“Taylor? Sweetheart?”
My eyes slowly opened to find Anne, smiling softly at me from a squatting position, pushing some of my hair from my face. How long had I been asleep? Where were Robin, Niall, and Haley?
“What happened? Is Harry okay?” My words came out in one big hoarse jumbled mess, as I scrambled to sit up. My whole body ached from the position I had slept in, but I ignored it.
She chuckled lightly, “He’s fine. The surgery was quite successful. He’s awake and he’s been asking for you.”
My heart leapt and before I could process another thought I was on my feet ready to follow Anne back to Harry’s room. We walked down the long corridor, a nurse was going around serving trays of breakfast to each room that she passed.
We finally stopped and walked into the quiet room, only the faint sounds of a soccer game playing on the TV and the heart monitor could be heard.
“Yes!” I heard that familiar deep voice croak, making me sigh in relief knowing it was so like him to be watching a soccer game right after surgery.
“Harry, there’s someone here to see you.”
His head rolled to the side, offering a lazy smile to me and again, I wanted to cry but this time in relief.
“I’ll leave you two.” Anne murmured, backing out of the room quietly and leaving the two of us alone.
I looked at my poor, poor boy. So bruised and scratched up, but still holding a smile.
“Come here.” He opened his arms and I hesitated, not wanting to hurt him or step on anything he was hooked up to. “I promise I won’t break.”
Without any more hesitation, I crawled in the bed next to him and buried my face in his chest beginning to sob away my troubles.
“Don’t” Hiccup. “ever” Hiccup. “do that” Hiccup. “to me” Hiccup. “again.”
He held me as tight as he could, pressing kisses to my head. “Shh, baby, don’t cry, I’m okay. I’m not going anywhere.”
“I’m so sorry, I’m sorry for everything.”
“Shh, don’t worry about it. We’ll figure it out later, right now just lay with me.”
*
“How are you feeling?” I asked, before beginning another round of hacking coughs.
He chuckled, “I think the question is, how are you feeling?”
“Better now.” I murmured into his chest, snuggling further into him. For over an hour, we had been lying in the same position, uninterrupted. We were quite a pair, a boy bruised and battered, leg casted up and elevated and a girl who was pitifully sick with the flu. Still, we were happy and content with finally being together again.
The past seven days had been the worst of my life, my world had almost crumbled down completely and now it felt like everything was beginning to look up again.
“Harry, honey, I brought you some clothes from home.” Anne rounded the corner with a pile of clothes for Harry, although I was sure he couldn’t put much effort into changing into them.
“Thanks mom.”
“Do you need anything sweetie? Are you hungry?”
“No mom, I’m fine.” I could tell he was getting annoyed, but I knew that he knew his mom was only trying to help make things more comfortable for him. He sighed, “Thank you.”
“Okay, I’m going to go by work just for a little bit and I’ll be back in about an hour. Will you be okay?”
“Yes mom.”
“I’ll call if anything happens.” I interjected, giving Anne a reassuring smile.
She hesitated, “Okay. But make sure you do.”
After pressing a kiss to both mine and Harry’s heads, she made her exit leaving us alone again. I curled up against Harry as tight as I could without hurting him. His warmth encircled me and I immediately felt comfort. It wasn’t long until I drifted off into a comfortable slumber.
*
Harry’s POV:
As much as my body ached from exhaustion and of course, surgery, I was completely content with where I was. My girl was by my side, cuddled into me sleeping soundly and for the first time in a week, I wasn’t worrying if we would be okay, because I knew we were.
“Knock, knock.”
I looked up from my place on the bed to see the chipper nurse that had been taking care of me walk through the door.
“How are you this morning Mr. Styles?” She chirped, paying no mind to the sickly girl sleeping next to me.
“I’m okay, just a little sore.” I said lowly, as Taylor stirred in her sleep.
“Oh, I see we have a visitor.” She chuckled looking down at my girl with a sympathetic smile adding, "She must've been the one I found crying hysterically when you came in last night. Bless her heart she was so upset."
My heart clenched just at the thought of her words. Despite my coldness towards her the night of the game, she came here and was upset. And as I thought more and more about it, the Vanderbilt issue seemed so miniscule and irrelevant, and I felt like an idiot for getting so angry with her when in all reality she was the one that should have been angry with me.
"I hope she's okay, she had a horrible cough last night and looked awful pale."
