Katie

"You should totally join us for drinks after," Jasmine exclaimed to her friend. Katie was sitting directly opposite her roommate; her Ceaser's salad untouched on the table before her. Brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she shook her head.

"I don't think that's a good idea. I have a quiz that I need to be studying for."

Jasmine's eyes widened. "Is Maxwell making you take that stupid quiz again?"

Katie blushed a little; calling her professors' by their first names always made her feel uncomfortable. It was as if, in some small way, addressing them without their proper titles meant that she was disrespecting them. Jasmine however, was more liberal with her labels.

"No, it's my PoliSci class."

Jasmine's lips made an oh of surprise but her eyes were still shimmering. Katie knew what that meant. Her friend was determined to get what she wanted, one way or the other. It was just Katie's luck that this time Jasmine's way involved her going out clubbing when she clearly didn't feel like it.

"Oh come on, two hours at most. I swear. What's two hours to what, a week of studying? You need a break, Katie." The raven haired girl reached forward and rubbed Katie's wrist sympathetically.

Katie laughed. Whatever happened, let it never be said that Jasmine was anything less than excellent at manipulating people.

"Fine," she gave in, "but two hours Jazz, nothing more."

Jasmine's smile lit up her small face and her right hand went up. "I promise to have you out of there in two hours or less."

Katie's smile mirrored her friend's. "What are we waiting for, then?"



The club was new and definitely on the classier side of things. Pulling her shirt further down over the top of her jeans; Katie looked around herself at the high heels, mini dresses and made up faces and couldn't help but feel ridiculously underdressed.

"This place is bangin'!" Jazz squeeled next to her.
Halfway into her first hour in the club and the girl was already more than a little wasted. Hooking her arm through Jasmine's, Katie pulled her through the throng of people towards an empty booth. She was already seating a tipsy Jazz down on the plush seats when a large hand pushed her out of the way.

"Hey!" she yelled. Turning on her heel, she found herself looking at a very broad suited up chest. Head tilting, she saw the beady brown eyes staring down at her.

"This booth is taken," he barked, "take your friend elsewhere." Katie thought that he looked vaguely like one of those mean guard dogs her brother loved to keep as pets.

The sudden flare of annoyance that crept up on her made her brave. Clenching her fists, she glared at the man.

"It wasn't when we got here. We saw this place first and we're keeping it. Go look for another one."

Rottweiler in a suit crossed his arms across his chest. He had just about opened his mouth to speak when a voice - sharp and clear above the club's music - intervened.

"Johnson, that's fine. I'm sure we can just share the booth."

Katie was too busy trying to stare Rottweiler man down to recognize the accented voice as British.

"And I'm sure some American company might be exactly what we need tonight, right boys?" that voice, now that voice sounded much more familiar.
It sent chills running down Katie's spine and for the thirty seconds that it took for Rottweiler man to hesitantly step out of the way, the girl was mentally debating the odds out in her head.

Impossible, she thought. He cannot be in America. Just impossible.

But he was.

The second the two pairs of blue eyes met; Katie did the one thing she remembered him doing the last time they had met. She turned her heel and walked away.



"Wait!" Harry shouted. Katie had already crossed the street and was practically running. Where to, she didn't know, but anywhere else, her mind reasoned, was better than anywhere near him.

Ears still ringing with the din of the music, she didn't hear the sneakered feet come up behind her and didn't feel the fingers wrap themselves around her arm until she was skidding to a sudden stop.

Spinning around, she turned to face him - powered by an irrational anger.

"Katie, stop!"

"What for?!" she almost screamed, pulling her arm roughly away. The tears that blurred her eyesight when they streamed down her cheeks.

He said nothing.

Blinking quickly, Katie had to focus very hard not to let the sight of him there in front of her get to her.

She was a grown woman now, darn it. Twenty years old with half a degree to her name and whatever else she had going on. The last time she'd seen the boy had been a year ago and even then, it had been on the back of some picture Jazz had been waving around her face. Harry had joined a band apparently, and they were making it big.

The ding of realization that hit caught on fast.

So he's the one who sent that concert ticket.

She sucked in a deep breath then took a step back. Katie told herself that it was to keep from hitting Harry upside the bloody head but she knew that that wasn't true.

Being so close to him made her feel like she was home again.

"I waited for you at that concert, Katie. I waited for you and you never turned up. Is that how long it took you to forget what we had together? Two years?"

The girl was frowning. "How dare you say something like that? Have you forgotten, Styles, or have you gone completely bonkers? You walked away from me. You ignored all the calls, and texts and emails I'd sent you. You're the one who left me."

Harry's mouth fell open but he said nothing. Then, his eyes fell to the fists she held clenched by her side and he took a step closer. Katie, despite herself, stopped breathing.

"Don't." She was tired. She was tired and upset and by god, she just wanted to be angry in peace.

What was Harry doing there, in front of her? What was he doing there, in her heart? Hadn't she told herself about how important it was that she got over him? Hadn't she convinced herself that it was the only way?

What then, was he still doing there, the memory of his dimpled smile and butterfly kisses worming its' way back into her mind?

The tears began to fall.

"I'm sorry..." he whispered. Despite the loud noise from the clubs, she could hear him as clear as day.

"I'm sorry, babe. I really am. I was an idiot and insecure and just..." his fingers brushed against her wrist. His touch sent electric shivers through her.

Katie squeezed her eyes shut. She needed to keep her head about all this. She needed to take a deep breath and think about what...

"Please forgive me?"

Harry's breath was on her cheek now. Katie knew, from memory, that if she opened her eyes and made the slightest movement forward, his lips would be on hers. That was how he apologised to her. He would stand move as close as he possibly could and then wait for her to make the next move.

Katie stopped thinking. Ten years, they'd been together. Best friends, a couple and then finally, lovers.

Her life had been so incomplete these past two years, hollow even. Standing so close to him like that reminded her about how truly easy it was to just let herself melt into his arms and let him back into her life.

"Will you forgive me, Katie? Will you?"

Her eyes fluttered open and she nodded slowly.

"I do."

And then she kissed him.