The following weeks go by smoothly for the boys. Louis especially enjoyed the period as it was a much needed break that gave him the opportunity to clear his head from ongoing battles in his life. He spent the days at home, taking care of Harry, without having to worry about anything or anyone. There were no interviews, no shows and therefore, no management. Harry's injuries had also almost healed. His cast had come off, although he was still not allowed to put complete pressure on his limbs yet.
Their typical day used to start with Harry fixing breakfast/brunch, Louis setting the table and both of them settling down in front of the telly for hours and watching mindless shows. Louis had developed the habit of feeding Harry from his hands, it had become automatic. Louis was also doing his part of cleaning the dishes, laundry, getting groceries etc. Sometimes the other guys would come over and chill out till late at night. On usual days it would just be Louis and Harry playing FIFA on PS and then going back to sleep.
They had gone back to sleeping in their own rooms. After the painkiller incident, Louis did not want to take any chances and therefore had mentally resorted to maintaining some distance. Harry did not question it, he anyway used to pass out the moment he hit the bed due to being under the influence of medicines.
Louis, much to his surprise had finally discovered gay porn, and there was no coming back now. He started watching some videos out of curiosity; he wanted to see if his earlier 'incidents' with Harry were good enough. And now of course he had a million new 'incidents' in his head he was curious about.
But the environment around them these days was domestic, comfortable and non sexual and Louis liked it too much. He never wanted to go back to work. None of them talked about anything other than daily routine. It was a nice homely, warm feeling.
One afternoon they were both chilling on the couch in sweats. Harry was casually having spoons full of peanut butter from the jar while watching TV. It was December and Louis' birthday was in a week. Louis was planning to visit his family. Somewhere, he also wanted to spend it with Harry. He knew Harry would want the same.
"You're birthday's next week!" announced Harry.
"Can you like read my mind or something?" asked Louis laughing. He was going through the schedule on his laptop to plan his travel.
"Yes sir. So, are you visiting home?"
"I do plan to, yes. Just thinking about how to manage this with Christmas and come back to y...uhm..come back home" said Louis biting his tongue, choosing to ignore Harry's smile that erupted.
"Are you going home?" continued Louis.
"Yeah, I was thinking I will come back on 25th. In the evening maybe"
"Hmm.. I will, I will do the same then"
"Cool"
"Cool"
There was silence for another 5 minutes filled with the sounds of typing keys and advertisements running on TV. Then Harry finally decide to break it.
"Do you...uh....do you want to like, go out for dinner or something maybe then..that day...later? Just the two of us?"
Louis' heart leapt out of his body for a moment. He looked at Harry and his innocent, blushed face made him melt. He was looking at him with hopeful puppy eyes and Louis wanted to shout and tell him he would sky dive off of airplane without a parachute if he asked him to while looking like this. But Louis also remembered the contract, their situation. His heart, which was dancing outside his chest suddenly dropped dead.
Harry noticed the shift in Louis' eyes from excitement to uncertainty and smiled warmly, he could sense his internal struggle.
"Lou, we can like go to a super exclusive place which has like minimum staff and..."
"Harry, you know we can't do that" said Louis dropping his head, staring at his own hands.
"Why not? I will take care of everything, just leave the planning to me.."
"Harry, it's not possible. You cannot control everything. Someone can click you while in car, or while entering/leaving the place. Anything"
"I will take care of everything Lou. We won't have to deal with any fans...any paps"
"What if the restaurant staff sneaks a picture? You just never know"
"Why are you so pessimistic?"
"I am not. I am just, practical. It's too risky. Maybe, we can invite others and then..."
"No! I want it to be just us. And we won't tell anyone"
"Then that's even more risky Haz. If some picture leaks, or modest finds out..We will be in too much trouble"
"Come on! We can't lock ourselves inside because of them?"
"I like it at home. We can order in or we can...."
"I don't want to stay in. We have been staying in from past 1 month"
"Harry, it's impossible. Why aren't you trying to understand?"
"It will never be 'possible' by the definition of standard terms. Will you never go out with me?" Harry shouted.
Louis was taken aback. He had no answer to this question. These were the questions that would keep Louis up and give him panic attacks. He had not been thinking about all this from past couple of weeks and thankfully had not had a single anxiety attack since. But now he was being forced to face the reality of their situation again. He just looked away from Harry and didn't reply. Harry pursed his lips and nodded. He got up and started walking back towards his room.
