Harry handles the act of finding a decent hotel and checking in with both grace and speed. Getting Eden into the hotel is a whole other story. She'd fallen strangely quiet once Harry began driving and spent the entire ride curled up asleep; therefore, he assumed his biggest obstacle would simply be waking her up.
Poor, naive Harry.
As soon as the engine dies Eden springs to life, jerking her head up and pushing her curls away from her face.
"Harry!" she sings while opening her door and stepping into the starlit parking lot.
"Yes?" he hums, exiting the car and heading for the trunk.
"Harry," she repeats in a dazed voice. "Haz, Hershey, Harold, Ry, Rhiannon . . . Rhiannon rings like a bell through the night and wouldn't you love to love her . . ."
Somehow singing nicknames for Harry has launched Eden into a very drunk rendition of Fleetwood Mac's "Rhiannon". She throws her arms wide open and begins twirling in a circle, a move very reminiscent of Stevie Nicks. Harry gathers their bags from the trunk while keeping an amused eye on her.
But then the keys fall from his grasp while he's fumbling with the bags and land at his feet in a small puddle of leftover rainwater. Cursing to himself, he does his best to awkwardly bend down and snatch them back up. His fingers are flecked with mud when he stands. He shuts the trunk and locks the car, now feeling the exhaustion settle into him. He's more than ready to crawl into bed.
Then he notices the quiet background. His eyes go to where Eden was but no longer is - no more spinning, no more Rhiannon. His heartbeat picks up rapidly in his chest as he glances around the parking lot, trying to keep his panic at bay.
Thankfully he spots her a few moments later, several dozen feet away near the entrance of the hotel . . . digging in the trash.
Harry wrinkles his nose in disgust. He doesn't want to imagine the filth her hands must be encountering.
"Eden!" he barks, crossing the lot in a matter of long strides. "What on earth are you doing?"
"I'm on a mission," she mutters when he gets closer. She's now shoulder-deep in the barrel and there's a small ring of trash around her feet, growing as she tosses more items out of her way.
Harry rolls his eyes. "I can't believe I have to tell you this but get out of the trash!"
She ignores him and that's when he notices something in her free hand: a light blue envelope, torn open rather carelessly to reveal its empty insides.
"What's with the envelope?" he questions, now accepting the fact that she's not going to stop her activity until she's found what she's searching for.
"It's for a wedding invite," she answers with surprising clarity. Harry wonders if she's beginning to sober up. "But it was empty so I wanted to see if maybe they threw away the invite too."
Harry's face scrunches up in confusion. "Why would they do-"
"Eureka!" she cries, straightening and pulling her arm up to reveal a slightly battered, slightly stained wedding invite.
"How did you know . . ." Harry trails off, still not quite following any part of the situation.
Eden doesn't wait for him to catch up. Instead she piles the trash back in the can and turns on her heels, reviving her performance of Rhiannon as she enters the bright hotel lobby.
"She rules her life like a bird in flight and,
Who will be her lover?"
***
Eventually they make it to their room without further troubles. Eden claims the bed nearest to the window by belly-flopping onto the covers. Harry sheds their bags by the door before turning to look at Eden.
"Miss America?" he calls. She rolls onto her back while bearing a joyous grin.
"I like that name." It gives me butterflies but so does everything else you do.
He clasps his hands together behind his back and peers down at her. "Would you care to explain why you were playing Tetris with the hotel rubbish?"
She smirks and sits up. "I told you, I saw the envelope and I wanted the invite."
"Why?"
She sighs and drops her smile, finally catching on to his serious demeanor. Her fingers pull the list from the pocket of her pants and she unfolds it.
"Because," she says, eyeing him closely. "Item Six is to crash a wedding."
Harry gapes at her unsurely before saying, "Repeat that please."
"You heard me," she laughs, tossing the list carelessly onto the bed next to her.
"You want to crash a wedding?" he echoes.
"It's on the list so it's definitely gotta happen now," Eden counters.
Harry still looks a bit dumbfounded. "You realize that people who are getting married . . . only invite people to the wedding . . . that they know, right?" he asks slowly, raising an eyebrow at her. "How do you expect to pull that off?"
Eden shrugs. "We have the invite, we can just tell them our RSVP didn't get mailed in time. You can be the distant cousin and I'll be your enchanting plus-one," she beams cheerily. "Worst case, they tell us to leave."
Harry can't contain his laughter at her words. "My enchanting plus-one?" he repeats through his chuckles.
"Yeah so get ready because this wedding is in two days and I need a new dress." She flashes him one last devious smile before brushing past him and disappearing into the bathroom.
***
That night as they settle into bed, Eden falls into a deep sleep without problem while Harry lies awake in his bed, staring at the blue light flickering on the ceiling as the TV silently displays a random movie. He can't stop glancing over at Eden, wrapped up in her covers and snoring lightly.
Then his eyes catch her famed list, still on the edge of her bed where she'd tossed it earlier. He knows he shouldn't, but his curiosity is overwhelming and he can't help himself. He carefully crawls out of bed and tiptoes over, picking up her list and unfolding it while keeping a watchful eye on her sleeping form.
Its contents are short but unexpectedly poignant and rather beautiful. He's torn reading her words - clearly she wants to experience the greatest emotions of life, like adventure and love. But some of the things included seem too complex for her tiny little list.
Nonetheless, now that he's read something he shouldn't have he feels even more responsible for helping her complete these items, no matter how big or how trivial they are. He kisses the paper once before placing it back where he found it and returning to his own bed.
***
The next day, Eden convinces Harry to go shopping with her. After flitting through a couple of stores without luck - Fayetteville isn't exactly on the forefront of wedding fashion - they stumble into a boutique where Eden manages to find something appropriately dazzling. Even Harry picks up a nice new shirt and pants without too much grumbling, much to Eden's delight. Again and again she's pleasantly reminded of Harry's surprising willingness to indulge her and her list.
~~
ok don't hate me for not including her list, i really thought about sharing it but i decided i want the rest of the items to be a surprise! so just stay tuned
also, would you crash a wedding? have you already? i haven't but i feel like it would be fun with the right person. let's swap stories!
xx
YOU ARE READING
the brave ones // h.s.
Fanfic"the brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."
