Songs:
Us Against the World: Coldplay
Flaws and All: Beyonce
Hold My Hand: Jess Glynne
Beneath Your Beautiful: Passenger (Labrinth cover/Spotify Sessions)
A.J.'s POV
I nudge Harry, trying to wake him up. I let him sleep in as long as he wanted since it is his birthday today. Well, that and we didn't actually go to sleep until very early this morning since I decided to give him one of his presents at exactly 12:06 a.m.. I purposely took a long nap the night before because I knew I had to be up early, helping Gemma finish up some minor details for the parties tonight. She tried to take on everything herself, insisting that I shouldn't be doing anything. I swear, this family thought being pregnant meant you were an invalid.
Except for Anne, we ended up telling her, Des and Robin when they all came in yesterday. I was reluctant at first, I still thought it was too soon to tell anyone, but I couldn't deny him the happiness he felt by telling his parents. Anne wasn't as shocked as the others, because of my little confession to her during Christmas, but she was just as happy, if not more. I was already ten weeks, or as Harry called it, prune week. I swear he was going to kill me with his antics.
"Harry, you need to wake up," I nudged him, again, speaking as softly as I could. "Come on, baby, your family is going to be back soon," I rubbed his bare back, kissing his puckered lips.
"It's my birthday," he whined.
"I know it is, baby," I caressed his face before moving my fingers to run them through his hair. "That's why you need to wake, up. Your family wants to spend time with you, it's almost one in the afternoon."
"Hmm, do I get more birthday sex?" he mumbled into his pillow.
I kissed him, a little more thoroughly this time. "I can't give away all your presents all at once," I said playfully, smacking his butt as I sat up in our bed.
He flipped around, eyes still swollen as he pulled me onto him, giving me a deep kiss while he settled each of my knees on either side of him. "How is our little prune? Any morning sickness?" He lifted me until his lips were able to press against my stomach before settling me back down, his hands resting on the smallest baby bump.
"Perfect, no morning sickness as of yet." He lifted my shirt, putting his warm hands on my stomach. The bump was so small, not even noticeable unless you paid attention. "Come on, I made you a birthday breakfast."
He gave my stomach one last kiss than me before he sat up fully, allowing me to climb off of him. "You packed?" He pointed at the luggage I had by the door.
He was going, well, we were going to L.A. tomorrow. The boys were going to film a music video and have some meeting, and he had to sign a deal, or something, i honestly got lost when he tried to explain it as vaguely as he could. But, the timing of everything couldn't be more perfect. Everyone was in on our Super Bowl secret, even Odie was going to meet us there. I was a little shocked when he had written her name on the list, but he insisted she would be a blast. Besides, I selfishly wanted to have her there, I hadn't seen her in so long and the video calls were doing nothing for me, except make me miss her more.
"Yeah, I mean, it's your birthday," I shrugged. Really, I had no clue when we were going to get back home tonight and we were not going to have time to pack afterwards.
He spent most of "breakfast", ignoring calls and texts until he was able to get to all of them later on. The only call he did answer was Odie's. They talked for a good twenty minutes, making my stomach turn to a bunch of knots. Not because they were talking, but because my big mouth sister was well aware of the surprises for Harry's birthday. Not to mention the fact that I still haven't told her that I am pregnant, which is eating me alive. Pretty much all of, Harry's family knows, but I still haven't been able to tell my sister, and it was killing me.
At around four, we were finally able to convince, Harry to go out to dinner, just us and his family, though he just wanted to stay in. Of course, we already had a dinner party ready and scheduled for seven, we just needed him to believe it was a spontaneous idea. It took me the longest to get ready out of all the women. The dress I had originally planned on wearing, did not fit as well anymore, well it did, but they were all so snug to begin with, if anyone was paying attention, they would be able to notice the small bump. So I was on a mission to find a dress that wasn't as tight, which was hell.
I ended up settling for an all black dress that, Harry got me for Christmas and the pair of heels that went with it. It was, like all the other dresses he preferred me to wear, backless. The sleeves were long, to my liking and it reached at least, passed the middle of my thighs. I put my teased hair half way up in a ponytail, while my curls fluffed out around my face, and of course, I couldn't forget the birthday boy's request that I wear red lipstick. Aside from the dark shade of lipstick, I opted for a more natural look with the rest of the makeup. It seemed to work out rather nicely.
Harry, as usual, looked absolutely amazing. Seriously, I can't believe I never fawned over him before when I used to accompany Odie and Sam to their concerts. What the hell was I thinking. Wasted time is what it was.
I pretend to be nauseous, something that shouldn't even be played with, seriously. But, I need a way to get everyone ahead of us so they can be there for the surprise. Harry tries to convince me to just stay in, but after about thirty minutes, I insist that we go, promising that I will let him know if I don't feel good.
