this chapter has been edited and updated. enjoy!xx
Sparkly Harry was back in full force tonight.
I hadn't seen this side of him in quite some time. He was a little excitable the couple of times we had gone out with his friends, but nothing like the night he'd crawled around the floor of my childhood home. Maybe it was the way it was just us and a handful of locals, or maybe it was the prospect of karaoke, which he seemed particularly ecstatic about. But for whatever reason when we got to the bar, he let himself go and encouraged me to do the same.
He'd even called us an Uber so that there would be no excuses for not drinking tonight.
The bar, Marnie's, was exactly what I had told him it was: a dive. It was a little run down, but some might say that's what gave it its charm. There were tables scattered about with mismatched chairs, framed pictures of owners past and present mounted on the wall behind the bar, and photographs of patrons throughout the years adorned the rest of the space. Some were framed like the owner's photos, others were little polaroids stuck inside other frames with dates written on them, and a whole wall was covered from top to bottom of images of families, and bachelor parties, and college students, and regulars. I, too, was up on that wall somewhere, having been here with Tico, Austin and Sara to celebrate Tico's twenty-first birthday. When I showed Harry that picture later that night, he couldn't get over how long my hair had been a few years ago. That and the fact that the picture managed to capture how drunk we all managed to get that night.
And finally, in the back of the bar, was a little karaoke machine. There wasn't even a stage set up, just a space cleared of tables by the back exit. I was a little surprised when Harry didn't immediately make his way over to the machine, having been excited about it at the house and on the drive over. But he just told me that he needed a few drinks in him first before he could go up there.
"Don't you perform in front of thousands of people for a living?" I asked, slightly perplexed.
"That's different. The people who come to see me are my fans. Plus, this doesn't really look like my demographic."
Harry was certainly right about that. Since this was the off-season and Marnie's didn't really scream "young," most of the people in here tonight were upwards of fifty years old. Harry and I were probably the youngest ones in here tonight, aside from the bartender, who looked to be in his mid thirties. With Harry's hand in mine, I pulled him over towards the bar, picking two stools at the far end.
"How's it going?" The bartender asked, placing two menus down in front of us.
"Good, thanks. And you?" I sat and chatted with the bartender, Mark he introduced, for a few minutes. Harry chiming in a little, but staying quiet for the most part. I'd noticed that out of the two of us, I was a little more outgoing in situations like this. Harry was great with people, but it also took him a while to warm up to strangers.
Mark left us alone to get our drinks started for us, gin and tonic for me and a vodka cran for Harry. We were silent for a few minutes while we perused the menu.
As promised, dinner was pretty good, though I find it's pretty hard to mess up chicken tenders and fries. Looking back now, Harry's drunken state might have had something to do with the fact that he only ate a salad and a few of the fries off my plate, and kept piling on the drinks. I didn't mind. It was good for Harry to let loose a little bit, especially since he'd been somewhat tense with all the work he'd been doing.
But after dinner, and about three more vodka cranberries, he'd opened up like a flower in bloom. He was talking animatedly with Mark, and then he was talking to two older men a few stools down, and then a couple at the table behind us, charming the pants off each and every person he spoke with. That didn't surprise me though, Harry was absolutely lovely to each and every person he met. But it was interesting to watch Harry interact with the bar's patrons the way he did tonight, carefree and without reservation. I think it might have had something to do with no one at Marnie's knowing who he was, and if they did, they kept it to themselves. Harry didn't talk about it much, but I knew that anonymity was something that he enjoyed when he could have it, and tonight it was handed to him on a silver platter.
Eventually the time came to Harry ask Mark about the karaoke machine that had gone untouched all night.
"Are you gonna sing us a song, then, Harry?" Sandra, one half of the couple Harry had spoken with tonight, asked.
Sandra's question was followed by affirmations and a couple song suggestions from the rest of the bar. Harry suddenly became a little bashful at all the attention directed at him, and turned to look at me, a question in his green eyes.
"You better get up there," I tell him, giving his hand a firm and reassuring squeeze.
Smiling, Harry stood up from his barstool, leaning down quickly to give me a kiss on the cheek. "You gonna come up with me?"
"Absolutely not, but have fun." Harry chuckled at my answer, like he expected it. Ordering shots for the two of us, he asked if I'd be okay on my own.
"Don't worry, dear, we'll keep an eye on your sweetheart. Now go up there and give us a show." I blushed at Sandra's words, something about the way she called me Harry's "sweetheart" made butterflies stir in my stomach. Either way, Harry gave my cheek one last kiss before heading over to Mark, who had been trying to set up the karaoke machine. Sandra called me over to sit with her and her partner Jill, who had called out for Harry to "sing us some Johnny Cash" earlier.
