CHAPTER ONE
*SOPHIE'S P.O.V*
My phone buzzes in my pocket and excitedly I pull it out, hoping that it's from my best friend, Harry Styles. Yes, THE Harry Styles of One Direction. I've grown up right next door to him my whole life and our mums met in some pregnant-lady yoga class. Anyway, the thing is... I'm in love- no... not love. Very deep LIKE for Harry Styles. I can't love him yet, I mean, we've never been in a relationship before. Not like that. I want so badly to tell him how I feel about him but I'm so terrified he doesn't feel the same way. And anyway, I HAVE a boyfriend. Sure, I like him a lot less than Harry, but I need to cover up my feelings somehow... I know it's harsh but I still like Josh a little, I guess. I feel like a terrible person, but I'm kind of just waiting on the day Josh breaks up with me. He's a great guy, but he isn't the one for me. I look back to my phone and see that the text is from Josh. We need to talk. It says. I frown, replying with Is everything alright? Almost immediately the phone buzzes with a reply. Um... not exactly. Let's meet at the cafe on ninth in five? I swallow hard. Sure. I reply nervously.
I get to the cafe in less than two minutes and sit at a table for two, awaiting Josh's arrival anxiously. I take a deep breath, bouncing my knee. I look at the ground biting my lip, wondering what he wants to talk about. Suddenly the little bell at the door dings and my head whips up. It's Josh. He gives me a tight smile when he spots me and comes over, seating himself on the chair gingerly across from me. 'Josh... What is it?' I ask. He lets out a whoosh of air. 'I don't think we should be together anymore.' he says quietly. I freeze. Did he just say what I think he said? He wants to break up? A tidal wave of emotions rushes through me: anger, hurt, relief... 'Really?' I ask finally. He nods, swallowing. 'I don't want to be mean, and I want to stay friends, but... you aren't the one.' He tells me. I sigh, nodding. 'That's the same thing I was thinking...' I say, and when I think of 'the one', for some reason Harry pops into my head. I shake the thought quickly, as it makes me feel weird. 'I understand.' I say to Josh finally. 'I love you.' he tells me as he stands up. 'I really do, but we just... we can't be together anymore.' I'm a little shocked. He just said he loved me. I blink rapidly, clearing my throat. 'Bye, Josh.' I say as he gives me a tight hug and walks away.
I sit there silently in the cafe for a few more minutes, not sure what to do. I replay what just happened over and over in my head. For some reason, I'm pretty sad about what happened. Josh and I were close. I didn't love him, and don't, but we dated for a few months. Surprisingly, a tear rolls down my cheek. I yank my phone out of my pocket and speed dial Harry as I get home. After just one ring he picks up. 'Hey, Soph.' his familiar accent comes onto the line. 'Hi, Haz.' I can't help a small smile. 'Why'd ya call?' he asks, and I remembered what just played out a few moments ago. My smile drops. 'Well, you know my boyfriend Josh?' I say slowly, feeling weird saying 'boyfriend'. Harry's voice hardens. 'Yes.' he replies. I take a deep breath. 'He dumped me.' I say, and to my surprise my voice cracks and the tears start flowing freely and I'm happy my mum, sister and dad are away on a trip with Harry's family. 'Oh, Soph...' Harry trails off, his voice softening. I let out a strangled sob. I hear a click, indicating that Harry has hung up. 'No...' I whisper, the phone dropping out of my hand and clattering to the floor. Even my best friend isn't here for me. I burst into tears and sit there crying. My thoughts are interrupted by the doorbell and I sniff, wiping furiously at my eyes, so thankful for waterproof mascara. I hurry downstairs and take a deep breath. I open the door to see Harry standing there on the porch, the pouring rain behind him. He's wearing a black knit sweater and black jeans, and he's biting his lip. 'Haz.' I whisper, unable to hold my feelings in anymore. I burst into tears again and he grabs me and pulls me into his arms. I cry into his shoulder and he rubs my back soothingly. 'Sh.' he murmurs into my hair. My body is wracking with sobs and I can't seem to stop. I feel a little self-conscious, but I've cried in front of Harry before, and he doesn't loosen his grip on me. 'Oh, Soph.' he says softly as I cry. Suddenly I hear someone clear their throat behind Harry and I sniff, peeking cautiously over his shoulder. 'Sh*t,' I mutter. Josh. Harry turns around and sees Josh, his eyes hardening. 'Hello, Josh.' he says coldly. 'Hey, buddy, you're hugging my girlfriend there.' Josh says in a triumphant tone. 'YOU BROKE UP WITH ME, IDIOT!' I yell, burying my face into Harry's sweater once again, breathing in his familiar cologne and it calms me down. 'Sh.' he says again. 'Josh, you need to leave.' he turns back to Josh. 'You've just broken the heart of probably the most amazing person I've ever met and you do NOT deserve her if you break up with her so harshly without a good reason.' I've stopped crying. I'm a little shocked. He's never said something that nice. Josh looks shellshocked and he walks away, stunned. Harry lets out an angry huff. 'Some people.' he mutters, his arms still around me. 'Thanks Harry.' I murmur, wrapping my arms around his torso and leaning into him. 'Anything for you, lovely.' he whispers. I sigh into his shirt. 'C'mon.' he says suddenly, pulling out of the hug and putting an arm around me. Harry leads me to his large black Range Rover sitting in his driveway and orders me to get in. I give him a questioning look. 'Where are we going?' I ask as I hop in. 'I don't know yet.' he replies and I laugh. 'Well alright then.'
