Zayn did it, y'all!! OMFG! 😭😭😍😍

October passed fairly quickly, but unlike September, there was less fighting and a lot more kissing. The two were determined to make up for lost time. They got into a routine of school, work, and sex, with the occasional argument. But everything changed on the last day of the month, on Louis' least favorite holiday.

Louis hated Halloween. He hated it even more when Zayn had made him pick out a costume. He hated everything. He hated how Zayn looked great in his Harley Quinn outfit that matched Liam who was dressed as the Joker. He wanted to punch the mirror when he looked at himself wearing his stupid costume. He had picked it because it was the only one that fit in the entire store. He was a damn pumpkin!

"I'm not going."

"What?!" Harry shouted, still trying to squeeze into his shorts.

"I'm not going." Louis repeated.

"Then why the hell did you make me take the day off?" Harry stopped what he was doing to stare at Louis.

"Because!" Louis stomped his foot and tried to cross his tiny arms over his pumpkin suit. He slowly unwrapped his arms and put them down at his sides when he couldn't even fully wrap them around himself. "I wanted to go to Liam's party tonight and have fun but I look like a giant orange whale!"

"Yeah well you just made me lose a hundred AND five bucks!" Harry shouted.

But when he saw that Louis looked like he was about to cry he stopped and walked over to him, standing behind him in the mirror.

"You look ... fine." Harry said.

Louis bursted into tears. "No I don't! I look so fat and so hideous."

"Louis you look fine. If you didn't, I wouldn't be telling you this." Harry just about groaned.

Louis narrowed his eyes and stared at Harry, knowing that the boy was honest. He was sometimes way too honest, so Louis believed him.

"Okay, fine. But you better stay with me the whole time." Louis looked at Harry, watching him nod.

He let Harry go back to putting on his Miley Cyrus at the VMA's costume and looked at himself some more. When he saw him with the whole costume on, orange shorts, black x's over his nipples, curls in twin buns and a large foam finger, Louis' mouth started watering. He quickly looked away before he got caught staring, smiling to himself when he saw that Harry's shorts matched the color of his pumpkin costume.

Harry grabbed his hand and helped him downstairs, rolling his eyes when Dusty followed Louis. Ever since he had given Louis the dead rat and bothered them during sex, Louis did not like to be around him. He let Louis go first then grabbed the cat to take him back to his mom, ignoring his wriggling when he wasn't allowed to go with Louis. He thought Dusty's obsession with Louis was getting a bit out of control.

He joined Louis outside where he found him sitting on the porch swing. He helped him up and they made their way to Harry's brand new car. Robin had finally finished fixing it up for him and now it was all his, an early Christmas and birthday present. Kendall was the first person they saw when they got to the party, but Louis did his best to ignore her and Harry acted like she wasn't there.

A cup was shoved into Louis' hand as soon as they walked in and Harry was quick to take it away and leave it on a table by the door. He grabbed Louis' hand and made him walk until they were in the kitchen, where he grabbed a brand new cup and served Louis some sprite from the unopened bottle Liam had gotten just for him.

After they got their drinks they went outside and sat down on some lounge chairs by the covered pool. Harry made sure that they stayed away from the weed smokers in the corner, not wanting Louis to breathe that mess in. He would glare at anybody who got too close to Louis, or so much as looked their way.

"Bring me more sprite." Louis shoved him the empty cup.

Harry rolled his eyes and grabbed the cup, leaving to go fill it up in the kitchen. As soon as he was gone, Aiden sauntered over to him. Louis wanted to get up and leave and cursed himself when he wasn't able to due to the stupid pumpkin costume and the kid. He tried to look somewhere else, feeling Aiden sitting at the edge of his lounge chair.

"Hi, LouLou." Aiden mumbled.

Louis didn't answer, he wanted the drunk idiot ten thousand miles away from him.

"I'm talking to you." Aiden put a hand on his leg.

"Can you not." Louis looked at him with his bitch face on.

"C'mon, baby." He whispered drunkenly. "I know you want me."

"I know I want you to leave." Louis told him, still trying to get up, but failed miserably.

Where the fuck was Harry!

