Hailey's POV
"What about this? It's cute?" Kels asked as she held up a dress and I shook my head at it.
We'd been shopping for an hour as I tried to find something to wear to my birthday dinner that night. I'd picked a cute restaurant in town, and needed a new dress after the fiasco that was our last night out. We'd left Ryan and Harry with the kids and it was nice to have some girl time with her since I hadn't seen her much lately.
"I wish you could have seen that nightmare of a dress Sam packed me, it was literally like something a stripper would wear on stage. I was horrified." I said, laughing lightly as I recalled it.
"I'm actually surprised you wore it, to be honest." Kels shrugged as she inspected a pair of shoes.
"Well Harry had planned a nice dinner and I didn't wanna ruin it, and he promised me nobody would see me. He gave me his jacket and even it was longer than the dress, that's how short it was."
"How do you go out for dinner and not have anybody see you?" She chuckled.
"He rented out the whole restaurant. We had dinner on the beach, it was amazing." I sighed at the memory and how much thought he'd obviously put into it.
"That Harry, he's full of surprises." Kels laughed as she held up a shirt and checked the price tag.
"Yeah, that's for sure." I scoffed thinking about the overdose of surprises he'd given me in the past few days. "I don't even know what to do with him."
"What exactly is up with you two anyways?" She asked curiously. "I mean, I've tried not to really pry...but you two seem pretty cozy these days and I can't help but notice that you seem to be sharing a bed."
I smiled to myself at her attempt at subtlety, and although she was failing at it I still loved her for it. Kels had never been one to try to stick her nose into my business, but she'd always been someone I could talk to if I needed her. She really was my big sister, and I supposed it was time I talk to someone about what was happening with Harry and I, even if I wasn't sure myself.
"I honestly don't really know what to call it...we're just...us." I laughed.
"Oh well when you put it like that, it's extremely clear." She rolled her eyes at me.
"I know...it's just not really clear to us so I don't know how to make it clear to anyone else." I shrugged. "We're just trying to let things happen I guess, not think about it too much."
"I guess it seems to be working for you. You both seem really happy, that's really all anyone wants for you." She smiled. "You're good together, you keep each other in check."
"Yeah...it's hard to explain. He just gets me."
"Have you talked about what's gonna happen after the summer ends?" She asked curiously, and all I could do what sigh.
It was like the dark cloud that constantly hovered over me, threatening to rain on my parade at any second. It's not like Harry and I were together and we had to map out how to carry on a long distance relationship in his absence. At the same time, it wasn't like we were nothing and he could just leave and it wouldn't be weird if we never spoke again. As usual, we were caught in some strange limbo that nobody, even us, understood.
"We don't really talk about it. It's not really something we do." I sighed.
Kels just nodded as we continued to browse, chatting about random things, before we both paid for the few things we'd found and headed back outside.
"Should we grab lunch? What time is this dinner?" She asked, looking down at her phone to check the time.
"I think we said 7?"
"Okay, well it's only 2, we could grab something small. Actually, is that a drug store? I need to pop in there for a second, my boobs are killing me and I need more nipple cream. Your niece is a savage." She laughed.
"Oh god, the joys of motherhood."
"We'll have this convo one day, you'll feel my pain." She laughed as she threw her arm around me and we headed into the drug store.
She picked up a few things while I browsed the aisles to see if there was anything I needed, before I was passing the magazine area and something caught my eye. I did a double take when I saw Harry's face, immediately stopping to grab the magazine and read the headline.
Popstar Heartthrob Harry Styles Makes Late Night Run to CVS for Mystery Girl in Hawaii
I felt the lump rise in my throat, knowing how much effort he'd been trying to put into staying under the radar while we were there, and feeling horrible that someone had obviously sold him out. The headline was accompanied with a picture of him getting into his car, dressed in sweats and a t-shirt, and it was obvious someone had snapped it as he was leaving.
"You got everything? I'm starving let's-" Kels stopped mid sentence as her eyes fell to what I was reading. "Oh shit."
"Yeah. Oh shit is right." I sighed as she peered over my shoulder.
