Chapter Ten

Priscilla is the first person Noel texts when she gets home, the excitement and nerves finally hitting her by the time she makes it home after the party. Thankfully Harken doesn't seem to return home for the night, no doubt spending it with Amy at her place.

"You owe me a lot for passing your number off to Nolan, just sucks he took so long finally asking you out. Why did you leave the party so early last night?" Priscilla asks the next morning, lounging across her bed as Noel rummages through her closet for something decent to wear.

"It's just a movie, don't get too ahead of yourself." Noel says this but she too is silently getting ahead of herself, and she knows it, taking so long just to pick an outfit being her first clue.

They're attention is brought to her slightly open door as they hear someone stumbling around downstairs. Noel and Priscilla share a strange look before wandering over to the door in time too see Harken staggering up the stairs.

"Was he out the entire night?" Priscilla whispers.

Noel nods. She frowns at his appearance, looking like he spent the night in an alley rather than comfortably wrapped around Amy in her bed.

What the hell happened to him last night?

He staggers past her door, and they quickly duck behind it, Priscilla covering her mouth as she gasps lightly. They listen to the creaking of the floorboards under his feet, stopping just outside her door and Noel squeezes her eyes shut, wondering if he would actually dare to enter her room in his current state.

Instead, she hears him hesitate outside her door for a few seconds before heaving a big breath and continues wandering towards his door. Neither of them moving until they hear the click of his bedroom door closing, Priscilla being the first to collapse against the door, closing it in the process.

"Holy hell, he looked like shit. Where did he go last night?" Priscilla wonders.

"I assumed he went home with Amy Stone last night. When I last saw him, she was all over him," Noel says, unable to hide the disgust in her tone. Priscilla looks at her knowingly but doesn't comment on it.

"Why would you think that? I've never seen Harken leave any of Karl's party with a girl, I always assumed he got drunk and came back here to bully you, it was the same last night, he left by himself. Actually," she stops and turns towards Noel. "Now that I think about it, he left not long after Isaac told me you walked off, too. Huh," she hums.

"What are weird thoughts are you thinking now? Yeah, we got into another fight and this time, Isaac was dragged into it. I felt embarrassed and guilty about it, so I just went home, my mood was ruined anyway."

Priscilla wiggles her eyebrows. "Until Nolan sent you that text asking you out, right?"

She stands up and claps her hands. "Speaking of which, you need to continue getting ready, enough worrying about that ass next door. You have a sweet and caring guy waiting for you in a few hours, let's get to work!" Priscilla cheers and whips out her make-up bag, Noel already feeling the headache she is going to have coming on.

Harken tosses in his bed, his brain hammering in his head after the stupid night he had. His original plan was to just get wasted at Karl's party, and find some random girl to drown himself in, but Amy Stone suddenly showed up and attached herself to him the moment she saw him.

It wasn't long after that, Isaac wandered onto the patio with Noel in tow, and he got a peek of the outfit she was wearing underneath. Harken told himself he isn't going to bother with her anymore and work on just letting his feelings for her go, but that all changed when he saw her last night and the tiny shirt she had covering herself.

He was both aroused and pissed, two emotions that don't go well together. He was fighting between lecturing her and dragging her away from all the peering eyes around them, not liking how close she was standing to Isaac, even though out of everyone he knows, Isaac is completely harmless.

But seeing them together bothered him, he didn't even try and deny the jealousy he felt when he watched her smile and laugh with him,

She's never smiled at me like that.

She did once, when they were kids, the one fleeting moment he succeeded in capturing her attention. He never understood why he never seemed good enough for her, never knowing what it was that he lacked for her to care so little about him, that she would stand him up without explanation and not even remember it only a few years later.

Ugh, my head is killing me, this isn't helping.

Getting up from his bed, he decides he won't be getting any sleep until he gets rid of his splitting headache and wanders out into the hall, forgetting temporarily about Noel and Priscilla hanging in her room.

He walks out of his coincidentally at the same time that Noel steps out of hers, both heading in the direction of the bathroom. She stops just before running into him and looks up in shock, her hazel eyes wide and bright when accompanied by the heavy make-up around them.

Harken doesn't think it suits her, but he can't deny how gorgeous and mature she looks.

