I Cannot Hide This Even Though I Try ~ A COMPLETED One Direction Fanfic

3 - Relationship Status

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*Harry's POV*

Things between Lou and I have been awkward since the night of the meeting. I knew I shouldn't have let my emotions get the better of me. You had to do what you had to do. Yeah? I had to ruin my friendship with Louis? You're just too much of a coward to talk to him about that night. You can only blame yourself.

"Well that was interesting," Louis mumbles as we walk through the door of our shared flat.

"Yeah, interesting," I mutter. That interview was long, boring and awkward.

"So..." he trails off.

"So..." I follow suit. You have to talk to him; it's now or never.

"I'm gonna go take a nap before practice tonight, alright? Could you wake me up before we have to go?" Louis asks after standing there in awkward silence for a few minutes.

"Yeah, of course," I murmur. I watch as he turns on his heel and walks away, clearly feeling the tension between us. Damn it.

I walk into the kitchen and pull out random ingredients, not sure what I'm making. I look at the supplies at hand and realize I've gotten out everything I need to make carrot cake. Really, Harold? You know that carrot thing was a joke. Oh bugger off, will you?

I slowly start mixing ingredients, keeping my mind occupied until I've put the batter in a cake pan and set it in the oven. I look around to see what else there is to do, but realize that I even prepared the frosting already and set it in the fridge to keep chilled. I twiddle my thumbs momentarily before decided to fix some real food to go with the carrot cake. I decide to keep things relatively simple, taking out a large pot, a saucepan, a frying pan and a cookie sheet.

I fill the pot with water and salt it, then add a little bit of oil to it and leave it to boil. Then, I pour a few different things in the saucepan, including tomato sauce and some different spices. I set that aside and pull out some vegetables, which I chop up quickly. I put the green peppers, mushrooms and onions in the frying pan with some butter and letting them simmer.

After a few minutes, I add them to the saucepan and put noodles into the pot of now-boiling water. I stir the noodles into the water and keep an eye on them while also stirring the sauce. I set the sauce on low heat, then take out some premade meatballs that I put on the cookie sheet after having sprayed it with non-stick spray. I set the second section of the oven and, once it reaches the right temperature, put the meatballs in and set the secondary timer before focusing my attention fully on the sauce and noodles.

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Just as I'm setting the table, I receive a text from Liam telling me that rehearsal is being moved to tomorrow night. Now, don't get me wrong; I love practicing with the boys, but I'm kind of glad that we we're gonna have a night off. I finish setting the napkins and silverware on the table, then bring out some candles and wine glasses. Don't ask me why two young adult males have candles and wine glasses. There is no reason.

After everything is absolutely perfect, I go to Louis' door and knock on it quietly. It's around the time I'd be waking him up anyways, if not for the sudden change in rehearsal times. A minute or two later, Louis still hasn't responded, so I knock harder.

"Go away," a groggy voice calls out to me.

"Boobear, I made dinner for us," I say as soothingly as possible. Waking Louis is almost as bad as 'waking the dragon'.

"Fuck off, I'm tired," he snaps.

"You can go to bed as early as you like tonight, Boo, but you need to come and eat before rehearsal," I lie.

A moment later a very bedraggled Louis is standing in the doorway to his room, shirtless and wearing pajama bottoms. "Sorry," he grumbles as he walks out of his bedroom. "Why is it so bloody dark in here and why is your iPhone playing soft rock through the iHome? What's going on, Haz?"

I grin at the adorable boy handsome man in front of me for a moment before grabbing his hand and dragging him to the table. I pull out his chair and wait for him to plop down in his seat, then take my own seat. "Like I said, I made dinner."

"Candles. There are candles. Why? Oh..." I can almost see the light going on in Louis' head as he realizes what I've done. "You didn't ask to take me on a date, Hazza, and don't we have rehearsal soon?"

"What, and be traditional? It was a spur of the moment surprise for you that I decided on when you left for your nap," I tell him. Then I remember to add, "Oh, Liam texted and said it was moved to tomorrow."

"Well, spontaneity has always been my preference anyways," Lou mentions with a chuckle. "So what's for supper?"

Instead of replying, I get up and go to the kitchen, returning with two plates of spaghetti and meatballs. There's cheesy garlic bread on the side that I had decided to fix somewhat last minute, once the oven was free again.

Before Louis has a chance to respond, I walk away again and come back with a bottle of grape juice, which I pour into our glasses. I sit down across from the awestruck boy that caught my attention from day one, smirking at him. "Oh, just some pasta and stuff. No big deal," I finally tell him as nonchalantly as possible.

We both dig in, enjoying this time together. We talk and joke around until we're done our food, at which point I take our plates and set them in the sink. I run water over them to keep the sauce from becoming a problem, then set the kettle on and putting the milk and sugar on the tray with mine and Lou's usual mugs.

As I wait for the water to boil, I cut two slices of the fresh carrot cake and put them on the dessert plates on the tray as well. Then, I pour the hot water into a teapot with some Yorkshire tea bags and carry the tray back to the table and set it down.

"You made me carrot cake?" Lou questions, laughing lightly. "I can't believe you still remember that!"

"As if I could forget! The fans wouldn't let me if I tried," I remind him.

"Well, thank you, Hazza."

"For what?" I ask, truly curious.

"For a perfect first date with you," he replies.

"Anything for you," I practically choke out. That was a better response than I expected. We continue the rest of our dessert in silence until I finally have the guts to speak up. "Hey Boobear?"

"Yeah, Hazza?"

I swallow and take a deep breath, preparing for what might come when I utter the question: "Will you do me the honor of being my boyfriend?"