S I X T Y - S I X :
It had turned out that a group of teenage girls, to no surprise, had followed Harrison to the tattoo shop because of a daily update feed one of them followed on Twitter had posted a photo that the Paparazzi had taken of him walking in the door with the girl. This could lead to many a problematic ending but it was one that which they were both willing to take, he'd signed a piece of paper for Brad and gave his son a video message then paid him the correct amount with a tip because he loved the end result, it had no colour but was very bright.
Harrison had also given the group of four some time of day to talk to him and get a picture, he'd asked Oak if it was okay because he knew they were on a date and would feel bad either way, of course, Oak didn't mind. It was thanks to the people like those girl that he was where he was so she completely understood him wanting to spend time with his supporters, she found it sweet. Even after so long in the public eye and also being so young when he was first thrown into the mix of it all, he'd still managed to say humble and grounded, which was probably quite a rare trait in young stars, he still had the time of day for everyone and would continue to do so until the day he died.
As of right now, the pair of them were sat on a wall overlooking the stunning flow of water that was like the full size of the whole of the United Kingdom, which in all honesty wasn't that hard to believe. Oak was in awe, she had never seen anything quite like this but then again she hadn't really travelled that much outside of the UK . Sure, she'd been to Australia once but they didn't go to many touristy places and stayed around Geraldton, where her cousins lived, it was truly spectacular there but they were just doing family things and would occasionally go to the local swimming baths and the beach but that was the extent of their Aus stay.
A warm gentle breeze brushed past them as they both sat there in silence taking in the scenery of the water that splashed down fiercely yet the atmosphere was more than tranquil. There were only a few other people here walking their dogs or were just there to take a photo of the sheer beauty that was in front of them. Harrison had been to Letchworth State Park a couple of times, mainly for filming purposes so he didn't really have the chance to take in the landscape, he'd merely just looked at it and then read his lines but being here with Oak gave him an incredible feeling that was again, indescribable, a word he was getting used to saying regarding her.
"I didn't say anything earlier even though I should've but you look exquisite, like usual," He complimented gauchely with a shy smile whispering the last two words under his breath as he fixated his eyes back on the waterfall. Oak focused her eyes on him and smiled a small smile then let out a soft giggle like chuckle, he just furrowed his eyebrows and hen turned his cinnamon-y eyes back in her direction, why was she laughing?
"I look exquisite?" She repeated his words that he'd used to compliment her, she couldn't help the small ounce of laughter that wanted to leave her lips, she'd been called many a thing but she can't quite remember ever being called exquisite.
"Well, yeah," He affirmed still unsure as to why she was laughing, he thought it was a nice thing to say and he was telling the truth, she did look exquisite. "I wanted to say something other than beautiful, it has the same connotations but it's pretty bland," He added with a laugh of his own now, it was probably one of the weirder adjectives he could've concocted to compliment her.
"I appreciate it, thank you Harrison," She thanked with a smile "And since we're using more advanced literary techniques you too look very personable," Oak complimented him back in her best southern English accent telling the truth too, how could she deny his beauty, it was everywhere even if she wanted to ignore it, she couldn't possibly.
"Thank you," He thanked back a small creep of heat rising to his cheeks that she'd noticed, he was truly the definition of captivating every single thing about him was truly sculpted by the most talented sculptor also known as his parents. She swears that the Stiles family just didn't have bad genes like both Harrison and Isabelle were drop-dead-gorgeous so she couldn't even begin to imagine what his parents looked like.
The roughness of the stone wall that they were sat on was chafing against the girls thighs slightly but did she have any cares? No. Was it because she was here with who she was here with? Potentially. Did she want to stay in this moment forever? Yes.
"Do you want to go further down?" He asked curiously, he kind of wishes he planned on coming on this date earlier on in the day just so he got to spend more time with the girl, he gestured his head towards the water further down from where they were.
