flower. h.s ✔️

fifty.

"Do you see her often?" I asked curiously, this was the most Harry had ever shared about his family.

"Not really. We were in New York for her birthday, so that should tell you all you need to know."

"Oh I'm sorry." I chewed my lip as Harry shrugged and took a large mouthful of pizza and I focused my attention on my own for a while.

"What about your parents? What do they do for a living?" I asked after I'd eaten two slices in silence.

"Why?" Harry snapped making me blink, "Why are you so interested?"

I swallowed as I forced myself to look away from him and wrapped my arms around my legs, shrugging.

"I just wanted to know what your family is like, I'm sorry. I just wanted to know more about you, I'm sorry, forget I asked."

I picked up another slice of pizza and took a bite, I knew I shouldn't push it with Harry. I was lucky with what information he'd already shared about Gemma. I should have just accepted that.

"I...I love my Mum, a lot." Harry started after a few minutes and I looked at him in shock.

"I um, I was a real mummies boy when I was younger and I did a lot of things I regret because they really upset her. Didn't really get on with my step Dad either, my real Dad, Des, hasn't been around for a while. They split up when I was about five and then every so often he'd come back around and then leave again.

"It probably fucked Gem up more than me but I couldn't do anything, she didn't want to listen or advice from her younger brother and Mum always said she knew what she was doing. I used to worry a lot and I still do, I'm just not there anymore and I have other people to worry about now."

I swallowed thickly as I listened to Harry, my pizza almost forgotten as I watched him, his eyes flicking about in front of us and I felt incredibly guilty for asking.

"H, I didn't know, you don't have to talk about it." I reached out for his hand and Harry willingly accepted me pushing my fingers through the gaps in his.

"S'alrigh' Flower." Harry shrugged, his eyes focused on our hands instead of my face and I was okay with that. "How else are yeh' gunna get to know me?"

I gave him a weak smile, I didn't have to get to know him this way and I especially didn't want to if it meant it was going to hurt him.

"There were a few men here and there as Gem and I grew up but none of them stuck and especially not when they found out Mum had us, y'know? Then my step Dad came along and I don't know what happened, not really. I'd started acting like a bit of dick before then, before he was even in the picture.

"But he stuck and there was just something about him I didn't like, but Mum and Gem loved him and I understand why they did because he had money and it was something stable and they had someone for the first time in a long time that wasn't me, or each other. And he didn't like me either, I still don't know why but then I had proof why I didn't like him and Mum pretended everything was fine and I made it all worse anyway."

Harry stopped speaking again and I could feel the water growing in my eyes at his implication and I felt even worse but surely Harry would stop if he wanted to.

"I became like a full time dick and he took offence at that, even though he's arguably the biggest dick, but he compared me to my real Dad a lot which caused a lot of trouble cause he's never really had a real job and is always in and out of something stupid, which I mean I guess I turned out like that so he wasn't wrong.

"And then when Gem went to uni, that fucked me up, more than I already was I guess,"

A harsh laugh left Harry's mouth as he rubbed his jaw again and I squeezed his hand, his eyes drifting to my face as he gave me a half smile before turning away from me and I saw the same misty eyed look I had, in his face.