I Know You, Lou // l.s.

40.

Louis spent the rest of the afternoon desperately trying to avoid contact with his phone.

He'd typed out several messages to Harry, then deleted them as he tried to control him self. He knew he shouldn't message him, he knew that Harry had asked for time to think and space apart, but he really wanted to talk to him. He needed to know what was going on.

It was painful, but he did it. He finished writing an assignment, he went to football training and he got dinner with some friends all without texting his boyfriend.

But eventually, he cracked.

He was lying in bed watching TV before going to sleep, when he finally messaged him after hearing nothing from Harry all day. He didn't want to be the first one to message, but keeping Harry was more important than dignity at this point.

[To: Harry <3] I hope you had a good day, I miss you baby. Please talk to me. I love you.

He pressed send and closed his eyes, snuggling himself deeper under the blankets as he willed himself not to burst into tears.

He tried to be strong but sometimes it was just too hard. It was exhausting having to put on a brave face all the time and pretend like he wasn't hurting when, in actuality, he was dying inside.

He had come a long way since starting university. He wasn't the same person he was before, and he didn't want to lose everything he had worked for.

Harry was the best thing in his life and the idea of losing him was unbearable.

He just hoped Harry was willing to talk to him.

.

"Lou."

Someone was snapping their fingers very close to his face, and shoving his shoulder.

"Louis."

Louis blinked a couple of times, and realized Liam was standing over him. He stretched his arms above his head and squirmed a little before looking at the man who woke him up.

"What, Liam?" He asked.

"Its nearly midday and you're still asleep, that's all." He shrugged. "How'd it go with Harry yesterday?"

Louis yawned and sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes a little as he did. "Fuck, I just woke up, can I have a sec before we begin the Spanish Inquisition?"

Liam simply laughed and went back to putting his laundry away while he waited for Louis to start talking. He knew his friend wanted to talk about it and the best way to was to let Louis start talking himself without trying to force him.

Louis rolled to his side and checked his phone. No notifications. More specifically, nothing from Harry. He felt his stomach drop a little bit.

Louis got up and went to the kettle in the corner to make a cup of tea in silence. After he did, he went back to the bed and sat down.

"I'm worried." He said quietly, and that's when Liam knew to stop what he was doing and sit down opposite him.

"What happened?" Liam asked softly.

"He said he needed some time to think, and that he thinks we should go back to being friends." Louis said, then let out a long breath. "I don't know what to do."

Liam honestly didn't know what to say, so he stayed quiet and let Louis continue.

"Maybe I fucked up too badly." He whispered. "Maybe this really is it."