The song made me think about Louis and Harry in this story ... (or even the planned sequel)

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The bar was getting more crowded by the second and more and more people were rolling in. The stage was set and ready for the boys, who were nervously waiting in a room backstage if you could call it that. While Zayn was talking to Evan, Àmber and Aria were cuddling in a corner. Liron was on his phone and Liam was sitting right next to Louis. He was backstage as a form of distraction and because he had helped to set everything up. Was better than leaving him alone with alcohol close by.

"Are you excited? You look nervous" asked Liam him observingly.

"I'm buzzing but scared that I might fuck this up" admitted Louis anxiously.

"You can't fuck this up. You're great and we're all here with you" assured Liam him.

"Exactly" mumbled Louis softly, earning a confused look from his friend. "I mean, I'm glad that you're all here. Having your support means everything to us. I'm just scared I could lose my focus during the performance".

"Ah, because your boyfriend is in the audience. Don't worry. It will be fine. Luke won't stare at you the whole time. He knows it could distract you. He is amazing" said Liam surely to take away Louis' fears.

"He really is amazing" sighed Louis out and realised how downcast he sounded.

"What's the matter, Tommo? Isn't it good to know that you don't have to worry about anything?" looked Liam crookedly at him.

"I mean, yeah ..." trailed Louis off, unsure of what to say. Deep down, he knew he wasn't nervous because of Luke being here. Louis was fucking scared to see Harry tonight after yesterday's incident and this lonely morning.

"Lew, is it okay when I sit down?" came Àmber walking over to them.

"Yeah, sure".

Looking kinda hesitant, Àmber sat down on the other side of Louis and threw him a sad look before speaking again. "I overheard your last bits of conversation, Lew. Is there the possibility that you're nervous because Harry is out there?".

Sometimes Louis hated the fact that she knew him this good and that they were so similar. He could never really hide anything from her or lie to save his life. She would always know directly if he was being honest with her, so all he could do was nod in shame with his head hung low.

"Why didn't you say that, Tommo?" sounded Liam almost hurt and now Louis felt even worse.

"I'm sorry. I just really didn't ... I don't know" muttered Louis ashamed.

"It's okay. I just really wanna know what's going on inside your head. I'm your friend and I'm here to help you and not judge you" smiled Liam understandingly at him.

"I know that, Lima Bean. I'm glad that I have you. Both of you, Am. It's just ... to be honest, I don't know what it is. I should be all giddy because of the gig and Luke being in the crowd but all I can think about is Harry being there as well after yesterday and I can't seem to get him out of my mind" rambled Louis honestly.

"Yesterday? You mean, after we left?" tried Àmber to grasp what Louis was referring to. Cursing himself in his head, Louis could only nod again. "What happened?".

"Um ... nothing. We went to bed because he was tired and just talked about his reason for the break-up" avoided Louis any kind of eye-contact with his friends.

"Why do I have the feeling there is more to the story?" eyed Àmber him suspiciously. "Don't even try to sass me, Mister. I know you way too good. You're keeping something from us. What did he do?".

Louis shifted uncomfortably in his spot and fiddled with his fingers before he breathed out the words shakily. "He kissed me".

"He what?!" exclaimed Àmber shocked, causing the other four heads to snap into her direction. "Nothing to see here. Keep doing what you were doing".

"Harry kissed you?" checked Liam again and Louis could only confirm that. "How did that happen?".

"I'm not quite sure to be honest. We were talking about Josh and then about Luke and Harry offered again that he could leave so I could see Luke after cancelling on him for this DVD night. I rejected that offer again and said I would never ditch him right now for Luke. He needed me and was more important because he is my Haz. And that's true. I could never ditch him for Luke or anyone at that matter. Anyway, after I said that he just looked at me in a way he has never looked at me before and then he just kissed me. Like ... not really ... just with his ... only for a few seconds ... I don't know. He immediately apologised and said it meant nothing and he was just being vulnerable and lonely after the break-up and wasn't thinking because he was tired" told Louis his friends about what happened, suppressing the heavy feeling in his heart when he thought back about Harry's words.

"I mean, that even makes sense. Some people tend to seek comfort in someone else after a break-up. Especially, a sudden break-up. And mostly they choose people they know without really knowing why. Thereis no real reason most of the time. Yeah ... so, don't worry. He won't do that again and put you in a bad situation with Luke" tried Liam to sooth him but it wasn't really working.

"Luke doesn't know" admitted Louis sheepishly.

"Why?" asked Àmber simply.

"Because it's not important. Harry just kissed me because he was lonely and nothing more happened. I didn't even kiss him back, so there is no reason to tell Luke about it and worry him. Especially not after I told him about Harry's and my past. He would only think ...".

"That you're still into Harry and cheating on him?" completed Àmber his sentence.

"Yeah".

"Are you?" hooked Àmber hesitantly.

