#I mean. his wife was pregnant three times I wouldn’t be surprised if he dabbled in a little-

[rubixcuby]

What is it with Luke and milk? Like, the two main drinks of the Star Wars franchise- green milk and blue milk- are drank by him. What’s next, white milk??

. . .

[cherryyharryy]

84! But maybe it's his baby and he's getting a divorce, so it can still be romantic.

Here you go, sorry it took so long!! Hope you like it!

Word count: 2,125

The best love is unexpected. The kind that comes out of nowhere and sweeps you off your feet. The kind that releases feathers in your heart and sends shivers down your spine. The kind that overtook your senses when your best friend walked in the room.

But the worst part about the best kind of love is when it’s dangled before your eyes everyday, so close but your not allowed to touch, and the most you can do is dabble in overwhelming fantasies before you finally fall asleep at night.

“Harry did you hear me?”

Harry, whose heart was not feather filled and was planted firmly on the ground, jerked at his desk from Daniel’s voice, knocking the mug of pens over.

“Uh, sorry. What’d you need?”

“Can you get me last month’s reports?”

“Yeah,” he sighed, scooping up the scattered pens and sliding them into the Friends mug—and wow— the word hurt. “Yeah I’ll get ‘em now.”

***

Harry set his leftover pasta on his desk, sucking in a breath past his teeth as he fiddled with the hot lid of the tupperware bowl. The steam hit his face and his mouth watered once he got the first real whiff, jaw already lowered but quickly realized he was missing one important aspect of lunch. So with a grunt he rose from his seat and straightened his tie before heading to the small kitchen towards the back of the office.

“So have you thought of any names yet?”

“Um, no not yet.”

Y/n’s eyes strained to stay focused on Emily. Had she any real power she would have bored holes in her co-worker’s face. But if she had any real power she’d probably choose invisibility. And God, could she use that now.

“Well what about the birth? Are you going natural? Or a home birth? My sister had a c-section, and—”

“I really don’t know yet, Emily.”

Emily nodded and grabbed the pack of crackers she bought ten minutes ago from the vending machine dispenser. “Well alright, I’ll talk to you later.”

Y/n stood at the counter, stirring her already cooled coffee with her lip trapped under her teeth. “I know you forgot a fork. I’m fine. Now go.”

“Should you be drinking coffee?”

Y/N sighed, shoulders slumping as she shifted her weight to her right leg. “I’m fine.”

“Y’know I...I…”

“You what?” She turned around, revealing the belly that seemed to have doubled in size since the last time he’d gotten a good look.

“Just want you to be okay. Both of you.”

“I know,” she whispered, “we are.”

Harry nodded. “Good. And uh, the ultra waves are good?”

“Ultrasounds?” She held back a smile. It wouldn’t be fair. “Perfect.”

“Good, good.” Harry pulled a drawer from the counter open only to close it and repeat his actions with the next drawer.

“Right here, as always.” Y/N stepped around him and pulled a drawer open a few feet away, taking out a fork and holding it out. “How do you even make it through your day?”

Harry took the fork and shook his head as he turned towards the door. “No idea.”

***

She was all alone. This thought overtook Harry more than he liked. More than Kaylin liked too, because whenever she came home and the dvd menu was frozen on the tv or the kettle was whistling loud enough to wake the dead, he had the same concerned look on his face despite him mumbling out a nothin’ when she’d ask.

“What about Olive Garden?”

“What?”

Kaylin sighed and reached over to turn the faucet off. “My parent’s anniversary. We can all go out to Olive Garden.”

“S’fine.”

“Yeah I know.”

Harry looked down at his wife as she finished rubbing in the moisturizer across her face. “You mad?”

“What? Mad? Of course not. Why would I be?” she scoffed, spinning on her heel and stepping into their bedroom.

Harry followed her a moment later. He pulled his shirt over his head and kicked the sweatpants off his legs before sliding into their cold bed. His hand was an inch away from turning the bedside lamp off when Kaylin’s voice broke the dead silence from beside him.  

“Really? You have nothing to say?”

“What do you want me to say?”

She huffed out, shaking her head. “You know what?” She yanked the covers over her body and thrashed until she was laying on her side, back to her husband. “Nothing. Say nothing. You’re pretty good at that.”

***

A new baby in the horizon was something Harry had pondered time to time. It really didn’t start until y/n was dancing through his mind more than usual, and more than a friend should. But what had started out as surprising thoughts of how cute y/n looked when she was struggling over their chemistry homework quickly turned into how pretty she’d look in a fancy white dress, and before he could stop himself the idea of looking for a house or arguing over whose turn it was to cook breakfast were more pleasing than finding someone to bring back to his dorm on Friday nights.

But now that baby would never have to grow up to his parents bickering over bacon and eggs. And Harry tried to find comfort in that. Tried.

“I want to go with you. Your next appointment.”

“Are you asking me or telling me?” Y/N pressed the close button and settled into the corner of the elevator, bringing her tired eyes up to Harry.

“It’s my baby too. And you’re...well you’re my…”

“You’re what?”

Harry brought his hand to rub at his neck, straining his jaw as he searched for his words. “My, I don’t know but you’re my something. You have to be something for me,” he whispered. “We’ve been together too long for you not to be.”

She looked down at her flats toeing at the floor, trying her hardest not to let a tear slip at the reminder that she wouldn’t be in heels for a while. And there’d be a lot of things she wouldn’t be doing for a while. “Things are different now, Harry.”

