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ilovejevsjeans · 3 years

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How Olympian race engineer Tom Stallard helped coach Daniel Ricciardo to Monza victory

Daniel Ricciardo and the ever-improving McLaren team were seen as a match made in Heaven ahead of the start of the 2021 season. But while it all came good at the Italian Grand Prix, Ricciardo’s win at Monza was a product of hours and hours of unseen work, and some confidence-shaking moments along the way. F1 Staff Writer Greg Stuart sat down with Tom Stallard, the man who’s race engineered Ricciardo throughout 2021, to trace the arc of that breakthrough Monza win.

You could make a strong case that Lap 52 of the Monaco Grand Prix marked the nadir in Daniel Ricciardo’s first season with McLaren. As the Australian exited Sainte Devote and accelerated up the hill, he dutifully jinked left to allow team mate Lando Norris to lap him, Norris acknowledging the gesture with a wave from his cockpit. Norris would go on to finish third. Ricciardo, who’d brilliantly won in Monaco just three years earlier for Red Bull, finished out of the points in 12th.

That was May – and yet just four months later, Ricciardo had taken McLaren back to the winner’s circle for the first time since 2012, capping off a superb Italian Grand Prix weekend with an emotional victory at Monza, and leading Norris home in a McLaren one-two.

How did that happen? Ricciardo’s race engineer Tom Stallard has been the man F1 fans have heard soothing and chivvying Ricciardo over team radio this year, a year in which success has been harder to come by than many had anticipated – and he was naturally delighted when Ricciardo combined all his learnings to take the assured win in Monza, his first victory since that 2018 Monaco triumph.

“I was super proud,” Stallard tells me as we chat in the paddock in Sochi, “because we've worked really hard this year to be honest, and it was nice to see him executing everything that we'd talked about and worked on.

“Obviously he did a fantastic job, but he actually did the job that we'd been talking about and working on together. He's a top driver, obviously, joined our team as a top driver, but we’ve actually had to work at it quite hard and in Monza, he really executed that.”

Why didn’t Ricciardo and McLaren gel immediately? Ricciardo’s stellar second half of 2020 with Renault – during which he took two podiums and finished every race in the points – combined with McLaren’s sharp upward trajectory and the arrival of Mercedes power units at the team for 2021, meant that many earmarked the Ricciardo/McLaren combination as a potential surprise package this season.

But despite claiming points in his first four races for the team – including convincingly leading Norris home in Barcelona – right from the off, Stallard says, there were issues.

“I think the Bahrain race [where Ricciardo finished P7 to Norris’ P4 on his McLaren debut] he did quite well, but that was with a lot of time in the car in the [Bahrain] test – I mean, not a lot of time but a bit of time at the test, and a circuit that suits him well,” says Stallard.

“And then at Imola [where Ricciardo finished P6 as Norris claimed a podium in P3] we kind of exposed the problems, if you like, that he was having with the car, and we understood the struggle that we would have.”

As you might expect from an engineer of Stallard’s experience (he joined McLaren back in 2008) his first reaction to the situation wasn’t to panic, but to put in place processes to help bring Ricciardo on.

“We put in place a plan of what we needed to do differently and how we needed to react. And since then actually, we've been on an upward trajectory from that point, but you don't always necessarily see that from the outside.

“There have been a number of races where after the race, he's been frustrated and I've been reassuring him that actually we are seeing progress, and we don't have the good results yet but they're coming.”

So what was it about the MCL35M that wasn’t suiting Ricciardo and his driving style?

“Ultimately,” says Stallard, “all the drivers would choose the same thing, which is very good rear stability, and front end that increases as you add steer. That is totally universal, but the truth is that having a car that does that is the Holy Grail of Formula 1 design; every team up and down this paddock is trying to do that, and succeeding to a greater or lesser extent.

“We have a car that understeers and that's been something that he's had to adapt to and modify his natural approach to get the best out of.”

One thing Stallard is at pains to point out is that, for all of Ricciardo’s famously insouciant manner, beneath the gigawatt smile there lurks one of the world’s top racing drivers, with a work ethic to match.

“Obviously Daniel seems like the most laidback guy in the world,” says Stallard, “but behind the scenes, under the water, the duck feet are going quite quickly.

“Because we were in lockdown and he was in Los Angeles [over the winter break], we did most of his initial integration virtually, and during that phase, he learnt all the switches, what all the toys do, how to use the steering wheel.

"We spent a lot of time talking through the strategy with Daren [Stanley], our strategist. And actually all the communication side, all of the switches, all the controls, he had completely down by the time he went to winter testing.

“He's been in the factory loads, doing the simulator, partly working on his driving with that, but also giving feedback to the team about what he wants from the car,” adds Stallard.

“And at no point during the phase where he was getting up to speed with our package did he question that there was any kind of, the team backing the other driver, or the engineers didn't know what they were doing, or the car was set-up wrong. He just knuckled down, got on with the work, and I think that the whole team has a lot of respect for him for that.”

Ricciardo endured an up-and-down run of form leading up to the summer break, the lows including a tough Styrian Grand Prix where he finished 13th to Norris’ fifth and a Hungarian Grand Prix where first lap contact with Charles Leclerc hobbled his McLaren, leaving him 11th at the flag.

But Ricciardo appeared rejuvenated after the summer break, nailing his best qualifying of the year at that point with P4 on the grid in Belgium – while after a race to forget for the whole McLaren team in Zandvoort, Ricciardo then put together what would ultimately be his winning weekend in Monza, qualifying P5 on Friday, racing to P3 in Saturday’s F1 Sprint before claiming that sensational victory in the race.

Indeed, it was Ricciardo’s anger at qualifying P5 on Friday at Monza (and just 0.006s off his team mate) that seemed to indicate that a change had come in the Australian’s expectations of the level he should be performing at – with Stallard noting the key difference in Ricciardo since the summer…

“I think the ‘frustration at being P5’ thing was there all along,” says Stallard. “For me, the difference with the break is that it helped him not overthink it, so he's adapted better to the way you have to drive our car without it being completely conscious every corner, what you need to do.

Daniel's easy to work with, because if you give him a problem to solve, he goes away and works at it, so the work ethic's always been good, which makes life easy,” adds Stallard. “He doesn't defer responsibility away from himself; he takes a lot on the chin, which means some of what I've had to do is keeping him, let's say, up, because he's taken a lot of responsibility for things himself.

“But from my side, that means he's great to work with, and that collaboration is very strong. And when we got to Monza, we both had a lot of confidence in each other, so that made the result in Monza feel very natural.”

Going forward

Ricciardo leading McLaren to their first victory since Jenson Button’s 2012 Brazilian Grand Prix triumph, and their first one-two since the 2010 Canadian Grand Prix, was a fantastic moment for all at McLaren, and one that was warmly welcomed by most in the F1 paddock.

But Stallard was under no illusions during our chat in Sochi that Ricciardo is still on a journey to being fully comfortable in McLaren’s MCL35M car this season – a point Ricciardo would then back up himself a few days later when, despite finishing P4 in the Russian Grand Prix, he admitted that “there is still some stuff missing”.

“In Monza, the circuit and our technical package aligned well,” says Stallard, “and actually last year we came second there, so it's a circuit that suits our car and obviously Daniel did a very good job putting it all together, and the strategy was correct.

“He now understands how to drive the car; I think he's felt that himself rather than it just being explained to him, which means we have made another step. But it's a much more linear process than it appears from the outside.”

