Song For This Chapter:
Smooth Criminal- Michael Jackson
Sounding heartbeats, intimidation
Annie are you okay?
So, Annie are you okay?
Are you okay Annie?
--------
Darlenes POV:
"Why did we have to go at night this makes it so much worse" I say anxiously as we approach the entrance. My stress levels are already rising and we aren't even in.
"It's not as fun during the day, it's scarie-" he quickly cuts himself off turning to me and giving me a dramatic smile.
"Scarier at night, go ahead and finish your sentence" I respond with a sigh.
Trust me, I know how annoying I'm being. But imagine how frustrating it is for me. I don't wanna be this way but yet here I am.
"You're gonna make me feel bad for forcing you here" Harry responds with a soft laugh, pulling me into his side as we continue walking.
"Don't" I sigh, wrapping one of my arms around his back, "the last thing I wanna do is ruin the trip you do each year" I try and reassure.
I mean it, even if this isn't exactly my thing I'm not gonna let it put me in a bad mood.
There's a bit of a line at check in but once we're through I look down the path ahead of us which is already swarmed with...monsters? Actors? I don't even know what to call them.
Harry's pace doesn't let up, he's just going for it. No mental preparation, no pause in our journey.
Great, love that.
I fall a bit behind, unknowingly my pace slowing down a bit. See, even my subconscious is trying to tell me not to go any further.
But the last thing I need is for these actors to see me by myself, I feel that makes me more of a target. I lightly jog a few steps to catch up with Harry who hasn't even noticed my absence.
He looks down at me when he feels my presence, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. Clearly he just realized I wasn't walking with him that whole time. He just raises an eyebrow as if to say 'you okay?'.
I nod my head even though my heart rate is starting to pick up. I just move closer to him to tightly grip on his forearm.
I should just hide behind him.
No. Oh my god I'm so annoying.
He doesn't comment on my actions thankfully. I know he's going to make fun of me, I've given up hope on trying to convince him not to.
I jump slightly when I hear screams, the sound coming from behind us. I turn my head to the side seeing two girls being chased by a man with a chainsaw.
They run past us, the man on their tail but he lets them get away stopping a bit ahead of us.
I hope to god he doesn't approach us.
I just avoid looking at him, I hold my breath when we're about to walk by him. But Harry's keeping his normal pace, when I hear the roar of the chainsaw I jump quickening my pace and dragging him along.
"Walk faster" I say trying to hide the embarrassing amount of stress I feel. Having to drag him is slowing me down and I'm about to let go and speed walk my way through this area.
I release my tight grip I have on his arm about to pull alway but he catches my own arm, keeping me there.
"Okay okay" Harry says with a soft laugh finally matching my fast pace and I instantly feel relieved.
Once we're finally far enough away from the swarm of them I let out a breath of relief.
I turn my head to look at Harry, "I'm sorry" I state guiltily already feeling like I'm ruining his fun.
"Don't be, it's cute" he responds, brushing a stray piece of hair behind my ear.
I look at him with an accusing expression painted on my face, "It's not cute it's annoying"
"I knew what I was getting into by bringing you here, I wouldn't have done it if I thought it was 'annoying'" He explains putting air quotes around the word.
My jaw drops, "So you did it on purpose?!"
I shouldn't be surprised.
"You get all cute and clingy" Harry responds with a shrug as if his reasoning was obvious.
"No guy finds being clingy appealing" I state shaking my head in disbelief.
"No like literally clingy," he clarifies, "you did it at Hershey Park too, wouldn't have admitted it then but I found it adorable" he teases, giving me a playful look.
I just continue staring at him in disbelief. I mean I guess it's the same reasoning a guy will pick a horror movie for you to watch on a date.
"Well then you're in for a real treat" I state in a reluctant tone, patting his chest lightly.
He just gives me a satisfied look, wiggling his eyebrows making me shake my head.
At least I know I won't completely annoy him. But I have a feeling he doesn't know what he's in for.
"Shit, we didn't grab a map" I state, pausing our movements. I look around my gaze locking in on a random gift shop.
"I'll be right back I'm gonna see if they have any in there" I state, letting go of his arm and entering the store.
I make my towards the register hoping there's either some in the counter or maybe the cashier can give me one.
