#Niall Horan | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

harrywavycurly · 1 day ago

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Handle With Care: Sunshine and Citrus

Masterlist: Here

CW: Language, miscommunication, jealousy Harry and one brief mention of your ex and angst like hella angst.

Tag List: @gmikaelson @ell0ra-br3kk3r @tulips4harry @mellamolayla @mads3502 @empathyroad @idk199o @sassamanda77 @maudie-duan @macy-tpwk @namoreno @coralferrio1 @stylesftcher @mema10 @cherryloveshs @umadirectioner @styleswithaseaview @sunflower-tia @fangirl509east @howling-wolf97 @outofthisworl-d @triski73

A/N: There’s only one more part left in this mini series and I am so sorry in advance but just know this does have a happy ending so just hold on okay? 😅

Summary: Harry is on a mission to show you he’s not an asshole but little does he know you’re also on a mission of your own✨📦

Harry feels all the knowledge he has about flowers, as little as it may be begin to slip away as he stares at the multiple bouquet options that are in little black bins right in front of him. For the life of him he can’t seem to remember the color of the flowers he ruined when he ran into you coming off the elevator almost a week ago, so he’s struggling to even know where to start in his efforts to replace them. He chews on his bottom lip as he scans his options for the third time, his eyes landing on an arrangement that has different hues of orange and yellow tulips with the smallest bit of red from a few roses tucked in as well.

A small smile slowly spreads across his face as he reaches for it because it reminds him of all the colors of a sun and if anyone deserves to have a bouquet of flowers that look like the sun it’s you. The girl who smells like pure sunshine and flowers rolled into the perfect mixture with a hint of something fruity, a smell Harry found himself missing so much he even went as far as trying to recreate it with candles and an odd room spray he found at a home decor store and while he likes the way they smell, nothing compares to the real thing.

“Thank fuck you finally picked something we’ve been here for ten bloody minutes staring at flowers like a pair of weirdos.” Niall’s statement of annoyance snaps Harry out of his thoughts as he rolls his eyes at Niall rant, having momentarily forgot he was even standing next to him the whole time he was staring at the bouquet options.

“Why are you even here?” Harry asks as he heads towards the checkout counter so he can get the flowers wrapped up in paper with some string.

“Because we both know you’ll somehow manage to ruin this whole thing if you do it alone.” Niall states as he looks at the roses next to the checkout counter while Harry just lets out a scoff as he places his bouquet on the counter for the nice woman to ring up.

“I’m more than capable of picking flowers for someone you tw-”

“You’re like an overgrown toddler Harry. Always making a mess of things that should be simple especially when it comes to her.” Niall cuts him off making Harry’s cheeks get warm at his words that even though they may be true doesn’t make them hurt any less. But when Niall looks over and sees Harry just rubbing his lips together he lets out a sigh and gives him a harsh pat on the back. “But don’t worry H m’not gonna let you fuck it up this time.” Niall says trying to reassure him as Harry smiles at the woman as she hands him the bouquet that’s been beautifully wrapped in white paper and some ribbon that’s tied in a nice bow.

“Good luck honey. I’m sure she’ll love them.” Harry feels his face get warm at the woman’s kind words and all he can offer in return is a tight lipped smile and a nod before he turns around and heads out of the store with Niall following behind him.

“Why won’t you just let me give you her number so you can better arrange this whole thing?” Niall asks as the two of them begin to walk the short distance back to Harry’s apartment complex.

“I already told you why.”

“Okay yeah but what if-”

“I don’t want to hear any what ifs okay? I want to get her number myself because I want to make sure she actually wants me to have it and that’s the end of it. We both know if I just text her she’s way too nice to tell me to fuck off so I’ll never know if she wanted me to have her number or not.”

“I get all that Harry I really do. But what if she’s out of town for a week and you leave these on her door and they’re ruined by-”

“Niall.” Harry stops walking so he can turn to face his friend who is usually always trying to look out for him but in this moment he’s not doing much besides annoying him. “I don’t care if she’s out of town for a month the point is she will see that I tried and that’s all I really care about right now. I need her to see I’m not an asshole.” He explains with a sigh as he runs his hand that’s not holding the flowers through his hair. Niall just nods and turns his head in the direction of Harry’s complex.

“You gonna leave a note with the flowers or just drop them off like a secret admirer?” Niall questions with a raise of his brow as he looks back at Harry.

