witness || h.s.|| ON HOLD

six || in the shadows

Tate

   I spent the next twenty minutes staring at the reservation list. Focusing on the name Harry Styles. Assuring myself that he did in fact exist, and wasn't just a figment of my imagination. Perhaps I freaked him out, staring at him the way I did. It was a bit of a stretch, but I was running out of reasons for why he disappeared the way he did.

     We have had guests in the past who have had to cancel, but it was usually before they got to the restaurant, and they definitely didn't just leave as he did.

     The restaurant is pretty much empty now, minus a few people at the bar, sipping on the last few drops of their drinks, savoring each taste. There's a couple, giggling about something, and a man, sitting by himself, twirling his straw in his glass. He looked familiar, but I couldn't quite figure out why. 

The couple began to stand up, the man grabbing his girlfriend's coat, slipping it over her shoulders, and smiling down at her. She leaned her head against him for a moment. It was a sweet sight. They made their way towards the front door, both of them thanking me and wishing me a good night, which I returned. 

   The only person left was the man that I thought I recognized. He suddenly looked up, as if he realized he was now alone. He looked down at his glass one more time like he expected it to magically refill itself, but alas, it didn't. He grabbed his phone and wallet off of the bar counter, and stood up, getting ready to leave. I took that as my cue that it was time to leave as well, seeing as there was nothing else for me to do. 

   I reached up to the hook on the wall and grabbed my coat, shrugging it on and then picked up my purse. Taking a final glance around the desk to see if I had left something behind. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the man, and I turned to him expectantly.

   He looked like he wanted to say something to me, but he was hesitant. 

  "Can I help you, sir?" I asked, wondering if perhaps he recognized me as well.

  "I'm sorry, I was just wondering, do you by any chance live in the Lotus apartment complex a few blocks down? I feel like I have seen you there before." 

   The Lotus apartment complex was one of the nicest ones in town, and it was no surprise that a man that could afford to eat here would be living there. For me, however, it was like a dream come true. The only reason I even had the privilege of living there was because my mother worked there as a maid.

I sighed in relief, glad that I wasn't losing my mind, as I feared I was after my encounter with Harry and his dissapearing act. 

   I gave him a warm smile. "Yes! I do! I thought you looked familiar!"

He looked just as relieved as me, maybe even more so. 

"Oh, wonderful! I'm James, James Collins," he replied cheerfully. 

"Nice to properly meet you, James! I'm Tate Bridges!" I smiled, extending my hand which he accepted, shaking it firmly, before retracting his arm.

I was expecting that to be the end of our conversation, but he remained where he stood, looking antsy.

"Is there something else, sir?" I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

He ran a hand through his hair and blew out a puff of air. 

"Listen, this is going to sound strange, but I was wondering if you would allow me to walk back to the apartment building with you? I don't want to-" he paused briefly as if he was catching himself from saying something.