Chapter 26 ~ Hannah

“Come on, I’m waiting,” he says with a cocky smile and his arms folded over his chest, his eyes are smiling as well. The pleasure this moment gives him is so evident and I’m not sure whether to laugh or curse under my breath.

I can’t believe I’ve lost, but at least it was by a hundred points only. He didn’t crush me that would have been more humiliating than asking him out. Still, I can’t make myself say the words out loud and I’m not sure why. Yes, this is embarrassing and everything, but I guess what scares me the most about this new situation I’m in, is the fact that I want this. There’s a part of me that wants to go on a real date with him.

I take a deep breath and close my eyes for a second, just to give me the strength I need to do this. “Harry Boy-band,” I say and his smile is wider. “Would you like to go on a date with me tomorrow?” I can’t believe I’m doing this. Screw the honour!

“Hmmm…” he mumbles and I look at him with eyes wide open. He’s got to be kidding me. I swear if he rejects me… if he made me ask him out just to decline it I’ll– “I’d love to,” he finally says before I finish that line in my mind and I can’t believe I’ve been holding my breath all this time.

“Idiot,” I blurt and he laughs, he even bows.

“Why thank you, milady. What plans do you have for our lovely date tomorrow?” Harry takes a step closer but I turn around and start walking to the entrance. Soon I feel him next to me and I’m awfully aware of his proximity.

“I won’t tell you. And who knows?” I turn to look at him with a mischievous smile on my lips. “It may even include a pink car.”

His eyes shoot wide open and I laugh as I resume my walking towards the door, contented with myself that he has stayed behind for a few seconds before he rushes to catch up with me. Like that, with a promise of a date and the fear of a pink car, we leave the arcade.

* * *

As I’m the one taking Harry on a date, I go to pick him up. When I told Savannah about this she couldn’t stop laughing. She ended up on the floor, crying actual tears. After that, her whole body was sore. Now Harry is her new idol because he got me to do this. I’m sure she is the happiest about all of this. She has wanted me to go out, to make new friends, to live my life for so long but she never succeeded and now Harry is doing what she always tried to do.  Harry is probably making me do things that I didn’t even do when Mum was alive.

When I told Dad that I am going on a date he choked on his coffee. His expression was a mix between surprise and incredulity. He hugged me and for a moment I thought he was going to cry. I went on dates before this, but he never reacted this way. Maybe it’s because now he’s the only parent I have. He even asked me if we needed to have ‘the talk’. I didn’t answer; I just left the house.

Everyone is overreacting. It’s a simple date, probably more harmless than any other activity. I’m taking Harry to a place where romance doesn’t come naturally, but something tells me he has never gone to a place like this and most certainly not for a date.

I don’t have any romantic interest in Harry –despite what that inner voice of mine says–, however, I want to impress him, taking him to a different place. A place he will remember.

I’m waiting for him outside my car, resting my weight on the door when I see him approaching me. He’s wearing his brown coat, a scarf hangs from his neck and there’s no beanie hiding his curls, as they move rebelliously against the cold wind that blows this afternoon. He stops in front of me, his smile cheeky and playful as he puts his hand on my waist and before I do anything else, he kisses my cheek slowly and tenderly. By the time he steps back, my heart is hammering in my ribcage and I feel my cheeks burning bright, which he notices because he smiles wider.

“You look lovely today,” Harry says raising his hand to brush one of my locks behind my ear, consciously stroking my skin. “Shall we go? I can’t wait to find out where you’re taking me. Now I get why girls like to be asked out. The intrigue is so thrilling!” I laugh at him softly and he only winks at me.

“Let’s go before we freeze to death,” I tell him opening the door for him and he looks at me falsely surprised. I can’t believe we’re doing this. We look so stupid.

I drive without telling him our destination, no matter how many times he asks me to confess. I know he’s intrigued and he looks around trying to figure out where I’m taking him, but by the furrow of his brow I know he has no clue. When I park, he is staring at me with confusion written all over his face.

“Where are we?” He asks and I smile proud at myself. He has definitely never been here before.

“We’re at an animal shelter. I thought it would be good to help a bit. Who knows, we may even end up being volunteers. Do you like animals, Harry?”

At the beginning I see surprise and still a bit of confusion, but then he accepts this is not a regular date and if he was expecting romance, all that he will get is the love the animals here can give him.

“You never cease to amaze me, Hannah Morgan.” I smile proudly before we get out of the car and walk inside the shelter.

