Warning (ish): I'd just like to point out that there are some phrases related to struggles with eating during this chapter. No, nobody has an eating disorder, but I few sentences could be triggering for some people so I thought I'd put that out there before you guys read! Enjoy the chapter...
Song: when I R.I.P, Labrinth
It's safe to say Louis was now eager to try other restaurants suggested by Liam and Zayn.
Though he had his doubts, the food was some of the best he had ever eaten and he was sad when the meal was over.
Throughout their time at the restaurant, Louis' thoughts were consumed by the advice Zayn and Liam had given him and his situation with Harry, the boy being in the room with him just a few tables over didn't help.
He knew at times he was irrational, and he had many issues with keeping his anger under control when faced by Harry, but he knew that if he worked on it, on himself, it would benefit him in the long run.
On the way out of the shopping centre, Liam convinced Louis to quickly buy a pair of sweats to go with his hoodie, saying that his silk pyjama bottoms just wouldn't do. He finally agreed, and that's why Louis was now looking at himself in the mirror, wearing his new outfit.
He turned around in all different directions, trying to see himself in every angle possible as his mind filled with doubts once again.
You look awful. Why did you think this would even be a good idea? Stop trying to fit in when you don't need to. You look like you have no care for your appearance at all. It's too baggy on you. It doesn't suit your figure at all. Fucking take them off already. You're a joke.
"Woah" Harry's voice startled Louis as he jumped away from the mirror in shock, widening his eyes as he tried to cover up the clothes he was wearing.
"Fucking get out now" Louis said, hastily taking off his hoodie as Harry looked at him in surprise.
"Why?" Harry asked, watching Louis as he held the hoodie up to his torso as if he were scared of him seeing his figure.
"I'm in the middle of something. Please just leave" Louis replied, and his voice sounded the weakest Harry had ever heard him.
"Why are you so scared? You're only trying on clothes" Harry's eyebrows pinched together, walking further into the room, shutting the door behind him.
"That's exactly why I don't want you in here" Louis lowered the hoodie and sat down on his bed, looking down at the article of clothing.
"I've never seen you wearing something so casual" Harry looked Over at the JD bag before looking back at Louis who was fidgeting in his seat.
"Yeah well you won't be seeing it again" Louis sighed, and threw the hoodie away from himself, it landing at Harry's feet.
Harry frowned and picked the hoodie up, walking over to Louis and offering it to him. "Put it back on" he urged, and Louis shook his head. "Why not? It suits you"
Louis let out a bitter laugh and pushed Harry's hand away. "Suits me? I look like a joke"
"No you don't, you're just not used to wearing things like this. Put it back on, you'll get used to it" Harry attempted to convince, but Louis wasn't having it.
"Why do you think I'd believe you? If anyone was going to try make a fool out of me it'd be you" Louis replied coldly.
"I'm not trying to do anything of the sort" Harry denied.
"Then what? One minute you're stealing my bags, the next you say I look good. You're so confusing" Louis said, exasperated.
"It's just nice seeing you try new things. For once you're doing something you want to do without thinking about your father"
"I am thinking about my father. He would say I look ridiculous. Not 'proper' enough" Louis made quotation marks with his fingers, emphasising what his father had told him many times before.
"Fucking hell just come here" Harry said, pulling Louis up off the bed by his hand and he faced Louis towards the mirror again and stood behind him. "Put your arms up"
"What?" Louis asked, trying to look away from the mirror at Harry but the boy wouldn't let him.
"Just do it" Harry rolled his eyes.
"I can dress myself" Louis hissed, trying to walk away.
"But you're not going to, so I'll have to do it for you. Arms up, I won't stop pestering you until you do"
Louis hesitated before doing as he was told, reluctantly raising his arms above his head as harry reached up and pulled the Hoodie on him. Louis poked his head out of the hole and re adjusted it around his neck before pulling the bottom of the hoodie down and folding it upwards slightly. "Happy now?"
"Very" Harry smiled, but noticed the uncertainty in Louis' eyes through the mirror. "It looks good. Do you seriously think it looks bad or are you just telling yourself that to agree with your father"
"It doesn't look right. I'm not used to it" Louis replied, eyeing his reflection in the mirror as he mentally pointed out everything that looked wrong.
"That's normal when trying something new. All you ever wear is suits and blazers and them awful silk pyjamas" Louis glared at him. "Oh come on, they look like something my Nan would wear"
"You're not doing a great job at raising my self esteem here" Louis said, feeling uncomfortable.
"But you can agree these look much better than them" Harry replied with a challenging look, and Louis couldn't lie, they were in fact miles better than his usual sleep attire.
"Ok fine, but this still looks bad. It's baggy in all the wrong places, they make me look fat and I don't look put together" Louis said in his frustrations. "What was Liam thinking" he whispered, but Harry heard it.
