Pulling Heart Strings

8.

I let out a sigh, offering him a reassuring smile as I went over to him and sat on his lap. He looked taken aback for a second before he smiled and wrapped his arms around my waist.

The way his green eyes bored into mine, and the black in the middle seemed to melt right into the amazing green, got me to wince away from him.

Damn that picture.

Harry noticed as his eyes furrowed together, and I had to act quick. "I am completely okay, Harry, alright? You don't have to worry about me."

"But I do, love." I chuckled at his response, kissing his cheek as I hoped off him to rummage through my purse to find my perfume, deodorant, and lotion. We stayed in a period of silence while I rubbed on deodorant, sprayed on perfume, including some on Harold, and rubbed lotion on my legs.

He finally let out a sigh as he stood up from my bed, came up to me, and kissed my forehead while running his hands up and down my arms.

"You're something else, Joey."

"What do you mean?" I questioned, cocking my head to a side. Harry smiled, running his fingers up and down my cheek while staring into my eyes. Something sparked inside of me, and I held back a small gasp. That feeling, I did not like. He left me wondering what he meant as he simply shrugged and walked out of my room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

*HARRY'S P.O.V*
Her voice was so weak, almost shaking and timid when she allowed me into her room and told me she was going to take a shower. While Joey showered, I causally scanned around her room with my eyes. This one was much like the apartment one back in California.

Christmas lights adorned the border of her room with vinyls lined up right underneath them. There were a few pictures of her and Zayn taped onto a canvas, which hung on the teal walls, then some with two other girls, and then some with her parents. I smiled at the pictures, knowing how sweet Joey was. Like the apartment, Joey had a bookshelf in this room stocked with various novels. I was about to go up to their spine and see what this interesting girl dug her nose into each night when her phone dinged right beside me.

Now, it wasn't very much like me to go snooping around someone's phone but... this was Joey, and I was very worried about her. Especially since she skipped breakfast and rushed up here. I scolded myself as I looked at the message from Nicole.

Nicki:
He never deserved you, Jo. Come on, answer me. I know you're reading this, you bitch.

So many thoughts and questions were clouding my mind. I knew that bastard Davis was no good for her from the moment I saw him at her graduation.

Dark spots clouded my vision, and I was about to respond when the bathroom door squeaked open. It startled me, and I quickly dropped her phone, looking up to notice Joey standing in front of me with only a towel wrapped around her.

She didn't seem to notice me snooping through her phone, but she did notice my wandering eyes. I looked away, blushing awkwardly when she went to the door and locked it. I chuckled, knowing it was a good idea to prevent anybody barging in on us like this. "What did you need?" she rested on her knees as she searched through her luggage. "I wanted to talk." I muttered the obvious, noticing how stiff she was. Something was bothering her, that's a no-brainer.

And her shaking hands weren't the only sign. All of a sudden, I saw a pair of panties and a black bra go flying out from her suitcase, landing next to her. I laughed, watching Joey scurry hide those under her leg. Her wide eyes signaled me she was horrified, but I kept laughing.

"About?"

"You're acting strange. Are you okay?" I asked after calming myself down.

"Well, no. You just saw my bra and panties." she responded as she gathered her chosen clothes and stood up.

I ran a hand through my curls and chuckled. "Other than thar, Jo," she shifted her weight from foot to foot, "there's something else."

"I'm alright." she shifted her body to go back into the bathroom, but I stopped her as I laid on my belly and buried my face in her lovely-smelling covers. I inhaled the smell endlessly.

"You can tell me what's up, love. You can trust me."
"It's not that I don't trust you..." she trailed off for a few seconds, "it's that there's nothing wrong." complete bullshit. I rolled my eyes so hard, I swear they almost got stuck at the back of my head.

"You're lying."
"No, I'm not."
"You were crying."
"You can sit up now." I obliged, facing her with my elbows on my knees and a waiting expression on my face. "And I was not crying."
"I know when you've been crying, Joey." I informed her of my knowledge.

When I witnessed her crying back in California, the image was burned into my brain. It was a sight that was heartbreaking, and that I would never forget. I knew the tears had been leaking out of her eyes when dark pink rimmed around those blue eyes, her cheeks blushed, and the tip of her nose turned red. It was cute, yet painful to see.

Jo let out a sigh, smiling kindly as she padded her way over and sat down on my lap. It was an abrupt gesture I was not expecting, but I didn't mind at all as I wrapped my arms around her waist and smiled up a her. The smile got wiped away when she winced when I pulled her tighter against me.

Her eyes went, wide and a small gasp fell from her lips. She looked frightened as hell. Soon, she recovered, probably after noticing I was intently studying her. "I am completely okay, Harry, alright? You don't have to worry about me." her voice was so soothing.

"But I do, love." I whispered before Joey chuckled, kissed my cheek, and hopped off my lap. Silence surrounded us while she did what girls do after they shower and I was left with my thoughts. The message still flashed behind my eyes in annoying way. Her dull attitude, even though she was posing a happy one, gave off that bad vibe. I wanted to question Jo, but she'll only get upset that I read her private message.

That was not a quality anybody wanted to have.

That didn't take away the fact that it still bothered me, and made me worry more about this girl. Her body was less tense, and she seemed more relaxed, but there was still an uneasy aura around her. I pushed away my thoughts as I let out a sigh and went up to her, kissing her soft forehead while warming up her cold arms with my hands.

"You're something else, Joey." I burst out, surprising myself as much as her. "What do you mean?" she smiled that amazing smile, my fingers still trailing up and down her smooth cheek. Her eyes were so beautiful, and I found myself getting lost in them. They were so intriguing and mysterious, like galaxies.

Fuck. What was happening to me?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

awwwww. Relationship goals asf tbh...

anyway, how is everybody?

I FINALLY UPDATED AND I AM SO HAPPY! I had to type this on my phone btw like copy it from my computer but it sucked sooooo much and there was so much more but I was so tired bc I spent 2 hours typing.

omfg.

Anyway, at least I got an extra chapter! Yay! If you see an mistakes then sorry but I tried my best and I'll fix those later :)
Hope you liked this!!
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-love, Charlotte Q. xx
(btw, those reading If I Survive, be prepared for an edited version! And also I'm starting on 2 new books coming this fall.. hopefully.. x)
(If you aren't reading IIS, go read it! Reads and votes are growing yayyyy)