All You Need Is Love: A Harry Styles/One Direction Fanfiction

Chapter 71

“Is this why you wanted to meet me outside?”

“Yep.”

As Ali and I walked through the entrance to Julliard, heads began to turn in our direction. I kept my gaze blurred, though not down; I held my head up and kept my eyes level; I had nothing to hide. I hadn’t taken a look at the papers because I already knew that they were just going to imply stories that were a load of rubbish, and untrue. But I had known that today was going to be hard, and so had asked to meet Ali outside to give me the slightest moral support. After I had informed Harry that I wanted us to be friends, and after our sudden comforting contact, we had taken a taxi together and had been each dropped in our separate destinations. I hadn’t told my dad about the change that had occurred relating to my plans, because I knew what he would say. But I was my own person, and the only person who knew what was best for myself was me. I could make my own decisions in life, and being friends with Harry was one of them. So I wouldn’t let anybody change that.

After our short journey (which, for the first time, had completely dragged), Ali and I arrived at our form class. As we walked in, everyone turned their heads in our direction, and nobody spoke. After a second I realised that not all sets of eyes were looking at me, but to my left. I turned my head and met the eyes I had been dreading the most.

Ryan.

Crap, Ryan.

“Can we talk – in private?” he whispered. I nodded and turned away from him, walking out of the classroom. As I stepped into the hallway I heard the door close soon after and met his eyes. He suddenly exploded.

“It’s enough to cheat on me, but like that!? I never thought that was you, Carly, but I guess I was wrong!” he shouted, walking up to me.

“What!?” I surprisingly gasped, my eyes wide. “You think I cheated on you!?”

“What else does this say!?” he screamed, shoving his phone in my face. I’d never seen him angry before, and it scared me slightly. But still I took hold of his mobile and held the screen to my face. A photo of Harry and I holding hands was shown on a news updating website, the title: ‘HARRY STYLES WINS BACK EX-GIRLFRIEND: CARLY GILBERT’ at the top of the page. I didn’t even scroll down the article to read the text because I knew it would be a load of idiotic rubbish. Even if Ryan did believe this, it still pained me that he didn’t give me a chance to tell him the truth first. He believed that I was a cheat. After what had happened to me, he believed that I could do the exact same? He believed that I could be so unconsidering and horrible? I closed my eyes at the thought, utterly upset.

“I-” I froze, letting out a quick breath. “-I can’t believe you’d believe that. You don’t trust me?”

“I did,” he breathed. “I never trusted him, though.”

“That doesn’t matter,” I shook my head, narrowing my eyebrows. “You should just have enough faith in me, Ryan. Nothing is going on between Harry and I.”

“I’m not so sure,” he naturally spoke. I let out a heavy sigh and looked away from him, dragging my hand through my loose hair.

“You know what, I can’t even look at you when you’re in this idiotic mood,” I said. “Come and talk to me when you’ve grown up a bit.”

I turned away from him and towards the dance studio. God, this was the exact definition of what I didn’t need right now. I walked past our usual Studio and turned the corner, sitting on an empty chair. I needed Ali at my side to walk into that class. And so the rest allowed my voice to take over inside me.

‘He’s not right for you.’

Maybe my voice was right. Maybe, for once, I would take it up on that statement.