"Yeah, she apparently has the flu." I chuckled, rubbing small circles on her sweater-covered back. She really needed to be at home in bed, making sure she was well, but instead she was here, and it just made me realize how much she really cared for me.
"Well how are you feeling this morning?" She asked, checking my vitals.
"I'm a little sore but other than that I'm okay."
*
“Baby, wake up.” I shook Taylor gently, trying to wake her up as much as I hated to. She mumbled something inaudible into my chest as she nuzzled her face further into my sweatshirt. “You need to go home and get in bed.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
I chuckled, “Yes you are, I’ll be fine, but you need to go home, get some rest and take your medicine. Your mom is here.”
“Taylor, sweetie, he’ll be home tomorrow afternoon. You can come see him then.”
She mumbled something into my sweatshirt again, something I couldn’t understand, but I was sure she was cursing me for disturbing her sleep which only made me chuckle.
“Only because I love you.” She said as I dropped a kiss to her forehead before she peeled herself away from me and slipped into her boots and coat.
“Feel better soon, I love you.”
“Same for you Styles.”
*
Haley’s POV:
“So Tay’s birthday is coming up and I kind of want to throw her a party, but not something big because I mean, Harry can’t really walk so, yeah.”
After all that I’d caused, I felt obligated to do something for Taylor and since her birthday was the next weekend, I thought what better than a little party?
“Well, what did you have in mind?”
“A trip to the beach for a bonfire. Her grandparents have a place, I’m sure we could get it for the weekend.”
Niall chewed on his French fry, thinking it over. “Just us or a few other friends?”
“I was thinking us, Louis and Chloe, Zayn and Jordan, and Maia and Ashton.”
“Am I providing the booze?”
“Yes, but don’t go overboard, we don’t need a repeat of the last party we were at.”
I still felt bad, there was not a bone in my body that didn’t ache with guilt. Sure, Taylor should have told Harry, but that’s the thing she should have told Harry, not me. I was sworn to secrecy by my best friend to keep her news about Vandy a secret, and I betrayed that trust because of my stupid, drunk, loose lips.
“Hey, don’t worry. She’s forgiven you. Like I’ve said before, it could’ve been anyone.”
I sighed, knowing he could see right through me as much as I’d try and fight it. I hated to seem vulnerable and so emotional, but with Niall it was like I was an open book.
“I know, but I still feel like I owe this to her, ya know?”
“Yeah, you only feel that way because she’s your best friend.”
“I honestly thought I ruined their relationship. Like, I was sure they were done.” My eyes widened just at the thought, I couldn’t see either of them single, nor could I see them with anyone else. They were the real Troy and Gabriella, they belonged together. If they had broken up, I would’ve lost all hope for love. “But somehow, we convinced them otherwise.”
“We make a great team Alexander.” Niall smiled, flashing his pearly white and perfectly straight teeth. Heat rose in my cheeks and I was sure the red tint was evident to everyone within a fifty-foot radius of us.
“Yeah, we do.”
*
Taylor’s POV:
Two days later I returned to school and quite frankly, I was glad to be back, glad to be healthy again and able to breathe. It felt nice to be out of the house and seeing people again. For the past week I was basically in isolation minus staying with Harry that one night at the hospital.
He was at home and resting, taking it very easy. The doctors had warned him not to do much and to just relax. He’d be out of school for at least two weeks and per Harry’s request, I’d be coming over everyday after school to tutor him, but I was sure there wouldn’t be much tutoring with my boy. He was too flirty for that, even when he was practically immobile.
When I pulled into the driveway I knew so well, I noticed his mother’s car wasn’t sitting in its normal spot and guessed she had already left for work. I parked my car and grabbed my books and the bag of Chipotle and let myself in the front door.
“Harry?” I called, setting my book bag down on the stairs, going to look for my boy. I shrugged out of my coat, draping it over one of the chairs at the dining room table and setting down the bag of food. “Babe? Where are you?”
The house was silent, not even the usual sound of a soccer game could be heard, which confused me. Usually Harry was sprawled out on the couch yelling at the TV as if the referees could actually hear him, but today everything was silent.
I made my way up the stairs, beginning to think he had fallen asleep again and my predictions were proven correct when I saw his bedroom door wide open and him piled in his bed, mouth agape, his bare torso showing just slightly from where the duvet had shifted lower on his body. I chuckled quietly as I took him in, looking so vulnerable and innocent which was far from reality. His soft snores slowly filled the room and I knew he was out.
