For the purpose of this chapter (and the rest of the book) we're introducing JJ's girlfriend!! Obviously the name is fictitious and for the plot.
THE WEDDING CHAPTER IS HEREEEEE 🤍 enjoy it whilst the peace lasts lol
Also, I wrote this chapter with Jealous by Nick Jonas on repeat, which inspired me for the last half of this chapter hahahah
"Wow," his voice is gentle, as I walk out onto the balcony adjoined to our room in the villa, all dressed with my make up done ready for the wedding.
Harry is sat on a chair, just finishing a cigarette, turning to me with a smile full of adoration, putting the remains of the cigarette into the ashtray, walking towards me to kiss me gently on the lips.
"You look...I don't even have words. I love the dress, I told you it would look amazing, didn't I?" He reminds me, and of course he's right. He always is.
"You did, indeed," I grin, enjoying the feeling of his lips against mine. "And you look amazing," I admit, loving the black shirt on him. He looked so smart, so well dressed, and it made me realise how lucky I really was to be loved by him.
"Thanks," he grins cheekily. "I might have to roll these sleeves up, though. It's supposed to be thirty four degrees today, we're all going to be sweating all day. Make sure you put suncream on, you burn easily," he reminds me, and it's a good thing I'd packed it for the trip.
"Will do. You're going to have to do my back though, it's a backless dress and I think that's where I burn the easiest."
"I'll go grab it and we can sort that out. Everyone's leaving in about twenty minutes anyway," he offers, sliding past me and back into our room to rifle through our stuff.
We'd arrived two days ago, and in all fairness we actually hadn't spent that much time together. Harry had gone golfing with some of the boys, and I'd been spending time with the girls.
Although, yesterday, Tobi, Mollie and I had gone out into one of the nearby towns to try out some gelato, which was a very good decision because I'd fallen in love with the local shops mango flavoured gelato, so much so I'd actually dreamt about it last night. I'd definitely be dragging Harry there before our plane home in a couple of days.
Our villa was actually really nice — JJ had offered to pay for everyone in exchange for upgrading it from the previous one, but no one wanted to let him do that so we'd all just paid for our rooms, and I was actually really glad we'd changed because it was luxurious here.
The views were scenic, looking out into the Italian countryside. The wedding venue bordered the sea, and was about a twenty minute drive away from where we were staying, but from our balcony we were able to see an orchard, which made for some really lovely pictures.
We were staying with seven other people, Kon and Kirsty, JJ and his girlfriend, Maya, Tobi and Mollie and Vik and Ellie. It was actually a really nice mix of people, and it was good to properly get to know Mollie, Maya and Ellie. I knew of them, but hadn't seen them much so spending time with them had been lovely.
Harry comes back out onto the balcony, suncream in hand. "Found it, finally. You pack in such an odd way," he laughs fondly, shaking his head as he squirts some onto his hand.
Luckily, my hair is slicked back into a bun so he can easily rub it into my back, which he does. The cold sensation is nice, because the air is warm and it's a nice little refresher.
"How have you got tan lines already and I'm only just starting to tan?" He complains, spreading the cream around.
"Probably because you've been wearing a whole T-shirt playing golf and I've been purposefully tanning by the pool?" I say sarcastically.
He shrugs his shoulders, practically massaging my back which felt heavenly. "Yeah, I'll end up with fucked up tan lines from the shirt now, watch," he laughs, finishing up my back so I can do my arms.
"I can't believe Simon and Talia are literally getting married today. That's crazy to me and I've only known them under a year," I think out loud, applying more suncream.
"Tell me about it. I remember when they first met. They were both so awkward, they were lucky Tobi was there to make it slightly less awkward at the time," he reminisces, and I feel somewhat jealous that I wasn't apart of the friend group as long as others had, but also still so grateful I knew everyone at all.
"I can't believe they've been together for six years. That's crazy. I feel like I've known you forever, but it's only been like what, seven months?"
He grins and nods his head, arm snaking around my lower back to pull me closer to him, kissing my lips. "Seven months," he agrees, and we just stay in close proximity, enjoying the view in front of us.
