Chapter 24 ~ The Two Ghosts
[Louis]
I didn't know how, but somehow I managed to bring myself to my feet and walk my way home. I had no idea what time it was or if it was even the same day. All I could register was that it was dark outside.
Hannah was long gone from my mind, but I still hoped she wasn't worried that I didn't show up after school. I couldn't really care right now though because all I could think about was a certain curly haired boy.
He left me. Again.
Just the thought made me want to cry my eyes out, but I was sure I couldn't bring more tears out of them right now. I was just drenched from everything. Every emotion and every feeling. Harry had taken it all with him, yet again.
How was this even possible? I thought I had done so well, ignoring him and standing up to him. Yet, here I was, feeling nothing but hurt that he was leaving for a second time.
Once I finally arrived home, I noticed that the front door was locked, which I wasn't really surprised about seeing as it was really dark outside. Could it be nine or ten o'clock?
I unlocked the door with my key, entering the warm house. It didn't take more than a second until mom appeared in the hallway, a worried look on her face that instantly turned to relief when she saw me.
"Oh my God, Louis! Where have you been? I was so worried!" She cried as she flung her arms around my body, pulling me into a tight hug.
My brain was still not working correctly, so it didn't even register in my brain that she was hugging me. So, instead of wrapping my arms around her in return, they hung loosely at my sides.
A few seconds later, she pulled out of the hug to look at my face. She grabbed it in her hands, the worried look coming back. "What happened to you, honey?" She gasped.
I still didn't say anything, just let her study my features. "Louis tell me. Has anyone hurt you?"
She brought me to the living room where she sat me down on the couch together with herself. "Talk to me, son," she pleaded, making me really look at her for the first since I walked into the house.
I shook my head before leaning it against her shoulder. Instantly, I could feel my eyes droop from all the crying I had done. I was exhausted, to say the least.
Mom didn't get anything out of me that evening because before I knew it, I was out like a light, letting the darkness take over me.
-
It was now a few days after Harry's last day here, and I still wasn't feeling good. Sure, I went to school and did my duties, but it was like my body was there and not my brain. I couldn't believe how I could react like this. We weren't even together again, yet I was behaving like he'd left me without a word once again.
He had actually said goodbye this time, and on top of that even confessed his love for me. I knew he was a terrible actor, but it was just so hard to believe his words after what he did to me last time. How can you possibly hurt someone the way he did if you loved them?
Mom caught onto the reason why I looked like a real mess that evening just the day after. I didn't even have to ask her, she knew that he was leaving and she immediately understood that was why I was behaving like this. I mean, she had experienced the same thing before, so it wasn't new to her.
Even if it had been at least three days since he left, I could still feel the touch of his lips on my forehead. It was like he'd pressed his delicate lips there just a second ago. The feeling still felt so recent.
The lads and Hannah had probably caught on to why I was behaving as I did as well. They wouldn't talk about it, which was the best thing they could do. That way, I didn't have to think about him when I had a conversation with them at least.
I was currently sitting in class, waiting for the last bell of the day to ring. My eyes were glued to the clock, counting down the last five minutes. The worst part was that the longer I stared at it, the slower it went forward. Regular mistake.
Once it finally rang, I gathered my books before sprinting out into the hallway and to my locker. On my way there, I could feel stares at me, something I had done the last three days since the pop star disappeared. It was like it was back to how it was last time he left, and I hated it. I didn't want their attention.
Hannah was there when I arrived at my locker, her lips curling into a smile at the sight of me. "Hello, love," she greeted.
I gave her a pale smile in return, opening my locker to get rid of my books and getting my jacket and backpack out. "Hey."
We started walking home in silence, the tension slowly building up between the two of us, something that had never happened before. Nothing was ever awkward with Hannah.
She broke the silence by clearing her throat. "Louis, we need to talk."
Yeah, and there it was. I had been feeling it coming the last couple of days, so I was just waiting for it to happen. "Sure," I muttered, not turning to look at her.
She did though, staring at the side of my face sadly. "Louis, I... We need to break up."
I just nodded my head, still looking down at the ground because I wasn't surprised by her words. As mentioned before, I had felt it coming.
"It's not because I don't like you. You know I do, so much. It's just... You love him, Louis. It's clear as day. I've felt it ever since he came back. You were drawn to him the moment he arrived at school for the first time. I... I just can't be in the way of that. I want what's best for you, what you want, and I can see that it's not me," she explained.
Alright, that, I was surprised about. Never in a million years did I think Hannah would be supportive of me liking another person. That was just surreal. However, even if she was right, I couldn't help but feel sad.
"I'm never going to be with him though," I muttered, still not looking at her.
From the corner of my eyes, I could see her frown. "What do you mean?"
Sighing, I ran a hand through my hair. "He's gone again, and who knows how long it'll take until he comes home next time? Plus, I can't really forgive him for what he did to me."
Hannah was quiet for a few seconds until she replied. "I understand what you're saying, but I think you should really text him. Just ask him to come back. That way you'll see if he is still an ass or if he actually really does care about you," she suggested.
I finally turned to look at her, my eyebrows knitting together. "Hannah, he didn't even answer me once when we were still together. What makes you think he would do so now?" I scoffed.
Rolling her eyes, she hit my shoulder playfully. "That's the point, Louis. Then you'll know."
I bit my lip, thinking about it. Could she have some kind of point with this? I mean, I would know if he had changed because if he really did answer and also did come back for me, then he'd really have shown me that he had changed.
"But what if he doesn't even have the same number anymore?" I asked, making her snort.
