January 20, 2016

"Are you going to be okay while we're gone? Not be too bored?" Debra pats Nataley's shoulder gently, hiking her carry-on higher as they get closer to the front of the line.

Following along at the barrier, Nat shakes her head. "I'm a grown woman, Mom. I'll be fine."

"Of course you will. I just wish you were dating someone."

"Moooooom," she whines. "Get on your plane. I'll call Bethany and see if she wants to go to the movies tonight after the show. Promise I'll be fine." With her finger, she crossed her heart, a clear symbol that she was being honest, even though completely unsure how she would manage without both her mom and her sister for three weeks?

"Have a great time with Uncle Norman and Aunt Pat, Mom! Keep her in line please, Ellie!" Nataley waved goodbye at the security checkpoint, waiting on the side to watch as her mother and sister stood in line, placed their items on the conveyor belt, and stepped through the metal detector.

"I'll just have to rely on Bethany to keep me company," she mumbled. Locating the escalator to carry her down to the first level where she'd parked in the lot, Nataley stepped into an alternate universe. Arrivals were packed, and as she attempted to push her way past people, a clamor raised. Bewildered, she tuned into the loud voices around her.

"Harry! Harry!"

"Harry! Are you and Kendall an item?"

"Are you going out with Kendall?"

"Can I get a photo?"

No way. It couldn't be. What were the odds? Impossible! Sure enough, there he was. His long hair was pushed back onto the top of his head with sunglasses, and he wore a plain white t-shirt with black jeans. His left arm tattoos were on display like a walking work of avant garde art. Similar to a bee floating from one flower to another, he leaned down to take selfies with a variety of different women as his bag bounced on his right shoulder. Poor guy. This must suck for him. Yet it was his life.

"That's not his car!" one of the paparazzi yelled as Harry attempted to return to the terminal.

Nataley paused for a moment to watch as he chewed his gum and ignored the questions from the multitude of photographers yelling to him. She chose to keep walking. He had enough happening that he certainly didn't have time to say hello to someone he likely didn't remember.

Pushing past the fans and paparazzi wasn't easy. Once Harry got into his car, the yelling died down as she heard the car door close. Finally able to cross the lanes of traffic, her breath stopped as a black car halted just inches from hitting her even though she was in the crosswalk. Eyes wide and frightened, Nat stared down the driver while he waved his hands with an apologetic smile on his face. When her eyes flicked to the passenger in the backseat, she saw it was Harry. Surprise tinged his features, and there was no doubt he recognized her.

Quickly, Nataley ducked her head and continued to the garage where her car was parked. Before she reached the vehicle, her phone started ringing in her purse. Shit. What had Mom and Elllie forgotten? They had their passports. Nat had double checked their luggage herself. Finally extracting her phone, she was extra-concerned when the caller ID simply said, "Unknown Caller". Didn't her mom and sister have their cell phones? Or maybe it was Noah's school? Had he been hurt? Nervously sliding the button to answer, she raised the device to her ear, noticing her hand was shaking. "Hello? Mom? Ellie? Is everything okay?"

"Oh. Bollocks. I didn't mean to scare you, Nataley. It's Harry. From the Late Late Show. From England. Harry Styles."

A blush started at her toes and quickly rose to her forehead. "I didn't mean to step in front of your car, Harry. I was trying to get past the mob after dropping off my mom and sister upstairs. I swear I wasn't trying to detain you in any way."

His smooth laughter drifted through the phone. "Don't be daft. Never suspected you were. Saw you and thought I'd call to ask about your son. Noah, right? Is he alright? Last time we saw each other, he was ill."

Nataley's breathing was beginning to return to normal. Was this guy for real? A celebrity who remembered her name AND her son's name? Who kept her phone number for unknown reasons? And who called to check on her? She must have stepped through a wormhole. Her car alarm started blaring for no reason whatsoever, and Nataley startled.

