Molly awoke in Gemma’s guest bed with a groan and covered her head with a pillow. They had ended up drinking quite a bit yesterday. Yet, now Molly had a hangover, and she dared not move in case it sent the room spinning again.

Despite this, her buzzing phone forced her out of bed much earlier than she would have wished. She had dozens of texts from Alexa and Lily gushing about the new pictures of Harry from last night, and some cryptic lyrics he had tweeted. Molly read through the messages in their group chat (most of them were between Alexa and Lily) to figure out what the heck was going on.

L: OH MY GOD!!! IS THAT THE SECRET GIRLFRIEND??

A: IM SCREAMING!!!

L: and the tweet?!?!?!!?

A: RIGHT? LIKE WTF HARRY!!!

L: he’s sending mixed signals I cAN’t tAkE It!!!!

This continued for about 20 more texts which Molly skimmed through, before checking out the ‘cryptic lyric tweet’ in question.

M: Guys that’s a line from Niall’s On My Own, he’s probably just being supportive of his friend

A: I know!!! He’s saying he’s on his own, like, he’s single, yet then he dances with this girl all night and buys her like 7 drinks???

M: what

Molly’s heart started to race and she felt sick -and it wasn’t from the hangover. He bought her 7 drinks? And they danced all night? To the- Molly stopped herself from thinking the words 'the best song ever’, since this was not the time for quoting One Direction lyrics.

L: Yes OMG he paid her whole bar tab for the night and then they danced for like an hour, and she was all over him! He didn’t seem to mind it too much ; )

Molly again thought she was going to puke, and tried to keep her head on straight. ‘I’ll just text Harry, and he’ll tell me what really happened. Who knows where Alexa and Lily heard this?’

Molly opened tumblr and sure enough, those pictures where everywhere, along with countless rumors that this was the ‘secret girlfriend’ Daisy had accidentally mentioned. Molly rolled her eyes at their speculation, but still felt very uneasy about the situation, and called Harry. When he didn’t pick up, Molly dragged herself downstairs to find Gemma.

“Good morning, luv,” Gemma said almost teasingly. “You look like a mess.”

“Thanks, I feel like it too.” Molly groaned as she sat at the table.

“Coffee?” Gemma offered, but poured Molly a cup anyway.

“Please.” Molly took a deep breath, added some milk to her coffee, and sighed. “What was your brother up to last night?”

“How should I know? I’m not his keeper,” Gemma laughed, until she saw the worried look in Molly’s eyes. “Why? What has he done.”

“I don’t know, nothing probably,” Molly shrugged and took a sip of coffee. “He went to a club with Adam and Sarah in Stockholm, got pretty drunk, and danced with a random girl all night.”

Gemma didn’t say anything, she just sighed disappointedly and shook her head. “He really knows how to mess up a good thing.”

“I can’t even imagine what he was thinking?!?” Molly nearly wailed, but tried to keep calm. She wasn’t sure if she was mad or sad or, like Gemma, disappointed. Like, maybe she had been expecting this all along?

Gemma reached across the table to place her hand gently on Molly’s arm. “I’m sure he has an explanation of some sorts, so don’t jump to conclusions before you’ve heard his side of the story. Have you tried calling him?”

“Yeah, but the line was busy or something; it went to voicemail.” Molly checked her phone again for a response from Harry. “I just…” She sighed again and closed her eyes. “Sometimes I pinch myself, like this is too good to be real. Like, how could I actually be dating the celebrity I had a major crush on in high school and college? It’s so unlikely, and some days I wonder if I’ve imagined this whole thing?”

“Well, you certainly wouldn’t be sitting here in my kitchen if you had,” Gemma added with a half smile.

“It would be a bit creepy if I were,” Molly tried to laugh, but couldn’t find it in her. “But now it feels real, like a proper relationship, not some fairytale fanfiction I might have imagined.”

“I guess that’s just part of a relationship, and considering what you told me last night, you’re pretty serious about it now.”

Molly froze at Gemma’s words and tried to recall last night. What had she said to Gemma? Her memories were muddy and blurry at best. “What?”


***
Harry woke up with a splitting headache, and cursed himself for not drinking enough water last night. As he slowly sat up, the events of the previous evening slowly filtered into his mind in bits and pieces. His phone buzzed on the nightstand, still plugged in and charging from the night before.

‘That’s where I left that…’ He thought, and tried to make the annoying sound stop.

“Harry!” A woman screamed on his phone.

“Shit, I’ve accidentally answered it,” he muttered to himself and considered hanging up on her. She yelled his name again and he added, “maybe if I hang up she’ll go away?”