I pause when I see a bunch of capes on a rack. I don't even hesitate when I grab two. I laugh to myself quietly already imagining what we're gonna look like.
Now that I have a Superman and Superwomen cape I finally walk up.
Just as I hoped there was a container in front of the register with a bunch of maps. I purchase our beautiful capes and grab two of the pamphlets on the way out.
I know he's gonna constantly steal it from me if I don't get him his own.
It takes me a second to locate him since he wandered away. He's standing near some booth closing up his wallet and beginning to put it in his pocket.
His back is to me so I take the opportunity to sneak up on him.
I undo the the velcro at the front, quickly going to put it around his neck. I have to go on my tip toes in order to reach.
He quickly whips around holding a looking of confusion but once his eyes land on me his features soften.
I just hold my own cape in front or him, dangling it moving my eyebrows up and down.
"I thought you were getting a map" he responds through a laugh, clearly amused.
"I did, calm yourself. You're welcome for your cape"
He grabs the Superwomen one from my hand, taking my shoulders and forcing me to turn around.
"If I have to wear it you have to too" he states, humor laced in his voice as he sticks the velcro around my neck.
"I wouldn't have bought it if I didn't plan to wear it. I'd never let you look like an idiot by yourself" I respond, turning towards him again a soft smile growing on my face.
"What you'd get?" I question, motioning my head towards the service desk.
"Uh" he begins seeming caught off guard which doesn't make me feel good at all,
"Alright first" he begins, grabbing my waist and pulling me closer. He leans down to give me a quick but guilty kiss.
When he pulls away I look up at him with an accusing look, I don't need to speak for him to know I'm demanding an answer.
"Also you know I l-...like you. Care about you" he prefaces but the anticipation is killing me. I notion with my hands to get on with it.
"Wow my sweatshirt looks really good on you" he blurts out, his comment making me give him an impatient look.
"Harry" I say in a serious tone.
He stares at me, seeming to mentally prepare himself for my reaction.
"So I bought us tickets for the haunted house" Harry reveals casually.
My stomach drops at his statement. As if the whole damn amusement park isn't a haunted house.
"What's their return policy?" I question, raising an unamused eyebrow at him.
"None refundable"
"Are you lying? Cause I-" I begin we I try and step around him to talk to the worker but he catches my arm.
"Nope come on" Harry says, dragging me away.
"Babe" I groan but I don't resist. At this point I'm too tired to even plead my case. I'm gonna let whatever happens, happen.
"Let's go find a ride" he suggests, snatching one of the maps from my hand.
I sigh in defeat, going to open up my own map.
I gasp when my eyes land on one of the rides, "Harry" I state in excitement, now beginning to drag him in the direction of the ride.
"Pandemonium. Right now." I announce over my shoulder as I speed walk.
My excitement made me completely forget about all the...things lurking around so when some guy in a prison outfit drops a loud ass chain in front of me I jump, a gasp leaving my mouth.
"Fuck!" I exclaim turning around and bumping into Harry's chest. I'm disoriented for a second but I flip back around.
The actor menacingly laughs, dragging the chain as he walks away.
I place my hand over my heart as I hear a quiet laugh behind me. When I turn I see Harry trying to stifle his laughter.
"That was uncalled for" I respond letting out a laugh of relief.
"Hey but you survived" he says dramatically pulling me in for a hug but ruffling my hair.
I push him off with a giggle, quickly trying to fix my now messed up hair.
The line for the rollercoaster (one I actually enjoy) was decently long. But thankfully being in line keeps you away from the scary actors, so honestly I didn't mind.
The ride was just as good as I remember, of course Harry tried to get the cart to spin as much as possible. Pandemonium is a cross between tilted whirl and rollercoaster. It's bigger than it looks, I promise.
"Wanna go on those super tall swings?" Harry asks as he guides us out of the line by steering me forward with my shoulders.
Of course he remembered I mentioned those. Theres always that insecurity that creeps in that tells me no one is listening to what I'm saying. So though these moments are insignificant to most people they're not to me.
"Sky Screamer? Yes" I say nudging him at my correction.
"Yes the Sky Screamer" he restates shaking his head in amusement.
"Mhm, thought that's what you meant. You know for someone that comes here every year it doesn't seem like you know the names of most of the rides" I point out, finding this situation pretty amusing myself.