"Hang on a minute, Harry. My piece of shit car alarm is going off because it's jealous that no one is anywhere near it." Wrestling her keys from her pocket and then into the lock stole precious moments, but soon she was able to climb in and insert the key into the ignition, the only way of silencing the errant noise.

"Sorry about that." Her breath was coming in pants due to the exertion, and she took in gulps of air as she placed her purse on the passenger seat and locked the doors. Placing the phone on speaker, she continued her conversation with Harry. "Noah is fine. It was a stomach bug that cleared up in no time. Thank you so much for asking. You're very kind."

"Not at all. I worried about the little one after I carried him to his bedroom that night. He's quite the musical one, isn't he?"

Confusion swept through her until she recalled that night in more detail. "Oh, because he wouldn't stop singing 'Baby Beluga'? It's his comfort song."

"That was part of what gave him away, but it was more the musical instruments of all kinds strewn on every part of the floor."

"Hahaha. Yes. His birthday was in September, and all he wanted was instruments. 'The real ones, Mommy' cause he doesn't want toy versions of anything. Honestly, though, there were so many real ones I didn't buy due to the expense so he has to make his music work with a recorder, some toy drums, and a ukulele."

"You're a good mum to make sure he has what he likes." Her heart soared at the compliment. It was all she wanted: to be the mother Noah deserved. A lull in the conversation followed, and Nataley was confident he was going to hang up now that he'd determined Noah was fine. The silence dragged on, and she took a breath to bid him farewell.

"So why were you at the airport?"

"Oh." Surprised at the ongoing dialogue, Nataley reached across her body and pulled on her seatbelt, clicking it as she spoke. "Dropped off my mom and my sister. They're joining my mom's brother and his wife for a trip to Italy. The four of them are going on a wine cruise, and I'm incredibly jealous of the wines they'll get to taste."

"Oh yeah. That would be an awesome trip. Have you been to Italy?"

"Nope, and I'm unlikely to go. I'm sure you've been."

"Multiple times."

"Naturally. And ugh. I'm going to have to lump you in with my sister and my mom. Right now I do not like you very much."

Rich laughter from Harry made her smile. "That's fair. I didn't see Noah with you."

"Nah. He's with his dad. It's Wednesday. I won't have him back until about noon on Saturday."

"So you're alone?"

"Yep. For a few days anyway. I'm going to see if maybe I can talk my friend Bethany into going to see The Revenant. She's a huge Leo fan, but the revenge stuff is giving her the heebie jeebies."

"Giving her the what?" Harry laughed.

"You know. It's creeping her out."

"Hmmmm...would you hold for a minute please?"

He clicked off, leaving the line open, and Nataley cranked the engine, praying it wouldn't sputter too much on the way home. At least she had a full tank of gas.

Just after she merged on the 405, Harry returned to their conversation. "Okay, so I have a suggestion. Why don't you bring Bethany to my house tonight for a movie party? Some of my friends will be there, and I promise we can taste a variety of Italian wines."

The car swerving at that moment couldn't possibly be her fault. Must be the wind. "Wait. Just to clarify. You -- Harry Styles -- are inviting my friend Bethany and I to your house to watch a movie and taste some wine?"

"Exactly! Your cost of admission is one bottle of Italian wine. Doesn't matter what it is. I'll text you the address. Come over around 9:00."

"Wait!" Nataley calls, confident he's going to hang up without waiting for her answer. "What friends are going to be there?"

"Jeffrey and Glenne. You liked them. Probably Cam, Jeffrey's brother. Kenny of course if she's in town. Maybe Cara. I suspect I'll be able to talk Kaia and Presley into joining us which might mean Cindy and Rande too. Not a big party cause I don't have that many seats in my theatre."

Shaking her head to ensure there are no cobwebs there, Nataley ponders his offer. "A movie? What movie? 'The Revenant'?"

"Yep."

"Holy shit. Bethany will freak." Pausing, Nataley wondered about his motives. "Kenny is Kendall, right? Your girlfriend?"

She'd seen photos of them on the yacht, and the two had seemed cozy. Not that Nataley normally pays attention to the tabloids in the grocery store line, but this time Noah was with her and pointed to the picture. "That Harry," he'd announced to the elderly gentleman behind them in line.