I still couldn't believe that this was my life now, flown out to Italy for two of our friends' wedding, getting to enjoy views and opportunities like this daily. It was insane.
"We should probably see if everyone else is ready. We've got to be there in just over half an hour," I say, not wanting to leave where we were right now, but knowing it was time to leave.
We lock the balcony door, Harry holding out his hand for me as I pick up my handbag, leaving our room.
From the top of the stairs I can already hear some commotion downstairs, and I realise that we're the last people to come on down. Everyone turns to look at us, and it actually feels a little surreal.
Kirsty grins when she sees us, the first to say something. "So that's why you guys took so long to get ready. Harry, I don't blame you, she looks incredible," she jokes around, and although she not technically wrong — I shake my head, Harry's bowing sheepishly.
"You look gorgeous," Maya compliments, gushing over my hair and makeup which I thank her for. She's dressed in a pale cream coloured dress with a slit running up her leg, and the colour really suits her. It also matches JJ's groomsmen's suit too.
"Car's outside. Let's get this show on the road!" Vik calls out, taking charge of our little group, to no one's complaint. Him and Ellie lead the way, and Harry and I follow at the back, getting in the second car with Kon and Kirsty, and Tobi and Mollie.
I sit in between Tobi and Harry, my hand intertwined with Harry's, resting on his lap as he looks out of the window, admiring the view.
I turn to Tobi, whispering in his ear. "Mollie looks gorgeous. You've done well there," I say, and he just gives me a knowing smile, looking pleased with himself.
"I'm glad I waited," he whispers back, and I think back to when I'd first met him and he'd been pining over her for the longest time. I wished I could go back to then and tell him what I knew now.
I sit back in my seat, trying not to ruin my hair, exciyed for the day ahead knowing that all my close friends would be there.
Georgie had wanted to come — John had invited her as a plus one, but she'd had a work commitment booked for a couple of months so she'd had to decline. I knew that John was a little bit gutted but he did understand, and of course Georgie was upset about missing it too, despite only knowing Simon and Talia briefly.
I'd already sent a picture of my hair and makeup to all of my family, and my mum had text back saying that my dad had nearly cried. Eliza had also apparently asked if it was mine and Harry's wedding, which did make me laugh a little, of course reassuring her it wasn't, and that when the time did come, she would be there in the front row.
Twenty minutes flew by, and soon enough we were pulling into the venue. It was beautiful, and there genuinely were no words to fully encapsulate it. Simon and Talia had gone all out — if that wasn't already clear from the fact we were in Italy.
There were multicoloured pastel ribbons tied onto the wooden fence running along the driveway, with customised balloons attached to them. It wasn't too windy, in fact it was just perfect in that the balloons swayed, but didn't blow about too much. We could read them from inside the car.
"They've definitely gone all out," Harry says to the car, and I laugh because it's exactly the same as what I was thinking.
"Good for them. They deserve it after all this time," Tobi says, looking like he's in awe as he looks around him.
Our car comes to a stop, and we're helped out by a member of staff. We all congregate around the entrance, and once we're all ready, we head into the venue in our couples. Once again, Harry and I bring up the rear.
He looks — happy. Which is good, because the last time we were in attendance at a wedding, he was full of nerves, and stress. Seeing him happy made me happy, and I was also a lot more relaxed today than I had been at the previous wedding.
"Guess we better go find our seats?" He suggests, and I nod my head. There wasn't much else for us to do yet.
As we walk through, I hear my name being called, recognising it to belong to Faith. Immediately I turn around, spotting Olive in her pushchair, Ethan walking behind them.
"Oh my god, you look so beautiful! I am in love with that dress. And your hair! And your makeup, oh my goodness," she gushes, giving me a brief kiss on my cheek, which I return, then focusing my attention on the little baby in her pushchair.
"Hello little Olive! Don't you and your mummy look so pretty! Yes you do! Yes you do," I say chirpily, smiling at the little human, then back at her mum. "How are you? Did you get enough sleep?" I ask as her friend.
