Together

Stairs

Well, Anastasia closed on Broadway today and I'm super sad about it, not gonna lie. But that's how it goes, I guess. It had a good run while it lasted. Some of the best shows are the ones that close too early, and even though it was a 2 year run, it deserved so much more. It was one of the most beautiful productions I've ever seen (I saw the tour). Oh well. Enjoy this chapter- comment/vote pls xx
-ab

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February 1, 2026

Patrick

Harper and I drive along, and I follow my directions from the GPS with a Vance Joy album playing softly in the background as Harper sleeps in the passenger seat.

Eventually, we aren't too far from our first castle, Chateau Rhianfa, our first destination. It's a spectacular castle, from the pictures that I've seen, surrounded by glorious gardens and not too far from lots of other attractions. Before we are able to check in, I'm going to take Harper out and around the Isle of Anglesey. We will probably go check out the lighthouse, that's supposed to be quite picturesque, with the views from the top being even better.

"Harper, love," I whisper to her, once we are within a few kilometres, "wake up. We are almost here."

"Where are we?" she asks, groggily. She rubs her eyes and blinks a few times, trying to get a good view of her surroundings.

"We are going to go see a lighthouse before we head to where we are staying the night."

"Oh!" she exclaims. "That sounds like fun."

"There might be a hike, though, so maybe you should put on some trainers."

"Oof, okay." Harper digs her Nike trainers out of her duffel bag and ties the laces up. "All good."

Once we reach the proper car park, we get out of our car, then purchase tickets to the lighthouse and start our adventure. Before we can get there, we have to take a footbridge across about 30 metres of water, so that we can make it to the little island. Then, there are lots of stairs that we have to climb.

"Should I have been counting these steps?" Harper asks with a laugh, once we are starting to get tired out.

"I'd hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I think that there are still lots more before we make it there."

"God," she groans.

"Then we have to climb stairs to the top of the tower."

"Geez, Patrick, if you thought that I needed to exercise more, you really could have just bought me a gym membership or something." She gives me a cheeky smile, so I know that she's just kidding me, but I do feel a little bit bad about it.

Eventually, we reach the actual lighthouse- South Stack Lighthouse. Before we go up in it, we decide to take a tour of the engine room.

"Maybe that'll give you some time to prepare for more stairs," I tease her, to which she rolls her eyes.

"God, I might need it. I never knew that I was so out of shape."

"It's just a different way of movement than your usual dancing."

The tour is interesting, but both of us really just want to get up to see some nice views. We climb up to the top observation deck. The wind blows through Harper's hair, causing her to giggle, and it's chilly, as it is February, but we have gotten lucky with the weather, and it's a breathtaking view, regardless.

After taking some nice pictures, Harper quickly determines that it's too chilly, and that we should head back to the mainland, where the wind isn't quite as bad as it is on the island.

With a quick check of the time on my phone, I decide that it's a good idea. By the time that we find our way to the Chateau, it'll be late enough in the day for us to check in, just in time to get dinner on site, an added accommodation on the tour which I'm sure is going to be well worth the extra bit of money.

"Where to now?" Harper asks, once we have found our way back to our car and I'm plugging the address into the GPS.

"You'll find out when we get there," I inform her.

It takes just under an hour to drive across the isle to get to Chateau Rhianfa, but every minute of driving is worth it when I see Harper's face as she first catches a glimpse of the castle.

"Are we going there?" she gasps.

"We're staying there," I inform her.

"Oh my god!" she squeals, causing me to laugh. "That's beautiful, Patrick."

"I thought you'd like it. I guess now is the time to spill the beans about what exactly is going on. We are on a castle tour of Wales, England, and Scotland for the next week. Right now, obviously, we are in Wales, but we are going to be staying at four different castles before we head back to London. Seven nights, and it's looking like we are going to be in for another early morning to drive back to London on the morning of the 8th, so that we can get you to Katherine's put-in."

"Oh my god," she breathes. "You know me so well."

"I try," I give her a little wink. "Are you happy?"

"I can't believe that you did all of this."

"I've got another surprise or two up my sleeve," I tell her. Of course, the biggest one is that we are seeing Waitress in Edinburgh, but that's information that she doesn't need to know for a few more days.

"Like what?"

"Well, it wouldn't be a surprise if I told you."

"Patrick..."

"Okay, I'll start you off with this. How about the aquarium tomorrow?"

"That sounds perfect," she giggles, leaning over to give me a kiss on the cheek.

As soon as we get checked into our room, Harper takes five minutes or so to freshen up in the bathroom, then we head to the dining room for dinner. After we eat, we plan to explore the castle a little bit, as it really is quite exquisite.

Before we know it, the night is drawing to a close. Harper and I cuddle between the sheets of our big, comfy bed in our suite, and I roll onto my side to look at her. "Did you have a good day, love?"

"The best."

"And you were surprised?"

"You really got me," she giggles. "I can't believe that you planned all of this without me knowing."

"It was all worth it to surprise you. I hope that it's going to be a fun week for you. It's what you deserve, with everything that's been stressing you out lately."

"I love you, Patrick."

"I love you too, Harper Alwyn. More than you could ever know."