“Lo?” Harry’s voice interuppted her sleep as Lola came to. She peeled her tight tired eyes open to see the daylight flooding through the pores of the tent. She shivered as her awakened body adjusted to the environment, remembering where she was. She felt warmth from behind her and rolled onto her back, seeing Harry leaning up on his elbow, gently nudging her.
“What time is it?” Lola rubbed her eyes vigourously, lifting herself to lean back on her elbows.
“Half seven” Harry replied. Lola opened and squeezed shut her eyes to try and loosen them up, so she could take a look at Harry. He was dressed in a his burgundy hoodie and black jeans, looking much more awake than Lola.
“I went to get some food, it was about half a mile walk to the nearest shop” he told her, pulling a plastic carrier bag out.
“Oh” Lola replied lazily, scraping her fingers through her slightly tangled blonde tresses and pulling it back into a messy ponytail. She sat up and rubbed her bare arms to try and create some heat through friction. Even though she was inside a tent, she could feel the damp morning dew and fresh air seeping through.
“They didn’t have much…just fruit, crisps and some sort of weird oaty raisiny things” he scrunched his nose, inspecting her granola bars.
“It’s chilly” she commented quietly.
“Eat” he instructed calmly, knowing hunger would make her colder. And she’d need her strength to carry on walking today. The silence of the early morning in an isolated British field allowed them to hear the pattering sonds of dense raindrops beginning to fall on the tent. “Great”
Harry swallowed half a cereal bar in one go and cleared his throat into his fist, shifting over to Lola slightly. She heard the loud sound of his zip being undone, and he shrugged his hoodie from his arms.
“Put this on”
He held it behind Lola, for her to slip her arms into but she shook her head “No, you’ll be cold”
“I’m not cold, take it” he said. Lola reached her arms into his fleecy warm hoodie, Harrys comforting manly scent flooding her senses as it wafted from the material. She tugged it tighter around her body, the size swamping her small frame slightly.
Harry unzipped the front of the tiny tent and Lola caught a glimpse of the dashes of rain scattering across the fresh green field. It lowered her positivity as she felt more reluctant to get out.
Harry stepped out of the tent and stood up in the rain, looking out into the distance. He tried to get an idea of which direction to head in next.
“I think I know which way we need to go. I managed to get some signal when I took a walk earlier and googled the map. I have a good idea of where we are now. So we should take a route that way” he said, pointing west. His chesnut curls had started to accumlate droplets of water, and become flatter to his head. His tanned arms had drops that had turned into little rivers trailing down the course of them.
“Well then why don’t you have a little journey down there and i’ll stay in the tent” Lola said almost patronisingly, as she blew hot breath onto her palms, pulling the hoodie snugly around her body.
“No can do sweetcheeks, we’re packing it away” Harry said, fighting a smirk as he knew for sure she wasn’t going to be happy about that. He was really beginning to learn her exact reactions, what she liked and what she hated.
“What?! Why?” Lola gasped
“So we can move on”
“But it’s tipping it down! Surely we can’t be too far away now can we?”
“We’ve got another couple of miles before we reach the village I remember visiting a lot, it must be near the beach”
“I’m staying here, we can go later when it’s stopped” Lola said stubbornly, her bottom lip pouting slightly.
“Do you want to find where your Dad is or not?!” Harry demanded in a rough gravelly voice, using his hand as gestures in his question. He gave Lola an irritated questioning look, his deep green eyes glaring at her intimidatingly. She didn’t want to make him angry, because she knew that had been something regretable in the past, but she didnt want him to boss her around over this.
“Yes, of course” she said sharply “But I wanna wait til the rains stopped? Okay?”
“No we can’t, we need to go now, the sooner we start moving again, the quicker we’ll get shelter and find your Dad. It’s not gonna stop anytime soon”
“I’ll stay in the tent til it does then” she crossed her arms. It wasn’t even that she didn’t want to go yet, it was just a response from Harry telling her what to do.
“No, you’ll do as I tell you so move” he said, glaring at her until he saw a sign of movement, but she didn’t “Now”
Lola huffed sharply and reached for Harrys backpack, chucking it out the tent to hit him hard in the shins. She was annoyed and he was playing with her temper, a switch in roles for a change. She wasn’t usually easy to wind up but he was annoying her a lot already today. Harry shifted his jaw and tried not to react to her tantrum, knowing that it would pass in a little while once they got walking.
Lola shoved her things into her bag and clambered out the tent, crossing her arms and stomping off to perch herself on the gate, leaving Harry to pack the tent away alone. She watched him concentrate on pulling the poles apart and folding the material up, almost feeling slightly bad for making him do it alone but he deserved it for forcing her out of the tent.
Five minutes later he’d packed it away back into the small bag and put it away in his rucksack, swinging it over his shoulder. Lola remained sat on the gate, raindrops running down her nose and dripping from the end of her ponytail, down her neck. She really hoped this rain would pass, and the sun would dry them off because there was nothing worse than walking a distance with wet clothes.
Harry walked over to her, trying to suss out whether she was still sulking or not. He stood between her thighs and placed his hands on them, his face close to hers. Lola refused to look at him, turning her head to the side and furrowing her brow to show him she was annoyed.
“You are, SUCH, a drama queen” Harry shook his head, grinning in amusement. Lola could see the infamous gorgeous dimples out the corner of her eye and tried to resist the smile tugging at her lips. She bit the insides of her cheeks, knowing Harry could see her fighting a smirk.
“Come on” he said, turning around and hunching over slightly. “Will it make you stop sulking if I carry you?”
Lola rolled her eyes, putting her hands on his broad shoulders. She took his rucksack and put it on her own back, feeling how heavy it was. She wrapped her legs around Harrys waist and hopped onto his back, feeling his arms secure around her legs.