Aiden grabbed Louis' foot and dragged him down toward him, his bum sliding down the chair and closer to Aiden's lap.

"What are you doing!?" Louis screamed, feeling uncomfortable when the weight of the baby was straining his back.

"You just look so good, Louis." He told him as he played with the green stem on top of his orange hat. "Even when you're dressed as a giant pumpkin-."

Louis flinched when a few drops of who the fuck knows what got all over his face. When he looked at Aiden, the boy was soaking wet and Harry was standing next to him with the cup in his hands, still trying to fully empty out the sprite on him. He then grabbed Aiden and shoved him away from Louis, watching him fall face first on the grass. Harry kicked him on his side once, then made his way to Louis to help him up.

"I wanna go home." Louis started crying. "My back hurts."

Harry nodded and soon they were on their way back home, until Louis saw an IHOP and made Harry stop so he could get chocolate pancakes. Harry wanted to scream when he knew Louis was going to order more than pancakes and it was going to cost him an eye and a leg. He wanted to say something but stopped when he saw how excited Louis looked and the way he had screamed at him about him only caring about the baby. So Harry let it go and bought Louis all the food that he wanted.

When he was finished, they went back to Harry's car and he began driving them home. But during the way Louis was constantly texting on his phone, and it reminded Harry of the time when they were at Babies R Us. And just like in the store, Harry started to get annoyed.

"Who are you texting?" Harry asked.

"Um... just a friend."

"What friend?" Harry pushed.

"A friend." Louis repeated.

Harry gripped the steering wheel tightly with his hands and decided to let it go for now. He would find out who it was later.

When they got home Harry didn't even help Louis out of the car. But he had to when Louis started screaming at him to help him out. As soon as they walked into the house, the cat wrapped himself around Louis' legs, ignoring the way the pregnant boy was trying to kick him off. But of course, he stopped when Anne walked into the room and let Dusty have his way.

"Harry I'm tired." Louis told him. "I'm gonna go upstairs and lay down."

"Kay. I'm gonna stay down here and pass out candy." Harry said grabbing the bowl filled with Hershey bars when the doorbell rang.

Louis walked to Harry's room with Dusty trailing not too far behind him. He giggled excitedly as he closed Harry's door and pressed Andres' contact, waiting anxiously when he heard the dialtone.

"Louis!"

"Hi." Louis almost giggled.

"It's been so long! How have you been?" He asked eagerly.

Louis smiled, loving how Andres asked him how he was first instead  of the baby. Andres cared about him unlike Harry. "I've been okay. This pregnancy has been a bitch though."

"Awe. But isn't it almost over?" He said.

"One and a half months left." Louis sighed, "Then she's all Harry's." Louis said, ignoring the lump forming in his throat.

"Oh..." Andres said.

"What does that mean?" Louis asked, getting defensive out of nowhere.

"Nothing." Andres quickly said.

"It had to be something." Louis snapped.

"I– I just thought that maybe you would have changed your mind, that's all." Andres told him softly.

"I haven't." Louis shrugged.

"So what's gonna happen to her? Is her dad keeping her?" Andres asked.

"I guess he is, he already bought her everything. Even things she doesn't need." Louis complained.

"That's wonderful!" Andres exclaimed.

"Yeah, I guess letting him keep her is better than leaving her in the hospital like I had planned. You know, before Sara ruined everything." Louis rolled his eyes, ignoring that Harry had just walked into the room holding two water bottles.

But once he heard Louis say that, he threw both water bottles at the wall, the force of their impact causing them to burst open and explode right above Louis' head. Louis screamed in terror when the liquid rained down on his head, but Harry gave no shits and glared at him.

"You were going to leave her?!" Harry yelled, his green eyes flashing with rage. "Where- FUCK!" He shouted, and then cut himself off when he answered his own question. "You were going to leave her in Spain, weren't you?"

Louis didn't know what to say. He had never seen Harry this angry before in his life. Not even when Harry had told Jodi and Michael to leave during the secret adoption meeting had he been this angry.

"How could you!" He screamed.

"How could you!" Louis screamed back, remembering that horrible night back in May. "You left her before I did, you fucking hypocrite!"

