A Lifetime With You // A Harry Styles Au

Chapter VI - Our Separate Ways

25th April, 2020

"Where are we meeting him?" I ask, pulling on my easy denim jacket over my dress. It's burnt orange in colour and made of chiffon, decorated with lots of tiny little white flowers, falling down to my ankles. There's a little sash tie around the waist which I've tightened into a little bow at the back, and my loose hair almost blends with the colour of the material. I wear an easy pair of black sandals now that the weather is warmer, though I do wish I'd picked my espadrilles yesterday before I'd left my house. In my defence I had been in a rush.

Harry looks over his shoulder from where he stands hunched over the side table writing something. "Maidenhead way. He's taken use of some house advertised as a cottage on a big bit of land."

"I won't lie, I don't understand why he didn't just come back here. It's not like we make a lot of noise."

He raises a single eyebrow, clearly amused thanks to the slight twitch of his lip.

I scoff and look away. "Shut up, you know what I mean."

"Never said anything." He mutters, turning back to his note for the maid. The fact that he needs to leave a note for a maid in the first place is frankly ridiculous. I thought we were moving away from those times. "Christian likes his own space. He might be letting me stay in this ridiculous place, but we're not direct kin - he's very strict with himself for some reason. Even when we travelled together we never lodged in the same place."

"I just find it very strange, that's all." I shrug, idly twisting my top half from left to right. I've shoved my hands in my pockets for the time being because my hand is still very brilliantly glowing.

"I suppose it is a little odd, but that's just the way he is."

Harry finally finishes his message and then turns back to me with a smile. "Are you ready?"

"Yes and no." I admit. I think I'm ready to travel, and fortunately Maidenhead isn't too far from where we are now so it won't cause that much of a headache. I don't quite know however if I'm ready to meet Christian for the first time. I've made an utter mess, he could well hate me by now.

I'm admittedly surprised that the primus decided to come back on such short notice. I only slipped up yesterday and he's already booked out (from what I understand) a large property to stay in while he's here because he won't stay in his own bloody house. I've never known anything so unusual, but then I suppose I am used to sharing a single bed with two sisters if the occasion calls for it. I'm sure it's just vastly different upbringings.

"Let's get to it, then." Harry smiles, and wraps his arms around my shoulders, resting his chin on my head as I bury my face in his chest.

I squeeze my eyes shut and intake a particularly deep breath, waiting for the air around us to change. Even once I know it has - almost instantly as usual - I don't move an inch until I know my head won't spin when I pull away.

"I really hate that." I mumble as I take a step backwards, staring at the floor for a moment.

"Better than an hour in a car though, ain't it?"

I look up to him with a dark glare. "Isn't it." I correct him.

"Hey, you said 'fuck' last night so you can't say a damn word about my language."

I huff and turn away from him, taking in our surroundings. We're standing on the lawn in front of a single storey cottage, which is thrust amongst greenery as tall as three times the building's height. The grass accommodates outdoor seating for warmer days such as this, and with the evening drawing in a few exterior lamps have been turned on to give the area a more homely feel. Any shrubbery and floristry is well maintained and neat, with bright flowers cropping up in certain places. In front of the lawn is a large pond, and as I keep turning I can see that across the water there's a picnic area where families are beginning to pack up. From what I can gather, no one seemed to notice Harry's random appearance.