Harry's POV

"I just don't think it's realistic."

"Yes it is."

"No self respecting human being would just let their family treat them like that without any kind of protest. She's on her hands and knees scrubbing the damn floor, for shits sake. That's just embarrassing."

"Harry, people actually do that in real life."

"And another thing, I don't think she has an actual conversation with the prince while they're dancing. I know that part hasn't happened, but Gem made me watch this movie when we were kids. They just dance and suddenly they're in love."

Lana lifts her head from my chest and glares at me. "If you don't stop dissing the movie, I will kindly ask you to get your Disney hating ass out of my home."

I chuckle and rub her back. "If you wanted to watch a movie in silence you shouldn't have forced me to watch Cinderella."

"You secretly love the princess movies, don't lie," she says, reaching up and poking my nose.

"No, I really don't," I argue, poking her nose as well. "But I do have a major crush on Ariel."

She pushes off my stomach and sits up on her knees between my legs. "What! Not fair, I can't compete with the tail and the shell bra thingy," she says, cupping her boobs with her hands. I raise my eyebrows and she lets her hands drop to rest on my legs. "What? It's true. I love Disney, but they create a very unrealistic expectation of female body image."

"Okay, let's not get all political and women's rights-ie. Come back here," I demand, pointing to the spot on my chest where her head was just laying.

"I'd rather not, to be honest."

I cross my arms over my chest. "And why not?"

"Well, you're not the most comfortable person to lay on, Harry," she says, sitting against the couch on top of my left leg and sliding her legs under my right one. She goes back to her Cinderella movie and I just stare at her, waiting for an explanation. She looks over and lifts her hand, blocking my view of her face. I reach forward and grab it, pulling her towards me. "Harry, I'm not kidding," she protests as I wrap an arm around her, holding her half on top of me, half beside me.

"I'm extremely cuddle-able, for your information."

"No, you're rock hard."

"I'm what?"

"Yeah, I know you want to be all tough and mocho and whatever, but it makes you so hard to cuddle with," she explains, poking my stomach a few times. "See what I mean? Hard as a rock."

I laugh and grab her hand to stop her from poking me any more. "I've never received any complaints before."

"Well, I'm not exactly complaining. I do enjoy looking at them."

"Is that so?" I ask, smiling and lacing our fingers together.

"Yep. But all this muscle doesn't exactly make you all soft and teddy-bear like."

"Sorry. I'll try to get....fatter?"

She smiles and tilts her head up to look at me. "Aww, you would get fat for me?"

"Of course."

"Really?"

"No."

"Okay, this is literally the weirdest conversation I have ever witnessed."

Lana sits up quickly, looking toward the door of the apartment. I lean up a little and look over the top of the couch to see Louis and Eleanor standing near the doorway, close enough to hear everything we've said to each other.

"How much of that did you hear?" Lana asks, ruffing her hand through her hair. I lay back down. I'm not too worried about this.

"Well, we came in when you threatened to kick Harry out for insulting Disney. Then we just stood here listening to the rest...and I have to say I'm worried for both of your mental health. However, I do agree that if you hate on Disney movies any more, you will be banished."

Lana looks down at me triumphantly. "Wow, you guys are pretty intense about these movies," I comment, winking at her.

"I'm serious, though, do you guys always have weird conversations like that?" she asks, flopping down on the other couch. We look at each other and she shrugs.

"Yeah, they're a regular occurrence."

"Wow, you guys are actually perfect for each other," she says as Louis takes a seat beside her.

"Yeah, their weirdness is complementary," he agrees, smiling at us.

"Where did you guys go?" Lana asks, laying down between me and the back of the couch.

"We just went for a walk. It's ridiculously warm outside today," El says.

"Is it really! We should go outside!" Lana says excitedly, turning on her side and leaning on her elbow so she can look down at me. I frown and shake my head. "Oh, come on! Please?"

She makes those adorable puppy dog eyes at me. Damn it. I feel so lazy, we've been watching movies all day and I've left my spot on this couch like four times. After about thirty seconds of those begging eyes I can't take it anymore.

"Fine."

She smiles widely, clapping and jumping up to go to her room and get changed. I'm still in the sweatpants I slept in and she never changed out of her pyjamas either, which consist of shorts and one of my shirts. I don't know how, but she always manages to steal my clothes without me realizing. I've spent a lot of time in here over the last two weeks, so I actually have a lot of stuff here. It accumulates quickly.

"El, can I ask you something?" I say slowly, sitting up and leaning over to see if Lana's door is completely closed.

"You just did."

"Funny. Do you know about the box Lana has on the shelf in her closet?"

