Apex [h.s]

chapter forty two

Song: Fire Away, Niall Horan

Darling you don't have to hold it, you don't have to be afraid

Frankie Doyle

December

"She will love you, I promise," Harry assured me as we walked to the door of his sister's home.

"You don't know that..." I sighed.

"Well, I love you enough to bring you to meet her. That's saying something and she know that," he shrugged.

"I don't even know why I'm so nervous. I was fine when I met your dad..." I blew air out from my cheeks as I rubbed my frozen hands together.

He kissed my temple and whispered in my ear that he loved me, before he knocked on the door.

I had seen photos of Gemma from when her and Harry were younger. I knew she was pretty, but I didn't expect her to be as gorgeous as she was. Although, what did I expect, clearly the Styles have flawless genes.

"Well it's about bloody time you came and visited me," Gemma smiled as she opened the door, immediately enveloping her brother in a hug. 

"Hey Gem," Harry laughed, hugging her back.

"And you must be Frankie!" She smiled as she turned to me, wrapping her arms around my shoulders.

"It's so nice to meet you," I replied genuinely. "Harry talks about you all the time."

"The same goes for you. You're the only thing he talks about anymore when we're on the phone," she rolled her eyes playfully. "Well, come on in, it's bloody cold out."

We followed her into her living room where another man was sitting on the couch.

"This is my boyfriend, Alex," Gemma introduced as he stood, shaking both Harry's and my hand.

"It's nice to meet you both," he smiled.

We all sat and talked for a while. With each minute, I felt my nerves melting away. It was nice to be able to get a glimpse of where Harry had come from.

"I kid you not, he would stand in front of that plastic microphone with a tiny guitar for hours at a time. If he hadn't got into racing, I was sure he'd be a performer of some sort," Gemma laughed.

"He barely ever plays for me!" I complained. "One of the first times we went away together for racing, he told me he played the guitar, but I could probably count on my fingers the amount of times he's actually picked up the guitar that sits in the corner of his room."

"I just don't know what to play," he shrugged.

"That's why we have things like the internet... So we can look things up," Gemma deadpanned.

"Leave me alone," he huffed with a chuckle.

"You haven't changed a bit," she laughed.

"Why change a good thing?" He fired back.

"If that's your definition of good, I don't want to know what bad looks like," she bantered back.

"I mean, you could just look in the mirror?"

I couldn't help but laugh at the interaction, "I swear, this is like watching my brother and I but ten years ago."

"I guess there's a lot of banter to catch up on when you don't live in the same country anymore," Harry shrugged with a laugh.

"I'm gonna go finish up dinner, it shouldn't be took long," Gemma said, standing up from her place on the couch.

"I can help," I offered.