When We Collide - Harry/Louis - Chapter 5
Title: When We Collide
Pairings: Harry/Louis
Part: Chapter 5 of ?
Genre: AU, Romance
Rating: R
Summary: Harry and Louis live parallel lives where nothing much happens, but when the lines begin to intersect, they find themselves in situations bigger than either of them have ever bargained for.
♔ PROLOGUE || CHAPTER ONE || CHAPTER TWO || CHAPTER THREE || CHAPTER FOUR
Chapter five
Harry stirs the contents of his cereal bowl as he bites on the end of his pen, fingers tapping rhythmically on the kitchen table and eyes going over the lyrics written down on his notebook. There’s papers strewn all over the table, some crumpled, some ripped in half, pushed aside to the left. The ones on the right are lined up, most with red marks crossing off, underlining, or replacing words.
He stops stirring, slides off the pen from his lips, and writes down a few lines in the notebook, words spilling out from his brain as easily as the flow of ink on paper. He’s been writing for a few hours since he woke up at four in the morning. He was still tired but he couldn’t go back to sleep, and after going for a quick run around the neighborhood to calm his mind, he decided to work on his unfinished songs instead. However, working on unfinished songs eventually took a backseat, because before he knew it, he was writing completely new songs-different from the songs he usually wrote-faster than he’s ever written before. The words kept on coming one right after another, as if he had the entire song mapped out somewhere in the back of his head and was simply putting them on a piece of paper word for word, and he was quite surprised when he managed to fill half the notebook in the course of an hour. Where the inspiration had come from still baffles him, but looking at all the songs on the table, enough to fill an entire album if he wished, he reckons it had something to do with everything that happened yesterday.
Something to do with Louis.
He pushes the chair back and walks over to get a drink from the refrigerator. As he’s grabbing the carton of orange juice, he hears Liam’s door open, and in another moment, he sees Liam walking slowly into the living room in his pajama bottoms, rubbing his eyes with a big yawn. Harry goes back in his seat and snatches all the papers, filing them neatly in a pile next to the notebook and gathering up the throwaways and pushing them off to one corner. Liam strides over and brings up a hand to shield his eyes from the light.
“Mate, it’s six in the morning. What are you doing up this early?”
“Couldn’t sleep last night.”
Liam smiles and takes a seat opposite Harry, elbows propped on the table, cheeks in his palms. “Still excited from yesterday, huh?”
Harry smiles back with a nod. “Yeah, it was all pretty crazy.”
Liam yawns and scratches his head. “How’s the nose?”
Harry gives the bridge of his nose a light squeeze. “It doesn’t hurt as much and the swelling’s gone down. I’m a fast healer so I wasn’t really worried.”
“I can see that,” Liam says, leaning over to get a closer look. “Still looks a bit raw but it’ll probably clear up in a day or two. When did you say your performance was again?”
“I didn’t, but it’s tomorrow,” Harry replies, taking a spoonful of the soggy cereal and grabbing the pen. “It’s at this café called One Way if you want to come.”
Liam’s eyes perk up at the name. “One Way? Man, I haven’t been there since I left for uni. I’d forgotten all about it. It’s still there?”
“Yeah, and it’s really nice,” Harry says with a nod. Liam smiles and sits back in his chair, hands linked on his stomach.
“I used to work there,” Liam says and Harry leans in, interested. “I haven’t had much time to visit ever since I dropped out and started working. I remember meaning to, but I never had time between my jobs and it all sort of just fell out of my mind one day. You wouldn’t happen to know if a bloke by the name of Niall Horan still works there, would you?”
Niall’s face immediately pops in Harry’s mind and he nods excitedly. “Yeah, he was the one who got threatened!”
“Shit, man, really?” Liam exclaims, leaning over. “He was my best mate. We were-” He cuts himself off and he sits back again, his expression hard to pinpoint. He tears his eyes from Harry’s and grabs a ball of paper. “We were, erm, we were really close, me and Niall. Knew each other since we were twelve. Can’t find a better friend than him if you tried. He got me out of some tight spots and he never complained. I wish we’d kept in touch.”
Harry nods, remembering how Niall had stood up to Zayn to protect Louis despite knowing what he was capable of. His first impression of Niall was an impossibly nice person who can’t seem to stop smiling, and from that, it was no question why Liam spoke highly of him.
“Anyway,” Liam says suddenly, bringing Harry back to him. “That means Lou’s still working there.”
Harry nods and this time, it’s not just Louis’s face that pops in his mind-the feeling of his waist, the touch of his hand, the way he says his name-and he closes his eyes and tries to push them out.
“Yeah, he’s the one taking me around,” Harry says, opening his eyes and trying to focus on Liam, who’s raising an eyebrow. “He’s nice, too. They both are.”
Liam nods, places the ball back on the table, and stands up, making his way to the fridge. “I was never really close with Louis, to tell you the truth.” He rummages inside and pulls out a bottle of water. “The only thing we had in common was Niall, really. It’s not that we didn’t get along-he’s a great lad-but we never really saw each other outside of Niall’s company. And the times that we did, he was always with his boyfriend.”
Harry’s mind flashes to Zayn with his hands in his pockets talking calmly talking to Niall before erupting into a rage. It seems that they’d been together for a while, and he wonders how long the abuse lasted before Louis finally took it upon himself to leave. It’s another thing that nags him about the whole situation-why did Louis stay in the first place?
“Zayn,” Harry says under his breath but Liam hears it, and he nods at Harry as he walks back to his seat.
