You Have Me

H.P.O.V

Harry: Is it all ready?

Bethany Ann Mills turns twenty today. Twenty. That means she's made it. We've made it. And if I can get her to leave our bed, I might be able to give her one decent day.

Louis: will you cool your tits? Everything's finished and there's not a single surface that is not covered in pink ribbon or balloons. The cake (because I picked it) looks delicious and you need to hurry because I'm having a bloody hard time keeping Niall from eating it! Don't forget the box...Also Liam refuses to give back the tiara.....

I'm still not sure why I put Louis in charge. I should've hired someone. I knew I should have, but Louis found out and whined like a baby about how 'I'm the oldest Harry! I think I can handle this!' And when I had refused (after the fifth attempt) he stomped on my foot and whined 'Beth's my best friend Harry! If you don't let me do this I'll set your hair on fire and make you ridiculously ugly!' After being promised that, I had no choice but to give in.

Harry: You're useless. You and everyone else. Tell Niall that if he so much as nibbles any part of the cake I'll cut off his foot and make him eat it. And get that tiara back! Even if you have to cut Liam's head off!

The door opens and Beth creeps out. "Sup." She yawns in her hand and stretched her limbs up and across her body. My phone beeping in my hand.

Louis: How about I send someone to pick you up and have them drop you off at the corner of pleasant and nice, Bitch. Everything's fine and you're wasting my time, so shut up and make sure Beth actually gets up before dinner.

Defiantly should've hired someone.

"Happy birthday gorgeous," I walk towards her kissing her cheek as she hums. Her eyes are sleep ridden and her body is leaning lazily against mine. "You're twenty today! S'like a milestone or something."

"S'like any other day." She mumbles. Her arms are hanging limply by her sides. "I know I'm still crazy and I can't remember the last two years of my life, but I still haven't forgotten how much I dislike birthdays."

She pats my shoulder and moves away. She walks to the kitchen and reaches inside the freezer, grabbing a small pint of ice cream. "Why yes Ben and Jerry, I'd love to do nothing but eat you."

Tired Beth is adorable Beth. And all I can do is smile fondly as my heart burst with affection--even if it's for a girl who speaks to her food, and somehow thinks that ice cream is a decent breakfast.

"Baby," Beth shrugs as I move towards her. I slide my hands to her waist and lift her on to the counter. "I've already decided that we're going to have a good day today. You're TWNETY, and we're going to celebrate and get drunk and then we'll come home--roll around naked and maybe. Maybe at the end of day you'll smile--your prettiest smile--and you'll kiss me because you've had a good day, yeah?"

"The fact that your plan involves me having to get dressed, upsets me." She grumbles. And sometimes all I want to do is cuddle Beth. I want to grab her and hold her close as I curl around her. "S'my birthday," she taunts. "I say we do nothing and just get naked. Duh."

"While that sounds lovely, you hopeless romantic, I already have a little something--something planned," Beth's eyes are still dim, they're not as sad as they once were, but they're also not as bright as they usually are. They're just dim. "How do you feel?" The room suddenly feels serious, Beth looks down and places the pint on the counter next to her knee.

"Harry, you promised to treat me normally." It sounded a lot easier when I had first agreed.

"What were you doing at the liquor store?" I asked quietly. Beth sighed and dropped her shoulders. "Sweetheart I need you to be honest with me."

"I just wanted you to stop giving me that look."

"What look?"

"That one," she cries out, pointing her finger towards my face. "I'm not an invalid Harry. I know I'm fucked up, I don't need you and your pity looks reminding me. It's bad enough that I get that from everyone else."

"Beth," I sigh, "I'm not doing it on purpose." I'm really not, it just happens without my permission. I didn't realize how bad of a thing it was. "Why didn't you just talk to me? Why did you leave?"

"I just wanted to do something without it ending in some sort of tragedy," she sits up and wraps her arms around her knees. "I was so close too. But then Lucas showed up saying he felt bad, and that he shouldn't have kissed m-"

"Don't remind me, please," if she does I may end up finding him and slitting his throat.

"He just kept wanting to help me, and I don't know--I snapped," she looked up with wide frazzled eyes. Irises blown and lip quivering slightly. "I tried to push it down, but he kept trying. He wouldn't leave me alone." Beth makes a small face. The face she makes when she's embarrassed or confused. "And when he said I was okay, I lost it. I couldn't breath and everything hurt. That was when the manager let me use his phone to call you."

"How did he even know you were there?"

Beth shrugged, and rubbed her face, over her eyes, and over her lips. "Thank you." She whispers. It's small and quiet. Like a small promise she's making.

"For what?" After everything, I should be the one thanking her for not leaving me. I should be kissing the ground she walks on for forgiving me. "Beth I didn't do anything." I really didn't.

"But you did," she turns and faces me. It only makes me sad. Her eyes make me sad. Because I know she's sad. "You came. I called and you came. Last time I called anyone to come help me, my dad said to figure my shit out and then left me there. But you came Harry. You didn't have to and you did."

That's when my heart bursts and grows heavy. How anyone could treat Beth like that is beyond me. How anyone can treat their own child like that is horrible.

I grasp her head between my hands and press my forehead against hers, breathing her air. Breathing her in. "Don't you know baby. I'll be there. I'm always going to be there. Always going to find a way to you." I'm going to keep holding on, until she tells me to let go.

