VALERIE

Chapter 26.9: Homerun

The first thing that I have in mind when I entered the room is it’s nowhere near to what an office should look like. It’s like a small house, a room even with the absence of a bed. It has a TV set on top of the drawer, a small fridge in the corner, sure there’s a brown wooden table on one side of the room. I mentally cringe at the sight of the few empty food-wrappers on the tiled floor. It seems that Norman read my mind when he immediately gets rid of them by dusting them off under the cabinet with his foot. I’m impressed with his way of cleaning.

I can’t help but think that Harry is quite the opposite of Norman. Harry is a tidy person—he can’t stand the sight of clatters around our kitchen, the bathroom, the lounge, everywhere. I even remember him yelling at me for drying sets of my underwear inside the shower—one of the fondest memories when we started living together.

“VALERIEEEE!!!!” I heard Harry yell from the top of his lungs inside the bathroom while I was at the lounge, watching some random rerun of my favourite comedy series, Friends. “Valerie, come over to the bathroom. Now.” His roaring made me stand up from my seat grumpily and I turn off the TV before heading towards the bedroom.

I had no single clue what it is this time that he is complaining about. We’ve been fighting over silly stuffs ever since we started going out in public.

My steps were casual as I head to the open door of the bathroom and I immediately stopped in my tracks when I saw my red bikini bottom hanging on Harry’s forefinger. My mouth flung open and I felt my eyeballs almost fall out of their sockets.

“What are these things doing in my shower?” He growls at me, gesturing his other hand to the garments hanging on the straw I had attached to opposite ends of the shower.

I quickly snatched the little article from his hand and dug it in the back pocket of my denim shorts. “I don’t know where else to put it. It’s raining outside, I can’t dry them under the sun.” I explained to him.

“Duh?” He retorted, “We have this machine called a dryer, Valerie.”

“I know, but I called you about it this morning. I think I might have wrecked it.” I cast my head down as I finish my timid statement, knowing that he could yell at me any moment now.

“What?! You wrecked the dryer?!” See?

“I’m sorry, Ma’am but it’s the only place I could offer you to hide in.” Norman subconsciously snatches me out of my thoughts. A smile appears on my face as I brush off the memory of one of my first fights with Harry. Looking back, I really find it funny when he used to yell at me. But now it’s different. I’ve become sensitive with the way his emotions affect me.

“It’s okay, Norman. It’s better than nothing. Thank you so much.” A reassuring smile blooms on my face as he begins to take a step towards the door.

“Uhm… uh,” He holds the door open and turns around to look at me again. “You’re Harry Styles’ girlfriend, right?” He sheepishly asks me and I begin to notice that he regrets to ask when he looks down to the ground and scratch the back of his head. “I’m sorry to ask, I was just-“

“Yes, I am.” I cut him off, answering his question anyway. He quickly snaps his head to look at me and he smiles eerily.

“Yes. You’re Valerie Scott. I didn’t even realize until I guide you to this awful room.” He looks around the small room, cringing to himself as he chuckles.

I giggle at his shy remark and I sweetly smile at him. “You don’t need to worry. I don’t mind.” I tell him matter-of-factly. “You can go back to work now. I’ll call someone to help me out of this mess. I’m sorry for disturbing you.”