Heartbeat

Car Ride; They Matter To Her

Song of the chapter-

Fall by Ed Sheeran


Harry-

I'd never gone clothing shopping with Alex. And I can tell its something that she doesn't have a great interest in. She holds my hands as we walk through Macy's at the mall, her blue eyes just scanning over the racks of clothes uninterested, while other girls would be looking at each item on that rack.

I'd forced her to ruffle through some clothes to find a few dresses, and she playfully trumped to the dressing rooms to try them on. I sit against the wall outside the door she's behind, seeing her feet as she kicks off her shoes.

"Now when you come out you have to put on a fashion show." I call to her.

I hear her laugh disagreeingly, making me chuckle.

The first dress she came out in was too big for her, and her lips were pouted as she pulled on the excess material around her waist. But the second one she came out in was perfect, I thought.

"I like this one." I tell her, my elbows resting onto my knees as I lean forward a little.

The white fabric ends mid thigh, tight at the waist and gentle against the curve of her hips and thighs.

Her face tells me she's trying to figure out if she likes it as well. I think it compliments her immensely.

"Do you like it?" I ask her.

She shrugs her shoulders indifferently and glances up to me.

"Do you?" She asks this as if its all that matters, and it makes me smile.

"Yeah. It makes your ass look great."

Her cheeks heat and she shakes her head at my perverted comment before she shuts herself into the dressing room again. Picking out a dress for her was fast, unlike it would've been with another girl. She's a go with the flow kind of person, as in if her boyfriend likes her dress and if she thinks it's nice, that's enough to settle. Not if it makes her look slimming or if it makes her eyes, hair, or whatever else there could be stand out.

"So that's it?"

Alex nods her head as she sets the dress on the counter of the register, unzipping her purse.

"No, you're not paying." I push her hand away from her purse as I take out my wallet.



*****


Alex-


I'll be missing therapy to go to Harrys Mums house with him for Christmas, but it's not like I mind. What I mind, is what his family will think of me. I began to wonder if he's told them about how I don't talk much, because I think that's an important thing for them to know about me.

But I don't mention it and I try not to over think things as the days came closer and closer. But, today we are leaving.

I'm stressing over making sure I have everything packed and that I have everything I need. And oh, guess what? My period finally came, which took some stress off both Harry and I. Because that was just another sign that I was not pregnant.

"Alex, I'm sure you've got everything." Harry chuckles from my bed.

I ignore him as I check my bag once more. I know it will be cold, so I made sure to bring warm clothes. I'm guessing it will snow, and that we will have a white Christmas which makes me happy.

"The boys want us to say goodbye before we leave."

Harrys getting off my bed now, his nimble fingers zipping up my luggage before I can check it or stuff more things inside of it. The guys and girls, Harry and I are going to do our own little Christmas when we get back to exchange presents, so I'm looking forward to seeing Brianna and Candice again. Especially now that Niall and Brianna are finally an official couple.

"You need to stop stressing, baby."

I nod my head as Harry rests his chin on my shoulder, his chest against my back. I didn't know going back to Harrys old home would put this much nerves on me, but it has.

"You got everything?" The span of his hands run up and down my arms as he lifts his chin from my shoulder.

I nod my head, telling myself to snap out of this gloomy mood I'm in as he lifts my luggage off the floor. While saying goodbye to all the boys they put a smile on my face like they always do, and it stayed there as we walked out of the apartment building and to Harrys car.

"Lets just hope this piece of shit can make it there." Harry grumbled this disappointedly about his car as he stuffed our things in his little trunk.

After being in the car for a while, Harry put some music on to keep us occupied and the mood I was in was completely gone. Because with him in the drivers seat next to me, and with my sock covered feet on the dashboard, I didn't think of what might come of meeting his family. I didn't worry about having a panic attack while I was there and embarrassing myself in front of people, or even about if they knew I don't talk much. Because I was only thinking of him. Us.

Because with his hand holding mine and with his lips moving in that slow motion of his as he murmurs the words of the songs on the radio, none of that mattered. Even though his heater still does not work, I take off my jacket because I'm getting a little overheated. I take my scarf off from round my neck and put them in the backseat, resting back into the seat and putting my feet back up, the fluffy white material of my socks making Harry smile amusedly.