"No, Haz. I don't know! Maybe one day..." Louis called out but heard the door slam hard which made him grimace.
He spent another hour in front of the TV but his heart felt heavy. He did not like Harry being angry with him, and he did not like saying no to him when he looked so excited about asking him out, with heart eyes. Louis sighed and rubbed his eyes. He finally took out his phone and sent him a text.
Fine! :X
Harry came running outside with a big smile.
"Jesus Harold! Who allowed you to run?" said Louis standing up immediately with arms raised towards Harry, panicking.
"So that's a yes?" Harry said almost jumping.
"We will see. You do your planning and then...then we will discuss"
Harry beamed and leapt towards Louis, enveloping him in his arms. Louis smiled and shook his head, hugging him back.
"You're such a kid" said Louis into his ears and Harry just laughed.
Few minutes passed, Harry still hadn't let go of Louis. His arms were around Louis' neck and his head was buried in his shoulder. Louis was rubbing his back with one hand and kept him firmly locked in place with the other one around his waist. It had been so long since they properly touched each other, so this gentle embrace felt heavenly to Louis. Harry brought his face back to look at Louis, his eyes darted to his lips. Louis' breathing faltered upon noticing and his smile dropped. They both looked at each other, deciding who should make the first move until the loud doorbell broke the tension.
Both jumped and broke apart.
Louis opened the door, it was Zayn and Liam.
"Hey man" said Zayn fist bumping Louis, followed by Liam. Both came in.
"You ready?" asked Liam looking at Harry.
"Oh yes. Lou, these two were going to the mall to shop for Christmas presents and stuff. Can I go? I have to get a lot of things" asked Harry.
"Will you be alright? What if you get mobbed or something, your body parts aren't exactly completely intact yet" said Louis with concern.
"You can come along mom" said Liam bumping Louis' shoulder.
"I.....I can't. You guys go ahead" said Louis and cleared his throat. Harry dropped his face. Every time Harry and Louis had to hide their basic existence together, they were reminded of their lost freedom.
"I'll be careful, yeah?" said Harry putting on his coat to leave.
Zayn and Liam walked out the door with Harry following. He paused to look at Louis. The awkwardness lingered again about not being sure of how to depart. Before it was obvious and Liam or Zayn could turn around to notice, Louis stretched out his hand and ruffled Harry's hair. Harry chuckled and left.
________________x_____________________x
It was around 9 and Louis was still lying on the couch, browsing through twitter and other social media. The noise around Larry had died down a little, thanks to the break they were taking. It was a bittersweet feeling for Louis.
Harry returned with many shopping bags and shot straight to his room smiling at Louis.
"You couldn't be less obvious about hiding my present" said Louis while smiling.
Harry came back shortly to the living room with few items of clothing and sat next to Louis.
"Look, I bought so many things. They are super cute. Oh how I missed shopping!" said Harry excitedly showing Louis a mix of t-shirts, sweaters and jackets. Louis unfolded and saw each one and complimented them. His attention went to one jacket which was printed, it was white and was full of colorful flowers. He picked it up and ran his hand through it. Harry noticed and shifted awkwardly.
"Do you think it's too much? Zayn said it might be too much. But I couldn't take my eyes off it" he said shyly.
"I think it's lovely. And it will look absolutely amazing on you!" said Louis pulling Harry's cheeks and he blushed.
"I got you takeaway by the way. It's on the kitchen table"
"Oh thanks mate" said Louis standing up from the couch.
"I got you this too" said Harry and threw one navy blue half sleeves t-shirt towards him.
"Thanks, it's really cool" said Louis wile inspecting the cloth in his hands.
"You can wear it tomorrow perhaps. We have an interview"
"Whaat? Noo, I did not want this utopia to end. Urghh" said Louis and went and sat at the kitchen table. He unpacked the burger and fries.
"You know who we bumped into at the mall?" said Harry while dragging the chair to sit next to Louis.
"Who?" said Louis feeding some fries to Harry and then having some himself.
"Kendal Jenner" said Harry while chewing on the fries.
"The...Kardashian?" said Louis raising his eyebrow at him.
