Love is Blind

Gripping onto my dad’s arm, I followed him into the crowded ballroom. The large room was filled to the brim with fancy tables and adorned with candles throughout. The dim lights gave the room a certain ambience that was expected at these events.

I hadn’t been to many of these posh events, but the ones I did go to were all the same. Fancy people flashed around their money for charities they didn’t really care about. Everyone pretended to be interested in things they wouldn’t ordinarily give a second thought to. People who had no problems of their own gave failed attempts at addressing the problems others.

If it weren’t my father, I wouldn’t go to any charity balls, but he insisted. My mother refused to go, so I was his required plus one. I didn’t mind, though; I enjoyed spending time with him.

When we entered the room, my father was immediately approached by the ball’s host, whom I only knew as one of Google’s CEOs. After the man gave us a quick hello, I followed my father to the table.

We were only a few feet away from our designated spot when my eyes fell upon his curly hair. He wore a suit comparable to any of the well to do men in the room, and his four best friends wore something similar. They were sitting table just a few away from ours.

Even from so far away, I could hear his loud laughter and it instantly brought back a flood of memories. Memories I’d wanted to forget.

My father clearly noticed what I had and immediately locked his eyes with mine. He gave me a sympathetic look, before patting my back.

“Just ignore him, Pup.”

That was easy for him to say. He wasn’t the one who had a break up with the infamous Harry Styles just a few months before. A bad break up, at that.

I don’t know what emotion felt stronger: the anger coursing through my veins or the sad tears that threatened to escape my eyes. I’d had so many feelings for Harry back then, and he claimed he did the same, but would never admit them in public. He was always single or just looking. He was never dating, not once. It had led to our break up, which was one of the worst I’d ever had.

I don’t think I’ve ever shouted that much in my life, or cried so many nights in a row. It had taken months, but I had finally gotten out from under the Harry Styles spell, but I’d lost a lot in the process.

The boys, who I had once been fairly close to, didn’t speak to me, and I didn’t try to speak to them. We had an unspoken agreement that they had to side with Harry, and I was okay with that. In reality, I was less okay and more accepting, but either way, it was acknowledged and that was the end of it.

I hadn’t seen any of them since the moment I’d gone running out of Harry’s flat, and I didn’t realize how thankful I was for that until I saw them again. Seeing the boys laughing and smiling together made me miss laughing and smiling with them. We’d once fit together so well, and I couldn’t help but wonder if we still could.

Just as I was about to pull my gaze away from Harry, he turned, locking eyes with me. His smile quickly disappeared, forming the frown I had come to know so well. It was the only look I expected to get out of him.

The boys all noticed his staring and followed his gaze to me. Instead of frowns, their smiles were replaced with looks of sheer shock.

Not knowing what else to do, I turned back to my father, hoping that would pull their attention away from me. The last thing I wanted was another fight from Harry, which was all we seemed to be able to do when we tried to speak.

Luckily, the moment we sat down, our table had filled with some of my father’s associates and our meals were brought to us.

Google’s CEO graced the stage in front of the room, and he gave a few quick words, thanking everyone for their gracious donations and eagerness to help a worthy cause. I knew it was to help find a cure for leukemia, but I wondered how many other people knew the same.

When he was finished speaking, and everyone had finished their meals, people began mingling. A few of the table disappeared, as waiters moved them out of the way so people could chat more freely.

I stayed close to my father, desperate to avoid running into the boys. I was doing a very good job, until my bladder refused to let me stay by his side any longer. I quickly excused myself to use the restroom.

By the time I had made my way out of the porcelain bathroom, the hallway was empty, when it had once been filled with a few straggling guests, who I assumed had made their way back to the ballroom.

I fiddled with the hem of my dress I walked, keeping my gaze to the floor. The last thing I wanted was to look up and be met with the eyes of Harry Styles. Every part of my body felt like the moment was coming.

“Ava?”

I recognized the accented voice immediately. Turning on my heels, my eyes locked with Zayn Malik’s dark ones. He had an unreadable expression on his face, something he was known for.

“Zayn,” I said, pushing a smile to my lips. “How have you been?”

“Good.” He kicked the floor gently. “Really good. I haven’t seen you in what? Three months?”

It was something like that. It had all been a blur and I really couldn’t keep track. Much of it was spent in my bedroom, where days and nights meant nothing to me.

“Yeah, that sounds right.”

I kept my forced smile upon my face. It wasn’t Zayn’s fault Harry had been so awful to me, and it wasn’t his fault he reminded me of that terrible time.

“You’ve been good, yeah?”

Nodding my head, I smiled again. “I have.”

“Well, I’ll be sure to let Harry know that.” Zayn’s lips turned up in one of his infamous smirks. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear it.”

Behind Zayn, the ballroom door opened, and Liam stepped out from behind it. The boy had shaved his hair since I had last saw him, and it gave him a more mature look.

“Zayn,” Liam said, he paused when his eyes fell on me, as his brain twist its flow of thought. “Ava?”
Zayn chuckled. “Clearly.”

Biting my lip, I forced out another smile. “Hello, Liam.”

The boy was obviously shocked at the sight of me and Zayn talking, and I was sure he’d have a talk with the dark haired boy later. They were on Harry’s side, not mine. That meant they couldn’t speak with me.

“Hey, Ava.” The smile on his face was wide, and it reminded me of the time he and I had played Wii together. It was one of the few times Liam and I had hung out without Harry, but we had bonded over it. “How have you been?”

“I’ve been well,” I said, tucking my hair behind my ear. “You?”

“Great.” Liam turned to Zayn and pointed back towards the ballroom. “You can just come find me whenever you get done here.” Liam’s gaze moved back to me and he flashed a smile. “It was nice seeing you, Ava.”

“It was nice seeing you, Liam.”

The now nearly bald boy turned on his heel and headed back into the crowded ballroom. Suddenly, things with Zayn had become more awkward then they were just moments before. Perhaps it was the tension I felt from knowing that I had possibly gotten Zayn in trouble.

“Ava,” Zayn said, pulling his gaze from the floor back up to me. “I’m really sorry about what happened with you and Harry. I wanted to say something sooner, but I didn’t want to cross any lines.”

Shaking my head, I smiled at him. “Don’t be sorry. I totally understand. Harry is your band mate and I’m his horrible ex-girlfriend. I’m okay with that.”

Zayn chuckled, as he took a few steps back. His gaze was locked back on the floor, while he slowly walked back towards the banquet hall.

Just as he was about to step through the door, he turned back to me.

“I don’t think you’re horrible, Ava. I never thought that at all.”