♡ chapter 3 - Rose ♡

            Night was upon us far quicker than I was comfortable with. The dark was growing thicker and thicker by the minute, my heart picking up pace with it. The trees had already turned into lurking shadows, my imagination twisting their unambiguous appearances into something dangerous, something evil. I've always had a creative side of me, but it only came in handy on the many lonely nights I'd sit in the basement and practice writing. It was basically the only thing I had to do.

            Harry seemed to be in deep thought as he stopped, scanning the portion of the woods we were in. My heart seemed to freeze as his eyebrows pushed together, almost like he was hearing something distant. He licked his plump lips before pursing them together, turning to me and saying, "Might as well make yourself comfortable. We'll sleep here for the night."

            Nibbling my fingernails, I frowned. "H-here? In the open? Are you sure?"

            Harry rolled his eyes. "Stop being such a sissy, Rosalie. I'll be right here."

            "Is that supposed to make me feel better?" I snapped, hesitantly sitting cross-legged on the ground. "You did try to choke me right off the bat when you saw me."

            "For the millionth time, I have to be cautious." He groaned. "And let's not forget who saved your life not even an hour ago."

            Chewing my bottom lip, I looked to my fumbling hands in my lap. "Thanks," I murmured, just loud enough for him to hear.

            Harry didn't reply.

            We sat there in silence, but I couldn't keep my eyes to stop frantically roaming. I was beyond terrified and this phobia of mine could get bad. I knew that if I didn't calm myself down soon, I'd be facing a panic attack.

            Harry actually seemed to notice as he frowned at me. "You're sweating bullets, Rose. Are you really that scared? It's hardly even dark yet."

            Figuring he was making fun of me, I turned my face away from him. Digging in my duffel bag, I was more than relieved to feel my inhaler still there. I took two puffs, the air gradually filling my lungs once more as I redeemed relaxation. But I was only partly calm while the other part of me still jumped around with butterflies of anxiety.

            Harry continued to watch me intently as I let out a breath, raking a hand through my hair. I rose an eyebrow at him, curious as to why he was staring at me so cautiously. Catching my inquisitiveness, he licked his lips and quickly looked away.

            I sighed. "You're so awkward."

            Harry frowned, looking back to me but not making eye contact. "I'm not awkward. I just don't talk much. Is that such a sin?"

            I held my hands up in mock defense. "Calm down, feisty. I'm just trying to make conversation."

            Harry scoffed, rolling his emerald eyes. "Yeah, because you haven't talked enough already," he said sarcastically in a bitter tone.

            Deciding I've had enough of his harsh attitude towards me, I shot to my feet. "You know what, Harry. I'm so done with you right now. I've done absolutely nothing wrong and you're talking to me like I'm some pain in the ass. Sorry for trying to be genuine and actually friendly," I snapped, picking up my shoes I recently took off.

            Harry furrowed his eyebrows, looking up at me. "Where are you going?"

            "Away from you," I huffed, stepping in the freezing water of the calm little river. I crossed it quickly, not wanting any small fish thinking my toes were edible. I was still beyond terrified of the night sky, but I tried to keep my mind off of it and think of the anger I had towards Harry right now.

            Harry rose an eyebrow at me from the other side of the stream as I plopped down to the ground. "Really? What are you, five?" he asked in a voice that nearly sounded like a laugh.

            I didn't respond, but then I realized I left my duffel bag over by him. Biting the inside of my cheek, I stormed across the stream again, yanking my bag off the ground. Harry was stifling a laugh as I—once again—marched through the stream. I dropped to the ground for a second time, fluffing my duffel bag for a pillow.

            "Come on, Rosalie," Harry said as he sat on his side. "Do you not know how to take a joke?"

            "Your insults are not jokes," I retorted coolly. "You're so harsh to me, Harry, and I just met you. I'm already sick of it."

            Harry didn't reply, just rolled his eyes as he leaned back on his palms. After moment of silence, he said, "So what? You're just going to sleep over there by yourself when you're petrified of the dark?"

            "You sound like you actually want me over there," I retorted, but didn't bother looking up at him.

            I heard Harry scoff. "I don't need you around, Rosalie. Just remember that."

            "Never forgot it."

            With that, we both laid down on the opposite sides of the stream, my body shaking from the terror in the night, but there was no way in hell I was going over there with Harry.

***

            The branch snapping is what woke me in the middle of the night. The sky was still pitch black, the trees still swaying with the little breeze nature provided for us. It was the perfect temperature outside, but the pounding in my chest was making me sweat like crazy. It was only a mere squirrel that had startled the branch into cracking, but I couldn't stop the fear from running through my veins.

            Glancing over at Harry on the other side of the stream, he was softly snoring and turning on his side, his hand under his face. He looked peaceful, almost beautiful with the moonlight hitting his face the way it did. But I knew this boy, just barely, but I knew he was no angel. He was no hero. He was as cold-blooded as you could get.

            The squirrels running through the trees made the leaves shake, my body going into complete trembling motion. I couldn't just lay down and try to ignore it, because the dark was never an easy thing for me. And I could hardly see as it was, the moon just barely giving me a view of the stream and Harry.

            After the second tree ruffle, I decided this had gone far enough and I was about to piss my pants. I knew Harry would make fun of me for this, but I couldn't help myself from trudging through the stream over to him. I knew I couldn't touch him, due to my bracelet, but no way in hell was I taking it off with the dark upon us.

            "Harry," I whispered, a little loudly so he could hear. "Harry, please wake up."

