Harry

I was sitting in the back of the car outside the address Jessi had given me. I'd been here for about fifteen minutes and I was feeling guilty because I'd been Social Media stalking while I waited. It was something I tried hard to avoid, going into a date with preconceived notions of what someone was like just didn't seem like a good plan. I thought it would ease my nerves, but if anything it made things worse. I'd found Lorena on Twitter and Instagram but Jessi's accounts were private. She was in a lot of Lorena's pictures, usually pulling silly faces. There was a video of them singing along to Lady Gaga, which I admit I watched more than once, they looked like they had a great friendship but then I knew that when I realised she'd came to our signing simply to support her friend.

"Should we drive around the block?" Jo interrupted my thoughts. He was getting anxious because we'd been sitting here for about ten minutes. I opened my mouth to agree and then I spotted her across the street, waving to somebody as she exited the building. She looked stunning. She had on a black leather jacket, a black top, black skinny jeans and the most awesome pair of leopard print wedge trainers. Her hair was up in a messy bun but I couldn't take my eyes off her lips, she had on a cherry red lipstick. I licked my lips, my mouth feeling a little dry, as she hurried across the road and pulled open the car door. I gave myself a mental ticking off for not getting out and opening the door for her.

"Hi. Sorry, I'm late. I hope you haven't been waiting long." She fastened her seatbelt, the space between us felt like a chasm. I wanted to be closer to her. Jo drove off as soon as her belt had clicked.

"Not too long. How was your day?" I smiled and forced myself to stop looking at her lips.

"Long," She stretched out her legs in front of her, "how was yours?"

"Same. I took Ed to the airport this morning. He says you've to go visit him if you're ever in London." I was glad he liked her, he was one of my best friends and a good judge of character.

"He's cool. Where are we going?" She smiled as she looked out the window. Her smile was so pretty. It made my heart race.

"It's a surprise." I was feeling pleased with my plan. I thought it was quite romantic and then I noticed her frown slightly, her fingers tugging on the seam of her jeans. "What's wrong?"

"Well... It's just I'm not overly keen on surprises. I like to know what's happening. It makes me feel a little out of control. I get a similar feeling with balloons." She tried to explain, as her fingers moved to brush at some non-existent fluff.

"Balloons?" I struggled to process how they applied to her fear of surprises.

"You're gonna think I'm crazy but you know when people give little kids a balloon, not helium balloons but those stupid air filled ones and you can't relax because you're constantly waiting for it to pop?" She lowered her head. "Sorry, forget I said all that. It's just embarrassing." I reached my hand out and squeezed her thigh.

"Hey. I don't think you're crazy. But nobody will jump out at you or anything. It's a nice surprise. I promise." Now I was nervous she wouldn't like it but I felt her relax. I hated being so nervous around her. It wasn't something I was used to.

"It's the not knowing that makes me feel anxious but I trust you. No balloons?" She laughed as she teased herself and I found myself fixated on her lips again. I really wanted to kiss her.

"No balloons. I promise." I smiled, drawing a cross over my heart.

"We're here, Mr Styles!" Jo said as he stopped the car. I'd told him a million times to call me Harry, but he never did. I jumped out the car and ran around the other side to open Jessi's door, holding out my hand to help her out. She grinned as she took my hand and climbed out, my other hand reaching for the bag of supplies I'd brought with me. Her hand fell from my grasp as she looked around, and it instantly felt cold. I wanted to hold her hand again, but I didn't want to just grab it so I tucked my hand inside my pocket as I watched a smile spread across her face.

Jessi

"I know where we are!" I felt myself relax as I recognised we were in Hudson River Park, it was one of my favourite places in New York. I glanced over at Harry, I wanted to hold his hand again, it had felt nice, but he'd tucked it into his pocket and he was carrying a bag in his other hand. He smiled at me and feeling like I needed to have any kind of contact with him, I linked my arm through his and cuddled into his bicep. It was cold.

He was quiet as we walked towards a bench, and I felt my mouth drop open as I took in the sight in front of me. There were multiple candles surrounding the bench, it already looked lovely even though it wasn't dark yet. There were a couple of guys who looked like security and they backed off as we got closer, nodding to Harry as they did so. I sat myself down on the bench, shuffling closer to Harry when he left a little gap between our bodies. Sitting in the car with the huge gap between us was torture, my body craved being close to him. He pulled a blanket from the bag he'd been carrying and wrapped it around us, wrapping his arm around me at the same time.

