Saturday, September 17, 2022

"Thanks, Tony," On the front lawn, Ellie shakes the hand of the notary who waves to the group as he walks to his car. "I'll be on my way now, Nat, as soon as I get a hug from my nephew." Ellie looks exhausted, and Nat can only imagine how this whole charade must have stressed her sister.

Said child bursts from the house at that moment. "Mama! My father says I won't be living with him anymore. Is that for real?"

Joy erupts from Nat as she hugs her son. "That's correct. Only a couple of days a month. Now go give your aunt a hug."

Running over to Ellie, the boy wraps his arms around her. As he releases his aunt, he moves his arms to twine around Harry's waist instead as Harry holds out a hand to her. "Thanks, Smelly Elllie."

"Did it for them, not you. But you're welcome." Nat's sister grins wearily, shaking Harry's hand before walking to her car. "Celebratory dinner soon, okay?"

"Come on, mate. Let's get what you need from your room here."

Noah holds up his duffel. "This is it."

Nataley steps to her son, running her fingers through his hair. "Honey, we should take all of your things. You won't spend more than a two days a month with your dad."

"Mama, this is everything I want or need. I promise. Can we go now?"

Stunned, Nat's gaze sweeps over her son. What the hell was in his bedroom here? Stomping into the house through the still-open door, she wanders down the hallway to Noah's old bedroom. Talk about minimalism. There's a bed and a desk. No clothes in the closet. No toys. No books. Nothing. Tears well up in her eyes. Her son had lived like this for how long?

Wrapping her arms around herself, she stalks out of the bedroom, finding Duane standing at the door, staring at Noah who is laughing with Harry.

"Did you ever love him?" she asks. "Or was he always a pawn to you?" A bleak look crosses Duane's face, and for a brief moment Nataley feels sorry for him. "Maybe you should look into some therapy for yourself. You're so unhappy, and life shouldn't be miserable all the time. Noah would love a real, meaningful relationship with you."

Appearing crestfallen, her ex-husband makes eye contact with her before his face hardens once more into the countenance she's most used to seeing. Cold. "Mind your own fucking business, Nataley."

With that reminder of what an absolute dick he is, Nataley nods, stepping out into the sunshine where her son and her -- and Harry are giggling uncontrollably. When Harry spies her approaching, he opens his arms and she steps into them while Noah wraps his arms around both of their waists. Stepping back from Harry, she invites Noah into the three-way embrace, tears trickling from her eyes.

"This calls for a celebration!" Harry calls. "Climb aboard!" Like a conductor on a train, he waves the two of them towards the Range Rover. Mother and son pile into the car, and Nataley takes a deep breath as she closes the door.

"We're free," she whispers. "Really, truly free."

Harry reaches over the console, grabbing her hand as her tears flow in earnest.

"Why's Mama crying, Papa?"

"She's just overwhelmed," he replies, and she appreciates the word as it is exactly how she feels. Too much all at once. Why hadn't she acted sooner to protect her son? And yet now that she has taken the reins, he is free. They both are. At the thought, she begins laughing.

"Why's Mama laughing now, Papa?"

Harry glances at Nataley, then into the rearview mirror. "She's happy."

"Me too," Noah states calmly. At his words, Nataley settles into her seat, relief finally seeping into her very soul and bones.

Back at Gabe's house, Nataley is confused to find a truck parked in the alley with five bicycles inside and another car parked nearby. From the car, her new bodyguard trainer Cynthia emerges with a man.

"What's going on, H?" she wonders.

He shrugs, "We need to celebrate. I couldn't think of a better way to do that than to go to an amusement park as a family."

"So what's up with Cynthia and friend?"

"I don't think we should go without security, and Cynthia was luckily available when I called her just after this morning's 'meeting'. She brought a colleague. And then I found this guy who would deliver bikes to us. Renting them seemed to make more sense than trying to find parking."

Nataley sniffles, and Harry giggles. "No crying, Nat. You'll ruin the outing."