"Yeah. We exchanged numbers"
"Oh. Great" said Louis dropping his head and focusing on the burger in his hands. Harry got up and left for his room, taking along all his new clothes.
Harry came back having changed into sweats and went to the kitchen and started making them tea.
"So, all of you exchanged numbers...I mean, Liam and Zayn?" asked Louis, not making eye contact.
"Oh..No. I meant, she and I did. Others had gone back to some other section to shop. So she and I hung around for a bit, talked and then she asked for my number..."
'What sins had I committed to deserve friends like Ziam' thought Louis to himself.
"Great......she is hot" said Louis looking at Harry. He wanted to see his reaction on this comment.
Harry's head turned like a spring towards Louis in an instant. He gave him the most confused look to ever exist making Louis internally cringe at what he had just said.
"Yeah" said Harry which sounded less like a statement and more like a question and turned back to making tea.
"So, I also got a call from modest. We have to arrange for a Christmas Party and invite loads of people. As in, like a pre-Christmas party, in a couple of days" continued Harry.
"Oh God.. What even?"
"Yeah I know. But it can be a good change too. I have been so bored at home, I don't mind having some friends around" said Harry bringing the tea over to the table, sitting next to Louis.
Louis looked at him and nodded in slow motion. His stopped smiling at thinking that Harry wasn't enjoying this break with Louis like he was, and he now wanted to suddenly exchange numbers with a model, wanted a 'crowd' over.
Harry noticed and realized what he had just said. He stretched his arm out and grabbed Louis' hand which was resting on the table.
"Hey, no, I don't mean that I didn't enjoy my time with you. You know how thankful I am to you for taking care of me" said Harry nervously
"Yeah yeah.. of course" said Louis and got up, removing his hand from Harry's. He walked to the kitchen to dump his burger's wrappers in trash. Harry followed him and stood behind him.
"Lou, I really didn't mean it like that" he said looking at Louis earnestly.
Louis patted his cheek and smiled.
"I know, we should sleep now. I will check the schedule for tomorrow as well" Louis said walked out of the kitchen to his room, taking his tea along with him. Once in his room, he lied on the bed and stared at the ceiling for next couple of hours. His beautiful break was coming to and end tomorrow. He wasn't mentally prepared for this. He felt like he had just given birth and was on a maternity leave but now he had to return to work and leave his baby behind.
Harry too lay lifelessly on the bed in his room. He felt guilty for not choosing his words wisely, and probably Louis was jealous. He convinced himself that he was overthinking and then sat crossing his legs, switching his laptop on. He had to make plans for Louis' birthday. He had to make sure everything was perfect and safe so that Louis would have enough confidence to take the step.
He browsed through various restaurants. He then called up his friend Ed.
"Hey Styles! Long time, how are your broken body parts?" asked Ed upon taking his call in less than 3 rings.
"Where would you take your girlfriend, if she cannot be seen in public? Like not at all. Not a chance. It has to be exclusive" shot Harry straight away coming to the point.
"Whoah.. Do you have to like take Beyonce out? What is happening?"
"Answer me! I want to take someone out, let's say for dinner"
"Don't worry my friend. I do have the solution for you. I have a friend who owns this restaurant which is over at the terrace of Brooks Mall. He allows me to book the whole place. You can take your special lady there"
"What about parking?"
"You can park inside the mall. And exclusive area can be arranged. It's a posh mall, they have a VIP entrance. So you can take the car to the basement, get out in front of the entrance. That whole parking floor is different from the general public parking"
"That's great! What about the hotel staff? I don't want a lot of people there"
"Bro, really, who ARE you taking?"
"It's..uh.. It's a guy"
"Oh.."
"Uhm...Yeah"
"Yeah, that's great yeah! And no, so, the owner is friend right? He is trustworthy. You can have minimal staff there. It won't be a problem"
"I am so glad Ed. Thanks so much. Share his number yeah? I'll speak to him"
"Absolutely mate!"
Harry hung up and bounced on the bed excitedly. He couldn't wait to share the plan with Louis once he finalizes everything. This was going to be his first official date with him. He had bought a very chic watch for him as well. He was overexcited. He just hoped for everything to go according to the plan without getting jinxed.
