I'm at a loss for words as we sit in silence in Harry's car, now that we're at our destination. A flood of thoughts are coursing through my brain and I can't figure out which one I would like to voice first.

He said he wanted to drive me home, and got me to say I'd be alright with it, because he would drop me off at the path. And now we're staring at what is definitely not the path that we passed down the street nor is it my house. He tricked me because he didn't want to take me home.

I want to be mad. There is a part of me that wants to storm out of the car and go home because he lied to me. But another part of me knows just how stupid that would be, even though I still don't know why we're here, and he's lied for good reason.

I can feel Harry's eyes on me as I stare out the windshield, as if he's waiting for me to say something. He's waiting for me to yell at him for this, voice my opinion, say something. But the longer I sit here, the more I realize how grand this gesture is. Because like always with him, actions speak louder than words, and I understand why he's done this.

I let out a long breath as I look over at him. His eyes flick back and forth between mine as he stares back at me and all I can wonder is what he's thinking about. What is his plan, now that he has me here?

"Are you mad?" he finally asks after the long silence.

"That depends," I answer. "Why did you bring me to your house?"

"Can we go inside first?" he asks. "We can talk more in there — if that's okay."

I look between Harry and his house just outside the window, knowing that what lies beyond the door is uncertain. I don't know what to expect, but I don't think it could be any worse than going home, and I should be happy that he didn't want to take me there.

He has an idea of the things that happen inside the walls I live in, and I want to believe that in some way he's trying to keep me from harm, to protect me. And all I need to do right now is allow myself to walk into his open arms and let him do this for me.

The fact is, I am usually fairly stubborn and I want to be independent. I want to do things on my own, on my own time, in my own way, because I had to learn to do that so quickly, so long ago and now it's all I know. I've had a plan all along for how I've wanted my life to be, where I was going to go and when. No one else was in the picture for the last year, making everything easier. I could figure it all out on my own. Deal with it by myself. No one was meant to come in and change things.

But maybe it's time I let someone do something for me. Stop being stubborn and realize I can't deal with this all by myself. At least not all the time. I know that I've been in need of a break, not just an escape. And while Harry is the one who gives me the escapes I need, maybe I should let him also give me a break, whether it be big or small.

"This better involve some kind of food, since you threw my dinner to the birds," I tell him. I grab my backpack from the back seat and look over at him, to see that he has a relieved smile on his face as he looks back at me.

"Oh, there will be food," he laughs. "This I can promise you!"

I follow Harry up the steps of his front porch, my heart seemingly pounding in my chest as I watch him open the door and walk in. He turns around when he notices I'm not following. My feet unable to move for unexplained reasons.

His eyes meet mine, concern laced in his features. "It's going to be fine, Jayde," he says.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I question. "I think I should go home."

He steps out, grabbing my hand to pull me into the house and closes the door quickly behind us. "You're going to be fine here. I promise," he assures me. His eyes flick back and forth between mine as he squeezes my hand before pressing his lips gently to my forehead. 

He backs away from me, taking his shoes off and takes my backpack to place at the bottom of the stairs with his. "Mom, I'm home!" he calls out, walking back over to me. "Take your shoes off. Stay a while."

His mom comes from down the hall, taking our attention away from each other to look at her. She has a bright smile on her face as she approaches us. "Well, what do we have here?" she cheerfully asks as she looks at me. She turns to Harry, wrapping one of her arms around him and he leans in to kiss her on the cheek. "Have a good day at school, love?" she asks, looking at him.

"It was decent," he tells her. "You remember Jayde, right? From the other day?"

She smiles brightly at me again, nodding her head. "Of course I do. Very nice to see you again, dear."

"You too," I smile back, trying my hardest to not look too nervous. Sure, I have met her previously, but this seems official, and much less brief than last time, and I want to make sure I give off a good impression, but I haven't the slightest idea how to do that. 

I'm sure if you don't run away like last time, you're good.

"Would it be alright if Jayde stays for dinner?" Harry asks her.

