Use Me - C.M.

Chapter 26

I stood outside the restaurant, my hands clasped together as I looked around anxiously. I fidgeted, moving  my hands to run over my jeans, then through my hair. Something I always did when I was nervous. Hannah told him to keep it casual. She knew I was much more comfortable that way.

"Layla?" I finally heard behind me.

Turning around, I came face to face with a tall, curly headed brunette. His green eyes sparkled as he flashed his white teeth to me in a big smile. He looked exactly like the picture Hannah showed me.

"Harry? Hi." I smiled back, tucking my hair behind my ear.

"It's nice to finally meet you. Hannah's told me so much about you." He moved forward hesitantly, as if he was reaching out for a hug.I obliged, wrapping my arms around his waist in a friendly manner.

"She's told me a lot about you, too."

"Shall we?" He asked, opening the door and gesturing for me to go inside.

He followed me in, stopping behind me momentarily until the waitress led us to our table. We sat down in a booth across from each other and he smiled at me again. "I never thought I'd be convinced to go on a blind date."

"Is it really a blind date if you've seen my picture, though?" I joked.

"Good point." He laughed. "I'm glad you agreed to it."

I forced a smile. Harry seemed nice enough, but I felt a little piece of my heart break every time he spoke. All I could think about was his British accent, and who it reminded me of.

"Your picture had me sold, but you're even prettier in person." He complimented.

I laughed lightly. "Thank you. You aren't so bad yourself."

He laughed as well, blushing slightly.

"How do you know Hannah anyway? She didn't say." I questioned.

"I actually know her through her boyfriend, Anth. We've recorded at the same studio. She came along with him one day and we chatted a bit. She's quite friendly with everyone she meets." He replied.

"She's never met a stranger." I laughed. "And I didn't know you were friends with Anth."

"We haven't hung out but a few times, actually. We had a mutual friend that I would write songs with sometimes. He recently moved though. I got to know Anth better just recently." He explained.

I paled. He must've been talking about Conor. It was too much of a coincidence. Surely Hannah was aware that they knew each other, but why would she set me up with someone that was friends with Conor?

"Are you alright?" Harry asked suddenly, breaking me from my thoughts.

"Yeah, sorry. I just felt a little strange for a moment." I said, forcing a smile.

He nodded, a look of concern on his face, but he didn't push it any further.

I had a decent time. We talked for a couple of hours getting to know each other, but I didn't feel any kind of romantic spark. I didn't really feel that much at all since Conor left. Hannah insisted I go on this date that she set up for me. It just so happened to be on this day exactly two months ago that he moved back to London.

I don't think it was a coincidence that she set this up. She probably didn't want to deal with the depression again that overcame me on the one month anniversary of it.

I did my best to keep a smile on my face. It wasn't that hard. Harry was very charming and funny and I had a good time with him, but I still knew this would be a one time thing. He offered me a ride home and I accepted. I was only a few blocks from the apartment so I had opted to walk here instead of drive.He pulled into the parking lot and put his car in park, turning to face me.