In all fairness to Harry, he didn’t show any signs of struggling to hold her as he walked for fifteen minutes, the weight of Lola and their bags on his back. He’d taken them down the hill from the fields, down a long narrow country road towards a small coast village. Harry came to a halt, catching his breath and feeling a slight strain in his neck muscles.
Lola decided it was time to give him a deserved break. She jumped down and kept her hands on his shoulder, rubbed her thumbs gently into the back of his neck. Harry accepted her massage and sighed inwardly in appreciation.
“Thanks for the ride”
“You owe me one” Harry said with a small laugh.
“Can I ask you something?”
“You like to ask things don’t you?”
“Yes, I just want to know. Why did I never get to see this caring side of you before?”
They both knew that she knew the answer, she knew the reasons now but she just wanted to bring it back up. It was her way of showing that she just couldn’t let it go, couldn’t forget about their past
Harry dismissed her question and Lola didn’t bother to repeat, and just followed him as he lead the way. He seemed to know where he was going now, his stride lengthening as Lola followed him up streets, slopes and grass. She wondered if this was the village he spoke about, the one he remembered visiting every year with his family.
The small village seemed to become distant as the sun gradually burst through the clouds, hazy sunshine casting across the town. Lola hadn’t realised they were walking up a long hill, and looked behind her to see the village below. The sky was grey yet golden, sunny yet full of rain. She could hear the violent cracks of wind across the sky, that sound when you know you’re near the sea.
Lola sped up her pace slightly, trying to keep up with Harry as he walked ahead. Her calves were aching and her breaths were increasing rapidly, the rain on her damp clothes drying off as the sun spread over the land.
Harry reached the top of the hill, and came to a stop, a line of sweat forming on his hairline. He didn’t realise how close they were until he’d seen the signs. The nostalgic sweet shop, the tourist postcards and fridge magnets outside on stands, the ice-cream stand. It all came flooding back, year after year he’d come here with his family. It was almost guilty to enjoy seeing it, when he was here with Lola this time. It didn’t seem right, it was like a dream and nightmare all in one as he realised his annual family holiday would never be the same again.
Lola caught up until she reached the top of the hill, bending over slightly to catch her breath. She stood upright and turned left, looking out over the final view. She gasped as she realised how high they’d climbed, right to the top of a cliff across the coast. The first sight of the blue horizon never failed to excite her, just like it did when she was a child.
“Wow” she breathed, looking at the gradient blues and greens painted across the scene, the sky and clear ocean with surrounding beachy cliffs and piers. Children and families strolled the gritty pebbly sand, not the kind of sand you can sunbathe on. It was Britain after all.
“This is the place” Harry spoke, his voice deep and stripped back to his vulnerable and pure state. He looked over the cliff, right down below to the violent waves crashing against the rocks. The sound echoed across the sky, almost scaring Lola as she wondered what could lie beneath the ocean. The vast emptiness of it was more spooky than the thought of sharks and jellyfish.
Lola looked at him, seeing the reflection of the horizon in his green glazed eyes as he looked out at the view. A gust of bitter wind blew, taking Lola’s breath away as they were at such a height. Harrys curls blew around in the wind, but he didn’t shiver or shake at all.
Lola shuffled her feet over to him apprehensively. She hooked her hand onto his arm, as he stood with his hands shoved in his pockets. Harry turned to her as he felt her contact, and looked her deeply in the eyes.
“You know why I was never caring before” he said, a crease forming between his brows “Don’t you”
Lola stared at him for a few moments, stunned by the switch of emotions in his eyes since earlier.
“Y-yeah” she croaked, nodding reassuringly. “Just forget I asked”
Harry wet his lips slightly and took his lower one into his mouth as he reached down into his backpack. He concentrated on fumbling his hand towards the bottom, searching for something.
Lola shivered but tried not to make it obvious as she knew this place meant something special to Harry. He’d visited this cliff top, this village, seen this view year after year; except it was usually with his Mum, Stepdad and Gemma.
Although Harry did notice her feeling the cold, and glanced very quickly
“We won’t be long” he told her
“Take as long as you need”
Harry sucked in his breath as he lifted the heart shaped rock out of his bag. He held it in both hands, looking down on it. Lola squinted as another gust of wind blew heavily, blowing her hair into her eyes. She felt her stomach ache as she looked at Harry.
“I admire you you know” she spoke above the noise of the wind.
Harry shut his eyes momentarily as he looked down at the pebble once more, rubbing this thumb across the markings of his name, written by his stepdad. Lola stepped closer once more, resting her head gently on his arm
Harry turned his head to her, his chin resting on the top of her head. His throat vibrated against her temple as he spoke “You know…..letting go is possible”
Lola figured he was referring to what he was about to do, but also between him and her. And their past.
Harry kissed the rock, mouthing something before throwing the rock over the edge of the cliff. They watched as it dropped for a few second then splashed into the waves, the last sight of it before it was buried away in the depths of the deep turquoise sea
Lola looked up at Harry, not even realising that she’d instinctively wrapped her arms around his firm torso, her cheek resting against his warm chest. Harry never took his eyes off the sea, his arms reciprocating her action and stroking the back of her hair as he let the cherished memoir fade into the horizon and his grief subside once and for all.
PLEASE READ BELOW Please vote on these chapters and this story so I can show the origional writer. She would be so happy and I want to get at least 200 votes on the whole story before I start uploading the sequel that is currently in progress. Once again... THIS IS NOT MY STORY. All credit goes to xxfan1direction.tumblr.com go follow and check her out. She has an amazing blog and is a beautiful writer.