#why holivia is a stunt

[daisiesonafield-blog]

not being funny but wouldn’t a pr relationship w flo and harry make the most sense? i mean ik why it was done w olivia and harry so she could get her few minutes of fame but it would make sm sense w flo and harry

It actually wouldn't.

Florence is actually super busy and is constantly traveling, so even logistically this would not have been a fit. On top of that, she had a boyfriend at the time who was also "friends" with H. She's also too young, and her appeal is with a younger generation.

Moreover, the stunt was for Olivia's movie, and the best way to ensure it did well, was for her to do it. And she was obviously all in from the get go. This stunt was the saving grace of this movie. It wouldn't have gotten made without it. It was also all she ever wanted handed to her on a silver platter. Additionally, dating a movie director who is older, in theory, was meant to help his image. It reads as serious, mature and links him to an older female demographics who have always dreamt of being the milf Harry Styles falls head over heels in love with. Which they provided. The whole stunt narrative from the start has been "they're so serious", "such a mature love", "omg settling down", "strong love going from strength to strength". Harry is nearing 30, he should be cultivating a maturing audience, not pandering solely to teen girls who are 10-17 years younger than him - there's a huge disconnect there and it's unsustainable from a marketing and image angle. Ofc they'll still market to that demographic, but expanding his desirability to an older demographic is the step they needed to work on, which they did via this stunt. On top of promoting this movie, which was meant to propel his acting career.

Heck, there's even a Harry Styles milf movie being made now from a het fanfic where young Harry falls in love with a 40yo divorced mom of 2 or whatever. The stunt certainly helped that move up the production floor.

[kiwikiwiandkiwi]

.

[twopoppies]

Sorry but I don't believe Olivia forced him to get the tattoo that was his own doing

Ok? Clearly I don’t agree with you. What’s the point of sending this? Also, I didn’t say she forced him.

[finexbright]

.

[kindathoughtprovoking]

.

[persephoneflouwers]

kinda funny how shawmilla was actually one of the main reasons they're on the spotlight™️ and being talked left and right but at the same time the only thing that made shawn's careers stuck lmao cuz i'm like 92% sure harry's path and where he is now is what he wanted to achieve at some points

Not really funny for me though lmao the thing is they had different backgrounds. Shawn was literally a baby when he started solo and got overexposed way too soon in my opinion. Being in the band protected Harry for when he went solo, built for him a huge fanbase for when he went solo, crafted his brand image for when he went solo and anyone can argue with the wall if they want.

Shawn is still very young anyway, so I wouldn’t call him completely out of the games. I don’t think he’s stuck as you may think. I think he’s stuck because his carreer skyrocketed too early and then nothing.

Shawmila was a mess and honestly I think it did them so dirty, so dirty. I hope this shawmila 2.0 will be less cringy. If they have learned something from the previous mistakes, this could potentially be helping them lol but I have zero expectations.

[astranva]

Tea & Confrontations

Word Count: 6.2k

Category: Angst, fluff-ish, but mostly angst

Warning: swear language

Summary: A mutual friend, and an inside source spills exclusive tea about your and Harry’s relationship, breakup, and your relationship with Joe Keery, and Joe confronts Harry.

a/n: this is set further down in time and not in October of 2022 for the sake of the fic’s timeline. let me know what you think! this is a long one x

.. 

Backstage Girlfriend Masterlist

Some days, you had found yourself regretting your choice of profession. Surely working as anything but a creative director, commonly known as Production Designer in the film industry–one who was successful and known as well–and having a circle of people who were in the entertainment industry wouldn’t have made you and Harry meet. Surely it was your profession. Surely it was the circle of big names and not-so-big ones that had your paths crossing years ago. Surely if it weren’t for it, you would have been getting over a breakup with an accountant or business developer of some sort, and only then, nobody would have given two shits about your breakup.

But that wasn’t the case.

And while you had had your days, meeting Joe had proved that everything worked out for the best.

“I was thinking that we might need to change Flo’s position for this shot.”

It wasn’t everyday that someone could be sitting next to one of Hollywood’s best directors, Christopher Nolan, but as the supervising production designer on his new movie, Oppenheimer, you were.

“The lighting on her face is coming from that side,” you pointed, “And if we have her on the other side, it’s more fitting to the mood.”

Nolan nodded along, looking at his screen in front of him, “Yeah, yeah, I see it,” he said, “Florence, can you stand on the left instead?” He called.

Working on one of the most anticipated movies with an incredible cast and crew, you were almost sleepless. As someone whose job was one between a Producer and a Director, your mind seemed to always be racing with the designs you worked on for the film, the budgeting, the storyboards, making sure all the teams you were working with were going according to plan—you loved your job, but saying you were busy would be an understatement.

It was why it wasn’t something you had anticipated nor wished for when the internet seemed to suddenly go crazy.

It was a rare day off when it happened, to your own bad luck and misfortune.

At 9 a.m., Joe had woken up before you, being gentle as he kissed your hair as you slept, overcome with the feeling of happiness that you were finally getting some sleep and rest, even if it was just for a day.

Time seemed to be dragged before Joe checked his phone that he had silenced before bed to make sure neither of you, and especially you, was disturbed.

Along with a few frantic texts from his friends, it was one of his sisters’ texts that he saw first:

Carolina: Don’t let Y/N come near her phone!!!

Caroline: Deux Moi released a podcast with an “exclusive source” that leaked everything about her previous relationship and yours

Caroline: Do NOT let her see this!

Carolina: https://www.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/20221002153091/harry-styles-exclusive-tea-yn-yln/

“Fuck,” Joe said under his breath, his shoulders slumping as he sat down, opening the link his sister sent him.

“Holivia was a stunt and Harry isn’t over Y/N”, says exclusive source about Harry Styles & ex, Y/N Y/L/N, on Deux Moi podcast and much more!

Joe only skimmed through the article, eyebrows furrowed as muscles tense as he decided to click on the link to the podcast, choosing to listen for himself.

