Summertime & Butterflies

Olivia was more than a little surprised and rather annoyed when Jeff and Glenne didn’t leave the moment she arrived. Surely they knew the last thing she wanted to do after arriving at Harry’s house was small talk with a couple of strangers. They could see Harry all the time. She couldn’t. She didn’t want to be rude and ask when they were leaving, but…

“When are your friends leaving?” she asked Harry in a hushed voice, wrapping her arms around him from behind and resting her cheek against his back. Harry chuckled in response, concentrating on twirling the corkscrew into the wine bottle.

“What, you want me all to yourself or something?” Harry teased, managing to pour Olivia a glass of wine, even with her arms constricting his. He turned, pressing a soft kiss against the top of her head and handing her the wine glass.

“Mmm… kind of…” Olivia hummed. “Thank you,” she added, taking a sip of wine before standing on her tiptoes, kissing Harry. He smiled against her lips, running his hands through Olivia’s hair.

“You know… we could go upstairs,” Harry mumbled, his hands trailing down Olivia’s back and gripping her hips, tugging her pelvis into his. His tight pants were leaving nothing to the imagination and his delicate kisses along Olivia’s jawline caused her to subconsciously grind against him. “I promise, it won’t take long at all,” he added with a smirk, gently nibbling on Olivia’s ear.

Olivia let out a laugh. “Ohh, keep talking!” she teased, continuing to press her hips against Harry, pushing him back against the counter. As much as she wanted to tear his clothes off and passionately seduce him right there in the kitchen, her college days were over and the thought of going to bed with her boyfriend with other people in the house grossed her out rather than turning her on.

“But… as tempting as your sprint sounds…” she continued, dotting his neck with seductive kisses. “I can’t do that with your friends here…” she told him between kisses, knowing she was driving him crazy.

“I’ll get them to leave,” Harry promised, his words overlapped by the sound of a beer can opening in the other room. “Ugh… fuck, I hate them,” he groaned, cupping his hands on Olivia’s bottom. “Can’t we just...?” he asked, his voice sounding strained.

“Ohh, we will,” Olivia assured him, pressing a kiss against his lips before taking his hand. “Come on,” she urged, flashing him a flirtatious smile. “I want to meet your cock-blocking friend.”

“I think I hate you, too,” Harry muttered, adjusting his pants as he followed Olivia into the living room. She smirked over her shoulder at him, squeezing his hand. Knowing that Harry was frustrated with her teasing excited her, and she really hoped they would be alone soon.

Harry pointed a finger at Jeff. “Jeff…” he began, seeming as though he was about to introduce his manager to Olivia. “Leave,” he demanded instead, jerking his head towards the door. He had a dimpled grin on his face, so as to show he wasn’t really serious, but after feeling the bulge in his pants, Olivia knew he was.

Olivia clicked her tongue at Harry with a roll of her eyes while Jeff laughed, standing up and extending his hand to Olivia. “Can’t leave without meeting the one you won’t shut up about,” he joked. “Jeff,” he added to Olivia, taking her hand.

“Olivia,” she answered with a smile, pleased to hear again that Harry talked about her nonstop. Not that her friends would say anything different. She caused one of her colleagues to dramatically press their hand against their forehead, pretending to be faint with shock when Olivia brought up an episode of Survivor, and not Harry.

“Nice to meet you,” Jeff told her pleasantly. “Don’t worry,” he added, directing a snicker to Harry. “We won’t stay long.”

~*~*~*~

But Jeff didn’t leave after finishing his beer. He didn’t leave after finishing his second beer. Olivia was having no trouble keeping up with him, and by the time Jeff had opened his third beer, she’d poured the last of her wine into the glass. Despite her buzz, she was incredibly annoyed that Jeff had the audacity to assume it was party time at Harry’s house. Not to mention, with every sip he took, he became more and more pompous and arrogant. She hadn’t met someone who could so easily discuss themselves with every topic brought up. Unintentionally, she found herself getting lippy.

