seventeen
Liam and Luke drove us to Harry's, Harry and I sitting hand in hand in the backseat of Liam's black Mercedes-Benz. The car ride was filled with music from the radio and Liam and Luke chattering between themselves, while Harry and I sat silently together in the backseat. Liam and Luke tried to bring us into the conversation, but neither of us really contributed. Liam and I helped Harry into his wheelchair once we reached the house, Liam then pushing him through the doors that Luke and I held open.
I had never seen Harry's house before, and it was much more beautiful than I could ever have imagined.
We pulled up to the back of the house on a short winding road that curved around a small patch of grass. The road was a full circle around the back of the house, making it easy to stop at the front door or go straight to the garage. The garage had three doors, one large one in the middle and two smaller ones on each side. There was a small crevice, I guess you could call it, that connected the house to the garage, curving the garage slightly forward. The front door was actually two, mahogany wood doors, windows above each of them. The house was one of which with sharp edges and several windows.
Inside the home, was two floors. The top floor was a loft, basically, with three bedrooms, a bathroom, and then a bathroom in the master bedroom. There was an empty area that had a railing that looked over the first floor of the house. It was basically an upstairs living room. It had a large white screen and a projector on one side, a long couch on the other, and a refrigerator at one side. Pictures of Lambeau and Harry with players, coaches, friends were hung up on the walls throughout the house. The loft hung over the kitchen and looked over the main floor's sitting room, which had wide open windows and a sliding glass door on one side. The first floor was large, the doors opened into the kitchen and dining room, which were separated by only our presence and an island jutting out of the wall in the kitchen. There was a door on the far left the led to the garage, and the room separating the house from the garage had been made into a laundry room. At the right, there was a hallway that led to two more rooms, and the door that led down to the basement.
I was suddenly very embarrassed of my house and how many nights Harry had actually stayed there when he was used to such a luxurious house, my fingers playing with the hem of my shirt.
"Have you heard from Louis?" I asked Luke when Liam and Harry had begun walking to the living room, Luke and I staying in the kitchen.
Luke shook his head and sighed, looking down at his feet. "No. Do you know where he is? I haven't heard from him in a while." He answered, making my eyes grow wide.
"Oh, shit." I said, shaking my head. "I'm sorry. I just thought Zayn or someone would've told you."
"Told me what?"
"About Louis.."
"What about Louis? What the hell are you talking about?"
I sighed and looked at my feet for a moment before looking back at Luke. "Louis...He um...He's in Wauwatosa. At a rehabilitation center. Zayn and I took him there about a week ago.."
"For what?" Luke asked quickly.
"Um, drugs. Yeah, he was doing cocaine and he wasn't eating...It was horrible..." I breathed, shaking my head as I looked down at my hands.
"Do you know why?"
"Vanessa...She was sleeping around for money because Champions is closing down. She wasn't getting a lot, so she was dressing a bit sluttier for more tips. Louis found out. I don't how. But yeah, that's pretty much why." I briefly explained, rubbing my hands over my face. "Louis loved the shit out of Vanessa and it's totally understandable that he would be hurting so much over this. I just wish he wouldn't have turned to a chemical happiness... Or whatever it made him feel.."
"In control." I heard Liam speak as he stepped up to Luke, his arm wrapping around his shoulders.
"What?" I asked, looking up at Liam.
"Coke. It makes you feel powerful and in control of everything. It makes you feel like a god." He said, sighing. "A few years back, I used to have a slight coke problem. It was before I even played in the NFL. It was during my college years, and I never got in trouble for it, but yeah. The cocaine made me feel strong and in control. I thought I was so powerful. That's probably what Louis wanted to feel."
I nodded and looked at my feet, rubbing my hands over my face. "I'm going to go sit with Harry. Thanks for picking us up." I said.
Pulling myself away from the two of them, I walked into the living room and sat in the chair beside Harry's wheelchair. "Hey." I said softly, noticing his eyes were looking around the room.
"Nothing will ever be the same, Niall." Harry spoke, turning his head to look at me.
"What do you mean? Of course things will be the same. The only difference is that you can't play football anymore. But I still love you, and I always will love you. Football or not." I told him, sliding my hand into his. "I don't love you because of football, and I never did love you because of football. It's just because of football that you came into my life as the person I was meant to be with until the day that I die."
"Don't say that." Harry whispered, his eyes staring into mine.
"Don't say what?" I asked, my eyebrows scrunching.
"Don't say that you'll die. Angels never die." He whispered to me.
I stared at him in awe, my face softening before I shook my head. "Harry.." I whispered, sighing. "If that were true, you wouldn't die either."
"We are one cheesy fucking couple." Harry muttered, a chuckle leaving his lips. His beautiful, perfect lips.
I shrugged, smiling at him. "Eh, it's our thing." I said and leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his lips.
"Our thing?" Harry asked, laughing at me. It wasn't that spiteful 'you're and idiot' laugh. It was a fond laugh, a 'you are the cutest thing on the planet' laugh.
"Yeah, our thing. Every couple has a thing. Being cheesy is ours. It's our thing." I told him, gently squeezing his hand.
"I love you." Harry whispered slowly, moving his free hand to rest on my cheek.
I smiled at him and nodded, closing my eyes for a brief moment as I relaxed under his touch. "I know, Harry. And I love you." I whispered back, taking a deep breath. "Luke and I are going to go back to my place and pack a few things so I can stay here. I'll have Liam stay here."
Harry nodded and sighed, leaning back as he pulled away from me.
"Harry, I'll only be gone a little while. An hour and a half at most." I said, setting my hand on the back of his neck.
"It's not that." He mumbled, looking up at me.
"What is it?" I asked, running my fingers through his hair. He seemed to relax at that touch, but only just a bit.
"I just wish I could do things on my own, you know? Everything is just so difficult, and I can't seem to do a thing on my own. I hate it." He muttered.
I sighed and nodded, getting to my feet. "I know, Harry. But it's okay. We aren't judging you for not being able to do thing and one day you will be able to do those things again, okay?" I whispered, kissing the top of his head.
"Okay. I'll see you soon, right?" He asked, looking up at me.
I smiled down at him and nodded, leaning down to kiss his lips before I walked back to the kitchen. When I was away from Harry, it hit me. Harry and I had basically switched roles. Harry was the one always reassuring me, telling me how much I loved him. I was always the one that never wanted him to leave, and I still didn't, but it was different this time. I was taking care of him. I didn't mind having to take care of him, it was just odd. It was strange being the one having to take care of the other.
"Liam, could you stay here with Harry? I have to head home and pack some things for the night." I said, leaning my hand against the counter.
Liam nodded and pulled his car keys from his pocket, setting them in Luke's hand. "Take Niall to his place and help him. I can stay with Harry." He said and kissed Luke's cheek before he walked to Harry, sitting where I had been before.
Luke wrapped his arm around my shoulders in a comforting way, pulling me out of the kitchen and towards the door. I turned my head to look at Harry, sighing when I saw him staring down at his lap. Luke led me to Liam's car, starting it up once we were both inside.
We were both silent as we drove, me on my phone while Luke focused on driving. I put my phone down when we were about halfway there, but within a minute it began ringing. I picked it up and looked at the number, biting my lip when I saw it was a Wauwatosa number. I swiped to the right and held it to my ear, closing my eyes. "Hello?" I choked out, taking a shaky breath.
"Mr. Horan, we had your number on file for a Louis Tomlinson. We would like you to come as soon as possible I feel that this would be better said in person.." I heard a woman speak into the phone.
I felt numb at her words, and everything after was a blur.