Finding Harry

Chapter 14

"Right," I said, as I slowly lifted off the blindfold. We were just in time for sunset, and the look of surprise and peaceful happiness on his face filled my heart with joy. The ocean looked amazing, and the water stretched far into the distance, for as far as the eye could see. The sun, which was just beginning to set, glowed a soft red, its remaining light spilling out on to the soft, crashing waves.

I pointed down to a little table which stood next to us. I had pulled two chairs up alongside it and had laid out a small white tablecloth, a candle, and two plates. He smiled.

"Have a seat," I said, and we sat down.

"So what's on the menu?" he asked, grinning delightfully.

"Your favourite," I said, pulling a bag of warm food out from under the table, "...Curry!"

"Oh wow," he said, his face filled with genuine delight, "It's perfect!"

"Then," I said, "To serve with our 'very posh' meal, I have...dun, dun, duuun..." I grinned, as I pulled out a bottle of his Vida Nova from under the table. He clapped.

"Well, you certainly know how to treat a guy!"

"Oh, this isn't to share...it's for me!" I grinned, and we both laughed. I put the empty bag under the table, and sat down.

"Thanks for this," he said.

"No probs," I replied. He put his hands together and began to recite a prayer. I joined him.

"...Amen," he ended.

"...Amen," I followed. We looked up at each other, smiled, and tucked into our food.

"Cliff..." I said, after a long silence as we sat and ate.

"Mmm?" he replied, looking up into my eyes.

"Do you think there are any other men out there who are like you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, sometimes I get all upset when I think that, well, I believe that you're my perfect guy...and then I think that, well, I'm never going to find anyone else who matches up to you...and I'll be alone forever...I sometimes think about that and I cry for hours on end..." a tear came to my eye.

"Oh come on, Hannah, I'm not that perfect?"

"But you are – I mean, you possess all the qualities that my perfect husband would possess...I love everything about you – you've got the nicest, warmest voice, you have style, you look stunning, and you've got a personality and a set of morals to match. I don't see how anyone can ever beat that." I smiled, and there was an awkward silence as he looked down at his plate.

"Oh come on, I'm sure there's loads of blokes out there who are like me – you just haven't met anyone yet," he said, affectionately, "Now come on, don't start to cry..." He put a warm hand on mine. I looked up, into his eyes, wiped a tear away, and smiled.

"Sorry..." I apologised, for probably ruining our dinner.

"No, not at all," I said.

"Has your food gone cold?"

"Yes, just slightly!" We laughed.

"Come on, let's go feed it to the fish...can't put good food to waste!" I said.

"Okey-dokey," he said, with a friendly excitement in his voice. He helped pour our remain curry into a small tub, and we walked over to the railing which separated us from a sheer drop into the ocean. We stood side by side, as he slowly drained the last few bits of cold curry into the sea. We laughed and joked for what must have been about ten minutes.

"Well, that's the last bit of it gone," he said.

"What now?" I asked. Our faces were so close together, I could feel the warmth of his breath. We were so near, and my heart began to pound.

"Come on," he said, and, with a happy smile and a twinkle in his eye, he gently took hold of my hand and led me to the end of the railing.

"What're we going to do?" I asked, excited.

"Come on, let's go sit on one of those rocks and watch the rest of the sunset."

"Okay," I said, and, grasping tightly on to his hand, we walked steadily out to shore, and found a big boulder to perch ourselves on top of. It was just about big enough to fit the both of us, and had a nice, flat top, so we wouldn't fall off.

Once arranged on the rock, we sat, huddled together, and watched the sun as it took its last few breaths, before drowning into the ocean.

"It looks beautiful," he said, gazing into the rainbow sky.

"It looks even better with you here," I said. He looked at me and smiled. We both sat, silently, watching the disappearing sun, and contemplating in our minds.

A cold breeze soon began to pick up, and I started to get a little chilly.

"You're shivering," he said, "Do you want to leave?"

"No, no, I love it here. I love this," I said.

"Then here, take this," he said, and removed his felt coat, "We can't have you getting ill, I'd feel awful." He wrapped the coat around my shoulders. I grasped at the hem, and smiled as I felt his arm go around me. I put a hand on his knee, and he placed his other hand on mine, and, gently stroking it with his thumb, he gazed into the distance. I couldn't believe that this was finally, after all these years, happening to me. I was sitting, watching the sun set, huddled up close to Cliff Richard, the most amazing guy who ever walked this planet, my idol. I smiled, a strong wave of happiness passing through my veins. I looked up at his face, the side of his jaw, so square, so perfect. He felt my eyes on him, and turned to face me. Our eyes met, and there was a strange sort of understanding between us. We smiled at each other for what seemed like years. And I couldn't get enough of his face.

"I love you," I said, and waited for a response. He seemed to think things through in his mind, and, after what seemed like a very long time, he replied.

"I love you, too." With that, he leant over and softly kissed my neck. The warmth of his breath sent a pulse of tranquillity up through my spine, and I was at last completely happy.

A thought struck me.

I'd never again be able to see my parents, my friends, I'd abandoned my life...forever. It suddenly struck me how much I actually missed it.

I pulled away gently, and there was silence as thoughts trickled through my mind.

"I need to go back..." I finally said, "I need to go back and live my life as it's meant to be lived."

"I knew this day would come," he said, smiling softly at me, "The day when you needed to go back."

"Forgive me?" I asked, searching longingly into his eyes. He smiled.

"Of course," he said, and we hugged a final hug.

"Please don't forget me," I said.

"Don't worry, I won't."

...Another short silence followed as we stared thoughtfully into the sky.

He looked up at me once more, "Thanks, Hannah," he said.

"What for?"

"For helping me become who I am."

"Oh, you would've achieved it all on your own – I just came along for the ride."

"Well thanks, anyway," he said. And that's where we left it.