This is the second part of today's double update, so if you haven't already read Chapter 89, please skip back and read that first! (I don't think the notifications are working properly - no one seems to have had the update notifs 🙄)

---***---

"Oh my God," I breathed again, reaching into the bag to touch the soft fabric of the hoodie. "Where did you get this? I threw it all away months ago..."

I could barely see for tears, now.

"No," Harry corrected, "you gave it to Callie to throw away. But she kept it in case you changed your mind."

I took a moment to process this, my heart thumping in my chest and my legs trembling under my dress.

"I can't believe you would do all this for me," I sobbed, as he put his arms around me again and I gripped him tightly round the waist.

"I've been planning it for months," he said softly. "Like I said, I wanted to make everything right again."

"Oh Harry," I said softly, lifting my head and letting him kiss me softly on the lips, not caring if anyone was watching us, as Perfect played perfectly in the background. "Thank you."

"You're not cross I interfered?" he asked tentatively. "Getting it all back without asking you, I mean?"

"Of course not," I assured him. "Why would I be?"

He shrugged. "You told me off several times last year for crowding you and trying to run your life for you. I was worried you might think I was doing it again."

"No," I said firmly, shaking my head. "This is completely different. We're back together now, and this the history of us. Of course I wanted it back, and to recreate the night we met, with the same people and the same music... it's just amazing. It's Perfect."

"Don't be corny, Jess," Calvin chastised from behind me.

"Stop eavesdropping," I retorted without turning round.

"I gotta hand it to you, mate. This was pretty awesome," Calvin said reluctantly, to Harry. "But you do know you've set the bar now. Imagine what you'll have to do to propose to her. She's gonna expect the world."

"Woah, let's not get ahead of ourselves," I chuckled, looking up at Harry who was grinning too. "We've just had the most tumultuous year imaginable. I'd quite like to enjoy some time together without any drama, before we go making any major life decisions like that."

"Amen to that," Harry nodded, and Calvin gave an inclination of his head in concession.

"Fair point," he agreed.

"So... can I offer you a cocktail of some sort?" Harry grinned, closing the laptop and removing the memory card from a slot on the side and shoving it in his pocket. "I don't know if you remember, but I'm quite the connoisseur."

"I do remember, thanks," I replied, wrinkling my nose. "You made some vile concoction last time that probably eroded the sink on its way down the plughole."

Harry shook his head at me, his lips pressed together and his eyes twinkling. "I can see you haven't learnt anything this past year. You still don't give an inch."

"Oh hush," I grinned, reaching my arms up around his neck and kissing him on the lips again. "I'll let you make me a cherry brandy in the kitchen, if only so I can recreate our first kiss and get myself all hot and bothered like last time."

"Will you ask me for directions?" he teased, kissing me back.

"I've got all the direction I need," I leered at him, and he laughed his shouty surprised laugh, and smacked his thigh with his hand.

"I can see I've been rubbing off on you."

"Not yet," I whispered in his ear, pressing my hips to his, and he gave a gentle intake of breath and looked down at me suggestively.

"Don't tease me like that."

"I thought you liked it when I sent out mixed signals."

"Damn it, Jess," he breathed, returning the pressure from his own hips and kissing me with a little more passion.

"Come on," I said, breaking away from him before anyone (ie Calvin) realised what we were up to. "Let's get that drink."

We slipped down the hallway into the kitchen where Grimmy was chatting to a few people I didn't know, and I stood to the side shyly while Harry poured us both cherry brandy cocktails. He handed me my glass and we clinked them together.

"To us," he whispered. "Happy anniversary."

"Happy anniversary," I whispered back, and we both took a sip of our drinks.

"Well, it's not as bad as previous attempts," he remarked, pulling a face and setting the glass down on the counter.

"I think it's nice," I nodded.

"That's because you're a girl, and this is a girl's drink."

We eyed each other in amusement.

"So are you going to kiss me or what?" I huffed, and he grinned.

"I thought you'd never ask."

He stepped up to me, and even after an entire year my body still had the same reaction to him: my stomach pinched and my heart rate increased, and my bones seemed to turn to jelly as he lowered his head towards mine.

His lips tasted sweet, like cherry brandy. They were as soft as ever, and his breath was warm and familiar. The touch of his hand on the small of my back was reassuring and gentle, and the beat of his heart against mine drummed out its usual rhythm. The burning fire that had ignited in my veins burned fiercely as his tongue swiped briefly against mine, and I felt the heat emanating from him where our bodies touched through our clothes. There was no hiding the chemistry between us, and there never had been. It had been obvious from day one that we'd had No Control.

I beamed up at him as we broke apart. "You still turn me to mush," I told him.

"The feeling's mutual," he beamed back. He looked up, and over my shoulder, and then back down at me with a glimmer of mischief. "Let's go through to the lounge, come on."

He took my hand in his, and I followed him through the glass doors into the spacious lounge, where everyone seemed to be facing the same way - towards the DJ in the corner by the window.

"Where's Callie and Calvin? And Maddie?" I asked, and Harry shrugged as he led me nearer to the window, weaving through the crowd of people and coming to stop just in view of the DJ.

I recognised the beginning of Love Me Like You Do as it started to play, and I looked up at Harry in adoration.