"Are you sure this is a smart idea, H?"

"Only one way to find out, love."

"Mama? Who are these people?"

"New friends," she smiles, exiting the car and greeting Cynthia. "Thanks for helping us out on short notice."

"Happy to do so. I'm not starting your training today though. Harry mentioned this is a special occasion."

Nat beamed. "It is."

"Great. Congratulations on whatever it is. This is my colleague Hal. We'll stay nearby but not interfere unless there's a problem."

"Thank you. This," she pulls Noah in front of her, wrapping her arms around him and resting her chin on top of his head, "is my son Noah. This is Cynthia and Hal."

"Cindy," she smiles, reaching out to shake Noah's hand.

Noah greets them, then twists his head to his mama. "We're going bike riding?"

"Yep. We're going to the Santa Monica Pier."

"Oh! I went there once with Aunt Ellie."

"Go take your stuff inside." She prods him, unlocking the gate. "Let me get some water bottles and sunscreen." Nataley follows her son inside while Harry negotiates with the bicycle deliveryman. Inside, she places her phone in her front pocket, choosing to leave her purse. Filling three TPWK water bottles, she adds them to a backpack along with a bottle of sunscreen after rubbing some on her face and arms. At the last minute, she adds her driver's license to her back pocket. When she finds the folded check from Stevie there, she unfolds it, staring at it with supreme love for her gypsy godmother.

"I'm gonna put on some shorts, love. You're wearing that?"

Nat examines her outfit. "Good point. It's warm outside." Following Harry into the master bedroom, she places the folded check in a pocket of her luggage to return to Stevie soon. Finding a pair of shorts, Nat transfers her phone and ID to the new outfit. Harry has also changed, and she examines him. "Looking good, H. Ready to go?"

"Yep. Just need to grab one more thing from my duffel."

Shrugging, Nataley exits the bedroom, finding Noah playing with Chuck. "Can he go with us, Mama?"

"What would we do with him while we're on the rides?"

"They can watch him." He points to where Cindy and Hal are checking over the bikes, ensuring the tires are inflated.

"Noah," she sits at the kitchen table, placing both hands on his shoulders. "They have a job to do, and it doesn't involve watching Prince Charles."

"What's their job? Are they in charge of the bicycles?"

Closing her eyes, Nat takes a deep breath. Making eye contact with her child, she knows honesty is the way to go. "Their job is to keep us safe."

"From who?"

In for a penny... "From anyone who might want to hurt us."

His brow wrinkles as he wrestles with this information, "You mean like people taking our picture and putting it in the news?"

Nat looks away, blinking frantically, before focusing back on her child. "There are some people who think that Harry shouldn't be with me."

"That's crazy! You and Papa are perfect together! He belongs to us."

"Crazy or not, it's true. Some of those people would like to keep Harry away from us. So Cindy and Hal are going to hang out near us today and watch for them. Then," she takes in a deep gulp of oxygen, "next week Cindy is going to start teaching me how to watch out for them myself."

Noah's eyes widen. "Really? So they're like bodyguards? And you're gonna learn to be one? Are you going to be my bodyguard?"

Laughing, Nat hugs her son tightly, peering into Harry's eyes where he stands at the door, silently watching. How long had he been there?

"Yes. They're bodyguards, and both Harry and I will always keep you safe. Like bodyguards."

"Can I learn too, Papa?" Noah asks, swiveling his head towards Harry. "I can do stuff too, you know."

"No doubt, mate," Harry states, placing a ballcap on Noah's head. "We can ask Cindy if she would give you some lessons too."

"YEAH!" Noah yelled, pumping his fist.

Laughing at the resilience and determination of her son, Nataley gathers her little family together, handing the backpack of water and sunscreen to Harry.

"Cool." Placing some bicycle locks in the backpack, he slings it onto his back, tightening the straps.

Still worried that this is a bad idea, Nat chooses not to disappoint Harry. He's like a little kid in his excitement. Plus he hired security. Disappointing him would hurt her as much as it hurt him.

