5.
Harlow closed the door and sank down to the floor, trying and failing to keep the tears at bay. That had been way too close. If Levi and Farlan hadn't shown up... well, she didn't want to think about that. Harlow took a deep breath and stood up with shaky legs, stumbling over to the bed. She pulled on her biggest hoodie and sank down with her sketch book. Thinking and drawing. It's what she often did when she was sad or depressed. She'd lose herself in her art, not even knowing what she was drawing until it was finished. When she looked down at the paper at the end it would either be a masterpiece or a shitty doodle.
Harlow stopped drawing for a moment to wipe her eyes, the tears were blurring her vision. Levi had kept her mind away from things when he was with her but now being alone, she couldn't help but go through what happened in her head. The fear. She hadn't missed the fear. But she also couldn't help but go through what happened after. Their conversation in the woods was the longest she'd had with Levi so far. He didn't talk much and neither did she. They hadn't talked directly since that day at the beach. If Harlow was honest, she had been avoiding him slightly. It scared her, the way he made her feel. How one look from his steel grey eyes sent bolts of electricity through her whole body. It was dangerous feeling that way. Being friends was a push, but a relationship was way over the line. Harlow still wasn't convinced how she had let the three of them in her lives. She didn't mean to, but it sorts of just happened. Isabel was very convincing.
A fat tear rolled off her chin and fell on to the paper, staining it. Harlow snapped out of her daze and looked down at the image. It only took her a moment before she realised, she had drawn a picture of Levi. Harsh jawline. Black hair styled in an undercut. Dangerous eyes. Porcelain skin. Yep that was Levi alright. But why had she drawn him? Harlow's head snapped up in panic as the door started opening. She forcefully closed the book just in time as Izzy came through the door and looked at her with a sad smile. Of course, the boys would get her. Harlow wanted to be irritated but she couldn't find the heart. Truth was, she really needed a friend right now. Harlow wiped her eyes as Izzy cuddled up on the bed next to her and let her head lean on the others shoulder. Izzy let her cry silently, knowing it was what she needed right now and rubbed her back comfortingly. All Harlow could think in the moment was how amazing this girl was and how lucky she was to call her a friend.
The rest of the day was spent curled up on Harlow's bed. The pair watched cheesy rom coms and horror movies late into the night. Izzy had asked if Harlow wanted to talk about what happened, but Harlow had politely declined. Luckily the redhead understood and didn't push her to talk. It was nearing 23:00 and the credits were rolling round to IT 2. Izzy had fallen asleep on Harlow's shoulder halfway through, while Harlow had no intention of going to sleep anytime soon. Her mind was way to high strung for that today.
Harlow shut her laptop and placed it on her bedside table. Carefully she moved Izzy from her shoulder onto a pillow, not wanting to wake her up and stood up from the bed. She looked out her window at the bright moon in the sky and decided she needed some fresh air. She would just have to be more careful this time. Harlow changed into a pair of black leggings, oversized blue hoodie, fluffy socks and her Ugg boots. She grabbed her sketch book and her pencils, shoved them into her shoulder bag which already held her camera and first aid kit and quietly opened the door, closing it behind her.
She quickly made it out of the building and into the gardens, marvelling at how the plants lit up in the moon light. It was like something out of a fairy-tale. Harlow took a few snapshots before making her trek towards the waterfall she had found one time. It would be perfect to draw tonight. And hopefully it would get her mind off of things. She knew one thing for certain; she was not going to let one asshole control her or her life. She spent too long getting over her previous fear, she wasn't going to allow a new one to form. Harlow smiled as she passed by a hedgehog scuttling behind a tree. Nature was always so relaxing to her, like a home away from home. It was almost as relaxing as her art.
Finally, she made it to her destination but was surprised to find herself not alone anymore. Lying down on some sort of jacket and looking up at the starts was none other than the man she had drawn in her sketch book a few hours previous. The same man that had been plaguing her thoughts. The same man that had just saved her from a few more years of pain and trauma. Once the shock of seeing him was over, Harlow smiled. She didn't know what she was feeling for this man, but she did know one thing. She felt completely safe around him and that was exactly what she needed right now.
Harlow eagerly closed the gap between them and gracefully fell backwards on to the ground, now lying beside Levi. She saw him shift slightly, in surprise, out of the corner of her eye before he laid back down and brought his gaze back upwards, where Harlow's was.
"I'm not stalking you." Harlow smirked, not looking at the raven. She heard Levi let out a puff of amusement.
"Really?" Levi replied in that low rich voice that never failed to send a shiver down Harlow's spine. She really did let this boy have way too much of an effect on her. Harlow chuckled ignoring his question, joining the stars up with her eyes. They were so bright out here.
"Their brighter here. I've never seen them this clear before. Not in London anyway." Harlow mused. Levi hummed in agreement. She didn't have to ask to know her three new friends were from her city. She knew how to spot Londoners.
"How's home?" Levi asked. Harlow smiled, she did miss London and it was clear the raven did too. Guess that was something they had in common.
"Loud. Busy. Expensive. But by God do I miss it. I haven't had a decent cup of tea since I landed in this shitty place." Harlow replied honestly. She thought she heard something like a small chuckle from the raven, but he managed to cover it up with a cough.
"Agreed. I'm not convinced they know what tea is. It's certainly not the watery shit they brew over here." Levi sighed, irritated. Harlow turned to look at him, glad she finally found someone who agreed tea was important and smiled widely.
