Delude | h.s.

twelve

Oh baby, whatcha gonna do when the universe puts your hand in mine?
Babe Ruth - COIN

♤

Layne

We walk to a small bistro that Harry says is really good. Before we even walk in the restaurant, there is a crowd outside. He said it was a smaller place, so it makes sense why everyone is waiting outside.

"Let me go see how long the wait is," Harry says when we get to the back of the crowd.

I nod and watch has he disappears inside the little restaurant. A couple minutes later he comes back out and looks unsure. "It's an hour wait."

I wince and look at the group of people waiting. It's dinnertime so obviously there is going to be a long wait time. I chew on the inside of my cheek, debating on what we should do. "We could just go back to my apartment and order takeout?" I suggest.

He rolls his lips into his mouth and shrugs, "That's fine."

We continue our walk back to my apartment and the sun is setting over the city. It turns the skyscrapers orange and a soft hue settles itself over the streets. I'm usually at work or inside my apartment during this time, so I never see the sunset outside. It looks so beautiful and makes the city seem so much kinder to the people in it than it really is.

About halfway to my building, Harry pulls a cigarette from his camera bag along with a lighter from his pocket. He appears to do them absentmindedly, like they're second nature to him. It isn't until he takes his first drag that I notice how tense he is. As soon as the smoke blows from between his lips, his shoulders relax tremendously. He makes an effort to keep the smoke from hitting anyone in the face, but more so he does whatever he can to keep it away from me.

Once the cigarette has burned down to the filter, he tosses it in front of us and steps on his as we walk.

"Smooth," I joke.

He gives me a side glance, raising a brow, "Thanks."

When we get to my building, I pull out my keys from my purse and unlock the door. Harry follows me the entire way up to my apartment and when we get inside, I toss my bag on the counter and start untying my shoes. He looks a little confused as he stands by the door. His sunglasses are hanging off the collar of his shirt and he starts taking the camera bag off his shoulder.

"Where should I put this?" He holds the bag out and looks around.

"Oh, you can just put it on the counter. And then, if you wanna take your shoes off, just put them by the door." I reply, pointing to both the countertop and the door.

He just nods, placing the bag down while he kicks his Vans off. "Where do you want to get food from?"

I glance at him as I go through my drawers, trying to find a t-shirt to change into. "Uh," I turn back to my dresser and pull out a worn-in black shirt, "I don't know. We could order pizza, or Chinese, or something. I'm going to change, so make yourself at home."

"Okay, I'll look up places," he says as I make my way to the bathroom.

Once the bathroom door is closed, I change my shirt. I check my appearance as I'm washing my hands and fix my hair before I go back to the living room.

Harry is now sitting on one of the barstools with his forearms resting on the counter, swiping through his phone. He eyes my t-shirt for a moment then looks back at his phone, "Cool shirt."

I look down at my AC/DC shirt and blush, "thanks."

He gives me a tight smile and looks at his phone. "There is a really good Thai place about a block away. I can call in an order and have them deliver it."