"Not really, but it's not the worst night we've had. The first night here was horrific, wasn't it babe?" She recalls, including Ethan in the conversation.
"Hmm? Yeah, yeah, we reckon it was because it's her first time away from home. Different surroundings and that," he chips in, putting his arm around her waist. "She's been alright, though. She's been an angel so far today, so fingers crossed."
Harry bends down to the pushchair, poking his fingers in, letting Olive grasp onto his index finger with her entire hand, bringing it up to her mouth. I fully expect him to snatch it away, but he lets her do it, and to all our surprise she giggles afterwards.
"Mate, she doesn't even giggle for us! How have you done that?" Ethan asks, clearly bewildered.
Harry laughs in surprise, looking between them and me, shrugging his shoulders. "I literally don't have a clue. Magic touch I guess," he shrugs again.
"Baby fever!" I mouth to Faith, who looks like she's about to burst out into laughter, looking at me and then at Harry who is oblivious to what I've just said.
We chat for a little while longer, leaving when Faith lets us know she needs to go feed Olive, and we walk towards the outside area where the ceremony will be taking place. They've put name tags on all of the chairs, and I let Harry try and find ours because I have no idea who we'll even be near.
We end up sitting second row, on Simon's side, purely because he's got to accommodate his family and then all of the guys and their girlfriends, and that's actually an awful lot of us. JJ, Josh, Randy and his brothers are up at the front, which leaves his parents and grandparents in the first row, leaving me and Harry, Tobi and Mollie, Vik and Ellie, Ethan and Maya in the second row.
I assumed Faith would be sat near the back because of Olive, but there was a name tag for them both next to Ethan, so I wasn't entirely sure. Maya was sat in between myself and Mollie, something I was sure JJ had requested of Simon.
"Second row's not bad," Harry comments, sitting down in his designated seat.
"Not at all. Good view from here," I say, looking out and able to see the sea from where I was sat. "Do you ever think about little details of your own wedding?" I ask, because whilst being here for Simon and Talia's, it's been something I've been thinking about frequently.
"Sometimes. I know I want it abroad, but other than that I think I'd let you decide what you want," he says casually, and hearing him talk about me, us — I'm already feeling emotional enough as it is.
"Abroad sounds like a dream. Ellie said her and Vik want theirs in Malta later this year...I'd say maybe Greece."
"Or..." he says, interrupting slightly. "And hear me out now, what about Cyprus?" He suggests, my face cracking into a grin.
"Where I got food poisoning?"
"There is that, yes, but when I was looking after you in my room, I told you I liked you when you were passed out fast asleep. I know you were asleep and didn't hear it, but it would be a full circle kinda moment."
"That's the cutest thing I think you've ever said. That's also the trip that Kirsty made me realise I didn't just like you as a friend. The jealousy trip she calls it," I recall.
"Well anyway, we have ages to think about weddings. Let's just enjoy this one right here, and we can think about the rest afterwards."
And that's just what we do — the outside seating area fills up as time races closer to the starting time, and soon enough it's completely packed with all of Simon and Talia's closest friends and family, ready to witness their big day.
Josh, JJ, Randy and Simon's brother wait up at the front with him, and bless him because he looks so incredibly nervous.
The music starts, and I remember Talia actually talking about this with me and some of the other girls so I'm glad she got the song she really wanted. We all stand up and turn to face the aisle, where we see her bridesmaids walk down the aisle first.
Gee and Freya walk down first, and they both look beautiful because — of course they do. They're followed by Amy and Angele, who also look heavenly and then — Talia.
She'd already shown me the wedding dress, but nothing compared to how it looked right here, right now. Even I felt close to tears, so I had no idea how Simon wasn't bawling his eyes out.
She walked past us, finally reaching the front where I noticed that Simon was actually looking a little misty eyed.
Their vows were both hilarious and beautiful, which summed them both up perfectly. Before I could even comprehend, they were officially married and walking back up the aisle, hand in hand, all their loved ones cheering.
"Am I allowed a drink yet?" Harry asks, standing up and stretching, the question making both myself and Maya laugh.
