Kissing Fire.

“I take it Management hasn’t forbidden the boys from seeing you?” Amanda called as I was starting to pack my bag up. I glanced up briefly at her, only to shake my head and continue gathering my things.

“What’re you going on about?” I asked with a small chuckle.

“Well, you were worried after the whole Collin incident. But there are pictures of you and Marina out with the boys yesterday on the internet,” my boss explained as she took a seat across from where I was standing, one of her legs swiftly coming to rest on top of the other.

“And how would you know that, Panda?” I inquired. Now, normally it’s in bad taste to come up with such a casual nickname for your boss, but like I said before: Amanda was the greatest boss ever and one of my best friends.

“You’re all over Tumblr, babe,” she answered nonchalantly as she inspected her nails.

“Since when do you check Tumblr for my face?” I quirked a brow in her direction. Honestly, she’d never taken this much interest in my social life.

“Since you started hanging out with a world famous boy band, my love. I have to make sure you’re not doing anything naughty,” she said with a giggle, only causing me to roll my eyes. She still found this whole situation hilarious. I mean, it’s not every day one of your good friends becomes close with these kinds of boys.

“Yeah, well, they were pretty pissed. Harry said he talked to them, though, and we haven’t talked about it since. Which is probably for the better, honestly. I’d like to not relive that day.” A small shudder ran through my body as I recalled the ‘crack’ that Collin’s face emitted when Harry’s fist came into contact with it.

“So anyway, where are you off to today? Harry’s suite again?” She teased, as she was on Marina’s side when it came to the whole “Harry and Emerson” thing. Not that there was even a thing.

“Maybe later, but I’m going shopping with Marina, Danielle, and Eleanor right now.”

“Ooh, fancy! Where are you girls going?”

“That sweet vintage place you showed me a couple weeks ago. I think they’ll totally dig it.”

“Good! Well, have fun, my darling. I’ve got more issues to work out with this client. I’ll see you later, though!” Amanda chirped as she pulled herself off of the chair, gave me a quick hug, and vanished into her office. After finished my packing, I threw my bag on my shoulder and headed for the door.

--

Not fifteen minutes later, I was stepping into Starbucks, where I found the girls I was looking for sitting at a table near the window, venti cups in their hands.

“Hello, darlings!” I chirped as I quickly placed a kiss on each of their cheeks, then excused myself to go order a coffee.

“How was work, babe?” Danielle asked once I had my drink and we had stepped back into the chilly September air.

“Not too shabby, did a bit of filing since the secretary wasn’t here today. And that’s never fun. But other than that, it was good!”

“Good! Now, where’s this place again?” I quickly directed the three girls to the store and we made good time in getting there. Typical chatter filled the air and it wasn’t until we’d been there for twenty minutes that things got interesting.
As we sifted through the different racks of blouses and skirts and sweaters and dresses, I couldn’t help but notice how in love with Eleanor’s blouse I was.

“El, your blouse is adorable. Where’d you get it?” I finally asked, not being able to hold it in much longer. A smile flitted to her face as she glanced down at the blouse she was wearing.

“Oh, it was from this little boutique in London; Lou bought it for me,” she replied, her smile only growing when she mentioned Louis.

“Awh, that was sweet of him!” I cooed, wishing I had a nice boy who bought me things.

“Yeah, I felt so bad though! It was more than I wanted to pay, so we ended up leaving and then a few days later he shows up with a bag from the boutique. He said he knew how much I liked it and couldn’t just not get it for me. Though I bet you’re used to that by now,” she grinned at me.

“What’re you talking about?” My eyebrows crinkled on my forehead as I glanced over to her. At this point both Marina and Danielle had stopped looking at clothes to listen to the conversation.

“Well, I just assumed Harry would’ve picked you up something by now-“

“Why would Harry buy me anything? That’s- wait. El, we’re not together. Harry’s just…Harry,” I concluded with a giggle.

“Oh please, that boy is absolutely smitten!” Danielle chimed in, a silly grin on her face as well.