"What? No! I would never cheat on someone. He kissed me and not the other way around" huffed Louis offended.

"That's not what I meant. I know you would never do that. I wanted to know if you're still into Harry and if the kiss meant something to you" cleared Àmber up calmly.

"Oh" made Louis before thinking about her question, not wanting to answer honestly. "Does it matter if I am? I can't have him anyway. He is not into me. That's all".

"Did Harry say anything else?" piped Liam in now curiously.

"No. Nothing" said Louis bitterly.

"So, you didn't talk this morning and just acted like nothing happened?" checked Liam surprised and Louis couldn't understand why that would be so weird. It meant nothing to Harry anyway. Why should they talk about it?

"He wasn't there when I woke up. No talking" replied Louis tried neutrally but he felt stupid when he thought about it.

"He just left?" blinked Àmber at him in shock.

"Yeah. He is good at this. Doesn't look like there is anything we should talk about. He already forgot about it or wants us to forget about it. That's what I'm gonna do now. Forget about it" decided Louis not really determined.

"If you wanna forget about it why are you nervous to see him in a few minutes?" questioned Àmber mysteriously.

"Um ... I don't want it to be awkward again. We're just recently over this. No need to be tense with each other again" answered Louis tensely.

"If you say so".

"Stop bugging him with this. Let him breathe. He knows what he is doing. Things will be alright" startled Zayn them with his presence.

"Gosh, stop scaring me" slapped Àmber Zayn's arm.

"You know about this?" stared Liam at Zayn in disbelief.

"Of course. I'm his best friend" grinned Zayn proudly just to tease Liam.

"When did you even have the time for that? You didn't ...".

"He could have called me this morning, you know? That's what people are able to do with their phones" interrupted Zayn him with a laugh.

"Sometimes I hate you" grumbled Liam cutely.

"I love you, too" kissed Zayn Liam's hair.

"When you're done with being all annoyingly cute we should end this conversation. We have one minute left" reminded Àmber them.

"Aye, we're great" huffed Liam dramatically while Zayn just blushed.

When Liam and Àmber were walking over to the door, Louis leaned closer to Zayn. "Why did you never tell me you like Liam?".

"Because it's pointless and I'm working on getting over him. He is straight and needs his friends at the moment. Other people should get a chance" answered Zayn in a sad whisper.

"Like Evan?" checked Louis curiously.

"Like Evan" nodded Zayn before walking through the door.

Pablo announced the band and they stepped on stage. The lights in the bar were blinding Louis but he could still spot his friends in the audience. They were all sitting around a table directly in front of the stage. Bailey, Niall, Sean, Liam, Luke and Harry, who was wearing a blazer over his t-shirt and looked like a dream under the lights. Forcefully, Louis had to tear his eyes away from him.

He introduced the band and they hit the gig off with their song Here We Are. This song had given them the gig in the first place and it felt right to start the night with it. The song that followed was Rock Me. The third song was called Perfect Liar.

A huge fake smile plastered on your face

Honey-dripping sweet words rolling off your tongue

How can you be this blunted but oh-so young?

You left spotted life without a single trace

You never break in, you never give in

It was all just a fucked up game you wanted to win

Chorus:

You have a heart of ice and a face of stone

You push your victims out of their comfort zone

Trying to break them – You're the perfect liar

It's a wicked game that you never lose

You show off all the broken souls like freshly new tattoos

And there's absolutely no excuse

You're the perfect liar

Is it fun to play people? Do you know any remorse?

You lie without shame, skilfully replacing the blame

No single emotion or crippled feeling inside

Never even cared when your victim cried

You never break in, you never give in

It was all just a messed up plan you fulfilled with a grin

You're the perfect liar - to set the world on fire

You're the perfect liar - only pleasuring your desire

You're the perfect liar - living on a highwire

And maybe Louis felt bad about his lyrics by now but especially when he saw Harry's face while listening to the words. Harry looked so sad and guilty and broken and all Louis wanted to do was go over there, take Harry in his arms and tell him the song wasn't about him but that would be a lie, in a way. Because partly the song was written about him but not completely. Louis had just thought about certain things that have happened when they have been writing the song. So, only partly about Harry. It's also about Max.

Holiday Love Affair was what followed and right after came Second Chances. A song written by Zayn. Louis loved the song and the lyrics but wondered what Zayn had been thinking about while writing it. Literally nothing came to Louis' mind, no matter how hard he tried.

