𝐎𝐋𝐃 𝐒𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐎𝐋! | harry styles

𝐗𝐕𝐈

SHADY Acres isn't at all what I expected. Granted, my teenage memories of Grammy's last days at Cliffhaven are a good fifteen years old, but the smell of the disinfectant that couldn't quite disguise the stench of death and decay still lives in my nostrils.

This place feels more like a luxury apartment building than a hospital. We pass the gift shop in the lobby, where Harry bought his replacement orchid last week. The young girl behind the counter waves at Harry, and he pokes his head into the store and greets her by name. Same thing happens at the reception area on the way to the elevators.

"You've got quite the fan base, I see."

"The son-who-visits is a unicorn in a place like this."

"More rock star than unicorn, methinks."

He shakes his head and grins. "Good thing, because if I were a unicorn, I couldn't hold your hand."

Just then, it hits me: I'm the first girl to stand here with Harry, about to go meet his mother. I lean into his arm, drawing from the strength in the muscles that press back against my cheek as well as the sturdy character below the surface.

"Harry?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you for bringing me here."

He drops a kiss in my hair. "Thank you for coming." The elevator dings, we step inside, and he hits the button for the sixth floor. "We won't be in Mom's room long. I just need to pick her up so we can escort her downstairs. They like the family members to do that as much as possible."

"Of course. I don't want you to do anything different just because I'm here."

He squeezes my hand. "Sure, I'll just pretend there isn't a beautiful girl attached to me. Nobody'll even notice."

Harry is even more popular on floor six. "Well, hello, handsome," calls one of the older women at the nurses' station.

He tugs me over to the counter. "Angela, I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Sophie. Sophie, this is my mother's very favorite nurse, but don't tell the others."

"Pshh. Nobody can compete with Raoul."

Harry rolls his eyes. "Raoul."

"Who's Raoul?" Two faces turn toward me-Angela's amused smile and Harry's I-don't-want-to-discuss-it glower.

Angela leans in to fake-whisper. "He's kind of a favorite with the female residents."

"Oh my god, wait! The sponge bath guy? He's real?"

Poor Harry moans. "How's my mother today?"

"She's doing great. She's all dressed for lunch, and she's been looking forward to meeting you, Sophie."

"Likewise," I say.

"Lovely to meet you, Sophie. Have a nice time."

My heart flutters with each step toward his mother's room, and Harry catches me running my hand up and down the borrowed scarf for comfort.

"I promise, she's going to love you," Harry says, squeezing my hand in his.

There's no time to respond before he knocks on her open door. "Happy Spaghetti Thursday, Mom."

A small woman in a big armchair turns her attention from the TV to the doorway. Her blue eyes light up as they land on her son. He crosses the room quickly, towing me along. Her gaze shifts to me, wrinkles deepening in her face as she smiles. I can so clearly see the beautiful young woman she once was and her son's handsome lines within the older features.