A/N: What's up guys? I hope you're all well :) <3
"Mummy, I don't wanna go to bed," Noah mumbled sleepily as I buttoned up his PJs for him.
"Oh, really?" I smiled at him, "Well sunshine, you look like you do," I then turned him around and ushered him to bed, "go on. Off you go. Bedtime."
Noah sighed and climbed into bed before letting his head fall against his pillows while he rubbed his eyes. My smile grew as I pulled out his bedsheets from under him and covered his little body – tucking the duvet around his chin and chuckling fondly as he gave a big yawn.
"Night-night, sweetheart," I bent down and kissed the side of his head, "I love you so much."
"Goodnight, mummy..." he murmured back – yawning again as his eyes slowly began to close.
I switched on his night light and slowly crept out of the room – leaving the door open by a small crack so that it was easier for me to check on him should I be passing by. I then made my way back to my own room as quietly as I could.
When I made it to my room, I sat down in bed and slid my legs under the sheets – turning my head towards the empty bed space beside me. I placed my hand over the empty side – lowering my eyes a little as I felt how cold it was.
I have to admit...as nice as it was to just be me & Noah, I still feel lonely sometimes. My past experiences with romance have been an absolute nightmare that trying to get back into the dating game should've honestly been the last thing on my mind. But...that just wasn't the case.
Whenever I see Michelle with her husband, David, I can't help but feel a little jealous. David was a very good man who was crazy about my sister – and though I'm happy for both of them, I just wish I could've had someone feel that way about me. I've never been with a man who's actually truly loved me. Not like David loves Michelle.
Well, I suppose for a man to be loving, he has to be a good man first.
And there aren't very many good men out there...not many available ones, at least.
I was suddenly snapped out of my thoughts by the sound of my phone ringing on my bedside table. I turned towards the phone with a slight frown – reaching out and lifting the phone from the table to check the Caller ID.
There was an unknown number flashing on the screen, but it was a local number – so I was confident that it wasn't one of those stupid scam calls. So, curious, I answered the call.
"Evening. Aurelia speaking," I said.
"Aurelia?" An all-too-familiar deep, husky voice instantly made my breath hitch as soon as I heard it.
"Harry..?" My voice barely escaped a whisper, "Is that you?"
"Yeah, it's me," he sounded like he was smiling, "sorry it took me a few days to call. I've been, er...busy."
"Oh no, it's fine. I'm sure you had much better things to do than entertain some lonely single mum and her son," I replied with a soft chuckle.
"No, please don't think that. I really did enjoy our last meeting," he told me, "and, er...I'd like to spend more time with you."
"Really?" I asked him hopefully – unable to fight the smile that was quickly spreading across my face.
"Yeah, absolutely," he replied without hesitation, "er...I don't know what time you usually start work, but I have a day off tomorrow. And...I guess Noah would be at kindergarten, right?"
"That's right," I nodded.
"So, I was wondering if you'd like to come out for a drink, if you're free? We could go out to one of the locals or something. But only if you want to, of course."
Oh my God.
Is he serious right now..?
My stomach was erupting with butterflies upon hearing his question. It was so embarrassing – I was acting like a silly little high school girl, but I couldn't help it.
"Er..." my cheeks felt warm, and I felt a shy smile starting to spread across my face, "yeah, I'd...I'd really like that."
"Oh, great!" I actually thought I picked up on a bit of relief in his voice, "So...when were you thinking?"
"Well, tomorrow I start work at midday, Noah gets dropped off at kindergarten by 8:30, so we can meet up any time in between," I replied, "there's actually a pub just down the road from the club. I've been there a few times – I think you'll like it."
"Alright. I'll trust you," he said with a chuckle, "what place is this?"
"Er, it's called Blackstone's," I replied, "it's a nice place. Really cozy. I've got your number, now – so I can text you more details if you need 'em."
"Sounds good," it sounded like he was smiling again, "alright, Aurelia. I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Does meeting up at ten sound good?"
"Yeah, it does. I'll see you then," my smile instantly grew, "and hey – thanks for calling."