Harry sighed, and Nat wondered what that meant. "Kenny is Kendall, and she's a friend who is a girl. You met her the other time?"

"I did. Yes, and I liked her based on the few minutes I got to spend with her. Just wanted to make sure I knew who would be there." Biting her lip, Nataley played out the idea in her mind. "Let me call Bethany and see what she says. Text me the details, and I'll let you know."

"You got it!"

Hands trembling, Nataley waited to call Bethany until she pulled into her driveway 30 minutes later. What kind of Twilight Zone was she living in? Once inside her condo, she dialed Bethany.

"You're never going to believe what just happened..."

After hearing the story, Beth squealed. "HOLY SHIT, NAT! HOLY SHIT! HARRY STYLES SAID WE COULD COME TO A PARTY AT HIS NEW HOUSE. HOLY SHIT!"

"Calm down!" Nat chastised. "It's not that big of a deal, and I'm not sure I want to go. Besides we went to a party with him before."

The gulps of air that she could hear over the phone sounded like a fish out of water. "NATALEY. He's going to show us the Revenant which I've wanted to see because of my love for Leo even though it seems really violent which I hate. And we're going to see it AT HIS FREAKING HOUSE! How could you say no to that? In fact, I'm going to start getting dressed right now..."

"Bethany. It's only like four o'clock, and you're still at work. You've got plenty of time to..."

"Are you even listening to yourself? NAT-A-LEY. We're going to Harry Styles' new house tonight. I've got to get my brows done and shave my legs, and at some point I have to find a bottle of Italian wine. Fuck. I don't even know what Italian wine to get. Do you think Leo will show up?"

"Bethany. Do I think Leonardo diCaprio is going to show up at Harry Styles' house just because we're going to be watching his movie? I don't think it works like that."

"But Nataley. How does he even have a copy of the movie? Like for real! It's not something you or I could just go out and buy."

Shrugging, Nataley toed off her sneakers and settled on the sofa with its makeshift sheet covering that disguised the myriad stains from previous owners.

"I don't know, Bethany. We could just go see it at the AMC and have popcorn with extra butter."

"No. No. No. You are NOT making me miss this opportunity! We are going. I'll pick you up at 8:15. We don't want to be late. Oh, shit. Yes we do. But how late? How late is fashionable? Do we waltz in at 9:30? Or is that too early?"

A smile wafted across Nataley's lips as she listened to her friend. "Beth. Listen to me. Harry said nine o'clock, so I would like to get there around 9:00. And don't wear anything pretentious!"

"What does that mean?" asked her best friend.

"It means I'm planning to go in black jeans and a white tee. Maybe take a cardigan in case it gets chilly."

"NAAAAATTTTTTTT." The whine made Nataley smile even bigger. "Nat. You can't do this to me! Please tell me you're going to wear fancy shoes and doll up your face?!"

"For a movie? With a guy I'm not dating? And his friends?"

"YES! One of whom is a model. You think Kendall Jenner will show up in casual clothes?"

"Yep. I do. You'll be the only one dressed up all fancy, Bethany."

"Fine," her friend sniffed. "I'll dress it down. A little."

"Good plan," Nataley agreed. "So pick me up around 8:15 please? If you're one minute late, I'm driving myself to Malibu." Her phone pinged, and she glanced at the text message. "Scratch that, Bethany. He doesn't live in Malibu. The address he gave is in Los Angeles. Still about 45 minutes away. And you better be here by 8:15 or I'm not sharing the address with you."

"Bitch," Bethany goodnaturedly laughed. "You win. I'll be there by 8:15, and I'll try to tone down my beauty. Don't want the model to feel insecure next to my stunning glamour."

"Oh, please. Kenny isn't like that. You met her before, so don't be a misogynistic bitch." Nataley sighed. "She was very nice that last time. Go get ready to do the show. I'll see you later."

