UNCOVER

16. UNVEILED DESIRES

*WARNING!!! THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SMUT. PLEASE PROCEED WITH CAUTION.*

Chapter 16

The neon lights of White Peak blinked in the distance as Louis stumbled out of the club, his senses dulled by the alcohol coursing through his veins. He squinted his eyes trying hard to take in the lack of light around him. His head was throbbing and his whole body was a minute away from collapsing under his feet. He had somehow managed to walk out of the club, and towards the main street. His mind could thankfully at least comprehend the fact that he was in no state to drive and so he was on the hunt for a taxi.

Quite dire and unlikely at this place and time but one could hope. The über app on his phone seemed to be playing games with him because the words on the screen wouldn't stop dancing.

The time on his phone flashed 2:45 am. Along with it there were a dozen messages from Zayn that flashed alongside the lingering 23 missed calls from Harry, as well as an "Are you okay?" text that had followed. Ironically Louis was far from okay. In fact in this moment he suddenly felt like he couldn't remember the last time he had felt okay. Perhaps the only times were when he was with Harry. When he could pretend even more than normal to live a life that he could only dream about.

Another 15 minutes had passed when to his surprise a taxi finally stopped in front of him. He stumbled over his feet as he tripped and nearly fell face forward inside the car. The driver asked him for the location to which he mumbled back his address. He looked at his phone again, and all he could do was stare at the message from Harry. What had he done?

The realization hit him like a ton of bricks. Like a thousand invisible piercing cigarette burns that felt a lot worse than the actual one still red on his arm. He had betrayed Harry, the one person who had managed to break through his tough exterior and perhaps touch his heart. It was a whirlwind of emotions—guilt, shame, and regret—all churning inside him.

The taxi ride home was a blur, the city lights passing by like distant stars in the night sky. Louis lay in the dimly lit taxi, the weight of his choices pressing down on him. His entire life had been a series of compromises, each one pulling him further away from the life he truly desired. He couldn't deny the allure of the mafia gang, the power and danger that had drawn him in, but he was tired of letting it dictate every aspect of his existence.

As he replayed the night's events in his mind, a profound realization struck Louis like a bolt of lightning: he wanted Harry like he'd never wanted anything more. All this time he had thought that the simplicity of love, the warmth of Harry's presence, and the feeling of being truly understood was what he craved. But truthfully, all of those things only made him weak. He had seen it in Ira's eyes today—the same gaze from 12 years ago when he had been drawn into his office. It dawned on him that escaping his life in the gang entirely was impossible, and eradicating the dark side within him was equally unfeasible. Nor did he wish to put his efforts towards something so futile. He enjoyed the power he had, the control that came so easily through his life in the mafia. The men that would get on their knees just to make him fuck them.

And having all that had worked for a while, especially those random one night stands with men he couldn't bother to know more about. But now he had Harry. And it had led him to discover that seizing control over someone he knew so well, someone so pure like Harry, turned him on in ways he never thought possible. Which is why he was ready to keep this life a secret, a concealed aspect of himself that would never get in the middle of what he wanted with Harry.

He understood it wouldn't be easy. But he'd spent almost his entire life training to become a master of deception, walking a tightrope between two worlds. How hard could it possibly be to deceive someone like Harry? "Easy," he answered and smirked to himself. The thought that Harry probably deserved someone else did cross his mind. It most definitely did because it was true. Yet, Louis couldn't deny his own selfish desires. He wanted him all to himself. And he was ready to do anything to make that possible. Even if that meant stopping his heart from feeling things it shouldn't be feeling.