"Baby it's just a question."

"Yeah, well it's a stupid question."

My eyes roll, "it's a valid question, that you should just answer, if it's so stupid." I kiss her cheek and smile when she lets out a small groan.

Yeah, tired Beth is my favorite. Next to clingy Beth.

"I feel like a sandwich at the bottom of a bag."

"Forgotten?"

"No. Squished," and sometimes I tend to forget that no one thinks like Beth.

"That makes no sense...."

"And this is me sober. Remember that." She leans in a presses her lips quickly against mine before pushing me back and jumping off from the counter. "I'm going to go and pretend to be alseep."

"No. You're going to get dressed. It's already half passed three."

"It's night somewhere in the world." Stubborn Beth is unfortunately not my favorite. That version of Beth makes me want to pull my hair out.

"Yeah, but not here. So come on. Go get dressed and I'll get your first gift." She spins with curious eyes. A small grin.

"Please tell me that the word first in your British language means only one?"

"British language? That's offensive." Beth rolls her eyes and shrugs. Playful Beth might be a close second favorite. But I'm biased. I'd love Beth, even if she had her hands around my neck, and with me, it might happen soon. "How did you make it through school? I can't picture you getting up before noon."

She tsked and shook her head. "Now who's offending people?"

"Well I'm your boyfriend. S'my job to keep it real with you." And when Beth laughs, the kind of laugh that causes her to double over and close her eyes, crinkles showing, it might be the best thing I've ever done.

"Please go change? I'll make out with you if you will?"

"Oooo," she smirks, "I'd rather make out with Ben and Jerry. They get me." When my mouth hangs open she laughs and walks back into out room.

Yeah, playful Beth is my second favorite.

My phone ringing on the counter makes me jump, and I only roll my eyes when I see Louis name light up my screen.

"If you're calling to say Niall ate the cake, I swear I'll cut your balls off and send them to Eleanor."

"This is why you have no friends and the lads and I only pretend to like you."

I roll my eyes--half annoyed that Louis can't see me. "What do you want? Did you get the tiara back?"

"Yes," he groans over the phone. "I only called because I wanted to talk to Beth. S'not always about you monkey face."

"Of course it's not," I sigh, making my way into the room. Beth smiles when she sees me and holds up two outfits, with an arch in both brows. I shrug towards the one with the bow tie as she nods, with an excited smile. I hold out the phone, Beth shrugging in question. "Louis." I whisper. She smiles and takes the phone, kissing me quickly.

"Louis!.....I--awe--oh my god, stop," the blush adorning her cheeks makes me curious and the way her eyes have warmed up, makes me want to take the phone and never let Louis speak to her, because I'm supposed to make her eyes light up. Me. Not Louis. No. "I lov-yes! Babe...hunny...Louis...oh for the love of-shut up! Louis no...thank you...yes...yes I do agree Harry's being demanding," she winks at me, as I frown. Demanding? Me? No. "Thank you. No sweetheart,I....yes I love you too. Of course I do. Thank you!"

"What was that about?"

"Louis feeling a bit emotional and under loved." She shrugged and removed her clothes from the hanger.

"You never call me sweetheart," I mumbled, pouting at the floor.

"Because you're my baby, duh."

"And don't you forget it."

"Why I'd never let myself." She smiled sheepishly, buttoning up her blouse. "Can you tie a bow?" And only Beth could pull off a blouse with a black tie. Only Beth. But then again, I'm a bit biased. Always am when it comes to Beth.

After countless attempts of trying to convince Beth not to put on her skirt, she was dressed and God, she was fucking adorable. The kind of adorable where all you want to do is coo and cuddle them until you can't take it anymore.

"Before you lock yourself inside the bathroom, I want to give you something." I shouldn't be nervous. I know I shouldn't be. But I can't help it, as I pick up the pink box, trying not to fuss around with the bow on top. "It's from me and mum--well Mum says she gets ninety-eight percent of the credit, because she's the one that made it."

She chuckles lightly and takes the box slowly. She lifts the lid, and pushes the tissue paper away. I know she's found the gift when a small gasp leaves her lips and the box has made it to the floor.

"I know how much you love my lucky beanie and Mum thought it'd be nice if you had a matching one--the only difference is the off white-cream color." But that's not a very big change. It's got the exact intricate knit patterns with my mums signature poof on the top. It's cozy and intended to remind the owner that someone loves them.

"Harry," she breathes out, "it's amazing."

"Look inside the hat."

She fumbles with it in her fingers, carefully. She widens the opening, another gasp being heard. "There's--it's a heart Harry," she says excitedly, titling it to show me. "Its got my initials in it."

"Mines the same." It's not surprising that Beth has never noticed the small heart on the flap, since I purposely have it folded it, where I know it would be hidden. It's a way to remind me of home. To make me feel better when I'm home sick. Mum always said it'd help me remember someone loves me.

"I love this. Oh my god, where's your mom I want to hug her, kiss her and then hug her." She's hugging the knit hat against her chest, like it was her teddy bear that she couldn't sleep without.

"You can hug her later. You can kiss me now."

And she does. It's incredible and it feels like home.

Notes

I just want a hundred votes omg /).(\ that's all I need. But chai latte would be nice too...