"No, shuffle it across a bit."

You pointed the decorators to the area you wanted the tall bar table to be placed as the sounds of setting up and general chatter continued around you.

It was a few weeks later and the night of The 1975's newest albums launch party. To say it had been a little thrown together would be the truth; considering how close Harry had planned it to the unexpected court date meant you'd only had just over two weeks to finalise all the details of the night.

But the task was nothing you couldn't handle, that was for sure. Working under pressure was not unusual to you, and considering how closely you'd been working with the band before New Years meant they'd been so helpful in giving you clear direction of what they wanted from their big night.

Bar a few little alterations which you were currently rectifying, the venue looked amazing. Since the album had some varying themes and vibes, you'd chosen an edgy bar set in a concrete-wall basement with different foundations and pillars, surrounded by colourful lights. With the added lighter backdrop lights, the space didn't feel claustrophobic or dark, but rather set alight with purple and green spotlights.

"Someones feeling bossy tonight," a familiar voice drawled from behind you.

You rolled your eyes good-naturedly with a growing smile as you span on your heel to face Harry, "Haven't heard that one before," you replied playfully as you reached to run your hands along the periwinkle blue lapels of his suit jacket.

"Was hoping you'd remember," he said back, hands curling around your waist to bring you closer to him as his eyes sparkled with memories.

Of course you remembered. How could you ever forget your first ever album party with Harry and his company? It had certainly been a catalyst of sorts, what with the kiss you and Harry had shared, the romantic dance and the fear that came after Tom Pennock had snapped those pictures of you two.

The thought used to make you feel a bit sick to your stomach, and what ultimately happened after that night, but now looking at how far you and Harry had come, and how Tom Pennock was merely a long forgotten annoyance, you couldn't help but feel a quiet sense of triumph.

"Of course, I think that was when I first started realising I liked you as way more than just a friend," you admitted, hindsight enabling you to recognise what you hadn't seen at the time.

Harry hummed in agreement, "Even though you ran off and left me stranded after my super romantic gesture," he teased, giving your waist a squeeze.

You whacked him lightly on the arm with a laugh, "Hey, who could blame me? I was terrified of what that picture could've meant!"

Harry laughed too, "I know I'm only messing with you, besides all worked out in the end didn't it? Water under the bridge and all."

It was your turn to hum in agreement as you slid your arms around Harry's neck, "It certainly did, and I couldn't be happier about it."

Harry's answering smile was as bright as the two gems that now adorned your bracelet which sparkled under the dim lighting. They winked at you from behind Harry's head as though in agreement with your words.

You leant up with a glowing smile of your own to press your lips to Harry's. Every kiss with him still felt as magical as the first and you knew you'd never tire from the bliss that ran through your every nerve when he touched you.

Harry had just begun to pry your lips open to connect his tongue with yours when a loud, over-the-top cough sounded to your left.

Disconnecting your lips, but still keeping as close to Harry as you had just been, you turned your head with a knowing, albeit annoyed smile to be met with a familiar face.

"Thought I'd break this up before any pictures get taken again," Niall said, a deep smirk etched onto his face.

"Oh Niall you're such an ass," Emmy chided jokingly as she joined his side.

You and Harry laughed loudly, slowly untangling yourselves from each other to greet your friends. Hugs and kisses on cheeks were exchanged before Emmy and Niall stood back to scan the room.

"It looks amazing Ceece, you've done a fab job as always," Emmy complimented, her tassel dress swaying as she turned to look around the room.

"Thank you," you replied sincerely, looking around the room yourself to do a final once-over before anyone else started to arrive.

The band were expected to turn up a little later as the guests of honour, but you'd made sure to invite all the necessary people to get them as much coverage as possible. Glancing at your wristwatch briefly, you were surprised to see how close to the start time it had gotten.

"Okay, people should be arriving soon. Harry you greet them all since you'll most likely know them the best, Niall and Emmy you, um...just look sociable," you tucked your bag under your arm and grabbed two Champagne flutes from the passing by waiters tray and swiftly pushed them into the hands of the couple.

