SOLITUDE

Chapter Two

As soon as Niall carefully pulled up to Louis' old flat and stopped the car, the homeless boy pushed his head up from the window where he was resting it for the short journey, now a red line dominating over his forehead. A long silence overtook the atmosphere of the car, everyone seemingly holding their breath, before it was eventually interrupted by Harry making a small noise as he shifted a little, glancing at the rearview mirror.

"What are you going to do to me?" He muttered, his voice rising in question and his eyes wide, shivers running down his spine as the man beside him leaned in a little to examine the dark bruise under his eye, holding himself back from running his fingers across it. He glanced at Harry before pulling back.

He hesitated, "What do you mean, exactly?"

"Please don't hit me, I promise I won't do anything," He whispered, his voice cracking in the middle, at which nobody spoke for a long minute. Eventually, Louis shook his head in disbelief, turning to undo his seatbelt.

"What? Of course we won't hurt you," Louis scoffed at the ridiculous idea. He wasn't one for violence - unless it was meant jokingly. Either way, he blinked at the boy in front of him in acknowledgement and paled when he realised that the boy was genuinely terrified. "Why would you think that?"

"Don't mean to be rude but I reckon we 'ought to go inside and all, it's quite cold," The boy in the front interrupted, raising his hand politely before shooting them both a soft smile.

Louis nodded quickly in agreement as the boy scrambled out of the front of the car, slamming the door shut behind him before stepping to the side and lighting a cigarette. Pulling his eyes away from Niall, he himself leaned towards Harry, patting his knee gently, "Harry, mate. I wouldn't even think about doing anything bad to you, honest."

When the young boy's eyes finally flickered up to meet his gaze, his pupils were wide with a glint of fear and Louis could feel his heart breaking.

"Come on then, let's go?" He sighed, offering in a small voice, hesitantly and somewhat unwillingly pulling his hand away from Harry's knee and nodding his head once towards the car doors.

"Uh, yeah, I suppose..."

"Does your hip hurt, mate?" Louis asked, and the boy let himself think for a brief second that maybe that was actual concern in his eyes. But hey, who was he anyway to care about Harry - and so he let that thought drift away quicker than anything.

"A little but it's alright, so yeah..." The young boy glanced down at his enterwined hands that were resting on his own lap, as Louis reached forwards to push the car doors open, the cold autumn air entering the car in a small breeze.

"Look, see that window?" Louis pointed to the third floor where dark curtains hung and Harry nodded weakly. "We're getting up there. There's a lift, don't worry," He added quickly when he saw Harry's wide, worried gaze.

"You're taking me up to your flat?"

"Yeah?" Louis glanced at the young boy before stepping out the car and reaching forward to grasp his hand, helping him up carefully. He felt selfish at the way the boy's skin brushed against his own, rough from the treatment of the streets and stained in dirt that seemed almost permanent. "Why not?"

The boy's shoulders rose and fell in a small shrug as he pushed himself up from the seat, scrunching his face up in a scowl when he wobbled a little on his feet. "Uh... I don't... I'm not an escort... I know you said before, but-"

"We'll talk when we get upstairs, okay?" He interrupted his frantic speech with a hand on his lower back, kicking out to push the door shut with his foot. The young boy beside him was stiff as he moved forward, hobbling along into the building that the man dared to call home.