Hearts Like Ours

Harry woke on Wednesday morning with a weight in his chest. His departure was looming over him like a cloud and he felt desperate to ignore it as he pushed himself out of bed. His phone was vibrating on the bedside table, the buzzing sound having been what woke him in the first place. He sighed as he ran his hand over his face tiredly, picking up his phone and sliding his thumb across the screen to answer Gemma’s call.

“I’m surprised you picked up,” she admitted after a moment. He rolled his eyes, stretching his back as he stood. He’d slept in an awkward position and his lower back was throbbing.

“I always answer your calls if I’m not busy, Gemma,” he told her as he walked over to his suitcase and began to rifle through what little clean clothes he had left. Locating a pair of athletic shorts and a black tank top, he pulled them out and balanced the phone on his shoulder as he wiggled into them.

“You’ve been pointedly ignoring me since you left two weeks ago,” she immediately replied.

“Because you’re over-eager and nosey,” he mumbled before tossing his phone to the bed as he pulled the tank top over his body. He could hear her voice raised on the other end of the line and decided not to bother picking it up to bring with him as he ran his fingers through his hair, doing his best to tame it from the night before. His sleep had been restless and he spent the better part of it tossing and turning. It reflected not only in the mess of his curls, but the dark circles beneath his eyes. After dealing with the former, he made his way over to the sink to splash cold water against his face in an attempt to wake himself up.

“Are you even listening to me?” he could hear Gemma ask as he re-approached the bed to grab his phone.

“Heard every word,” he responded as he tucked his wallet and keycard into one of the pockets in his mesh shorts. His running shoes were waiting by the door and he slipped them on easily before opening the door to step out into the hall.

“You didn’t even have the phone with you,” she accused. “I heard your faucet running in the distance.”

He made no response as he headed toward the back stairwell and started taking the stairs two at a time up to the sixteenth floor. Gemma was still ripping into him, but he wasn’t paying attention to anything that came from her mouth. Instead, he pushed open the door to the gym, peeking in to evaluate the equipment. It was completely vacant and he smiled as he pushed further into the room.

“Gemma, I have to go. I’ll see you at the airport tomorrow, okay?” he sighed.

He knew she only wanted to talk to him. She missed his company when he was on tour, and now he was in Seattle instead of spending two weeks in the guest bedroom in her apartment like he’d promised he would do. It was true she had been the one to talk him into leaving in the first place, but that didn’t make it any easier for her.

“We didn’t even talk about Charlie,” she whined. Harry bit back a smile as he stepped onto one of the treadmills facing the wall of windows that offered a view of the city. He peered out the window and into the distance where the Space Needle stood tall against a backdrop of mountains. The skies were overcast, though it hadn’t rained yet. He made a mental note to check the forecast before he returned his attention to his sister.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Gem,” he dismissed her. “I love you.”

There was a pause on the other end of the line. She sighed and mumbled back a half-hearted, “Love you, too” just moments before hanging up. The line went dead and he set the phone down in one of the crevices beside the treadmill controls. It had been ages since he’d ran last and his muscles felt uncomfortably tight. He decided to start with a low pace to warm himself up before a jog.

He had been on the treadmill no longer than two and a half minutes when his phone vibrated, alerting a text. He groaned, picking up his mobile with the expectation of a snarky message from his sister. He was surprised to see Charlie’s name on the alerts.

Looking forward to tonight.

Harry grinned, typing back a quick response before kicking up his pace, a sudden burst of energy spreading throughout him.

-

Behind the wood door, Harry could hear a familiar song playing as Charlie shuffled around her apartment. He reached out a hand to knock just as the door swung open to reveal the petite blonde, a smile on her glossed lips.

“How did you know...?” he began, but she answered before he got the chance to finish his question.

“The floors creak. I heard you step off the elevator,” she replied.

He crossed his arms, leaning against the doorframe as he watched her cross the room to silence the music playing on the speakers.

“Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers?” he asked her, quirking a brow. She laughed, her face flushing scarlet as she reached into a closet near the door and extracted a leather jacket to throw on over her gray racerback tank.

“Free Fallin’ is my go-to feeling good track,” she replied, tucking both her hands behind her neck in order to free her hair from where the jacket fell on her shoulders. She picked her bag up off the floor and slung the strap over her head before flicking off the light. Harry had yet to move from his position in the doorway and she paused in front of him, allowing him just enough time to reach out and pluck a piece of hair from where it was still caught beneath the weight of the jacket. She smiled softly at him, mumbling a thanks as he pushed up from the doorframe and allowed her access to the hall.

“So how is this going to work?” she asked as she pressed the down button for the elevator. Her eyes flickered over to him as he shrugged.

“Haven’t given much thought to it, really,” he replied. She frowned.

