Sometimes in Love. (AU) -- Niall Horan & Harry Styles

Sometimes in Love... 

~

I could hear my father shouting for me. "Avery sweetie. Come downstairs for a minute."

I looked back down at the family picture on my computer before going downstairs. I found him sitting at the kitchen table with four envelopes in his hands. "Yes?"

"Sit down." He said gesturing to the chair in front of him.

Crap what did I do now?

I sat down in front of him and began to think of any trouble I've gotten in, in the past few days. Nothing comes to mind.

"Ade--" He began to say but stopped.

He took a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair. Before he could say anything I grabbed his hand and held on to it tightly.

"It's okay dad." 

He nodded before continuing. "Avery." He corrected.

I gave him an encouraging smile.

"When your mom found out she was pregnant with you she was very happy." he paused to wipe the tears from his face.

"We both were. I was so excited, she wanted another boy but I was sure you'd be a girl. I felt it inside me, I couldn't explain it but I just knew." This time he paused to wipe my tears.

"I remember the day you were born, it was one of the happiest days of my life. I was so happy to finally have my little girl in my arms. You were such a beautiful baby. So tiny with your little eyes and nose and mouth, and just everything about you was so tiny and fragile and beautiful. I knew you'd be an amazing young woman, and here you are."

I started to cry more and more. Dad never talks about mom, not because he doesn't want to. He just can't take it, it hurts him too much.

"Dad. You don't have to." I said trying to avoid us both braking down.

He shook his head. "No I want to. I have to, for her."

I nodded indicating he continue.

"Your mom was so scared when she found out you were a girl. She didn't know what to do with you, her first girl. She was worried she wouldn't know what to do. Before you came along all we had were boys."

He started crying again.

"Soon after you were born she started to get worse, her heart couldn't take it. She was in a lot of pain and fluid started to leak into her lungs, her breathing got worse and she became very asthmatic. She couldn't do all the things she wanted to. Her heart started pumping less and less blood, we knew."

He started sobbing a little. I stood up and wrapped my arms around his shoulders.

"It's okay dad. You can do it."

"We umm, we knew what was going to happen. We just, we didn't know when. The doctor said that it would take a year maybe two. She passed in her sleep when you were 5. I think that not being able to see you and your brothers grow up is what really got to her, what really broke her heart. I want you to know that I love her very much."

"Dad?"

"Yes baby?"

"Why didn't you ever remarry?"

He laughed. "You are your mother's daughter. The minute she found out she wasn't going to make it she told me to marry the first person who made me happy, but I couldn't. That was her place, you kids are the ones that make me the happiest and that's good enough for me. I don't need someone else taking your mom's place."