Songbird [Harry Styles AU]

1

"Gigi," she asked looking up at me with wide eyes. She had a spark of wild desire in them, one that would have been in my eyes at her age. "Can you tell me the full story? Of you and papa?"

She was curious, of course she is. Just like me at her age.

"That story?" I asked making it seem silly, "It's quite a long one dear, and it's almost your bed time."

"I'm twenty-two," she frowned crossing her arms. "Please, I'm not a child anymore."

I sighed because she was right, she wasn't a child. Sometimes talking was too hard. Sometimes talking is exactly what I needed. "Okay, well, I'll start about two years before I met your papa. I was your age, twenty-two," I smiled remembering that time in my life when I had such youth. "I was dating another man named Klaus Shepard, I was just ending my last year at university. . ."

•••

"Klaus," I'm trying to keep my voice low while we sit in a busy coffee shop. I had enough of him. Constantly telling me what to do, bossing me around. I was suffocating.

"You know what?!" He yelled even louder making me shrink back and hold my face in my hands. Maybe if I stay like this he'll disappear or better, I will. "You want to break up with me! Go ahead, you won't last a week," he mocked storming out of the coffee shop.

Once he was gone I sighed and tried to ignore the sting in my chest. I earned sympathetic and annoyed glances from the bystanders who were just trying to enjoy their coffee. Finals week was in full force and while breaking up with my boyfriend of two years in the middle of the most stressful week was probably not a good idea I couldn't take it anymore.

He actually told me that If I accepted the job opportunity in New York he wouldn't stay with me. So, I didn't see the point in prolonging the inevitable. He never supported me or my work.

"A career in film?" He scoffed shaking his head. "Might as well be an art degree it's useless."

I should have broken up with him then but he was my first love, at least I think he is. I've never been in love but I assumed that first feeling I had while with him was love. As months went on the relationship was worse and he progressively became more and more controlling.

I knew I did the right thing, breaking up with him, but I did care for him. Despite the pain he put me through, I wanted the best for him. I also wanted the best for myself and he was not that.

This was good, I was moving to a new city, I needed a fresh start. College was simultaneously the best and worst years of my life. Academically, I thrived, I was at the top in all of my classes and had very successful summer internships that gave me a nice portfolio that just so happened to land me the job offer I was accepting in New York.

I'd been fascinated with the art of cinematography at a very young age, I enjoyed watching videos and making my own. But I had more so been attracted to the art of documentaries. Capturing personal stories in an undramatized way, a real and authentic way, that was my sweet spot.

New York has offered to pay my college off if I joined them back in August but I told them I wanted to continue my degree. If they truly valued my work then they would offer me the job again in May before I graduated. It was a ballsy move to tell your dream job to wait for you, but I did it and they waited.

Finishing finals I made the top grades in all 3 classes earning a 4.0 GPA and a six figure salary plus commission job in my dream city.

Maybe it was the lights, the theatrical component of it all, or maybe the buzz on the streets even at 3 in the morning but New York City was a place for dreamers and hopeless romantics, both of which I was wholeheartedly.

I said goodbye to my family and the few friends Klaus let me have but never allowed me to get too close too and I didn't look back. Of course I visited home as much as I could.

I was single since I had broke up with Klaus, part of me didn't want to face another toxic relationship and New York was famous for those. So, I chose a life of singleness and told myself getting used and hurt wasn't worth the pain and self-loathing that it took me two years to get over.

I was quite content and happy being single, I only had to look after myself. I did have a few friends, Frankie, Laurel and Nick

Frankie was a Journalist for the Rollingstones.

Laurel was an artist with her own exhibit on fifth avenue and she was happily married to a guy named James that was also deeply loved by Frankie and I.

Nick is Nick Grimshaw, we have a long distance friendship but we are still close, we consider each other brother and sister.

It was about 3 months after moving to New York that I met Frankie and Laurel at a kickboxing gym I found not far from my apartment. We had coincidentally stumbled there for the first time on the same day. After having the most intense workout of our lives we decided to get a sweet coffee to make up for the calorie deficit we found ourselves in and the rest is history. James came into the picture about 4 months later when he spilt his coffee on Laurel's white shirt after yet another intense kickboxing class.

At first they were strictly friends, Laurel had a boyfriend. About another 4 months after Laurel and her boyfriend broke up James had a big heart to heart with her about how he was feeling. 1.5 years later and they were married. I was the made of honor.

Everything was going so well, I had a job I adored, friends I loved and a city that never got old for me.

I didn't even realize I was missing anything until I met him.