"I know I did, and I'll never forgive myself. But it's not the same!" Harry insisted. "How were you going to look her in the eyes and then leave her behind? In a place where you don't know what they do to them." Harry asked, his face looking heartbroken before twisting into disgust. "You're no different than Des." He spat bitterly.

It was like a slap to the face, especially when Louis knew the type of man Des was. Or had been. When Harry was younger, Des started drinking. At first he would only come home drunk every so often. But then his drinking increased and he began coming home every night completely intoxicated. Louis would hide in the closet with Harry and Gemma, always telling them stories to drown out Des and Anne's screams. When their arguing would get too bad, Harry would always run out to defend his mother, only to get shoved out of the way before he could reach her.

The last straw was during a rainy night when Des had pushed Harry into the kitchen cabinet next to the stove. His father had pushed him so hard that it had made his son hit his head against the wood, causing his skin to split open and blood to seep out of the open wound. Anne had kicked Des out that night, ignoring Harry's cries to let him stay. Louis from the porch swing had watched the way a sobbing Harry had ran after his father begging him not to go. But Des had only looked into his eyes and turned his back on him, leaving a seven-year-old Harry alone on the sidewalk, his tears mixing with the pouring rain. Louis watched him run after his father's car, stopping as soon as Des was out of sight, never to be seen again until years later. By then, Harry had changed. His heart was eclipsed by bitterness and his only father was Robin.

After recalling the memory, Louis lips trembled, hurt that Harry had compared him to that good-for-nothing man.

"I'm not..." Louis denied as he took a step back, his eyes already filling with tears. "I'm not like him."

"You're exactly like him, Louis!" Harry argued brokenly, angry tears rolling down from his cheeks, reminiscent of that terrible day. "Not only do you not love her, but you wanted to leave her behind. Just like he left me. Y– you wanted to abandon her just like he did, like she didn't mean anything to you. Do you ever wonder what she would feel like? Wondering everyday of her life why her mother left her. What was it like for him to leave her behind?"

When Louis didn't say anything, didn't make any effort to prove him wrong, Harry looked completely shattered. He took a step back then turned around and left the room. He slammed the door closed, shutting Louis out of his life just like Louis had done to him the night he announced he was pregnant.

Louis' heart dropped into his stomach as he heard Harry's footsteps fading away. He was filled with the overwhelming feeling that he had lost something, though what, he wasn't sure.

Louis slowly picked up the phone and held it close to his ear, hearing nothing but silence.

"I– I have to go." Louis' voice trembled.

"Wait! Are you okay?" Andres asked, his accent thick with worry.

"No. I have to go." Louis wanted to cry.

"Okay. I guess I'll talk to you later." Andres said before he ended the call. Louis could tell that's exactly what he had wanted to do all along.

Louis made the hard decision to go and talk to Harry, but he had to pee and these days he couldn't hold anything in. When he was done, he slowly approached Gemma's old room and stopped by the door when he saw it had been left ajar. There was a single lamp lit, making the atmosphere intimate. He peeked inside and his heart broke when he saw Harry sitting on the floor next to a laundry basket, putting hangers on all her newly washed clothes that he had gotten from Barbara and Zayn. There was no more room in the drawer Harry had picked for her clothes, so now he was hanging them on the space he had made when some of Gemma's clothes were still in her closet.

For a moment Louis entertained the idea of joining him, but then thought against it, thinking that Harry probably wanted to be alone. But in that moment something in his heart shifted. The way he saw Harry cuddling a teddy bear against his chest that he had bought her last week. He remembered having been so jealous, but now all he thought about was how cute it was. Harry didn't even know her and he already loved her so much, like a father should.

So why didn't he? Why didn't he feel just like Harry did when he was the one carrying her. When he was the one keeping her safe. When he was the one that felt everything she did. When she was supposed to be his baby girl too, just like she was Harry's. When he was her mother.

Louis placed a hand on his tummy, feeling her wiggling around in there. He wondered if she would have his or Harry's eyes. Would she have his straight hair or Harry's long brown curls? If she was anything like him, he hoped that she didn't have his sassiness or else she was going to give Harry a hard time at least for the next eighteen years.

