Harry let's out a loud laugh, startling Louis out of the little imaginary world he's created.
"Tone it down Styles." Louis says trying to keep himself together. He knows it's only a matter of time before he snaps.
"You're the most boring person ever." Harry rolls his eyes and turns back towards his cellphone.
"I think I made it clear to not bring any gadgets in here with you Mr. Styles." The teacher lowers her glasses and glares at Harry and goes back to grading papers.
"What else am I supposed to do? This is honestly worse than my parents having sex."
"Well you should've thought about it before you decided to pick a fight during lunch break." The teacher says in a very monotonous voice. She extends her hand forward, gesturing for Harry to give her his phone.
"Alright fine, I swear I won't use it again."
"I won't ask a second time Mr. Styles."
Harry groans and hands his phone to the teacher.
Louis goes back to reading his book. This detention is actually not bad, well accept for this dickhead here. Louis thinks.
"You're such a nerd." Harry turns around to look at Louis again.
"Don't you have any homework to do?" Louis says without looking up. He turns to the next page.
For a while Harry remains silent and then releases a loud sigh, chewing the insides of his cheek, he says, "Look I shouldn't have said that."
"It's okay. Just let it go." Louis says in a dangerously calm voice. Harry feels it's the calm before the storm.
"Don't give me that bullshit."
The teacher clears her throat. Harry rolls his eyes for what feels like the millionth time this day and goes to sit beside Louis.
"I'm just saying it was none of my business to comment about your family."
Louis doesn't say anything. He remains in the same exact position, highlighting a sentence in the book with a pencil.
"Louis are you even listening to me?" Harry bangs his fist against the desk a little too loudly and Louis visibly flinches, though he didn't intend to.
"I told you it's okay. Piss off now." Louis says harshly and gets up from his seat. "Miss, I need to use the washroom." Louis says. It's sounds more like a statement than asking for permission. He gets up and walks out of the room, leaving Harry sitting there like a clueless child who lost his parents at the fair.
After a while Harry grabs Louis' book tossed carelessly on the desk and gives the teacher the same excuse who seems the least bit interested to give a shit about them. She gives him a look but let's him go anyways.
"Tomlinson!" Harry shouts from a distance once he sees his silhouette in the bright afternoon light.
"Leave me alone Styles!" Louis finally snaps at him.
"Relax angel, you forgot your book."
"Don't fucking call me that!" Louis snatches the book from Harry's hand, stuffing it in his backpack.
"Easy there." Harry let's out a weird chuckle.
"You didn't have the right to talk about my fucking relationship with my father. It's none of your goddamn business."
"And I would like to apologise for it, if you would just let me." Harry says in a much more calmer tone than Louis.
"Harry honestly I can hit you so fucking hard right now so it's best if you leave." Louis' jaw shifts and he can practically hear his teeth gritting.
"Go on then." Harry says.
Louis looks at him with his eyebrows weaved together in a frown.
"You can hit me if that helps but just know I won't leave until you accept my apology."
"Screw you man." Louis kicks at the dust on the ground and starts walking towards the opposite direction. School's over and there's almost no one except for some students and teachers.
Louis' still mad at Harry and if Harry tries to be any more smug than he's already being, Louis will do something he'll regret later.
*Lunch break (A few hours earlier)
Harry sits across from Zayn at lunch, opening a little packet of peanuts.
"I still don't know how you can eat that shit and not want to throw up." Zayn says.
Harry simply laughs and pops some peanuts in his mouth. He thought people would be talking about Louis and his fight that took place yesterday on the field but weirdly enough it feels as if people have forgot it even happened in the first place.
Last night to say Harry was furious at Louis would be an understatement but at the same time he also found himself not being able to stay mad at him for long even though he wanted to.
He doesn't know what came over him when they were alone in the locker room. He's also half scared worrying if someone saw them but he doesn't regret it at all. It felt foreign to him, the emotion he was feeling yesterday night when he was getting ready for bed.
His mind kept going back to the blue eyed boy, his delicately shaped features and then to his bruise which did not fit his skin, it wasn't supposed to be there.
He kept replaying Louis' reaction to him finding about the bruise in his head over and over again. Though it was quick, Harry had still caught on to the way Louis reacted and the way his face contoured into a terrified expression, like Harry wasn't supposed to see it. Well, obviously he wasn't otherwise Louis wouldn't have had such a reaction.
He kept checking Louis' profile again and again, scrolling mindlessly through his pictures and without even realising he would let his mouth relax and then feel his lips stretching upwards to form a small yet fond smile.
When he would come back to his senses, he purse his lips together as if to suppress a smile and feel guilty because he isn't supposed to feel this way about Louis. They hate each other. He's not supposed to be smiling at his pictures or even caring about him in the first place. But why is it that he always finds his mind circling back to Louis?
"Earth to Harold?" Zayn waves his hand in front of Harry's face to get his attention.
Harry is snapped back into reality. When he sees Louis looking at him weirdly, he realises he zoned out and now it probably looks like he was staring at Louis the entire time.
"Don't start another fight now." Zayn says looking back and forth between Harry and Louis.
"No why would I." Harry replies, shaking his head like he just had a thought he shouldn't have had.
He sees Louis walking towards him and feels his nerves growing with each step he takes towards their direction. He for some reason he freezes in his spot, when ironically he feels hot to the touch. He hates feeling whatever he's feeling right now. It's starting to take over his senses and he doesn't like it one bit but at the same time enjoys it.
