Eleanor's POV

"El, I really don't feel like going out tonight."

"I know. That's like the zillionth time you've told me. Sitting around here moping about your fight with Harry isn't going to do any good. Plus, you haven't been out in forever."

She flops back onto her bed with a groan. "I don't think drinking is going to help me."

"Lana, relax. It's not like we're going to a club. We're just going to a party."

I came back to our place after work to find Lana curled up in a ball watching Titanic. That's the movie she watches when she wants to have an excuse to cry. She didn't tell me much about it, but obviously it was about Harry. I wonder what the boy did this time.

"Fine. I will go with you. But I want you to promise that if I want to go home you'll let me," she says, pointing at me.

"As long as you promise not to go with the goal of leaving after five minutes," I bargain, pointing at her as well.

"Deal." We pinky promise and she lays back down while I search through her closet for something for her to wear. It's just a casual house party; nothing extavagant. But Lana needs to look hot. Obviously I'm not telling her this, but Harry and the boys are all going to be there, too. I'm the only one that knows that we're all going to the same place, though. Mia is coming over soon to get ready with us.

"Can't I just wear leggings?" Lana asks when I throw some white ripped skinny jeans on her bed.

"No. You're going to look hot."

"Fine, but I'm not wearing heels."

"Hey guys!" Mia yells, shutting out front door.

"We're in Lana's room!" I call back to her. Seconds later she's flopping down beside Lana. "Are you wearing heels, Mia?"

"No way. I only put up with those things for going to clubs," she says, shaking her head.

"Well, looks like we won't be wearing heels then," I whine to Lana. She looks pleased with this verdict. I take out two floral crops and hold them up. "Which one?"

They both examine the tops for a minute before pointing to the same one. "That one," Mia says. "Definitely that one."

After about two hours, we're all feeling a little buzzed from the coolers we've been sipping on. Our hair and make up is done, all we have to do is get dressed. Mia takes the bathroom and Lan and I go to our bedrooms to dress in the outfits we picked out together. Lana is the last to emerge, dragging her heels in her new outfit.

"I really don't want to do this," she says, plopping down on the couch. Mia and I exchange an annoyed look.

"Lan, you can mope here or you can mope there. What's the difference?" Mia asks, putting her phone in her bag.

"The difference is that here I can wear sweatpants and one of Harry's shirts and eat ice cream all night. There I have to wear these tight clothes and try to be social. Plus, I don't think Harry will be thrilled if he finds out I went to a party tonight."

Oh shit. "Well, too bad for him 'cuz we're going," I say firmly, ending the discussion.

---

Harry's POV

I finish the rest of my beer and get another, leaning back against the counter next to where Lou is talking to some randoms I don't know. I don't know how I let them talk me into coming here; I'm really not in the mood to be around people. And this house is crowded. I would much rather be at home with Lana. She apologized for what she said and now I need to do the same. I should have accepted it instead of throwing her words back in her face and bringing up Chase. What the fuck was I thinking?

"Mate, snap out of it," Lou says loudly, nudging my arm. "Try and have some fun."

"I don't want to be here, Lou," I tell him honestly.

"Why not? We've been here for two hours and you're not even tipsy! Have a few more beers, you'll feel better."

"I need some air." I take my bottle with me and go to the back of the house where there's a small deck. There's some people sitting out here smoking, but I stay far enough away that they don't try and speak to me or offer me something.

Someone comes out of the house and stands next to me, but I really couldn't care less about who it is.

"You must be Louis' new mystery friend."

I shrug and answer as I bring my bottle to my mouth. "I guess that's me."

"I'm Andrea. I go to school with your friends."

I finally turn and look at her and my eyes almost pop out of my skull. Holy shit.

"What th-" she mirrors my expression, eyes wide. "Harry?"

"Andie?"

She laughs in disbelief and wraps her arms around me in a friendly hug. "Wow, it's been so long!" She pulls back and puts her hands on my arms. "How are you?"

"I've been better. What are you doing here?"

"My family moved to London, remember? And I go to the university with Louis. This is crazy, I can't believe you're here!"

I laugh and lean on the railing. "Yeah, it's been a long time, hasn't it? How have you been?"

Andrea and I were neighbours in Bradford. She was the only female friend I had there and my first girlfriend. During our first year of high school she moved to London with her family. We drifted apart; I guess fourteen year olds don't do long distance very well. Other than Lana, she's the only girl I've ever actually dated.