"Well I wouldn't say no to this anyway," muttered Emmy, taking a gulp from her glass instantly.

Niall chuckled in agreement and tipped his glass towards Emmy's in a light cheers.

You watched the room avidly, only just catching Emmy's sarcastic comment, suddenly focused back on the task at hand. It was as though a restless feeling was washing over you; nerves wasn't the right word, as these events felt like second nature, but more so a desire to make sure it all went according to plan. Maybe this feeling was also heightened because it might be your last event like this with Eroda Music.

"Hey," Harrys soft voice near your ear made you jolt slightly, "You okay? You started tapping your foot and biting your nail."

Instantly you let out a slightly bashful hum and stopped the fidgety habits, even as your heart clenched at the fact Harry knew your telltale signs of unsettledness so well.

"Just feel a bit restless is all, think maybe it's dawning on me that I won't be doing this much more and the pressure is on," you admitted as Harry stroked soothing lines up and down your arm.

"There's no pressure at all baby, there's no-one you need to prove yourself too; they already know you're a force to be reckoned with. I wouldn't have hired you as my right hand woman if it wasn't the case," Harry finished with a cheeky wink.

You breathed out a short laugh, moving in to place your cheek just under his shoulder whilst his arms simultaneously cupped further around your back, "Yeah I know you're right H, I need to just relax a bit and enjoy it tonight."

As though you'd timed it perfectly, at that moment another waiter passed with a tray full of champagne, and seeing your eyes follow it almost hungrily, Harry smoothly grabbed two glasses as they passed.

"For you my love," Harry placed the glass in your already waiting hand and clinked them together, "A toast to my incredible, beautiful, insanely talented girlfriend and soon to be co-CEO," his words were spoken with a huge grin, knowing the slightly cheesy tone would have the desired effect on you.

And it worked a treat, you tipped your head back with a laugh, "Co-CEO, is that my official title now?"

"Well no, cos I'm not even calling myself that, but you can't say it doesn't have a nice ring to it," Harry intoned with a raised eyebrow.

"Hmm, you might have a point," you murmured back, the words brushing across Harry's lips as you leant in for a chaste peck.

"Seriously you two, it's no wonder you got papped with how much you kiss," Niall's teasing lilt broke you and Harry apart for the second time tonight, as you both turned to him with slightly tinted cheeks and guilty smiles.

"Oh piss off. Let me kiss my girlfriend in peace," Harry turned to flip his middle finger up at Niall before wrapping his arm around your back and titling you slightly towards the floor in an overdramatic, Hollywood-esque kiss.

You laughed against Harrys soft, but firm mouth as Niall made a disgusted groan before melting into the kiss and letting Harrys tongue pry your mouth open.

As much as you were enjoying it, and every fibre of you wanted to forget tonight and just stay wrapped up in this kiss forever, you both eventually broke apart.

"Right c'mon you, let's get this show on the road," Harry said with a light tap to your bum.

You nodded in affirmation, taking a long swig of your Champagne before dropping one more kiss to Harry's jaw and taking his hand in your own, "Let's do this."

◇

A few hours in and the event was packed.

The band were due to arrive any minute now on the makeshift stage that had been set up earlier in the day. There was a clear buzz among all the guests as they waited for their esteemed arrival. You knew Matty, George, Adam and Ross were all equally as hyped, having just poked your head backstage.

One thing you'd always loved about them as a band, was their ability to not care about what the critics or reviews said about their music. Because they absolutely adore what they produce, all that mattered to them was continuing that; doing what they loved.

It was an infectious aura to be around, and you found yourself even more excited for them than you had already been. Besides, you were a massive fan of them regardless, so to say this night had brought a shedload of excitement would be an understatement.

"Oh my god," you whispered, almost frantic with enthusiasm, to Emmy, "I am so excited Ems!"

She gave you an amused look, "I know, this is a huge night but the fact you get to listen to their new album so soon is such a good added bonus."

"Exactly!"

"Bet Harry's feeling nervous though," Emmy commented, taking a sip of her drink after.

That pulled you up short. With a furrowed brow you turned more to look at her, "Why would he be nervous?"

