IM BAAAAACK!! Sorry for ghosting for 3 days I literally came home from work everyday and just slept until I started the next day 😭live love laugh starting work at 3am
It's six hours before Harry's flight is due back at Heathrow when I make the announcement to my family.
I'd thought it through for the last two days, and it was this morning I'd actually done something about it, starting to pack up all of my belongings, and Harry's remaining ones into my suitcase and an old bag I'd had to dig out of my wardrobe.
We're sat on the sofas, in front of the TV, just the seven of us, all of the extended members of our family off doing various things.
"I'm going back to London today," I tell them, watching each of them turn towards me with surprised expressions on their faces.
"You're what?" Ella is the first to speak, pressing pause on the tv remote so we can actually hear each other.
"I'm going back to London. I'm going to surprise Harry at the airport. It's time to get back to my life, and my job," I explain to them, feeling a little sick to my stomach with anxiety, but continuing on anyway. "Obviously, Harry took the car so I'm going to get the train back up, I'll -"
Charlotte interrupts. "No you're absolutely not. I'll drive you."
"Charlie -"
"Nope. Not taking no for an answer. We need our sisterly bonding time anyway," she carries on, and considering I hadn't actually bought the train tickets yet, I stop arguing it and nod my head.
"Are you sure, though? It's a long drive."
"Absolutely I'm sure. When did you want to leave?"
"In an hour or two maybe. It would give me time to drop stuff off at home first."
"I want to come," Georgie adds in, and we turn to look at her, both of us nodding our heads.
"Ella?" Charlotte asks, turning to our other sister, who looks overjoyed to be included.
"I'd love to. We haven't had a road trip in ages, let me go get ready if we're leaving in an hour, though. I look like shit," she calls out after her, jumping off the sofa and darting upstairs.
"Wait for me Els!" Georgie shouts out, also running off after our sister, now leaving just me, Charlotte, Archie and our parents, who were yet to say anything.
"I would come but I've got a shitload of work to do before tomorrow," Archie explains, looking a little deflated. "Make sure Charlie drives safe, though. You know what her driving is like," he teases, then suffering a pillow being launched at his face.
Whilst they bicker between themselves, I look over at my parents who are already looking my way, and I can't quite decipher what they're feeling, or displaying on their face.
"I - I know I've kinda sprung this on you guys. I'm sorry I'm leaving so suddenly," I start to apologise, but I'm stopped by my mum shaking her head, dad following her lead.
"I am so proud of you, Matilda. Don't ever apologise for doing something that will make you happy. Just make sure you text us when you get there?"
"Of course I will," I smile, climbing off the sofa to go over to them both, launching myself in the middle of them both to receive a warm hug. I felt like I was eight all over again, and the feeling was bittersweet.
"Love you so much my darling," my dad says, sounding a little choked up.
"I love you, dad. Thanks for having me and Harry here the last couple of weeks. It's helped more than you know," I murmur, head cushioned into his chest.
"You're our baby. We'll always accommodate you, forever," mum adds, kissing the side of my cheek. "Do you want me to make you some sandwiches for when you get there?"
"It's alright, we'll probably get something to eat on the way there, but thank you," I reject the offer, feeling slightly bad, but getting up from the sofa to go and finish packing everything up.
Considering I'd already started earlier in the day, there wasn't much left to pack. Harry hadn't left too much, only a few jumpers and trackies because it was much colder in the UK than it was in Ibiza.
Me on the other hand, had definitely overpacked for my stay here, and I wanted to take back more of my things from my room, so was struggling to fit it all into the suitcase and the bag.
It was perfect timing, really, when Georgie peeked her head round the corner of my door.
"Come sit on my suitcase for me?" I ask her nicely, and she enters my room wordlessly, perching on top of the suitcase to compress it so I can zip it up.
It's easy, with two of us, and the suitcase does up.
I smile at her. "Thanks."
"No worries. I'm ready and got bored so I thought I'd come annoy you for a little bit," she grins, now sitting on top of my bed whilst I'm shoving a few remaining things into the bag.
"So nothing out of the ordinary then?" I tease, folding up one of Harry's shirts.
"Oh, shut up. I actually wanted to tell you something," she says, suddenly a little serious which makes me perk up.
I glance at her, curiously. "And what's that?"
"John asked me to be his girlfriend," she tells me slowly, and I wait for her to continue but she doesn't.
