Secret embraces || harry lewis

53

fifthy-three

I pull Harry after me, my hand firmly around his. We are standing in front of a small restaurant, the sky is dark and the only light we have are the streetlights and the bright stars.  "Come on, let's just get back to the hotel." Harry groans. I laugh and roll my eyes. "It's your birthday. we have to do something!" He laughs a little and rolls his eyes too. I was far too excited for him. Maybe he was right, I was in a very good mood for being out all day. But secretly, I was just happy to be able to make Harry a happy birthday. We've been through so many bad things, a dramatic break-up, and I want to apologise for that and show him how much I love him.

I open the door of the restaurant, which was almost empty, but I pull him through the entrance area closer to the end of the room. "Have you booked a table or why don't we wait for a waiter?" Harry laughs nervously but follows me without asking another question. I don't answer his question. We can hear people laughing in the background and a broad grin appears on my face. I don't turn round to see Harry, but simply move further back.  "What are you doing, Joan?" I laugh softly and step aside as we see a large table. All his friends were sitting at it: the sidemen boys, their girlfriends and the troops. I turn round and grin at Harry, who has a shocked look on his face. "Surprise." Harry continues to look confused at his friends and then at me. "What the hell!"

I could see the joy on his face, even though he was still looking shocked, you could see how happy he was that his friends had flown to Australia for his birthday. "What are you doing here!" Harry runs up to his friends and is hugged by each of them individually. Some just laughed while others wished him a happy birthday. I watched from a distance, my heart filled with joy to see Harry so happy.

I knew he wanted to celebrate his birthday in London with all his of friends and felt guilty that he would miss that because of me.

After Harry said hello to everyone and thanked them, he turned back to me, a shocked smile on his face. "Was that your idea?" I grin a little but nod. "Maybe." Seconds later, he almost wraps his arms around me, pulls me up from the floor and hides his face in my neck.

I could feel his hot breath on the back of my neck and grinned into the embrace. "Thanks." I giggle a little and pull out of the hug. Harry looked at me with a look I'd never seen from him before. "Thank you." he repeated. "That's... that's just... wow." No one could hold back their laughter as Harry stuttered to himself.

I nodded my head towards the table to show him to sit down. Harry took my hand and pulled me to the last two empty chairs. We sat down and I smiled to the crowd. A few scattered hellos came back. "I told you tonight would be unforgettable." I grinned at Harry. He put his arm around my shoulder and it felt like a puzzle piece. His arm and my shoulder just felt right. Like he was made for it. I could hardly hold back my smile. Seeing Harry so happy was the most beautiful thing I could imagine.

"So, how was the holiday?" Josh leans over the table so Harry and I can hear him better. I smile and look at Harry. "Yeah, how was it, Harry?" He grins at me and shrugs his shoulders before looking at Josh again. "Quite nice. it was good to switch off." He smiles nervously, but everyone knows how seriously he meant what he said.

Harry always enjoyed going on holiday. If he could, he would spend his whole life travelling, discovering the world, getting to know new cultures. But with his job and the responsibilities and commitments he has, holidays like this were the only way he could make his dream come true. "I've seen some of the photos."

Chris leans closer to us with a grin on his face. "Oh yeah?" I look at him questioningly. "The fans thought you were one hundred per cent engaged now." Everyone at the table started laughing. "Well, that's obviously the trend at the moment." I grin at Josh and Freya. It was nice to see how in love almost everyone was. We were all growing up fast and didn't even realise it. Some have kids, some are engaged, and some are already married. I grin at Harry, who just shrugs his shoulders before reaching for a wine glass. he takes a sip and laughs nervously. "Definitely not." I look at him a little confused, but don't show that his statement has hurt me a little. Definitely not?

I realised that he wasn't ready to get married just yet. But it definitely offended me a little. I don't let it show, though, because I don't want to ruin Harry's birthday. I pushed the thought aside as I reached for my wine glass too. I raise my glass and a short time later have the attention of all the guests. "Thank you all again for coming... So here's to Harry!" everyone cheered and Harry gave us another nervous laugh, a little embarrassed by all the attention he was getting.