It's been about a week since I came to England, I've settled in a little more comfortably with the city and with Rose and Edward. I already started working at Little Miss Ann's and so far I haven't ran into any problems. I made some tea, apparently all my customers prefer tea over cappuccinos. England was so different but I didn't mind. Little Miss Ann's was a bit far from my house that I had to take a cab. Rose sometimes gives me a ride when she's heading this way to pick up some laundry. I'm so thankful for her.
While taking the next order, I went on a break, hoping I could squeeze some homework in. I got out of school at 2 in the after noon and left work at six. I could only do four hours except the weekend where I work in the mornings until one. I didn't mind though, not like I really had other things to attend to. Or people.
Harry tried to Skype me not too long ago, but like always I denied his call. He sent me countless messages, saying things like "We need to talk" "please answer, I know you're there" and the most common "fine, I wont bother you again". but he always did the very next day. So has Louis, but in all honesty, I did not want to tell him anything. I still felt hurt. My phone was connected again, but I had a new number for it. I did have all my contacts saved, but why bother texting one of them when they would eventually tell Harry my number and then he'll bother me on my phone?
I went to the back and started on some homework, by the time my break was over, which was about twenty-five minutes, I had finished everything. Thankful I got back to work to find an unexpected customer. I flinched the second I laid eyes on his hair.
"Alaine?" he asked, his face looking baffled. Shit.
"Um, hi Zayn." I wanted to run, run as far as I could. Why did he have to come here, why when I'm on shift?
"What are you doing here! I thought you weren't coming for another three months until Harry fixed up the paper work?"
I cringed, so he was trying to get me over here? But what would be the point? So I could find him sleeping with another woman, breaking promises he clearly had no intention on keeping. I smiled, offering to talk at the other end letting my co-workers assist the others. "I had a change of plans. I'm going to school here now. I got here all on my own."
He smiled. "That's great! Did you surprise Harry or something?"
My face suddenly found the counter more interesting than Zayn, which everyone would call me crazy because I should feel blessed he is talking to me. I could already see my co-workers whispering and looking our way.
"Zayn, I really want one of those." a blonde petite girl pointed at the breads behind me. I looked at her, she so effortlessly looked flawless. Her eyes immediately scanning mine and vice versa.
"Alaine, I would like to introduce you to my girlfriend, Perrie." he said, holding one of Perrie's hands and her offering me the other.
"Oh so you're Alaine!" she smiled, showing perfect white teeth. "I've heard so much about you! I'm so glad I could finally meet you hun!" I smiled, happy she didn't see me as a vulture flirting up with her boyfriend.
"Nice meeting you too. Would you like that one?" I pointed behind me, grabbing a plastic glove. She nodded and I reached it for her, pulling out a paper bag I quickly slipped it in and handed it to her. Zayn brought out his wallet and handed money which I quickly went to the cash register to get change.
"Does Harry know?" Perrie asked excitedly.
My heart skipped a beat, hearing this question over and over again was going to be pointless, I had to tell them. Maybe they didn't know. I looked over at the head manager who nodded in approval of my small second break. I took off my apron and went to go sit at a table with them.
"First off, why, out of all the places, did you pick here to come?" I asked, a bit curious at what they're response was going to be. Zayn smiled right away as Perrie took our her pastry.
"Well Harry told us you worked here back in The States, we went there a couple times while you and Harry were on dates." A stab in the heart, once again. "We ended up finding one here when we came back! I've been coming here ever since, although the vacation I took with Perrie, I hadn't come in a while."
"They have great tea here." she added.
"Yes, the best!" I laughed. "Well, to just let it out in the air Zayn, I'm not with Harry anymore."
His expression was appalled, almost as if someone had dropped the biggest news on him in some time. "Why? You guys were so happy and-"
"I surprised him, I didn't tell him I was coming here. But in the end I was the one who got the big surprise." I sighed, here we go, reliving terrible sad memories. "I walked in on him with some woman."
"Woman?" Perrie asked curiously.