"Thanks for answering," he replied cheekily – making me giggle, "alright. It's late. I guess you'd wanna hit the sack. Goodnight, Aurelia."
"'Night, Harry," I replied, "see you tomorrow."
The first thing I did after ending our call was save his number – saving it under the name 'Harry :)' with a little smiley face at the end.
Woah. I can't believe it.
He actually asked me out for a drink...
There now, Lia. Don't get too ahead of yourself. This doesn't necessarily mean you're going on a date.
It's probably just gonna be like a catch-up. Yeah, a catch-up.
I plugged my phone into its charger before I switched off my lamp and burrowed under my bedsheets – my cheeks still heated by my soft blush from my phone call with Harry. I fell asleep that night with a warmth in my heart and a flutter from the butterflies that were still in my stomach.
He's such a nice guy...
***
I got off the bus and headed straight to Blackstone's the next day – not even looking at Flamme as I walked past it and focused all of my thoughts onto meeting up with Harry.
I entered the pub and took out my phone to review Harry's text – since he was apparently already here and had told me where he was sitting – but I couldn't quite remember where that was.
Hi Aurelia, I got here a little bit earlier than agreed. I've saved us a table – I'm sitting in one of the booths close to the bar. See you soon :)
Close to the bar. That's right.
I reached the bar and quickly greeted the bargirl standing there – who responded with no words but a quick smile since she was busy mixing up some sort of cocktail, so I just left her to it and moved on. I made it to the booths set up closest to the bar, and I immediately smiled when I saw Harry sitting down in one of them. He was on his phone, so he didn't see me – and so I decided to surprise him by walking up to him as quietly as I could.
"Hi," I spoke up shyly – my smile growing a little as his head jerked up upon hearing my voice.
"Aurelia!" He gave me a big smile back – and I could see that he was actually quite happy to see me, "You made it!"
"I said I would," I said with a soft chuckle as he stood up to greet me, "I hope I haven't kept you waiting long."
"No, not at all," he gave me a friendly and polite welcoming kiss to the cheek, "here – take a seat."
"Thank you," I put my bags down and sat in the seat opposite his.
"You have two bags?" He sounded a little confused.
"Oh yeah. One of them's got my...work clothes in it," I replied after a moment of hesitation, "I don't know how long we might be, so I brought them with me just in case. Not that I'm in a rush, though. The club is just down the road, after all."
"I'll try not to keep you long. I wouldn't want you to be late because of me," Harry said, "should we order now, then?"
"Yeah, OK," I nodded and smiled, "let's do that."
"What do you feel like? I'll pay – don't worry."
"Oh, are...a-are you sure?" I asked him anxiously.
"Yeah, 'course. A treat for a treat," he smiled at me, "you bought me a coffee, so now it's my turn to buy you a drink."
"Oh...alright. I won't turn down a free drink," I chuckled, "er...well, I do fancy a glass of vodka and orange."
"Got it," Harry smiled, "oh, and do you like pork scratchings?"
"Are you kidding me?" I smiled back, "I love pork scratchings."
"Then I'll also get us a couple packets of those," he took out his wallet and began to head to the bar, "I've got this. You relax."
I chuckled again and returned to my seat – looking back at him to see that his back was turned to me since he was now ordering from the bargirl, and I took this as an opportunity to pull out my hand mirror and take a quick look at myself. Seeing that my hair had become a little unkempt from the wind outside, I smoothed it down and tousled it a little to make myself look a bit more relaxed. I then dropped the mirror back into my bag just in time for Harry to return.
"Here you go," he sat down and handed me a packet of pork scratchings, "they'll bring out the drinks in a minute. Would you like anything else?"
"No, thank you. I'm fine," I assured him with a smile, "but if you want anything, go right ahead."
"No, I'm alright," he smiled back, "just checking, that's all."
"How kind of you," I told him with a soft chuckle.
The bargirl came over and delivered our drinks. We both thanked her, but as I looked down at Harry's drink, I was surprised.
"You only ordered a glass of Coke?" I asked him.