You watched Emmy's eyes bug out slightly as she nearly choked on her drink. Lowering the glass from her lips and clearing her throat she blinked a few times as though to reset her expression before replying, "Oh, cos you know, after the statement and everything people might just have...um, high expectations."

You narrowed your eyes a little, not believing a word at all. Yes, Harry's surprise announcement a few weeks ago had caused shockwaves through the tabloids and news articles, but it had begun to die down significantly this week.

"Hmm," you chose to let it slide since Harry hadn't said anything about it to you. But you didn't have the chance to say much else as Emmy shuffled uncomfortably on her feet as the lights began to dim and shallow spotlights swooped towards the stage.

A round of loud clapping and a few cheers spread through the crowd as Harry walked up onto the stage to introduce the band.

"Hello, good evening everyone," he began, waving briefly before clasping his hands in front of him, "Welcome to our album launch party for the wonderful band The 1975 and their new album Notes On A Conditional Form!"

Another loud cheer from the crowd. You watched Harry, instantly smitten, as he continued to talk, giving a little background to the band and his relationship with them.

The crowd ate up his every word, taking the odd photograph and jotting down notes for whatever news article or review they would be spinning up after the event. Luckily from what you could discern, most of the individuals seemed to be positively rapt by the event and you knew you'd done a good job at researching the background of the news outlets you'd invited. You wouldn't make the mistake of inviting the wrong names again, that was for sure.

After a few more minutes Harry was wrapping his speech up, "Without further ado, to sing several songs from their newest album, give a warm welcome to The 1975!"

You couldn't help the excited butterflies that swarmed your stomach knowing you'd be one of the first people to hear one of your favourite bands new songs. You really did love your job.

The four men took to the stage as relaxed as ever as noises of appreciation showered down over them. You were so focused on them as they tuned their instruments for a moment that a warm hand on your lower back made you jump.

"How'd I do?" Harry asked from behind, his warm breath flooding over your neck.

"You made me jump," you chuckled before turning slightly to look at his face, "Excellent as always baby," you complimented, cupping a hand on his cheek and leaning in for a quick peck.

Harry hummed happily against your lips, but you were pulling away soon after as the lights dimmed and the first note of the familiar album classic The 1975 began to play around the room.

You let out a loud cheer, goosebumps covering your arms, suddenly transported back to the concert Harry took you too so long ago. Regardless of how big a fan you were of this band, their music would forever hold a special place in your heart because of that night.

Knowing that this event was much more relaxed than the previous ones you'd heralded, you allowed yourself to let loose and enjoy the music for once, rather than being overly concerned with hosting.

And it was the perfect decision. It seemed as though everyone had the same thing in mind as the band played their new music. It was clear that the people invited had a genuine love for the bands music too, as everyone was dancing and cheering along.

After playing a handful of songs, the last being an immensely catchy number called If You're Too Shy (Let Me Know), Matty took a moment to address the crowd.

"Thanks so much for all being here tonight," he began, taking a swig from his glass of red wine, "We love this album so fucking much, I for one think it's our best, because it just incorporates all that we are."

You turned to look at Harry, a broad grin on your face, eager to share this moment with him as you had done similarly during the concert. But that grin quickly faded as you realised he was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's H?" You whispered loudly to Emmy and Niall who were stood to your left.

They both turned to you with matching shining eyes and subtle, knowing smiles rather than supplying an answer. You raised your brow in further question but Emmy only tipped her head towards the stage and looked away from you.

Confused, and slightly miffed as to why they weren't answering, you diverted your eyes back to the stage, sure that Harry would appear soon.

"Anyway, wanted to say a few words about this next song. The chorus was shown to me by someone I, at the time, did not expect as he is technically my fucking boss."

A hushed murmur went through the crowd at this because everyone knew that Harry was of course the bands boss, but they definitely didn't know about his affinity for song writing. However, it wasn't much of a surprise to you as you knew Harry wrote lyrics and songs all the time; you had a book filled with them after all. But what did surprise you, was the fact Harry hadn't mentioned this to you at all.