“Harry I can hear you talking to yourself…” she scolded.

“Sorry Jocelyn,” he mumbled into the phone and braced himself for the verbal berating he was sure to receive. “Listen, about last night...it's not what it-”

“It was an excellent diversion from the rumors, and from the truth. That was actually quite clever of you, or, was this Molly's idea?” Jocelyn asked, and the pit of Harry's stomach fell at the mention of his girlfriend.

“Umm, can I call you back?” He stammered as guilt and regret washed over him.

“No I’ll be quick; I actually called to tell you I had gotten you into the lineup of a few of the Jingle Balls in December, after your tour ends.” Jocelyn paused and waited for Harry to respond, but his mind was swarming with other thoughts at the moment. “Harry?”

“Yeah, yeah great,” he mumbled, having not really heard what she'd said. He barely noticed when they ended their call, as he sat dumbstruck by his own actions.

What was he thinking? Harry tried to figure this out, but all he knew was that he had not intended to hurt Molly's feelings.


***


“You quoted ‘The Office’ -the American version- and, I’m pretty sure you said you loved my little brother,” Gemma awkwardly explained, grimacing slightly.

“Oh.” Molly’s eyes’ widened at this, and suddenly the memory came flooding into her brain. “OH!” She sat up straight and looked up at Gemma. “You mean I said all of that out loud?”

Gemma nodded. “Was that just the alcohol talking, or…?”

“....yeah. The ‘or’ part, though yes, also the alcohol, too.” Molly answered and hung her head in embarrassment.

“Okay,” Gemma nodded. “And, I take it you haven’t told Harry?”

“No, and I can’t; it can’t be like that,” Molly shook her head.

“Like what?” Gemma asked.

“We’re not there yet, I don’t think, and...I can’t be the first one to say it,” Molly said after a pause.

“Has it ever occured to you that Harry is thinking the same thing?” Gemma asked. “That he can’t be the first one to say it, too?”


***


Harry paced his room after he got off the phone with Jocelyn and tried to clear his head, but before he could really think through what he was going to say, he had pulled out his phone and called Molly.


***


“He's calling! He's calling,” Molly nearly dropped her phone on the table when she saw his name appear on her ringing phone. “Do I answer it? Should I be mad at him?”

Gemma shrugged. “Do whatever you like, I'll give you some privacy,” she said and slid her chair away from the table to get up.

“No, no please stay!” Molly grabbed her hand, so Gemma reluctantly sat back down at the table. “For moral support,” Molly grinned overenthusiastically to thank Gemma, before finally answering her phone. “Hey,” she said simply, still not sure if she should be upset with him or not.

“Hey,” Harry replied, with about the same lack of emotion. Neither of them really knew what to say, so as usual, Molly broke the silence.

“Did you have fun last night?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess, but the thing is...I didn't mean for it to seem like...none if that was planned or anything. I didn't even mean to drink that much, but I was...I missed you, and I, uh,” Harry's mouth suddenly went dry and he felt out of breath for no apparent reason. 'Just say it’, Harry willed himself to complete the sentence and finish his thought, but he just couldn't. “And, I'm sorry.”

Gemma shook her head and quietly mouthed, “You got this, I’m out,” to Molly before slipping away.

“You bought her a drink, or drinks rather, and danced pretty close together. Who is she even? Some random girl?” Molly was trying not to get upset, since Harry sounded remorseful and like he truly regretted his actions, but it was clear from her tone of voice she was not happy.

“I just covered her bar tab for the night to be kind, you know the pay it forward thing? People still do that, right?” Harry sighed. “And I didn’t realize how close she was dancing to me. Every time she touched me I moved further away, but she didn’t get the hint. And yeah, she’s just some random girl who sat next to me, and was kind enough to listen to my drunk rambling about Niall’s song.” He squeezed his eyes shut and could only imagine the disappointed and hurt look on Molly’s face right now, and the fact that he had caused her to feel this way made him feel sick with guilt.

“Oh Harry,” Molly laughed softly as she picture that image in her head. “I’m sure you did have the best intentions, but you have to think of how this will look on the outside. I’m not mad at you, at all, but you must realize how this seems, right?”

“Yeah, I know,” he sighed, “And Jocelyn actually called me to say it was ‘good press’ or something, that it helped with the girlfriend rumors, but I don’t really care. I hurt your feelings, and for that, I am incredibly sorry. I wish I could say this to you in person, and show you properly how much I regret ever leaving my hotel room last night. But Adam and Sarah thought it would cheer me up, since they knew how...um, sad, I was about having to leave you behind.”

