Because I Like You

"There you are, Harley! We were starting to think you'd gotten lost." Louis teases, waving to Harley from the high, circular booth we're seated at. She laughs slightly, her hair falling over her shoulder as she hurries to the booth. "Why don't you sit next to Liam? That way we can ask you more about your relationship."

Harley emits a tiny sigh, no doubt preparing herself for Louis' onslaught of questions as she slides into the booth next to me. She gives a tiny smile, sitting her purse in between us and glancing at the menu before addressing Louis.

"So, what do you want to know?"

"Oh, what you two did for your date, the intimate details, the usual." Harry says, grinning at the two of us from across the table.

"Harry!" Harley squeaks, flustered and shocked at his reply. I can't help but laugh at the expression on her face; green eyes wide, mouth in a shocked 'o'. She notices, shooting me a brief glance and I quickly cover my laugh with a cough. "We went laser tagging, got dinner, and went to the hill in the park."

"Sounds very romantic. Now, how about the intimate details? Have you kissed? Did you get to any bases?" Harry asks rather loudly, just as our server arrives, directing the last part my way.

"Harry Edward Styles!" She hisses under her breath, embarrassed and furious as she aims a kick at Harry's shin.

"Ah, Zayn, why don't you order first?" I suggest, diverting our waitress' attention as Harry emits a yelp and drops a bit closer to the table. I glance to Harley, who's sporting a rather triumphant smile, as she scoots closer to me. Our booth is rather quiet after that little incident, interrupted only a few times after our food arrives. "So guys, anymore questions?"

"I suppose I'll just stick to the safe topics since Harley seems to have a rather wicked kick." Louis says and I can see Harley casting a rather concerned looking glance to Harry who, despite being kicked with a high heeled shoe, seems to be just fine."So this is the biggest question and the most important, really. Are you two exclusive?"

"I don't know, honestly. We've only been on two dates and haven't talked about it yet."

"Do you want to be exclusive?" Louis asks, shocking me with the direct nature of the question.

"Um, Li?" Harley says quickly, turning to me before I can respond to Louis. "I'm thinking maybe I should head back a little early. There's this storm on the way and-"

"I'll take you home. Lads, I'll leave my card and you can use that to pay. Just be sure to return it later, yeah?"

"Oh, you don't have to. Honestly, it's not that far away." She protests, seeming flustered a blush on her pretty face once more.

"Nonsense, I figure we'll leave the limo for the lads and take a cab? Maybe up to fifth and then we can walk the rest of the way if the weather's still nice?" I pause, waiting for her response. Harley finally agrees, sliding out of the booth as Harry leaves his seat to help her down. She thanks him with a smile and turns to me as I hand her the shawl she'd been wearing as well as her purse. When we've both said our goodbyes, I lead her out of the restaurant and we hail a cab.

"Where to?"

I reply to cabbie, telling him to take us to fifth and settle back in the seat with Harley. She's watching the sky anxiously, green eyes scrutinizing every cloud they see for signs of rain.

While watching her I'm reminded of the first time I met her when we literally ran into each other. I was going for a run in the park when Harley suddenly walked onto the path and I smacked into her. When I helped her up and asked her if she was alright, she apologized and explained that she had been looking for a particular store and was following the gps directions on her phone.

She told me they obviously weren't working and asked if I knew where the store was after apologizing a second time. I took her to the store she was looking for and ended up seeing her again a couple days later when the lads and I were roaming about town. We've been friends ever since. Or rather, we were friends since our relationship is a bit complicated now.

"Fifth. That'll be twenty-oh-two." The cabbie says, breaking my train of thought.

I hand over the required amount of money adding a few extra pounds as a tip before tapping Harley's hand to get her attention and getting out of the cab. Harley follows moments later, folding her shawl and putting it in her purse as we start walking.

"Thanks for taking me home, Li." She says quietly and I'm immediately glad I decided to do this. She looks so fragile and, though I know she could defend herself if she needed to, I can't help but feel protective of her.

"It's no problem. I mean, you do live in a nice part of the city, but you never know what could happen. Not that I'm saying you can't defend yourself because I know you can and-" I realize I'm babbling and stop talking immediately, earning a burst of laughter from Harley.

"I know what you mean, Li."

"Ah, okay then." I reply, feeling silly. "You know, there are some awfully thick clouds in the sky, but it doesn't seem like the storm's gotten here yet."

Mere moments after my observation, it starts pouring rain as if there's a giant bucket that some decided to tip over. Harley emits a tiny squeak, not really due to the fact that her clothes are getting wet but more about how cold the rain is. We take shelter from the rain under a nearby shop awning and I take a moment to state rather awkwardly 'Maybe I spoke too soon'.

"You wouldn't happen to have an umbrella in there, would you?" I ask, nodding when Harley shakes her head. "Okay then, I guess we'll just have to make a run for it. Wait, you're wearing high heeled shoes so that won't work. I don't want you to hurt yourself..."

"I could take them off and carry them?" She offers, pushing her damp hair away from her face.

"You could still hurt yourself... I know, I'll carry you!"

"Li, no. What if I'm too heavy?" She protests, giving in when I give her a skeptical look. "All right, just be careful okay? I don't want you to fall because your stuck carrying me."

Moments later I have Harley in my arms, and we hurry the next two blocks to her flat. A short while later, we're inside and I watch Harley wander back in the direction of her room before attempting to find a spot where I won't be dripping water all over the floor. She returns to the living room wearing a overly large tee with her hair pulled back into a braid and I can't help thinking how tiny she looks.

"Here, let me get you a towel so you can attempt to dry off." She starts back towards the hallway and I hear a loud high pitched squeak as a boom of thunder sounds accompanied by a generous flash of lightning. "Li," she says when she returns with the towel. "Would you maybe want to stay? Just until the storm dies down?"