Giving them a small smile, I grabbed my gin and tonic and moved to their table. The three of us talked quietly while Harry and Mark looked through a big binder of songs. I half expected Sandra and Jill to talk about themselves and their lives, the way older people tended to do, but surprisingly they asked about me. So I told them about my family and how we'd come up here for years, and a little about how Harry and I met.
"You saw that boy for the first time and just walked away? With no expectations to ever see him again?" Jill sounded genuinely shocked, and Sandra swatted her arm, but I just chuckled at the woman's bluntness.
Jill reminded me a lot of my grandmother, the way they both seemed to be sharp as a tack despite their old age. Jill, like my lita Sofia, also held themselves regally. She sat in her little chair at Marnie's straight-backed, like she was holding court and not talking to a stranger about her love life in a tiny bar.
"I did, yeah," I replied. "But then we ran into each other a few hours later, and I guess the rest is history." There was definitely more to Harry and I getting together than that, but I would've sat there explaining for a while, so I settled for the shorter version.
"Was an act of God was what it was," Jill muttered, but there was a smirk etching her slightly wrinkled face. It did get another swat on the arm from her partner, though. Jill opened her mouth like she wanted to protest the hitting from Sandra, but then Harry's voice was amplified across the bar.
"Erm, hello, I'm Harry, and I love karaoke, so I thought I'd sing a couple songs for you all," Harry announced, standing at the back of the bar with a microphone in his hand.
Anyone else would've looked awkward, maybe even Harry himself under different circumstances. But the slight twinkle in his eye that came from the drinks mixed with the warm and receptive atmosphere of Marnie's made him look like he didn't want to be anywhere else. The people scattered throughout the bar applauded Harry, eager for entertainment.
Sandra cheered the loudest, and when he looked over at our table, his eyes lit up upon seeing me with her. Jill shouted for Johnny Cash again, which brought about a slew of requests for "Sweet Caroline" and Billy Joel and Elton John.
"I'm, uh, actually here with someone tonight," Harry said, his smile turning a little devious, and suddenly I was slightly worried about the next words to leave his troublesome mouth. "She refused to come up here with me. So until she does, I will be dedicating each song to her. "Darling, this one is for you."
I felt my face flush, and hid my face in my arms on the surface of Sandra and Jill's table. The little shit, I thought. I should've known he would never have just accepted me not wanting to go up with him. Peeking up from my folded arms, I saw the one waiter working tonight queuing up the song for Harry, Mark having taken up his place behind the bar once more. My eyes flicked over to my idiot of a boyfriend, only to find that his gaze was already trained on me. Our eyes met and he winked, mouthing an, I love you, and blowing me a kiss. I ducked my head down again, simultaneously hiding my ever reddening cheeks and the foolishly large grin that had erupted on my face.
"You're just too good to be true, can't take my eyes off of you..."
"Oh, honey, if you don't marry that boy, I will," I heard Jill say with a sigh, but she sounded far away as my focus zeroed in on Harry, who was singing and looking right at me like I was the only person in the room.
"I love you baby, and if it's quite alright, I need you baby..." Harry sang, dancing between the tables of the bar, high fiving and twirling different patrons around by the hand as he went. Watching him now I assumed was only a taste of what he looked like while performing on stage, and the thought of his concert in a week became even more tantalizing. I was mesmerized by him in a jean jacket and hoodie in a small town in an even smaller bar, I could only imagine what he would be like singing his own songs, decked out in his stage outfit. Not to mention his voice, which was so smooth, and warm, and lovely. And he wasn't even trying. Harry just oozed pure charisma.
He eventually came to the table where I was seated, kneeling down to my eye level, taking my hand in his to finish out the song. When the music slowly faded out, Harry was met with loud cheers and one particularly excited whistle. He stayed where he was, though, his eyebrow raised at me in question.
"Well?" He asked away from the mic in his hand, his grin never leaving his face.
"You were wonderful," I told him, even though I knew that wasn't what he was asking me.
"Damn," Harry mumbled so that only the two of us could hear. He shook his head, but he was still grinning, and I knew he was only getting started. "Alright then, kiss?"
I obliged, quickly pressing my lips to his, not wanting to linger knowing that we had a bit of an audience. Getting up, he wended his way through the tables and back towards the karaoke machine to sing a new song.
The rest of our time at Marnie's went like this. Harry singing to and entertaining the small number of patrons that were at the bar, alternating between their suggestions and his own picks. They were all songs that everyone seemed to know, and everyone sang along to the familiar words of each one. Jill eventually got her Johnny Cash, then he performed a Peter Gabriel song, followed by a Beatles song someone sitting at the bar requested, and then Harry did a rendition of "Bennie and the Jets" that managed to be both ridiculous and worthy of being added to his upcoming tour's setlist. Every now and then, I would bring him a drink, or he would come to my table for one. I tried getting him to drink water, but he playfully pushed it away and made a face each time until I eventually gave up.