“Today we have someone, let’s call them Kyle, and I feel like you guys will like this one,” the distorted voice of Deux Moi said, “I’ve been getting asked about Harry and Olivia, and about Harry and his ex, Y/N Y/L/N and her and Joe for so, so long now, and I always said I didn’t know so much about what actually went down. Like, I wasn’t sure if the things you all sent was truthful or just total cap, but Kyle here is an exclusive, you guys. Hey, Kyle.”

“Hey, hey, how are you?”

“I’m doing good, doing great. First of all, I’m really excited to talk about this because—Gosh, it’s what everyone has been talking about for so long and people are dying to know, so you’re literally going to end everyone’s misery.”

Kyle chuckled, “When I reached out to you, I actually had that in mind. Like, I just felt like I have been sitting on this one.”

“Yeah, thank you so much for reaching out,” the voice of Deux Moi said, “First of all, let’s start talking about Harry and Y/N. Do we have a timeline?”

“Yeah, so,” Kyle began, “Harry and Y/N met back in 2018.”

“Oh my God.”

“Yeah, there were some mutual friends and I was one of them, and we were all there for his last show on his first tour then we went backstage, and let me get this straight,” they paused, “That was literally love at first sight.”

“Shut up, no way!”

“When I tell you Harry couldn’t keep his eyes off of Y/N, I seriously mean it,” they said, “Y/N is shy. Like, she has a lot of friends and she’s, like, the sweetest person ever but the moment you meet her, she’s just shy and sweet and Harry off stage is exactly like that, but that night, he was trying so hard to talk to her, like just her, and he was blushing and she was, like, very flustered and all, and we all knew that we basically have some setting up to do.”

“Neither of them was in any relationship at the time?”

“No,” they answered, “Just two single people who basically had the hots for each other. So, that night, Harry and his bad and, like, everyone else, were all going out to celebrate the tour coming to an end and all and obviously we were all invited, but I remember he directly went to Y/N and he was like, “I’ll see you there, right?” and we were all just absolutely swooning.”

“This is everyone’s dream. Like imagine Harry Styles wanting to see you.”

“Exactly, exactly,” they agreed, “But Y/N wasn’t just starstruck with him because he’s a celebrity, you know? I don’t even know how to describe it but they moment they met, they just really clicked.”

“This is so cute.”

“Right?”

“So what happens next?”

“Well we go out and we party, and they dance together, they talk, and it basically looks like they’re on a date and everyone could see it. They exchanged numbers that night,” Kyle spilled, “So then like a couple of days later, we all go out for brunch.”

“Like, the friend group?”

“Yeah, we all basically decided that we needed to set them up so we were, like, set it into action at that point. So we all went out and they were just—there’s some shy flirting, you know? They were just talking and having a conversation all evening.”

“This feels like a fairytale.”

“We all placed our bets on them, honestly,” they said, “Anyway, we all met up more times after that, like two or three times, but I feel like—like it all just, sort of blossomed when we all went on a trip to Italy together, and I can’t tell you how absolutely smitten they were. They had their first date there,” Kyle said.

“No way!” The voice of Deux Moi gasped, “This is so adorable. Is that why it seems like Italy is like, so close to Harry? Like, it feels like he just goes there to relax and that it’s like his getaway of some sort.”

“Italy was their country, honestly,” they said, “Like they had their first date there, and then they later had so many vacations there, I feel like it was like their safe haven or something.”

“This is so adorable, I can’t. I literally can’t.”

“Right? Anyway, fast forwarding a bit, they were just so adorable together. Like, their relationship at that point was the perfect example of puppy love. Harry was the happiest we’ve ever seen him, Y/N was the happiest, everything was going so well.”

“When did they make it official?”

“It took them some time,” they answered, “Y/N met Harry’s family before they actually made it official. I think she met them around Christmas time and Harry just told us about how his family absolutely adored her,” they said, “But they made it official in 2019, first day of the year.”

“First of January?”

“Yup,” Kyle answered, “I can’t even begin to describe how they both were literally glowing at that point. They were just so in love, it was crazy.”

“Wait, so they were together for how many years before they broke up, again?”

“Three years.”

“Three years!”

“Three whole years, yeah,” Kyle repeated, “And everyone loved them together, and at the time, we all understood that they wanted to be private, because you know how things get with the fans and the media and all. But the fans, you know, they saw her and were beginning to join some dots but I think at some point, everyone assumed they were just friends because they were never really touching or kissing in the pictures, but I remember our friends talking about how much the fans loved Y/N.”

“You know, I get some sightings of Y/N, and it’s always with, like, the cutest stories. Like people telling me she’s so respectful, she’s cute, she’s nice, is big on tips, and all that, so I get why fans would love her,” the voice of Deux Moi said, “And I think I remember getting some messages about her getting fans concert tickets and merch.”

“She always did that,” Kyle confirmed, “I think that—Y/N is just a very humble and simple person, and I think she has always realized that with her place in the industry, she does have some privilege, right? Especially when she was Harry’s girlfriend and all, so she just really liked doing these things,” they said, “Like she always told him to get more in touch with his fans, and I think there were some arguments about ticket and merch pricing and all.”

“Wow, really?”

“Yeah, I think that’s why the fans loved her. You always pick up that vibe, you know? When someone is being real.”

“True. That’s so true,” Deux Moi agreed, “But—where did it all go wrong? I think it all went bad with the hate and all after Harry’s song got leaked. I remember that—she was getting so much hate. You know what? No, don’t answer that right now, we’ll get to it.”

Kyle chuckled, “Yeah, let’s take it one step at a time,” they said.

“Alright so, Holivia? That’s—That’s also the tea.”

“Oh, it’s hot,” Kyle laughed, “It’s very hot tea.”

“Right? Because I feel like from what you’re saying, Harry and Y/N, they were—they were endgame.”

“They really were,” they said, “But then Harry got the Don’t Worry Darling role and that’s when things went south,” they began, “Look, publicity stunts and scandals happen all the time. It’s a classic for a reason, too. It always works.”

“I agree.”

“So in 2020, there were talks about the stunt. Basically that Harry and Olivia start going out and all, and Y/N was—She was literally crushed when Harry said he was going to think about it.”

“She didn’t think he’d do it?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Kyle answered, “Obviously, she’s in the industry and she knows that these things happen all the time but when you’re in her position, it’s—it’s not so easy. But she was very supportive of his career and, like, respected his decisions and everything because she knew that he wouldn’t—like, he wouldn’t disrespect her, you know?”