“Fuck no I’m not just dropping them off are you insane?I’m not letting some random asshole take credit for my flowers.” Harry answers making Niall laugh as the two of them start walking again.

You rub your lips together and try to fight off the nerves that are beginning to creep back up as you stand in front of Harry’s apartment door, the pep talk you gave yourself in the elevator long forgotten as you rethink your whole plan. But before you can give yourself anymore time to possibly back up and turn to head back down the hallway to the elevators you raise your hand up and knock on the door. Not trying to be nosey or be seen as a creep to anyone that might glance out of their peepholes or come out of their front doors, you just stand there and do your best to listen for footsteps or any signs that someone is home but after a solid two minutes of silence you come to the conclusion no one is going to answer.

The sigh that you let out if a mixture of relief and also disappointment, having texted Niall asking for Harry’s apartment number so you could try to talk to him about the other night when he showed up at your door talking about zaps and a party but ended with you accidentally hurting his feelings. As you turn to make your way towards the elevators you begin trying to work through what exactly he was talking about when he mentioned feeling a weird static like shock every time you touch him but you’re certain that if something like that was happening to him then you’d have to feel it as well and yet you haven’t, not even once. But most importantly you begin to wonder why you can’t seem to just let the whole thing go, why you can’t just forget about the tall tattooed man who’s been nothing but mean to you since you met him minus the one time he showed you an ounce of kindness when he was drunk standing in your door at one in the morning.

“Why does he have to be so cute?” You mumble to yourself as you step into the elevator. “Like really cute.” You add with a sigh as the doors close and you press the number for your floor. All of a sudden you feel annoyed with yourself for letting Harry’s looks get in the way of the fact he’s not nice nor does he seem to be interested in you, because even when he knocked on your door to invite you to his party he only did it on Niall’s behalf and hours after the party even started meaning he didn’t really want you there.

“He doesn’t like you. So we are letting him go.” You say with a firm tone, you nod at your reflection in the elevator door just before it opens up on your floor. “He doesn’t-” you are about to repeat your new mantra but the words get stuck in your throat as you look down the hallway and see Harry bending down to leave a bouquet of flowers on the welcome mat outside your front door while Niall stands off to the side with his back against the wall.

“Jesus Harry you writin’her a damn novel? Just sign the card and let’s go. I’m hungry.” You hear Niall’s voice from down the hall and you instantly look around for a place to hide so neither of them see you, deciding you don’t really know if you’re ready to be face to face with Harry yet since just a few moments ago you were ready to swear him off and now he’s suddenly leaving you flowers.

“Oh fuck off you’re always hungry.” You hear Harry’s voice snap at his bestfriend and you feel your cheeks get warm at how deep it is but you don’t have time to wonder if he’s always sounded like that or not because you then hear them begin to walk towards the elevators because Niall’s keys he keeps on his belt loop begin to jingle with each step. Quickly you dart into the stairwell and thank your lucky stars they don’t opt to get in some cardio and choose to use the elevator instead.

“You think she’ll like them?”

“I mean yeah why wouldn’t she?”

“Because I don’t know? What if that’s the kind of flowers she hates? Or what if she’s allergic to them or-”

“What happened to not wanting to hear any what ifs?”

“You’re such a twat.” You cover your mouth with both hands to stop yourself from letting out a laugh at Harry’s choice of insult and to keep yourself from audibly awing as he voices his worries about if you’ll like the flowers he picked for you.

“Yeah yeah whatever at least m’not in-” You don’t get to hear the rest of Niall’s sentence due to the very obnoxious sound of the elevator doors opening. You chance a glance through the small window on the door to the stairs and let out a sigh of relief when you see the doors to the elevator have closed and the arrow shows they are heading down.

“Just because he left flowers doesn’t mean he likes you.” You repeat over and over again in your head as you quietly exit the stairwell and begin to slowly walk down the hallway towards your front door.

“Love, Harry.” You whisper to yourself as you hold the card from the bouquet of tulips and roses that are in a yellow and white polka dotted vase on your kitchen counter.

It’s safe to say you’ve been staring at the flowers and the card that was tucked inside them ever since you picked them up off your welcome mat two days ago. It’s also safe to say you have been doing everything humanly possible to not run into Harry since then because you just don’t know what you’d say to him. You’re trying to figure out what exactly it all means, because if you wouldn’t have heard Niall complain about how long it was taking Harry to write the card you never would’ve thought something so sweet could be written by him, the man that usually is extremely short and snarky towards you.

