Carter hardly gets any sleep. Her heart is confused and hurt all at once and it keeps her up until exhaustion takes its hold on her body. It's been about a month since she's heard from Harry and she feels a deep twinge of regret because he's never given up so easily and she thought that he'd at least try, even when she told him to leave her alone.
Instead, there were no phone calls, no voicemails, and no texts. She's starting to think about her decision so much more and she thinks that she's going to try one more time. But will he still want her when she comes back?
The competition is near it's end and there's a final three now. Carter's going home tomorrow morning to get started on her final piece.
Where she should be overjoyed about how far she's made it, she can hardly think about being excited because Harry still haunts her mind every second of every day.
Carter decides that she's not going to tell him that she's coming back and that she'll make up her mind about giving him another chance on the plane. He's certainly made a tremendous effort after he screwed up and he listened when she told him to give her some more time and some space, but is he truly invested in her so much that it won't happen again?
After weeks of thinking, she's decided that she'll be able to let him try again one last time. But she isn't going to be able to forgive him just yet. It's happened to her so many times that she just can't fathom forgiving him, even if he genuinely did have too much to drink and thought that it was her that he saw.
She makes up her mind before she leaves the hotel room.
* * *
The rain falls in heavy sheets and thick drops, soaking everything in sight and sparing nothing during its onslaught. Most of the city is asleep and the hum of the rain hitting the roof and the windows helps to lull them into a deeper sleep.
Harry's wide awake and comparing the rain to Carter's tears.
He's felt nothing short of awful since the incident and not talking to her or knowing where her mind is at only served to make it worse. Carter has a fragile heart and he's certain that she's still hurting and wide awake by the time that he falls asleep.
Every week he watches her on Everlasting Ink and he can tell just how much he's gotten to her even though she masks most of it from the cameras. Her tattoos suffered for a brief period of time and she was almost sent home because of it, which only made him feel a hundred times worse than he already felt.
Meanwhile, on his end, his art has suffered and he isn't doing very much anymore, so his money influx is suffering in return. At one point he even covered everything that involved Carter because it hurt him to look at his work and know that he hurt her.
There's only a slim chance that she'll find it in herself to give him another chance and he's beginning to lose hope with each day of radio silence that passes between them. His mind torments him every moment that it's not occupied, and for once, it's inspired him to get it out of his system.
It's three in the morning and he's up, painting the same letters over and over again on a pristine white canvas that's no longer pure.
"I'm sorry," sums it up and around thirty minutes later his canvas is filled with the two words in endless patterns, the final result being an anatomical heart that bleeds the same words that it's made from.
After he's finished and set the canvas aside to dry, Harry feels better in some way and his mind finally relaxes.
He's still thinking about Carter as he gets comfortable in his bed for the first time since he's come back home. The rain still hasn't let up at all and he focuses on its steady rhythm to lull himself to sleep just a little bit faster in case his mind decides to strangle his heart again.
Sleep's just taken its hold on him when there's a succession of knocks on his door. A slight groan passes his lips as he lifts his hand to rub his eyes.
It's nearly four thirty.
He forces his tired body out of bed and to the front door. A yawn takes a hold of him as his hand grasps the cool metal of the doorknob. He's too tired to care and opens the door anyway.
Carter stands outside getting drenched by the rain, her lips quivering, her chest heaving as if she's just run a mile, and her suitcase at her side.
Harry can't tell if he's dreaming or not and stands there, dumbfounded as the rushed words tumble from her lips. "I love you."
She has this profound look to her features and even though he's half asleep, he's certain that she's finally just put her heart on the line. The only problem is that he's had dreams like this before and he can't tell if this is real or just his imagination again.
"Please say something."
Harry gently pulls her inside. He can't hear her over the rain and she's soaking wet. If this is real, he doesn't want her to get sick. "How do I know that I'm not dreaming?"
Carter huffs in annoyance. She's tired and she's jet lagged and he's really asking her if this is a fucking dream. "I just ran, however many blocks, to get here in the pouring rain to tell you that I love you and you're asking me to prove that this isn't a dream!? Damn it, Harry-"
She's cut short by his lips pressing to hers in a hasty and passionate kiss.
Harry pulls away too quickly and mumbles against her lips, "Real."
Carter nods, out of breath. "Real."
Their foreheads are pressed together and their lips are just barely touching. "Did you mean it?"
Again, she nods. Her heart is threatening to burst out of her chest and her mind is racing at a million miles an hour. "Yes."
