The Water Boy (Narry)

Chapter 17

Once again, I was in Harry's car on the way to the football match. I already made sure to mention to my mum that I was probably going to be coming home late. This was so I wouldn't have to focus on remembering to call her later in case anything happened. I didn't want anything to happen but for some reason something always seemed to happen in spite of me. 

As per usual, Harry wasn't a cheerful person during this short car journey. He probably just had a lot on his mind since this would the first of however many matches that he would not personally be participating in. This was also my first match of not getting to watch him play in but that wasn't what was important here. How else was he supposed to cope from this? I think he was going about this appropriately; only from what I've seen. I had no idea what he was doing at home before this moment or what he was thinking now. All I did know was right now. Harry was sitting rather upright in his seat and had his eyes narrowed straight onto the road ahead like he wasn't about to let a single thing distract him or that he was trying to get lost in zoning in on a single point far off in the distance. 

I didn't talk to him. I didn't touch him. It wouldn't have mattered. Plus, I was nervous about upsetting him any further than he seemed to be. I was never good in situations where I had to be the one to provide comfort to somebody else. I was still getting used to letting people try and comfort me. Maybe one day I could learn from them and pay it forward. 

We walked into the change room side by side. Harry still hadn't changed his focused demeanor and I still haven't tried to let him know that I was here for him. I had my own things to focus on so maybe Harry wanted to be by himself. It was going to be quite difficult since he had to be around the team and all these other people who came to watch them play. 

When we got into the change room I gave Harry a nod and left to go start on what I needed to do before we all had to go down to the field. As routine would have it, I went to my locker, retrieved my clothes, changed in private, and then I went to get my equipment all set in time for the coach's final words of motivation. 

I came back in and accidentally bumped into Zayn, who was of course with Louis. I heard him grunt on impact and then he turned to me. I swallowed nervously, uttering out an apology to him, ready for whatever he was going to do to me. 

But he didn't do anything as he stared angrily over my shoulder. I glanced to see Harry standing behind me, giving Zayn a hard stare back, as if to tell him to stand down from him and to leave me alone. I was expecting somewhat of an insult at least. Once they went back to their conversation, Harry nudged me in the shoulder gently like he was telling me that things were already for the better but I gave him a look back that told him not too look too far into it because they were never the type to let me off the hook for anything, especially now that I seemed to be under their captain's care. When the captain disappeared, their true intentions would emerge.

I shrugged him off and took my place in the back of the change room. I knew Harry still felt the need to take his place up front next to the coach and I had a feeling his new remarks from the other day were still holding on firmly for him. He wanted to be a better captain. He wanted to be a better person. He wanted his team to be better people. I didn't know how much of that was even remotely possible. 

I stared straight ahead at him, watching as his eyes seemed to look over each boy, who weren't even paying attention to him as he took an authoritative stance. They were all in their own little world and probably wouldn't come out of them until the real leader, the coach, made his appearance. I think, and the boys would probably agree with me, that Harry was trying too hard to fix the mistakes that he has made. 

It's not the same in the change room this time, and not just for Harry but for the rest of the team as well. They seemed almost lost since Harry's incident and maybe even after his action in taking charge. The boys weren't any less rowdy but it was probably just going to take a long time for them to be used to being around this new version of their former offset captain, even though the team was often together. They were used to Harry not taking and leadership so maybe they thought he was bluffing.