For Fair Love

We walk along not speaking to one another. The streets are quieter. I try to cope with my blisters at the bottom of my feet. I feel awful for letting my tongue slip earlier. I wish I could apologize to Harry for saying something so unreasonable. But he walks ahead of me, fuming. I doubt he’ll want to make peace. I prefer being on people’s good side. I can’t stand having someone angry with me. I stare at the walkway until Harry stops by a condo and enters. I follow him after looking around. I try to figure out where we are and how long we’ve been walking. Harry probably has forgotten that I’m behind him. I occasionally have to jog in order to keep up with his quick pace. We get in the elevator and Harry pushes the top button. I hear him sigh. There’s like twenty stories. I have to say something soon…
“Harry, I’m sorry,” I start, staring at the shiny floors. “I didn’t mean what I said earlier.”
He sighs again. It feels like a punch to the gut, though. I have a habit of feeling guilty for every single thing. I don’t know why.
“Can you forgive me?” I press on.
“It’s fine,” he says under his breath, “It’s not like you were wrong.”
“But I was wrong. I shouldn’t have said that,” I murmur.
Harry then looks over to me. The doors open letting us out to the hall and Harry walks ahead. I follow, quietly, looking at the doors and the numbers on them. He stuffs his hand in his back pocket, taking a key out. He unlocks his penthouse door and I assume this is where he’s living. He walks around while I stay in front of the door. He looks back to me.
“You can take the bedroom,” he tells me, pointing in the direction I should go.
I slowly walk to the steps leading upwards to his bedroom. I can see the lights of the night through the big windows above the bed. It seems to be the only clear thing…

My phone rings on the side table. I pop my head up, looking for it with my eyes. I groan and try to reach for it. I bring the phone to my ear. It’s already screaming.
“Oh my God, Chas! You need to come to my office right now! And hurry it up! You’ve got lots of explaining to do!”
It’s Karen.
“Good morning Karen,” I yawn.
“Not yet it’s not. Come here right now!”
She hangs up. I look at my phone, trying not to feel too worried as Karen makes everything seem more dramatic than it is.
I open my suitcase, which sits by the wall. I find something suitable and throw it on. I slip my phone in my back pocket before heading to the bathroom. When I finish getting ready to head out, I go down stairs and look for any sign of Harry. He doesn’t seem to be in the house, so I leave on my own.
I walk down St. John’s Wood road, trying to remember the way. I pass by a few shops with pretty things staring at me in the window. London air smells of chimney smoke and roses. The sun isn’t up, though the sky is bright grey. The clouds float fast and the wind picks up. I finally find the right address to the skyscraper where Karen’s office is.

“So your old phone keeps beeping. I figured out your password. It was quite easy,” Karen says, completely in a calm tone, unlike earlier. “You didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend.”
I look at her, “I don’t.”
“Then who’s…” Karen pauses and glances at the screen of my phone, “Jack?”
My back straightens in the chair.
“Oh, no one really…” I try to convince.
She gives me a weird look and begins reading the texts Jack apparently sent me since she took my phone.
“Chas, I’m sorry. Can we talk?” Karen says, gliding her finger. “I miss you. I wish you’d speak to me. I can’t stop thinking about you. Bla, bla, bla. Say something. Please don’t hate me. Can’t we just talk? Text me back. I really miss you. Bla, bla, bla.”
How is this possible? Jack? Miss me? No. I frown as Karen goes on.
“This doesn’t sound like no one to me.”
“It’s not what you think. I don’t—”
“It doesn’t matter,” Karen cuts me off, “Just remember that it’s Harry you’re going out with.”
“I prefer not going out with Harry,” I let slip.
Karen sits at her desk, staring at me.
“Why not?”
“I just want to go home.”
Karen sighs, annoyed at me.
“Look, we’ve been over this. You’re the girl in the pictures. Everyone is going to find out sooner or later. You might as well be Harry’s girlfriend. It’s better if we come out and say it before people start digging in the dirt.”
“Can’t you just get another girl to do it?” I plead.
Karen frowns, “I could. I really could. It would be so easy, too. You know how many girls would kill just to be close to Harry?”
“So why don’t you?” I ask, impatient.
Karen gives me an amused face and chooses her words, “Harry’s good with the ladies. There’s no doubt. The reason he jumps from one girl to the next is because he knows he can. That’s it. So, if I were to get just any girl, he’d have his way with her and it would be over. That would mean I would have to get Harry a different girl every other day. That’s not the image he’s supposed to portray. Since I met you, I know you’re a little different. So I know you’ll be fine.”
“What do you mean?” I question.
“Don’t worry about it,” Karen changes the subject, “Anyways, you should go in the fitting room, Caroline needs to take your measurements. We brought in some clothes for you to try on.”
Karen gets up and leads me to another floor.