"Yeah," he nodded, "I'm gonna be driving home after this, so better safe than sorry."
"Wow. And you were the sober driver for Tristan and his friends on that night we met, too," I then gave him a cheeky look, "do you even drink at all?"
"Yeah, of course I do. I know how to have a good time, thank you very much," he told me with a chuckle, "it's just every meeting we've had so far has happened under circumstances where I'm not drinking."
"Alright," I shrugged and smiled, "if you say so."
Harry chuckled again. "Hey...thanks for agreeing to meet me today. Things have been a little...stressful lately, and I just really needed to see a friendly face."
"Aww, I'm sorry," my face softened out of sympathy for him, "are all your other friends busy?"
To answer my question, Harry only gave me a small, sad smile.
"I don't have as many friends as I used to."
"Oh..." my brow furrowed in concern, "what...what happened?"
Harry sighed. "It's my fault. I was the one who pushed them all away," he lowered his eyes a little, "there was...a time when I was just...angry, at the whole world, and I didn't want to open up to anyone. I drifted away from all my friends, and at the time I didn't even care that much."
"Wow..." I bit my lip, "well, er...you know, if it makes you feel better, I don't really have that many friends, either. I ran away from all my friends, because I...because I ran away from home."
"What? Why did you run away from home?" He sounded worried for some reason, "Were you in danger?"
"Oh...no. Nothing like that. Well...not really," it was my turn to lower my eyes this time, "I just...I wanted a fresh start, I guess."
"I see..." he sounded thoughtful, "fuck, I wish I could do that. Have a fresh start. There's so much I'd love to leave behind here..." he sighed again, "but there's so much more I can't leave behind..."
I was very intrigued by what he meant by that – but I could tell just by looking at him that the meaning was clearly very personal. His eyes were drooped, and his fingers even trembled a little as he held on to his Coke glass. So, I chose not to pry – but I was still worried about him.
"Harry..." I asked him softly, "are you alright?"
At my question, he cleared his throat and took a long sip of his drink.
"Yeah. Of course," he coughed again, "anyway, er...how are you?"
"Erm...I'm good, yeah," I replied.
"And how's Noah?" He asked.
"He's good too," I said, "he's just being Noah – always running around, never losing energy and that," I chuckled fondly, "I honestly have no idea how he can stay hyper all the time."
Surprisingly, at my words, Harry began to laugh.
"Oh God, tell me about it," he began to chuckle as well, "kids that age. It's like, all day and every day, just running around and around and never getting tired. Seriously, how do they do it?"
"I know!" I replied with an amused smile, "You're totally right."
"He's a sweet kid, though. I could instantly tell when I ran into you two the other day," Harry smiled back at me, "I can tell you're a great mother. You're doing so well with him."
"Oh...thank you so much!" My smile instantly grew into a bright grin, "That means a lot to me. Really."
"I just wish I could say the same for-" he began before cutting himself off abruptly – as if he realized just in time that he was saying something he shouldn't be saying, and cleared his throat yet again, "...nevermind. Hey, can I ask you a question?"
"Oh...sure," I was a bit startled by his sudden change of subject, but I still nodded all the same, "ask away."
"I was trying to figure this out before, but I can't quite put my finger on it," he said, "your face is quite...exotic. And trust me, that's a good thing – but it's left me really confused. So, pardon me for asking, but are you...Spanish? Venezuelan or something?"
"What?" I began to laugh, "No, I'm not either!"
"Really?" Harry asked me doubtfully.
I nodded. "Not Spanish or Venezuelan, but...I am half-Colombian."
"Ah, of course! It makes so much sense!" Harry sounded proud (which was actually really adorable), "But...only half Colombian? You could've fooled me. Your face is very Latina."
I giggled. "I know, it's total chaos, isn't it? I look like a Latina, but with a British accent. It used to freak people out sometimes. Everyone at school thought I'd be talking like Sofia Vergara."
"No, I wouldn't call it 'chaos'," he smiled at me, "so, I guess that means you were born and raised here, then? Or have you been to Colombia before?"
