Keeper

Chapter 20

My last class breezed by and before I knew it I was walking side by side with Harry down the crowded school corridor. His leather jacket was hooked in his left hand, his warn out book bag hung loosely over his shoulder. As we passed through the front doors and begin down the cement sidewalk, Harry hesitantly grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together.

As we neared the car he gave my hand a small squeeze, a light smile playing at his lips. He hadn't said anything the entire walk, but neither had I.

He opened the passenger door for me once again, his incredibly kind gesture still causing butterflies to have a frenzy within my stomach. He quickly shut the door once I hopped inside, rushing over to the drivers side, pulling the seatbelt across his chest.


"Buckle up." Harry mumbled, turning the key in the ignition.

I immediately felt my cheeks heat up at the realization that I had been staring at him the entire time. I fumbled with the strap before pulling it across and chest and bringing the buckle down, a clicking sound soon ringing through my ears. Before pulling out Harry reached his hand up and turned on the radio, the tune of a heavy metal song playing on low volume.

The drive to my house from the school seemed faster than ever as Harry pulled up in front of my house in what seemed like a blink of an eye. I went to open the passenger door but before I could harry reached out and grabbed my hand, making me turn my head to face him.


"Remember seven-thirty." He winked, giving my hand a little squeeze.


"I will." I whispered, slowly proceeded to open the door with my free hand.


Harry let go of my hand but didn't take his eyes off of me. His stare had me frozen, the only part of me moving was my chest, rising up and down.


Before I knew what I was doing I was leaning in, my cheeks meeting the cold flesh of Harry's cheek.


I slowly pulled away, my eyes once again locking with his. This time his lips were curved up into a small smile.

"Goodbye Harry." I mumbled, my fingers fumbling with the metal door handle before finally pushing it open.


Once I unlocked the front door I stumbled up the stairs, my mind set on picking out an outfit for tonight. I couldn't make it obvious that I was going on a date, yet I had to look presentable. My eyes searched through my closet, every stitch of closing being rejected by my rather picky mind before settling on a black skirt and black and white polka dot blouse. My parents would think it strange of me for being more dressed up for after school than school itself, but they wouldn't go as far as to question me over it.


I set my outfit aside and quickly rushed in my homework, that of which consisted of a couple math problems and a review of my history notes.


By the time I finished I heard the front door open once, signaling my father was home. I didn't bother greeting him at the door, and it's not like I wanted to anyway. The second time I heard it open and made my way down, knowing it was my mom. She was hooking her jacket onto the coat rack as I began to speak,


"I'm going over Anna's for dinner."


My mom spun around, raising an eyebrow,


"What time?" She questioned.


"Seven-thirty." I shrugged nonchalantly.

"Any on a school night and not the weekend?" She questioned further, mentally taking in my last answer.


"Just because, I'm already done my homework so that's not a problem." I beamed.


"That's fine then." My mom shrugged.


"Thanks. I'll go get ready now." I smiled.


My mom turned to walk away but stopped herself and raised an eyebrow,

"It's only five o'clock? Why so early?" My mom questioned.


"Nothing better to do?" I stammered.


My mom just shrugged and continued her wall to the kitchen, most likely to make a pot of coffee.


I flew upstairs and threw off my jeans and sweatshirt, followed by my tank-top, leaving myself in nothing but my bra and underwear. Quickly I slipped on my skirt, smoothing out the creases. My top came next, my fingers tediously tucking the hem into my skirt.


I headed over to my bathroom and did my hair, curling it for a change. Afterwards I applied my makeup, lining my top eyelid with pure black eyeliner along with two coats of mascara. It wasn't too much, but just enough.

The time leading up to seven-thirty was spent flipping through the television. I was completely oblivious to the sun setting from outside my window.


Before I knew it, it was time to leave, so I rushed downstairs and headed to the front door. My fathers back was facing me, as he sat on the couch which meant he didn't even acknowledge my presence, and my mom was busy reading a book next to him. She looked up just in time to catch me opening the door,


"Bye I'm going to Anna's!" I called before disappearing out the door and down the dimly light sidewalk. As I rounded the corner I spotted Harry's car only a few feet ahead.


I came up to the passenger door and was about to reach for the handle, when all of a sudden it popped open for me. As I leaned down to peer into the car I became eye-level with a grinning Harry.


"Hey baby." He winked.


Baby? That's new.


"Hey." I smiled back, slipping onto the cold leather. I buckled myself in and folded my hands in my lap.


As Harry started pulling away from the curb I spoke up,

"So, where are we going?" I asked.


Harry but at his lip ring,


"Told you it's a secret." He answered smugly.


