George | a harry styles story

fifteen

"Hey, buddy," Harry smiled, crouching down next to George's bed. Tessa was standing by the door, her eyes fixed on Harry. "How are you feeling?" 

"Good," replied George, smiling at his dad. "Daddy, why were you away for so long?" 

"I think I'll leave," Clara said. "Call me tomorrow when you get to take George home, alright?" 

"Will do," I replied. Clara gave me a hug before leaving the room. 

"Well, um... All you need to know is that it has nothing to do with you. I love you very, very much and I hated being away from you for so long," Harry said, holding George's right hand. 

"Then why did you go if it made you sad?" George asked. 

"Daddy had his own personal problems that you will understand when you're older," I said, realizing that Harry had no idea what to reply. 

"I missed you, Daddy," George said. "I wish you didn't leave when we were at Disneyland..." 

"I'm so sorry I did, George," Harry replied. "I let my own problems come before you, and I was being selfish. I am so very sorry for leaving," 

A tear fell from Harry's eye, and George was quick to reach out his hand and wipe it for him. 

"Don't be sad, Daddy," he said, smiling. 

"Give me a hug, buddy," 

George crawled over to the bedside and gave Harry a hug. 

"Daddy, who's she?" George asked after noticing Tessa. Harry's gaze quickly turn to me, checking for my approval. I nodded back to him, but what other choice did I really have? I couldn't tell him George couldn't be introduced to Tessa yet when she was actually in the room. 

"That is my girlfriend Tessa," Harry replied, and Tessa took a few steps towards them. 

"Hello, George. It's so nice to finally meet you," Tessa smiled at him. "Your daddy has told me lots of nice things about you."

"Really?" George grinned, looking back at his dad, who smiled at him. 

"Rose, would you be okay with Tess looking after George for a few minutes? I was wondering if you and me could talk?" 

"Um, yeah sure," I replied, putting on my best fake smile. 

Harry and I walked out of the room, while Tessa and George stayed in the room. 

"I'm sorry," Harry said once we were out in the hallway. "About everything. I shouldn't have brought up the subject of Tessa when we were at Disneyland, and I'm sorry about bringing her here today. I wasn't going to, but when she heard what happened to George, she wanted to come with me." 

I nodded. 

"And I'm especially sorry about leaving you and George at Disneyland. Why I haven't contacted you since is because I figured you were upset with me and I wanted to give it some time to let everything cool down. I realize now that it was just stupid and I should've called you right away."

"It's alright..." I said, avoiding eye contact. "But I'm worried about George." 

"How come?" 

"After Disneyland, he didn't mention you. At all. And it's really worrying me," I explained.

"You've told me yourself that he's a very compassionate boy. He probably knew you didn't want to talk about it, and therefore he didn't mention it," said Harry. "I'm sure there's nothing to worry about." 

"I'm just afraid I've made him incapable of expressing his emotions properly? What if he keeps all his emotions inside him because he's afraid it'll upset me?" 

"Hey... You've done nothing wrong, Rose," he said. "And not to start a big fight again, but I really want to know something... Was there a reason you didn't want Tessa to meet George yet? And have either Tessa or I done something else to upset you in any way?" 

"Harry..." I sighed. 

"If we're going to make this co-parenting thing work, then we need to be open with each other. Please tell if there's anything bothering you," 

"I don't like the idea of George having a step-mum," I blurted out, still not looking at Harry. "An old friend of mine got a step-mum when she was five years old, and because she was so young, she started calling her mum, too. And I don't like the thought of George calling anyone else but me mum." 

"I understand..." he said. "I wouldn't like it if George had started calling another man dad either." 

"And also..." I sighed deep. "I'm upset that you're so willingly staying with Tessa during her pregnancy, while it didn't even take you five minutes to leave when I was the one pregnant." 

"Oh," 

This time it was Harry's turn to be the one avoiding eye contact. He put his hands in his pockets and looked down on his shoes. 

"You know what? Just forget I said that. It doesn't matter anyways. You couldn't change it if you tried," I said, reaching my hand out for the door handle. 

"No, wait," Harry said, shoving my hand away. I looked up at him, noticing his eyes were red, but no tears had fallen. "Again; I'm sorry. I wish I could take back what I did that day at the airport, and at Disneyland, but I can't. And I'm sorry I put you through what I put you through. You deserved to have someone to support you through your pregnancy. I know you had your parents and your sister, but we both know what I'm talking about. I should've been there for you, and I will never forgive myself for it." 

Now, several tears had fallen and his voice was a lot shakier. 

"I'm a shitty dad. I know I am. But I am trying my best to be a good dad. It might not seem like it, but I am. I love George more than anyone, and I have so much respect for you for raising such a gentleman like him all by yourself. You did such a wonderful job raising him. I'm just sorry you had to do it by yourself." 

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hope you like this :)

- m i a h.