~Annabel's POV~
"Annabel, what do you think of this one?" My mother asked, walking around me in a circle, as I stood on a platform, with my arms straight out at my sides, like I was trying to keep balance. The tailor was poking and prodding at the dress, trying to get it to fit at the right places.
"Ow," I blurted out, as she pricked me accidentally with a pin. She looked at me with sympathetic eyes.
"Annabel," My mother repeated.
"Um, not my favorite." I answered. The dress was a strapless long dress, with a sweetheart neckline. It was black on the top, and separated by a diamond "belt," just below my bust area. The rest of it was poofy, and a light pink color. It was like a prom dress. It showed a lot of my chest area, due to the low plunge.
"Mm, I suppose you're right." My mother agreed, one of her arms crossed over her chest. Her other elbow rested ontop of her arm, and her fingers touched her lips and jawline. "Alright, let's try on a different one, quickly." She snapped her fingers. I helped the tailor by removing any pins that held the gown in place. We were onto our fourth dress, out of six.
"Mother, why can't we just pick a dress out of my closet? I have plenty, I don't need another."
"Annabel, we get a new dress every year for this ball." She sighed. "Keep going," She told the tailor. This next dress was long again, all the way down to the floor. But instead of poofing out, it was a skinny dress, with blue, silky material. It had only one strap, that was braided with diamonds, that connected to another thick line of diamonds running directly underneath my bust. There was a slit in the dress, running from the very top of my thigh, all the way down, exposing a lot of leg.
"I don't like this one." I commented, as the tailor secured another pin in place.
"Annabel, you can't be so picky all the time." My mother shook her head, and looked me up and down.
"I just don't like it, don't I get a say in what I wear?"
"Of course, next one." She sighed. We moved on to the fifth dress. It was another ball gown style dress, red and long with more silky material, but it wasn't skinny. It was very elegant, and it poofed out the slightest bit. The bust area had overlapping fabric, and had a beautiful diamond accent "securing" it all together. The tailor pinned more places down, as my mother walked in circles around me. "Oh Annabel," She cooed. "You look absolutely beautiful." Her hard look softened, and her eyebrows were raised. There was a glimmer in her eyes.
"Mother, are you crying?" I asked, shocked. My mother wasn't a lady to ever cry. She was strong, and stubborn. Showing emotion meant showing your weak side, in her eyes.
"Oh honey," She dabbed her eyes lightly with a tissue, careful not to smear her make-up. "I remember when you were just a little girl, we never thought you'd make it this far, but look at you now. You were so strong, such a fighter-"
"Okay Mother, please no sob stories." I smiled, trying to lighten the mood.
"Okay, sorry. You look absolutely stunning darling." She nodded. I smiled in thanks, and examined the dress in the mirror in front of me. It was a beautiful dress, and it fit me nicely, with the tailoring of course. I nodded in approval.
"I like it, but let's try on the last one in case." I suggested. My mother nodded in agreement, and clapped her hands, cueing a worker that brought out the last one. It was wrapped in a solid black bag that covered the whole dress, letting none of it be seen. I headed back into the dressing room, along with the tailor that would help me get the dress on. When she removed the dress from the bag, I can already see it was a stunning dress. I slipped it on, and waited until I was secured enough in the dress, before walking out, and back onto the platform. Once again, my mother circled my figure, and I stood still, getting poked and prodded by pins. Once the tailor was done, she stood back, leaving me standing in the center. The dress itself, was a beautiful nudish, peachy color, underneath the bust. It was another skinnier dress, and it flowed nicely down my figure. The bust area and straps were covered in shimmering silver and gold diamonds, accents, and sequins, when it reflected off the light.
"Wow," The tailor whispered. I looked over at her, and smiled kindly. She was younger, maybe early 20's. Her hair was brown and long, and her eyes were a beautiful blue color. She was actually quite pretty, and her name tag read Paisley.
"Annabel, you look absolutely exquisite." My mother complimented. And if I may say so myself, she was right. This dress suited my body quite well, and it didn't show off too much, except for my cleavage, because of the low V that the dress had. Other than that, the dress was amazingly beautiful.
"I think this is the one," I said, turning on my foot, to look at the back of the dress.
"Oh darling, you're going to look sublime!" My mother exclaimed. I smiled, and went back into the dressing room, to change. I slipped on my nude maxi skirt with a black band, and my black bandeau type crop top, and slid on my white Marc Jacobs sandals, and opened the dressing room door. My mother was speaking to a worker, at the checkout counter, with a credit card in between her index and middle finger. I decided to have a conversation with Paisley.
"Hey," I approached the girl. She was sitting on a cushion that was meant for customers to sit on while they watched women try on dresses. Her eyes looked up from her hands, that were before, stabbing pins back into the pin cushion.
"Oh, hi." She smiled.
"Thank you for helping, and sorry for my mother. I know she can be a real handful." I let out an awkward laugh.
"Oh no worries, I've seen worse, trust me." She assured me, laughing. After the laughter died down, the awkwardness continued. "So, are you uh.. you're getting married?" She raised an eyebrow, with a strange look on her face.
"Oh no," I laughed. "I'm only 19. I'm going to an annual ball at the country club I go to."
"Okay now that makes more sense." Paisley giggled. "I didn't think you were older or anything, I thought it was pretty weird for a teenager to get married, but trust me that isn't what I meant."