"I loved the idea, as I can't resist a bit of a quirky love song, but what made it even more special, was knowing the person it was about," Matty somehow managed to meet your eyes as he spoke, and you felt your stomach drop in shock, "And even though it took a while for it to come together, since a certain collaborator was busy making this song come true, everyone involved is really fucking proud of the outcome."

A scattered laugh ran through the crowd at Matty's teasing tone, but you were stood stock still, practically frozen as the anticipation of what was about to happen continued to build.

"So to join us on the stage, it's Mr Harry Styles!"

Your mouth dropped open in shock as Harry loped onto the stage with a small wave while everyone else encouraged him on with loud, albeit surprised, cheers. You managed to bring your hands together to clap a few times, even though you were still utterly unsure about what to expect other than a weird sense that this song somehow had something to do with you.

Everyone quieted down as the opening notes rang out and you listened intently as Matty sang the first verse.

The lyrics spoke of someone having a friendship with a girl, but wanting to take it further into a possible romance, but the girl unfortunately denies the offer because it wouldn't feel right. The person waves it off, but still admits to how much the girl means to them. You couldn't help but recognise some similarities between the start of yours and Harry's relationship, but as soon as Harry opened his mouth to sing the first chorus, any theories left your mind.

"I've been in love with her for ages, and I can't seem to get it right, I fell in love with her in stages, my whole life..."

Your heart began to hammer away in your chest as the message of the song began to dawn on you and a smile began to take over your face. You could feel Emmy and Niall's eyes on you and see their huge grins from the corner of your eye as they began to blur with tears.

"I had a dream where we had kids, you would cook, I'd do the nappies..."

Harry sounded like a dream and your heart swelled in your chest with pride as you could see everyone else around you was just as enraptured with his voice as you had been the first time you'd heard it.

You watched his face intently, his eyes having been focused on your own the moment he'd stepped on the stage. He had a light colour tainting his cheeks as though he was somewhat nervous, but from the small smile playing at his lips you knew it was more because of the knowledge of what this song would mean to you - and also for hiding another surprise from you yet again.

"We went to Winter Wonderland, and it was shit but we were happy..."

A loud laugh bubbled from your lips, the memories of your own trip to Winter Wonderland coming back to you instantly, and how happy the two of you had been even though you'd decided it was extremely overrated.

Matty joined back in, taking over from Harry, as though to imply that the lyrics Harry had sang had been of his own creativity. The thought made you giggle, knowing how smug and proud Harry must've been to get that silly, yet meaningful reference in.

"And there's been no way for me to say, that I felt a certain way in stages, I think the story needs more pages, yes..."

The vulnerability behind the lyrics made your throat squeeze, knowing now how long Harry - and yourself - had secretly harboured these feelings for each other. As emotional as you felt, you couldn't help but join in with the dancing that had quickly come about from the catchy, upbeat tune.

But as the song drew to a close you slowed down for a moment, Emmy wrapping her arms tightly around you as you listened closely once more.

The two men sang together in perfect harmony, "I've been in love with her for ages, and ages, and ages..."

But unexpectedly, as Matty moved away from his microphone, a small lyric change had your breath catching in your throat as Harry looked you straight in the eyes and finished the song.

"I've been in love with you for ages, for ages, for ages, and ages...I've been in love with you for ages."

You didn't even notice, but tears had begun slowly trickling down your cheeks at the intensity behind Harry's voice as he brought the song to a close. The fact he had kept this song so tightly under wraps until this very moment was enough to send your emotions running wild, let alone the story and meaning behind the song.

Before you could even register what was happening, what with the loud applause from everyone including the band, Harry was jumping down off the stage and engulfing you in his arms.

You wrapped your arms around him so tightly, gripping the soft fabric of the back of his suit jacket in fisted hands. Burying your head into his neck, you let out a few laughed sobs of disbelief and love.

"Oh, baby," Harry whispered, ducking his head into your own shoulder as his voice broke a fraction.

Luckily, everyone in the crowd apart from Emmy and Niall had turned back to the stage where the band were starting up their penultimate song. You took a few moments to compose yourself before pulling out of Harry's embrace.