Harry and I drive for hours. We talk about practically nothing the whole time too. At one point we turned on the radio and laughed and sang together for a bit. After about three hours, two bags of chips, four packages of gummy bears and a Booster Juice, Harry and I pull into a small town to walk around. I jump out of the car and stretch, thankful to be out of the car. Harry comes around the side of the car and grins at me. 'Shall we?' he asks and I nod eagerly. We start walking through the streets, not going anywhere in particular. Every few seconds our hands brush against each other and it sends shivers up my spine and I want more than anything to take his hand, but I resist it. I take a silent deep breath, holding in my feelings. Harry glances over at me and my eyes meet his emerald ones. I give him a halfhearted sad smile. He looks up at the gray sky clouding over and sighs. I follow his glance and make a face. We've walked out into the outskirts of town and are heading down a dirt road. Suddenly a rain drop lands on my face and I scrunch up my nose. 'Haz, it's gonna rain.' I inform him. 'Nah.' he says confidently as a crack of thunder echoes across the sky and I see a bolt of lightning. I squeal as rain showers down over us in icy sheets. I shiver in my thin blue t-shirt. It's only just the beginning of September but it is already kinda chilly. I grab Harry's hand and pull him towards a large dark red barn further down the road. We run inside and collapse on a pile of hay in fits of laughter. 'Oh my gosh.' I say, looking at Harry. 'Your hair is soaked!' I look at his wet curls and he laughs, shaking his head back and forth, spraying water all over me. 'HARRY!' I screech and he reluctantly stops, a mischievous smile on his face. 'What?' he asks innocently. I laugh and ruffle his hair, looking around the barn. I shiver slightly once again. I look up curiously into a small loft with a rope looped around a beam. 'Oh!' I exclaim, jumping up and climbing into the loft. 'C'mon.' I say, looking back at Harry. 'I'll pass.' He laughs. 'Well, you might want to move then.' I tell him. He raises his eyebrows and moves from the pile of the hay. I look longingly at his warm sweater and shake off the cold, grabbing the rope. Harry grins at me. 'One, two, three!' I exclaim, jumping off the loft and swinging down on the thick rope, a squeal escaping my lips as I land in the large pile of hay. I burst into a fit of giggles and Harry chuckles. I sigh, looking out at the rain. 'Hey, c'mere.' says Harry, patting the spot beside him. I rub my arms to warm up and sit beside him. 'Oh my gosh, are you cold?' he asks, pulling off his knit sweater. 'Haz, I can't take that. What will you wear?' I ask. 'My t-shirt!' he exclaims proudly. I laugh as he slips the sweater over my head. It falls to my mid-thigh and the sleeves cover most of my fingers. 'Thanks.' I say softly. 'You look great, love.' he winks. I smile, laughing once again. He gets up and smiles at me. Suddenly he holds out his arms and my heart swells. I go to him and he wraps his arms around me. I breath in his familiar smell and smile to myself. 'Soph...' he says softly. I pull away slightly and look into his deep green eyes. 'Yeah?' I ask. 'I've never felt this way before.' he whispers. 'Me neither.' I breathe as he bends to kiss me. His lips are softer than I ever could have imagined, and they had the slight taste of peppermint to them. I never wanted to stop kissing him but after a while we pull away. 'I love you.' he whispers breathlessly in my ear, giving me goosebumps. 'I love you too.' I say, leaning my head on his chest. We seat ourselves back in the pile of hay and cuddle, looking out at the rain until it dies down enough for us to walk back to the car. As we walk, Harry entwines our fingers and I happily rest my head on his shoulder. Quickly we stop in a cafe for a hot chocolate and then once again head back to the car. Once we are safely inside the dry, warm vehicle, Harry kisses me sweetly once more. After we pull away he starts the car and we drive in silence until we get back into Holmes Chapel.