"Yeah, some Caroline or something. She was in a bathrobe and Harry was naked besides a towel hanging on him." I looked down, swallowing back some tears that threatened to come out. "I put the pieces together and I figured out they were sleeping with each other. I think the message was loud and clear." I remember the handprints I saw on the mirror...
"Oh, Alaine I'm so sorry." Perrie put her hand over mine. I half-heartedly smiled. "I can't believe Harry is with that bitch! I mean, didn't you tell me he was anticipating Alaine's arrival? Why did he have to turn back to her?" she gave Zayn a look as he sighed and ran a hand through his quiff.
Wait, did I hear correctly? She said "turn back to her"? I shook my head, realizing this wasn't the first time he's hooked up with her. "Woah, he has history with this woman?"
Perrie and Zayn looked at each other. I felt so out of the loop. He finally turned to me, a straight serious face, as he began to talk. "Listen Alaine, before you, there was Caroline. It was a small thing they had going on during some of the X Factor, the show where we all auditioned for and got famous from, well they dated. It was roughly three months, we didn't think it would affect you guys considering he was ready to move on when we left to tour at The States. But yes, they had a huge past. One Harry does not like to talk about at all."
I slumped in my chair. "Not talk, but screw." I said, sarcastically. "I thought he was serious about me. Everything he did was out of forgetting another girl? She looks like she could possibly be-"
"She's thirty-two Alaine." Perrie said.
"Perrie! I don't think she wants to know that!" Zayn shot her a look as if she had said way too much. My eyes widened, she was thirty-two? I was not good enough so he had to go with someone who could possibly be his mom? I felt my heart sink to my toes, all blood left my face and I felt like utter shit.
"I'm not good enough..." I mumbled, still a bit shocked.
"You are Alaine!" Zayn said. "Harry is just too stupid to see it!" Perrie finished him off. I looked at both of them. They were both the same age, both happy, both committed, I mean, what did it take to make Zayn choose only Perrie? There had to be something I was doing wrong, wasn't there? Or else Harry wouldn't have thought about her. He likes older woman, with more... experience? How repulsive.
"Zayn, you have to promise me you will not tell Harry I'm working here. Let alone start investigating anything about me. I want him as far away from my life as possible. Can you please promise me that? Perrie, please?" I begged them.
"Alaine, you should hear him out, maybe its not-"
"I saw her half in the nude Zayn," I said, looking him dead in the eye. "I'm pretty sure Harry could wash his own back, if he needed help he would have asked Louis. I don't want to know anything about him. He's dead to me. Just promise me he will not find out about me."
"Promise, if that's what you want." he said finally.
I nodded and bid them a farewell. Not only did this news just want to tear me up from the inside out, but it also filled me with much anger and hatred. More than I could actually handle. I didn't talk the rest of the day, not at work, not when the cab driver dropped me off later that day at the college, not ever. I just wanted to crawl into a hole and remain there for a long time.
When I came back from the showers, I saw my laptop blink. A message. I went over and opened it, another fifty missed skype calls from him.
Alaine, I would please like to talk to you. Just please answer one of my calls?
My finger hesitated before it tapped the mouse pad over the "Delete" button, I didn't want him in my life anymore. I was more than sure of it. He was nothing but a distraction, and a bad one at that. How foolish could I have been to think, Harry Styles would be any different. I tapped the mouse pad and shut the laptop off. As I was about to undress, my phone started to vibrate in my pocket. I opened it to check who it was to find it to be Rose.
"Hello?" I said into the speaker.
"Hey girl! You ready for the party?" she said happily through the other line.
I let my mind go blank, was that today? It had completely slipped my mind. With the whole break-up occupying most of my mind, I didn't falter back to the invitation they gave me. I immediately went to go choose my outfit, unhooking a black pencil skirt and beige top with brown sequence and teal beads. I started stripping my other clothes off, thinking thoroughly about my shoes. I own hardly any high heels.
"I am, hey listen Rose, do you have any high heels I could borrow? I'm not a big fan of them, but this party sounds..."