"No worries, I totally get it." I laughed. My mother called my name, with the large black sleeve in her hand, that held my dress. I waved goodbye to the brunette, and walked out of the bridal shop, which had all kinds of dresses in it. My mother and I sat in the car, with surprisingly something to talk about. We ranted on about the ball that was coming up in two days, and all I could seem to think about, was if Harry would be able to see me in the dress, or not.
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~Harry's POV~
"Want one, Styles?" Travis called out.
"Sure," I responded. Why not, right? He came back from the kitchen, and tossed me the bottle of beer I agreed to having, before falling back on the couch.
"So what's new, Harry?" Niall asked, after taking a sip of his beer.
"Nothing really." I responded.
"What about Annabel? What's going on with her?" He questioned.
"Woah woah woah, wait!" Travis held out his hands, as if he was telling us to stop. "Who's this Annabel, we're talking about, and why don't I know her?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You can take this one." Niall chuckled.
"She's my friend," I hesitated.
"Bullshit Harry!" Liam called out.
"She's my girlfriend." I corrected.
"Styles has a girlfriend?!" Travis yelled.
"That's what we all said." Niall laughed, drinking more of his beer. I tilted my bottle back as well, hoping to cure this pounding headache that was beginning to take place.
"Did you fuck her yet?" He asked.
"No, shut the fuck up. Don't talk about her like that." I defended.
"Woah, chill out I was joking. What happened to you, man?!" Travis laughed. I shrugged my shoulders.
"I actually like her, okay? It's no big deal. I'm not gonna take advantage of her like that."
"It is a big deal, especially since you've never dated anyone, ever. Not even that Sarah chick, and then this chick comes along, and now you're all soft." I tensed at her name.
"Don't mention her." I warned. "And Annabel is different. And I'm not fucking soft." I honestly answered.
"Wow, man. You're whipped." He chuckled.
"That's what we said too." Zayn joined the group, sitting down next to Niall.
"Well, you gotta bring her over to meet us some time, alright?" He patted me on the shoulder, before standing up to get another beer. "Who wants another?" He called out, and I blocked out any other responses, as I chugged down my bottle.
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I dialed her number when I got home, hoping I would be able to hear her voice. She picked up on the third ring.
"Hello?"
"Hey." I smiled.
"Harry," She responded. I could hear shuffling in the background, and then stillness.
"What are you up to?" I asked.
"Nothing, I was just reading. What about you?" She asks.
"Nothing. Hey, listen. Since we're not doing anything, do you want to go on a date?" I blurted out, instantly regretting my choice of words.
"Where?" I could practically hear her smile through the phone.
"It's a surprise."
"Okay, yeah. Sure." I can just picture her tucking a strand of hair behind her ear at the moment, a shy smile on her beautiful face.
"I'll pick you up in ten minutes." I responded, then hung up. I didn't know what the fuck I was going to do for this date, and now I was screwed.
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~Annabel's POV~
I wasn't sure what to wear, since Harry said it was a surprise. I didn't want to overdress, or look too casual, so I just went with a casual sundress. It had thin spaghetti straps, and was floral print, resting just above my knees. The middle of the dress cinched at my waist just a bit, and I decided to pair it with the same white Marc Jacobs sandals I wore today. I grabbed a white satchel, that matched my shoes, and slipped my wallet, and phone into it, along with a pair of white sunglasses just in case. As I made my way down the stairs, my mother stopped me.
"Going somewhere?" She asked.
"Yes, I'm going on another date."
"With this Harry boy?" I nodded, clarifying. "When will we get to meet him?" She raised a perfect eyebrow.
"Soon enough, Mother." I smiled, giving her a quick peck on the cheek, then heading out the door once Harry's car pulled into the driveway. As I approached the car, Harry exited, and made his way to the other side, to open the door for me. I slid in, saying a thank you, and he made his way back around the car, and into the driver's seat. From my view, I saw my mother standing in the big window in our living room, watching. I'm pretty sure I saw a small smile on her face, as we pulled out of the driveway.
"You look nice." Harry complimented, gripping the steering wheel tighter.
Not as nice as I will look at the ball, but you won't get to see me. I thought to myself.
"Thank you," I responded, smiling. "So where are you taking me this time?"
"It's a surprise, like I said." He smiled, his dimples peeking through.
"Is every date that we have, going to be a surprise?" I teased.
"Maybe, but for now, it is." He chuckled. We laughed, and sang along to the radio as he drove with the windows down. It wasn't long before he pulled into a parking lot. He killed the engine, and walked out of the car, making his way towards my side, and helping me out. We walked hand in hand, and I pressured him into telling me where we were headed, on the way there.
"Harry, where are we?" We reached a wide open space, with very green grass, and a nice view of more open "fields" and rivers, and bridges. I walked forward, looking in the distance. The space was open, and beautiful, and birds were chirping cheerfully. The sky was clear, and the sun was shining down. He walked up behind me, and slid his arm around my waist.
"I play golf here sometimes, it's a golf course. Come here," He spoke. He led me somewhere close by, and once we approached the date area, the cutest sight was to be seen. There was a picnic blanket laying on the floor, and a picnic basket, with the lid open, exposing different foods.
"Harry," I was speechless. The thought that was put into this date was incredible, and it was so sweet, and kind of him. I could already tell this date was going to be one of the best ones yet, and then, I realized, behind all of the black ink on his skin, behind his bad boy image, is a man with a warm, and loving heart.
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YAY! Double update, even though no one reads my story😔
Okay, so I know this chapter is shorter, but I wanted to upload it, because if I made it longer, it would seriously never end, because I know exactly what's to happen, with these next couple chapters, so enjoy!