Not gonna lie, the rest of the week has me kind of bummed. School has got me so stressed, and I genuinely think I'm going to fail one of my classes, which has me shook because I made all As in high school, so I'm not used to this feeling of devastation. That sounds stuck up, but I don't mean for it to. College is just hard, and this week, I'm feeling its cold, metal claws dragging me into the depths of failure.

The other thing is I haven't seen Harry very much. He's been really busy talking with that record label ever since Monday, and while I'm really happy for him, I wish he weren't on the phone as much. Oh, well. I suppose that's just how the holidays are: busy.

I spend most of the week studying... studying, ammiright? So, when the weekend finally comes, I'm super excited to finally catch a break, even if it is only for a small section of time.

After history class on Friday, I go over to Harry's apartment, where we cook ourselves a little dinner and watch a movie together. I let Harry pick the movie, mostly because I don't care enough to look for one, and I end up crying like a little bitch at the end of it. Harry takes a picture of me crying, I guess because he's never seen me cry before, and he mocks my pain with a playful laugh. I honestly can't complain though, because the movie Atonement got me, for real. It's Kiera Knightly, that guy from Split, and it's set during World War II, so yeah, I cried. I think that'll be my new "watch this if you haven't cried in months and want to cry" movie, because it really went in for my cold, dead heart and sent me over the edge.

I spend the night with Harry, though admittedly, it is not intentional. I'm way too tired to drive back to my dorm, and Harry is asleep by the time I decide I should go home. But alas, that journey is never made, and I end up falling alseep next to Harry in his bed. The next morning, I awake to find Harry missing from the bed, but I am quick to gather a rather accurate supposition of where he might be.

Staying true to his character, Harry is standing shirtless in the kitchen making pancakes for the both of us. Seeing his tan skin glowing in the morning sunlight has my mind reflecting back on that first time I spent the night here. It was new and scary, but still one of the greatest mornings of my life.

That was when Harry told me he liked me, and I don't know what it is about that phrase, but I really feel like it's more significant than the "I love you" angle. Like, I guess I just supposed that "I love you" seems too obligatory. To be genuinely liked as a person though, that is something else, and I am getting super blushy just thinking about it. I should have appreciated Harry that morning more than I did, because God, I miss the newness of it all.

When I walk into the kitchen, Harry smiles happily up at me with bright and gleaming green eyes. The natural sunlight streaming in through the window illuminates Harry's entire disposition, and though I should be used to his beauty, I find that I am not, and I can't help myself from staring just a little bit at him.

"Good morning," Harry grins at me, expertly flipping the spatula in his hands. "I'm making your favorite." He seems proud and excited to do something nice for me, which has my heart beating wildly in my chest. He's literally too cute for me, I can hardly stand it sometimes.

"Thank you, Harry." I smile at him and take a seat on one of the bar stools so I can watch him. Several moments pass between us in a lighthearted and pleasant silence, but it isn't long before Harry speaks again.

"I'm glad you stayed last night," Harry says, leaning against the kitchen sink and crossing his tattooed arms across his broad chest. He really looks like a full-ass meal this morning, and I am not functioning well. But besides that, Harry's words make my insides ignite with happiness. "I like waking up with you next to me... even if you're dead asleep." Harry laughs, and I roll my eyes. He likes to make fun of me for how often I sleep in, but I personally just think he's jealous that he can't do the same.

"And I like waking up to find you cooking me breakfast. That's always a treat," I reply with a teasing smile.

Harry frowns and walks over to his stove to take the pancakes off the griddle, "Sometimes I think that's the only reason you keep me around."

"Babe," I say dramatically, fighting his stubborn determination to look away from me by trying to attain eye contact with him. "You know I love carbs, but if I had to choose between you and carbs, I'd choose you."

At this, an amused laugh falls from Harry's mouth and he looks up at me with a plate full of pancakes stacked high on top of it in his hand. "Oh, really?" Harry skeptically raises his eyebrow at me. "So you're telling me that if I were to give you the choice between this plate of pancakes and me, you'd choose me?"

What the fuck kind of question is that?

