not in love || l.s. ✔︎

CHAPTER ELEVEN

A/N: I'm dedicating this chapter to @CrushingBarriers who has stuck with this story since the beginning! Thank you for all the encouragement!

I hope you like this chapter. We're getting really close to the drama now. I'm excited!

Warning: there's some smut ahead

HARRY / PRESENT

After putting on SPF one million Niall was ready to come scope out the park and venue for the wedding. We weren't going to risk getting swarmed again, so we all wore sunglasses and snapbacks and made sure Zayn wore a shirt that covered his tats. It wasn't easy.

Sophia was working, but Liam happily strolled through the park with Zayn on his arm instead, the two friends still hopelessly affectionate with one another. It hurt my heart. I had missed my own friendships with the lads but I missed watching the way they were with each other even more.

Darby brought along two of her friends; her colleague at the magazine, Sarah, and her childhood friend Chloe. They hated our music and teased Darby mercilessly when she and I started dating, but they came around eventually. Or at least, that's what they told Darby. Sarah, in particular, remained unimpressed. She wrote a gossip column for Rolling Stone online. She followed us religiously just so she could tear us down in epic fashion. We didn't have to tell her that Louis wasn't coming to the wedding. She already knew.

Chloe, a petite brunette with a sharp bob and an eagle eye, surveyed the area. "We could put the maypole over there that way you'll get a bit of the cityscape in the background in the pictures. I don't like the look of that cream signage back there. It will totally clash with your dress."

"Have you got someone to set up the chairs?" said Sarah. "What about the canopy? I know you want to do it all yourselves but is that realistic?"

"Hey, she's got us," said Niall casually flexing his biceps.

"Yeah, I'm pretty good at heavy lifting in case you can't tell," said Zayn.

"We can't," Chloe said drily. "Take off your shirt."

"Nobody's taking their shirts off!" Liam scolded. "Not today."

The girls lay down on the grass, heads pressed together, their bodies spread out in the shape of a star. They were planning photo ideas. I offered to ask Patrick Ecclesine-the photographer who shot the band for Vanity Fair-to photograph the wedding but Darby didn't want the fuss. Like every other aspect of her wedding she wanted the photographs to be personal.

The lads looked at each other and tried to figure out what they might do for a boy's photoshoot. Liam eyed Niall. "One, two, three, four..." The lads pummeled me to the ground.

I tried to get up but Zayn straddled my back and slapped my ass. "What about this pose, sweet cheeks?"

I flushed. I forgot how good it felt to be pinned beneath a man's weight.

Then Niall hopped on. "This is good! An equestrian theme!"

Zayn brushed a curl away from my ear and whispered. "You do love horseback riding, Hazza."

I thought Liam might save me, but he just pet me like a pony and snapped a selfie.

When they finally got off of me we tried another pose. Liam suggested yoga. He grabbed my leg and lifted it above my head. "Wow! Still so flexible!"

"Ahhh, you're going to split my pants," I hollered.

"These jeans are obscenely tight," said Liam.