Echo Of Us • Zarry

TV 4

Every year, Harry makes a point to have at least two weeks of uninterrupted holidays with his family. Just him, Anne and Gemma and absolutely no one else. It's so reminiscent of how it was when Harry was little, in the years between his dad leaving and Robin coming into their lives that they had their own little world. It was great, never lonely, never heart-wrenching.

This year, they chose Greece in late September. Just a small cottage by the sea on an island, relatively in the middle of nowhere. Ten minutes by foot, that's all it takes to reach a small fishing village that hasn't been tainted by tourism. Every morning when Harry wakes up and walks out onto the patio to hear only the sea and the birds, well, he does feel like staying here forever and ever.

"I can't believe that all these years, you still carry Scrabble around wherever we go," Harry tells him mum as they play in the small living room. "Gaunt is definitely a word, by the way."

"It is, yes," Anne agrees. "And Scrabble is fun, it creates a good opportunity to talk and have a good time when there's not much to do. Besides, I feel like it's a habit that has stuck with me ever since Gem and you were little and there always had to be something to stimulate your little brains or you'd go berserk."

"Didn't help Harry that much," Gemma quips in from the patio where she's pretending to do yoga. Yes, pretending. Harry hasn't been working out, he's on holiday after all, and she's just trying to make him feel bad. He's sure of it.

"Alright, miss I-have-a-uni-degree," Harry scoffs. "Stop eavesdropping, it's not nice. I'm trying to talk to mum."

"Not interested anyway," Gemma sighs and puts in her AirPods.

"Is she still mad I won at Scrabble last night?" Harry asks Anne. "Puta is Spanish. I know enough to be sure about that. Either way, weak word."

Anne sighs and lays her word down on the board. "No. Mark called in the morning. I think they might've had a disagreement over something."

"What?" Harry perks up. "Do you know what it is about? Will I need to beat his arse? Because I will."

"Oh, stop it," Anne says and slaps Harry's hand away as he tries to cheat and swipe a letter. "There won't be any fighting involved, are you joking? This isn't the seventeenth century, you don't need to defend your sister's honour. If Gemma wanted to physically hurt Mark, she would easily do it herself."

Harry holds his hands up. "I'm just offering some help. From a statistical standpoint, I'm taller than Mark and I've been boxing for over ten years now. We could link up and have a go at him together. Superhero style."

Anne chuckles, shaking her head. "Sometimes it's like you both are still children. Nothing has changed."

"Lots has changed, we just don't like to think about some of it," Harry remarks.

"Yes, I suppose," Anne says. "Have you heard from Charles at any point since you broke up?"

Harry frowns at Anne. "No, why would I?"

Anne clicks her tongue. "He called me before we left England. It was completely out of the blue and he just... thanked me for raising you right? All of it was very strange, I think he might've been drunk."

"Oh no," Harry groans and rubs his face. "Are you serious? I thought it was a clean break. Sure he was sad, but he's a grown man. Mum, I never even told him that I loved him and there he was, proposing to me. What was I supposed to do?"

"No, darling, you did the right thing," Anne reaches over the low table and puts her hand on Harry's elbow. "I feel like he might've been just saying goodbye for good. You can't force yourself to be in a relationship that isn't right for you."