I roll my eyes, "Of course I would. Surely, you don't think this lowly of me or of my feelings for you, do you?" Harry shrugs and tentatively begins grabbing the pancake toppings, refusing to lock his eyes with me. What is with him this morning? He's not serious, is he? With a sigh, I stand up from my stool and force Harry to let me hug him, wrapping my arms around his slender waist and pressing my cheek against his bare chest.

Wow, he's so soft and warm; I could literally hug him all day and never get bored of it.

"What are you–"

"I love you a lot; you know that, right?" I look up at Harry and see that he is smiling rather proudly down at me.. a little too proudly if you ask me. Harry doesn't say anything to reveal why he's grinning like an idiot, so I guess I am tasked with asking him myself. "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Harry bends his head down to lightly kiss my lips, his warmth seeping into me and making me feel all tingly inside. But the feeling is fleeting as Harry pulls away, that same cheeky grin still plastered on his face. "I just wanted to hear you say that."

Ah, I see. That's cringey, but I guess I can let the cheesiness slide just this once. I suppose I'll even participate a little.

"What?" I tease him, reaching up to his face and brushing a loose curl from his face. I love that curl; you know which one I'm talking about. It's the one that falls in front of his eyes no matter how hard he tries to keep it in place. That curl right there is my very best friend; however, right now, I'd like to get a clear view of his lively green eyes, so I'm afraid I must brush it aside for now. "What did you want to hear me say?"

Ha, two can play at this game.

A giggle comes from Harry's smiling mouth as he turns his eyes shyly away from me, and I can see the blush rising to his cheeks. Cupcake Harry is out to play this morning, and I am here for it.

"Hm?" I press Harry, and he groans in embarrassment.

"I should have seen that coming," Harry laughs nervously, finally looking into my eyes. I love it when he does that, because then I get to see the tiny details in his irises that I don't normally notice by just looking at him. Harry's eyes are just so enchanting, because generally, they're fairly bright, but towards the edge of his eyes, he has this really striking shade of emerald that bleeds into the light part with a really intense contrast. They're just stunning, and I feel myself falling further under Harry's spell every time I look into them.

Harry continues, pulling me out of my Harry-induced trance. "I love you.. I love hearing you say that to me." Shaking his head and chuckling to himself, Harry pauses with a sigh. "This is going to make you cringe into your soul when I say it," Harry begins, and I brace myself for the cheesy line he's about to lay on me. "But when I hear you tell me you love me, I can see that you really mean it, and I– I've never had that before... To be loved by the one I love, that's just... incredible to me."

Oh, Harry, please stop or I'm going to actually cry. That was the sweetest, most humble and shy thing I've ever heard a person say. Harry really does put all these romance movies to shame with the way he speaks; I'm just glad that I'm the only one who gets to hear it, beacause it makes me feel so special.

I am about to respond to Harry with endless praises, but he goes on before I can begin what would be a very long list of things I love about him. "You probably think it's cheesy, but you make me feel like I'm home again. Like, I don't know why, but I feel like I can just trust you with anything, and it's just a relief to have someone like that in my life."

Yep, I'm gonna cry. Yep, there the tears come now; they're arising in my eyeballs as Harry's waiting for me to say something to him. This is great. I was not ready for this at all, but with how sweet his words are, how can I not cry?

"Damn it," I mumble to myself as I turn my face away from him and quickly try to brush the tears away from my eyes. It's too early for Harry to be getting me all in the feels, but yet, here we are. I don't even think it's eleven in the morning yet, but now that I think about it, I really did need this from him this morning. After this stressful week without seeing much of him, it's nice to be reminded of his feelings for me. I must admit, though, I hadn't really wanted to cry over it.

I feel Harry's hands gently wrap around my wrists and pull my hands away from my face. Harry smiles affectionately down at me as he uses his calloused thumb to wipe the fallen tears from my cheeks. His touch ignites a strange sensation beneath my skin, and I find myself entirely engrossed in his presence like I've never been before. How on earth did it come to this?

"Hey," Harry says softly, his blazing green eyes full of sympathy and adoration. "Don't cry...please?" I laugh through my tears and try to blink them away, but to no avail. Harry really has touched me deeply today, and I don't think I'm ever going to forget the words he has spoken to me here in this kitchen.