"Where are you going?" he asks, not meaning for his voice to come out as harsh as it does. He closes his eyes and scolds himself, opening them he is surprised to see a hint of hurt in her eyes rather than the anger he expects.

"She has a date tonight, with Nolan James, since you ruined the opportunity I set up for them last night," Priscilla sneers walking out of the bedroom. "Now move, I need to get my Nole looking absolutely beautiful for this evening."

Harken snorts. "You can start by removing all that make-up then. She doesn't need it."

Noel pauses in the doorway of the bathroom, spinning around to Harken to make sure she heard him right, but he is already making his way downstairs.

"Did he just compliment you?" Priscilla asks.

Noel shakes her head. "Doubt it, let's finish getting ready."

Harken wanders into the living room and collapses onto the couch, picking up the remote and flipping through the channels before he decides to open up Netflix. Noel's account is the first one in the list, clicking it he sees her last watched show is Shameless and something compels him to put it on, wondering what is so interesting about it but in reality, he needs something to distract him from the fierce irritation he's feeling.

It started the moment Priscilla mentioned Noel was asked out by Nolan. From the times Harken hung around him and his goofy friends, he got to know the type of guy Nolan James typically is. He can't say he's a bad guy, but he's no saint. In front of girls like Noel and Priscilla, he would never dare talk about the things he does when it's just the guys.

Most think he's only slept with a couple girls in their school, but the truth is he has scores of girls from outside of school, his parents frequently travelling out of the country over the summer breaks and taking Nolan with them. He is just as much a playboy as Karl and the others, but his kink is he likes the chase. He would rather get a girl no one else can get, and brag about his accomplishment rather than brag about bagging someone everyone else in his group has already had a taste of.

Harken can't harp on them, his sex life hasn't been any different, but he doesn't go that low as to see girls as just a quick fuck, whether the interest is there on their side or not. If the girl he wants to sleep with is clearly not interested in the same, he won't bother chasing them. But Nolan will, and it sounds like he's drop to some unimaginable levels just to get what he wants.

Harken doesn't want Noel to become one of his targets, but it's hard to sway her opinion when it's clear she's already obsessed with the guy. He can understand those feelings well, and that just pisses him off more.

What does Nolan have that makes him so special? He barely gives her the time of day, yet I tried every day in junior year to get her attention.

Nolan asking Noel out randomly last night doesn't sit well with him, and the more he thinks past his splitting headache, the more he feels this all sounds familiar to him, something pushing in the back of his mind like there is something he is forgetting.

His phone rings in his pocket, alerting him of a message. An unknown phone number flashes across the screen, and he nearly drops his phone like a hot potato when he reads the message.

Hey Nolan, just about ready. Still interested in going to the movies tonight?

He doesn't have to think hard, the memories of his drunken stupor from last night rushing back to him, remembering how after Noel left the party he drunk himself into a black out and did something utterly stupid.

He took the number of Noel that her dad gave him when they first moved in and wanting to take out his anger on her – he faked a text as Nolan James, asking her out as a prank. He was so drunk; he didn't actually plan on doing it. But checking back through the message thread, the evidence is right there.

Fuck. Fuck, fuck! What is wrong with me?!

The gut wrenching guilt and panic clash together in his stomach, his heart feeling like it's going to crack through his ribcage and sucker-punch him in the face.

To make it all worse, he hears Noel and Priscilla bounding down the stairs after getting ready, already smelling the thick scent of perfume coming off of them. He turns with a heavy heart and stares at Noel, his heart sinking further when he witnesses how utterly beautiful she looks, hating how dressed up she got for someone other than him.

For no one, actually, and it's his fault. The look of excitement and nervousness in her eyes kills him even more. How is he supposed to get out of this? Either way he has to let her down and cancel the date, knowing she will be devastated no matter how understanding she is about it. Harken will just feel like a pile of crap regardless, and it might make him feel worse if she tries to act tough and okay about it.

"Have you heard anything from Nolan?" he asks her.

Noel frowns at him and her smile quickly falls. "What does it matter to you?"

Harken doesn't even get angry at her; the guilt is overcrowding every other emotion right now. "What if he decides to cancel last minute?" He regrets asking the second the question is out of his mouth, only asking out of silent concern and curiosity of how she will react when it is cancelled.

