in the night- h.s

chapter 69

August 2018

Rosalie didn't see Harry again until the August at Sarah's birthday. Her life had become so hectic that she decided rekindling with Harry would be too much especially when she didn't know how she felt about him. It wouldn't be good for either of them if they started again and she still didn't know what she wanted. That night in Mexico was a distant memory in both their minds now.

Sarah's birthday had been arranged by her parents, it was being used more as a family reunion that happened to be on her birthday but she got to invite whoever she wanted. Even though she knew Harry was going to be there, she was determined to stay with Nick and have a good time.

"Wow, this place is mental." Nick commented as they walked into the large garden. There were many people stood around, holding glasses of champagne and talking amongst themselves. It was very white middle class.

"Enjoy it while it lasts, after this it's back to our grungy flat." She nudged him. Nick snorted, looking around around. "I wonder where Sarah is." She mumbled.

"Rosalie!" A voice burst bringing joy to her face instantly as she saw Sarah dragging Mitch towards them.

"Sarah! Mitch!" She beamed, throwing herself onto Sarah as Nick politely said hi to Mitch behind him. Rosalie hugged Mitch, who held her tightly.

They had met up a few times between the end of tour and that day but it always felt like such a blessing to spend some time with Sarah. Especially since she used to see her so often, going for months on end without seeing her was a big kick to the face that she never wanted to experience again.

"Happy birthday, I put your present on the pile is that ok?" She wondered, Sarah cringed and looked at Mitch.

"Oh god, this whole thing is so embarrassing. I really only invited immediate friends, I can't be having people I don't trust seeing what my family enjoys." Mitch put his arm around her as they all laughed at how silly she sounded.

"I think you should do this more often. I'm loving it." Nick smirked. Sarah rolled her eyes.

"Could Lola not come?" Sarah looked disappointed but Nick stepped in before Rosalie could say anything. The reality was that Lola hadn't been to a party yet since rehab and didn't think starting at Sarah's would be a good place if she couldn't handle it. The closest she had come was Rosalie's gallery opening but she barely got through that with all the alcohol that was being handed out willy nilly.

"She couldn't get time off work but she sends her love." He had been told explicitly what to say when asked. Sarah gave a sympathetic nod, putting two and two together.

"Oh of course." She smiled politely. Rosalie looked around, knowing exactly who she was looking for but not wanting to admit it to herself. Instead, her eyes landed on the food table.

"Ooh, food. Do you want anything Nick?" She asked him. They all seemed amused by her distraction as Nick shook his head, trying not to roll his eyes.

Making her way to the food table, there were many people in all sorts of outfits. It was a hot day so many people were in shorts, some were in summer dresses like Rosalie. There were many kids running around, in fact one kid ran straight across her as she was walking. She stopped and laughed as the kid was giggling furiously as she ran. Then a much larger body ran straight into her, they were laughing and seemingly running after the child.

"Oh sorry." They laughed but the sound made Rosalie's heart plummet. The figure looked up, holding onto her so she didn't fall but as soon as their eyes met his hands fell. "Sorry." He said again.

"It's okay." They stood staring at each other for a moment.

"Sarah, Sarah." Mitch nudged her, having seen the whole thing go down. Sarah's eyes widened as she saw them standing awkwardly staring at each other.