            Harry grunted for a moment, then turned on his back and peeled his eyes open after my third call. He squinted at me, his voice groggy and rough as he said, "Rose? What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

            I hadn't realized I was crying, but now I could feel the tears streaming down my cheeks. Sniffing once, I twiddled with my thumbs as I looked around us. "I... I'm scared," I muttered, knowing I sounded so pathetic, and I knew he would make fun of me for waking him up over my phobia.

            But instead he sat up, looking at me in a concerned way. He let out a soft sigh, pulling his knees up and resting his elbows on his legs as he met my gaze. "You really are scared shitless of the dark, huh?"

            My bottom lip quivered like a petrified five year old as I nodded, looking to the ground in embarrassment.

            Harry pursed his lips in thought for a moment before meeting my stare once more. "I don't know what to do for you, love. You could try lying down and closing your eyes again, but that's all I've got."

            I knew he was saying this because there was no way he could physically comfort me. He couldn't pull me into a warm hug without burning to ashes. But I didn't think that was the problem, because the idea of Harry hugging someone was highly implausible.

            "Can... can I sleep over here?" I asked in a quiet voice, wiping my cheeks.

            Harry raked a hand through his hair, but scooted over some. "I guess so. If it makes you feel better."

            I nodded, laying down on my back beside him. Harry mimicked my action, both of us gazing up at the stars. My hands were still shaking, my body trembling like a wet dog in the cold. I couldn't stop the fear clawing at my insides, the pit of my stomach feeling as if it could drop to the ground. In the basement at home, I slept with a nightlight (make fun, but it's true) just because of this phobia. But the moon hardly casted any brightness with the trees blocking the way.

            "Hey," Harry said softly, making me peek over at him. He was already staring at me, his emeralds dilated in what looked like worry. "Just relax, all right? I'm right here, Rose. Nothing is going to hurt you. Do you trust me?"

            "Is that a trick question?" I managed to ask, my heart still pounding.

            Harry smirked, shrugging just the slightest. "It could be. Or it could be serious. Depends on how you take it."

            "You're a confusing person, Styles."

            "I try." Harry chuckled some before his face went serious. He met my eyes for the umpteenth time tonight. "I was being serious, though, Rosalie. Even though you annoy the shit out of me, it's pretty nice having someone to walk with. Keeps me occupied, I guess. Instead of thinking about all the other shit going on in my life, I can think about the many ways I could shut you up to get some peace."

            "Wow. What a compliment," I snorted.

            Harry grinned. "I'm not the best with them, if you haven't noticed."

            "I've noticed."

            "Most people do within ten seconds of meeting me."

            "Really? I got that picture within about a split second," I said, acting as if I were pondering. "But I mean, the choking thing could have me biased, who knows."

            Harry laughed, an actual laugh that sounded beautiful rolling through my ears. He glanced down at my hands—which had now stopped shaking—then up at me. He smiled. "See? You're calm already."

            I frowned. "What do you mean? I'm still scared of the dark."

            "Yeah, but by getting your mind off of it, you stopped shaking. See, this whole time I was distracting you and it worked. You're too gullible," he teased, that cocky smirk of his returning to those plump, pink lips.

            "You're an asshole," I said, biting back the smile that threatened to creep onto my lips. He wasn't acting half bad at the moment, but I knew that by morning, the cycle would repeat himself and I'd be ready to jump off a cliff again.

            Harry nodded with my statement. "Seems accurate."

            I laughed, rolling my eyes. But my giggles subsided when the inevitable truth dawned upon me. I fumbled with my hands again, resting them on my stomach as I quietly asked, "Harry? What do you think is going to happen to you in the future? To me?"

            Harry licked his lips before pressing them together, contemplating my question fully. His eyes remained locked on the sky, but I watched his expression twist as he somewhat shrugged. "I don't know. Mine will probably include someone dying—most likely me, and you... well... I don't know, Rosalie. Maybe you'll find out where your mum ran off too. Out of all my abilities, predicting the future isn't one of them. And I'm glad."

            I furrowed my eyebrows, still looking at him. "Where are you happy about that? Most people would die to see the future."

            Harry pursed his lips again before speaking. "Seeing the future is a scary thought to me, Rose. It could change with the slightest action, the littlest decision you make. You're in charge of your future, so why would you want to see it when it could change at any moment? You may have an incredible future one moment, and then the next you have a shitty life in prison for some little act of shoplifting. You don't know how the world will play out. If I saw my future... Well, to say the least I'd be terrified."

            The wise words leaving his lips left me baffled. Harry is constantly criticizing things, so I had no clue he had this brilliant bone in his body. The more I thought of what he said, the more I believed it. But I was still curious to know why he would be terrified of the things he would see, so I asked him.

            Harry sighed as he looked over at me. "Rose, I'm a criminal. I escaped prison, I pissed off the Council, and I basically kill anything that gets in my way. My future doesn't seem like it would be... appealing at this point. I know I'll end back up in jail. I know my death will be brutal. Why would I want to see those things when I'll have to go through them? It's illogical to think of things you can't control."

            For once since I met this curly haired boy (which was only about twelve hours ago), I believed the words leaving his lips. But I could see the little glint in his eyes that he refused to admit while talking about his future. The emotion he bottled up so well, it was hard to believe he had.

            Harry Styles was scared.

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A/N: Dudesss! This book is rated like... 153 or something in paranormal & it's only three chapters in! That's so amazing you guys. You're all incredible and I WANT TO KISS EACH ONE OF YOU. No? Mkay. Love you all & thank you so much! xx

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