evergreen ↠ harry styles ✓

+16

There was nothing River could've done, except offer her condolences and be there for her best friend. Even though Mila needed privacy and nothing else, River made sure to check in on her every other hour.

When Harry contacted River, she didn't have much hope for any good news to be shared. In fact, she almost expected him to say something negative to rain on her parade even more.

"Please explain why you asked me here," she prompted and broke the silence that otherwise would've snowed them in. As nice as it was to be out of her usual comfort zone, River needed to understand why he requested her presence.

"I need your help."

She sighed to herself. "You've mentioned as much over the phone."

"Right," he pulled himself together quickly and visibly. His body seemed to almost jump into place as he sat up straighter and darted his tongue across his bottom lip. Harry's knee hit the bottom of the table which wasn't stable enough to stand the force—their coffees nearly went over the rim of their cups. In fact, Harry's leaked over and he swore as he cleaned up the plate with a couple of napkins. He seemed unlike himself which River thought was a fair conclusion. Compared to his usual calm and collected, he appeared to be someone else entirely.

He took a moment to ball up the used napkins and put them in the corner of the tray. Eventually, he said, "I know that Juliette is struggling, and I know you also know."

"Struggling?"

River felt lost for a moment. Once Harry met her gaze—he kept his own focused on the table between them at first, then strictly over River's shoulder—she understood what he meant. It was a gut feeling, sharp and cold as a knife.

"She told you this?" she proceeded to ask because surely, if Harry knew, he only knew because Juliette told him. If he only suspected the truth, River didn't want to be the one to throw the McAllister heir under the theoretical bus.

"I figured it out."

"Hm," River tilted her head softly as she measured up the man before her. Of course, he wasn't stupid. "And you, without a doubt, assumed I am part of this... struggle, as you call it."

"Yes," he said. Then added swiftly, "But not in the way you might think I think."

"How do you think I think you think?"

A moment of silence kept both of them without a breath of fresh air. When it broke, slowly but surely as their lips quirked up at the sides, they both chuckled.

Harry cleared his throat and brushed his index finger beneath his nose. Without hesitation, River sniffled.

He said, "I ended up asking her about it, and she told me you helped her in the past but didn't go into too much detail. I also know that the way you probably helped will be out of... let's just say, we don't run in the same circles so I most likely won't be able to get the same contacts you do but I'm sure you could recommend someone else?"

If the confusion River felt didn't show on her face, she didn't know how she could've portrayed her feelings. Nerves got the better of the man before her and it was strange. Nothing like he was at the hospital when his brother was admitted—those were different nerves. These nerves... part shame, part uncertainty. Worry etched into his features clear as water.

While River processed—tried—the words he spewed, she tasted her latte in a couple of careful sips. Her tastebuds welcomed the familiar taste, the sweetness then the hit of coffee. It was late in the day but she could never say no to a boost of energy. Given the overseas call she had later in the evening, she was grateful for it.