“Bullshit, Harry is definitely not into me,” I muttered with an eye roll as I started rifling through the dresses again.

“Em, I’ve been telling you this for the past two weeks. Plus, don’t you think Dani and El would know the signs a bit better than you?” Marina tried to reason with me before checking her phone. No doubt looking for a text from Niall.

“I’m sure they would. I’m not knocking their knowledge of Harold. I just- he doesn’t like me. And I don’t like him, and he’s not buying me any gifts any time soon, capiche?” I finally snapped. I didn’t understand why they couldn’t just drop it. Yeah, I knew Marina was hoping for something to be happening between me and Harry. And I knew she was certain that something was happening. But the fact of the matter is that she was wrong. There was absolutely nothing going on between myself, Emerson Annaliese Kingsley, and Harry Edward Styles. And there never-

Bzzz. Bzzz. With a small sigh, I fished my phone from my large bag to see that I had a text message.

Harold.
hello beautiful .x

“Who’s that?” Danielle asked, glancing over to see me staring at my phone.

“Just Harold,” I answered, trying to keep my voice even. Why the fuck wasn’t my voice trying to be even? Since when did I get flustered over Harry calling me beautiful? He’d done it before and it never made a difference. So what the hell was my problem now?

“I love how she calls him ‘Harold’. I’m pretty sure she’s the only one he lets get away with it,” Eleanor gushed, and I could just hear the smile in her voice. God, she was so adorable!

“That’s because he’s in love with her,” Marina chortled, and I could just hear the smirk in her voice. Bitch.

“Oh, hush, all of you,” I huffed as I moved away from them into the shoe section. Then, and only then, I decided it was safe to text him back. Y’know, once I took a deep breath and tried to seem nonchalant.

hello, harold.

There. That wasn’t so difficult, was it? As I looked at all the cute flats they had, I couldn’t help but want them all. Shoes were a favorite of mine, to be honest. I had just picked up a pair of pretty blue ones when my phone buzzed again.

how’s shopping with the girls? are you coming over later?

shopping is lovely, thanks. mm, afraid not. girl’s night at our place. sorry, boo!

Not thirty seconds later, and I gave up on that pair of shoes.

but i wanted to see you. :( also liam says you’re not allowed to steal his girlfriend.

tell liam he can suck my dick.

he politely declines.

A loud laugh escaped my lips as I read his text and I quickly hushed myself, my cheeks burning.

“Oh, just date already!” Danielle called from the other side of the store, prompting me to subtly send her my middle finger. It was only when I heard her laugh that I knew she received my message. After sliding my phone back into my bag, I made my way back over to the girls, whose arms were just as full with clothing as mine. Thus, we decided to head to the fitting rooms.
After nearly an hour of trying on things and contemplating which ones we wanted, we finally made our way to the register to purchase all of our things. Then, deciding we wanted dinner, headed to a small diner near Marina’s and my apartment.

--

“So what’s going on with you and Niall?” Danielle asked as we set up makeshift beds in the living room of our apartment. I glanced over at Marina to see a deep blush settling on her cheeks.

“We’re just- I don’t know. I like him,” she mumbled, a silly grin plastered on her face.

“Well obviously! He definitely likes you, too! He even shared his food with you!” El chirped before flopping down onto her bed. Laughs rang through the apartment as we all concluded that Niall didn’t share food with anyone.

“He must be really into you,” Danielle added, an approving smile on her lips.

We continued to tease Marina until she was practically a puddle in her blankets before talking about anything that came to mind for at least two hours. Danielle’s phone buzzed suddenly and we all looked at her expectantly, wondering who was texting her at that hour.

“It’s Liam. He wanted to say goodnight,” she explained as she typed a reply. A chorus of “awh”s flew through the room but were cut off as her phone buzzed once again.

“Liam?” I asked, wondering how he’d answered her that quickly.

“No, it’s Harry. He wants to know if you’re mad at him,” Danielle spoke as she glanced up at me, her eyebrows crinkled.

“No, why?” I asked as I shook my head.

