STUFFED

Mystery Girl

Courtney can't stop thinking about that guy from the party.

It's been a week since prom. Exams are done, school is out, everyone is either on a family vacation or doing their own thing. Courtney has been moping around the house for days now, not knowing what to do with herself.

Her mind keeps going back to laying in bed with him and how he wrapped his arm around her body. It was so cozy. She felt safe, and like she was supposed to be there. Even though the situation they met in was a bit hectic, he still came off as a really affable person. She wishes she had gotten his name.

But, technically, she does know where he lives... 

What does she have to lose? And he said that he didn't have a girlfriend. Not that she's implying that they're going to date or anything but she would enjoy getting to know him a bit more.

Courtney doesn't allow herself to think too hard about it otherwise she'll probably end up talking herself out of it. She takes his clean shirt out of the dryer and folds it before getting dressed and then hopping into the escalade. She stops at the grocery store on the way over and picks up a large container of assorted cream puffs.

It's sort of a struggle to get to the house, because it was dark and she was in a limo the last time she was there, but after a few wrong turns, Courtney pulls up into the super long driveway. There are other cars parked ahead of her so she's hopeful that he'll be home. Once she shuts off the engine and exits the vehicle, it hits her. It becomes real and she starts to get nervous.

What if he doesn't want to see her? Or what if this is the wrong house? She had no doubts before getting out of the car but now she doesn't even feel confident that she's in the correct neighborhood. 

This was kind of a grand gesture. She didn't realize it until now but she's totally pulling a complete Bradyn. Showing up unannounced bearing treats. 

Whatever.

She's here now, there's no turning back. Courtney rings the doorbell. She can hear the chime inside followed by the sound of footsteps. 

A silhouette appears behind the frosted glass and she holds her breath as the door swings open.

It's not him.

But a middle aged woman who shares his eyes stands in front of her.

"Hi there!" She's bubbly and seems friendly.

"–Hi. I just, um... I just came to drop this off for... your son."

"Oh thank you! How kind of you. I'll see that he gets this."

Courtney was sort of hoping that she'd call for him to come to the door. She hesitates after handing over the box with the neatly folded shirt on top but doesn't want to seem weird so she forces herself to say goodbye and walk away. 

She hears the door close behind her. She's right back in the position she was in before. All that adrenaline for nothing. Multiple regrets flood in all at once. She could've written her number on the inside of the box, she could've asked for his name, she even could've told his mom her name.

Maybe this is a sign that it's not meant to be. Some moments in life are just moments. Something doesn't always have to come from them. 

She looks at the front door for the last time before putting the car in reverse and carefully backing out of the driveway. They have plants and a few statues lining the entire length of the drive and she doesn't want to run one over by accident; she's already caused enough physical damage to this family. 

 She breathes a sigh of relief when she reaches the road. Courtney shifts the car past neutral and into drive and then turns the wheel all the way to the right. Before she drives off, something barreling down the driveway catches her eye.

A big body and a pair of bruised eyes are running down the pavement after her.

Courtney smiles. She puts the car in park and rolls down the window. 

"Oh my gosh." Harlow is winded. He puts his hands over his head but that doesn't help, then he bends over and puts his hands on his knees and that doesn't do anything either. 

His chest is burning and he kind of feels like he's going to pass out.

Courtney can't help but notice how flushed his cheeks are. Running down that runway of a driveway was probably the most exercise he's gotten in a while. She contemplates getting out of the vehicle to help him but he's already standing so close to the driver's side door that she doesn't want to risk hitting him by opening it. 

Instead, she just chuckles nervously, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." He responds. He's sort of got his breath back now, "Thank you for taking care of me the other night, and for washing and returning my shirt, and for bringing me treats... You really didn't have to do any of that."

He is thankful for getting the shirt back but he kind of lied about being happy that she washed it.

"Oh it's really not a problem. I mean I messed up such a handsome face, it was the least that I could do."

Was she flirting with him? He doesn't know. All of his energy is being used towards not blacking out.

"Should we sit on the grass for a sec?" Courtney suggests, noticing that he's still struggling.

Harlow doesn't respond, he just turns around and finds a good spot to plop himself down. Courtney only opens the door to jump out when he's a reasonable distance away from the vehicle. 

Courtney sits down on the grass beside him. The grass feels like it should be on a golf course, not in someone's yard. It must take a large amount of effort to maintain it. She runs her hand over it. She looks over at him at the same time that he looks at her. His cheeks are still flushed and he's not breathing as hard but his mouth is still hanging open.

The sun is too hot and he's already completely drained of energy. He feels light headed and still kind of faint but he has to ask her for her name before he misses his chance again.

"What–"

He stops his sentence as Courtney reaches up to touch his eye. Her hand then brushes onto his cheek. 

"What did you tell your parents?"

"That I ran into one of the prettiest girls I've ever seen but wasn't able to get her name because I was too busy bleeding out."

His response makes her laugh, "Did you actually say that?"

"No." Harlow smiles.

"My name is Courtney."

"Harlow."

His name suits him perfectly. 

"So, Harlow. Do girls usually show up at your doorstep bearing gifts?"

He laughs, "Yeah, but they usually show up on Sundays so you're a little late."

"Okay, yeah I could tell just by the way your mom didn't waste any time grabbing it from me. She closed the door so fast."

"I almost had a conniption when she said she didn't get your name."

Courtney giggles. This was working out well. It seems that he's just as interested in her. 

"Did you try the cream puffs I got you?" She knows that he hasn't tried them yet. How could he? He literally just sprinted out of the house to come find her. 

He laughs at the impracticality of her question but plays along, "No, I haven't."

"Do you wanna go try them? We should probably get you inside anyway." She's right. He's probably going to pass out from heat exhaustion if they stay outside any longer.

Harlow looks her in the eyes and then glances down to her lips. He wants to kiss her so badly, "Yeah, sure."

She gets up first and stands in front of him holding out her hands to offer him help up. Harlow takes hold of both of her hands and the pair struggle to get him off of the ground. He laughs and gives up, letting go of her hands and getting up by himself. Courtney shamelessly watches the exposed part of his lower back as he gets up until it disappears under his shirt when he's standing and pulls it down.

Harlow interlaces his fingers with hers and leads them both inside.