A hum.

“Anyway, Harry agreed to it and he had conditions set. Like, he wanted it to still be lowkey and to, like, keep it on the minimum.”

“That’s not really how it goes,” Deux Moi joked.

“It’s not how it goes,” Kyle repeated.

“Did Y/N at any point—Or her and Harry, did they ever consider going public?”

“Y/N wanted that,” Kyle answered, “She’s mostly also private, but she just wanted everyone to know that they’re a couple, you know?”

“Yeah, nothing wrong with that. I’d want people to know that Harry Styles and I are together, too.”

Kyle laughed, “Right? But it was because—They’re both attractive people, so you have people shooting their shot at them all the time and at some point, it was a little hurtful to Y/N how she had to stay, like, very discreet about her relationship. It felt like a secret, you know?”

“Like she was hidden.”

“Exactly, exactly. And that’s just—It’s not fun and it does things to your mental health. Like, you start thinking.”

“Yeah, of course.”

“So anyway, the stunt was supposed to be short-term, but everything was just super intense. Shit mostly went down during Jeff and Glenne’s wedding.”

“Jeff is Harry’s manager, right?”

“Yeah,” they answered, “So when you’re in a relationship, obviously your plus one is you girlfriend, your boyfriend, like, your partner, right?”

“Yeah?”

“Y/N was asked to not attend with Harry and to, like, blend in.”

“No. Fucking. Way.”

“Swear,” Kyle assured, “Just so Harry and Olivia can make their debut as a couple.”

“Oh. My. God.”

“I know.”

“I think I felt my heart break,” Deux Moi said, “Are you kidding me?”

“I wish,” Kyle said, “We were all so worried about Y/N because she was literally crushed. Like, oh my God, I can’t even begin to describe it. Like, to the point that she wasn’t going to attend the wedding if it weren’t for Glenne insisting.”

“And how was it?”

“She was so anxious that day, and I think—I think that’s when Y/N really began doubting herself. Like, at that point, the relationship was making her feel like shit and she felt like—You know, she felt like she just wasn’t worthy of being Harry’s girlfriend, that maybe she wasn’t good enough for his image, all that talk.”

“Poor woman, I feel like crying right now,” Deux Moi gasped, “And how was Harry dealing with it?”

“Look, I can’t believe I’m saying that but I feel like there was just so much manipulation happening? I don’t know, I don’t know, because Harry really did love Y/N. He—Actually, he still does. Like he’d be agreeing to all that stunt shit then be the good boyfriend to Y/N so to her, it sort of felt like she didn’t really have the right to complain. Like he’d tell her that it was basically work, that he loves her, that it’ll all end soon, and she, you know, she took it all in and tried to go on with it to be a supportive girlfriend.”

“This is literally a toxic relationship.”

“Which is so sad! It’s so sad, because—because they really did love each other so much,” Kyle said.

“Still toxic,” Deux Moi said, “Did Olivia know? About Harry and Y/N?”

“Yeah, yeah, she did,” Kyle answered, “And I’ve seen some people say that she was mean to Y/N and stuff, but that’s not true. They were both actually respectful towards one another.”

“Y/N is way better than I can be, because I don’t know how I’d act with Olivia if I were her.”

“We were all so shocked, but if this proves anything, it just proves how above and beyond Y/N was willing to go for her relationship—for Harry.”

Deux Moi hummed, “Then what happens?”

“Y/N did tell Harry about how uncomfortable the situation is. Like, he knew, but you know, he’d always assure her and all. But then,” they enunciated, “Harry missed her birthday for a sighting, with Olivia.”

A gasp was heard, “No fucking way. No way, are you kidding?”

“I wish I were,” Kyle said, “But I remember we were all trying to plan a night out and one of us told her that, like, Harry better leave the night for us to celebrate her and all, and she was like, “Oh, he’s not going to be here all day”, and we were like “What?” and she just said “He just has things to deal with and do” and then later, we find some pictures, like papped pictures of Harry and Olivia and everyone was like “Oh.””

“I’m so shocked right now. I literally don’t know what to say.”

“Yeah. We celebrated her birthday that night and she just—she just wasn’t happy, you know?”

“Yeah, can you blame her? Who can blame her?”

“Exactly,” Kyle agreed, “But then, like a day later, Harry made it up to her by taking her to the Amalfi Coast.”

“But is that even worth anything?”

“That’s what we were saying. Like, he missed her actual birthday, and for what? But Y/N was—she was still appreciative. In a way, she was just constantly convincing herself that it’s his work after all,” they said, “But then—”

“I’m always scared of what follows that.”

Kyle laughed, “It’s bad, alright? I wasn’t kidding when I told you earlier that it’s a sad story.”

“Oh you definitely weren’t.”

“Yeah so, you know these pictures of Harry and Olivia? When they were kissing on a yacht?”

“Oh yeah, know those. Kissing on a yacht is a classic when it comes to these stunts, I’m surprised they still do it.”

“Right?” Kyle laughed, “Yeah, after those Y/N was like—she was just reaching the breaking point, you know? She asked for space. It wasn’t necessarily a break, but just—just some space, and Harry respected it and he gave her space but he was like—he sent her flowers, sent her some letters, you know, stuff like that.”

“If it weren’t for the context, I would’ve said that was cute.”

“Right,” they chuckled, “But like, soon after, they went out for brunch and we all were—we were literally celebrating it because to us, that relationship—it was like you said, it was endgame. They were our favorite couple, so we were glad to see them working. But they got so much shit for that brunch date because there were paps and Harry’s management was, like, having none of it. Like they didn’t want Y/N in the picture when Olivia was in it.”

“That’s—Oh my God, that’s so fucking brutal.”

“Absolutely brutal. At that point, we all were sort of distancing ourselves from Harry. Everyone was trying to stay neutral, but we knew what was happening and it was just hurtful seeing what Y/N was going through,” they said, “So back to how Y/N loved interacting with the fans—they wanted her to stop that.”

“They wanted her to stop interacting with the fans?”