Deciding to let him be, I quietly tiptoed over to his drawers where I knew he kept my favorite t-shirt and pair of basketball shorts, opening the drawer and pulling out the articles of clothing. As I was slipping into the clothes, I noticed Harry’s snoring had come to a halt, but really didn’t think anything of it.
“Damn, this is the best thing to wake up to.”
I squealed, covering up my half naked body with the clothes as I turned around to face him. His eyes were droopy and his voice was gravelly and honestly so sexy, he held a smug smirk as he put his arms behind his head.
“Babe, I’ve seen you naked, you don’t have to hide yourself. Please don’t.”
“You were supposed to be asleep horndog.” I grimaced, slipping on the t-shirt and shorts before turning back around to see him wearing that shit-eating grin he always wore when he was being especially flirtatious.
“I can’t help that my girlfriend is hot.”
I rolled my eyes, “You’re high as a kite.”
“No I’m not. I haven’t even taken my meds today.”
“What? Harry! You’re supposed to take them three times a day!”
He chuckled, holding his hands up in defense, “I’m kidding babe, chill.”
“Jerk.” I muttered, he knew that I would flip my shit if he wasn’t following every single one of the doctor’s orders, especially when it came to taking his medicine. “Why do you do this to me?”
“Because you’re cute when you freak out.”
“One of these days I’m going to really flip my shit and it’s not going to be pretty.”
He chuckled, throwing back his duvet and opening his arms. “Come here pretty girl.”
Even though he was, dare I say it, annoying, I couldn’t help but blush when he said that. He had a way with me, he made me feel things no one in the world had the ability to just by being his flirty self. Of course I wasted no time climbing into the bed and snuggling up to his warm body, laying my head right above the swallows inked on his chest. They were my favorite of his multiple tattoos, although his mom loathed them, to me, they just gave him a rebellious edge, they were sexy.
We laid there in comfortable silence, just happy to be with each other again, and especially not scrunched up in a hotel bed. He was home and I was extremely relieved. The whole situation had me scared to death, no matter what the doctors had promised me, in my mind, Harry wasn’t safe until he was home with me.
“What do you want for your birthday?” He asked, looking up at the ceiling thoughtfully, his fingers dancing on my back underneath the fabric of his t-shirt that I wore. “Like from me.”
“Hmm… How about a new car? Or a house? No wait! A pony.”
He let out the all-too-familiar spontaneous cackle of a laugh, warming my heart. It felt like it had been so long since I heard that laugh, the laugh that, despite the obnoxious volume of it, made my insides fill with warmth. It was one of those sounds that could turn a terrible day into a great one, because it meant he was happy and that made me happy.
“I’m serious, what do you want?”
I craned my neck to look at his face, my finger finding his defined jaw line. “Baby, you don’t have to get me anything, okay? Don’t worry about it.”
*
Harry’s POV:
I was thankful to be out of the house for a while, even if that meant tagging along on Taylor and Haley’s weekly trip to the mall. The hospital had lent me a wheelchair for the time being, seeing as I was still unable to balance on crutches so that meant Taylor had to push me around. I was sure it was a sight, her small self trying to push her long, lanky boyfriend around the mall while Haley was glued to her phone, offering no help whatsoever.
I was amused to say the least, just people watching as the girls tried on outfit after outfit, putting them all back and then picking them up again. There were some strange people out on that Thursday afternoon, the usual housewives bustling around with their husband’s credit cards burning holes in their expensive wallets, the occasional goth with multi-colored hair and multiple piercings, and then there were the adorable elderly couples that would pass. There was one couple in particular that I couldn’t help but take notice of, the husband seemed to just be completely smitten with his wife, and I was sure that it had been a while since he’d first laid eyes on her. There were probably years and years of memories between the two, some good and some bad, but he looked at her like they were seventeen, as if it were the first time he was falling in love with her.
I couldn’t help it when my mind thought of the distant future, maybe that would be Taylor and I. Scratch that, I knew it would be us. We would be the cute old couple that would still be so in love with each other, still looked at each other the same way, with the same love.
Usually it was girls who thought of these things, but I found myself thinking of my future with Taylor quite often. Even at our young age, I knew that she’d be the one I’d marry, the one that I’d start a family with, the one I’d grow old with. She’d be the one I’d spend the rest of my life with.