"You already ruined her night once. Are you seriously hell-bent on ruining every other night for her now? If you hate living with her so much, then just move out," Priscilla harps at him, escalating the situation further.

"I didn't mean anything bad by it, it's just possible. I don't want to see her crying and breaking down over it later." He knows saying that isn't going to make his case any better, but if he admits to knowing it's going to happen and wanting to save her the heartbreak, it will make him look suspicious.

"You look like hell, Harken. Why don't you just go to bed?" Noel waves him off, turning away before waiting for a response. He can tell there's no chance in talking to her right now, it's only going to irritate him, and he won't be able to think straight either.

He leaves and returns to his room, contemplating even bothering to cancel the prank on her, part of him angry again and wanting to see how long she will wait before she realizes she's being strung along as a joke, but he doesn't think he can handle how she will react after that.

He stops when he sees a glass of water on his bedside table that wasn't there before, with two migraine pills sitting next to it. No chance Priscilla would put those there and Scott hasn't been home all night most likely, which only leaves Noel. She noticed and assumed he was leaving his room to get pain relievers from the bathroom before Priscilla pushed them in front of him and went back to take some pills and water for him after.

Little red...you're really cruel, you know that? He thinks to himself with a smile. Taking the pills and downing them with the water, he takes out his phone and makes up his mind. It's time to put an end to this joke. He just hopes he has the chance to redeem himself after this without exposing what he's done.

Writing out a quick text he thinks sounds decent and respectful as possible, he reads it over a few more times before sending it. He came up with an excuse to tell Noel as 'Nolan' that a family emergency came up and he was unable to make it tonight. That sounds reasonable enough, right?

A few minutes after, he knows Noel got the text when he hears Priscilla scream out profanities from downstairs, giving him a good excuse to go down and see what's going on.

"You just had to jinx her, didn't you? Or did you know this was all just some big stupid joke?" Priscilla turns on him the moment he enters the kitchen, a teary eyed Noel sitting blanky at the island counter, staring at her phone in her hand.

"Chill out, I don't know anything. Why are you freaking out?" he asks calmly, feigning innocence.

Priscilla rolls her eyes but seems to believe his words. "Nolan just cancelled on Noel, making up some lame excuse that he has a family emergency and can't make it."

"How do you know it's an excuse?" Harken asks.

"Because I'm well aware of his family, his parents' aren't even in the country right now and they rarely ever contact their sons for anything, Nolan's older brother included. So, how could he suddenly have a family emergency, an hour before they're meeting up? That just sounds like an excuse to me."

Priscilla is deliberately making it sound like Nolan was playing a joke on Noel, not something Harken thought her best friend would be doing. If it were him, he would be trying to reassure Noel that maybe there really was an emergency, and he took their date and his interest in her seriously. Then again, Noel has always seemed more logical than others, thinking outside the box and only considering what made sense, rather than allowing herself to believe in lies for comfort.

"Enough, Priscilla, it's fine. I saw this much coming, I'm just glad this happened before I left the house, and he didn't keep me waiting in the dark not saying anything at all. If he wanted to play a prank on me, he wouldn't have cancelled and would've just let me wait here in shame and never show up," Noel mutters, slouching her head against her arms on the counter.

Harken tries to hide the guilt that flashes across his face, and though Noel isn't paying any attention to anything, Priscilla is eyeing him closely and catches it clear as day.

"Okay, you're right, maybe it's not what I'm thinking. Regardless, you got all dressed up for nothing, why don't you and I go and see a movie instead?" Priscilla offers, but Noel shakes her head. Like Harken thought, she is pretending to be alright and not bothered by what happened with Nolan, but it's clear behind her eyes that she wants to cry right now and is probably waiting until she can be alone.

How many times has she had to act strong in silence like this? It seems like second nature to her now to always mask her feelings if she finds they will be a burden to others or make her appear weak. Priscilla continues to try and persuade her out of her bad mood, but it doesn't seem like Noel has the energy to try at the moment.

In the end, she tells Priscilla she wants to be alone for the night and retreats to her room. The night is getting late, the sun setting within the hour. Harken suddenly gets an idea that he hopes might cheer Noel up and relieve some of the guilt and tension in his chest. He remembers what he bought the other day and how he never got the chance to show Noel after their argument at the mall, when he thought there was no chance of them becoming friends again after.

