No Regrets

*HARRYS’ POV*

I could barely sleep that night after Liz left. I felt so broken- no girl had ever made me feel like this before. That’s how I could tell how special Liz truly was to me, and because of that night, I promised myself that I would do everything I could to get her back. When Louis woke me up the next morning, I immediately regretted giving him a key to my room.

“Harry! It’s six o’clock in the bloody morning. Get your butt up.” He said as he entered my room. He froze, I assumed because he saw the candles laid out on the floor. “Oh, I’m sorry Harry I forgot about yesterday, how’d it go?” he said as he sat down on the desk, and I started to get dressed.

“She said no,” wow it hurt me to say that. “So, we’re going to try and see how it goes as just friends.” I definitely was going to take being friends with her over nothing, especially with the next few days coming up. Today was our big half-time show for the SuperBowl, tomorrow was my birthday, and the next few days were supposed to be a break for us to spend in New Orleans and see the Mardi Gras parades.

“I’m sorry,” Louis said as he got up and hugged me. “You’re being shockingly mature about this, Haz, and I’m proud of you.”

“Ha shut up.” I said jokingly as I pushed his arm. “Let’s go downstairs before I cause us to miss another rehearsal.” I was desperate to get out of this room and off the subject.

The rest of the day, I basically went into autopilot- turning off my mind and throwing myself into the songs. It helped me somewhat to distract myself from Liz, but then we’d come across certain lines in songs, and the pain would be back again. How the hell was I going to do this?

*LIZZIE’S POV*

I was woken up later the next morning by my doorbell ringing. I hadn’t slept much that night after I left Harry’s, so I dragged myself to the door even though it was noon.

“WHO IS IT?” I called out, not wanting to answer the door in my pajamas, but not feeling like changing.

“It’s just me Dani!” called out a sweet British girl’s voice. I relaxed on the inside, and I went and opened the door. She was standing next to a stunning brunette who I assumed was Eleanor, since I had heard so much about her. As soon as it opened, they both hugged me together.

“Sweetheart, we’re so sorry! We heard everything and this must be so hard for you.” Eleanor said. “Oh, I’m Eleanor, Louis’ girlfriend” she explained.

“I know who you are! I’ve heard so much about you, I’m glad we are finally meeting officially.” I said. They walked past me into the apartment. Not trying to be awkward, but I felt compelled to ask them what they were even doing, so I did.

“Would y’all mind explaining why you’re here…?” I asked them awkwardly after a moment.

“Oh! Sorry, completely slipped my mind!” Danielle said. “We’re here because you’re coming to the SuperBowl performance with us to surprise Harry. We were watching their rehearsal earlier this morning, and we decided that we were coming to kidnap you because Harry needs a little Liz right now.”

I was shocked. I didn’t think it seemed right, since Harry had never even asked me to go in the first place.

“We’re not letting you protest, it’s already been decided, you’re coming” Eleanor said as she dug in her purse. “Here’s your backstage pass, meet us at entrance C at 6:00 sharp tonight. Wear a dress, because we’re going out after to celebrate with the boys once they’re done.”

“And don’t think about skipping,” Danielle cautioned, “because we will come find you and drag you there by your hair if we have to.”

“Okay, that’s all!” Eleanor said cheerfully. They kept alternating as they spoke like this was a rehearsed script. They began to walk to the door.

“Well…err.. Thank you?” I said awkwardly once again, unsure of how I felt about the situation. I was definitely going, especially if it meant- like they said- that Harry would perform better.

“Oh and Liz?” Eleanor said turning to me as they walked out the door.

“Yes?”

“It’s Harry’s birthday tomorrow, incase you didn’t know. He’s going to be nineteen.”

“Fuuuuuuckkk. Okay, thanks for the reminder.” This just complicated my life so much more. Now was I supposed to get him a birthday present? Or would that be awkward considering my position? Or what? I closed my door behind them and tried to sort out the mess that was me and Harry, but the problems just seemed to grow and grow.

I got in my jeep around 5:00 and prepared for my 30 minute drive to the Super Dome. I had my black “stripper” heels in the passenger seat and was driving barefoot because it was much easier than trying to manage in my heels. I had on a strapless body-con dress that was made out of tiny, dark/royal-blue sequins. It had a peplum around the waist and was very flattering on. Plus, in club lights, the sequins looked mesmerizing when I danced.

