Burn

Shoe Fits

Young and full of running
All the way to the edge of desire
Steady my breathing, silently screaming,
I have to have you now.
-Edge of Desire [/bi

“Pssst.” The very annoying, very persistent sound assaulted Rae’s ears, making her frown as she slept on the couch. Twisted away from it, she tried to settle into a deeper sleep. She was so tired, and needed a few more minutes. “Raaeee.”

Her frowned deepened as she kept her eyes closed, croaking, “What?”

There was a very soft chuckle next to her as arms snaked around her waist, a weight pressed against her right arm. Yawning, she cracked and eye open to see Harry laying across the expanse of the couch, his face placed on her arm and his arms around her waist. She sighed, more annoyed than tired now.

“You took up the whole fucking couch,” she complained, wiggling under his grip to put her legs on the couch, stretching them out. The cramps breathed out a sigh of relief, once she did that. “Don’t you know you’re supposed to share?”

He put on a thoughtful face. “I’ve never exactly been the sharing type.”

“I bet you beat kids up in the sandbox as a child.”

“I did.”

Both of them lay on the couch like that, only the sound of the air conditioner kicking on breaking the silence. Sunlight filtered through the curtains, casting a cold hue around the living room. Trystan lay silent and unmoving, splayed across the arm chair in a very ungraceful manner.

It seemed all three of them had spent the night downstairs with the TV on. Rae was slightly amused by that fact, seeing as she almost could never sleep with the TV on. Sleeping for her only came in the comfort of her bed and total darkness.

Harry sighed deeply then and pushed himself off the couch. Rae yawned and rubbed a hand over her face, placing her hand in his extended one as he pulled her up from the couch. Without saying anything, they both moved to the kitchen, knowing a nice cup of coffee was in order.

Without exchanging words, Rae began making coffee as Harry hopped up on the marble countertop, stretching his arms towards the ceiling and yawning. The girl tried to ignore the way his arm muscles flexed as he did so, imaging how she could shade the contours of his muscles with charcoal.

The thought made her chuckle lightly to herself, shaking her head. Harry caught the motion and tilted his head to the side, casting her a quizzical glance. She shook her head at him, not wanting to share what had just crossed her mind. As she walked past, he used his legs to catch her in his grasp, pulling her in between his legs and holding her there firmly. “Spill.”

Rae’s cheeks tinted a bit as she smiled, looking down at his hands. “I was just thinking how nice it would be to draw you, sometime.”

He chuckled and she covered her face. he removed her hands, making her look at him. “Why are you embarrassed by that?”

She shrugged. “I just didn’t want you to think I was a right lunatic. I see people as art, sometimes.”

“Well I think that’s a great trait to have. Feel free to draw me like one of your French girls any time.” Rae swatted at him for the Titanic joke, rolling her eyes and continuing to make coffee.

Once they were done, they went out into the back yard, careful not to disturb Trystan. She could be an absolute horror when she woke up in the morning, especially when she woke up to find she had spent the night cramped on a bloody couch in the middle of the living room.

Outside was warm and cloudless. They both sat delicately on the hammock, careful not to flip it. Sipping their drinks lightly, they sat talking about Lilly. Harry was interested in Rae’s small cousin, and Rae told her all about different stories and how she saw the young girl as more of a sister than a cousin.

It intrigued Rae, to see this new side of Harry who was interested in children. She had pegged him as the type to cringe a the crying of children and frowning in annoyance when bothered with tea parties and dolls. And yet he dove head into that sort of thing without batting an eyelash. She assumed it was from his lack of care from his own parents that made him want to act differently.

Halfway through their conversation, they heard the sliding glass door open. Both turned to see a very tired, glowering Trystan come outside. Without so much as a word, she sat on the patio in front of them. Rae smiled a bit and pat her on the head.

The big surprise, was when Harry lightly picked up strands of Trystan’s hair and began braiding it. Rae expected Trystan to make a snarky remark, but instead, she set her chin on her knees, just letting Harry braid her hair as if they had been best friends forever. The thought warmed Rae’s heart.

Rae busied herself with laying on Harry’s shoulder. They sat their for a long time before Trystan sighed, moving to stand. “Alright, I’m done with this really weird bonding fest. I’m going to shower. Thanks for the braid, flower child.”

Harry gave her a grin as she left them alone, turning to walk inside. Rae gave him a look and he laughed, knowing how to read the look on her features. He shrugged and explained, “I don’t think she’s overly fond of me. So anything I can do to change that, I suppose I should.”

“Yes,” Rae deadpanned with a bit of a smile. “Because braiding a girls hair is the way to the soul.”

“Hey, don’t hate the player, hate the game.”

“Get over yourself.”

“Don’t you have work tonight?” Harry asked then, poking Rae in the side of the head. He knew she got annoyed whenever he did that. Her annoyed glare was all he needed to confirm that. “Leaving me all alone with nothing to do.”

“Oh please,” she waved, standing from the hammock. It rocked dangerously and Harry flailed for a moment before he caught his balance, making her grin wickedly. “You have plenty of friends and plenty of things to do. Call Louis or Niall.”

He put on a thoughtful face. “I suppose I will. Haven’t seen the lads in a week or so.”

“Good. Go have a lads night.”

“Don’t tempt me with a good time.”

*

Hours later, Rae found herself at work, dusting off shelves and singing along to the sound of John Mayer as it played throughout the store. She had an hour left of work, though she had not been busy much throughout the day.

As she stepped down from the stool, the door dinged and she turned to see Niall and Harry walking in, milkshakes in hand. Rae raised a single eyebrow as they grinned at her, shaking the milkshakes as if they were mighty prizes.

“Hullo!” Niall said happily, popping a friendly kiss on her cheek. Rae saw the way Harry’s eyes flash in anger but she leveled him with a look. He glared back but looked away, ignoring it. “Brought you and your co-worker a milkshake.”

Danielle, one of the girls who shared shifts often with Rae looked up, surprised. Rae laughed a bit. Harry really was doing it just because he knew Rae wouldn’t expect it. And she didn’t, when he handed her a milkshake and gave her a friendly grin. Turning to Rae, he smirked.

“Smart ass,” she murmured when he kissed her head, handing her one as well. She gave the straw a good tug, tasting cookies and cream. “You’re sucking up really is interesting to watch. Are you compensating for something?”

He gave her a shocked look. “If you’re insinuating my skills in the bedroom, you are going to be extremely sorry for that comment, love.”

“Well if the shoe fits…”

Harry’s green eyes lit and he grinned evilly at her. “When you least expect it, you’re going to wish you hadn’t said that, Rae Bastian.”

“I’m sure, Harry Styles.”

♠ ♠ ♠

More drama coming up soooooon muahahaha.