~Cassidy~

A few days later, I was sitting alone at home, reading a book on my bed. I glanced around my room. It was nothing special. Dark blue with a white bed, and two matching dressers and a nightstand. I hadn’t done too badly…for someone like me, I guess.

It was really cloudy. The whole state was on a hurricane alert, there was no surfing allowed on the beaches, and we’d already begun to receive a bit of rain. The hurricane itself was moving very slowly, continually inching closer to us, but we hadn’t felt the brunt of it yet, which was good. I was so afraid of storms.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. I groaned and rolled over, burying my face in my arms, but the person at the door continued to ring it. Damn, it was annoying.

I sat up and straightened myself out. I was wearing a fitted white t-shirt with sweatpants, and was sporting bare feet, but who really cared, right? I’d known people in this neighborhood well enough, and I even had a few friends…who would’ve thought, right? I barely saw them nowadays though, what with all of the competitive swimming.

“I’m fucking coming!” I yelled as I skipped down the steps two at a time. I cursed as I slipped on the last one and fell flat on my ass. Groaning, I got up and made my way over to the door, wrenching it open.

“What?” I snarled.

Shit, it was that guy again. The British dude. I rolled my eyes but took in his appearance nonetheless. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt like I was, and black skinny jeans, even though it was really hot and humid out. A star-spangled bandanna pushed back his curly hair, and I snorted lightly.

“Whoa,” he said, taking a step back, “Sorry.”

“You should be,” I said, crossing my arms.

He chuckled, and I just sighed, blowing a wisp of dark hair from my eyes, “Can I help you?”

“Right,” he cleared his throat and looked me in the eyes, and I found myself glancing away a little longer than I usually would have, “I just came by to apologize again. About your shirt.”

“Whatever,” I scoffed, my hand finding its way to the door, ready to end this conversation, “Like I said before: it doesn’t really matter.”

“It should,” he insisted, and fuck, he was really starting to get on my nerves.

I held up my hands, “Dude! Fine!”

Without another word, I turned away, leaving the door wide open. I could tell he was confused, but I just strutted into the kitchen, opening the fridge and pulling out a large carton of cranberry juice. Smiling wickedly, I held it behind my back, opening it, and walked back out to the front entrance. The guy still stood there, looking quizzical, but he relaxed when I reappeared.

Then I tightened my grip on the cranberry juice and swung it at him, spraying his white shirt with red. He looked down in shock as it seeped down the cottony fabric, and I rolled my eyes. Get over it, dude, it’s a single shirt. I’m sure you have more.

“There,” I said, and I glared at him challengingly, “Now we’re even.”

Without another word, I closed the door in his face.

~Harry~

I stood there, shocked, staring down at my now reddish t-shirt. For a moment, I was speechless, but then I began to laugh. My lips curved up into a slow smile before I began chuckling lightly. Before I knew it, I was doubled over, clutching my stomach and fighting to breathe. This girl really was a piece of work.

And I still didn’t even know her name.

Finally, I wiped my eyes and managed to stand back up straightly, still emitting breathy chuckles. I glanced at the door that she’d swiftly closed in my face, sniggered once more, and then turned away, hopping back down the steps and crossing the lawn to where my own house stood. I’ll admit, when I first moved in, I found it a bit overwhelming; this neighborhood was a bit ritzy, and I even considered screwing it and moving back to England.

But then I’d bumped into her.

Maybe this move wouldn’t be as bad as I thought.

A fruity smell lingered around me, and I could only guess that it was her scent.

I entered my house and kicked off my shoes, making my way upstairs and pulling off my shirt as I went. I glanced down at the tattoos that littered my body for a moment before something in my back pocket vibrated. I realised it was my phone, and quickly fished it out from the sea of denim, answering it while I made my way into my room.

“Hello?” I said.

“Harry?” I immediately recognized Matt’s voice, and a wide smile broke out on my face.

“Matt!” I said, grinning. I held the phone to my ear while I threw my dirty shirt onto my bed. Sitting down on the edge of my bed, I said, “How’ve you been, mate? I’m so excited to be here.”

“I’m excited that you’re excited, Haz,” Matt chuckled, and then moved onto the topic that I’d been expecting, “I really want to thank you for doing this. It’s really going to help her.”

