I Just Need A Friend Right Now

I looked over at Harry, wondering how to wake him up. He’d been sleeping solid for the last two hours. He had his sunglasses on and his hood up still, his head resting against the window. I had spent the time with the music low and making sure to drive as smooth as possible. I didn’t know what his schedule was like, but I assumed he didn’t get to take naps very often.

Now, we were parked outside of my house. I looked over at him, trying to hide a yawn. I was tired of driving and just wanted to take a nap myself.

“Harry,” I whispered, reaching up to lay my hand on his arm. Nothing. “Harry,” I said a little louder.

I moved my hand only when I felt him move to sit up in the seat. He removed the glasses and I saw his eyes blink several times, getting used to the light outside. He looked out the window, his eyes dancing from the front yard, to the house, and then over to me. I offered a short smile before explaining.

“This is my house,” I said. “You fell asleep and I didn’t want to wake you.”

“I appreciate it,” he said. His voice was even lower than usual, full of sleep still. He rubbed his hands against his eyes and stretched, adding a yawn at the end. “Should we go inside?”

“It’s only just past four,” I said as we opened our car doors. I continued talking when we were facing each other again through the backseat doors. “I’m a bit tired after flying and driving so I’d like to take a nap for at least an hour or two and then we can order some food. If that works for you?”

“Yeah,” Harry hoisted his bags out of the backseat as I pulled open the hatchback and grabbed mine. “Do you need any help?”

I noted that his hands were already full with his own luggage. “I’m good, thanks.”

I locked the car behind me and led Harry up the walkway. I was grateful to see that my dad had mowed the yard while I was gone. The yard was big for the standard houses in this area. It was fenced in by a chain link fence, with the driveway being the only open section.

“I typically go in through the backdoor, but this is easier with bags. We can just set our stuff in the living room and get to it later.” I picked up my bags as I carried them up the four steps to the front porch. The porch was a wooden addition my parents had added on when they first bought the house. It spanned from the front door and all the way to the right, ending with the edge of the house. It had a metal roof over top, which made it ideal to sit outside while it was raining. There was a black, wrought iron table with two chairs against the railing. The wood was stained a dark color, a stark contrast to the white siding of the house.

The house itself was two stories. The front door opened to the stairs that led upstairs. Two bedrooms and a bathroom were up there. The living room was to the left. Dining room to the right. And around where the back door was was the kitchen. There was also a bathroom just off the side of the living room on the backside of the house. The walls were painted a blue/grey color throughout the entire downstairs. My bedroom was a dark blue. The other bedroom, which I used as more an office and storage area, remained a basic white color.

I relayed all of this information to Harry. Only after I saw Harry’s eyes cross between the couch and back to me did I realize that the couch in the living room was much too small for him to sleep on. The only other place would be my bed. Awkward.

Or at least I felt like it should be awkward, but I didn’t feel like that. We’d spent hours talking and he’d already trusted me enough to fall asleep while I drove. It was clear that there was nothing that would be interpreted between us. Friends. That’s it. I still wanted to be polite.

“I didn’t even think about how small the couch was,” I said. “I can take the couch and you can sleep in the bed. I promise the blankets are clean.”

He seemed to be thinking the same thing as me because his next words were almost exactly word-for-word from my brain. “I don’t mind sharing the bed.”

“Sounds good to me,” I said with a sigh. I could sleep on the couch easily, but I really just wanted to be in my bed right now. “You can just leave your stuff down here and we can get it later.” I stifled a yawn and I could see Harry hiding a grin. “I’m beat. Also-” I started up the stairs but turned around when I didn’t hear him following me. He was taking his shoes off by the front door. He set them neatly beside mine.“There’s a cat somewhere in the house. He’s friendly. Just if you happen to wake up with something laying on you or anything, don’t freak out.”

“Got it,” he said.

“Bathroom is right here if you need it,” I explained at the top of the steps. “It’s a full bath so there’s a bath and shower combo. The one downstairs also has a larger shower. The left is an office area. And this is my room.”