Outside, the five mount the bicycles. Cindy rides in front of the three of them with Hal pulling up the rear. Noah only whines about the distance once, but not until they're close enough to actually see the pier. After about 20 minutes, they're parking the bicycles, using the locks to secure the bikes.

"What do you want to do first?" Harry asks Noah as they buy their wristbands for unlimited rides. The boy's excited face has a bigger smile than a portrait in a dentist's office.

"Sea Dragon!"

The line isn't long, and Noah bounces the whole way to the end of it. When their turn arrives, Noah rushes onto the ride, finding a seat near one end. "We can go super high from here, Papa!" The three settle together as others board the ride. "Wait, Mama! Cindy and Hal didn't get on! They're gonna miss the ride."

"They're doing their job, Little Man." Harry argues.

"But does that mean they can't have fun?"

Nataley exchanges a look with Harry over Noah's head as the ride starts moving. Her son has a giant heart.

"It means they're working right now, Noah," Nat answers.

"Well that sucks."

Her kid makes her smile, and as the ride picks up momentum and Noah starts screaming, alternating between raising his hands above his head and clutching the safety bar, Nataley's heart smiles too. Fuck. This. This is what she loves most -- spending the afternoon having fun with her boys.

As the ride comes to an end, they head to the arcade. "Papa! Can we have some cotton candy?"

"Noah, that stuff is pure sugar."

"But it's so yummy, Papa. Please?"

Shaking his head, Harry gives in with a grin, forking over money to the vendor. "In England, we call this candy floss. In some places it's called fairy floss."

"Really?" Noah opens the bag, stuffing a handful of the sticky substance in his mouth. "I wanna go to England sometime. See your house and Mama Anne and Aunt Gemma."

"One day, mate."

"You're a pushover," Nat whispers as she sidles next to Harry. He takes her hand, drawing it to his mouth for a kiss before dropping it.

Quickly, Nataley looks around at the crowd. "Should you be doing that?"

"Today, the love of my life did something incredibly courageous, and yesterday she did something equally courageous. I'm just trying to catch up."

Planting her hands on her hips, Nat pretends to glare at him. "Who is this person? I need to have a talk with her. Get some tips."

"Hush," he teases, threading his fingers through hers. "I'm done caring who sees us together. As long as they don't follow us back to Gabe's house."

"It's risky, H."

"Hence the reason we brought security. Love, I'm ready for the world to just accept that we're together. Get on board."

Anxiety causes her to bite the inside of her cheek. Is she ready? Bodyguards are great, but there will be times she's on her own. What then? And they can't hide away at Gabe's house forever. She'll have to move back to her condo at some point.

"Papa! Mama! Let's play this!" Noah scrambles towards the water race, planting his bottom on one of the stools, waiting impatiently for his mama and Harry. They sit on either side of him while Harry hands over money for the three of them. Hal and Cindy stand on either side of the game, facing outwards.

"Sorry, folks. You need at least four people to play the game."

The disappointment on Noah's face causes a physical ache in the vicinity of Nat's heart. She glances around. Maybe someone will join them? Two young women standing on the side are watching them and whispering to each other. With a sigh, Nataley rises and approaches them. Might as well.

"You're Nat, aren't you?" one asks as she gets closer to them.

She nods, waiting to see what they say.

"Are you and H back together?" the other one inquires.

"Right now, we're just playing a game with my son, but we need at least one more player."

"Really?" The first one seems incredulous. "You want us to play with you?"

"I was hoping so," Nat responds. "No photos with H, though. He'll sign whatever you want. And you can't post about it until tomorrow."

"And a hug?"

Nataley considers the offer, finally nodding in agreement.

"Deal!" They squeal, jumping up and down before running to stools at the game.

Reminding herself that 98% of Harry's fans are lovely individuals, Nat returns to her spot, readying her water gun.

As the bell rings, the water guns start firing, and Nat risks a sideways glance at Noah who is laughing with complete glee while firing directly on the target. The two fans are so busy watching Harry that neither one consistently hits the goal. So it's down to her son and her super-competitive boyfriend.