“I know, God I know things are different.” He relaxed his tense shoulders and sighed. “I just want to be there.”

“What about Kaylin?”

Harry shook his head, watching the number above the doors stop at thirty. “She has to be okay with it.”

The doors opened and Harry motioned for her to go, following behind her.

“She doesn’t have to be—”

“Yes she does. She can’t keep me away from my child.”

Y/n nodded. “Okay. It’s next week, next Tuesday at three.”

***

“So, what happens exactly?”

Y/n set her hand on Harry’s bouncing knee, offering a small smile. “What do you mean?”

“The appointment...what goes on in there?”

She giggled, patting his leg before retracting her hand. “Well, first they probe the baby.” Harry’s eyes shot open and she fought against her lips trying to smile. “Then they hook me up to this machine that uses electro-magnifying radiation waves to turn the baby, y’know so it doesn’t come out with its head lopsided.”

His jaw was shaking, and his skin had lost all its color, but he nodded along to her words.

“And then, and this is the worst part, they put these suction cup things all over my belly so they can hear the baby talk, and God, he has your dreadful accent.”

“You little shit.”

They busted out in laughter, getting shushed by a few of the other women in the waiting room.

“You just wait,” he spoke between laughs, “You’re in for it later. Had me scared out of my mind, thought I was gonna pass out.”

“Your face was priceless, I loved—”

“Mr. and Mrs. Styles.”

Y/n raised a brow and drew her lips into a tight line.

“What?” Harry shrugged. “A man can dream, can’t he?”

***

“Is that cold?”

Y/n nodded as the doctor spread the jelly over her bare stomach.

“Can you warm that up for her? She’s—”

“Harry, it’s fine, I’m fine. I’ve done this before.”

He nodded and set back in his chair by her side, eyeing her hand that was toying with the belt loop of her jeans. Without another thought he reached over and pulled her hand into his, smoothing his thumb over her knuckles and giving a gentle squeeze. She kept her eyes on the monitor that was now lit up and dug her teeth into her bottom lip.

“Here’s your baby. Strong heart, everything looks great.”

Harry couldn’t stop it, the unrelenting sob that overtook his body. His head fell to his hands, losing his grip on y/n while his cries racked his body.

The doctor set a box of tissues by his chair and patted him on the back. “I’ll give you two a moment. Seeing the baby for the first time is emotional for most parents.”

Once the door clicked shut y/n pulled her shirt down over her now clean belly, running her hand over the growing bump. “Hey,” she whispered, “y’know if you cry I’ll start. And I won’t stop, you know how I am.”

He nodded into his hands, releasing another strained cry into his grip. Her hand ran over his back, lightly scratching his shaking form.

After another minute or two he brought his head up, face a blood red with eyes to match. His cries slowed down and he took advantage of the tissues left by him. “M’sorry.”

“You don’t have to be sorry. I cried the first time too.”

“Th-that’s it,” he struggled to get out, straining his jaw to keep the sentence going. “Y-you’re by yourself, and that kills me. And this baby...I should be jumping for joy right now but all I can think about is how much I’m gonna miss.”

“You won’t—”

“Bull shit. I’ll miss everything. This is all so screwed up. And it’s all my fault—”

“Hey now, none of that.”

“S’true.” He cleared his throat and tossed the handful of tissues in his fist into the trash. “I left you. Left you all alone. And now that’s what I’m gonna be. But it’s what I deserve.”

His body slumped over and his head fell back into his hands as his shoulders began to shake once more.

“Harry, Harry look at me.”

His head shot up, and he rose to his feet to stand before her, grabbing both of her hands into his. “Let’s move in together, wherever you want—”

“What? Harry no, that’s crazy.”

“Why?”

“Why? Because we can’t. We shouldn’t. You’re married and I’m pregnant.”

“Listen, I haven’t told anyone this, but I’m going to file—”

“Don’t say it. Do not end your marriage because you’re feeling guilty.”

Her eyes bore into his own but his grip on her hands tightened.

“I’m miserable, y/n. She’s miserable. I’ll never be able to give her all of me.”

“Harry,” she drew out, “you need to think about this. You’re married to this women. You promised her that you’d be there.”

“And I promised you that and look what I did. Ran away the second I found out your pregnant. S’not like she’s not expecting it.”

“Harry, sweetheart…”

“Marrying her was a mistake. A huge, stupid mistake. I don’t love her, a-and what kind of marriage is that? She deserves to be with someone who does, and as much as I wish I could, I’ll never be that person for her.”

Y/n closed her mouth. She could see it in his eyes. He was right, and she doesn’t want to push two people together who don’t love each other just as much as she doesn’t want to encourage a life commitment to end.

“I don’t know how I feel about this,” she sighed.

“I’m gonna talk to her. I really think she’s in the same boat as me. We’ll figure it out.”

Y/n nodded and slipped her hands from his grip, stretching her arms out. He wiped a stray tear off his cheek and stepped into her embrace, nuzzling into her neck.

“We can talk about us, right? Once me and Kaylin get everything together?” Harry pulled back, leaning over to kiss her forehead.

“Yeah,” she whispered. “I guess we’ll have to. I’m sure you won’t leave me alone once you do.”

A smile pulled at his lips and he tucked her hair behind her ear. “You have no idea, darling.”

Her lashes beat against her eyes as they lined with tears and her mouth wobbled around silence before her voice finally gained strength. “I love you.”

He nodded and kissed the top of her head. “I love you too.”