"You want Jayde to stay for dinner?" she asks slowly, as if she's contemplating the words, stepping out of Harry's arm and looking at him seriously. I feel like they're having a conversation without saying anything as they look at each other, like he's telling her something that I'm clueless about. It's clear when another smile appears on her face, that she has understood this look on his face and instantly I feel out of the loop and more awkward than ever. "Alright, great. I hope you like chicken and spinach casserole, because that's the plan for tonight. How about a snack for now?" She looks between the two of us as I look at Harry with my eyebrows raised.

"We'd love a snack, wouldn't we, Jayde?" Harry says. "I thought you'd never ask!"

"Oh, shut up," she laughs, lightly patting his shoulder. "I give you a snack every day after school. Don't try to make me look bad in front of your friend."

They start walking down the hall, and I slowly follow them out of the foyer. I can't seem to take my eyes off of them, almost in awe of their relationship. His mom is sweet and kind and warm, just like I had thought she was the first time I met her, except exceeding my expectations more than I could have ever imagined, and I had only just walked in.

The kitchen is big with an island in the middle, large windows placed around the room nicely and opening up into a dining room. Everything is white and light grey, bright and spacious, with lots of cupboards, which beats my little kitchen with green counters and brown flooring by a million. Harry instantly sits at the island, which faces his mother on the other side, who is placing a bowl of fruit in front of Harry before she starts cutting up a block of cheese.

He pats the stool next to him, looking over at me still standing in the doorway, indicating for me to sit down, with a smile. "Where's Riley?" he asks. 

Silently, I move across the kitchen to sit next to him, taking in how perfectly they interact with each other. Everything they do, they do it with ease, the atmosphere feels so calm and comfortable — except me. I am far from comfortable at the moment, and my heart is still pounding hard in my chest.

"He's in the backyard," his mom answers, taking a box of crackers from the cupboard above the stove and placing a few on a plate with the now cut up cheese. "What would you like to drink, dear?"

Her eyes meet mine and she's still smiling and I don't know if I should say I'd like a drink or not. I'm thirsty because I'm so nervous, but I don't want to impose. "Oh, I'm fine for now, Mrs. —"

"Please, call me Anne," she interrupts. I'm glad that she did, because I'm just realizing I haven't got a clue what her last name is, remembering Harry talk about his step-dad. 

"Okay — Anne," I say nervously. She walks over to the fridge, taking out two bottles of water and sets them in front of Harry and I, even though I've just told her I don't need a beverage. "Oh. Thank you."

"I told you there would be food," Harry says, nudging my side. I look next to me to see that he's smiling, as he slides the bowl of fruit over to me. "Hey Mom, you know that assignment I was telling you about?"

"Which one?" she asks. "The one with a partner, for English class?"

"Yeah," he answers. "Jayde's my partner. I thought maybe Saturday we could all do something together. Spend the day — Dad and you and us, so Jayde can get to know our family for her report."

I swallow a strawberry hard, feeling it almost get stuck in my throat. He wants us to all hang out for a whole day? As if I wasn't nervous already, this just makes everything in me feel anxious. All Harry is getting is a dinner. How does that seem fair?

"Harry, we don't need to do that," I speak up. "All you're getting is a dinner at my house. We can just use the dinner tonight. I'll get what I need, I'm sure."

"One dinner couldn't possibly be enough," Anne replies with a smile. I know she means well, but now I feel even worse about the one and only dinner he'll be getting, because apparently it's not enough. "Saturday sounds wonderful, Harry. We will plan to do something for sure! When is Harry having dinner at your house?"

I sink in my seat as I look back at her. "My Mom has invited him over for Monday night," I tell her. "If that's alright with you, of course."

I already know that I don't need more than the dinner tonight to get what I need for my assignment. I haven't even been here for twenty minutes and I already know how wonderful this family is, and I would do anything to have a mother like Anne. One who greets me at the front door, who I could kiss on the cheek. One who gives me snacks after school and I could sit in the kitchen with and have a chat and laugh with and tell about my day.

As time passes and I listen to Harry make her laugh, and we chat while eating this cute little snack, I find that I can rest in a more comfortable place within myself. The conversation flows easily between the two and I like that they include me in the small talk, making sure that I'm at ease with them.