“No, it was this person on Instagram,” Harry was saying, his cheeks flushed from his own drinks.” I can’t remember what they were called, though…” he trailed off, furrowing his brow.

“Speaking of Instagram,” Jeff interrupted, turning his attention to Olivia. “Do you have it?”

Olivia scoffed curiously. “Of course,” she answered, her tone bordering on condescending. She heard Harry exhale and she glanced at him, wondering if he caught her tone and was wishing she would lose it. In her inebriated state, she didn’t care. Jeff was stupid.

“Do you have him on it?” Jeff questioned, not commenting on her tone and nodding towards Harry.

“I stalked him and he was boring, so no,” Olivia answered, teasingly nudging Harry’s arm. She liked Instagram and posted regularly, but she found she followed more funny and satirical accounts than people she actually knew. Not following Harry didn’t make their relationship any less real, so she wondered why Jeff even cared. She took a sip, expecting him to bring up how unboring his own Instagram account was.

Jeff didn’t seem amused by her joke. He leaned forward, his face serious as he began his manager speech. “He’ll likely want to follow you,” Jeff told Olivia, shrugging slightly as if to ask why. “And then the fans will see that, and start stalking you. Is your account private?”

Olivia rolled her eyes. “I’m a high school teacher,” she reminded Jeff. “My social media stuff is seriously under lock and key.”

Jeff rolled his eyes back. The two of them were not on the fast track to friendship. “I think being a teacher is a little different than dating one of the most famous people in the world,” he told Olivia with a snicker, demeaning her career for the second time that evening. When she’d mentioned earlier about wanting to get her Master’s degree, he had proceeded to scoff about how unnecessary it was, and how much money he managed to make without any type of degree. When he spoke about how he believed higher education was a waste of time, Olivia had excused herself to the bathroom and screamed into a towel.

“Well, I’ve done both,” Olivia began, her voice haughty. “And you’ve done neither. So… I think I might know a bit more than you do about it.”

“I really don’t think – ”

“Jeff,” Glenne whined from her curled up position on the chair in the corner. It was obvious to everyone but Jeff that his girlfriend was exhausted and wanting to go home. Jeff’s complete lack of awareness of Glenne’s needs irritated Olivia. He clearly cared about himself first… second… and third. If Harry showed such disregard to Olivia’s feelings, she knew she wouldn’t be sticking around long. She felt sorry for Glenne.

“What?” He questioned, turning to look at his girlfriend. “She’s comparing dating a sought-after celebrity to grading a bunch of kid’s papers. I mean, you can see it’s like apples and oranges.”

“You asked if my Instagram was private!” Olivia exclaimed. “And I said yes!”

“Well, no… You said – ”

“Okay, okay,” Harry interrupted, grasping Olivia’s knee and pointing to Jeff. “It doesn’t really matter. Don’t fight,” he whined, tugging on a lock of Olivia’s hair. “She’s so pretty,” he hummed, his words slurring together slightly. “And he’s my friend,” he reminded Olivia. “So let’s all just be friends, okay?”

“Okay,” Olivia agreed with a quiet sigh, appeasing Harry but not planning on being Jeff’s friend any time soon.

Jeff wasn’t so quick to agree. “I just want to make sure you – ”

“Friends!” Harry interrupted, scowling at Jeff.

“Fine,” Jeff agreed sullenly, making eye contact with Olivia. She could tell he didn’t trust her. She wondered if he could tell she didn’t trust him either.

~*~*~*~

“Okay, bye guys,” Olivia heard Harry say. A moment later, the door closed and she could hear his footsteps on the stairs, making his way to his bedroom. Olivia was standing in the en suite, washing her face. She’d disappeared upstairs about fifteen minutes ago, saying she would be right back, but not planning on it. Jeff had made her feel about two feet tall and, try as she might, she couldn’t stop wondering if everyone else in Harry’s life would make her feel the same.

“Hi,” Harry greeted, his voice low as he leaned against the door jamb, watching Olivia massage cream onto her face. “Are you alright?”

Oliva glanced at Harry through the mirror, almost responding with a vague yes. But she knew Harry would call her out on it, and she’d already vowed to have better communication with him than she’d had with anyone from her past. So rather, she sighed.

