Chapter 9:
Louis
His eyes shift between the floor, his mum, and my chest. We all stood there for a moment, none of us find the courage to speak. His mum looks between us before clearing her throat in attempt to ease the tension in the room, failing miserably. His eyes refused to meet mine.
"Harry, aren't you going to introduce me?" she chirped, but Harry flinched at her words, almost as if he was coming out of some sort of trance.
"Oh, Uhm yeah...mum this is Louis. He's my... my uhm" He stumbles over his words, not sure what title I deserve.
"My names Louis, I'm a friend of Harry's" I interrupt him before he confuses his mum even more. He subtly scoffs at the word "friend" but I don't blame him. I don't even know where we stand with one another. The things that took place yesterday understandably left a bad taste in his mouth. I don't necessarily feel bad about it, I just don't understand why he got so upset.
His mum smiles so widely that it reaches her eyes "Nice to meet you, Louis. My name's Anne, I'm Harry's mum" She exclaims, pulling me into a tight hug. I look back over to Harry, but his eyes are trained on the rug underneath his socked feet.
"Well Louis, why don't you stay for a little bit?" Anne questions. She steps aside, allowing me to step into the house
"No mum I have to get ready, I have my first shift at the bakery today" Harry objects quickly once I step inside. "Oh shoot, I forgot. I don't have time to drop you off today. You think you could get a ride from someone?" I feel awkward standing in the middle of their living room, but I decide to stay quiet.
"Mum you promised you would take me" He whispers. I can tell he didn't want me to hear their conversation, and I wish I hadn't, but I do.
"Oh come on Harry, you can handle going to work by yourself. It'll be fine" Anne rushes over to the couch, grabbing her purse and slinging it over her shoulder.
"I know I can handle it mum, but I just wanted you to be here" His cheeks turn a deep red as he draws his bottom lip in between his teeth, biting down softly. I have to lean against the wall to prevent myself from rushing over to him and wrapping my arms around his waist. Why do I even want to console him?
"Harry don't start, ok? Get over it, I have to get to work" She says in a firm tone. I shift uncomfortably on the heels of my shoe, wishing I could just leave. Anne makes her way over to him and places a quick kiss on his red cheeks.
"How am I gonna get to work mum? Niall's has to go home" Niall's here? Why the fuck is Niall here?
"Louis? I saw your car in the driveway, do you mind taking Harry to work? I can give you some money for gas" Anne questions. Harry and I both widen our eyes at her request. I only came here to find out why he ran away yesterday, not to be his chauffeur.
It then dawns on me that I can use the car ride as an advantage to find out more behind his actions yesterday, so I simply shrug my shoulders and say "Sure, I guess"
"No mum absolutely not, I'm not riding with him" He crosses his arms over his chest, trying to appear more serious but it nearly makes me laugh
"Either you ride with him, or you miss your first day at work. What's it gonna be?" Anne challenges. I can tell she's annoyed, but I can also tell that she and Harry don't exactly get along too well.
"Fine, I'll be ready in 5 minutes, stay in here" He grumbles out before turning swiftly on his heel and retreating into the dark hallway. I look over to Anne and she pinches the bridge of her nose in between her thumb and her index finger.
"Thank you, Louis. I don't know why he's being so difficult" I contemplate confessing that I know why he's being this way, but I decide not to.
"Heres some money to make up for the gas. You should come by sometime soon for dinner. Harry's never been too good at making friends, so I want to make sure the people that he's beginning to surround himself with are good for him. You understand don't you?" I understand perfectly. But I also understand that if she knew the type of person I was, she wouldn't want her son to associate himself with me.
"Yes ma'am, I understand" She gives me a quick smile before exiting the front door, leaving me in an empty living room. I sink into the couch, waiting for Harry to come out. The sound of a door opening makes me look up from my phone, but instead of seeing a blushing green-eyed boy, I'm met with an angry Irish man.