What Ricciardo does have in his corner, meanwhile – apart from the work ethic and talent that have made him an eight-time Grand Prix winner – is a race engineer in Stallard who has been an elite athlete himself, forming part of Great Britain’s silver medal-winning men’s eight rowing crew at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

And Stallard believes that his own experience as an athlete can help get the best out of Ricciardo, who signed to McLaren on a three-year deal that will take him into Formula 1’s bold new era of regulations with the team.

“In this sport, 20 years ago, the race engineers were very much engineers,” says Stallard. “But now we are coaches, and so we're using the data to guide the drivers in how to get the best out of the car.

“So I see myself now as a coach and I have a lot of experience of being coached, whereas a lot of the other race engineers… don't necessarily have the same experience of being coached. And I think that does give me an insight in terms of the struggles that people have when being coached, especially in a sport where on the way up, drivers often aren't coached that much and it gives me a good ability to manage the pressure and stay calm in what would be a pressured situation as well.

“And I also think that on any journey, although I describe it as a linear process, there's still ups and downs, and there'll be events in the future that are more difficult and that we'll have to respond to and react to. It would be naive to think it's plain sailing from here – but I think that it's a good next step.”(X)

#daniel ricciardo #tom stallard #dan #so long but so good #articles

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havethetimeofyourstyles · 4 years

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Chapter Three. Mind Your Business

the scene is set in 1956, a young man moved to Hollywood to follow his dreams of becoming an actor. But with little money and a struggle to keep his apartment, he is approached by a man who offers him a job at Sweetland

a/n: decided to title this chapter ‘mind your business’ because no ones sexuality is anyone’s business! dont assume, make fun of, invalidate anyone’s sexuality because it’s not funny nor is it cute. YOUR SEXUALITY MATTERS AND ITS BEAUTIFUL

SERIES MASTERLIST | JOIN THE TAGLIST | chapter word count: 8.9k

warnings: biphobia (it’s the 1950s)

TALK TO ME ABOUT CN! let me know your thoughts!

pls rb to share! <3

It was Friday, two weeks later as you were sitting with your girls at Mel’s Drive in as you three talked and ate.

Frances was talking about her date that she went on last weekend with the guy that worked with them; as she did assume he was going to ask her out, which he did. She was practically gushing over him as you and Alice listened as you ate, both being happy for her.

“He was the sweetest guy! Took me to a drive in and after we walked on the beach! It was so fun, and after he kissed me-” You and Alice gasped, interrupting her story. “On my cheek! Jeez, you two are something. But it was the sweetest kiss, and ugh! I just want him to ask me out again.”

“The next time you see him, maybe mention that you’d like to go out again, or invite him for a bite to eat,” you told her, and she nodded. “So, Alice, what about you and that guy you were seeing?” She changed the subject.

Alice scoffed and rolled her eyes, “Ugh, I’m not seeing him anymore. He can never make up his mind if he wants to take me out on a date or just wants to continue fucking me, so I dropped him,”

“Good for you,” you say, taking a bite of your toast. Alice was always one for being decisive and assertive. Just like you, she doesn’t take shit from anyone, but she’s ten times more intense than you. But overall, you love her for it.

“Yeah, although, I’m having eyes for someone right now. Behind you,” she only told you, since you were sitting across from the two.

You slowly turned around, trying not to make it obvious that you’re turning around. And what you saw was something shocking, and it made you have a cough attack as you choked on your toast.

“Oh my god, doll, are you okay?” Frances asked. You grabbed your napkin, hysterically coughing into it, and Alice handed you your cup of water.

Practically everyone around your booth was staring at you oddly, wondering if you were okay or not, and once you finally calmed down and the piece of bread washed down your throat, you took a deep breath.

“You sure you’re okay?” Alice asked.

“Yeah, uh, that guy your ogling…”

“What about him?”

“That’s Harry.” Alice and Frances’ eyes widened, immediately moving their heads to take another look at him as their jaws dropped.

“That’s Harry?!” Alice asked in shock.

“Like, as in the Harry?!” Frances added.

“Yup. The one and only.” You watched your friends practically stare at the guy you’ve been thinking about for the past two weeks.

“Oh my god, he’s hotter in person than you described,” Alice swooned. “Sorry, for hitting on your man, doll.”

“Eh, don’t worry about it. If he hit on you dolls, I wouldn’t even be mad because I’d hit on you both too,” you teasingly winked at them, and they both raised their eyebrows in a flirty way

Another thing you loved about your trio was that you were able to make those kinds of remarks without them thinking it was weird. You were truly grateful for friends that accepted your bisexuality, or else you would’ve been in shambles. And besides, who doesn’t hit and flirt with their best friends?

“I can’t believe that’s him!” Frances exclaimed.

“Yeah, he’s handsome, isn’t he?” They both nodded, excitedly.

“Well, are you gonna go up to him?” Alice wondered. You turned around again to really get a look at him. He was facing you, sitting across a lady as they both chatted. He hadn’t seen you, and you were thankful for it because you didn’t want him to see the hint of sadness in your eyes because of the hint of jealousy you had in your body.

You shook your head, “Hell no. He’s obviously on a date.”

“You don’t know that!” Frances said optimistically. You really didn’t know. It was a bit after four p.m, so you didn’t know if it was for work or if he was actually on a date. Either option, you couldn’t help but feel a tinge of jealousy. Of course, you couldn’t stop him from working, but if it was anything outside of work, the thought made your heart sink.

“Well you’re gonna have to suck it up because I just paid and he’s sitting right by the door,” Alice said, gathering her purse. You closed your eyes for a moment, preparing yourself to simply just walk by him, and you hoped he wouldn’t see you as you were doing so.

You walked behind the two, following them to the exit of the diner as you looked at Harry the whole time. He hadn’t noticed you at first, but until you walked past by his table, he definitely saw you.

As you two made eye contact, it was like you were sucked in; never for a second breaking contact with him as his green eyes captured yours. You noticed his face perk up, smiling widely.

“Hey,” he greeted.

“Hi,” you said with a smile as you stopped walking. Alice and Frances heard you causing them to stop walking as well.

“How are you? Haven’t seen you in a while,” he said; the person sitting across from him was completely forgotten as the woman watched the interaction between you two as she stirred her coffee.

“Yeah. Uh, two weeks,” you nodded, silently cursing yourself as you seemed like a complete idiot for keeping track.

You took the time to subtly look over to the person on the other side of the booth, and saw a very gorgeous looking woman who was probably in her late twenties. She was tan and had long locks of red hair, and her outfit was quite cute as well. And if you weren’t swooning over Harry, you would definitely be swooning over the lady in front of you.

“Yup, two weeks,” he confirmed.

In all honesty, he’s missed you. You two had only met once, but he’s missed being around you—your presence comforted him.

“I should get going. Have a lovely rest of your day, you two,” you told Harry and his date before walking out with Alice and Frances.

Your face remained neutral as you walked out as the girls followed. Once you were outside, they both put an arm around you, comforting you.

“I’m sorry, doll,” Frances said sadly.

“I mean, at least you weren’t too attached, right?” Alice said, somehow convincing you.

“Yeah…” you agreed, but in all honesty, you were already attached. You’ve known him for tops, two hours, and in those two hours, you came to the conclusion that you really like him. That may make you a bit crazy, but you couldn’t help how you feel. Harry’s charming and sweet and humble. How could you not fall for him?

“It’s okay! Let’s have a dolls night? We can watch a movie at my house and maybe a sleepover?” Frances suggested, and Alice nodded her head eagerly.

“I’m up for both, what do you say doll?” They both looked at you with pleading eyes, wanting you to agree to have a night with them to simply take your mind off Harry. And you wanted that too; to just be with your girls and out of your parent’s home.

“Both sounds lovely,” you agreed, and they squealed in excitement as you three walked to your car, hoping your mind gets a break from thinking about the man inside of the diner.