“Yeah, like to just cut it because it wasn’t good for Holivia but Y/N—she was like, no, you’re Harry’s management, you’re not mine.”

“Yes. Queen.”

“We were so proud of her!” Kyle exclaimed, “We were so proud,” they repeated.

“I feel like I’m proud of her and I don’t even personally know her.”

“Right? Right?” They laughed, “So yeah, she was just still interactive with fans over Twitter and like, Instagram comments and stuff.”

“She’s private on Instagram, right?”

“Yeah, she is,” they said, “But she’d always like some posts, comment on some stuff, stuff like that. She didn’t do it a lot, but it was still something she enjoyed—she still does it.”

“That’s so sweet.”

“I’m telling you, she’s—she’s just amazing.”

“So now, that’s when? Like was that nearing the breakup?”

“That was, like, months before their third anniversary,” Kyle answered, “So they celebrated their third year together and things were going fairly well—like, as good as it can get, at least. Until Harry’s show in Brixton, in May. The One Night Only show.”

“He had two, right?”

“Yeah, one in the UK, in Brixton, and the other in New York,” they answered, “They actually broke up on that day.”

“The one in Brixton?”

“Yeah. I wasn’t there for that one, but basically what happened was that—You know, Y/N was super supportive of Harry’s career. Like, she was his biggest fan and was literally the muse for all his love songs—like so many in Fine Line, and basically all of Harry’s House. Harry’s House is literally her album,” they said, “And I bet the next one as well but, anyway—so, she was there, of course. She was so excited to see him perform his new album, she basically was going on and on about how proud she was of him, how excited she was.”

“I’m so scared right now.”

“And then she was asked to stay backstage during the show.”

“Like—Like, not watch him from the crowd?”

“Yeah. His mom was there, his sister was there, so many of his friends—of our friends, everyone was going to stand there and actually watch him from the crowd but it was just Y/N that was told to stay back.”

“You have to be kidding.”

“I’m not. I wish,” they said, “But she was told to just, stay back and basically give her spot to Olivia,” Kyle said, “And Harry was—He was actually, like, okay with it.”

“No.”

“Yeah,” they confirmed, “You know, told her things like, it was just for a day, you’ll still get to see me, et cetera, et cetera, and she was just so broken at that point. So she stayed back, she watched him for like, some time, then she just left.”

“Like, left him?”

“She left the arena, yeah, and she called one of our friends and she was just—she was like, hysterically crying, like sobbing, and she was like, ‘I can’t do this anymore’. And nobody could blame her. So she just, like, went back, and packed her stuff. Then Harry caught her, like before she left, and she broke up with him.”

“For good?”

“Yeah, they never went back together after that,” they said, “And for the longest time, Y/N was devastated. It’s because—when you’re in a relationship, it’s like an investment. Like you invest with your time, with your energy, your efforts, your—your mental health, everything, and in a way, it felt like Y/N lost.”

“And what about Harry?”

“Look, Harry will never love anyone the way he loves Y/N, period,” they said, “He’s still not over her, he’s still not over their relationship, still not over what he’s done. He’s still, like, constantly beating himself up for it.”

“I can’t say I feel too bad, honestly.”

“It’s Karma in a way, I guess.”

“But how did he take it when Y/N got into a new relationship? Because Y/N and Joe Keery have been a hot topic ever since they got together.”

“God, he was absolutely crushed,” they said, “Joe is a great guy. He’s a great, great guy. He treats Y/N so well, puts her first, supports her, defends her. He’s—He’s basically the boyfriend Y/N truly deserves and Harry sees that.”

“Yeah, it wasn’t too far ago when he defended her on Instagram after Harry’s song about her got leaked.”

“Yeah, he’s just—he’s incredible.”

“Do you know when they met?”

“They met in 2021 if I remember correctly. They had a mutual friend, I think it was a creative director or something who worked on Stranger Things. And Joe had the biggest crush on her back then,” Kyle answered.

“Yeah, yeah, I remember he said that in an interview.”

“Yeah, and then they met again in, like, early 2022 as well, then after the breakup, like, I don’t know three months later, they went out for some coffee, then it was just—like really casual for a while even though Joe was smitten, but Y/N didn’t want to rush anything.”

“Can’t blame her.”

“Yeah, nobody can. So yeah, they took their time and everything.”

“But Harry’s not over her.”

“Harry’s not over her,” Kyle confirmed.

“God, that was heavy.”

It wasn’t long before Deux Moi and their guest moved to another celebrity gossip, making Joe pause before he stared at his phone for a few moments.

Everything was out in the open.

Between your sleeping state and Joe’s stressed one, was Harry who now seemed to get only bad news from his manager and friend, Jeff.

Going on social media was like a nightmare.

Not only was Harry getting cancelled, but so were Olivia and Jeff, while supportive messages, tweets, and edits were being sent your way.

“We owe Y/N an apology” was among the trends, sitting right on top of the 4 other relevant trending topics about you. After it came “#HarryStylesIsOver”, “Y/Noe”, “Holivia”, and “Thank you deuxmoi”.

The latter was a surprise to everyone, but never did anyone guess that a day would come where people would thank the celebrity gossip platform.

user

nobody believed me when I said y/n and harry were together and that he fucked her over. fuck harry, fuck olivia, fuck jeff, and fuck dwd.

user

Imagine your worst mistake being that you trusted the person you loved the most. #HarryStylesIsOver

user

WE OWE Y/N AN APOLOGY? NO! YOU owe her an apology because some of us still stuck by her side and knew that she wasn’t the evil guy in this. now yall wanna talk

user

idk who “kyle” is but thank you

user

I TOLD YOU HOLIVIA WAS FAKE!!! I TOLD YOU YNRRY WAS REAL!!!!

Countless of tweets, some angry, some sad, some supportive were being added by the second and Joe found himself growing nervous for when you woke up.

It was inevitable for you to wake up. A day of sleeping one was one you appreciated, and even more so after you freshened up and were ready for a day of doing absolutely nothing but chill with your boyfriend.

“Good morning,” you said, taking notice of Joe flinching on the couch, causing you to giggle, “Sorry.”

Joe forced a smile, standing up and meeting you halfway to press his lips to yours as he wrapped one arm around your waist, his other hand going into your hair to bring your head closer to his. Pulling back, you smiled, “Okay then,” you joked.

