Flavor of the Week

The moment Jay told the boys the biggest, darkest secret they’d probably ever been told, Ava could feel the world collapsing around her. The tension in the room was unbearable, and it only took a few moments before the boys began making their way out of it.

Harry ripped his hand away from Ava’s, and just from the way he did that, she could tell that he hated her more than anyone else ever had. She didn’t know whether or not to go running after him, because she didn’t know what she could do to make any of it better.

Taking a deep breath, she looked out in front of her and her eyes locked with Louis’s almost immediately. He didn’t look nearly as hurt as Harry he did; he just looked angry, and it was that fact that made Ava decide that maybe, just maybe, running after Harry was worth a shot, because if she had hurt him that meant that he cared.

She was out of the room in seconds, her heart pounding in her chest, as she looked around for Harry. She spotted him through the glass of the window, standing by the pool and looking out into the water. Her body froze as she watched him, because she knew that this was the make or break moment that would decide what kind of ending they were going to get.

Her hands were shaking as they pulled open the sliding glass door, and she stepped out onto that patio with a deep breath.

Harry turned around the moment he saw her, his eyes red with emotion. It didn’t take but a few seconds for him to speak and Ava was thankful that she wasn’t the one that had to do the first bit of talking.

“How could you do this?”

“Harry, I – I never, ever meant for this to happen,” she breathed, tears already forming in her eyes. She’d tried to keep herself together, but it wasn’t working. “I never thought that I would actually end up falling for someone.”

“So, you were just going to –”

“Did she tell you?”

Louis stepped through the door, startling both of them and causing them to look back at him with wide eyes.

Having Louis step out there was the very last thing that Ava wanted to happen. He couldn’t have shown up at a more wrong moment, because she hadn’t even gotten to explain herself yet.

“Tell me what?” Harry asked, looking at Ava as opposed to Louis.

Ava could feel her entire body shaking just at Harry’s look, and she knew she couldn’t keep secrets anymore. It was the perfectly wrong time, but she had to lay all her cards out on the table because she didn’t have a choice.

“Louis and I –” she stuttered, her throat closing up while her head began to throb. “We –”

“You slept together?” Harry interrupted, a laugh falling from his lips as he spoke. He looked between Ava and Louis, who both said nothing. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

“Harry, it was –”

“All part of the game, right?”

Ava nodded her head, choking on her own words.

“Can you leave, please?” Harry breathed out as he turned his back to both of them and looked back at the pool. “I’d like to be alone.”

Ava opened her mouth to speak, but nothing would come out. She begged her mind to come up with something to make this whole thing right, but it just wouldn’t. She’d ruined everything before it had even begun

Tears fell swiftly down her face as she turned around to head back inside, unsure of exactly where she was going. She had almost reached the door when Louis reached his hand out to her, stopping her dead in her tracks.

“Ava, don’t go,” Louis said, his voice sounding rough and low. “Harry, you need to talk to her.”

Harry turned around, looking Louis dead in the eyes. “I don’t have anything to say.”

“Then just listen,” Louis said, guiding Ava back towards Harry. “Just listen to what she has to say.”

Ava didn’t know when or why Louis had suddenly decided to become a mediator, but she was more thankful for that than anything, because she knew Harry never would have talked to her if his best friend hadn’t told him to.

“I’ll be inside if you need me,” Louis said, excusing himself back into the house.

There was silence between Harry and Ava as they both just stared at the ground, waiting for some tragic event to interrupt the turmoil in their heads.

“Go on,” Harry breathed out, just barely loud enough that Ava could hear his words. “I’m listening.”

“Harry, I – I never meant to hurt you. I just wanted to be famous,” she said, letting out an embarrassed laugh. “It was awful what I did – what we all did – but I’d still do it over again. I’d do it differently, but I’d do it again. I’d do it a thousand times if it meant I’d get to meet you. I regret hurting you, Harry, I really do, but I don’t regret joining this show.”

“That’s it?”

“No,” Ava said, shaking her head as she took in a deep breath. “From the very beginning, I wanted you, Harry, but I knew that I couldn’t have you, so I tried to stay away from you for as long as I could, hence the debacle with Louis.”

“Debacle?”

“Yes. Now, would you let me finish?”

He nodded his head and she continued.

“I tried to stay away from you, Harry, because I knew there was no way I could be around you without really falling for you. I tried as hard as I could, but every time I pushed, there was something that pulled me closer to you.”

Ava finished, her lungs suddenly out of breath and her chest heaving up and down to catch up. The air between them was so thick, and Ava absolutely no idea what was going to happen next. She felt like she was pleading for her life, and she still wasn’t sure whether or not they were going to pull the trigger.

“Are you done now?” Harry asked, and Ava nodded her head gently, her eyes wide as she looked at him. His face remained expressionless until he began biting at his lower lip, just watching her unfold in front of him.

Just when Ava thought she couldn’t wait anymore, Harry leaned forward so quickly that she didn’t even see him move, and his lips were on hers in the most Harry kiss she had ever had, and for once, she knew that kiss was real.