“How did you know?” Liam asks, stretching his arms in the air and yawning. Harry bites his tongue and Liam continues. “We went to school together, me and Zayn. Shy little kid when we first met, and probably would have stayed that way, too, if he didn’t turn out to be so damn handsome. Fun guy to be around, always chipper. Are they still together, him and Lou?”
Harry’s brain is going a hundred miles an hour and he replays the question in his head. He’s not sure what to think anymore-at first, Zayn was cool, calm, very soft-spoken, then the next second, he’s grabbing people by the collar and exchanging blows with complete strangers, and now, Liam’s saying he’s fun to be with. Just how much “fun” was Louis having with him when he came home with bruises on his face? He takes a moment to consider recounting everything that happened to Liam but he decides against it, opting instead on shaking his head and saying, “They broke up.”
Liam grimaces and takes another sip. “Bummer. They always looked so happy together. I thought they’d get married one day.”
Harry feigns a smile and turns the page on his notebook. He’s not sure if it’s the right thing to do to tell Liam that Zayn’s been abusing Louis, but then again, it’s not his place to stir something up between friends. He doesn’t know them well enough to meddle-he doesn’t even know Louis’s last name. He sighs and taps the tip of the pen on the blank page, poking black marks above the first line.
“Well, no sense in going back to sleep now,” Liam says, jumping up from his seat and strolling over to the burners behind them. He picks up a pan from the cupboard and starts to cook some eggs. Harry listens to the sizzling as he scrawls the words “why didn’t you leave?” above the ink dots. “What do you want for breakfast? We have blueberry pancakes somewhere and there’s some bacon in here.”
Harry turns to him with a smile. “I’ll just have what you’re having.”
“Perfect. Coming right up,” Liam says, and Harry reaches for his red marker and crosses out the words, and he writes “I’m glad you left” underneath.
::
A pillow to the head jolts Louis awake, and when he cracks his eyes open, he sees Niall hovering over him with a fist rubbing his eye and his mobile in his free hand stretched towards him a few inches from his face. His eyes search for the clock and he sighs when it reads 8:04.
“Niall, it’s too early to be playing around. Go back to sleep, for God’s sake.” He flips over to his other side, his back to Niall, and throws a pillow on his head. He groans when he feels Niall prodding his back with a finger and he turns to look at him over his shoulder, brows furrowed and eyes tiny slits. “Come on, Horan, let me get back to sleep or I’ll throw Jess out the window.”
“It’s Harry,” Niall says flatly, and Louis scrambles at once and snatches the phone from his hand, his heart speeding up.
“Hello?” Louis says as he watches Niall totter back to his bed and collapse face-down with a grunt.
“Hey, Louis. Good morning. Did I wake you up?”
“No, no, I was already awake,” Louis says, trying to suppress a yawn. “What’s up?”
“Couldn’t sleep last night. My nose kept waking me up.”
“Sorry about that,” Louis says, sitting up and scratching his head. “I couldn’t sleep, either. Well, up until a few hours ago at least. Are you feeling better?”
“I should be asking you the same thing, but yeah, I’m healing just fine. Hopefully, I’m close to being back to normal tomorrow.”
“Me too,” Louis says with a smile, and when he sees Niall tossing and turning, he continues in a hushed tone, “Listen, I’ll pick you up in an hour, okay? I have to let Niall get back to sleep or he’ll throw a fit.”
“Alright. I’ll see you then. Bye.”
“Bye.” He ends the call and sits for a few seconds, gathering his thoughts and trying to slow his heartbeat. Satisfied, he stands up and places the mobile on the dresser.
“You gave him my number without telling me,” Niall says after turning his head to look at Louis, and Louis smiles and lies down on the spot next to him, eyes fixed on the ceiling.
“Sorry about that, I forgot to tell you. But at least you’re awake now, yeah?”
“You owe me,” Niall says with a groan, and Louis drops his eyes to him and gives him a poke on the cheek. Niall laughs and turns his head the other way.
“I’ll make you some breakfast then.”
He swings his legs over the edge and jumps down, and as he’s reaching the doorknob, he hears Niall call after him, “More bacon.”
He smiles. “More bacon.”
::
Harry fixes his hair in the mirror and tugs at his collar, wondering if he’s overdressed for a day out-a red checkered polo shirt under a beige sweater vest, white khaki trousers, and grey converses. He’s just about to take the vest off when his mobile rings, and he smiles when Louis tells him he’s right outside. Looking at himself one more time in the mirror, he straightens the vest, grabs his keys and Louis’s helmet, and sprints down the endless flight of stairs. He’s huffing when he reaches the door to the building and he composes himself and wipes the sweat from his forehead before walking out the doors and seeing Louis on his moped with a smile.
“Hey,” he says with a wave of his hand.
“Hi,” Louis replies, eyes immediately landing on his nose. “Well, your nose looks better. Still makes you look badass.”
Harry laughs and runs a finger down the length of his nose, ignoring the tiny needles pricking his skin.
“You think?”
“Definitely,” Louis says, grinning. Harry can feel his face getting red. “You ready?”
Harry nods and walks over to the vehicle, and once he’s firmly seated in his spot and his helmet’s secured, he reaches for Louis’s waist without hesitation, and a shiver runs down his spine. When Louis chuckles, he wonders if he felt it too.
Harry’s more comfortable riding this time around, and he’s not putting as much pressure on Louis’s waist like he did before, which Louis probably appreciates. They’re going at a leisurely pace, Louis keeping mind not to go too fast, and soon, Harry’s relaxing and enjoying the wind whipping around his face as they headed for One Way.
Just past the art store, Louis stops on the curb and looks ahead, and Harry takes his hands off his waist and inches his head sideways to see what he’s looking at.