"Hot chocolate?" He smiled, pulling a flask from the bag. I nodded taking it from him and pouring us both a drink so he wouldn't remove his arm from my body. "Good surprise?"

"The best. It's so pretty." I leaned my head on his shoulder as we watched the sunset. I wished I had a camera with me but then again Lorena always got annoyed with me always trying to take photos, she said I should just enjoy the moment instead of looking at it through a tiny lens. Maybe she had a point. It was a lovely moment, but this was usually the kind of cheesy rubbish I'd be scoffing at, balking at how fake and forced it seemed, even laughing at how he was trying too hard. But this didn't feel funny, fake or forced and I had to admit that scared me. It felt like my defenses turned to dust when he was around.

----------

Harry held my hand on the way back to the car and once Jo came into view he suddenly stopped, tugging on my hand. I turned round to look at him and he smiled, a huge smile, making his dimple appear.

"What?" I asked as he pulled me into him. He wrapped his arms around me and my heartbeat quickened. Down go those defenses again.

"Nothing. I just want to look at you." He placed his hand on my cheek, which instantly warmed at his touch. His eyes felt like they were boring into my soul, making me feel naked and exposed.

"Kiss me, please?" I whispered as I placed my hands on his shoulders. He tightened his grip on me and picked me up, pressing his lips to mine. I felt goosebumps spread over my body as his cold nose bumped mine. I deepened the kiss and moaned slightly as his tongue brushed along mine. I heard somebody whistle behind me and sighed as Harry pulled back from me. He kissed my lips gently before he put me back down on the ground.

"Come on, Jo's getting antsy!" He grabbed my hand and practically ran to the car.

I couldn't stop grinning when he sat in the seat beside me. No space between us, his leg pressed up against mine and he was holding my hand but still I craved more. It felt like every fibre of my being cried out for his touch.

"Do you want to meet the rest of the band when we get back?" He said into my ear, it tickled.

"Sure?" I nodded, instantly feeling nervous. What if they hated me? What would we talk about? Lorena might kill me.

"You sure? We don't have to hang out with them if you don't want to?" He squeezed my hand tighter. I felt bad for making him worried.

"I'm sure. Meeting four people at once is just a bit intimidating." I smiled.

"Not gonna lie, they'll probably tease you a little but I'll protect you." He squeezed my hand again.

"I can handle myself." I felt myself bite back. I didn't need protecting.

"I'm sure you can." A cheeky look spread across his face.

"That's not what I meant!" I playfully smacked his arm, I liked his cheeky side.

"What? All I said was I was sure you could handle yourself." He tried to look innocent, and I looked away as I felt my cheeks blush. He nudged my leg with his but I still didn't look at him. He was constantly making me feel like I'd come undone. I was used to being the one in control in a relationship, I didn't trust people easily, I'd never been in love, I didn't let many people get close, my heart had been hurt so much already and I'd vowed never to let a guy break it. Yet here I was in the back of a car with Harry fucking Styles and I felt completely out of control, I had to get a grip on myself. My heart was racing.

"Jessi..." His voice pulled me out my own head. I really did love how he said my name, just like a growl. "Jessi, I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable. It was just a joke. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be sorry. I know you were joking." I squeezed his hand tight, to try to show him I wasn't annoyed. Suddenly, the car stopped, I felt Harry undo my seat belt, and I lunged for the door, desperate for some air. I stumbled out and took a deep breath before Harry came crashing into me as I'd practically dragged him from the car since I hadn't let go of his hand. He wrapped his arms around me and stood me back on my feet and I stared into his gorgeous green eyes. 

"Come on." He took both my hands and pulled me through a set of doors and into a lift, my palms were sweating like nobody's business.

"You are so beautiful." He kissed beneath my ear and my knees turned to jelly. What was he doing to me?

"I'm not." I muttered into his chest as he wrapped his arms around me. He made a weird sound, something between a gasp and a scoff before staring into my eyes, that look straight into my soul.

"Yes, you are!" He cupped my face and gently pressed his lips to mine before kissing my forehead and pulling me into a hug. The biggest smile spread across my face, my entire body tingled, nobody had ever kissed me like that before. It made me feel like he wanted me more than anything in the universe but he was also so gentle, as if I was made of glass and he might break me. I wanted more but the lift door pinged and he took my hand as he walked out.