“He said you’re not answering his texts.” I quickly scrambled up from my bed and went to fetch my purse. After literally emptying it onto the floor, my phone was nowhere in sight.

“Fuck! I can’t find my phone!” I cried as I ran back out to the living room.

“When was the last time you remember having it?” Marina asked as she sat up to look at me.

“Amanda texted me at the diner and- shit! I left it at the diner!” Another string of curse words flew from my mouth as I ran my fingers through my hair.

“Well just call and see if they have it,” Eleanor suggested, but they were already closed.

“I’ll just call in the morning,” I concluded before asking Danielle to tell Harry that I was not mad at him and that I’d text him when I got my phone back.

Let’s just say it was a long night of worrying.

--

Upon calling the diner the next morning, they told me they’d check and call me back as soon as possible. So after sitting around my apartment for nearly two hours, they finally called back to say it was nowhere to be found.

“I can’t believe this,” I muttered as I flopped down onto the couch next to Harry back at their hotel.

“Hey, it’s okay. People lose their phones all the time. Just call them and deactivate it, and then I’ll go with you to get a new one later,” Harry spoke softly as he placed a reassuring hand on my knee.

“Mm, I don’t like calling places. It makes me anxious,” I groaned as I dug my face into his shoulder. His torso vibrated as a low chuckle escaped his lips.

“I’ll call them for you, babe. C’mon,” he replied, standing from the couch and leading me to his room. Everyone else was watching a movie and he didn’t want to disturb them. With another groan, I threw myself onto his bed as he quietly shut the door behind him. He retrieved his phone from the bedside table and proceeded to call my cell phone provider. About fifteen minutes later he was thanking whoever and hanging up the phone. “See? No problem,” he murmured as he lay back with me.

“Blergh, except now I have to buy a new phone. And I so don’t have the money for that right now. So who knows when I‘ll actually have a phone again. Fuck,” I muttered before rolling onto my side to face him. He soon followed suit and his stunning eyes met mine.

“I’m sorry, love,” he practically whispered as he brushed some loose hair from my face. I let out a quiet sigh as I held his gaze. There was just something so mesmerizing about Harry, and I couldn’t figure it out. Before I could stop myself, I’d wriggled over to him. Noticing what I was trying to do, Harry rolled back over so he was on his back and placed his arm around me, pulling me close so my head rested against his chest.

“Can we sleep?” I mumbled quietly as I glanced up at him.

“Yes, sleep sounds amazing. I didn’t get too much of it last night,” he answered with a sigh as he pulled the blankets up to cover us.

“Why? Is everything okay?” I asked quietly, biting my lip lightly.

“Yeah, I was just- thinking about you.” I lay silently for a few moments, just listening to his breathing mixing ever so well with the steady beat of his heart.

“You shouldn’t do that,” I finally whispered. But it would seem that my words were falling on deaf ears, as Harry had already slipped into unconsciousness.

--

Two days had passed since Harry and I “slept together” again, and I was still phoneless and trying to come to terms with the fact that the boys were leaving in two days. I wasn’t expecting to become so attached to these boys and it kind of frustrated me. I didn’t sign up for this all those weeks ago. Damnit, I just wanted a cigarette. And now look at me. I was going to miss these people. Hell, there was no guarantee that I was even going to see them again! They could easily just leave and that would be the end of it. I mean, I had no way of contacting them, seeing as I didn’t have a phone. Even if I did have a phone, there was no way I could afford an international plan. Marina was lucky and already had one since her parents had moved to France and wanted to stay in touch easily.

My apartment was empty, save for me, as all the other girls were out with their respective boys. And who knows what Zayn or Harold were doing. So, I was sprawled out on the large couch in the living room watching a rerun of Supernatural and sipping some tea. What a lovely Friday evening. There was a sharp knock on my door just as a climactic scene happened in the show and I nearly spilled my hot tea all over me as I jumped. Quickly composing myself, I set my tea down and made my way to the door, checking my complexion quickly before answering it.

“Hey, Em.” His green eyes crinkled slightly as a smile reached his lips, and I’d be lying if I said a smile didn’t reach mine as well.