“Good sleep?”

You hummed, wrapping your arms around him in a hug as you closed your eyes in bliss, “So good.”

“You deserve it,” he said, kissing your head, “What do you want to have for breakfast?”

“I don’t know, anything,” you answered, “Some scrambled eggs sound nice.”

“And buttered toast?”

“And buttered toast.”

“Avocados?”

“God, I love you,” you shook your head with a smile, leaning to kiss him again, “Let me just grab my phone a-“

“Let’s not,” Joe quickly said.

Your eyebrows furrowed, a smile of confusion on your face.

“I just—I figured—We can just—We can disconnect for the day, how does that sound?” He asked, “Leave our phones, turn them off, just-just enjoy your break.”

You stayed quiet for a moment, tilting your head as you looked at him.

“You’re hiding something,” you said.

“No, I’m not.”

“Then why are your cheeks and ears all pink?” You raised an eyebrow, “What’s going on?”

“Is it too bad that I want us to be together without any distractions? Without any—”

“Joe.”

He pursed his lips, avoiding eye contact as he looked at the ceiling for a moment.

“What’s going on?” You asked again.

A sigh escaped his lips before he looked at you, “Someone—Someone you know just—” He paused.

You raised an eyebrow again, “Just what? Did someone die? Joe, oh my God, di—”

“No, no, nobody’s dead, baby. Everyone’s fine. Everyone’s okay,” he assured.

“Okay, then what is it?”

“Well, um,” he cleared his throat, “Uh, someone—you know,” he shrugged.

“I don’t.”

“How do they say this?” He muttered, scratching his chin, “Someone spilled the tea?”

“The tea?” You asked, “What tea?”

“Someone went on a podcast and they—they basically said every single thing about your past relationship. Your relationship with Harry.”

You stayed quiet, eyebrows going up, “Oh.”

“Oh,” Joe nodded.

“Everything?”

“From the moment you met,” he said quietly.

“Oh,” you repeated.

“Yeah,” he nodded unsurely, “I’m—I’m really sorry, baby. I’m so, so sorry.”

“It’s okay,” you said quietly, “It’s not your fault. It’s—It’s nobody’s fault,” you added, “Who did that?”

“It was a guy, I think? Went with the name Kyle, like a pseudonym, but I don’t know. They could’ve distorted the voice, could be anyone.”

You hummed.

Joe looked at you, trying to asses your state before asking, “How are we feeling?”

“I’m not so surprised, honestly,” you answered, “I’m just—I’m so done with this, you know? I don’t know. I think—I think I just don’t care anymore.”

He nodded, rubbing your back soothingly, “I get it,” he said, “Do you want to address it?” He asked, “You know, they’re—everyone’s sending you support, some cute shit.”

“No, I won’t. I won’t address it,” you answered before sighing, “You know what I want?”

“What?”

“That scrambled eggs, the buttered toast, and those fucking avocados.”

To you, the day went well, and you knew that a huge reason why was that you did actually decide to take Joe’s advice and not check your phone. Instead, you and Joe had cooked breakfast and lunch together, had watched Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and decided to order takeout for the night.

To Joe, his mind was restless.

In a way, he felt like he needed to do something. Sure, he posted about you, he liked standing up for you, and he absolutely loved being a total sap on main—publicly and openly loving you, but something didn’t feel right.

He was smiling all night, loving on you and laughing with you, but his mind was all over the place. It wasn’t until you were asleep in his arms that he did what he felt was right.

Opening Instagram, he never had thought that he’d be the one to type in “harry styles” in the search bar and tap on your ex’s profile, but that was what he did before he also tapped on “Message”.

Strange enough, Joe was calm as he typed in his text:

Hey, Harry. I was hoping we can meet up soon to talk.

And stranger enough, was that his text was seen no more than 2 minutes after he sent it.

5 minutes passed before Joe received a reply.

Hello. Sure. When and where?

Joe then replied:

I’m currently in New Mexico but I’ll be in LA on Tuesday. Would that work for you?

And as if Harry had no idea that Joe was with you as you worked on Oppenheimer, he replied back:

Yes, I’m staying in LA for the time being. Tuesday works well.

Joe replied:

Great. We can meet at 6pm at my house since it’s the most private.

Harry then replied:

Okay. Is this about the recent podcast?

Joe replied:

Yes and no.

Harry replied:

Does Y/N know about this?

Joe replied:

No, she doesn’t.

Harry replied:

Okay. Send me the location and I’ll see you then.

Harry would have been lying if he said he wasn’t nervous, because of course he was. As someone who got into the acting world, scenarios ran through his mind like the ones he was offered; Joe was going to beat him up, or he was going to blackmail him, or he was going to tell him that Harry was the best choice for you and that didn’t seem like the worst scenario, although a cliché.

Days seemed to fly, or so it seemed to both Harry and Joe. The meeting was one that was discreet with neither’s friends knowing about it, even as Harry rang the doorbell to yours and Joe’s home.

Opening the door, Joe offered a very small smile, only stepping aside to let Harry in, “Come in,” he said.

Harry’s stomach was in twists; clammy palms against the sides of his thighs, erratic heartbeat that would definitely need medical attention at some point because there was no way that was normal.

“Want anything to drink?” Joe asked.

“Um, no, thank you,” Harry answered, sitting when Joe motioned towards the teal-colored couch—your favorite color on couches, although you wished you could have a cream-colored one but those seemed to be too much work, Harry remembered.

Joe sat on the chair opposite to it, a space between the two men that seemed occupied by tension and lingering awkwardness.

“Look,” Joe began, voice steady and calm, “I know this is weird. Like, really weird,” he said, “But I felt like it needed to happen.”

Harry pursed his lips, hands linked together as he looked at your boyfriend.

“I think we needed to talk, a long time ago. With how messy your relationship with Y/N was, and—and all the mess that’s been happening after it came to an end, I think I needed to talk to you,” Joe said, “Because it’s reaching a point where Y/N can’t catch her breath before something just, crashes down on her.”

Harry nodded.