There are a few people inside, two girls behind a desk doing paperwork and pending till the phone rings. I approach the blond one, she is probably in her thirties and she has this kind look that makes you trust in her immediately. The badge on her jumper says Sally. “Hi, I’m Hannah. I called this morning,” I tell her and she smiles happily.

“Oh yes, we’ve been waiting for you and your friend. Doctor Charles is inside with a new patient. He will show you everything and tell you how to help. Thank you for showing interest, Hannah.”

I nod and turn around to look at Harry. He’s kept his distance so I hold my hand out for him until he takes it and ignoring the flip my heart does in my chest when he curls his fingers around my hand, I start walking in the direction Sally pointed before.

We walk down a hall until we get a room clearly sterilised where a man around thirty-five is petting a small ginger cat. He hears us and turns around to look at us, stopping petting the cat that immediately stirs and meows to demand more attention, making the doctor chuckle.

“You must be Hannah,” he says with his attention on the ginger cat again. “I’m Charles, the vet in charge of this shelter. He must be your friend, Harry.”

“Nice to meet you,” we both say and he nods in our direction.

“Come here,” he calls. “We received her yesterday in the morning. Someone found her on the street wandering and brought her here. She’s healthy, but she’s been alone on the streets for a few days already. You can tell by how skinny she is,” Charles explains to us and we approach the table where he has her, purring like a train.

I notice that I’m still holding Harry’s hand but I don’t feel uncomfortable, in fact, it’s quite agreeable to keep contact with him like this. I pet the orange cat and she moves closer to me immediately, looking at me with big green eyes and meowing when I stop.

“Now she looks for a home where someone will love her. Like many other animals here, they only want a bit of love in return.” I look around and I don’t see anything, but then I spot a door at the right with a small window and on the other side there are cages. “What we do here is take animals that have been abandoned or from people who can’t keep them anymore. We take care of them until new owners appear. We keep them fed and healthy.”

“And what can we do?” Harry asks and I look at him for a second, his green eyes showing real concern.

“There’re many ways to help. You can work as a volunteer here, sometimes only to take the animals to play a wee bit. To give them a bit of love. You can also take some animals in for a short period of time. That’s called being a temporary owner, this mostly happens after the animals have been violently mistreated as a way to rehabilitate them. And of course, you can donate money.”

Harry nods and I smile because I see how interested he really is. “May we see the other animals?” he asks and Charles smiles delighted.

“Of course, but we can’t leave this princess alone, can we?” He answers pointing at the ginger cat. But before he can say something else, I take her in my arms releasing Harry’s hand and my heart flutters at the sight of such a small creature in my arms, comfortably finding her place there, purring even louder. “She really likes you,” Charles states and I smile, feeling the emotion constricting my chest. “Shall we?”

We nod and follow Charles through the door into the room with all the other animals. Harry is next to me and sometimes he looks at me with pride and sweetness in his eyes. I smile back at him all the time.

There are many animals there, some of them look so happy when they see us, some of them look scared and so weak. Charles tells us all their stories and some of those make me cry. I can’t help it. Harry holds me in his arms more than once when the unfairness of some animals breaks my heart. In all that time, I never let go of the ginger cat in my arms and she’s sound asleep already.

The shelter receives all kinds of animals and the job they do there is amazing. By the end of our tour, Harry and I enrol to be volunteers at the shelter. Harry decided to donate money every month as well and not only to this shelter, but to many others. We don’t only end up with a commitment to the shelter, but I also take the ginger cat with me. I just couldn’t leave her behind, plus, my therapist told me a long time ago that cats are really good when you’re depressed as they absorb all the low and sad vibes.

“I’m happy you brought me here,” Harry tells me when we’re in the car. This time he is driving as I have the cat in my arms. “And I must admit, I’m in love with that little ball of fur on your lap,” he adds and I giggle. He’s not the only one. “What are you gonna name her?”

“I dunno,” I reply honestly, still petting her. “Any suggestions?”

“What about Hope? I think that coming here is all about hope. How there’s always a bit of hope for everyone, even animals that have suffered that much. You clearly are hope for her, hope of a better life.”

I look at him with a warm feeling in my chest, impressed at his words and the passion in his voice. He’s right, there’s always hope, even when everything seems dark and lost, there’s hope.

“Hope,” I whisper looking at the kitty on my lap. “It’s perfect. Thank you, Harry.”

He only smiles at me before focusing on the road again, his left hand is on the gear lever and as a sign of my gratitude, I take his hand and squeeze it gently, realising that he has brought hope to my life, too.

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It's Sunday in my country, which means it's @sdurham6's birthday and the dedication goes to her. Have a lovely day!

Bel, xx