Introspective Strangers [h.s.]

Chapter 11

"Just... be careful, okay?" he said in a small voice, tucking a piece of my hair behind my ear. "You've had – you have enough to worry about. And he doesn't seem like the best guy."

"Yeah, that's why I punched him," I said with a laugh, but Isaac didn't return it. I swallowed, noting his anxiety was blooming from somewhere that I couldn't relieve him from right now and just nodded. "I'll be okay," I whispered, standing up on my tiptoes and resting my forehead against his. "I'm not going to see him again anyway."

"I know you'll be okay. You always are," he said with a small smile.

With that, he turned on his heel and gave me a small wave before running across the street and starting on the way to his apartment.

--

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

"What the fuck?" I whispered.

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

With a groan, I rolled over in bed and sat up. I rubbed my eyes with my palms and dropped both of my hands onto the comforter, squinting. It was pitch black in my room and for a second, I was completely dazed.

Did something just make a noise?

Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

"Christ, what is that?" I muttered. Light flooded my bedroom as I reached over to the nightstand and flicked my lamp on, realizing as I did so that it was my phone making that noise.

I looked at the clock. It was 3:42 A.M.

"Ugh," I growled, yanking my phone from the charger.

The phone buzzed in my hand and I stared down at it, scrunching my nose up at the harsh light that it was emitting. It took a few seconds for my eyes to adjust before I actually read the contact name that had popped up.

Harry Styles.

"For fuck's sake," I swore, rolling my eyes.

Would I have expected anyone else? It seemed that Harry was the only one who called me nowadays.

"Are you mental?" I asked as I picked up the phone. My voice was hoarse from having just woken up. I thought about how we had left each other earlier in the night and the events that had unfolded in the bathroom hallway. A blush crept across my cheeks and I was grateful that he wasn't here.

"Ah, Killer," Harry said. I could hear through the speaker that he was grinning. "It's nice to hear from you too."

"What is your problem, Harry? It's nearly 4:00 A.M., for Christ's sake." I groaned and fell back on the bed, squeezing my eyes shut in the process.

"I just wanted to hear your voice-"

"Nope," I interrupted. "That is not a valid excuse. Not today, not at this hour."

Harry was silent for a second and then chuckled. "If you really need another reason, I was calling about your boyfriend."

I shot back up, suddenly wide awake. "Isaac?" I sputtered, throwing my comforter off of my legs and jumping to my feet. I put the tip of my thumb into my mouth and began to pace the length of my bedroom. "Why are you calling me? What about him?" I didn't even care at this point to correct Harry about the boyfriend remark.

"I'm calling about his interview, obviously," he responded nonchalantly.

"Okay, I understand that but why are you calling me?"