Camera Shy (Louis Tomlinson) Book 5

Chapter 50

Louis’ POV

I can’t help but roll my eyes as I see her leave. She was being dramatic. It was one interview. She needed a push to fully adjust to the media attention, and even if the interview hadn’t gone that well, it had been a good start. God knows how she would have reacted if that had happened five months ago. Maybe I could have asked nicer; told her sooner. I’d have to apologize for that. I had been rude in the car, but she was being unreasonable. I loved the girl, but damn she knew how to push my buttons.

“Where’s Lauren going?” Harry asks, walking over.

“She’s feeling sick” I lie. “She’s going back to the house.”

“Oh that sucks,” he says with a frown. “Won’t get your kiss at midnight”

“Eh” I say with a shrug. Frankly I think she would have been too pissed even if she had stayed. He pats my shoulder before the two of us head back over to talk to some of the big wigs at Modest. The album was dropping at midnight, which meant we had to stay until at least then. I’d sort things out with Lauren when I got home.

“Hey mate, where’d Lauren go?” I hear Ed ask. I quickly excuse myself from the conversation I’m in, turning to look at him.

“She’s sick,” I say, giving the lie I’d given Harry.

“Sick? She seemed fine earlier.” He says skeptically. “Just angry.” I sigh, glancing around before pulling him away from the crowd.

“We had another fight. She left.”

“What did you say to her?” he asks, shocking me. It sounded like he was siding with her.  “She was angry before, but not to the point she’d have left.”

“She was yelling at me for making her do the interview and I told her that’s what we’d been working towards all this time and then she left.” He frowns, thinking over what I said.

“What exactly did you say…” he trails off. I look off to the side as I try to remember the conversation word for word. I didn’t see why it mattered. She was mad about the interview. That’s all I needed to know.

“She asked why everything was about publicity for me and I said something like that’s what the point was and that I’d told Hunter I’d help her get over her fear since it was my fault to start with.”

“Louis” he groans, face palming.

“What?” I ask in confusion.

“Do you realize what that sounds like?”

I shake my head no as I think over the words. My eyes widen and my head stops shaking as it hits me. Oh shit.

“I wasn’t just dating her for publicity I swear.” I blurt out, a wave of panic rushing over me. I’d seen rumors about that, but that’s all they’d been. Rumors. If that’s what she thought…

“I know mate, but girls are weird. They don’t seem to ever feel secure in relationships and frankly, your relationship does seem pretty public…”

I take a deep breath, running my fingers through my hair.  My heart was running wild. The relationship was too public. That’s what Lauren always said also. “I just… when I was dating Eleanor, people kept calling her my beard right? Well… I didn’t want that to happen with Lauren. I was hoping, if people saw how happy we were together, then they’d accept us as real.”

“Don’t tell me mate. Tell her.”

“I can’t leave though. I’d get in so much trouble.”

“I was going to go, I’ve got some friends I told I’d drop by their place. I can check in on her before I head over. Make sure she’s not tearing your place apart.”