“Look, I know I’m not your favorite person on earth,” Joe said, “And—No offense, you’re not mine either and I think that’s normal,” he put his hand out, “You’re her ex, I’m her boyfriend, and the situation isn’t ideal. It never really is. But I do respect you because you’re—you’re someone Y/N really appreciated at some point, and regardless of what happened, I know she still respects you and still cares about you because she’s just that kind of person.”

Harry, again, nodded.

“But I do know that with your status—with your place in the industry, you can put an end to all that,” he said, “It’s definitely hard getting over Y/N. I can’t imagine what you’re going through and I—To be honest with you, I don’t want to. I don’t want to be in your place, it’s not something I wish upon anyone, even you,” Joe said, “But I’m going to need you to just—to stop getting into her life like that. It’s not good for her, it’s not good for you, even, it’s not good for anyone.”

“How am I getting into her life?” For the first time, Harry spoke.

Joe sighed, “I know you still like her pictures on Instagram, you still—you’re not a stupid guy, Harry, you know exactly what I mean,” he said, “And like I said, I know that with your status, you can keep things on the down low. Give her some peace.”

“You know I wasn’t the person who said all these things on the podcast, right?”

“I’m not saying you are.”

“You’re—I think—I think you’re implying that I had something to do with it.”

“I never did,” Joe said, “But I do know that your management wants your name to be everywhere.”

“So, you are implying it,” Harry chuckled quietly.

“Look,” Joe took a breath, leaning forward a little, “I believe everything Y/N says, and I believed her when she told me that you aren’t your management. Your principles don’t align. I don’t know why you don’t take matters into your own hands. I don’t know whether it’s because you’re unsure, you’re scared, nervous, I don’t know, man, but what I’m saying is that you need to sit down with your management and actually set thing straight. Not for you, but for Y/N,” he said, “I get that they always say bad publicity is still publicity but we all know that’s bullshit.”

Harry stayed quiet.

“I don���t think you’re the worst person,” Joe said, “I think you do some stupid shit but I know you love Y/N and—and I can’t blame you for it and I can’t even ask you to just stop and move on, because having Y/N is one of the best goddamn gifts anyone can have.”

“Yeah, I know that,” Harry mumbled with a quiet chuckle.

“So all I’m asking is for you to talk with your management and do Y/N a favor.”

“Do her a favor or do you a favor?” Harry found himself asking, “Because I think—I think It seems like you’re trying to save your relationship.”

“There’s nothing for me to save it from,” Joe instantly said, “It doesn’t need to be saved. I’m confident in my relationship with Y/N.”

And that seemed to shut Harry up.

“What you and her had—that was real. It was great, until it wasn’t. And don’t get me wrong, I’m not gloating but I didn’t meddle in and ruin what you have. I waited and I kept my distance and things fell into place and it’s not my fault your relationship went to shit, man,” he said, “I’m trying to be nice. To be respectful, and I’m asking nicely.”

Harry stayed quiet for a moment before sucking in a breath, “Okay.”

Joe nodded slowly, “Alright.”

“Did you tell her? About this?” Harry motioned between them.

“No, I didn’t,” Joe answered, “And I won’t tell her.”

“She doesn’t really like secrets,” Harry said with a chuckle, joking.

“It’s only so that she doesn’t feel like I had to tell you to be a decent person,” Joe shot back.

Harry’s eyebrows went up, “Wow,” he nodded, “Thanks for that,” he sarcastically said.

Joe nodded, “No problem.”

“Well,” Harry let out a breath, “I’ll do what I have to do,” he said, “But um—Thank you, for being respectful.”

“Like I said, she respects you, so will I.”

[awesomefringey]

Is this just my perception because of tumblr or do people actually care less about this stunt than any others before? like theres nothing to “chew on” for the gp either. they just do their thing and some harries get excited im sure but at what point does this become boring for them too?

I can only speak for myself, but yes, I’m hardly fazed by it all. Holivia has really bruised us in so many ways because they’ve gone off script so much.

Olivia herself was extremely attention hungry from the beginning. She would seek to be near Harry all the freaking time since her calendar was empty with no job in sight and split custody.

She would take her tired kids to the final show knowing very well People would drop the Holivia BUA less than 24 hours later.

Which took way too long in everyone’s opinion anyway, with all of her shit reflecting so badly on Harry. Hooking up with a subordinate, their shady stunt kickoff with Sudeikis hinting him and her weren’t done at the time, the embarrassing drama around Florence and Shia, the nasty custody battle that followed, the whack DWD promo interviews that revealed her twisted views on feminism, her arrogance towards Harry’s fans and calling us “mosquitoes”. Even Harry’s het fanbase bailed on her eventually, and they usually idolize any girl Harry lays his eyes on. I will never understand why Harry dragged her along for so long.

Olivia meant bad news in every way for Harry and in hindsight it looked like she needed Harry with his “good guy image” in her life to prove she’s not a terrible person.

With Hussell, Harry used familiar patterns from the beginning. The VIP tickets to the shows, the soho house roof top sun bathings, the strolls through London. We’re back to things being predictable. Taylor Russell has even received the same gold star package Olivia did, gets into Vogue, Harry Lambert takes care of her look and overall getting a huge push in the press for holding Harry’s hand. As long as TR doesn’t turn out to be another awful person in Harry’s life, we’ll be all but eye rolling from afar and yeah, possibly not care at all until the next BUA.

[indiaalphawhiskey]

https://at.tumblr.com/indiaalphawhiskey/everyone-says-holivia-taking-a-break-is-intended/69fvoj82zgwm

What morality clause ? I don't get it

So, first disclaimer is this is a personal theory that I have no evidence to back up. It is a hypothesis. Second disclaimer is that I’m not a lawyer and have no legal background whatsoever.

But, from general knowledge (I’ve worked for brands and marketing in my previous life), when any two parties go into a collaboration (brand + celebrity, brand + brand, or, in the case of a stunt, celebrity + celebrity), there will be a section in the contract that focuses on image, cleanliness, and morality clauses. (Harry has alluded to similar cleanliness clauses between 1D and Sony and Syco in his recent BH&G interview.)