"When was this?" She asked.
"The night before you got here, I woke up with the worst cramps. He was so fucking sweet and he went to the store to get me tampons and ice cream. Someone obviously saw him." I sighed. "I can't believe he has to live like this. He can't go to the store at 3am for fuck sakes."
"I can't even imagine." Kels sighed as I tucked the magazine under my arm and we headed to the check out.
I knew I wanted to read the entire article, the whole thing being beyond strange to me, and I noticed there were other magazines with him plastered all over them at the check out as well.
Harry Styles Finally Emerges in Hawaii after Four Months of Hiding!
New Girl for Harry? Popstar Proves He's Boyfriend Goals as he Picks Up Tampons and Ice Cream in Hawaii
Sorry, Ladies! Harry's Off the Market!
I silently gritted my teeth as we waited in line to pay, finally reaching the register to find a middle-aged woman smiling at us as she started to scan our items through.
"Isn't it so exciting? Harry's here right now, somewhere on the island!" She said excitedly. "He's just so handsome, my daughters love him!"
"Well he's obviously here on vacation, so I hope he's able to have some privacy and relax." Kelsey said with a small smile, trying to be diplomatic.
"Oh of course, I hope so too. But the whole island is on the lookout, he's just so famous everyone is dying to catch a glimpse of him! We've had people coming in all day asking if anyone's seen him around the mall."
I looked over at Kels and sighed, getting a new glimpse into this strange fame vortex that Harry seemed to be a part of, and I couldn't seem to wrap my mind around it. We paid for our stuff, thanking the lady before we left and went into some café for lunch. The second we ordered I pulled out the magazine and started reading it to Kelsey.
You hear that? It's the sound of millions of teenage hearts breaking all over the world as it appears there is confirmation that One Direction heartthrob Harry Styles is officially off the market. While Harry is not exactly known for his resume as a good boyfriend, it appears times may be changing. Harry was spotted hitting up a local CVS while on vacation in Hawaii at 3am to buy tampons and ice cream, telling one of the employees that he'd been sent on a run by his girlfriend. According to our sources, Harry was his usual polite and pleasant self as he posed for a photo with a fan and chit chatted with the cashier, even joking about keeping his lady happy.
Which brings us to the next obvious question...who is this mystery girl that has finally tamed Styles' womanizing ways? Has he just been hiding away with her all summer in some love bubble? It appears he's come a long way from his days of leaving Taylor Swift crying alone in the back of a boat on vacation. Let's hope this new one doesn't suffer a similar fate on their Hawaiian vacation. One thing is for sure, she must be something special to have a multimillionaire making a personal tampon run at 3am. Harry is officially boyfriend goals *sigh*
"This is literally the biggest load of garbage I've ever read." I scoffed. "They talk about him like he's such a piece of shit."
"I know, that's fucked up." Kels agreed. "I feel horrible."
"I don't even know if I wanna tell him, he's gonna be so upset." I sighed, hating the idea of Harry's bubble of anonymity being popped.
We sat through a quiet lunch, both of our moods being dampened by feeling bad for Harry and all the shit that he has to deal with. It really was a whole different world outside of Lily Ridge, and the more time I spent in it the more eager I was to get home. We paid our bills and headed back to the car, throwing our bags in the back and heading toward the house to see what Ryan and Harry had been up to with the kids all day. We cruised down the main highway, the warm tropical breeze hitting my face as I breathed in the ocean air.
"Umm...Hails..." Kels said slowly as we turned off the highway and onto the street, making our way toward the gate of the driveway.
There were people everywhere, standing all over the street in front of the gate, all gathered at the entrance with cameras and just waiting around.
"What the fuck?" I muttered to myself as we approached, people immediately turning to look at the car before camera flashes started to go off, blinding us both as we tried to figure out what the hell was going on.
"Are you with Harry?!"
"Is Harry inside?! Is he enjoying his time in Hawaii?!"
"What's your name beautiful?! Give us a smile!"
All I could see was a sea of people and cameras being shoved against the windows as Kels tried to move forward with nowhere to go. They kept shouting random questions at us, and neither of us had any idea of what to do.