"You're not even close to being fat Louis" Harry said, now realising that the perfect Louis Tomlinson wasn't so perfect after all. "Besides, you don't need to look put together all the time. These are comfort clothes, you can just wear them around our room and I'll be the only person to see it" Harry turned him by his shoulder so he could speak to him directly. "I'm not going to judge you"
"You already do fucking judge me. You judge me on everything. Things I say, things I do. Why wouldn't you judge me by my clothes"
"Because I know exactly how it feels to be judged by what you wear" Harry said firmly, and Louis went silent.
Now you know exactly how you make him feel every time you comment on his clothing.
"My suits are the equivalent to what you're wearing right now. How you're feeling right now is how I feel every time you see me in a suit; scared, vulnerable, shamed" Harry paused as he looked down at his feet. "So tell me again I look like a freak and this time you'll know exactly how I feel"
That was the first time Louis felt sympathetic towards Harry. Now that he had a taste of his own medicine, the pit in his stomach was growing and gravity was replaced by regret, pushing down on him until his knees felt week and his head was swimming.
"I'm sorry" Louis muttered, and it took a great deal of strength to push the words from his lips as his pride slowly crumbled.
Harry chuckled. "Don't bother saying you're sorry now. It shouldn't take this for you to realise it's a shitty thing to do"
"You'd rather me act like I'm still fine with it? Like I still think it's okay?" Louis asked, confused by Harry's reaction.
"No, I don't want you to be sorry for something you'll just do again anyway. I want you to be sorry when you mean it"
"But I do mean it" Louis said weakly, wishing Harry would believe him.
"No you don't. You've had your moment of reflection and said you're sorry so you don't look like even more of a dick than you already do. By tomorrow it'll be back to normal, with me and you throwing insults at each other and arguing until we go to sleep and repeat the process all over again. That's how it works between me and you, we have a split second of bliss before our ego's take over"
And Harry was right, because any time they took a step forward they took two steps back, too stubborn to be the first to let their bad blood go. In the moments that they seemed to get along, both of them knew it wouldn't last. They could enjoy it until one of them realised the other was the enemy, and press play again on their argumentative nature.
"Then why bother with the bliss in the first place?" Louis asked, stepping away from Harry.
"Because it's natural to realise you're in the wrong at times. And when we do we feel the need to do better. Like I said though, it never lasts" Harry shrugged and walked over to his bed where his bags were from shopping.
"I think we enjoy arguing with each other. It's quite entertaining" Louis said, starting to unpack his designer clothes.
Harry laughed slightly. "We do. I think it'd be weird if we didn't argue"
"Hm, it's just so easy to take the piss out of you" Louis smirked, walking over to the wardrobe with a blazer in his hands.
"And it's so easy to get you riled up. I'd recommend an anger management class but I doubt you'd attend it" Harry replied, hanging up one of his own suits he had bought.
"It's weird that you know any anger management classes in the first place. Maybe I should recommend you a therapist"
"I've already got one" Harry said without thinking, and he looked over at Louis who had stopped what he was doing entirely. "I'm joking" he shrugged it off, facing the wardrobe once again.
"Are you though?" Louis asked, watching Harry intently.
"Obviously" Harry grinned, but Louis could see it was forced. "I can see why you would have one though"
"Don't turn this around on me. Why do you have a therapist?" Louis pressed.
"I don't, i was kidding" Harry said, and Louis didn't believe him for a second.
"I can tell when you lie, you don't make eye contact"
Harry turned to look him in the eyes. "I'm not lying"
Louis looked at him for a moment before storming past him to the wardrobe, grabbing one of Harry's suits and ripping it from its hanger. He pinched the collar and turned it outwards, scoffing at the sight of the lavish Gucci label embedded on the material. "What, like you didn't lie about being wealthy?"
Harry gulped and took the suit from Louis, looking down at the label. "I don't flaunt my wealth like you"
"You might not, but it still doesn't explain how you're rich and yet I've never heard of your family. So why don't you do me a favour and explain" Louis said sassily, sitting down on Harry's bed as it was closer. "I've got all night to listen"
Harry looked at him but never said a word, instead choosing to distract himself with hanging up his clothes neatly.
"You're not going to say anything?" Louis asked, tapping his foot.
"No, it's none of your business" Harry mumbled, "get the fuck off my bed"
"No, I think I'll stay here until you chose to explain" Louis gave him a fake smile, leaning back and propping his legs up.
"You'll be sat there all night then. Guess you'll be sharing a bed with me" Harry smirked, almost laughing at the disgusted face Louis pulled.
"Thanks for the offer but I'd rather not" Louis turned his lip up at the idea. "Why are you so reluctant about this topic? It's just money"
"Because I don't like talking about it, you could at least respect that. I don't pester you about your mother, which seems to be a touchy subject for you"
"That's completely different and you know it" Louis snapped at him.