It takes us about twenty minutes to get to the venue, which happens to be Harry's favorite restaurant. I rented out the place so it would be as private as possible, so Harry could enjoy his evening with his family and friends without someone trying to disturb him. I also followed in Harry's footsteps and made the restaurant sign a nondisclosure, just in case. I felt stupid for doing it, but both Sam and Gemma urged me to do so, otherwise they had every right to call the paparazzi, which would have ruined his night, for sure.
Harry's POV
I laced my fingers between hers as we road up the lift to the top floor. She seemed nervous, but I assumed it was from being around my family after we told them we're having a baby. I honestly didn't want to come out to dinner, I would have been perfect just laying in bed with, Katarina. But, my mum insisted, so it wasn't like I could say no to her, she did give birth to me and all that.
I drew small patterns on the back of her hand with my thumb as I watched her fidget with her phone nervously. She looked up at me, offering me a wide smile, I just wanted to kiss her. I was about to lean down, but the ding, letting us know we had reached our stop interrupted me. She tugged me out, walking over to the restaurant we were going to have dinner at. I remember bringing her here a few weeks ago, she seemed so uncomfortable though. It was odd how shy she was around settings like this since she grew up in this life. I didn't. But, it seemed like it was the opposite.
We walked down the wide hallway, which was surprisingly deserted, especially for this time of night. This place was always busy. When we got to the front, Katarina gave the host her name, making her eyes go wide. Once she recovered, she nodded, leading us through the restaurant. Again, I was surprised by how dark it was. Usually this place was very dim, but never pitch black. I was about to say something to, Katarina, whose hand tightened around mine, she was probably scared or on the verge of an asthma attack, or both.
"SURPRISE!" I heard shouting in front of us, making me tear my eyes from Katarina.
All of the sudden the lights were turned on, full blast instead of their normal dim setting. My mouth literally fell open into a large smile as my free hand smacked my own chest, trying to keep my heart from jumping out onto the floor. I hunched over a bit, squeezing Katarina's hand before I stood up again, looking around at everyone, who wasted no time in taking a bunch of pictures, making my eyes hurt from the flashes.
My family stood in the center, my mum and sister holding hands. All the boys were there with their respective girlfriends, as well as Chris, Ed and a bunch of other friends and family members. I also noticed that we were the only one's here. There was no one else occupying the rather large room, except for whoever was at the party. I wonder how they pulled that off.
I looked back at, Katarina, who was laughing her ass off. "Surprise," she squealed, still nervous herself.
"Did you do this?" I ask, pecking her lips.
She smiled shyly, "with Gemma's help, and a few others," she shrugged with one shoulder, her smile never faltering. "Go, go, go. Mingle, mingle, mingle, have a good time, the night is just getting started." She shoved me a bit, following quietly behind.
I went through the crowd, doing as I was told, mingling until we all sat down for dinner. I swear I couldn't be happier. Not because of the party, but simply because I felt like my life was amazing, too amazing if you ask me. I had a beautiful girlfriend, a baby on the way, wonderful family and friends, a very successful career, I was healthy, and I was only twenty two. Most twenty two year old's don't get this lucky, or blessed I should say. That's what I feel while I look at, Katarina, I feel blessed to have found her.
It's at that moment, while looking at, Katarina that I make a decision to throw caution to the wind. I pull out my phone, dialing Odette's number to face time her, handing the phone over to, Samara, who is sitting across the table with our video camera, which I assume was, Katarina's idea. She liked to say I had a weird affinity for cameras and needing to document everything, but she was just as guilty.
I stood up from my seat, holding up my champagne glass with one hand and Katarina's in my other. "I, um, I sort of, I have an announcement to make," I finally spit out, my nerves working on over time now that I opened my big mouth. I look at, Katarina one more time to gather a bit of courage. She looked at me with knitted eyebrows, confused about my actions. "First off, I want to thank all of you for being here," I looked around, smiling at everyone in my life that I love and trust and want to make part of my happiness. "Um, well," I felt, Katarina tighten her hand around mine, giving me some reassurance. "Well, Katarina and I, we're going to have a baby," I let out as fast as I could. As soon as the words left my lips, Katarina's hand loosened momentarily before it tightened around mine, making me squirm in pain. When I looked at her, I swear if we were cartoon, this would be the point her face would turn red, smoke coming out of ears.
The room, on the other hand, erupted in loud cheers and a bunch of congratulations from everyone. Niall was the first to make his way to us, wrapping us both up in his arms, his loud laughter filling our ears. Once he let go, he put both hands on Katarina's stomach, saying hi to the little monkey, as he called it. Then came, Chris, who of course already knew, but offered his congratulations to me as well. Next was Louis, who practically killed me with the giant hug he gave me, thanking me for giving his baby a little cousin before he enveloped Katarina in a big hug of her own. Next was Liam, who surprisingly was all smiles and hugs just like the other boys. I had half expected him to scold me, telling me it was too soon or we were too young, or something else along those lines.
