fight for me

coraldown

This is when I got out of the water and heard my phone muffedly ring under my hoodie. I picked it up, realised it was my sister, Zoe, well half-sister. My parents decided that they wanted three children and when my mum wouldn't fall pregnant, we adopted. A lovely girl either way. "Zoe, hey." I heard her cough, sniff then talk.

"Hey, Ni. Where are you?" As she said that, I walked back to my parents' beach house, reached under the mat and got out a key.  I opened the door.

"At Coraldown." Coraldown was the beach house's name. Zoe chuckled, 'No way! I'm on my way to Lakeview.' she said, I smiled, she turned 16 about two months ago, got her first car. 'Greg's here, too!' She spoke again and I heard my older brother laugh and shout a 'Hey' from beside Zoe. I smiled to myself as I remembered the name we all gave our little group when we were younger. 'Bandits'. We were never bad kids, as far as bad kids go but we just felt like that suited us. "The Bandits are back together, aye?" Zoe laughed and concurred. I looked up and saw her car and watched her park before Greg and Zoe got out and walked towards me. Once they reached me, we hugged. I hadn't seen them in a while and I made it clear I missed them as we walked into the house and sat down in our old childhood room, I was sat on the top bunk, Greg on the one underneath and Zoe on the single bed on the other side of the room. I was the first to speak.

"Do you remember that day?" I pointed to a picture on the bedside table featuring Zoe, Greg and I outside, grinning at the camera.

"Yeah," Zoe chuckled. "You fell in the water at Lakeview and you were soaking wet." I crossed my arms, Greg had pushed me and being the clumsy shit I was, I fell. I shook my head.

"Remember when you caught crabs and gave them to Mum and begged for her to take them to Ireland?" I laughed, so did Greg.

Zoe rolled her eyes playfully. "Yes, I remember." She paused, said a thing we hadn't said in years. "Summer five." We'd been counting our summers ever since we had moved there because summer was when Coraldown really came alive. We spent a lot of time at Oakgar, the big rock that flattened out the view, we really loved it there, our parents absolutely loved the beach, even in the winter, though it wasn't too cold in those months and if it was, they'd pack us up and ask our auntie to let us move in, laughable. As I was remembering that specific time, my phone rang. I checked the caller I.D. and to my surprise, it was Harry.

"Harry?" I almost said babe, then I remembered I broke up with him. Accidentally.

"Baby! I'm on my way to your house." Excitement filled his voice, so I guessed he hadn't checked his voicemail. I nodded to myself, covered my phone so Harry couldn't hear and briefly explained who Harry was, they seemed happy I found someone.

"Oh, great. I'll see you then." He hung up, I turned to my siblings. "I gotta go," I grinned and high fived them. "Tomorrow, I'll be here, and the bandits will ride at sunset." I laughed, they did too when I left. I got in my car, drove home and soon enough, Harry was there, engulfing me in a big, tight, lingering hug, the ones he knew I loved so much. I hugged him back, I did love him, tremendously.  I was just..hurt, I guess. I pulled away and Harry sat on the couch, patted his lap.

"We need to buy new couches." Harry chuckled and stroked my hair.

"We're too broke." His chuckle turned into a laugh and he leaned back. I watched him, the man that both loved me and hurt me was laughing at his own joke and had me on his lap. It was a fine line between pleasure and pain. I sighed, then smiled. "I love you." Harry looked down at me.

"I love you too." He gently moved me off his lap and stood up. "I'm going to a record a song." I sighed, he moved towards the door and left.

"Can't you just stay?" I crossed my arms, taking a deep breath as I mumbled to myself. I poured myself a glass of wine and drank most of it and I waited for Harry, without reassuring myself it was okay because I knew he was coming back this time. He did, after a few hours. When he came in, holding a cigarette between his fingers, he smiled at me then sat on the couch. I looked at him. "That's it? A smile? No 'I'm sorry I'm always away' or 'I missed you'? Fine." I huffed and furrowed my eyebrows, Harry took a puff of his cigarette and unbuttoned his blazer.

"Niall, don't start that shit with me." He looked at me. I stood up.

"I can't keep quiet about my feelings just because you want to be famous!" Harry shook his head, spoke through the cigarette hanging between his lip.

"That's the difference between us," He stood up, brushed past me to the kitchen. "I can." I raised my eyebrows.

"You realise I've been crying until 4 in the fucking morning at your cost?" I yelled at him. "You're a dick, you know?!" I grabbed my wine glass and gulped the rest of the wine down.

Harry chuckled and turned to face me. "How sweet," He came closer to me. "Using something you love about me to insult me, I'm flattered," I growled and raised my hand to slap him, to my surprise, Harry caught my wrist and pinned me against the wall. "Want to try that again, lovely?" He whispered slowly into my ear. I took deep breaths and calmed down before I finally got my feelings out.

"I don't think this is working." Harry let me go and pulled away.

"What do you mean?"

"You make me feel neglected. You never call me or text me and if you do, it's for two minutes!" I shouted, my eyes watering as Harry wrapped his blazer tighter around him like it would protect him from the truth.

"So it's over?" Harry spoke, looking into my eyes. I managed to nod, already crying.

"I guess," Harry asked me why, so I answered with a summary with all the shit I went through because of him, absolutely dumping the fact that maybe I was being dramatic because I truly believed Harry could've tried harder.

"Because you couldn't fight for me."