"Hails, what the hell do I do? I can't go anywhere!" Kels said in a panic as everyone swarmed the car, standing in front of it with nowhere to go.
We both frantically looked around, seeing if we could back up instead but we were completely surrounded. The flashes were blinding as they yelled and shook the car, making it so loud that we had to shout over the noise just to hear each other.
"I have no idea!" I yelled back, just as clueless as she was, until I saw the crowd start to part and a man started to wave us through.
They continued to yell and shout, pounding on the windows and taking their pictures as we passed them, the man getting us a clear path to the driveway as we pulled in and he closed the gate behind us. My heart was pounding in my chest as we drove up the long drive around the side of the mountain, thankful that it hadn't been a short driveway. Both Harry and Ryan were waiting nervously on the front steps as we pulled up, rising to their feet when we came into view.
"Are you okay? I'm so fucking sorry." Harry said frantically as he practically pulled me out of the car, cupping my face in his hands like he was checking me for injuries.
"We're alright." I assured him. "What the hell was that?"
"I'm so sorry, someone found out where I was staying. They've been camped out since this morning, we didn't even realize until one of the cleaning people came and couldn't get through. I've been on the phone trying to get security all morning, I wanted to send them to the mall to get you but I didn't know where you guys went shopping." Harry continued to apologize profusely and I tried to calm him down.
"Harry, it's fine. We're okay. It was just a little strange for us, that's all. No harm done." I said softly as I reached up and placed my hand on the side of his face. "It's alright."
"No it's not." He said, shaking his head. "What if you'd taken the kids? It is not okay. It's me they want, you shouldn't have to deal with it."
"You shouldn't have to deal with that either, Harry. It's not right." Kelsey said sternly from the other side of the car. "That...whatever that is...has nothing to do with music."
Harry anxiously rubbed his face with his hands before he pulled me into him, kissing my head as he sighed.
"I'm gonna fix it, I promise. I'll get them out of here somehow, even if I have to move to a hotel and you guys stay here." He said and I immediately pulled away to scoff at him.
"You are NOT moving to a hotel while we stay here. We are here together, as a family, those fucking low lives are not taking that away from us." I spat as I pushed past him and stormed into the house, the three of them exchanging glances before they followed me.
*******
Harry's POV
I followed Hailey up the stairs into the bedroom, where she started pulling things out of her shopping bags and inspecting them. It was obvious that she was irritated, but she wasn't saying anything as I just stood behind her waiting for her to yell at me like I knew she wanted to.
I'd been in a panic all morning, knowing that her and Kels would head back to the house and run into the swarm of people who had gathered outside the gate, and I was powerless to do anything about it. I could care less that they knew I was there, or that they'd showed up, but the last thing I wanted was for them to dig into her life and subject her to the kind of hate that came from being associated with me.
"Just say it, Harry." She sighed as she turned to face me. "Whatever it is you wanna say, just say it."
I swallowed hard as she looked at me, not even sure of what I wanted to say. I wanted to tell her how sorry I was that she'd had to deal with that, that I'd do whatever I could to stop it from happening again, but I knew she'd just yell at me for apologizing.
"You just don't understand." I sighed. "There's no point in saying anything."
"Okay, so is this over then? Whatever this argument is?" She said in annoyance.
Her tone irritated me, that she was brushing it off and dismissing it because it wasn't a big deal. I knew it was because she didn't understand, but I didn't like that she was being so nonchalant about it. It wasn't just about what people would say or print in the papers, it was about her life and her safety and she just didn't seem to get it.
"Don't do that, don't just brush this off like it's not a big deal." I said, my irritation clear. "You haven't been exposed to it, and I get that, but as someone who has I would appreciate it if you would just trust me."
"Harry, how many fights have we had since we've known each other? And I don't mean stupid fights that we have every day about what movie to watch or what flavor of ice cream is better, I mean big fights."
"One...well no a couple but it was all part of the same fight I guess." I sighed, knowing where she was going with it.
"Yeah, it was a couple because they were over the same thing. The same stupid fucking thing that we are arguing about right now. About you being worried about this exact shit happening."