“Over there,” Louis starts, pointing a few ways down the café at a store with a large guitar sitting above the entrance, “is the record store. It’s pretty massive so you’ll find nearly everything you’re looking for.” He points to the establishment directly across it and adds, “And that’s Bistro Eleanor. It’s a relatively new restaurant and I’ve only gone there once, but the food was good and the service was nice. Definitely a place to watch out for. Let’s see. Oh, and past those two, there’s a bakery on the left and a book store across, and all the way down is the shopping mall. There’s not much between One Way and everywhere else, but they offer good distractions.”
Harry nods and tries to remember where all of them are. Record store-check. Bistro Eleanor-check. Bakery-check. Bookstore-check. Shopping mall-check. Louis looks at him over his shoulder and asks him where he wants to go first.
“The nearest one, I guess,” Harry says with a shrug. “The record store.”
Louis nods but he doesn’t start up the moped, only looking forward, and Harry knits his brows together, confused.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, and Louis shakes his head with a shrug.
“I just thought I’d let you know that Zayn works there,” Louis replies, and when he hears Harry start to say that he’s changed his mind and they don’t have to go there, he shakes his head and smiles. “Don’t worry, he’s off for the day, and I don’t want you to be discouraged from going there just because of him. Maybe you’ll see your CD there someday, you never know, and it’s the only record store in miles.”
Harry laughs and there’s excitement bubbling in his chest. The thought of seeing his own CD amidst all of his idols gives him a rush and soon, he’s seeing his name up in lights, at the top of the charts, played in all the big radio stations, performing in front of thousands in sold-out arenas. The excitement falls as quickly as it comes and he sighs and shakes his head-no, not yet. Not even close. As much as he’d like to be lifted off his feet and thrown into the business with a wave of a hand, he knows it’s going to take time and effort and luck, and thinking about everything that’s happened in just the past twenty-four hours, he’s beginning to think he might not be the luckiest person in the world.
But then he looks at Louis and thinks of Niall and Liam and his parents and maybe there’s some luck buried in there, and all he has to do is break the surface and let it blossom.
“I don’t think we’ll be seeing my CDs there anytime soon,” Harry says with a chuckle. “Maybe in five years if I’m lucky.”
Louis smiles and turns back to the road. “I wouldn’t be so sure. It’s never a sure thing, and sometimes we go months without seeing some, but if you’re lucky, you’ll see some agents there. They’re not hard to miss-just look for rich-looking old chaps with pinstripe suits. I wouldn’t necessarily start hoping, but just keep an eye out for them.”
Harry nods and he’s not sure what he’s feeling-excited, anxious, scared. He tries to shake it off and instinctively reaches for Louis’s waist. Louis is probably used to Harry’s grip by now and this time, he doesn’t jump, and with a shake, they start off a few ways down the road, stopping in front of the record store.
::
The look on Harry’s eyes when he first saw the inside of the record store was priceless-his bright green eyes were glittering and his mouth was slightly open, and Louis gives him a nudge on the side to bring him back to reality. The record store is pretty impressive: two floors of CDs, headphones, even various instruments like guitars and drum sets. There’s two sets of escalators on either side, and there’s posters all over the walls. Louis turns to look at Harry to say something but he’s disappeared, and Louis finds him shuffling through CDs behind him like a boy given unlimited access to a candy store.
“So cool,” Harry says, flipping through the albums at breakneck speed and Louis watches him with a smile. “They have all of the albums, don’t they? I’ve literally searched everywhere for a copy of Take That and Party but I couldn’t find it anywhere where I lived. This is great!”
Louis laughs and Harry lifts the album and looks at it closely, thoroughly fascinated.
“You know, I worked here for a while,” Louis says, and Harry tears his gaze away from the album and looks at him. “Just to earn enough to get my moped and save up for my own place.”
Harry wonders if that’s where they met and was about to tell him he’s going to try to apply for a job, but the thought of working with Zayn makes him think twice, and instead, he says to Louis, “Hey, would you mind checking out the bakery with me? I think I want to apply for a job.”
Louis raises an eyebrow. “Why the bakery?”
“Just ‘cause,” he replies with a shrug. “My mum used to bake for us all the time and I know it’s only been two days but I miss it.”
Louis doesn’t take a moment to consider and says, “Of course not. Come on.”
He motions with his head to the exit and Harry leaves with the album in a small plastic bag and Louis with a new set of headphones.
::
Next to a building up for lease, the bakery is modestly-sized, with a light-blue façade and the words Wonderland Bakery elegantly painted on the glass windows in white. They pass through the single door and a bell tinkles from a distance, and at once, Harry walks into the smell of a thousand pastries. It’s more spacious inside than it looks from the outside, and there are tables scattered around the blue checkered floor, tiered pastry stands atop each one. There’s cream puffs the shape of swans macarons, chocolate truffles, and little cakes that look like presents with tiny designs on top. Harry can feel his mouth watering. It’s empty except for an elderly lady giving money to the cashier for the small bag of treats she’s holding, and after thanking her and walking past them, Harry sees the cashier putting the receipt in a small basket next to the cash register.
The very pretty young woman with dirty blonde hair met eyes with Harry, and she gives him a smile. He smiles back and walks up to her, and he hears Louis following behind him.
“Welcome to Wonderland Bakery, how may I help you today?” she says in a sugary voice, and Harry looks at her name tag: CAROLINE. He smiles and looks at the pastries some more, debating whether to ask immediately or buy something first. The display case in front of him is filled with cakes, tarts, and cookies, and he decides on buying two sugar cookies and two blueberry muffins.
“Hey, erm, is this bakery hiring?” Harry asks as Caroline places the pastries in a paper bag.
