to preface, this is based on a true story in a sense. my friend, L, is legally blind. her vision is not as bad as Harryâs in this fic but she can only see really well in bright light. any kind of darkness, even early morning daylight or late evening twilight, and her eyes can only pick out splotches of dark. she went walking one day, was on the phone and didnât pay attention to steps. she then caught her toes on a large crack in front of her house, went down hard, and had a cute neighbor come to her rescue.
love is blind and lovers cannot see
Itâs then that he finds the raised cracked in the sidewalk.
Like an elephant being tripped or a mortal angering the Greek god Zeus, Harry falls. Harry falls hard. He barely has time to get his arms in front of him before heâs flat on the ground. He feels the torn flesh on his palms and knees almost immediately, a sharp pain on his chin where heâs scraped it up, too.
It would be the most embarrassing thing thatâs ever happened to him, he thinks to himself as he pauses on the ground to catch his breath, but thereâs luckily no one around to have witnessed it.
âShit, man, are you okay?â
Of course, Harry thinks to himself. âIâm good,â he says out loud, ignoring the pain in his hands as he pushes himself up to his knees before standing carefully. âSorry if I scared you.â
A wet nose finds the edge of his shorts. Harry startles but doesnât react any more than to stand up straighter as the new voice says, âRhino, leave him alone, yeah? Iâm sorry, heâs normally shy around strangers. You can just push him away, he wonât bite.â
The manâs voice is somehow familiar, Harry thinks as he struggles to place it. Thereâs a distinct accent there, the ends of his words trailing out and his vowels over emphasized. Itâs one heâs sure heâs never heard before in his life but reminds him of something nonetheless.
âI canât really see him to push him away,â Harry says. He offers the back of his hand for the dog to sniff, smiling when he feels his short muzzle rub against him and tuck under his palm as if Rhino is encouraging Harry to pet him. âI might be bleeding, little guy,â Harry apologises. âI canât really pet you right now.â
âYou canât see- oh,â the voice says, a bit closer now. âShit, I didnât realise. Rhino, get back, leave the man alone.â
âItâs fine, I love dogs,â Harry says, finding Rhinoâs ear and rubbing at it with the tips of his fingers.
âLet me see your hands.â
âIâm fine. This is my house, Iâve got a first aid kit inside.â
âHow do you know itâs your house?â
Harry pauses, trying to think of a less-humiliating way to describe what he had been doing when heâd fallen, and the lad must take his silence as offence.
âI didnât mean- oh, bloody hell Iâve miffed this a bit. Donât answer that, mate, sâalright.â
âI was looking for the crack.â
Now itâs the strangerâs turn to be silent, clearly unsure what to say. Harry realises how it sounds and hurries to clarify.
âNot, like- not the drug, kind. I donât do dru- well, I smoke pot sometimes but Louis says Iâm not supposed to tell people that because they might be police. And not even, like, undercover police like in the books or movies or stuff. You could be standing in front of me in uniform with the hat and badge and everything and I wouldnât even know.â Harry doesnât even recognise that heâs rambling, his words coming slowly but in such a stream-of-consciousness that he doesnât know what heâs saying until itâs already out in the air. âErm, youâre not a police officer by any chance, are you?â
Heâs sure he hears the muffled sound of laughter, as if the man is covering his mouth and trying to mask it. It makes Harry grin wider when he hears, âNah, mate. Iâm not a cop. Your mate Louis is right though, probably shouldnât admit certain things to strangers.â
âWell, next time Iâll do better. But, yes, no,â he says, tripping over his words now. âI was looking for the crack in the sidewalk. Itâs pretty unique and itâs right in front of my house so I figured I could use it to get back.â
âThatâs clever. I really do think youâre bleeding, though. Can I please take a look?â
Harry holds out his hands in offering, suppressing a shiver when he feels the ladâs fingers circle his wrists. His hands are moved up and then down before the contact between them ends and Harryâs left holding his arms out with no support.
âWhatâs the prognosis, doc, can I keep my hands?â Harry asks, smiling wide when he hears a snort of laughter, nothing muffled about it this time.
âThink youâll be alright, yeah,â he hears.
Harryâs wrist and fingers are tingling where the stranger had touched him to inspect his hand. He attributes it to misplaced stinging from the scrape on his palms.
The sounds in the neighborhood are shifting around them. Harry hears a car door close, then the engine start with a roar. There are more birds waking up to the day, a gush of wind rustles the leaves of his oak tree high above his head, and the sound of Rhino panting at his feet all make up the things he can sense around him. He hears first a footstep and then the sound of Rhino whining. Thereâs a click of metal on metal.
âWe were just heading out for our walk,â the stranger says. Harry doesnât understand why his heart beats faster at the boyâs apologetic tone.
âI didnât mean to keep you,â he says.
âNo, you didnât. Rhino doesnât usually leave the porch without me but we saw you fall and he took off. I hope we didnât scare you.â
âIf I got scared by everything I couldnât see,â Harry says seriously, âI wouldnât ever leave my house.â
âSâ too deep for six in the morning.â
Harry grins, hard enough that he can feel his dimple pressing deep into his cheek. âIâll let you continue on your walk,â he says, mock bowing. âGood bye, Rhino dog,â he says, rubbing his hands on Rhinoâs ears with more vigor now that he knows he isnât bleeding. âGood bye, Rhino dogâs owner.â
The words trail out and he blinks slow, waiting for what he hopes is the manâs next response.
âIâm Zayn,â the voice says.
âHarry.â He holds out his right hand and inhales.
The press of a warm, work-hardened hand against his palm forces his exhale. The tingling sensation is back and Harry doesnât try to blame it on his fall this time. He holds Zaynâs hand for a few seconds too long before letting their connection fall.
âHave a good day,â he says, turning and heading up his drive.
Besides his footsteps- slow and careful as he counts the pavers up to his front steps- he doesnât hear any other new sounds. When his hand is on his front door punching in the code, only then does he hear the jingle of a dogâs leash and the rhythmic footfalls of Zayn and Rhino walking away.