"Exactly!" Harlow laughed; Levi smirked. They lay like that for some time, just staring up at the stars and enjoying each other's company. Eventually Levi broke the comfortable silence.
"Why are you out here, if what you said was true and you aren't stalking me?" Levi said teasingly. Harlow rolled her eyes and nudge him in the side. Only then did she register the question. She didn't really feel like telling the truth, but she didn't feel like lying either. Harlow sat upright and pulled her sketch pad out of her bag and looked towards the waterfall.
"I was going to draw that. The moon gives it a good light." Harlow bent the truth slightly. Levi also sat up and narrowed his steel gaze at her. Harlow gulped silently. It was like the man was reading her very soul.
"If you say so." Levi replied finally. Harlow let out a breath of relief. It was pretty obvious he knew she was lying but wasn't going to push. Harlow was grateful for that. She smiled to herself, flipping to a clean page and starting to sketch out the scene before her.
"What'd you do then?" Harlow asked, curiously. Not taking her attentions off of her work. Levi shifted beside her so he could lean on a tree and watch the waterfall.
"What do I do?" Levi said, confused. Harlow rolled her eyes and smiled. She was pretty sure Levi knew exactly what she was talking about.
"I'm sure Izzy told you I'm an Art major. If she didn't, I'd say it's pretty obvious anyway. So... what do you do?" Harlow explained, shading in a part of the rocks.
"Me and Farlan are P.E. majors." Levi answered. Harlow nodded in understanding. If they were P.E. majors, then maybe that was why they were able to beat up those guys so easily. Still, Harlow wasn't convinced. They seemed way too good at that.
"Izzy's a psychology major right?"
"Yeah. Next week's going to be a shit storm, they are making us all take fillers again." Levi said with a sigh. Harlow turned to look at him quizzically. "Fillers? They are stupid unimportant lessons like maths and English. Every 3 months our free periods are replaced with those classes. Fucking ridiculous if you ask me." Levi grumbled. Harlow sighed in agreement. She hadn't been told about these, but the raven was right. It did seem fucking ridiculous.
"How long do they last?" Harlow asked curiously.
"Around a month." Harlow scrunched up her nose in annoyance. She used her free periods to get all her art done. This was going to make her fall behind.
"What a bunch of bullshit." Harlow spat angrily. Levi sighed in agreement. They fell back into silence. Every now and then Harlow would catch Levi watching her draw and she couldn't help the smile that came to her face. Why she was smiling? She had no idea. After 40 minutes or so, her sketch was finished. She had debated halfway through whether to leave it just outlines and use colour back at her room but decided against it. It was a dark scene in a dark atmosphere. Black and white suited it well.
When she was finally finished Harlow smiled in satisfaction, stretching out her aching limbs and closing her book, packing it back in her bag. Her trip out to the forest had done her well. She was a lot more relaxed, maybe she would even get some sleep tonight. Although she knew it probably had more to do with the company than the activity. Levi's presence was very calming. When they did talk it was always easy and when they didn't the silences were comfortable. Harlow never felt any pressure or expectation to be someone she wasn't when she was with him. She stood up, shouldering her bag and looked down at Levi.
"Are you coming?" Harlow asked. Levi took a minute but nodded, standing up shaking his jacket of the dirt and sliding it on. They started walking side by side, back towards the dorms. "Why are you out here then?" Harlow asked. Levi tensed up beside her and didn't answer straight away. Harlow stayed silent; she didn't think the question was a difficult one, but she wasn't going to push. If he wanted to tell her, he would.
"I don't sleep well." Levi finally admitted with a small frown. Harlow could tell it took a lot for him to open up.
"Insomnia huh?" Harlow asked carefully. Levi looked at her, clearly debating whether to continue.
"Yeah." Levi said with a sigh. Harlow felt a pang of empathy in her stomach.
"My brother had it." Harlow said, the words slipping out so easily. When she realised what she did she snapped her jaw shut. Eyes widening with panic. Why did she say that? He's going to have questions now. Then he'll tell the others and they'll have questions. She was normally so careful around other people. What was different about this guy? She chanced a glance at the raven and wasn't surprised to find him eyeing her curiously with narrow eyes.
"You didn't mean to say that, did you?" Levi asked in a monotoned voice. Harlow found herself balking at him. Was he some sort of mind reader? Levi let out a puff of amusement at her reaction. "Don't worry I won't mention it again. But I wouldn't talk let anything like that slip around the others. They don't know when to keep their shitty mouths shut." Levi said, his voice slightly irritated. Harlow couldn't help the small smile that came to her face.
"Thank you." Harlow replied genuinely. Levi nodded as they got to the edge of the building. The girl's dorms were right next to the gardens while the boys were at the other end of the campus. This was where they had to part ways. Harlow couldn't help the dread that started to pool in her stomach at the thought of leaving the raven. Then she caught herself and mentally shook her head. She was being ridiculous.
"Guess I'll see you tomorrow brat." Levi said simply. Harlow smiled.
"Guess so. Goodnight Levi." Harlow started heading in the building, not expecting a response. Which is why she almost froze in surprise when she heard a, "Goodnight Harlow." In reply. It was the first time the raven had said her name and Harlow hated to admit she like the way it sounded on his tongue way too much.