I brought along my book but with Harry seeming to he enjoying the music, I didn't bother on taking it out. Because I can't really read even to myself with the radio on, and I know he won't allow me to read it without him because he doesn't want to miss anything. So an hour or so went by of me basically admiring Harry as he drove, the out stretching sky around us turning that adorning pink/orange color.

"What's your middle name babe?"

Harrys fingers had reached out to turn the knob of the stereo down before he asked me this out of no where, his eyebrows crossed in curiosity. I laugh, caught off guard.

"I was just thinking while driving, and I realized I don't know it." He explains this after taking in the curious wonder on my face.

I unlatch my seatbelt to be more comfortable without the restraints on my torso; ignoring Harrys disapproving look while doing so before sitting up a bit in my seat, adjusting my feet on the dashboard.

"Jo." I murmur this while looking away from him, not wanting to see the amused smile that will probably light up his face.

"Jo." He repeats it, and I glance over to him.

"Alex Jo." He says aloud, his foot hitting the gas pedal to speed away from the stoplight we'd been at.

"Boy name." I tell his disapprovingly.

"I like it. At least it's better than Edward, right?"

I shake my head and laugh. I would like to know what made my mother give me that middle name, because I was too young to even think to ask her when I had her around.

"Could you put your seatbelt on please? You're making me nervous." Harry tells me at a stop sign.

I wave him off with my hand and lean the back of my head against my window, smiling at Harry as he mumbles something under his breath I couldn't hear.

"Okay, anything else I don't know about you, Alex Jo?" He teases me, his warm fingers squeezing at the top of my knee. I giggle and swat him away.

"Piano." I tell him.

"You play?" His voice is full of surprise.

"Used to." I say.

"Why'd you stop?" He asks after a minute.

"My mom had me take lessons." I murmur, and that was the end of the conversation.

A while later, The Outsiders was retrieved from my bag from the backseat of the car and I was reading word after word to him as the sky got even darker around us. When he said they were a few hours away, I never really processed how many hours it might be. This will be our fourth hour of being in his car. He tells me maybe and hour and a half more to go.

So I soon end up leaned over the center concle with my head on Harrys shoulder, book held in front of my face as I read to him.



Harry-



Her hand had fallen limp in my lap with the book in her grasp about fifteen minutes ago, but I didn't mind. I could tell she was tired so I let her sleep, humming under my breath and tapping my fingers against the steering wheel into the silence of my car. I didn't feel like turning on the radio, so I kept it as it was. With the sound of her breath as she slept and the sound of my hums and taps. It's surprising me that it hasn't begun to rain, or even snow for that matter.

I find myself driving with even more caution without notice because of her lack of a seatbelt, and it makes me chuckle to myself a little. I knew we were getting pretty close to my old home when all my surroundings got familiar to me, waking up Alex with the gentleness of my voice to tell her we are close. She yawns, and begins to check her hair in the mirror. I shake my head when she pulls out a small bag from her purse.

"Since when do you wear makeup." I chuckle.

"Special occasions." She murmurs as she uncaps a small purple bottle, lifting it to her eyelashes.

"And this is a special occasion?"

I tap my breaks to make her jerk forward before she can swipe the black stuff across her bare eyelashes.

"You don't need it." I tell her when she glares at me.

She shakes her head and says something under her death before lifting it to her lashes again. So I tap my breaks again.

She looks over to me with an irritated look, but a small smirk, her makeup on her nose instead if its intended place.

"Stop." She tells me, a little laugh coming after wards as she wipes the makeup off her nose with a tissue from her bag.

She huffs loudly, over dramatically when I do the exact same thing to her once again.

"Harry!" She exclaims, making me laugh in joy.

"I don't want you to put it on!" I tell her with a chuckle. She raises her eyebrows to ask me why.

My cheeks want to heat when I say this, and I can bet you that they did.

"I just want them to see you the way I do. Not with something like that, something you never wear." I gesture to the bag in her lap, her gaze following, a small, bashful smile lighting her face.

I feel torn of my masculinity as she puts her things away for me, putting it back in the backseat where she'd gotten it from. But when her hand takes mine, and when she whispers a small thankyou, I knew that my embarrassment of admitting mushy things like that didn't matter. Because they matter to her.




IM SORRY IM SORRY IM SORRY.

I know it took longer than usual to update but I'm just busy! So I hope you enjoyed even though its not that long, and I didn't really read over because I'm rushing to do things around my house so sorry for any spelling errors.