Friend Zoning Harry Styles

Protection and rejection

---Emily's POV---

I stood there in the pantry closet for a bit. I knew Harry had left... but I was too frozen in shock to move. I had no idea that Harry felt that way. He just confessed everything, his feelings for me, how he regrets making me feel horrible, how he still wanted me... The boys probably could tell this was going to be awkward. I could hear shuffling outside of the door. 

"Well, I'm going to go home." Louis said after a few minutes of silence. The sound of metal clinging together could be heard as he picked up his keys. 

"umm, I'll walk out with you," Zayn spoke up. The sound of his boots hitting the floor echoed around my surroundings. Now it was only Liam and Niall on the opposite side of this door. They wouldn't make it so awkward. I could handle seeing them. 

I placed my hand on the doorknob. The cool surface was smooth against my palm. Taking two deep breaths, I twisted to doorknob, opening the door completely. Niall was standing infront of the stove, his weight leaning against it. His arms were crossed as he looked down at his feet. He knew I was out of the pantry now, but he didn't look up at me. Liam was at the table still, his now empty plate right in front of him. 

I walked towards the table and grabbed Liam's plate, along with all of the other dishes that the boys left behind. I turned on the sink, the water rushing down from the faucet was cold to the touch. Turning the knob towards the warm side, I placed the dishes on one side of the sink. 

"You don't need to do that. I'll get it." Niall's whispering voice caused me to turn and face him. He was still looking down at his feet. Something was bothering him. 

"I can do it, it's the least I can do for letting me stay this one night," I offered. He looked up at me in a confused way.

"Well, I better go. I'll bring Danielle back later so that she can go shopping with you. Bye Emily. See ya later Niall!" Liam yelled out as he walked towards the door. The sound of a door opening and closing filled the kitchen. Now it was just me and Niall.

"You're staying here Emily." he whispered. 

"I can't impose on you like that Niall. I'll find a place to stay." I shook my head. I couldn't let the boys spend money on me, and I couldn't butt into Niall's life like this. It was too much of a burden. 

"Emily, You're staying here and that's final." My eyes widened at his order. "If that bastard decides to come back at you, I want to be there... he won't touch you again I promise you that." All I could do was nod my head. From the sound of his tone, there was no ifs, and, or butts, about it. 

***

The rest of the day was movies, twitter, and more movies. Niall kept making jokes, and finding other ways to take my mind off of Brandon. I really appreciated that. At the moment, I was waiting for Danielle to show up. We were going to the mall to buy some necessities and some clothes that I could wear. The boys didn't want me going back home to get anything. Not even Charlie. I missed him so much and the thought of never seeing him again broke my heart. He was like my baby. 

"You okay?" Niall whispered into my ear. He was sitting right next to me on the couch as we watched movies. The warmth of his body bringing me comfort. I looked up towards his bright blue eyes. They were heart warming. I sighed. 

"Yeah, it's just that... it was so scary Niall." My eyes began to tear up. Flashes of Brandon's fist coming down and making contact with my face ran through my mind. The only reason he stopped was because Isabel held him back, and even at that, I could tell he wasn't finished. 

"Hey," his voice bringing me back to this earth, "You're safe now okay? Nobody will hurt you. Paul will be there during your shopping,  No one is going to get anywhere near ten feet to you." He assured me. I gave a small smile and nodded.