Walking alone on Christmas day, on the streets of Holmes Chapel, Cheshire was lonely nonetheless. Why am I walking alone on Christmas do you ask? I’ll explain that now.



My name is Harry Styles. Yes, the Harry Styles. Now you must be even more confused. Why is a big shot like me alone on Christmas? Well, the boys were all with their girlfriends, except Niall, he was back home with his family. I told them I was fine with it and I would be with my family, but that was a lie. My family wasn’t even in England. They had all taken a vacation in The Maldives, assuming I would be with the boys this Christmas. Therefore, I was alone. I know this shouldn’t bother me, but knowing that people that I love and care about don’t even have the courtesy to offer to come home or offer me to go with them kind of hurt. I would tell them no, but does it kill someone to ask?



I honestly don’t mean to sound ungrateful, really. I’m just hurt.



Trudging my boots through the thick winter snow wasn’t the easiest thing to do, but it was manageable. I had gotten use to the weather in places like California and Australia that I forgot how cold and snowy home could get.



I smiled at some girls who were giggling and pointing with their friends and gave a little wave. I passed them and heard squeals of joy. I chuckled to myself. Things like that never got old.



Upon spotting a small café that I used to go to, I walked in. It smelled so familiar. The scent of warm baked blueberry muffins and fresh coffee lingered in the air. I smiled to myself and walked up to the counter. For it being Christmas, the place was pretty busy. I waited in the line and decided what to order. I settled on the classic blueberry muffin and a hot chocolate. Couldn’t go wrong there could you?



After receiving my order and quickly finishing my muffin, I walked back outside and pulled my trench coat closer onto my body. I sipped my hot chocolate and continued walking down the familiar streets. I wasn’t paying particular attention to anything directly in front of me and apparently neither was someone else because we crashed into each other pretty hard. I dropped my hot cocoa, but thankfully it didn’t get on either of us. I looked up at the person quickly and she was frantically apologizing.



“I’m so sorry. I should have been paying attention. I’m so sorry. Let me buy you another,” she said in a rush. I smiled and met her eyes with mine. Her eyes were bright green with a hazel ring around them. Her perfectly arched eyebrows reminded me that of my sisters. Her lips were beautifully shaped and everything about her face was perfect. She shook her black bangs out of her face and smiled at me. Not flirtatiously, just out of habit I assume.



“It’s fine,” I responded. I stuck my hand out. “Harry,” I said simply.



“Aurora. You can call me Rory if you want though,” she told me as she shook my hand. I smiled. Aurora.



“That’s a beautiful name. I’d rather stick with it, if that’s okay,” I told her. Her smile widened and she nodded; the blush prominent on her cheeks.



“Well, Harry, it was nice to meet you,” she said. She pulled her gaze from mine and she started to walk away. I turned and decided I couldn’t let her go without getting to know her. It may sound really cliché, but she was different. Really, she didn’t even freak out when she saw me. This may sound cocky, but there’d no way she doesn’t know who I am, and yet, she treats me like I’m another pedestrian on the street, not a celebrity.



“Hey Aurora!” I called out. She turned around and her hair spun perfectly. I smiled.



“Yeah?” she asked.



“Do you, um…Would you like to get something to eat with me?” I asked. Her pearly whites were visible once again and she looked down and then back. Up.



“Yeah, I’d like that,” she responded. I held my hand out and she grabbed it. We walked down the street and past all of the large buildings and into a part of town that was quieter. There were still a lot of people here; it was just less…busy.



We walked into a little breakfast diner and we were seated immediately. I opened the menu and my eyes scanned it quickly. I wasn’t really a picky eater so I settled on the egg, toast, and bacon combo. I looked at Aurora as she glanced over the menu multiple times. She looked up and caught me staring at her. She immediately looked away and back at the menu. I smiled to myself. She finally put the menu down as the waitress came over to take our orders.



“Hello loves,” she said. “What can I get for you today?” she asked looking between both Aurora and me. I gestured for Aurora to go first.



“May I have the French toast combo please, eggs scrambled,” she said smiling at the waitress. She wrote it down and asked what drink. “OJ please,” she said. The waitress nodded and looked over to me.



“I’ll have the egg, toast, and bacon combo please. Eggs scrambled and a hot chocolate,” I said completely. She wrote it down and asked if that was all. We both nodded and she left.



“So Aurora, tell me about yourself,” I simply stated.



“Well, I’m 18, I attend Oxford University, I major in Musical Theory and Math. Um, my birthday is January 3rd, I like singing and playing guitar. I’m classically trained in playing piano and dance. There’s nothing really that special about me,” she said. What? Everything was special about her. She treated people the same, famous or not. There had to be a lot more things to her than this.