Harry

I wanted to get back in the lift. To take her straight to my bedroom. Spend hours showing her how amazing and beautiful she was. But I also wanted to take my time with her, Jess was different from other girls so I kept heading to the conference room we'd taken over as a common room, it was where we'd all hang out when we weren't busy. I was excited for to them to meet her; it was like introducing her to my brothers.

"You ready?" I paused at the door.

"Yeah." She nervously chewed her lip, and she looked so sexy I almost reconsidered dragging her up to my room. I shook my head and pushed open the door, surprised to find nobody there except Zayn, who sat on the floor drawing.

"Hey Zayn. Where are the rest of the guys?" I asked.

"Some promotional thing, should've been done yesterday. Apparently I'm the only one who did it. They're looking for you too." He barely looked up from his drawing. Great. I had tried to make sure I was finished for the day before I left to get Jessi. Now what? I couldn't just leave her on her own.

"Go, I'll be fine. I'll just hang out here." She said as if she could read my thoughts. I saw Zayn look up from his drawing as he realised I wasn't alone.

"Zayn, will you look after Jessi until I get back?" I asked, pulling out my phone to check where they were.

"Sure?" He shrugged, immediately returning his attention back to his drawing.

"You're sure it's okay?" I turned to Jessi. I felt awful, but they'd just be hassling me all night until I did it and I knew Zayn wouldn't give her a hard time.

"It's fine. Now go. The sooner you go, the sooner you'll be back." She squeezed my arm.

"I'll be as quick as I can, I promise." I gently kissed her lips and quickly walked to the door before I changed my mind and ran away with her. I glanced over my shoulder and felt my heart leap as she smiled and waved. This had better be the shortest promo ever. I walked out the door and down the hallway to the lift. It seemed crazy, but I missed her already.

Jessi

"So what do you want to do?" Zayn asked from behind me. I forced myself to look away from the door and realised Zayn was packing away all his art things.

"No. Please don't stop drawing because of me. I can amuse myself. In fact, if you don't mind, could I watch you draw? I used to love watching my Mum draw." I blurted out, surprising myself, thinking about her still hurt.

"Sure," he shrugged, "Do you want to draw?" He held out a piece of paper. I took off my jacket and lay down on the floor, taking the piece of paper from him. 

"You're sure I'm not bothering you?" I picked up a pencil.

"It's fine. At least you're wearing a better outfit today." He smirked.

"Ha. I'm sorry about that. I thought Zarry was your name. I'm surprised you remember, there were so many people there. It was crazy." I sketched. It felt calming. This was something I used to do with my Mum, she was super talented.

"Well, a French girl and an English girl in a crowd full of New Yorkers kinda stick out." He concentrated on his sketch and I was shocked at how comfortable drawing with him felt.

"Yeah, I guess we would." I laughed.

"So you're not a fan then?" I love how immersed he was in his work.

"Hmm..." I paused as I thought about my answer. "I'm not a super fan like Lori but I don't dislike you guys. Lot's of your songs are catchy and everyone likes a bit of pop music don't they?"

"What's your favourite song on Four?" He eyes flicked up towards me.

"I like Stockholm Syndrome and it's super annoying because Lori always skips it because she loves Clouds." I smiled at the sound of the pencil drawing across the paper.

"Clouds has better writers." He laughed. I didn't get what he meant by that, so I kept on drawing. I felt pretty pleased with how it was coming along.

"I like your tattoo. It reminds me of 1960s batman." I pointed at a comic book style ZAP tattoo.

"I've never seen it." He smiled.

"It's totally cheesy. But I remember liking it when I was a kid." Liam, Louis and Niall burst through the doors, shattering the peace in the room as they argued about what they wanted to eat.

"Oh, I didn't know we were meeting a fan?" Louis said.

"Shh.." I whispered to Zayn as I got up from the floor. "Yeah. Sorry. I was early." I put on my best American accent.

"What's your name, Love?" Liam asked.

"Jess." I smiled. Niall eyed me suspiciously.

"You guys have to give her something you're wearing so she can auction it at her school." Zayn winked at me. They all looked at each other and I tried not to laugh as Liam handed me his sunglasses, Louis handed me a beanie hat and then they yelled at Niall to just give me his hoodie. Niall still looked suspicious, but he handed it over.

"Pizza?" Liam said, getting back to their previous argument.