"Well, it took me a while to get over you. Would have been even harder if you had looked like this when we were fourteen," she jokes, eyes raking up and down my body. "But I've been really good. Why are you in London? Last I heard from Tasha you were back in Bradford with Zayn and all them."

"I was. I'm sort of living here now. For about two months? Maybe a little more."

"Good for you. I never liked Zayn."

I laugh and roll my eyes. "I know. You told me that a lot."

"He's shady. Anyway, catch me up! What brought you here? Do you go to the university?"

My mood instantly goes a little darker when I remember how I was feeling five minutes ago. "No, I don't go to school."

"So, you came to live with Lou and Niall?" she pries. She knows me pretty well; she can probably tell something's bothering me.

"Not exactly." I take another sip of my beer and she rolls her eyes playfully. "What?"

"It's a girl, isn't it? Harry, it's been like six years, I think we can talk about this stuff." I laugh and nod my head a little. "What's her name?"

"Lana Forester."

Her expression turns to shock when she hears the name. "Lana? Like, Louis' friend from home?"

"That's the one. Do you know her?"

"Yeah, not well. I know Eleanor better. I've seen her a bunch of times at parties and stuff. She always looked miserable. Kind of like she does tonight."

What? "What do you mean?" I ask, eyebrows pinched together. She can't be here...

Andrea points with her thumb over her shoulder towards the house. "She's inside...you didn't know that? So you guys aren't together, then?"

"No, we are." I look through the glass doors to see if she's in my sight line, but I can't see her.

"And you didn't know she was here?" I shake my head and continue watching the sea of people inside. Why on earth would she come here? "Give me your phone," she demands, holding out her hand.

"Why?"

"Because, loser, I'm going to give you my number. We can meet up sometime to catch up." I hand her my phone absentmindedly and continue looking inside. She hands it back to me and pats my arm a few times. "Go find her, Harry. You look like a creep."

"Thanks," I tell her sarcastically. I smile at her and walk back into the house, manoeuvring through the crowd back to Louis. He nods his head at me and continues talking. "Louis, did you know the girls were coming here?"

He smiles widely and starts looking around a little. "They're here? Where?"

"Don't play dumb, Louis. You set this up, didn't you?"

He laughs and shakes his head. "I honestly didn't. El said she was going out with Mia and Lana, but I assumed they were going to a club. you're probably glad I dragged you here now, right?"

"Ecstatic. I'm going to find them."

Eleanor's POV

"Lana, I don't think that's a good idea," I advise, pointing to the drink in Lana's hand. I've lost count of the amount of times she's gotten that red cup refilled.

"Don't worry, there's plenty more for you, Eleanor," she slurs.

"That's not what I'm worried about," I mumble to myself, helping Lana sit on one of the sofas pressed against the wall in the living room. Where in the hell is Harry? Louis said this is the party they were going to go to, so where are they? Harry is going to mad at me as it is for bringing Lana here, never mind how drunk she's managed to get.

"Stay here, okay, Lana?" I command, pointing to her. "I'm going to go find you a bottle of water. Do not move from this couch."

"Why not?"

"Just don't okay? I need to be able to find you. I'm going to look for Mia and find you some water."

"Okay, but can you put some rum in it? Water is boring."

I roll my eyes and tell her one last time to stay put. I push my way through the sea of people and finally get to the kitchen. This house is absolutely massive and right now it is packed full. I open the fridge and look for some water. Suddenly I feel someone put their hands on their hips.

"Back the fuck up," I spit, spinning around and preparing to slap this guy in the face. My eyes go wide when Louis is the one smiling at me. "Hi!" I squeal, throwing my arms around his neck.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming here?" he asks when I finally release him.

"I wanted to make Lana and Harry work this out, but you guys have been invisible or something all night! Where have you been?"

"Around. Harry just went to look for Lana."

"Oh, good. She's sitting in the living room, she shouldn't be hard to find."

"I was just there," Harry says suddenly, coming up beside me. "Why the fuck did you bring her here, El? I made her upset earlier and you know how she drinks when she's upset about something. Where the hell is she?"

"I left her on the sofa in the living room. She's there right now."

"No, she isn't."

"Yes she is, Harry. I left her there no more than five minutes ago."

He rolls his eyes in annoyance. "I was just there right before I came back in here. Trust me, she's not there anymore. Mia is with her, right?" I look away from him and bite my nail. "Eleanor, please tell me you didn't leave her alone."

"I just wanted to get her some water," I defend weakly.