I opened the door and stepped in, giving him plenty of room to step around me. I watched him as his eyes wandered around. There were three windows, one for each wall that was on the outside of the house. A closet was situated into the side wall to the right of the door, the front of the house. My queen-sized bed was pushed against the same wall, just under the window. I had a long, three-drawer dresser settled underneath the window on the opposite wall. There was a grey and off-white rug that filled a good portion of the wooden floor. The walls were covered in motivational quote posters and photos of my family and of past concerts I’d been to. I could see Harry was most interested in those photos. The photos were hung underneath a strand of fairy lights I had stretched across the top of the wall.

I let him look around for a minute while I pulled off my hoodie and hung it up in the closet. I pulled a thinner hoodie from one of the hangers and slipped it on, pulling it over my shirt I was wearing.

“Did you just change?” he asked, tilting his head in confusion when he turned around.

“Just the hoodie,” I said with a smile. “That one was too hot to sleep in. This one is the perfect amount of thickness when I lay under my blanket. Don’t judge me.”

“How many of those do you own?” Harry asks, catching a glimpse into my closet. I laughed, opening the door wider. I had a full collection of hoodies. They ranged from places to bands to just plain colors.

“I think altogether I’m up to like fifteen. Maybe more. I have one for pretty much every occasion.”

“I don’t see any of mine in here,” he said with a smirk on his lips as he thumbed through them.

“Yeah,” I said, stretching the word. “When I can afford it, you’ll be next. The price plus shipping is a little out of my budget right now.”

“I can get you one,” he said simply. “Consider it payment for letting me crash here.”

I tried to hide my excitement from him. It wasn’t that Harry Styles was offering to give me free merch. It was that I would be getting a new hoodie. “That would be cool,” I said. “But you don’t owe me anything for staying here.”

I moved to jump up onto the bed. I almost always slept on the side closest to the wall. The bed frame it was on added an extra foot of height and I honestly had to climb into the bed or just straight jump. I was immediately jealous of Harry as he just sat down without having to stand on his tiptoes or anything.

He was shrugging out of his own hoodie, revealing the black t-shirt he had on on the plane. I took the time to pull the top cover back and slide my legs underneath it. I could feel the bed dip just a bit as Harry laid down. I turned my head to look at him and smiled, shaking my head.

“You don’t have to lay above the covers,” I said. He looked like he wasn’t sure what to do with himself. His hands were linked together over his stomach and he was laying flat on his back. “I swear I don’t bite.”

Again, I realized how weird I should be feeling right now. Possibly one of the biggest names in the world right now, a guy I’d just officially met today, was now laying no more than a foot away from me in my own bed. Was it weird to think that it felt normal? Like we’d been close friends for years already?

“Can you reach over and set that alarm clock for like six or so?” I asked, realizing I should have done it before laying down. “Just hit the second button on the top there-” I started laughing when I saw his hands holding the digital clock. “Wow, that completely dwarfs in your hands. Anyways- the second button on the left and then the hour button is to the right. Flip the little switch on the side to turn the alarm on. Okay, there you go.”

I laid back down and could feel my eyes getting heavy already. Now that my body wasn’t moving, the waking up at four in the morning and flying home and then driving, on top of losing five hours, the day was catching up with me. “Goodnight,” I said with a smile.

“Night,” Harry said. I saw that his eyes were already closed as mine became too heavy to stay awake.

****

There were two things my mind registered when I came back to the world of consciousness.

One, the alarm was going off way too loud. It was one of those alarm clocks that got louder and louder the longer it went off. I usually woke up immediately, but it had to have been at least a minute of it going off already.

Two, there was something heavy on my chest.

I slowly opened my eyes to see the culprit of the second thing. My vision was filled with dark hair. I couldn’t help but smile. I realized we both had migrated more toward the middle of the bed. Harry’s head was laying on my chest. The rest of his body was curled up against me. Once again, I thought it should be weird, but it wasn’t. My arm was under his shoulder, my hand resting on his back. I had no idea how his six-foot-whatever height seemed to be cut in half as he slept.

The alarm was annoying now. Harry didn’t seem to be even a bit conscious. I took a deep breath and inched my body slowly toward the edge of the bed, just enough to reach the alarm clock on the bedside table. I could just barely reach it and it took another stretch of my arm to turn it off. I flopped back on the bed, letting my body relax again. Harry was still asleep.

I stared at the ceiling for a minute, trying to decide if I should wake him or just go back to sleep. I was sure tomorrow would be hell to adjust back to normal time. It wasn’t like I had anything to do other than take the car back to the rental shop though.