"But it's not though, and you wouldn't know that because you don't know why I don't like talking about it"
"I would know if you told me"
"And I'm not going to, leave it at that" Harry sighed, folding up an empty bag.
"Fine. What did you buy anyway" Louis changed the subject, looking at Harry's bags that seemed pretty normal.
Harry paused for a moment as if realising something, then crouched down under his bed to drag more bags out. "Guess there's no point hiding it" he shrugged, and Louis instantly recognised all the fancy labels.
His eyes widened at how many there were, Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Lancôme, Chanel, Gucci, off white and more. It had to add up to at least ten grand. "Fucking hell" he whispered, peering into the bags. "Not that wealthy huh?"
"Thought I could spoil myself for once, I haven't been shopping in months" Harry said, taking a seat on the bed besides Louis as he took out some of his purchases. He looked at his off white hoodie and white Balenciaga shoes thoughtfully. "Have you ever shopped from here before" he asked Louis, pointing to the logos.
"No. Of course I've heard of them, but my father considers them to be in the low ranks of designer clothing. He's not particularly fond of street wear" Louis said with a shrug, taking the shoes from harry.
"I can see it being something you would like to wear, the style suits you. It's high fashion but more on trend, perhaps you could buy from these without feeling as guilty" Harry wondered out loud, and even though he didn't want to admit it, Louis agreed with him.
"Maybe I'll have a look next weekend" Louis replied, biting the inside of his lip.
"Why not go tomorrow? It's a Sunday and we're allowed out all weekend" Harry suggested, but Louis shook his head.
"Nah, Liam and Zayn are staying here. They want to chill out for the day and catch up on school work"
"You could come with me and Niall, if you wanted to. We're going again because Niall forgot to buy a new pair of shoes" Harry asked shyly, taking the shoes back from Louis to put in the box.
"Don't get ahead of yourself styles. We might have had a 'moment of bliss' as you liked to call it, but that does not mean we're suddenly best friends who go shopping together" Louis said in amusement.
"It was just an offer. I'm not saying we're best friends, I don't think we ever will be. But I can tolerate you for a day if you've got nobody to go shopping with" Harry rolled his eyes, standing up again to put away his designer clothes.
Louis thought about it for a few minutes, debating wether he should take him up on his offer or not. He still didn't like Harry, and he was right when he said they'd never be friends. But his interest peaked when seeing the clothes Harry was slowly taking out of his bags. He had always wanted to wear more casual clothing from these brands, but his father had never allowed him to. For him, has wardrobe had always consisted of suits, tail coats and polished black, leather shoes. Which now that he thought about it, they weren't as comfy as he thought they were.
Plus, for once he dreaded the thought of spending his free day doing work. All he ever did was work, work, work when he already knew everything he was reading up on. The sound of shopping instead was much more appealing, even if it was with the boy he hated more than anyone.
"Fine, I'll come. I don't have any school work to catch up on anyway" Louis said, and harry didn't think the boy would actually agree.
"Oh, alright yeah. I'm sure Niall won't mind, I think he's fucking in love with you" Harry said with a smile.
"Just add him to the long list of people who do" Louis replied, walking back over to his side of the room.
"Don't get cocky. I'm sure as hell not on that list"
"Oh I know you're not, if you were I'd cross you off it" Louis said sassily, lifting his chin up.
"No you wouldn't, you'd just tease me about it till the day I die" Harry corrected.
"Yes and that too. I cross you off it, tease you about it, then never return the feelings"
"Oh jeez, my heart is already breaking" Harry said dramatically, clutching his chest with a pained expression.
"Die slowly then darling" Louis said with a grin, and harry smiled with raised eyebrows.
"You sounded very camp then" Harry laughed, and Louis was confused.
"Camp?" He asked, never having heard the term before.
"Effeminate and theatrical" Harry stated.
"I'm neither of those"
"Course you're not, darling" Harry said sarcastically, heavily emphasising the last word.
"I'm very manly actually"
"Your wrist says otherwise" Harry smirked, looking down at Louis' hand that looked as if it were dangling from his arm, his wrist bent loosely.
Louis looked down at his hand and quickly straightened it out. "What the fuck does my wrist have to do with anything?"
"Nothing, it's just dainty is all" Harry bent his own wrist as Louis had done before and put his arm out to his side, his other hand resting on his hip. "Does this look manly to you?"
"I was not stood like that" Louis replied knowing that he in fact was. Half the time he doesn't realise he's doing it.
"You so were" Harry laughed at him, seeing the scowl on Louis' face. "There's nothing wrong with being a little camp"
"I never said there was, I'm just not. I'd say you're camp" Louis replied.
"What, because of what I wear" Harry looked at him pointedly, having only just spoken about this topic.
"You can't deny that your clothing choices are a little on the camp side. It's definitely theatrical"
"You didn't even know the definition of the word camp until a few seconds ago" Harry pointed out.