He storms over to where I'm sitting, his feet stopping directly in front of mine. His hands are clenched into fists down by his sides.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" he barks, his eyes wild with anger. What the hell?
"Goodmorning to you too Nialler" I sarcastically remark, my lips curled into a small smirk. "Don't even start with me Louis, why are you here?" What the hell is his problem?
"I'm here to take Harry to work, but I could be asking you the same question" I challenge, no longer smiling.
"I'm here because Harry called me crying yesterday after hanging out with you and I had to go pick him up. He's been a fucking mess ever since" he seethes. I don't know what to say, I didn't know Harry was that affected by what happened. I nearly give up on this argument, but I refuse to let Niall win.
"Okay? Why are you telling me this? Are you trying to set me straight or something? Your boyfriend can fight his own battles" I laugh, making Niall's face drop.
"I'm not gay, Louis"
"Really? That's why you kissed Zayn on Friday night?" I can tell that I'm fucking with his head, but that's all the fuel I need to keep going. "You have no idea what you're talking about" He states.
"Whatever you say Nialler" the red on his cheeks deepens with every passing second. "I'm not fucking gay!" He yells, getting closer and closer to my face
"I never said you were Niall" I stand from the couch but he pushes harshly against my chest, making me fall back into the cushions. Before I can fight back, a soft voice sounds from behind Niall.
"What's going on?" Niall steps aside, allowing Harry to come into my view. He's dressed in a loose short-sleeved white button-up, and a pair of baggy tan pants hang loosely on his small hips. His curly fringe is swept across his hidden forehead, which draws my attention to his glossy, bloodshot eyes.
"Nothing H, I have to get going. I'll see you at school tomorrow, yeah?" Niall quickly grabs his jacket and rushes towards the door.
"Niall wait-" Harry calls out, but he's already out the door. He looks at the door for a while in confusion.
"I guess we should get going then, yeah?" I stand from the couch, walking over to Harry. For the first time this morning, green meets blue, and I nearly shiver at how cold his gaze is. I run my hand awkwardly through my hair and walk briskly over to the front door, desperate to be out of this tension-filled room.
It must've begun to rain sometime during my little visit, because it's pouring out here. I turn to face him, his small body shivering in the cold wind. Goosebumps raise on his pale arms, and before I can even think about it, I'm offering him my jacket.
"No it's f-fine" He crosses his arms tightly over his chest, stubbornness getting the best of him. "Come on Curly, just take the jacket" he rolls his eyes before finally obliging.
We've been driving in uncomfortable silence for 5 minutes. It's driving me crazy not being able to know what he's thinking. He doesn't speak much as it is, but complete silence when there is so much that needs to be said doesn't sit well with me.
"Harry, look we need to talk about yesterday" I begin. I look over to him, expecting to see his doe eyes wide in apparent shock. Instead, his stare is trained on the passing cars and trees outside of the window, appearing so nonchalant.
"Come on Haz, don't make a big deal out of this" It's like I'm talking to a wall. His silence remains unaltered.
After another minute of torturing silence, his voice finally sounds. "You humiliated me" it comes out barely above a whisper, but it surprises me nonetheless
"I didn't humiliate you, you just got too sensitive" I defend. I'm willing to discuss his little temper tantrum, but he's not going to blame all of this on me.
"You cursed at me and ordered my food for me like I'm some child, you basically had s-sex with the waitress right in front of me, and you laughed at me in my face" Why does he keep bringing up the flirting thing? It wasn't a date, I made that very clear. Why is he still stuck on this?
"Oh come on Haz, I didn't "basically have sex with her" and even if I did, why does that matter?" I question, but he only resorts back to being silent.
"Okay well what about everything else? You talked to me like I'm a child. You invited me out just to make fun of me. Was it some sort of ego boost for you?" He finishes with a scoff. I can feel my patience with him wearing thinner and thinner with every word he speaks.
