1996 [harry au]

VII. Cinema

I turned to look at him, inevitably at a close distance to his face. My eyes averted down, away from his overwhelming ones. "You say that a lot," I whispered softly.

"Because it's true. I'm surprised you weren't whisked away by some other guy before I even got the chance to ask you first," he confessed, my pulse nearly stopping with the sincerity of his tone.

The movie began and we were silent for the most part of it unless we were laughing or sharing popcorn. At one point, he opened his mouth and beckoned me to feed it to him. I reached into the bag and placed one into his mouth, but he bit my finger teasingly before I could pull it away. I would giggle and scoff, nevertheless enjoying the time we were spending together. 

He gestured that he would feed me this time. I opened my mouth and he leaned forward, popcorn ready to go until he placed a kiss on my nose and threw it into his mouth instead. My lips parted in a playful gasp, eyes narrowing at him. He chuckled at my reaction. 

Another moment passed before I felt his arm wrap around my waist, pulling my body closer to his side. I nearly melted when he gently caressed the tips of his fingers against the my thigh, the gesture both achingly soothing and alarming to my heart. 

"I've seen the movie hundreds of times since it came out last year, with my little brother Max," Harry informed me as we walked around the field like many people were doing. The movie had been over now and I still had maybe half an hour to spare before Nonna could "hunt him down". 

I walked beside him, still holding the popcorn bag that was now nearly empty. "Little brother? How old?" 

"His full name is Maximilian Styles, but we call him Max because we just got really lazy. He's six. He's going into the first grade after summer." 

"Aw, is he a cutie?" I asked him teasingly.

"Well he looks a bit like me, so yeah. He is," he cockily remarked. "Are you done with the popcorn?" He questioned, and I nodded. He grabbed it from me and tossed it into a trash bin we were walking by. "So...how about you? Any siblings?" 

She nodded. "I have an older sister, Rebecca. She's into all that political stuff," I told him. "She rarely comes to visit. We call her on her birthday and we never succeed in convincing her to visit." 

"Yeah, I know the feel. Mine's like that, too. Gemma." He sighed. "For now, it's just me and my dad and Max. Plus our kitten Bubbler." 

I frowned lightly. "Where's your mom?" 

He shrugged. "In California? She always had this wild dream to be an actress, and here she felt so deprived of her ambitions. My dad thought the only way to make her happy is to send her there -- the golden coast. He saved up the money and there she is now. She calls every now and then," he explained. "Yours?" 

"Uh...rarely see mine. They're always traveling the world for charities. I didn't feel like it this year for some reason, and I came here with my Nonna. Just because I haven't seen her in such a long time, and I missed being insulted by her," I said with a smile. 

Harry chuckled. "You really love your grandmother. I can tell. Just by the way you care for her."

"She's the best." I laughed. 

"Mine is up there somewhere. Hopefully in Heaven," he looked up, and I did, too. 

I felt an ache for him. It was dull and unpleasantly hallow. "I'm sorry."

"No, don't be. It's okay. I've come to terms that she'll never come back. And honestly, she's much safer up there than anywhere down here. I like to think she's happy," he told me quietly.