"Well, just ask his mom or something. Don't you usually talk to her?"
She was right again. Anne most certainly had his number. Letting out a defeated sigh, I nodded my head. "Sure, I'll do it... Some time."
"You'll do it today, Louis. Not tomorrow or next week. Today. You hear me?" She said stubbornly, making me think of the curly haired boy and his stubbornness. Why did I surround myself with these people?
"Fine, mom. I'll do it tonight," I said, rolling my eyes.
"Good," she smiled.
By now, we were outside her gates so we slowly came to a halt. "See you tomorrow, Louis, and if you haven't texted him by then, I'm gonna take matters into my own hands, alright?"
I chuckled, shaking my head. "I thought you hated him though?"
She tilted her head, pursing her lips. "Nah, I just thought he was an ass for breaking your heart, but when I noticed how much he means to you, I couldn't possibly hate him. You love him, Louis," she shrugged as if it was nothing.
She was the best friend you could possibly have. I was so damn lucky, I swear.
"You are one of a kind, Hannah," I said in amusement, the bitterness I'd felt ever since Harry left leaving my body by the second.
How could it not when she was encouraging me to contact him?
She gave me a warm smile before taking a step forward to give me a tight hug. "I know I'm awesome, but I won't be so nice if you don't listen to me."
I rolled my eyes as we pulled away. "I will, gosh."
"Good," she said, turning around to walk through her gates. "See you tomorrow, Louis."
I nodded as I gave her a wave. Then, I walked the last bit home, my hands in my pockets as I thought of her words. Was it even worth trying to contact Harry? He was surely not going to answer me anyway. However, she was right about the fact that I would at least know if he really meant everything he said to me the last month if I did.
Once I stepped into my house, I walked right into the living room where Lottie was sprawled on the couch, a bowl of ice cream in her hands. She looked up when I made an entrance.
"Look at that, you seem to be feeling better," she noted.
I shrugged, sitting down at her feet. "Hannah broke up with me," I explained trying my best to stay serious.
It seemed like she bought it because her eyes narrowed at me. "And you're feeling better because of that?" She asked in confusion.
"Well, considering the fact she broke up with me because she knew I was in love with someone else and because we are still very good friends, I don't really see it as a problem."
She looked shocked by my words, her mouth hanging open. "You... She... I... You finally admitted you love Harry?" She exclaimed.
"Not really..." I trailed off. "She found out herself."
"Wow. I... I'm shocked. Hannah is really someone," she concluded. "Who thought she would ever be supportive of you in another relationship?"
I shook my head. "I was just as shocked as you are. She is really awesome."
"What did she say though? That she didn't want to be with you anymore because you are in love with someone else?" She wondered, raising her eyebrows. By now, the bowl of ice cream was long gone from her mind, all of her attention locked on me. She had also lifted herself into a sitting position, so into the conversation was she.
"Yeah, kind of," I said. "She suggested I text him tonight and tell him to come back. That way I will know if he really means what he's been trying to say to me the last month."
Lottie seemed impressed. "That's actually a really good idea. I'm disappointed I didn't come up with it myself."
I was quiet for a second, biting my bottom lip. Lottie snapped it up right away, her eyebrows furrowing together. "What are you thinking about?"
Sighing, I turned to look at her. "I just don't know if it's even worth a try. I'm just going to be disappointed and I don't know if I'll be able to handle yet another turn down from him," I muttered.
She rolled her eyes, reaching out to hit me in the back of my head. "You're such a damn coward. Live a little and dare do something about it. Otherwise, you'll never know how he really feels and you'll go around wondering about it for the rest of your life."
I pursed my lips, crossing my arms over my chest. Instead of answering her, I reached out to grab the remote to the TV on the coffee table and turned it on. Lottie tried to grab the remote from me to get my attention back, but I held it out of her reach.
It wasn't to my luck, however, because the next second, the woman on the television mentioned a very known boy's name, making Lottie stop her attempts at grabbing the remote. And if she didn't, she would have had it in her hand by now because my attention wasn't on it anymore either.
All four eyes were focused on the screen, staring at the brown haired woman as she introduced the curly haired lad to the stage. Lottie and I were quiet as the song started playing and Harry came into view.
He was wearing a black t-shirt, a pair of black skinny jeans and brown boots. Around his silky brown curly, he had a brown bandana, and to be honest, I had never seen him look so beautiful before. He usually didn't wear those kinds of clothes, but damn, he was hot.
My mouth was hanging open as he started singing, and it only widened when I instantly recognized the words. "Same lips red, same eyes blue. Same white shirt, couple more tattoos. But it's not you and it's not me."
It was the sentences I had received along with the roses. Had he really made it all into a song?
"We're not who we used to be, we're not who we used to be. We're just two ghosts standing in the place of you and me. Trying to remember how it feels to have a heartbeat."
I gulped at the words. It was about us, there was no doubt about it. It was clear as day. I figured Lottie realized this as well because she was staring at the screen with shock written all over her face.
When the song came to an end, Lottie finally grabbed the remote from my hand and turned the volume down.
"Brother, I give you no other choice but to contact him."
I didn't say anything as I bit my bottom lip while staring at her. A second later, I fished my phone from my pocket, dialing a familiar number, my eyes locked on my sister the entire time.
"Hey, Anne..."
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Alright, alright guys! What do you guys think of Hannah? Isn't she just awesome? I love her character.
Do you think Louis should contact Harry?
Thank you all for your lovely comments. You're awesome guys. You know how much I love you.
Pauline .xx