"Of course! I have a lot. I'll bring a pair, pick you up in ten." she said, hanging up. I quickly slipped on my clothes, I searched for my black ballet flats, rushing on some mascara and bottom liner, yes I have been using make-up finally, and did the other thing to make my hair look good. This would be my first party ever, I thought maybe I could look my best. As I was hooking the back of my earing studs, my phone rang. It was Rose waiting outside. I grabbed my black bag and slipped cream, perfume, phone, and deodorant into it.
When I arrived to the parking lot, I recognized her car immediately. When I got in her face had seemed to drop in astonishment. "Wow!" she finally said.
"What is it?"
"You look stunning! Are you sure you haven't gone to any parties?" she laughed. I noticed her purple dress, it was rapped around her figure perfectly, the flower on her right hip making it seem like if you just picked it out the dress would unravel and be nothing but cloth, the illusion was pretty.
I shook my head. "You look pretty too."
She smiled. "Thank you! Here, I got these for you." she unbuckled her seat belt and reached to the back seat and flashed me some nude high heels. They gave an impression of such a sophisticated young lady and I didn't mind giving that off. My foot slipped nicely into them. She started the car and pulled out. I watched as the lights illuminated the night, so lovely and bright.
"Alaine, can I ask you something? It might be personal, but it's just something I haven't had a chance to ask you, do you have a boyfriend?" she said, paying attention to the road. I glanced over at her, a little taken a back. The sudden question taking me by surprise. I faced forward, looking to see Big Ben radiantly high in the sky.
"I had one."
"Had? Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to..."
I shook my head smiling. I looked over at her, seeing she had gripped the steering wheel until I could see her knuckles turned white. "It's okay Rose. I had a boyfriend. I've had two in my entire life, but the one I recently dated was the one I was most close to..." I faltered, afraid I had said too much. Last thing I wanted her to know is that it was Harry. He's famous! She'll never treat me the same again. I couldn't risk a nice friendship with her, she was someone I wanted to have as a friend. Within time, I know I can trust her even more. Just, I like to be known as Alaine instead of "Harry's unimportant ex-girlfriend."
"Oh, was it hard? I mean, I totally understand. I've had boyfriends, break-ups aren't the prettiest things in the world. You seem so shy and quiet like me, I knew you had boyfriends though! You're so pretty!"
I looked down at my skirt, playing with the hem of it. I didn't know how to respond to that, I never found myself as pretty. I just woke up and presented my face to the world. Although in order to have boyfriends I did need to be somewhat attractive. But I never put much thought to into it.
"Oh look we're here! Edward's already here, he's just waiting outside for us." she said, as we pulled up into a snazzy bar. The neon sign made it hard to look up after staring at the pitch black night. She got a spot near the back and when we walked to the line, Edward pulled us in with a huge grin on his face.
"Girls! Thank God you're here! I was starting to get cold." he flashed a couple tickets out of his back pocket. "I got us in exclusively, since this is hosted by some kids at our school. You look pretty, both of you. Shall we go in?" he handed the security the three neon orange tickets. He was tall, built, and looked damn serious if anyone of us tried to mess with him. He marked us, with an orange marker on our right hands. As we entered I couldn't get my eyes off of the lights playfully dancing on the walls, dance, floor, and people. The music made your body tremble, the floor like an earthquake with no sign of stopping, and the air smelled of sweat and alcohol.
I followed Rose and Edward to the bar, where immediately they hugged a bunch of guys, Rose being the shyest in the hugs, and Edward shouted to try and dominate the music.
"Guys, this is Alaine, I want all you assholes to be nice to her because she's a good girl. Best behavior!"
Rose giggled as I shook all the guy's hands. Two tall blondes, one brown haired one, and when I finally got to the last person leaning against the bar my eyes couldn't believe who they were seeing. Immediately my jaw dropped and I saw his smile come out.
"Alaine! I cant believe you're here!" Mark said aloud.
"Oh my gosh Mark! How do you think I feel?!" I said, more enthusiastic than I wanted to show. I calmed myself down, still smiling like crazy, when he pulled me in for a hug. It felt much longer than a regular hug, but I didn't want it to feel awkward if I pulled away first so I let him do that first.
