Love Lock

Preface~Goodbyes

"I've packed my things. After tonight's concert I'll be on a plane going home," Zayn admitted. Harry went wide eyed and Liam let out a soft gasp.

"We'll always be your second home Z," Niall whispered and was the first to stand up and embrace Zayn.

Harry and Liam joined with words of 'it's okay' and 'we understand' . Louis stayed in his spot until Zayn looked up at him with a silent request of 'please understand'.

"I get it Zayn, it just doesn't make this hurt less," Louis said finally and stormed to his bedroom down the hall.

"I'll see you guys tonight, okay?" Zayn opened the front door.

"Okay."

"Alright, we'll see you there."

"Bye Zayn."

And so the three boys stood together, not understanding how a normal day could turn into watching their bandmate walk out of the door for what seemed like the last time.

~

"It's not like we haven't dealt with obstacles before," Louis said, crossing his arms in the process.

"This isn't just an obstacle Louis. We've lost a member. This is a disaster," Niall whined, dragging a comforting hand over Harry's back.

"He's replaceable," Louis yelled in the heat of the moment.

"You don't mean that. I can see you're angry, I know we all are. We need to contact management tonight after the concert and we need to refocus. This is not the end," Liam said slowly with his eyes shut, pressing his lips together as he listened to Harry and Niall crying.

"Harry, bloody hell would you stop crying ?!" Louis lashed out at the youngest.

"Just leave me alone," Harry frowned, burrowing his face into Niall's shoulder.

That really was how things went these days. Liam was the most mature and constant one in the group. Five years only made him a stronger leader. The boys knew to come to him when things went wrong. As far as sensibility went, Liam was the embodiment of the word.

On the other hand, Niall was likely to overreact and think that the world was going to end. He had a wide eyed outlook on life and was without a doubt the naive one. But if someone needed a hug or a shoulder to cry on, he would be that person in a heartbeat.

As for Louis and Harry, that was a different story. The two boys used to be two halves of a whole but that was no longer the case. The best friends seemed to drift apart for reasons that Niall, Liam, and Zayn couldn't understand.

It was evident in Harry's eyes when he looked at Louis that he missed him, that he didn't understand why Louis pushed him away.

There would always be a part of the 21 year old that wanted to tell Louis he missed him and that he was sorry for whatever he did wrong, but the voice in the back of his head was glaringly loud, telling him that it was too late.

So Harry stayed quiet, watching as Louis lived and experienced new things without him. The ache in his heart hadn't left, not even after all this time, he just learned to live with it. And slowly but surely, the distance began to feel like normal.

Harry was more or less the same boy that auditioned for X factor all those years ago. Sure he was more mature, but he always stayed true to his personality. Shy, trusting, and full of love, the band treasured him and protected him because of his age and sensitivity.