One Journey, the Final

Chapter 26:

Things came back a lot easier than I thought they would. We had decided to keep the wedding date the same, which was only a few short weeks away. Luckily, I had neglected to cancel all the orders after calling off the wedding, so things were still in place and the only thing I had to worry about was the people coming. Especially my overbearing parents. I feared mostly for Harry, afraid that he might lose it with them. But the day they called to say that they were on their flight, he took it pretty well. I however, was the one going crazy with the Windex and Clorox. There wasn't one inch of that house that hadn't been touched with a cleaning product. I was vigorously vacuuming the entryway when I heard him knocking. I wiped my forehead that had been sweaty, pulled back a few loose strands of curly hair, and walked towards the door. I swung it open, not expecting it to be Harry. But low and behold, he stood there with flowers in his hand. Why did he have to catch me looking like this? Apparently, even though I looked like a sweaty monster, that didn't matter to him, because he was still checking me out. I wacked him with my dusting towel and said,

        "Stop it. You're terrible at being discreet with that stuff." He smirked and walked in.

        "I'm sorry. You've just got to stop being beautiful all the time," he said, kissing me on the cheek.

       "Ah! Shoes! Off!" I said, about to tackle him to the floor. I was not going to vacuum here again. He quickly removed them before I chewed off his leg.

       "Ok. I'm going to go get ready. In the meantime, you go put those in a vase, and try not to make a mess. Please." I begged, halfway up the stairs.

       "Ok...I'll just be here. Waiting." I then hastily took a shower, changed, and did my hair and makeup. I looked at the clock, with five minutes to spare before my parents were expected to arrive. I jumped down the stairs to find Harry examining a painting on the wall. It wasn't a special painting or anything. Just something I found at a flea market. Without tearing his eyes from the painting, he said,

       "So what have you made for dinner?"

          “I was thinking of making lasagna,” I said.

                “Homemade or packaged?”

                “It was going to be homemade, but now I won’t have enough time. But the garlic bread will definitely be homemade.”

                “Then I should probably kiss you now than later with your garlic breath,” he joked lightly. He pulled me in close, and then dipped me. I could feel my hair swish against the floor. Slowly he bent towards me and gave me a kiss. It was a light kiss, but with so much to it. Those are my favorites. It’s simple and yet so deep. It’s a way to test true love, if you feel no depth to it, then you know the love isn’t enough. But for me, a simple soft kiss on the lips is enough to make me go crazy. That’s one of the reasons I know Harry is perfect for me. I was lost in my own thoughts when the doorbell rang. Harry quickly released from me and helped me up. We walked towards the door hand in hand, and I found my parents outside. I opened the door, and they practically ran me down.

                “Annabel!” they both cried in delight. Dropping their bags they ran to my side and covered me with hugs and fusses. Harry stood behind me, letting them practically drown me. They overlapped in questions and comments. “Your hair is so long!” “Did you get it cut?” “You have a lovely home.” “It’s awfully cold outside.” “You’re so skinny!” “You look beautiful.” “Have you lost weight?” I was finally able to move them from me to the couch.

                “I haven’t got my haircut, it’s just curlier in this weather. And thank you, I designed the house myself. It’s 65 degrees outside, and rainy the entire week. And I have lost weight, ten pounds to be exact. I’ve just been walking and managing my carb intake. Now if you’re done with those questions, I’d like to introduce you to my fiancé. Mom, Dad, this is Harry Styles.”

                “Harry? I thought you said his name was Larry Myles,” my dad said. “We brought a card for you two, guess it doesn’t really work now. Sorry Barry,” he continued.

                “Um, it’s Harry, dad. Like Harry Potter,” I corrected him. His cheeks began to blush.

                “Well we’re very happy for you two. You looked very happy together in the wedding announcement. It’s hard to believe the wedding is only a few days away! Now, how did you two meet again? I never told your father the story,” my mother asked sweetly. Harry placed his hand on my knee, and let me answer the question. I saw my father tense up.

                “Well, we actually met at this charity event. It was a ball, and we just happened to dance with each other. He asked me for my number, and, here we are now." I said, now gazing into Harry's eyes. I tried to count the number of little silvery specks in his eyes that overlapped the green. But I was interrupted by my fathers loud booming voice.

                “So what’s for dinner?” my father asked. He was always willing to eat something.

                “I was thinking we could go out to dinner,” I said. Garlic bread could wait for later.