He has tried letting go of his feelings and distance himself from her altogether, but after doing that for weeks only for all of it to crumble once he saw her at Karl's party last night, he knew there was no way he could ever stay away from her when she is so close to him. Harken may never be able to capture her heart the way he wanted to in the past, but he has gained her attention from the moment he walked into the Ashford house.

Maybe he can settle for that, and just become good friends with Noel instead, letting his romantic feelings for her fade away with time. He makes a stop at his room before wandering over to her closed door and knocking quietly, not waiting for her to answer and walks in.

His heart breaks a little when he sees her curled up on her bed hugging her pillow to her chest, her face buried in it as she tries to muffle her cries.

"Harken, please, I beg of you. I just want to be left alone right now," she mumbles to him, her voice sounding hoarse from her sobbing. He just lifts the surprise he has for her and puts it on the bed, not saying a word until she lifts her head and gazes at the brand new, smaller sized helmet he picked up a couple weeks ago, before they met at the mall.

"What's that for?" she sniffles.

He pushes it towards her. "It's for you. I figured I'll probably be driving you to and from school every now and then when Scott is home, and he already harped me for not wearing a helmet, so I bought another one."

He watches as her face suddenly falls in disappointment, realizing he made it sound like he got it because he was told too. Letting out a chuckle, he lifts the helmet and puts it over her head, flipping the visor up and grinning down at her.

"I bought it for you, Little Red," he says softly. He flips the visor back down, startling her before he stands back up and walks towards the door. "So, stop looking so sad and come for a ride with me."

She takes off the helmet, her complexion already looking much better than before.

"A ride where?" she asks, sounding reluctant, but still climbs off her bed, dressed in the same clothes for her date but the make-up she had on has been wiped off. He smiles when he can clearly see her natural beauty once more, her freckled cheeks and frizzy hair reminding him of when she was younger, and the first time he saw those freckles and her curly copper hair on stage.

To others she might have looked plain, but he saw the way her hazel eyes sparkled under the stage light, and the small, sweet smile that touched her face. He fell for her fast and hard in that moment and hasn't been able to let go of his feelings since, he thought as a kid he could never settle for being just friends or some kid passing by to her.

But being with her now, getting to spend time with her and see the smile he once starved over, it feels like more than enough.

"You'll see when we get there, come on."

Noel is confused when Harken drives towards the downtown core but seems to drive right past it towards the area of where Karl and Nolan live, wondering if he plans on making a visit to Nolan's house over what happened tonight. Having no way of communicating with him while riding on the back of the bike, both of them wearing helmets now, she has no choice but to pray he isn't planning anything stupid and wonders why she even agreed to get on the bike with him.

To her relief, he drives right by the neighborhood and straight through towards the city limits. He stops just before the border to the next city over and pulls into a dirt road off to the side that's most likely meant for dirt bikes and ATV drivers. Luckily his motorcycle isn't that bulky and just fits the narrow path.

Harken seems to be driving in the direction of the old, abandoned water tower, one that was once used to provide for the entire town of Bisbee – about 50 years ago when the population was just sitting below a few hundred people. It has gained a few thousand people since then and had to produce a bigger water tower on the other side of the city.

He stops the bike just below the tower, surprising Noel further when he helps her off the bike, the warmth from his hand radiating on her side even through her thick autumn sweater. She squirms out of his grip, suddenly feeling uncomfortable and hot despite the chill in the air as the sun dips towards the horizon.

"What are we doing here?" she asks.

He takes her hand, yet another shock, and leads her towards the ladder on the side. Standing under he, she realizes even with his height, Harken can just barely touch the bottom of it.

"I used to come here a lot as a kid, it's been a while since, so I thought to come back at least once before the weather gets too cold at night."

She glances up at the ladder again. "How did you get up there back then?"

He smiles, looking like he is sharing a memory with himself and extends a handout to her. "You're going up first."

She gives him a dumbfounded look as she takes his hand, and he hovers the other one above the ground.

"Alright, you're going to step on my hand so I can boost you up onto the ladder. Got it?" he asks.

"This doesn't seem safe," she says.

Harken laughs at her. "Of course, it's not. But I'm here, nothings going to happen to you, I promise. Now come on, I want to get up there before the sun sets."

