My eyes burned into the back of her stupid blonde head as I glared at her, neither of them noticing my arrival yet.  I stood about ten feet away, attempting to melt her with my vision but to no avail.  She stood firmly, her stupid hand resting on Harry’s arm as she leaned into him, body language making it very clear what she was trying to accomplish. 

Harry’s expression remained stony, his lips turned down in disapproval as he took a step back from her, only for her to take one forward.  I was frozen in place as I watched them, irritation and anger coursing through me and planting me to the ground. 

She tilted her head toward a door that led to the backyard, tugging lightly on Harry’s arm.  He didn’t budge and said something I couldn’t decipher.  He stared down at her as she assumedly spoke again, his features set into a hard frown, eyebrows knitted together. 

A heavy exhale left his lips as he rolled his eyes lightly when she tugged on his arm again.  Much to my surprise, however, he obliged this time and followed her.  My jaw fell open as I watched his back disappear into the crowd, but not before I saw the smug expression on her face. 

I took a deep breath and told myself to stay calm.  I trusted Harry, and knew he wouldn’t do anything.  It was blatantly obvious he was less than thrilled to be following her, so I knew I didn’t have to worry, but that didn’t stop the nervous ache that had crept into my body. 

It was irrational to not trust Harry, but that wasn’t the issue.  It was Katie that I didn’t trust, not at all, and her actions so far gave me plenty of reasons to be nervous about her disappearing with my boyfriend.

Would she try something?  It was pretty obvious that she was interested in Harry; her body language, frequent appearances, and blatant dislike of me made that perfectly clear.  Perhaps even his obvious resistance and dislike for her made it more of a challenge she wanted to conquer, determined to get her way no matter what.  It also probably didn’t hurt that he’d grown up into an absolutely beautiful person, in both appearance and personality. 

It took everything in me not to run after them and throw her to the ground; if he had gone with her, there must be a perfectly good explanation.  I don’t know what she had said to him to make him agree, but whatever it was must have been good.  He hadn’t looked pleased, making me wonder what it possibly could have been. 

They had long since disappeared from my line of vision, but I had yet to move or to tear my gaze away from the direction they had disappeared.  In the back of my mind, I heard someone calling my name.  It wasn’t until the third or fourth repetition that I was able to focus and pull my head away from where Harry had gone off with Katie. 

“Sorry, what?” I asked, shaking my head and trying not to sound so angry.

“I said, you dropped your drinks, Joey,” Lydia said, pointing at my feet.  I looked down to see the brown liquid flowing across the floor, splattered on my shoes and onto the furniture in the vicinity, empty cups rolling around as the got kicked unknowingly by passing feet.  I hadn’t even been aware that I had dropped the drinks, but I must have at some point in my observation of Harry and Katie.  Perfect. 

“Oh,” was all I said, blinking my eyes furiously at the ground as I tried to collect my thoughts.  An idea struck me.  “Do you guys know that girl?”

“Who?” echoed around me, all of them looking at me in confusion.

“That girl who was talking to Harry…”

“Oh, no I didn’t recognize her,” Haley said, her face screwed up in concentration as she tried to recall her face.  The rest of the group nodded in agreement, seeming unconcerned about the fact that my boyfriend had just wandered off with her.  I distractedly rejoined them around the table, trying to focus on what they were saying but failing miserably, my mind only able to focus on where Harry had gone.

I couldn’t stop picturing her hand on his arm and the way she tilted her body towards his.  Jealousy and rage rushed through me, making my hands shake as I stood at the table.  How dare she even consider touching him when he so clearly wanted nothing to do with her, never mind the fact that he had a girlfriend which made her actions even more wrong.

It was clear to me she was an awful person with only one thing in mind: getting Harry.  As if her attempt to “get” my boyfriend and her disgusting past with him weren’t enough, the way she viewed him as a challenge to overcome made me sick to my stomach.  He was a living, breathing, amazing person, not a prize to be won in some game just for the thrill of the challenge.  It was so incredibly disrespectful of her to see him this way, which she obviously did because she hadn’t been his friend for years, that I felt like throwing up. 

