AN: Okay so I feel like last chapter was kinda boring so there's some drama in this chapter :) Please admire this beautiful cover made by alwxys_lou. I literally love it so much.

Love you all so much...

~Alex

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"I invited Liam and Louis over for dinner tonight. Would you want to stay?" Harry asks me as we casually walk back to his apartment hand in hand, my hair still in tiny little braids adorning white flowers.

"Well, I was kind of hoping I could stay the night again," I mumble softly while snuggling deeper into his cardigan, the air becoming colder as the sun drifts into sleep so the moon could take over.

He chuckles softly, sending me a quick glance, "Even better."

In all honesty, I felt as if I practically lived with Harry at this point. It wasn't just the fact that I didn't want to go home to McKenna, it was the fact that I felt safe in his arms and I slept better when I was snuggled up against his chest.

"What were you planning on fixing?" I ask him.

"I was thinking we could make our own pizzas. Lou and I used to do that with our families when we were younger," he smiles brightly.

"That sounds lovely."

My family was always rather strict on what we're having when it came to having guests over. My mother never liked to be simple, probably because she owns her own restaurant and her standards were set too high. My father on the other hand could care less about what we were eating as long as it didn't kill him.

I'd come to realize that although Harry was nowhere near a simple person, he still acted as if he was just a simple man who never did anything exciting with his life. I felt like I could be myself and remain calm around him instead of constantly being on my toes. Things came easily yet with anticipation which was just how I liked it.

"So are you ever going to tell me what you're saying when you speak in French?" I nudge him slightly with my elbow, the curiosity of what he's saying practically spilling from the edges of my mind.

For all I know he could be saying he hates me and I'm the ugliest person he's ever seen.

"We'll see," Harry hums softly and I playfully roll my eyes, coming to a halt and causing him to do so as well, "What are you doing?"

I lift the camera up and take another picture of him, "Staring at you."

"How cheeky."

"Only for you."

He shakes his head as he laughs softly, a chilly gust of wind swirling around us and carrying the sweet melodic laughter of Harry away, "Vous êtes parfait, n'êtes-vous pas?"

"Okay, seriously?" I roll my eyes at him, "Don't even bother speaking in French if you're not-"

"I said 'you're perfect, aren't you?'" Harry cuts me off while my mouth is halfway open.

My cheeks heat up from his words and I smile shyly, "I'm nowhere near perfect."

"To me you are," he says sincerely and I can feel my heart deciding to skip a few beats here and there, "Now come on before we're late for dinner...at my own home," Harry adds with a chuckle as he tugs on my hand, causing us to continue walking down the street that led to his apartment.

People once again stared at Harry, their eyes widening at his beauty. I found it rather amusing and adorable. The fact that Harry's beauty was so obvious to other people yet he was completely unaware of his own beauty. I somehow felt enlightened that he only felt beautiful around me, the thought that I could make him so good about himself causing me to feel like I've achieved something.

Liam and Louis were waiting outside of Harry's apartment door when we arrived, our heads bent in conversation as we laughed about something Harry had just said.

"Well that explains why you're late," Louis smirks as he crosses his arms and raises his eyebrows at us.

"Sorry, Lou," Harry mumbles, detaching himself from my side to unlock his door, "We got carried away and lost track of time."

Liam sends me a look and I narrow my eyes at him, bumping him with my hip as he opens his mouth to say something, "Let's talk in private," I whisper as we walk into Harry's apartment, the warm air instantly warming my freezing legs.

Louis and Harry are talking in front of us as they lead the way to the kitchen, "Did something happen?" Liam whispers back to me quickly.

"I'll say," I mumble, recalling the arrangement of roses and small card hidden in the pink petals.

"So, Aurora," Louis says loudly, throwing his arm around my shoulders as we all stand in the kitchen, "What makes you think you can keep Harry out so late, hmm?" He winks at me before pressing a kiss to my cheek.

I laugh softly, leaning into his side, "I'm sorry, Lou. We were having fun."

"Oh, I can tell you two were having fun by the way Harry can't stop smiling," he says with a knowing grin, causing Harry's cheeks to flush red as he was getting out all that we needed to make pizzas.

"Okay, Lewis. Stop embarrassing them," Liam says while grabbing his hand and pulling him away from me.

I chuckle softly before walking over to stand beside Harry, overhearing Louis say he hates the nickname Lewis, "You can't stop smiling, huh?" I poke his side gently, eliciting a startled laugh as he jumps slightly, "Someone's ticklish," I raise my eyebrows as I poke him again.

"Stop!" He laughs, swatting away my hand and pulling me against his chest, "And what can I say? You know that you make me happy."

"I don't think you've ever said that before, actually," I joke, kissing the tip of his nose.

"Oh, I haven't?" He grins, squeezing me a bit tighter. He leans down and brushes his lips against mine.

