ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɴɪɴᴇ
Story of My Life
After Kiera had finally left following awkward exchanges and a request for a picture, Louis looked back at Elora as she glanced away. With her gaze facing the floor and a blush tinting her cheeks, he was allowed a moment to fully register her appearance. Her usually straight hair was curled, resting above her shoulders and lining her elegant features which had been highlighted with more make-up than normal. Her eyes were shining in the lights and the dainty jewellery lying against her skin shifted when she eventually looked up. He admired the dress that hugged her figure, even though it was slightly obscured by the white coat she had slipped on, and he was reminded of, as he is every time he sees her, just how gorgeous she was.
"You look proper nice," he complimented and she grinned at the compliment before she thanked him. That was another thing Louis had grown to admire about Elora: she didn't shy away or brush off compliments like most insecure girls, but rather they brightened her eyes and she always seemed to genuinely smile in appreciation - it made him want to always compliment her.
"I, once again, didn't realise that you wanted to see me today," she mentioned with a sheepish smile, "so I'm a bit overdressed."
Louis brushed off his insecurity that she didn't want to spend so much time with him and decided to focus on the way her face shone when she greeted him. He shrugged before saying, "If I wasn't dressed like such a slob then I would've suggested that we do something to fit your attire."
She grinned as she registered the comfortable clothes he wore which were much like the outfits she normally saw him in after a day with the band.
"How about we pop by my flat so that I can get changed and then we head out somewhere more casual?" she suggested once they finally stepped out of the bistro.
After taking a breath of confidence, he then proposed that they stay at her place instead. He watched her reaction to his words and was pleased to find that she didn't seem uncomfortable with his suggestion and rather took kindly to it.
Upon briefly discussing her need to drive back to the apartment alone so that she could return her roommate's car, they both headed in the direction of their separate vehicles. She shot a message to Simon containing her instruction for him to not be home by the time she arrived and entered the car. Elora's heart was racing as she drove through the busy London streets, stressing over the possible state of her flat and hoping that Louis wouldn't be disappointed by its size. She was well aware that the man wasn't materialistic and didn't care for ostentatious belongings but she couldn't help but worry that he would be turned away by her more vulnerable side.
She was relieved to find that Louis hadn't arrived before her, giving her the opportunity to hurry into the flat and make sure that her beloved flatmate wasn't still lazing about. With a sigh of relief, she noticed that his room had been neatened with no trace of his presence hogging up any area of the apartment. The buzzer for her entrance went off and she quickly allowed Louis to enter the building before anyone could notice him. It took a minute for him to knock on her door, which was only enough time for her to remove her coat and accessories before she had to rush back to the door and let him in. He smiled in greeting before his eyes raked over the entire place and she excused herself to finish changing in order to avoid the awkward process of him examining her entire apartment.
When she eventually emerged in leggings and a mauve jersey, Louis looked in her direction as she slid over to him in her fluffy socks. He raised an eyebrow but just pegged it as an Elora-thing before turning to face her fully.
"Would you like a very brief tour of the place?" she asked and he nodded, assuming that there wouldn't be much more to see than what he had already noticed. She pulled him over to stand in the middle of the area that was comprised of the open kitchen that merged with the lounge which was placed adjacently to the dining table. She pointed down the split between the lounge and kitchen to the short passage way and informed him that the door at the end was the bathroom that she shared with her roommate - whose bedroom was behind the door in the middle of the passage. She then turned him on his spot to the direction she had come from before revealing that her bedroom was the door on the far wall of the lounge, right next to their TV setup. The entire apartment was very spacious with everything laid out in appealing design and enough light streaming through the countless windows for the space to feel airy and warm. His simplistic eye appreciated the black and white spectrum of colours used for most of the furniture but he could see that a home-y feeling was brought in through random splashes of colour from objects lying around.
"This is a pretty big place for the centre of London," he commented once she had finished her presentation. She nodded but shrugged and revealed that her roommate came from a rich family that helped support him, much to his egotistical desire to be completely independent.
"Wait, you live with a guy?" he asked with wide eyes, not expecting that revelation, "Are you dating?"
She laughed and waved him off before his thoughts could run too wild, "No, no, don't worry about some random dude trying to beat you up. I guess I forgot that I hadn't told you. Simon, my roommate, is an old friend that I've known since my Primary School days - he was actually friends with my brother first and that's how I met him. We got pretty close in High School due to similar personalities and interests, we did Debating together, but he moved to England for university. When I was given the opportunity to do my thesis and practicals with the University of London, he offered for me to stay in his guest bedroom for the six months."
Louis nodded along to her explanation before she offered to make him some tea and he accepted, telling her how he liked it whilst still absorbing her story. He didn't like the jump he got in his chest with the thought of her having a boyfriend so he decided to attribute it to fear of some over-protective douche harassing him for spending so much time with their girlfriend.
"I didn't know you have a brother - nor a sister for that matter," he noted with a bit of disappointed amazement in his voice.
"I guess it never came up," she brushed it off easily and he was saddened by the prospect of her not wanting him to know things about her personal life. She wouldn't have, however, let him into her apartment if she didn't want him getting too close to her - allowing someone into your home is a step of vulnerability.
"I can't believe that we've spent every day of this week together and I don't know anything about your family," he said, realising how little he actually knew about the girl he was steadily growing dependent upon.