Twenty anxiety inducing minutes had passed and I had not spoken once, trapped in my head in an endless cycle of debate on whether or not I should go after Harry.  I didn’t want him to think I didn’t trust him, but I also didn’t want to give Katie any chances to try anything while I wasn’t there. 

You’re being stupid, Joey.  Harry won’t let anything happen.

My mind was berating itself over and over, going back and forth as torturous images of Katie forcing herself on Harry swum before my eyes.  I was going to drive myself insane if I just sat here and waited.  When my eyes fell on a couple making out in the corner, my feet started to move before I consciously made up my mind.  I needed to go find them, right now. 

I moved away from the table, ignoring the questions fired at me as I hurried away without any explanation.  My arms extended in front of me to push my way through the bodies, which seemed more packed than ever.  A gust of air was forced from my chest as a large guy slammed into me after losing his balance and falling into me.  I shoved him as hard as I could off of me, shooting him a disgusted look as I tried to catch my breath and continue on. 

Shoving my way through the people, I finally made it to the door I assumed they had disappeared out of seeing as I had seen no hint of them in the party.  I whipped the door open to let myself out, the cool blast of air that rushed past my face making me feel a bit better.  The warm, humid air of the party had been fogging my brain and making it difficult to think straight.  There were a lot more people outside than I had expected, and I was disappointed when I didn’t see Harry’s lanky frame right away. 

My eyes scanned the dark yard, unable to decipher the differences between the shadowy figures spread among across the property.  I started across the grass, dodging an extremely drunk guy who made no effort to hide his appreciative gaze at my body.  He opened his mouth to speak, his stance wavering sloppily as he grinned oafishly at me. 

“Heyyyy pretty,” he slurred.

“No, sorry,” I said shortly before continuing on my way through the dark.  My eyes continued to scan the yard, finally adjusting to the dark to allow me to see a bit clearer.  A group of five or so people were gathered to my left, passing around cigarettes and probably other things as well.  I walked further on, spotting a couple going at it against a tree, my heart freezing for a second in my chest until I saw the guy was short with buzzed hair, definitely not Harry. 

“Harry?” I called out, getting more frustrated by the second that I hadn’t found him yet.  No reply came, although another group of people cheered from across the yard.  Suddenly a giggle sounded from my right, the area dark and difficult to see in. 

My blood ran cold in my veins, terrified it belonged to Katie.  Slowly, I walked toward the sound, my eyes squinting in the darkness, petrified I’d recognize Harry’s silhouette mixed with hers.  As I drew closer, a darker shadow appeared before me, the two figures tangled together in a heated embrace.  My heart pounded heavily in my chest and I was sure they’d hear it, alerting them to my presence.  A loud crunch sounded through the air as I stepped on a discarded beer can, causing the shadows to separate and look my way.

My eyes connected with a pair of hazel eyes, their expression glazed as the guy they belonged to wavered backward in surprise.  It wasn’t Harry, and I let out an audible exhale of relief so strong it almost knocked me over. 

“Sorry,” I breathed, my entire body drooping further, beyond happy it was a random couple I had discovered rather than Harry and Katie.  The thought of them together nearly made me vomit.

“I said no,” an angry voice sounded from further down the yard.  My heart sped up immediately, recognizing the voice.

“Harry,” I breathed as my feet carried me toward him.  Out of the shadows I finally saw who I had been looking for, his hands gripping Katie’s wrists and pulling them off his neck.  Red flashed across my vision as she pressed herself forward again, attempting to entrap him with her arms as she stood up on her toes.  She pressed her face closer to him when while he leaned back, a disgusted look on his face while he tried to free himself without being too violent with her.

Without being aware of it, my feet had started running toward them.  My breathing was ragged and my anger clouded my vision when I grabbed the back of her shirt, yanking her away from him. 

“Joey!” Harry said in surprise, unaware that I had found them.  “It’s not what-“

“I know, Harry,” I said to him, barely even glancing in his direction before diverting my glare to Katie, who looked bewildered as she attempted to regain her balance. 