"That's fan-fucking-tastic," he spits.

"Calm down, mate. We'll find her," Louis says, taking my hand. "Knowing Lana, she is probably dancing."

Harry's POV

Awesome. She's probably drunk out of her face right now and alone. And dancing. That's just great. Way to go, Eleanor. I push my way through the people, earning a few death glares when I'm a little too forceful. I really couldn't care less at this point, though. I just want to find Lana so we can go home and work this whole mess out. We're both pissed and I just need to talk to her. We've made our way through the entire main floor and there's no sign of her.

"Where the fuck could she have gone?" I shout in frustration.

"Maybe we missed her. She's got to be here somewhere," El says, looking just as worried as I am.

"El, how drunk was she?" I ask nervously. She avoids my eyes when she answers the question, moving slightly closer to Louis.

"Very."

"Let's look upstairs," Louis suggests, pulling El towards the stairs. This house is huge; I bet the upstairs is just as expansive as down here. When we get to the top I push past them, turning doorknobs and forcing open any door I can.

"Did you hear that?" El asks suddenly, head snapping around to look down the hall.

I look in the same direction. "What?"

"I think...I think I heard Lana's voice."

My stomach drops when the words leave her mouth, my heart rate instantly getting faster. There's only bedrooms up here. If someone is...

"Stop!"

My blood boils. That was definitely Lana's voice. I take off running down the hallway, hoping she'll make another sound while I search the rest of the rooms.

"No! Please stop!" she shrieks. I almost crumple to the ground at how scared and desperate she sounds. I finally get to a locked door where I can here a struggle going on inside. I instantly pound on the door and shout as loud as I can.

"Open up!"

"This room is occupied," I hear a male voice say rather harshly. There's a few other muffled noises I can only assume are coming from the fight Lana is attempting to put up.

"Open this door or I'll do it myself!" I yell again, still pounding on it. I stop and lean my head against the door, trying to find out if this is what I think it is. Suddenly I hear the guy groan in pain.

"Harry!" Lana screams. Yeah, that'll do it.

Lana's POV

He's outside, he'll help me. I know he will. the guy's hand is over my mouth so I can't fucking scream. I open my mouth really wide and bite down as hard as I can. He lifts his hand and i take the opportunity to scream as loud as I can.

"Harry!!"

I hear some more violent pounding, and after another fifteen seconds Harry is inside, throwing the guy off of me and onto the floor. I sit up and roll off the bad, crawling backwards to the wall and huddling up into a ball while tears stream down my face. What I see next scares the hell out of me.

Harry reaches down to pick the guy up by the front of his shirt, throwing him around roughly and slamming his back up against the wall. The guy probably has forty pounds on Harry, but he looks scared shitless.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Harry spits, getting in his face. "Do you know the meaning of the word 'no'?"

"I didn't-"

"Shut up! Shut your dirty fucking mouth."

He brings his hand back and hits him in the face hard. Then he brings his arm down lower and brings his fist forward into the guy's stomach, then once with his knee. The guy doubles over in pain but Harry grabs the front of his shirt again and slams him into the wall once again. His nose his bleeding a lot. I've never seen Harry so angry, so violent.

"If you ever touch her again- hell, if you ever look at her again, I will fucking end you. Do you understand me?" The guy just stares at him, which apparently isn't the reaction Harry was looking for. He brings him a little away from the wall and slams him back into it hard. "You're a worthless piece of shit." I flinch when Harry hits him in the face two more times, then throws him to the ground. My eyes are wide with shock and fear when Harry finally turns and looks at me. I didn't realize she was here, but I feel El wrap one arm around me and protectively tuck my head under her chin.

I stare at him in shock and he takes a few deep breaths, face twisted in anger. He looks down at my bare legs, currently hugged against my chest so tight my arms hurt. He looks around the room, finding my white and now dirty jeans. When he bends down to pick them up I look over at my attacker, who is still on the ground groaning in pain. Harry doesn't look twice at him. He walks over to me and bends his knees so he's closer to eye level.

He sticks out his hand for me to take, which I do. I'm scared of what would happen if I didn't. He doesn't speak or look at me while he pulls me to my feet and places me on the bed. El sits beside me and rubs my back while he leans down to put my legs in my jeans, making me stand to get them over my bum. He zips them up and does the button up for me. I watch his face the whole time, but he won't look at me. This is a side of him I've never seen. I've seen Harry angry, but never like this. His eyes are dark and his mouth pressed in a hard line. His whole body seems to be tensed up. There's no emotion other than anger present in his features. I don't know the person standing in front of me.