Harry was sitting in front of a woman that didn’t really spark his interest. Don’t get him wrong, she was very stunning in every way, but he’d noticed that you really set the bar for him.

After your little cloud nine adventure together two weeks ago, Harry had three customers within those weeks. One of them was married, so they only stuck to oral as she claimed that “it’s not fully cheating if I don’t go all the way,” to which Harry was baffled by her explanation. The next one was a young man, probably the same age as Harry or a little younger, and he told him that he was curious what it was like to have sex with another man. So, Harry fucked him and met all his expectations, to which he got a very decent tip from him. The next one was a woman his age that works at a fancy restaurant, and told him that it was her only day off and decided that she needed to get laid, and of course, Harry helped her.

But those three encounters did not compare to you. He mentally slapped himself thinking he was crazy that he was even comparing others to each other, but he couldn’t help it. Since the very first time he saw you, he thought you were the most beautiful person he’s ever seen. And it wasn’t just the way you felt around his raging hard on, but it was the way you talked to him and the way you listened to what he had to say. He felt important and valid when he was around you because that’s how you treated him.

And Daren can throw so many women and men his way, but Harry’s come to the conclusion that you’re always going to be on his mind, despite only knowing each other for less than a day, he was completely whipped.

“Harry?” Jeannette, the woman from across from he said. He broke out of trance and softly smiled at her. “Are you okay? You kind of blanked out.”

“Oh, yeah. I am. Did you want to get going?” He suggested, and she perked up at that, nodding her head excitedly.

Harry and Jeannette headed over to her apartment where they talked for about a minute or two before she inched closer to him, giving him a kiss to his cheek. Harry turned his head slightly, and she captured his lips against hers.

As they kissed, her hand traveled to his crotch and he was taken by surprise as he slightly jumped as she rubbed the front of his pants. Usually, he would be turned on, but there was a sort of rushness he felt through her actions that he wasn’t into, and he was sure she felt it in the kiss he gave her. And he wasn’t even hard.

The kiss he gave her was one that had no effort, but kissing just to kiss and going with the flow as she was the one in control of it.

“I-I’m sorry,” he said as he pulled back. Jeannette’s lipstick was all over the place and he’s sure that there’s some on his lips as well.

“Is something wrong?” She asked concerningly.

“Uh, I…yeah. Can we just take it slow?” He asked hesitantly, and she nodded her head slowly.

“Sure,” she said as she waited for him to make a move or say something.

But Harry was lost in his mind as he thought about you. And he knows he shouldn’t when there’s a gorgeous girl right in front of him, but the occurring thought of you washed throughout his mind and there was no effort in stopping it.

He thought back to the day when he met you up to when you two had sex. He loved the way you built up the sexual tension and the way you teased him into sexual agony. The way you would smirk at him when he would do something sexy or when you would participate in his playful banter. And he couldn’t forget about the slight dirty talk that came out of your mouth, to which he knew there’s more from where the words came from, but since it was your first time together, there were only a few words. But those words were enough to cum twice.

“It’s her, isn’t it?” Jeannette suddenly said, and Harry’s brows raised in confusion.

“I’m sorry?”

“The girl from the diner. There’s something between you two, I can tell,” she explained.

Harry chuckled, scratching his head as she read him very well. “I-I mean there’s nothing going on, but she was a customer and-”

“And you like her,” she finished for him. Harry slowly nodded, feeling guilty that someone else had to tell him.

“Yeah—I’m sorry. I know you came to the shop for a good time, and I’m sorry I couldn’t deliver,” he apologizes with a small frown on his face, and she waved it off.

“It’s alright. I could tell she’s into you also, but I don’t know, by her wandering eyes, I may be wrong.”

Harry looked at her confused, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, she was checking me out. She had her eyes on me when she was talking to you, and I looked at her as well—saw her eyes go up and down on me. Think she might be into girls too?” She said casually as she got up and walked over to her bar cart, grabbing herself a drink.

“Oh, uh, did you have a problem with that? Her checking you out?” Harry wondered, and if her answer wasn’t the one he was looking for, then the conversation would end badly.

“Well, yeah!” And Harry got his answer. “She was checking me out, Harry. Had some flirty eyes when she looked at me, and it made me uncomfortable.”

Harry controlled his temper, answering her with a cooled tone. “I’m sure she didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. She was probably just wondering who I was with.”

“Still. I know when someone’s gay, and she definitely is. Do you really want to be with someone like that? One who can’t fully give themselves to you? It’s not a real thing,” she rolled her eyes, and Harry was infuriated.

“Not a real thing? Don’t speak about her like that! So what if she likes men and women? Her sexuality has nothing to do with you nor is it your business,” he snapped at her, fully angry and annoyed.

“Woah, why are you getting so mad? I’m just saying-”

“No, what you’re saying is that you’re assuming her sexuality, and also invalidating it. That’s so low, very low,” Harry got up, heading for the door.

“Well, don’t cry when she doesn’t want you and has eyes on another woman!”

“You’re saying a lot of bullshit that doesn’t make sense, but gladly, fuck off!” With his last words, he slams the front door, huffing all the way out of the apartment complex.

He’s never felt so angry with anyone nor had he snapped like that at anyone, especially women. His mother has always taught him to be kind and respectful to everyone. “But if there’s something that they said was wrong, I expect you to stand up for those who aren’t there to stand up for themselves and people who don’t deserve hatred whatsoever,” his mother would say. And that’s exactly what he did. He stood up for you, even if you weren’t, for the Eric and Mack who is gay and bisexual, and for everyone else whose sexualities are being hated on because ‘it’s not the right way.’

When he was walking towards Hollywood, he realized he was in Downtown; way too far for his liking to walk back. But luckily, he had some spare change for the railway.

He arrived at Sweetland a little past five, and Daren smiled, but also wondered why he was back earlier than usual.

“Sorry, Daren. The customer I had today was just…” he trailed off, not knowing how to put what had happened into words.

“What happened, kid?”

“Well, it was going well—kinda. We were at a diner, and went back to her place, kissed a little, but I wasn’t really into it, to be honest,” Harry said, and Daren chuckled. “She started saying things about gay people and how bisexuality isn’t real, and I just snapped.”

Daren hadn’t said anything, and Harry was starting to feel anxious. He didn’t know if his boss was going to be mad because he didn’t get any tip, plus he made a customer angry. But Daren reacted the opposite and smiled.

“I’m proud of you, boy,” he said, patting his shoulder.

“Really? I’m sorry I didn’t get any money and didn’t do my job, but she was insulting people!”

“Hey, I don’t care. What you did was right, and I’m glad you did it. Would’ve done the same thing, and leave them horny and to dry,” Daren laughed, and Harry joined.

“Did it for Eric and Mack too,” Harry included.

“They would be so grateful you stood up for them. Tough world out there, and it hurts that people can’t live freely,” Daren shook his head, feeling ashamed of how society is developing with discrimination and hatred.

“I’ll clean up here,” Harry said, grabbing a broom from behind the storage door. He started to sweep up the dust and candy that’s fallen out of their jars. It was a long day for Harry, and it’s going to be even a longer one tomorrow. He’s got a day off from Sweetland for a couple of days, so that means he has to run down to the studio to try and be picked to be an extra or get a screen test. He sighed deeply, thinking about how chaotic it’s going to be tomorrow, and hopefully not be let down once again.

“Hey, kid?” Harry perked up. “You said you weren’t into when you were smacking lips with that customer…why’s that?”

Harry smirked, holding the broom in his arms as he spoke. “Well, there’s this girl…”

It was the usual ten a.m morning rush when folks would gather around in front of the gates of the studio, patiently waiting for two casting directors to come out and make their picks.