"Nope," I shook my head, "I've never set foot outside this country. Definitely born and raised here. Although, fun fact: my accent used to sound a bit muddled since I was hearing both English and Colombian accents at home, but as I attended school more, I eventually started to sound normal."
Harry chuckled. "I would have loved to hear a half-English, half-Colombian accent."
"No, no you wouldn't have. It was a disaster – believe me."
"Nah, I reckon you would've sounded cute," he smiled again.
I scoffed. "I sounded anything but cute."
Everything was going great so far, but as I looked at him, I just felt so curious.
Harry was so sweet: he was friendly, polite, respectful, easy to talk to, and my God he was gorgeous. And I just couldn't help but think: how can he not have a girlfriend?
I already knew he wasn't engaged to anyone, but that didn't mean he was single. And there was no way he could be single...right?
I mean, how would a man like him actually be single?
I knew there was only one way to find out, but I didn't want to ask him straight-up – because that would just make it way too obvious that I was crushing on him. But can you honestly blame me, though?
Ugh. Well, here goes nothing...
"So..." I cleared my throat, "I, er...I hope your girlfriend doesn't mind that we're doing this..."
"Girlfriend?" Harry immediately frowned, "What girlfriend?"
Wait...seriously?
"Oh, come on!" I said, "You can't tell me you don't have a girlfriend!"
"But...I don't have a girlfriend," his frown deepened.
"No way!" My eyes widened, "Oh, wait, wait...are you gay?"
Harry sniggered. "I beg your pardon?" He gave me an amused smile, "No, I'm not gay."
"Shut up!" My jaw dropped, "I don't...seriously, how is a guy like you even single?!" I blurted out.
"A guy like me?" Harry rose an eyebrow, "What's that supposed to mean?"
My eyes widened again as soon as I realized what I said, and I immediately clapped both hands over my mouth as I felt my face burning hot red.
FUCK! You've fucking done it now, Aurelia!
IDIOT!!
"I...I just..." my voice was weak, "well...y-you know, you're just...you're really nice, and well-mannered, and...and good-looking..." my blush deepened even more, "I just...I don't see how you don't have a girlfriend..."
"Well..." Harry began, "you're really nice, you're well-mannered, and you're good-looking," he cocked his head to the side at me curiously, "how come you don't have a boyfriend?"
Wait...what?
"Huh..?" I could feel my stomach erupting with butterflies, "W-Well, I, er...I-I..."
Clearly amused by how flustered I was getting, Harry smirked and let out a low chuckle.
"You're cute," he told me with a smile, "look, long story short, I have an ex – and she's done more than enough to put me off dating for life," he rolled his eyes, "the things she did...it just put me in this 'I don't give a fuck' attitude for the longest time. I didn't care about my job, I didn't care about relationships, there was even a point where I didn't care about my life or how I was going to live it after we parted ways."
"Oh..." I felt my blush fading now that the conversation was taking a more serious turn, "I...I'm really sorry..."
"No, don't be. I'm over it now. I'm trying to get on with my life...but I still hate my ex's guts," he said curtly.
"I hate my ex, too," I gritted my teeth a little, "I really do...hate him so much."
"Well, I guess that's something we have in common, then," Harry huffed, "I probably have more in common with you right now than I ever did with my ex."
"You know, even if this isn't a date, you are literally the first guy I've gone out with in nearly four years," I crossed my arms, "that's how much he put me off dating," I picked up my vodka and orange and took a large, long sip, "everything that's happening to me now is because of him," I felt my bottom lip trembling, and there were tears pricking at and falling from my eyes before I even had time to stop them, "he ruined my life..!"
"Woah, Aurelia, hey..." Harry gently eased my drink out of my hand and put it back down on the table, "look, I get too caught up in my own anger sometimes. That's been one of my biggest faults for so long now. I...I should never have brought this whole 'ex' subject up. I'm so sorry."
"No. It's fine, it's fine. You're free to talk about whatever you want..." I sniffled and pulled a handkerchief out of my bag to dab at my eyes and blow my nose, "sorry...I've spoiled everything now, haven't I..?"