"Not Pizza again." Louis countered.

"Will somebody just order food? I'm hungry!" Niall snapped and I couldn't help but chuckle. He looked like a hangry toddler.

"Fine. Jess can choose. What do you want to eat?" Louis asked.

"There's a place a couple of blocks away that does great sandwiches." I clapped my hand over my mouth as I forgot my American accent.

"I knew it. You're that girl with the pretty friend, aren't you? The French one?" Niall yelled. I could hear Zayn laughing behind me.

"You got me. Her name's Lorena." I smiled.

"What's going on?" Louis and Liam glanced at the three of us with blank expressions.

"She's with Harry. She's waiting for him to come back from shooting the promo." Zayn was still laughing.

"Sorry. I couldn't resist pulling your leg." I felt a tiny bit bad, but I figured they could handle some teasing.

"She was at our signing the other day. Uhm... is your friend here?" Niall asked, his cheeks turning ever so slightly pink.

"No, but I can bring her with me next time." I couldn't wait to tell her all about this. She would freak out.

"Listen Love, you're waiting for Harry. There's probably not going to be a next time." Louis snapped. And I felt my mouth drop open. It's not like I hadn't considered that already but it felt like such a rude thing to say.

"Louis!" Zayn scolded while Niall and Liam looked like they wanted to be anywhere but here.

"Sorry Love, I'm sure you'll get married and live happily ever after." Louis sarcastically rolled his eyes.

"Hey, you don't even know me. Don't presume you know why I'm here or what I want. Harry seems to be a nice guy, and he's fun to hang out with." I shrugged. Truth be told, I had no idea what I expected from Harry but I wasn't about to let some guy I didn't know tell me how I should feel.

"Hey, if you're just here to be fucked then good for you. I hear Harry's good at that!" I felt my hands clench into fists. I really wanted to smack him.

"LOUIS! That's enough. Jessi is a nice girl, leave her alone!" Zayn yelled before he turned me to face him, "Ignore him. Harry is a nice guy. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." I tried to relax my hands. I was still angry and embarrassed. I hated people knowing my business. I heard the door swing and turned round to find Louis had left, Liam following after him.

"So this sandwich shop?" Niall made me laugh. I gave him the number, and he called and ordered enough sandwiches for about ten people. I sat down on the sofa and pulled out my phone, trying to forget everything Louis had said. I didn't care if Harry just wanted me for a fling, that could still be fun, right?

"Hey Lori, so there's this guy called Niall. He wants to know if he can have your number? J"

"GIVE IT TO HIM!" Her reply came instantly and I couldn't stop myself from laughing.

"Lorena said you can have her number." Niall nodded like one of those bobble head toys and handed me his phone. I typed in Lori's number and handed it back to him. He looked so sweet as he smiled while I assumed he sent her a message.

"Hey Jessi, can I keep this? It's amazing." Zayn sat down beside me.

"Of course you can." I smiled. I'd drawn his hand. Hands were one of the first things my Mum had taught me to draw. I was happy he liked it.

"That's wicked." Niall looked over at the picture.

"Thanks." My cheeks blushed. I heard somebody open the door and hoped to see Harry but it was somebody looking for someone named Paul. He left again, and I talked to Zayn while Niall was busy on his phone. It surprised me to find out Zayn was engaged, I couldn't imagine being married at our age, well any age really. I didn't think marriage was for me. He told me she was also in a band called Little Mix, the name sounded familiar. I think Lorena liked them. It was sweet how happy he seemed while he talked about her. I heard the door and again I was disappointed to find it wasn't Harry. It was the food Niall had ordered. He looked so excited. He pulled out his phone, and I heard him tell whoever answered that food was here, I guessed it was Liam or Louis. Shortly after he'd hung up somebody came in and picked up some sandwiches. I had to admit I was glad Louis wasn't coming back, but I hoped we could put it behind us, I didn't want to fight with him.

"Do you want something to eat?" Niall asked. I still loved his accent.

"No, Thanks. I should wait for Harry, we're supposed to be having dinner." It smelled awesome though, and it made me realise I was really hungry. I pulled my phone out as I felt it vibrate.

"OH MY GOD! NIALL JUST ASKED ME OUT TO DINNER TOMORROW!!!!!"

"Well? Are you gonna go?" I could imagine how happy she looked, it made me happy.

