Harry's P.O.V. December 21st
I paid Tristan yesterday, but she hasn't gotten back to me yet. Well, she didn't tell me directly, but Jeff messaged this morning that he discovered the guy. I didn't tell him I paid Tristan though...
Jeff: Found the motherfucker! He's a retired pap from the LA area... sounds like a shitty life to be honest. I'll contact your lawyer for you and work on a restraining order. Tell Emma everything's going to be taken care of.
Harry: Thanks Jeff. I'll be sure to tell her.
I update Em on what Jeff had to say and she's relieved, but now we have to go through all of the court procedures to make sure we stay safe. I'm really not looking forward to that part, but it will be worth it in the end.
Em and I talked last night, and we're going to surprise the boys by taking them sledding today. Mum still has our old sleds, as well as a few newer ones that I'll borrow. Jillian and Mum also said they'd watch Charlie if we went out for a few hours, and I think it will be nice for the two of us to spend some time away from the house.
"Nan's here!" Jamie notices my mum's car outside. It's precious how Jamie and Mason are so quick to welcome people into their family. I told them that they didn't have to call my mum Nan, or my sister Auntie Gemma, like Charlie will, but they insisted. I think they're excited to have such a big family now, especially because not even a year ago they didn't have any family besides the three of them.
I was worried that Jamie may get too overwhelmed with the amount of new people around the house, but we're outnumbered by women and I think he finds comfort in their motherly qualities. The boys haven't even been here for six whole days yet and the only person Jamie is hesitant around is George.
While Jamie mostly ignores him or spends time in another room while he's here, I've enjoyed getting to George for the most part. He's a little odd perhaps, but everyone has their quirks. We mostly talk about music since we happen to have pretty much the exact same music taste. He admitted to me the other day that Stevie Nicks has been his "celeb crush" for decades and was especially surprised to hear that she's a good friend of mine. After that, he wouldn't stop asking questions about her or really any of my friends in the industry. I understand his curiosity, but it got old after a little while. I would much prefer to talk about the artist's work rather than if I know them personally.
Speaking of George, he also just happened to arrive right behind my mum.
"My mum's going to watch Charlie while your aunt and I take you out for a surprise," I tell Jamie and he reaches upwards for me to pick him up.
"A surprise! Is Mason coming?" Jamie clings to me.
"He is. Is that okay?"
"Yeah. What about Daddy?" he asks.
"Your dad has to get some work done today, so it's just you, Mason, Aunt Emma, and me. Sound good?" I tell Jamie.
"Mhm. Can I know what the surprise is?"
"No," I smile at his little pout, "but you can run upstairs and put on some long socks. Tell your brother, too." Jamie says a quick, "ok," and then I set him down so he can get ready to go soon.
Just as I hear Jamie calling out for his brother, both my mum and George are walking through the door and chatting a bit.
"Hi Mum, hi George," I greet them at the front door.
"Hello, Harry. Jillian said these two were watching Charlie for a few hours," he references to my mum and Jillian who's just come from the living room, "Hope it's alright if I hang out for a bit as well."
"Of course, you're always welcome. Can I get anyone anything? I just put the kettle on, Mum."
"Thank you, I can make it myself. You just go get the boys ready and say goodbye to Charlie," she smiles on her way past me into the kitchen.
Unsure of where Em and Charlie could be at the moment, I go up to the room Jamie and Mason are sharing to get them ready to leave. As I get closer to the door, I hear shouting and a few other concerning noises.
"Those are MY socks, Mason!" I hear someone jumping on the bed.
"But I like yours better than mine! You need to share with me Jamie."
"But- but your feet are too big! You're going to RUIN MY SOCKS!" Jamie is full on screaming and crying now, the both of them running around chasing each other as I enter.
"Woah, what's going on here?" I step between the siblings. Jamie looks at me with tears in his eyes, pointing at Mason who holds a pair of socks above his head so Jamie can't reach.
"He's chasing me!" "He's stealing my socks!" They both shout at the same time.
"There's no need to yell," I quiet them, "Mason, why is Jamie chasing you?"
"Because I have his socks-"
"MY SO-" Jamie tries to interrupt but I stop him.
"Jamie, one person speaks at a time. Let Mason finish please."
"Jamie's socks are cooler than mine, so I want him to share them with me," Mason explains.
