Little Shy Ariel (ft. Harry Styles)

Chapter 35 - Comfort

Chapter 35  Comfort

I know my dad and Timmy are worried about me. I’m not smiling and I’m not saying much, but I really don’t want tot talk about what I’m feeling inside. I rather ignore the ache, the betrayal, the longing. I keep praying that if I don’t think about it I won’t have to feel it. Of course, it doesn’t work like that but I’m trying. I don’t know how to handle all this, but I’m doing the best I can.

I don’t want to call my sisters either. I know that Mary would have the perfect answer, she would tell me what I have to do to overcome this pain in my chest, but how can I call her and explain all the stupid decisions I’ve made? How do I explain her that I don’t know how to get over a heartache? How do I tell her that I fell in love and that I got my heart broken? I’m lost.

Harry came the next day… and the next. And the next. But I’ve run and hid every time. Until he doesn’t come after me anymore. He sighs and whispers something I can’t hear. Today he hasn’t come and I hope he won’t. I don’t want to run, I don’t want to hide, but I don’t want to see him. It hurts too much knowing that I can’t hurt him because I love him, and because I love him I’m trapped in a deal I can’t escape from. I hope once he’s gone, which will be tomorrow, things will start to improve. He’ll be out of the picture.

I sit by the dock, watching the lake and thinking of taking a swim. When I’m in the water I feel safe, complete and all right. When I’m in the water it’s just me, calm and relaxed. I think I need that. I’ve always thought too much. It’s like as I never talked I had too many things going on in my head and now I don’t even know how to keep them inside. I want to stop overthinking, I want to stop pondering things. I just want peace. And water can give me that.

So I take off my dress and my trainers and stay only in my swimming suit. I take a deep breath and dive in, welcoming the water that embraces my body and hugs me tightly. I needed this. I needed it so badly.

I swim calmly and my thoughts slowly start to clear. In no time I feel like myself again but then I remember I’ll have to leave this place. I haven’t even told my dad! I won’t have the lake to help me calm down. I won’t have my father. I won’t have this place.

I’ll have to leave.

I start to feel like I’m suffocating again so swim back to the dock and stay there, trying to even my breathing. I don’t want to leave. I don’t want to leave my dad and my home. Oh God.

“Ari?” someone asks and I freeze, terrified to look up. But I do and I feel my muscles relaxing when I see Niall standing there. “Are you okay?”

I shake my head and he hurries and helps me to get out of the water. There’s no towel around, only my dress so I point at the cottage next to the lake and he goes there for a towel for me. Soon, I’m wrapped and feeling warm again.

“What’s going on? I haven’t seen you around and Harry doesn’t wanna tell me anything,” Niall says and I shudder when I hear his name.

“I—I— I don’t,” I stutter, not knowing how to explain things, getting tongue-tied.

“It’s okay, Ari, you can tell me,” Niall offers and soon his arm is around me, pulling me closer, comforting me. I let him do that because I haven’t let anyone do the same since that afternoon when Harry came to the lake. “You heard me once, it’s my turn now. We’re friends, remember? That’s what friends are for.”

I nod so he leads me to the dock and we sit there, with Niall still keeping me close to him. I take a deep breath, trying to figure out how to start this.