“Harry, what do you think of this one?”
My eyes traveled over to her, standing outside of the dressing room in a dress that fit her like a glove. I found myself staring, she looked beautiful.
“That’s your homecoming dress.”
“Really? You think so?” She walked over to the mirror, examining herself closely, spinning around to look at all angles, and when she face me again, she smiled.
“Really. You look beautiful.”
*
While Taylor was being fitted for her dress, I asked Haley to take me over to the jewelry store to find something for Taylor.
“Hello sir, ma’am. May I help you with anything?” A smiling salesman asked, adjusting his cufflinks on his suit jacket sleeves.
“Um, yes, I need to get something for my girlfriend’s birthday.” I spoke, peeking in the glass case at the multiple sets of diamonds.
“Oh that’s wonderful, how old?” He smiled.
“Eighteen.”
“Is this the lucky lady?” He asked, referring to Haley behind me, who I was sure was still glued to her phone.
“No, this is her best friend. She’s here to help.”
“Well the more the merrier!” He chirped. “Now is there anything specific you were looking for?”
I thought for a moment, trying to remember if she’d mentioned anything lately. Just when I was about to start from scratch, I remembered a certain bracelet she’d had her eyes on just last month, she practically adored it.
“Actually, there is.”
*
Haley’s POV:
As Harry talked to the salesman about gift wrapping and such, I broke away to call Niall.
“Hey, I’ve got everything over at my place ready to be taken over.” He said, sounding slightly out of breath, and I figured he had just gotten in from a run.
“Okay, do you mind missing the game tomorrow night? Or at least the last two quarters?”
“That’s fine. Not a big football fan anyways, I was just going to see Tay on the field.” He answered, “We can leave right after homecoming court is over. Head over there a little earlier.”
My heart leapt at the thought of Niall and I being alone for an extended amount of time. To me, it was the perfect time to try to have an ‘us’.
“Um, yeah, that sounds perfect.”
“Great,” He started before falling silent for a moment. “Listen um, would you um, like to be my date?”
There went my heart again, I felt like it was going to leap out of my chest right then and there. Sure I was Niall’s date to his party, but we were shitfaced and high as kites, I wouldn’t call that an ideal date even if I did have a good time. This was different, this party was intimate and calm, I wouldn’t even call it a party. There would be a ton of opportunities to snuggle up under a blanket and possibly sneak off from the group. I couldn’t help but feel butterflies already, just at the thought.
“I’d love to.”
“Really? That’s great.” He sounded excited, almost as excited as I felt, and it made me smile. “I’ll call you later and we’ll work everything out.”
“Sounds good.”
“Bye Hales.”
“Bye Ni.”
*
Harry’s POV:
It was a chilly Friday evening, the stands were filled with the usual fans awaiting the prolonged homecoming football game. Usually, the homecoming game wasn’t this late in the season, but due to us hosting the soccer state championship, it was moved to tonight. Tonight wasn’t just homecoming, it was Taylor’s birthday. She had been so excited to be nominated once again for homecoming queen, and I knew she’d once again snag the crown. She was very loved around school, every teacher adored her, and most students did too. She claimed that it falling on her birthday was a sign that it would be a good night and I agreed, especially if all of my plans went through perfectly.
“And your senior class representatives are: Olivia Holden, Brittany Chance, Paige Ramsey, and Taylor Jackson.”
I sat in between my parents and her’s, bundled up in a big coat, scarf, and beanie. Luckily, we were able to see from our second row seats, I had the perfect view of my girl standing on the field, arm looped through her father’s in the dress that she had bought just the other day. She looked beautiful, as always.
“And your 2013 Rock Hill High School homecoming queen is… Taylor Jackson!”
Immediately, I stood on my good leg, balancing myself and cheering for her as she was crowned. Her smile was a mile wide and I knew that she was ecstatic to be crowned for the second year in a row. Her father kissed her cheek, squeezing her hand in his before they smiled for pictures and exited the field.
*
“There’s my homecoming queen!” I announced as Taylor made her way up the few steps, now bundled warmly in a coat, jeans, and scarf. Her hair was still fixed just as it had been for crowning, except now she wore her tiara proudly. It made me smile to know that this was something she'd wanted and gotten. And even if she wasn't homecoming queen, she would still be my queen.
"You didn't trip this year!" Tyler shouted, punching the air from beside their mother who swatted at him with a small chuckle of her own.
