Between the Lines

Chapter 2

"Knock knock." Sutton hears a familiar voice behind her, and she looks over her shoulder to find her boss, a shorter guy with dark hair and thick black glasses, which he only wears when working.

She immediately pulls her legs off of the check-out desk when James' crisp blue eyes meet hers, and he lets out a throaty laugh while shaking his head, indicating he didn't care that her scruffy boots had been resting on his desk. She smiles, not exactly used to having a considerate boss.

"So how was your first night shift the other night? I forgot to tell you to just take the key with you, but I see you already did." He asks quietly, careful not to disturb the people reading around them. Sutton packed her things into her bag and smiled, handing him the keys.

"It was good, pretty slow, but good. Oh, um, some guy did stop by though, he said he knew you?" She tells him, remembering her encounter with the drunk man.

"Some guy?" He asks.

"Ya, well I stayed a little while after my shift ended, I was completely caught up in an amazing book, but anyway that's not the point," she says, coaxing that she stayed way later than she was supposed too. "Your friend came in. I think he was really drunk, and he said he had a spare key." She tells him, and the moment the word 'drunk' rolls off her lips, his features seem to show recognition and he nods his head slightly.

"Oh," He says, holding the word out for a couple of seconds. "Yeah, that's Harry. How late were you here? No one usually catches him until the morning." He says, and chuckles.

"Not that late, actually." She says. Eh, maybe a little late, she thinks.

"Hm, well that's funny," he says, then pauses before continuing. "This is for some reason his favorite place to come when he is drunk and lonely in the middle of the night. Funny guy, he is." James says. He seems to be thinking, then shakes his head and begins laughing again. "I don't think he comes very often, it shouldn't be anything to worry about." He says, and turns to sit in the seat Sutton had previously occupied. "Did you recognize him?" He asks, looking at her curiously.

"Who, your friend?" She replies, and he nods. "Oh, it's actually weird that you say that, I thought he looked kind of familiar." She says, maybe she did know him from somewhere.

"Yeah, that doesn't surprise me." He rambled in a lower tone, glancing down at his rather expensive looking watch.

"What?" She asked, not understanding him. "It was actually kind of dark, and I couldn't really see his face in the first place." Sutton explains, and James nods.

"Oh, I see. Well, do you know who Harry Styles is?" He asks, looking amused as she shakes her head slowly. "Okay, um, do you remember that super popular boy band named One Direction? You were probably eighteen or nineteen when they were all over." He explains. Sutton recognized the name, and James watches as the gears turn in her head.

"Oh wait, the lead guy in that band? No fucking way." She says, and covers her mouth as soon as the words leave her lips. James laughs quietly, and shakes his head.

"Sutton, I couldn't give a shit if you have your feet up on my desk or if you cuss around me. To be honest, I prefer it. I prefer personality," He says, and she nods while smiling, thanking him. "But yeah, that's him. Harry Styles of One Direction" He returns back to the topic at hand, laughing at how the conversation switched so quickly.

"That's insane. I completely remember them, some girls at my university loved them." She says. "How did you meet him?" Sutton asks curiously.  

"I was at this private pub a couple years ago, and I saw him just on the ground. Literally, face down on the cement. I helped him up and the guy couldn't even stand. I went out of my way to help him, I mean he couldn't even talk, I felt like I had to help the lad. I just brought him back to my flat, and threw him on the couch. The next morning he was a little creeped out, but once I explained what had happened he was super appreciative. After that I kept seeing him whenever I went out, and we just started hanging out, I guess. He's one of my best mates now." James tells her.