"Let's go grab one. Maya, you coming?" I ask, but she's already looking over to the front, where JJ is heading her way, so I already have my answer, even when she shakes her head no.
Harry and I make our way into the outside seating area, where there's a bar situated against a wall covered in ivy. "Do you want one?" He asks, and I shake my head. There's water at the table, and I want to enjoy my food before even thinking about getting drunk.
I wait for him to order, watching the bartender make his drink, handing it off.
When we walk towards the tables to find our names, I notice that Harry is looking at me a little weirdly.
"What's up with you?" I ask, trying to read the name tags on the first table.
"I don't like the way he was looking at you," he says suddenly, making me look up questioningly.
"What do you mean you don't like the way who was looking at me?" I ask, genuinely baffled at what he was trying to say.
"The guy at the bar. He literally didn't take his eyes off you, even when he was pouring my pint," he explains, his eyebrows furrowed.
"Harry -" I start, but he talks over me, so I let him continue.
"I know you weren't looking at him, and I also know you'd never...I know," he trails off, trying to explain himself better. "I trust you one hundred percent, I always will. I just don't like how some of these people will just stare at a woman like that. Like, what's wrong with people?"
"I'm flattered you care so much, but I didn't even notice him looking. If I was uncomfortable I would've told you, yeah? Let's just drop it and enjoy the rest of this wedding. I love you," I reiterate, kissing his cheek as I finally locate our name tags.
"Alright...I didn't mean to be so..." he says, clearly unable to find the right word.
"Jealous? You're not the only one," I remind him, sitting down at my seat, waiting patiently for him to join me.
His face relaxes into a knowing smile, planting down his drink on the table.
After quickly scanning the other names, I find that we're on a table with Chris, Freezy, Lux and Theo. It does mean that I'm the only girl at the table, but I'm friends with all of them so it shouldn't be an issue. They're also some of the funniest guys I know, so it means that tonight is going to be one to remember.
"Hello you two!" A clearly tipsy Chip says, waltzing towards our table along with Theo and Freezy, who are also probably a few pints down already.
"Fucking hell," Harry moans, taking a few sips from his drink. "I need to be on their level to deal with this," he says to me quietly, which makes me snort with laughter, covering my mouth the second it sounds.
"Did you just snort?!" He asks, laughing into his cup.
"....no!"
"Liar," he grins, then welcoming the other three boys to the table, striking up a conversation with them.
Lux and Chris come over not long after, because the food was about to be served.
We're just about finished with food, and have five or so minutes until the speeches start, so I offer to grab drinks for the table. Harry offers to come with me, noting down what the others want to drink.
We head over to the bar, where the same guy Harry had accused of staring at me from earlier was still working. As soon as we get up to the counter, he wraps an arm around my waist, gently pulling me closer towards him.
"Can we get five pints, and — a gin and tonic?" He asks, looking at me, confirming it once I nod.
"Sure," he smiles, pouring the pints first, then making my gin and tonic.
I do notice, now, that he is in fact staring at me, and I also know that if I can notice it, Harry can too. I find his hand on my waist, covering it with my own, watching as he slowly turns to face me, his previously frustrated face relaxing and turning into a smile towards me.
"Here is your drink," the bartender says, and I thank him whilst still training my gaze on Harry, helping him carry the pints over.
"Did you offer to come up with me so you could swing your dick around?" I ask sarcastically, walking back to the table.
"I did no such thing!"
"Liar. Also, even if I wasn't madly in love with you, which I so am, that guy is very not my type at all. Just for your information."
"Oh? And your type is?" He asks, clearly intrigued as we're steps away from the table.
"Harry Styles," I reply, voice full of sarcasm and a grin on my face as I start handing out the drinks, knowing the exact look on his face without even having to look.
The speeches are — again, beautiful, with JJ and Randy both making a speech. JJ's is funny, full of memories of him and Simon, and Randy's is sweet, so it's a nice mixture of the two. Before long, Simon is on the mic, encouraging everyone to get as drunk as they can with the open bar tonight.