A small movement from Harry made me look down. He seemed to still be asleep, but I realized my hand had been rubbing circles on his back while I was lost in thought. I stopped, dropping my hand back to the mattress. Between laying under the blanket and Harry curled up next to me- and on me, really- it was starting to get a little warm.

My eyes were half-lidded again and I decided that it wasn’t too unbearable that I had to get up just yet. We had eaten our fair share of food on the plane. It seemed First Class meant a constant supply of meals, snacks, and drinks. We’d eaten last just thirty minutes before we landed, only eight hours ago. It felt like a lifetime though. I could stand to wait a little longer, I thought just before my eyes closed fully and I welcomed the sleep again.

When I woke the second time, the room was dark. No sunlight coming through the window. And no Harry laying in the bed. I sat up, letting my eyes adjust to the darkness. The bedroom door was open and I could see the light from downstairs was on. I could also hear the faint noise of people talking. Harry must be watching TV, I thought to myself. I looked at the clock and was surprised to see it was past nine. I was a lot more tired than I thought. I wondered how long Harry had been awake.

I got out of bed and stretched my arms as far as I could above my head, rolling on the balls of my feet to stretch my legs out too. I heard a couple pops before I dropped my arms and sighed, relieved. Nothing beat a good stretch after a nap.

I padded my way to the stairs. The house was quiet again. Maybe he was on the phone? I tip-toed down the steps, careful to avoid that squeaky spot on the third step. I turned the corner to see Harry sitting on the couch, a book in hand.

My book in hand. He must have found my copy of the book he’d bought on the plane. I still couldn’t wrap my mind around the fact that Harry was reading it. And it seemed like he was at least a quarter of the way through.

“Hey,” I said, announcing my presence. Harry’s head shot up and he smiled.

“Sleep well?” he asked, smirking. “You were snoring a bit when I woke up.”

“Just trying to breathe with someone laying on top of me,” I joked back. “You were out like a light curled up when the alarm went off. I could just barely reach it to turn it off.”

“I was wondering why we slept later than planned,” he said. He closed the book around one of his fingers and turned his full attention to me. “I didn’t mean to end up like that.”

“It’s all good,” I said, waving a hand to dismiss his words. “That side of the bed hasn’t been slept in… ever, really.”

“Ever? No boyfriend? Or girlfriend?” I could tell he added that second part quickly, not wanting to assume. “Sorry, I didn’t want to assume.”

“No no one,” I said, ignoring his comment. “Single as a pringle.”

I pushed off the wall and walked through the living room to the kitchen. The wall separating the stairs from the room was covered in shelves of family photos and little knick-knacks of the owl and panda varieties. The couch was a three seater and I had it angled out from the opposite wall. The TV was positioned in front of the window at the front of the house.

“How long have you been up?” I called from the kitchen. “Are you hungry? I should have told you you could help yourself to whatever.”

“I’ve only been up for about a half hour,” Harry said. I could hear his voice getting closer. I turned from my spot in front of the fridge to see him now leaned against the door frame. The kitchen was longer than it was wide. The backdoor was just a few feet from Harry. A cabinet was pushed against the wall between him and the door. The back wall was where the counters and sink was. There was a cabinet above the counter to the left of the sink, but the right side had been replaced by more shelves. The oven and flattop were set into the counter just below the shelves. The fridge, where I was currently scanning to see if there was anything that could be made quick, was tucked in the corner by the door frame leading to the dining room. “Are you hungry?”

“Starving,” I said, not taking my eyes from the fridge. There wasn’t much. I’d thrown a lot away before I left because I knew it would go bad. I was the queen of leftovers. “What are you feeling? There’s a few places that deliver if we don’t want to risk you being seen. We can DoorDash just about anything.” I turned around to look at him finally. “There’s pizza, Chinese, Italian, Japanese, Subway.”

“As long as they have a vegetarian option,” Harry said, his voice soft.

“That’s right,” I said, rubbing my eyes again, still trying to wake up. “I remember reading somewhere you’re… uh, the one that only eats fish. I’m sorry, I don’t remember the name for it. There’s plenty of veggie options or you could order fish, but we would have to drive and pick it up. I don’t mind going to get it.”