“Aren’t you afraid of getting mobbed or something?”

The elevator arrived and they both stepped on. He pushed the down button before she could begin to reach for it. She was glaring at him with her hands crossed over her chest, childishly sticking her tongue out in false anger for him stealing her job. He rolled his eyes, wetting his lips to answer her question.

“Not really. At a show like this, I’m not anticipating it being too bad.” He paused a moment. “Maybe we should head to the balcony just in case.”

She nodded, pulling her lip between her teeth as they arrived at the bottom floor. He allowed her to step off first, following closely behind as she made her way out onto the street. A taxi was idling there and Harry pulled the door open for her. She thanked him quietly as she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, sliding in.

The venue was closer to the university than where Charlie lived, a twenty minute drive across town. The ride was mostly spent in silence, Harry’s leg jiggling in nervous anticipation as Charlie’s eyes followed the scenery outside the window. Without looking away, her hand reached over to steady his knee. He froze as she turned to him, a small smile turning at the corners of her lips.

“Sorry,” he breathed. She only shook her head, her eyes upturning as she returned to her previous position near the window.

A few moments later, the taxi turned down a residential street. It took a few more turns before arriving at a small downtown area, a different vibe hanging in the air than what they’d left behind in the city. It was directly related to the amount of university students who roamed the sidewalks in groups of two’s and three’s. Harry paid the driver before following Charlie out onto the street.

Smushed between a pizzaria and a bookstore was the venue, modest in size. A line had already formed around the corner and spilled into the alleyway where college aged kids in various forms of hipster clothing waited boredly, shuffling their weight and occasionally puffing from a cigarette. Harry raised a brow at Charlie who began to laugh.

“Seattle’s the new Portland,” she shrugged.

He wasn’t sure what exactly that meant, but he assumed it was somewhat of jab at the sort of crowd they were passing by as they walked to the end of the line. A few gasps could be heard as they walked, Harry being sure to keep his gaze steadily ahead in order to reach his destination with Charlie. She was surveying the line, whether to look for familiar faces or to watch with amusement the sort of response he illicited, he couldn’t be sure. When they finally stopped and she turned to him, he confirmed his suspicion that it was the latter.

“You worried now?” she asked, inclining her head in the direction of a few girls who were stepping out of the line in order to approach them. He sighed, running a hand through his hair before stepping out of the line.

“Hold my spot?” he asked, glancing at her over his shoulder. He feared what her response to this would be, but she was grinning at him and his shoulders instantly relaxed.

He glanced at the time on his phone briefly before shoving it back in his pocket. He’d have twenty minutes of this before doors opened, enough time, he hoped, to get to anyone who wanted a picture so he could be left in relative peace during the actual show.

Those who didn’t approach Harry directly had phones out of their pockets, taking snapshots from afar. Usually, this kind of thing didn’t bother him. He was all too aware of Charlie’s presence, however, and pursed his lips between photos, forehead creased with worry. In the brief moments during which he snuck glances at her, she seemed content enough, texting someone before her eyes flickered up at him when she sensed his gaze. He promptly turned away again, throwing his arm around a girl with a lip piercing and purple dip-dyed hair. She thanked him profusely afterward and he smiled at her, assuring her it was no problem. The amount of girls who approached him for a photo was manageable, as he expected. He estimated just below half cared he was there, the others blatantly ignoring him or rolling their eyes, too cool to care.

Harry snapped one last picture with a fan before the line began to move. He slid easily into the space beside Charlie as she finished typing into her phone and looked up at him.

“Done now, popstar?” she asked teasingly. He pressed his lips together, nodding sheepishly. Locking her phone, she frowned at him.

“What?” she asked.

“I’m sorry about that,” he told her after clearing his throat. She only laughed, which caught him off guard.

“I am slightly offended.”

Harry’s shoulder’s fell as he furrowed his brows. She grinned up at him a moment later, playfully bumping him with her hip to show she was joking. “You took pictures with all those girls, and yet we don’t have a proper photo together.”

He let out a relieved chuckle as she opened the camera app in her phone.

“Do you want me to take that?” a girl in line in front of them asked. Charlie handed over her phone, thanking the girl in earnest before slipping beneath Harry’s outstretched arm. He smiled down at her as she grinned up at him. A moment later, both her arms were hooked around his waist and they looked to the camera lens.

“I took a few,” the girl said, handing Charlie back her phone.

“Thanks again,” she said, not bothering to look at the photos as she slid it back into her pocket. The line was moving and it was obvious she was eager to get in.

“You’re in a good mood,” he mused, watching as she bounced up and down on the balls of her feet. They were nearing the front entrance now and Harry pulled out their tickets from his back pocket, handing one to her so she could get in after having it scanned. The moment they both passed through, she grabbed his hand easily, leading the way up the steps to their immediate right that he assumed led to the balcony.

