the moon [h.s.] - EDITING

six.

Morning comes around once again. Harry wakes up to find himself still dressed in the clothes from the night before. And, Luna? She's not around again.

He gets out of bed and heads to his bathroom to take a quick shower. He undresses after setting the warm water to run. He stops to look at himself in the mirror before getting into the shower He frowns at himself as he remembers what had happened at Zavier's place. He should've listened to his gut and went straight to his new home, he tells himself.

As he steps under the warm water, he closes his eyes. He washes his body clean, but his stress is the only thing he can't seem to wash away.

He's remembering his ex-fiancée, Kristen, and how she would jump in the shower with him to rub at his shoulders whenever he was stressed out. Her touch was so heavenly to him.

He keeps his eyes closed and he swears he could almost feel her again. He could hear her.

"Breathe, babe," she whispered to Harry as she left kisses on his jaw and down his neck. "Slowly."

Harry's breathing slowed down. He'd almost forgotten about his long day at work through Kristen's whispers and kisses. It wasn't long until he had fallen completely under her touch and then her mouth.

He whispers her name in the shower as a response to his memory. He opens his eyes to only find himself alone. He scoffs. He feels pathetic.

Harry is having one of those days. One of those days where Harry cannot stop thinking about Kristen. On these days, he's sad and reminiscing about their time together. It always happens after having sex with strangers. He feels guilty when he shouldn't.

Their relationship was good. So good, before the lying and the cheating. Sometimes, he wishes he had never caught her cheating so he would still be able to marry her. It's crazy, but it's true. And on days like these, he can't help but picture what their life would be like if he had married her.

Harry finishes his shower. He turns the water off and dries himself off. He steps into his bedroom with a towel around his waist. After a quiet and short moment, he hears voices from outside his room. He frowns and goes to see who Levi is talking to so early in the morning.

He finds Luna sitting on top of a bar stool by their kitchen island while Levi stands across from her. She's holding his favorite pink mug, cupped into her hands. After laughing at whatever Levi said, she turns her head and sees Harry. "Hey, you..." She smiles at him and even sneaks a glance at his body.

Harry looks at Luna, then at Levi, and back at Luna again. "Um, morning," he said. He thought she left. "Don't you have to go home or something?"

Luna hears Harry and goes quiet. She sets the mug down and seems a little embarrassed in front of Levi. "Yeah." She stifles a laugh and looks away from Harry.

"But we're having coffee and we're getting along!" Levi buds in, trying to get Luna to stay.

"Sorry, Levi. It was nice meeting you, though... I just remembered I gotta go home or something," Luna says. She gets off the stool chair and pushes it back into its place. "Thanks for the coffee." She smiles at Levi and waves goodbye. She walks away.

She's out the door and the room fell quiet.

"Are you good, man?" Levi asks.

"Yeah, why?"

"I don't know... It was just a little rude to kick her out like that." His flatmate is honest.

Harry didn't think he was rude. Was he? "I didn't kick her out... I just figured she has better places to be." He shrugs.

"Oh... Well, I think she's nice and she seems to really like you."

Harry takes in what his mate says. He shakes his head in disbelief. "We don't even know each other," he says. "I'm going to get ready now."

Levi watches Harry walk away. In the short span he has lived with Harry, he already knows when to give him some space. This was one of those times.

»»

Later in the evening, Harry is grabbing dinner with Nolan and a few other interns who aren't as memorable compared to Nolan. As a mentor, Harry must find time to actually mentor the students who aspire to be like him.

The interns talk and laugh. They're loud and full of life. He remembers what it was like to be twenty and still in uni. He was full of life then, too. Before the lying and the cheating.

"Mr. Styles, sir..." Nolan nudges him lightly.

Harry gets taken out of his trance. He looks up to find the interns staring at him. They must laugh at him behind his back. "Sorry... what was the question?" He sits up and takes a drink of his water.

"Is it true that Femme tried to buy you from Á La Mode? What made you stay loyal?"

Harry looks at the girl who asked the question. She has a fruity cocktail and it reminds him of Luna. "Um," he starts. "It's true. Femme reached out to me after a year at Mode. They offered me better pay."

"Woah, why didn't you take it?" Another asks.

"Because once you commit to something, the right thing to do is to stay loyal. You should stay loyal to the one who took a chance on you, and wanted you when the other didn't. So to cheat... I mean, throw away what I had at Mode, it's wrong," Harry says, almost without catching a breath. He bites into his cooked asparagus and chews.

The interns just look at him. There have been rumors about Harry's broken engagement around the office. They sit there awkwardly, except Nolan. Nolan breaks the silence with a laugh. "And, because of what past Femme employees have published right, sir? About the lack of benefits, and a crappy building location?"

Harry stops chewing and realizes he might've said too much. He begins to nod. "Yeah... yeah, that's it. Mode's the best place to work for."