"For someone who hasn't even rode most of them, it seems you know the names of almost all of the rides" he fired back quickly.
I mean he has a point, but also sorry for being observant?
"If you're jealous just say so. Looks hot on you" I taunt, shrugging once I finish my statement.
Well except for when he channeled it into anger towards me and called me a bitch cause he thought I slept with Liam.
"Careful darling, you don't know what you're getting yourself into by saying that" Harry warns, his tone now turning from playful to serious.
"Trust me I know" I respond with a satisfied look on my face. Beginning to walk the short distance to our next ride.
My direction shifts harshly to my left causing me to stumble and crash into his chest.
Once I look around to see where the hell I was just taken to, all I see is a shut off ride across from wall he's leaning his hip on.
"Uh the ride isn't op-"
"Don't be getting so bold now angel. Don't wanna have to put you back in your place" Harry says in a warning tone as he pushes me back again the wall.
I gasp at the sudden movement once again but I recover quickly.
"Mhm, love it when you're rough with me" I taunt, humor clear in my voice.
His hand finds my throat the actions only causing goosebumps to rise on my skin. I look to our right to see if anyone noticed but we're kinda concealed.
"Eyes on me" he commands, taking my chin and turning me back towards him.
I give him a disinterested look despite the fact that I find that extremely attractive.
"You gonna 'put me in my place' right here, right now? Than do it Harry" I challenge. He and I both know there's nothing he can do, right now at least.
His jaw clenches at my response looking away briefly before his eyes meet mine again.
"I'm waiting" I push, a knowing tone in my voice. I grab his wrist and push it harsher against me, making his glare only turn that more intense.
I smirk in triumphant when he still doesn't do anything, using my grip on his wrist to rip it off me.
"You and I both know I could have you in the palm of hand right now, all I would have to finally do is call you da-"
I can't even finish my sentence before his lips are being smashed against mine. The fact that we're basically in a giant 'haunted' amusement park is completely wiped from my mind. The unexpected feeling of his lips being a source of comfort despite the hunger he's kissing me with.
"Whats wrong? Wanted me to say it so bad the other day" I question a bit out of breath with a smirk on my face.
"Shut up" he groans, definitely frustrated right now. In more than ways than one.
When he takes my leg to hike it up on his thigh I can already tell he's going to take this too far. Which is why I flip us around so his back is now to the wall, I just want to kiss him for a little longer.
I use this position to my advantage, taking over in leading the kiss. His lips are moving against mine frantically at this point. Despite both of us almost being out of air, our pace doesn't let up. But once I know we can't hold our breath for much longer I begin to pull back.
But in typical Harry fashion, he now flips me back against the wall.
Geez he's going to give me a concussion and a heart attack all in the same night.
He detaches his lips from mine, both of us breathing heavily. I stare at him briefly, watching how with each breath his collarbones poke out just a bit more. If I didn't already mark them up so much the other day I would do it right now.
It's as if he reads my mind cause now he's the one who's kissing up and down my neck. I flutter my eyes closed at the feeling.
He's hasn't done it in a hot minute, don't make fun of me for giving in.
When he pauses on my sweet spot and begins biting and sucking at the area I let out a breathy moan. My eyebrows creasing together as I blink up at the sky.
God damnit.
I can't get turned on in the middle of Six Flags Freight Fest there's nothing sexy about that.
There's minimal space available for him to mark up, his sweatshirt practically engulfing me everywhere.
In a quick motion he's grabbing onto my wrists and pinning them above my head. I don't protest.
He won okay? Just let me enjoy this before I enviably have to stop it cause we all know he won't.
His lips trail to the front of my throat and I stupidly think he's gonna just make his way to the other side of my neck but nope. Before I can even fully process it, he's nipping at a spot just below my jaw.
Usually I never get marks there but holy fuck does it feel good. However, once my rational mind kicks in I'm pushing him off of me.
"H" I scold through my labored breathing. The placement is very much, front and center. The kind of place you would get one in high school and purposely show off to seem cool. I don't even wanna know how dark it already is.
He just hums in acknowledgment, no ounce of guilt on his face.
"Just making sure everyone knows what's mine" Harry responds, his breathing just as frantic as mine.
Okay, well now my heart is going to explode. I'm his. I still find myself in disbelief over it.