Louis looks at her curiously while she continues to stare at me. There's no reaction on her face, but she obviously knows something. After a while she takes a deep breath.

"Yes."

I lean forward with my elbows resting on my knees, waiting for some sort of explanation. She doesn't look like she's about to give one.

"Do you know what's in it?" I ask, prompting some sort of answer.

"Did you ask Lana about it?"

"No, I didn't think she would tell me."

She rolls her eyes. "Then why are you asking me? If she doesn't want you to know about it why would I tell you."

I put my hands up in surrender at her suddenly harsh tone. "Didn't mean to go behind her back or anything. I was just curious."

"Well ask her yourself."

"Ask me what?" Lana suddenly exits her room. "El, will I be cold like this?" she asks, gesturing to her outfit.

"No, you'll be fine. Where should we go?"

I raise my eyebrows at her. "We?"

"Harry, don't be stupid. They're obviously coming with us," Lana says, sitting down next to me to put her shoes on.

"So harsh today. But you look pretty good, so I think I'll let it slide for today." She smiles at me and I go to her bedroom to get changed. I walk to her closet and fish through the clothes to look for something of mine to wear. I find a plain white tshirt and put on the black jeans I was wearing yesterday. When I'm dressed I look up at the shelf where Lana had put that box. It's still sitting there. I'm sure she wouldn't care if I looked...

No. I can't do that. If she wanted me to know what was in it, she would have said so. Just leave it alone. But why were my sweats in there?

I shake off the thought and go back into the living room. They're all in the kitchen eating some of the cookies Lana and I made the other day. I'm not lying when I say that it feels like I never left. The last few weeks we've been acting so normal, like nothing changed. It's not true of course, everything changed, but we have the same connection we used to. I don't think anything could happen that would make us not want to be together. Hell, I left out of the blue for two years and look at us now. Things could not be better.

Well, that's not completely true. We could actually be together. Officially. And Niall could back off. Yeah, there's no way I'm letting that go. Whether Lana sees it or not, there is something going on there and I refuse to ignore it. She just won't be able to see me getting angry about it anymore. Niall is going to tell me what his deal is, one way or another.

The four of us walk downstairs, Lana and Eleanor chatting excitedly a few steps in front of Louis and I.

"So what do you think is in that box?" Louis asks me, voice low enough that the girls won't hear us.

"I don't know. She got weird about it when I asked her. What do you think it could be?"

He exhales dramatically, tapping his chin with his finger. "If I had to guess, I would probably say....a human head."

I laugh loudly and cover my mouth quickly, hoping Lan and El won't join the conversation. They both turn and give us suspicious looks, but they turn back around and continue their own chat.

"Yeah, I don't think that's what it is," I say definitively, punching him lightly on the arm.

---

After going into a dozen shops and the girls both trying on an endless number of dresses, they both finally found some stuff they like. El of course bought more for clothes for going out and Lana got a dress for her dad's party. I guess his new girlfriend is throwing a semi-formal party for him at the club. Lana says she's nice enough, but she's worried that she's a gold-digger. She's in her 30s and very pretty, so I guess she's chosen to go with the stereotype. I don't think her dad is dumb enough to fall for that, so I'm not too worried about it. Lana said that she's gotten extremely close with him, even though she's living so far away.

When back at the apartment, I cook everyone dinner and Niall comes downstairs to join us. I'm really trying not to let him get to me, but it's a work in progress. Lana doesn't notice anything, thankfully. After dinner she goes straight to her bedroom. I assume she's just changing or something, but after a while she hasn't come out. I walk over and lean against the doorframe to see what she's up to. She's at her desk with her laptop open and two books open in front of her, notebook balanced on her knee.

"What are you doing?" I ask, folding my arms.

"I have a busy week ahead of me, so I need to get to work," she says, not looking up from her textbook.

"You're that busy but we spent the entire afternoon shopping?"

"That may not have been the smartest decision for my grades, but it was great for my closet."

I laugh and walk over to the bed where she dumped all of her bags from her purchases. I take it upon myself to take everything out and put it away for her, eyes wandering up to the top right of the shelf every time I go to the closet. I really want to know what's in there.

"Thank you," she says sweetly, looking up quickly when I've finished.

"Are you going to be doing this all night?" I ask, sitting on the edge of the bed behind her chair. She puts her pen down and turns around, leaning her arm on the back of the chair with her chin resting on her hand.

"Unfortunately, yes. I have a paper due tomorrow that I haven't exactly started writing."

I shake my head at her and she smiles innocently in response. "That wasn't smart of you, was it?"

