A few more weeks had gone by, and there was not much more in the way of stress from either country involved in any of the recent drama. It was a relaxed time for everyone, and Sarah had felt relaxed for the most part. There wasn't any drama, and no one seemed to bother her. She just went about her normal business with working between Man City and the national team. It was a stressful time at Man City with all of the injuries they had piling up and a loss to Liverpool that put a huge dent in their title race. However, it was a very happy time with the England National Team. They had just qualified for the European Championships in the summer. The last break was a fun one. John had returned after being injured for the October run, and Sarah was happy her brother got to be there when the team officially qualified. She also got to see her boyfriend captain the team at one point, and that was another highlight for Sarah.
It was back to business after the break. Man City had comeback after the loss at Liverpool with a very important win against Chelsea at home. It was a nice comeback for the team to help boost their confidence after the loss. It was a stressful game, but it was very pleasing to see.
The day after that game, however, had Sarah very nervous and shaking before she even left her house. It was another one of those weekends where City played one day and United the next, so Sarah was able to go and see Harry today. Normally, Sarah would be excited when she would be able to go see Harry play. It made her happy when she had a free day to go see him. However, today was a big day. United where traveling to Sheffield to play Sheffield United. In the city where Harry was born and grew up in against the club he came up through.
It didn't seem like a big deal thinking about it initially, but it was the fact that Harry's family was going to be there and she was meeting them the first time. Both of his parents and three siblings. Harry thought it would be a perfect idea to do for his homecoming. He wanted her there, and he felt like it was a perfect time to introduce her to the family. It has been smooth sailing between the two of them, and this was going to be another step in their relationship. They had been moving pretty quickly, but it felt right for the both of them.
Sarah was up for the idea. She was more than happy to meet his family. He pretty much knew her siblings at this point, so it was only fair to meet his. However, the day that it came, it made her very nervous. All of the problems Sarah had in her life that could affect that people could judge her on suddenly came to her head. What if his family viewed her negatively because of all of the drama that surrounded her? It made her so nervous to think about.
During the morning of, Sarah had Laura at her place, since Laura had been in town from being at the game the evening before. Laura knew that something was up. Sarah was tense that morning as she tried to drink her coffee. She was tense and was shaking. She had not been like this in such a long time, and she had just wondered what was going on.
"Hermana?" she asked Sarah as she had been staring outside the window for awhile now. At that moment, Sarah looked over and blushed a little bit. Laura had given her the weirdest look, because it had been so long that Sarah had been staring out the window. She didn't even know what to say. "You know you have been staring outside for like 10 minutes now. Are you okay?" Laura continued to question.
Blushing more, Sarah shook her head and sipped on her coffee, which wasn't a great idea. "I'm so nervous." she admitted. Laura then took the coffee away from her and pushed the water towards her instead. "Well, it's not the best idea for you to be drinking coffee, it's going to make it worse for you." she first then started. Blushing, Sarah then laughed a little and took a deep breath. Laura was right. Caffeine made the anxiety of today worse.
"I'm going to Sheffield today for Harry's game." she started. Smiling, Laura then nodded. There was nothing wrong with that. She loved how much Sarah supported her significant other, especially when he played for a rival team. He made her extremely happy, and there was nothing like seeing Sarah happy. Laura knew how much Sarah wanted something like she had with Harry, but there was something more to it.
"Is it a big game?" Laura then asked. Immediately, Sarah nodded and almost shook again. "It's at Sheffield, where he played growing up. I'm going to be meeting his whole family." she explained. Laura then nodded and gave her a smile. She knew it was going to be tough. She had not had a test like this in a long time. She knew how much Sarah loved Harry. Sarah did not want to admit it to Laura, but Laura knew how much more Sarah loved Harry than she ever loved Sergio. It did not hurt Laura at all, because Sarah was over the moon happy. It was so important to Sarah that it all went well, but the past and what Sarah had been through scared Sarah.
"Hermana, I know why it's scaring you. Pilar tried to make you like shit to the world, but I know you have proven yourself to be wonderful to him. You two treat each other so well, so there is no reason that his parents wouldn't love you. I know it's scary with all of what has happened, but trust me, it is all going to go well. Just imagine, since you love him as much as you do, you will love his family. You'll probably love his family more than mine."
