The Only Exception | W2S

FORTY FIVE.

"Harry's. I'm at Harry's, and I'm - we're okay, Jess. We're okay."

She doesn't say anything for a moment, and I'm slightly concerned she's about to tell me I've made a massive mistake going back to Harry, but then she speaks.

"It takes a great deal of maturity to do that, Hols. I am so incredibly proud of you, little sis. So proud."

"You don't even know what I did," I laugh, the tears streaming down my face. 

"I'm going to imagine you had some very angry sex with him and then you guys talked?" She asked, and whilst I'm not surprised, I'm slightly disturbed that she knows me so well. 

"No comment," I tell her, although we're both laughing. "Anyway, I phoned you to say that I'm going home. I'm taking Harry to meet mum and dad."

A pause. 

"Holly, they're going to love him," she says finally.

"You really think so?" 

"I know so," she replies. "I know he's - well, made some mistakes - but, but, he's never treated you badly. Truthfully, I don't think he ever will. He's a good person, Holly. And you deserve good."

"I'm slightly freaking out now," I admit, as we're roughly ten minutes away from my house. 

"It'll be fine," Harry reassures me, concentrating on the road. "And anyway - if anyone should be freaking out, it should be me. What if they hate me?"

"I mean, they're probably not gonna be completely impressed with the whole - well, you know," I start, referring to the Matthew drama, "but I did phone them earlier and let them know about everything. If anything, my dad will glare at you for ten minutes, but he's harmless," I tell him with a smile, although I don't know if it's calmed him down. 

"Fair enough. I probably deserve a glare."

We both stay silent and let the music fill the car as I look out of the window, the roads becoming increasingly familiar as we drive closer to my home. 

"Did you ever tell your family about me?" I ask, the thought suddenly popping into my head. 

"I told my mum that I'd met a girl I liked the very first time I met you, at the party last December," he says, looking across at me whilst we were stopped at a red light. "Told her that you intrigued me. But I told the whole family when we set the one month trial period."

"You told your mum after we met for the first time?" I asked, not even realising I was smiling until I looked at my reflection.

"Pretty sure I told her you were gonna be my girlfriend one day."

"Liar."

"No I'm not."

"Did you manifest me, or something, because I swear it all happened so quickly and -"

"What if I told you I paid a witch on Etsy to perform a love spell on you -"

"I really wouldn't put it past you."

Harry chuckles, shaking his head as the light turns green. "No, but seriously. I knew from the start. I mean, I didn't know it'd be this," he gestures between us with one hand, "but I knew you weren't just going to be someone in my life. You were going to be important."

My chest tightens, warmth spreading through me at his words. I fiddle with the hem of my sleeve, trying to suppress the ridiculous smile threatening to take over my face. "You're being disgustingly sweet right now."

"Well, I am meeting your parents. Gotta turn on the charm, haven't I?"

I roll my eyes. "Just don't be too charming. My mum is already gonna like you more than me the second she hears your accent."

Harry smirks. "Is that so?"

"Oh, absolutely," I say, leaning back into my seat. "You could burn the house down and she'd still be like, Oh, but his voice is just lovely, Holly."

He laughs, properly laughs, and the sound does something strange to my stomach. I stare out of the window, trying to push away the thought that no matter how nervous I am, no matter how much drama has led up to this moment—this is right.

A few minutes later, the familiar bend in the road appears, and suddenly, my stomach flips. "Oh, God."

Harry glances over. "You okay?"

"No," I groan, covering my face with my hands. "What if this is a terrible idea? What if I walk in and immediately regret everything?"

I peek through my fingers just in time to see Harry smirk. "Then we'll turn around, drive straight back to mine, and I'll remind you why you don't regret it."

I swat his arm. "Shut up."

But it works. The nerves don't feel quite as suffocating anymore.

Harry turns onto my parents' street, slowing down as we approach the driveway. My childhood home comes into view, and I inhale sharply.

"Well," he says, cutting the engine. "No turning back now."

I turn to face him, suddenly feeling very aware of the weight of this moment. This means something. Introducing him to my parents, letting him step into this part of my life—it's the closest thing to a fresh start we could have.

Harry must sense the shift because his expression softens. He reaches over, brushing his fingers against mine. "You ready?"

I take a deep breath. "Yeah. Let's do this."

And with that, we step out of the car together.

The front door is open before I even turn the corner to go down the path, and my mum and dad are stood in the doorway, and they look so incredibly happy to see me. Us. 

"Holly," my mum says, her arms extending for me to receive a hug, which I warmly accept. "Hiya, lovely. How are you? Okay? Tired? Hungry?" 

"Hi mum," I smile into her chest, allowing myself to feel small in her arms. It feels so good. Just to be here in this moment. "I'm alright. Let me just - this is Harry," I introduce, pulling away from the hug, and wrapping my arm around his waist, like I was presenting him to my parents. In a way, I sort of was. 

"Harry," my dad says, extending an arm out for a handshake. If he was annoyed with him in anyway, he wasn't showing it. I put that down to my mum, and probably Jess, who had also most likely phoned them both to defend Harry for me. 

"Mr Peterson," Harry replied, shaking his hand in return. 

As predicted, my mum turned to me, her eyes widening at the sound of Harry's voice. 

Harry and my dad went in first, and as my mum and I followed, she whispered into my ear. 

"Holly, that man has a lovely voice."