"I have all the information I need, I just have to put it all together. So, you're welcome to stay, but I'm literally going to be working on this all night," she says smiling apologetically before turning back around to get to work.

"I'm going to go up to my place to shower and I'll come back down," I say, standing and kissing the top of her head. I shut her door behind me and walk out of the apartment and back upstairs. Niall is on the couch and when I swing the door shut a girl's head shoots up from the couch. She must have been laying down.

"Hey Harry," Niall says awkwardly.

"Hello." I look between him and the girl, confused and very happy at the same time.

The girl gives Niall a confused look before turning back to me. "I'm Mia," she says, waving. "You must be Harry."

She knows who I am? "Yea, that's me. How do you know Niall?" I ask, walking closer to them.

"We've been hanging out," she says carefully. Niall looks extremely nervous.

"Interesting. Niall hasn't mentioned you."

"Is that so?" she asks playfully, smiling at Niall. His face goes a little red and he looks away from both of us. I stare at him, waiting for something to tell me what this is. He's been hanging out with a girl? I have no idea what to think at this point. Why wouldn't he tell us that? He stares at the TV screen, deeply interested in the movie playing. This doesn't make any sense.

"Well, it was nice to meet you," I say to Mia. She nods and lays her head back down on his lap. I walk to my room and get a change of clothes, some sweatpants and an old tshirt, then go to take a shower. So, Niall is seeing someone. I don't get it. Does that mean he's trying really hard to get over Lan or something? It doesn't make any sense. Why wouldn't he tell us about her? Maybe Lana was right, maybe I don't have anything to worry about. I was just being paranoid.

Then how do I explain his weird behaviour?

Lana's POV

"Hey, did Harry leave?" El asks, sitting on my bed.

"Yeah, he went to go have a shower. Why did Niall leave so quickly?" I ask, taking a quick break for a small gossip session with Eleanor. She shrugs.

"I asked Louis. He just said Ni had plans. He didn't say what."

"Weird."

"Yeah. Anyway, We're going to go meet Chase and Ben for drinks. Do you want to go?"

I laugh and shake my head. "I have a lot of work to do." She's so oblivious sometimes. How weird would it be for me to hang out with Chase? I would feel so uncomfortable. She just hops up and walks to my closet.

"Can I borrow this?" She holds up a skirt.

"Didn't you get two new skirts today?"

"Yeah, but I've always liked this one. Do you mind?"

"No, go ahead." She smiles and skips out of the room. Does that girl ever do homework? Doesn't seem like it. Here I am pulling all nighters and struggling to keep my grades where I want them, while she does whatever she likes and still manages to do well. How is that fair!

After about a half hour Harry comes back into my room, kissing the top of my head like he did when he left. He flops down on the bed.

"Are El and Lou gone?"

I nod and continue writing, eager to finish my introduction. It was a lot easier for me to keep up with my work before Harry came back. Now, school just isn't as high on the priority list. I would rather spend time with him. I can feel his eyes on me while I continue to work, typing away on my laptop.

"Are you just going to keep watching me?" I ask without turning around.

"Probably. I have nothing else to do."

"Why don't you watch a movie or something?"

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" he asks. I can hear the smile in his voice.

"It's hard to work with you burning holes in the back on my head."

He laughs and stands up from the bed, leaning down from behind me next to my face. "You said I could stay."

"I didn't think you would want to."

"Of course I would. I'd rather be here with you." He kisses my cheek softly and walks out of the room, probably to the kitchen. I don't think Harry ever gets full. He manages to keep himself busy for the next while, talking to me occasionally. He must be bored out of his mind.

Now it's almost midnight. I've been working since around 7:30 I think. I've earned a short break, right? I save my work and get up from my chair, crawling onto the bed beside Harry, who is grinning widely at me.

"Are you done already?"

"Not even close," I whine, laying on my back beside him. "Procrastination may not be the best strategy."

He just laughs and interlocks his fingers with mine on the bed. He isn't being very lively. He must have been falling asleep. After a minute or two I look over at him. Yup, his eyes are closed. This is not the fun little break I had in mind. I let go of his hand and stand up on the bed, jumping on the mattress beside him. He opens one of his eyes and closes it again, rolling onto his side to avoid me. I put one leg on either side of his body, still jumping. He groans.

"Why are you doing that?" he whines, eyes still closed.

"You're being boring," I say breathlessly. Wow, I'm out of shape.

"It's almost midnight. I'm tired."

I continue jumping, waiting for him to react. After a minute or two I'm completely out of breath, so I give up and jump one more time, landing on my bum beside him. I sit there and catch my breath, staring at him. Why won't he entertain me!