I couldn't help but stifle a laugh as I looked at my girl, her face now flushed and embarrassed. Last year, right after she'd been crowned, she was walking to get pictures made, and with the help of her precariously high heels and the turf of the football field, she was sent tumbling to the ground. Of course, at first I was worried that she had broken her ankle but when her dad started laughing, I knew it was her usual clumsiness that had gotten the best of her.
"Shut up Ty." She mumbled, taking her seat next to me and cuddling into my side snugly. I chuckled, pressing a kiss to her flushed cheek.
"You looked beautiful." I murmured lowly, nuzzling my nose to the side of her neck inhaling the familiar floral perfume she always wore.
Right about then, I saw Niall and Haley make their way over to us to offer hugs and congratulations to Taylor before they left to set up for the party. Tonight would be a good night, very relaxed and just what our little group of friends needed.
*
"Harry, where are we going?" Taylor chuckled as Ashton drove us down the highway.
Taking her hand in mine and threading our fingers together, I replied, “Just enjoy the ride baby, we’ll be there in a few minutes.”
She sighed, leaning her head back on the headrest and trained her eyes on the road ahead.
For some reason, I was nervous to give her her gift, I honestly didn’t know why though. I guess it was the principle of it, ya know, maybe she’d think since it was more extravagant than what we usually exchange, that it was a goodbye gift instead of a gift out of love. And that was far from the truth, it was totally and completely out of love. It’s cheesy to say, but seeing the sparkle in her eyes when she saw the bracelet, was something else. It was like she practically adored it, and I wanted to be the one who bought it for her.
Minutes later we drove up to the dark house and she turned to me as Maia and Niall made their way, looking at me questioningly. “Harry, why are we at the beach house?”
“Thought you might want to spend the night of your birthday at your favorite place in the world, the beach.” I said carefully, hoping that she wasn’t about to say she wanted to go home. If she did, all of our plans would be ruined and we’d have to think of something else. “We can just go home if you want to-”
“Baby, this is perfect. Thank you.” She smiled, squeezing my hand in reassurance, offering me a sweet peck to my lips. Her soft lips met mine, and I felt the familiar fire burning between us, there was no doubt that we’d lost our flame over the years. It was still burning bright.
We broke and she helped me out of the car carefully, handing me my crutches and walking slowly into the house with me.
“Surprise!”
I looked over to Taylor, who was smiling from ear to ear, her eyes showing just how happy she was. It made my heart swell to see her like this, after all, she did deserve it.
“Oh my god, you guys are the best.” She was embraced by everyone in a big group hug, everyone telling her happy birthday and giving her kisses to the head. She was reveling in it, enjoying having all of her best friends there with her on her birthday. I stood back, watching it all, enjoying seeing her so happy.
*
The bonfire was alight and full, all of us gathered around, cuddled together in couples under blankets. Taylor sat in between my legs, leaning back into my chest, resting her now beanie-covered head on my shoulder. My arms were wrapped snugly around her, enjoying the closeness that we had. It had been a tough few weeks for us, but like always, we got through it together and came out stronger than ever.
At some point in the night, everyone went up to eat, leaving me and Taylor on the beach by the fire. I reached into my pocket of my coat, feeling velvet of the box on my finger tips, pulling the item out of my pocket and reaching around to put it in Taylor’s view.
“What is this?” She asked, ghosting her fingers over the blue box.
“It’s your present, it is your birthday isn’t it?” I chuckled, shaking the box in her direction to encourage her to open it.
“Harry, I said I didn’t want anything!” She protested, like always.
“I know, that’s why I had to get this for you. Now take it hard-head.” I chuckled again, forcing her to wrap her fingers around the box.
I watched her carefully as she hesitated to lift the lid, but once she did, her hand clamped over her mouth. “Oh my god.”
She didn’t hesitate to turn in my arms and bury her face into my neck. “Thank you so much baby, it’s beautiful. I love it.”
Then, I was showered with kisses all over my neck and face. Yep, I had gotten this one right.
“Happy birthday beautiful.”

Notes

Okay WOW, long delay and I apologize for that! But here is chapter five, a bit fluffly I know but I promise it is about to get more tense!

Anyway, I hope you guys like it! My favorite part personally was when Harry was comparing himself and Taylor to the adorable elderly couple in the mall! So precious!

Please tell me what you think! I live for your feedback! xoxo