evergreen ↠ harry styles ✓

+11

"Good evening," River greeted him, amusement in her voice, a smile proudly sat on her face. Harry automatically reached for his seatbelt and River followed his movements, another silly thought in her mind about how well he fit into her car. When he was safe and secured, he sighed and ran his fingers through his hair then planted both of his hands on his spread out, toned thighs. The veins ran up the back of his hands, thick, until they disappeared beneath the sleeve of his blazer.

Back in the car, the door slammed, and River glanced towards the rear-view mirror. Tony awaited River's slight nod before he started up the car, and they were on their way.

"So, I thought I would give you a little rundown of what, and specifically who to expect there," River started up right away, practically allergic to the silence between them at any given moment. When it happened in such climates, only half a body of a distance from one another, it became worse. "Henriette Faucheux is one of the most talented artists I have ever known, and it is her grand opening tonight. I have met her a couple of times, and she is a great acquaintance of my family."

"Hm."

"Henriette painted my parents' wedding portrait, and offered to do so for my brother's, but Kaia found someone else. Of course," River sighed inwards. "This caused a little bit of a cold shoulder to develop, and so it has been a difficult five years of making up. Though, you must take into consideration that Henriette travels the world to find inspiration, and likes to live in different countries for extended periods. This certainly makes the task of sweetening her up intricate."

While silence encouraged River's rant, it was clear Harry listened, even with his elbow propped on the car door by the window, eyes on the outside. He spoke when she quieted down to catch her breath. "So, what?" he scoffed, and ran his palm down the length of his thigh, still leaned against the side of the car like he wanted to crawl into it so he didn't need to sit so close to River. "You want me to charm her into your arms? Is that why I'm really here?"

River chuckled. "No, of course not," she said. "You're here because you needed a distraction, and time away from your family. Which I completely understand."

"What does that mean?" he asked but still refused to look at River.

"Everyone needs time away from their family sometimes," she responded simply. Heaven knew River begged for it every now and again but she always had an escape plan. Maybe Harry needed those tips more than she realised before. "Anyway, I do not need you to charm Henriette to me. I can do it alone. I am simply filling you in on the situation so you don't say anything that will compromise my mission."

"I won't breathe a word," he muttered. Grumpy as ever. Did he ever laugh? Genuinely? River couldn't recall a time when he did. Even with his nephew around earlier... he smiled, and chuckled, but laugh? She could not imagine the sound of his laughter, not the real one, anyway. Then again, she had no idea why she even thought of such matters.

"While that is promising, I'm afraid your attitude will need to change for the duration of the event. Is that something you can manage, or would you like a lollipop to elevate your mood?"

This comment seemed to struck him where it was aimed. For Harry turned to her finally, and while his eyes could've killed her on the spot, and he certainly would've gotten away with her murder, she felt victorious because somehow, she managed to be more interesting than the blurry trees, and cars, in passing.

"A lollipop?"

"Anthony has some in the glovebox," she smiled, much too entertained. River leaned forward slightly, then asked her chauffeur, "What flavours do we have left? Must do a stock up soon."