"Look before you open your mouth to vomit something, Niall sent me here to apologise." Louis says using air quotations around the word apologise.
"Whatever. It wasn't your fault. I should've admitted my mistake." Harry says which probably surprises anyone who's listening to them including himself.
"Um ok?" Louis raises an eyebrow as if in suspicion. He turns to talk to Zayn about something which Harry doesn't catch because he's too busy analysing Louis' every single movement. The way his hands move in weird yet delicate patterns when he explains something or the way his mouth moves when he's speaking.
Harry's throat suddenly feels dry and he swallows thickly. His eyes travel down Louis' neck and he can see a faint bruise mark there. He can't pry his eye away from the mark which is now barely visible but he can still see it. He feels a weird feeling arise in him, anger maybe and before he can actually think, he blurts out, "Did he do that to you?"
Louis looks at him confused.
"Did your dad do that to you?"
"What?" Louis says, a crease forming on his forehead with the way he's frowning.
"Does he hit you?" That seems to catch everyone's attention.
"What are you talking about?" Louis says nervously, his hand automatically rubbing the part of his neck where the bruise sits.
"You know what I'm saying. I saw that bruise on your neck and it's obviously not a love bite or some shit." Harry says seeming a little angry.
"Wow you're great at talking shit." Louis scoffs.
"Then why were you wearing that stupid scarf around?"
"Because I had a sore fucking throat!"
"Louis don't lie. Does your dad hit you regularly?"
"Harry what the fuck!? Are you even hearing yourself?"
"I always thought something was wrong with him."
"Do you even have an idea of what you're talking about. You don't have any fucking right to talk shit about my dad! How can you just assume such a bizzare thing!?"
"I'm not assuming things Louis!" Harry throws the packet of peanuts next to Louis, causing him to flinch badly.
"Don't ever fucking talk to me." Louis says with bitterness coating every inch of his voice. He can feel his eyes sting and tears threatening to spill any second now.
"This isn't a fucking circus guys!" Zayn shouts. Most of the people go back to what they were doing but there are still some who are engrossed watching the scene fold in front of them.
Zayn gives all of them an eye which seems to work and they turn their heads, returning to their conversations, though these conversations now include Harry and Louis in them.
"Let's take some deep breaths and try to calm down." Liam says trying to relieve some tension.
Louis glares at Harry, his usual bright blue orbs, now a darker, hateful shade. Without saying another word he leaves the cafeteria. Liam doesn't follow him, neither do Zayn or Niall.
"Harry what the fuck was that about?" Liam asks.
"N- nothing." Harry says with his head turned towards the door and before Liam can bore him with another question he sprints out to find Louis.
Near the lockers, he can see Louis with his face buried deep inside his locker.
"Louis-" Harry tries but Louis doesn't give him a chance to say another thing. He pushes Harry hard against the lockers. Until now, Harry didn't realise Louis' full strength.
"Can you at least listen to me?"
"What you said was so fucked up. Say that bullshit again and I swear to god I'm gonna kill you." Louis says. Harry can see the fresh tear stains on his cheeks and that's when he realises what he's done.
"But-" Harry pushes himself off the locker but is shoved back in with a strong push to his chest.
"Styles, Tomlinson! To my office." They hear the principal calling. He sounds pissed.
"Fuck!" Louis yells frustrated, kicking the locker.
"Can you calm down Lou- Louis?" Fuck, it almost slipped out of his tongue. But why? Harry grimaces at the thought. Why did he want to address Louis by a name his friends probably call him?
"Fuck you." Louis hisses, venom dripping from his voice. He turns on his heels and walks towards the principal's office with Harry following suite.
*Present time*
"Louis!" Harry calls, jogging towards him.
"Don't follow me!" Louis tells him. The anger still hasn't left his body and he can feel the effects on his hand, which is starting to curl into a fist.
"Just accept my fucking apology and I'll go, I promise." Harry says.
Louis doesn't say anything. He's pissed beyond limit.
"Come on. How long are you planning to stay mad?" Harry says.
Louis can feel his jaw flex and then relax.
"What's the fucking matter with you? Wasn't what you did at lunch enough!?" Louis lashes out. He can feel his lips start to wobble and his throat gets caught.
"I know he hits you. I saw the way you flinched earlier." Harry tells him.
"God, you're delusional. Stop assuming things." Louis says, blinking back the tears. He doesn't know why he's getting so worked up but he feels like crying.
Harry takes a few steps towards Louis and he instinctively backs away. "You can tell me, you know? I won't tell anyone."
"There's nothing to tell. Just go."
"Louis-"
"Why can't you fucking drop it already! Just leave Harry."
"I won't leave until you tell me what's going on."
"Why do you care!?"
"I- I don't know." Harry stammers. He closes the distance between them and crashes his lips against Louis'. It catches the both of them off guard. Louis pulls away almost as soon as his brain comprehends what's going on which might've taken a couple seconds.
Louis looks dazed. He shakes his head and turns again so that his back is to Harry. He crosses his arms over his chest and starts walking. Harry doesn't follow him this time. He watches Louis until his figure disappears into a blurry silhouette. Harry exhales heavily through his nose like he just finished a sprint and walks back to fetch his things.
~~~~
Chapter 8!
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