Red String [h.s] (Completed)

Chapter 44

A/N: No lyrics at beginning as there is a song in the chapter :)

Once Amy and Harry get the car packed they hit the road. Harry told her that she wasn't expected to dress fancy at the dinner which is a relief to her because she would have had to buy something. She wore a cream colored waffle knit sweater with jeans. Harry dressed in a white band tee with black jeans and a newsboy cap.

Harry asked Amy if it was okay if they stayed at his mum's place tonight rather than make the long drive back to London late tonight. Amy agreed that it was the best choice. She is nervous to meet his family. She wonders if he was nervous to meet hers. He never seemed to be. To be honest, the only time she has seen him nervous is when it has to do with her. Everything else he seems extremely confident about.

If she asked, Harry would tell her that this isn't true. There are plenty of things that he gets nervous about. All of those are things he has gotten used to putting on a front for and pretending like he's as cool as a cucumber while he's sweating on the inside. But somehow with Amy, he can't seem to hide it as well. She is so good at seeing through all of that and seeing the raw version of him. It both excites him and scares him, because he just hopes to god that she likes what she sees.

The two of them take turns with music from their phones, showing the other all their favorite Christmas songs. As they drive further north there is snow on the ground. The snow makes it feel more like Christmas for Amy even though Vancouver doesn't get snow very often in December. They stop for lunch part way and Amy jumps out to grab them some take out food while Harry waits in the car.

Amy has generally been protected from the mania that comes with being around Harry. While in Vancouver, they were able to fly under the radar, because of a mixture of luck and being discreet. Being at the show in Los Angeles was the only time Amy saw how passionate his fans can be. She knows with added eyes comes added pressure on their budding relationship. Neither of them want that right now.

They're about fifteen minutes away and Harry begins to talk nervously.

"I feel like I should warn you that my family always plays games every year after dinner."

"Okay," and she eyes him, trying to figure out why he would be worried about telling her that.

"They get really competitive."

"They get really competitive or you get really competitive?" she teases him.

"You're one to talk! Tricking me into winning our first race!"

"I still maintain that was fair! I didn't choose the event, you did!" she says back defensively.

"Well, hold on to that fighting spirit because you're going to need it tonight. My mum plays to win," he reveals with a laugh.

Harry feels completely at ease going into other people's spaces and meeting their families. He has been doing it for almost a decade now. There have been times, when he had just started in the band, that he lived with other families. He lived with the band's producer for a while and then lived with their photographer for a short period. Lived with another singer, too. At the time, he hated being alone. Hated coming home to a big empty house. Hated eating by himself. That's when his inner critic was the loudest. When it whispered in his ear all the ways in which he wasn't good enough. All the things he'd never accomplish because he was talentless. He surrounded himself with people all the time to dull the noise.