Speechless (Harry Styles AU)

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

The wind had penetrated its way to the bitter edges of my broken soul before I realized where I was going. I had thoughtlessly made my way to an eerie place, a place that I didn’t want to return. Not now, not ever.

I slowed my pace and wrapped my arms tight around my body. This was the first time since I left the school I let myself recognize the cold that was biting at my body. Glancing around I let the memories flood back at me.

 The way the empty swings swayed violently in the wind, the lifeless playground equipment in the field of untouched woodchips, the rustle of the leaves on the ground and the rattle of the tree branches against one another.

This was the park, the park where I first learned about Amelia, the park where I first learned who Harry truly was and why he had such a dark aura about him. With reluctance I sat on the cold red bench exactly where Harry had sat a little over a month ago. If I had a choice I would keep running.

I would run to the edge of town and beyond. I would run until the agonizing pain that was eating away at my heart disappeared. I would run until this place had faded to black in my memory.

Pulling my arms close I let myself fall back into the memory of Harry. The weakness and vulnerability that radiated off of him as he spoke about his sister was unprecedented by anyone I had ever met before. He was bearing all to me when he was telling me about the bitter regret he had about losing his sister.

“Um excuse me sweetheart,” a tender voice called in my direction breaking me away from my thoughts.

Turning my head I saw a small mother type woman standing above me with a stroller close behind. She was dressed from head to toe in winter running clothes and her child, who couldn’t be more than a year old, was bundled up tight with layers of coats and blankets snuggled tight against her in the stroller.

“Are you alright?” she asked her voice soft and concerned.

I could only imagine what I looked like right now, with tear streaks down my cheeks, nose bright red wearing only a sweatshirt in harsh cold weather sitting alone at in the middle of a park during the school day.

Whipping the tears off my face I nodded slowly trying to get her to leave me alone. She seemed like a lovely women but there was no way we could ever have a conversation.

“I don’t like leaving you out here in the cold like this,” she spoke softly pulling the stroller closer to us and sitting down beside me on the bench.

I turned my face away from her and tried to shut her out, but I was without avail.

“Can you at least tell me your name?” She asked placing her hand on my shoulder, “I’m Caroline.”

Halfheartedly I turned back to face Caroline, she had kind blue eyes that longed for me to respond to her. Her lips had a tinge of blue to them from the cold and I could tell she was nervous from the constant biting she was doing at the inside.

Raising my shivering fingers I signed to her slowly knowing she wouldn’t understand, “I’m mute, but my name is Genevieve.”

The recognition washed over her face with a gust of wind, “oh are you deaf?” She asked her eyes widening.

I shook my head and pointed to my mouth, this was an instant assumption for nearly everyone I met. It was normal for someone to be deaf, but being mute was taboo.

“Well,” Caroline stopped and glanced down at her daughter then back towards me.

Her face had morphed from concern to sadness in a matter of moments. She pitied me, she felt bad for talking to me now. It would be just as every other interaction with people who didn’t know ASL ended. They would stammer then figure out a way to leave with the least amount of awkwardness left lingering in the air.