"Ellie! You didn't tell me you had company," Audrey gestures to the tall man behind me. I smile sheepishly while she winks, holding out her hand. "Hi Harry, I'm assuming you're here to help with the move?"

He nods and shakes her hand before quickly letting go. 

"Well, come on in!" She chirps, letting us inside the apartment. It's my first time seeing it in person. She showed me a couple photos on the internet, but they were more focused on the common areas. Nothing could compare to the real deal.

It's way better than I expected. The living room is pretty big with wood floors. The kitchen looks sleek and not cheesy at all, like how most traditional apartments look. It's lined with modern appliances. 

She stands outside a door and dramatically opens it to reveal my bedroom. I peek in and notice a queen-size bed. There's also a dresser and desk on opposite ends. The walls are white, giving the room a bright look. 

There are two different doors. One leads to a giant walk-in closet, while the other is an en-suite bathroom.

I silently thank Audrey's rich parents. 

"So, Harry. I'm so glad you manned up and visited our poor Ellie here. She missed you and wouldn't stop talking about you," Audrey smiles, enjoying my embarrassment.  "What a shame you can't man up in bed," she says under her breath. My eyes go wide and I hit her arm. 

"What?" Harry asks, not knowing if he heard correctly. 

"Nothing, she's kidding. How about you finish unpacking?" I hiss, glaring at her retreating figure. At the door, she smiles apologetically before closing it shut.

I doubt she's sorry.

Once she's out of the room, Harry looks over at me with dark eyes. "Have I not... satisfied you?"

I avoid his gaze. "She's crazy," I say, distracting myself with my hands. Wow, have my fingers always been this long?

He forces my head up, making me look into his eyes. "Did you not finish?"

"I did the second time!" I say defensively. 

"So not the first?" 

"No," I whisper under my breath.

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair. "Fuck Ellie, why didn't you tell me? That was your first time!"

I shrug, not wanting to make it a big deal. It wasn't a big deal. It's not like he kept up with the trend. Besides, he couldn't do anything about it now. 

"Wait, you faked it?" 

I nod, bracing for his reaction.

He sighs for the second time. "You should have said something. Baby, I could have tried something else. You didn't have to lie."

"I-I just didn't know what I wanted," I whisper. We stand in a killer silence. "Are you mad at me?"

He looks up, bewildered. "No, I could never. I'm mad at myself for not realizing." 

"I enjoyed the second time," I quickly add, trying not to hurt him. His ego's taken a big hit and I definitely don't want to add to it. 

"You could have faked that too."

I move closer to him. "No, I didn't. Harry, it was amazing and you were amazing. It was one time, let it go." 

"Just don't lie to me again. Sex is about mutual pleasure, and it's not fair if I'm the only one getting it. Just tell me next time, okay? We can try new stuff." 

I smile reassuringly. He's just too sweet to me.

Audrey clears her throat and leans against the doorway. I didn't even hear her come in. She's smirking, but speaks innocently. She definitely overheard us. "I'm just going to work. I'll be back at night." She winks at me before leaving the room.

Harry's smirking at me. "We could christen your bedroom..." he glances at the new bed. 

"Harry," I gasp, hitting his arm. "Come on, we have to unpack." 

He groans but follows me back to his car. He takes the big boxes, while I take the smaller ones. I'm glad he's helping me. I wouldn't be able to this without him, especially with Aud at work.

Every time he brings something into the place, I reward him with a kiss. One box equals one kiss. He likes this system, trying to bring in multiple boxes at the same time.

"Don't get too ahead of yourself," I giggle when he walks in with five stacked boxes, barely being able to see in front of him.

He gently drops them on the floor and makes his way over to me. I give him a kiss.

"1"

Another.

"2"

He shifts even closer, cupping my face.

"3"

I peck him one more time.

"4"

For the final kiss, he decides he wants something more than a peck. He holds my face as he kisses me deeply. I go with it, kissing him hard. I open my mouth, giving him access. 

"5," I breathe out after. He snickers as I try to catch my breath.

"That was the last of it," he pats the stack of boxes. I give him an approving look, proud that he was able to bring it all in.

I reach on my tippy toes and give him one last kiss.

"What was that for?" He asks, amused.

"For being a good boy," I pat his head then plop back down on the floor. While Harry was doing the heavy labor, I was actually unpacking my stuff. So far, I've filled half of my dresser. Seeing all these boxes has me overwhelmed.

He must sense my apprehension before he sits on the floor next to me. "Just tell me where these go," he says, picking through the box. He picks up an article, looking confused, until he realizes it's a thong. 

I snatch it out his hand, red as a tomato. He flashes me a smirk before digging into the box.

"You know, why don't we take a break. We can put the sheets on the bed," I say, mortified of what else he might find.

He nods in agreement. "Which box is that in?"

"Shit," I mumble, having no idea.

We look through all the boxes until I finally find them. I had to buy new ones because my bed at home is just a full size. This bed is a queen, so I need bigger sheets.

"Okay, we have to put it on at the same time," I explain. Harry nods. We both carefully pull the sheet over our designated corner. Everything goes well, until the other side pops out. "Argh!" I groan. "Stupid fitted sheets, they're so complicated."

Harry nods in agreement. "Let's try again."

We repeat the action and receive the same reaction. 

"You're putting it on too fast!" I yell.

"Am not," he narrows his eyes. "We're doing it at the same time!"