“Well, why are you alone on Christmas?” I asked.



Her faced turned sad. I wondered what I had said. “Um, my parents died about 7 months ago and I’ve always been an only child. During school I was always really quiet and I got good grades, so no one really wanted to talk to me,” she explained. She tucked a fly away hair back and looked up at me.



“They missed out on a beautiful girl,” I told her. A blush crept on her face.



“Well, what about you superstar? Why are you alone on Christmas?” she asked jokingly. I chuckled.



“My mates are all with their girlfriends and Niall is in Ireland with his family. My family on the other hand, is on vacation in the Maldives. One group assumed I’d be with the other group,” I explained to her. She gave a small smile.



“Well then, I guess since I don’t have anyone at home to talk to, and you don’t have anything to do, I’ll spend my Christmas with you. If you don’t mind that is,” she suggested. I smiled.



“I’d like that.” I smiled. “By the way, I want to thank you. You’re the first person who I’ve met in a while who treats me like I’m any other person, not Harry Styles, the kid from the famous boy band with the curly hair,” I said.



“Harry, you are any other person. People just happen to know your name. That’s how I think of most celebrities. As long as fame doesn’t change them, they’re just an ordinary person whose name just happens to be known,” she told me. I have never actually thought of it that way. It was true.



Our order came shortly after and we ate in silence. Nice silence. When the bill came, we both reached for it. I looked up at her.



“My treat,” I said. She shook her head.



“No, I owe you,” she told me.



“I don’t care. You can pay me back a different way. I never let girls pay for anything,” I said. She sighed knowing I wasn’t going to let her pay. She let go and I smiled in triumph. I put my credit card in and handed it back to the waitress. As soon as I got it back, we stood up and left. We stood closely and the friction was definitely noticeable for both of us. Neither of us moved though. I don’t know how this happened. I was walking around feeling sorry for myself when all of a sudden, I meet her. She’s perfect. The feeling overwhelmed me because I’d never done anything so spontaneous.



“So, when you’re not busy with school and stuff, what do you like to do?” I asked her.



“Street race,” she told me. My eyes shot open. She laughed. “I’m totally kidding. Although, I have done it twice,” I looked at her. I could tell she was being honest. She was a dare devil…I like it. “But normally, I’m in my dorm room singing or playing the piano/guitar,” she told me. I smiled at this. Music was in both of our bloods. I loved people I could relate to. It made life so much more…real to me.



* * *



It was already 6 p.m. and Aurora and I had been walking around for a little over two hours just talking. We talked about everything. Our childhood, music, video games, television, even Facebook. She told me she wasn’t a big fan of our band. She said she has liked us since X-Factor, she just doesn’t relate with some of our music. She does have our album though, but only because of Moments and Taken. I told her she should help us with our third album. We are writing all of the songs and we could use some help. She agreed to help because she’s been working on some songs. I really wanted this friendship to work out because I could feel something there. Something that could turn into love. Something I haven’t felt with any previous relationships. I don’t know what it is, but it’s there.



We decided that for the remainder of the night, we would go up to this secret spot I’d found when I was thirteen. It wasn’t a long walk and when we got up there, she was stunned. We had an overview of our whole city. The Christmas lights were lit up, the florescent glow of the street lights gave everything a nice orange color to it. The city looked like it was on fire. A beautiful, colorful fire.



She pulled out her IPod and we laid flat on the hill as we listened to the rhythmic beats. I recognized the song as Fast Car by Tracy Chapman, but it was a cover. It soothed me and made me forget about all of my troubles, just like Aurora did. We listened to the song on loop and I sang along to it when she started to. Her voice sounded like angels coming down from heaven. Cheesy, yeah, but was it true? Absolutely.



After about an hour, she turned to face me. I smiled down at her.



“Harry?” she called out. I nodded. “I just wanted to thank you. I haven’t just sat and listened to music with someone in years. I haven’t had the company of a friend ever and knowing that someone I’ve met and known for only a few hours could be the one with me right now is unbelievable. I don’t want you to leave my life. You’ve changed everything for me. I want you to keep doing that,” she said with tear-filled eyes. I smiled and pushed her hair back.



“I’d like to thank you. You’ve made me feel what no one else could. You’ve made me feel like I was me again. No one understands how frustrating it is to not be treated normal. Today, all of the yelling fans, screeching girls, and colorful banners were gone. I wish there we more days like this because honestly I like this. I like laying here and forgetting the world. It brings peace of mind. I don’t want you to leave my life either. I want you to stay forever,” I told her. We both sat there smiling to each other, forgetting about the cruel, hateful, judgmental world below us, and focusing on each other. The only thing that matter on this cold Christmas night was us lying in this white snow. Nothing could ruin this.