---

"Addie," Harry called out, tapping her shoulder.

Black locks swished as Addie turned around, a lopsided grin on her face. "Hey, Curly."

Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "Are you drunk?"

"She only had a few shots." Sam slurred, stepping out of the booth. She muttered a farewell and started going down the stairs.

"A few shots?" Harry echoed, looking at Addie. "You okay?"

"Perfect!" She pulled Harry's arm and stood up, facing him.

"You're drunk." Harry stated.

"Nah, I'm fine!" Addie shouted through the music. She pulled on his blazer, dragging him down the stairs. "I'm bored!"

Harry spotted Liam and pulled him by the hem of the shirt, bringing his mouth to his ear. "She's drunk, what do I do?"

Liam laughed, pushing Harry's hands off him. "She's drunk! Take advantage. She has no idea what's going on."

Harry sighed as Liam left him, walking to the bar. He turned to face Addie. "Hey, I have an idea."

"What?" Addie slurred.

Harry wrapped his arms around Addie's waist and leaned down to whisper on her ear, pulling her close. "Let's get out of here."

Addie giggled and nodded, feeling Harry pull her out the bar.

"Can we walk?" She suggested, pulling her hair up in a ponytail.

Harry chuckled. "Alright, sure."

Addie walked in front of Harry, her arms up as she walked down the streets of London while screaming a song at the top of her lungs.

She turned around quickly with a spark in her eyes. "Let's go to the tree!"

"Excuse me?" Harry raised his eyebrows.

Addie ran to Harry's side. "When you were little, did you have those secret places around the village?"

Harry nodded slowly. "Yeah, but I thought you didn't grow up in London."

"But I know this tree I found last year!" Addie grinned, tangling her fingers with Harry's and running down the street.

They reached a dead end, the lots on either side had no houses, just tall grass and trees. The brick wall at the end had posters pasted on it, a few campaign ads. The street was damp, like it had rained, and chirps of insects were heard everywhere.

"Are we allowed here?" Harry whispered.

"Follow me," Addie pulled on Harry's finger and walked to the empty lot at her left. She picked up a tall stick on the ground and moved a few leaves away, making a path in front of them. She got out a small flashlight from her bag and handed it to Harry for him to help her make the way leading to the tree she wanted to show him.

"So one day, this guy named, well, I'm not telling you his name, but let's call him Eric." Addie said, swishing her stick in front of her. "So one day, I was at a bar with Sam, and this Eric guy comes and introduces himself to me. I told him my name and his eyes changed ever since. He got me to fall in love with him, and then I found out that he was only with me so that I would give my parents his demo CD thing."

Harry pressed his lips togehter, keeping quiet. Guilt washed over him but he shook it off, exhaling. "So, where are we going?"

"Right here," Addie moved a few vines hanging from above and a tree was in sight. Its trunk thick, the leaves a shade of dark green. There was a tire swing hanging on one of its branches, and across it was a tree house made of scraps of wood. "Built it myself after I knew about what Eric did to me. I stay here when I'm upset, usually about people who are on the List."

"The List?" Harry echoed.

"A list of people who've used me just so that they can get signed by a record label that so happens to be owned by my parents." Addie walked up to the tree and started climbing the ladder. "Come on, I'll give you the grand tour."

Harry chuckled and followed, climbing up the pieces of wood nailed on the trunk. They reached a small wooden area consisting of a built-in shelf, a beanbag, and paint supplies.

"Welcome to my sanctuary." Addie grinned, sitting on the beanbag.

"You built this by yourself?" Harry sat beside her, looking around.

"Yeah," she nodded. "I got scars on my arms from building it and people actually thought that I did self harm. Everyone's so negative."

Harry chuckled and wrapped his arm around Addie. "Good job on the tree house, Ms. McHale."

"Thank you, kind sir." Addie giggled, looking up at him.

She leaned her forehead on his, and Harry smiled. He closed the space between them, kissing her full on the mouth. He pulled away and received a pout from Addie.

"Let's continue this at your place."

---

Notes

Hi again. The chapter before this sucked. I rushed it and I should never rush things.

Don't forget to comment!