The very next day, the first thing he's met by when he walks into homeroom is a hot scowl from the back of the classroom. It's Harry, who else, and he looks proper pissed off. Louis isn't exactly fazed, but he can't help but wonder what it is now. He isn't surprised, but he's fairly certain he hasn't done anything. He goes through his memory in class, but he can't seem to remember a moment where he's supposed to have angered him. Football practice went fine, they didn't even bicker since Harry was pleasingly ignoring him, and he can't be reminded of any other time where they could have clashed.
He doesn't really care, though. Harry's an unreasonable twat anyway. Louis has things to do, like, not worry about any Harry related thing whatsoever.
Niall complains about his nail condition during lunch, which means he's still hung up on the school nurse. Louis doesn't really see it, but supposedly she's hot.
"But have you seen her legs, mate?" he says, when Louis tells him to get a grip. "She's like made of gold. Her skin is shining, and her eyes are the deepest of the deepest seas. I'd get down on my knees for her anytime and anywhere. I bet she tastes like glitter, if you know what I mean."
"You need a fucking filter."
He doesn't have the time for this.
Thursday is coming up, and he actually finds himself getting a little nervous. He's not usually the type to get nervous, and Greg seems great, but Louis has this feeling that if he doesn't do this properly he will be getting sacked stat, and that is just isn't something he can afford.
When the day finally rolls around, and Louis has suffered yet another day with Harry staring at him like a creep the entire school day, he is at the frozen yoghurt shop and Greg is showing him the ropes.
He's in his normal black jeans, but he's wearing a black t-shirt with the logo on, just like the one Greg had on a couple of days ago. It all seems pretty easy, only the fro-yo machine is a little complicated to refill, and the cashier takes him about fifteen minutes to work, and Greg laughs at him the entire night. He has to wear a stupid tag as well that says 'NEW AT WORK' and while it's embarrassing, it helps him not to look like a complete idiot in front of costumers.
Actually, this whole job thing isn't as bad as he'd thought. He thought he'd feel ashamed standing behind the counter, but it makes him feel better. He's making a difference, helping himself get somewhere and he feels less uneasy knowing he's at least trying.
He feels his phone buzzing in his pocket, and a wave of unease falls over him at once. He lied to Niall about what he was doing tonight. He never lies to Niall. He hasn't lied to him in years (and withholding certain information does not count), and he seriously doesn't have a good reason why he's done it now. It's just... embarrassing, but he knows that if Niall found out he's gotten a job, he would passively aggressively guilt trip Louis into bringing his family to dinner at his house, and then make his own parents invite them to lunch both two days of the weekend for the rest of the year. That's not something Louis wants. They're fine.
He ignores his phone, looking up when he sees his new boss approaching.
"Do you think you could handle a customer by yourself?" Greg asks, nodding encouragingly at the glass door. Louis looks over, and he spots somebody coming towards the shop.
"Yes," he nods, feeling kind of okay behind the till. "You better not leave though," he adds. Greg cackles, but stays.
When the door opens, Louis regrets his decision instantly. It's a woman and a man walking into the shop, and his stomach sinks. This is so not what he needs right now.
"I'm just saying, Des," the woman says, hand gesturing vividly. "I don't think it's a good idea –"
"Anne, we've talked –"
"Don't interrupt me, please." They stop in front of desk, eyeing the toppings while they continue bickering.
Louis' never felt more uncomfortable. He glances back at Greg helplessly, but the bloke only snickers, gesturing for him to go on. Louis really doesn't want to interrupt – he doesn't want to be a part of this at all.
"Are you ready to order...?" he asks carefully after another minute of listening to the couple snip at each other.
The woman looks up at him, and Louis meets her eyes. She looks strikingly much like Harry. The same big mouth, the jawline familiar and her hair the same dark color as his. Her hair is wavy, not as curly as Harry's, but it's easy to tell from whom he inherited his looks. Mrs. Styles' eyes are lined with wrinkles, but it's hard to tell if they're from age or exhaustion. Something tells him it's the latter.
Louis fully expects her to recognize him, considering he plays on her son's football team. Yet he earnestly hopes Harry's parents are too wrapped up in their fighting to realize who he is, because if they do they might tell Harry he works here, which is definitely not something he wishes. He can't believe it's only been a few hours and it's already gone to hell.
Somehow Harry's mother doesn't twist a muscle, doesn't actually seem to recognize him in the slightest. She orders a small pot with cut strawberries and coconut shavings, and Harry's father one with Oreo chunks. Louis nervously taps the screen to the computerized cashier as the couple start bickering again. It makes him even more nervous, because their fighting is incessant and he barely knows how to work the machine as it is.
"Is something wrong?" Harry's mum asks, and Louis instantly flushes.
"I'm sorry," he says. "I'm new."
"It's okay, sweetheart." She pauses. "Des, I'm going to my lawyer on Monday if you don't change your mind."
Jesus Christ.
"Anne!"
"I'm done!" Louis announces much louder than intended, and hands the credit card back over to Harry's mum forcefully. Take it and leave, for the love of God.
"Thanks, love." She takes the card, and picks up her fro-yo. They leave and Louis almost feels like he's supposed to wipe sweat off his brow. He watches the door to the shop close, uneasiness bubbling in his stomach.
Greg hangs his arm over his shoulders. "That went well. Depressing couple as hell, but that went pretty good I think."
"Yeah," Louis swallows, tearing his eyes from the windows.
YOU ARE READING
Unbelievers
FanfictionIt's Louis' senior year, and he's dead set on doing it right. However, along with his pair of cleats, a healthy dose of sarcasm and his ridiculous best friend, he's also got a complicated family, a terrifyingly uncertain future, and a mortal enemy m...