"Harry-"

"We're going home," he says firmly without looking at me.. His tone is harsh and it makes me cower back a little. He takes my hand roughly in his and pulls me out of the room, Eleanor and Louis following close behind. He pulls me down the stairs and through the dense crowd, shoving people out of the way and swearing at anyone that has a problem with him. When we get outside he takes out his phone.

"Where are you? We need to go home."

"Is that Niall? Ask if Mia is with him," El says, standing beside me.

"Is Mia with you? Bring her too, we're leaving. No Niall, now." He hangs up before Niall can argue. He keeps his tight grip on my hand, not looking at me once. Can he seriously be angry at me for this? Is it my fault? I was really drunk before, but now I've never been more sober in my life. I stare up at him while we wait. He keeps his eyes trained on the door, glancing at the watch on his wrist once or twice. Niall finally emerges from the ouse, Mia's hand in his.

"What's the rush?" he asks, walking slowly up to us.

Eleanor and Louis exchange anxious looks and I move a little to Harry's hard frame without making eye contact with anyone. Harry makes no attempt to comfort me.

"Something happened. We need to go," Louis says. Niall is about to protest again, but Louis whispers something in his ear. He nods and takes out his keys. We all walk to his car but there's six of us and his car only fits five. Louis and Eleanor get in the back seat together. Harry gets in next and pulls me down roughly onto his lap. He keeps an arm tight around me while we drive home, but it's more protective than anything else. After an eternity we get back to our building and Harry opens the door so I can climb out. When he's out he slams the door shut, making me flinch. He takes my hand in his again and pulls me inside and up the stairs. Everyone stays silent. Harry remains what I can only assume is angry the entire time, which is probably the reason for the somber mood that's hanging over everyone. I'm really hoping I'm not left alone with him. I don't know what's going through his mind right now and I'm afraid of what he's going to do when we're alone. I've never seen him hit anyone like that...

"Eleanor, sleep at our place," Harry says when we get to our floor. It's not a request, it's a command. I watch with wide eyes while my friends walk up the stairs and out of sight. Harry pulls me into the hall and to the front door. He finally releases my hand to take my purse from me and fishing through it for my key. He swings the door open and places one hand on my back to push me inside. He shuts the door and I stand there awkwardly awaiting my next command. He locks the door again and gets a bottle of water from the fridge. He hands it to me and storms to my bedroom. I see the light flick on and I can hear him shuffling through clothes. He comes back out and stands in the doorway.

"Come here." I walk slowly towards him, not looking at his face. He steps to the side so I can go into my bedroom. I don't understand the way he's acting. He's being so...cold. He's laid out a pair of pyjama bottoms on the bed and one of his tops that I had washed this week. I flinch at his touch when he puts his hands on my arms to make me sit on the bed. He kneels in front of me, much like my father used to when I was a kid and got in trouble. He finally meets my eyes and I sigh with relief when I see the familiar shade of emerald that has always comforted me.

"Did he hurt you?"

A lump grows in my throat when the images come back to me, reminding me of the ordeal I just went through. I've been so concerned with Harry's actions that it hasn't really sunk in. I shake my head and take a shaky breath to try and control my emotions.

"Are you sure? He didn't hit you or anything?" I shake my head again. I was so drunk that I couldn't put up too much of a fight. When I heard Harry outside the room is when I really kicked into self defence mode and started flailing like a mad woman.

He nods his head in understanding a few times. "Okay. You should change." He points to the clothes beside me and gets up without another word. He exits my room and shuts the door behind him. I'm so confused right now. I don't understand the way he's acting. So..indifferent. And distant. Did I do something wrong? Is he angry with me?

I change quickly into my pyjamas and slowly open my bedroom door. Harry is pacing in front of the couch, running his hands through his hair. He does that when he's trying to calm himself. I walk past him without a word and go to the bathroom so I can brush my teeth and wash my face. When I'm finished Harry is sitting on the edge of the couch, face buried in his hands.

"Harry?" My voice is quiet and shaky, but he heard me. He lifts his head and looks at me for a minute with a sad expression. Then he stands and walks over to me, faster than I expected. I reflexively take a step backwards. His face goes quickly from confused to pained. He takes another step, slower this time, extending his hand towards me. I look down at it for a few seconds and slowly reach for it. He gently leads my to my bedroom, pulling back the covers for me. I crawl in and feel confused when I don't feel the bed dip down from Harry's weight. When I turn he's standing up from picking up a pillow from the floor.