He put on his best clothes; wearing a tan gridded trousers, a cream button down shirt with bottles printed on it, and on top of it, a red and yellow sweater vest. He was always a sucker for a stylish and comfy sweater vest; made him feel very professional along with fashionable.

As he made his way through the crowd, trying to find Mikey, he found that many people were incredibly rude. They pushed and shoved him as he tried to squeeze in between him, and said some really harsh words. He knew he was ‘cutting’ them, but his friend was waiting for him up at the gates.

“Hey, Mikey,” Harry greeted, and Mikey turned around, beaming his camera smile.

“Harry! I’m so glad you’re here. They’re about to come out any second,” Mikey nudged him.

“Do you think today’s the day?” Harry asked his friend hopefully. Mikey always had this sixth sense that he was able to feel the difference between the good and bad vibes from what they both manifested. And most of the time, It was either a blessing or curse to know.

“Honestly…” he said suspensefully as Harry waited for, hopefully some good news. “I have a good feeling about this,” Mikey smiled, and Harry clapped his hands once, loudly.

“That is the shit I like to hear,” Harry said excitedly, putting an arm around Mikey as the boys both smiled in anticipation.

After a few minutes, the crowd spotted two people walking towards the gate as the guards opened them. The crowd of locals went wild, throwing their hands up as they screamed “pick me!”

Again, Harry used his trick of smiling not too big and not too small to make him seem like he was trying too hard. The woman scanned through the crowd, glancing at the eager people. She pointed at the ones she wanted, usually picking about five or six people to bring with her on set; already picking five people.

Once she glanced over to the area Harry was standing, looking over if she wanted to pick another one, but stuck with five. Everyone’s eagerness altered, frustrated that they weren’t picked. Harry’s expression turned into a sad one, wishing he wasn’t too hopeful when Mikey said his senses were telling him they were good. And just as he was about to leave, something struck the lady causing her to turn back around.

Everyone in the front rows saw it, making them smile quickly at her. But Harry panicked because he thinks he’s looking right at him, despite the sunglasses. Harry softly smiled, in case she really was. And his day, possibly his life, changed when she lifted her hand and pointed right at him, gesturing to him to follow her.

Harry was in complete shock, practically not even believing he was picked until Mikey physically pushed him towards the gate because the ladies and the rest were waiting.

“Go on man! You got picked!” Mikey said excitedly, and Harry snapped out of his disbelief, beaming at his friend and kissing him on the forehead before walking inside the gates of Paramount Studios.

He was so in awe of the whole atmosphere; the crew working on building sets, making props, wardrobe, the cameras—everything. He’s never seen the real thing up until now. But when he was picked to be an extra with Mikey when they had first met, they weren’t in front of cameras or a big set; they were part of the rehearsal act that included them being in a room with all the other actors, so this was a huge deal for Harry.

When the ladies led the ‘picked ones’ to a room where the screenwriter, director, and producers sat, Harry felt his anxiety rise up again. He had no idea what was about to happen, but he made sure to do it with feeling and to give his best performance.

“Alright, everyone. In my hand, I have the script of the upcoming movie we finally got approved of. I picked six of you by random to act out specific parts that I think will fit you,” the lady explained. Harry noticed that everyone in this industry was very fierce and strong willed. But he figured, they probably have to because this is a very serious job that has to do with entertaining the entire country. “Think of this as an audition to a movie—because it is. This is the real deal, kids. We’ve never done this before, only picking you all up to be extras, but since we have some small roles that need to be filled, this is your time to shine.”

She grabbed a stack of scripts and handed it to the group. And when Harry felt the stack of papers that could possibly include one of his lines in a big movie, he felt like he was dreaming. He’s never held an entire script in his hands before, and god, he wished he would hold scripts for the rest of his life.

“Each of your scripts has a sticky note on it that says the name of the character that I think suits you all, again, based on first glance. You will go to the lounge area, study your character and the general plot of the movie, and you will come back to audition for us. You don’t have to memorize it, but it is suggested. We just want you to get a feel of the character. You have an hour to do so,” she dismissed everyone as they walked out the door and to the lounge room.

The room was like a movie theatre in some sorts; sofas lined up as people sat and talked about everything and anything. Harry picked a spot in the back, so no one would disturb him as he was buried in the script, studying the character he’s auditioning for.

After thirty minutes of studying the plot and his character, he came to realize that the movie was a romance film. The classic story of a man falling for a woman, but the woman is hesitant. The casting director had assigned Harry to audition for the main character’s best friend. And when Harry found that out, he was ecstatic. The role obviously wasn’t the lead character, but it was pretty close.

Harry took the rest of his time to memorize the highlighted lines. He knew he didn’t have to, but like the casting director said, it’s better to. And he’s very grateful for his memorization game that he’s had ever since he was younger; always memorizing lyrics to songs when only hearing it twice.

With hushed mumbles of his lines, repeated saying it over and over again, he felt confident and he was ready. He had about ten minutes to go before it was time to go back to the room, but he decided to head over there already because he learned that you should always show them that you’re ready; it builds confidence in yourself and it’s always good to be early better than late.

Harry waited outside of the room when an older lady approached him.

“Harry, right?” The woman asked, and his head perked up, surprised one person even knew his name in this place.

“Yeah, that’s me. And you are?” He asked politely, flashing her his million dollar smile.

Always be nice to others; no matter how good you think you are, you never know where kindness will take you in life.

“I’m Shareen. I’m not sure if you remember me, but I was at one of your auditions a few weeks ago,” she told him, handing him her hand to shake. Harry took it as his eyes widened, remembering the woman in front of him. She was an older woman--somewhere in her 60s. Harry noticed that she was wearing a barrette on her head, just like the last time he saw her; probably one of her staple pieces, which he thinks is lovely. Shareen had a friendly face as well; Harry not being intimidated by her like he is with the rest of them as she kindly smiled at him with bright eyes.

“Ah, yes! I remember you. It’s lovely to meet you, officially. Also, love the barette you’re wearing,” he compliments honestly.

“Oh, thank you, dear. Quite a favorite of mine.” Shareen felt nothing but giddiness when someone noticed her barrette. None of her coworkers rarely noticed it, so it made her happy when someone complimented her on it.

“It looks wonderful on you,” he smiled, and she placed her hand on his arm.

“You’re sweet. But I wanted to come by and introduce myself, and tell you that I think you did really well. It’s too bad one of the producers cut it way too short--I was eager to see what you could offer,” Shareen smiled softly, feeling bad for the young man in front of her.

“Oh, thank you. That means a lot to me,” Harry smiled widely, feeling immensely grateful for someone from the industry to say something like that to him. He rarely gets told that he’s good at what he does, and for someone to say that to him means a ton. “But I’m happy to be getting another shot.”

“Me too, dear. I just know you’ll do just great,” she patted his shoulders before walking into the room, leaving him to wait alone again. What she had told Harry had given him a boost in motivation; it encouraged him to keep going and to keep trying. And sometimes that’s all he needs--a boost of encouragement to tell him that he’s doing things right. That’s all what everyone needs.

The other five people had gathered around next to Harry as they waited for another three minutes before they were called in. He took in everyone’s moods as he does, and controlled his breathing and nerves. Everyone was obviously very nervous--Harry was as well, considering this could possibly be a huge step in their careers.

“Harry and Sky, please come in,” a man called out from the door. Sky was another actress that he assumed he would be auditioning with. She smiled softly at him before walking towards the room, Harry following.

The room was even more intimidating than the first time. Five pairs of eyes stared at the two as they walked in and stood on the mark that was taped to the floor.