“Oh, yes we are, actually,” she replies, putting the bag on the counter and punching Harry’s order in the register. “One of our decorators just quit last week and we’ve been trying to fill her spot. As of right now, I’m juggling between decorating and cashier, and we can definitely use another hand. Do you know someone who’s interested?”
Harry chuckles and scratches his head as he gives her the money. “Me, actually. I’m, er, I’ve just moved here and I’m trying to look for a job. Anything’s fine, really, I’ll take any job I can get-even dishwashing.”
Caroline laughs and hands him the bag, blue eyes never leaving his. “There’s not really a dishwashing position here. It’s just a clean-as-you-go type of thing. But we do need a cashier and you can get trained for it so why not ask the manager. She’s just through that door.” She points to the door next to the display case and Harry grins at her. She leans in with her elbows on the case and adds softly, “She can be a bit scary at first but if you’re polite, she’ll warm right up.
“Thank you,” he says, and he can see her cheeks tinting with pink. She turns away as he takes the bag off the counter, and he goes back to Louis, who’s busying himself looking at the cone-shaped tower of small pastry balls, little sugar flowers poking out from the holes in between. Harry places a hand on his shoulder and he turns around, meeting his eyes.
“Can you hold this for a second?” Harry asks, offering the bag. “I’m just going to talk to the manager about getting a job here. You can eat some now if you want. They’re for us to share, anyway.”
Louis takes the bag with a nod and Harry gives him an excited smile, whispering “wish me luck” and crossing his fingers before spinning around and making his way to the door. He knocks on the door three times and a voice sounds from the other side.
“Come in, whoever you are.”
The last thing he sees is Caroline grinning and giving him a thumb’s up before he twists the doorknob and slips inside. An Asian woman, probably in her early thirties, with her black hair tied up in a bun and small, thin glasses resting on the bridge of her nose is sitting behind a desk, quickly tapping the keys on her calculator and writing down numbers on the paper in her clipboard. Her thin, pale face is focused on the papers on the desk, filed neatly in rows, and Harry feels uncomfortable standing there without being given the slightest of attention. He watches as she crosses out numbers and punches in more numbers in her calculator, and he nearly jumps out of his skin when she speaks.
“You can sit down,” she says, her voice sharp and ice-cold, without looking up. Harry clears his throat and sits on the chair in front of her, his heart beginning to pick up speed. She stops typing in her calculator and drops her pen, and the silence that ensues is so palpable, Harry can run a knife through it. She meets his eyes for the first time and she raises an eyebrow.
“Well?” she asks quickly, and Harry shifts in his seat and sits straight up, eyes glued to her.
“I, erm, I-I’m just wondering if I-if you have a, er, a job open for a drop-drop in applicant,” he stammers, face heating up for tripping over his words like an idiot. She keeps his eyes to him, face stoic, unmoving, and he takes a deep breath, debating whether to drop the whole thing and run out as fast as he can.
She waits for a moment to reply, and just as Harry’s about to jump from his seat and tell her to forget it, her face cracks a small smile and she starts to laugh. Harry’s scared and confused and he wants to ask her why she’s laughing but there’s a lump in his throat. The laugh, which only lasts for a few seconds, felt like forever, and she takes her glasses off and sets them slowly on the desk.
“You’ll need to work on your speech if you’re planning on applying for jobs,” she says, her smile getting wider, the coldness in her voice gone, replaced by a sweetness rivaling that of Caroline’s. He sighs in relief and manages a crooked smile.
“I’m sorry, I was just really nervous,” he admits, and she waves a hand dismissively.
“Even so, you shouldn’t let your future employer see it. Fake it if you have to. It makes for a bad first impression.”
“Was mine bad?” Harry asks sheepishly, and she laughs again, picking up her glasses and putting them back on.
“Just a little bit, but I’m not going to hold it against you.”
Harry grins and his heartbeat starts to mellow down.
“I’m Jennifer Chang. Jenny for short.” She extends a hand and Harry takes it. He’s quite surprised at her grip, strong and firm despite how delicate her fingers look. She’s the first to pull back and he drops his hand to the space in the chair next to him. “Now, tell me about yourself.”
Harry clears his throat. “I’m Harry Styles and I’m trying to be a musician.”
::
Louis watches Caroline speaking with a woman and her child as he takes small bites of his cookie, and he’s taken it upon himself to study her while he waits for Harry to get back. She’s tall with a bustline probably bolstered by a push-up bra, a wasp-like waist, and a constant smile. Robotic. She hands the woman the bag and gives the little boy a cake pop, who shyly turns away when he reaches for it. She laughs and tells them to have a nice day, and when he hears the tinkling of the bell, they lock eyes for a split second and she gives him a smile. Louis returns it and takes a large bite of the cookie. She tears her eyes away and looks at the door where Harry disappeared, and Louis rolls his eyes, turns around, and goes back to inspecting the food, wondering what’s taking Harry so long.
Then, as though he had heard his thoughts, Harry emerges from the door with a smile on his face. Louis comes to him at once and asks him how it went.
“She says she’s going to call me tomorrow if I get the job,” Harry replies, and Louis gives him a light punch on the shoulder.
“Nice!” Louis exclaims, handing him back the bag. Harry takes it and turns around to look at Caroline, who’s busying herself with new customers. Louis follows his eyes and sees Caroline lift her head for a second to give Harry a smile, and again, she gives him a thumb’s up. Harry reciprocates the action and tells Louis he wants to go somewhere to eat. Louis nods, glad to find an excuse to leave the bakery, and he looks at Caroline one last time before they reach the doors.
She’s staring at Harry with a small smile, and he feels his face burning and his heart picking up speed when he sees Harry grinning, staring right back.