Louis swallowed hard at the thought that he might not get to watch her grow up, that he would never know the answers to his questions.

Maybe, just maybe he should reconsider his decision. He ended up going back to his bedroom, wondering if Harry was going to come to bed soon. He ended up falling asleep with a hand on his tummy, still waiting for Harry.

*****

After finding out that Louis had planned to leave their baby girl all alone in the hospital back in Spain, as if she meant nothing to him, Harry was done.

He was one hundred percent done with Louis.

He could no longer entertain the idea of being with him when he had wanted to abandon their child like that. It was downright cruel. Harry could understand giving her up for adoption. It was a perfectly okay thing to do, to give your child up and place them in the hands of another who would love them better. But leaving a helpless infant all alone in a hospital never to be seen again, was terrible. Harry didn't even like to think about it, the thought of his little star becoming an orphan in a foreign country made him want to vomit. 

He had thought that Louis having bought the onesie and the blanket in Spain, was a sign that deep down he cared for the baby. But in reality, they were just going away presents. The last and only thing he would give her, similar to the scar Des had given Harry on the back of his head.

It was hard to believe, though, that his Louis, the sweet boy that he had known his whole life, would do such a thing. Harry would have never thought that he would put the boy he loved on the same level as the man he hated.

That night Harry decided that he didn't want to have anything to do with him. He debated telling Louis to pack up his stuff and go home, but decided against it because him staying meant that Harry could keep a close eye on the baby. So he would just stay in the nursery and sleep on Gemma's bed. After she was born, Harry would move back into his room. For the remaining six weeks Louis was welcome to use it.

But once he had signed off his rights, Harry was going to completely erase him from their lives. His daughter did not need to know that her mother left her. That he didn't love her. It hurt to know that he would never be able to fully and truthfully answer her when she asked about her mother. It was going to happen at some point. It was inevitable.

But there was still another part of Harry that wanted his little star to have something of her mother's. He wanted her to have a little keepsake or souvenir that she could always carry around without even knowing its significance. In that moment Harry decided to name her Josephine Louise, after his Grandmother, who he loved dearly and after Louis, who, despite everything, he would always hold in his heart.

Originally Harry had wanted to name her with Louis, but he realized how that was never going to be a possibility when he didn't care about her. Oh well, Harry didn't feel bad for leaving him out. He was happy with the way it sounded, and planned on ordering a baby blanket with her name embroidered on it, hoping that they wouldn't be too expensive.

Once his rage had simmered down and he was completely calm, Harry climbed into Gemma's bed and went to sleep. It was the first night of many that he would he spend away from Louis. 

~*~

November passed by quickly.

After that night, also known as the worst Halloween ever, Harry stopped sleeping in the same room as Louis and would avoid him as much as he could. The only times Harry would even be in the same room as him was when they had to go to appointments and during dinner. That's if Harry made it back in time from work.

Louis continued filling out college applications, but as he did so, it somehow felt wrong. He felt like it was unfair for him to go to university when Harry was going to be stuck at home taking care of a baby. But again, that was the choice that Harry had made.

It was sad how they had gone from talking everyday to not talking at all. At school Harry would only hand him his chocolate cake while never speaking a single word. Louis wanted to say something to him but every time he tried he would chicken out. Some nights he would fall asleep crying, his only company was the baby kicking in his belly, which after eight months he had finally started enjoying. There was also Dusty, who curled up against his tummy every night. But he didn't compare to Harry's arms.

He spent more time with Zayn, sometimes going to his best friend's house and chilling on his bed after school and on the weekends, and other times when Louis was feeling tired, Zayn would drop by Harry's. On Black Friday, while everyone's parents were out shopping and Harry was working at the hardware store, Zayn decided to stop by for a visit. Like always, he walked into the house like he owned the place, the excitement in his amber eyes lighting up the room. Louis was happy to see him until he spotted the camera in his hands.

"Hell no." Louis said shaking his head.

"Oh come on, Louis!" He begged. "Just a few pictures. I need to add some for my portfolio if I want to get into the Art Major at UCLA."