“Alright, you two. You’ve studied your roles, and now it’s time to perform them. You will be auditioning for page 50.” Harry and Sky flipped to that page as they both studied it for a second. Feel free to use your scripts. But give us your best performance, okay?” One of the ladies said, and Harry and Sky nodded eagerly, nerves creeping up both of their skins.

Harry glanced at Shareen, and found her smiling at him. The friendly face and smile had calmed him down a bit, remembering her words. After a minute of gathering their notepads, she spoke again. “And action!”

Harry and Sky turned towards each other with scripts in their hands; Harry walking passed her, arms crossed so he wasn’t tempted to look down at his lines. “I just…they’re not right for each other!” He said.

“They’re getting married--what can you do?” Sky acted out, a frustrated look on her face.

“Stop it.”

“What?” Sky scoffed.

Harry grabbed her shoulders, according to the script, shaking her lightly and said, “Don’t you get it? We have to stop the wedding!”

“You’re his best friend! How could you do that-”

“Because I’m in love with her!” Harry exclaimed

“No…”

“Yes! I’m in love with her. We have to stop the wedding,” his eyes pleaded.

“You’re insane, Nate.” Sky removed herself from his hold, walking away before Harry ran in front of her to stop her, grabbing her shoulders again.

“Insane? Don’t tell me that you haven’t been thinking about it too. I know you’re in love with Matt,” Harry raised his brows.

“That doesn’t mean we stop their wedding,” Sky scolded.

“But that means we’ll be happy. Can’t you see that?”

“And cut!”

Harry and Sky broke out of character. Their faces returned back to normal as they weren’t two stressed out adults who were planning to ruin their best friend’s wedding. Half of the table clapped for them, Shareen, of course, being one of them.

“Wonderful job, you two,” Shareen said with a delighted smile. “We just need your contact information just in case, and you’re free to go.”

Once Harry gave them his contact information, which was simply his home phone, he walked out of the studio with a big smile on his face. He had no idea what the outcome would be with all of this, but he was proud of himself for getting through it, and he thought he did a wonderful job this time.

“Catherine, I know you can lift your leg up higher than that!” You teased one of your students, giving them an encouraging smile. Catherine lifted her leg up all the way to her head, and you clapped for her. “There you go!”

It was your Monday ballet basics class as little five to seven year olds were spread out, and working on the little number you made up for them. You were exhausted from the long hours of class and plus, it was eleven in the morning, seeing as you were up since seven. But you had an hour left to go before you get to go home, and have a nice bath and a house all to yourself.

Your father was at work, thankfully not going to be home until later in the night, and your mother was helping her friend with a charity foundation. And an empty house and a relaxing bath that will probably end up with you touching yourself, was calling your name.

You haven’t been laid since the night you and Harry had sex, and the most you’ve been doing since then was pleasuring yourself. There was just simply no sexual interest when you looked at others, and you may have to just curse Harry out for ruining your sexual life for you, but you were fine getting yourself off.

As you watched your class run through the routine, you felt a presence behind you, causing you to turn around and see Tyler smiling at you. Tyler was one of the few guys who taught ballet, and on Mondays, he taught the ages of eight to twelve in the morning; the same time as you.

“Hi, Tyler.”

“Hey. Are you almost done with the class?” He asked.

“Yeah. About 40 minutes left--why aren’t you in class?” You asked, figuring he had about the same time left as you, and wondered why he wasn’t with his students.

“I dismissed them early. It’s Monday, the hardest day of the week. But I was wondering if you’d like to get some lunch after your class ends? I’m free for the rest of the day,” he asked you hopefully.

It wasn’t like you didn’t like Tyler because you thought he was really nice and friendly. When you two had met, he asked you out for dinner, but you were with Chris at the time, so being a loyal girlfriend that you were, you said no, to which he understood. When he somehow found out that you and Chris broke up, he asked again, and you told him honestly that you didn’t want to date nor did you want to go out, and he understood again. But up until now, it was constant questions of asking you on a date and the constant rejection of you saying no. It was clear he couldn’t take a hint.

“Oh, uhm, I was hoping to be alone today…” you scratched your neck awkwardly.

“Gotcha,” he nodded his head. “But another question, why do you never want to go out with me?”

“Tyler, I think you’re a really nice guy and I’ve noticed you have some certain eyes for me ever since we met, but I’m just not interested in you. And I hope you understand that,” you told him honestly, but ultimately feeling bad that you even had to tell him that.

You heard him scoff and saw him roll his eyes, “Unbelievable.” You saw him start to pace, and you were afraid that he would snap in front of your students, so you stopped the music, telling them to take 5, and brought him out to the hall.

“What is your problem?” You asked confusingly.

“You think you’re the shit, don’t you?” His voice started to raise.

“No, I don’t actually.”

“You do though! Think you’re all high and mighty just because you’re a rich bitch, but guess what? You’re not!”

“I never thought I was, but okay,” you said sarcastically, completely annoyed that you have to put up with this dumb arguement.

“No, you do. Just because you like men and women, you think you can just get anyone?” You looked at him amusingly; you think it’s funny he says that because he’s been begging you to go out on a date with him. “What? You’re secret’s out.”

“Never really kept it a secret, and I’m happy about that,” you entertained him as he began to grow more frustrated, but you were completely over this conversation as you were never going to give him the satisfaction of snapping at him, so he could possibly tell people that you weren’t all what you seemed.

Before you reached for the door to your classroom, you turned around one last time. “Hey.” Tyler turned around like a kid who just got scolded, which only added to your amusement. “Feel free to spread that secret of mine, yeah? Makes me proud to be who I am.”

Your original plan was to go home after class and have a nice day to yourself, but you found yourself parked in front of Sweetland, debating with yourself whether you should go in or not.

You’ve been sitting in your car for a good 10 minutes under the sun, and your debate meter is pointing to yes because it’s scorching hot in July in California. But not only your body melting from the heat that your debate meter is green on yes, but also wanting to see Harry.

It’s been a few days since you last saw him at the diner, and it was no secret that you missed him, but seeing his face after two weeks made you realize that you truly missed him. So you made the conscious decision to get out of your car and enter Sweetland.

When you opened the door, you stumbled into someone who was pushing the door out, but you beat him to it, causing him to fall forward slightly.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” Once the man regained his balance, his eyes met yours, and he smiled. “Oh, Harry.” It was the same man that you were at the shop for, and you couldn’t be more happy to see him.

“H-Hi,” he said nervously, running his ringed clad hand through his disheveled curls.

“Are you off of work right now?”

“No, I didn’t work today actually. But we’re still open, so you could go inside.” A hint of pain was felt in his chest when he said those words; wanting to be the one to help you and not one of his coworkers.

“Oh…I was actually looking for you,” you smiled, and Harry’s eyes widened.

“R-Really?” He asked surprisingly, and you nodded. “I’m not working though, I just came by to get my paycheck.”

“Yeah, but I was wondering if we could maybe go out for lunch? That’s if you’re free though.” A hopeful smile was brought onto your face and your innocent eyes looked at him, making it unbelievably hard for Harry to say no, not like he wanted to.

“I’d love to!” He said a little too excitedly, so he toned it down a bit. You chuckled at his lifted mood. “Where would you like to go?”

“Swinger’s isn’t too far from here, if you’d like to check that place out? Heard their waffles and milkshakes are to die for,” you mentioned, trying to convince him at the thought of food.

“Didn’t have to mention waffles—already wanted to go with ya,” he smirked, teasing you as he read your mind while you were trying to convince him. He earned a giggle from you as you walked to the driver side of your car as he walked up to the passenger side. “Ah, missed Rosie,” he said as he got in.