He tried to be nonchalant about the way their hands were threaded together, but found it to no avail. His eyes couldn’t leave the place where they were connected and he could only thank God silently that Charlie was too busy maneuvering her way through the stragglers to notice. Finally, she reached a place in the front row of the balcony, albeit right beside the wall. He didn’t mind having the blockage on at least one side in case things got too crazy and happily moved to that space beside her. A heartbeat later, Charlie unhinged her hand from his, expertly avoiding her gaze to seem interested in peeking over the rail to see the amount of people crowded into the space below them.

Her blonde hair fell in curtains on either side of her face as she bent forward, blue eyes darting this way and that as she people watched. Harry was content to watch her that way, leaning forward on his forearms against the rail, a lazy smile on his lips. He hadn’t seen her this giddy since their bout in laser tag, but this felt different.

It wasn’t a date, but it was close enough to send his stomach in nervous flutters when she brushed against him a moment later to make room for some more people. With just the two of them there in a rather date-like setting, it felt more real than it had in the last two weeks they’d spent together. It was undeniable that they’d formed a closer bond after the intimate exchange they’d had in Emmett’s room the night prior. It came easier between them now; the teasing and casual touches that they both pretended were nonchalant but were actually anything but. It was all he could do to keep is weight on his arms in order to keep them from reaching out to her.

During the hour long wait before the opener came out, Charlie didn’t seem to mind her proximity to him. Quite the opposite, when she found something she thought was worthy of comment, she’d lean into him to speak over the cacophony of the crowd. For a while, these seemed far and few between as she immersed herself in the task of eyeing every member of the audience below them. Harry was holding his chin in his hand, watching as the crew set up on stage, when she turned to him suddenly.

“Can I ask you something?”

Her voice was quiet and serious, her eyes searching his for any hesitancy. She found none there and smiled when he responded without a moment’s hesitation, “Of course.”

“I just don’t want you to be offended...” she started, but before she could finish, the lights dimmed and the crowd let out a roar of excited screams.

“Later,” she called to him over the noise before pulling away. Harry wanted to ask her to finish her question, but before he could music started up on stage and the band walked out. Instead, he leaned over and asked who they were.

“NONONO,” she replied, her eyes not leaving the stage for a moment. He made to say something else, but she lifted a finger to his lips to shush him. He froze and a heartbeat later, she turned to look at him, her finger dropping automatically as she smiled sheepishly at him. He blinked at her, his expression unwavering, and she blushed before turning back to the stage.

The music sounded vaguely 80’s inspired, but with a more modern twist. Charlie mouthed along with the music, swaying back and forth slightly to the beat. He watched the band with mild interest, liking what he heard but more interested in stealing glances of Charlie from the corner of his eye. Her energy was still vibrant throughout the set as she watched on, but it wasn’t until their last song that her hand wrapped around his wrist and his eyes shifted to her.

“I love this song,” she told him, eyes bright. He laughed at her response but she only tightened her grip on his wrist. “I’m giving you fair warning that I’m about to white girl dance, and I’d appreciate it if you would withold your judgment.”

He only laughed harder, which illicited a few giggles from her before she dropped his wrist and lifted her hands into the air, pumping them both with the beat as she moved to the music. The chorus came around and she really had at it, headbanging and singing along as loudly as possible. Harry was cracking up beside her, enjoying watching her more than the show itself.

When the song finally wound down and the band left the stage, Charlie was completely out of breath, but grinning from ear to ear. She turned to him, her weight supported on her back by the railing.

“That was quite the workout,” she told him with a chuckle. He only shook his head at her.

“You’re something else, you know it?”

Charlie made no response but to keep her eyes fixed on him. He had meant it as an airy comment, but they both sensed the undertones of it. She was distincly and undeniably different from any other girl he’d ever met, let alone had the opportunity to really get to know. He felt a churning in his stomach when he remembered he’d be flying out tomorrow morning. As if sensing where his thoughts were leading, she inexplicably wrapped her arms around his torso and pulled him into a hug.

He sighed against her, fighting an internal battle as to whether it was better to keep his mouth shut or let the words slip from his mouth. He decided he didn’t have time for the former.

“I’m going to miss this,” he mumbled into her hair. He could feel her smile into his shoulder before she pulled away to look up at him.

“Let’s have a fucking rad night,” Charlie decided with a smirk. He grinned easily back at her, nodding in agreement. “I’ll be right back,” she told him, slipping from his grasp before he could let out a word of protest.

Awkwardly, he shifted his weight as he leaned forward again. Running a hand through his hair, he felt certain this girl would be the end of him. This thought was confirmed fifteen minutes later when Charlie returned with two cups in her hands. She offered one to him and he glanced down into it before looking up at her.

