If you didnt see, i updated again on monday so make sure you read that first, also long ass chapter, buckle in
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Louis left his coach's office with a lighter heart. Although he was hesitant about the coach speaking to the team, he knew that, at the end of the day, it would be for the best. And, more than anything, Louis wanted only the best for Harry.
He grabbed his bag and headed to his car before starting on his journey home. It was the end of February and although there was still a chill in the air, Louis couldn't help but feel excited for the coming months. Not only was spring, summer, sun, the beach, all with Harry, coming, but Louis was excited to spend his last few months at school with his boyfriend. Out and proud and freer than he had ever been before.
And at the end of it all he would be graduating and leaving Doncaster, leaving behind every negative feeling he had ever had, leaving behind the rejection he had felt from his parents. But also leaving behind his sisters, and Harry, the people he loved most in the world, the people he would fucking die to protect. But he knew it was necessary.
He thought that he and Harry could spend a year apart, skyping and texting and visiting on weekends. He wasn't one to believe in long distance, but Louis believed that if anyone could do it, it was them.
And Louis was halfway home when he got a text from Lottie, which he quickly opened. He knew not to text and drive, he really did, his mum had spent hours lecturing him about the do's and don'ts of driving the moment he got his licence, but he had been questioning a lot of what his mum had told him.
Lottie: Mum and dan have gone out for the night. Will you please come over? we miss you
Louis: course lots , now ? I'm on my way home from footie but I can come after I shower , about 15 min ?
Lottie: ok, bring harry? the twins love him
Louis grinned and shot back an okay before, soon enough, he was pulling into Harry's driveway. He parked the car and rushed into the house, closing and locking the door behind him. Harry liked to keep it locked at all times and Louis knew that the younger boy had only left it open for him.
"Haz!" Louis called, not receiving a response, assuming that his boyfriend was probably up in his room. Harry hated shouting and would rather wait for Louis to come find him.
And Louis was right. He dragged his bag up the stairs and paused in the doorway to Harry/his room to see the younger boy, fast asleep, lying on his stomach with just a thin blanket wrapped tightly around him.
Louis couldn't help the fond smile that covered his face before he moved slowly onto the bed and lay down right beside Harry. He ran his fingers lightly over Harry's back before bringing them to the boy's hair. He felt Harry move closer to him before the younger boy opened his eyes in a squint.
"Hmm?" Harry made a confused noise but smiled at the way Louis was looking at him all soft.
"You're so pretty," Louis mumbled, watching the way Harry's smile grew.
"Why're you waking me up?" Harry whispered quietly, his voice still lingering with sleep, like the rest of his body only craved to do.
"Lottie said we should go over. I'm gonna shower and then we can head over," Louis explained before getting off the bed and opening a drawer, rummaging around for clean clothes.
"Your mum?" Harry asked, eyes following Louis as the older boy moved around the room.
"She's gonna be out, apparently." Louis turned around to Harry with a big smile and Harry felt his heart fill up with Louis' happiness in a way that hadn't been possible since the boy was kicked out. "Get outta bed, love, we can even shower together," Louis suggested with a wink.
Harry smiled and pulled himself into a seated position with a groan. "Are you sure you want me there? I don't want to impose on your sibling time."
"Don't be silly." Louis walked back over to the bed and leant on his palms so he was face level with Harry, just centimeters apart. "They love you, I love you." Louis pressed a quick kiss to Harry's mouth before striding out of the room, presumably to take a shower.
Harry just kept smiling and moved to change out of his uniform, happy that the crinkles by Louis' eyes had finally returned.
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"Louis!" Was heard almost immediately when Louis stepped out of his car, having parked it in the driveway of his family home, the gateway to his old life.
Louis looked up to see Phoebe running at him so he quickly squatted down and pulled her into a hug, only pulling away when he felt Daisy trying to snuggle into his arms as well.
He pulled his youngest sisters into a tight hug, not wanting to let go. He could feel the couple inches that they had grown and both their hair were now in braids, whereas when he had left, they were almost always in pigtails.
"I missed you," He said before giving them one final squeeze and standing up, only to see Harry smiling at him with a large grin.