"You're being ridiculous, Harry" The conversation is not heading in the direction that I was hoping, but I'm not going to let him guilt trip me.
"Unbelievable, you tell me that you want to have a conversation about what happened, but when I express how I feel, you belittle it." I look over to see him shaking his head, his body pressed against the car door, attempting to be as far away from me as possible.
"I'm not belittling it, but you're being dramatic. I didn't humiliate you"
"I mean am I that horrible? Why is the thought of going on a date with me so laughable to you?" He can't be serious right now. I barely fucking know the boy.
"Jesus Harry please just shut the fuck up" I expected him to comply, because that's what he usually does. Instead, this seems to set him off.
"Pull the car over" he seethes, his voice dangerously calm
"What? Harry, it's raining. We're a few minutes away, just-"
"Pull over, Louis!" He yells, his voice filling the car, nearly making me flinch. I've never seen this side of him before.
"Harry, stop" I try to calm him down, but I can tell it's too late. I pushed too far.
"Pull this fucking car over right now!" he yells once again, striking the dashboard repeatedly with his open palm. That was all it took to make me pullover
He steps out of the car into the pouring rain, slamming the door behind him. No, he doesn't get to have the last word, no way. I get out of the car, following directly behind him. "Harry!" I call out, but he keeps walking "Come on Harry, stop being a fucking baby" He stops immediately, turning around and storming over to me. Shit
"A baby? A fucking baby?! All you've done these past few days is talk down to me and make me feel like shit for every single thing I've done! You make fun of my clothes, the way I speak, the things I believe in, you even make a mockery out of me when I cry! You're relentless, and for some reason, I keep trying to give you another chance. But you know what Louis? That's my fault. I should've listened to Niall." He finishes his speech, tears mixed with rain streaming down his defeated face.
I'm at a loss for words. I didn't expect all of this from him, and I don't know how to handle it. I want to apologize, and to tell him how right he is, how sorry I am. But the fact that Niall probably warned him about me, hurts. He went into this with negative expectations. The anger coursing through my veins overpowers the filter on my mouth, and before I can even stop myself, hurtful words began to spew past my lips.
"I laughed at you because you're fucking pathetic. You walk around like an oblivious idiot who can't form a coherent sentence to save his goddamn life. No wonder everyone sees you as nothing more than a fucking freak. The only reason Niall even hangs out with you is because he pities you, but who can blame him? I've said it once and I'll say it again, you're fucking pathetic. Go cry about that, Curly" The nickname comes out of my mouth bitterly with only one intention, to hurt him.
The pain that flashed through his eyes as each and every word seeped into him was enough to make me weak at the knees. His bottom lip began to quiver, emotion and heartbreak building up behind this wall that he's desperately trying to keep up. I reach my hand out to cup his cheek, feeling immense regret for the words I spoke, but it was too late. The damage was done.
"N-no no no no" He repeatedly whispers the word to himself over and over again, his voice breaking and cracking as tears continue to well in his eyes. Drops of rain begin to fall from his drenched chocolate-colored curls as he repeatedly shakes his head. What did I just do? It's like my words triggered something within him that I didn't even know existed
"Harry I-"
"Get away from me! I never want to see you again. Stay the hell away from me" He whimpers. He turned on his heel, quickly running away from me and disappearing into the rain.
I stood there for a moment, not sure what to do. I don't usually care about how my words affect people because in my opinion, it's not my problem. But seeing the way my words broke him down and put an extra crack into his already fragile heart made me crawl in my skin.
He wore his heart on his sleeve. No matter how fragile and delicate it may be, he wears it on his sleeve. And I took advantage of that.
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A/N (2491 words)
Hi lovelies. I hope you're all doing well. We're starting to get into the more drama-filled parts:) as usual, let me know what you guys think. Any constructive criticism, comments, or questions is always welcomed.
Please vote:)
Chappie 10 coming soon
Love you pumpkin -A :)