Noel's heart skips a beat, knocking against her chest.

Was this his plan the entire time? To watch the sunset from the water tower?

Was she always a part in that plan? Or did he invite her along because he is taking pity on her and being dumped before she even got the chance to go on her first date, the one goal she has set for herself this year?

Regardless the reason, he is being oddly gentle towards her tonight, and she can't help liking his attitude change towards her this time, hoping it lasts longer than before.

Deciding against her better judgement, she trusts him not to drop her and puts her foot in his hand, allowing him to lift her into the air and practically throw her towards the ladder. Not expecting the force of his toss, her hands flail as they fail to grip the bars and just barely miss the last ones.

"Are you okay?" he asks, already in a position to catch her. She nods her head and gives herself a second to catch her breath and calm down before she uses all her strength to lift herself up and reach for the next bar, doing this slowly until her feet find a bar to stand on.

"Okay, I'm good, you can come up," she calls out, gripping the ladder for dear life.

She hears the deep chuckle of Harken below her and can imagine the amused look he must have one, watching as she shakes like a leaf on a branch.

"I can't until you start moving, Little Red."

Oh, right. Mustering her courage, she continues to slowly climb up the ladder, keeping her eyes on the large water tower hovering over her. Finally reaching the top, she scrambles onto the platform and scoots back until she hits the metal outer shell, expecting Harken to climb over soon after her.

When he doesn't she moves to the edge just enough to peek down and sees that he is still at the bottom. He remained down there until he made sure she could make it up safely, in case she slipped and fell, ready to catch her. Noel's cheek blush at this, her heart softening when witnesses first-hand how caring Harken can be.

Not wanting him to see her reddened face, she scoots back against the platform again and waits for him to climb up and join her. He's wearing a tightly fitted jacket tonight but the swell of the muscles in his arms are still clear through the stretched material as he clutches the railings and pulls himself up, towering over her.

She feels the heat pooling in her stomach when she remembers the toned abdomen he was sporting in the shower the first day they ran into each other and remembers how fit Harken really is. She can't stop the curious images in her head of what he would look like completely naked, doing her best to banish them, but having him hovering over her in all his muscular glory isn't helping.

"You doing okay, Little Red?" he asks. Noel realizes it has been quite some time since she has heard him call her Little Red so frequently instead of her name. Going so long without hearing him say it and remembering how she once thought it annoying; she didn't realize how much she actually missed him calling her that.

Noel nods her head, a small smile creeping onto her lips as she feels unknown warmth filling her chest. She was terrified of being anywhere near the edge of the platform when she first crawled up here but sitting next to Harken and feeling his arm brush against her, causing invisible little sparks to fly between them, she feels a surreal amount of comfort and confidence.

"Did you ask me out here because you felt bad for me tonight?" Noel finds herself asking, though at first she wasn't going to bother.

"Do you think I always intended on coming out here tonight?"

She shrugs. "You seemed to have this destination in mind before we even left the house."

"Yeah, because I thought it was a good way to cheer you up, even a little. I didn't want you to spend the night crying in the house, but if you still feel like it, you can do it out here where no one can hear you, at least."

He was thinking of ways to cheer her up? Noel thought for sure he would be revelling in her despair after seeing how crushed she was in the kitchen, but instead he's showing concern for her, even trying to comfort her by telling her it's alright to cry if she wants too.

"But you're here," she mutters.

"Why do you think? I'm hoping me being here won't make you cry, but who knows with the way things have gone recently." He says this, but there is no malice in his tone, he doesn't mean to say it as a hit towards her.

"Can we talk about what's been happening between us? At least try and clear the air?" she asks.

Harken leans his arms against the railing in front of him, looking out towards the overview of the city. "I know you probably think I hate you, or I might have at some point, and I never meant for you to think that way."

Noel thinks back to their first week spent together and can't help but laugh in spite a little, remembering the torment he put her through, especially the time he mentioned her virginity in the middle of class.

"You've always had a funny way of showing how you feel towards me."

It's Harken's turn to laugh in spit of himself. "Yeah, I can agree with that. I've never been good at expressing myself when it comes to someone who is close to me."

"I'm someone close to you?" Noel asks, shocked.

