leaves and maybe we can actually talk because now I know I'm not the only one who's been feeling like this.

"I'm sorry, w-what are you doing here?" Niall asks Ari once he finally makes it through the door.

"I have an audition this weekend, I wanted to surprise you while I was here," Ari explains, immediately catching my attention.

"An audition? For a play?" I find myself instantly interrupting.

"Yeah, it's last minute though so it could be a lost cause my best friend convinced me to at least try."

"Well you gotta start somewhere," I tell her, alluding to what she told me that night on the rooftop. "What's the role?"

"Um, it's The Little Mermaid," her cheeks turning a pink tint in embarrassment while she explains, "I'm going for Ariel."

"Are you fucking kidding Ari," Niall cuts in, "like you wouldn't get that role. You know you're the perfect Ariel. You wouldn't even need to practice either, I'm pretty sure even I know all the lines from hearing you practice them over and over back home."

I watch her cheeks heat even more, turning a bright red as she glances over and makes eye contact with me. I bite back a smirk at her reaction, she's unnecessarily captivating, even when she's nervous.

She reluctantly snaps her eyes away from mine before Niall has the chance to notice, turning her attention back to him.

"I'm still nervous though, okay?" she explains, nervously playing with her fingers.

"Yeah, yeah, alright Ari," Niall teases, walking over and wrapping his arm around her, "but you got this one. Don't worry about it."

"Thanks, Ni," she mutters, shyness completely taking over her.

"So, um," Niall speaks again, suddenly sounding nervous, "I kinda had plans tonight, I obviously didn't know you'd be here, but I can-"

"No, it's fine," Ari cuts him off, "I'm really tired anyway, I'll probably just spend the rest of the night in the hotel."