Harry Styles One Shots

Part 4 of Harry and Y/N are in the same ballet class, and they hate each other

22k+ words 

iv.

Y/N is...not used to this Harry.

The Harry that Y/N met and had been privy to for the months that she'd been here was mean. With eyes that cut daggers through her for breathing and harsh, annoyed groans and sighs whenever she was what he deemed too close to him – he made her feel hated. It was never a secret that he disliked her; if anything, it was public knowledge that Harry didn't care for his classmate. That he thought she was annoying and loud, and wasn't as good of a dancer as people hyped her up to be. Hell, he'd never even said anything nice to her except by accident.

(It was within the first month of her being at the school; Y/N had hugged Niall because he gave her his extra bagel prior to them walking into the studio. When Niall made his way over to Harry, he leaned in and sniffed at him, "Are you wearing perfume? It smells good." And when Niall takes a sniff of himself and lets Harry know that it was actually Y/N's perfume he was smelling, his face soured and puckered before replying, "You know, the longer it stays in the air, it's too fucking strong – kind of grating don't you think? Shouldn't you change?")

And then after her incredibly embarrassing, drunken complaints about him being the absolute worst to her...he'd started to soften up a little. Baby steps, of course, because he was still rolling his eyes at her, and he'd still call her stupid, or dumb – but he was praising her too. He'd tell her she did well with a certain move, or compliment her posture, or – away from the dancing aspect of it – he'd even say he liked her shirt if it represented a band or a show that he recognized. The way that he danced with her was more gentle, and when she spoke to him it didn't seem like he wanted to scream just to drown her voice out.

Then, within all of that, there were the odd moments of almost uncharacteristic kindness that he would give her. Letting her sleep in his bed when she had knocked out on his bean bag during an impromptu movie night she wasn't technically invited to. Giving her his snack when she hadn't eaten breakfast, taking care of her when she had a fever (even though she'd snapped at him before that), spending time with her before the show, letting her fall asleep in his bed again.

And, of course, there was the kiss. He didn't scold her for stumbling during the show – the only person scolding her, was herself, but she'd always imagined that if she fucked something up Harry would be her worst critic. So imagine her surprise when instead of immediately telling her how stupid she was for not practicing that move enough times that there would be no reason to stress over it – he took her somewhere quiet. He promised her that it was in her head, that it wasn't that big of a mistake, that nobody would notice unless they were waiting for it, that she had been doing so well...and then he kissed her. A careful, tender press, not enough to even smudge her makeup but still her heart was racing.

There was a significant shift in how Harry looked at her, from the beginning of this semester to the night of the show. A gaze heavy with disdain, irritation, and animosity is replaced by one of sentiment, warmth, and care; his features soften when he sees her rather than harden. Y/N felt comfort under his eyes rather than uneasy or agitated. Being around him wasn't a problem, it was something she looked forward to, and that alone was something difficult to process.

The morning after the show, when Y/N wakes up, she's in her hotel bed – or at least, she's in the hotel bed that was supposed to be Christopher's but since he never showed back up last night, she figured it was hers now. Sunlight funnels through the curtains, leaving the room bright and Y/N has to squint in order to see. She was confused because she knew she didn't wake up on her own – her alarm hadn't blared in her ear either, which could only mean that her bladder woke her up, or an outside source.