"His feet are smaller than yours, so I don't think they'll fit you," I tell Mason.
"Hmph," Mason pouts and throws the socks onto the ground. I see Jamie picks them up as I bend down to Mason's level to talk to him.
"Hey, take a deep breath Mason. We need to control our actions when we're upset. Throwing things does not help," I use a sterner voice which I think scares Mason a bit. I'm not yelling, and I don't think it's too mean, but I realize that the boys both think of me as more of a friend than an authority figure.
"I'm sorry Uncle Harry," Mason looks down to his feet.
"Thank you, but I think both of you should apologize to each other. Jamie also needs to control his actions when he's upset," I look to him, "It's okay to be upset with your brother but it's not okay to yell at him."
"I'm sorry too," Jamie frowns, "I'm sorry Uncle Harry and I'm sorry Mason."
"I'm sorry Jamie."
"Okay, now we're going to do something my mum always made my sister and I do after a fight—a big group hug," With one arm around each of them, I pull the boys and I into a hug. I tickle them a bit too, to get them to loosen up and it works because their giggles are contagious and all of a sudden everyone is laughing.
"Mason," I let go of them, "do you need help finding some socks?" he nods.
"I'll help Mason, Jamie you go find Aunt Emma and she'll help you get dressed for the weather."
Now that everyone's emotions are handled, Em and I are able to help get the boys ready and we're off to find a nice, hopefully not-so-crowded, hill to go sledding.
We didn't tell the boys what we were doing until we got to the hill, but after some explaining of what sledding exactly is, they were quick to unbuckle their seatbelts and help drag the sleds to our spot.
"I was around their age, maybe a little older, when I saw snow for the first time too," Em tells me as we take a break from sledding and stand at the top of the hill to keep a close eye on the boys.
"I can't imagine growing up without snow," I tell her, "after school all the kids on our street would drop off our backpacks and play in the snow until our parents got home. One year Gem and I built a snowman that didn't melt for a whole month. I thought that meant he was magic like Frosty, but he eventually turned into a muddy puddle."
"I can totally see you having a full conversation with a snowman," Em laughs, "did you sing the song too?"
"Maybe," I eyed her, "I was genuinely devastated when he melted."
"I'm sure you were," she grabs my arm and pulls us down to sit on the ground. It's already warmer down here than it was when we were standing, but now Em's head also rests on my shoulder so perhaps that's actually what the difference is.
We sit in each other's warmth and watch the boys have fun for a bit. Occasionally they'll run up to us and tell us something funny that happened or ask for a push, but mostly they help each other, switching between sliding by themselves or together on the faster, wooden sled.
"What do you think of George?" Em asks after Jamie and Mason run away to slip down the hill again.
"George? I think he's alright, why?"
"My mom is really happy with him," she says plainly, but I know there's more.
"What do you think of him?" I ask.
"I don't know," she sighs, "He seems like a nice guy, I just don't enjoy his company all that much. I can't tell my mom that though, so I guess I should just suck it up. I don't want to ruin it for her."
"Is there something specific that happened?" I ask her.
"No, he's just annoying I guess," she attempts to laugh it off, "and sometimes I feel like our conversations are awkward and one-sided."
"I know what you mean. I don't have any personal issues with him, but I agree that he's not really the type of person we'd be friends with."
"Okay, at least I'm not the only one. I have a feeling Annie isn't too fond of him either," she says.
"Did she say something?"
"Just a few comments when we were out shopping. And you know how she is, Annie's a very talkative person and usually tries to get to know everyone, but I don't think she's done that with George. She cares about my mom basically as much as I do, so I doubt she would say anything either."
"Maybe he'll grow on us," I shrug, not really knowing how to give advice in this situation. I'd known Robin for almost all of my life and everyone loved him as soon as my mum introduced us. My dad never remarried either, so I don't have any experience with parents' annoying girlfriends/boyfriends.
"I hope so," Em pauses, "I miss Charlie, can we go back soon?"
"I was just thinking the same thing," I tell her, "let's gather the boys."
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A/N: this is a shorter, filler chapter, but I promise things are going to pick up after this ;)
Also!! I meant to ask last chapter, but what time zones are people in? I'm honestly just curious but it might affect what time I post new chapters if more people are from a certain area. I'm Central/Chicago time :)
Thank you all for your input/comments <3 I read all of them and they always make my day
<3 <3 <3