These clauses are there to protect celebrities and brands from damages to their brand image and reputation, and can range anywhere from vague stipulations to super hard cut limitations, but will essentially say something along the lines of “if either party is in breach of this clause or is forseen to be a risk to the collaborators’ image and branding, the collaborator reserves the right to terminate the partnership, etc etc etc.” (For example, this is very likely the legal grounds brands used to dissolve their partnerships with Kanye.)

Now, when things went belly up with DWD, the first question on everyone’s mind was why these morality clauses weren’t triggered and used to get Harry out of the stunt immediately because Olivia was clearly in breach of multiple things, considering how much of her image was taking a nosedive and how much it was affecting Harry’s very pristine and protected professional reputation.

But, in hindsight and reflecting on the timing of the BUA, my theory is that these morality clauses were breached, but instead of dissolving their collaboration immediately (like they honestly should have), Harry’s team used the breach to renegotiate their stunt contract by shortening the length of the stunt in exchange for continuing to participate in it while things were still happening for DWD and MP. And, knowing Olivia wouldn’t go down without a fight, shortening the length of the stunt likely came with other advantages on her end, like softer communications narratives (“taking a break” vs. “breaking up”, amicable split), continued access to his concerts while they’re taking place in North America, continued linkages through Pleasing merch and parallel pap walks, etc.

More importantly though, regardless of however way their communications teams phrase it, there is a clear effort to split them (and, in turn, their images and brands). It’s very clear that Harry wanted to confirm to the public that they’re officially no longer linked and (likely to protect himself from Olivia doing interviews after the fact or whatever) put a hard boundary on what she can/can’t say about them publicly.

[alarrytale]

You've lost respect for harry when he was covering himself from paps pretending he didn't know they gon be there? I lost it after the emrata thing. Bc up until this point all of his stunts and fake girlfriends had some sort of purpose. Holivia happened bc there is no way he could do a gay movie without being linked to a woman. But making out for no real reason unless attention? Just because he had a break on his tour and don't u dare he wasn't in the papers being talked about during this time. The thigh tattoo which is also just for the attention? Current stunt that's happening because there are some pieces of expensive designer fabric to sell and make everyone richer? I lost respect for him when I saw him getting way too comfortable with ignoring the principles I believed he had. Has the fame, power and money really got to his head that much? Does he really want to become a household name by playing pretend? Louis has this little break on tour, they haven't seen each other in months and Harry is still going out stunting instead doing everything to make up for the time apart. Pathetic if you ask me. Has he become such a yes man to his army of leechers that does everything he's told? Has he stopped caring about everything as long as his album and tour sells? I have been a fan since 2014 and this Harry is a stranger to me and I don't support him in anything he does anymore. People obviously change but I'm not ready to attend the funeral for the person he used to be. Either way I wouldn't call myself a fan of his anymore. Fame, money and status are such shallow goals to have in life. Having the right people around you who love you unconditionally and would never use you for their sake is the most valuable thing. I can only hope Harry would realise this one day before he starts to rot with his money around people who only see him as a product that they can mold into anything they desire. (Sorry it was long, I had to get this off my chest )

Hi, anon!

It's okay, get it off your chest. What i meant is that i'm losing respect for him, it's getting chipped off bit by bit, not that there is no respect left. I agree i lost a lot with the emrata stunt. I still think there are some extenuating circumstances here, due to things out of his control, but i do agree there are things he doesn’t have to do that can't be explained away. Like him pretend hiding himself from paps he and his team called.

I think we are all just basing our judgement on him on what we see here and now. Things might make more sense at a later date or if we get more information. I, like you, can't reconcile the person i see now, with the one i used to know.

I deal well with the stunts, i don't deal well with the fake friendships or the capitalist turn this has all taken. The greed he's starting to show is such a turn off. The crackdown on fake merch, the blood prices on tickets, pleas*ng, the low quality brand deal promo for a quick buck. I would buy all this if i knew it went into his 'sue sony' fund. But it looks like it goes into the pockets of jeff and sony, with harry getting a cut. Cool it with the blatant greed thanks. At least be transparent about it. Say that your're a citrus fruit bike ambassador or a german lion brand ambassador.

I wish that his, jeff's and sony's priorities were different. He is more than a product that can be sold to the highest bidder (or not that high even...) it leaves us with such a bad taste in our mouths. I hope H knows all this and that's why he looks like a sourpuss while doing it...

[talkingharrystyles]

The only reason why I think we could potentially get some more PDA shit especially in Japan is because this stunt is the lowkey version of Holivia but also not lowkey at all and it’s also to combat the Emrata Tokyo debacle from last year. That’s a reason why they’re so public in Tokyo now. I can guarantee you that there will be lots of songs on the album where shippers especially Holivia, tayrry and Emrata ones can fight with each other who are they about (none of them for real though but he’s a songwriter and Tyler and kid will do anything to make it fitting for each shipper narrative). Also a reason why they went to the play…

Harry can’t even hold her hand so I would love to see him attempt PDA

[daisiesonafield-blog]

Why do you think are we seeing Brad so much these days? I know he is not harrys “boo” but Its so annoying that he is basically Xander 2.0

Let Harry have friends 2k23!!!!!

This is my new campaign.

Yes, you may say he has friends. But I don't see anyone losing their marbles over non white, non-conventionally attractive friends.

Like, think about his position. He's on a long ass tour with the same crew of people. He's the biggest pop star of the moment and has always been a huge deal. It's hard for him to trust people and get close to people because literally everyone has an agenda or wants something from him. Brad is his trainer and has been touring and close to him for months now. They became friends. Which is rare. Don't you become friends with people you are working closely with? Even if you're not bffs, you still talk, may do stuff together. It's life.

Nobody cared about Brad until they ended the Holivia stunt and Harry became "publicly single", but god forbid Harry Styles be single. No. He must be fucking the next thing he's pictured next to.

Fans are going nuts over it, so the media is talking because they talk about what will get clicks. But other than them being friends in addition to the trainer job, I see nothing extra to it at all.

Nobody is getting their panties in a twist over Oli. But I bet if he was a "hot Brad" everyone would be crying and screaming about how Oli is everywhere with Louis and it must mean they're fucking, because god forbid he has a close friend.

Someone make me a banner for my harry friends campaign pls.

