𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐳𝐚 𝟐𝟓𝟖 [𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧]

𝟎𝟒. 𝐎𝐟 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐈 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝!

After this discussion we also started laughing and I was happy, happy that I made him laugh, it was kind of an achievement because he laughed only with Josh.

"I reckon you've lost Harry!"

I looked and when I saw that I ended up on his most expensive hotel I threw the money on the board and went to the couch faking offence.

Louis laughed and joined me on the sofa.

"Are you angry?"

I didn't answer him and continued to pretend to be offended.

"Come on Harry! What if I told you I cheated?" Having said that, he started to put his arm behind me but then, as if realising what he was doing, he pulled it back and scratched his head.

"How did you cheat???"

"Well, every now and then when I passed by the go, I took a little more money!"

"You bastard!"

He gave me his rematch and this time I won even though I suspected he had let me win on purpose. When we finished it was almost time for dinner.

"So shall we go eat?" I asked him as I stretched. My legs were a little numb after spending the afternoon on the floor.

"Sorry, curly, I'm not coming to dinner today."

Curly? He had been calling me Harry all day, why did he come back to curly? And why with that 'curly' that coldness had returned to his voice that characterised him?

I went out the door, but his words reminded me too much of those of the previous Sunday: 'Sorry, curly, I have better things to do.'

I didn't go to eat, I waited around the corner for him to come out. I knew he would, he didn't come back last Sunday until 3.

I waited for half an hour then I saw him leave, without thinking I followed him.

He went out and I didn't understand how he was only wearing short sleeves since I was freezing in my sweatshirt. He went over to the lake, into a grove where not making me heard became more difficult with all the dry branches and leaves. Louis walked for quite a while, the terrain was uphill. Finally he emerged in a very small semi-circular clearing that overlooked a cliff. I stopped behind a tree waiting to see what he did. I would have preferred not to. I saw him fall trembling to his knees and start crying, he grabbed the grass with his hands and uprooted it frantically. From time to time he punched a tree near him and after a while I saw that his hand was covered in blood.

He continued like this all the time, sometimes even adding a heartbreaking scream. After twenty minutes I couldn't take it anymore, I turned around and started running and running until somehow I managed to find my way back to college.

I entered the building and, continuing to run, I returned to my room.

I sat up on the bed and put my head in my hands. I was shocked.

Louis was cold, sour, intimidating to the other students, relaxed and fun with Josh and even a little with me today, but I never, ever expected to see him weak and desperate. Desperate, yes that's the right word, Louis was desperate.

The question 'who is Louis' buzzed even louder in my head at that moment, but it was drowned out by another: what could I do to help him?

Maybe nothing but I wanted to at least try.

I got up and walked to the bar, grabbed a piece of cake and went back to our room. I put it on his bed and added a note:

'In case you're hungry-H.'