golden | A HARRY STYLES NOVEL

"He Is Broken, And I'm Hopin' Someday You'll Open"

Chapter 10.

Harry's Perspective, One Year In The Future.

Sparks by Coldplay

"I can't, I- I can't Mitch. I can't do it." I mumbled, shaking my head and biting at my lip. I wiped the tears out of my eyes with my palms, I was supposed to go on in something around 5 minutes. But I was shaking. I hated myself for it, every second and I lost control and even that made me think...

Mitch tried to convince me of crap as I paced the room, but I could barely process what he was saying. "She's going to hear it." I said, blatantly.

"Well yeah idiot, you wrote it. About her. And now you are going to sing it." Mitch grabbed me by the shoulder and tried to physically shake it out of me, but my head was so heavy, everything felt like it was spinning, but psychotically still all in one second.

He went grab his water which sent me into another fit of emptiness, knowing that it meant we were going on. My heart kept sinking and sinking until I could hardly feel it beating anymore, I tried scratching the tears out of my eyes but they came back quicker than I could rid them. "This never mattered to you singing about anyone else, H." Mitch said quietly from across the room as he entered the stage, as if it was my fault. He was right.

I changed my mindset within the last second, but it kept creeping up on me. They cheered for me. They loved me. A nice surprise in comparison.

I heard the beginning of the song, the happy symbols and the happy chords and the happy keys,

But this was anything but that.

"... Hey!" I started it off, but my voice cracked. Yet another thing that sent me spiraling back to her.

To Darby Anna Eden,

Darby's Perspective, Back To Present Day.

We drove home in the middle of the night. My heart felt at peace with the present as I watched the lines in the middle of the road running by. I had one earbud in, the other was in his. He laid in my shoulder as we sat in the back seat.

I stroked his gentle curls, I was pretty sure that he was asleep. I tried not to move but the second I shifted he sat up to make sure I was comfortable. "Are you okay?" His voice was so scratchy, it was sweeter than I ever could have imagined.

"You're tired, H, you can sleep." I whispered. He yawned, of course proving my point which led to a little giggle. "I want to stay up with you. If you're— staying up." His eyes squinted to see me and he rubbed them with his palms to stay awake.

I smiled as a reply. "...We can just talk." He whispered. The air and the outside world seemed tired as well. But it had no effect, and the hours passed beautifully. "I need to know every simple thing about you before I can know much more." I laid on my side, resting my head on my arm that hung over the back of the seat.

We knew from the back seat that no one would bother to hear us, but the whispering continued in its blissfully innocent essence.

"What is your favorite memory, Darby." He asked, turning to face me the same way I did him. "That's not as simple as you'd think, Harry."

"I can't get to know you if you don't let me." He tried not to plead, I know he did. He seemed to scream 'If only you'd open up to me. I realize that I hardly know you as I should.' And I sat imagining that nonsense as I watched him bite at his lips.