Perilous (Harry Styles)

chapter 17

"A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity."

- Dalai Lama

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"Zoey! Wake up, sleepy head!" Harry screamed into my ear at the crack of dawn.

The bed dipped up and down, nearly throwing my body in the air.

It felt like an earthquake and I would be scared to death if it wasn't for the fact that I could see Harry jumping on my bed like a little kid.

"Harry, what the hell? The bed's gonna break." I meant to say it fiercely, but my voice came out muffled due to my face being hidden in the pillow.

"I think your bed is fine, it has survived much worse." Harry plopped down on top of me, his raspy voice close to my ear.

"Go away, I'm still on my period," I warned.

"But Zoooeeeeyyyyy," Harry whined, stretching my name like bubble gum.

"No," I stopped him curtly.

"Why you gotta be so rude?" He half-sang, half-shouted, a laugh following his words.

"You're the rude one. Waking me up at 5am," I complained, still not opening my eyes.

He nuzzled closer on top of me, his chest firmly pressed to my beck. "It's 6:52am, to be exact. My alarm clock goes off in 8 minutes, which means we still have some time to cuddle."

"You woke me up at basically midnight to cuddle?" I asked doubtfully, praying this was all just a dream.

"Are you aware that you have to practice getting up early now?" Harry suddenly asked.

I lifted my head to finally look at him, the position uncomfortable for my neck. "What? Why?"

"Well, if you get that job at the hospital, there's a 50% chance that you will get early shifts and I think they start at 6am."

I sat up straighter, pushing Harry off me. He fell back down on the mattress next to me. "Seriously? I'm taking my application back."

"Most jobs start early in the morning. School starts early in the morning as well," he pointed out.

"Yeah, at 8am," I groaned, emphasizing the time.

"You're so grumpy in the morning," Harry pouted, pushing my hair out of my face.

"You're far too cheerful, what's wrong with you?" I shot back. My head fell on my pillow again and I sighed in relief, releasing the tautness in my neck.

"You need to surround yourself with positive things," Harry wisely said.

"Now you basically said I'm positive," I laughed, grinning smugly at him.

"Eh, whatever. Are you going to take a shower with me?" He asked.

"I don't know. Am I?"

Harry made the decision for me. "Yes."

"But it's 7 in the morning, I don't need to take a shower now. I can sleep in, you know."

"If you take a shower with me now, we'll go to the cinema once I'm home from work. And I'll take you out for dinner before the movie starts. You even get to choose."

That sounded like a fair compromise. "I'm in."

Harry clapped his hand triumphantly. "I knew it. Any suggestions yet?"

"Nope, I'm gonna take a look into the program once you're gone," I told him, throwing my warm blanket aside.

My feet hit the cold laminate when I padded over to my closet, retrieving some comfy clothes to wear.