“You fucking bitch, you do not get to touch him,” I seethed, anger dripping from my voice as I struggled to keep it below a shout.

“Says who?” she dared to spit back, glaring at me as she let her derisive gaze travel down to my feet before returning to my face.  She crossed her arms over her chest, resting her weight on one leg as she glared at me skeptically. 

“How about him, first of all? It’s pretty obvious he wants nothing to do with you but you’re so pathetically ignorant you won’t take the hint.  Either that or you’re too fucking stupid,” I spit, taking a step toward her as my hands balled into fists at my sides. 

“That’s what you think,” she snarled, laughing spitefully. 

“Oh is that why he was practically shoving your filthy hands off him? You’re pathetic.”

“He’s a big boy, don’t you think he can choose for himself?” she asked, cocking her eyebrow at me.  I stared at her in disbelief. 

“Joey-“ Harry started, his tone clearly attempting to calm me down.

“No, Harry,” I said, dismissing him without tearing my eyes from Katie, directing my next words at her. “Are you fucking serious?  How can you be so stupid?  He doesn’t. Want. You.”

She stepped closer to me, bringing her face within inches of mine as she glared at me.  “Are you sure about that?  Because I know for a fact I can take care of him better than you can.  In every way.” She gave me a disgusting wink, her cocky expression grating at me more and more by the second.  When she let out a laugh, I snapped. 

My hands shoved into her chest and pushed her away from me, taking her by surprise as she fell to the ground.  I followed her instantly, straddling her hips as I pinned her down, my hands clawing furiously at her face as she attempted to grab my wrists. 

“Get off me!” she yelled, kicking her feet beneath me as I growled insanely at her, completely out of my mind.  My rage and the alcohol I had consumed were a dangerous combination as my fists flew toward her face, attempting to land a solid hit anywhere I could.  She managed to deflect my first few attempts before I finally landed a solid hit on her jaw.  Her lip split and blood immediately started flowing as her face twisted away from me. 

She recovered surprisingly quickly, managing to connect her fist with my eye socket causing pain to radiate through my face.  It hurt, but it wasn’t enough to make me stop.  I attacked every inch of her I could, punching, scratching, slapping, and pulling until a strong pair of arms lifted me off her, wrapping around me tightly and pulling me to my feet.

“No, let me go!” I shouted, struggling furiously against my captor.

“Joey, you have to stop,” Harry said into my ear, his lips pressing against my skin as he cradled me to his chest firmly. 

“No, Harry!”

“Baby, please stop, you’ll get hurt,” he pleaded as I grunted in frustration, still attempting to free myself from his tight grip.  “Joey, please.”

My legs kicked at her on the ground, where she had managed to lift herself to rest on one elbow as she spit a mouthful of blood into the grass.

“You bitch,” she shouted, scowling at me. 

“Takes one to know one, you stupid slut,” I screamed, completely losing my head as I thrashed against Harry.  I had never been so angry in my entire life.  The vision of her wrapping her arms around his neck and attempting to kiss him flashed in front of my eyes, further fueling my rage.  A scream of anger hurled from my throat.

“Harry, let me go!”

“Shit,” he said distractedly, loosening his grip on me just enough for me to push away from him before he reoriented himself and grabbed me again, spinning me to face him.  My eyes were wild as I looked up into his face, concern written all over his features.  My heart, which was already pounding, beat erratically in my chest when blue and red lights flashed across his face, which could only mean one thing- cops.

“Joey, we need to run now,” he said calmly, glancing over my head at the street behind me as his hands gripped my shoulders.  “Don’t turn around, just run.”

“Okay,” I said breathlessly.  I heard a scuffle behind me before Katie appeared back into my line of vision, running away from the street into the maze of backyards, away from the cops as she followed the quickly swarming bodies that fled the yard.  Harry grabbed my hand as he gave one more concerned glance behind me, pulling me with him as he started to jog away from the street. 

“Come on, Joey, let’s go,” he said, attempting to keep his voice calm.

I ran as fast as I could, Harry going no faster than I was able as we disappeared into the darkness.

**

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Also, I've updated 'Resolution' and put Chapter 3 up! Have a look? :)