"Fuck" I whisper under my breath, leaning forward to capture his lips desperately. My arms go to loop around his neck.
He kisses me back almost immediately.
Just a few more seconds. A small break from the fear I'm gonna have once we're back in the open and in the eyes of whatever actor feels like approaching us.
Our passion is currently matched, our lips moving with a similar motive. But the sweet moment is cut short when I hear the blaring of a chainsaw.
We both pull back simultaneously, turning our head in the direction of the sound. Only a couple feet away from us stands one of the actors. He just stares at us unmoving, and I go frozen in fear.
"Wanna play a game?" The man says in a menacing voice.
I just stay frozen speechless, and surprisingly Harry is too. My arms are still wrapped around him, the only thing that's changed is the fact are lips aren't connected anymore and my heart is racing for a different reason.
"It's called Tag" The man says, positioning his chainsaw in his hand, "Since you two don't speak I guess I'll be it" he continues in a disturbingly happy tone.
He pulls the string on the chainsaw making it roar, this seems to snap both Harry and I from our shocked states cause just as we see him sprinting towards us we begin running too.
Holy shit, the amount of times I've run from people with Harry.
I'm running faster than him because I don't fuck around when it comes to this type of stuff. I've only been to this park a couple times but I still know my way around which is why I begin running towards the exit of this section of the park.
I can hear Harry's footsteps as well and the chainsaw close behind. I take a sharp right turn, turning my head over my shoulder to see Harry following me. At the next corner I take another sharp right going between two buildings.
The passage leads us right back to the Sky Screamer, but near the exit of the ride.
I quickly turn the corner to hide, seeing Harry follow shortly after me pressing his back to the wall like me.
I quickly peer around the corner only to frantically go out of sight when I see the man with a chainsaw run past the path between the two buildings.
Once the sound fades a bit more I turn to Harry both of us holding blissful smiles on our face before we each let out a series of short laughs.
He shakes his head at me in awe, seeming to be admiring not only me but the eventful moment we just shared.
He guides me to stand his front of him, my back now to the flashing lights of the ride behind us. He gives me a soft kiss, which makes me grin against him.
"Harry?" I hear from behind me.
I softly groan at the voice, kill me now.
I turn around so I'm standing at his side, going to grip onto his forearm.
"Oh it is you! Hey, I haven't seen you all night" Aubrey says as she continues to approach us, her hair a bit messy clueing me in that she must've just got off the ride.
"Hey Bre" he responds politely.
Bre? Bre?!
"Oh hey...uh Darla was it?" She greets giving me a soft smile, but if being with Harry has taught me anything it's that the truth is always in someones eyes. Looking into hers, I see nothing genuine about her interaction towards me.
"Darlene" Harry is quick to correct, causing me to nod my head giving her a sweet smile back.
"Hanging with the PennState frat boys again?" I ask politely, turning my head to the side to emphasize my curiosity.
"Yup, with Noah" Aubrey responds, both of us keeping up and act despite knowing both of us are being fake.
There's just tension between us. One we're both refusing to acknowledge.
"Well I guess no one can stop you from hanging out with them here, since you've graduated and all. This is off campus" I respond in encouragement, leaning into Harry more.
"Alright well Darlene and I are gonna go get in li-"
"No, Noah is gonna be back in a second with funnel cake for me. I'm sure he'd want to say hi" Aubrey responds quickly.
"Uh n-" he begins,
"That's a great idea Aubrey" I respond with a smile.
"Darlene?" I hear a familiar voice say from beside be causing me to turn my head.
I see Grant approaching us, I smile at him despite wanting to bang my head against the wall.
Of course he's here, of course he found me right now.
"Hey Grant" I greet enthusiastically, as he approaches us. Quickly turning to peer up at Harry who seems just as excited about this situation as I am.
Oh you know, just your typical group. You, your boyfriend, and each of your past 'hook-up' buddies. How lovely.
He stands near Aubrey or should I say Bre. Just know I'm mentally rolling my eyes.
"Uh this is Harry and uhh..." I begin turning to her putting a look of confusion on my face.
"Aubrey" She clarifies and I swear to god she just glared at me.
Two can play that game sweetheart.
"Oh look Noah is back" Harry says, clearing his throat to turn the attention away from us.
This conversation is horrible, I hate it so much.