Once we finally ended our hugs with the three boys, Samara handed me my phone back, Odette still on the screen. "I knew you were going to do this to my sister, Styles," she shook her head with a large smile and what looked like tears in her eyes. "You better take care of her and my little bean." She squealed. "A.J., congratulations, I can't wait to see you in a few days," she covered her mouth, her eyes widening just as she ended the call.
Before I could ask her what, Odette was talking about, we were interrupted by Cara, who pushed me aside, wrapping Katarina up in a hug first. She said something to her which made Katarina erupt in a full, deep, genuine, laughter, her eyes going bright with happiness once more. Thank God. As soon as Cara left, Katarina excused herself, to go freshen up.
After a few minutes, I start to panic, like most times when she's far from me. I excuse myself, looking for her in the bathroom, only to find it empty. My heart starts to race, hoping that she didn't just leave. I know I'm being paranoid, but I can't help it, especially now that she's pregnant. I pull out my phone, calling her, only to be reminded by the buzzing in my jacket pocket that she gave me her phone to hold.
I began searching the entire floor, checking the kitchen as well, with no luck. I'm about to call Pete to ask him if she left with him, when I spot the host walking past me to go check on the party.
"Um, excuse me," I call out, practically running towards her.
"Oh, is everything okay?" She asks politely.
"Yeah, the woman I came with, have you seen her?"
"Oh, yeah, she went out the staircase," she pointed to a door that I assume led to the so called staircase.
I thank her, quickly making my way to the stairs, taking them two or three at a time until I saw her. She was standing on the second landing, her back towards me as she looks out the massive window that lines the building. Her arms are wrapped around herself, and it looks like there's a tear staining her cheek.
"Baby," I call out, cautiously taking a step towards her.
"Don't, Harry, not now," she whimpers softly, taking two steps to the side, away from me.
I ignore her request, grabbing her by the hips to turn her half way. I stand in front of her, looking down at her beautiful face stained with tears, her eyes producing even more as she looked up at me.
"Sweetheart, what's the matter?" I panic, yet again, not knowing why she's crying or how to help her.
She shuts her eyes, letting the tears that just pooled in her eyes fall down her cheeks. "I asked you," she sniffles. "Not to tell anyone yet, your family was one thing, but you just announced it to everyone. I haven't even talked to my sister yet."
"That's why I called her, so she can be part of it," I say, trying to wrap my arms around her to comfort her.
She pushes me away. "That's not how I wanted to do it. I wanted to sit down with her and talk to her, tell her in person. I don't know, but not like this, not over the phone," she practically yells, pushing her small fists on my bare chest, resting her head against them. "I'm sorry," she whispers, picking up her head and running her fingers under her eyes to clear her face of tears. "It's your birthday, your night, go. Go have fun," she smiled weakly.
"No, no, no. Come one, something is bothering you, talk to me, please." I could tell it was more than just me announcing it, she was just as thrilled as I was. Sure, I should have warned her, but, it was a heat of the moment thing, I hadn't planned on this. I didn't even know there was going to be a party. She shook her head, not wanting to talk about it, but I saw the fresh set of tears forming in her eyes.
I took her to the staircase, sitting her down before I took the seat next to her, wrapping my arms around her waist. "Okay baby, now, tell me what the hell is going on through your head." I kiss her temple softly, rocking her gently from side to side.
"I just," she huffs, not wanting to continue, but I nudge her, silently asking for her to continue. "I wanted to tell Odie, she's all I have left of my family" she let out. "I know I have, Sarah and Victor, Derek, Oh, God, I need to tell Derek, and Eva," she whined.
"Baby, you have so many people that love you, you aren't alone, you know that, right?"
She nodded, sniffling again, her breath faltering a bit. "I just, I wish my dad and Robbie were here for this. I wish I had them here to show them how extremely happy I am." I could tell she wanted to let out a sob, but was holding it in. "Harry, I'm sorry, I just. Before you, Odette was literally the only thing I was living for. I felt so alone and scared, I guess. But, I knew I had her, still. Until I met you, and you showed me how to be a real person again, and filled me up with all this love I feel now, all I had was her. I know, I know, that's a lot of pressure to put on a little girl, but-" she took a deep, shaky breath, trying to control herself. "And, I guess, a small part of me, wishes that I had a real mom that I could share this news with, an actual, mother who cared, who would teach me how to be a mom. I'm so scared Harry. I guess that's also why telling my sister was so important. I don't know," she chuckled. "I guess it's just hormones," she shrugged, trying to move passed this conversation as soon as possible.