Harken rubs the back of his head, turning his face away from her in an attempt to hide it, but he can't hide the tint of red covering the tips of his ears.

Is Harken...acting shy?

Noel has to cover her mouth to hide the grin that spreads across her face, never thinking she would see the day Harken would appear embarrassed because of her. It's rather cute if she's being completely honest.

"Honestly, Noel, you're probably the person I'm closest too. Other than my friend Abel, I've never opened up or acted like myself as much as I have when I'm around you. When I'm with others, I feel like I put on a disguise and mask my true self and emotions, not wanting to reveal any weaknesses that one might use against me when given the opportunity. But with you, I never feel the need to do that, or more like I don't want to."

Her heart starts beating wildly in her chest, his words making her feel flustered, but she tries to ignore it to respond to him. "Why didn't you want to with me?" Her heart continues to race in anticipating for his answer, her entire body buzzing as her nerves go into overdrive and her brain stimulation crashes.

"I don't want to hide who I really am from you. I want you to know the real me, and like the real me, not some person I pretend to be."

She has never heard him sound so vulnerable before, like he really is opening up his heart to her completely, exposing every inch of himself inside and out so she can bare witness to all his flaws and imperfections he has carried with him.

Thinking about her next words carefully, she asks, "is this the real you now?"

He seems to think hard about her words, then nods.

"If that's the case, then I really like the real you, and I wish you would show me this side of yourself more often."

She isn't aware of the weight her words carry, and just how long Harken has been waiting to hear these words from her. All he has ever wanted is for her to like him, whether it was the real him or someone he needed to become for her to like.

Hearing her admit that she has finally noticed him, and likes him for who he really is, he can't handle the swirl of emotions that hit him all at once.

"Can I kiss you?" he blurts out, his face blunt and serious.

Although she is sitting inches away from him, Noel doesn't believe she heard him correctly, her mind going blank. Though Harken seemed to ask permission, he doesn't wait for it, reaching his hand up to cup her cheek gently and leaning his face down towards hers.

Noel feels like she should push him away, but is frozen, unable to move her arms at all as Harken draws closer, his breath coming out unsteady and ragged, as if he is having trouble breathing. Her bottom lip is electrified at the soft touch of Harken's, his fingers trembling against her cheek as he presses his lips to hers with a force that catches her off guard and she loses her balance as she leans back. Harkens large hand comes to wrap around her back, steadying her but also taking the opportunity to hug her to his chest, the kiss taking a heated turn.

Harken's mouth suddenly opens to cover hers, his tongue slipping out between his lips to flick her bottom lip slightly, earning a slight gasp out of her mouth. She hardly recognizes the sound that slips out of her lips when Harken's hand covers her waist and squeezes it lightly.

His lips hovering over hers, his whispers to her, "Noel."

She shivers at his husky, out of breath tone whispering her name, her stomach fluttering uncomfortably, feeling like a pool of lava is sitting at the bottom. This is her first kiss, she never expected it to be so heated. Then again, she never expected the first guy she ever kissed to look like Harken, either.

Staring into his pale blue eyes, admiring his chiseled cheekbones and strong chin, she realizes she has never denied how handsome he is, but never truly appreciated how exotic his looks really are, and how he perfectly suits her type of guy. When comparing him to Nolan, she can't believe she never realized how superior Harken is to him in looks, blaming it on blinding herself to everything else about him except his bad attitude.

Harken dips his head back down and steals another gut-wrenching kiss from her, his thumb brushing against her cheek and igniting sparks on her skin. She has no idea how to feel right now, both excitement and confusion battling inside her.

What does this kiss mean? Is Harken trying to tell her that he likes her?

Noel doesn't know what to expect after tonight, and how their relationship might change, knowing no matter what happens, whatever is going on between them will change drastically after tonight, she is just unaware of if it will be for better or worse.

They fall into a weirdly awkward but comfortable silence after their sudden kiss, neither having the courage to be the one to speak about it first. Instead, they watch as the sun quickly sets below the horizon, Harken pulling away from her but still sitting up against her, almost cuddling himself into her side.

Noel last remembers staring off into the darkened night before her eyes succumbed to the exhaustion from all her crying and the comforting warmth from Harken's body. As the night comes to an end, she feels the relief of knowing she now has one good memory with Harken, where it didn't end in disaster.