“Rosie or me?” You bantered, starting your car up.

“It’s a close tie between you two, to be honest. Although, Rosie might be winning,” he played back. Your jaw dropped dramatically, slapping his chest playfully.

“Well, what if I say we could share a milkshake? Would I earn points then?” You leaned in a tad bit, asking something so innocent but your time was saying the opposite.

“Do I get to choose the flavor?”

“The choice is all yours, honey.”

“Let’s get there in one piece and maybe I’ll decide then, yeah?” He said, ending the bacon and forth teasing. You giggled as you put your car in drive, and drove off to Swinger’s.

The booth was a cushioned, checkered print seat, but it wasn’t as comfortable as Mel’s, albeit, you’re a bit biased because you’ve been going to Mel’s ever since you were younger, so you couldn’t compare the two. But it was a lovely diner either way.

Sitting in front of Harry was a bit of a dream. You’d imagined meeting him again over and over without it leading to sex, and the simplicity of how the reality of it turned out to be made you happy.

You and Harry talked about simple likes and dislikes as a way to ease into getting to know each other. You found out that he prefered mint chip over cookies n’ cream, and to say you were disappointed was an understatement when he ordered you both a mint chip milkshake to share.

“What? It’s flavorful! Not your usual,” he argued playfully.

“But cookies n’ cream is just a staple. You can’t go wrong with that,” you raised your brows, knowing you were right and he knew it too.

“I mean you’re right, but mint chip is good! We’ll get cookies n’ cream the next time,” he told you, putting a truce on the debate, but you ignored the truce as your heart fluttered multiple times at the words ‘next time’ and you wanted to do pirouettes from excitement. “Okay, okay. Pancakes or waffles?”

“You can’t pick between the two,” you simply put it.

“That’s a very easy answer though. It’s waffles,” he said.

Just as you two discussed how you couldn’t choose between the two because you had to be in a certain mood for both, your food had arrived; the aroma of freshly made waffles hit your senses, making your mouth water.

“So…” you started, sipping the milkshake with your straw. Harry’s head lifted, giving you a smile, encouraging you to continue. “How was your date on Friday?” You asked hesitantly, not really wanting to know if it went well.

“Uh, not so good…”

“Oh?” Now you were intrigued. You tried to contain a smile from beaming out by pulling in your lips together, but your eyes said it all. And Harry read your expression, knowing you were happy with what he said. “What happened? If you don’t mind me asking?”

“Oh, uhm-”

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” you said, noticing his hesitation.

“I do. I just don’t know how to put it,” Harry nervously scratched his head as you told him to take his time. “So she was actually a customer from the shop,” he mentioned, and you gulped, waiting for him to continue. “She wanted to grab a bite to eat before we go back to hers, then we saw you, and I was just so lost in thought of you that I wasn’t paying attention to her that she noticed, so I suggested we just go back to hers. We got there and she immediately started making out with me and placing her hand on my dick, which kind of startled me because I wasn’t really hard or turned on nor was I into it,” Harry explained.

“Can I ask why you weren’t into it?” You asked, somewhat knowing the reason, but wanting to hear it from him.

“You. I was thinking of you the whole time, and she also sensed that. And then…” he stopped talking, like he didn’t want to tell you anything.

“Take your time, or you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” you said calmly, having no idea if something bad had happened during their time together, and you were a bit pissed but you didn’t want to force him into telling you.

He took a deep breath, controlling his breathing. “We stopped, and she assumed that you were the reason why I wasn’t into it, and she was correct, but then she started to say things how you were into both men and women, saying how weird that was because you wouldn’t give yourself to one person or some shit like that, and by then I was completely off the rails--pissed.”

“She said that?” You asked with no emotion behind your words, and he nodded.

“Said it was because you were checking her out at the diner and it wasn't a real thing to like two genders or some shit. I was proper livid,” he shook his head, still in disbelief that he came across a person like that. You only nodded your head slowly, trying to take everything in. Plus, this was not how you imagined coming out to Harry. “But told her to fuck off, and how rude it was to one, assume someone’s sexuality. And two, say that it’s not a real thing. Then I left.”

Your eyes softened as you looked at him; a crease in his forehead made you reach across the table and smooth it out with your thumb. His features softened, and he looked at you, seeing your glossy eyes look right back at him.

“Thank you for saying that. No one’s ever defended me like that besides my friends, and that means a lot to me,” you gave him a small smile to which you earned one back. It felt some sort of shock knowing that people live in fear and can’t be who they want to be because society doesn’t accept it, and he felt some sort of sadness when you thanked him and said that no one else ever defended you.

“Of course,” he said, reaching across the table to hold onto your hand, which you gladly took. His thumb caressed your soft skin, making no effort to let go; not like you wanted him to.

“I was supposed to have a relaxing night to myself, but I’m glad I went to the shop.”

“Me too. What made you change your mind?” He asked, and you rolled your eyes, remembering the events that happened before you left the studio.

You told Harry about Tyler, not leaving out a single detail of what he said to you as it was still fresh and ingrained into your mind. The entire time you told the story, Harry also rolled his eyes and scoffed at some people’s immaturity. But you just shrugged your shoulders, telling him that you were going to live your bisexual life freely.

“What’d you do this weekend?” You asked, putting an end to your story as you felt like you were talking about yourself too much.

“Oh, I, uh…had a couple of days off from the shop and I had an audition,” he said with a humble smile. Your eyes widened, jaw dropping.

“Harry!”

“What?” He asked obliviously.

“Oh, I don’t know--you just casually mention that you had an audition,” you said sarcastically; a chuckle from Harry was heard. “That’s amazing! I’m so proud of you,” you beamed at him, feeling so happy for him as he maintained his composure and tried not to get too excited.

“Thank you. I’m trying not to get my hopes up, but it was such a thrill being in front of the producers,” he said, proceeding to tell you the entire story. He felt giddy telling someone other than Mikey or Daren, and he definitely felt your energy, telling him that you were just as excited for him as well.

“Harry, that’s truly so great. They would be missing out if they don’t pick you.”

“Thanks, sweet girl.” The name had slipped out. It came out naturally, but he closed his mouth immediately, not knowing if that crossed the line since he used that pet name in bed.

“I’ve missed hearing that name,” you told him honestly, and he calmed down a bit, smirking at you.

The night was going by quicker than you intended as you hung out with Harry starting around 1 p.m, and now it was nearing 4.

As much as you wanted to continue hanging out with him, you still wanted to have some alone time with yourself since it was rare that you would have the house to yourself. Besides, like he said, it wasn’t the last time you would be seeing each other.

“I should probably get going,” you say, a sad tone behind your words.

“Yeah, okay, sure. Let me just grab the check,” he turned around to find the waitress that served you both.

“Oh, I can pay for half,” you said, beginning to reach into your purse for your wallet.

“It’s okay. Let me; I just got paid. And besides, I was the one who picked the milkshake flavor, so let me pay for it,” he smiled at you, making you blush. “Next time, you’ll pick the flavor, and maybe you can pay if you want to next time.” You only nodded, smiling as you watched him just walk up to your waitress and pay for your meals.

Once he paid, you two walked out the diner; the summer sun was still bright outside, making it seem like it was still early in the day. You walked over to the driver side as Harry stayed still in front of the restaurant.

“I’ll see you soon, maybe? Drive safe,” he said, waving at you.

“What are you doing?”

“Oh, I was gonna catch the railway.” he said shyly, and you chuckled, thinking you were probably crazy if you were going to leave him out here.

“You know you’re too kind for the world, and don’t need to get all shy on me. It’s just me—you’re comfortable with me?” You asked, wanting to make sure he felt comfortable with you no matter what.

