Red String [h.s] (Completed)

Chapter 45

"The mood is right
The spirits up
We're here tonight
And that's enough
Simply having a wonderful Christmas time
Simply having a wonderful Christmas time"

The next day goes by quickly, with Anne making a big breakfast for all of them and then opening presents after. Anne and Gemma love Amy's gifts and repeat over and over how unnecessary it was for her to get them anything. They both express how bad they feel that they hadn't got her anything but Harry hadn't told them she was coming until the day of. Amy reassures them that she doesn't have room in her luggage anyways for anything more and she is just happy she was included in their Christmas festivities. The four of them have an early dinner and then Amy and Harry have to drive back to London because Amy has a flight in the morning.

The drive back to Harry's house seems to fly by. Amy can feel the hourglass on their time together slowing running out of sand. She pushes the thoughts aside trying to just enjoy the time she has with him. Harry's hand rarely moves off of Amy's leg the whole drive. They drive straight through, not stopping because they both want to get home and be alone together before they have to part ways.

Harry carries their bags inside and doesn't hesitate to put them both in his room which makes Amy happier than she thought it would.

Amy begins repacking her bag with all of her belongings again. She is trying to figure out how to pack the big picture frames that Harry gave her in her small carry-on luggage. Harry had been looking at her and feeling sad to see her pack until she started making her thinking face. He loves how expressive her face is and he takes out his phone and discreetly takes a photo of her. He's done this a few times; taken photos of Amy without her noticing. When he was staying at her apartment, he snuck a shot of her engrossed in painting. Another time, it was her dancing in the kitchen while cooking. He took one when he woke up early to go jogging and the sunlight was streaming in her window making her skin look golden.

Those photos helped him get through those three months without her. Reaffirmed that what he felt was real. That he hadn't imagined it. That the feeling he got when he was around her, that he could still feel a dull version of it when he looked at her picture.

"I can keep them here, babe," he says, gesturing to the frames.

"No way! I want them!" she responds back firmly.

"They don't fit, love. And you wouldn't want to break them."

She sighs, looking at her suitcase again like it's a puzzle she is trying to solve.

"How about I ship them home for you?" he suggests as a compromise.

Amy sinks down from her kneeling position to sit fully on the floor. She looks at Harry standing over her. He thinks it's sweet that she is determined to take them with her, although it's completely unrealistic.

"You'd have to send them to my parent's place. I don't have a home at the moment."

"I feel like I've said that exact sentence so many times in my life," Harry says with a half-chuckle.

"Is this home now for you?" Amy asks curiously.

"I would have said absolutely six months ago and then I spent that time with you. Now, this place feels empty. And then you come into it and it feels—" he takes a breath "—it feels like home again so maybe it's a person, not a place."

"Aw, baby," and she reaches for him and pulls him to her for a kiss.

She grabs the frames and hands them to Harry, reluctantly.

"I'll text you their address," she concedes.

"Now, can you finish packing so we can go to bed?"