*Harry's POV*
Sunlight crept onto my face, waking me up. I opened my eyes then quickly closed them, cursing. The sun was shining directly in my eye. I turned away so my back was to the sunlight. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes again.
It was very nice waking up to Dani's apartment. Even though this couch was old, I found comfort in it. I sat up and stretched my arms over my head and yawned. I glanced at the wall clock and saw that it was only 7:30 AM. I was surprised I wasn't tired despite sleeping so late last night. I had work in an hour and a half and decided that it was best to stay awake. I stood up, turned off my alarm, and walked to the bathroom to brush my teeth.
I splashed my face with cold water and grabbed a towel to dry my face. As I dried my face, the memory of Dani kissing my head flashed back and I couldn't stop the smirk that formed on my face. She had no idea that her kiss woke me up. The pleasant memory formed questions in my head. Why did she do that? What is the meaning behind her kiss?
To prevent myself from dwelling on the kiss, I walked back to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. I opened the fridge and moved some stuff around until I found what I needed--bacon, eggs, and milk. It wasn't long until the aroma of bacon woke Dani up. She sleepily walked into the kitchen and glanced at what I was cooking.
"Morning, sleepyhead," I greeted her.
"Morning," she replied with a sleepy smile on her face. "What time do you have to go to work?"
"Nine."
"I'm surprised you're up so early."
"I'm surprisingly not tired."
"Well I'm tired so I'm going back to bed, but before I do, I'm eating this piece of bacon." I watched as she grabbed a piece of bacon and stomped back to her room. I couldn't stop laughing at her strange behavior. She never ceases to surprise me.
After eating, I said goodbye to Dani and headed off to work. She didn't have class till noon. I walked into the bakery and greeted Mel and Dan (the owners) and my co-workers. I spotted John in the back organizing the table. He was by himself so I took the opportunity to talk to him.
I walked up to him and he turned his head towards me.
"Hi," he greeted.
"Hi," I responded. "Do you need help?"
"Uh, sure. Can you throw these away?" he asked, handing me a stack of soiled paper. I quickly threw them away and came back.
"Look..." I started, "I'm sorry about yesterday. I was trying to find someone but I couldn't and I was upset about it. But things are good now because I found her." John looked at me in confusion and I realized what I said made no sense and was very strange.
"Don't worry about it," John said, smiling. "I kinda had a feeling you were upset and wanted to be left alone."
"Thanks for understanding. So are we good?" I asked.
"Of course! Why wouldn't we be?" I sighed in relief. I was glad things were good between us. I wouldn't want to work with someone who held grudges.
All of a sudden, I felt the phone that Tom gave me vibrate in my pocket. I took it out and looked to see who it was. It was my other boss. What could he be calling for? I quickly excused myself and stepped outside to answer his call.
"Hey, buddy!" my boss greeted.
"Hey," I replied. "What's up?"
"I'm sorry to bother you but there's a guy who wants to buy a gram of coke."
I frowned. "But I'm at work."
"Oh...never mind. You see, I called Josh earlier thinking he could do it but it went straight to voicemail. I haven't been able to get ahold of him lately which is strange. I called you hoping you could help me out but I don't think you can either. But that's alright. I'll go do it myself. Thanks for your time though."
"It's no problem but can I tell you something?" I asked.
"Sure! What is it?"
"I don't know how to say this nicely so I'll just say it. ...I don't want to deal drugs anymore. It has nothing to do with you. It's just--I want to change and be a better person and I feel that in order to be one, I need to stop selling drugs. I'm sorry." It felt good saying that but I was afraid of what he'd think. After a moment of silence, he spoke up.
"You shouldn't be, Harry. I'm happy for you. You're making the right choice. ...Just promise me one thing: that we'll keep in contact. I'd love to see how you're doing."
"We'll definitely keep in contact," I promised.
"Great! Well I'll see you around. Have a great day, Harry."
"Thank you and you too." I hung up the phone. I stared at the black screen for a while before putting it in my pocket.
It felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I was happy with the progress I was making. Today is going to be a good day.
.
.
*Dani's POV*
I walked to class with Josh right behind me. I told him I had class to go to but he kept talking and following me. Sooner or later, I'm going to have to put my foot down and tell him that we can't see each other anymore. But what stopped me from doing so was how he wasn't right in the head. How is he going to take it?
"Are you free this Friday?" Josh asked.
"No," I answered.
"How about Saturday?"
"I'm busy that day."
"But how? You don't have classes on the weekend."
"I have a ton of readings to catch up on and a paper due next week."
"Oh. So when are you free? I'd like to take you out to lunch or dinner some time."
"I'm sorry but I have a boyfriend," I lied. I had no idea where that lie came from but I hope it'd work and that he'd leave me alone. Josh's eyes widened in shock and he stopped walking.
"Who--what? When?" he asked, out of breath. He stared at me in disbelief. I just stayed silent. I didn't think he'd ask so many questions. I'll have to properly think things through next time I tell a lie.
"He...he's a great guy."
"Who is he?"
"He's...a very good friend of mine. We've known each other for a while."
"Are you lying to me?"
"No! Of course not!" I said, laughing awkwardly. I'm the worst liar ever.
"Well I'm happy for you. I'd like to meet this, um...'boyfriend' of yours."
"Yeah! If he's around, I'll introduce him to you."
"...Okay," Josh answered. And with that, he just walked away without saying goodbye. He didn't look too happy but I was glad he was gone for now. What did I just get myself into and where can I find a boyfriend?!
I was finally in class but I couldn't pay attention to what the professor was saying. What he said went in one ear and out the other. Rachel tapped my shoulder and I sat up straight, startled.
"Huh?" I asked.
"Are you okay? Class is over, let's go," Rachel replied. I embarrassingly gathered my notebook and pen. How did I not know class was over?
"Can I borrow your notes? I didn't take any."
"Didn't pay attention, did you?" Rachel asked, smirking. "Of course you can. But tell me first--what's on your mind?" She fanned herself with her notes and waited for my response. Should I tell her the truth? Eh, why not? She might have a solution to this problem.
"I need a boyfriend," I blurted out. "Long story short, I lied about having a boyfriend so this one guy would leave me alone. Now I need to prove to him that I have one." Rachel started laughing uncontrollably but handed me her notes nonetheless. I reluctantly grabbed them and put them in my bag.
"How did you even get into that situation in the first place? You're too funny! But I know who could be your boyfriend," she said thoughtfully. I raised my eyebrow in curiosity.
"Who?" I racked my brain trying to figure out who she had in mind. Rachel and her crazy ideas. She just stared at me and smiled evilly which made me nervous.
"Harry."