As they pulled up outside of Harry's house that evening, the gate was closed, and neither woman could figure out what they should do. The box by the gate didn't have a way to ring a buzzer or anything. Just a card reader. After glancing at each other and exchanging mutual shrugs, Nat pulled her phone from her pocket to dial. That's when the gates started to open.

As she parked next to a few other cars, Nataley grabbed the two bottles of wine they had chosen at the liquor store and stepped onto the driveway.

"You made it!" Harry exclaimed, his arms wide as he greeted them. "Come on in!"

With a glance at his feet, Nat saw his bare toes peeking from under the hem of his black skinny jeans with holes at the knees, and it made her smile.

"Pardon the mess. I'm still moving in. Mostly living out of my luggage these days." Harry commented as they swept inside the house. "You brought wine?"

Holding one in each hand, Nataley grinned, "One white. Something called a Verdicchio. And one red -- a Chianti."

"Yum!" Harry took the two bottles from her and set them on the counter with a collection of other wines. "Pick the ones you want to try! I'm keeping a list for myself so I know what I've tried, but you can just as easily drink and pay no attention. Do you know everyone? Oh, here. Let me pour you a taste of this one. It's a light one and a good starter." He tipped the bottle to pour a fair amount into two glasses, handing one to each of them. "Cheers!" he called, and the whole room raised their glasses and repeated the toast.

Mingling with Harry's friends, Nataley found the conversation ranged quite a bit.

"But how can they play at the LA Coliseum?" Jeffrey asked Rande, and Nataley moved in closer to listen.

"They played there before," was Rande's response.

"Yes, but that was 70 years ago," Nat felt the need to join the conversation. "I mean, times have changed since then."

"Eh, it's only temporary," Jeffrey added.

"I'm glad it wasn't the Raiders," chimed in Nataley.

"Nataley! Get over here!" Bethany yelled across the room from where she was standing with Glenne and Kenny.

Warily, Nat's gaze shifted from her best friend to the other women. True to Nataley's predictions, Kenny wore grey jeans with a grey tee, finishing the monochromatic look with sneakers.

"You look so cute, Kendall!" Nataley complimented the woman as she approached. She was dying to mention the yacht trip to Kendall, but it didn't seem smart to bring it up.

"Hey! What about me?" Glenne grinned, gesturing at her outfit.

Taking in the blue jeans and black Eagles shirt, Nataley smiled. "Adorable!"

"Come on! We're taking snaps to send to each other on Snapchat," Kenny giggled. "Give us your best pose, Nat!"

"Snapchat?" Nataley had heard of the app, but hadn't used it previously.

"Glenne works there," Kendall mentioned sotto voce.

"Oh! Of course." Moving closer to the woman, Nataley laughs at the filter that makes them all into puppy dogs with floppy ears and black and white spots. "CUTE!"

Downloading the app while she sips more of her wine, Nataley sidles closer to Glenne. "Show me how it works please."

"Movie time!" Harry announced as Nataley finished sending her first Snapchat message to Glenne. Refilling her fourth glass with a different wine, she smiled when Harry approached her. "Having fun?"

"You bet! I love your friends even more now than before. But please, please, please tell me that DiCaprio is not going to show up during the movie! I think Bethany would combust."

Harry's laugh made her feel like she was a member of the group. "Probably not. But I wouldn't count it out."

Giggling as she carried her wine and a bowl of popcorn into the home movie theater, Nataley settled between Bethany and Kendall on the second row of seats. As the lights lowered and the movie began, Kendall leaned over and whispered in her ear, "This is kind of violent, so if you need to puke, signal me so I can hold your hair."

With a smile at the woman, Nataley settled in her seat to enjoy the movie. The home movie theater was unlike anything she had ever seen. From behind her, she heard Harry's voice as he teased Kendall. "If you get scared, you're welcome to climb into my lap."

The model simply smiled, and Nataley felt confident that if anyone were going to be afraid, it would be Harry.

Photos of Harry's house are from this article: https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/harry-styles-relists-los-angeles-house-for-8-million-88015