Shelter In Your Love (Beatles Fan Fiction)

12. Red Hot

I take a step back from him. 'I can't believe you've just said that to me. After what we've just been through.'

There's a twist in my stomach, even as I'm saying this. Hypocrisy, probably. Guilt, undoubtably. I haven't told George about Klaus. When Klaus kissed me, I didn't know what to do. I still don't know what to do now. I just stared at him for a few seconds and then turned on my heel and ran - actually ran - away and into the hostel, where he couldn't follow me. He didn't come to the Kaiserkeller last night.

George's mouth is a thin line. 'Please, Han. Just leave it. It's none of our business, is it? It'll only cause more upset and arguing.'

'George - '

He steps closer to me and takes my hand again, holds it to his chest. 'Please, Han. At least stay out of it for now, eh? See what happens first.'

We're not going to agree. I nod shortly, but I'm not convinced. I don't want to upset everything again, but I would be betraying Minnie, wouldn't I, if I keep quiet?

George smiles and gives me a quick kiss. He drops my hand and turns to get dressed.

I sit down on George's bed. I don't know what to do about anything. I'm dreading seeing Klaus again. He will be wondering what on Earth is going on, although he didn't come out last night. George didn't ask me much about it. I just told him it had been alright.

' - Han?' George is speaking.

'What?' I ask him, trying to push the thoughts from my mind.

'I said, you'd better get dressed, or we'll be late.'

I nod, absently.

'Han, don't stew about it, okay?' he says, pulling a jumper on over his shirt.

'Did you know? About this 'Cyn'?' I ask him, something else occurring to me.

He looks uncomfortable. 'Yes, I suppose so.'

'Does that happen a lot then? You've all got other girls back at home?'

'Not me,' he says, with a faint smile. 'You're my girl back home and out here, aren't you?' He sits down next to me and puts his arm around me again. 'Besides, you were the one out with another fella yesterday, weren't you?'

I know he's joking but it's too close to the bone. I decide to stop talking about it.

*

'Hey!' Minnie shouts, noticing Astrid and her camera pointing towards us. 'Them, not us. Take their picture. That's what we're here for!'

Astrid laughs. 'A photographer captures whatever her eye sees,' she says as she walks towards us.

'Well, capture Hannah, not me,' Minnie replies as Astrid joins us. 'I look a mess.' She smiles, but she means it. She walks away, over towards where the boys wait.

Astrid and I exchange looks. 'She's never liked her photo taken,' I tell her.

'No?' Astrid asks. 'That is a pity. She is very pretty, isn't she? You two make a nice frame together.'

I smile and give her a half shrug.

'Minnie though, she has a... uh, I don't know a word in English for it. A kind of beautiful sorrow, a longing.' Astrid lifts her camera again and takes another shot of Minnie as she stands a short distance away talking with John and Stu. 'Don't tell her,' Astrid says to me, conspiratorially.

I nod absently as we watch Minnie and the boys. I don't understand what Astrid means. Minnie isn't sad. She's fine. Living in Liverpool was enough to make you sad, but Minnie would never let it drag her down. That was her thing. What I know about John would be enough to make her sad, but right now, she's not got anything to be sad about. I wonder if Astrid meant something else, she didn't chose quite the right word.