When Noah's marker reaches the top first, he jumps up, screaming, "BOO YEAH! BEAT YOU, PAPA!"

At the sound of the name, Nataley cringes, her eyes roaming to the fans who don't seem even remotely phased. Perhaps they hadn't heard?

"Go pick your prize, mate. I've got to take care of something." On his way past Nataley, he leans over to her, "What did you promise them?"

"Autographs and hugs. No photos."

"Fair. I'll just be a minute." Stepping over to where the fans are rising unsteadily from their stools, Harry holds out his hand. "Hi, I'm Harry."

With one eye on Noah, she keeps her ears tuned to the fans.

"I'm Mo. This is Court. Thanks for letting us play with your family."

"We saw you on all three of your tours, Harry."

Nataley can't hear anymore. The blood is rushing through her ears at the words 'your family'. How had she forgotten that some of his fans were like this? That some wanted them to be together? They aren't always the loudest group, but they are the majority.

After hugging each girl once, his face squishing in that way he has, Harry rejoins Nat to congratulate Noah on his choice of a stuffed Minion as a prize.

"Now what?" Harry wonders aloud.

"Roller coaster!" Noah jumps up and down.

"Cool. Let's put this guy in the backpack." The three march off gleefully with their security shadows following. Having Cindy and Hal with them isn't what Nataley expected. She actually appreciates their presence, and they are unobtrusive. She spots Hal asking a girl and her family to please not post photos today, but she's not sure it matters. The girl is over the moon at spotting Harry, and when Harry jogs to her for a quick hug and hello, her smile is wider than the Mississippi River.

==========

As the sun and Noah both begin to droop, Harry speaks up. "Let's do one more ride and then head back. I'd like to go on the Ferris Wheel."

"That's boring, Papa. Can't we just go? I'm hungry."

Kneeling in front of the boy, Harry reasons with him. "I'm getting hungry too, but this is the first ride I really want to go on. Everything else has been what you wanted. Why don't you wait here with Cindy and Hal while your mama and I go? We won't be long."

"Okay," Noah grumbles good-naturedly. "But I get to pick what we have for dinner."

"Fine," Harry agrees, and Nataley winces, confident he'll choose something completely unhealthy.

Grabbing her hand, Harry leads Nataley towards the entrance to the Ferris wheel, nodding his appreciation to Cindy who has stepped closer to Noah. Twisting around to watch her son wave, Nataley's pulled into one of the seats as the operator slams the bar over the two of them. As the ride turns and they rise, Nataley gasps at the beauty of the sunset.

"It's glorious, Harry," she breathes.

Twice they float around the wheel until the ride stops with them at the top to allow others to join the ride.

"Nat..." Harry begins, reaching under his shirt and yanking out a second chain she hadn't noticed. Attached to the chain is a...

"Fuck, Harry. What is that?" Her stomach is churning, and her heart starts pounding like Sarah playing drums.

"It's exactly what you think it is, my love. I've had this for long enough, and I'd really like to put it on your finger tonight."

"Harry," she cautions, but he raises a hand.

"I was only able to buy a couple of minutes at the top, so hush. Let me talk."

Clamping her mouth shut, she avoids the ring, watching Harry's face instead.

"I know we've only been back together for a week, but, Nat, I know we're going to survive this time. I love you beyond all measure, and I adore Noah. We're better together. You cannot deny that. The three of us are already a family. It's time we made it official. I want to wake up next to you every morning for the rest of my life. I want to be in interviews and talk about my wife and how she takes good care of me or reminds me of things or inspires my songs. I want nights like this forever. I want to adopt as many children as we can fit in our household. Noah deserves siblings. You deserve other babies. Fuck. I'm bungling this. Knew I should have written out something formal and rehearsed it." Harry pauses, swallowing, before looking her square in the eye. "Nataley Penelope Zwinger, will you please let me spend the rest of my life loving you as my wife?"