"Okay, and what did you say?"
"No."
"What?!" I exclaim, hand clapping over my mouth the instant the word left her mouth.
"You're so gullible. Of course I said yes, do you think I'm crazy?" She laughs, shaking her head.
Sticking my middle finger up at her, I can't help but laugh. "You're an asshole. I was thinking about how awkward it was going to be at work," I giggle, finally finished packing, zipping up the bag.
"Oh yeah, not comforting your sister or anything?"
"Well and that, obviously," I say, rolling my eyes at her.
We're laughing when another head peers round the door, except this time it's Ella.
"What's going on?!" She asks, wanting to be part of the conversation.
I look at Georgie, and she smiles, patting the space next to her. Ella doesn't need telling twice, quite literally launching herself into my bed. "What have I missed?"
"John asked me to be his girlfriend!" Georgie breaks the news to Ella, who screams in delight, hugging our sister.
"Gee! That's amazing, you look so happy with him. I'm so happy for you!" She beams supportively, and I know it must kill her a little inside with what happened with Ryan still being so fresh, but she does seem so genuinely happy for her.
"Yeah, it means I can come up to London to see Tilda more, too," she adds in, and I hadn't thought about that part which makes me even happier.
My phone buzzes from beside me, and I notice that Harry is calling me, so I excuse myself, stepping out into the hallway to accept it.
"Hey," I greet, just happy to hear his voice again.
"Hey, thought I'd let you know we just got to the airport. Flight leaves in like three ish hours, so I won't be back to you until late tonight," he says, and I can hear the tiredness in his voice which just makes me want to give him a hug.
"Did you have a good time?" I ask, because despite texting over the three days I'd tried to avoid messaging him all the time to allow him to spend proper time with his friends.
"I can't remember the last time I wasn't drunk or hungover, but I think it was a pretty fucking good stag due," he tells me, and I can literally hear the smile on his voice. "Can't wait to come back and see you, though. Did you see your therapist? Have you been okay?" He questions.
"I...yeah, I saw my therapist yesterday. I've been alright, been spending a lot of time with my family, it was nice. I can't wait to see you, too," I tell him truthfully, leaving out the part about me surprising him at the airport.
"Good, good. That's great. I need to send you this picture Freezy took of us at this club. I look absolutely battered in it," he tells me.
"Alright, send it. Anyway, I'll let you be, text me when you land," I reply, and after saying our love you's and goodbyes, I hang up, ending the call to find a picture on my phone.
From: Harry
Fucking hell 😭😭
I told you we were battered
Yeah just slightly
What is in those shot glasses
Tequila 😭 criminal
Disgusting
Explains the hangover
Drink some water
I've been drinking water all day!!!
Then keep drinking it!!!
You are no help 💔
Oh shut up!!!
See you later ❤️🔥
Yeeessssss x
I laugh at the messages, making my way back into my bedroom where Ella and Georgie are still chatting on the bed. It's a perfect time to take a picture.
matildatate just posted on their story!
@charlottetate replied to your story:
You bitches
Where was my invite?
COME JOIN
We might as well leave now anyway Tbf! I looked at traffic and it looks nasty on the motorway
Oooh ok I'll let them know
Next time though
I want an invite
"Guys, Charlotte wants to leave now. She said the motorway doesn't look too great, and I don't want to be late and ruin the surprise," I tell them, interrupting their conversation.
"Alright, let me grab my bag. I'm staying with John for a night too, and don't worry, he's not telling Harry we're coming," Georgie informs us, running out the room.
Ella flashes me her tote bag, staying on my bed. "I've got everything I need."
Ella and I head downstairs, where Charlotte has a little bag over her shoulder, looking at something on her phone. Mum and dad are stood in the archway connecting the porch area to the living room, my dad's arm around my mum's shoulder.
"Have a lovely trip, girls. Text us when you get there, and Charlotte, text us when you and Ella are on your way back," mum requests, first bringing me in for a hug.
"I will," she replies from over by the front door.
The hug isn't too long, and I know I'll see them soon but I still feel a little emotional leaving them so suddenly.
"Love you both. Thanks again, I'll be back soon, I promise," I whisper, letting myself out of the hug.
Charlotte and I leave through the front door, Ella behind us, and head towards her car knowing that Georgie would be here soon enough.
