Anna || HS

CHAPTER 9

~April 12th & 13th, 2009~
Anna- 15
Harry- 15
Ben- 17

Harry POV:

I re-read the text twice. I don't know what else to answer besides 'yes'. What could have happened to make her want to come over at 10:20pm? Whatever it is doesn't matter. She needs me and I want her to need me.

My thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door, and I answer to a hysterically crying Anna on my front step.

"Oh, Anna. Hey, hey, hey... come in," I say as I wrap my arm around her shoulder looking back at my mum who is standing in the kitchen looking to me, questioning what is wrong with her. I shrug back to her and separate from Anna for a moment to go in the kitchen with mum. "Love, I am going to go and get you some water. Do you want to sit down here, or go up to my room?" I ask.

"I don't want to sit down here with your mom," she answers as she starts to climb the stairs up to my room by herself. With her on the way upstairs, I grab water for her and ask mum to let Mrs. Campbell know that Anna is at our house, in case she isn't home by her curfew. I honestly don't know what happened, and I don't know how long the conversation will take.

I open my door to find Anna curled up in a ball on my bed, still wearing her vest and boots, crying softly. I put the water glass on the night stand, and reach for one of her red boots to pull it off her leg and set it on the floor before I repeat the same action with the other boot.

I ask her to sit up for a minute so she can take off some of her layers, and she removes her vest and top sweater, leaving just the denim shirt, with its dangerously low undone top buttons. Once free from her boots and layers, she curls back up in a ball, hugging an old stuffed animal of mine.

I gently crawl on the bed behind her and decide to lean in, wrapping myself around her back and encasing her in a protective embrace from behind.

"Want to tell me what happened?" I ask as I brush her hair away from where it is stuck to her face from her wet tears. She shakes her head 'no' and keeps sniffling. I adjust my pillows to get comfortable behind her, figuring I may be here for a while.

I can feel her heartbeat against my chest. I can feel her shallow breaths as she continues to softly cry. I don't know how much time passes, but I keep her pulled tightly against me, repeatedly telling her that I'm here. Then, I hear her take in a breath, and a small voice says out loud, "He told me he loves me."

"Is that why you're upset?" I ask, lifting my head to be able to look at her better as she gives her answer. She rolls over towards me and onto her other side, now facing me. She curls her cold hands in a ball under her chin to hold up her head.

"I couldn't say it back, Harry." She sadly admits, looking up at me, pushing her hands into my chest to keep my comfort at arms length, but I once again pull her closer into me. "I'm not sure if I love him. I'm not sure what it's supposed to mean that he loves me. I just turned fifteen, Harry! It's all too much," she says shakily between snotty sobs.

I reach over to grab some tissue, and hand it to her asking, "was he upset that you didn't say it back?" Thinking that I'm going to kill Ben if he was mean to her on her birthday, especially over something like this.

"No, he was really sweet about it, of course, but I could tell that it was not how he thought telling me was going to go. He was silent on the ride home, and he brought me home early... Fucking early, Harry. On my birthday." she sighs. "It was like he couldn't get away from me, or the situation, fast enough."

"Did you text him? Or do you want to text him?" I ask timidly, not really wanting to get in the middle of things between them, though I fear it may be unavoidable at this point. I also make a mental note never to set my friends up with each other again.