“Hey! What’re you doing here?” I asked as I opened the door wider to let him in.

“I thought we’d go get you a new phone,” he replied as his eyes scanned over the place. It was just occurring to me that this was only the second or third time he’d been there.

“Awh, that’s sweet, but I told you I don’t have the money for that right now. But you’re welcome to hang-“

“I’ll take care of it,” he cut me off, causing me to spin to face him again.

“Harry, no, you don’t have to-“

“I want to. I miss being able to text you whenever I want.” A small smirk sat on his lips and I reluctantly agreed to let him do this. After excusing myself to put on some real clothes, I hurriedly got dressed and met him back in the living room. “Ready?” he asked chirpily as he hopped up from the couch.

“Yeah, I guess so,” I answered with a sigh. I still felt rude letting him buy me a new phone. It was a couple hundred dollars, but he didn’t seem to care.

Harry’s hand found mine as we walked down the bustling street, something I’d become accustomed to since our trip to the zoo. It was sort of comforting, really. He squeezed my hand a little as he glanced down at me, a content smile on his face. And I’d be a liar if I said there weren’t tiny butterflies dancing in my stomach. I hadn’t felt butterflies like this before.

Yes, I’d felt butterflies with Collin. Though in hindsight, these butterflies were always very rambunctious and perhaps even warning me. Of course I didn’t realize it at the time, but it all made sense now. However, the butterflies that came to play in my stomach every time Harry held my hand or called me beautiful or played with my hair were incredibly different. They were dainty, I suppose. Just a light fluttering, but enough for me to know they were there. And as much I hated it, I loved it.

We soon arrived at the phone store and Harry was quick to find assistance and the process began. It was a long one and I soon got bored and started playing with all the other phones in the store. About fifteen minutes into Harry’s little appointment, I’d decided I wanted some Starbucks, as there was one next door. So I politely interrupted their phone talk to see if Harry wanted anything.

“The usual?” I asked as I looked up at him. A ghost of a smile touched his lips as he comprehended that I knew his usual before he nodded and reached for his wallet. “Oh! I’ve got it, Harry.”

“Are you sure? It’s no problem,” he tried, but I shook my head firmly.

“You’re buying me a new phone. I think I can handle two cups of coffee,” I declared as I looked him hard in the eye. He was too lenient with me.

“Fine, fine. Thanks, love,” he gave my hand a quick squeeze before I turned and left the store. Typically, the line was atrocious, so I spent at least another fifteen minutes in the Starbucks. It was a settling fifteen minutes though. Although the small shop was noisy, filled with so many people, I felt calm. I’d been noticing that Harold had that effect on me. I’m not sure why, really, considering he was just the reason for the butterflies in my stomach, but hey. I was okay with it. So finally, coffee in hand, I arrived back at the phone store to find Harry and the sales associate exchanging pleasantries and soon Harry made his way over to me and accepted his coffee graciously.

“Ready?” I asked quietly, once again looking up at him. I absolutely loved his height, if we’re being honest. And I’d like to be honest.

“Yeah! Thanks for the coffee,” he nodded with a smile as he handed me the bag with my new phone.

“Thanks for the phone,” I replied, still not really believing that he had just purchased a new phone for me.

“It’s no problem, babe. Shall we head back to yours so you can set it up and everything?” he asked as we headed back down the city block in the direction of home.

“Yes, please!” I chirped happily before taking a long sip of my coffee. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him sneak a glance down at me and I bit my lip to keep from smiling.

--

“So I still have my same number and everything, right?” I asked as we stepped through the living room and entered my room where my laptop was. I wanted to fill my phone back up with music and try to sort through the contacts I had on my laptop, since all of my old ones were now gone.

“Yeah, babe, same number,” he replied with a chuckle. There he goes with the ‘babe’ again! And there go the butterflies! God, they were getting a workout that night!

“You got me a 4S?” I asked in confusion as I pulled the box from the bag.

“Yeah, isn’t that what you had before?” he answered, a look of concern starting to form on his face.

“No, I just had the 4.”