"Thought you loved Winter Wonderland?" You asked teasingly around a teary laugh.

Harry tipped his head back and laughed, "Have to let you be right sometimes don't I?" He responded cheekily.

You slapped him lightly on the chest, joining in his laughter before melting into the glowing emerald of his eyes, "But seriously H...I can't even cope with you and your surprises, I never saw that song in my journal!"

"That's cos I was saving it for the right moment," he explained, all sparkly eyes and dimpled cheeks, "You deserved to be reminded of how much I adore you as often as possible."

You gave him what could only be described as a soppy, lovesick smile, too overwhelmed to even fathom how you'd managed to call this man yours. Leaning up you pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

"And I thought you wouldn't top the bracelet," you chuckled against his mouth, teeth clashing a little as you both couldn't stop the cheesy grins spreading across your faces, "I love you so much Harry."

"I love you my darling Cecelia, always."

You both leant in again to share what would've definitely been a more passionate kiss, when suddenly two pairs of bright blue eyes were peering at you both and most definitely invading your personal space.

"I feel like there's four people in this relationship," muttered Harry as he turned to side-eye your friends.

The extra two in question just grinned like Cheshire cats, "You're gonna miss the end of the set with your snogging!" Whined Emmy, "And besides, I think you're both gonna like this one."

You'd not even realised but the final song had already begun, and from the slight shimmer in Emmy's eyes you new it must be something special.

Turning around as Harry slung an arm over your shoulder, you tuned into the soft lyrics paired with a gentle melody that instantly tugged on your heartstrings.

"The moment that you took my hand, was the best thing that ever happened..."

You immediately had a feeling you knew what this song was about. You recalled a conversation over the phone with the band to discuss their setlist for tonight, and remembered how they had said they'd be ending with one of the most emotional and personal songs on the album. You hadn't pressed for any more details, having wanted to be surprised, but from their brief description it was all about the love they shared for each other and the incredible lives they got to live side by side.

Instantly you felt your throat tighten with how much you could relate to the song; a day didn't go by where you weren't grateful for how the past year had turned out, and a large reason for it was all down to the three people currently stood by your side.

If it hadn't been for your friendship with Emmy and her birthday party in that club almost a year and a half ago, you'd have never had that intense, wonderful encounter with Harry. You'd thought that night had been potentially life-changing enough but then to find out he was your boss had completely thrown everything off balance, and even if you hadn't realised it at the time, it had been thrown off balance in the best possible way.

It seemed as though all four of you had begun to think the same thing as Emmy moved to grip your hand in her own and offer you a warm, understanding smile. Harry's arm around your shoulders tightened a little, as his fingertips began stroking along your upper arm. You saw Niall loop an arm around Emmy's waist out of the corner of your eye, pressing a kiss to her cheek as he did so.

And that was how the four of you stood as the song came to a close. A quiet, yet special moment between all of you, surrounded by people, but still feeling as though you were home.

"You guys are the best thing that ever happened to me."

You couldn't stop the beaming smile that took over your face as the song ended, because it was true; this job, these friendships and most importantly, this all consuming, eternal love you had with Harry were the best things that had ever happen to you.

◇

the end

◇

lmao only partly joking still got the epilogue to go hahaha

but still omg :(((( I can't believe this book only has one more chapter to go before it's finished!!! I've absolutely loved writing it and am so proud of it, even though I'm sure there's a load of editing I would definitely do but overall my first complete fic is for sure something to be proud of!!

anyway, I won't get soppy too much because I'll save that for the epilogue lol but I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I tried to capture Matty as best as possible with the red wine and the swearing so I hope that came across lmao

but aren't our little four-some so adorable :') I love them so much hahahaha also props to you if you remember the song that Harry sings in this chapter ;))

thank you so much as always, and maybe more than ever now since this fic is coming to an end, for all the love and support you've shown me and my writing - it'll never go unnoticed or unappreciated <3

happy reading, and hopefully I'll see you soon for the epilogue!!

all my love,

kait x