Strong [h.s]

Did I Ever Tell You?

I s i s

"Thank you, I'll see you then."

I hang up and slide my phone into the pocket of my yoga pants, walking back into the bedroom.

"All went well?" Harry asks, looking up from his laptop.

I smile and nod. "My first prenatal is next week." I sit down beside him on the bed, where he's been doing online baby shopping for the past hour.

"I'm only six weeks in," I remind him, "and we don't know the gender yet."

"So we'll buy gender-neutral things! Everything doesn't have to be either pink or blue, I think we'll know the gender of our baby pretty well without visual reminders." He grins and wraps an arm around my shoulders. "What do ya' think?"

One look into his jade eyes, sparkling with excitement, and I can't say no. I smile and gesture towards the laptop. "Whatcha' got so far?"

He beams even wider than before, pulling me close as he shows me the items he was looking at. My heart swells at the pure love he already has for a baby he's never even met.

"Did I ever tell you about the day I fell in love with you?" He suddenly asks, the laptop now closed and pushed off to the side.

"That was random," I laugh, "but no, I don't think you did."

Harry's eyes widen and he sighs happily. "My God, from the moment you stepped through that door, I knew you were going to make my life a living hell." He pushes his hair back and wets his lips, noticing my expression of confusion.

     "Because," he adds pointedly, "you were the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. Radiant as the sun, with a smile that could break hearts. I wanted to listen to you talk forever, but I only knew you for those short holiday evenings. You were the thing I looked forward to the most on Christmas, as stupid as that sounds."

     I laugh and Harry smiles softly. "I knew that you and Aiden seemed happy, but. . ." His smile fades, replaced by a frown. "It's terrible, but I couldn't help but think that I could treat you better." He won't lift his guilty gaze to meet mine, instead staring at the bed sheets underneath himself.

     "You were utter perfection," he murmurs, "not a single outstanding flaw."

     I laugh dryly, "I sure can think of a few." He is as the sun, magnificent and immensely bright, the center of all that is good. I, however, am like the solar flare that has the power to destroy entire planets in its wake.

None of that matters now, though.

Instead of announcing their presence by knocking on the door like normal people, Louis and Liam come barreling in through the living room window. I nearly jump out of my skin, clutching my chest as if trying to prevent my heart from escaping. They're each holding a paint roller, and Liam has a death grip on a grocery bag.

Harry and I had decided that instead of just cleaning out my old room and making it into a nursery, we would have our friends and family help out. Niall and Aideen were invited, but they had already left for Ireland. Which brings us to where we are now, watching the boys pick themselves up off the floor and brush off their clothes.

"Are you ever going to use the door?" Harry asks, "Entering rooms is kind of what it's made for."

Louis laughs and shakes his head. "Probably not."

"Here you go," Liam chirps, suddenly right in front of me and holding out the grocery bag. "It's a blanket, I found it at one of the antique stores by Louis' shop. I washed it already and everything."

"Do you have the furniture yet?" Louis asks, starting for the upstairs.

Harry follows. "Isis and I have ordered most of it online, it'll be here sometime next week. She wanted to wait, but I. . ." His voice trails off as they disappear from my sight.

"Does this mean I'm eventually going to be watching two of your spawn?"

I look to Liam, who's made himself comfortable on the couch as we wait for Anne and Robin to arrive. "At some point, probably," I answer half-mindedly.

It doesn't take long for them to pull into the driveway, and seconds later, they're standing at the door with painting supplies of their own. We greet each other with hugs and they hang up their coats in the closet, turning to greet Liam warmly. Both of them are wearing worn-out jeans and baggy, old t-shirts, whereas Liam and Louis were both wearing skinny jeans and some kind of expensive-looking sweater.

"Louis and Harry are upstairs already, probably finishing on the room. We had to take all of his old furniture out, but there were a couple of things that I just couldn't help carry." I lead all three of them up to the second floor, where laughter and singing is immediately audible.

"Sounds like they're having fun," Robin murmurs, clearly amused.

Sure enough, when we enter the room, the only things remaining inside of it are some paint cans, tarps, Randie, and two singing men. Everyone grabs a paint roller, dips it in the pan, and gets to work.

A/N: suuuuuuuper short chapter, I know! I felt that it was appropriate this time around, and now that this one is finished I can get started on the next one, which will be out shortly. The end of the road is almost here! Only two more chapters left!