AN: I don't really care for this chapter but oh well...

Just wanted to say I love you and sorry it took me so long to update :)

~Alex

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Life finally came back down from its high after work that following Monday, my mind still reeling from the events of this past week. It all seemed so unreal that Harry and I were no longer friends. Although it had taken two months for us to actually start a relationship, it still felt too good to be true. Almost as if it could all come crashing down any day now.

The only thing Liam and I did today was talk about what a great week we had, relishing the memories for as long as we could. Even though the small getaway was incredible, I still missed being in my shop and seeing people walk into the store with smiles on their faces. I missed the sweet aroma of flowers that greeted me every time I opened the door or would walk past a wall full of flowers.

My grandmother always brought flowers to every event. Whether it be a birthday party or a small get together, she would always enter the room with a bouquet of flowers in her hand. I liked to say that she was the one who brought the happiness while other people brought the food and the drinks. She'd always bring me a yellow rose that she had picked from her garden before leaving her house. I cherished those roses and kept them until they were completely wilted and no longer had yellow on their petals.

I had just gotten back home from work, laying on my couch as my body relaxed. Harry hadn't been able to come to lunch with me, saying he had some things he had to do. I didn't ask any questions and instead, he promised to take me out to dinner. He wasn't coming over until eight and it was only five, so I had plenty of time to relax before worrying about getting ready.

My suitcase still needed to be unpacked and my apartment had collected some dust while I was away. Thankfully, my next-door neighbor had watered my plants for me like she always does when I'm away.

While I was cleaning my living room, I heard a knock on my door and immediately looked at the time, wondering if I had lost track of time while I was cleaning. Luckily, it was only half-past six, and I let out a sigh of relief. "Coming!" I yell once the knocking on the door gets louder.

"About fucking time," her obnoxious voice rings through my ears while her white teeth blinds me, "Hi, Rory."

"McKenna," I breathe, taking in her luminous blonde hair and honey brown eyes that I could already tell were judging me, "What are you doing here?" I ask as she brushes past me and walks into my apartment.

"I thought I'd come visit my favorite cousin," she says simply, her strong perfume invading my nostrils, giving me a headache, "This place looks like shit."

McKenna Greene. My cousin who always had something bad to say every time she opened her mouth. There was never a time when she didn't constantly put me down or make me feel bad about myself. She was the type of person who only thought about herself and nobody else. I never said anything though, wanting to be the better person.

"I just got back from vacation," I mumble, noticing the multiple suitcases she had drug in behind her, "I thought you were still in New York studying law?"

She rolls her eyes, chewing loudly on the mint gum in her mouth, "Law is boring. I thought I'd take a break and come stay with you for a month or so."

Dread passes through me as I think about the fact that she would be living with me for the next month. I had to grow up with her my entire life and Italy was the one place where I could escape from her clutches of judgment.

"Okay," I say slowly, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath.

She plops down on my couch, looking around my apartment, "I assume you live alone since you're still not over Niall. He's moved on you know. It's kind of pathetic that you still haven't," McKenna says, watching my face to see what my reaction was going to be.

All my life, McKenna has taken every guy I've ever talked to right out from underneath me. Anytime a guy would come up and talk to me, she'd steal him away with a bat of her eyes and a flick of her hair. Niall was the one guy she couldn't take away from me since I met him in Italy. College was the one place where she couldn't constantly drag me down.

McKenna was the type of girl every guy dreams of being with. With her long tan legs and perfect body, every guy fell at her feet. We were complete opposites when it came to looks and personalities. She had beautiful blonde hair, where I had plain brown hair. Her eyes were a gorgeous honey brown and her personality was as bland as bland could be. She thought that being pretty was a personality and so far, it has gotten her through most of her life without having to lift a finger.

"You can take the guest bedroom," I sigh, not wanting to get started on the whole Niall thing. She shrugs her shoulders before grabbing her multiple suitcases and disappearing into the bedroom around the corner.

This next month was going to be hell. I wasn't even sure how I was going to tell her about Harry. I haven't even told my family about him yet, wanting to keep him to myself for a little bit longer. It wasn't that I was ashamed of Harry, it was just that I knew they were going to want to meet him as soon as possible, and I wasn't sure if he was ready to meet my crazy family yet.

"God, Rory. You could at least try to put some effort into your appearance even though you're home by yourself. You look like shit," McKenna snaps at me once she returns from the bedroom.

I hum at her words, not saying anything that would cause her to continue her harsh behavior, "Okay," I say quietly, going back to cleaning to keep my mind off of her harsh words.

She starts rambling on about this hot Italian guy she saw at the airport, kicking her shoes off in the middle of the floor, "He was totally eye fucking me," she brags while she checks her reflection in the small mirror beside the front door, "It's no wonder I was always the pretty one while we were growing up."

"Yeah," I say softly, knowing it was the truth.

McKenna was always told how beautiful she was by everyone around her. Although my mother and father constantly told me how beautiful I was, I didn't believe them, knowing McKenna was the truly beautiful one. I grew up thinking that this was how it was always going to be. McKenna would always be right there over my shoulder, stealing all of the attention.