"If we were, then we wouldn't be having this problem."

He grunts in annoyance. "You're such a child. Try again."

"Me?" I snap. "You're the one who can't put a fitted sheet on!" 

He rolls his eyes. "This is a two person job, meaning it's not only my fault."

I stick my tongue out in response. We both navigate our corners, hoping it sticks this time. Once they're tucked in, I suck my breath in, waiting.

"Yes!" I chime when the sheet doesn't pop out. We give each other a high five.

"Now, what were you saying?" Harry whispers, walking toward me. "I'm a child?" I stand my ground, avoiding his menacing look. My feet stay planted on the floor. 

His eyes glare into mine. I know he wants me to back into the wall so he has power over me. 

When he's directly in front of me, I hop up and kiss his nose. He looks taken aback by my reaction, and his smirk fades into shock. 

"You're something else," he laughs. 

"I know," I grin, backing away from him. "I'm getting tired," I yawn, staring at the bed.

"Ah," he smiles. "I guess that's my cue then."

"No, wait!" I say a little too quickly. "Spend the night?"

He looks hesitant at first. "You want your first night at this apartment to be with me?"

"Well, yeah."

"What if Audrey minds?"

He's right. I never asked her.

"I'll text her. If she says no, then you leave. At least stay for now." 

He nods and takes a seat on the bed while I text her. She's at work, so I doubt I'll get an answer anytime soon. 

My stomach rumbles loudly. Harry shoots me an amused smile. "Hungry?"

I nod a yes. "Very."

"Let's order takeout. I doubt you have any groceries." He's right. I haven't even thought about cooking. That's something that I'll miss about living at home. My mom always made sure we're fed, no matter how busy. He adds, "Next time, I'll show you my cooking abilities."

A small laugh escapes my mouth. "You can cook?"

"You know, besides being incredibly handsome and strong and an amazing singer, I can cook."

My jaw drops at his shameless self compliments. "Jeez, have some humility. Besides, I don't really believe you."

His face drops. "I cook for myself you know. When I'm at home, I have my own place."

"That doesn't mean you're good."

His smirk reappears. "I'll prove it."

"I can't wait, but not today. We don't have time to get groceries and cook them. I'll die of starvation by then."

He rolls his eyes at my drama. "Okay drama queen. What are you in the mood for?"

I think about my options. "Pizza?"

He makes a disgusted face, which I take as a no.

"Chinese?"

"Better," he agrees. 

I google the nearest Chinese place and find the menu. Luckily, they have an online ordering system, which spares me a phone call.

~~~

"Are you sure she won't mind that I'm staying over?" Harry asks for the millionth time.

I shove the text in his face. "No, I told you she said it's fine! You need to relax."

He leans over and gives me a kiss. "You know, I'm going to have to switch hotels. Mine is too far from your place."

"How long are you staying, anyway?" I ask nonchalantly, trying not to seem clingy. If there's one thing I hate, it's the thought of someone having control over my emotions. 

Luckily, he doesn't see my question as clingy or annoying. I swear, sometimes I overthink too much. 

"No idea, really. I'm really in my downtime. I guess my fate is in your hands." He dramatically reaches out his hands, pretending to give me his physical 'fate'. 

I giggle, pretending to grab it. "You know, you act different when we're alone."

His face changes. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know. You're just more playful around me. When you're with others, you act grumpy." 

He thinks about my words for a minute. "Do I?"

"Yes, especially around the boys."

He sighs and explains, "the boys can be annoying. They'll tease each other for any small thing. You saw how they reacted in the plane. I have a- umm- reputation. Not necessarily the committed type. You just always put me in a good mood." He finishes his sentence with a goofy smile. 

I swoon with his word choice. 

Now's the best time to ask the burning question I've had. "What are we?" 

All signs of silliness are gone. "Ellie," he sighs, running his hand through his curls. "You have to tell me what you want. I want to make sure you're happy and forgiven me. I know I hurt you and I'm willing to spend my whole life making it up to you."

Tears well up in my eyes. I never felt so loved in my entire life. His little gestures mean so much to me, and I don't even think he realizes. I lunge toward him, hugging him tightly. "You're so sweet."

He strokes my hair as I stupidly cry over nothing.

"Harry, I want to be yours." 

He pulls away to assess my dead serious face. "Really?"

"Yes," I whisper, kissing him through the tears. 

"You've just made me the happiest man alive." He grins, his dimples becoming prominent. 

"And me, the happiest girl." 

We both grin at each other. 

"Wait, I don't want this to be public. Only friends and family," I add. "I'm not ready for the media."

He nods understandably. "Gemma's going to be excited."

I cock my head, confused. "What?"

"She loves you. She'll be over the moon!"

"Hm," I laugh. Our first impressions were less than friendly, but we've come so far. I secretly love his family's approval. "Well, then your mom will be more than happy."

Now it's his turn to be confused. 

"You know, your mom and I hung out a lot while I was there... maybe if you paid more attention..." I tease. 

His eyes widen in surprise. "Really? Shit, did she say anything embarrassing?"

"No," I say nonchalantly. "She did show me some stuff though..." I add mischievously. Let's just say, his baby pictures are the cutest. 

His face turns slightly red. "Ugh."

"Come on, let's try out this new bed," I sit up and grab his hand. He sends me a suggestive look, making another blush form. "Oh gosh, no. I just meant sleeping."

He laughs, mocking me. "You're too cute, Ellie."