Receiving Her (h.s. au)

XV

I'm torn out of sleep when my phone blares through the room, my hand reaching to grab it. Harry's smiling face is displayed on the screen and I swipe my finger across the screen, answering.

"Hello," I say, my voice still carrying sleep.

"Hey, uh, Emma right?" I hear a man say, unfamiliar to me.

"Yeah," I say hesitantly, his lips releasing a sigh.

"Considering Harry is writhing in pain right now, he's only said call Emma since he twisted his ankle. Do you think you could get down here?" he asks, my head nodding.

"I'll be there," I say, suddenly very worried about Harry. I climb out of bed and put on my jacket and shoes, walking to the front door. Quickly, I make my way across the street to the stadium.

I walk in and try to find where I'm supposed to go, no one around. But I hear a painful yell, my heart dropping. My feet run back to where I heard it, the team standing there.

"Styles, we need you to get up slowly," his coach says, my body walking towards them.

"My ankle. I can't get up," he says, shaking his head. The football players all look at me as I maneuver through them, my body so small compared to them.

"Emma," Owen says, my arm taken in his hand. My feet move closer to Harry and he lies on the field, his shoe off and his mud-stained practice uniform on his body. He turns his head and pushes his arms to sit up, my hand taken in his.

"Take you pads off. If you're too hot, you'll go into shock," I say, my nursing classes coming into play. He nods and takes the pads off, his shirt beneath clinging to his muscles tightly.

"Just relax," I say, not wanting him to freak out that he broke his ankle. It could be a sprain.

I move to sit near his feet, the entire football team, the coaches, and Harry all watching me. Carefully, I lift his shin and set his foot in my lap, his sock still on. My fingers lightly move it off, mindful of the situation.

"Move your foot in a circle," I say, his eyes on me closely.

He nods and slowly moves his foot in a small circle, signaling it's not broken.

"I can't any further," he says, my fingers setting his foot back in my lap.

"It's not broken. Only a sprain," I tell him, his coach releasing a sigh.

"Thank God. My boy can't be injured. We have a big game next week," he says, my hand resting on Harry's shin.

"I suggest he rest it for a few days though. I'm sure the team will want him to be healthy," I say, coach nodding. I ask for medical tap and supplies, Harry continuing to watch me. The supplies are brought to me and I start to cut tape, forming it onto his ankle. The make-shift brace will have to do for now until I can find him a better one in my class.

Harry shifts due to pain and I apologize, his head only shaking. My fingers wrap the bandage around his foot and ankle, his eyes attentive to me. I can't figure out why; the job not very fascinating. Once I finish wrapping it, I look back up at Harry and he meets my gaze.

"I'll drive you home," I say, his lips curving. I stand up and move towards him, his body getting up yet keeping all pressure off his right foot. My hands grab his waist and his muscles are felt beneath my touch, his hands setting on my shoulders.

"Put weight on it just to see bear-ability," I say, his head nodding. His trust in me is so clear.

"Ah, fuck," he groans, setting his weight on his foot. My heart stops at his pain and I tell him to lift it up, his head nodding.