“Pescetarian,” he said nodding. “And no, I don’t want you to do all that. What options are still available for delivery?”

“I’ll have to check on my phone.” I walked back toward Harry, trying to remember where I put my phone. I came to the sudden realization as well. I groaned, knowing I was going to catch hell for forgetting. “I was supposed to call my parents to let them know I made it home safe before falling asleep. I’m sure I’m going to have so many calls.”

“I heard it go off at least twice,” Harry said. “I didn’t want to impose and see who it was.”

“Oh, I don’t care,” I said. I found it sitting on the coffee table. “I don’t have anything bad to hide. It’s just family and Serena I talk to. And work when they want me to work more than I already do.” Even I could hear the distaste in my voice as I said that. I shot my eyes to Harry, but he didn’t comment on it.

Sure enough, I did have a couple missed calls and three texts. I also had some messages on Facebook from Serena. I sent a quick text to my mom apologizing and promising to call her in just a couple minutes after I ordered some food.

I pulled up the food app and started listing off different things. Harry joined me on the couch and I tilted the phone to let him look through the options. We finally settled on a couple different things from one of the Asian restaurants in town.

“Are you okay if I order meat?” I asked after inputting everything he wanted. He went with a veggie bowl and something with sushi. “I’ll make sure to ask for it in separate bags.”

“You’re fine,” he said. “I’m not allergic to it. Just chose to eat this way.”

“Any particular reason?” I asked. I finished putting in the order and the instructions before submitting the payment.

“A couple friends are Pescetarian and they made a lot of meals for me. I grew to love it. I could feel the difference when I started it and kept it up. It’s been a couple years now.”

“Fish and sushi is just a texture thing to me,” I said. I leaned back on the couch. The order wouldn’t be ready for pick up for another half hour at least and it was only a twenty minute drive downtown to pick it up. “I’ve tried it a couple times growing up but never could get into it. Of course, it’s much more popular in the UK than in this area of America I believe.”

“So you’ve never had a proper fish and chips basket? Did you try it when you were over there this week?”

“I’m ashamed to say I couldn’t bring myself to try it,” I said with a smile. “Maybe one day. I did go mostly vegetarian for the week though just because I’m not the most adventurous person when it comes to different foods.”

“You’re missing out,” Harry said. “Cooked properly and it’s some of the best food you’ll eat.”

“I’ll take your word on it,” I said. “Anyways, if you want to stay here I can go get the food. I’ll be back in about forty minutes or so.”

“Is it in a busier part of town?” Harry asked. “Would I be able to at least go unseen if I stay in the car?”

I thought about that. The restaurant was in part of a strip mall, but it wasn’t in the actual downtown area. It was dark outside, which would make it easier for him to just lean back into the shadows of the car. It was already nine-thirty. By the time we got the food it would be ten o’clock. I got an idea and smiled.

“Want to go see one of the best views the area has to offer?” I saw Harry’s eyes widen in a questioning surprise. “If we get the food and head straight there, we will have about forty-five minutes to sit. It’s a beautiful place, but it’s late enough I doubt there will be anyone still up there. We should have it to ourselves.”

“I’m in,” Harry said with a smile.

“It’s our very own Hollywood sign,” I explained as we got into my own car. I didn’t want to drive the rental anymore than needed. Mine was a 2009 Chevy Equinox.

The night was a perfect summer evening. It was warm enough I didn’t need a jacket, the wind was still. I could see a few stars showing in the sky and knew there would be a vast amount more when we got to the Mill Mountain Star. “It’s somewhere between eighty and ninety feet tall. You’ll see it on the way to get the food. Lit up in solid white lights. They change the colors for the Fourth of July and Christmas. But the view-”

I snuck an exaggerated glance at Harry who just smiled. “Ugh,” I said with a laugh. “The view is absolutely amazing. You’re well above the lights of the city and you can see everything. On a clear day, you can see all the way to another state.”

“I can’t wait to see it,” Harry said after I finished my little rant. I continued driving down the road, aiming to hit the interstate to cut down a few minutes of driving. “Are there any other views I should see while I’m here?”

“Do you like hiking?” I look over at him for a second, sneaking a glance into the side view mirror to make sure it was safe to merge into the turning lane. I could see Harry nod. “There’s a couple of trails around here with amazing views. McAfee’s Knob is the most known one. It’s super popular on the weekends, but if you go on a random Tuesday or something, it isn’t as bad.”