"Fine." I laughed, slouching down into the seat.


Without realization I closed my eyes, my ears set on the steady rhythm of Harry's loud breathing and the sound of passing cars.


Harry set a hand on my shoulder, my eyes fluttering open immediately without hesitation.


"We're here." He whispered.


I sat up and rubbed my eyes, the sight in front of me making me smile.


It looked like a small cafe, a string of lights lining the window. As we walked inside a bell rang on the door, making me giggle. The air smelled of cinnamon and various pastries, and my senses were proven correct as my eyes found the array of desserts sitting behind the front counter. An old lady, appearing to be in her mid seventies, came and lead us to a table in the dining room. There were a few other couples scattered amount the small space, and once me and Harry had taken out seats, Harry across from me, the lady lit a candle which was placed in front of us, making the atmosphere even more calm and warming as it was before. She handed us two menus and cleared her throat to introduce herself,


"Hello, my name's Clara. Can I get you two something to drink?" She asked, pulling a notepad and own out of her pocket.


"Sweetened iced tea." I spoke, giving her a small smile which she sweetly returned.


"Same here." Harry mumbled rather dully, but fixed with a small smile as well.


"I'll be right back with that." The lady nodded, turning around and heading towards the kitchen.


It was quiet while me and Harry looked through the menu, but once the lady came back with our drinks and took our order he was quick to start up a conversation,


"Ever been here before?" He asked, leaning his head on his hands.


I shook my head but held a smile,


"No, but it's absolutely adorable."


"I thought you'd like it here." Harry mumbled. His eyes trailed down to the silverware in front of him,


"When I was younger, about eight, right after my we moved here from England, my mum used to take me here every Sunday afternoon for tea and sandwiches."


When I didn't speak Harry took in a deep breath, deciding to continue,

"You would've liked her." He smiled, but I could see the hurt behind his eyes as he looked back up at me.


I didn't know what to say, I didn't know his mom had passed away.


"I'm sorry." I whispered, biting on the inside of my lip.


"It's fine." He shrugged, messing with the straw in his cup.


"What kind of sandwiches?" I asked, trying to change the subject to something more light.

Harry laughed,

"BLT's." he smiled.


"Any good?" I asked.


"The best." He smiled back.


"You should've said something, I would've gotten that instead of the turkey club." I fake pouted, taking a sip of my iced tea.


"Oh but believe me, the turkey club is beyond better." He winked.


"Better be." I laughed.


"You need to try the cherry cheesecake here as well, it's absolutely phenomenal." Harry raved, throwing up his hands.


"I will, cheesecake is my favorite." I hummed, widening my eyes at the very thought of the heavenly dessert. My Grandmom makes homemade cheesecake for parties and events every year, the recipe a complete secret. It's my favorite, especially the graham cracker crust.


Before I knew it Harry was changing the subject on me,

"So what did your father say about me yesterday after he found out about the whole window thing?" He asked, his eyes holding an amused twinkle.


I shook my head, "You don't want to know." I laughed.


"Yeah I do." He smirked, pushing me to elaborate even further.


I shifted uncomfortable in my chair, unintentionally making it squeak,

"No really, I think it's best if you don't know."


The smile on Harry's face fell completely, before he threw his head back in aggravation,


"I wanna restart." He muttered.


"What?" I asked, making sure I heard his jumbled works correctly.


"I just wanna restart with your father, with your parents, they absolutely hate me. I mean, I know I was being kind of a jerk, but was I really that bad? Was I really? I want to prove the them that I, I-" His voice faded out, his hand quickly running over his face out of frustration.


"You what?" I asked timidly.


He bit on his lip ring,


"I just want to prove to them that I actually do have a heart."


The room was almost completely quiet beside the small chattering coming from the other couples.

"Why does it matter what they think?" I asked.



"Because they can stop me from seeing you and I don't want that to happen."


"But you-"


"I really like you, Harley." Harry spit out.


"I know." I whispered.


"You know that I'm not a bad person right? You know, I-I've changed. I would never hurt you, that's the last thing I would ever do. Well actually it wouldn't be the last I ever do because I would do it at all. I know these piercings and tattoos are a bit much but-"


"I really like you too, Harry." I cut in, yet my voice was still as soft and calm as before.


"I mean I know it hasn't been very long, but I do." I shrugged.


The pin straight line of Harry's lips immediately changed, turning upright into another smile.

"Thank you, Harley." Harry spoke, breathless, almost as if he had been holding in a breath.

I creased my forehead,

"For what?" I asked, curious.


He licked his lips, his lip ring finding it's way back between his teeth,

"For feeling it too."



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