"Okay...and I admitted that I overreacted back then, but this is different." I said sternly.
"How is it different? You're worried that they are gonna affect my life." She scoffed. "It's the same thing."
"No it's not!" I shouted, my annoyance taking over. "It's not the fucking same, because it's actually happening! You just had your space invaded, cameras shoved in your face while they shouted questions at you that are none of their business! You think I didn't see your face when you pulled up? I'm not fucking stupid, I know you, and I know when you're fucking pretending you're not freaked out!"
"Jesus Christ! Shit happens, Harry! It's a part of your life, who fucking cares what they think, or what they say, they don't even fucking know you!" She yelled as she threw a magazine down on the bed, my own face staring back at me as the headline made cringe. "I read that, and I don't even have to ask you to know that you didn't say half the shit they say you did, that you didn't do half the shit they accuse you of. It doesn't make a fucking difference what any of it says, and here we are arguing over it when its fucking pointless!"
"I'm not gonna apologize to you for trying to protect you! There's nothing I can do to protect my mother or my sister, or the rest of my family and friends that have suffered because of my career. What's done is done, but you're fucking insane if you think I'm gonna let it take over your life too." I said angrily, clenching my teeth as I tried to hold onto any ounce of patience I had left.
"So I just don't get a say? I don't get to decide for myself? You just make that decision for me?"
"Yes. Because I understand it, and you don't." I spat as I watched her face turn to one of pure defiance.
"Wow. Well let's not waste our time get starting on the things you obviously don't fucking understand. You've obviously decided for both of us, so this conversation is over." She snapped as she tried to push past me out of the room.
"Stop. Don't do that." I said as I grabbed her arm. "Don't walk away from me, I'm trying to talk to you. You just don't understand, I-"
"Stop treating me like I can't take care of myself!" She yelled back at me, yanking her arm from my grasp. "I'm not a fucking child! I may not have a lot of experience with it like you do, but I also come from a place where people don't fucking care! I know who I am, I know what I stand for, and nothing anybody writes in some trashy magazine is gonna change that!"
"That's not what I'm saying! But you don't fucking understand, it can't be undone Hailey! You can't just test it out and go back to your normal life! I've been doing this for seven fucking years, and I just need you to trust me when I tell you that it's not what you want. I know you, I know the things that are important to you and the things you value. You can be mad at me all you fucking want, but I will not let your association with me take those things away from you."
"You know what it's taking away from me, Harry? You. You are the only thing that they are taking from me, and you're letting them." She snapped.
"It's not like that, how can you not see that I just want what's best for you?" I sighed, exhausted from fighting with her. "I refuse to let you be portrayed as my latest hookup that I just use and toss to the side, for the world to think that's who you are or all you mean to me."
"Well is it?" She asked simply as my head shot up to look at her. "Is that all I am to you?"
"Of course it's not, don't even say that. You know how important you are to me."
"Then why the fuck does it matter what someone says about me?!" She sighed in frustration, throwing her head back and talking to the ceiling. "You know, I know, both of our families know who we are. I do not give a single fuck what anyone else has to say about it."
"I do! I don't care what they say about me, who they think I am, but the idea of them making you out to be something you're not kills me." I said, desperate for her to at least remotely see where I'm coming from.
"Are you a womanizer, Harry?" She asked, her calm tone almost creepy as she watched me carefully. "Are you that guy who hooks up with girls and never calls them again? Do you leave girls crying alone on boats and then go party with your friends? Is that who you are? Running through an endless string of models until you can find someone better?"
"I really fucking hope you are asking this in a hypothetical fashion, because if you are genuinely asking me that we have bigger fucking problems." I scoffed. "We both know the answer to those questions."
"You're right, we do. And I don't even need to say anything else to make my point." She shrugged as she picked something up off the bed and headed toward the bathroom.
"Where are you going?" I called out after her, ready for this argument to be over even though we obviously hadn't reached any kind of conclusion.
"I'm going to get ready. It's my birthday, and I'm going for dinner with my family. I would really love it if my best friend could show up." She said before she walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.