← chapter four ♕ chapter five ♕ chapter six →
Pairings: Harry/Louis
Part: Chapter 5 of ?
Genre: AU, Romance
Rating: R
Summary: Harry and Louis live parallel lives where nothing much happens, but when the lines begin to intersect, they find themselves in situations bigger than either of them have ever bargained for.
♔ PROLOGUE || CHAPTER ONE || CHAPTER TWO || CHAPTER THREE || CHAPTER FOUR
Chapter five
Harry stirs the contents of his cereal bowl as he bites on the end of his pen, fingers tapping rhythmically on the kitchen table and eyes going over the lyrics written down on his notebook. There’s papers strewn all over the table, some crumpled, some ripped in half, pushed aside to the left. The ones on the right are lined up, most with red marks crossing off, underlining, or replacing words.
He stops stirring, slides off the pen from his lips, and writes down a few lines in the notebook, words spilling out from his brain as easily as the flow of ink on paper. He’s been writing for a few hours since he woke up at four in the morning. He was still tired but he couldn’t go back to sleep, and after going for a quick run around the neighborhood to calm his mind, he decided to work on his unfinished songs instead. However, working on unfinished songs eventually took a backseat, because before he knew it, he was writing completely new songs-different from the songs he usually wrote-faster than he’s ever written before. The words kept on coming one right after another, as if he had the entire song mapped out somewhere in the back of his head and was simply putting them on a piece of paper word for word, and he was quite surprised when he managed to fill half the notebook in the course of an hour. Where the inspiration had come from still baffles him, but looking at all the songs on the table, enough to fill an entire album if he wished, he reckons it had something to do with everything that happened yesterday.
Something to do with Louis.
He pushes the chair back and walks over to get a drink from the refrigerator. As he’s grabbing the carton of orange juice, he hears Liam’s door open, and in another moment, he sees Liam walking slowly into the living room in his pajama bottoms, rubbing his eyes with a big yawn. Harry goes back in his seat and snatches all the papers, filing them neatly in a pile next to the notebook and gathering up the throwaways and pushing them off to one corner. Liam strides over and brings up a hand to shield his eyes from the light.
“Mate, it’s six in the morning. What are you doing up this early?”
“Couldn’t sleep last night.”
Liam smiles and takes a seat opposite Harry, elbows propped on the table, cheeks in his palms. “Still excited from yesterday, huh?”
Harry smiles back with a nod. “Yeah, it was all pretty crazy.”
Liam yawns and scratches his head. “How’s the nose?”
Harry gives the bridge of his nose a light squeeze. “It doesn’t hurt as much and the swelling’s gone down. I’m a fast healer so I wasn’t really worried.”
“I can see that,” Liam says, leaning over to get a closer look. “Still looks a bit raw but it’ll probably clear up in a day or two. When did you say your performance was again?”
“I didn’t, but it’s tomorrow,” Harry replies, taking a spoonful of the soggy cereal and grabbing the pen. “It’s at this café called One Way if you want to come.”
Liam’s eyes perk up at the name. “One Way? Man, I haven’t been there since I left for uni. I’d forgotten all about it. It’s still there?”
“Yeah, and it’s really nice,” Harry says with a nod. Liam smiles and sits back in his chair, hands linked on his stomach.
“I used to work there,” Liam says and Harry leans in, interested. “I haven’t had much time to visit ever since I dropped out and started working. I remember meaning to, but I never had time between my jobs and it all sort of just fell out of my mind one day. You wouldn’t happen to know if a bloke by the name of Niall Horan still works there, would you?”
Niall’s face immediately pops in Harry’s mind and he nods excitedly. “Yeah, he was the one who got threatened!”
“Shit, man, really?” Liam exclaims, leaning over. “He was my best mate. We were-” He cuts himself off and he sits back again, his expression hard to pinpoint. He tears his eyes from Harry’s and grabs a ball of paper. “We were, erm, we were really close, me and Niall. Knew each other since we were twelve. Can’t find a better friend than him if you tried. He got me out of some tight spots and he never complained. I wish we’d kept in touch.”
Harry nods, remembering how Niall had stood up to Zayn to protect Louis despite knowing what he was capable of. His first impression of Niall was an impossibly nice person who can’t seem to stop smiling, and from that, it was no question why Liam spoke highly of him.
“Anyway,” Liam says suddenly, bringing Harry back to him. “That means Lou’s still working there.”
Harry nods and this time, it’s not just Louis’s face that pops in his mind-the feeling of his waist, the touch of his hand, the way he says his name-and he closes his eyes and tries to push them out.
“Yeah, he’s the one taking me around,” Harry says, opening his eyes and trying to focus on Liam, who’s raising an eyebrow. “He’s nice, too. They both are.”
Liam nods, places the ball back on the table, and stands up, making his way to the fridge. “I was never really close with Louis, to tell you the truth.” He rummages inside and pulls out a bottle of water. “The only thing we had in common was Niall, really. It’s not that we didn’t get along-he’s a great lad-but we never really saw each other outside of Niall’s company. And the times that we did, he was always with his boyfriend.”
Harry’s mind flashes to Zayn with his hands in his pockets talking calmly talking to Niall before erupting into a rage. It seems that they’d been together for a while, and he wonders how long the abuse lasted before Louis finally took it upon himself to leave. It’s another thing that nags him about the whole situation-why did Louis stay in the first place?
“Zayn,” Harry says under his breath but Liam hears it, and he nods at Harry as he walks back to his seat.
“How did you know?” Liam asks, stretching his arms in the air and yawning. Harry bites his tongue and Liam continues. “We went to school together, me and Zayn. Shy little kid when we first met, and probably would have stayed that way, too, if he didn’t turn out to be so damn handsome. Fun guy to be around, always chipper. Are they still together, him and Lou?”