“Yeah, of course-”

“Then hop in. I don’t bite, that is, only if you want me to,” you smirked, starting your car and putting on your sunglasses. He absolutely loved when you wore your sunnies; you had a different pair on than when he first met you. Today’s sunnies were pink circular glasses; the lens was see through as he saw your eyes, thinking you look absolutely stylish and all kinds of adorable.

“I live in West Hollywood,” he said suddenly, feeling a bit anxious for you to see the neighborhood he lives in because he knows that it’s nothing compared to where you probably live.

“Okay, that’s on the way to where I live anyways. Just lead the way,” you quickly glanced at him, giving him a smile before turning your head back to the road. You sensed his anxiousness as you did when you first met him; and you thought that it was simply his personality—he was a shy guy in general. That’s why you wanted to make sure he was comfortable around you, and not push his limits.

After a few directions from Harry, making a left here and making a right there, you made it in front of his apartment building. It obviously wasn’t a neighborhood you were used to, but you didn’t mind it nor were you going to judge it. It was Harry’s home, and as long as it makes him safe, then everything was fine.

Harry waited a few seconds, not immediately getting out of the car, before turning towards you as you turned your car off. “I had a really nice time tonight,”

“Me too. I’m glad we were able to go out. Until the next one?” You subtly slipped in, in case he had forgotten, or to see if he wasn’t joking when he said ‘next time’ at the diner.

“Of course. I’ll see you then,” he gave you one last smile before getting out of your car.

“Harry…” you called out just like the last time you had dropped him off. He once again turned around, leaning his forearms on the top of the door and bent down.

“Yes?”

You unclicked your seatbelt, making your way towards the passenger side as you kneel on the seat. You reached your hand to place your palm against his right cheek, feeling his stubbled skin.

“Thank you for today, and for lunch. I mean it when I said I had a really great time.” Your face was inches away from him, and Harry was starting to get very antsy; wanting to kiss you so bad as your lips were so close but so far from his.

“The pleasure is all mine. I’ll see you next time, sweet girl,” he said. He noticed how much you really like being called that because every time he does, a blushy smile appears on your face, and he would make sure to always call you ‘sweet girl’ to see that kind of smile from you all the time.

His eyes flickered between your eyes and your lips as it was painted in a bit of lip gloss. He also noticed how your attention was on his lips as well. And before he could ask you if he could kiss you, you had leaned your head into his left cheek, planting a kiss to his skin.

It wasn’t anywhere on his lips, but it was sweet and soft; a sweet innocent kiss that he would always remember and and he was sure he would giddily scream once he got back to his apartment.

“Have a good night, honey,” you said as you pulled away. Harry’s heart immediately swooned at the second time you called him honey.

“Honey?” He said as it came out as a pleasant surprise. You say back down in your seat, blushing.

“Yeah, is it too cheesy?”

“No, no! I really like it,” he smiled, dimples showing off.

“Good.”

“Great.”

You two stared at each other, smiling like idiots as neither one of you wanted to leave. But you two broke eye contact due to the car alarm that startled you both, but both looking back at each other as you two giggled.

“Bye—for the millionth time,” you said as you started your car, putting the gear into drive.

“See ya, sweet girl,” he bid you goodbye as he gave you one last wave and watched you drive away.

As he walked up the stairs to his front door, he thought of how the day had been really good and how much he had fun; anticipating the next time he gets to see you again.

one of my favorite chapters! BE PROUD OF WHO YOU ARE. YOU’RE BEAUTIFUL AND VALID.

next chapter will be posted on September 4! LETS CHAT IN MY INBOX!

taglist babies: @froggystyles @outofsstyles @whoschantel @4592222 @groovybaybee @bfharry @wellbafineline @tfonty @bfilipa52 @afire-hes @thorsangel @brrilliant-harry @apples2019 @bbymichelleee @harrys-cherrry @ggaayyyong @heslilac @hufflepuff-always-and-forever @sozvuchiy @mellamolayla

#cloud nine #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles au #harry styles angst #harry styles smut #harry styles fluff #harry styles writing #harry styles series #harry styles x you #harry styles x reader #harry styles ff #1d ff #boyfriend!harry #bestfriend!harry #actor!harry #harry styles concept #harry styles #harry #hs

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kinghoranshit · 3 years

Text

Just Another Normal Story (HS) - PT 1

I yanked on dark denim skinnies. Then pulled on an oversized, ugly, reindeer sweater. Tonight’s the Lowry family, white elephant Christmas. Since there were more than twenty of us, this was how we did it.

“Nichole! People are arriving! Are you almost ready?” My mom called up the stairs.

“Yeah!” I replied and walked out of my bedroom to look over the railing so she could see me. Then I went into the bathroom to brush out my silver, mid-length, wet hair and I did little makeup; it was just my family.

When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I was immediately pulled into hugs.

“How’s our little Nikki?” uncle Jeffy gushed.

I laughed. “I’m doing alright. Got some of my own novels in the works. Started my new freelance editing work too.”

“Heard that’s not super stable,” someone commented.

I turned around and rolled my eyes. “Writing is a career, Daren, and I’m quite good at it.”

His blue eyes laughed, but his lips pressed in a firm line. “Money will be tight.”

“I know that.” I huffed. “Everyone keeps telling me that. Leo and my friend Sonnie are the only ones that haven’t. They trust my choices.”

“I think writing is a great career,” a deep, soothing voice stated. One that was completely unfamiliar, and British.

“Says the one who’s making music,” Daren, a great friend of our family, remarked and turned around to look at whoever it was.

I peeked around his shoulder to see a guy the same height as him. He was obviously closer in age to me. His green eyes caused me to catch my breath. Holy fuck. He was attractive. I felt my cheeks burn at the realization that I am, in fact, wearing an ugly sweater. And my hair was still becoming an unruly mess as it continued to dry. I tried to not make my fingers running through my hair too obvious.

Though, I felt better when I noticed he was wearing a somewhat ugly sweater as well. Green to match his eyes with grey snowflakes aligning across the chest. His hair was a little messy. Curls that looked the color of melted dark chocolate. His features were strong. I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

His eyes met with mine and I couldn’t stop myself from changing my sight to Daren. I think my hands were shaking; I managed to fold them together to help stop my nerves. This always happened when anyone I found attractive remotely looked in my direction.

“Nichole, this is my second cousin Harry Styles,” Daren introduced. “Harry, this is Mark’s daughter, Nichole Lowry. I feel like I’ve done my part.” A sneaky grin placed on his lips as he walked away and into the kitchen where everyone else had congregated to talk and eat.

“Hi,” I breathed, my cheeks still burned.

He had his fairly large hands in front of him, folded, and a cute smile crossed his lips. “Hi... So, you’re an author?”

I nodded. “Yeah, sort of. I copy-edit for others right now.”

“What do you write?” he asked, seeming naturally interested.

An easy, big smile now replaced the nervous line I had moments ago. “Novels. All mostly YA mysteries and supernatural. I’ll basically write anything though.”

A devious smirk replaced his smile. “Do you write, like, smut and stuff?”

I wasn’t going to question why he knew something like that. There were multiple reasons, but it wasn’t my business.

I cleared my throat with a fake laugh. “You think you’re funny. Yes, sometimes, I do… What about you? You write music, right?” I was hoping to change the subject off of me. I’m not one to talk about myself.

He brought a hand through his hair. I could almost guarantee that he had a popping bicep underneath that bulky sweater. He looked like a fantastic hugger by his stature and demeanor. I’d love to be wrapped up in them. I averted my eyes back to his to avoid any further (dirtier) thoughts.

