masochist // h.s

07; EMPTY WORDS AND VIOLENT THREATS

:: 07

you can break my heart

and i'll crack jokes like ribs

in a four car pile up

-

/ florence /

"Florence, what in god's name is going on back there?"

During that exact moment in time, I felt every wisp of air exiting my lungs sending me into a panicky state. My grandmother's voice brought me to a standstill, my eyes widening in fear and anxiety of getting caught, whereas Harry was tense, an unreadable expression drawn on to his chiseled features.

I mentally cursed, trying to find a way out of this fractious ordeal. I had to think of something, and fast. If Harry tried to run back to his house, he wouldn't go unseen and that was the real problem. I bit my lip in utter frustration and hid behind one of my grandmother's infamous pots of succulents, tugging Harry's hand to bring him down with me.

A minute must have ticked by before slothless footsteps were being heard against the exterior wooden steps of the front porch. "Florence, I know it's you." She called out.

I shut my eyes and squared my shoulders in defeat. "Damn it," I cursed under my breath. I shot Harry a look signalling him to stay here, before innocently shooting up from behind the bushes with a huge grin overtaking my face, "Grandma!" I laughed dramatically as I hurried up the steps of our porch.

I could feel the grin on my face reduce to a timid smile as I caught the grim expression on her face. She was enraged. "What do you think you're doing out here at such an unholy hour? What were you thinking?" She snapped.

I neared closer to her, leaning down to slide an affectionate arm around her, earning a confused look. "Grandma, you know, I could barely recognise you from over there. You have never looked so ..." I stopped midsentence, my mouth steadily shaped into a perfect 'o' as I was searching for the right word to deliver.

She turned to look at me sternly although I felt her leaning an inch closer in anticipation. "So ... what?"

"...Young," I finished, sending her a lame smile.

She slowly shrugged my arm off of her, after sending me a look of pure irritation. "Care to explain why you were wandering through our front lawn?"

I faked a sigh, innocently throwing my arms in the air. "Well, I just heard this weird ruckus coming from outside and I had to come check it out you know." I explained.

She turned to face me fully, folding her arms across her chest in a taunting fashion. "Really?"

"Really." I mimed. "You'd be surprised to hear how high the crime rates are in this town. We could've been robbed!" I exclaimed, incredulity audibly present in my voice.

My grandmother shook her head skeptically, casting me an apprehensive look as we still stood outside our house. I knew I wasn't able to keep Harry sitting out there, hidden for too long and I was trying to get her back inside the house without rising any suspicions. "But I was so sure I heard voices."

I shook my head as I sympathetically laid a hand on her arm. "It must have been merely a figment of your imagination."

She sent me a stern look and clutched her woolen cashmere blanket around her body, shielding herself from the cool October breeze. "Florence, this isn't the time for your impotent sense of humour."

I felt my heart thrumming under my skin as I saw a hooded figure shuffling in my peripheral vision. Shit. With my heart beating faster, I stepped directly in front of my grandmother's sight blocking her view. I laughed obtrusively clutching onto my stomach as I pretended to burst into fits of uncontainable laughter. I felt five fingers sink into the skin of my shoulder, forcefully yanking me forward. "Florence, would you quiet down? You're going to wake the neighbours!" My grandmother whispered harshly, shaking her head as she eyed me disapprovingly before spinning on her heels to enter the dimly lit house.

I stole a rushed look to both sides, spun a full 180 degrees as my eyes roamed in the darkness and sighed in relief as nobody's shadow was standing out. Before stepping back inside, I took several strides farther on and glanced around again confirming Harry wasn't there and had hopefully found his way back home.

-

"Fuck," Harry muttered under his breath, instantaneously gathering all his items. His books were thrown into his bag as he frantically shuffled through the podium making his way to the exit after two excruciating hours of english literature. It was the end of the day and as glad as I was to be going back home to get some rest, Harry was being abnormally frenetic.

"What's wrong?" I asked, quite worried.

"Nothing," Harry breathed out as he briskly walked ahead of me and I struggled to keep up with his pace, "I have a date and I'm going to be late."

"A date?" I questioned, swallowing the forming lump in my throat. I had stopped walking and Harry had stopped too, whirling around clearly amused.

"Yes, Flor, I actually have a life outside this shit college," joked Harry, rolling his eyes before continuing to walk.

"With who?" I continued.

"My friend, you don't know her." He answered, squeezing past the sea of passing bodies.

I gasped, my eyes widening. "You have friends?"

Harry swiveled around to look at me with a puzzled look on his face. "Yes, Flor, again I actually do have a life besides smoking cigarettes and downing a couple of beers." He mocked.

I gnawed on my lip awkwardly, as I shifted on my heels. I gazed at Harry as his brilliant eyes bore into mine. I tightened the grip on my hand bag, feeling my knuckles turning numb. He averted his gaze elsewhere and rubbed a hand behind his neck. "I'm sorry about last night."

"Whatever," I fabricated a weak smile at him before spinning on my heels the opposite direction to get to the train station as fast as possible. And as I walked through the crowded hallway, I felt my smile slowly slip into a rancor grimace.

-

i aM NOT HAPPY WITH THIS CHAPTER

idk i was (and still am) really nervous to post this because i wasn't sure entirely sure if anybody would like the format and how i write and it's just ajfdfdfg;

florence is played by taissa farmiga (hashtag wcw i love her omg she is queen) but i'm not forcing anyone to imagine florence as her, you can imagine her as whoever you want to imagine her as, including myself plot twist i play florence

anyway that's pretty much it and if you're confused about anything at all you can always ask me please donut give up on me or this shitty story just yet

-h