"You've never sabotaged someone, have you?" Zayn asks and Harry lets out a nervous laughter.

"And you have?" Zayn only shrugs. Harry stares at him for a moment before shaking his head.

"This is going to get us in so much trouble." Harry whispers the younger lad only rolls his eyes before tapping away on his phone. Harry sighs nervously before pulling out the new phone he bought so he could call Louis.

He dials Louis' number, leaning against the wall and waiting for him to answer.

"Hello?" Louis greets him and Harry can't help the small smile that spreads across his face.

"Hi, doll." He whispers and he could hear Louis let out a quiet laugh.

"Hi. How are you?" Louis asks. Harry's hands subconsciously reach up to grab the dagger necklace, fiddling with the small pendant.

"Good. How are you, doll?" Harry asks and listens to Louis talk animatedly about how life was going for him in the few days he's been back. He listens to him explain how he's been followed around by paparazzi and the kids in his school were wondering if the rumors were true.

Harry sighs, running a hand through his hair. He knew the type of things the news were saying.

X Factor Contestant Kicked off When Affair with Judge Arises

Louis was going through quite a lot, being the face of the media and Harry wishes he could do something about it. He wishes he could stop all the crude remarks about his boy but can't do anything. He has no physical control in any of his social media or actual life for that matter.

"A girl in my history class told me to kill myself. She said I turned you gay." Louis says, voice timid.

"No, baby. That's not true. You know that." Harry replies and he could hear Louis' shaky intake of breath. The seconds tick by in silence.

"Don't listen to what they say, okay? It's you and I and nothing's going to change that. Alright?" Harry tells him and Louis takes a few moments to answer.

"Alright. I–I'm sorry for breaking down. I'm just—"

"Listen, doll, you have nothing to apologize for. It's okay to cry sometimes. You'll look beautiful either way." Harry says.

"Such a fucking sap." Zayn cuts in from his spot on his bed. Harry honestly forgot he was there.

"My heart is going to burst. Please stop before I go into cardiac arrest." He says, placing his hand on his chest. Harry rolls his eyes and turns his back to Zayn.

"I have to go, doll. I love you." He says.

"I love you too. Goodnight, Harry."

"It's two in the afternoon, darling." The older man says and he could hear Louis' small laugh.

"I know. I don't like saying goodbye. Goodbye means leaving. At least if I say goodnight I know I'll see you in the morning."

****

Louis knows there's only a few months of school left but he thought that when he went to boot camp and through the competition, he wouldn't have to come back for his senior year. But here he is, wearing that shitty uniform and acting as if he never left.

He feels caged in, a small seventeen–almost eighteen–year old boy being ridiculed on a daily basis because of the fact that he had an affair.

Affair.

Louis hated the word. It made him feel dirty and like sloppy seconds. He was not sloppy seconds.

He sighs as he fixes the stupid tie on his stupid school uniform while walking downstairs. Johannah smiles at him from the living room while drinking a fresh cup of tea. He gives her a small smile before grabbing his backpack and leaving the house, trying to catch the bus.

He makes it just in time and takes a seat in the back, leaning his head against the window and fiddling with the rose pendant. He could hear some people on the bus make crude comments about him and Louis catches the word slut, his body curling into himself. He hears some snickers and laughs and more jokes are made.

He feels completely ashamed and embarrassed and wishes he could walk off this bus this moment. But he can't. So he just sits there while the teenagers continue to mock him, saying unspeakable things.

When the bus reaches the school, he gets up and makes a beeline to the front of the bus. He makes it halfway until a leg is put out and he tumbles to the floor. His glasses fall off his nose and he searches for them blindly.

"I–where're my glasses?" He asks, hands feeling around. He finds them and moves to pick them up when a foot presses down on his hand. He winces and looks up, but just sees a fuzzy figure.

"Bet you like being on your knees, fucking whore." The boy says and Louis tries to move away but his foot presses harder until a loud crunching sound is heard and his glasses are broken beyond repair, a small shard of glass lodged into Louis' Palm.

The small boy cries out and the boy only laughs, walking away when the bus driver starts yelling about calling the headmaster. The man helps Louis up and tells him he'll take him to the nurse. The younger lad only sniffles, nodding timidly.

He's led blindly to the nurses office where his hand is bandaged and asked what happened.

"I–this boy tripped me and b–broke my glasses."

"Why would he do that?" The nurse asks as she continues to wrap gauze around his hand.

"A–A lot of people don't like me. Because I–I fell in love with Harry Styles." The nurse stares at him for a moment before shaking her head.

"People nowadays are ridiculous. Don't let them get you down." She says with a small smile. Louis thanks her and when he's done, he pulls out an extra pair of glasses from his backpack and slips them on.

He stands up and leaves the nurses office, contemplating on whether he should tell the headmaster. He starts walking towards the office but stops when he's a few feet away. He stands outside the door, thoughts running through his head wildly. In the end he shakes his head and walks away.

He will not let this childish behavior rule his world. He'll hold his head high and turn his head from all the negative comments about him because in the end, it's his life and not theirs.

------

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