Yes I like Stormy Weather

[Harriet Turner]

The clouds swirled almost angrily in the sky, Harri had known it wasn't possible for the good weather to last. There was definatly going to be a storm now, she could see it in the big purple clouds that were the actual colour of a bruise she had got recently from falling over, as usual.
But if there was one thing she knew she wasn't going to be stuck indoors all day, she stuck her hand out of her dorm window and felt that it was the warm and sticky weather that went with storms sometime. "Great!" she said, not entirely sarcastic. She pulled on a pair of denim shorts she had and a bright red polo, backing Gryffindor of course .
The rubber of her white plimsolls squeking slightly on the floor she walked straight out of the castle and into the grounds, of course once she was out the humidity hit, it was in no means unbearable, though a little uncomfortable.
Her recently dyed bright red hair was pulled up into a slack ponytail, only her fringe remained down. She reached the gardens, a smile on her face as she felt the first drop of rain...

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex saw the sky becoming stormy and felt it was about time he got out there and went for some fresh air, away from his studying. He pulled on a baggy hoodie, trackies and a pair of worn out trainers. he walked out into the gardens feeling the weatehr agreeing with his mood entirely. He smiled slightly before rememberign why hew a shere. Killing his brother. He stared at the ground seeign footprints in the grass and randomly started following them, hoping they would lead to an answer though highly unlikely. He didn't know why he deserved all the trouble he was getting that was for sure. He heard a drop of rain on a leaf in the silence and looked up seeing he was in the garden. He noticed a girl there who seemed familiar. He looked for a while before recognizing her. 'Harri, hey, how are you?'Alex said smiling positevely, jogging over to her.

 

[Harriet Turner]

Harri turned on her heel as she heard someone call her name, "Alex?" she said shocked, her face broke into a huge grin, "This year just keeps on getting better," she murmed happily to herself. She walked over to meet him half way, "Hey," she said giving him a hug. "Im good thanks," she said happily laughing a little. "How are you?" she asked softly, not sure whether to let on that she knew about his brothers death, on one hand she didn't know if he wanted her to know but on the other she wanted to offer her condolansces. She bit her lip a little before smiling again, she couldn't help but feel happy right now.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex smiled, and hugged her back glad he was talking to someone he knew finally. 'That's good. How was your summer after we 'wrecked' your place?'Alex joked smiling. He wondered whether he should just tell Harri or not. It was that reason that Nina had broke up with him. He had kept to himself, then he let it out at once and it had gone into disater though Alex still blamed himself for letting his temper egtting the better of him. 'Well, I've had better summers as far as the story goes'Alex said before remembering it was in the newspaper.

 

[Harriet Turner]

Harri laughed, "Come on your not that bad, you didn't wreck it," she said grinning.
"But it was pretty awesome thanks, I went to my friends house in California, so it was beautiful!" she said happily.
She saw his face change, "How do you mean?" she asked, pleased that she was managing to hide the fact that she knew so much well. If he wanted to tell her he could, she wasn't going to make him.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex shrugged. 'I don't suppose you read the papers when you were on holiday'Alex asked looking at her, hoping she didn't. But then, he would have to tell her the whole story if she ahdn't and Alex didn't think he could bear that without his emtions getting out of control. He smiled, waiting.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"Erm a little," Harri confided, this wasn't exactly true, she hadn't but she knew what he was referring to, what Nina had told him. She bit her lip as she scanned his face for some emotion she couldn't find. "I heard, I'm sorry Alex," she said quietly, hoping he wouldn't be mad that she already knew, she put her arms around him in a hug, as she wondered how he truely felt, right now he seemed to be hiding alot behind the smile on his face.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex bit his lip as she told him she'd heard. Ow well, he thought, at least I don't have to tell her. He shook his head annoyed at why she was apologizing. 'Why are you apologizing?'he asked her seriously. 'It wasn't your fault, was it?'Alex added, looking at her before staring off at a tree behind her.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"I'm saying sorry for your loss," Harri said confused at his anger, "Its what you do," she said, though she was having flash backs to when she lost Emma, people apologizing never helped. "It must be hard right?" she sa quietly.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex bit his lip. 'Oh,. sorry'Alex relizing he lost his temper nearly again. 'Hard?'Alex thought about it. 'Yeah, hard, that's one way of putting it.'Alex said before sitting down at the bottom of a tree. 'Have you ever lost anyone who seemed like the only person that you could relate to inlife?'Alex asked Harri looking up, holding back the tears.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"What are you apologzing for?" Harri asked, laughing gently as she used his own words against him. She nodded, "I lost my best friend two years back," she said sadly, she hadn't talked about Emma for two years and she had to smile for fear of welling up, "I'd known her since I was born, my mum and her mum were best friends you know?" she said, she could hear her voice cracking but she ignored it, "She was killed in a car crash, aged 11," she said, now she was biting her lip so hard she could taste blood, she wouldn't cry though she had no right to cry, not when Alex had lost his brother and he was holding up. She sat down under the tree with him, not caring about the gentle rain that was beginning to fall, "Was that what it was like with your brother?" she asked, her tone suggesting that he didn't have to answer if he didn't want to.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex shrugged and stared at the ground, listening to Harri. He had no idea how that felt or what it was like having your mum being freinds with someone else. It meant nothing of relavence to him. Alex nodded solemnly as she told him how she died. He rested his elbows on his knees and started playing with the blades of grass as the gentle rain fell down on them. He welcomed it, letting it wash away his worries. Who cares what they think of you?he told himself while mulling over the question Harri question. 'It was great. Really,'Alex said before plucking some blades away from the rest of it. 'Ok, it wasn't completely happily ever after but we got through things and had a laugh about everything. We respected each other, maybe a bit too much. Or I did anyway, expecting too much of him, all on his own.'Alex's voice fell quieter till he was talking to himself '..so stupid..he was always the smarter one...why did it have to me?..' He clenched his hand in a fist digging his nails hard into his palm.