“How did you get us beers?”

She was mid-sip, but her eyes were still on him as she drank. A moment later, she frowned at him.

“Why do you sound so surprised?” she asked. He laughed.

“I’m mostly worried about what you had to do to get them.”

She rolled her eyes, giving him a light shove.

“I’m a nineteen-year-old college student in one of the only countries in the world where the drinking age is twenty-one. I have a fake, obviously.”

“I’ve never seen this side of you,” he observed before lifting the cup to his lips. She nudged him with her hip to scoot over so she could press herself up against the railing again. He obliged.

“I’m not usually big on alcohol, but I don’t think a little bit of buzz would hurt either one of us tonight,” she said, lifting her brows before taking another drink.

Harry took a moment to consider what she could mean by that. He was unsure whether or not she simply intended for the alcohol to liven up an already great night, or if she was suggesting she needed it as a distraction from his impending departure in the morning. The lights dimmed again before he had time to ask, so instead he took a long drink and returned his eyes to the stage.

Harry was always reluctant to admit how much of a lightweight he really was, but he knew it took more than one beer to sink him under. It probably had more to do with the energy of the crowd, the upbeat music, and the way in which Charlie moved easily beside him. She would brush against him every so often, a smell he’d come to closely associate with her filling him up. It was these things, on top of the alcohol, that had him feeling buzzed.

Something told him she could feel it, too. The smile never left her face as she danced around to each song they played, her hands high above her as she screamed in exaltation. There was something about simply being near her that left him feeling dizzy and drunk, and despite having finished his beer, he knew it was her that had him feeling so high.

The chords to a vaguely familiar song started to play and Charlie grabbed his wrist like she had during the NONONO song. He smiled as she pulled on him, enticing him to dance with her, and though it normally would have taken a few more pints to get him to loosen up enough to have a go at dancing, the bright blue of her eyes would do. She was singing the words as she whipped her hair about, one hand firmly wrapped around his wrist, the other on his shoulder.

Borders and horizon lines, we’re alone but side by side

The lyrics seemed oddly fitting to him as his right hand slid to her waist, his left cupped against her lower back. She was so close he could almost taste her. He felt an overwhelming urge to reach out and do just that, but was too afraid to ruin this perfect moment. Instead, he watched as she threw her head back and half-screamed, half-laughed the words as the chorus started.

Half awake and almost dead, keeping empty beds elsewhere. We're yet to bleed, we’re yet to bleed, all the time and energy

He wished he could capture this moment somehow, bottle it up, and keep it with him. He wanted to remember everything about this; the way her fingers felt as they wove their way into his hair, snaking upward from the nape of his neck, the way her breath felt against his cheek when she came in close just before taking a step back again, the heavy thumping of her heart when she was pushed up close against him. He could make it out of a million lonely days on tour if he could only take this moment with him when he went.

Lead me to the edge of night, ’til the dawn the end of time, ’til the fire blazing light shines again within our eyes

The room lit with a pink light as there was a temporary break in the music, the lead singer continuing on with the hook one more time. Charlie was flush against him, her body heat radiating from her in waves while Harry wondered how she still wore her leather jacket. He’d long ago rolled the sleeves of his black button up up to his forearms and yet he still felt as if he couldn’t breathe from the stifling heat.

He danced with her until the song wound to an end. While the crowd cheered around them, Charlie lifted her head to look at him, a euphoric look on her face as she fought to catch her breath. Her palms were pressed against his chest and she slowly let them fall after a few moments. Harry tried to hide his disappointment.

“What do you say we beat the crowd out of here?” she asked, eyeing him as she leaned back to get a better view of him. He was only slightly surprised that she hadn’t wrangled her way out of his grip yet. He wondered if she noticed at all that his hands were still on her, or if she just didn’t care.

“We could go back to my apartment,” she suggested. “I think I have some whiskey.”

He nodded, desperate to do anything if only to elongate this moment. He’d be damned if he went home tomorrow morning without having “a fucking rad time”, as Charlie had so delicately put it earlier. She smiled at his response.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” he agreed.

He braced for her to turn, but she didn’t. Instead, she reached up, almost absently, and let her fingers spread across his cheek, her thumb brushing over his dimple.

Harry was frozen beneath her touch, wondering for a moment if she would do what he’d been thinking about doing for the past few days: close the space between their two sets of lips and light the fire they’d slowly been building together. Instead, she dropped her hand from him as if she’d been shocked and stumbled her way out of his arms, turning to leave without so much as a warning.

He stood there a moment, dumbfounded, before composing himself to take off after her. It was all too often that he found himself dizzied and confused in her wake.