To say Louis was scared was an understatement. He was absolutely petrified. The short brunet had never felt the need to share his past with anyone ever since he moved and it was like the whole situation forced itself to arrive. Nick switching schools was like a personal nightmare come to life for Louis because he knew that Nick would bring up the past and Louis knew that that meant he had to actually face the music instead of running away. At least he was going to face it with people that accepted him and stood behind him... he only had to explain the whole situation and hope they believed he wasn't like Nick or the others.
"Do you need another?" Ed asked when he made his way back to where Louis sat, "You look like you need a whole bottle."
The shorter one grimaced, "I have to stay sober for this unfortunately, but I might just consider that bottle if it goes wrong." Louis shook his head, trying to get rid of the negative thoughts, "Whatever. Let's get over with it."
Louis was sitting on one of the chairs at the table in the back near the back of the bar. His head jerked up when he heard the door of the bar open and a tiny smile made its way to his lips when he saw his boyfriend looking for him. Harry rushed towards Louis when he saw him and wrapped his arms around the shorted lad.
"Hazza?"
"Don't just leave me when we have an argument. I'm always standing beside you, even when no one else is behind you. We're a team now."
"Sorry, babe. I'll talk to you first before jumping to conclusions." Louis wiggled out of Harry's hug and kissed his cheek. At least he didn't scare his boy away.
Zayn, Niall and Liam arrived a bit later and Louis and Zayn started explaining their relationship with Nick after they all ordered a drink -Louis claimed he needed more alcohol if they were going to do this-. They told the others about how powerful they felt when they were around Nick and the others because Nick had filled their head with the thought that if they were popular, everyone should do what they say... And they believed him. Louis began with their first day and built up, every misstep after the other. Every little detail he was ashamed of came out of his mouth and he didn't try to hide behind the fact that there were others doing the same or that it was just something stupid all young boys did, because it wasn't like that. Louis went with it and turned peoples school life into a hell until he couldn't go back anymore. Throughout the story, Harry held Louis hand and squeezed when they came closer to the end.
[Flashback]
Louis was outside with Eleanor. She had bruises all over her arms and he knew that there were more under her cloths. Even a few he inflicted on her. He sat her down on one of the stairs and kept apologising while he wiped the dirt and a bit of blood away with his handkerchief.
"Why did you do that?" Eleanor asked, her head tilted a bit in curiosity, "You started this. You asked them to do this, they told me you did. Why would you feel guilty when you're the reason my best friend Fenna quit school because she was scared she'd end up with broken bones. Lisa quit cheerleading and started wearing long-sleeved shirts to hide her scars. Did you know she started cutting because of your mental abuse? It's not only the ones you hurt physically, Louis. You push people to their limits until they break or give in. Did you ever stop to think about the ones on the receiving end? You break everyone down if they don't do what you ask, if they don't worship you for some unknown reason. You sit at the 'popular' table because they fear you and they don't want to be next, but if you take that away, what do you have? You're the same as us, Louis. An insecure, fragile, naïve teenager who doesn't know what to do and runs with the crowd because, at the end of the day, you don't want to be alone."
"I know, I'm sorry."
"No, you- wait, did you just admit I was right?" Eleanor looked at him as if he had gone crazy and Louis laughed.
"You are right, so why would I deny? I know I'm an asshole. I know I pushed your friend away and I knew Lisa quit because of what I said to the other cheerleaders. But, don't you think I would've stopped if I knew she hurt herself?"
"Why would you? You're the one that handed her that blade!"
"And I'm sorry, okay? How many times do I must repeat myself? I stopped Aiden and Nick from kicking you into a hospital! Shouldn't you be the one thanking me?"
"Right." Eleanor rolled her eyes, "Thank you for saving me from your friends who bullied me just a bit more than you do."
Louis opened his mouth to reply, but closed it again. She was right... even if he didn't want her to be.
****
A week had passed since the day Louis had stopped the fight. He still sat with Nick and Aiden, but only Zayn talked to him. They had stopped going after Eleanor, but that didn't mean it all had gone back to normal. Louis saw how everyone flinched when he gave them something back they had dropped or when he went for a high-five with his teammates. All the little things he used to be oblivious of were now crystal clear.
The first bell rang and Louis made his way to the lockers. They changed into their gym clothes and ran outside to the field. Their coach stood in the middle of it, his expression serious for once.
"I have an announcement to make. The school was informed yesterday and the principal thought it was better if I told you guys. Max won't be attention school anymore... He committed suicide last night. His mother found a letter on his desk. Apparently, he was being bullied and-"
Louis blocked out the rest. He was the one that had been going after Max. He had pushed Max too far and now he was confronted with the consequences. Louis knew he probably didn't had the right to feel so broken because of it, but he couldn't stop a few tears from rolling over his cheeks. Behind Louis stood Nick. His face was pale, but a sick smile broke out after a few seconds.
After training, Louis texted his mum that he was going to Zayn's after school. It was a little white lie that was justified in his mind. He couldn't exactly tell his mum that he was going to visit a dead teammate's house. He stayed inside for three hours to comfort Max' parents. Louis told them how loved and appreciated their son was in their team and that they didn't know how much he struggled. He told them how sorry he was they had to go through such a loss and that if he could do things over, he would've tried to stop Max.
Things weren't the same after that day. Louis didn't want to talk to Nick or Aiden anymore because he felt like they had pushed him towards bullying -even though Louis knew it was completely his own fault-. Louis went around apologising to everyone he knew he had hurt. The only one who didn't avoid Louis after it were Zayn and somehow Eleanor -she came around after she saw Louis looking for his bag in the pond near the school-. The rest of the year was an absolute nightmare, but Louis knew he deserved everything that came from him.
[End Flashback]
"Wow..." Niall gawked at the two boys, "I would've changed schools too if all that happened."
"What did you ask of that guy that pushed him so far?" Liam asked, somehow not satisfied with Louis' explanation.
Louis shrugged, "I asked him to pay my meals a few times I think. But, Stan and the others joined in later too."
"Nick took him to the bar once, remember, Lou? Max ended up wasted and Nick took pics, but we never saw them. Aiden made him walk on hands and knees for a whole month and Stan used him as a personal foot bench." Zayn added, "Even if you started it, I don't think you were the reason it escaladed."
"Let's stop talking about it. We know now," Harry said, squeezing Louis' hand, "You went to his parents and helped them with their loss. That's enough for me."
"Something doesn't feel right about it though. Why would anyone commit suicide about paying a few meals? I get it that it might get hard if-"
"Li, drop it, please? You're making Louis uncomfortable. He told us, he's sorry, he changed. We can't go on about it forever. It happened, we can't change it."
"Fine." Liam sighed. He shifted in his seat so he was closer to Zayn and circled his arm around the boy's waist, "Why don't we talk about the fact that Niall is now the only one who's single -and straight apparently- in this group?"
Three pair of eyes widened and a stereo of "What?!" made everyone in the bar look at the back of the room. Liam started laughing and Zayn hid his face in his boyfriend's neck to masquerade his blush.
----
a/n: alright, so, this happened. I might add 10 more chapters or so to this story and then it's done. First story I ever finished, I'm proud of myself already (*v*)
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed even though this chapter is long overdue.
THANKS FOR READING
Q: Did you know that your comments/votes/reads mean the world to me? If I have a bad day and I feel like everything breaks down, I can always count on you guys to make me smile. Thank you so much!