"Harry." I reach forward and shake his arm. "Harry, come on."

"Shh. I'm sleeping," he says quietly.

"No you're not."

"Yes I am."

I roll my eyes, even though he can't see me. He needs to stop being an old man right now and find some energy. I scoot a little closer to him, smoothing my hand over his hair a few times to try and act soothing. After that I trail my fingers lightly down his spine until about two thirds of the way down. My hand travels to his side, making small circles there.

"Well, I think it's time for you to wake up," I say softly. He doesn't respond, so I put my plan into action, tickling him furiously. He starts squirming under my touch, smiling and attempting to swat my hands away. He starts laughing and opens his eyes, rolling onto his back and taking my wrists firmly in his grip.

"Okay, I'm awake. Do you need something?"

"I'm bored."

"That's shitty."

"Harry!" He laughs and pulls me forwards by my wrist. I squeal and fall on top of him. He pulls me up his body, trailing his hands down my arms and sides to my waist when I'm where he wants me to be. His hands lock together on the small of my back, holding me tight to him.

"Why is it my job to entertain you?" he asks, smirking up at me.

"It just is."

"As convincing as that is, I'm very tired."

I frown dramatically at him, sticking out my bottom lip a little for effect. He chuckles and tucks some falling hair behind my ear. His hand rests on the back of my neck, pulling my face towards his. He kisses me sweetly then separates our lips.

"You have a paper to finish, love," he says quietly.

"It can wait."

He raises his eyebrows in question and I lean down to kiss him again, more fiercely this time. He complies with my demands, moving his lips against mine. I pull my legs up, planting one knee on either side of him for more control. This move is obviously detected by Harry. He pries his lips from mine, flipping me over so he can take up his usual position. I smile as he leans down and attaches his lips to my neck.

"Well, you're suddenly very awake," I comment breathlessly. He chuckles against my skin.

"This would probably always work for future reference."

"Good to know." I put my hands on either side of his face, pulling it back to mine so I can kiss him again. He supports himself on one hand while the other roams my waist, sliding my shirt up in the process. His hand makes contact with the skin on my stomach, raising goosebumps. He sits up suddenly and reaches for the bottom of his shirt. I know where this is going.

"Wait." I reach forward and put my hands on his to stop him. My face goes a little red.

"Something wrong?"

"Not at all. I do need to get back to work though," I say shyly. I don't want him to feel rejected. He takes both of my hands in his, interlocking our fingers.

"So now you need to finish you're assignment," he says, referring to a few moments ago when he stopped kissing me to remind me of the paper I was just working on. He leans forward and pins my hands above my head.

"I do."

"Alright. So I should finish the job myself then."

I pull my hands out of his grip and smack his chest. "Gross!"

He laughs and leans down to kiss me once more. He rolls off me and watches as I go back to my desk. I turn around a few times to see if he was serious or not.

"Lama, stop. It was a joke. I'm not going to do that right here on your bed while you're doing homework. That would be weird."

"I was just making sure," I defend, turning back to my computer while he laughs at me.

After a while I turn my head to see what he's doing. He's under the covers now, passed out. He's so adorable when he's sleeping.

After a few hours I've finally got a draft I feel that I can hand in without failing. I save it and change into pyjamas that consist of one of Harry's shirts and some cotton shorts. I turn off the lights and crawl under the covers, lifting his arm so I can snuggle up against him. He wakes up in the process, looking around with a confused expression.

"Shh, go back to sleep," I say to him, running the back of my fingers across his cheek.

"What time is it?"

I look behind me at my alarm clock. Oh boy. "It's just after four," I whisper. His eyes go wide.

"Did you just finish?"

"Yeah."

"Lana, how are you going to go to class tomorrow?"

"Don't worry about it. Let's just go to sleep." He still looks worried but he nods and lays his head back down, turning onto his side and putting both arms securely around me. I'm probably just going to have to go to campus and hand my paper in, then come straight back here and sleep again. There's no way I'm going to be able to function well enough to learn. I feel so relaxed in Harry's arms, sleep quickly taking over in the most desperate of ways.

Notes

im sorry its been so long!!!! christmas was insanely busy and i was having a hard time with this chapter to be honest. im not completely satisfied with it, but i hope you guys like it :) im going to try to get another one up tomorrow.

let me know what you think please :) im really tired also, so if theres tons of grammar or spelling mistakes, dont judge. ill reread it tomorrow and fix it if i need to lol. im too tired right now.

vote, comment, subscribe! thanks so much for reading!

i hope you all had a lovely christmas.