My table doesn't need telling twice. Both Freezy and Chip go up to the bar, ordering two rounds for the table. By the time they come back with all the glasses, I think we're going to run out of room on the table.
"I'm going to return some of these glasses," I announce, knowing that the others are way too tipsy to be trusted with a handful of glasses.
I head up towards the bar, dumping them on the counter when a voice attracts my attention.
"I'm assuming he's your boyfriend, then? The one in the black?"
It's the bartender, and I'm so not bothered for this conversation, but I don't want to be rude and ignore him.
"Yes, he is. Is that all?" I ask, barely maintaining eye contact with him.
"Sorry, yeah. Dunno why I asked, hope you have a nice night," he says, and I walk away as fast as I can, back to Harry, who luckily did not notice the encounter.
Our table has more room now, and I notice two very full gin and tonics in my place, with a table full of grinning men.
"You lot will regret this when I end up drunk as fuck, especially you, because we're sharing a room," I laugh, pointing at Harry, sitting back down next to him.
"I've handled worse. Nothing is worse than the food poisoning, and that didn't put me off you so nothing will," he shrugs, blowing me a kiss which results in the others making gagging noises. "Shut up, midget," i hear him say to Chris, which promptly does shut him up.
I'm now five gin and tonics in, slightly losing the capability of seeing straight, and it's definitely gone to my head. The others are on their sixth and seventh pints, and they are not handling their alcohol well either. Simon and Talia have done their rounds, thanking everyone for coming, and had ordered a round of shots for our table which had just arrived.
Luckily, it was a different bartender now, because I know for a fact Harry would've created an argument if he saw him staring at me once again.
The shots were vodka, and we all clinked glasses, throwing it back. Surprisingly, Chris and Lux handled it the best, with Freezy being the one to struggle, looking slightly green afterwards.
"What if we all just snuck down to the beach? Simon was saying there was a secret little footpath," Lux suggests to the table.
"Lux, mate, we can't just ditch their wedding," Theo laughs, shaking his head, but everyone else is seriously considering it.
"Fuck it, let's do it," Chris agrees, standing up like a man on a mission.
"Tils?" Harry asks, cocking his head to me, looking to see what I wanted to do.
I shrug my shoulders. "Fuck it," I say, repeating Chris and also standing up — albeit swaying slightly.
"I'm in, then," Harry says straight after, also standing up.
Freezy and Chip also agree, and then because Theo doesn't want to feel left out he also decides to join. We must look like a right state, the seven of us stumbling away from our table and towards the garden area, where there is a gate with a sign to the beach on it.
Lux opens it, heading down the path first, and I hold onto Harry's hand, following him down. The sun is just starting to set, so we have a little bit of light which makes a significant difference because I'm actually able to see where I'm going and not trip, which is already difficult enough considering the amount of alcohol I'd had in such a short space of time.
It's not a long walk at all — and soon enough we're stumbling onto sand — which is really inconvenient with my high heels. Harry notices, yelling at the boys to wait when he crouches down, tapping my ankle.
"Kick 'em off," he instructs, helping me to get them off until both my feet are on the sand. He picks both of them up, and I hold my hand out for them, but instead he shakes his head. "Who do you take me for?"
He holds the high heels in his right hand, reaching out for my hand with his left, holding it tightly as we continue walking on the sand towards the sea. The sun was nearly set now, the sky full of beautiful colours. It was such a beautiful way to end the day.
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Whilst taking the photo, I'm suddenly being lifted up, the sea looming closer and closer.
"Harry! I swear to God, put me down!" I screech, knowing exactly what he's planning on doing.
He doesn't say anything, just laughing as he runs closer to the water.
"Harry Lewis! I'm being so fucking serious, you won't have any sex for the next three months if you put me in this water," I squeal, but I'm laughing so much whilst saying it we both know I'm not serious.
It's no use anyway, because he reaches the water, it splashing up as he runs through it, and soon enough he's nearly knee deep, and he sinks into it, submerging me in the process, dunking my head underneath the surface.
"You are an asshole," I cough, running a hand through my hair, but laughing the entire time.
He just grins, looking pleased with himself.
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