I'm Right Here- SWM Sequel (Harry Styles)

Chapter 3:

On Friday night, Bear and I walk inside the airport side by side. It’s impossible to miss the large group of adults in the waiting area. The best part about it though is seeing Bear’s face when I tell her that the adults are the group we’re traveling with. Her face reads an odd mixture of embarrassment and excitement and her only response is a loud laugh. My friend comes over to greet us.

“Nice to see you, Harry. I’m Alex- What’s your name miss?” Alex asks Bear. I always thought Bear was cute when she answered that question. It always took her a second to remind herself that she introduced herself as Bear and she always answered so shyly.

“My name’s Bear. Nice to meet you, Alex.” Bear says shyly, as always. The lighting of the airport always makes her eyes twinkle and once again my breath is taken away.

Alex leads us over to the other adults and we quickly find out that they’re all intoxicated. Of course, that only makes me and Bear even more excited. It gives us a cover to be teenagers having fun. On the plane, it’s even worse. Me and Bear have claimed a row to ourselves and the adults are dispersed throughout the cabin. In our little row, me and Bear joke around and listen to music. Slowly, I feel our friendship getting as strong as it used to be. Back to when we were both sure that we wanted to be with each other.

“I missed this.” Bear comments with a small smile as she runs her finger along the armrest between us, avoiding my eyes.

“I did too. You really are one of my best friends.” I smile as I move my head so that I can be seen in Bear’s direction of vision.

“You are my best friend. Thank you again for inviting me to come with you.” She says sweetly, while diverting her eyes again.

“No need to thank me. We needed to catch up anyways.” I say while grabbing Bear’s chin lightly. I lift her chin so that her eyes meet mine and after we smile at each other for a few seconds, Bear pulls her chin away.

“Harry, you’re dating Taylor. You can’t just do that anymore. It looks bad to everyone else.” Bear warns quietly, her eyes and tone becoming serious.

“It’s friendly.” I defend myself.

“I know it is. But everyone else is constantly looking for a way to tear you down.” Bear says worriedly.

“Fine, here’s what we’ll do. This weekend, I’m allowed to do friendly things with you. Anything that I would do with Taylor, I won’t do. Those are the standards. Good?” I smile, trying to get Bear to join me. She stares at me questioningly for a few moments before a smile spreads across her face and she breaks.

“Alright. But this is your idea.” Bear smiles while poking her finger lightly into my chest. Right on my heart.

“I’ve been told that my ideas are great.” I say with a boastful hand on my chest.

“Oh please, it’s the charm that wins everyone over.” she smiles as she roughs up my hair.

“I have no charm if my hair doesn’t look good!” I complain as I quickly fix my hair.

Bear lets out a loud laugh, the sound filling my ears. Her laugh is adorable; There’s a hidden melody somewhere beneath her crinkling eyes, her hand clutching her stomach, and her other hand covering her mouth that released fast and short bursts of laughter. I laugh along with her and lift up the armrest between us. Quickly, I grab her waist and pull her towards me. She lays her head on my chest and both of us start to calm down. She leans into me, and we both start to fall asleep.

The next morning, we arrive at the airport on Necker Island around 5. Everyone that gets off the plane it drowsy with the time zone change. All except for me and Bear. We seem to be the only alive ones of our groups, chasing after each other and doing some flips while we wait for taxis to pick us up.

“Me and you should just walk to the hotel. They’re too hungover to walk but the hotel is twenty minutes away by foot, tops. And we’ll keep each other interested. What do you think?” Bear asks as she gets her converse from off the ground.

“Sounds good. Let me go tell Alex.” I say over my shoulder as I quickly walk over to Alex who is standing around with the other adults, joking around. I tell him what me and Bear are going to do and when he nods his acknowledgment, I run back over to Bear. We walk side by side, talking as we make our way to the hotel. The sun has just started to rise when we see a beautiful white beach across the street.

Without saying another thing, Bear sprints barefoot across the street over to the beach. I follow after her and take off my shoes before I enter the sand. Bear is already way ahead of me, frolicking around in the white sand. I carry my shoes in my hands as I run over to her. The sand feels like clouds under my feet and between my toes. The lightning sky of sunrise provides a surreal backdrop to our game of tag. Finally, I catch Bear and lift her up by her hips. I lean down a bit to get her on my shoulders and her hands take gently hold to the top of my head.

“Woah, I feel tall.” I hear Bear say breathlessly from above me. I carry her over to the water’s edge and we watch the sunrise and the waves lightly hit my feet.

“To the hotel?” I ask while lifting my head up to look at Bear. Her dazzling blue eyes meet mine and I feel like my knees are about to give out.

“Yeah, we should get some more sleep.” Bear says with her bright smile growing as she speaks.