angel. h.s ✔️

thirty four.

"Excuse me, are you May?"

I paused as I turned to face the customer who'd spoken to me, a pretty brunette girl who looked about my age sitting in one of the window seats just along from the counter. I nodded in answer to her question even though I had no idea who she was.

"You need to stay the fuck away from my boyfriend you crazy bitch." She hissed and I blinked, taking a step back in shock.

What the actual fuck?

"I'm sorry, but who are you? I don't know who your boyfriend is." I assumed she got my name from my name badge but I hadn't seen her before, maybe she'd asked Susan or Kate?

"Rebecca Smith." She informed me, a thick Liverpudlian accent formed around her name and I felt my stomach shift. I'm sure it was just a coincidence.

"I don't know you who you think you are but you need to stay away from Tommy, you were a one night stand and now you're a psycho clinging to him. I've seen the messages!"

My heart fell into my arse and I felt it shatter as her words settled across my skin like a painful slap.

I was lucky Tommy loved me.

"I'm sorry I don't understand, you're Tommy Scott's girlfriend?" My voice was shaky but I had to be thankful I could speak at all. He'd told her I was a one night stand?

"You must be fucking stupid as well as crazy. Of course I'm his girlfriend, we spent Christmas together. He's moving to Liverpool to be with me."

The blood rushing in my ears almost drowned out her words as I stood there frozen in time as everything crashed down around me, it was almost like I was at the bottom of a swimming pool watching the ripples from people above.

"Y-y-you can't be his girlfriend."

"Of course I can. You need to back off and stop being a crazy bitch, I won't stand for it and neither will he!" Rebecca Smith's voice had risen and I knew people were looking at us now and if I hadn't wanted the ground to open up and swallow me before I sure did now.

"You're mistaken. I'm his girlfriend, we've been together for five years." I told her watching as her eyes narrowed and she pushed away from the table and I stumbled back almost automatically out of fear.

I was lucky Tommy loved me. He loved me. Tommy loved me.

"He said you were a liar but I didn't think you'd be this deluded. You've been sleeping together not dating, but we've been together for a year now. So fuck off."

Together for a year.

Tommy's had another girlfriend for a year? Oh god.

The anger I had in my chest surged forward and outweighed the pain I was feeling, or maybe the pain was fuelling the anger. I didn't know, all I knew was I'd never been this angry before.

"You need to leave."

Harry's deep voice made me jump as he appeared next to me towering over both me and the girl at the table who just rolled her eyes.

"You two friends? Or is she obsessed with you as well? She's a liar and a fucking crazy bitch trying to steal other peoples boyfriends. You look like a fucking malnourished African."

My fist was so tight around the mug I was vaguely afraid I was going to break it, aware that people were looking and I could feel the heat on my face. Heat coursing through my body as my anger rendered me speechless.

Unable to fight back.

"Get the fuck out, you horrible little girl."

Harry hissed leering forward to grab Rebecca and I didn't stop him. I could see the sneer twisted onto his face, he was scary when he was angry. He reminded me of Tommy.

"With pleasure." Rebecca said as she stood and gathered her jacket before pausing and turning to face me with a sly smile.

I watched the movement but it took a few seconds before I realised that I was in pain, searing pain as the hot liquid from her mug soaked through my top and onto my skin and I let out a strangled scream as the liquid burned and stung at my cold flesh.

Everything happened so quickly, Kate and Tessa rushing to my side, Louis at Harry's, Harry surging forward with the gun pointed, other customers of the café gasping some screaming as Harry cocked, Rhiannon telling customers not to panic and Rebecca's face paling.

"Harry don't." I croaked out as I tried to keep the wet fabric away from my skin as Susan ushered the girl out of the café and Kate and Tessa half dragged me into the office.

I didn't know what was worse, the pain on my skin, the pain in my chest or the pain of the realisation that I saw so much of Tommy in Harry just now.

I could see their mouths moving but their words were falling on deaf ears as I just stood shaking under the fluorescent glare of the lights. Their gentle hands pulling at my top yanking it up over my head.

Their gasps finally reaching me and I blindly looked down at my stomach red raw, skin bubbling as it blistered. The pain coursed through me but I still couldn't decide which cause was worse.

I crumpled to the ground aware that Tessa had disappeared leaving me with Kate and I let out a strangled scream.

I didn't know what I was screaming for, I didn't even know I was crying until Kate wiped the wet streaks with a tissue and I cried out again.

I wanted to scream at her to get out, to leave me alone but nothing came out as I cried even harder. Tessa returned and I let the two of them move about me. Blindly staring at the computer desk as I tried to process it all.

I flinched as cool water was splashed over my stomach before Tessa carefully wrapped my middle in clingfilm and my face felt as hot as my torso as I stared at them. My eyes not focusing in on either of them.

"Thank you."

I sounded different. Not me. I felt detached.

I saw them give each other a look before Kate placed a gentle hand on my kneecap.

"You should go home May."

"Should we get Harry?" Tessa asked in the absence of my reply.

I shook my head almost immediately to both statements, regretting it as I felt my brain thud about.

"I'll be out in a moment. I need to make a phone call." I said. "Thank you." I repeated my words.

I could see they were both unsure about leaving me alone but I was too angry and too hurt to let them stay. I pulled myself up and ushered them out, reassuring them I'd be fine.

My hands were shaking as I picked my phone up from the ground, the crack through the middle of the screen not bothering me like it should have. My finger hovered over the call button my heart thudding in my chest and I wondered if this was it.

If this was the end of my life.

If it was, I wasn't going out without telling him how I felt. Anger coursed through me lighting my body on fire as my hands shook and I pressed call.

If this was it, then I wasn't going down without a fight.

The ringing stopped and I heard the faint click of the call connecting.

"What is it sweet cheeks? I'm very busy."