It wasn't until Niall called me beautiful that I even remotely felt that way. I almost cried the first time he called me beautiful, knowing that for once someone thought that I was. Even when Harry called me beautiful, it felt even more real.

"Uh, who is the artist and why can't he wait to see you?" Her voice interrupts my thoughts.

I look over to see my phone in her hand, a smirk playing on her lips, "It's nobody," I say quickly, snatching my phone out of her hands.

"You better tell me, Rory," she says, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Fine," I huff, "His name is Harry," I tell her without going into further detail.

"And I take it he's an artist?" She smiles at me.

"Yeah," I mumble, not wanting to meet her eyes, knowing they were filled with eagerness. I knew she was going to do everything she could to take him from me just by the way her voice sounded.

What troubled me even more was knowing that beautiful things attracted Harry, and McKenna was undeniably beautiful. His eyes would go straight to her and every bone in his body would be drawn to her. I would be left out of the picture once again.

"Excuse me," I mumble, quickly walking away. I closed my bedroom door behind me before letting myself slide down the door, my breathing coming out in short breaths.

My mind went into overdrive as I thought about all of the bad things that could happen if McKenna met Harry. She would do everything she could to take him from me, whether it involved simply batting her eyes at him or drawing him in with her words. She had a way of taking whatever she wanted and she never failed.

"Let me help you get ready," McKenna's voice says from the other side of my door, "You need all the help you can get anyways. The second he sees me, you're done for."

I squeeze my eyes shut, blocking out her words the best I could. I reach up and lock my door before standing up, "I'm just going to get ready on my own," I tell her through the door.

"Fine. I'm going to get ready myself," she says before I hear her walk away. I groan, face planting onto my bed. This was not how I wanted this evening to go.

It only took me around forty-five minutes to get ready, my mind racing as I wondered what was going to happen the minute I opened that door to let Harry inside. It was only five minutes until Harry would be here and I could already hear McKenna pacing in front of the door.

"That's what you're wearing?" She asks me as I take in her short skirt and tight top, revealing way too much.

I look down at my simple short pink dress, shifting nervously back and forth on my wedges, "Yeah."

"At least your hair looks good. You should probably put on more makeup. Mascara and lip gloss isn't going to cover it," she laughs sarcastically.

"I think I look fine," I tell her while I place my purse over my shoulder.

A knock on the door puts us both on edge and McKenna lunges for the handle, opening it to reveal a casual looking Harry. I smile once I see that he was wearing a yellow shirt, a bouquet of white daisies in his hands.

He looked so beautiful in yellow, the color suiting him better than anybody. I knew he probably wore yellow for a reason. The same reason I had worn pink tonight.

"Oh, sorry. I think this is the wrong apartment," Harry says with a confused look on his face.

"No, you've got the right one," McKenna smiles at him, biting her bottom lip as she looks him up and down. I'd never seen eyes drool before until now and I knew I was a goner, "Come inside," she says, stepping aside as Harry walks past her.

"Is Aurora here?" He asks, his eyes scanning the room until they land on me. Relief washes through me as his eyes instantly light up, a wide smile appearing on his face.

"Hi," I smile at him, enjoying the way McKenna's face was filled with rage and shock.

He takes me into his arms the minute I'm within his reach, gently placing a soft kiss to my lips. His normal jasmine smell fills my senses while I curl my fingers into his hair, "Hi," he smiles back at me, "I missed you today."

"I missed you too," I say before pressing another kiss against his sweet lips, still tasting like mint and sugar. My lip gloss was now covering his lips instead of mine, making his lips look even shinier than normal.

"Who's the blonde?" He whispers against my lips, causing a small laugh to leave my mouth.

"McKenna, this is Harry. Harry, this is McKenna," I take a step away from Harry, motioning towards McKenna, "She's my cousin."

"Nice to meet you," Harry says, kindly sticking his hand out to shake hers.

"You too," she says slowly, shock and rage still etched onto her face. She quickly regains herself, pulling her already short skirt farther up her thighs, "So, Harry. I hear you're an artist," she bites her lip, taking a step closer to him.

Harry notices her small action, raising his eyebrows as he quickly glances at me. I shrug my shoulders, enjoying the way McKenna was embarrassing herself, "Um, yeah. I am," he clears his throat.

"If you ever need a model," McKenna smiles at him, "I'll gladly be one for you."

"Oh, um. That's not necessary," Harry says, taking a step back as she continues to inch closer towards him.

"We should get going," I say, placing my hand on Harry's arm.

McKenna shoots daggers at me as Harry and I walk towards the door. I hold back my laughter as I push Harry into the hallway, peaking my head back into my apartment. "Have fun, Ken," I wink at her, feeling Harry tugging on my waist as small giggles begin to fall from his lips.

"Fuck. You," she snaps before I close the door, Harry and I giving into our fit of laughter.

We hold our stomachs as we both laugh together, tears forming in our eyes as we think about the embarrassing moment we had just been in.

I now knew that there was nothing to be afraid of, Harry quickly seeing straight past her beauty and to who she truly was. There was nothing to be worried about all along.

Beauty may be his weakness, but it was the beauty within that truly made him fall to his knees. A beauty that only a certain amount of people possessed. And to Harry, I was one of those people.