Note To Self (Harry Styles AU)

Chapter Seven.

Harry sat in his usual seat, three rows behind Aubry next to the wall of windows in Anatomy class early Thursday morning. He was exhausted, the words he was trying to read on his paper only making his eyes even more tired. He rubbed at them and stretched out in the hard plastic chair, hoping to wake himself up enough that he didn't wind up falling asleep in the middle of class.

What saved him was when the teacher, Mrs. Violet, stood from behind her desk and walked to the front of the room with her heels clicking against the tiled flooring. That maintained his attention enough too keep him from feeling like his heavy eyelids would close at any second.

He watched as she grabbed a green marker and wrote, "Research Project," in big letters on the whiteboard. He heard a few sighs from other students around the room.

"Don't sigh," she said, snapping the marker closed and turning around to face the class. "I'm not making you write out a 5,000 word essay, it's a project. The topic is diseases." She paused to write that down on the board also, but already there were hands in the air ready to ask questions. They went ignored, and she continued on explaining while writing the details down. "I have slips of paper with names of diseases in a bowl, I'll be going around after to have you pick and whichever one you get is the one you'll do your project on."

He listened in carefully as the details were given to him. "You have exactly two weeks to complete your project, with a full poster with facts about the disease on it. You must come up with information on causes, symptoms, effects, cures or treatment options if there are any, statistics such as who's most likely to get it and how many people in which age groups are effected by it, and ways to avoid it if possible. It must be strictly informational, a typed up paper with an in depth overview of the disease must be handed in alongside the poster. Project presentations will happen in two weeks time."

Papers were passed out to everyone in the class with the project outline on them, and he glanced down at his to see if he'd missed anything she said.

"It will be done in groups of two, so pick your partner wisely because you'll be stuck with them for the next two weeks," she finished off and his eyes left his paper to look at her again. Already there were students looking around the room at their friends and making silent agreements to work together though eye contact and hand gestures. "Pair up."

Everyone in the room began to shuffle around to find their partners, while Harry remained seated. He was internally pouting about the fact that it wasn't a solo project because he always struggled with finding a partner to work with. He was too shy around people he didn't know very well, and everyone always seemed to find someone to work with before he had a chance to ask them.

His eyes scoured the room, watching everyone happily sit down next to their friends, but he wasn't the only one who didn't have a partner. Aubry sat in her seat by herself, paying everyone else absolutely no mind whatsoever. He knew who he wanted to work with.

He was sort of scared to ask. Admittedly, she intimidated him. When it came to asking her for things, at least. No one seemed to be rushing over to ask for her partnership, just like no one was bothering to ask for his, and he decided it would only make sense to pair up with her. At least they kind of knew each other.

He slid out of his seat and grabbed his paper and pen before slowly moving up the few rows to her desk. He was nervous again. He noticed she was doodling on her papers as he peeked over her shoulder, standing behind her because he still hadn't gotten up the courage to speak. A boy bumped his shoulder as he walked by him and it forced him to step closer to her. He took it as a sign to just go for it and reached forward to lightly tap the back of her shoulder in request for her attention.