Strings and Schemes

Chapter 15

"Alright love, you ready?" He smiles, clapping his hands on my shoulders.

"Ready as I'm gonna be!" I say.

"That's not very enthusiastic for someone on their Independence Day...." Louis says doubtfully.  I laugh.

"Should I be more American about it?" We both let out bated breath.

"Fuck that," he says laughing, "the less American the better."

We head up the stairs, in our ridiculous get-ups, laughing at how uncoordinated we've become. The image of true contentment. If I could take a mental photo of this and keep it forever, I would.

Harry notices us and says "There they are!"

Everyone cheers, and we take a ridiculous bow before hopping out of our cardboard uber black. Harry comes over hugging us, I already can smell the booze soaking out from his pores. Who am I to judge? I have literally been drinking all day.

"Happy Independence Day!" He screams, and everyone shouts it back.

I look around, enamoured with my life. Liam, Harry, Zayn, and a few mutuals of ours are all crowded in the tiny upstairs bar. The bar is covered in decor, including what looks to be some sort of flag. I look at it confused. Picture is grass, sparkles, tequila and a literal magic wand.

Harry laughs, throwing his arm around my shoulder steering me towards the bar where a Mace shot is being prepared for is. "You really think we could throw a Raina Independence Day party with insane decorations and not include a vibrator on your flag?"

I laugh, "I suppose not." Of course they did.

"Speech, Speech, Speech!" The boys shout in unison. I laugh, god what do I say to the people that have helped me so much in such a short time?

"Alright - nothing long, and nothing too sappy," I say; "As expected, Addams!" Liam heckles.

I laugh, "Alright, long and sappy it is!"

"Welcome to my first Independence Day!" I say, everybody cheers. "It's about doing whatever it is that scares me. The things I couldn't do because of my position in the world, and the things I maybe didn't want to do but couldn't do anyways so now I've got a vendetta and must do them all." I smile, "I can't thank you enough, for helping me get some sense of clarity, for being rocks in my corner. I know that this is just one battle, and that there is still many more to come, but the tides are turning and you've helped me see that I can live freely."

"She really could've been a great diplomat," Niall mutters to Liam.

"She's definitely got a way with words, our Raina," Harry says, clapping me on the back and pulling me into a quick hug before kissing each cheek. "I'm proud of you, for standing up for yourself. You may be giving us all the credit, but it was you at the end of the day who put your foot down in that embassy."

"-In a very kick ass way I might add," says Louis. Liam shakes his head, like he wants to object and say something that isn't meant for him to know or say out loud, but I see him shrinking realizing his anger is wrongly placed at this moment.

I look down at the Mace in front of us, how did they manage to get one of these? A ceremonial mace sits in front of me with shots somehow welded to it. Incredibly coveted and difficult to get near, they're an ornamental staff of metal but sometimes wood, carried by a sovereign or high official in civic ceremonies in the UK and other parliamentary systems. Instead, it's being used for shots. At an American's Independence Day party. I take my phone out and snap a photo of the Mace shot, before Harry's friend Niall is standing behind the bar yelling "shots, shots, shots!"