It had been three days since I'd seen Harry. Three days since he'd taken our daughter on stage and three days since we'd both confessed how we really felt about one another. He'd skyped Nola since then and spoken to her on the phone, but I'd felt awkward hearing this voice and had kept our communication to a minimum while I figured out what I was going to do.

It was a relief that we both knew how the other was feeling. There would be no more interrogative hot seat ploys from a drunken Elenore on a Saturday night or strange looks shared between everyone. But what did it mean now? What was supposed to happen? It was a relief, but I honestly didn't feel like my life had changed in any way, other than the awkwardness level rising to its full potential. Just because Harry and I liked each other, it didn't mean we were supposed to act on it...did it? And how could we? I mean, was he planning on debuting me on stage too?

Elenore had been strangely agitated and wound up since the concert. She was never without a frown on her face, even when she left for and returned from work. After seeing Nola on the stage with Harry, she'd leapfrogged over Gemma and sprinted backstage, apparently swatting every interfering memeber of security with her VIP pass whenever they'd asked questions. The minute the boys had come off stage she'd snatched Nola off of Harry and given them all an earful. Zayn had copped the worse, having Elenore roaring in his face, which had still been taking place when I'd hurried into the dressing room minutes later. I'd never seen Niall so embarrassed and I figured that was what had gotten Elenore so angry in the first place. Zayn had called her a bitch, resulting in Ele turning to Niall for some form or support or back up, although Niall had been too shocked to provide any. The humiliation had been plastered right across her face. She'd been so sure that Niall was going to come to her defence. She hadn't doubted it for a second. We'd left not long after that, hastily saying our goodbyes and instructing Niall to pass on an apology to Harry when he discovered our absence.

I'd been running on adrenaline the minute I'd run off from him, even sitting upright and wide eyed as Elenore sped the entire way home. It had only been the morning after that my body had given way to the drama of it all. My knees had given way in the shower and I'd slumped in the tray, staring at the shower screen while my tears blended with the streams of hot water. Everything that had happened had almost been too much for me to deal with. I'd been so close to backing out and taking Nola far away from the new prying eyes, but Harry's declaration of feelings had somehow given me hope. Even if it did mean that we were now both too invested to return to how things were.

I was anxiously awaiting his call today. He'd been in a meeting with his management team to talk about future plans for Nola and myself where publicity was concerned. Harry was going to make it clear that he wanted all possible steps to be taken to ensure that the paparazzi couldn't stalk Nola, especially when she started going to nursery. There wasn't a lot that could be done, of course, but his main concern was that the two of us had a say in what was and wasn't published about her. Despite not agreeing with his method of choice for introducing her to his fans, I did appreciate that he was trying to to keep her private life as preserved as possible. Not that Nola had minded, of course. Her debut on stage with the flashing cameras and screaming fans should have traumatised her, or at least had her terrified, but I'd been assured by Lou and Gemma that she'd done nothing but giggle and smile at them all. A comment had even been made that it proved she really was Harry's daughter.

I'd planned to spend the day staring at my phone and finally unpacking Nola's birthday gifts from the band, but an unexpected knock of the door had me suddenly distracted. Nola stopped playing too and watched as I removed myself from the lounge and stepped out into the hallway. I was surprised to find Julie from Modest Management at my door.

"Um, hi." I stammered as she grinned at me with two black bin bags in her hands.

"How are you feeling? Harry said you've been adjusting to his stunt the other night. Can I come in? I have a surprise for you." Her questions came out at 100mph, leaving me rendered speechless while she hovered on the door mat. I tore my eyes away from the black bag and stepped aside.

"Sure, come in. Nola's in the lounge." She wiped her feet quickly before stepping in and heading through. I heard her cooing to Nola as I shut the door. What on earth could she possibly want to surprise me with? I'd had enough Harry related surprises to last a lifetime. When I joined them in the lounge she'd placed the bags in front of my daughter who was staring at them curiously.

"What exactly is in there?" I asked warily, imagining a collection of bricks with crass comments scribbled across them. Somehow though, I didn't think Julie was quite strong enough to carry that. She pursed her lips and then grinned.