"Dibs front seat," I call out, just as Ella opens her mouth as Charlotte's car comes into view.
"Fuck sake," she says instead, Charlotte grinning at both of us.
"Matilda said it first, it's only fair," she shrugs, unlocking the car and starting the engine.
"At least you'll definitely get it on the way back," I say to her innocently, climbing into the passenger seat after loading all of my things into the boot.
"This is favouritism," Ella complains lightheartedly, sitting behind my seat, leaving the other side empty for Georgie when she would finally turn up.
"So who gets aux?" I ask, knowing full well it'll be me, also knowing exactly what I was going to play.
"You," Charlotte replied, playing right into my hand. "We all have no idea who you're going to put on repeat. Like no idea at all," she drawls sarcastically, leading to me giving her the finger.
"I will force you all to become Harry Styles super fans. And it's only right! I'm seeing him in concert and meeting him in like six weeks. Let me get excited!"
"I still can't believe Harry managed to pull that off. Like does Harry Styles even do meet and greets?" Ella asks, already on her phone.
"Usually, no. So I also have no idea why or how Harry managed it, but I'm not complaining," I shrug, finally seeing Georgie jog towards the car with her own carry on bag.
"Took your time," Charlotte muses, watching her in the mirror as she clambers into the backseat.
"Yes, yes! Sorry. I forgot some things I needed. I'm all good now."
"Right. Before we set off, do we definitely have anything? I'm not turning back round," Charlotte instructs, and it's so very clear that she's a mother at this moment in time.
It sounds like Ella was thinking the same thing, because she piped up with, "yes, mum!" in a sarcastic tone, which made Charlotte roll her eyes and pull out of the parking spot.
My Bluetooth came on immediately, one of Harry's newer songs coming through the speakers.
"What a surprise, Matilda is playing Harry Styles again," Georgie jokes from the back, but I ignore her and sing louder, knowing it would annoy her.
The first hour of the car ride goes smoothly, and then we hit traffic, like Charlotte feared.
"I fucking hate driving on motorways," she vents, coming to the third stop in the last ten minutes.
"We've got ages. We'll still make it on time," Georgie pipes up, but it's not helping and Charlotte ends up glaring at her.
"It's not you driving, though, is it Gee?" She retorts, winding down the window for a bit of fresh air.
Georgie and I share a brief look, before I turn back round, looking through some messages on my phone.
There's nothing major, one from Kirsty asking how I was doing, a few from my parents and an email from the team from work asking when I'd be back.
I reply to Kirsty and my parents, leaving the email for later.
Finally, we start to move again and I cheer silently, partly because Charlotte would have time to calm down a little.
I must've drifted off to sleep at some point during the journey, because I jolt awake after hearing a massive horn going off, then realising it's coming from our car.
"Fucking asshole! Indicate you fucking idiot!" Charlotte yells out of the window, all three of us equally confused, looking around to try and grasp what the problem was.
"You ok?" Ella asks no one in particular, but Charlotte answers, nodding her head.
"Londoners are fucking assholes. I swear none of the twats can actually drive properly," she swears again, veering off left.
"We're in London?" I ask, sitting up properly in my seat and looking out of the window.
We're not quite in London yet, but I spot signs for Slough so I know we're only about twenty or so minutes away, depending on traffic which looks alright for the minute.
"Basically," Charlotte replies, concentrating on the road. "Am I going to terminal five?" She asks, looking at the signs in front of us.
I know this off by heart already, looking at Harry's flight plans in depth. "Yep, so you need to -"
"- take a right, yes, I can read the signs," she interrupts me, causing me to raise my eyebrows and lean back in my seat. "Sorry, that was bitchy. I just haven't done a long drive in a while, I get bitchy when I do them," she apologises.
"It's okay. You be as bitchy as you like, you saved me having to get a train by myself," I reassure her, looking back out of the window.
Harry's flight is supposed to land in an hour, which gives me a little time to find where I need to be to surprise him. Words can't even explain how excited I am to see his face when he realises I'm in London. We can finally start to go back to our old life, and I can return to apartment hunting.
Kon and Kirsty getting ready to leave the apartment - they'd already started to move some of their things into their new home, and within the next two weeks they would be fully moved out. I needed to find somewhere soon because I'd be paying for the entire apartment by myself, and it wasn't exactly cheap.
