Josh's P.O.V.
The air felt heavy. It was muggy outside, hot and heavy and damp and even in an air conditioned room wearing shorts and a t-shirt I felt kind of gross. And on top of that, it was almost midnight in the middle of autumn. It shouldn't have been hot or muggy but some asshole decided hey, why not, lets ruin everyone's day. The only time it was worse was when it was like this but also raining because that multiplied the grossness.
Inside was silent however, the only noise was the air conditioner blasting away behind me. Vikk had just moved out so his room was completely empty, strange after having lived with him for four years and if I was honest I kind of missed him, and JJ and Simon were out at the club or something, taking advantage of the warm weather. I had decided against going out, I had work do to and who wanted to be surrounded by hot and sweaty people in a hot and sticky place while attempting to flirt. No thank you. Oh yeah, and Harry was here. Something was getting redone in his apartment so he was staying in the guest room for a few weeks.
Wandering down the stairs I headed for the fridge, desperate for a cool glass of water. My throat was dry, I was parched, and it was only then that I realised I hadn't had anything to eat or drink since breakfast that morning which possibly explained the grumbling in my stomach as well.
What I wasn't expecting, however, was to see someone wrapped in a blanket despite the disgusting weather, sitting inside the glass doorway that lead to the patio in the kitchen. Harry was wrapped in a blanket, wearing nothing but a t-shirt and boxers, sitting on the floor of the kitchen while gazing out the window. He didn't seem to notice my entrance, not until I called his name.
"Harry?" I asked, curious as to what he was doing down here so late. "Why're you up?" He turned his eyes towards me, still wrapped in a blanket.
"Hi Josh." He whispered, patting the ground beside him. "Come look."
"Look at what...?" I said, confused as to what he could even be looking at. This was the middle of London and it was cloudy, light pollution and the weather would mean there was nothing to see at all.
And then I stopped. I suddenly understood why Harry was so mesmerized, sitting and staring up at what I thought was nothing- turns out, it wasn't nothing.
The sky was blue. Not like that bright, happy, everyday blue, but a deep and rich blue like I had never seen before in nature or otherwise, and there was lightening flashing within the clouds. There was no thunder, not yet, but it was so enthralling, mesmerizing, that I couldn't help but to sink down beside him.
Despite the mugginess, the heat, the damp and the grossness Harry and I sat in silence for quite a long time, an hour maybe, just watching the sky. At some point the younger boy shuffled closer to me and I found myself with him in my lap, sitting between my legs with his head resting on my shoulder, eyes to the sky. We sat and watched as the sky changed and morphed above us, lightening strikes growing larger as the hours passed. It was calm, quiet, and peaceful.
It was almost 3am by the time I forced myself to stand up, helping Harry to his feet as well. He stumbled so I had to hold him up, one arm around his waist.
"Ready to go to bed?" I asked him, picking up the blanket to wrap around him. He nodded, then stopped and flinched as a bolt of lightening lit up the room and the thunder cracked. "You don't really like storms, huh?"
He shook his head. "No." He mumbled. "I don't."
"Alright, come on, you can stay with me. You've basically been cuddling with me for three hours, another few hours won't make any difference."
He was looking away from me but I could see the grateful smile playing on his face, a sigh of relief emitted from his lips as he visibly deflated. Maybe that was why he was up- I hadn't thought about that until now, why he had been up, perhaps he had been scared of the storm to come. I was glad I had wandered downstairs when I did.
"Let's hope JJ and Si make it home in one piece cause I can't be bothered to deal with the drunk bastards." Harry giggled, still clinging to me as I helped him up the stairs. "Let's hope they're quiet too."
He only nodded, flopping onto my bed with my help and crawled under the duvet with the blanket still wrapped around him.
"Do you really need that?" I mused, raising one eyebrow. "It's muggy and hot, I was planning on sleeping with just a sheet."
"Yes." He mumbled around the blanket. "I like this blanket."
"Alright then."
I didn't question him any further, tucking myself under the blankets, but I was immediately surprised when Harry tucked himself right into my chest, head buried under my chin. I was a bit bemused but found I really didn't mind, tangling my hand in his hair almost as if it was instinct. Harry sighed happily but he still jumped when there was another crack outside.
"It's alright." I whispered, securing my other arm around him. "It's just thunder. It's okay."
He must have been feeling comfortable because he was asleep within 10 minutes.
-------------------------------------------------
We slept in, not surprising considering we had been sitting in the kitchen at 3am. When I did finally awake it was well into the new day, the storm having passed over along with the heat and damp. Instead it was a cool and crisp day, water soaking into the ground from the rain. Harry slept on, tucked up in my arms in the same place he had fallen asleep the night before.
I couldn't help but smile, looking down and watching his peaceful face as he slept. I didn't get to see him this quiet that often like I had last night or this morning and I found I enjoyed it. This was a new side of the younger boy, a more vulnerable, less overenthusiastic side.
Just like last night, it was calm. There was no movement, no sound other than our breathing. It was complete quiet and complete peace and for once I didn't feel the need to get up. Sure it was late and I had work to do, but I would much rather lie there with the sleeping boy in my arms. It was the calm, I think.
Pressing a kiss to his forehead I lay back and closed my eyes once again, surrounded by the feeling of absolute contentment.