"So, since Harry's big reveal," I felt my eyes narrowing as she referred to Nola like she was a set of tour dates. "We've had a lot of your fan mail arrive at the office."

My mouth fell open. "My what?"

"Your fan mail." Julie chuckled. "That's what's in these bags. There's mail for both of you." I looked at Nola briefly and then back to Julie.

"You mean like hate mail?" I squeaked.

"No, of course not!" She looked horrified. "I mean letters and gifts from fans of One Direction, but for you. Nola must have made an impression at the show."

"Why would we get fan mail?" My voice had gone all strange and wobbly and my hands shook.

"Why don't we just empty the bags and you can see for yourself? I was going to ring and tell you, but I thought it might be better in person." She hauled the black bags into her arms again and went to turn them upside down. "May I?" I nodded and watched as a fountain of envelopes spilled from them, forming a huge mound on my living room floor. Nola squealed with delight.

"Shit." I whispered, my eyes widening at the quantity of it. It was a collection of envelopes in all shapes, sizes and colours. Some were flat and thin like your standard envelope, but others were bulky and oddly shaped. I gulped at the prospect of strangers spending their time and money on myself and my daughter. I still wasn't sure what we'd done to deserve it. "I don't get it." I said aloud.

"They're just showing their support, Marnie. They're more understanding than you might give them credit for. Some of them may be in similar parenting situations to your own." Julie got down on her knees and starting sifting through the mail, organising it into piles of letters and gifts. "Some of those are European." She mumbled, reading the air mail stamps.

I collapsed onto my knees beside her and Nola came forward, picking up a package and shaking it as if it was Christmas day. I took it from her grasp and stared at it, gasping when I noticed Nola's name sat above the address line. Despite feeling completely surreal, it looked perfectly harmless. I took a breath and tore it open, revealing a customised t shirt. It had originally been plain and white in colour, but someone had very carefully and accurately drawn every single one of Harry's torso tattoos in all their correct places on the front. I was surprised to catch myself smiling.

"Turn it over." Julie said suddenly, indicating to the back of the shirt. As I flipped it over in my lap, I laughed. Across the top of the back was 'STYLES' with the number one below it. Someone had clearly put a lot of time and effort into this shirt. I tipped the envelope up and a sheet of folded up paper fell out. I opened it up and began reading:

Dear Marnie (and Nola),

Firstly, I hope you like the t shirt I made. (I hope Harry likes it too)
I am a HUGE fan of One Direction and have been since 2010 when they were on the X Factor. When I read all the articles about Harry having a kid I didn't really believe them, so finding out Nola was real was a bit of a shock. I was at the concert three days ago when Harry brought her on stage and can I just say - she is SO cute. She looks just like him. She is very pretty which, after seeing your photo in that newspaper, she obviously gets from you. No one in the fandom thought Harry would be the first member to have a kid, but he clearly loves her to death and we are all really happy and proud. It probably seems really strange for you right now, receiving letters from people you don't even know basically giving you their approval, but we do mean well. Although some of us are a little crazy. (It's probably the hormones!)
Anyway, I hope you enjoy my gift. I'll add my twitter name at the end if you could let me know that it fits. (Could you also ask Harry to follow me please??)

Love from Yasmin (@harry_is_my_everything) 

I put the letter with the t shirt and smiled. When Harry had taken Nola on stage, never had I imagined a reaction like this. I looked up at Julie who was watching me.

"Wow." Was all I could say. "Their fans really do love them, don't they?"

Julie laughed. "You have no idea! You should read this one." She passed me another letter and I brought it up to my face:

Dear Marnie,

My name is Ava. I'm eighteen and a huge One Direction fan. Zayn is my favourite, but Harry comes in close second. When the media were publishing articles about you and your daughter, I got really angry. They had no right to do that, regardless of who your baby daddy is. You're probably overwhelmed enough as it is, having a young child, without the media publishing it for the world to see. And I'm sorry about your mum too, that was just cruel.
I know how it feels to he a single mother. I had my daughter last year when I was seventeen and I called her Georgia Rose. 'Midnight Memories' had just been released and I listened to the album to keep me calm in labour because I didn't have anyone to support me. Georgia's father was a one night stand and my parents didn't want to have anything to do with me when I told them I was pregnant. I can't help thinking you were in the same situation when you had Nola. It was a pretty bad time for me, but I have a boyfriend now, Simon, who takes care of both of us. He treats Georgia like she's his own and I want her to call him 'dad' when she's older.
I just wanted you to know that you're not alone and I'm thinking of you, as are many of us One Direction fans. I hope everything works out for the three of you, Harry is going to be the the best dad. (Apart from Simon of course!)