"Well now I do know. And it does line up pretty well with your outfits"
"I knew your apology wasn't sincere" Harry said, though he wasn't bothered, he had expected it.
"That wasn't even an insult! It's true that your outfits are camp" Louis exclaimed, pointing to his current outfit; purple flared trousers with a matching blazer and a white shirt.
Harry knew there was some truth in what Louis was saying, his outfits were bold and bright, his wardrobe was like a rainbow it's self. "Fair enough" he admitted.
"That's what I thought" Louis said smugly. "Anyway, I'm going for a shower. What time are we leaving tomorrow?" He asked, finally finished with putting his things away.
"Probably like half ten ish, make sure you're ready in time" Harry said.
"Oh don't worry, I'll be up at seven sharp to listen to your obnoxious meditation music"
——————————————————————
"Louis" a sing song whisper disturbed the boy, hot breath tickling his ear as he groaned.
"Tomlinson, wake up" It said again, and Louis thought he was dreaming.
"No, bed, warm" Louis mumbled incoherently, pushing his face further into his soft pillows.
"Louis wake up, or we'll have to do this the hard way" Harry said again, grinning at the sight of Louis' bed hair, all messy and tousled.
"Fuck you" Louis said groggily, waving harry away who sighed and tilted his head to the side.
"Alright then" and a second later, freezing cold water splashed onto Louis' face, startling him awake as he sat up with a gasp, breathing heavily as it slid down his t-shirt.
"What the fuck styles!" He exclaimed, squinting up at harry through the bright daylight.
"I did warn you" Harry smirked, placing the glass back down on Louis' night stand.
Louis pushed back his fringe and yanked off his now soaking wet t-shirt before standing up from the bed. "And I'll warn you now" he grabbed his wet pillow. "Run"
Harry's eyes widened as he sprinted away from Louis towards the door, Louis hot on his heels. He quickly opened the door and left the room with Louis still chasing him, shirtless, down the corridor as students minding their own businesses moved out of their way with shocked faces.
Suddenly, Louis caught Harry's foot from behind him and he was sent tumbling to the floor with a harsh bang. Not realising he had done it, Louis stumbled over Harry's body, landing on his chest as he groaned in pain. That didn't stop him though, as he straddled his room mate and began to hit him Over the head with his pillow, Harry screaming at him to stop with his arms protecting his face.
"Fucking stop!" Harry shouted, out of breath from running.
"Pay back bitch" Louis said as he laughed, hitting harry over and over again until a teacher walked by and stopped them.
"What on earth are you two doing?" She asked, scowling at them as they hastily stood up, both panting for air, Red faced with messy hair.
"It's nothing serious miss, we're not actually fighting" Harry said, turning his head to see Louis nodding along with him.
She squinted her eyes at the two suspiciously. "Well no more of that, you could end up hurt. Go back to your rooms" she said, shaking her head as she walked away.
Harry burst into laughter that he had been holding in the entire time, and Louis rolled his eyes before whacking the pillow at his chest once and walking back to their room, harry left frowning like a kicked puppy behind him.
And just as Harry entered the room, Louis threw his own glass of water at his face.
Fuck sake.
"The fuck? You already hit me a million times with that soggy pillow" Harry said, wiping the water from his eyes.
"I saw the opportunity and took it. Don't start what you can't finish" Louis replied with a smirk, walking away Into the bathroom.
The two of them got ready for the day, Louis wearing a slim fitted tux with a t shirt underneath to make it more casual. Whilst Harry went all out with a red and white checkered suit, of course from Gucci, a crisp white shirt laying beneath it.
"Where are we meeting Niall?" Louis asked as they walked out of their dorm room, waiting for Harry to shut the door.
"Down by the exit, he's probably already there" Harry said as they walked in step with each other down the hallway, earning stares from other students as they went.
"Seriously. Niall seems like the type to be late for everything." Louis replied, noticing Liam and Zayn at the bottom of the stairs, realising he hadn't told them he wouldn't be joining them on their study session. "Shit" he muttered, earning a confused glance from Harry.
"What?" He asked, and Louis sighed as the two noticed him as he drew closer.
"Louis, and- Harry?" Liam said, and they stopped in front of them.
"Sorry, I forgot to tell you but I'm going to the shopping centre again with Harry" Louis said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Oh. Uh, I thought you two hated each other. And you already went yesterday" Zayn replied, looking between the two of them.
"We do hate each other. But there's a few things I wanted to look at maybe buying and Harry offered for me to join him and Niall seeming as you two are studying today" Louis explained.
"Okay. That's, strange, but have fun anyway. Come find us when you're back" Liam said with a hesitant smile, and Louis nodded before the two pairs walked in opposing directions.
"Well that was awkward" Harry commented.