________________x_____________________x
The next morning all the boys were ready and waiting for their ride to the studio for an interview. Harry was dressed in skinny blue jeans and a black t-shirt and Louis was wearing black jeans with the blue t-shirt that Harry got him.
Louis had received a text from Helena from modest already to call her after the interview. He was jumpy ever since seeing the text. He had a bad sinking feeling. He knew nothing good can come out of their 'meetings'. But he was also expecting modest to intervene soon. They had been at sort of like a break from their work for an entire month, no outings with Eleanor. He had just made some obligatory tweets to her and Eleanor posted a photoshopped picture of the two together for lunch. Larries had swarmed the post with comments about being photoshopped which didn't shock Louis, but he knew that they were losing popularity since there were many Eleanor supporters now. So people didn't believe when they dropped their analysis which was really ironic.
"Hey lou?" called Harry who was sitting behind Louis since they obviously could not be seeing sitting together.
Louis turned around and rested his chin on the head rest to look at him.
"Chinese orrr Italian?" asked Harry excitedly.
"What are you hinting at?" said Louis eyeing him suspiciously.
"Come on! Just tell me" asked Harry but Louis kept staring at him with narrow eyes. Harry leaned forward and whispered to his ears.
"It's for our date!" said Harry and giggled.
Louis turned red and looked around to see if others were noticing. They weren't.
"Harry, I mean.."
"I have planned most of the things. I have to tell our chef what we want"
"Our chef? What have you planned?"
"I'll tell you later. Just tell me the cuisine"
Louis looked at him and smiled adoringly. Harry was the most enchanting thing he had come across. He made him forget all his worries while talking to him. And he couldn't help but get excited about the idea of going on a date with him. A hint of normalcy in their life despite the turmoil sounded too good to be true.
"Chinese?" said Louis.
"Okie!" said Harry and bounced back to his seat and started typing on his phone excitedly. Louis kept smiling.
They reached the venue and got down from the car. Louis gave an apologetic nod to Harry and went ahead to walk next to Liam. While Harry followed with Zayn and Niall. They walked to the set where there was a couch for them and three high stools behind the couch to seat them. Zayn and Harry sat at the couch and the other three sat behind them. Niall sat exactly behind Harry and Liam sat in the middle with Louis on the other corner.
The interview went by smoothly with general questions about their next album and Harry's health etc. But Louis could barely concentrate. His heart was sinking thinking about what modest wanted from him next.
"So, which ones of you are single at the moment?"
Louis glanced at others and saw Liam, Niall and Zayn raise their arms. Harry didn't but shifted in his sheet. Louis' heart skipped a beat.
"Ohh, Harry Styles, what do we have here?" asked the interviewer cheekily.
Harry blushed and said "Well no.. I didn't say I am dating someone"
"Come on Harry, let us know about the special lady"
"No, you see, I actually have pain in my arm which is why I can't immediately raise it. So it...it was... a..uhm bit of a delayed response"
Louis' heart began sinking further. He didn't want people to start speculating again and twitter to go crazy. Why was Harry responding like that? His brain started spiraling without realizing that his fake smile had dropped significantly.
"We know by the way, who you are talking about. Soo.." said the interviewer with a smirk bringing Louis' attention back.
All the boys froze at that. None wanted to drop any incorrect signals so they just decide to stay still.
"Well, let me show you" said the interviewer and brought in some blurry printed pictures that fans took at the mall from a day before.
Louis craned his neck to see, It was Kendal and Harry. Both stood very close to each other and stared at the phone in Harry's hand. And the other one was of them hugging, possibly before leaving.
Harry started laughing and just shook his head while the live audience started to cheer.
If Louis' mood was down before, it was now trampled by a mob, stomped over, rolled on the floor and thrown off the cliff. He thought people might actually see fire coming out of his ears and nose with every breath he took. He just wanted to wrap Harry up in a blanket, throw him over his shoulder and take him back home where no one could watch them, pair them with others. Where both of them could just...'be'.
He was lost in his thought about how to plan a perfect murder while staring at the damn interviewer when Niall laughed and nudged Harry's arm playfully, but a little too strongly for his recovering injury. Harry immediately winced in pain curled on his stomach.
"Niall!" screamed Louis throwing daggers at Niall.
