It had been a long day and Harry was tired. Bad weather in the states had delayed their flights, so he and his girlfriend were just now making the drive to his parents' house from the airport at an hour to midnight. All he could think of was crawling into bed with the familiar smells of his pre-fame home wrapping around him as he wrapped his arms around his girl.
Not typically the type to let his temper flare, he had come dangerously close to snapping at officials at the airport today. Y/N had stepped in deftly to take over the conversation, a warm hand on Harry's elbow that was both comforting and a warning. He had walked away to get his breathing under control and to call his mum to let her know they would be late for her birthday. That was why he had been so upset. It had been months since he'd seen his family and he was devastated to be losing more time with them.
When he'd come back Y/N had it handled, though. She had managed to find a new flight (she refused to fly private jet when it was just the two of them) and a private setting for the two of them rest while they waited. "They can't control the weather, Harry," she had reminded him soothingly as she scratched at the back of his head. "It messes up their day just as much as it messes with ours. We'll get to see your mum, I promise."
She was right, of course. She normally was. The trick of the matter is that she could diffuse a situation with grace and ease. Not that she had to often with him, but it was still an aspect of her personality that had drawn Harry in.
Now they were here and Harry was completely relaxed. "Are you ready to see everyone?" Harry asked and was met with silence. He looked over to see Y/N curled up in the seat, her head facing towards the window as the street lights lit up her face in intervals as they drove under them.
It was soft, like a picture or a movie. Harry's fingers itched for a camera, but he knew there was no way he'd ever be able to catch it on film. These soft, mundane moments were his favorite. She was stunning in formal dresses and perfectly primped hair, but he loved her like this more. Her hair in a braid that was starting to go frizzy from a day of travel. Dressed comfortably in travel clothes. Her mouth slightly open as the lights briefly illuminated her skin. The soft yellows muting her skin tone.
Harry reached up and turned down the radio, just to make sure it wouldn't wake her. This was what he'd been looking for his entire adult life. A girl who fit seamlessly into his work life and all it entailed, as well as his life in Holmes Chapel. She never seemed out of place anywhere. She loved helping his mum in the kitchen just as much she loved dressing up for formal events. In any situation, just her presence brought him a peace that he hadn't always felt in his fast pace life. Even when he was trying to move quickly through life's obstacles, she had a way of slowing him down without getting in his way.
With no other cars around him, Harry took the risk in reaching over to run his hand down her arm. She squirmed and as her eyes opened in slits, she murmured, "Are we there yet?"
"Shhh," he soothed, squeezing her arm before putting his hand back on the steering wheel. "Not yet, love. Go back to sleep."
She smiled dazedly at him and fell back asleep. The near silence in the car was the most comforting thing Harry had felt in a long time. As picture perfect as it felt, driving down the highway close to midnight with his girl asleep next to him, a part of him was glad for the intimacy and that this was something he would never be able to catch on camera. It was a part of her and their relationship that he'd never have to share: the comfort of just knowing she was there as the streetlights illuminated her features. And he'd get to know these moments, these preciously private moments, for the rest of his life.