“Tried to pick some that reminded me of you. Hope you like them and they make you smile. I really like it when you smile.” You read aloud hoping that saying the words out loud and not just in your head it’ll help you uncover the secret message that you feel is hidden somewhere within the three simple sentences. “He likes it when I smile?” You question while placing the card down next to the vase.

“Doesn’t mean he likes you.” You remind yourself as you turn to go into the living room, ready to get comfortable on your couch and decide what you want for dinner before starting a movie. Right before you sit down you hear three loud knocks on your front door making you raise a brow because you don’t have plans with anyone tonight and you haven’t ordered anything to be delivered. When you get to your door you look through the peephole and you feel your eyes go wide at who you see standing on the other side.

Harry tries not to let the idea that you’re avoiding him enter in his mind as stands outside your door after his second round of knocks. He thought you moving into the same complex as him would make it easier for him to run into you but he’s quickly learned that’s just not true. Much to his disappointment he hasn’t even gotten a whiff of your floral and sunshine scent in the elevators and he finds that extremely odd because usually it lingers long after you’ve left the room. So naturally that has him convinced that you just haven’t left your apartment recently or you haven’t been home, but when he sees the flowers he left on your doorstep two days ago are gone he knows you’ve at least been home in the last forty eight hours. When he reaches up to knock one more time before giving up he hears what sound like locks being undone so he takes a small step back to give you some space once you open the door.

Now Harry swears he’s not one to really believe in the whole love at first sight thing, thinks it’s silly and probably just a really hearty dose of lust getting mixed up with love. But something about the way your eyes almost get a whole shade brighter when they meet his has his knees wanting to give out and his mouth to hang open as he tries to come up with something, anything to say since he is the one who knocked on your door after all. He finally feels a brief moment of clarity when your eyes break away from his and travel down to the box in his hands.

“Uh hi Harry what-what are you doing here?” He hates how unsure of yourself you are as you cross your arms over your middle as you stand in front of him in a pair of bike shorts and a pink and purple tye dye shirt. He knows it’s his fault that you don’t know how to act around him, he’s the one who can’t seem to get it together around you but that’s also the whole reason he’s here.

“I got these for you.” You look down at his hands as he holds the box out for you and that’s when you get a good look at the picture and label on it, it’s a dish ware set that looks like the ones he broke when he dropped your box. “Sorry if they aren’t the exact same as the ones you had I looked everywhere for-”

“You didn’t have to do that.” Harry feels the corners of his mouth fall a bit at your words, he absolutely did have to do this because he’s the reason you don’t have plates and bowls but he knows you’re just trying to be nice per usual.

“We both know it’s the least I could do.” He counters making you just rub your lips together as you take the box from him.

“But you didn’t do anything right? Nothing happened?” You repeat the same words he snapped at you with when you confronted him after you watched him drop your box, but to his surprise there’s a smile on your face as if you’re teasing him.

“You know that’s the uhm-only box I’ve ever dropped.” He admits with warm cheeks making you quirk a brow at him as if you don’t believe him. “Really out of all the moves I’ve done over the years your box of dishes is the only casualty I’ve ever had. I had a perfect track record.” He explains making you let out a light chuckle as you shake your head.

“Sorry I ruined that for you.” You apologize as you look down at his feet that are once again covered by his scuffed brown boots.

“You didn’t ruin anything.” It’s the way he says it that has you swallowing nervously as you dare to look up at him and you almost have to take a step back at the intensity of his stare. “I’m sor-”

“It’s okay.” You don’t want to hear him apologize right now because you’re not sure you’d be able to keep yourself together if he does it while he continues to look at you as if you hung the moon and all the stars. Harry just runs a hand through his hair as he nods his head but he doesn’t turn to leave like you assumed he would, instead he takes a small step towards you and reaches out to gently tuck a strand of hair behind your ear.

“I uhm-sorry I just you had-a hair.” He stumbles over his words as if his tongue doesn’t know how to help him form proper sentences. Meanwhile the spot on your cheek his knuckles lightly skimmed when he brushed the hair behind your ear feels as if it was stung by a bee but without the pain, leaving behind a warmth and slight tingling feeling.