Once he finally reaches us holding-
Wait help me think of a name for her. Diploma? Wash up? Has been? Ohh or maybe like a Nat, stupid flying bugs that never leave you alone.
I know it's mean, god trust me I know. I promise I'm not usually like this.
-okay so holding Nat's funnel cake, before my boyfriend quickly chimes in.
"Alright, well Darlene and I should probably get in line now" He spews out quickly before anyone can spark up another conversation. He moves my grip on his forehand down signaling for me to take his hand,
"Come on babe" he says quickly, pulling us away to freedom.
"Don't look behind you, they'll just try to get us to come back" He says under his breath as we speed walk around the ride to get to the front.
After that horrible run in, we finally went on that damn ride. Along with some of the other ones I insisted that we go on.
I would be lying if I said I wasn't on edge the entire time we were walking around places. I always feel like something is going to sneak up behind me.
When I catch sight of the huge swarm of demonic ass looking clowns I pause my movements,
"Oh fuck no" I say with a unamused laugh, pausing my movements.
Harry just turns to me looking amused and I really wish I could yell at him but if the roles were reversed I know I'd probably find this funny too.
"Come on we gotta get to the haunted house" He reminds, wiggling his eyebrows at me in a taunting way.
This statement just makes me plant my feet harder into the ground,
"Please d-"
"It's October darling, you're suppose to get scared it's part of the fun" He cuts me off but his voice oddly comforting.
I just stare up at him, fuck I can't be the type of girl who ruins these types of experiences for him. Cause I know damn well if I wasn't here he'd be going on every ride. I already feel bad enough but I also don't think he understands how scared this shit actually makes me despite knowing it's not real.
"How about if we go on one of those big roller coasters than we won't have to go to the haunted house" Harry proposes.
The offer is tempting, neither of the outcomes seeming appealing but it doesn't stop me from weighing my options.
"That one" He adds on, my eyes following the direction his finger is pointed.
My stomach immediately drops when I take in the sight.
"Now that just unfair" I scold immediately turning to look at Harry who has a smug look on his face. The longer I look at him... wait, you're kidding-
"You had this planned out didn't you" I accuse, disbelief laced in my voice. I cant even be mad cause I almost didn't even realize.
After waiting for an answer for a few seconds, the only one I get is a shrug.
"Can you pick, I don't know, not the tallest one in the park" I say, my hands motioning around.
"In the world actually"
My jaw drops even more, why? Just why?
"I thought we had something here" I state dramatically motioning between us, "but apparently you just hate me"
Harry just rolls his eyes playfully before he walks closer to me as I cross my arms, feeling a bit vulnerable right now.
"Come on D, it's October. You're suppose to do something that scares you" He encourages, his voice a lot more motivating than I expected.
"Why wouldn't we have like..." I begin as I frantically rack my brain, "uh...fuck!" I groan in frustration that my brain can't give me anything else.
When I look back to him the satisfied look has just grown.
"No take your time" Harry eggs on in amusement.
I just glare at him, I'm so glad he's finding this funny.
"How about you pretend to ask me out again cause apparently that was pretty damn scary" I suggest in a 'sweet' and 'casual' tone.
His jaw drops as he lets out an amused huff, "That's completely different"
"Maybe, but you were still afraid, no?" I continue, raising my eyebrows at him in hope he takes something about of this comparison.
Harry opens his mouth but quickly closes it in defeat.
"I don't know why you're purposely trying to terrify me" I begin, I feel like I have a right to be a bit upset. He could have gone easy on me.
"You're-fuck!" I scream out when one of the stupid fucking clowns honks it's stupid fucking horn in my face.
"Can you not?!" I snap, looking at the clown, not an ounce of amusement on my face. Surprisingly he listens and trots away back towards the rest of the swarm.
"I'm really trying not to ruin this trip for you cause I already knew I'm keeping you from going on rides you most likely always go on" I begin in frustration
"But you're making it really fucking hard when you're intentionally trying to scare me as much as you can" I finish with a huff, crossing my arms trying to shield myself away at this current moment.
"I didn't- I was just trying to get you to have fun. I was hoping you'd realize at least one of these is not as bad as your mind makes it out to be" he defends quickly taking a step closer to me, his eyes locking in on mine.