Love, Ava

The ink suddenly smudged in front of me and I was surprised to find a tear had escaped my eyes. Receiving gifts from a stranger was one thing, but knowing that there were people out there relating to my situation was another thing entirely. I felt somewhat responsible, like some sort of role model. I wanted to write back to this girl, all of these people, and tell them how grateful I was for their kind words.

"This is crazy." I said quietly. "I didn't realise it would be like this, Julie."

"I knew you'd be surprised." She smiled. "They are a wild bunch in the audience, but the majority of them really are just normal girls, or boys, going through the same stuff as you and I. Some of the mail the boys have received before has been very touching. They were just as surprised when they first started out."

"Am I supposed to write back or is anything expected of us? I don't know how this works." I felt myself blushing as I gave Nola the envelope to play with.

"That's up to you." Julie shrugged. "But if you're interested in setting up a Twitter or email account then we can help you with that." I couldn't help thinking that setting up an email account with Elenore would have been much more fun, but at least it was something to think about. It would give me something to do too.

"I should tell Harry." I said quickly, reaching for my phone. "Could you watch Nola for five minutes?"

"Sure." Julie smiled, collecting the empty envelopes and making a pile of them beside Nola.

I stood up and headed into the kitchen while tapping Harry's number and pressing my phone to my ear. He answered straight away, making me smile.

"Hey you." He said cheerfully. "Or is this Nola?"

"It's me, Harry." I laughed. "I have something to tell you."

"Isn't that what the woman says in films before she reveals that she's pregnant? Because as much as I love Nola, I'm not really ready for another one, and I'm also not sure how it could have happened either. I mean, we're not even seeing each other, right? So unless you have the same relationship with God that Mary did, I'd say it's impossible. Unless it's not mine, of course. And obviously I'd be totally cool with that, I mean it's none of my business, right? Well I would feel a bit miffed, I did confess that I liked you after all." He rambled. I stood, wide eyed, with the phone pressed to my ear while I waited for him to either stop or run out of breath.

"Harry, I'm not pregnant." I assured him. Although I liked the fact that he'd obviously been thinking about having another child with me, regardless of the fact that we weren't dating.

"Ok. Well I'm glad we cleared that up. So what were you going to tell me?" He sounded embarrassed.

"Julie from Modest is here." I told him. "Nola and I have fan mail."

"Are you serious? That's awesome!" He chuckled. "Anything funky?"

"Nola got a t shirt, customised to look like your tattoos and with your surname on the back." I grinned as I told him, imagining that he would be doing the same.

"That's so cool! Some of our fans are ridiculously talented. They never cease to amaze us." He gushed, clearly incredibly proud of their fanbase. 

"They are. There are some heartwarming letters too. I never expected girls to relate to me." I was the one getting embarrassed now.

"Because you're amazing, Marnie." Harry said gently, catching me off guard. My cheeks burned and I was relieved that I'd left the room to make the phone call.

"Thanks." I replied, but it was barely audible.

"I mean it," he continued. "I am so proud to even just know you. I don't think I'll ever be able to thank you enough for raising our daughter to be the most amazing little girl." I felt emotional again. "Marnie, please go on a date with me. Next Saturday, in London. I'll pick you up at seven. Wear whatever you feel comfortable in. We'll have dinner and I'll take you to our bar in Soho. Please say yes."

I didn't even have to think about it.

"Yes."

a/n: Just a note to say that any Twitter names mentioned in this chapter came off the top of my head. I didn't check to see if they actually existed, so if they do - my apologies!