"Sorry, sorry!" said Niall nervously raising his palms and looking at Louis.
Zayn threw his arm around Harry to comfort him. Harry just laughed and recovered, joking about how Niall was a bigger threat to him than road accidents.
Once the shoot wrapped up the boys walked out towards the car. Louis' anxiety started building up again, he had to make the inevitable call to management. He called up Helena and she asked him to come to their office for a meeting. Louis knew there was no point in protesting and agreed.
The other boys were waiting for the car to come when Louis returned after hanging up. He walked over to the security and took a cigarette from him.
"You alright?" Harry asked walking over to Louis with a concerned look.
"Hm? I am cool" said Louis lighting the smoke.
"You hadn't smoked from past many weeks"
"Felt like it"
Harry didn't say anything and continued to stare at Louis. He was trying to dissect Louis' mind from his face.
"You shouldn't be talking to me here by the way. Go join the other guys" said Louis shifting between his feet uncomfortably.
"It doesn't matter. We are from the same band. If we completely stop talking, it will stir even more rumors"
"Well, we can in groups. But not here standing away from them" said Louis without meeting Harry's eyes.
When Harry didn't reply Louis added "Standing close to you or hugging you in public is not the luxury I can afford Harold. After all, I am not Kendall". Once the words escaped him Louis realized how bitter he sounded. He immediately regretted it.
"Lou?" said Harry with a tired sigh but before he could continue he was called over by the others since their car had arrived.
"Hey, you carry on, I have a meeting with modest. I will be back by evening" said Louis signaling Harry to leave.
Harry turned around and started walking back without objecting. Louis watched him go back. He turned around and threw a last disappointed look towards Louis and entered the car. They left.
The look on Harry's face before leaving made Louis' heart collapse. But not the kind of drowning feeling that he was feeling since morning due to modest. This was guilt mixed with sadness and protectiveness. Harry was so happy and chirpy earlier. That's how he wanted Harry to always be. But he always ended up spoiling his mood. He realized he was being a dick again and venting out his frustration due to uncontrollable circumstances on Harry. He threw the cigarette and took out his phone to text Harry but was surprised to find a text from him already.
"I was just typing in my number on her phone"
Louis gave a melancholic smile and replied
"I know. You have to start learning how to ignore my pathetic, sad comments"
"I know where you are coming from. It's alright"
"You are being 'modest' XD "
"Eew. Yeah I do need to learn how to ignore some of your comments/jokes"
Louis laughed. He could feel some of the tension lifting away from his body.
"But hey, I have just the thing to cheer you up" replied Harry and sent a picture.
Louis opened the picture and it was of a beautiful restaurant space. It was an open terrace set up with white canopies and beautiful fairy lights. Louis' chest started feeling warm and delighted.
The car came to pick him up to take him to the label's HQ. He sat in it without looking up from the phone and continued chatting.
"Is this the place you have decided on?" Louis replied.
"Yup! Booked the entire place! It is a friend of Ed's so he is trustworthy.
Louis was still typing his concerns when he received another follow up from Harry.
"We have a personal chef. I am going to let him know the menu before hand which he is going to prepare before we reach, so that there is not additional kitchen staff. There will just be 2 servers at max who aren't allowed to carry any electronics with them. I have asked Ed to lend a guy from his security who will ensure that. We drive to the place, park inside the building in the VIP area and take the elevator directly to the restaurant"
Louis read over and over again. He felt elated and submerged in a pool full of Harry's sweetness. He couldn't believe the lengths at which he was going, just to be able to spend time with Louis. But he also felt like he didn't deserve it.
"Harry! This all sounds too expensive. Don't get me wrong, I am beyond impressed,, but still?"
"STFU Louis Tomlinson. I am taking you on a date! It has to be lush. Besides, you literally helped me get back on my feet, it's payback time"
Louis blushed and replied "Alright! You're the boss"
"Yay!"
Louis threw his head back and actually laughed and pocketed his phone. He thought about what he is going to wear to the dinner. Harry should wear his new printed jacket but Louis didn't have anything that complemented that very well. He would have wanted them to. Maybe he could just go shopping. Maybe he will buy something when he is back home. He thought he can stop on the way back home and get flowers? The idea was so cheesy and he had never done such a thing in past. But he wanted to do this for Harry. He could almost imagine how his face would light up with surprise. Maybe they can actually give this relationship thing a shot.
