Anna || HS

Anna 2- CHAPTER 49

~January 2021~

Harry- 26
Anna- 26
August- 4
Robin- 3
Florence- 19 Months
Hazel and Milo - 6 Months

This ENTIRE chapter is from Harry's POV:

The last six months have left me feeling like I am stuck in one long, fucking disastrous, nightmare. Things are starting to get better, though. When we got to South Carolina, there was a shift. One large enough to finally let the feeling of hope creep in. One large enough to finally see a way out the limbo I've been living in since bringing Charlotte on board as part of the band nearly a year ago, now.

To understand how we got here, though, I think I need to go back to July.

>>>>> Harry's flashback to quick overviews of the past six months.

~July~

I made it in just enough time to see Hazel and Milo born. Like they came minutes later, and I would have missed it all. Though I knew it wasn't something that she wanted to do, Anna gave me access to the entire day. I was in the delivery room. I was in the recovery suite. There were moments where it felt like things were back to normal, but those moments would be bookended by the reminders that things were very much not back to anything near normal.

Anna and the babies were discharged from the hospital four days later and I reluctantly followed them home, after Anna told me the only topics up for discussion were the children and anything having to do with them or our schedule. Thankfully, with two newborns, she had no option but to take my help and she allowed me to be involved in every aspect of being a dad, never showing anything but support for that role.

Husband, however, that role was not currently in rotation in our London house. By the start of the second week at home, Anna started to stay in the nursery on the daybed there, avoiding our room entirely. I had cancelled four shows and I didn't know what to do about the rest, but she made it very clear that she expected me to get back on the road in time to make it for the next one on the schedule. She said it was because she didn't want tour to drag out any longer on the other side, but I think it was that she needed me to leave.

Though it absolutely killed me, after talking to Jeff, we decided that I would go back on tour.

~August~

I fucking hated being on tour. I've never hated touring before and I've certainly never had to fake loving my job just to get through shows, but that last show in San Antonio was a struggle. It was probably because I knew that after the show I was going straight to the airport to fly home for the break between stops. I guess I should say I was flying to mum's house.

I landed on August 12th. Darcy would have been eight years old that day, and as much as Anna and I were struggling, there was no way that I was going to miss spending that day with her. I greeted mum first when I got to the house.

"How is she?" was the first question I asked.

"She is doing well, darling," mum offered with a sad look on her face.

"Do you think that you and Gemma could suggest the two of us going out tonight? I'm hoping that if it isn't my idea, maybe she will agree to it?" I asked mum.

"Anything you want, but Harry," she warned, "don't be upset if she says 'no'."  I nodded at her answer but hoped that Anna would take them up on the offer to watch our tribe.

That night, Gemma was the one who talked Anna into having dinner in town and spending the evening away from the kids. I think she even bought that it was all Gem's idea. I pulled the car out of the garage, sweating bullets under my shirt as I waited for her to get in. She sat in the seat and let out a large sigh, either out of annoyance or exhaustion. Out of habit, I reached for her hand, only to awkwardly pull back when her eyes grew wide at the gesture. This was the moment it became clear to me that this evening was going to be a disaster. "I have a proposal," she said.