angel. h.s ✔️

fifteen.

"May, is that you?"

I looked up as I pushed the door shut behind me, shaking off the rain drops from jacket. I smiled to myself as I headed towards the sound of Mum's voice, seeing her stood leaning against the counter with a glass of wine in her hand as something on the hob crackled.

"It makes me laugh every time you say that, a burglar isn't going to call out that its them robbing the place, are they?" 

I laughed as Mum turned to face me with her eyes narrowed before she laughed too and put her glass down.

"It's not like you ever answer me anyway." She chided and I shrugged as I peered at the pan on the stove. "Teriyaki salmon." Mum explained and I nodded as I moved away, checking the time on my wrist.

"I need to talk to you about Christmas."

"Oh?" I licked my lips, something about Mum's tone made me shift awkwardly. "Right now? Tommy's picking me up six." I chewed my lip.

"It's just that I'm working Christmas and New Years this year." Mum shrugged and I felt my chest deflate, that was nowhere near as bad as I had expected but it was still disappointing. 

"I know you're upset, but I had last year off and you know how it works."

I nodded as I chewed my lip, "Of course, it's no big deal anyway." I waved my hand, forcing a smile onto my face.

"May," Mum sighed and I looked at her expectantly. "I'm sorry, but you have Tommy so you won't be alone." Mum smiled and I nodded as I kept my smile.

"Yeah I know. You don't need to apologise, honestly it's no big and now I really have to go and get changed, I smell like milk." I laughed making Mum laugh in return and wave me away as she returned to her wine.

+

"So these friends?" 

I asked trailing off slightly hoping Tommy would get the hint as I rubbed my hands together, wishing he'd put the heat on his car. But he never did.

"What about my friends?" Tommy asked, his eyes glued to the windscreen and I licked my lips, he'd been nice. That hadn't changed since he'd come home. Maybe he wasn't as nice as he had been immediately after returning but I certainly wasn't covered in any bruises.

"Are they the normal ones?" I was hesitant at how to refer to them, but I couldn't deny I was hoping I'd get to see Harry this evening considering he hadn't been in the café today, but that made sense; he did have his own life.

"No." 

Tommy almost snapped at me and I swallowed as I looked at him just as he pulled across the road from a different pub that I'd been in the night I'd properly met Harry.

Even just the thought of him made me smile, I was stupid and I was aware that I was still playing a very dangerous game but Harry was nice and he was my friend and it honestly upset me that I couldn't tell Tommy about it.

"These are different friends, a lot of them are from Liverpool." Tommy briefly explained as he latched his hand around my wrist making me sigh and I couldn't help but wonder why he never held my hand anymore.

I only nodded as I followed Tommy across the road and out of the cold air, expecting him to tell me to get him a drink but I was pleasantly surprised when we bypassed the bar and just headed down to the back of the pub.

"Evening." 

Tommy nodded as he dropped onto a chair and I tugged me to sit on the empty one next to him. A chorus of greetings filled the air and I immediately focused my eyes on my boots.

"May don't be rude."

Tommy nudged me and I flinched as I looked up to his face, his lips pursed as he flicked his head towards his friends. "May this is Jake, Ben, Calum and Rich." Tommy pointed at each of them in turn.

I smiled politely at the small group and I couldn't stop myself from comparing them to Tommy's other friends and as I listened to them break off into chatter, I think I preferred Harry and his lot.

"Oi, finally."

I looked up when Ben spoke loudly and Tommy laughed and I found myself looking at him as if he was a different person. It felt like years since I'd last heard Tommy laugh, properly at least and I couldn't stop myself from squeezing his hand in response.

"May?" Tommy asked and I just smiled and shook my head at him making me look at me strangely before his eyes moved over my shoulder and I glanced at the person who'd taken the empty chair next to me.

"Luke Jones, and you are pretty lady?" He introduced himself and I shifted slightly, uncomfortable with the name he'd spoke.

"May." I introduced myself quietly before turning to look back at Tommy who was engaged in conversation with Jake or Calum, I couldn't remember which one was which.

"You and him?" 

I glanced at Luke to see him gesturing between Tommy and me and I nodded.

"Don't you ever stop and think you're too pretty to be with a brute like him?" Luke laughed and I shifted in my seat awkwardly.

"Stop harassing my girlfriend."

Tommy snapped but he was laughing as well and I swallowed tightly as I focused my eyes on my boots once more. There was something about Luke that made me uncomfortable.

And it wasn't the same uncomfortable that I'd first felt when I'd met Harry for the first time, this was different. I was scared of Luke Jones, down right scared. And Tommy didn't do anything to help.

I paled when I saw a familiar face heading down towards us and I tried not to fidget knowing that Tommy hated it and instead I shoved my hands into my jacket pockets as Zayn took the seat directly opposite me.

"And you got at me for being late." Luke joked making Zayn roll his eyes, and I tuned out as Luke started talking about something that interested Tommy immensely.

They were loud, and I had thought Niall and Louis were loud.

But this was different, everything about this was different, how uncomfortable I was sat between someone I knew like the back of my hand and someone I'd only just met, how Tommy didn't bring me any comfort.

Even though he was the Tommy I loved, he wasn't the same.

"The only way to take down the Diamond Snakes is from the inside." Luke spoke from next to me and I licked my lips as I kept my eyes down. Tommy wanted to leave?

"And Harry Styles?" Calum, I think, asked and I looked up.

I at least assumed that it was the Harry I knew, I'd never heard his last name before.

"Styles deserves everything he gets and I will make sure he suffers. Suffers like I did." Luke snapped and I swallowed tightly and caught Zayn's eye.

I met his gaze and I watched him raise an eyebrow at me, I was right when I suspected he knew that I had been talking to Harry. I wasn't doing anything wrong but the fact Zayn knew that I knew Harry on a level that Tommy wasn't aware of made me nervous.

"Sweet cheeks."

I jumped when Tommy nudged me and I looked away from Zayn, uneasy feeling in my stomach. 

"I'm trusting you bringing you here. You mention any of this and you'll be in trouble."

I licked my lips as I nodded, a jerky movement as I tried to hide my hands from shaking. Tommy wasn't doing something good, and it involved Harry and as I stared at him, for the first time in our entire relationship I wished I didn't know Tommy Scott.

"May won't say a thing will ya poppet?" Luke nudged me and I flinched as I flicked my eyes up at him.

 "She's a good girl." Luke grinned at me and I sucked in a shaky breath, I hated this. I really did.

"Besides, we can just cut her tongue out if she squeals, but we wouldn't want to ruin that pretty little face of yours, would we?"