“I think you told me about that on the plane? You have to start hiking early, right?”

I wasn’t sure why, but the plane ride felt like days ago. I didn’t realize how much we had actually spoken about until now. We covered a lot of random subjects on the plane.

“Yeah, like three in the morning depending on the time of year.” I put my turn signal on, gearing to hit the interstate. As I merged from the ramp the white-lit fixture came into view. “That’s where we’re going.”

“I can see why you say it’s your own Hollywood sign,” Harry commented. “Have you ever seen the Hollywood sign?”

“Never been to California, unless you count the airport in San Francisco. I don’t get to travel as much as I like.”

We settled into a steady conversation bouncing between what Los Angeles was like and Harry asking random questions as we pass different structures and places. I pointed out the park where a lot of local artists were allowed to exhibit their artwork.

“I’m not sure what day you plan on heading back,” I started. “But I’d say if you wanted to walk around and take a closer look we can go Sunday night. Tomorrow night is pretty busy. They have concerts and events almost every weekend so you’ll be most exposed Saturday night.”

“I was thinking until Monday, if that’s okay. I have some meetings I really can’t miss that afternoon.”

“Sounds good to me,” I said. I pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant and got out, leaving the car running. My phone started ringing as I walked through the door. It was my mom. “Hey Mom,” I said. “Give me just a second. I’m picking up some food.”

“Okay,” she said. I gave the lady behind the counter my name, asking if they could make sure everything was bagged separately. I knew Harry didn’t mind, but I wanted to be respectful. “Sorry about that. What’s up?”

“Why are you getting food bagged separately?” she asked, not bothering to answer my question. “Do you have someone with you?”

“No,” I said, trying to keep from answering too fast. “I just ordered some for tonight and tomorrow so I didn’t have to go anywhere.”

“Sounds like you,” she joked. “Did you have fun on your trip? You were supposed to call me when you got home but I assumed you just fell asleep.”

“That I did,” I said with a laugh. “I was more exhausted than I thought I was. I didn’t wake up until after nine. The slight jet lag was definitely worth it though.” Not only did I get to see my best friend for a week, I got to make an unlikely new friend. The lady silently handed me my order and I mouthed a thank you to her, heading back to the car. I made it a point to let Harry know I was on the phone before he opened his door and I handed him the food to hold. I slid behind the wheel as my mom was still talking. “I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow if that’s okay. I’m going to just be hanging at the house this weekend enjoying the last bit of freedom. If you want to stop by Monday evening or Tuesday, I’ll make dinner and show you all the photos.”

“Sounds great, sweetie. I’m glad you had fun. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

I ended the call and put my seat belt on. “Sorry,” I said automatically. “Didn’t mean to just throw the food on you like that. My mom is very keen on hearing people in the background.”

“Not a problem,” he said. “Happy to hold the food. Are your parents the kind to stop by unannounced. I don’t want to get you in trouble or anything.”

“You’re fine,” I said dismissively. “I don’t have many people over, but you wouldn’t be the first person to be there when they came by.”

I turned back onto the main road and headed over the bridge to the base of the mountain. I drove in silence for a minute before Harry spoke. “What do you do for fun?” he asked suddenly.

“Like hobbies or in town?” I asked, wondering why he was asking either way.

“Hobbies,” he said. “I know you write, but what else do you like to do.”

“Honestly-” I really wasn’t a fan of this question. Especially not from someone who got to travel the world and do amazing things on a daily basis. “I don’t have the time to do anything else. Between work and writing, I barely have time to breathe. I don’t mind it though. I’m just biting my tongue until I get a publishing deal.”

“What about friends? What do you do when they come over?”

I thought about that, starting to feel a little uncomfortable. Not because he was asking the question, but because I already knew the answer. I tried to think back to the last time someone other than family had stopped by the house.

“Other than video chatting with Serena and you being at the house, I couldn’t tell you the last time I had someone over that wasn’t family. I’ve just been working non-stop it seems. I want to save up enough money to move to Nashville or somewhere similar that has more writing opportunities.”