He kisses her again, his hands moving to her waist instead of her face. This time his lips are gentle and not rough like they were moments before. Carter gives into him easily, her hands wrapping around his neck and tangling in his hair as their kisses gradually heat up.
"I love you."
Carter smiles against his lips as he swoops in to kiss her again, "I know."
For the moment, everything that's happened between the two of them in the past month is completely non-existent. That is, until Harry decides to ask a stupid question when they break apart for some air.
"Does this mean I'm forgiven?"
Carter's smile immediately drops to a frown. "No. I don't forgive you yet, but I'm giving you another chance because I realized that I couldn't just let you go. Can we please not discuss this now?"
Harry nods and resumes kissing her. Soon they're upstairs and making out in his bed half naked.
"I really missed you." Harry speaks between kisses and Carter hums in response.
He starts to map kisses all over her skin and it's only when he's gone back to her neck that she speaks so softly that he almost doesn't hear her against the rain on the roof and the sound of his heartbeat pounding in his ears.
"Make me feel beautiful again..."
Since he cheated on her, Carter hasn't found herself beautiful in any way. She knows that he made her feel beautiful before and that he can do it again.
Harry complies readily and the entire affair is sweet, gentle, and loving, such a contrast from how they usually spend time in bed together and neither Harry nor Carter have felt so good in weeks.
The sun is starting its slow ascent into the sky and the dark is gradually fading away by the time that they're done loving one another. Carter rests her head on his chest and lightly traces the ink of his tattoos. "You know, I still hate you for doing this to me."
Harry nods, a tired smile on his lips. "I know."
He knows that she's referring to the simple fact that he's somehow managed to make her fall in love with him and he also knows that she still hates him on some level because he cheated on her.
"You should really shave. Facial hair doesn't look good on you."
His laugh is loud in the empty warehouse and Carter's smiling brightly because she's missed the sound. "What if I don't want to?"
Carter lifts her head to look up at him. She tries to maintain a serious expression, but it's far more difficult than she thought it would be because of their recent distance and how nice his smile is.
"Then you won't get very many kisses. That is, if you even get any at all."
Tired green irises look into hers with a radiant happiness shining through, "You know, it's incredibly hard to take you seriously when you're trying not to smile."
Carter laughs lightly and cuddles closer to him. The draft has finally caressed the skin that isn't covered by the thick and fluffy blanket. "I'm so God damn tired."
"Then go to sleep!"
She hums against his skin before mumbling, "But I like talking to you. It's been so long."
Harry pulls her even closer and his arms hold her more securely, "I know, but we can talk later. I'm not going anywhere unless you want me to."
Her breathing slows and she takes too long to answer. She's fallen asleep before she even heard his reply.
Harry smiles softly and kisses her forehead, "Sweet dreams, my love."
Carter wakes before him because of a patch of sunlight that's made it through a hole in the actual building and focused itself on her eyes. Harry's still sound asleep with his usual light snores and his arms holding her tightly.
He's such a cuddler and it isn't even funny. But he's really cute, so Carter ignores the fact that he has her in a tight lock that she can't get out of even if she tries.
She notices that he looks really good when he sleeps. The way that his lips part as he snores—even though he swears up and down that he doesn't—the way that his hair falls in his face, and the way that his eyelashes gently flutter against his cheeks as he dreams is absolutely wonderful to her.
Carter gently moves his hair away from his face. Harry stops snoring and makes a noise that sounds like something between a groan and a hum before he pulls her close and buries his head in her neck, his nose tickling her skin.
A soft giggle falls from her lips and she lightly pushes against his chest. "Harry."
"Hmm?"
"You're squishing me."
She's still laughing as he pulls her even closer before he releases his grip so that she's no longer being squished.
"Sorry, 'm afraid you'll leave again."
His eyes flutter open and soft green irises meet her light blue ones.
Carter speaks softly, a small smile on her lips as she brushes his hair back with her hand again. "I won't."
There's a scratchy quality to his voice as he asks, "Promise?"
She kisses his forehead and he smiles. "Promise."
It's silent for a few minutes until Harry decides to ask the question that's been on his mind since she told him that she loved him at four in the morning. "Do you really love me?"
He asked her if she meant it earlier, but he still needs to double check to make sure. That, and he wants to hear her say it again.
Carter can read him very well and decides to say it again for his sake and because she wants to. "I love you."
She presses her lips to his gently and he smiles. "And yes, I mean it."