I waved away his gratitude, “It’s really no problem. I’m getting to improve on my swimming, so it’s a win-win situation really.”

Matt paused, “Just…don’t take anything she says to heart. She’s not the easiest person to be around, trust me.”

I stood up from the bed, staring around my room. The walls were red, with a single window beside my bed. There was a crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling and I only had my bed with a black duvet occupying the room, aside from a single dresser that I’d managed to move in all by myself. My guitar was in the corner, but that was it. I would get to the nightstand and all of the other essentials later on.

“What do you mean?” I asked, making my way over to the black dresser, where I pulled out the top drawer and rummaged through, eventually bringing out an identical white V-neck t-shirt, like the one I’d been wearing before. I pulled the phone away from my ear so that I could slide it on, but when I brought it back, Matt had just finished saying something.

“Sorry, what?” I asked, and he said again, “Just trust me. She can be very rude and full of attitude when she wants to be.”

“Is she fit?” I asked, and Matt made an offended noise, “Dude! You can’t ask me that! She’s basically my sister!”

I laughed, adjusting the bandanna in my hair, and walked back over to my bed, standing in front of it. I could almost hear Matt’s smile through the phone. “Still,” I insisted, “She’s got to be fit, right?”

“Well,” Matt sighed, “She’s got so many guys interested, and the funny thing is that she doesn’t even realise it. All she cares about is swimming; she’s not letting anything distract her. She wants this really bad, bro.”

I nodded, putting my hand on my hip, “Don’t worry about anything Matt. I’m sure I’ll be able to handle her.”

“Trust me Haz; I wouldn’t be too sure about that. You have no idea how stubborn, hot-headed and rebellious she can be. It’s actually unnatural, I’ve never met anyone like her,” Matt told me.

I laughed, “Matt, you make her sound like she’s Godzilla spawn or something.”

“You know,” Matt sounded inquisitive, “That actually wouldn’t surprise me,” we both laughed at that before he continued, “But I love her anyways. She’s actually really awesome; you just have to crack her shell first.”

“Crack her shell?” I teased.

“What?” Matt acted offended, “What did I say?”

“Nothing,” I laughed, before I thought about something, “And don’t worry about her being a lot to handle. I recently was introduced to my new neighbor. That’s what I call a piece of work right there.”

“Piece of work?” Matt teased, imitating me.

“What?” I put a hand to my chest, scoffing, “What did I say?”

Matt chuckled, and I turned around, facing the window in my room. I hadn’t put any blinds up yet, and I had a clear view of the window in the neighboring house right beside me. If I peeked into the room, I saw that it was blue, and I had a clear view of the white door that led to the other parts of that house.

I was about to look away when a small movement in the room caught my eye. The white door’s knob jiggled, and I watched with interest as my neighbor strutted in, rolling her eyes and collapsing on her white bed. She reached for a book, and flipped it open, and began reading with interest.

I should’ve been looking away; if she turned her head only a fraction she would be able to see me. But I couldn’t. I studied the side profile of her face. Dark, wavy hair, brown eyes, slight freckles, a cute, perfectly shaped nose, and pink, full lips. She really was something to look at, and I didn’t mind looking at her one bit.

“Did you hear me?” Matt asked, disturbing my thoughts. I turned my attention back to the conversation, but I was still looking at her.

“What?” I said blankly, and he chuckled before turning serious.

“I just have one request,” he told me sternly, and I nodded. Even though Matt was only a year older than me, I still listened to him and abided by his rules, because they were often important and for the well-being of as many people as possible.

“Yeah,” I said, clearing my throat, still staring at the girl, “Of course. What is it?”

Matt was silent. I was just beginning to think that the call had become disconnected until he finally sighed and said, “Don’t fall in love with her.”

The request took me by surprise. I was speechless for a moment, my mind going blank, not knowing how to respond, before I finally processed it. I smiled lightly and chuckled, shaking my head, and closing my eyes briefly before flashing them open again to stare at the girl in the window.

“Don’t worry,” I said slowly, smiling faintly, my gaze never leaving her, “I’ve kind of got my eye on someone else.”

Notes

Hello, lovelies! I hope you liked it!

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Random fact: The number '4' is considered unlucky in Japan, because it is pronounced the same way as 'death'.

~Stay beautiful~