It was at that moment, I decided, I actually hated Sarah. I didn't understand how she could be so cruel and hurtful to such an amazing human being. Even if she was a terrible person, she was still her daughter. Her little girl, someone she should love, unconditionally. Yes, Katarina was surrounded by people who loved her and cared about her, but she was still missing something that no one else, but, Sarah, could give her. A mother's love. She was lacking something so basic and human.
"Hey," I wrapped my fingers around her chin, lifting her up to look at me. "I know it's not the same thing, but you have me now. I will love you, and I will be right there with you to figure all this out." I assured her, kissing her lips, softly. "How about we invite Odette out while she's on break or something?" I offered. "That way she could enjoy your pregnancy and you guys can bond and all that?"
She nodded, offering me a small smile before wiping her eyes again and clearing her throat. "We should get back before people start wondering where we are," she stood up, pulling me along with her, but I protested, not wanting to rush her. "It's your birthday, Harry and you still have a long way to go and presents to open, oh lord, the presents," she shrieked. "You are going to love them."
I knew she was just putting on a smile for my sake, but it was genuine, nonetheless. I followed her to the powder room so she can clean up, not wanting to leave her alone anymore. She tried to protest, telling me I wasn't allowed in the girl's bathroom, but I didn't give two shits, I wanted to be with her and protect her, let her know she was not alone, not anymore.
When we got back, we cut the cake and opened my presents, ending the night fairly quiet. I guess this is how my life would be now. By this time next year, I will have a five month old baby, and going out for late nights would probably not be considered good parenting, though, I don't think I would leave my little baby for a night out on the town.
Katarina pulled me away from the crowd, once we had said our goodbyes. I thought it was a bit rude, since it was my birthday and we should have stayed until the last guest left.
"Babe, why did we leave?" I asked as the lift made its way down.
She shrugged with a small smile. "Just, trust me, the night is just getting started."
I watched her silently, not sure what to make of her comment. By the time I decided to ask her to elaborate further, the doors slid open. She pulled me through them and across the lobby and out the front doors to our car. Landon quickly opened the door for us, Katarina literally jumping in and pulling me in behind her.
"Whoa, where's the fire?" I laughed, watching her as she looked through a large bag.
She remained silent until she pulled something out of the bag and turning on the light. "Here, this is my birthday present to you." She squealed, uncharacteristically.
I held the medium sized box in my hand. It was clearly some article of clothing, judging by the size and shape of the box. "I thought the party was my present?" I asked as I pulled off the green bow that adorned the box, before unwrapping it and pulling off the top part of the box. Inside was some type of jersey looking thing.
"That was just a party, this is your actual present."
I lifted it out of the box, pulling out a Panthers jersey. It wasn't the team I liked, but I smiled anyway. It was the thought that counted, at least I had something to wear when we watched the Super Bowl. "It's great babe, thank you," I put the jersey back in the box before pecking her lips.
She giggled pushing me away. "That's not your present," she shook her head. I also heard Landon chuckle lightly from his spot in the driver's seat. "Well, it's part of it, anyway."
She moved the jersey out of the way, tossing it on the seat next to me. My eyes fell on the large white envelope at the bottom of the box that I hadn't noticed. I grabbed the envelope, slowly opening it and dumping out the contents into my hand. The first thing I noticed was the NFL logo, when I took a closer look, I realized, they were tickets to the Super Bowl; a lot of them.
"Babe, is this, what I think it is." I looked over at her, taking in the huge grin on her face.
She shrugged. "You said you wanted to go to the Super Bowl one day, so, happy birthday."
"Why so many tickets?" I asked flipping through the tickets. "Wait, are these fucking box seats?"
She nodded, taking the larger white paper from my hands, placing it directly in front of me to look at. "These are the people that are going," she grinned sheepishly, awaiting a reaction.
I looked at the paper, looking through all the names on the list. It took me a minute to realize that all the names on this list were almost identical to the names on the list of people I had given her and my sister a few days ago. I guess that explained the weird question.
"This is absolutely amazing," I laughed, kissing her lips repeatedly. "Thank you, but you shouldn't have. I mean, you shut down an entire restaurant and box seats are exp-"
"Do not ruin my gift to you Harold," she scolded, taking the things out of my hands and placing them in the box. "It is a gift, so, accept it and move on."
I kissed her lips, again and again. "I'm sorry," I apologized. "Thank you, really."
She grinned, again, returning the kisses I had just given her. Minutes passed and we had come to another stop, when I looked out the window, I noticed we were at a club. I tried to protest, knowing how uncomfortable places like this made her, but she insisted. Instead of fighting her on it, I just went with the flow, which was something I had a feeling I was going to have to keep doing for the rest of the night.