The last little comment made Sarah laugh a little bit. She knew Laura was right. She went over and hugged her adopted sister. It calmed her down, but it only calmed her down for a little bit....
...
It was then later that day where she started feeling nervous again. She drove that hour to from Manchester to Sheffield to see him play, and she almost forgot everything that Laura told her. reality was hitting her, and she thought of so many scenarios that could go on today. Harry was the man that loved her more than anything, and she wanted his family to feel the same way about her as he did. She wanted to show them how much she loved him too.
The atmosphere around the stadium is Sheffield was amazing when she got there. She took it in for a few moments and tried to smile to herself. This is the place where it all started for Harry, and Sarah had to have a little bit of appreciation for that place. His career took off for him there, and that led him to so many places. It led him to eventually being called up for England, which is how it all started for her. So as she walked in, she took it all in and began to appreciate it.
However, as she did make her way into Bramall, she immediately saw a familiar face with a goofy smile. It was Kyle waving like an idiot. Quickly, she walked over to him and in an area where people wouldn't raid him. "What are you doing here?" She asked. Smiling, Kyle shrugged. "Just wanted to support my boyhood club today. Now what are you doing here?" He asked as the two of them walked together. Thank god he was here to calm her down. Blushing, Sarah just shrugged. "I'm meeting his family. You know, all from Sheffield, and he's playing here today." She told him.
Raising his eyebrows, Kyle looked at her with a bit of concern. He saw the worry on her face and the fact that she got so tight. "Why are you so tense? They'll probably love you just like everyone does." He told he's. Shaking her head, Sarah just sighed. "What if they view me as difficult because of everything that happened regarding Madrid?" She thought out loud. Kyle knew everything too well though. Harry would explain what happened with Sarah to his family, but he would talk about all of the good things. Madrid didn't define Sarah. It was just a difficult period in her life that made her stronger and care more about the people who did so much for her.
"It's not gonna be that way. Come on. Harry thinks you're fantastic. Trust me, I've heard him talk about you, and it's like beautiful music." Kyle explained. He knew too well that Harry would ever let his family think lowly of Sarah. Sarah nodded slowly. She still felt very nervous though, and she could feel herself shake. "I just want everything to go well. He means so much to me." She admitted. Smiling, Kyle nodded and pulled her into a hug. "Ah trust me, you will do great." He reassured her.
Right at that moment, someone ran straight into Kyle from the back, causing the big man to jump a little. "Kyle, you're always in my way somehow!" A girly voice sighed. Kyle smiled wide and turned around. "Oh hi young Daisy. Couldn't resist seeing me again?" he giggled like a child. Sarah looked over and recognised the girl he was talking to. She had seen this girl somewhere before, probably at another game or something, but she didn't quite remember.
"Can't resist you, because you're everywhere. I can't talk, because I have to look for someone." the lass explained as she tried to get away from Kyle. Instead, the City defender smiled like a child and stopped her. "Hold on. I have who you need." he told her. Right away, he grabbed Sarah by the wrist and pulled her in the view of this lass. "I found Sarah! I win!" Kyle sang. Sarah just shook her head and pushed Kyle away. This was only making her anxiety worse. "Goodbye Kyle Andrew Walker. Go to your seat." she told him. Kyle could only pout as he walked away. "I'm telling John!"
After that, Sarah could only shake her head and blush as she turned to face the girl that had ran into Kyle. She was practically shaking at this point facing her. "I deal with him everyday, and he's worse with my brother." she sighed. The girl in front of her smiled and shook her head. "No worries. Erm, you were at the World Cup, weren't you? Stones family?" she asked. It then hit Sarah as she now figured it out. Ahhhh, that's where she was from. Harry's family. Nodding slowly, Sarah sighed. "Not the best time in my life, but yeah. I'm Sarah, the oldest one." she explained. Oh god, stop shaking. It's okay.