"You're telling me" Louis sighed. "It is a bit strange though, he's right"
"How so?"
"We don't like each other, like, at all. And yet we're going shopping together" he paused and stopped walking "Maybe I should stay here" Louis said, uncertain.
"Just ignore them, only we know how we feel about each other and going shopping doesn't change the fact that I don't like you, and you don't like me. At the end of the day, it was either going alone, staying here to study, or coming with me and Niall. There's an obvious choice there" Harry assured, not seeing the big deal about it.
"But-"
"Not buts. Don't try and talk yourself out of it. You'll come shopping with us, I'll show you some more casual designer, and you can come back here and pretend it never happened" Harry pulled him by the arm to start walking again. "Here, I'll make it easier for you so there's no confusion. I don't like you, you're a complete dickhead and shopping doesn't change that"
"Okay. I hate you, You're a hypocritical, annoying prick and shopping most definitely does not change that" Louis nodded, and strangely, saying it out loud did help.
"There we go. Now hurry up, I don't wanna keep Niall waiting"
They sped up their pace and finally made it to the exit, where just like Harry had said, Niall was waiting as he leant against the door frame checking his watch impatiently. When the Irish boy saw who Harry had brought along with him, his eyes widened in both surprise and excitement, a toothy grin plastered onto his face.
"Louis! Hi" Niall greeted him, and Louis couldn't help but crack a smile at the boys enthusiasm. And maybe a little because he knew it pissed Harry off.
"Hey Niall. You alright?" He asked politely.
"I'm good thanks, just surprised you're here. Harry never told me you were coming" He looked over at his best friend and winked suggestively, Harry flipped him off in return.
"Yeah I wanna buy some things but I had nobody to go with, Harry offered for me to join you guys" Louis explained for the second time today, heading out the door with Niall and Harry.
"I'm glad you're here, but don't you guys like, hate each other?" Niall said, and Louis internally groaned.
"We do hate each other, I'm just tagging along because I'd rather go shopping than study" Louis said.
"Oh alright. What you gonna buy then?" Niall asked, trying to make small talk.
"Harry showed me some more casual designer clothing yesterday and I wanted to check it out. I need something more comfy from brands I won't be embarrassed to wear" Louis scoffed, thinking about his Adidas hoodie.
"I wish I had enough money to buy designer. I've barely got the money for a chicken nugget meal at maccies" Niall sighed, first for his reason stated, second because now he was craving chicken nuggets.
"What's maccies?" Louis asked, and Niall's jaw looked as if it had been broken from how low it had dropped.
"You've never been to McDonalds?" Niall asked, because who the fuck hasn't.
"Ohh" it clicked. "No Of course I know what McDonalds is, I've just never heard of it being called maccies before" Louis said, "now that you've mentioned it though, I've never actually tried it"
"Have you been living under a rock?" Harry asked, looking at Louis as if he were crazy.
"No, I've been living with my father who wouldn't dare let me touch fast food" Louis corrected with a fake smile.
"Well you're trying it today. I'll drag you there myself if I have to" Niall demanded, and Louis didn't even argue with him.
"Fine. If it's as good as Nando's was then I'm up for it" Louis shrugged, now more open to the idea of eating less expensive food once he was introduced to it the day prior.
"Nando's is my favourite. I go there at least once a week. I've probably tried everything on the menu by this point" Niall said, and Harry confirmed it.
"I don't blame you, it was way better than I had expected" Louis nodded.
"Yeah. Maccies is great too, I'm sure you'll love it" Niall replied.
"He's quite the food fanatic isn't he" Louis said to harry, who smirked back at him.
"You don't even know the half of it" he replied, winking at Niall. "The worst part is he doesn't even put on any weight from it all. I'd sell my soul for your metabolism"
"Oh fuck off Harry, you've got a great figure" Niall argued.
"If I ate half as much as you do I'd be overweight by now. I actually have to watch my calorie intake where as it doesn't affect you"
"Same. My fathers always been strict with what I eat since I was a kid. He stopped letting me have sweets when I was ten and started me on salads and shit. The only time I ever got something other than rabbit food was when we went to important meals or hosted a gala" Louis explained, and though it didn't really bother him, Niall and Harry thought it was disgusting behaviour.
"He seriously started making you watch what you eat at the age of ten? Who gives a shit what their kid eats at that age? They're the years when you shouldn't have to worry about what you eat or how you look" Harry replied, and Niall agreed with him.
"Exactly. Why's your dad so focused on appearances?" Niall asked.
"Probably because we're in the media all the time. Wouldn't be great to have headlines talking about your overweight son would it" Louis laughed bitterly.
"Sweets and junk food every once in a while won't make you overweight. I honestly couldn't even imagine you being fat" Niall replied, trying to make eye contact with Louis who was looking at the ground.