After every song, Harry still came over, the same question lingering in his eyes each time. I'd managed to brush him off, and Harry playfully sighed the whole way back to the binder of songs. The final time, though, he'd gone back, but motioned for me to bring him a drink. I stayed with him while he sipped on it, noticing the little beads of sweat that had appeared around his hairline, having worked himself up into light perspiration.
"Do you love me?" Harry asked suddenly, his hand slipping into mine.
"You know I do," I responded, almost like it was a knee-jerk reaction.
"Great. Don't hate me," he said in a rush, and then he tugged me towards the center of the little clearing. "Okay, everyone! My girlfriend has decided to join me for my final song of the night."
He'd announced it into the mic for everyone to hear before I could make my way back to Sandra and Jill, my hand still tightly gripped in his. I wanted to kill him, but then he turned and looked at me with the biggest smile he had in his arsenal of grins and cheeky smirks. I swear I'm like putty in his loving hands. The waiter fired up the final song for Harry, and for me I guess, and the opening chords got a loud cheer, the same piercing whistle that sounded after each song tonight bouncing off the walls of Marnie's.
It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. There was only one working mic, so it was really just Harry singing for the most part while he spun me around and danced with me on his little makeshift stage. Plus, the bar's contribution to singing the always familiar "Sweet Caroline" made it easier to stomach.
Harry finished with an ambitious dip, and I prayed that I wouldn't fall on my ass in front of everyone, no matter how small of a group we were. Luckily, Harry managed not to drop me and I was deftly brought back up, and he took my hand so we could bow together.
He took the next ten minutes walking around and talking to the various tables, while I went and sat back down with Sandra and Jill. They gave me knowing smiles, which I ignored to ask about them and where they met.
I was still caught up in conversation with the two ladies when a hand rested on my shoulder. "Ready to go?"
I looked up to find Harry smiling down at me. I nodded, getting up from Sandra and Jill's table and gathering my things. I said goodbye to the two women, telling them how nice it was to sit and chat tonight.
"She's a special one, Harry, you best remember that," Jill told Harry, after they said good night. I thought it was the other way around, if tonight was anything to go by. But Harry nodded his head, pulling me to his side and pressing a kiss to my temple.
"I know. Have a good night, ladies." I waved one last time over my shoulder to the two women and followed Harry outside to meet the Uber Harry called for us.
The Uber wasn't here quite just yet, so we stood in the late night quiet, my back flush against Harry's chest, swaying back and forth a little to a rhythm only we seemed to know.
I brought his hand up to kiss the back of it. "Did you have a good time tonight?"
It seemed like an unnecessary question, but I asked it anyway.
"I did. Although I'm slightly dizzy. Maybe a little too much vodka."
I looked up, twisting my neck to see Harry, scrunching my nose at him. "I'll be fine," he assured me.
Now that we were outside and away from the buzz of Marnie's, my own alcohol consumption caught up to me a little bit. Turning around, I wrapped my arms around Harry's waist, rubbing my cheek on his chest. I felt the vibrations of Harry's soft chuckle, and his own arms snaked around me.
"I forgot you got like this when you're drunk."
"Hmm," I mumbled into his chest, and nestled deeper into the folds of his sweatshirt, holding onto him a little tighter. I also might have inhaled deeply to appreciate the smell of Harry's cologne, but that couldn't be helped.
Our driver finally came and we shuffled into the car. I took advantage of the space and our position to cuddle up to Harry's side, which he happily obliged. By the time we'd gotten back to my uncle's house, gotten ready for bed, and nestled under the covers, I was practically on top of him. Harry only chuckled lightly at the way I clung to him and pressed lazy kisses wherever I could.
I felt Harry move underneath me, my heavy-lidded eyes lifting slightly to see him twisting over to the bedside table and turn off the lamp that sat there. Frowning, I lifted my hand to poke his cheek, the spot where his dimple would appear if the corners of his mouth were to lift. He turned over to see what I was up to and smiled. My lips were still turned in a frown, but they were also slightly puckered.
"How could I forget?" Harry's voice was quiet, soft, as he beheld my face. Pressing a gentle kiss to my waiting lips, I gave him a lazy smile and rested my head back down on his chest.
Harry twisted back towards the lamp to switch it off. Once we were under the cover of darkness, I felt him kiss my head. "Good night, my love," he whispered quietly, and then I was fast asleep.