He was quiet for a moment and I took the turn that led to the last stretch of road to the star. My headlights were the only light around. I knew in about a mile, the parking lot for the star would come into view and the streetlights would be on. I was really hoping there wouldn’t be anyone there this late.

I could hear him start humming something under his breath instead of asking a follow up question. I felt bad. I know he was just asking questions like anyone would to get to know someone. I just didn’t have the answers for him. If I wasn’t at work, I was at home sleeping or writing. If I wasn’t doing either of those, I was doing something with my parents or my younger sister. It wasn’t that I didn’t have friends- I just didn’t have the time.

“I’m sorry,” I said, feeling guilty as the silence grew. “I don’t have much of an exciting life right now. I’ve been so focused on getting my writing to take off, working to pay the bills, and taking a couple classes to get a better degree which will hopefully at least put me on the radar of different places.”

“You don’t have to be sorry about that,” he said. I could tell that he was looking over at me, but I didn’t want to take my eyes off the road. We just had one more curve to drive around and we would be there. “Doing what you love already makes you successful.”

I didn’t say anything as the parking lot came into view. There were two cars parked, both with their lights on. I looked at the clock on the dash; we would have about forty minutes to hang out before they locked the gate. I parked and shut the car off. Before we got out though, I could see Harry looking at the other cars. I shook my head, smiling. “Trust me,” I said. “They aren’t paying us any mind.”

Harry nodded, pressing his lips together in a knowing grin as the realization of what I was implying hit him. We got out of the car and I waited for him to walk around to my side. He had his glasses and hat on again, just in case. Neither of us spoke as I led him to the little pathway that wound around to the front of the star.

I was always amazed at the sight of the star whenever I came up here. Standing underneath it, you immediately felt small. I looked over at Harry as he kept moving his head, looking up and down. “Not everyday that you feel small around something, huh?” I joked, nudging him in the side. “That isn’t even the best part,” I said. “The view is amazing at night.”

Harry turned his attention away from the star itself and walked to the railing. I stood beside him, both of us silent as we took in the lights and views. The downtown lights were bright and busy. As you looked away from the heart of the city, the lights became more and more scattered until it turned almost dark. The mountains in the distance were nothing more than a black backdrop.

My eyes were on Harry though as he took everything in. He took his sunglasses off and I could see his eyes dancing around, taking everything in. His lips were slightly parted, an expression I could only describe as bewilderment written on his face.

“It isn’t Los Angeles, but does it at least stand up to the Hollywood sign?” I asked. I grabbed the food from him and moved back toward the star. I sat the food on the retaining wall around underneath the star and started pulling the food out. Harry was still standing by the railing, looking out. “Oh,” I said, almost forgetting. “Just keep your hat on by the way.”

That pulled him away from the view and back to where I was. “It’s amazing,” he said. “I can see why they compare the two.” I handed him the container with his steamed vegetables and curry. “Why keep the hat on?”

“You’re good now,” I said, dropping my voice now that he was standing in front of me. “I forgot that there’s a camera that takes live photos every minute or so that gets uploaded to a website. I don’t think it would make a difference either way, but just to be on the safe side. It only shows the view and like half the deck there, so we aren’t seen from here.”

Harry nodded, but took his hat off. He shook out his hair. It wasn’t too long, but I could see that curls were starting to form at the nape of his neck. I noted for the first time since I’d changed before we left that we were wearing similar clothes. T-shirt and jeans with tennis shoes. Or trainers, as the British called them.

We settled into a comfortable silence as we ate. Sitting at the top of a mountain, the wind was blowing more, whipping my hair around my face almost constantly. I tried to find the perfect way to stand so my hair would blow behind me, but it was no use. I could hear Harry’s low laugh as he watched me struggle.

“I used to carry around the little hair ties all the time,” he said. “I haven’t had to in a couple years.”

“It’s all good,” I turned to mimic Harry’s stance and finally the wind settled down. We were still the only ones up here. I looked out over the city again as I continued. “I have about a hundred of them scattered around the house in random places. Probably two or three in the car itself.”

“Girl problems,” Harry muttered as he took another bite of his food. I couldn’t help but laugh at that. The sound was loud in the silence around them. It just made both of us laugh more.

“So you’re telling me when you had the long hair you didn’t have a stash of ties on like the bus or in a hotel room?”

