The Boxer

Chapter 14

     The heat welling within me was, of course, directed at Harry now. After I flung my towel across the living room and swiveled on my heels to face him, I completely blew up. "What the FUCK? I told you not do that, and you do it anyway! You almost gave Josh a fucking concussion!" I screamed. Harry slicked his tongue over his lips and raked a hand through his hair, visibly trying to calm himself. 

    "Well, he wouldn't STOP. You can't blame me for giving him a good knock, Cryssy."

    "YEAH, BUT YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO HIT HIM SO HARD HE FAINTED," I could see Harry's own blood boil as I yelled. Both of our tempers were short, so it always ended in all-out screaming matches when we got in the tiniest argument. 

    After Harry's little episode with Josh, I helped Nina clean him up and made Harry leave. He was being way too aggressive, just as I predicted, and Josh, being the idiot he was, didn't know when to stop fooling around, which just angered Harry more. It was silent the entire ride home until we made it inside, and I was sure that, if the neighbors didn't know our names, they would soon. 

    "It wasn't my fucking fault! For christ sake, why don't you listen!"

    "Because what's the point of listening when you're too caught up in your fucking hormones to calm the hell down and stop fighting!" Harry and I had gone from opposite sides of the room to not even two feet from each other. Harry had his hands gripping the kitchen counter to calm himself, his knuckles white and his cheeks puffing out in bursts of air as he tried to steady his breathing. "Not even a day yet, and we're already fighting about your god-damned temper," I hissed. 

    "MY Temper?!" Harry boomed quickly, turning to face me so we were face to face. I sneered. 

    "Yes, YOUR fucking temper, you dick!" 

    "You're such a fucking bitch, you know that!" 

    "Oh, I hate you!" I screamed.

    "I hate you too!" 

    But in the heat of the moment, Harry's lips became flush against mine in eager anger. It was a deep kiss and filled with a ridiculous amount of emotions. The movement was so fast, it was practically invisible, but there was no doubt that the two of us wanted it by the way we both tried to grip each other closer. 

    Harry and I were very different, but we had one thing in common. Despite our fighting and challenging each other every day, we were crazy about each other in every way. We didn't know how or why, but we knew it was something bigger than the two of us that kept bringing us back to each other. 

    "You're such a dick!"

    "You're so controlling!"

    Again, our lips connected, my back against the hallway wall as Harry's hands traveled down my arms, past my waist, to my legs and hooking his hands under my knees, and, in one swift movement, my legs were wrapped around his lean waist. My hands immediately tangled into his soft curls and I tugged at them roughly. 

    "I fucking hate your temper," I breathed, biting his lower lip hungrily and then his mouth moved to my neck. 

    "Hate to break it to you, but you're no better babe." He nipped the skin of my neck, trailing little purple and red spots down onto my shoulder.

    "Fuck, Harry."

    "Be mine," he whispered into the nape of my neck so quietly, that I almost didn't hear. 

    "I'm yours."

~

    Harry and I sat cuddled on the couch an hour later. Nothing major happened. We just made out our anger away, which was a strange feeling for me. When we finally got tired, Harry moved us to the couch, wrapping his long arms around my torso and pulling my back against his chest. He flicked on his record player from his spot on the couch as we layed there. I was tired now, and still slightly our of breath, so I turned onto my side and propped myself up on my hand to get a better look at Harry's face and huffed. 

    "You know, if we keep fighting like this, I'm not sure how long we'll last."

    "As a couple?"

    "No, I mean, like, how long we'll stay alive, because damn, I swear that's the longest I've ever held my breath. It was like drowning in your lips," I said, and Harry laughed. 

    "Not sure if that's a compliment, but I'll take it." I rolled my eyes and lay my head on his chest, listening to his heart beat softly. My hand drew small circles around his skin and, as my index finger made a new design, I couldn't help but smile at Harry's silver ring on my thumb. I didn't know why, but it made me happy to have something of his I could call my own. 

    "You don't really hate me, do you?" Harry asked after a moment of silence, and I sighed. 

    "Of course not. I just say a lot of crap I don't mean when I'm angry . . . I'm sorry I called you a dick, by the way."

    "I'm sorry I called you names I should never call a woman," Harry apologized and I smiled slightly. Harry was a real gentleman when he wanted to be. 

    "Apology accepted."

    "So do you think Nina and Josh, like, hate me?" he laughed, and I joined him.

    "Nah, I'm sure Josh got a nasty head ache, though."

    "And hopefully learned a lesson," Harry added, and I rolled my eyes. 

    "Yeah, never wrestle a boxer with a temper."