He reached the office and walked inside. His was light on his feet. He wanted to quickly finish the meeting and go back home, to Harry. He walked into Helena's office, she was already expecting him. He sat on the chair opposite to her and passed an exaggerated fake smile. Helena did the same and started;
"Louis, I will just cut the chase, we are both busy and don't have time to waste anyway. You haven't been out with Eleanor from really long. And, your birthday is coming up, which is also Christmas. People will expect you to be seen together..."
Louis' heart shattered into a million pieces. Of course he didn't deserve the happiness with Harry. Of course this was going to happen. How did he expect that they could be normal. He tried to gain composure and talked
"Hey wait. I am going home for my birthday. Won't be here"
"Yeah of course. You should take her along"
"Absolutely, no fucking way"
"Louis? You cannot be doing this. You have to take her. It was mentioned in your contract, you are supposed to make this believable and it's like you're not even trying"
"I am NOT involving my family into this Helena thankyou very much. I will have her photoshop some pictures and post. But she is not to enter my house. No way"
"Your fans! These Larries are able to see when the pictures are photoshopped and they post the debunked pictures right away" Helena said sounding frustrated.
"So? No one believes them. Doesn't matter"
"Louis..."
"Helena. She is not coming to my home. And that's final" asserted Louis placing his palms on the table.
Helena sighed and pinched her nose bridge with her fingers.
"Alright. Okay. When do you come back?" she asked.
"25th afternoon or evening perhaps.." Louis said in almost a whisper. He knew where this was going. He was trying to prepare his heart for the ultimate fall.
"Fine that's great then. Don't post anything on social media on 24th so that at least people can't say that you aren't together. Let that be a mystery. On 25th you can go for a dinner at a very public place...."
"I...I actually had plans already for....."
"Are you throwing a party?"
"No. No that..Christmas party we anyway are throwing tomorrow night. She can come there tomorrow. I will click a lot of pictures with her and post them on 25th and..." said Louis excitedly hoping that Helena agrees.
"No. Tomorrow's party is very public already. So many people are coming. We can't use anything from that event"
Louis just exhaled sharply and waited for the final defeating blow.
"So it's final. We will set up everything for 25th. Thanks for your cooperation" said Helena.
There...There it was. The reality that Louis didn't want to face from the past month. The slap on his hopes and happiness. Harry was so excited, he looked so charming in the morning asking him about the cuisine. He went to so much trouble to plan all this for him. He didn't deserve Harry. He didn't deserve his love. He was just going to disappoint him over and over again and break his heart. He couldn't offer him the most basic aspects of a relationship like hanging out, PDA, vacations...anything.
Louis was still lost in his thoughts while being driven back home. He looked outside the window and saw a florists and his chest hurt more. He was earlier thinking of taking back flowers, and now he could barely take himself home. He was so sad, he shut his eyes and dropped his head back trying to keep it together. He was thinking about how to tell Harry about this new development. Also the fact that Eleanor was going to come to their party tomorrow. He had no plans, no idea what to do.
He entered the flat and Harry came out bouncing upon hearing the door shut.
"Lou! I have planned everything for tomorrow. Have placed order for pizzas, Paul will pick up the drinks and drop them early in the morning. I have even blasted the mail inviting everyone" said Harry excitedly while flipping through his notepad until he looked at Louis.
Louis saw the happiness fluctuate in Harry's eyes. His bubbly smile exited his eyes though his lips were still curved up. If Louis felt horrible earlier, now he felt he died. He quickly hid his emotions and plastered a smile on his face.
"Great! That's great. Do you need me to do anything?" said Louis trying to sound enthusiastic.
"No. Is everything alright?" said Harry looking confused and concerned.
"Yeah yeah. Cool" said Louis and walked past Harry towards the kitchen. Harry followed.
"Are you upset? You're lying"
Louis snorted and said "Oh please. You are going crazy" while helping himself with a glass of water.
"Your eyes twitch when you lie Lou. Why are you sad?"
"Well, when I am happy after coming back from a meeting with modest? It's just the usual stuff"
"Oh, yes. Sorry, I forgot. And here I am bludgeoning you with tomorrow's prep talk. What happened with management?"