"Okay," She nodded and he instantly hopped off of the wall and extended his hand for her to grab hold of, which she did and he didn't hesitate to intertwine their fingers properly and he started their walking to get them closer to the waterfall.
"Is this okay?" He questioned apprehensively, raising their hands up slightly so she knew what he was referring to, he didn't even think about how she'd feel by him holding her hand and that made him feel bad because he'd hate to do something she wasn't okay with doing.
"Of course, it is, why wouldn't it be?" She replied cocking her head to the side slightly, the gesture actually made her feel like she was in a butterfly sanctuary, the way his large hand held onto her ring-cladded one, the contrast fitted so well together. She appreciated that he asked though even though he really didn't have to.
"I just don't wanna do anything that'll make you uncomfortable," He admitted shyly and she could've sworn she turned into the wicked witch of the east from the wizard of oz' because she swears she melted right on the spot. She'd never met anyone like him and she meant that very much so, he had so much care and compassion within him that it made her want to cry, sure it shouldn't be surprising but it was hard these days to find people like him.
With a sudden jolt, she halted them to a stop and turned to face him placing her hand on his cheek and rubbing her thumb over it, which made his heart skip about forty beats, he was very surprised he wasn't dead. She looked deep into his eyes searching over his face slowly, taking in every inch of his perfectly sculpted face. "Harri, nothing you could do would make me uncomfortable because I trust you," Her words came out frank, most of the time it took her a while to sincerely trust someone but it was so effortless when it came to him and she wanted to let him know.
"I trust you too," He said replicating her words quietly, the moment was so public yet so intimate but neither of them really gave a shit because now, they had each other. Oak smiled and said a small good, maybe they were crazy for putting their trust in each other this soon but you can always tell when someone is trustworthy and both of them saw it in each other in a mass amount.
Oak lead them forward now to continue their walk even though she hadn't the foggiest idea about where they were going. It was just so outstandingly beautiful here, every inch of it, every single moment of it, just every single thing. What a story to tell people about where your first date was, bloody New York, what a place.
When it dawned upon him he let out a small breathy laugh, which in return confused the girl because of the suddenness of it, what was he laughing at? Well at least now they were both even with the other laughing at something the other didn't understand "You called me Harri," He stated and Oak felt her whole body tense, she hadn't even thought about it, she'd just come out with it and now she regrets it.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to, it kind of just slipped out," She rambled her apology, which made him chuckle further. It didn't bother him, not even in the slightest, in fact he quite liked the way She said it, it sounded cool, she'd managed to make the name sound cool, she made fucking everything cool--he swears she could sing fucking Justin Bieber and he'd worship the very small ground that wasn't already worshipped, that she walked on.
"Don't apologise, it's just you've never called me it before, you've always just called me Harrison," He told her with a smile as they walked around the winding path still contently hand-in-hand.
"Oh yeah," She realised in a tone that sounded bewildered, she'd always used people's first full names for a while until she was sure they were going to stay in her life, she wasn't sure about Harrison just yet but she trusted him and knew that he wouldn't leave suddenly. They'd gotten too close over recent weeks to let each other slide away and in genuine honesty it was an accident it just slipped out, she'd heard other people call him it like his sister and cast mates even her friends did and he didn't mind, she always just felt nervous when it came to nicknames.
"Have you ever been nominated for an Oscar or anything?" As they meandered down and down the rocks. She wasn't really sure about how the award industry worked for actors, she assumed it was the same as how it was for music but there just seemed to be a tonne more awards like the Oscars, Golden Globes, BAFTA's, Emmy's and more that she couldn't even name.
"An Oscar, no--I've never been single-handedly nominated for an award, the show has been nominated for a Golden Globe and an Emmy but it didn't win either," He explained to the girl, it was nice of her to assume he'd been nominated for such a prestigious award but it was a bit far-fetched.
"How come it didn't win?"