By the time that I drove downtown, parked, and made it to entrance C, it was 6:00 on the dot. There were two security guards at the entrance, and I had to go through a full pat down and metal detector before they let me through. Once I was through, Eleanor and Danielle pounced on me, nearly knocking me over.

“LIZZIE WE’RE SO GLAD YOU’RE HERE!” They cried out.

“Well, I didn’t really want to risk getting my hair pulled out, so I chose the easy option and decided to come.” I said jokingly.

“Well you look absolutely smashing; c’mon, we want to take you to surprise Harry before they go on in about 30 minutes.” They both took my hands and dragged me down the hallway.

*HARRY’S POV*

The other four boys and I were sitting in my dressing room trying to calm ourselves before we went on. We had already finished hair and makeup, and I was anxious, but somehow even with the big performance moments away, I was still thinking about Liz. We were singing different lines and notes, making sure that we were fully warmed up when there was a knock on the door.

“Come in!” A few of us called out at once. Danielle poked her head in.

“Hope you don’t mind our little intrusion boys, but Eleanor and I have an early-birthday surprise for Harry!” She said excitedly. I was confused, because I hadn’t asked for anything, and this was pretty odd timing for a gift, but then Danielle stood back and pushed the door open. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Liz was standing there. She looked so stunning I was frozen on the spot.

“Harry?” she said softly as she smiled at me. I couldn’t believe she was here. I ran forward and picked her up in the tightest hug possible- forgetting about everything- because I was so happy just to feel her in my arms. I put her down and slightly pulled back from the hug, with my arms still around her, just enough so that I could look into her eyes. She had on more makeup than usual, and she looked gorgeous. And this was all for me.

“Excuse me, can we get a thank you?” Danielle said jokingly. Not wanting to let Liz go, I turned to them.

“THIS IS BETTER THAN ALL OF MY BIRTHDAY PRESENTS COMBINED. THANK YOU SO MUCH.” I said happily. I looked back at Liz, who was now blushing.

“Harry!” she was laughing, “you have to let me go at some point!”

“I know I do,” I said as I pulled her close again and whispered in her ear, “just not now.” And by some miracle, she let me stay like this, with her in my arms and her head on my shoulder, until we were called to get in our places.

*LIZZIE’S POV*

I was in awe as I stood on the sidelines with Eleanor and Danielle and we watched the boys perform, never once taking my eyes off of Harry. Once they finished, and the lights went out, Eleanor grabbed my hand and we ran backstage, hoping to catch the boys as they walked off.

I guess we were lucky, because we made it backstage in perfect time. The boys were running through the halls, obviously pumped up from their performance. Then Harry saw me and ran straight to me. He picked me up in his arms and kissed me as we spun around. The feeling of his lips on mine is not properly defined by any other words than pure perfection. It literally was like a perfect movie moment, until it ended, and he put me down, and reality slapped us both in the face again.

“Um sorry, Lizzie.” He said awkwardly as he backed away from me. I could practically see the glow in his eyes dim down. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be between us. That moment shouldn’t have been ruined by management, it should’ve been a moment that was untouched in time- a moment that Harry and I could keep forever just between the two of us.

Almost as if Louis could tell what Harry and I were both undoubtedly thinking about, he announced with perfect timing, “ALRIGHT WHO’S READY FOR A CRAZY NIGHT!?” as he raced to the dressing room to go change and remove all the electrical/sound equipment that they needed to wear for shows. The rest of the boys, except for Harry followed.

“Go, Harry,” I urged him, “I’ll still be here when you get back.” I kissed him on the cheek and he smiled, before he ran off after the rest of them.

Danielle and Eleanor both turned to me.

“What was THAT?” Danielle practically shrieked- obviously talking about me and Harry’s kiss.

“… I honestly have no idea…” I answered softly. And I really didn’t because friends didn’t kiss- especially not like that.

“That seemed pretty serious to me,” Eleanor sighed almost as if she could also tell how difficult this was.

After a moment, Danielle spoke again, almost whispering.

“You need to be careful, Lizzie, with not just your heart but Harry’s too, because it’s obvious that you guys are both falling fast, and neither of you guys are there emotionally ready to catch the other.”

Before I could respond, the boys came back, and Harry slipped his hand into mine. As good as his hand felt, I slipped my hand out subtly. I turned to face him, but as soon as I looked into those green eyes I had to look away. I was suffocating again with Danielle’s words practically echoing in my head.

Notes