“I do. The lads and I are trying to make something of ourselves. Our working name is One Direction.”

“I’m sure you’re great! What’s your main genre?”

“Pop. A little mix of pop rock.”

I slowly nodded. “Nice, my kinda thing. Maybe I could hear a song or two some time?”

His face brightened up like a little kid’s on Christmas morning. “Yeah, of course, love.”

My heart fluttered at the word ‘love’. I bet it was something that he used a lot on the daily considering he was british, but it was just so soft and sweet. I couldn’t help the butterflies that filled my internal organs.

I noticed the mass of my family coming out of the kitchen and gestured to them. “Later then… I think we’re starting soon.”

“Okay. I won’t forget.”

I laughed. “Same. I’m gonna get a drink. Want anything?” I walked past him and headed towards the kitchen. For some reason, I just knew he’d follow.

I grabbed a wine glass from the kitchen and poured some of the rose wine my mom had already opened.

“I don’t know,” he replied.

I raised a brow. “How do you not know? Either you’re thirsty or not.” It came out a little more snappy than I had intended and I shot him a sheepish look. “Sorry. Are you thirsty? We have water. I know a couple beers in the fridge. Rose wine. A bottle of white somewhere. Uhm… We also have some sparkling juice I believe.”

He chuckled. It sent shivers down my spine. He rubbed his chin and it was now I noticed the rings he wore. God, those made the thoughts I was trying to suppress worse; I’ve only just met the guy, I needed to chill. But the fact he wanted to keep talking to me… Why?

“I think… I think I’ll have the rose.”

“You got it.” I reached back up in the cabinet on the middle shelf for another wine glass. The last one happened to be in the way back and I was having a hard time reaching. I felt something hard against my back and a hand lightly brushed mine before taking the glass. My face heated up furiously now at how close we were.

I turned around and looked up into his intense eyes. I couldn’t help glancing at his luscious lips then back into his eyes. I noted he did the same.

“Here you go,” he whispered, his voice a bit raspy, and handed the wine glass to me.

“Are you two coming?” Daren called.

I groaned internally. “Yeah, Schumaker, we are.”

Harry chuckled again. “He is quite annoying.”

“You are right on that one,” I remarked and poured his wine. I corked the bottle before I picked up mine. “Ready for some fun?”

He took a sip of his and tasted it thoughtfully, his eyebrows furrowing, “Yeah. How is it done?”

I smiled and went on to explain it. We all got a number out of a hat or bowl and went in that order. There would be a couple rounds of the starter gifts, and then once round of the large gift. Items were locked down after the round was officially over. Families sort of became smaller teams when it came to getting certain items; we had the rule that items could be stolen up to three times before it was locked.

He tapped his chin. “Okay… I think I have it. Are we on a team?”

That caught me by surprise. Usually, it was my two brothers, my mom, my dad, and I who are a team. When Daren came last year for his first Lowry christmas though, he just joined our team.

“Yeah, sure. Our team also includes my two brothers Leo and John, mom, dad, Daren, and I,” I stated, pointing them out from where we sat on the carpet. My parents had a thing for naming us kids after famous actors. Leo was named after Leonardo DeCaprio, John after Johnny Depp, and I was after Nicholas Cage. They thought I was going to be a boy, thus they only changed a couple letters and still got their way.

“Okay… Uhm, not sure what to take so just tell me.”

He was so freaking cute. He was both cute and sexy, he was basically a nuclear weapon.

I giggled.“It’s not rocket science. Take whatever. Don’t be afraid to steal, we’re all friendly here.”

He licked his lips. “You do know stealing is wrong?”

“Not here. It’s all part of the fun. Seriously, don’t worry about it.”

“Okay. Am I supposed to tell you what number I am?”

I shrugged. “You can. Everyone will know eventually.”

“Number twenty two.”

“Hey!” I exclaimed, lightly whacking his arm. “I’m number twenty one, and you’re the last one. We can tag team.”

“Alright, everyone knows their number and is ready?” my aunt Dianna asked, who sat over by the massive pile of starter gifts. She always went overboard every year; she thrift shops a lot.

“Yeah,” everyone chimed in on their own account.

“Okay, let’s get this started!” She clapped her hands.

***

I shook my right leg nervously. We were in the large gifts now; the final round of the white elephant. We had three rounds of the starter gifts. So far, no one had taken the gift I wanted to go for. An HP Envy 5525 printer. I knew which one it was because it’s one our family contributed. I didn’t know why. My mom knew I’d been needing a new one, yet she didn’t get me one for Christmas when it was one of the only things on my short list.

This was the sucky part of being the second to last person. The anticipation.

My cousin Jeremy was two numbers before me and my heart clenched when he went straight for it. Everyone ‘ooed’ after he’d revealed it, and it was now that I noticed other family members were interested. It wasn’t impossible for them to get it if they had the means. But Jeremy and his wife seemed to be smitten with the gift; it was a nice ass printer.

I looked down at my hands in my lap, then looked back up when I knew it was the next person; Leo. Suddenly, I had an idea. Subtly, I texted him. He gave me a short nod and I let out a breath. We’d always been a great tag team.

Leo stood up and walked straight over to Jeremy to grab it. Everyone ‘ooed’. And knowing he’d go for what Leo wanted, I’d steal from him when it was my turn. I watched as Jeremy went to take the FIFA games away from cousin David. Cousin David only laughed, eyeing all the presents. He decided to go for another large gift; there were only three left. It ended up being a toolset, which was up more his alley anyway.

My heartbeat quickened as I got up and went to Jeremy to take the FIFA games. There were ooo’s and laughs once again. I saw him look at Emily, his wife, and I mentally cursed. Jeremy took Emily’s gift and of course, she went to take the printer from Leo.

Leo looked around and I internally cheered seeing my family plan the next moves. My oldest brother John and my mom had worked together so John could get the weight set and my mom could get the running gear. Leo took the toolset from my dad, and then he took the printer from Emily.

I smiled widely, then frowned as she took, Jeremy’s mom, Nancy’s gift and in return she got the printer. Gah! It’s never ending! My dad looked at me and shrugged. I shrugged back. My dad went for one of the two last gifts. It was a movie, candy, popcorn basket; that worked for our whole family. It was two movies we already had though-- ‘We’re the Millers’ and ‘Battleship’.

I looked over at Harry. “Your turn.”

He looked at me thoughtfully and whispered, “You really want that printer?”

“Yeah, but you-”

Without hesitation he took it away from Nancy-- the last alliance for Jeremy’s side.

He plooped back down beside me and presented it to me.“You said stealing was okay.”

I laughed under my breath. “Thanks, but now you didn’t get a large gift. I’ll wrestle my dad for that movie basket.”

“No worries, love. Your smile is enough.”

The heat came up my neck again and I forced myself to watch the end as a distraction. Nancy just took the final gift. It seemed like the large gift round was always equivalent in time with the amount of rounds we did for the starter gifts.

Everyone who tag teamed switched their gifts around and all was right. Now, it was time for whatever before those who had to drive home did so. I might eat.

“I’m gonna heat up leftovers, want anything?” I asked as I stood up and straightened out the sweater.

He stood up as well and smirked. “I could eat, especially with you.”

It took a second for his words to click and I cocked a brow. “Did you just ask me out?”

“I did.” He chuckled. It vibrated in my chest.

“I’d love to.” I smiled before I headed to the kitchen.

Next: 2

[Masterlist]

#harry styles #harry styles fic #harry styles fanfiction #hs #hs fic #hs fanfiction #fic #fanfiction #short fic #zombies #zombie apocalypse #zombie apocolypse au #drama #comedy #romance

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