Teenage Dirtbag

42. Graduation

Taylor's POV

A few weeks had passed and I still hadn't been comfortable enough to really talk to Harry.

The past few weeks I had been hanging with girls on the cheer squad and I had really taken notice of how fake they all were. I missed Louis and Zayn but if I wanted to be around them, I had to be around Harry.

Today was our last day of school and tonight is graduation.

In science class, Harry and I still sat next to one another and he smiled at me everyday, hoping for something, but I was just uncomfortable. I knew he was sticking up for me, but the image of him hitting Niall as hard as he could repeatedly haunted me.

Now, I was at home looking at myself in the mirror as I wondered exactly what I was going to do with my hair for graduation tonight. It was still wet from my recent shower and I didn't know whether I wanted to leave it in it's natural curl or if I wanted to straighten it like I had everyday at school for the past few months.

Before I could finish, I heard the doorbell and my mom shuffling to the door.

I heard a few faint voices and then heard my mom calling my name.

Who was here?

I got out of my chair and quickly changed from my bath robe into a pair of Nike shorts and a run down tshirt before going downstairs.

When I saw who was standing there, a smile crossed my face. It was Zayn and Louis.

"Hey you!" I said, taking Louis in for a hug, then Zayn. "What are you two doing here?!"

"We had to see you before graduation because we pitched in and got you a small gift..." Louis said, pulling a small rectangular box. "It's a thank you for being such a great friend to us this year."

He handed me the box and I carefully opened it, revealing a small bracelet with a T charm on it.

"This is beautiful, you guys. Thank you!" I said, hugging them both once more. "I'm DEFINITELY wearing this tonight."

"Good! Look, we gotta go. Harry's probably getting anxious sitting in the car..." He said, stopping when he realized what he said.

"He.. He's out there?" I asked.

"Yeah..." Zayn replied.

"Oh... Well I'll see you two tonight!" I replied, opening the front door for them as they piled out of my home.

Before Louis was too far away, I spoke. "Lou... Tell Harry I'm sorry. And that I miss him..."

He bit his lip, then nodded before walking to the car and I closed the door.

I then skipped up my stairs, setting the bracelet down on my counter.

I decided to let my hair dry in it's natural curl and I put on my makeup and dress and before I knew it, I was ready for my high school graduation. I slipped my bracelet on then walked downstairs, ready to go.

When every senior had arrived, we were lined up in alphabetical order by our last name, putting Harry and I next to each other.

At first, it was a little awkward, but I spoke first, hoping that would make Harry more comfortable.

"I'm sorry, Harry." I said, looking down at his leg.

"Sorry for what? I'm the one who did wrong." He replied.

"I overreacted. All you were doing was trying to protect me. And I don't know about you, but I want graduation night to be good. I don't wanna be bitter about having to sit next to you." I said, looking him in the eyes.

He softly placed his hand on my leg. "I'm glad. Because I missed the hell out of you."

And that was it. It was time to go into the auditorium and get our diplomas and exit high school.

After the ceremony, I went and met with all of my family members and hugged my parents and Austin tightly.

"YOU DID IT!" Austin screamed, throwing his arms up in the air in celebration.

I smiled and gave him a high five in return.

He soon spotted Harry across the room.

"I saw you two talking before the ceremony... Is everything okay?" He asked.

I nodded my head and a smile appeared on his face before he yelled Harry's name. I had figured out recently that Austin really looked up to Harry.

Harry quickly came over, giving a bro-type handshake to Austin. My parents noticed that he had come over and they, too, greeted Harry.

When the crowds had died down, Harry and I got more time to talk to each other on our own.

"So... This is it. After summer, we're gonna be leaving this stupid town. What does this leave of us...?" He asked, resting his hand on a wall. The red graduation gown he was wearing made his eyes pop a little and I loved that he had ditched his glasses for a pair of contacts, at least for now.

"I don't know. I guess we'll have to see..." I replied, feeling butterflies in my stomach.

"I don't know about you, but being without you these past few weeks has been SO hard... I don't know how we'll be able to be away from each other off at college." He said.

"It was really hard. But I think we could do it... If it's worth it, I think we could make a long distance relationship work." I replied.

It was hard not to smile at the thought. I really had overreacted with the whole Niall thing. Harry made me the happiest girl on the planet and though I hadn't realized it until I talked to him once again, without him there was a huge hole in my heart.

He smiled. "I think so too."

With that, he leaned in and kissed me, placing his hands on the small of my back and pulling me close.

When we pulled away, he placed his forehead against mine.

"I love you, Taylor." He whispered through a huge smile plastered on his face.

"I love you, too, Harry."


THE END.