"I'll be on the couch if you need anything," he says, walking out of my room. What? I guess he is mad at me. I stare at the door for a few minutes, praying that he'll come back in here and hold me until I fall asleep. He doesn't.

I stare up at the ceiling for a while, completely wide awake. The reality of what happened at the party suddenly hits me. I was almost raped...

What if Harry hadn't been there? What would have happened? I shudder at the thought and turn onto my side to curl up in the fetal position. I don't even know how it happened, I felt really sick; I must have looked it too. The guy came up to me and offered to help to the bathroom. Instead, he pulled me into a bedroom and threw me down onto the bed. Until I heard Harry on the other side of the door, I couldn't find any strength to fight him. By the time I did he had my jeans off and he was working on my panties. Harry saved me. Every time I close my eyes, I see him. I don't even know what his name was. All I can see is his face.

I toss and turn for a while, unable to fall asleep. I look at the clock, annoyed when I see it's almost four. I've been laying here for over two hours. One look at the empty bed beside me is all it takes for the tears to start to fall. Maybe he thinks I'm...dirty. Maybe seeing that happen to me made him not want to touch me anymore. He's probably angry and thinks I'm stupid for letting myself be put in that position. I am. How could I let that happen?

Regardless of how little Harry thinks of me right now, I know that I won't be able to sleep without him here beside me at the very least. Just knowing he's near me would be enough. That's not too much to ask, is it?

I get up from the bed and slowly make my way to the living room. Harry is sound asleep, lying on his back with one arm hanging off the couch. I stand over him for a minute, biting my bottom lip. Will he be angry if I wake him up? I decide not to and go to the kitchen instead to get another bottle of water. On my way back to my room I stub my toe on one of the chairs, scraping the legs on the floor and cursing a little too loud. I look up and see Harry's silhouette as he jumps up from his place on the couch.

"Lan?" He bends down and turns on the lamp next to the couch.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up." He watches me carefully while I slowly make my way back to my room. "I just needed more water."

"Are you okay?"

I nod my head and go back to my bed, sitting on the edge to inspect my now throbbing toe. It's not bleeding or anything. I leave the door open, so I can se Harry turn the light off and lay back down on the couch. I hate how far away he feels right now. I stand and bravely walk back out, fiddling with my fingers.

"Harry?" He turns his head and waits. "I umm..." a lump forms in my throat and my eyes tear up suddenly. Damn it. "I'm not okay," I whisper. He stands again and stands in front of me. "Will you..can you..."

He takes a deep breath and rubs on hand on my upper arm. "What is it, Lana?"

"Please sleep with me," I whisper. I've never been so afraid of rejection in my life.

"Lana-"

"Please, Harry," I beg, voice still barely above a whisper. "I can't be alone."

He sighs and nods his head, following me back to the bed. I crawl back in and lay on my side and wait for him to do the same. He lays beside me on his back, staring up at the ceiling with one hand resting on his chest. The tears begin to stream down my face, despite my best efforts to stop them. He's obviously already annoyed with me, this isn't going to help anything.

"I'm sorry."

He turns his head at my words, eyes boring into mine. I sniffle and let out a small sob. He suddenly turns and wraps his arms tightly around me, hugging me against his chest and stroking my hair.

"Why in the world are you apologizing?" he asks quietly.

"I know you're angry with me. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." I continue to cry against his chest.

"Lana, stop. Hey, look at me," he says, pulling me back a little and tilting my face up to his. "I'm not angry with you. Not even close. I thought you were angry at me, that's why I slept on the couch. I'm angry at myself. If it wasn't for me yelling at you earlier, that wouldn't have happened. I should have been there."

"But you were," I remind him, eyelids drooping.

"Not soon enough." He kisses my forehead gently and hugs me back to him. "I'm the one who should be sorry. And I am. You have no idea how sorry I am, baby."

"It's okay," I assure him. He shakes his head and kisses the top of my head a few times.

"It's really not. Get some sleep," he whispers. "I love you."

Sleep takes over before I can answer him.

Notes

well i didnt see that coming...
took me a while to write that one. hope its okay. again another serious one. gah.

vote, comment, subscribe!
please tell me what you think :)

HA also i threw you guys off with the chase thing eh ;) no im not bringing him back. just no.

thanks for reading :)