The girl that was practically a female version of Harry then smiled sweetly. "It's okay if you don't remember me, but I'm Harry's sister, Daisy." she explained. Sarah nodded slowly and blushed more. Slowly she closed her eyes and shook her head. "I'm sorry." she whispered. Daisy smiled and only shook her head. Harry had already explained how Sarah would be. "Don't worry. Everything is okay. You don't need to stress." she said with sincerity. Sarah opened her eyes and took a deep breath. "I panic a lot." she admitted. Daisy could only shrug and smile. "No need to. Come meet everyone else."
Sarah was still shaking at that point as she followed the youngest Maguire sibling down to where the rest of their family was sitting. She hadn't felt this nervous in awhile, because her anxiety had been under control, but she was having one of those moments. She was never this nervous about meeting a family before, not even Sergio's. She just wanted them to accept her for who she was. She didn't want them seeing her as someone problematic.
She had five and a half people to impress as of now. All of his siblings, his parents, and his tiny nephew. That was so much for Sarah to take in, and she had to keep the anxiety under control. She continuously took deep breaths until she reached where his family sat. Both of his brothers and father looked exactly liked him. This was already so much to take in. How the hell did she not remember any of them from Russia?
"I have returned!" Daisy announced. The attention was about to turn onto Sarah, and it made her cheeks burn already. Of course, right away, the looks immediately turned to her, but luckily they were warm and welcoming looks. It was a little bit relieving. Immediately, Harry's mum smiled widely and stood up. "Oh my gosh. Hello darling," she went over to Sarah, ignoring her own daughter, and greeted her, "I'm Harry's mum, Zoe. We're so happy to get to finally meet you."
Sarah was still shaking as she was hugged by his mum, but she felt even a little bit more relieved now. It was a great start. She hugged his mum back. She had the sweetest hug. "It's a pleasure." she shyly told his mum. She went right down the line of being introduced to each and one of his family members. It was like she was meeting three and a half other versions of Harry when she was introduced to both of his brothers and his father plus his cute little nephew. He was the middle son out of the three boys and the second oldest child.
"Maybe I should become a brunette to fit in better." she joked as she sat down. She had to keep herself loose. She was still nervous, despite getting a warm welcome from the rest of his family. "Oh honey no! You're so beautiful as a blonde." His mum was really talking her up and it made her blush. She had been so sweet to her from the beginning, and Sarah had barely said a few words to the woman. All she knew was that she could see the truth in her eyes. It made Sarah smile and thank her quietly.
"I still cannot believe you're the older sister of John Stones." the younger out of the two brothers, Laurence, had pointed out and laughed a little bit. Shrugging, Sarah just shook her head and smiled at him. "I know, him and I are different, but we function really well as a family somehow." she explained as there was the little toddler version of Harry standing right in front of her. He was way too cute, and she could imagine Harry being that cute as a little kid. She gave the little one a cute little wave and smiled at him. She couldn't help but smile every time there was a little one around.
"Daddy, who?" the little one asked his father, which was Harry's older brother Joe's child, and pointed at Sarah. "That's Uncle Harry's girlfriend," he told the little one, before smiling at Sarah, "you can hold him if you want to. He behaves well." Sarah raised her eyebrows and almost cried from joy. There was no way that Harry didn't talk her up a lot to the whole family before doing this, because she did not know how they were able to trust her already by taking the littlest member of their family.
"You want up?" she asked the little one sweetly. The tiny version of the males in the family nodded happily. Carefully, she took the little one and placed him on her lap. "Hi cute one. Are you excited to see Uncle Harry play?" she asked him. Nodding, the tiny one smiled wide and clapped his hands as the team was out and warming up. "I love Uncle Harry!" Laughing, Sarah smiled and nodded with him. "I love him too, little one."
It was that moment where she had made eye contact with Harry and saw the huge smile on his face. She waved to him with his little nephew and copied his smile. It was at that moment where she realized that it was all going to end up okay, and she did not have too much to worry about. His family were so kind to her, and they all really wanted to know so much about her. They were already sold on the way she handled the littlest member of the family, but it was like their admiration grew as they talked to her and got to know who Sarah Stones really was without any of the bullshit in her life.
They saw how much she loved Harry. There was so much pride that she showed watching him captain his team at his home ground, and she wanted him to do so well. It was like every time she talked about Harry, they saw the sparkle in her eyes and the music come from her voice. The result of the crazy match that ended in a 3-3 draw didn't not matter today. As much as they all wanted a win, they loved seeing someone love Harry as much as Sarah did.