"To The Rioter's won, it was well deserved the show is brilliant," He told her with a smile, it was sweet that she was curious, he knew she'd never watched the show but it was nice to know that she was supportive or seemed it.
"I'm sure yous will win one soon, you're all very talented," She smiled with a nod complimenting the cast, from what she'd seen behind the scenes, even if it was only a very small part of the show, she could feel the rawness of each of their performances, she could feel their meaning behind the characters stories. She never really thought she'd be in this position, having the opportunity to work with some of this generations most successful young actors and actually being able to build a friendship with them, it was truly something that only happened in ones dreams.
"Thank you, I'm sure The Blue will win plenty of awards too," He complimented back, he'd be very surprised if they didn't win something because they had pure talent and it needed to be heard worldwide hence the reason Steven decided that he wanted to have their song as part of the soundtrack to the this series. The show was massive, it was big worldwide and The Blue deserved all the success with their music because they really had a solid message that needed to be heard.
"I don't know about that," She responded shyly, she couldn't lie, they'd all thought about it, of course, they had but then they realised guitar music was dismissed in society these days and the likelihood of a wide variety of people wanting to listen to political music probably wasn't very high. Sure, not all of their songs were involving politics but they all had a meaning and people these days seemed to prefer how many bitches people were fucking so it was what it was.
"I do," He said purely, there was no way they weren't going to win at least something, like he kept saying, they were a force to be reckoned with and this was just the beginning, he felt it.
——— ••• ———
Since they'd gotten down, closer to the trickling waterfall Oak had managed to stroke three dogs, with the permission of the owners, and every time she did so she was astounded by the fact she'd just done so and Harrison really felt the butterflies every time she smiled, it was ridiculous but he didn't mind it either.
They hadn't really done much since they'd been down there other than take a photo of the waterfall and just sat on the rocks listening to the tranquillity of the place. They'd spoke to each other more, obviously, asking each other random questions like what each others favourite food was and what their dream were as kids, what they wanted to do with their current careers and just a bunch of other random things, which made the evening a lot better. Harrison had also brought some food with him, he'd asked the three of her friends what food she liked so he didn't get it wrong, they just said she wasn't fussy but to remember she was a vegetarian so to not get no meaty products. In the end he'd opted for some handmade sandwiches with apparently premium bread that was supposedly nicer than most and had topped them with nicely cut cheese, he'd also brought a load of random other snacks that Oak thought was adorable, he said that her friends didn't help much with the decision so he more or less emptied his cupboards and brought everything that was picnic snack-able with him.
Harrison had come to the car park earlier on in the day to leave his car there but it was full so he'd left it near the road because he knew the temperature would drop by the time they would be leaving and he was right, it was slightly more chilly now and he didn't want Oak to catch a cold or the flu.
"I've enjoyed today, thank you," Oak smiled honestly, it was a simplistic day but it was lovely and it was fun, they didn't need to do something extravagant to make it special because the simpler the things the more heartfelt it felt. This was by far the best date she'd been on and it helped that the guy she was actually going on a date with was actually a decent person and actually didn't make her feel like she'd be better off six feet under from the ground suddenly collapsing.
"I'm glad, I enjoyed it too," He felt a wash of relief submerge him, he was glad she had fun or at least enjoyed it because he had a worry that he hadn't done enough to make it a day to remember for her and that worry was playing in the back of his head for the full day. Ultimately, he thought he was useless at planning dates because he'd been told he was before but clearly he wasn't as bad as he thought he was.
Out of the blue they found each other attached by the lips in a soft moment, they really were beyond caring at this point because their chemistry was just too high to ignore at this point in their life; his hands were on her waist gently as one of hers was placed on his cheek again similar to earlier but this time this closeness didn't seem close enough, they were ready to go mere seconds ago but now they just wanted to stay put.