“What’s the saying you have over here?” He lifted his hand to cover his mouth as he finished chewing, fork still in hand. “I plead the fifth?”

I couldn’t hide the smile at that. “You aren’t even American. That doesn’t work for you.”

“I’m over here enough, it should.”

I shook my head and took another bite of my food. I was almost done. And it had to be close to eleven. I didn’t want to risk a cop or someone coming up to tell us to leave and spot Harry. Plus, the wind was starting to pick up again and I could feel the air getting cooler.

“Are you ready to head back to the house? I’m thinking about a movie night.”

“Sounds good to me.” Harry set his empty bowl back in the back and reached into his back pocket to grab his phone. “I want to get a picture of this though.”

I cleaned up my mess and watched as Harry donned his hat and walked toward the railing so he could get a full picture of the star. He also turned and snapped a couple photos of the view.

“I’d like to come back one morning to watch the sun rise,” Harry said.

“I’ve never stopped to even consider that,” I said, thinking about it. “I bet it would be amazing. Want to come back Sunday morning?”

“Sure,” Harry said. I threw away the trash and we headed back toward the car. “What’s the plan for tomorrow? Any plans?”

“I was planning on getting some writing done,” I said. “But I can do that anywhere if you want to go do something. It’s kind of fun to be experiencing these things with someone for the first time.”

“If you want to stay home, that’s fine.” I noticed that the two cars that had been parked were already gone. I checked my phone, realizing I had a missed call, and saw that it was only ten minutes until eleven.

“No, really, it’s fine.” I would call my dad back later. I buckled up and started the car. “On a Saturday though, I’m not sure how much we could do out in public. I mean I don’t know how hidden you want to stay this weekend, but there are parks, rivers, trails, museums, concerts. You name it, I could probably find a place for us to go.”

“What about that restaurant you were telling me about? The one you’ve never been to? I’m sure by the time any photos or stories get to the press I’ll be back in L.A. anyways.”

“Rowland’s?” I asked, trying to remember back. Why did it feel like so long ago on the plane? I thought to myself for the twentieth time since I woke up. “I think you have to have reservations.”

“I can call them,” Harry said casually. I glanced over at him as we started back over the bridge. I figured we would just drive through downtown to get back to my house. “I’m sure they’ll find a table if they’re full.”

“Is it bad that just a second there I was about to ask why they would give you special treatment?” I stopped at a red light and looked over at him. I could see him clearly in the glow of the lights around us. His smile was undeniable; teeth showing, eyes crinkled. I sat back in my seat, smiling more to myself than to him, and stared at the traffic light. “I would be the one to forget that Harry-freaking-Styles was sitting in the car beside me.”

We were still both laughing when the light turned green. I focused on driving while Harry pulled out his phone. I reminded myself I needed to call my dad back as well.

“Hello,” I heard Harry’s voice and I shot my head to the side in confusion. My lips formed a silent ‘O’ as I realized he was on the phone. “I was wondering if you had any reservations for tomorrow.”

Oh, I thought. You’re making the reservation now. Okay.

“Any time would be fine,” I heard him say.

I felt weird. Harry Styles was making a reservation at a restaurant for the two of us. Nothing romantic, of course, but it was still weird. Wonder what people would think if I added that to my resume of life. I smiled to myself as I stopped at another red light.

“It’s under the name Styles.” He said it so casually, but I felt my heart rate speed up. It was too late to turn back now. “Yes,” he said. I could hear the smile in his voice. “I don’t think I could fake the accent so well if I wasn’t.” Another pause. So whoever was on the other line knew who he was. “I’m just passing through and remembered someone recommending this place to me.” Pause. “Of course,” he said. “I would appreciate it if it was kept secret. You understand?” I wish I could hear the person on the other line. “It will be a table for two. Outside, if possible.”

Harry looked at me, eyebrows and hand raised in a silent question to make sure that was alright with me. I just nodded.

“Okay,” he said. “Thank you so much.” He dropped his phone to his lap and I let off the gas as the light turned green. “We have a table outside reserved for seven-thirty tomorrow.”

“Do you think they’ll keep quiet about you making the reservation?” I asked. I wasn’t worried about being photographed or anything. “I mean, you came here to disappear. It would suck to get bombarded with pictures and such.”

“I don’t think they really believed me,” he said. “We’ll see tomorrow.”