Harry cuts the engine as we park in front of his house once again. 'Care to stay over at my place tonight?' he asks. 'Sure!' I reply. I rush to my house quickly and pack some things and then head back to Harry's. He's sitting on the couch when I get inside and I dump my duffel on the ground beside the door. It's started heavily pouring rain again and I glance at the bad weather wearily. 'Hey, it isn't that bad.' Harry says with a laugh, seeing my expression. 'It's a cuddle day!' I exclaim. Harry chuckles. 'Can we watch a movie together, Haz?' I ask. He nods. 'Absolutely. Pick one.' He says. 'Okay!' I reply, running to the shelf of movies across from the couch. Eventually I pull out The Notebook. Harry nods approvingly with a small smile. It's been his favorite movie forever, but he doesn't tell anyone that. He tells people that it's Fight Club. I pop it into the DVD player and move to sit beside Harry, still in his large sweater. Once I sit he wraps an arm around my waist, pulling me closer. I tuck my feet up and contently rest my head on his chest. We watch the movie in silence, and I've never felt safer in anyone's arms before. Once it's finished, I yawn loudly and look at the time. It's already nine o'clock. 'Jeez.' I say. 'I'm starving.' Harry nods in agreement. 'Order in?' he asks and I nod. Harry orders us a pizza while I rush upstairs to change into some different pants. I'm wearing sweats and I'm melting even though it's cold outside. After a minute or two I decide on plain black short sweatshorts that have 'UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA' written on them from when I went to Edmonton when I was fourteen, and they still fit. I head back downstairs to Harry standing and looking out the window. 'Hey,' I say softly, worried that I'll scare him. He turns around, still holding the phone. 'Hey, baby.' he says with a small smile. 'Aren't you happy that there isn't paparazzi hanging around in Holmes Chapel?' he says. I nod. 'I mean, sometimes there is a couple girls out here but otherwise it's dead.' He tells me. 'That's good, isn't it?' I reply. He nods. 'Absolutely.' I walk over to him and he wraps his arms around my waist. I have my arms around his neck and we're just kind of staring at each other, which I don't mind. 'Wanna know something?' I ask quietly. 'Yeah,' he whispers back, looking down at me. 'I thought you liked Emma Werner.' I tell him. Emma Werner has been growing up across the street from Harry and I for as long as I can remember and she is pretty much the definition for perfect, but at the same time TOO perfect and also she was probably sent here from hell. But she's very nice to Harry. He chuckles. 'You thought I liked Emma Werner?' he asks, incredulous. 'Mhhm.' I nod. 'Ew.' He says, deadpan. I giggle. 'Don't be meannnn.' I say, playfully swatting his arm. He gives me his crooked smile, his dimple showing. I go onto my tiptoes and give him a quick kiss. I pull away as the doorbell rings. I wriggle out of Harry's grasp and go to grab my wallet, but Harry runs in front of me and pays at the door before I get a chance. 'Harry..' I mutter as he takes the pizza and bids the delivery man a goodnight. He closes the door and turns around with the pizza in his hands, a devilish grin on his face. 'I could have paid.' I tell him. 'Nope.' he replies. I smile. 'Okay, if you insist...' I trail off, grabbing the pizza and running to the kitchen. 'Hey!' he cries, following after me. I drop the pizza onto the counter and turn around, going to the cupboard. I reach up and grab two plates and I plop two pieces down on each plate. We sit together at the table in the dining room and eat in silence until there is a knock at the door. Confused, I glance at the clock on the microwave. 10:30. Who could be here this late? 'Wait here...' Harry says cautiously, getting up to go answer the door. I pretend to stay there obediently but once he goes down the hall I get up and peek around the corner. Harry opens the door to a grubby-looking man in his late thirties probably with a long olive-colored coat and and a dark fedora. He has a camera around his neck. 'Sh*t.' I mutter. Your typical stereotypical reporter right at Harry's door. 'Hello...' Harry says, not opening the door all the way. 'Harry Styles?' the man asks in a deep voice. 'Yes. Why?' asks Harry. 'My name is Johnathan Brown. I'm a reporter from Sugarscape?' he says. I let out a small breath of relief. Sugarscape is a good magazine. I see Harry brighten slightly. 'Hello. Can I help you?' he asks Mr. Brown. 'Yes, well, someone came around to our main headquarters in London and said there's a small rumor you and Ms...' he trails off and looks at a piece of paper in his hand. 'Sophie Laskoski?' he says. Harry nods. 'were seen together kissing in a small town called Cadbery in a barn.' he says. 'Really?' Harry asks, obviously trying to contain his surprise. Mr. Brown nods. Harry looks back to where I've come out and started standing in the hallway. He raises his eyebrows questioningly, and I know he's mentally asking, 'Should we make it official?' I bite my lip and think for a few seconds. The fans and management won't all be too great, but Harry makes me happy. I want to be with him. I take a deep breath and look back at him, giving him a firm nod.
A/N: This chapter isn't super long, but enjoyyy xx :)