Just Me, You, And This Box of Matches

Chapter 10: Intervention

"So it was your usual Vally day, right?"

Louis swallows his mouthful of chicken. "Right."

"Me and Amy are at this restaurant, right-"

Louis smiles a meat-smeared smile at phone sitting in his lap. "Oh ho, you and zodiac sign girl."

"Yes, me and Amy," says Niall impatiently. "So anyway, we're at a restaurant, and we order a pint-"

"Bad idea," says Louis.

"Well, yes, in retrospect, but- we ordered one, and then Amy might have challenged me to a drinking contest-"

Louis blinks. "Amy challenged you?"

"Yep," says Niall, and he sounds half embarrassed and half proud. "And then the next thing I know, we're on the highway, running full tilt away from two police cars."

"Why were you being chased by police cars?"

"We were naked."

"Ah." Louis points a nugget at the phone. "That would explain it, then."

"So I need your help."

Louis makes a face. "I'm in the hospital, Niall."

"Only for a few more hours."

"Your point?"

"My point is, 'm stuck in here till someone pays my bail, and Zayn is screening my calls."

"And your bail is... how much exactly?"

Niall tells him. Louis hangs up.

When Louis reaches the door of his apartment, the soft chatter of overlapping voices is bleeding through the thin plywood.

Louis frowns and reaches out to try the handle. It's locked, but as soon as the doorknob squeaks in its casing the apartment falls instantly silent, like everyone has suddenly sucked in and held a collective breath.

Louis rolls his eyes and digs in his pocket for his key.

When he shoves the door free of its frame, he almost hits the curly-haired girl standing in his doorway, cradling a bowl of bright red liquid in one arm.

"Punch?" she says, offering him a ladleful.

Louis stares blankly at her. "Who are you?"

"I'm Danielle," she says. "Punch?"

"Erm," says Louis, and looks past her into his apartment. The lights are dimmed, and there is what appears to be a disco ball spinning on the ceiling of the den. It's still utterly silent. "I- I'm good, thank you. If you'll excuse me-"

He pushes past her into the entry hall, almost trips over something large and bulky lying against the wall of the hallway. He looks down to see a sparkly pink guitar case propped up against the wall. There is what appears to be a rhinestone-studded pocketknife balanced carefully on top of it.

"I don't understand what the fuck is going on," says Louis, mostly to himself. He kicks the guitar case closed- a few dollar bills flutter to the ground- and rounds the corner to the kitchen.

Liam Payne is standing behind the counter, holding an oversized knife. There's a giant banner stretched across the wall behind him. It reads INTERVENTION in big bubble letters.