"I'm pretty sure they won't be impressed by seeing my fatass," Louis groaned as he looked down at his belly, which was still getting bigger. He didn't understand how it was even possible when he felt already stretched to the max.

"You look beautiful, babe." Zayn reassured him. He smiled at the compliment, knowing that his words were genuine. Louis just wished that they were coming out of Harry's mouth. "Thanks, Zee."

"Now change into some actual clothes. I'm not photographing you in rags." Zayn said going up to Harry's room. Once Louis changed, Zayn still stared at him in disapproval. "Let me do your hair. It's a mess!" He shook his head. "Looks like you've been rolling around in the sheets all day. Are you and Harry fucking again?"

Louis turned bright red as he sat down, letting Zayn comb out his fringe with his fingers. Then he stared at the ground. "No. He won't even talk to me... or look at me. The only thing he said to me all week was Happy Thanksgiving."

Zayn frowned. Louis had told him about the fight on Halloween after Liam's party, and he thought that Harry had overreacted a bit, knowing that he hadn't been much better when he abandoned Louis in May. Of course neither of them were innocent, but it was definitely strange to see how the tables had turned, making a complete one eighty.

"You guys will figure it out." Zayn told him. Louis doubted it, shrugging hopelessly in response. "Now let's go outside. The lighting is better out there."

They walked into the afternoon sun and were surprised to see Harry had pulled up in the driveway on his motorcycle.

"Harry!" Zayn called out delightly. "Just in time."

"For what?" He asked, taking his helmet off.

"To pose with Louis for a few pictures."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "Um, I think I'll pass..." He trailed off, making his way to the house.

But before he could reach the front door Zayn stopped him again, trying to be as convincing as he could with his explanation. "Please, H. I need to portray "True Love", and what better way to do so than with a pregnancy photoshoot?"

"Maybe with pics of you and Liam?"

Zayn groaned, exasperated. "I already used him to represent "Home." Anyways, the point of the assignment is not to be cliche, but to be creative!"

Both Louis and Harry rolled their eyes.

"Fine." Harry agreed. "What do you want us to do?"

Zayn squealed in happiness. "Okay! I want some pictures of you guys on the porch swing, then we can take a couple in the garden. Sound good?"

They both nodded their heads and then did as Zayn instructed them.

For the rest of the afternoon they posed for Zayn. They sat on the porch swing, Harry's arms around him for the first time in weeks and they were both staring at the bump. Zayn even got Harry to gently kiss his cheek during one. Louis had to do his best not overthink it. Harry was only doing it for the picture. It meant nothing.

Eventually they moved to the back yard and Zayn had them stand in several positions. Despite Zayn saying he didn't want to be cliche, he still had Harry get on his knees and kiss the tummy. He told Louis to run his hands through Harry's hair when he looked too stiff, wanting it to be appear natural and loving.

Louis' favorite though, was when Zayn had him lay down in the grass next to the rose bushes. He told Harry to pick one and lay down beside him, both their hands connected on his belly. Zayn snapped the camera while Harry tucked a flower behind his ear. In that moment Louis lost his breath, his heart swooning, beating wildly with longing. The way Harry was staring into his eyes made him forget about everything but the two of them and the baby kicking under their hands, lost in their own little world.

After Zayn shouted that he got the perfect shot, the spell was broken. Harry was quick to stand up and help Louis to his feet. Next the black haired photographer took a few candids of Louis walking around and looking maternal. He even got a shot of the baby kicking her feet against the skin of his stomach.

When his best friend was finally finished, he thanked them and said goodbye, saying that he would have the photos developed by Christmas. As soon as he left, Harry went back to acting like he didn't exist.

After Louis was finished with his college apps at the beginning of December, he started making the habit of going to the baby's room after school while Harry was at work. He would sit in the rocking chair that Anne had bought Harry and refold the clothes in the laundry basket.

During one night, a week away from his due date, he placed the onesie that he had bought with Andres on his huge belly, imagining how it would look on her once she was born. If she looked like Harry, Louis knew that she would be the prettiest baby in the world. If she was intelligent like him, he knew that she would be the brightest star in the sky. For her sake he prayed that she was a perfect mix of both of them.

Thoughts?