"Alice."

Every waking moment was slowly being consumed by him, only this time it was Annabeth"s warning. Gone were the sexy fantasies and doubts of how he felt. Now it was just Harry. I started over-analyzing everything he had done in my presence, looking for signs that I knew were there. I knew he had tore apart a pharmacy so I knew the anger was there but now I wanted to know where the anger was currently. There had been moments like when that lady smashed-

"Alice!"

I whirled to find London staring at me. In an attempt to play it off, I smile. "London, baby. How can I help you today?"

She huffed, clearly not believing my bluff. "I've been calling you. You really didn't hear any of that?"

I shook my head. "You did? Why were you calling in the first place?"

"I wanted to talk about what happened." God dammit. She did seem genuinely concerned though. "What happened with you and Harry? Are you guys alright?

Were we alright? "Yeah, we're alright. How are things with you and Bran?"

Her green eyes swept around, almost like she was checking if he was around. "I don't know at this point. Things are kinda everywhere at the moment. He hasn't even spoken to me at all since then. I just can't believe he'd go on a date with Danny."

It occurred to me that I was probably the only one who hadn't spoken to London about what had happened. I was so wrapped up with Harry the day before that I forgot it was my turn to care for her.

"You know," I began with what I hoped was a sympathetic smile as we continued to our lockers. ", maybe it wasn't a date. Maybe he just realized that flirting with you everyday wasn't working so he tried something new."

She rolled her eyes, clearly irritated by the idea. "Could've found a better way honestly. That's just stupid."

I nodded and pulled her closer. "I said new, not great. Feelings, man. Feelings."

She looked like she would've agreed but suddenly her eyes widened. "Crap, his coming."

I looked in the direction we were walking and saw that she was indeed right. Bran was casually strolling toward us, an air around him and a smile on his face. Almost like he was about to do something that would make his day.

"Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap." London's hands tightened around me as he got closer. I was starting to understand why they haven't spoken. "What do I do?"

Picking up on her energy, I found myself whisper-shouting too. "I don't know! Talk to him."

Her blonde hair swept frantically around, looking for escape routes when her eyes lit up. "Promise not to hold a grudge."

A grudge? Before I could ask she let go of me and took off in the opposite direction. When my eyes followed her, I suddenly understood.

God was shining on him today. Literally. His back was towards the main entrance where snippets of light shone through almost outlining him. I noticed that (besides his baggy clothes) he seemed to be getting bigger. The way he styled his hair (or the lack of) made me think his hair was actually shorter than it really was. But those eyes, always alight, were trained on the ground uninterested in the world as London rushed towards him.

She quickly clung to his right arm like some sort of lovesick girl. Harry watched her with a perturbed look almost like he couldn't comprehend what was happening. Suddenly she pulled him down and stood on the tip of her toes to whisper something in his ear. The perturbed look disappeared.

I understood now why she asked me not to hold a grudge. It was the first time I'd seen anyone physically interact with Harry and, telling by the glances they were getting, I was not alone. The sight made my stomach feel funny.

"What is that?" I'd forgotten that Bran was also walking this way and was now standing next to me, the good air gone.

I shrugged, at a loss for words as they came closer.

London tried to catch my eye as they walked past but all I could do is catch Harry's. The feeling in my stomach blossomed as he threw me a quick, small smile and raised his eyebrows as if the situation was funny. He understood what was happening better than I initially thought.

"Hey Harry!" Bran called out as they continued past us, seemingly angry. Instead of acknowledging us, they just kept walking which was a bit harsh. "Ass."

He turned and walked away, definitely angry. I looked between the two groups, clear daylight between them and I was wondering if maybe Harry's anger wasn't just the only anger I should look out for.

I trudged my way up the stairs after my mom dropped me off. She was on her way to talk to the other mothers to see if someone could drop me off. That way she could stay at her job and my dad could have the car if he needed it.

I was sort of hungry but I figured I should at least change first. I knew that because of the physics practical, my afternoon was booked off so if I wanted to do it now was my only chance. That said I still wanted to be quick so when I rounded the corner I didn't expect to find someone in my room.

Harry stood at the foot of my bed, my bedroom window wide open behind him. He appeared the same as before except the wind was running its hands through his hair, the locks dangling in front of his eyes.

"How the hell did you get in here? How come the alarm didn't go off?" I immediately jumped using my anger to get over my shock.

That small smile from this morning appeared on his lips. "Bold of you to assume the alarm was on."

"You waited till we got here and climbed through my window like the nimble monkey you are, right?" I guessed but added a little smile of my own as I stood in my doorway.

"So now I'm a nimble monkey because I came to see you?" He spoke calmly but I could tell he was amused.

"I've seen those fingers and I did a little research since you were here the last time. Turns out those pictures of monkeys are remarkably similar." I don't know where the confidence came from but I threw a wink that seemed to make him a bit jittery.

"I think you need to stop checking my fingers out, Hadley." Nevermind jittery, he was holding on strong.

Because he seemed like he wasn't going anywhere I moved into my room to drop my bag and shrug off my sweater.

"What can I do for you, Mr Malakai?" I threw over my shoulder, watching him through the mirror. "If there is nothing though, do you mind if I get changed? I have a practical on Friday."

He turned slightly so I couldn't see his eyes anymore but I felt them on me. I didn't want to start peeling anything else off but I felt naked underneath his gaze.

"Are we okay?" I stopped breathing. It felt like he was voicing some of my doubts. "Especially after this morning?"

I paused, thinking about London clinging to his arm in an attempt to get out of dealing with Bran.

I inhaled deeply. "Yeah, we're okay. You were just helping."

A hand hovered on my hip, swaying between until he finally placed it. He was close, so close that I could feel the heat off him. He moved a little closer, his grip tightening.

"May I help you? Undress that is." He mumbled, our eyes locking in the mirror. Why was he so tall? I could see every detail of him as we watched each other.

I shivered as my eyes traveled to his hand. "Seems like you're helping already there..."

My hand traveled between us and gripped his hoodie, pulling him against me. A groan vibrated against my back. I could feel his heavy and fast breathing. I could feel his grip on my hip and the shivers that came from it. I had a hand free with the other one trapped between us but I felt completely at his mercy.

I drew in another breath and pressed myself closer to him. I could feel him against me to, just enough to make my legs buckle. His arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me off the ground and completely into him.

"It's okay." He whispered into my hair. "I've got you."

"You can-" I gulped as I melted into him even more. "You can be romantic when you want to be."

One hand trailed up and tilted my head up towards the mirror. I stilled as our eyes met. We were so close, almost one but his eyes were dead. The flames that licked at everything it touched were suddenly gone. That's how I knew he was serious.

"I've got you, Alice Hadley."