Hold My Girl

Chapter 31

August 2019

The biggest downside of the tour, even with people writing shitty articles, packing and unpacking cases 300 times a week and spending copious amounts of time on planes and cars, is never getting to spend enough time in the cities Harry is performing in.

I got to travel a bit when I was younger. Holidays to Spain and Greece with my parents, weekend city breaks to Amsterdam and Prague on holidays from university. I enjoy travelling. That feeling of stepping off an airplane and being hit with that wall of stuffy heat gives me butterflies. Trying different foods, walking along the beach in shorts and flip flops, learning the basics of a new language so you can ask for the bill and say thank you in their language gives me a bubble of thrill that's hard to replicate.

But it was too difficult to do any of that when we were holed up in hotels and arenas all day. And I understood it. Harry was on a schedule, there were times where he had to be in specific places at specific times and there wasn't anything I could do to change it. Sound check needed to happen, radio interviews and promo needed to happen, it was just part of life on the road with Harry.

And I was really starting to enjoy being on tour. Life with a touring musician was fun for the most part. There was a total family vibe going on amongst Harry's band and his crew. Avery and I spent a lot of time at arenas with no real purpose, I just always liked to keep Avery close to him, that was my excuse anyway, I didn't want to admit that it was probably more to do with the fact I just wanted to be around him all the damn time, even when he was busy, but there was always someone to hang out with. Some of the stage crew and lighting guys would invite me to play cards with them while they had some down time and Avery was sleeping. Harry's band always had time for us. They kept me involved every step of the way, regardless of how busy Harry was.

But being inside constantly was getting to me. We'd visited some gorgeous city's like Hamburg and Munich and I'd barely seen more than passing fields from the window of the car taking us too and from the venues. Today we'd woken up in Barcelona before Harry's show tomorrow and I was determined I was going to see more of this city than I had the others and wether Harry liked it or not, he was coming with us.

*

"Can we venture out today?" I asked as Harry and I sat quietly in the corner of the hotel restaurant that morning having breakfast. We sat across from each other at a small table with Avery propped up in a high chair surrounded by blankets, between us. She was amusing herself sooking on a piece of buttery toast.

Harry's eyed me over the rim of his tea cup. His shoulders tensed.

"Venture out... where?"

I shrugged my shoulders casually like this was a random idea I was floating by him and not something I'd been thinking about for the past few day's.

"There's the Sagrada Familia not far from the hotel which I think would be pretty cool to see and there's an aquarium that Avery might like" I throw in another shrug of nonchalance for effect and watch as Avery batters her small fists against the table trying to pick up the piece of toast she's dropped. I watch as she figures out how to move it closer and pick it up with her tiny fingers. She buzzes with happiness as she manages and I'm hit with a wave of sadness as I realise she's growing up. She's 5 months old now and it feels like time as flown by. She's no longer my little baby, she's growing in to a beautiful little lady and I have the biggest urge to pause time.

I look up to see Harry watching me closely. "I don't know if it's wise, Nora" He sets his tea cup down and leans back in this chair. His long legs stretch out under the table and I feel the fabric of his cotton pants rub against the outside of my bare leg. I move my leg a little to press it against his because I like the connection.