The whole world was turning at a pace that they couldn't control and they didn't mind, they had so many feelings within them in this very moment that they weren't even sure that they were real. His heart roared in want. Her stomach did a Tom Daley in want. They both wanted more but they both knew it was too soon or they felt it was too soon, feelings were weird, they were the best but they were odd fuckers.
It had taken them a while to pull away from each other, to escape the heated moment that they both craved from each other a lot and in all honesty it was taking a lot of willpower for them to not just fuck each other in the back of Harrison's car. However, they both knew it was a stupid thing to think especially in public and especially because Harrison was very famous and if he was essentially caught dogging, he doubted it'd go down very well with the media and his family, who'd be scarred for life. Thankfully, they both had self-control otherwise they'd be bloody done for because of the want they had for each other was growing stronger with each waking second they spent in each others company.
As they drove they had a soft hum of the music that Harrison had connected to fill the void of just wanting to kiss each other for longer not that it'd bother either of them if it resulted in more lips on lips connection but they needed to put that want aside and just vibe, if they could, which they could definitely do because they had self-control, didn't they? Yes, it was just proving to be extraordinarily hard to control it.
"Can I turn it up?" Oak asked as she recognised the song that was on, Harrison looked at her briefly before focusing his attention back on the road and nodded. Oak thanked him and then reached over to twist the volume nob up a bit so that it was filling the car, she'd asked if it was too loud but he just said it was fine. Instantly, Oak was singing along to the song trying her best to convince the man on the right side of her to sing along too because he knew the lyrics, she knew he did.
He kept declining the offer to sing the David Bowie track but Oak was being very persistent by shimmying her body along to the guitar and singing the words perfectly with the legend himself but he still refused making Oak do a playfully pouty face that made him laugh and shake his head. "Harrison, come on man, feel the vibes. . ." She tried to further him into singing by doing her best chill American accent as she spoke the last three words, dragging them out for as long as she could to try and persuade him.
"I can't sing," He stated after laughing, it was the truth he couldn't and he didn't want to do anything to scare her away.
"I don't mind if you can't just please sing with me," She shrugged and then smiled sweetly to try and bribe him further, she knew it probably wouldn't work but it was worth a try wasn't it, you never know until you do.
He took a glance at her to see her bright beautiful smile and just couldn't say no and he hated that he caved "What song do you wanna sing then?" He questioned with a deep sigh, he was absolute mush when it came to her and he probably would be until the end of time and handed her his phone with his Spotify open. Oak took it and quickly picked a song that instantly stood out to her, she was pretty surprised to see it in his drive playlist but it was also pretty boppy so she didn't question it and added to his queue as the Bowie song was nearing the end and would come on immediately after.
His eyes widened at the song choice, it was the last one he expected her to pick and he felt slightly embarrassed, it was his guilty pleasure song. "Go on it's down to you," She told him as the first verse kicked in, he felt nervous and he didn't know why but nevertheless he sang.
"Wake up in the morning with a head like 'What ya done?'
This used to be the life but I don't need another one
Good luck cuttin' nothin', carryin' on, you wear them gowns
So how come I feel so lonely when you're up gettin' down?" He sang in tune with the lead singer to the best of his ability and felt more relaxed when Oak joined in with him on the chorus, it was essentially awful singing, from both participants, and a whole load of laughter. He felt so comfortable, so, so, so comfortable.
"Don't feel like dancin', dancin'" Oak sang and the pointed to Harrison to sing the faster bit, which he complied with.
"Even if I find nothin' better to do," He had tried to say the lyrics correctly but had messed up leaving the two of them in hysterics. This is what it felt like, this is what it should feel like, it should have felt like this every single time they found someone but it didn't and now that it does it was weird but they both loved it. They could be serious as fuck by being wrapped up in the heat and then next thing they could be having a right old laugh. This is what they wanted.
They wanted each other.
thank you so much for 1.3k reads, it means the world!
wrote; saturday 13th june 2020
(partially) edited; saturday 12th december 2020
published; saturday 12th december 2020