Unchanging [h.s. au]

twelve

After Harry had left, I trudged up the long driveway alone and stomped through entryway of the house. With my dad gone, everything was eerily quiet.

My dad was actually gone.

I let out a celebratory shout and flopped onto the sofa.

My plan had turned out to be a success. At least so far.

I somehow managed to find my room again and saw my suitcase still haphazardly open on the floor where I left it. Not bothering with my normal bedtime routine, I crawled up onto the plush bed and sank underneath the covers.

My mind swirled with the events from the day. My dad was sure to be livid, I hadn't even talked to my mom yet, and most importantly, I couldn't figure out if Harry really meant all the things he said.

I was almost asleep when I realized I was still in Harry's clothes. I felt like I should have changed into something else as act of defiance, showing I didn't care what Harry thought. After a mental debate with myself, I decided as long as no one knew, there was no harm in it. Plus, there was no way I was getting out of bed.

I let out a sigh of defeat and pulled his shirt tighter around me, inhaling its scent and drifting off to sleep.

* *

Ring riiiing!

The sudden loud noise vibrated through my skull and I shot up in the bed to only fall right off the edge.

"Ow," I muttered to myself, rubbing my elbow.

Ring riiiing!

As I slowly regained consciousness, I realized two things: 1) my phone was ringing and 2) if that was my mom or dad, I needed to answer it. Now.

I frantically crawled on the floor, searching for my cell phone. I threw items I had left on the floor out of the way.

Ring riiiing!

"Where is my. Freaking. Phone!" I shrieked out loud.

If I didn't answer after ignoring them for a whole day, they would be furious.

During my agitated search, I picked up my backpack to find my phone lit up underneath. I snatched it up off the floor and immediately answered.

"Hello?" I breathlessly spoke into the receiver, preparing myself for an onslaught of yelling and one giant, anger filled lecture.

"Hiii, Clara." A deep British voice replied on the other end.

"Oh, thank God." I whispered, my heartbeat already starting to slow down.

"Jeez, did you really miss me that much?" Harry teased.

After my moment of relief, annoyance started to set in. "What? Of course not." I groggily responded while I rubbed my eyes.

"Clara, did you just wake up?"

"Maybe."

"It's 11am."

"Well, thanks for waking me up," Malice dripped through my words. Anyone who screwed with my sleep schedule was messing with the wrong person.

Harry seemed oblivious to my anger. "You're welcome."

"Wait, how did you even get my number?"

"I may or may not have borrowed it while we were at the driving range yesterday."

I pinched the bridge of my nose and mentally reminded myself to put a passcode on my phone later. "You better have a good reason for waking me up."

Harry cleared his throat. "I was going to ask if you wanted to go out with me tonight. To dinner. For a date."

I froze. "Are you serious?"

"Pretty sure I am, otherwise I wouldn't be calling."

I hesitated, still not sure whether this was part of some big prank or not.

"You don't have to say yes if you really don't want to come." Harry mumbled.

"No, I'll go." I quickly said. "I mean, yes. Yes, I'll go out to dinner with you."

"Great!" I could practically hear Harry smiling through the phone. "I'll pick you up at 6:30."

After saying goodbye, I hung up and collapsed on the floor.

Maybe Harry really did like me. A guy wouldn't ask out a girl to dinner if he didn't, right?

Either way, I had a date to get ready for.

I turned to my suitcase and pawed through my clothes, trying to find one decent outfit that could be considered date worthy. The only problem was, I didn't know how fancy the place we were going to dinner would be. I really should have asked Harry some clarifying questions. I ended up settling on a simple, dark blue summer dress with a pair of brown sandals.

After a lazy breakfast and shower, I decided I should at least call my mom to check in with her. I'm sure she'd have a few choice words for me after hearing I ran away and I figured I better get it over with.

Soon after dialing her number and speaking with her for a few minutes, it was obvious she didn't know anything. She wasn't concerned in the slightest. At one point, I casually asked if my dad had called at all and she only seemed confused, wondering why he would even bother.

As it turns out, my dad hadn't said a peep to my mom. He was a real coward, threatening to call my mom for backup and not even having the guts to follow through with his own threat.

I ended up talking with my mom for a good half an hour, catching up with what we missed in each others' lives. I always enjoyed talking with her, however, I didn't mention Harry. I knew it would shock her if I said I was going on a date and the last thing I wanted was for someone to pester me about it.

After we hung up, I realized I didn't have any other activities lined up until 6:30. I didn't know the area and I surely did not want to go outside and run into Harry only a few hours before our date.

I stayed inside and watched TV on my dad's big screen for a long time. Sadly, one can only watch so many Chopped episodes before they get bored.

When I couldn't stand watching people purée vegetables and slice weird meats any longer, I got up from the leather couch and started exploring my dad's house.

The first room I turned into appeared to be his office. It was very neat, only a few stray papers here and there. All the furniture was polished and expensive; the type of room that looked like it was meant more for show rather than actual work.

I turned to leave, but I froze in my tracks as a small, framed picture on my dad's desk caught my eye.

. . .

Idk man I just really love the show Chopped.

Any predictions?

-K