Harry’s brain is going a hundred miles an hour and he replays the question in his head. He’s not sure what to think anymore-at first, Zayn was cool, calm, very soft-spoken, then the next second, he’s grabbing people by the collar and exchanging blows with complete strangers, and now, Liam’s saying he’s fun to be with. Just how much “fun” was Louis having with him when he came home with bruises on his face? He takes a moment to consider recounting everything that happened to Liam but he decides against it, opting instead on shaking his head and saying, “They broke up.”
Liam grimaces and takes another sip. “Bummer. They always looked so happy together. I thought they’d get married one day.”
Harry feigns a smile and turns the page on his notebook. He’s not sure if it’s the right thing to do to tell Liam that Zayn’s been abusing Louis, but then again, it’s not his place to stir something up between friends. He doesn’t know them well enough to meddle-he doesn’t even know Louis’s last name. He sighs and taps the tip of the pen on the blank page, poking black marks above the first line.
“Well, no sense in going back to sleep now,” Liam says, jumping up from his seat and strolling over to the burners behind them. He picks up a pan from the cupboard and starts to cook some eggs. Harry listens to the sizzling as he scrawls the words “why didn’t you leave?” above the ink dots. “What do you want for breakfast? We have blueberry pancakes somewhere and there’s some bacon in here.”
Harry turns to him with a smile. “I’ll just have what you’re having.”
“Perfect. Coming right up,” Liam says, and Harry reaches for his red marker and crosses out the words, and he writes “I’m glad you left” underneath.
::
A pillow to the head jolts Louis awake, and when he cracks his eyes open, he sees Niall hovering over him with a fist rubbing his eye and his mobile in his free hand stretched towards him a few inches from his face. His eyes search for the clock and he sighs when it reads 8:04.
“Niall, it’s too early to be playing around. Go back to sleep, for God’s sake.” He flips over to his other side, his back to Niall, and throws a pillow on his head. He groans when he feels Niall prodding his back with a finger and he turns to look at him over his shoulder, brows furrowed and eyes tiny slits. “Come on, Horan, let me get back to sleep or I’ll throw Jess out the window.”
“It’s Harry,” Niall says flatly, and Louis scrambles at once and snatches the phone from his hand, his heart speeding up.
“Hello?” Louis says as he watches Niall totter back to his bed and collapse face-down with a grunt.
“Hey, Louis. Good morning. Did I wake you up?”
“No, no, I was already awake,” Louis says, trying to suppress a yawn. “What’s up?”
“Couldn’t sleep last night. My nose kept waking me up.”
“Sorry about that,” Louis says, sitting up and scratching his head. “I couldn’t sleep, either. Well, up until a few hours ago at least. Are you feeling better?”
“I should be asking you the same thing, but yeah, I’m healing just fine. Hopefully, I’m close to being back to normal tomorrow.”
“Me too,” Louis says with a smile, and when he sees Niall tossing and turning, he continues in a hushed tone, “Listen, I’ll pick you up in an hour, okay? I have to let Niall get back to sleep or he’ll throw a fit.”
“Alright. I’ll see you then. Bye.”
“Bye.” He ends the call and sits for a few seconds, gathering his thoughts and trying to slow his heartbeat. Satisfied, he stands up and places the mobile on the dresser.
“You gave him my number without telling me,” Niall says after turning his head to look at Louis, and Louis smiles and lies down on the spot next to him, eyes fixed on the ceiling.
“Sorry about that, I forgot to tell you. But at least you’re awake now, yeah?”
“You owe me,” Niall says with a groan, and Louis drops his eyes to him and gives him a poke on the cheek. Niall laughs and turns his head the other way.
“I’ll make you some breakfast then.”
He swings his legs over the edge and jumps down, and as he’s reaching the doorknob, he hears Niall call after him, “More bacon.”
He smiles. “More bacon.”
::
Harry fixes his hair in the mirror and tugs at his collar, wondering if he’s overdressed for a day out-a red checkered polo shirt under a beige sweater vest, white khaki trousers, and grey converses. He’s just about to take the vest off when his mobile rings, and he smiles when Louis tells him he’s right outside. Looking at himself one more time in the mirror, he straightens the vest, grabs his keys and Louis’s helmet, and sprints down the endless flight of stairs. He’s huffing when he reaches the door to the building and he composes himself and wipes the sweat from his forehead before walking out the doors and seeing Louis on his moped with a smile.
“Hey,” he says with a wave of his hand.
“Hi,” Louis replies, eyes immediately landing on his nose. “Well, your nose looks better. Still makes you look badass.”
Harry laughs and runs a finger down the length of his nose, ignoring the tiny needles pricking his skin.
“You think?”
“Definitely,” Louis says, grinning. Harry can feel his face getting red. “You ready?”
Harry nods and walks over to the vehicle, and once he’s firmly seated in his spot and his helmet’s secured, he reaches for Louis’s waist without hesitation, and a shiver runs down his spine. When Louis chuckles, he wonders if he felt it too.
Harry’s more comfortable riding this time around, and he’s not putting as much pressure on Louis’s waist like he did before, which Louis probably appreciates. They’re going at a leisurely pace, Louis keeping mind not to go too fast, and soon, Harry’s relaxing and enjoying the wind whipping around his face as they headed for One Way.
Just past the art store, Louis stops on the curb and looks ahead, and Harry takes his hands off his waist and inches his head sideways to see what he’s looking at.