"Oh! Our song," I said happily.

"Well it wouldn't be a proper anniversary if we didn't hear this," he said, slipping his arm around my shoulders as I leaned my head against him. "Live," he added, and before I could say anything the lyrics began, and I realised they weren't just on the pre-recorded track - they were indeed being sung live.

My heart missed several beats as I snapped my head up to look towards the DJ, and saw Ellie Goulding standing with a karaoke microphone, singing the opening line as the entire room erupted in cheers:

"You're the light, you're the night, you're the colour of my blood..."

"Oh!" I squeaked in shock, covering my mouth with my hands, and Harry squeezed my shoulders and kissed the side of my head. "Is this... did you arrange this?!" I managed to ask.

"I may have had something to do with it," he smiled sheepishly.

"Is there any limit to how lovely and amazing you are?" I asked, as tears brimmed in my eyes for the millionth time that night.

"I know there's no limit to how much I love you," he murmured into my ear, punctuating this sentiment by kissing my cheek.

"I love you, too," I said, trying so hard to keep control of my emotions. I wasn't sure what I had done to deserve such an amazing man, and there were times when it just felt so perfect it seemed too good to be true.

Yet it was true, and here he was, standing next to me with his arm around me while our song was performed live in front of our eyes. I squeezed his waist again, hoping to convey the love I felt for him that seemed to be radiating out of every pore of my body. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Callie standing with Maddie and Calvin, beaming happily at me like a proud parent, and I beamed back with equal enthusiasm.

Once the song had finished several people surrounded Ellie, so I hung back with Harry until she was free, and then went over to her to thank her for the amazing performance.

"That was fantastic," I said shyly, and she smiled at me as she shook my hand.

"Thank you," she said. "It's great to meet you. I'm flattered that my song holds such meaning for you both."

"It really does," I nodded, as Harry gave her a hug.

"Thanks," he said gratefully. "That was perfect."

We chatted with her for a few minutes longer, and then I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror and saw my mascara had run underneath my left eye, no doubt from the abundance of tears gracing my face that evening.

"You could have told me I looked a show!" I muttered to Harry, and he glanced down at me in confusion.

"You look beautiful."

"I have a black smudge underneath my eye," I grumbled.

"It's hardly noticeable," he shrugged.

"I'm going to find the bathroom and sort it out," I said, and I slipped away from Harry, out of the lounge and along the hallway to the downstairs bathroom. I shut the door behind me and inspected my reflection in the mirror. The smudge wasn't as bad as I thought, and I wet a bit of tissue and dabbed it under my eye to remove the traces of mascara. I spent a few minutes touching up the rest of my makeup (my skin looked a little blotchy thanks to crying every few minutes at the amazingness that was Harry) and then fluffed my hair with my fingers, arranging the waves around my face. When I was satisfied with how I looked, I opened the bathroom door again and walked down the corridor towards the back of the house, in search of someone I knew. The kitchen was fairly empty, and I walked all the way across and came back through the other set of doors into the lounge again, and caught sight of Harry and Callie talking next to a large pot plant. I approached them, wanting to thank Callie for her part in this. I had been hard on her lately, and had assumed she had been deliberately trying to rain on my parade. I now realised this hadn't been the case at all, and she had actually been working with Harry to give me the most wonderful anniversary surprise. All her negative comments and shifty glances suddenly seemed to make sense.

As I came within earshot of them, I heard Callie say, "Yeah, well you two make a great couple. For what it's worth I really am sorry for all the stuff last year."

"It's fine," Harry said. "Let's just forget it ever happened."

My stomach gave a nervous twist at their words that made little sense to me. What stuff was Callie sorry for, and what did Harry want to forget had ever happened?

I opened my mouth to ask this, but Callie spoke first.

"Are you going to tell her?"

I stopped in my tracks, my heart pounding as I stared at Harry's face, but he was so focussed on Callie that neither of them had seen me approaching. He hesitated for a second. "I don't think that would do any of us any good, do you?"

"Actually I think it would do me the world of good," I heard myself say shrilly, my voice high and unnatural.

They both jumped as though they had been shot, and I watched Callie's face as it slowly drained of colour.

"Jess," she whispered.

"What's going on?" I asked, my voice sounding as though it belonged to someone else. "What are you hiding from me? And don't bother lying to me. There have been way too many unexplained moments between you two these past few months that I've previously put down to my own imagination."

They both stared at me silently, and I risked a glance at Harry who was biting his bottom lip nervously. The gesture sent a jolt of unease to the pit of my stomach.

"Don't be silly," he said eventually, not meeting my eyes. "We're not hiding anything."

"I said don't lie to me!" I snapped, but before I could finish, Callie interrupted me.

"No," she said, her voice trembling. "I can't avoid this forever. The game's up, Harry. I need to be honest with her. I need to tell her the truth."

My stomach dropped sharply at her words, and my gaze flicked momentarily to Harry, who was staring at her in shock. She turned to me, her eyes filling with tears.

"I've been such a bitch, Jess. I'm so sorry."

"Callie," Harry began, his tone almost warning, but she didn't tear her gaze from mine.

"It started last summer..."

---***---

Three chapters left x