Tis the Season

Harry & Jamie

Jamie sat in the driver’s seat of her car with her head resting against the steering wheel. She knew her car was a piece of junk; it was from the 80s but she loved it and she was sure it could withstand the cold winter temperatures. She was so sure that she didn’t even think twice about heading across town to work with it and that was fine – it was on the way back that she ran into the real trouble.

A quarter of the way back to her flat it started slowing down until the engine completely died out and she was stuck by the side of the road with angry drivers blaring their horn at her as they passed. Banging her head on the steering wheel, she pulled out her phone and rang Derek again.

After three rings it went to voicemail, a sign that he ignored her call again. Sighing, she unbuckled her seatbelt and slipped out of the vehicle. It was freezing and the air was crisp, cutting into her lungs with every breath. Jamie popped the hood and propped it open even though she knew next to nothing about cars. She couldn’t even identify the engine from the carburetor.

“I think it’s about time to put Bessie to bed,” a voice called from behind the car. Jamie’s heart rate kicked up, zooming off to the races as she reached for the ring on her necklace; a nervous reflex she has never been able to shake. “Don’t you think?”

Harry walked out from behind the car. His brown curls were hidden beneath a dark gray beanie and his hands were shoved into the front pockets of his jeans. Jamie thought he looked wonderful and her stomach twisted into nervous knots. She hated that he still had that affect on her.

“What are you doing here?” She snapped, her hands flying to her hips. “You live on the other side of the city, you shouldn’t be here.”

Harry chuckled. “Zayn lives over there,” he said, nodding in the general direction of the other boy’s house. “He saw you and told me you were just sitting there. You always have been helpless when it comes to cars.”

“It’s not like you’re any better.”

“At least I know the difference between the engine and the exhaust pipe.”

“Yeah… well…” Any retort Jamie had died on her lips when she noticed the amusement in Harry’s eyes. That shut her down cold. She wasn’t going to fuel his amusement and she wasn’t going to stand there and act like there wasn’t anything wrong between them. Even if he still made her heart race and her stomach tie into knots.

“Cat got your tongue, Jam?” Harry teased as he moved to the front of the car to take a look under the hood.

Jamie didn’t say anything. She pursed her lips and crossed her arms over her chest and watched as Harry fiddled with the different things under the hood. She wanted to yell and scream and ask him why. She wanted to talk about all the things that they’d left unsaid since the breakup. But she couldn’t because the fact was that Harry was here, helping her when he had no obligation to and her actual boyfriend was probably sitting on his couch engrossed in Halo or Call of Duty. So she kept her mouth shut and swallowed the questions and prayed that this would all be over soon.

“I think you need a new engine,” Harry offered after a few long moments of poking around. “Like you said, it’s not like I know any better but I’m pretty sure.”

He flashed her his thousand-watt smile and it took all of Jamie’s willpower not to return it. That smile could melt a solid block of ice in less than ten seconds.

“Okay, fine,” Jamie nodded and headed back towards her car. “I’ll call a tow truck. You can go now.”

Harry sighed as he removed the metal stand and slammed the hood shut. Jamie watched as he walked around the other side, slightly disappointed that he was actually leaving without a fight. But then he opened the passenger door and slid in and Jamie’s disappointment was replaced with a mix of anger and begrudged happiness.

“What are you doing? I said you could leave,” Jamie all but screamed as she got into the car. “This isn’t your job anymore, Harry. You gave that up.”

Harry winced and leaned back against the seat. “I’m not going to leave you alone while you wait.” His voice was the picture of calm but Jamie knew better. “Mechanics are creepy, Jamie. And it’s getting dark. And I still care about what happens to you.”

Jamie sat stunned in the drivers seat, staring over at Harry with a dumbfounded look on her face. It wasn’t fair. Harry ended things with her and yet he was still here when she needed someone while her boyfriend wasn’t. She called Derek more than a few times without answer and yet Harry showed up because his friend spotted her. She didn’t have to ask; he just came. And for all he knew it might not have even been Jamie, Zayn could have seen wrong. But he still came.

“You alright?” Harry asked, his brow knit with concern. “Jamie?”

Jamie shook her head and turned to look out the windshield. She didn’t answer him as she reached for her phone to try and find a tow service online. She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t be having second thoughts about her boyfriend because of Harry. He left her. He wasn’t supposed to come back. This couldn’t be happening.
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We're almost halfway to the end. :(
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