(Flashbacks in italics)
Harry Styles
"So, who's the new kid?" Darren asked while I sat down on the bed next to him.
"What new kid?" I laughed.
"Tomlinson," Darren replied, looking anything but happy.
"He's just someone I started talking to," I replied, my smile gone. "Does it really matter?"
He stayed quiet, his eyes not leaving me. He finally spoke again, "he seems like he likes you a lot."
I stood up, sighing, "look, I'm going back home. I shouldn't have even come..."
"You just got here," he almost laughed, "stay."
I stood back against his dresser, my arms crossed. I had no clue why I was here... why I always was.
He stood up slowly and walked over, his eyes glancing down at my lips. "Give me a few minutes at least."
I stared at him, feeling so many things overwhelming me. "I really should go."
He smiled a little, "you always say that. And yet, here you are."
I sighed as his phone sounded. He stepped over to the bed to answer it.
"Yeah, now isn't a good time," he said lowly as he glanced at me, "I'm sorta busy."
I stayed quiet and went through his dresser before finding some of his pills.
"Look, I'll take care of it, don't worry," he kept going on, "that can wait until tomorrow morning, alright? I call the shots here, not you. I'll take care of it tomorrow."
He ended the call and turned back to me.
"Who was that?" I asked before gulping down the pills.
"Uh, just someone being a little impatient," he shrugged it off and stepped over to me, "they can wait."
"If it's that important, I'll go," I said. That's all I wanted to do... Louis was back at my place asleep in my bed... and I was here.
"I don't want you to go," he whispered before his hands wrapped around my waist, "just stay for an hour or so, alright?"
I sighed and agreed, though my mind was telling me otherwise.
But I gave into him again... I stayed and allowed him to control once more.
____________________________________
"That's all I remember," I was telling Louis as we sat on the bed that night, the laptop open in front of us.
"He never mentioned names or anything?" Louis asked me before closing the laptop.
We had searched and searched on there to see if we could find any information on who he was involved with. Of course he wouldn't keep that information on a laptop, but we had hoped we would at least find photos or something... there were none. All he had on there was me.
"He was talking to someone that night I went to see him after you and I got back from the pub," I sighed and sat back, "and he told them he'd take care of it... that he was in control of it."
Louis nodded a little, his eyes staying on the bed.
"Can we... can we not worry about it right now?" I asked quietly. I knew all of this upset him. "This is our last night in Ireland."
Louis bit his lip before replying, "yeah, sure. I suppose."
I had no clue what to say to him. There was so much tension between us now and I wasn't sure why. Maybe because he didn't understand what Darren and I had... or maybe he felt like there was more to us than I had told him; even though, for me, Darren was nothing more than someone to be with. I knew deep down I had never loved him... I cared about him probably more than I should've though.
That was more evident now than ever. After seeing everything on his laptop, I felt not only betrayed by him, but I also felt hurt... even though I shouldn't have. I guess because I was young and naive I believed that he was honest with me; that he didn't keep shit from me... but Louis was right. He didn't care about me, not as a person. He only cared about me as an object.
"Hey, you two awake?" Niall called while he knocked on the door.
"Yeah, come in," I replied.
Niall opened the door as Louis sat back against the headboard next to me. "Hey, just wanted to say that my parents really loved your dish, Harry."
I smiled a little and replied as Louis sat smirking, "thanks. Yeah, your mum told me about 10 times before they left."
"They really liked Louis, too," Niall grinned at Louis.
Louis rolled his eyes but smiled and I couldn't help but snicker.
"They did, yeah," I nodded smiling at Louis. "Your mum talked to me about him."
"Did she?" Louis asked glancing at me, "when?"
"When you were outside talking football with his dad," I chuckled.
"Yeah, she told me before she left how perfect you two were," Niall smiled.
"You should go to bed," I laughed, "you're way too drunk, Niall."
"I'm about to head there," he nodded, "just wanted to tell you two, alright? Thanks for cooking that for them."
"No problem," I replied quietly, "night."
"Night," Niall called while he shut the door back.
Louis turned back to me, smiling, "so, what'd she say about me exactly?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" I grinned and got up and went through my bag to grab my swimming trunks.
"What are you doing?" Louis asked laughing, "we just packed all of that for the flight tomorrow."
"Well," I shrugged, "it's our last night in Ireland for who knows how long, it's past midnight and everyone's asleep..."
Louis smirked as I threw his own trunks to him, "are you implying what I think you're implying?"
"Depends," I replied while I changed, "what do you think I'm implying?"
