Illicit [Harry Styles]

Chapter 22

Harry let go of my arm once we reached the bottom of the stairs and I continued to follow him into the living room. He picked up a beer in passing and slumped down into the sofa where we started off; across from Louis, who must've finally sweet talked Mckenzie because she was sitting close to him and he had an arm draped across her shoulders, along with Luke and Zayn who sat chatting next to them - all four huddled on the adjacent sofa to the one Harry and I sat on.

We were sitting reasonably far apart and the air suddenly felt kind of awkward between us once again. He wasn't looking at me - in fact, he wasn't looking at anything, just staring at the wall on the other side of the room while the hustle and bustle of the party consumed him.

"That was close," I spoke up, quietly enough so that no one else would listen in but loudly enough that he would catch it. I wasn't exactly feeling nervous - since the alcohol had clearly worked to loosen me up as proven by the entire goings-on of the evening - but I was a little unsure of how I was supposed to act around him for some reason.

"Yeah," he murmured, still not looking at me, pouting his lips and tucking his top one inside the clear glass bottle as he took a swig of his drink coolly. He spoke specifically to me but he wouldn't have looked like he was even sitting with me to anyone else, like even engaging in a conversation with me was a huge secret and no one could realise it was me he was talking to.

None of the others had taken notice of our presence, and since Harry had decided for whatever reason that he was going to be cold towards me again, I felt rather ignored and definitely like I was beginning to sober up. One minute I was so blind drunk I was tripping over and kissing Harry in the bathroom, and the next I was sitting quietly on the sofa with no one really to talk to and the buzz draining out of me. I really didn't want this time alone with my thoughts to dwell on any of the decisions I'd made tonight.

I slipped my phone out of my back pocket and took a peek at the screen; it was only 11:16pm so I knew we'd be here for at least another hour or two, thus I decided I better get another drink to perk myself up. I stood from the sofa and manoeuvred between the seat and the coffee table, making it past Harry without looking at him. As I was almost done shimmying by, his hand shot up and seized my thigh in a tight grip that immediately loosened once I stopped just beside him.

"Where are you going?" he asked, sounding almost confused, his voice was soft and attentive all of a sudden. I glanced down to find him staring up at me, mainly with his eyes through his dark lashes rather tilting his whole head up to me.

"I was just going to get a drink?" my voice sounded how his face looked: slightly puzzled and maybe a little wary like I didn't want to say the wrong thing like I usually seem to. He was such a strange and frustrating person.

"Don't you think you've had enough for one night?" he challenged in that usual serious tone that just had something about it that allowed me to sense that he was being playful.

"Well you're being boring and it's sucking all the fun out of me, so actually I was thinking I better fuel up."

He furrowed his eyebrows momentarily and then stood up, rising above me with his body close to mine in the narrow space between the seat and the table, "Well I'm coming with you then... to make sure you don't go overboard."

"There'll be people in the kitchen, you know? Sure you want to be seen with me?" I mumbled sarcastically once I'd turned around and started to head to the kitchen with Harry probably following close behind me.

"What?"

"Nothing."

After making myself a drink - which might I add, took a lot longer than expected with Harry for company, since he was practically supervising me and kept telling me it was too strong and making me start over - we went back to the sofas, but our spot was now occupied, so we perched on the coffee table in front of the others and joined in with their conversations.