“Are you okay?” Harry asks a few moments later when concern replaces his earlier embarrassment, he bends his knees a bit so he’s eye level with you as you stare off into space with wide eyes and pink cheeks. You don’t know how to answer him, because inside you feel all warm and tingly but your mind is cloudy as if it’s stuck in a fog and can’t find its way out leaving you unable to do much besides just stand there staring at him.

“Uh-uhm I think-” Before you can finish your sentence Harry is grabbing the box just before it hits the ground having slipped out of your hands in your dazed state. “Thank-thank y-you.” Normally Harry would be flattered at someone getting so tongue tied around him but in this moment all he’s feeling is worried as he looks you over and realizes something isn’t quite right.

“Let’s get you off your feet okay? You look like you’re about to pass out on me.” Harry takes your small nod as his permission to softly put his free hand that’s not holding your box of plates on your shoulder so he can quickly maneuver around you and walk into your apartment. He rushes over and places the box on your counter, only briefly catching a glimpse of the flowers he left for you sitting near your sink in a vase before he’s back at the door standing behind you.

“Sorry it’s uhm just me.” He whispers when you flinch at his touch as he places his hands on both your shoulders so he can help you turn around so you’re now facing inside your apartment with him close behind you. “Let’s go to the couch okay love?” He suggests before he takes a step so he’s now by your side and kicking your front door closed with his foot, his eyes don’t leave your face as he drops his hands from your shoulders so he can wrap an arm around your middle so he can help you walk since he can tell your legs seem a bit wobbly.

You feel like you’re floating as Harry practically drags you to your couch, a trail of warmth and tingles left everywhere his hand touches you in the process. Right now it’s your hip he has a firm grip on and it’s sending the tingling sensation right down to your knee almost making you take Harry and yourself out but luckily he manages to get you to the couch before that happens. Your heart is beating so fast you think it’s going to explode as Harry sits on the edge of your coffee table right in front of you so he can get a good look at you.

“Are you okay? Do you need-”

“Why-why’d you get me-me the flowers?” Your words are rushed and jumbled but Harry understands you because you watch him turn and look towards your kitchen where they are sitting on your counter.

“I just want to fix what I broke.” He answers when he turns back to look at you, he wishes so badly he could have an inside look at what’s going on in your mind because the way you’re staring at him has him thinking you’re about three seconds away from kicking him out or you’re about to start crying and in this moment he’s not sure how well he’d handle either option.

“They remind me of sunshine.” You whisper as you place a hand on your chest and try to help clam yourself down a bit. Harry feels a grin take over his face as you tell him the exact reason why he picked that arrangement in the first place.

“They reminded me of you.”

“Sunshine?”

“Yeah.”

“What does that mean?” You question making Harry let out a deep breath as he tries to ready himself to explain evening to you.

“From the moment you opened your apartment door I haven’t been able to get you out of my head and a massive reason for that is because you smell just like sunshine and flowers and-”

“It’s called sun washed citrus.” You correct him making him quirk a brow. “It’s my body wash. It’s called sun washed citrus not sunshine and flowers.” Your words are less mumbled as you begin to gain a little bit more control of yourself. Harry chuckles and nods as you blink at him a few times and he’s honestly not even sure you’re really understanding what he’s saying but that doesn’t stop him from continuing on.

“I was mean to you and I’m sorry. I swear I’m never like that-I’m a nice guy but I think I just knew you were too good or too nice for me from the first time you smiled at me.” You watch him slowly place a hand on your knee and you feel grateful that you’re already sitting down because it sends a tingling jolt down to your toes. “I didn’t want to hurt your feelings or make you upset and I’m sorry that’s all I’ve seemed to do but I think I realized the real reason I just can’t get my shit-”

“Stuff.” You interject making him laugh as he gives your knee a little squeeze.

“Sorry. I know why I can’t get my stuff together around you and it’s because I uhm-well I uh I really like you and it’s got me all messed up.” Harry tries to focus on how much lighter he feels after admitting he likes you, as if the weight that’s been holding him down ever since his party has been lifted off his chest. But he also can’t stop himself from trying to get a sense of how you’re feeling about the words he just let slip out, and right now he really can’t tell because you’re just staring at him with big eyes and a blank expression on your face.