"Small world. And I thought for sure I'd never see you again. How'd you end up all the way on this continent?!" he laughed, barely audible through the background.
"Could say the same about you! Oh well, that idea you gave me, it stuck to my mind. I decided it would be good for me to do this for myself since I am still young." I shrugged. He nodded.
"That's good, I ended up here because this offer stood before I left for Cali, but after hearing back from you I decided it'd be best if I take this offer." he said, sounding a bit hurt when he mentioned me. I felt like it was all my fault he ran away to another continent, all the while it wasn't even worth it, Harry ending to be a waste of time.
"But you're having a great time here! So in the long run, it was a good choice?" I said, hoping to light up that awful thought that played in my head.
He nodded, grinning. "Yeah, I made lots of friends, doing great in classes, and a job. I couldn't believe I was here and now I cant believe you're here!" we laughed in unison. Rose came beside me, looking at Mark as nicely as she could without showing a bit of shocked.
"You two know each other?" she asked, innocently.
"Long time pals." Mark joked.
"That's great! How weird? You guys were so far apart to come back to each other on another continent?!" she laughed, along with Mark, me knowing exactly why I came here.
"Drink you guys?" he offered.
I shook my head, Rose nodding, I looked at her a bit confused.
"Rose we're eighteen!"
She laughed, hugging me. Was she already gone or was I just crazy? "Oh Alaine, your so cute! Here in England the drinking age is eighteen. I thought you knew all along? How else would we have gotten into the bar?"
"I assumed you knew people?" I said, not thinking clearly about what I thought about us getting in.
"Start her off with something soft Mark, want to go to the ladies room with me? I feel my mascara running already from so much humidity in here!" she said, turning away. I excused myself from Mark and followed her, the ladies room being huge and white, the stalls a light teal and the sinks in shapes of shells. I looked myself in the mirror and decided I looked fine. Maybe more chap stick...
"You didn't tell me you knew Mark!"
I looked over at Rose, who was applying a small amount of lip gloss on her, which suited her lips. "I kind of just... found out right now. I mean, I knew him but I didn't know he was here."
"He's been here for only like three months, but he's a real nice guy. Doesn't talk much about his life in America."
I half smiled. He was always classified as a "geek" back in high school, never had many friends, but was a genius at what he put himself into. I couldn't believe I ran into him as a pizza guy! Now he's popular here. Guess those books that say when you're lame in high school, you're a pop star in the real world. We walked out of the bathrooms and over to the guys.
"Got you something soft." he laughed.
I looked into the glass cup and saw it was coke, I laughed with him. As I drank a bit of it, he started to tell me how amazing it'll be here for me. How he's made so many friends, gotten better grades, and will never regret coming along for the trip. I nod, hoping he doesn't realize I regret coming. My purpose was to be with Harry, but now, it's just to finish school, and get the heck out of here. Spain would be better.
I glance out at the dance floor, watching as Edward and Rose dancing to the music, they were having fun. When was the last time I had fun? I look over to see the other guys in the group picking up other girls, blonde, brunette, dark haired, tall, skinny, in-between, thick, curvy. I noticed as this girl came over to Mark's side and chatted up with him. I distanced myself to give him some privacy with this girl, although I felt he was uncomfortable talking to her.
I glance over to see there's a lounge room where the seats are red, cushiony, and the table is round. The lights are perfect there. It would probably let you see the whole dance floor. This man, a security I believe, gestures towards the seats to a group, thinking nothing much of it I turn back to the dancing, until I hear a laugh. A food loving, Irish laugh. I dare myself to look over one more time, to confirm this loud laugh, that seemed to be the only thing I could hear.
The blonde hair. The black quiff. Oh, no.
------------------------------------------------
I'm sorry you guys for this crappy chapter, & for the long wait. My file got lost apparently, & i had to look for it in every folder of my computer. You have no idea how many files i have .__________. thank you for your patience, and the reads, & votes & fans you guys are the best :D ♥ also school is taking up a lot of my time, so i will only be able to update on the weekends & if i'm lucky on a free day :c thanks babes ♥ your support has gotten me this far :3