Wild Flowers - A Harry Styles Fanfiction

Chapter One

Chapter One - Goodbye, Portsmouth. Hello Plymouth.

    Growing up my mother would occasionally say, "A flower is only as beautiful as the bee who pollinates it, the gardener who tends to it, and the rain that falls upon it." and I never truly understood.

    She said it the first time I scraped my knee, and again when I got my first period, she whispered it to me when she sent me off on prom night, and again when I graduated high school. Now, I am starting my Freshman year of college, the ripe age of eighteen, and I still have no clue what she means. She has always been something of a poet, a cryptic one at that.

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    "Eleanor!" My mother shouts from the shower.

    "Coming!" I yell. My family has always loved showers. In my opinion, there is no feeling as great as being clean. I make my way from the kitchen to the bathroom, pondering whether she needs a new bar of soap or a towel from the cabinets. "What's up, mum," I say though the door.

    "What time do you need to leave?" She asks me. I'm leaving for campus today so I have the weekend to unpack and settle in, my first semester starts in three days.

    "I was planning on leaving around seven-thirty. I just made a pot of coffee its on the stove if you would like some," I say with a small smile playing on my lips.

    "That sounds good, dear. Thank you," she replies, and I make my way back to the kitchen. My mother has always been kind to me. When her and my father divorced a few years ago, we became something of a duo. I went everywhere with her. The grocery store, doctors appointments, the park, walks, funerals, weddings, and everything in between. We were always together, sort of best friends. I didn't have many friends in High School, only my boyfriend, Theo. We have been together since my junior year. He asked me to the prom, and we have been dating ever since. He is only one grade ahead of me so he started school last year and I was able to visit on weekends, but this will be our first year this far apart.

    I approach the kitchen cabinets and grab my favorite mug from the bottom shelf, it has a daisy painted on it with the words 'I love you, always' engraved in the side of the ceramic. Theo gave it to me one of the weekends I visited him last year. We spent all of our free time this summer going on walks and simple dates. This morning is going to be the last time we see each other until winter break. I will be attending Plymouth State working on my English major, and he will be attending Johnson and Wales again for his second year in Culinary Arts. I am going to miss him, he has always cared for me and treated me so well. I fill my mug to the brim with coffee, adding cream and sugar when I hear a knock at the door.

    I rush to the door excited to see Theo before I leave today, his courses start sometime next week. I grip the handle and swing our front door open to be met with a warm familiar face. I smile from ear to ear as he enters the small house and close the door behind him. I open my arms wide and he encases me in one of his infamous Theo style hugs. His blonde hair is styled to perfection, not a single hair out of place, and he is wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a white t-shirt. It suits him, he looks adorable. He is a whole head taller than me, so he bends down and wraps his arms around me, his head resting the crook of my neck. Butterflies dance around in my stomach, knowing we will only have a few more of these hugs before I leave today. 

    "I missed you," he says into my hair. I can tell he is wearing the cologne I purchased for him recently, and a shove my nose further into his neckline. I laugh, smile still evident on my face. "What?" He questions me with a raised brow.

    "You saw me last night," I laugh again. "But I missed you, too"

    He smiles and laughs with me, "I'm going to miss that sound," he states, "and I'm going to miss laughing with you," A small frown sets into his face. This is always a sad day for us. I wish he could have found a college closer to me, but Johnson and Wales has the best culinary program offered in the country, and my mother couldn't afford it even with the scholarships I received and student loans I took out. The dorms alone were half of her salary.

    "Only a few months until Winter break, we will be together in no time. Don't even worry about it, we will both be so distracted with school the time will fly by. Me with my novels and ridiculously long papers, and you with your... knives and stuff," I giggle at my own choice of words and he joins me.

    "Knives and stuff, huh?" He mocks, I playfully swat his arm and turn to walk towards the kitchen, he follows and lists off kitchen tools and how they differ from one another, I stopped listening after he mentions a how a paring knife should only be used for chopping up small fruits. I grab my mug off the kitchen island and lean into the speckled linoleum behind me while he continues, taking small sips and throwing a few 'oh wow's' and 'that's cool's' in the mix of sentences.

    My mother enters the kitchen a few minutes later with a towel concealing her short brown hair, wearing a white floral dress ironed to perfection and simple nude heels. "Don't mind my hair, Theodore, I wasn't aware we had company just yet," She smiles at him and shoots a playful glare in my direction. She makes her way to the stove, grabbing a simple white mug from the cabinet before pouring herself a cup of coffee and taking a small sip. " Ooh, still hot, just the way I like it," she smiles and Theo chuckles. "Would you two like me to make some breakfast, I'm feeling a bit peckish, myself." She flashes an award winning smile at myself and Theo before taking another sip.

    Theo smiles back at her, "I could eat, what about you, Elle?" He asks, now looking in my direction with a toothy grin. 

    "Yeah I could go for some French toast, is that okay?" I look at my mother, she nods before placing her mug on the linoleum and grabbing a few pans from the drawer under the oven. "I am going to shower before we eat, I will be right out."

    I finish my coffee and place my cup in the sink before heading upstairs to my bedroom to grab some clothes, settling on a white cropped t-shirt and a pair of high waisted loose jeans for move in day. After hurrying back downstairs I pass through the kitchen and head to the bathroom, turning the water on before stepping out of my pajamas. I fold my dirty clothes and place them next to the sink, and I check the temperature of the water before stepping into the shower. The water instantly soothes my back, the warmth pulling the tension out of my muscles and loosening them. I finish up my shower a few minutes later and wrap my towel around my small frame. Once I brush my teeth, get dressed, blow dry and pull my blonde hair into a ponytail, I exit the bathroom feeling much better than I did before.

    Theo and my mom are already eating when I enter the kitchen so I grab a plate while my mom questions him about his classes this year. All of us make small talk about the upcoming year while we all finish breakfast, clearing our plates afterward. Theo heads upstairs to grab my suitcases as I get ready to leave. I tell Theo that I love him and promise I will call him everyday. My mother hugs me goodbye while stifling a sob, claiming it never gets easier as I inch my way to my car. I tell them I love them and I will text both of the upon arrival to campus. The drive there is just over an hour, I should be all checked in by ten. My mother blows kisses and I pretend to catch them as I back out of the driveway. As I am driving down my street a small smile creeps its way to my face and I laugh. Fucking finally.

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*( Hello!! This is my first ever story on Wattpad and I am so incredibly excited!!! Stay tuned for updates, I am going to be making them as frequent as possible!!! Leave a comment, vote, and share if you can!!! I am going to list some songs that inspire the chapters in the future so keep an eye out !!!           -Killjoy)