He shook his head and smiled while he changed, "alright, fine. But I can't get this arm wet, you know. Don't wanna ruin my tattoos."
I grinned and ruffled my hair before fixing it back again, Louis' eyes on me. I stopped and asked, "what?"
"Nothing," he replied, "I just love the way you do that with your hair."
I smiled a little, "it's just a habit I've had since I was like 16..."
"It's adorable," he nodded a little before picking up the cigarettes from the table by the bed, "ready, love?"
"Ready."
We went to the kitchen first, pulling out several of Niall's ales he had bought and Louis making jokes about becoming Irish and trying to talk in a terrible Irish accent. I couldn't help but laugh at him, though everyone was asleep and we were trying to be quiet.
Quiet wasn't a strong point for us.
"Do you ever wonder what it'd be like to live in a different country?" Louis was asking moments later while we sat in the hot tub side by side.
"Uh," I started, "not really, I don't guess. I mean, I've seen several different places."
"Like LA?" He asked, "Gemma told me you've been there."
"Yeah, I've been there twice," I nodded, "it's quite nice there. It would be amazing to live there, I'd say. Or really, anywhere like this... either the city or a place just like this, where it's so quiet at night you can actually hear nature speaking to you."
Louis smirked and passed the joint back to me, "that is quite nice, yeah."
"I always wanted to see the world," I said as I leaned my head back and took a drink of my ale.
"Well, you've seen more places than I have," Louis laughed a little.
"Well, maybe we can travel it together one day," I looked back at him, "maybe a backpacking trip through Europe or something?"
"Backpacking?" He laughed, "Jesus, I'd need to get into shape for that, right?"
"Yeah, we should've brought a football," I nudged his arm gently and smiled, his eyes meeting mine.
"That would've been great," he sighed smiling as he took the joint back. He took a hit and put it out.
I watched him lean his head back and stare out at the night sky. He was too beautiful for words.
"Are you nervous?" He asked looking back at me, "about tomorrow?"
I kept my eyes on him as I shook my head, "no. Not really. I think... I think it'll go well. My mum texted me earlier and I told her I couldn't wait to see her again."
"Good," Louis said softly, "and if she hates me?"
I chuckled a little as a smile came over his face. "She won't hate you, Lou. How could she? I'm sure Gemma has put in an excellent word for you by now."
He laughed and finished off his beer before setting it to the side, glancing down at the tattoos on his right arm.
"What... what made you decide to get those?" I decided to ask.
He turned back to me, "uh, I don't know actually. It just sorta came to my mind... I tried to talk myself out of it..."
"Well, then," I joked as he smiled at me, "thanks a lot."
"Nothing against you," he chuckled, "I just... I didn't know how you'd react... I mean, yeah, they are just tattoos... but..."
He stopped and bit his lip while he smiled down at the water.
"But they mean something to you," I almost whispered.
He looked back at me, his face completely serious, "yeah. Well, I figured someone needed to give you the missing pieces..."
I stared at him wondering how I ever got fortunate enough to have someone like this next to me... someone who loved me despite what I had done...
"I'm sorry, maybe I should've asked you first," he said softly, "or at least told you about them..."
"No," I interrupted, "I'm... I'm actually glad you didn't... I like that you surprised me."
"Really?" He asked, "you didn't seem so happy about them."
"It's not that I wasn't," I started slowly, "I just... I didn't know how to react. I mean, that's pretty scary, matching tattoos."
"It's not like your name is tattooed on me," he smirked at me, "maybe I should do that, though... right across the arse."
I nearly spit out my ale as Louis laughed while he watched me.
"Don't choke, Jesus," he grinned at me, his eyes crinkling.
"I don't think that would be a good idea," I finally said while laughing after swallowing the ale, "I'd probably laugh every time I saw your ass then... 'Harry' in big, bold letters..."
Louis threw his head back laughing and my smile grew even more at the sight of him.
"You're really amazing," I managed to say as I smiled at him, "I'm... I'm really thankful for you... that our paths crossed like they did, Louis."
His eyes met mine again, his smile could still be seen in them, "so am I, love."
"You know that song Fools Rush In?" I asked tracing over his cheek with my fingertips.
He smirked a little, "yeah, I've heard it."
"I think that defines how I feel for you," I admitted, "and I truly mean that... because, well, I am a fool for you."
He was blushing while he stared down at the water again, "I'd... I'd say that's a perfect song for us... given that I'm a fool as well... I mean, look at the tattoos..."
He looked back up at me and took my hand in his.
"Sometimes rushing in isn't so bad though," he whispered, "I mean, sometimes... I think things just work that way, don't they? Like... you see this person staring at you on your first day at a new uni..."