I completely forget that Liam and Louis are in the room as Harry kisses me softly, our bodies pressing hungrily against each other as I tug lightly at the curls framing the nape of his neck. Butterflies swarm every nerve in my body and I realize that what I was feeling simply wasn't butterflies. Butterflies were too simple of a feeling - of a word. I needed something stronger that correctly depicted and explained how I felt when Harry kissed me, touched me, or even looked at me.

Electric?

No. Too basic and didn't seem strong enough.

Blissful?

That still didn't seem strong enough to correctly explain how Harry made me feel.

I wasn't too sure I would ever be able to describe the way Harry made me feel and the unimaginable joy I felt whenever I was around him.

"Uh, guys. We're still here," Louis clears his throat and I'm thrown back into reality as Harry and I quickly separate, our breathing erratic and lips swollen and red, "Holy shit that was hot. Almost makes me wanna be straight," he adds with a wink and I feel my face flush blood red.

"Hey!" Liam smacks his arm and I laugh nervously, adjusting Harry's cardigan I was wearing and wiping my mouth with the back of my hand.

"Sorry about that," Harry says, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly as he shifts back and forth on his feet.

Louis waves his arm in the air, "It's fine. Liam and I did that once at my office and now my assistant won't let me hear the end of it."

"How about we get started on making the pizzas," Liam suggests and we all agree quickly, my stomach rumbling softly as I remember I hadn't eaten anything yet today.

Harry and I would be sharing one while Liam and Louis would be sharing one. A bottle of wine had been opened by Louis and he poured us all a glass. Soon enough, the kitchen was filled with warm laughter and entertaining conversations.

"You seriously don't remember Becca Grier cornering you in the stairwell and kissing you your freshman year?" Louis asks Harry with a laugh and I raise my eyebrows, wondering how a young Harry felt about someone forcing him into a kiss.

He shakes his head, laughing as he pushes a stray curl away from his forehead, leaving a streak of flour from the dough we had been kneading, "I try not to remember traumatic experiences."

"I recall hearing you gag about how she used tongue," Louis laughs and Harry erupts into a fit of laughter, "Any traumatic kissing experiences for you, Rora?"

"Hmm..." I mumble, trying to recall my childhood years, "Well there was this one time I thought I was going to have my first kiss in high school, but the boy, Dillon Edwards, burped right in my face and I swear I've never smelled anything so horrid," I shiver at the memory, laughing a bit as I remember I practically ran away.

The three of them erupt into a fit of laughter at my story, Harry kissing the top of my head, "That must've been horrible."

"Not as horrible as being forced into a kiss," I raise my eyebrows at Harry, not really finding the story of someone cornering him and kissing him against his will all that amusing.

"It was a long time ago," Harry shrugs his shoulders, "and besides, I had a small crush on her anyways. So it wasn't like it was unwelcomed."

I only hum at his words, still not liking the fact that the kiss was not consented.

"I personally have had no traumatic kissing experiences," Louis brags and Harry rolls his eyes.

"Don't lie. You came crying to me one day because you tried to kiss a guy on the football team and instead you ended up kissing his sweaty armpit," Harry says with a smug expression and Louis immediately throws a handful of flour at him.

"Shut up, H," Louis hisses at him while Liam doubles over from laughter, holding onto his stomach as he struggles to take deep enough breaths.

"And don't get me started on the time you kissed some random guy at a party and then proceeded to throw up on his shoes," Harry adds with an evil wink in Liam's direction.

Louis' face turns red from embarrassment and he throws another handful of flour in Harry's direction, "I said shut up!"

"No don't!" Liam laughs. "Tell me more."

"Oh I've got loads," Harry smiles, opening his mouth to say more but I cut him off by pressing my finger against his lips.

"I think that's enough of embarrassing Lou for one night, baby," I raise my eyebrows at Harry who only presses a kiss to my finger.

"Thank you, Rora!" Louis smiles triumphantly, kissing my cheek again, "I'm starting to think that I should make you my best friend now."

Liam and Harry both gasp playfully, Liam taking my hand and pulling me towards him, "No way. That's not happening. She's mine."

"I thought she was mine," Harry huffs before taking my other hand and pulling me into his chest.

"So you don't care that you'll no longer be my best friend?" Louis says shrilly and I can't help but give into a fit of giggles.

"Boy, boys. You're all pretty and we're all best friends. Can we go back to making our pizzas now?"

After a few more seconds of playful glares, we finish kneading our dough and desperately struggle tossing it into the air, Harry and Louis being the more skilled ones since they've been doing it since they were young. Liam and I stood back and watched as they bickered over who was doing it the best, which in reality, was neither of them.

It was all heartwarming as I stood in the kitchen alongside my three best friends, reveling in the way their laughter bounced off of the walls and surrounded me with warmth and happiness. The stories we told as we made our pizzas never ceased to elicit laughter from all of us, leaving us breathless and distracted from our task of making food.

Once we had added all of the toppings we wanted, we placed our pizzas in the oven and all sat around Harry's bar with a glass of wine in our hands, "You're so boring, Rora. Only cheese and pepperoni is so bland." Louis says before taking a sip from his wine glass.