“Oh, well, now you have a newer one, yeah?” he replied with a grin. I let out a sigh before sitting on my bed. “What’s wrong, love?” he asked as he sat down and scooted over to me.

“I just feel bad that you’ve spent all this money on me,” I mumbled.

“Hey, if I had a problem with it, I wouldn’t have done it. And just so you can get all your sighs out now…” he trailed off.

“What? What did you do?” I asked as I quickly looked over at him.

“I, uhm…I put your phone under my name. So you don’t get the bills.” It was silent in the room for a few long moments.

“What? Harry, what-“

“Let me explain! I just- I wanted to be able to talk to you once we leave. And yeah, I guess it was kind of selfish because you might not even want to talk to me. But I wanted to talk to you and I didn’t want to ask you to get an international plan because they’re kind of expensive, so I figured it’d just be easier if I paid for it.” Once again silence filled the room.

“So you’re just…paying for my phone bill, no questions asked?” I asked to clarify.

“Yeah,” he let out a sigh. “You’re not- you’re not mad, are you?” he asked as his bit his lip nervously. God, I could’ve kissed him right then. I mean, what?

“Not mad, I just…I feel greedy,” I finally muttered. A loud laugh escaped his lips, his dimples on full display and his eyes all crinkly.

“You’re not greedy! It’s not like you asked me to. Don’t worry about it, babe. I wanted to, okay? End of story.”

“Fine,” I muttered, suddenly feeling exhausted. With a groan, I slid my laptop onto the floor and placed my new phone on top of it.

“What’re you doing?” he asked as I hopped up from the bed, starting to unbutton my jeans.

“I’m getting changed,” I replied easily, shimmying out of the pants.

“I- I’m still here, you know.” His voice came out shaky and I couldn’t keep back a smirk.

“I’m aware, Harold. It’s not like I’m getting naked. Relax, yeah?” I teased as I pulled a tee shirt from my closet. I quickly slipped off the one I was wearing and replaced it with the new one, only taking my bra off once my shirt was completely on. For Harold’s sake. Once I was done switching out my shirts, I couldn’t help but notice that Harry was staring at my bare legs. “Harry?” I finally asked, causing his head to snap up and his eyes to meet mine.

“Y-yeah, sorry. Uhm…” he trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck before shaking his head and ruffling his curls like he does.

“Are you staying here?” I asked as I made my way back over to the bed and crawled under the covers.

“I, uhm, I didn’t realize that was an option.”

“Well, I just figured that Marina would be staying with Niall tonight, so…”

“Yeah! Yeah, I’ll stay. Should I just- the couch, yeah?”

“Harry, we’ve slept in the same bed before. It’s not a big deal. I mean, unless you sleep naked or something,” I muttered as I nestled deeper into the blankets. He paused for a long second before shaking his head and letting out an over exaggerated ‘no!’.

So, after a little more of me assuring Harry that it was fine for him to sleep in just boxers, he finally crawled into the bed and situated himself in the blankets. This wasn’t supposed to be weird. We’d slept in the same bed quite a few times. Hell, we’d even cuddled! So why were we now trying our hardest to stay on opposite sides of the bed? After twenty minutes of the both of us trying to sleep and letting out sighs, I broke the silence.

“Harry, I can’t sleep,” I whined childishly as I rolled over to face him. After letting out another sigh, he turned his head to face me.

“I can’t either.”

“I’m not used to sleeping this far apart from you,” I mumbled.

“C’mere, then.” I could’ve sworn I heard him swallow loudly, but I tried to ignore it as I shuffled over to him and his arm wrapped around me. This was what I was used to. Instead of letting my head lay on his chest as per usual, I scooted up a little higher and let my head fall in the crook of his neck. Again he swallowed a large lump in his throat and I almost wanted to giggle. It was so cute seeing him get nervous like this. My arm came to rest across his middle as I nuzzled my head into his neck. His entire body stiffened and at that point I actually did let out a giggle.

“Relax, Harold. I’m not going to bite,” I cooed quietly before the room fell silent again.

“…But what if I want you to?”