I state back, analyzing him to find any ounce of dishonestly. But of course, there's not a trace.
"Ugh" I groan out throwing my head back, "I kind of miss when it was easy to stay mad at you" I state in defeat, avoiding eye contact.
Harry's expression holds a bit of relief along with amusement.
"We don't hav-"
"I pick the haunted house" I interrupt, god I must really like this man if I'm willing to put myself through this.
"Darlene really it's o-"
"None refundable, let's go." I stare quickly, grabbing his arm and tugging us towards the clowns.
I walk quickly through, thankfully going un noticed by any of the actors.
I know where the haunted house, well I hope I do. They may have moved where they put it since the last time I've been here.
At some point Harry catches up to me so I'm no longer dragging him anymore.
I just lead us right up to the creepy ass looking decorations and straight into the line. The faster we get in the line, the quicker I can get this over with.
After the line moves a bit and no words have been spoken he finally breaks the silence, "You okay?"
"Yup, promise" I say turning to him trying to give him the most convincing look I can.
He just gives me a disbelieving look, reaching forward to place his hand on my chest to feel my racing heart beat. I try and swat him away as quick as I can but he didn't need it there for long to feel how fast it was going.
"We'll obviously I'm scared" I quickly say before he has a chance to say anything else.
"That's-"
"Just this one time can you pretend not to be concerned, please" I say, giving him my best doe eyes.
Learning about the actual reason Harry brought me here weirdly enough makes me want to do this stupid haunted house, just so I can say I did.
His eyes scan over me before he reluctantly lets out an "okay"
"Thank you" I respond simply, turning away from him needing to mentally prepare myself for this.
The line feels like it went by far too fast because before I know it Harry and I are being let into this heart attacking inducing building of nightmares.
I know I'm being dramatic, you don't have to make fun of me more than I'm already making fun of myself.
I instantly grab his arm as we walk side by side into this pitch black hallway. I can already hear screams from further away. I take a deep breath, stop being a fucking pussy Darlene.
We turn the corner into another dark hallway with flashing red lights. The fact that nothing has happened yet is putting me even more on edge.
"Shit!" Harry exclaims, his body going further into my side. The sudden sound of his voice scared the shit out of me but now I'm looking beside him in a panic as to what caused his reaction.
"Wha-Ah!" I screech when I feel something grab my arm, practically body slamming into him to get away. I only caught a quick glance of a arm poking through a hole in the wall.
He's just laughing it off at this point but my heart is racing even more now. I grab his hand and pull us through wanting to get through this as fast as possible.
We walk through another room, some actor being stuck in some sort of cage and trying to reach out. He's screaming bloody murder but I just continue to tug us through without stopping.
I'm relieved when I see a light, this leading us outside. But I'm not lucky enough for this to be the end, I wish.
Theres fog covering the grass area, with tombstones all around. There's zombie looking things slowly walking around seeming in their own world. Being outside does bring some ounce of relief, enough that I drop Harry's hand.
I'm about to turn around to wait up to start walking with him but my eyes widen when I see one of those stupid zombies behind him.
"You're doing good so far" Harry says with a smile on his face, unknowing to the thing lurking behind him.
My instincts kick in and I'm turning on my heel and speed walking away.
"Darlene wai-what the fuck" I hear from behind me, his voice changing from confusion to shock. I keep walking forward but his running feet soon catch up to me.
"You really just left me for dead" Harry says dramatically, walking in front of me so he has to walk backwards.
"I panicked" I defend, shrugging my shoulders.
If this were The Walking Dead...
"Mmm" he hums in confirmation, turning back around and allowing me to clutch his arm.
We're back inside again, but this room is some sort of creepy ass hospital room. A single hospital bed hidden behind a curtain.
We're just about to make it out of the room when a surgeon with his scrubs covered in blood jumps out,
"Thought you could skip your appointment" he yells startling the hell out of me, even making Harry gasp.
I scream from shock, ramming into Harry before whipping myself behind him.
"Uh oh, someones a little nervous for their surgery" The man says in his gruff and menacing voice and he tries to walk around him but I just throw myself back in front of Harry.
He wraps his arm around me, spinning me around until my face is in his chest.
"Think you got the wrong patient, the one you're looking for is actually coming in behind us" Harry plays along, as I hear the doctor walk in front of us again, meaning my back is now completely to him as Harry uses his hand on the back of head to hide my face into his chest like a scared toddler.
