#47 The Interior Designer (Harry Styles)
Word Count: 2560
Summary: A girl with a cheating boyfriend and a new client.
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“And, you know I don’t know why she was so mean, I did everything on that list. It’s just me she picks on every time. Riley, she didn’t even finish-” I was cut between my upset rant, with my tears falling down my eyes.
“Look, Victoria, do we have to this right now?” He looked at me like I had spilt coffee over all his papers.
“What? My crying?” I asked, feeling so upset with what happened at work today.
“Yeah, this complaining! Why don’t you go and talk to Noah or something?” He said, going back to his computer.
“Noah, is not my boyfriend you are, and I want to talk to you-” I said, wiping my tears.
“Victoria!” He yelled. “I have four people on call waiting to talk to me once I finish this document. I swear I have better things to do that hear you crib here. Please go do some work and leave me alone!”
I flinched as he yelled at me, and looked away from his face. Looking everywhere but him, embarrassed and slowly going numb, I picked up the coffee mugs in front of me and walked to the kitchen. “No wonder she gets shit at work,” I heard him mutter. I frowned at his words, filling water in the cups, feeling this was not needed.
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“You know, I told you to leave him! He ticks all the ‘don’t touch this human” signs on my list!” Brittany explained sucking on her straw.
“Don’t touch this human?” I asked.
“Yeah! He has no time. He wakes up and looks at his phone. His phone is always ringing. He doesn’t listen to you, talk to you, be with you. He knows the important dates of his clients than you! These are all signs of running Victoria!”
“I don’t know what to do! He wasn’t always like this! And I have been with him forever. Like forever Brit, how can I just leave him?” I explained. “It’s his job, you know. He wouldn’t be doing this if it wasn’t! And you were talking about dates? I was reading online that couples who live together don’t really have to go on dates to keep their relationship alive!”
“Does he? Does he live with you?” She raised her eyebrows.
“Brittany…” my phone pinged. “Oh look,” I said reading the message, “He wants to take me out tonight!” She gulped her drink and came close to read the message.
“No, he is ordering you.” She said. “There is no ‘will you?’ ‘would you” or even –”
“But, it is something. It is an effort. I knew something good will happen,” I smiled to myself, and she smiled.
I dressed in a really nice black dress that accentuated my curves. Looking in the mirror, I smiled to myself. It was a long time since we went out and I wanted to make myself look the best for him. “Are you ready, Victoria?” I heard his voice call out from downstairs. I took a deep breath and walked down the stairs, making sure to make him see my legs, but his eyes stayed glued to his phone. “Let’s go.” He didn’t look at me even once, but I still tried to keep my hopes up. A dinner date was a good attempt and, I was going to give him that. “Sit in the car.”
I saw a bouquet in the back seat and frowned. If it was for me, shouldn’t he give it? I didn’t say anything as he started driving. He switched off the music in a minute of it playing, talking loudly to his clients on his Bluetooth. I sighed and looked outside. We pulled into a huge mansion, and I knew this was not a dinner date. “You bought me to a party?” I looked at him in shock and disappointment.
“Take the bouquet out,” He ordered still typing away on his phone, “and Vic, please. On your best behaviour today? This is an important party for me,” Best behaviour? What did he mean by that? When was I not on my best behaviour? I handed him the bouquet, and he kept the phone away, before fixing it and walking away leaving me behind to follow him.
Kisses, hi’s and hello’s took place as soon as we walked in. A lot of how have you been, I hope you’re well, come enjoy as people danced on the floor to soft music, and then, held glasses of wine or champagne talking to each other in small groups. I saw as different women came and kissed his cheek and he kissed their cheek back, asking them about their work. Did he know about mine? He introduced me once, and then left me to talk to more people. Feeling abandoned like a little child and trying not to pout, I walked towards the bar.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asked.
“Whisky please, a little water and ice, thank you.”
I sat there was a long time, sipping my glass with my back straight, phone on the side for it wasn’t very proper, trying to locate where my boyfriend was and failing. Sighing, I asked for another drink.
“Long night?” I heard a deep voice ask, as I looked up. I knew who he was. He was everywhere these days. His album has just released.
“It’s getting longer than how I expected it to be,” I said, taking another sip.
“Oh same, I came here with my manager and he is well managing. It’s not a lot of fun when you just have to show your face from faraway,” He said and I chuckled. “Are these parties always this boring with slow music and pretentious conversations?”
“Yes, always,” I said. He smiled and sat down next to me. “So, who are you here with?” he asked.
“That guy,” I said finally finding him.
“Mr Douchebag?” He said, and I frowned. “I didn’t see you as the type?”
“What is that supposed to mean?” I said.
“No, I mean. Why are you here with him?” He asked again.
“I am his girlfriend,” I said, trying not to take offence.
“What? Since when?” He laughed.
“Since 5 years, what do you mean by all this?” I asked, trying to figure out what was happening.
“Woah. My god. I am sorry, I am Harry,” he said, pushing his hand forward.
“Victoria,” I said, shaking his hand. “Why did you call him a douche bag?”
“Umm, that is a story for another day. What do you do Victoria?” He said, trying to change the topic.
“How do you know him?” I asked, staring into his eyes.
“Umm, he has been to many of my parties,” he said. “Your drink is over, let’s get you another?” He asked the bartender to make my drink.
“He has?” I hadn’t heard of any of these parties. I had heard nothing. I thought he only worked all the time…like me.
“Yeah, known him for quite some time.Anyway, you didn’t answer my question…Victoria? Victoria?” He pulled me out of my thoughts.
“I’m an interior designer,” I told him.
“Oh, that’s nice! That’s great. I have awful taste in furniture though, I have never designed any of my houses. I sold my old one because it felt to impersonal and shifted again, and I am literally now living in an almost empty house cause I don’t know how to just make it personal, you know?” He explained.