"Yeah well, my father thinks different and there's no changing his mind. I probably shouldn't even buy anything from McDonalds to be honest, maybe I could get a salad" Louis said, worried that the high calories he's been eating over the past week were going to catch up with him eventually.
You'll return home over the break looking just like everything father had tried to prevent. Fat, ugly, wearing clothes he won't approve of. What are you thinking? You're changing already!
"No you will go in there and buy a burger, or a wrap, or chicken nuggets just like Niall and I. You're not going to sit there eating a fucking salad when you're already skinny as fuck Louis. I'll buy you a damn meal if I have to" Harry said, and you could tell by his tone he was angry. No parent should make their kid worried about their weight, preventing them from even touching any fast food. Making them scared of it. It's wrong.
"I'll eat what I fucking want" Louis shot back, not needing their pity.
Fathers right. You should watch what you eat.
"Louis it's not the end of the world if you eat a burger" Harry argued, acting as if he was being ridiculous.
"Calories add up Styles, and I've eaten plenty this week"
"Guys-"
"It's one fucking meal, you haven't even had breakfast today. It's normal Louis, it becomes a problem when you start binge eating"
"Yes, one grease filled, high calorific meal. It's not healthy for me"
"Hey guys-"
"Neither is starving yourself. You can't live off salad"
"I don't live off salad and I'm not starving myself. Do I look like I starve myself to you? Is that it, you think I'm too skinny and should eat more? Do I look sickly to you?"
"No! For fucks sake Louis I never said that at all. What I'm saying is you're a healthy weight and you shouldn't worry about what you eat. There's no need for it"
"Fucking shut up already!" Niall shouted, and at once they went silent. "Finally" he rubbed his forehead, looking at the two with an annoyed expression. "I didn't come out with you two to listen to you argue all day, I came to have a good time and go shopping. Louis, you're not fat, and you still won't be after eating at Maccies. Harry, the things you were saying weren't wrong, but if Louis wants a salad he wants a salad. Leave it there and stop bickering like five year olds"
Niall finished and began walking again, Harry and Louis stood still in confusion and surprise. It wasn't often that you'd see Niall anything but happy. The boy practically glowed with positivity and rarely shouted at anyone, so it was an eye opener to the boys.
"Look, eat what you want, I'm not going to force you into anything. All I'm saying is it doesn't matter if you eat junk food every once in a while, it's okay in moderation. But I'm done with the arguing today. This isn't just about us right now, Niall's here too and it's not fair of us to ruin his day just because we don't like each other. Once we're back at school you can scream and shout at me all you want, but don't be selfish whilst he's here" Harry said firmly, staring at Louis to show he means it.
"Fine, no arguing. For Niall" Louis agreed, nodding at Harry who finally relaxed, letting out a deep breath.
"For Niall" he nodded back, and the two ran to catch up with him.
Once they made it to the shopping centre the boys were in much better moods again, excited to spend their money. Harry suggested they go to Selfridges first as they stocked many of the designer brands Louis was interest in. They agreed and found the shop easily as Harry had been in there yesterday.
Once they entered the shop Louis had no idea which way he wanted to go first. There were too many products, too many brands to even comprehend and they were spaced out everywhere. Harry seemed more at ease, and Niall was, well, he was Niall.
"What do you want to look at first?" Harry asked Louis, who was looking around himself with unease.
"I don't know, there's too many to pick from" Louis answered.
"Come on then, we'll go balenciaga first" Harry pointed over his shoulder and Louis followed him to the suggested Brand.
"Anything catch your eye?" Harry asked him, and Louis looked at the products, realising a lot of them did.
"These are pretty cool" He said, taking a pair of black graffiti style shoes off its stand to look at them closer. It was a sock shoe, with a white sole and the word balenciaga was printed across it in red ink.
"They're sick mate. How much?" Niall commented, wishing he could buy a pair of his own.
"£585" Louis replied as if it were nothing, and Niall thought for a moment he was going to faint.
"Try them on" Harry encouraged. "I'll hold onto them until you find everything you're interested in so you don't have to keep going back and forth" he offered, taking the shoes from Louis who smiled gratefully.
"I like these too" Louis said, referring to another pair of shoes from the speed collection. They were fully black, the sock much lower with laces and a small balenciaga logo print on the side in white. "I could wear them in PE"
"You'll ruin them" Harry replied.
"No i'd only wear them for the indoor sports. I'm not that stupid" Louis said, handing harry the second pair of shoes.
Louis continued looking, and ended up with a 'crew' black hoodie and matching t-shirt, a black logo denim jacket and an oversized printed sweater. By this point Harry was struggling to carry all the items and Niall was hovering around a certain pair of shoes he had been eyeing since they had gotten to the section. Louis noticed, and walked over to him to see what he was looking at. They were the same pair Louis was looking at buying, however the shoe was completely black and the writing was in white instead of red.