"I just don't like all of those toppings. It becomes too much," I scrunch my nose up a bit, "and Harry only adds cheese, pepperoni, and peppers. That's only three things."

"Yeah...but the peppers add more flavor," Harry adds and I narrow my eyes at him, nudging his foot with mine.

"Exactly," Louis nods his head and I roll my eyes, standing up from my seat.

I give Liam a certain look and he slightly nods his head, understanding what I meant, "I need to talk to Liam for a second " I smile at Harry and Louis before pressing a kiss to Harry's cheek, "We'll just be a minute."

They don't say anything as we leave the kitchen and instead engage in their own conversation, barely noticing that Liam and I had left. I drag Liam into Harry's bedroom and softly shut the door.

"What are we doing in here?" Liam asked and I motion towards the arrangement still sitting on the nightstand, "Oh."

"Yeah...oh," I sigh, walking over to the nightstand to pick up the small card.

"So that was Maria in the shop yesterday?"

"Yep."

"You met Harry's ex?"

"Yep."

"Holy shit."

"Yep."

"Can you stop saying yep and open the fucking card?" Liam rolls his eyes and we both sit down on the edge of Harry's bed.

I turn the small white card over in my hands, my stomach becoming queasy as I imagine what could possibly be written on the inside. With shaky fingers, I open the card and let my eyes read the neat handwriting.

Harry,
It's been awhile. I've missed you. I've changed during these past two years...and I realized that I still love you. I know you're with someone at the moment, but please...come back to me. I love you, H, and I always will. You don't have to let me know right away. Thank you for not opening this until we've parted ways after lunch. Just know that I've changed and I love you. I love you.
- Maria

"Holy fucking shit," Liam gasps and I stare blankly at the words on the paper, "Aurora, babe. Are you okay?"

Was I okay?

At the moment, I don't think I am.

"She...she still...loves him," I whisper quietly and finally turn my head to look at Liam, "What if...what if Harry still...loves her?" Scratch that, Harry does still love her. How couldn't he?

Liam hangs his head, taking the card away from me and placing it back into the roses, "I don't know what to tell you, Rory..."

"I should call Niall."

"Aurora, don't go running back to him just because you think Harry's going to leave you. You're obviously in love with Harry and he's obviously in love with you. Can't you see that?" Liam says sternly.

There were times when I could see it and when I couldn't. For instance, today. He had been so loving and warm, kissing me and touching me every spare chance he had.

Then there were times where he was distant and I'd catch him zoning out with a longing look in his eyes. Almost as if he wished Maria was in my place.

"We should be getting back," I mumble, quickly standing up.

Liam grabs my arm and pulls me back down on the bed, "You need to talk to him about this, Aurora. Please don't brush this off like it's no big deal."

"Okay...I'll ask him," I say half-heartedly, having no intention of actually doing so. Of course, Liam knew I was lying, but he only sighs in defeat, "We really should be getting back."

This time he lets me go and I rush out of the door and into the bathroom down the hall, sliding my back against the door until I touch the ground. My mind seemed to be in overdrive at the moment, trying to process what all Maria had written.

I wondered what Harry's reaction had been when he read the card. Had he sighed in relief knowing that she still loved him? Did he want to go back to her? Or did he completely brush off her words? Did he decide he wasn't going to put himself through the torture of wondering if she actually had changed?

"Flower?" Harry's soft voice calls from the other side of the door, "Are you in there? The pizza is ready."

"Yeah...um...I'll be right there," I say quickly, taking a few deep breaths and planting a forceful smile onto my face before I stand up and open the door.

Harry stands in front of me with a worried look in his eyes, immediately reaching out for me and pulling me against his chest, "You're not okay, Flower. Tell me what's wrong," he says and I sigh as I realize he's seen right through me - as always.

"I don't think I want to talk about it right now," I mumble as I close my eyes, "I'm sorry, it's just...the same thing as last night. I'm just not ready to tell you yet."

"I understand, baby. I just wish you'd stop pretending like you're not okay. You're not weak for showing your true emotions. If anything, it shows how strong you are that you'd allow yourself to be so open."

I nod my head slightly, feeling him press a kiss to the top of my head. I wanted to tell Harry what was wrong and I wish he'd tell me what was wrong.

But we all can't live in perfect realities.

"Harry?" I ask him softly as I recall what I was struggling with in the kitchen.

"Yes, my darling."

"I have another question for you," I breathe, running my hands down the length of his back, "How does it feel when I kiss you or touch you? I've been trying to find the right word to describe it, but nothing seems...strong enough."

He remains quiet for a few moments, soothingly rubbing my back as he thinks, "It feels like..." Harry hums softly, "Paris in the rain."

Paris in the rain.

I'm thrown back to the time when we first met three months ago, the painting of the couple kissing in the rain being my favorite one out of all of them. And although I've never been to Paris or felt the energy and atmosphere in the air when it rained, I realized that that was exactly how it felt when Harry kissed me or touched me.

It felt like Paris in the rain.