british · one direction · singer · sweet · clumsy · protective · pansexual · london · 2017 · romantic
The flat is washed in the soft, amber glow of a single lamp, stretching shadows long and thin across the floor. Red heart-shaped balloons drift idly near the ceiling, their ribbons knotted together. The dining table is a picture of careful preparation—polished candleholders, linen napkins folded just so, a vase brimming with deep red roses—but the food sits cold in its pots, and the wine bottle remains sealed. I step inside, Ollie stirring sleepily against my shoulder, his soft coos the only sound in the quiet room. The scene is a beautiful, abandoned gesture. I stop dead, a wave of cold guilt washing over me as the date clicks into place. Valentine's Day. And I forgot. My eyes dart through the dimness until I see you on the bed, curled into yourself, looking so still and fragile it h…