I had many things I needed to factor into which apartment I'd eventually move into — how close it was to work, or how easy it would be to commute, and also how close it was to Harry. My current place was a good fifteen or so minute drive away, but a shorter one would be preferable.
I come out of my daydreaming when I see signs to Heathrow, because it gets real now that I'm returning to London, and most importantly, to my boy.
The last ten minutes of driving go agonisingly slow, but before long we're parked up in the short stay car park which I was more than happy to pay for considering this had been my idea and Charlotte had driven.
I can barely contain my excitement as we walk towards the arrivals area. He lands in around thirty or so minutes, so I suggest getting some food, which the others jump at.
Ella chooses a takeaway pizza place, and we all buy individual slices, getting a drink too and sitting down on a nearby table.
"Do you two want to come back to mine for a bit? Or are you going to head straight off?" I ask, taking a bite of my pizza which I instantly regret because it's piping hot. "Ah! Ah, ah, ah, shit, hot!" I squeal, immediately downing some of my drink.
All my sisters laugh at me, and I shake my head in disappointment, but the small smile on my face still evident.
"We'll head back. It's a four hour drive, I don't want to drive too long in the dark. Is that okay Els?" She asks our other sister, who nods her head, just happy to be here.
"Course. As long as we stop for a McDonald's on the way home?" She hints, and Charlotte rolls her eyes but nods.
"I'm sure we can manage that."
I join in with the conversation, but keep my eyes trained on the arrivals board, when a new one pops up at the bottom.
Ibiza, arriving now.
"His flight's here! Let's go!" I squeak in excitement, picking up my drink, scraping my chair back and already setting off towards the arrivals lounge.
I don't even look back to see if my sisters are following, more concentrated on seeing Harry again, despite only being away from him for three days.
Whoever said I'd had separation anxiety from people I cared about hadn't been exaggerating.
I wait anxiously, standing with my own luggage in the middle of the arrivals lounge.
My heart starts to race when I see a new crowd of people coming through the doors, and I have to physically restrain myself from yelling when I spot Josh first. Then I see Simon, and Randy, and Freezy, and then -
"Harry!" I yell, catching his attention as he looks over at me in pure disbelief. He comes racing over, pulling his suitcase behind him which ends up bumping his ankles several times, and catapults himself into my arms.
"Tilly, what - what the fuck are you doing here?!" He asks, holding me so tightly I might suffocate.
"I thought I'd surprise you. Charlotte drove me up, Ella and Georgie are here too," I grin, feeling so overwhelmed with happiness I actually start to feel a little emotional.
"You have no idea how happy I am you're here. I'm serious," he says quietly, kissing my forehead, then my cheek, and then my lips briefly before remembering we were literally in the middle of the airport.
He lets go of me, but doesn't take his eyes off me as we walk back over to my sisters, where Georgie is giving John a hug.
The others come over too, and I end up getting introduced to Lannan, Simon's brothers, Chris, Deji, Chip and Theo.
Obviously I'd heard of them, but this was the first time I'd actually met them in person.
I end up introducing everyone to my sisters, considering some of them hadn't come to my birthday, and it went over smoothly.
"Alright boys, I am off to spend some quality time with my girl. Simon, it was a fucking laugh, I'll see you lot next Wednesday," he says, standing beside me.
I privately say my own goodbyes to my sisters, thanking Charlotte for driving us all up here.
"I'll be back to visit soon. Give Eliza a kiss from me," I say as I hug her, then moving on to Ella.
"Message me if you need anything. That goes for a FaceTime if you need company. I'll be there for you, okay? And I'm sure Harry will say the same. You've got his number too," I tell her, giving her an extra tight hug, before I leave them again.
Georgie leaves with John, and they get an Uber back to his place, but as Harry drove here, we go and find his car.
"So," I say as we walk through the car park. "Successful surprise?"
"Successful surprise. I was literally seconds away from texting you I'd made it back. I genuinely had no fucking idea," he reveals, finally coming across his car. "Here, give me your stuff, I'll chuck it in the back," he says, taking it off my hands so I can get in the front.
Once he's in too, he just sits there for a minute. "How come you decided to come back? Not that I'm not over the moon, cause I am, but how come?"
"I decided it was time to come back. Get my life on track. Get busy, do things, spend time with my friends who make life worth living. And I guess seeing you is alright, too," I grin after seeing the look on his face.
"Just alright?!"
"Just alright."