"Ohhh" the man says, his voice devious, "Then I'll let you two go"
After a few seconds Harry is pulling me from his chest, "He's gone"
I let out a breath of relief, "I hate this, I'm literally acting like a child. This is so embarrassing" I groan, walking forward into the next room.
The last three rooms went similar to how the hospital one went. Different sets with different demonic looking things that scared the hell out of me in some way. When I see the light at the end of the current hallway I am relieved.
The second we're back outside I immediately feel less anxious, being back out into the park thats swarmed a bunch of these actors is a lot better than being in a confined space and forced to interact with them.
"Sooo" Harry says from beside me, pulling me into his side, "not as bad as you thought?" He questions with a hopeful look on his face
I sigh, "Honestly...it was kinda just as bad" I say guiltily, almost wanting to lie just to make him feel better.
His face drops into disappointment, "Great so I really am just an asshole who forced you to go somewhere that scared the hell out of you" He states, guilt now filling his voice.
"I mean..." I begin but the look on his face only falls more,
"but you were trying to do a good thing" I quickly spew out. He holds my gaze for a couple beats before looking down at the ground shaking his head in disbelief.
"You know if this happened over the summer you probably would've been screaming at me" He states, amusement filling his voice.
I hum in agreement, "Trust me I know, maybe I'm just better at holding myself back" I tease with a shrug.
"Admit it Darlene May, you like me" He jokes, wiggling his eyebrows at me.
"Absolutely not" I say in dramatic disgust, looking away from him briefly. But the second I turn back both of us can't help but break into smiles.
"What are you doing to me Darlene May?" He states, with a soft smile on his face.
"What are you doing to me?" I answer back, without missing a beat. It feels like so long ago we said this to each other.
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A/N: Hey! I wrote this spastically throughout my vacation, but I'm so excited to be able to update more often. I completely forgot I was going so sorry for low key lying and saying regular updates where gonna start again last week.
Alright I'm gonna answer some more questions!
How many chapters do you plan on writing?
I always was going to shoot for 100, but I'm not going to restrict myself to that. Theres a big chunk of story left to tell and I doubt I'll be able to do ALL of it in the next 14 chapters. So most likely more than 100 in total.
Would we get a sequel from Niall or Maya's POV?
I honestly haven't thought about it, but I'll consider it. Maybe I'll write a short story about the progression of their relationship from their POV but no promises.
What made you start writing Darling?
This one is kind of a long story but I'll try and explain it in a little words as possible. I had written short one shots in the past, two or three (Only one of them Harry 👀). But I hadn't written anything in years, I just didn't have the motivation.
One day I randomly was like "I wanna write a Harry fanfic". I texted my friend (who had read the other things I had written) and she just said YES.
I wanted to write something inspired by the shower scene in Kiwi (If you haven't read that book you really should), but I also wanted my characters college age. The whole lifeguard thing kinda just came to me.
I started writing with the intention of this being a short story, ending at chapter 5. I didn't even plan to publish it, I was just sending screenshots of it to my friend after I'd finish a chapter.
To be honest, Maya wasn't even going to be a main character but I set it up enough for her to be and I REALLY liked her character. But I literally picked her name by googling "Popular girl names" and picking the first one I liked.
(Darlene had a lot more thought into it, I near I wanted Harry to call her something to annoy her so I looked up "Name with cute nicknames" and Darlene with the nickname "darling" came up and then all the puzzle pieces kinda fell together.)
But I decided to publish it cause 'why not', I didn't expect anyone to see it let alone enjoy it. I was just writing for fun.
I didn't start getting reads into over 20 chapters in and I was definitely shocked. I posted about it on my tiktok account a couple times after I realized people were actually interested in it.
NOW here we are, 76 chapters later and I couldn't be more grateful for EACH one of you. I love you all SO much.
ANYWAYS sorry for the long answer! Make sure to like and comment!
Comment anymore questions you may have and I'll answer them next chapter!
Also may make a mini edit for this chapter (also if any of you ever post anything about Darling tag me or lmk ur account so I can see!)
Apparently people have been recommending my book on tiktok! So if that was any of you THANK YOU and please lmk you're account names so I can leave a like!
-Ash<3