Hold Me Close (Sequel To Take Me Home and Keep Me Safe)

Chapter Fifteen

Harry came around for dinner that Sunday night the same way he usually did. Things felt a little different to him though, like the dynamics of the family were just...off.

First of all, Papa was there which was weird because he had been at work the past three weekends that he had come home for. Not that he didn't love to have both of his parents around, he'd just gotten used to one being away.

Then of course, there were the twins. They just weren't themselves, neither of them. Harry could tell Lou was fed up over his leg, but Niall seemed to have reverted back into himself, staying quiet and excusing himself to his room not longer after he had shown up. It was like seeing the kid who had broken down and destroyed his room before sobbing himself to sleep in his Papa's arms all over again. Like all the progress he had made was just fading.

Of course, Harry tried not to let it get to him too much. He knew he had a bad habit of looking too much into these little things and most of the time, it was all for nothing. He just worried that he wasn't around to protect his brothers enough. But he couldn't keep blaming himself for things, he was doing his best to flip the way his mind worked. He couldn't keep thinking in the same negative way and expect things to change.

And it had felt like things had been getting a little better recently. He could picture a future that was bright and happy, for the first time ever. He had his moments, no doubt, and he knew his medication aided him through a lot of the bad days, but he refused to slip backwards and allow himself to feel guilt for something that he knew logically wasn't his fault.

So, he decided to make the most of his visit home. Ash was in the living room playing video games with Lou, and Niall was playing with Cooper outside again. He had his parents, both of his parents, to himself for the first time in what felt like forever.

"Well if you ever need Papa and I to help out, we will...it's a lot to carry," Dad was saying softly, and Harry appreciated it more than he liked to let on.

He had just finished telling his parents about the situation with Ash's father and how hectic everything had been recently. The two men were more than understanding and supportive, but he could do this alone. He wanted to prove that he could do this alone, prove that for the first time since he was about thirteen, he didn't need his two Dads to do everything for him.

He was determined to be independent for once.

He shook his head softly. "Its okay, Dad. Thank you, it's just...I've got this. Me and Ash have got this," he said with certainty, smiling at the two men sitting opposite him at the kitchen counter.

They both had soft smiles on their faces, though Dad still looked concerned - ever the more worried parent of the two. "I know, and I don't doubt you for a second. I just worry about you taking on too much and -"

Papa let out a quiet chuckle at that, resting a hand on Liam's shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze. "What your Dad means is that we're proud of you, buddy. You've...you've really grown up these past few months," he murmured, and Dad smiled, eyes a little watery.

Harry being the sensitive soul that he was, the sight of his Dad tearing up was enough to make him have to swallow down an emotional lump in his throat. He felt his chest swell with pride - pride for himself, something he hadn't yet experience - at the fact that he had made his parent proud.

There was still that little niggle at the back of his mind which doubted the truth behind his Papa's words, but he managed to ignore it. Conquer it.

He sniffed and nodded quickly, standing to wrap his arms around his parents and burying his head into his Dad's shoulder so that he could blink the moisture out of his eyes before they could see it. They both returned the embrace tightly, and Harry allowed himself to fully appreciate the family he had been given - perhaps they weren't his first or his biological, and though there were times where he thought about his birth mother and father, he never stopped being glad that he had his Dad and Papa in his life.