Molly’s emotions had done a complete 180 over the course of this conversation. Just hearing him say these words only confirmed what she’d known: she had nothing to worry about. She suddenly thought of that meme from The Office, and what she had told Gemma, but Harry continued talking.

“I have to leave for soundcheck soon, but...are you going to watch my concert tonight?” Harry asked with trepidation.

“Of course, I’ve been watching them all on live stream.” Molly had even planned her flight back to New York around this, so she wouldn’t miss his show.

“Okay, um, yeah.” Harry smiled, but couldn’t think of anything else to say, so they ended their conversation soon after.

That evening, Molly and Gemma set up the live stream to watch Harry’s concert in Stockholm. Things went as usual for the most part - he made joke about Ikea, said something about ‘Stockholm Syndrome’. When it came to the part of his setlist where he usually played ‘Girl Crush’ he surprised the audience (and Molly) by playing ‘their song’, If I Could Fly. It was just him and his guitar with no accompaniment, and he seemed incredibly emotional.

Both Gemma and Molly worried that Harry might cry -right there on the stage in front of everyone- but he made it though the song okay. After the song ended he did seem to take a bit longer putting his guitar away and grabbing a drink of water, but he was smiling by the time he faced the audience again.

Near the end of the show, Harry played ‘Strong’ and it again felt very personal for him, and Molly. Just like the last time he’d sang that song -with Liam back in London- Harry paused and practically spoke the words ‘I don’t care, I’m not scared of love’ and the audience went crazy.

Harry kept these changes to his selt-list for his next few shows in Germany, Amsterdam, and Milan, and each night Molly watched his concert she got the same butterflies as he sang ‘their’ song to her. The fans didn’t think much of the change in the setlist, since the rumors of his ‘secret girlfriend’ were starting to die down now that Harry was actively working to refute them.

It was actually Molly’s idea, and Harry was quite reluctant at first, but his manager and PR team reaffirmed him that it was a good idea. After his escapade to the club in Stockholm, many of his fans seemed to forget about his supposed girlfriend, or assumed they had broken up. Molly followed fan reactions closely, and each time Harry appeared out in public alone, or with his band, the fans/media seemed to forget a little more about the rumored girlfriend. So, even though Harry still felt guilty about going out to a club, he knew it meant that Molly might be able to join him on tour again without the risk of being exposed to the fans. This time, however, he did not drink as much, and certainly didn’t try to be nice and cover some random girl’s bar tab. There might have been a bit of innocent dancing, but Harry stuck with his bandmates and made sure there was ample space between him and whomever he danced with.

Molly didn’t necessarily enjoy seeing the pictures of these events all over twitter or tumblr the next day, but she knew it was for a ‘good cause’ and Harry was, essentially, doing it for her. They spoke often, and Harry made sure not to misplace his phone as frequently anymore so Molly wouldn’t worry.

“So, how’s Italy? I’m jealous!” Molly asked during their nightly call on Harry’s last night in Italy.

“It’s nice, but...it’d be better if you were here.” He answered.

“I know, but...” Molly tried to word this right. “I’d rather they not know about us.”

“Right,” Harry agreed, reminding himself that this was hopefully temporary. “Maybe, next time, we can enjoy all of this together.”

Molly’s heart fluttered at the mention of a ‘next time’ and again wondered if Harry felt the same way she did. She had considered saying something, but she didn’t want to say that kind of thing over the phone, and worried that it would change things between them too much if he didn’t reciprocate those feelings.

Near the end of their call, Harry got quiet. “So, this is my last night in Europe.”

“Oh, right.” Molly checked his schedule and realized he was going to the other side of the world now, the farthest apart they’d been (since they started dating). “That doesn’t really change anything, though, we’ll still talk every night, though the time will be different.”

“Yeah,” Harry agreed. “You’ll be eating breakfast now, instead of lunch.” He tried to laugh, and Molly smiled at his attempt at a joke, but deep down she felt it would somehow be different. He was going to be on the other side of the world, and even though he was just a phone call away still, it would somehow be different.

“We’ll make it work, though,” Molly added. “I miss you.”

As they hung up, Harry yet again decided he had one more 1D song he wanted to cover, and set off to find his band.

Notes

Another 1D song Harry?? What do you guys think it is? ( hint: Molly kind of quoted it in this chapter) (and it's not the Best Song Ever xD)

Thank you for reading, voting, and commenting! :D
Harry playing If I Could Fly, if you haven't seen it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5m5mLxwpiE