“Over there,” Louis starts, pointing a few ways down the café at a store with a large guitar sitting above the entrance, “is the record store. It’s pretty massive so you’ll find nearly everything you’re looking for.” He points to the establishment directly across it and adds, “And that’s Bistro Eleanor. It’s a relatively new restaurant and I’ve only gone there once, but the food was good and the service was nice. Definitely a place to watch out for. Let’s see. Oh, and past those two, there’s a bakery on the left and a book store across, and all the way down is the shopping mall. There’s not much between One Way and everywhere else, but they offer good distractions.”
Harry nods and tries to remember where all of them are. Record store-check. Bistro Eleanor-check. Bakery-check. Bookstore-check. Shopping mall-check. Louis looks at him over his shoulder and asks him where he wants to go first.
“The nearest one, I guess,” Harry says with a shrug. “The record store.”
Louis nods but he doesn’t start up the moped, only looking forward, and Harry knits his brows together, confused.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, and Louis shakes his head with a shrug.
“I just thought I’d let you know that Zayn works there,” Louis replies, and when he hears Harry start to say that he’s changed his mind and they don’t have to go there, he shakes his head and smiles. “Don’t worry, he’s off for the day, and I don’t want you to be discouraged from going there just because of him. Maybe you’ll see your CD there someday, you never know, and it’s the only record store in miles.”
Harry laughs and there’s excitement bubbling in his chest. The thought of seeing his own CD amidst all of his idols gives him a rush and soon, he’s seeing his name up in lights, at the top of the charts, played in all the big radio stations, performing in front of thousands in sold-out arenas. The excitement falls as quickly as it comes and he sighs and shakes his head-no, not yet. Not even close. As much as he’d like to be lifted off his feet and thrown into the business with a wave of a hand, he knows it’s going to take time and effort and luck, and thinking about everything that’s happened in just the past twenty-four hours, he’s beginning to think he might not be the luckiest person in the world.
But then he looks at Louis and thinks of Niall and Liam and his parents and maybe there’s some luck buried in there, and all he has to do is break the surface and let it blossom.
“I don’t think we’ll be seeing my CDs there anytime soon,” Harry says with a chuckle. “Maybe in five years if I’m lucky.”
Louis smiles and turns back to the road. “I wouldn’t be so sure. It’s never a sure thing, and sometimes we go months without seeing some, but if you’re lucky, you’ll see some agents there. They’re not hard to miss-just look for rich-looking old chaps with pinstripe suits. I wouldn’t necessarily start hoping, but just keep an eye out for them.”
Harry nods and he’s not sure what he’s feeling-excited, anxious, scared. He tries to shake it off and instinctively reaches for Louis’s waist. Louis is probably used to Harry’s grip by now and this time, he doesn’t jump, and with a shake, they start off a few ways down the road, stopping in front of the record store.
::
The look on Harry’s eyes when he first saw the inside of the record store was priceless-his bright green eyes were glittering and his mouth was slightly open, and Louis gives him a nudge on the side to bring him back to reality. The record store is pretty impressive: two floors of CDs, headphones, even various instruments like guitars and drum sets. There’s two sets of escalators on either side, and there’s posters all over the walls. Louis turns to look at Harry to say something but he’s disappeared, and Louis finds him shuffling through CDs behind him like a boy given unlimited access to a candy store.
“So cool,” Harry says, flipping through the albums at breakneck speed and Louis watches him with a smile. “They have all of the albums, don’t they? I’ve literally searched everywhere for a copy of Take That and Party but I couldn’t find it anywhere where I lived. This is great!”
Louis laughs and Harry lifts the album and looks at it closely, thoroughly fascinated.
“You know, I worked here for a while,” Louis says, and Harry tears his gaze away from the album and looks at him. “Just to earn enough to get my moped and save up for my own place.”
Harry wonders if that’s where they met and was about to tell him he’s going to try to apply for a job, but the thought of working with Zayn makes him think twice, and instead, he says to Louis, “Hey, would you mind checking out the bakery with me? I think I want to apply for a job.”
Louis raises an eyebrow. “Why the bakery?”
“Just ‘cause,” he replies with a shrug. “My mum used to bake for us all the time and I know it’s only been two days but I miss it.”
Louis doesn’t take a moment to consider and says, “Of course not. Come on.”
He motions with his head to the exit and Harry leaves with the album in a small plastic bag and Louis with a new set of headphones.
::
Next to a building up for lease, the bakery is modestly-sized, with a light-blue façade and the words Wonderland Bakery elegantly painted on the glass windows in white. They pass through the single door and a bell tinkles from a distance, and at once, Harry walks into the smell of a thousand pastries. It’s more spacious inside than it looks from the outside, and there are tables scattered around the blue checkered floor, tiered pastry stands atop each one. There’s cream puffs the shape of swans macarons, chocolate truffles, and little cakes that look like presents with tiny designs on top. Harry can feel his mouth watering. It’s empty except for an elderly lady giving money to the cashier for the small bag of treats she’s holding, and after thanking her and walking past them, Harry sees the cashier putting the receipt in a small basket next to the cash register.
The very pretty young woman with dirty blonde hair met eyes with Harry, and she gives him a smile. He smiles back and walks up to her, and he hears Louis following behind him.
“Welcome to Wonderland Bakery, how may I help you today?” she says in a sugary voice, and Harry looks at her name tag: CAROLINE. He smiles and looks at the pastries some more, debating whether to ask immediately or buy something first. The display case in front of him is filled with cakes, tarts, and cookies, and he decides on buying two sugar cookies and two blueberry muffins.
“Hey, erm, is this bakery hiring?” Harry asks as Caroline places the pastries in a paper bag.