 

[Harriet Turner]

Harri nodded, "Perfections not real, everyone argues thats life," she said shrugging, "I don't have any siblings, I don't know what its like," she said honestly. "But I know loosing someone special is hard, but look at you, your coping amazingly," she said, "You should have seen me after Emma's death, I was a wreck," she said, closing her mind to the memories that began to flood it, they weren't good pictures not at all.
Harri lost trail of his mumblings, he seemed to be talking to himself now, "Alex," she said softly, taking his hands and unclenching his fists.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex felt his nails digging harder into his plams, leaving deep marks. Alex felt someone unclench his hands and looked at Harri shutting himself up. He realized he had just been talking to himself again and grew red. 'Sorry, I was talking to myself wasn't i?'he asked before before crosing his arms ontop of his knees and hanging his head on them. 'I'm a useless waste of space now aren't I? Can't do anything right now'Alex asked Harri not looking back up.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"Just a little," Harri said trying to make her tone light. Her brow creased and she stared at Alex who appeared to be avoiding eye contact, "Don't you dare say that," she said firmly, "Your not a waste of space at all."
She looked at him, wondering if he was botteling all this grief up inside, he was hard to read it was hard to tell if he was talking to someone about it. Anyone, because she knew how hard it was to keep things locked up, they would just mount up and explode out of you, usually in an angry outburst towards someone who had no idea what was going on.
"What do you mean you can't do anything right? Of course you can," she said confidently, hoping her confidence would give him the confidence he needed, "You can do anything you put your mind to," her tone flicked from confidence to calmer, she didn't want to freak him out.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex laughed coldly. 'Harri, I gave up on that saying 6 years ago. Believe me, the only thing I'm doing right here is staying out of most people's ways. You know Nina hates me now as well?'Alex said surprised he managed to keep himself completely clam when he said that. He never raised his head though, he was too ashamed to. He was being so wimpy, Harri manged to do it, you should be twice as good as her. You're older for goodness sakes, Alex told himself angrilly.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"Alex," Harri said quietly, she had never seen him like this before, he looked kind of...manic. "Thats so not true, and you better not stay out of my way, okay?" she said firmly, "And staying out of people's way, isn't really going to help. Believe me," she said quietly.
His next point seh shook her head firmly at, "Nina does not hate you,"she said firmly, "Believe me I've spoken to her," she said shrugging.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex shook his head slightly at her points. 'She does. I spoke to her as well and she hates me. I completely messed it up.'Alex moaned towards the end, annoyed.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"Your so stubborn," Harri said, laughing a little. "Okay well lets say she hates you then, why?" she asked, she knew that this would prove her point, Nina had no reasons to hate Alex, she wasn't sure whether Alex knew that Nina like Noah now, and prehaps he shouldn't know, not right now. And of course Nina would have to be the one to tell him, because from what he was saying now Harri couldn't help but get the feeling that he still liked her.

 

[Alex Cullen]

'I know, Alex said before rasing his head. 'Well, for one, I lost my temper at her, made her summer hell and, umm..'Alex thought before giving up, 'Oh I don't know. But she didn't seem very happy at seeing my here'Alex said putting his cold hand round his neck wondering why she would actually hate him.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"I'm sure she was just suprised to see you here," Harri said, "I mean everyones suprised at the amount of transfers we have this year!" she said nudging him. "But she doesn't hate you, but I know your too stubborn to believe me, so why don't you talk to her?" she said as if this was the most obvious thing ever, she knew it was the only way he could find out that she didn't hate him. "Just stop blaming yourself for everything, kay?" she said.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex laughed at her joke. 'I do not blame myself for everything.It's not my fault that your weird'Alex joked at the end. He sighed. 'Ok, I'll talk to her'Alex said before finishing the sentence off in his mind -eventually.

 

[Harriet Turner]

Harri laughed, "I'm not weird," she said sulkily, but her face was spread into a grin that he was joking again. That was always a good sign. "Good," she said. "I think she might have changed a bit, I heard from Kiera that she was really rude to her," she pondered outloud, before realising it probably wasn't the best topic to bring up with Alex.

 

[Alex Cullen]

Alex frowned. 'Nina? Rude for no reason? Wow, she's definetely not ok'Alex thougt aloud.

 

[Harriet Turner]

"Thats what I thought," Harri said nodding in agreement. The rain was still drizzling down, strangely enough it was reminding of her of home, in England it always rained like this just sort of there, in the air. She welcomed it now though as it feel gently on her skin. "You been running much?" she asked thinking that she really needed to get started again, wondering if she would ever bother to do it, maybe she could run with Alex once in a while, he was faster then her and so she would be pushed a little harder.