Twist Of Fate

Where There's A Will There's A Way

I exit the bathroom, towel-drying my wet hair.
"Mus!" Anne exclaims, standing in front of me, with her hands on her hips. "You can't towel-dry your hair in this weather." She frowns, marching over to me. "Firstly, your hair will get extremely frizzy and secondly, you'll catch a cold."
"I'm fine, Anne." I say, smiling at the way she worries about me, and seems to have accepted me into her small family.
"No, you're not! Mother's orders are that you need to follow me into my room, so that I can style your hair." Anne grabs hold of my hand and turns on her heels, dragging me behind her. Since yesterday, Anne and Gemma have been treating me like a child; with fragility. Harry has obviously told them about what happened last night, and I'm okay with that. What I'm not okay with, is their sympathy filled gazes. I'm not a charity case and neither do I want to be one. Anne sits me down on the bed and heads on over to the dressing table. She shuffles around in the clutter of cosmetics, and hairbrushes on the table, grabbing a small sized hairdryer. Anne makes her way back towards me and organizes herself, with the hairdryer and a round brush.
"Let's start," Anne murmurs. She begins to toy around with my hair, as I sit their, hands folded on my lap and let her go to town. "Harry told me about last night." I moisten my lips.
"Yeah, I presumed he would've." I say, wondering what direction this conversation is going in.
"Don't worry, love. Sometimes parents get upset and say things they don't mean. I'm sure your mum would've thought over what she said to you yesterday and regretted it." I wish, I want to say. However, my mother's not like that. She meant what she said yesterday and I know that as surely as my name. "She'll come around."
"I doubt it," I scoff. "Mamma is...different. She's not like you."
"I'll take that as a compliment." Anne smiles fondly and bunches up my hair in her fist. "But remember this, if you ever need anyone to talk to - anyone - just come over to me, or dial my number; I'm here for you. I know Harry can be pretty bad at listening and solving problems. Oh hell, he can't solve his own, so how'll he solve yours?" Anne chuckles.
"You've got to give your son more credit, you know?" I defend Harry, grinning. "He's actually a great listener." Anne pffts.
"Now I know why you're with him; because you're seeing a facade." We're both laughing, as the door swings open, and Harry steps in.
"Am I disturbing bonding time?" Harry questions, looking at us with an amused smile.
"Absolutely!" Anne exclaims, faking a pout. "And here you walk in, and disturb the two of us."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Your Royal Highness." Harry enters the room, just as Anne switches off the hairdryer and wraps up the wire. "Mum, Gemma just told me you're going out with some friends for lunch. Do you want me to drop you off?" I love the amount of adoration and love Harry has for his mum.
"No, Harry, I'll be going by myself. After all, I am a grown woman and you need to spend time with yours." Harry's eyes fly over to me, before landing back on his mum.
"There isn't enough time in the world to spend with her." Harry whispers, his eyes distant, as if he's been transported to another world. Anne's mouth forms an 'O' and she glances over at me, as if to say I-told-you-so. Harry clears his throat, and smiles. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure." Anne assures him by squeezing his hand.
"Okay, then, Bump and I are going sightseeing." Harry announces, getting up and offering me his hand. I take it and he pulls me into his chest.
"Harry, please cut the nonsense of calling her, 'Bump' and 'Bumper'. I mean, what nicknames are those?" Anne asks, getting up and making her way toward her dressing table.
"Bump likes them, don't you?" Harry says, looking at me.
"Yeah," I murmur. "I didn't at first, but now I've grown used to them." Laughing, Anne exits her room, leaving us both in silence. I'm still leaning into Harry's chest and his arms are wrapped around my upper body.
"Ready to leave yet?" Harry murmurs, brushing my cheek with his lips. I give the slightest shake of my head. Just being here - held this close to Harry - makes me feel safe and loved more than I ever have with anyone else. Last night, the same feeling washed over me when Harry and I lay in his bed, all curled up. It makes me want to spend more nights and moments like this with him.
"Bump?"
"Hmm?" I murmur.
"I love you." I close my eyes and devour the sound of those three little words in my ears. Three words that I'll never be able to reciprocate.
**********
"What should I do with this batter?" I ask Gemma, licking some off the chocolate off my finger.
"Just place it in the fridge for a bit and then we'll work on it." She instructs, checking the cake which is baking in the oven. I nod my head and follow her orders. For the latter part of the evening, Gemma and I decided to bake. Well, she decided and I just followed her into the kitchen to help. I've never baked on my own before; it's always been with a friend, or family member. That's why I'm following through with everything Gemma says. Anne is going to be home soon and then we'll off head for dinner. Harry and I spent the whole afternoon sightseeing. I've got to admit, if he wasn't a singer, he should've chosen to be a tour guide.
"Oh God, Mum!" I hear Harry exclaim from the lounge. Gemma and I rush out of the kitchen because his voice was filled with panic and fear. The minute we enter the lounge, Gemma and I come face to face with a badly injured Anne. My hand flies to my mouth and a gasp involuntarily escapes from my lips. Her lip's cut, dried blood lining one side of her bottom lip and a bruise is forming above her upper lip. Anne's right eye is half shut, it's blue and purple, and swelling up like a ping pong ball. There are quite a few scratches lining her face and arms. Since she's wearing a sleeveless dress that reaches just the top of her knees, I can see her bloody and bruised knees clearly.
"Mum, what happened?!" Gemma questions, running to her Mum's side. Harry has seated her on the couch and is sitting near her feet. Gemma finds her place next to Harry, on the floor and takes her Mum's hand in hers.
"I got into an accident." Anne explains, her voice sounding weak and lifeless. Unlike her usual, chirpy tone. My heart constricts at the sound of her voice and I turn on my heels, running toward the kitchen. Hastily, I fill a glass with cold water and make my way back into the lounge. Harry takes the glass from my hand, and offers it to Anne. She takes it gratefully, lending me a weak smile. I can see that even smiling hurts her.
"Mum, did you note his number plate?" Harry asks, concern lacing his tone.
"It all happened so fast," Anne mumbles. Suddenly, her phone buzzes. It's in her hand, so she turns the screen upwards. Anne furrows her eyebrows. Clearly, whatever she's read has disturbed her. Harry takes the phone from her, and reads whatever's on the screen. He frowns. I peek over his shoulder to see what's so disturbing.
'It could've been much worse. Anne could have not made it home. Need any more warnings before you dump that bitch of yours?'
I take a step back and the back of my knee hits the coffee table. Harry turns his head and looks at me with a pained expression. His message is loud and clear. Whatever happened so far, didn't matter. However, now that this person, who's hell bent on separating Harry and I has targeted his Mum, Harry needs to take action. Since we're not able to trace this person, I get the alternative through Harry's eyes. I nod my head and exit the lounge, unable to keep the tears from rolling down my cheeks.