"Well duh? Obviously. We could double date?" My smile faded as I realised I still wasn't sure this thing with Harry would go anywhere. I saw Niall pick up his phone and a huge grin spread across his face.

"Did you just text Niall? A huge grin spread over his face. It's so cute." I was curious about what she said.

"You're there with him? I told him I loved his accent."

"Yeah. I'm waiting for Harry. He had to go do a promo thing." The longer he was away, the more I was thinking I'd made a terrible mistake coming here. I jumped as I felt hands on my shoulders.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Harry laughed.

"Harry!" I exclaimed and spun round on the sofa. I hadn't even heard the door.

"You ready for dinner?" He smiled, "Thanks for staying with her Zayn. Hi Niall!"

"No problem." Zayn smiled.

"Hi!" Niall said, his phone in one hand and a sandwich in the other. I got up off the sofa and grabbed my jacket. Harry took my hand, and we said goodbye to Zayn and Niall. As much as I enjoyed their company I was happy to be back with Harry. 

"I missed you." He smiled when we got into the lift, his eyes bored into me again. I wrapped my arms around him tightly and breathed in his aftershave. Louis remarks still niggled at me. I tried to push them from my mind, getting lost in Harry's scent. I heard the lift doors ping open and Harry placed his hand on my lower back as he guided me along the hallway, it gave me a warm fuzzy feeling inside. He opened the room door, and I felt my mouth drop open for the second time today, the room was dark except for a table set up with dinner, candles and flowers. It looked so pretty.

"Harry. This is amazing!" I exhaled.

"You like it?" He took my hand and walked me over to the table, pulling out my chair for me and I smiled as I sat down. I didn't think gentlemen existed anymore. He sat down across from me and pulled the covers off our food. It was Quesadilla with spicy rice, my favourite.

"How did you know this was my favourite?" I grabbed a fork to tuck in, I was hungry.

"Lorena might have told me or I might be psychic?" He ran his tongue along his lips and I felt like I might explode if he didn't kiss me soon. "I meant to ask you about her sign the other day?" He looked genuinely interested but my entire body tensed up.

"It's a long story." I warned him.

"That's okay. I'd like to hear it." He reached for my hand.

----------

I rushed to Lori's house. It was 2am, and she'd called me in a right state saying she needed my help so I got there as fast as I could. I could tell something was seriously wrong the second she answered the door. She looked more scared than I've ever seen anyone. She didn't say a word she just dragged me inside, along the hall and into her bedroom, being careful not to wake her parents.

My heart stopped when I saw the pills all over the floor. So many pills, enough to kill herself at least ten times over.

"What have you done?" I asked, my body was shaking with fear but I had to keep calm.

"I don't know what to do?" She whimpered.

"How many have you taken Lor?" I forced myself to ask the question even although I didn't think I could handle the answer.

"None. I swear." She burst into tears and I felt a huge sigh of relief release from my body. I left her crying on the floor while I concentrated on picking up all the pills. Once I was sure I had every single one I carried them to her bathroom and flushed them all down the toilet. I went through her bag, her drawers and her wardrobe to make sure she didn't have any more hidden somewhere and then I sat down on the floor and held her until she was ready to tell me what happened. I thought she would never stop crying but eventually she calmed down enough to speak.

"I'm sorry." She whimpered.

"It's okay. Everything will be okay." I stroked her hair, trying to calm myself as well as my friend.

"Everyone hates me Jess. They all believe everything Fynn said about me and I can't take it anymore." Her voice was still small. Fynn was her ex. He was an arsehole. He cheated on her and when she dumped him he spread nasty rumours around school about her. Even her parents gave her a hard time because they really liked him and she hadn't told them he cheated on her.

"It'll all blow over soon, Lor and if they all want to blindly follow Fynn then they'll most likely end up with crabs or something. The cheating dick that he is."

"I felt like this was the only way I could escape it all." She handed me her phone. I knew she'd gotten a few mean messages from people but she had seemed better in the past few days, I now realised that's because she thought she'd found her solution. I couldn't believe my eyes when I read message after message.

"Why don't you just die? I hate you!"

"You're nothing but a slut!"

"Fynn deserves so much better than you!"

"You're ugly!"

"You have no boobs!"

"Lor, you should have told me. And they are just jealous. You're an amazing person, beautiful and have fabulous boobs. Seriously, they put mine to shame." She let out a little giggle, and it sounded like music to my ears.