The envious feeling I had in my heart when I first walked into this house seems to deflate rather quickly. I know that there will always be a part of me that is jealous of anyone who has a good relationship with their mother, but I decide as I'm sitting here, eating strawberries and blueberries with a fork, that I'm going to take advantage of the fact that I'm not at home, locked inside of my room, listening to the yelling and glass shattering downstairs. Because as Harry rests his hand on my thigh behind the counter hidden from his Mom, I know this is exactly the kind of break I've been needing.

"We should probably go and do some homework," Harry says, when all of our snack is finished.

"Try and get it done before dinner, so we can watch a movie later," Anne says as we get up from our stools.

Harry and I don't say anything to each other as I follow him up the stairs, carrying our backpacks. I take in the pictures on the wall as we walk up. Harry's school pictures, him growing up, family pictures and Anne and Harry's step-dad, who I now know his name is Robin, and I will be meeting him at dinner. So many family pictures. So much love on just one wall.

He starts talking when we reach the top of the stairs, explaining the first room at the top is his parents room. We round the corner to walk down the long hallway, where he shows me where the bathroom is, Robin's office, and at the end of the hall, the spare bedroom and just outside of it, a reading nook. In the corner, on the opposite side are a few stairs and a door, which he opens. I follow him into the darkness, climbing more stairs, and when we reach the top, I feel like I've entered a whole different world. A completely different house.

Harry's room is the entirety of the attic. One side holds a bed, dresser and a desk with a laptop. A book shelf filled with books just beside the stairs. It's very clean and tidy,  well put together. And on the other side, he has a few guitars and amps. Music equipment that I wouldn't have a clue what he'd do with, with a desk that holds a computer monitor and a microphone. The are walls filled with band posters such as The Beatles, Radiohead, The Who and The Rolling Stones, among many others. A black love seat sits in front of the window, notebooks and crumpled up pieces of paper scattered over it. The two sides contrasting in such a way, it's clear to me that Harry has a lot more to him than I would have ever anticipated.

He starts to tidy up his notebooks and balls of paper on the love seat, stuffing it all into the drawer of his desk before looking over at me. "So, this is my room," he says. "And uh — make yourself at home. I'm going to be right back."

Before I can say anything, he walks down the stairs and he's out of sight. I hear him close to the door behind him on his way out and suddenly I'm alone, wondering how I'm supposed to make myself at home in a place I've never been in.

I walk over to the music side of the room to look out the window. The top of the hill at The Clearing is in perfect view through and just above the trees, and I can now see how Harry could see me from here when I went there.

It feels weird to be in the room in which he had watched me from. Wondering just how many times he had seen me there as he sat on this couch. How close he's always been, yet so very far, at a distance that could've determined how many worlds apart we used to be.

When I hear a text come through on my phone, I take it out of my purse to see who it is.

From: Carter
>> Hey, wanna hang out tonight?

To: Carter
>> Busy tonight. Sorry.

From: Carter
>> Really?

To: Carter
>> Is it really that surprising I have plans?

From: Carter
>> Yes. It is actually. You're usually always home. Who are you hanging out with?

To: Carter
>> Harry. And it's not like we're hanging out. We're partners for a project in English so we're working on it.

From: Carter
>> Damn. You got it bad for this guy!

To: Carter
>> Don't be an asshole! We really are doing homework. I don't have it bad for anyone. Stop it!

To: Carter
>> So, can I get a rain check on the hang out?

From: Carter
>> You don't need to lie to me, Jayde. lol  But sure. Rain check sounds good. I miss you.

To: Carter
>> Me too. 

"Who are you talking to?" Harry asks, making me drop my phone onto the couch, not knowing he was there.

"Oh," I say, picking it up, and putting it back in my purse. "Just Carter. He asked if I could hang out tonight."

"I hope you said no," he says, walking over to me.

I raise my eyebrows at him, unsure why he wouldn't want me to make plans for later tonight. As it is, I'm just staying for dinner and going back home. If I wanted to, I'd still have time to hang out with Carter later. In fact, I probably should have said I could hang out with him, so that I don't need to be at home if I don't have to be. "Why would it matter?" I ask.

"Because you're going to stay here tonight."

A/N: Sorry it's a little shorter than normal. But hope you enjoyed it, regardless of the size! ☺

It's official, I'm in love with his mom! Thoughts?

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