I'm Not Fine At All

Chapter 16

By ten o'clock, the apartment was packed full and the party was raging. People crowded every corner of the place and music blasted from large speakers stationed all over the living room. Zayn was lighting up joints with his buddies on the couch, Louis was doing shots in the kitchen, and Liam was flirting with some girl from his psych class in the hallway. It was going great for all of them, except for the youngest one.

Harry, the poor thing, was curled up under his blankets in his room, trying desperately to block out any noise he could. It was impossible, though. Hoots of insane drunk people came through the paper-thin walls, making Harry's head hurt. He contemplated opening his door and just yelling at them to shut the fuck up, but he thought that might get him in huge trouble with Liam. Or worse, Louis. Harry had come to learn that getting Louis angry was a bad idea and you should always try to stay on his good side.

Another shout tore through the apartment and Harry whimpered, holding his pillow tighter around his head. He finally decided he had to do something, so he unraveled himself from his blankets and went to his door in his pajama shorts and Louis's oversized t-shirt that had accidentally wound up in Harry's laundry. He opened his bedroom door and walked out into the hallway, immediately getting blasted with the scent of cheap booze, stale cigarette smoke, and sweat. The smell suffocated him and made him gag slightly. The boy covered his nose with his, Louis's, t-shirt, and made his way through the sea of bodies, trying to find his older brother or Zayn.

Harry sighed in relief when he saw a red-eyed Zayn splayed on the couch, a bowl of chips resting between his knees. "Zayn," The boy said loudly. The boy didn't stir. "Zayn!" The lad blinked slowly and turned to look at Harry, his face breaking into a huge grin. "Harry! My boy! What do you need?" Harry moved forward so he could speak right into the boy's ear. "I need to find Liam! Do you know where he is?" He shouted. Zayn closed his eyes for a second, humming softly. "I saw him in the kitchen about, oh, I'd say twenty minutes ago. You should check in there. And tell him to refill this bowl."

Zayn passed the near-empty bowl of Fritos to Harry and winked at the boy, ushering him toward the kitchen. Harry rolled his eyes and walked into the kitchen, spotting Liam leaning against the counter with a cigarette between his lips. The older lad took a puff and blew smoke out of the corner of his mouth, closing his eyes. "Liam!" Harry shouted, making the older lad startle. He stumbled and dropped the cigarette into the ashtray next to him, putting it out. "Harry! I told you to stay in your room! Get out!" Harry shook his head and ran toward the boy. "No! Tell your friends to keep quiet!"

Liam sighed and grabbed onto the boy's arm, dragging him back to his bedroom. He shut the door behind them. "Harry, this is the first party I have thrown in a long time and I need it to be good. I can't have my little brother running around the place telling people to be quiet. Please, Haz, I'll do anything for you. Just give me this one night. Okay?" Harry nodded and rubbed his eyes tiredly. Liam softened his face and lowered himself a little bit to Harry's level. "Do you want me to soundproof your room a little bit?" Harry smiled and gave the boy a thumbs up. Liam stood back up and looked around, trying to find something good to block the sound of the party. His eyes settled on his and Harry's grandma's old cedar chest.

The older boy opened the chest and found a large collection of hand-sewn quilts and blankets. He took a pile of quilts out and carried them over to the door. "Do you have any thumbtacks?" Harry opened his bedside drawer and handed Liam a small plastic box. "Here, help me tack these up on the wall." The younger boy came over and help up the blanket while Liam stood on a chair, pinning it to the wall. They did that until they covered the whole wall, muffling the sound of the party-goers. "Okay, I'm done with that. I'm gonna head back out there, and after I leave, I want you to tuck this under the door." He handed the slighter boy a rolled-up blanket, kissing the boy's forehead before leaving the room.