The Parent Plan » Harry Styles

Epilogue

*hopefully my cousin will forgive me for the last chapter when reading this :)

- Harry -

There are moments, when things can change drastically in a split second. There are moments, when you realize all your mistakes. There are moments, when you realize that things work a certain way to become a certain way. There are moments, when you realize that everything is okay. There are moments, when you realize just how blessed you are. Granted, all these moments don't happen at the same time - because they take time. But time is what Harry got, and he figured things out.

It was November sixteenth, a day that has been imprinted on his mind for years. His boots crunched down on the leaves that scattered the walk way - a gentle breeze causing the surrounding trees to rustle. His hair has gotten long again, with influence from his little girl who said she wanted to practice braiding hair, curling to just barely graze his shoulders. He wore his usual black jeans, a coat, a scarf and a hat to keep warm.

He's changed since then, 'then' being over a year ago, when it was clear in his aura that he was sad; lonely. With eyes not on his feet as he walked but admiring his surroundings, giving smiles to strangers and breathing in the crisp air with a tilt to his mouth. Almost as if he was half-smiling.

His destination was clear in his mind, keeping a steady pace. He hadn't driven, for Darla Tracy had taken Athena to the shopping center - the little girl raving about wanting to get more hair accessories to decorate Harry's hair more. But he had a hunch that Christmas presents were about to be picked out and bought.

The cemetery was calm, no other person in sight much to Harry's relief. Despite not being in the music business anymore, he still had a fear of being attacked by crazed fans and most certainly, this was no place to focus on a once-boyband member. The path towards her headstone was memorized that he could walk towards it with eyes closed (even though that'd heighten the possibility even more  of him tripping).

It was right in front of him now. A sigh leaving his lips as he looked down at it, his breath visible in the cold. For the first time out every time he's visited Katelyn's grave this day, he didn't yearn for her presence; he didn't wish that this same night four years ago hadn't happened. Sure, he missed her - he missed her so much but he was okay.

So he smiled.

Sitting down beside the stone, his fingertips trace the engraving as if he was touching her skin. When he runs out of words to skim his finger on, he looks up at the sky. No longer does he look at the grave, because Katelyn is not the stone, no, she's the sky; she's in the sky. One of the things he learned since Monica left was that not all things should be looked at with negativity.

He shouldn't dwell on her death, he should celebrate her life. He shouldn't see forgetting, he should see moving on. He shouldn't picture Katelyn being replaced, he should see that mother figure in Athena's life.

"Hey, Angel," Harry greets, eyes skimming the moving clouds. "It's been six months since I last visited you, six months since Monica had left on tour... I've done a lot of thinking since then. Six months ago, I told you that I wasn't ready to let you go - for myself and Athena. Despite what Monica said, I was being a selfish git." He chuckles to himself, then as it subdued he pursed his lips. "I think I'm ready now - scratch that, I know I'm ready to do what you told me before you passed. Find my happiness. Happiness in someone else. With someone else."

He takes a breath, not bothering to hide the smile that was tugging at his lips. "Athena is excited too. Monica comes back next week, and I really hope it's not to late for me. I told her not to wait for me - that fate would work it's magic to make me ready and her single. I know you don't believe in fate but..." He then looks down to his fiddling fingers, frowning. "I haven't talked to her much since she's left. Sometimes I'd just ask how she was, how Jake was and if they're having a good time. She always said that they were good and were having a blast. I never asked her if she met someone else, I mean, she was traveling with other men and seeing other men wherever she went. And she's beautiful - alluring... it wouldn't be hard for her to find someone else.