"You wouldn't have been able to stop them. You can't go around fighting everyone in school." She said. (Maybe she was right but Fynn was a lot quieter after I broke his fucking nose a few days later)

"Lor, what stopped you?"

"Oh, you'll definitely think I'm crazy if you don't think I am already." She fidgeted beside me.

"I won't." I insisted.

"Well, I don't know why but I turned on the radio and there was this guy singing and I don't know, it was like he was singing just for me. His voice was like an angel, Jess and it was as if something switched inside me, I looked down at the pills and I just knew they weren't the answer." She paused. "And that's when I called you, I panicked. I didn't know what to do about all the pills."

"Well, I'm glad you heard this song. I don't know what I'd do without you." I hugged her as tight as I could manage. Feeling so thankful she'd turned on the radio.

----------

"Wow. But she's okay now? She's never tried to do it again?" Harry squeezed my hand as I finished my story.

"She's good now. She switched schools, changed her number, blocked a lot of people on social media and gained about 100 new friends who love you guys as much as she does." I smiled.

"Do you love us?" He smirked.

"Thanks to you, I still have my best friend so I think there will always be a part of me that loves One Direction." He squeezed my hand again, and I wished somebody could have saved my Mum too.

"You and Lorena should come to our show on Saturday." He pulled me from my thoughts as we moved over to the sofa.

"Isn't it sold out?" I asked. Lorena had tried to get tickets months ago when they first came out. She literally cried for a solid hour when she didn't get them.

"I think I can sort something." He pulled me down beside him,  wrapping his arm around me and drawing circles on my shoulder. I jumped as I felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. 

"Hmm... Niall would like to know if we want to go for dinner with him and Lorena tomorrow? When did this happen?" He smiled as he read out the message.

"He thinks she's pretty. He asked for her number earlier." I smiled.

"That's awesome. So dinner tomorrow? Or are you sick of me already?" He pulled me closer.

"Hmmm... I suppose I could manage to spend another evening with you." I laughed.

"You suppose?" He laughed and tickled my side. I'd always been ridiculously ticklish, so I threw myself down on the sofa and tried to get away from him but he kept on tickling, adding his other hand into the mix too.

"Stop! I give up!" I yelled between laughing and squirming around. My breathing was heavy once he gave up his attack, my chest rising and falling quickly as it tried to replace the missing oxygen. I looked up at him, his hands placed on the sofa either side of my body, his long curly hair had fallen into his face and I reached up and ran my fingers through it, brushing it out of his eyes. His tongue poked out to wet those perfect pink lips of his and I tugged on his t-shirt, needing him to come closer. 

He lowered himself onto his elbows and my heart raced faster and faster, like a train rushing along a track. I looked into his eyes, begging him to kiss me and I smiled as he placed his hand on my cheek and slowly lowered his head, granting my wish. The kiss was gentle at first. I placed one hand on the back of his neck, my other lazily trailing down his back, with no particular destination in mind. He deepened the kiss and our tongues fought for dominance. I reached under his t-shirt, enjoying how his muscles flexed, hoping I got to feel them flex as we did more than kissing, which caused me to moan into his lips. He ran his hand down my side and my entire body ached for him but he suddenly pulled away and sat upright. 

What the hell? I raised my head from the sofa and looked at him. He was running his hands through his hair, roughly. His curls being pulled straight before pinging back again.

"Harry? Is everything okay?" I didn't understand what had happened, what had I done wrong?

Harry

I looked down at Jess. Christ! I wanted her. Badly. She licked her lips, and I forced myself to look away, she was driving me crazy.

"Harry, talk to me. Do you want me to go?" She kneeled beside me.

"No!" I yelled a little louder than I intended to. She looked hurt, and I instantly felt bad. "I'm sorry - I just - I don't want to rush you - rush this." I held her hand in mine, I loved the way my large hands enveloped her small ones. "I like you."

"I like you too." She playfully poked my shoulder and I couldn't stop smiling. She liked me.

"Want to watch a film?" I asked.

"Sure, what you got in mind?" She grinned.

"The Notebook?"

"Never seen it." She shrugged as I got up to go put it on. I couldn't believe she hadn't seen it, I thought everyone had seen it.

"You will love it." I sat back down on the sofa and pressed play. She lay down on the sofa and placed her head in my lap, my fingers automatically brushing through her hair. She let out a contented little sigh and I wished we could stay here, like this forever.