He rolled his eyes at the boy before leading the group of them inside, where Lottie and FIzzy were waiting. He immediately engulfed his eldest two sisters in a hug, glad that Fizzy seemed to have let go of the anger she held the last time they saw each other.
"So what are we doing today?" Louis asked after they had all made their way to the kitchen. Louis had been quick to lead everyone passed the living room, the last place his life had been okay.
Fizzy shrugged before turning to Lottie who was already doing something on her phone, so Louis picked up each twin and sat them on the counter. "What do you guys wanna do?"
Harry watched fondly from the side as Louis and the five year olds tried to figure out what to do, until Daisy shouted out, "Let's play hide and seek!"
So they played hide and seek.
Although Lottie complained, saying that at 12 she was too old for such a childish game, with a few words of encouragement from Harry and Louis, she gave in.
"You're the oldest, so you have to be the seeker first," Daisy explained to Louis.
The older boy frowned and reached over to tickle her sides, making the young girl shriek.
"Fine," He gave in, helping the young girls off the counter before pointing at Harry, "But one of you have to help Harry find a place to hide, he doesn't know the house."
"I'll do it!" Phoebe said excitedly, jumping up and grabbing Harry's hand.
"Alright, gang," Louis said, sending a wink towards Harry who he could see was slightly flustered from all the attention, "I'm gonna count from 50."
Louis counted before setting off and immediately spotting a head of curls sticking out from behind the kitchen table.
"H," Louis said, stifling his laughter, "Why are you hiding there?"
Harry stood up, brushing off his legs before looking at Louis sheepishly, "I told Phoebe I was too tall for it."
Louis rolled his eyes and wrapped his arm around Harry's shoulders, pulling him in close for a moment. "Alright well help me find them then."
The boys worked together and found the girls quickly. Louis was glad to know that even if their appearances had changed slightly, they had the same hiding spots and the same lovable personalities. Louis could almost pretend that it was actually a year in the future and he was home from university, spending the weekend with his sisters and his boyfriend. It was so close to perfect that Louis didn't even care when the girls decided they wanted to do makeovers, allowing them to curl his short hair and put makeup on him.
This was the kind of activity that even Lottie couldn't complain about. In fact, she was ecstatic to pull out her makeup, insisting that the lipstick she had just bought would look perfect on her brother.
Louis would groan and pretend to hate it but share secret grins with Harry, who actually looked quite pretty, in Louis' opinion, with a yellow bow in his curls and eyeliner smudged around his eyes.
"Can I paint your nails, Harry?" Lottie asked, after she had finished doing Louis' make up well, and had allowed the younger twins to go crazy on their brother.
"Uhh," Harry hesitated for just a moment, "Sure."
"What colour do you want?" Lottie held out an arrangement of colours. With four young girls in the house they had almost every colour imaginable.
Harry glanced at them shyly, "Which do you think will look good?"
Lottie hummed and frowned, "How about this one?"
It was a light blue colour that reminded Harry of Louis' eyes when he first woke up in the morning, before he could think of anything but the warm boy next to him.
"I approve," Louis butted in with a smile.
Harry smiled back at his boyfriend before nodding to Lottie, "Yeah, that one then."
Lottie painted one hand in silence while Fizzy painted the other, the only sound in the room being the younger girls telling Louis all about their fight with another girl in their kindergarten class.
Harry leaned into Louis, who sat right beside him, perhaps a smidge too close but they were too used to always touching. Harry can't help but picture their future together, as he does quite often when he sees Louis with his sisters. Harry could picture Lottie and Fizzy doing his nails on his wedding day, all dressed up before leaving to make sure Louis is actually dressed and not goofing off.
He pictured them with kids. Little, faceless, nameless children with loud giggles as Louis teases them, quieting when Harry enters the room, only for all of them to burst into laughter when the group rushes to engulf Harry in hugs, Louis leading the charge.
Harry was still hesitant about their chances. About the chances that love could be enough to hold them together. But he was optimistic. He wanted Louis and he wanted his sisters and he wanted little, laughing kids and a slightly short, blue-eyed husband to come home to every night.
So Harry thought that, maybe, if they tried hard enough, love could be enough.