Schizophrenic // Harry Styles

Chapter 22

*song for chapter - Never Say Never by The Fray*

Chapter 22 – Harry's P.O.V.

            One hundred and forty-four hours. Eight thousand, six hundred and forty minutes. Five hundred, eighteen thousand, four hundred seconds. In other words, six days. It's been six quiet, agonizingly slow days. No trace of Chloe's laughter was left in the air of my apartment. No hint of her intoxicating aroma of flowers could be smelled. The only small, vivid thing I had left was a beautiful image of her face when I closed my eyes. Even that wasn't enough to satisfy my need for her company.

            Hushed whispers flow around me as I sit in the front of the courtroom, my lawyer gathering his papers next to me. Due to the short expectance of the date, I had to get the quickest lawyer I could find and hope he was good at what he did. Right after Elizabeth marched out six days ago, I went online to begin my surfing. This man—Will Stevens—had decent reviews on his website, so I gave him a call and we made an appointment. Of course I told him everything from day one, and even he agreed that all of this was a bunch of bullshit. It's too extreme for a little fib a desperate, jealous girl made, but at least I didn't go straight to prison. There's minimum decency in this situation right now.

            I wanted to see Chloe, but another part of me—the highly protective part—knew it was better for her to keep out of my sight. I knew she'd be in a patient outfit. I knew she'd have handcuffs. She didn't deserve either, and that would piss me off more than I already am. Elizabeth was right about my overpowering feelings for Chloe, but I can't break the truth to her. She's not fully herself yet, and I want to make sure she could handle such a confession. But nonetheless, Elizabeth was right about one thing:

            I love Chloe Williams.

            People entitle her as insane, but I entitle her as confused. They say she's schizophrenic, I say she's scared. The girl has been through a shitload of family things her whole life, especially this newfound information about the death of her mother and how it all went down. Whether the exact story is true or not, I may never know, but it's hard to deal with all the same. Chloe may not remember, but she does know that she got a bunch of mistreatment from her family. She doesn't know why, she just thinks she's unloved. Honestly, I think that's part of her problem.

            No one loves her, but now I do. Through her eyes she's nothing, but through mine she's everything. She's come a long way in a mere two months, but I feel like I've changed right along beside her. Truthfully, we're both trying to decipher who we actually are compared to who society sees us as. She thinks I'm only helping her, but little does she know just how much she's helping me.

            "Don't worry, Harry." I looked up to see Will shuffling his papers, then his eyes met mine. He gave me a soft smile, but I couldn't tell if it was empathetic or just plain genuine. "We'll win this, all right?"

            Puffing out air from my cheeks, I simply heaved a hand through my hair and prayed he was right. I don't know what I'd do with myself if Chloe and I were both locked away. I wouldn't be able to stand it, not seeing her. Six days has felt like six years and it's too painful for me to keep up with. I just needed her back as soon as possible. I missed the way her small frame molded against mine when I hugged her. Believe it or not, I even missed her crying. At least she was still here with me instead of stored away in an area that doesn't deserve her heart-warming presence.

            Fuck, I need to stop overthinking all of this so much. However, if they would've never snatched Chloe away from me, I wouldn't be thinking any of this at all.