Ace (HS)

Hold On

NOTE: this is the happy ending, but if you want to just have it end at the last chapter then thats up to you!

***

Three days. Twelve hours.

Not that she was counting.

His eyes still burned through her mind like a reopened wound, aching with the painful longing even as she got ready for work in the morning. Her fingers slotted through her hair, which seemed to be rebellious this morning, the dark strands refusing to settle in the way she desired. Carmen huffed to herself, frustrated, and threw the comb in her hand at the mirror.

"I should just shave it all off," she mumbled to herself. Her eyes drifted away from her reflection as she collected her purse and apron, and ventured off to work. She decided to walk, since the restaurant wasn't that far away. Shortly into her walk, however, she realized that it was impossible to go even a minute without being reminded of her encounter with him.

The cars rushing by reminded her of the short and silent cab ride they had shared together.

The toddler holding onto his mother's hand reminded her of what she would never be able to give him.

It was like the universe itself was out to get her, to shove every insecurity and mistake in her face until she suffocated.

Finally, after what felt the longest walk of her life, she made it to Villa Parma. The restaurant wasn't nearly as busy in the morning as it was during the evening, which she was grateful for. Having a shift at night always took a toll on her. Waiting on old men who complained about the rawness of their steak, having to carry several dishes at once; it was stressful to say the least.

"Glad you're here," Barbara sighed in relief when Carmen entered the kitchen, tying the black apron around her waist. "There's a man at table four who is asking for you to serve him. Specifically you."

Carmen's slender fingers froze, the apron falling from her waist. There was no doubt in her mind who that man was, and it made her blood boil and the hairs at the back of her neck stand up in excitement and confusion.

"I, um... I will go serve him in a minute." Her teeth gnawed at her lip in angst. What was he here for? Did he want to say one last goodbye? Maybe he wanted to yell at her and give her the shit she deserved?

All these thoughts were racing through her mind as she retrieved her apron from the kitchen floor and tied it around her skim waist. Palms covered with a film of sweat, nails scratching at her wrists, Carmen inhaled a deep breath before straightening her spine, as if to gain the confidence she obviously lacked in the moment, and sashayed out of the kitchen. The buzzing noise around her seemed muted when her eyes landed on the face she had seen only days ago.

His hands were clasped together in front of him on the tabel, his knuckles protruding under the rough skin. There was the hint of a smirk on his lips, the corner of them twitching up as his jade eyes found hers. Harry's smug expression made her insides boil with anger. How dare he come here and smirk at her, when she was just moments away from falling apart.

"Morning," he was the first to speak when she stopped in front of the table he was seated at. His casualness only pushed her irritation over the edge.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed in a whisper. "You are supposed to be in London by now."

"That is no way to talk to a paying customer, miss," he hummed, his smirk etching further. He grabbed the cloth napkin and elegantly spread it over his lap. Her eyes instinctively flickered to his crotch as he laid the napkin over it, the ever present bulge not even barely concealed by the white fabric.