"No, of course not," he smiled at me warmly, "you know, it's too stuffy in here. Why don't we just ditch this place and go for walk?"
"What? Now?" I was slightly startled by his question, "But...my drink...you paid for it, and I haven't even finished it..."
"Yeah, well, I don't quite think it's a good idea for you to finish it now," he told me softly, "alcohol is the last thing you wanna drink when you're upset. Let's just get some fresh air."
"Shit, but...th-that means I just wasted all your money..." I sighed, "I'm sorry, Harry."
"Hey, if you're wasting it, then so am I," he gestured towards his own half-finished glass of Coke, "and we can still take the pork scratchings with us, anyway. That's the main thing, right?" His smile grew.
At his words, I finally managed to let out a soft chuckle.
"OK," I softly replied with a nod and a smile back, "OK, let's go."
***
"Oh, fuck," I immediately rolled my eyes as soon as I checked the time on my phone, "I have to go to work in half an hour."
"Erm...I hope you don't mind me asking, but..." Harry hesitated for a moment, "Aurelia...do you even enjoy your job?"
"Do you enjoy yours?" I wanted to change the subject.
"Yes, of course. I love photography," he replied without hesitation, "I mean, sometimes I do get tired of it – but I'd still never want to do anything else for a living."
Hoping that I could set him off talking about photography so that he'd forget all about asking if I enjoyed my job, I looked up at him and smiled.
"When did you start developing an interest in photography?" I asked him.
"Er...I think when I about 5 or 6, actually," he replied, "my mum wanted a photo with Gem – that's my sister – but she didn't have anyone to take it, so she asked me to do it. And I did."
"You took your first photo at 5 or 6?" I was impressed, "Did it turn out good?"
"Yeah, it did actually," he said with a smile, "my mum framed it. I'll show it to you one day if I get the chance."
"I would love to see that," my own smile immediately grew, "so, how long did it take you to study for your degree?"
"It took..." he paused for a moment and let out a long, shaky sigh, "I studied for, er...three years."
"Oh, that's not too bad!" I nodded in approval.
"Yeah. Right. Not too bad," he sounded a bit distracted – which confused me a little, but I decided not to comment on it.
"Did you study a photography degree in general? Or did it have to be like, a special photography degree since you're working for the newspaper and stuff?"
"Yeah," Harry nodded, "the standard photography degree is like, if you want to be an independent photographer who does photography art or has their own photography business or something. My degree was a course in photojournalism. That's what it has to be if you want to take photos for a newspaper or a magazine or something."
"Would you have liked to run your own photography business?"
"Yeah, I would've loved it, but..." he let out a long sigh, "at the time I was studying, I wasn't in the right...circumstances...to have a goal of running my own business. So...I had to settle for the next best thing."
"Aw, well, maybe you'll still get to do it someday," I smiled at him.
"Yeah. Maybe," he smiled back at me softly, "hey...Aurelia?"
"Yes, Harry?"
"Thanks heaps for today," he told me, "I...this is the first time this week I've felt so relaxed, and that's because of you."
"Aw, hey, it was no problem," my smile grew, "I know what you mean. It feels good to be able to hang out with someone other than my son or my sister," I chuckled, "it's...it's nice to have a friend again."
"Yeah. It is," Harry nodded in agreement – his smile growing as well, "you know...I've been so overcome by this...stress and tension for so long, and today is the very first time I've felt completely free of all that. Maybe it was because I just...needed a friend again."
"I...feel the same," I blushed a little, "I don't think I really knew how much I could use a friend until today..." I looked up at him, "can this...become a regular thing? Us just...hanging out, and...talking?"
"Yeah. I'd like that," Harry nodded again and smiled, "I really would like that, Aurelia. Thank you."
A/N: I got a little stuck towards the ending lol, I hope it wasn't obvious :p I hope you guys liked the chapter <3
Oh, and for those of you who still support my book Escaping the Dead, check out my latest post on my dashboard if you haven't seen it already :)) xx