I grinned even more as I listened to him. He paused for a moment while he studied my face.
"And suddenly, everything makes perfect sense," he went on, his voice cracking, "you realize that some things are just meant to be... and it only takes one glance... one stolen glance in a room full of people..."
I tried to nod, fighting the stinging in my eyes.
"You suddenly realize why fate brought you to that specific place," he whispered smiling a little, "and sometimes, it changes your life forever."
I felt a tear fall from my eye while I stared at this incredible human being. I wiped it away slowly as Louis continued.
"If only fools rush in, Harry," he whispered to me, leaning closer, "then, I'll proudly say I'm a fool. Because, yeah, I did rush into this... we both did... but I don't for a second regret the decision to talk to you that day... to go with you that day. I can't imagine things being any other way now. That's how much you've become a part of me."
I was speechless while I bit my bottom lip and tears streamed down my face slowly.
"I love you," I managed to get out, "and I really mean that... I've never meant anything more in my life, Lou. And I know I don't deserve someone like you..."
"Stop," he interrupted, his hand wiping away my tears, "Harold, we've had this talk..."
I smiled a little and so did he.
"You inked your skin for me," I said softly as I stared into his eyes, "and I'm having a hard time realizing that I'm worth doing that for... I'm sorry."
"It's alright, love," he nodded a little, his own emotions taking over, "because I promise to show you every day that you are worth it. I will spend the rest of my life showing you how much you deserve this, if you'll let me. Because that's how much I love you."
"I don't want you to ever leave," I spoke as more tears fell, "because... when I look at you, I see nothing but happiness. I see a future, Louis. I see a future that just a while ago wasn't there. It's absolutely insane..."
He chuckled a little, wiping his own eyes now. "It is insane, yeah."
"But if this is insane or crazy, I wouldn't want to be any other way," I replied, my arms wrapping around him, "you... you will never know how much you mean to me. Words can't even begin to express what I feel for you... what I felt the first day I saw you, even if I didn't want to feel it."
"You did a piss poor job," he joked, his fingers running through my curls. "It's like you said just the other night..."
I watched him closely, his tears still falling. He sighed a little and tried to carry on, "you... you suddenly feel alive for once; you feel like your life has led you to this moment for a reason... a very important reason."
"Exactly," I whispered back, "and it's like everything just makes sense all of a sudden... at least that's how it felt for me."
He nodded smiling a little, "I couldn't agree more."
"Do you remember lying in bed at Gemma's just the other day talking about soul mates?" I asked quietly.
His eyes never left mine as he nodded.
"Well, I think... I think finding the person that is meant for you feels sorta like this," I explained, "I think you just know... like you said. When you find that person, everything just falls into place. And it doesn't matter how long you've known them... because your soul knows as soon as you see them. You stop and think, 'I've been looking for you.'"
Louis was losing it and I had never seen him this emotional before. I knew that he had to feel the same way.
"Maybe," he started as he sniffed, "maybe that's why I couldn't talk myself out of the fucking tattoos... my soul wouldn't let me."
I chuckled a little and so did he. I leaned over, staring in his eyes, my hands pulling him closer to me.
There were no more words to be said. We were both overtaken at the realization of what we had... how we had stumbled upon this love; this amazing and anything but normal love.
Louis pressed his lips against mine, his tears salty on my lips. I lost myself completely in the feeling; his tongue entwined with mine while our bodies were pressed against each other's in that hot tub.
Within minutes, our swimming trunks were lying by the side on the deck and my body was situated on top of him, him buried deep inside of me while I rode him slowly. His lips traced up my neck and I leaned back, losing myself completely in the moment and not even paying attention to how loud I was being. Fuck, I didn't care.
His fingers traced up and down my back while I moved up and down on top of him, my hair falling down my back. He put his hands on my face next and pulled me in to kiss my lips again.
I loved the way his fingers gently grazed over my skin. He treated me like I was so delicate, almost like I was breakable. But that's just how Louis was. His eyes stayed on mine the entire time and I think neither of us had ever felt this strongly while doing this. It was almost painful.
His arms pulled me in closer and held me tight as he moaned into my neck when he finally reached the edge.
I wrapped my arms around him while I slowed down and finally stopped, his heavy breathing next to my ear. I leaned my head against his, my eyes closed. I honestly didn't want to let go of him.
"I love you," I whispered into his ear before putting my head against his shoulder.
"I love you, too, Harry," he softly replied, his fingers still running up and down my back.
I closed my eyes and lost myself in him while we just sat there holding one another; I was holding the person that was my entire world now.