"You like them?" Louis asked, startling Niall as he hadn't noticed the boy stood behind him.
"Jesus Christ don't scare me like that" he said jokingly, and Louis grinned back at him. "And yeah, I mean they're cool but I could never afford them" he said with a sad smile. "It is what it is"
"I'll buy them for you" Louis offered, because although he was friends with 'the enemy', he had taken an instant liking to Niall. He was kind hearted towards everyone and always saw the best in people. He didn't mind spending money on people who deserved it and his mother had always taught him to be generous with his wealth as others aren't so lucky.
"God no, have you not seen the price of these things?" Niall said in shock, his eyes widening at Louis' words.
"You deserve it for being so kind to me" Louis shrugged, taking the shoes off it's stand.
"And you're crazy" Niall said, but it was light hearted.
"Maybe I am, but you can't complain because you're getting a new pair of shoes" Louis winked at him and walked over to a staff member to ask for some help with getting their correct sizes.
"He's buying you them?" Harry asked Niall, who was beaming with excitement.
"Yes! God Harry i don't see your problem with him at all. I fucking love this guy" Niall said, practically bouncing on the spot whilst harry laughed at him.
"Of course you do" Harry sighed, looking over at Louis fondly, a small smile resting on his face.
Louis and the staff member finally walked over to them to get Niall's shoe size along with the two pairs of shoes she would get from storage. They all sat down on the stools specifically for trying on shoes as they waited and Harry could finally rest the pile of clothing he had down on his lap.
"That's a really nice thing you're doing you know, getting them shoes for Nialler" Harry said softly to Louis.
"He's a nice lad. I couldn't just ignore the fact that he had been eyeing up them shoes like they were the Crown Jewels or some shit"
"But he's not even your friend" Harry said quietly, so that Niall wouldn't hear him.
"He doesn't have to be. You don't need to be close with someone to give back every once in a while. If someone deserves better then I'll do what I can to help"
"I don't get you. You're like a completely different person with anyone who's not me"
"It's all about first impressions, you failed on that part"
The staff member returned with three boxes stacked on top of each other in her hands. "Okay I have the speed clear sole graffiti here" she said, and Niall raised his hand slightly to indicate they were his. "And here are yours" she handed the least two boxes to Louis and stayed with them whilst they tried them on in case they needed different sizes.
Louis swapped his polished leather shoes for the first pair he had been looking at, black with a red print, and stood up once he had put them on. Niall also had his on, and he stood by Louis looking at their matching shoes.
"Look at us being twins" Niall said happily, showing off his shoe with Louis to Harry who watched on in amusement.
"Awh, now you'll always have a part of Louis with you Niall, just how you always wanted" Harry said sarcastically.
"Too right I will. I'll never take these off, I'll even sleep in them" Niall joked, and Louis chuckled at him.
"They look good on you" Louis compliment Niall, and he was also happy with his own pair, much preferring them over his uncomfortable dress shoes.
"You too Tommo" Niall replied, walking around to make sure they were the right size.
Louis then tried on his other pair of shoes, liking them just as much as he did the first pair and he decided he would buy them both, along with Niall's shoes and his clothing.
"Now I don't need to buy those shoes from JD" Niall said to Harry as they headed for the off white section in the shop.
"Your just winning at life right now aren't you. You saved £60 and got a free pair of designer shoes for £585" Harry replied, stopping at the section.
"Honestly I think this is the best day of my life" Niall said, the grin still not leaving his face since Louis had offered to buy the shoes.
"Glad I could make your day Niall" Louis said with a joking tone to his voice. "Now help me pick out some clothes"
Niall agreed and the three of them spent the next twenty minutes gathering yet another pile of clothes in Harry's arms. He chose a vintage stencil black bomber jacket, a black Caravaggio painting sweatshirt, a white marker arrow hoodie, a white tuxedo shirt, a flannel checkered shirt, an oversized logo t-shirt and an industrial yellow belt. Before he knew it he had spent £3175.
"I get you're rich and everything, but how on earth does your father let you have that much money?" Niall asked once hearing the man at the check out read his total.
"He probably just likes to flaunt his wealth by giving me a ton of money. I'm not complaining though" Louis guessed, having never really asked his father about it.
"I wouldn't either. Harry's minted but he rarely ever spends it unless he wants a new suit or something" Niall said, looking over at Harry who was waiting for them out of the way.
"Yeah he said something about that the other day. Why doesn't he?" Louis asked, paying for his clothes.
"I'm not sure. All he's told me is that he doesn't like to brag about it. I think he gives most of it to charity"
Louis smiled at that. "We held our galas for charity before my mother passed. My father never cared much for it, now he just hosts them for the social aspect of it all" his smile faded.
"Oh. I'm sorry. I can't even imagine what it must be like to lose a parent" Niall said sympathetically, he didn't think he would be able to cope if he lost his mum.
