Harry Styles Fanfiction - Remember Me?

Chapter 209

**HARRYS POV**
„She should be here any minute." Y/n said as we got downstairs on that Thursday morning. „I'm nervous, I don't know what to do."

„Hey, relax, sweetie. We're all around somewhere if you need company, but you're here in your home, your surroundings. Talk to your mother and see what's up. Okay?"

„Yeah okay." She breathed. „Where will you be while we talk? Can you be close and just listen to the conversation as well?"

„Of course. I'll be upstairs, somewhere where I can hear you. Gem and mum will be upstairs somewhere as well. Call me anytime and I'll be with you in a sec."

„Okay, thanks, H."

Right in that second, the doorbell rang. It was Y/n's mother. Y/n stood behind me in the hallway while I went to open the door.
Her mother looked exactly the same as she did when we were little kids, as if time didn't even pass all those years.
Y/n looked exactly like her besides her eye color and the shape of her nose.

„Hi Mary, how are you doing?" I greeted her as she smiled at me shyly.

„Hey Harry, I'm good thanks, how are you?"

„Can't complain." I smiled back, then stepped aside and Y/n slowly approached her mother."

„Hey mum." She said quietly, standing next to me while I rubbed her back to make her feel a little less nervous.

„Hi Y/n, darling." Her smile got bigger and her eyes glossy.

She was hesitant of hugging Y/n, but eventually, Y/n stepped forward and opened her arms for her mother which was really sweet to look at.

„Come in." Y/n said, leading the way to the living room while I made my way upstairs. I grabbed my journal and placed myself right at the top of the stairs on the floor, leaning against the railing, so I could hear her in case she called me.

„How are you doing, Y/n?" Mary asked her as they sat in the living room.

„I'm okay...chemo is just really hard on my body right now." Y/n told her.

„Are you...are you gonna be okay?"

„I don't know...I hope so." She sighed. „It's really aggressive."

„God I'm sorry, Y/n. I don't know what to say."

„It's alright." Y/n said, changing the subject. „You  said you wanted to explain some things when we talked on the phone?"

„I do, yes. Now...I know I haven't been a good mother to you. I didn't guve you what you deserved. I couldn't and it was partly my fault, but things happened that you had no idea of. Things you couldn't know, either because you were too young to understand or because we simply weren't in contact. I made mistakes, believe me I know that and I'm not here to be the mother to you that I never was. I'm not here to replace Anne, which is the mother to you I never was, but I'm just here to explain and in case you understand, that'd be a relief, but if not, I'd understand too." Mary said.

„Okay then...shoot, I'll listen." Y/n's voice was soft.

„When you were little, actually already years before you and your sister were born, your father was abusing me. It was shortly after we got married that he'd start to hurt me. I won't go in detail of what he did to me all those years, but it was horrible. When I had your sister and then you, I thought things would change, that he would change, but he didn't. He wasn't the man I fell in love with. It came to a point where he wouldn't allow me to do anything on my own, not even leave the house. The situation became worse and worse. I was trapped. I couldn't leave him because I was too scared and I couldn't get any help from anyone as he totally cut me off my friends I had. It went on and on like this until you were 9 or 10 years old. He made me yell at you and your sister, threatening me he would hurt you two, what scared me even more, because you were everything I had. He threatened about hurting the both of you more and more until one day he laid hands on your sister and that was it for me. I knew I had to leave, but not with you two. I left you with Anne, because I knew she loved you, took care of you and you were getting along with Harry so well. I never told her the real reason. Everything happened so fast back then."

„I-...what...what about Sophie? Did you take her with you?" Y/n asked her about her sister.

„No, I left her with my best friend, the one that stuck with me even though your father tried to separate us as well. He didn't know I was still in contact with her, so she took Sophie and cared for her and then I told him I got a new job in another city and we left. Believe me, giving you two away was the hardest thing I ever had to do, but it was the best for you. I had to save you before something happened to you." Mary explained, her voice trembling and I could tell from hearing her talk that she was crying.

„I don-...I don't know what to say, mum. This...this changes everything. I thought you hated me all this time." Y/n herself cried now.

„I didn't, of course I didn't. You and Sophie are the most precious thing to me. I'm sorry I did it, but there was no other way."

„But it's been years, why didn't you try to get in touch with me?" Y/n asked her.

„Because I was still with him, I couldn't leave for another few years. If I contacted any of you in any way, he would've come find you or something. I remember only shortly before I was able to leave him, that he saw on the news something about Harry being in the hospital and he threatened me to find you, that's why I showed up there a while back. He made me do all those horrible things, always threatening me with the most horrible things and I was so scared that I had no other choice than do what he said. I only got out of that marriage 1 year ago when he got arrested for something he did and when I finally spoke out about what he did to me and he confessed, he got even more years locked behind bars." Mary continued. „I'm sorry for everything, Y/n. I'm sorry you had to go through what you had to go through because of me and I'm sorry that I couldn't have been here for you when you got sick. I am so sorry, but I want you to know that ever since I coincidentally saw you participating on the X-Factor, I watched you all those years. I saw your success in the media, I listened to all of your beautiful music. I didn't forget you and I never wanted to hurt you. I know I did, but I never intended to. I did care about you, I always did, but I couldn't be there and I hate that, but I don't regret leaving you because it saved you." She finished, sniffling. „I didn't tell you this for your compassion or anything, but you deserved the truth after all this time."