It’s not until Harry removes his hand that’s on your knee so he can use it to run through his hair that you begin to feel the fog lifting from your mind allowing you to think more clearly. You try to register everything he just said to you, the fact he likes you and how he really seems to enjoy how you smell but you can’t make sense of how his feelings for you had him acting like a complete jerk. So with a clear head and a full control of your limbs you push off the couch making Harry quickly stand up and hold his hands out for you to grab just incase your knees give out of your legs feel wobbly still.

“I don’t think you really like me Harry.” Of all the things Harry was prepared to hear you say that sentence wasn’t on the list. He gets a sinking feeling in his gut as he watches you look down at the floor. “You don’t treat the people you like the way you treated me. Thank you for the flowers and the plates that was very nice and-”

“I’m sorry I’m-I’m so sorry for everything I did and said to you I never wanted to hurt you I just-”

“But you did.” When you look up from the floor Harry feels like he’s been punched in the gut, your eyes are glossy and the very tip of your nose is turning a light shade of pink as you sniffle a few times. “I know you’re sorry and I do forgive you for everything but I don’t think you did all of that because of how much you like me. We aren’t in junior high anymore Harry we aren’t mean to the people we have crushes on.” Your words hit him right in the chest as you move away from him and towards your kitchen.

“I’ve seen glimpses of the nice guy you say you usually are but then you just turn right back into this jerk and I’ve already dated a guy who treated me like dirt and it didn’t end well so I’m-I’m ending this before it even starts to save us both the trouble because you’ll just get bored with me while I’ll probably fall in love with you and it’s not fair so you-you should just go.” You cross your arms over your chest and let out a shaky breath as you try your hardest to keep yourself held together, but Harry can see very clearly that you’re moments away from a breakdown and he hates knowing that it’s because of him and the way he’s made you think he’s exactly like your shitty ex boyfriend.

“I swear I’m nothing like him.” He tries to get you to look at him as he takes a step towards you but you just shake your head and take a step backwards until your back is hitting the edge of the counter.

“Then why do you act so much like him?” Harry feels like the wind just got knocked out of him as you stare at him right in the eyes and break his heart piece by piece with every word that comes out of your mouth. He doesn’t try to argue with you because there’s nothing to argue about, you’re right he’s been acting exactly like your ex he just didn’t realize it until now.

“Can I try to explain why I’ve been acting that way? I know it doesn’t make sense right now but I swear there’s just something about you that has me-”

“Please just go Harry I can’t-can’t do this right now.” Your voice is low and watery making Harry feel sick to his stomach at the thought of you shedding even a single tear because of him but he can’t do anything about it since you no longer want him in your space. He lowers his head and lets out a long sigh before he starts to head for your front door.

“I know you felt it.” You turn your head and find Harry already looking at you from where he’s standing by your front door. “I don’t know what it felt like to you but I know you felt something when I touched you and that’s why you looked like you could pass out. So I know you at least feel something for me.” You feel your heart sink to your stomach as he runs a hand over his face to try to distract from the sound of his own sniffles. “If you ever change your mind and want to maybe start over you know where to find me.” With that Harry opens your front door and steps out into the hallway, quietly closing it behind him leaving you alone in your apartment with nothing but your thoughts.

Harry does his best to hold himself together until he makes it to his apartment, only letting out a few shaky breaths and some sniffles in the elevator. When he finally closes his apartment door he can’t hold back anymore as he sinks to the floor with his back up against it. He brings his hands up to his face as he lets out the first of many tears he knows are coming, he swears he’s had his heart broken before but the feeling he has now is as if someone reached inside of him and ripped the entire organ out of his body and replaced it with a black hole. He didn’t see it ending like this with you especially since it ended before it even began, he didn’t imagine for a moment that you’d want nothing to do with him but he can’t blame you because he brought all of this upon himself with how he treated you.

“God I’m a fucking idiot.” He mumbles between sobs as he thinks back to how he really thought some flowers and plates would magically fix everything and have you jump into his arms and want to be with him the same way he wants to be with you. In a moment of pure selfishness he allows himself to cling to the small shred of hope that maybe in time you’ll want to start over with him, you’ll let him show you the man he really is and the story of the two of you can get the happy ending he so desperately wants. So even though he knows it’s probably just going to end up hurting him, he lets a tiny smile form on his face as he tells himself that you just need time and then you’ll come around because you felt it, you felt the zap just like he did and that has to mean something.

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