“Oh, yes we are, actually,” she replies, putting the bag on the counter and punching Harry’s order in the register. “One of our decorators just quit last week and we’ve been trying to fill her spot. As of right now, I’m juggling between decorating and cashier, and we can definitely use another hand. Do you know someone who’s interested?”
Harry chuckles and scratches his head as he gives her the money. “Me, actually. I’m, er, I’ve just moved here and I’m trying to look for a job. Anything’s fine, really, I’ll take any job I can get-even dishwashing.”
Caroline laughs and hands him the bag, blue eyes never leaving his. “There’s not really a dishwashing position here. It’s just a clean-as-you-go type of thing. But we do need a cashier and you can get trained for it so why not ask the manager. She’s just through that door.” She points to the door next to the display case and Harry grins at her. She leans in with her elbows on the case and adds softly, “She can be a bit scary at first but if you’re polite, she’ll warm right up.
“Thank you,” he says, and he can see her cheeks tinting with pink. She turns away as he takes the bag off the counter, and he goes back to Louis, who’s busying himself looking at the cone-shaped tower of small pastry balls, little sugar flowers poking out from the holes in between. Harry places a hand on his shoulder and he turns around, meeting his eyes.
“Can you hold this for a second?” Harry asks, offering the bag. “I’m just going to talk to the manager about getting a job here. You can eat some now if you want. They’re for us to share, anyway.”
Louis takes the bag with a nod and Harry gives him an excited smile, whispering “wish me luck” and crossing his fingers before spinning around and making his way to the door. He knocks on the door three times and a voice sounds from the other side.
“Come in, whoever you are.”
The last thing he sees is Caroline grinning and giving him a thumb’s up before he twists the doorknob and slips inside. An Asian woman, probably in her early thirties, with her black hair tied up in a bun and small, thin glasses resting on the bridge of her nose is sitting behind a desk, quickly tapping the keys on her calculator and writing down numbers on the paper in her clipboard. Her thin, pale face is focused on the papers on the desk, filed neatly in rows, and Harry feels uncomfortable standing there without being given the slightest of attention. He watches as she crosses out numbers and punches in more numbers in her calculator, and he nearly jumps out of his skin when she speaks.
“You can sit down,” she says, her voice sharp and ice-cold, without looking up. Harry clears his throat and sits on the chair in front of her, his heart beginning to pick up speed. She stops typing in her calculator and drops her pen, and the silence that ensues is so palpable, Harry can run a knife through it. She meets his eyes for the first time and she raises an eyebrow.
“Well?” she asks quickly, and Harry shifts in his seat and sits straight up, eyes glued to her.
“I, erm, I-I’m just wondering if I-if you have a, er, a job open for a drop-drop in applicant,” he stammers, face heating up for tripping over his words like an idiot. She keeps his eyes to him, face stoic, unmoving, and he takes a deep breath, debating whether to drop the whole thing and run out as fast as he can.
She waits for a moment to reply, and just as Harry’s about to jump from his seat and tell her to forget it, her face cracks a small smile and she starts to laugh. Harry’s scared and confused and he wants to ask her why she’s laughing but there’s a lump in his throat. The laugh, which only lasts for a few seconds, felt like forever, and she takes her glasses off and sets them slowly on the desk.
“You’ll need to work on your speech if you’re planning on applying for jobs,” she says, her smile getting wider, the coldness in her voice gone, replaced by a sweetness rivaling that of Caroline’s. He sighs in relief and manages a crooked smile.
“I’m sorry, I was just really nervous,” he admits, and she waves a hand dismissively.
“Even so, you shouldn’t let your future employer see it. Fake it if you have to. It makes for a bad first impression.”
“Was mine bad?” Harry asks sheepishly, and she laughs again, picking up her glasses and putting them back on.
“Just a little bit, but I’m not going to hold it against you.”
Harry grins and his heartbeat starts to mellow down.
“I’m Jennifer Chang. Jenny for short.” She extends a hand and Harry takes it. He’s quite surprised at her grip, strong and firm despite how delicate her fingers look. She’s the first to pull back and he drops his hand to the space in the chair next to him. “Now, tell me about yourself.”
Harry clears his throat. “I’m Harry Styles and I’m trying to be a musician.”
::
Louis watches Caroline speaking with a woman and her child as he takes small bites of his cookie, and he’s taken it upon himself to study her while he waits for Harry to get back. She’s tall with a bustline probably bolstered by a push-up bra, a wasp-like waist, and a constant smile. Robotic. She hands the woman the bag and gives the little boy a cake pop, who shyly turns away when he reaches for it. She laughs and tells them to have a nice day, and when he hears the tinkling of the bell, they lock eyes for a split second and she gives him a smile. Louis returns it and takes a large bite of the cookie. She tears her eyes away and looks at the door where Harry disappeared, and Louis rolls his eyes, turns around, and goes back to inspecting the food, wondering what’s taking Harry so long.
Then, as though he had heard his thoughts, Harry emerges from the door with a smile on his face. Louis comes to him at once and asks him how it went.
“She says she’s going to call me tomorrow if I get the job,” Harry replies, and Louis gives him a light punch on the shoulder.
“Nice!” Louis exclaims, handing him back the bag. Harry takes it and turns around to look at Caroline, who’s busying herself with new customers. Louis follows his eyes and sees Caroline lift her head for a second to give Harry a smile, and again, she gives him a thumb’s up. Harry reciprocates the action and tells Louis he wants to go somewhere to eat. Louis nods, glad to find an excuse to leave the bakery, and he looks at Caroline one last time before they reach the doors.
She’s staring at Harry with a small smile, and he feels his face burning and his heart picking up speed when he sees Harry grinning, staring right back.
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