Asleep {h.s}

vi - The Great Gatsby

// past //

"Would you just relax, you're going to freak her out." Niall said to his friend.

He didn't need to look at Harry to know that he was nervous. They had only been driving for fifteen minutes and from the moment Niall started the car, Harry had been fumbling with his hands. Harry's window was down, allowing fresh air to circulate in the car. But the air in the car was still barely breathable to Harry. He couldn't handle the situation and almost told Niall that he was sick this morning. It wouldn't have been a complete lie because Harry was so stressed, it was eating at him, his stomach was in knots and his temperature was high, it was unbearable. But as much as the thought of seeing her again was nerve wrecking, it was also liberating. He couldn't wait to see Azalea and he hoped that she wouldn't be upset with him for his attitude last time she saw him.

"I can't relax Niall," Harry complained. "How ridiculous is that."

He nervously laughed, wiping his hands on his jeans to get rid of the moisture.

"I don't even know her, Niall. Why am I so nervous?"

Niall kept his mouth shut, he knew that it was a rhetorical question and that whatever answer he would give, Harry wouldn't have it. The situation was funny to Niall, seeing his friend so nervous was unusual and his behaviour had something comical about it. But Niall knew better than to smile right now, so he kept a straight face.

"Do they know that I'm coming along?" Harry turned to Niall with wide eyes.
"I told Aiden, don't know if he told the others."
"How should I approach her, Niall?" he rested his head on the headrest and grunted, "I'm sure she thinks I'm bipolar or something."

Are you not? Niall said to himself. This time he couldn't help but smile at his joke.

"Why are you smiling?" Harry said with panic. "You think she does, don't you?"

Harry grabbed his hair and pulled them. He felt like he was going insane, so many questions were going through his mind, so many scenarios, all much worst than the last.

There is no way that this is going to end well, Harry thought.

He looked outside and vaguely considered opening his door and throwing himself out of the moving car.

"Calm down, will ya'?" Niall said with a small laugh. "It's going to be okay."

Harry sighed in response. He didn't say anything because he knew that he needed Niall's calming words right now.

"You said you two got along well Monday, I don't see why it would be different this time", his friend said reassuringly. "Just be yourself and everything is going to be alright."
"What if it isn't?"
"Then it wasn't meant to be," Niall lowly said.

Harry frowned at his friend's words; he didn't want them to be true.

"How do I approach her?"
"Well, at first, I would say to just tell her hi, don't start a big conversation with her. You'll be too nervous to form a full sentence," Niall laughed while Harry grunted. "We'll be walking around town, maybe wait until you have something relevant to say and start a conversation. I'll try and keep the others occupied."
Harry turned to his friend. "Thank you so much for doing this, Niall. Really."
"It's no problem Haz."

The rest of the ride was silent, at some point Niall turned the radio on, hoping that it would sooth Harry and it did for a little while. But when Harry saw the familiar roads that lead to Mullingar, his stress was back to its high.
Niall handed his phone to him.

"Would you mind texting Aiden that we're there in 5 minutes?"

Harry nodded and quickly did it.
They entered the town and Niall parked his car next to a public park. He turned off the car and looked at Harry with encouragement.