[sadaveniren]

Why are you and your pals getting so defensive lmao? Not every show is going to have the best energy or the best vibe. It's not a reflection on you personally. And just like Louis took a little to warm up, it being his first show back, maybe the crowds needed a little time too. And if you thought the crowd yesterday was amazing than that's all that matters and not what people on the internet think.

So you wanna know why? Honestly?

Because when Harry did his first leg on LOT in fall 2021 everyone was talking about how the energy of the concerts were wrong and the crowds weren’t that loud and clearly it was a sign that everyone was displeased with Harry (and Holivia and him touring as soon as he could during covid). And it began a VERY rapid anti-Harry turn within fandom as a whole. And where was everyone getting this idea that the crowds were off? The livestreams people were watching.

Meanwhile, every person I spoke to who went to a show during that time said the energy was fine! And that nothing was that weird! And the crowds were loud enough as is!

But the fandom narrative had already taken off. There was a lot of bad blood towards Harry at the time for stunt related reasons and the “weird energy of the tour” that was assumed entirely through watching livestreams that cannot and did not capture the true experience of the show only amplified that.

And so I have that lived experience, and I then see that the moment I leave the venue everyone is talking about how dead the crowd was, and how the energy had changed and you know… in fandom there’s currently a lot of bad blood towards Louis involving stunts right now….

You see where I’m going with this? I’m seeing a lot of the same signs I saw before the anti-Harry shift happening right now with Louis.

And that’s why I’m defensive. Because I don’t want the anti-Louis shift to happen. I don’t want the livestreams to make people think what they’re seeing is true and just mindlessly go along with the anti-Louis hate. Like I really fucking don’t. So if being extra annoying about it is what it takes there you go 🥰

[twopoppies]

With Harry being so private and reserved, almost in a strict manner, how could anyone really think he would let his relationships be open to the public. Like how is it possible that they don’t think it’s just stunt?

It’s the same thing every single time.

Like ok, you’re not a Larrie. Cool. I get it. But even if he was with someone else, like this girl, based on his persona he would keep it privately like EVERYTHING in his life.

Also, related to this: that is why every time he explains a song and the meaning behind it (only the stunt ones or like the het ones that fill the fake media narrative) I don’t believe in what he says. Because Harry dodges every question about songs, and he doesn’t explain anything about anything. So I know he just has to say that for the narrative 🙂‍↕️

Yeah, we've been saying it for years, but I think there's a real mental block for some people. 1. They really want him to be dating women. 2. They don't want to accept that Harry would "lie" about anything. #. And then there's the added layer of not wanting to acknowledge that larries were right about that aspect, which means they might have to accept that larries were right about other things, too.

And yeah, I agree with you about Harry being very specific about songs. It's a pretty good indication he's lying. LOL! The only one I struggle with is Love of My Life. I go back and forth about that one because it was in the midst of Holivia, and he was doing so much to ensure everyone knew nothing was about her. So, did he say LOML was about England to make sure people didn't attach it to her? Or did he write a love song about a person disguised as a love song to England and put out that comment to throw people off? Maybe both.

[louisisalarrie]

Ooh, if you are in the mood for a deep dive, can you talk about the reasons why Mexico is so special? I loved what L said yesterday, something about poetic and romantic, and I’d adore to know everything behind that. Thanks!

hellooooo! there’s not been too much proof about Larry and Mexico, except for the fact that the Holivia BUA happened just before H went to Mexico, and the Elounor BUA also happened just before L went to Mexico. So it’s like… a lot of people anticipate a BUA or the end of a stunt prior to a Mexico tour. So it’s a bit more of a larrie theorie, but we also do get stunt action there too, unfortunately (Louis and DC in Mexico where she was topless(????), Harry with that girl by the pool etc.).

Someone said it like this the other day: LA is work, London is home, and Mexico is freedom. Louis’ comment about romance and poetry supports what has happened prior to trips to Mexico for H and L before. I don’t know what it is about it, but yeah, two BUA of long term stunts happening right before H/L went to Mexico? Pretty odd. But yeah, I mean, we still get stunt content in every city they visit.

BUT we did get the beautiful Larry whisper/kiss there, louis pointing at the Pride “love is only for the brave” flag that had a pic of Larry hugging on it, Larry interacting and having fun for like the first time in FOREVER (a reference to their tattoos with the lighthouse which is hilarious), and more of Larry interacting and their legs being pressed up against each other. And im sure other instances too, but those are the ones I can remember off the top of my head.

And it’s not just about Larry either. Louis and Niall had a reunion in Mexico in 2019 too. So, yeah. All very cute, and we seem to get some lovely content when they’re there (minus the over the top stunts). Louis wrapping a flag around his shoulders is lovely to see, too. Hopefully it’s a pride one soon!!

[skepticalarrie]

hii :), i'm really sorry to ask such a stupid qst but why are you saying that Louis is digging a whole for Harry ? like i get the expression and what you mean by it but why is Harry digging a whole for himself right now? i feel like i've missed something... i saw the bad bunny thing and how he "shaded" (thats a big word) Harry, but apart from that, did anything happened ? (apart from Emrata bc we don't talk about that pretty please) I saw you mentioned something about stunts and Kendall, but i dont really see how that would be his fault (or why were bringing up stunts rn). Like the media will use any crazy shit for clicks... (but again i feel like im missing something, maybe it was more than a stupid connection and i just missed it). It a genuine question btw because since Tokyo i've not seen anything alarming about Harry and i feel like i maybe just missed some things...

No, I’m talking about the bigger picture, anon. I think he has taken quite a few questionable paths with his career especially when it comes to his public image. From all the Watermelon Sugar bullshit, to the entire Holivia and DWD mess - and the fact they let it last that long to only get that messy. Queerbaiting accusations, his Grammys speech, the fact he’s truly overexposing himself and his music, and now Emrata… it’s a lot to deal with, and it feels like things could go south at some point for him. Which is something I’d HATE to watch happen, I think it’s very hard as a fan to watch things happening knowing this is just not Harry 🤷‍♀️ So as much I just want to put him on a bubble, these are his choice and I hope it’s worth it for him. But oh boy.. I would really like to just knock some sense into him sometimes.