Lively. {Larry}

Twenty Six

"It's fine." He groaned, rubbing at his face aggressively before finally getting to the point because he really did not want to be on the phone so early in the day. "Anne, listen-"

"I know you and my son aren't on good terms but have you seen him? I was calling him all day yesterday and he wasn't picking up." She interrupted, her words laced with concern.

Which of course made Louis feel horrible. He couldn't tell the woman that her son was probably some macho man's bitch in a jail cell at the police station downtown.

Well, let's give Harry some hope, he told himself as he gnawed lightly at his lip, Maybe he has his own bitch.

"He's-" The man paused, throwing his sheets off his body so that he could plant his bare feet on the floor and begin getting ready. "Busy at work. He told me that he got called in early and he asked me if I could go to the event at Gemma's school in his place."

"Called in early at the bar?" Anne questioned inquisitively, obviously a bit skeptical of his story.

"Alcoholics." Louis shrugged, using that as his excuse which the woman had bought.

"Well, we can't pull you away from whatever you have planned. It's fine, I was planning to go anyways since I foresaw Mr.Busy-Pants not being able to make it." Anne chuckled, causing the smaller man to smile at the nickname she had given her son.

The man almost wanted to cave in and let her go instead of him but he had an obligation. If not to the small girl, than to Harry who had trusted him to go.

"No, I am serious." He pushed, biting on his lip harshly. "Harry told me how much he wanted to be there and I feel like me going to the thing will maybe put us in a good place. I'm trying." He explained, shutting his eyes as if she was in the room with him.

He heard a soft coo from the other side of the line.

"Louis, I have to tell you... Harry was really heartbroken after you had left him."

"I-I." The man stuttered, letting out a deep breath because he couldn't imagine. He honestly pictured the curly haired man surrounded by darkness with an alcohol bottle attached to his lips as tears poured down his face. He knew that the man was a silent crier and that after a while he has a small breathing problem and had to be held in order to fall asleep.

He wondered if anyone was there to hold him. But he kind-of already knew the answer to that.

"I know. This is why I want to make it up to him." He stated, already grabbing a pair of underwear from his drawer and a towel from the closet in the hallway. "I just need the address to Gemma's school."

At that point, Anne had understood his intentions and told him the address. At first, she had felt a bit nervous since the man was insisting that only he would go to the school but there was one thing that she knew. If Harry trusted him, then so did she.

>>>>

Louis swallowed a rather large lump in his throat as he eyed the classroom filled with small children seated at the metal desks with a top wood surface, while the back was filled with older men who were the fathers.

He almost felt uncomfortable as he stood beside firemen, police officers, construction workers, and fitness trainers.

There were a few regular jobs such as sales clerk and bank teller as well but those didn't stand out to Louis and they surely did not stand out to the children since their attentions had drifted off as soon as the man from the bank began speaking about the differences between a savings and checking account.

He couldn't help but feel an ounce of happiness as Gemma repeatedly turned around in her seat to wave to him, sometimes just turning to smile at him since she was probably ecstatic that he had came.

"Next we have Mr. Tomlinson, who is coming in for Gemma Cox." The teacher announced, snapping him from day dreaming. Her manicured hand motioned for him to move towards the front of the room while all of the children's eyes were focused on him.

He was dressed in a button up shirt and slacks since he wanted to be formal. His hair was styled a messy fringe while his face was freshly shaven. He looked like a semi-respectful young man.

"Hello, I'm Louis Tomlinson. A friend of Gemma's older brother Harry." He introduced, making sure to speak clearly and loudly for those in the back.

Having all those eyes on him as he spoke in the front was definitely a bit nerve racking, especially when he could see how the older men were scanning his body with their eyes in either judgement or another feeling. He honestly felt uncomfortable.

But Gemma was looking up at him as if he was god himself, so the feeling was unimportant.

"Why didn't he come?" A small girl blurted out, causing him to laugh awkwardly and rub the back of his neck to avoid making eye contact with anyone.

"He couldn't make it and he told me to come." He muttered, attempting to continue only to stop when there was another interruption.

"Her own brother was too busy to show up." A boy chirped, causing a bit of laughter which made the smile on Gemma's face fall as she slouched in her seat. As if she was trying to hide away from the torment.

And Louis could relate to that insecure and fearful feeling.

"Did your father come today?" The blue eyed man cracked, crossing his arms over his chest as he waited for a response. He even rose an eyebrow and some could say that he could be mistaken for a disappointed teacher in that instance.

The kid's smug smile fell from his face as he looked up at him in shock. Probably not expecting a retort to his comment.

"Y-Yeah. He was here early but he said he had to go-"

"He had to go? Interesting. And did he even speak?"

"Well, no..." The kid pouted, his gaze going towards his desk while his classmates watched him get basically destroyed by the chestnut haired man.

"Then I don't think you should be speaking about who's here for Gemma and who's not." He snapped, rolling his eyes for a brief second before pulling a smile as he continued on with his introduction. Surely, having everyone's attention now.

He told the group about how he worked in a record store and the typical tasks that he had which included organizing the genres and helping customers. He spoke for about a good fifteen minutes until he had ran out of things to say, ending his presentation with a sweet smile and a wink at Gemma.

As the teacher thanked him for speaking, he walked down Gemma's row, giving the small girl a high-five as he passed by. He paused though when she held onto his hand to pull him back towards her.

"Thank you for coming." She whispered loudly in his ear, making him smile and bashfully nod his head. It was clear that she was happy that someone was there for her and that she was not alone while she was publicly bullied.

"Of course." Louis smiled, patting her back as he crouched down so that he was looking up at her while she was looking down at him. It was then that he saw the facial similarities between her and her brother. And her beautiful hazel eyes.

"I missed you." She admitted, giving him a wide smile.

"I miss you too, Gemma." He replied, "So much." 

And it was right at that moment that Louis had realized that he missed the old life he had with Harry which included his sweet family that had already accepted him as their own. He had a family once again and someone who would go to the ends of the earth for him.

And how could he miss out on that?