The innocence and caring look of this kid was going to be the death of Louis. There was no way he could break his heart right now. He wanted to see him cheerful.
"Nothing that matters curly. Chill" said Louis slightly bumping his knuckles on Harry's cheek
"Okay.." said Harry still sounding unsure.
"Oh yes, Eleanor is going to be here at the party tomorrow" said Louis and felt a little lighter. He can break the bad news in installments, that should ease out the blow.
"Hmm. Fine, I expected it anyway. By the way, I invited Kendall too"
There was nothing innocent about this kid. He should be the one trampled by mob and thrown off the balcony. Thought Louis to himself while the fire from his nose and ears returned.
"Why?" Louis blurted before he could even process what he is saying.
"What?" said Harry raising his head from his phone to look at Louis in surprise.
"I mean, you just asked about her in the interview which will be aired by later tonight. And then she will be papped while coming over and stuff. It's only going to solidify the rumors" said Louis withholding his urge to scream and say 'Dafuq Curly, wasn't Eleanor enough?'
"Yeah. Actually, I thought it shouldn't be a bad idea if people suspect that. You know she also invited me to a football game tomorrow and.." Harry said with a faint laugh but Louis lost it.
"Are you serious Harry? Are you even thinking this through? What are you going to hang out with her time to time and get papped? You might as well just sign a contract with modest if you are so eager to be on this this side of the grass"
"Why are you yelling? I didn't say I was going. She just said she had some tickets and..."
"So what? Does she know you are using her for the sake of keeping fans fooled?"
"Lou you are going on different directions. Calm down! I just meant to say that if I get clicked with her while hanging out, what's the harm. It might just work in my favor. I anyway liked her so.."
"Oh! Oh I am so sorry for interrupting then. I guess I didn't look at it this way. By all means, please go out with her. You have my blessings!" Louis said with exaggeration throwing his arms in air.
Harry could see that it was pointless at this moment to fight Louis. He was gone, he had his walls up again and there was no way he was going to have a logical conversation with him. But Harry was himself too angry and did not want to give up.
"You are twisting my words! You know I didn't mean it like that. Will you even let me talk?! I am just trying to say that if hanging out with her takes some load off of you, what's the harm?"
" You are not even thinking about the implications of this"
"I think it will be a good move, and it will help us hide our relationship so that...."
"Relationship?" said Louis, he turned white. He was panicking now. And he knew he was going to mess things up again. He didn't want to touch any topic remotely related to Harry and his current status at the moment.
"Yes! What? You are telling we are not in a relationship?" said Harry, almost not wanting to hear an answer back. He had thought he wouldn't be the one to bring this up but it was getting impossible given Louis' flaky behavior.
"I don't want to talk about this right now" said Louis looking away and came back outside to the living room, trying to look for something to make him busy.
"No! Let's just have this conversation right now. You have had enough time to dodge it"
"When did I dodge it? We just....we are not...we didn't talk about this"
"We are right now Louis. What are we doing?"
"Harry just stop. You are redirecting the conversation"
"If we are not in a relationship, what are we doing? I need an answer!"
"Well, I don't have one right now! Please just give me a break" said Louis pacing around the room. Harry stood his ground looking disgruntled.
"Why not?"
"There are so many things to think of. It's not easy...It's...It's never going to be easy. Look at us, we are fighting every other day"
"We have been fighting since the day we met over whose room is bigger. What has that got to do with anything?"
"It's not the same thing! It's not! I don't want to complicate things by committing to something and.."
"Do you have such little faith in us? You are so pessimistic that you don't even want to look at the possibility of..."
"You are being immature Harry, you are not thinking of everything"
"Wow! we are back at the 'I am just a kid' narrative. And you know what, fine. Do whatever you want. I will do whatever I want. I don't need your permission for anything. Maybe I will go out with Kendall tomorrow, I will bring her along in the party and I will most definitely hang out with her in future. At least she can stand next to me without being conscious!"
"Fine! Just go! Why don't you just shag her. Go, sure.. absolutely"
Both stopped screaming and stared at each other with eyes full of anger, regret and pain.
"You told me you love me Louis" Harry said softly and stomped back to his room.
The silence of the room only filled by the loud echo of his door slamming shut.