"I didn't think you wanted to know anything about my personal life," she revealed with a chuckle but Louis' heart tightened with the thought that she didn't realise how much of an impact she was making on his life.
When she turned around, Elora noticed the deep furrow of his eyebrows and registered his concerned expression. Oddly enough, her heart warmed at the sight of him being troubled by her words - he actually cared about her story. She gave him his mug of tea and picked up hers before walking to the couch and waiting for him to join her before she sat down.
"Elora," he sighed, "I'm sorry if I gave you the impression that I didn't care about you."
She smiled at his words before sipping her tea and saying, "I can tell you about my family if you want?"
Upon gaining confirmation from him, she exhaled and thought about where to start.
"Well, you already know that I'm from South Africa. My mum and dad are both South African as well, so there's nothing really exciting about that. My parents got divorced when I was ten, so most of my school career was spent alternating between their houses every week. It's not a sad story though, I knew that they weren't happy together and I was so tired of the fighting, so when they told us we were all pretty okay with it. My sister took the news the hardest because she is the oldest and thought that it was her fault. It took a couple of years, about five, for everything to settle down though. I began noticing an improvement with my dad and my mum was so much happier without the strain of their relationship. I have always been closest with my mum but eventually my relationship with my dad grew and as I reached the end of High School, I was comfortable with both of them equally. Both of them are still fine and contently single with barely any bad blood between them."
She sighed calmly as she paused, thinking about what to say next while Louis absorbed her words and wondered what that peaceful life might be like. She continued, "I have two siblings, both of which are older than me. My sister is five years older and we always seemed to miss each other in the phases of our lives. When I joined High School, she was in her last year; when she finished university, I was finishing High School. We weren't really close when I was younger, we were too different and the age gap is always so much more noticeable when you're growing up. When she went to University, however, we grew closer because the time apart helped us realise what we meant to each other in the journey of life. My brother is only a year older than me, so we grew up at basically the same pace. The primary school years were hell because he had pretty bad anger issues and I was a stubborn twat, so we fought constantly. It was a pain because one moment we would be thick as thieves and the next we were refusing to talk to each other. He's a success story for puberty, though, because by the time I started High School we had both calmed down. I'm probably closest to him in my family now; we're a chaotic duo when we're together. We used to find so much joy in confusing our parents with inside jokes and references that they knew nothing about. He brings out my crazy and I am his biggest supporter - we understand each other freakishly well."
When she finished her story with a sweet smile on her face, Louis' heart panged with nostalgia as he thought back to his family and all of his siblings. She turned her head to look at him and noticed the sentimental look in his eyes before figuring that he didn't want to get sad, so she cheekily grinned at him before revealing, "We're also all very severe fans of One Direction."
His head shot up when she said that and saw the laughter glinting in her eyes as she tried to suppress her smile. He raised his eyebrows, "Is that so?"
"Oh, definitely," she nodded as her smile slowly grew, "My sister introduced me to you guys and together we dragged my brother into the fandom - he is now my main supplier of One Direction news and content."
She began chuckling as the sight of the emotions flitting across his face. She saw his confusion, fear, annoyance, worrying and then resignation all within one minute. Before he could say something, she spoke up, "Don't worry, I don't obsess over you anymore."
"Are you that much of a die-hard fan?" he asked as his thoughts swirled around why she was friends with him. Maybe she had been secretly planning to infiltrate his life the entire time and he was beginning to open himself up to her - what if she wanted to learn all his secrets and tell the world?
"Louis, calm down," she smiled as she rested her hand on his lower arm, "I'm not some phony who's been tracking your sleep schedule and recording your every move."
He looked up at her, staring into the sincere pools of brown he had seen the first day they met. He was the one to walk up to her, how could she be a crazed fan trying to root herself in his life if he was the one who had initiated it all?
"Remember, I'm just an awkward girl who sat in the wrong seat," she teased lightly, "You always knew I was a fan, come on, I was listening to your music when you met me. Plus, as someone who lives their life in books, I don't know enough about you to be an obsessive fan. If anything, you at least have the assurance that I'm not lying when I say that I like you."
He smiled at her words, calming down his heart as he looked down to her hand that slid off his arm while she was speaking. Rolling his shoulders to release the tension, "I'm sorry, I just have to be really cautious with this stuff. You fans are intense and I wouldn't be surprised if a fan had somehow managed to slide themselves into my life without me knowing."
She grinned with the thought as she leaned back, "Fear not, dear child, I don't have the commitment to do that - sounds like it would require way too much energy."
Rolling his eyes at her joke, Louis sighed in relief at not having to giving up on his friendship with Elora. He didn't like the thought of her not being a part of his life, even though he had just met her, something about the confusing girl made him want her to be in his life from that moment onwards.
As she got up and walked to the kitchen with the intention to get them food, Louis turned around on the couch and watched her while his thoughts continued to spin. He knew that Elora wasn't going to be in England forever and that at some point she would go home leaving him thousands of miles away from her. He couldn't bare the idea that they wouldn't be friends after that.
"Hey," he called to her, "We're friends, right?"
She turned around and saw the look in his eyes; he was beginning to grow vulnerable around her and he wanted to make sure that it wasn't a mistake. She smiled, her heart warm with the prospect that Louis Tomlinson wanted her to be in his life, "Of course, Lewis."
"Lewis?" he questioned but knew that she was teasing him when he saw her cheeky grin. Deciding that she needed the same treatment, he turned back to the TV with a smug grin, "Alright, Laura."