Stage Lights || H.S.

the date

I parked the car on the stone driveway. It felt different coming to that house for her and not for William. The house was big and the lights shinning bright on the cream outside made the whole thing more grand. Comfortably Numb by Pink Floyd played on the radio, the volume low enough so I could listen to my own thoughts. I was nervous. 

I squeezed the steering wheel and then ran my hands through my jeans to dry the sweaty palms, then looked at the rearview mirror to make sure my hair was still in place, then checked my phone, eight o'clock.

It's been a while since Luna and I have started seeing each other but in between fights, traveling, busy schedules and all the sex, we never went out on a proper date. It was like we had skipped five steps of knowing each other. There was one time we went out for lunch, and one time we went out for drinks; but it was different this time.

I watched the tall door waiting for her and when the door was pulled open I felt my heart drop on my chest. I rushed to get out and around the car to wait for her. Her hair was blown around by the night breeze, her dress was plain and simple, so light it moved around as she walked, her legs long and carefully stepped on the stones with a tall pair of heels. 

"Hey." Luna's lips were pink and opened in the most gorgeous smile I had ever seen her wear as she tucked her hair behind her ear. "I'm Luna Davis." 

"I'm Harry Styles." 

"One Direction, huh?" She asked, sliding carefully into the passenger seat of my car. 

"So I reckon you're a fan?" She giggled as I shut the door. 

I smiled to myself as I went around the car one more time. She watched me as I buckled my seatbelt, her hair again falling around framing her face, her legs slightly crossed and it was taking all I had to not touch her thigh. 

"I want to hold your hand." She said, bringing me back to reality. 

"W-what?" 

"I Want To Hold Your Hand. Good song." It took me a second to realize Pink Floyd was no longer playing through the speakers. 

"So you like the Beatles?" 

She scoffed. "Who doesn't like the Beatles?" I pulled away from her house, the street was empty and quiet, and the sky a beautiful shade of blue. "You know, my dad has always been in the music industry so I grew up to pretty good music. Not some poppy-bubble-gum-boyband kids these days are growing up to." 

"Oh is that so?" 

She nodded with a smirk on her face. "Mhm. Let's see what's next on the Harry Styles' playlist." 

She reached for the radio and clicked next. The song started playing making her eyes get wide and my cheeks burn. Out of all the Pink Floyd, Johnny Cash, Queen and Ramones songs I had on my playlist, HUMBLE. by Kendrick Lamar was the next up. 

Luna's laugh filled the car. "What?" 

"I'm sorry, I just--" She shook her head. "--Surprised. Never in a million years I would've thought you listened to this type of music."

"Well, there's a lot you don't know about me, miss Davis." 

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Luna

The way the dimple dented his left cheek sent butterflies to my stomach. Harry sat across from me at the table, a candle in between us and the way it flickered made his eyes shine in a way that made my heart beat so fast it felt like it was going to leave my ribcage. 

"I was always the closest to Lou, we became best friends quite quickly. And then she had Lux and Tom would come around and then we became best friends too. It was a good time." He said. "When I was back in London we would go around to bars and my sister Gemma would come too, it was... We were young."

"You're still young."

"But now it's different. It feels different." He took a sip of his water and put it back down. "See, Tom and Lou broke up and now I barely talk to him anymore, or most of my friends back in the UK. And I'm never in London anymore. It's like I grew up, that felt like ages ago but in reality it was just a few years back. I had this weird hair going on, with a fringe type of thing pushed across my forehead." We laughed. 

We sat at Nobu and had a big plate of sushi rolls in front of us. I learned that also liked the shrimp tempura the best and we both played flight with our chopsticks when aiming to them. I hoped that when he looked at me he couldn't see that it was my first date. 

It was the first time I went out with someone that we weren't both getting drunk and high. It wasn't out of lust, it was free and light, with giggles and smiles and gazes that made me loose my breath. It was the first time I went out to dinner with a guy. It was the first time I accepted that the way that he tucked his hair made me want to run my fingers through it, the way that he that we joked around made my heart race, the way that his eyes fell on me sent goosebumps all over my body, and the way that he smiled at me made my toes curl. 

"How is London?" 

"I thought you've been there before."

"I have, for your movie premiere but-- We went to London Eye and that's it. Didn't see much." 

"Well, it's pretty hard to describe. It's nothing like you have here in America. It's more of an old city, absolutely gorgeous. I lived far from it though, in a village in the country side. I moved to London when I was sixteen, I had to because of-- you know, the band. I shared an apartment with one of my bandmates. Again, seems like ages ago."

"It feels different?" I repeated his words jokingly. 

"Yeah. We don't even talk anymore. No hard feelings. We just fell apart, I guess." I listened to him while popping a vegetable roll on my mouth. "My sister absolutely loves London. I don't see her ever moving away from there." 

"Do you miss her?"

"Yeah. We grew up pretty close. It's hard seeing her now, her schedule is busy and so is mine, and she has a boyfriend. It's easier to see my mum since I can fly her out or get her to London without hassle." 

"She's a lovely lady."

"She said the same about you. She also asked me to apologize for the crying.She always promises it'll never happen again, but she cries a lot." 

"It's alright. It was only during--"

"Ever Since New York." He said. "It's a very emotional song for us."

"Why's that?" 

"My stepfather passed away." Without thinking twice I dropped the chopsticks on the table cloth and reached for his hand. His eyes fell down to my fingers squeezing his and slowly traveled up to meet mine again. He didn't want to hear that I was sorry, I'm sure countless people said the same thing to him, so I just stayed quiet and let it sink in. His thumb rubbed on the back of my hand. "What about you? How was growing up in sunny California?" 

I told him it all. 

I told him about the horse riding classes I took up in Malibu until Renee started making me compete, then all the joy I took on it disappeared. I told him about the ballet recitals I hated and how I'd stand up the stage along with my friends and look for two familiar faces in the crowd but they would never be there. About when Amy and I watched the Spice Girls' movie and then wrecked Renee's closet playing dress up with her Gucci dresses and her expensive heels. About the time I got lost at the Santa Monica pier and Amy threw up at the ferris wheel. About how I almost got a tattoo done but started crying because I was afraid of needles. About how my parents forgot about my birthday when I turned ten, fourteen, sixteen and every year after nineteen. 

I told him things I had never told anyone, moments that I had pushed to the back of my head that were almost gone forgotten. And I had accepted one last thing: I liked him way more than I should; and that was undeniable. 

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What did you guys think of this chapter? I loved writing it! 

I'm so excited for the chapters to come and I'm also thinking about writing a book two on this story. Let me know if you'd like that. 

Thanks for reading! xx