Handle With Care (EDITING)

ch.8 Breakfast

"And now I must confess, that I am a sinking ship,

And I'm anchored by the weight of my heart."

•
•
•HARRY•
•

"Hey, Louis?" I call from the bathroom.

"Yeah, babe," he calls back and walks in the room.

"Shower's open," I tell him. I watch as he starts to undress and continue to talk, "Can you, um, tell me who Harley is? I mean I obviously know her name, but I can't remember why I'm supposed to remember her."

He's completely naked and bent over to turn on the water for the shower. I can't help but stare a little - or a lot. He's a beautiful boy. I've memorized every curve on his tiny body, but I can never get used to seeing him like this.

I'm happy he and I started this thing we've got. We've been together - in the background, you could say - between other dates and all kinds of drama and problems in our lives. The time I was talked into dating Taylor Swift, he was there for me and slept with me to take the pain away.

"You'll have to remember on your own, babe. I don't want to get in the middle of this. I've got too much going on right now."

I sigh and nod. I brush my teeth and leave the room before Louis gets out of the shower.

When he comes out, he sees the stress in my face and comes over to the bed where I'm laying. He lets his towel fall to the floor and crawls onto the bed. He hovers over me on all fours and kisses me. It's gentle, but then it's not and he's taking my bottom lip between his teeth and grinding down on me.

It's times like these when we don't need words, only actions. It's times like these when I only need him and my worries fade away.

•
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•HARLEY•
•

"Mel, what the hell am I supposed to do now? I didn't know this would happen!"

"So you're telling me he doesn't remember you at all? How do you know?" Melody asks from the other end of the phone.

"I just know, okay. I could tell by the way he was acting. I just know."

I barely listen to her ranting about how "I told you so! He's a no-good rich kid who's not going to believe you anyway." She continues to go on and on even when I fall back onto the couch and groan, losing interest and slowly beginning to ignore her. Somewhere in the middle of her never-ending rant about my mistakes, she says, "And are you even going to be back for my wedding?"

I've already told her I'll be back, considering it's mid August and her wedding isn't until late October. Thankfully, before I can answer, by phone starts buzzing against my ear. "Hey, Melody, gotta go. Someone's calling me. I'll text you or something."

I hang up before she can answer and greet the next caller with, "Hello?"

"Hey, it's Zayn."

"Oh, hey, what's up?"

I don't really care what's up, though. I don't care about anything. At least, I'm trying not to care. I don't want to care. I want Harry to just remember me and recognize our past and put the pieces together to see that he has a daughter. I don't want this situation to end up like the one with my dad. I won't let it. It can't.

My dad didn't believe me when I told him I was his daughter, I won't let Serenity be in the situation I was in. She will have a dad. Her father will be in her life. The whole time, not after years of being without a dad. And I'll be in her life too. I'll always be there. There is no way I'll let myself become a greedy bitch like my mother.

The thing is, I don't even care about Harry's money or fame like my mother did with my dad. I don't care about stupid materials that won't matter in the end. All I care about is Harry being there for Serenity. That's all I want.

"Well, I was just calling to apologize about the way Harry acted tonight. It wasn't what I was expecting. I thought the night would go differently," he says. He sighs quietly. "How are you doing?"

"I don't know about you, but it's all roses and rainbows over here! I'm fantastic! Never been better, honestly. You know, it's not like my whole plan to come out here and tell Harry everything went to shit or anything. No, I'm great, honestly," I say, beginning to sob somewhere in the middle, signaling the beginning of an anxiety attack.

Zayn talks me through it with "it's okay"s and calming words. When I've calmed down, he speaks.

"When are you leaving?"

"Well, with the way things are going right now...I'm feeling like giving up and heading home soon."

Zayn is quiet when I start crying again. He's one of those people who knows when to be quiet and just listen. He doesn't say a word until my crying subsides.

"I'm coming to get you. Where are you staying?"

An hour later, I find myself standing in one of the guest rooms in Zayn's house while he makes up the bed and puts Serenity's bed together in the corner.

"Thank you, Zayn. Really, you don't understand how much this means to me. Your help, I mean. It's-"

He cuts me off by shushing and walking up to me. He wraps his arms around me in a hug and tells me it's no big deal and, "I would rather have you staying here. Nobody should have to go through these things alone. Especially not with a baby to take care of. I know how hard-headed Harry can be, but you've got my help."

When he backs away, he takes the baby from my arms and puts her to bed. He comes back to me and tells me to get some rest. But at this point, I'm not sure I'll sleep until everything is sorted out.

After he leaves and closes the door, I sit on the bed and pull the covers up over me. I fall asleep much faster and easier than anticipated.

When I wake in the morning, it's because the sun is coming through the window, shining directly in my eyes. I'm startled that it wasn't because of Serenity's crying. She's usually my alarm clock. Now, though, the silence around me is disturbing.

I jump out of bed and cross over to where my baby should be asleep. I find that she's not there. She's not in her bed. Where is she?

I run out of the room and down the stairs in search of Zayn. Surprisingly, he's not the one I find in the kitchen. He isn't the one holding my baby and making food at the same time.

I run up to the boy at the counter and grab his shoulder. He turns around, surprised.

"What the hell are you doing?" I ask, plainly. I was unaware of my giving permission to anyone besides Zayn to take care of Serenity, as selfish as it sounds. And especially not someone who doesn't wear a shirt when he cooks. Or real pants for that matter. Boxers are not real pants.

"I heard her waking up earlier when I was passing your room. I didn't know you were here, but assuming last night was rough, I decided you could use the extra sleep this morning," he answers with a slight smile. "You can go back to sleep if you'd like. I wouldn't mind watching her for a few more hours."

"No, it's okay. I'm awake now. It was a miracle I slept that long."

"Well, in that case, do you want anything to eat? Or would you rather get dressed first?" A smile creeps onto his face as he looks down at what I'm wearing.

I hadn't noticed my lack of clothes. All I was worried about was my baby. "Says the one in his underwear as well." I scowl at him and turn away. I feel eyes on my back. "Louis Tomlinson, I swear to god. If you're looking at my ass."

I hear him laugh as I reach the stairs. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm a gentleman, Miss Downey."

"Mhm, I'm sure you are."

I want to be angry at him for making me worry and making fun of me, but as I'm getting dressed, I can't help the smile on my lips. And as I walk back downstairs and find a plate already made for me, I know my smile is here to stay.