Roses [h.s]

Chapter 17

Finally, the ceremony winds to an end, and as everyone starts to stand and move in an orderly fashion to form a line circling around the church and up to the altar, I edge slowly away from Harry. Immediately I miss the contact, but even this small distance reminds me that I have a plan to stick to. Harry stretches out his limbs slowly, a lazy smile on his face as he catches me staring.

"You didn't tell me it was gonna take that long." He teases, and I smile back.

"Just you wait, we're barely half-way done."

I feel like I'm warning myself as I say that, reminding myself that the day is far from over. I wish I could just forget about this, that it isn't the only thing that races through my mind, but there's too many things around me, especially now, that remind me of the feelings I'm harbouring. God, what I would give in this moment to go back to before Harry came back, or better yet, to go back to before he even went to X-factor, when the only thing I had to worry about was getting my schoolwork done before dance class.

Harry follows me without question as I stand and make my way to the end of the line of people. It's shortened slightly but it'll still be another few minutes until we reach the front of the line.

"So, what now?" Harry asks, leaning softly against the wall, acting as if his suit probably didn't cost more than everything in this church.

"We have to go up and congratulate everyone in the wedding party, like give them best wishes and stuff. Then we wait for them outside, so we can throw confetti and things, and take family photos after that. And then," I continue, taking an exaggerated breath which makes Harry smile. "We finally go to the reception."

I expect Harry to sigh, or roll his eyes, or seem even slightly irritated at the fact that this day was barely beginning, but he simply smiles at me again, and nods. There are a few moments of silence as we shuffle forward in line, a silence that would've been a comfortable one if it had been two weeks earlier, but now I can't help but feel overly cautious about every move I make, as if Harry would be watching me.

When we finally reach my cousin, I expect her to simply smile and thank us for coming, there's not enough time to have a conversation in this line, even though somebody always tries. There's still a few more people waiting behind us, so I'm ready for a brief interaction, maybe a look of surprise when she notices Harry, but nothing else. So, when my cousin looks at Harry, and then smiles at me widely after I say congratulations, I feel nervous.

"Yiayia told me you brought your boyfriend with you."

I can feel my mouth open and my eyes bulge when the words finally hit me. My first thought is wondering how exactly that little old lady was able to start spreading rumours in the middle of a wedding, and then the heat hits my cheeks as I fully realise what exactly she's saying.

"I – uh – He's not my boyfriend." I splutter, glancing back at Harry, who's looking at me with a weird expression that I can't quite place as I rush to expel the thought from everyone's mind, particularly my own. "No, no, Harry's just a friend."

I turn back to her, seeing her smirk at how uncomfortable I am, but before either of us has the chance to say something more, the person behind Harry, pushes themselves forward impatiently, pulling my cousin down for a kiss and forcing us on to the next person.

I refuse to look back at Harry as we continue down the rest of the line, that expression on his face when I glanced back at him still the only thing I see. He had been smiling, I know that, an awkward smile that hadn't surprised me at all. But there had been something in his eyes, that if I didn't know better, I would've thought was a glint of disappointment at how quickly I had shot down my cousin's statement. I could have latched onto that as miniscule proof that Harry might, maybe possibly, feel the same way about me as I do about him, but I brush it off as me projecting it onto him.