As for Sarah, it made her feel ecstatic that she felt accepted. She felt loved by them already, and she really hoped that it would continue to stay like this in the future...
......
Later that night, Sarah was fast asleep early. The day had felt exhausting from the occurrences between meeting his family, the wild game, and avoiding being seen by anyone that would recognize her and say anything. It took a toll on her and she just knocked out right when she laid into bed. Even though it ended up being a fantastic day, she was tired. She completely forgot where she was as dreamt, but soon she was brought back into reality as the light touch of someone all too familiar snapped back into reality.
Immediately, she jumped up and realized she was in Harry's bed, and there he was right next to her. He sat tall and was still wide awake. He had a little bit of an amused look as Sarah looked completely startled out of her slumber. "What time is it?" She asked with a slight blush on her face. Smiling, Harry relax and sat back. "Half 10. You must have been really tired to pass out like that early." He pointed out as he immediately opened up his arms. Without thinking, she laid into them and felt as safe and comfortable as she always did. It was perfect to her.
She looked up at him and blushed a little bit more. "Today was a bit exhausting." She admitted. Harry understood why. He knew she was nervous. It was scary for her to go and meet his family when she had all of these stories surrounding her. She had all of this attention she didn't want. All of the controversy back in Madrid put a lot of spotlight on her, and that is why she didn't want to make their relationship public yet. Even though all of the drama had died down, she wanted to wait for the right moment to tell the world about their love, but meeting his family was more important. It was a meeting that went well.
Luckily, it was all good news coming from him. Harry made everything better. "You know, they understand, and they love you. My mum is so happy to see me with someone who cares so much about about the people that mean most to her." He reassured her with a sweet smile. Of course, those words hit her right in the heart. That meant so much to her. It meant everything. It was the most reassuring thing she could hear. It meant that everything was working out so nicely, and that's all she wanted. It didn't matter that she pretty much figured out Harry's mum was so happy with the way she treated Sarah. It was still early in their relationship, but this was the smoothest something had gone.
"I don't know where to begin." She admitted as she felt her eyes water up a little. Smiling, Harry took her hand and interlaced their fingers. Slowly, both of them sat up so they could look at each other more directly. "It's okay." He reassured her. His voice was soothing and sweet. It calmed her, but she didn't let all of her words out. The tears were bound to happen.
"It just means everything knowing that they love and accept me for who I am and what has happened with me. I don't remember things going this smoothly in a relationship before, but I remember what this feeling I have is too well. It just feels like it's all finally coming together for me." She explained. Harry raised his eyebrows at her and nodded slowly. There was more to it, and he knew by the tears rolling down her face. "The feeling?" He asked. Luckily, this was easy for Sarah to answer to him. "The feeling that I can feel confident in saying I found the person I meant to be with, because I feel safe, loved, appreciated, and just that there's something special there. It's so cliche, but I didn't know if I could feel this way again. This time, it's better because everything wants to workout and not fall apart. I know that this time, it really is meant to be and it will all end well."
It hit Harry like his head hit that ball for that World Cup goal. It felt amazing to hear those words, because he started accomplishing his goals with her. He wanted to feel her to feel that way again, and he wanted to be that person. The sincerity came through her tears. He hated to see her cry, but it was letting go of pain she needed to be rid of. Carefully, he wiped those tears and kissed her softly. It's so perfect every time. "We are meant to be together. I know the whole thing of soulmates sounds so cliche, but I know we're each other's."
Smiling, Sarah laid back down with Harry and cuddled close to him. It filled her heart even more, and there was nothing better than hearing that. "When I go public with everything, I'm not gonna care what people say. I forgot when the last time I was this happy was, and no one is ever gonna ruin my happiness again." Mimicking her smile, Harry kissed the top of her head and sighed happily. "And that can be whenever you want. I am here through everything. Nothing from Madrid will ever come in between us."
She hugged him tight and took a deep breath. "I love you, Jacob. You are really my everything." she whispered to him. "I love you too, my baby girl."
Still calm. Still happy. Drama free.