Visionary [Louis Tomlinson AU]

[06] What Meets the Eye

            The lad seriously needed a housekeeper or something.

            “Shoes off,” Zayn grunted as he strolled past him, and Louis looked down to see a few pairs of shoes kindly kept against the wall beside the door.

            Considering how cluttered the place was, Louis found it kind of pointless, but didn’t say anything. He only removed his shoes and followed Zayn down the short hall and into the next room, without another word.

            The room was the epitome of an artist, basically.

            The walls were covered in drawings and paintings, little notepad sized sketches along with full-blown canvases of work. Louis also had to admit that upon closer examination, most of them were pretty good.

            “So what’s so important then?”

            Louis almost jumped at Zayn’s voice, completely absorbed in the art of the room.

            “Uh, well,” Louis stuttered out nervously. Where on earth to begin? “It’s kind of a long story.”

            Zayn raised an eyebrow as he stuffed the rest of the cigarette into a dusty soda can. “Now that you’re here, I’ve got time,” he simply said. “Make it good and worth the time though, I’ve got a painting to finish.”

            Louis’ eyes wandered over to the canvas in the middle of the room, splattered with a mess of colors that somehow still seemed to shape themselves into something artistic.

            “Right,” he only said, clearing his throat. “Well, you’re going to think I’m insane but… I dreamed about you.”

            “Cute,” Zayn said dryly, seeming mildly amused now.

            Louis had to resist the urge to grind his teeth together. “Listen, I dreamed about you for four years.”

            Zayn seemed at a loss for words now, and Louis couldn’t tell if that was a good or bad thing, but he barreled on anyways.

            “In my head, I mean. I was only asleep for like, a month and a half in the real world, but I lived out four years of my life in my head with you and three other lads. Four years.”

            Louis took a deep breath, realizing that Zayn was the first for him to tell even half of the story too, not a lie about some accident involving a head injury. Something about him just seemed like he’d understand though, something unexplainable.

            “I can’t remember anything of my real life though, only the one in my head. And now that I’ve woken up, I’m finding you all. First I found Liam by accident, at the place where I’ve apparently worked for a year or more now. Then I found Harry at a school, basically failing and wasting away there. Then Niall at this really fancy restaurant, and now… you.”

            He took a breath, waiting for a response for Zayn. He knew that it was a lot to throw on a person, and that he was probably coming off as insane more than anything, but he had to try.

               He couldn’t hold onto this alone anymore. He needed his friends again, his brothers.

           “Two questions,” Zayn finally spoke, looking questioning and thoughtful at the same time. “First, is this Niall at the fancy restaurant Niall Horan, by any chance? At The Phoenix?”

               Louis was surprised that Zayn knew. Did that mean he knew Niall? He had to. He knew him, which, again, could be both a good and bad thing.