"I'm sorry," I choke out before clearing my throat and trying to speak like a normal human being who is not overcome with emotion. "I just– I don't know what to say. That was–" I pause, not really knowing what my thoughts are trying to express to me.

"Oh." Harry seems to suppressing a grin. "Are you crying because I was too cheesy? I knew I shouldn't have gone there."

Aw, he's trying to make me laugh.

"No," I smile, nervously lifting my tear-filled eyes to look upon Harry's face. My vision is kind of blurred still, but it's the thought of looking at him that counts, right? "I'm crying because I'm in love with you, and that was the most romantic thing I've ever heard."

At this, Harry allows himself to smile broadly, and I can tell he's still trying to contain his joy like the precious child he is. "Wait, so.. not too cheesy, then?"

I shake my head with a laugh, "No, that wasn't too much cheese." I'm going to encourage him, because if he's going to be saying things like that to me, I sure as hell never want it to stop. "I guess when it's about us, I don't really mind... I actually kind of like it."

"Hmm," Harry hums, biting down on his bottom lip as he appears to be deep in thought. "Well, in that case... mon amour, je t'adore."

Is he speaking fucking French to me right now? I'm going to fucking die; that's so hot. I have no idea what it means, but I am fucking here for it.

"Tu me rends tellement heureux." Harry pauses, and curses under his breath, "Fuck, how do I say– oh! Sans toi, je ne suis rien." Smiling proudly, Harry's eyes meet mine and he appears to be looking to me for approval.

I reach up to Harry's face and stand on my tiptoes to kiss him gently on his French-speaking lips, because let's be honest, he deserves it after that. Harry complies with my actions without hesitation as he stoops down and wraps his arms tightly around me and pulls me still closer to his bare chest. As our kiss deepens and Harry lifts me to sit atop the counter, I wrap my legs around his waist and make my to Harry's neck, sucking the skin just below his ear. Harry moans quietly, and I take that as my cue to say what it is that I want to say.

Leaning down to him, I speak with a low but clear voice that has but one meaning alone, "If you keep this up, we're going to be having a different kind of breakfast."

Harry sucks in a sharp breath and tightens his grip on my thighs, but he remains silent for what seems like several moments. Finally, Harry leans his head back so as to look into my eyes, but as he does, something behind me seems to catch his attention and he pulls away rather quickly with a look of shy embarrassment creeping onto his face. I almost thought he was going to comply with me this time.

I swear to all that is good and holy on this earth, if it's what I think it is, I'm going to go insane.

"Am I interrupting something?" The voice of Harry's flatmate sounds behind me, and I have to restrain myself from walking over to him and shoving him out the door.

Looking behind me, I see the man standing there in the middle of the living room like he is proud to have stopped Harry and I's wonderful morning encounter. Adam. Fucking Adam. Leave it to him to interrupt the actual best morning of my life.

Harry sighs, clearly annoyed, "Not gonna lie this time, yeah, just a bit."

Adam shrugs and rather obnoxiously makes his way into the kitchen like he owns the damn place. Well, I guess it is his apartment too, but still, I'm annoyed. "Sorry, I just smelled pancakes and got hungry."

Oh yeah... pancakes. I forgot about those.

"Oh, um..." Harry pauses and apologetically looks to me. "I guess I can make some more."

With that, I begrudgingly make my way off the counter as Harry begins to make some more pancakes, and the morning goes on without further event. I guess I have tonight at Harry's mom's to look forward to, but still, fucking Adam has ruined what was most likely going to be Harry and I's first real time together. I'm kind of pissed to be honest, and I can see that Harry is just as frustrated despite his attempts to hide it. Oh well, there's no rush, and I guess the time will come eventually, just not right now. Who knows? It could even happen tonight.

•••

Lol sorry to drag this out, but I needed a cute scene and for Harry to say some of that stuff :) it's important for the next chapter.

It's game day, y'all (college football), and I am the worst college student ever bc I literally drove home for the weekend to avoid all the traffic😂😂 #antisocialbitch

I love you all! Thanks so much for reading and for voting; it is so so so SO appreciated fr❤️
-Kate❤️