“I’m sorry, I don’t like him,” she blurted out. “I know he’s super important in your life, and next time, I promise I’ll try harder to just… go with the flow, but I… I don’t like him.” She finished flatly, shrugging her shoulders apologetically.

Harry chuckled softly, stepping across the bathroom to join Olivia. “I know,” he told her, pulling her into a hug. “He can be a lot to handle. And he’s kind of an ass when he drinks,” he added unnecessarily. “He’s just…” Harry paused, searching for the right words. “He’s seen me deal with a lot… and the other boys too. He’s just making sure… I mean, your friends are protective of you too, right?”

Olivia pulled away, eyeing Harry curiously. “Are you defending him?” she asked, scowling as she recalled Jeff’s comments about her career and his insinuations about her motives.

Harry laughed loudly, unfazed by Olivia’s accusation. “No, you dork,” he told her, pulling her against him again. “Just trying to explain why he’s an idiot. Plus,” he added, tipping Olivia’s chin up so she was looking into his eyes. “You’re super important in my life, too,” he told her quietly, causing Olivia’s stomach to flip-flop.

Olivia allowed herself a small smile before looking down. “But what if… What if everyone thinks like him? I mean, he basically said I was with you because you’re famous.”

“I don’t really think he did,” Harry said, causing Olivia to scowl at him again. “He’s meaning other girls. From before,” he quickly corrected. “Not you.”

Olivia exhaled loudly, frustrated that Harry seemed to be taking Jeff’s side over hers. She couldn’t decide if she was being dramatic or accurate. “Well, I guess we heard different conversations, then,” she told him, shaking him off of her and crossing her arms across her chest. She knew she was being a brat, but she couldn’t help it.

Harry crossed his own arms, sassily mocking Olivia. “You’re kind of cute when you’re pissed off,” he told her, unable to hold back his grin. “Even if you are pissed off at me.”

“No, I’m not,” Olivia answered truthfully, letting her head drop. “I just… don’t want everyone to think like he thinks.”

“Everyone like who?”

“Like… I don’t know. Your mom, I guess,” Olivia told him, the confession making her feel embarrassed.

Harry smiled softly. “You’re worried about what my mom thinks?” he asked her, gently tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

“Of course,” Olivia answered, sounding surprised. Moms were the scariest thing in the world. She would much rather meet Harry’s father. Dads always liked her. Moms were always worried about their little boys, and there was no question that Harry was the biggest momma’s boy she’d ever met. It was sweet, but intimidating. “Aren’t you worried about what my mom thinks?”

Harry shrugged dismissively. “Eh, moms love me,” he teased.

Olivia groaned. “Fuck off,” she told him as Harry laughed, hugging her again. It was annoying and yet endearing how he could make everything into a joke.

“Stop pulling away from me,” he instructed, his voice muffled by Olivia’s hair. “And stop worrying about what you think Jeff said. No one who matters is going to think any of those things about you. My mom, my sister, my family… they’re all going to love you. And do you know why?” he questioned, nudging Olivia’s chin up again.

“Why?” she whispered, staring into his soft green eyes, her heart fluttering as their eyes locked.

“Because… I love you,” Harry told her, a small smile creeping onto his face and meeting his eyes. Olivia felt his grip tighten on her, but she wasn’t sure if it was because her knees suddenly went weak. Her stomach fluttered erratically and she almost didn’t believe she’d just heard him say those three little words. Of course, after their goodbye the last time, Olivia knew he loved her – and she knew, without a shadow of a doubt that she loved him – but actually hearing the words made her heart feel as though it would burst.

“I love you, too,” Olivia said softly, her voice sounding shy at the declaration. Harry’s eyes were bright, and he barely let her utter the words before touching his lips against hers.

“Good,” Harry breathed out against her lips. “Now I can stop trying to impress you.”

Olivia snickered. “I didn’t know you’d started,” she teased him.

“Stop talking so I can kiss you.”

“Deal.”

Notes