“Yeah, but you need to get a designer and then spend time with them, so they know how you are and then, be absolutely involved in the process of buying and installing and designing to get that personal touch and favor,” I told him since, I faced cases like these on a daily basis. I’m going to quit my firm though, start my own designing,” I said, thinking loudly now.
“Oh then, can I be your first customer?” He asked.
“You're very nice,” I smiled.
“No really, I am serious. Please don’t let me search for people. I hate it. Please design my house?” He looked like he really meant it.
“Okay, so here, give me your phone?” I took it, “I’m putting my number in with my name and designation. Contact me when you are absolutely sober, and we’ll talk?”
“Splendid.”
Harry and I just talked for the evening, until it was time to leave. “I’ll call you, designer.” I looked back and smiled at this goofy look on his face. The ride back home was suffocating. I was suffocating. I knew I had to break up, but we had been together forever. And, relationships aren’t made in a day. You have to work on them and keep working on them.
He left in two days for a business trip. In these two days, we had said four sentences to each other. Harry and I, on the other hand, had met two times and he kept chatting with me for some reason. I didn’t mind it. I needed a friend. This week was quite hectic as I left my job, and signed my new papers for opening my own firm. Everything was ready since I was planning it for a long time, and Brittany threw a small party with my closest friends to celebrate it as well. My boyfriend knew nothing about it. Now, I didn’t even have anything to tell him.
“Just leave him, bro!” Mike said, whining, quite drunk now. “He is like this Airbnb person living in your house.”
“It is our house, you know.”
“Yeah, but he doesn’t live in it? Does he buy veggies and those wine glasses and those cheerios? No. He does not. He paid for half the price, and that is it. Kick him out!” He said, imitating the kick with his legs.
“Mikey, calm down, here have some water,” I said, bringing it to his face.
“Brit, Oscar…tell her that I AM RIGHT!” He yelled, and everyone cheered.
I met Harry for lunch, the next day, “So, where do I sign to go into this intense procedure with you?” He asked, taking a long sip on his coffee.
“Here,” I took the page out. “Are you sure you want me to do this? You haven’t seen all my work yet?”
“I have enough. And you designed Nick’s house, and I love it so, yeah…there we go,” He said signing it. “I’m free for the next two months before I get busy again. I’d like to do this! And! And! I am your first client! So, cheers to that!” he giggled, and we almost banged our coffee cups.
The long designing procedure started the next day. It was my first project with my company name, and it was a huge one. I wanted to give my best to it. I spent time in his house, working on each floor and then talking to him. I wanted to know him properly, his tastes, his dislikes to be able to come on a nice theme for his house. I could see Harry enjoyed it. I like to know that he enjoyed everything that was new to him. My boyfriend wasn’t back yet, and the only conversation I had with him was a guy who came from his office to collect a few files. It had been three weeks now, and I was almost done with the theme. We had set a budget, even though Harry was pretty lenient with it and we went looking for things on the list.
“I like this,” He said looking at a ceiling attached sofa chair. “I’d like to put to in the balcony,” he said.
“Near the trees, the opposite side, first floor? I guess, it’ll look nice there and a perfect spot to sit as well because of the sunlight?” I asked.
“Yes, perfect!” He nodded.
We looked around more, picking up a lot of things that we liked. He wanted to go room by room so, he could individually pay attention to it so, it took a longer process, but I didn’t mind it. I was absolutely enjoying my work with no politics being played like my previous workplace. I was at his house, setting up the master bedroom when my phone rang. It was Oscar, but he cut the call. He then sent a picture. It was my boyfriend…I sat down. He was on the beach with a girl, lying on the sand with him. I read his message.
Was here off work after a meeting. Saw him and wanted to go say hi, until I saw her. I’m sorry Ria. I had a chat with the girl as well, just to confirm when he left for a while. They have been seeing each other for quite some time. Five months…I’m sorry.
My legs failing to hold my weight, had me sitting on the bed, just looking at the pictures. “Hey, do you want to have lunch from this nice Italian place, I know?” Harry walked in. “What happened?” He asked, as my tears just fell. Five years for this guy. Two years before that and this is what it led to. Harry sat on his knees in front of me and took my phone from my hands. “I’m sorry Victoria…”
“Why did you call him a douchebag?” I asked.
“What? Umm…Victoria…it doesn’t matter now.”
“Just tell me, Harry!”
He closed his eyes, “He had a reputation. And, I saw it at work. He came to each of my parties with a different woman, and then Jeff knows him. He told me how he went on these holidays and Jeff once went with him –”
“You knew?” I stood up, looking at him with accusatory eyes. “You knew he was cheating on me?” He nodded, still on his knees. “And you didn’t tell me! In these three weeks, when I told you how sad my relationship was making me, you didn’t say anything?”
“Vic, I –”
“Don’t call me that! I hate that name!”
“Ria, I didn’t know what to say! I saw you at the party, and you were so beautiful. And your eyes were so innocent and full of love, and when you told me that it was for five years, I didn’t want to see your heart crushed.”
“It had been crushing for years, Harry! I thought you were my friend! I treated you like my friend! A friend tells!”
“I didn’t know what to say, Ria!”
“Say that Victoria, Wake up! He is cheating on you! He came to my parties with different women every time!” I yelled.
“Victoria, he is cheating on you. He came to my parties with different women every time,” Harry repeated. I could see the guilt in his eyes.
“I know that now, you – you –” I couldn’t even curse. I knew he was not to blame. But, my world was crushed now. “I have to leave. I am taking a break for a few days. Please don’t contact me.”
“Ria, I’m really sorry.” He said, coming forward and holding my hand, while I just looked at him with defeated eyes.
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PART 2
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