Louis gave him a sad smile before taking his bags and thanking the worker. "There's nothing to be sorry for" he replied to Niall.
They said nothing more on the touchy subject, as Niall didn't want to ruin the mood or press for answers, and Louis couldn't bare to speak about it. He would save his tears for when he was alone, in the darkness of his room where nobody would see him.
"Don't know about you guys but I'm starving, why don't we take a break and go to Maccies" Harry suggested, easing the tension he knew nothing about.
"Oh thank god, my legs are about to give out and my stomach is screaming at me" Niall said dramatically, sighing in relief.
"Sure" Louis agreed and he followed Harry to the restaurant, if you could even call it that.
And it's first impression was even worse than Nando's. The place was crowded with people, it was way too loud for Louis' liking, and the bins were practically overflowing with rubbish. "You're seriously going to make me eat here?" Louis said to Harry, who saw no problem with it. After all, it was just Louis being Louis with his high standards.
"I admit, it's not the fanciest looking place in the world, but trust me, the food is amazing" Harry replied, joining the que of people.
"I highly doubt that" Louis said. "Where's the menu anyway?"
"On the screens" Niall pointed out, but Louis could barely read the writing from all the way at the back on the line.
"I can't even see it. Don't they have proper menus?"
"No, it's fast food Louis, not fine dining" Harry said, already knowing what he wanted. "I'll pay by the way, it'll be easier just ordering together and it's pretty cheap"
"I would kind of expect you to, seeming as this was your choice of food out of all the places we could've gone to" Louis huffed, moving forward in the line.
"Watch it or I won't" Harry said back, taking his wallet out of his blazer.
After waiting a few more minutes they finally made it to the front of the line and walked up to the cashier. "Hi, What can I get for you?" The girl asked, and she looked to be around the same age as them.
"I'll have the double quarter pounder with cheese please, could you make that as a meal and I'll have a Pepsi with it" Harry requested politely, making room for Niall to order.
"Yeah, and for you?" She gestured to Niall.
"I'll have the 9 piece chicken nugget meal with a sprite please" he asked, and the girl nodded as she tapped on her screen before looking up at Louis.
"Uh, shit, I don't know what to get" Louis said, looking up at the screens that kept changing, annoying him immensely.
"Just get a burger or something" Harry replied.
"I would if I could bloody see the options"
Harry rolled his eyes and decided to order for him. "He'll have a Big Mac meal with a Pepsi as well please"
Louis opened his mouth and looked between Harry and Niall. "I don't even drink fizzy drinks!"
"You do now" Harry grinned, and paid for the meal.
They waited for their order to be called and got a few different sauces before taking the tray upstairs to find a seat. It took a while as it was so crowded and Louis complained the entire time, giving Harry a headache. "I'm starting to think it was a mistake bringing you here" he said to Louis as they sat down in a booth.
"It was a mistake. I never wanted to come here in the first place" Louis said, taking his meal that Harry handed to him with a look of disgust.
"You seemed up for it when Niall mentioned it" Harry replied, unwrapping his burger whilst Niall was already stuffing his mouth with chicken nuggets.
"Yes, because I was a fool to think that a place as popular as this would have standards" Louis grumbled, unwrapping his own burger to reveal it had been squashed. "How the fuck did that happen" he pointed to the oddly shaped burger.
"They don't do well with presentation" Niall chuckled, grabbing the Barbecue sauce from the tray.
Louis reluctantly picked it up and eyed it carefully. He didn't even think he could take a bite until he saw the pointed look he was receiving from harry and felt the pang of pain in his stomach.
"It looks disgusting" Louis said, peeling up the first layer to look inside, gagging at the sight of a gherkin.
Harry laughed at his reaction. "Take those out, almost everyone does. McDonald gherkins are one of the few things I won't eat"
Louis did as Harry said and pulled the gherkins off his burger by the tips of his fingers, not even wanting to touch the damn things. "If nobody likes them why do they bother?"
"Because some weird people do like them, like Niall, but it's expected from him. He'll eat just about anything" he said between a bite of his food. "Eat the fucking burger Louis"
Louis looked at it once more before taking a bite, struggling to fit the entire thing in his mouth as there were too many layers. Once he had managed he chewed it slowly at first, Harry watching to gain his reaction, and he couldn't deny it was pretty good.
"See, you like it" Harry teased, focusing on his own food once again.
"It's alright, not as bad as I thought. But they seriously need to work on presentation. It looks like it got ran over by a car" Louis admitted, setting the burger down to dip some fries into his sauce.
"You should have more faith in me" Harry replied with a smile.
"I don't think I'll ever have faith in you Styles"
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Author notes:
Lmao I completely forgot about time zones in my last note at the end of the chapter, sorry about that. But anyway I hope you like the update, this is probably the longest one I've written so far!
Love you all xxx