In Front Of A Camera

• chapter three •

//TW: Domestic Abuse and eating disorders

"Harry!"

Harry whined a little at the sound of his name being shouted loudly, he just wanted to sleep.

"Harry!" The voice shouted again.

Oh shit. Oh shit shit shit. That was Liam, and he was supposed to be awake whenever he came home.

Harry quickly sat up, "Sorry Liam, I'm so sorry. I laid down to relax for a minute and I must've fallen asleep. What time is it? I'll get started on dinner!"

"It's nearly 11:30. You should've had dinner ready and waiting for me, it's way too late to start on it now." Liam snapped, making Harry tense up.

He really didn't want to cross Liam, he really aimed to please. But nothing was ever good enough.

"Liam.... I'm so sorry. It won't happen again.. I promise! I was just tired and-"

"You don't think I'm fucking tired too? I have a stable job with set hours! And I often work over time, you have no right to complain you little bitch." Liam muttered, yanking on Harry's ear a bit and forcing him to make eye contact, "You only work a few days a week. Not nearly as much as I do."

"I..." Harry was about to argue back, but he knew better than that. He'd learned that lesson too many times. "You're right. I'm sorry, I know you do so much for us."

Liam let go of his ear, and hit him across the face.

Hard.

"That's right. Now I'm gonna go shower and you better have some McDonald's at the table for me when I'm finished." Liam said, "And you're paying. That's what happens when you don't cook dinner like you're supposed to."

Harry nodded silently, his hand going up to his throbbing cheek. He was trying so hard not to cry in front of Liam. "Okay... I'll go get some," he mumbled quietly, hurrying off.

He grabbed a bag of ice, wrapped it in a towel and pressed it against his cheek quickly, before heading out the door. He knew if he was quick enough he'd be able to stop at the pharmacy to get some ointment too. He didn't want a puffy face for his shoot in the morning.

•

In light of all that had happened the night prior, Harry was nowhere near surprised when he came home to Liam making out with another guy on the sofa. Liam immediately heard him, but didn't stop what he was doing, instead made brief, cold, eye contact, before getting back to being all over this random guy.

Harry sighed, knowing that meant he'd really fucked up.

Again.

He cursed under his breath as he walked to the kitchen, intending to make Liam's favorite meal. He knew he had to make up for the night before, and he thought this would be perfect.

He spent several hours over the stove and at the counter, preparing one of Liam's very favorite pasta dishes, along with a salad, plenty of sides, and dessert.

It took everything in him to not just devour the whole thing. He was starving, literally. He'd had a yogurt parfait for breakfast, some coffee at lunch, and nothing else. He had to keep his figure.

Not only for his job, but for Liam too.

Just as Harry was putting together the final touches, he heard the guy leave, before Liam came into the kitchen and smiled.

"What's all this?" He asked, acting all sweet. Harry loved when Liam was affectionate with him, it made everything worth it.

"Oh...just dinner. I made your favorite," Harry smiled, letting Liam lean in and kiss his cheek.

"Thank you babe, it looks great. I'm starving!"

Harry knew it was just an expression, but he couldn't help but think how Liam had no idea what being starving actually felt like.

Harry did though.

He dished up a hearty plate of food for Liam, and some of the salad for himself and brought it to the table.

"You know why I have other guys over right?" Liam asked, taking a heaping bite of pasta.

Harry nodded softly, "because sometimes I'm not good at it..."

"That's right," Liam replied. "And you know why you can't have other guys, yes?"

Harry nodded again. "Because I'm yours."

Liam grinned, "Exactly."

Harry blushed and looked down at his plate. He was determined to earn more of Liam's affection. He wanted to be everything he needed, he didn't want him to have to look elsewhere.

He had a little journal in fact, where he kept notes of everything Liam told him that he liked and disliked about him. He was trying to build himself into the best possible boyfriend, and even though it was hard, he felt that in the end, it would be worth it.

•

Louis arrived home that day with a mind full of worries. He knew something was deeply wrong with Harry, his behavior had been so... odd.

He wanted to learn what was wrong, wanted to help. He could see it in Harry's eyes, how broken he was. How much he was hurting. And he just wanted to fix it all.

The problem was, he just didn't know how. He didn't know when he'd see him again since he'd called off the photoshoot twice, and they hadn't rescheduled anything.

His biggest worry, was that they wouldn't schedule anything ever again.

Gosh, why was he thinking about this so much? He knew he had no place getting into Harry's business, he was a client, just like anyone else.

But there was just something... something different about him.

Louis spent the rest of his day, and well into the night, trying to distract himself. It was pretty useless though, because Harry still had a hold on his thoughts.

It wasn't until about ten o'clock that night that Louis received an email from Mitch.

Hello-
Sorry about the last couple of days. Life's been a bit... challenging for Harry it seems. He'd like to give this photoshoot one more chance though, if that's alright? I understand if you don't want to work with him again, and I'm sure he will understand too.

Let me know,
Mitch Rowland.

Louis was a little too eager it seemed, because he was immediately typing out a reply.

Hi Mitch,
Of course I'd be willing to try again. Harry is lovely, and he's a great model. Is there a time next week that will work for you?

Thanks,
Louis Tomlinson

Louis closed his laptop, looking up at the ceiling with a smile. He still had a chance.

Hey guys! It's Stella (: hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please leave feedback if you have any! 💛