21

He lied. Of course Harry lied. How could he tell Louis that Sam being gone changes nothing when it changes everything? It shouldn't change anything, Harry's feelings shouldn't change just because Sam isn't here anymore but they have. 

His green eyes stare down at his phone as he tries to come up with something to do. He should call Sam. Harry should call Sam and ask him how his day is and maybe hearing his voice will ease him off the ledge. However, the idea of talking to him, and hearing his voice when these thoughts are running through his head feels wrong. 

"Fuck," Harry whispers to himself as he unlocks his phone and opens the Telegraph app. 

Me

Can we get lunch?

~_~_~

"I'm surprised you reached out," They say as they take a seat in front of Harry. The pair sit at a cafe at a country club. 

Even after all these years, she's hardly aged. Her blond hair sits above her shoulders, cut into a wavy bob. The iconic red lipstick has been retired for something a little nude with a slight berry shade to it. A red blazer covers a white tanktop and pressed blue slacks cover her lanky legs. She slides a pair of sunglasses over her head, revealing her icy blue eyes. 

"Of course, you were about the only one I liked back then," Harry explains as he glances across Taylor's face. She doesn't give him a smile and instead glances down at the cafe menu. 

"Not at first, but I'd say we grew on each other," Taylor hums. She spares a look at Harry from over the menu and continues, "The new look is... a look." 

Harry glances down at his outfit, a pair of jeans tucked into a button-up. He doesn't know what's wrong with it. Of course, it's nothing he would've worn before but he's on a tighter paycheck now and gave up his taste for fashion when he moved to Texas. 

"Bitter doesn't suit you, Taylor," Harry replies curtly. He knows what she's doing. Hell, he's watched her do it before. Whenever she was upset about something she would use the same tone of voice. 

Taylor sets the menu down with a sigh and gives Harry a pointed look. "Well, wouldn't you say I'd have a reason to be bitter," Taylor snaps. 

Before Harry opens his mouth to speak Taylor cuts him off, "No let me have my moment, okay? You left me. You were my best friend and you left. No goodbye. No explanation. No phone call. You change your number, you deleted all your social media. There was no way for me to contact you. Nobody knew what happened. You didn't even care enough about me to give me a fucking phone call. I looked you up everywhere and I couldn't find a single 'Harry Edward Styles' on this fucking Earth. Now, 25 years later you come strutting in in your stupid denim asking if we can have lunch like nothing happened. So yeah, I'd say I'd have a reason to be a little bitter." 

Harry feels like he's been punched. Leaving was a decision he made as he walked out the door. At the time, he hadn't thought about anything except his consuming heartbreak. When he left he cut off everyone. 

"I don't know what to say. I'm sorry for doing that. It was the last thing I wanted," Harry apologizes. Taylor lets out a loud huff as she wipes furiously at her eye once before sliding the sunglasses back down. 

"Yeah, well, it's too late for apologizes isn't it? I'm assuming you've come back to wreak havoc in our lives again," Taylor replies snidely. Harry lets out a little sigh as he plays with his engagement ring. 

"Why did you agree to meet me if you were just going to be nasty the whole time," Harry breathes. He'll admit that he expected a warmer welcome from Taylor, but now her reaction makes sense. She's hurting and she lashes out when she's hurt so Harry can't be upset with her for it. 

"If you wanted someone nice you should've asked Eleanor. Although, now that I think about it she would probably be just as upset. She would've babied you though. I don't believe in that," Taylor explains. 

Eleanor. Admittedly, Harry hasn't thought about her much over the past couple of years either. Her name is added to the list of 'people-Harry-screwed-over-without-meaning-to' list, one that grows longer and longer every day. 

"How are you two," Harry asks. He sees a glimpse of a smile across Taylor's lips before the frown appears again. Blue eyes glance down at her finger where an elegant ring rests. 

"We made it work," Taylor says simply. 

Harry can't help but feel broken. Taylor and Eleanor managed to make things work despite everything that happened. That could've been them. He feels jealous that his relationship with Louis wasn't strong enough and theirs was. Maybe they loved each other more. Maybe they weren't so beaten down. Who knows. 

"You broke him you know," Taylor starts. Harry looks up at her as she talks. "You broke him so bad I never thought we would get him back. For a week he wouldn't leave his bed. I've never seen anyone like that before." 

Harry can tell she's not present anymore and her mind has wandered to a different place as she continues, "He never told me what led up to everything and he never talked about it... you. We tried setting him up with other people but it never stuck. A year or two after you left he told us he met someone and we were so excited. They went on a couple of dates, but he never showed us what he looked like. Eleanor got suspicious so she did a deep search. The guy could've been your twin. We confronted him about it and I swear he didn't talk to us for a month. He never went on another date."

"Why are you telling me this," Harry asks. Hearing about Louis and the aftermath is something Harry never wanted to hear. He never wanted to think about it. 

"I don't know, but I feel like you should know. I have to leave, Jo has practice and I need to get her home," Taylor sighs as she stands and gathers her things. Before Harry has the chance to say goodbye she's already walking off towards her car. 


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