Broken hearts are never easy

And you wanna give up on love completely

He broke your trust and all that's left of your love is dust

But don't let yourself get crushed

(And just let it be stardust)

Your friends are perfectly in love

And you wonder why you weren't good enough

Times like this can be tough but please, never give up

I was feeling all alone

And was longing to even hear your ringtone

I was missing the sound of your voice

But thought you've made your final choice

But I was wrong

Your feelings for me were still very strong

You wanted to hold on

Cause in my arms is the place where you belong

You thought I'd never forgive you for what you did to me

But without you I simply can't be

I need you in my life with me, by my side

I really don't care how it looks to other people from the outside

It's just you and me

We all want those perfect romances

And sometimes all we need are some second chances

When they were done with this song, Louis got all nervous again. For the next song he had decided against Battle Inside My Heart and for Fool For You. He felt like the first one was way too obviously about Harry and he didn't want Luke to have a reason for doubt. But standing here right now on the edge of singing his new song Louis wasn't so sure if this has been such a good idea.

"Crying on the cold pavement cause of your ruthless statement. Locking myself in the dark basement, missing your sweet fragrance. Everything you ever did was for your pure entertainment. You never gave a shit about me and already found a replacement" started Louis the song, only focusing on his great rhymes that had taken him forever to come up with it instead of the actual meaning behind the words.

"I was blinded by your innocent face and hypnotized by your spotless grace. You whispered convincing words of endearment and were the first to make me feel good about my appearance" sang Louis and did he mention how proud he was of his amazing idea to connect the first and second verse with rhymes?!

"Yeah, I was a fool for you, fool for you. Your lies deceived me and kept me from being free and maybe I still want you to lie to me. Cause Baby, I'm a fool for you. Silly me was naïve enough to trust. Let me be played, let me be fooled. Never noticed I have always been out ruled. You're the reason for my newfound mistrust" went Louis into the chorus and continued with the third verse, trying to block everyone out but he could only helplessly stare at Harry's stunned face.

"My betrayed feelings were just a game for you. You ignited a fast-burning flame. But all you ever cared about was the fame. Lied to me from the start and never cared about breaking my heart. Yeah, I was a fool for you, fool for you. Your lies deceived me and kept me from being free and maybe I still want you to lie to me. Cause Baby, I'm a fool for you" locked Louis eyes with Harry and got lost in the ocean of greens.

"Your soul is as dark as the Caribbean sea. You took me down with you and made me believe I have to be glad (about what we had). But none of your words have ever been true. One day you're gonna realise what you had and regret you ever left me" sang Louis directly at Harry without realising it and Harry's whole face changed. Maybe Louis has been a bit dramatic with this part but back then that's how he had felt and he couldn't lie about it.

"Yeah, I was a fool for you, fool for you. Your lies deceived me and kept me from being free. But maybe I still want you to lie to me. Cause Yeah Baby, I'm still a fool for you" ended Louis the song with the last chorus and god damn it, where did that still come from? That wasn't part of the lyrics and apparently, Harry had noticed that.

"As the last song for tonight we chose a mash-up of two of our new songs because they literally say the same thing" spoke Zayn up into his microphone because Louis was just staring at Harry petrified.

"Um ... yeah" cleared Louis his throat, tearing his eyes away. "Javy wrote a song about me and I wrote a song about him. He doesn't like to sing alone in front of people and I wasn't keen on singing a song about myself. So, we decided to throw both songs together for today".

With that, they started the song and Louis tried everything in his power to focus on Zayn but his gaze kept shifting over to Harry every few seconds. He was curious to see Harry's reaction to the songs. For one second, Louis made short eye-contact with Luke but he couldn't handle this right now. So, he kept his eyes on Zayn, who was smiling in pure understanding at him. God bless Zayn.

On the outside you look all rough and you pretend to be tough. People think you're all dangerous but in reality you're pretty generous. They don't see who you really are cause you live underneath their radar. The word they describe you with is cigar but to me you're a Rockstar

Sometimes you're lost in your own world with your head up in some clouds and you're so tiny you get lost in the smallest crowds. Life has only shown you the bad and you still turned out to be the best ever lad and I'm glad that we met and even sang a duet

Of course, Zayn had to keep that part in the song and make his friends laugh at the tiny part. All except for Harry. He had a weird look on his face anyway. Was that guilt, sadness or fond? All three or nothing at all?

Where do I even get started? Out of a million you're always the smartest. When you were little you wanted to be a guitarist. You never make me feel like the shortest cause you're not heartless. You're my favourite person to ever exist. You're my special artist and I know you by heart

You have the bravest heart to ever exist. With that smile there's no one who could ever resist. You're ready for the biggest ever plot twist? No? We're just gonna ignore the one time that we kissed

And was that a frown on Harry's face? No, that couldn't be. Louis had long gone clarified that Zayn and were never more than friends. Why should that bug Harry anyway? It shouldn't matter that they have kissed.

In a crowded room you're always pretty silent. I really don't see how people can think you're violent. You always have my back and together we produce our own soundtrack with a shared duet. We get through every panic attack and sometimes even share a cigarette

You make me feel alive and together we act like we're barely five. We clicked from the start and I knew it all along. Boy, I love you with all my heart but this is no love song

No matter what, you're always by my side. It's perfect even when we're quiet. We talk late into the night and in the morning you shine brighter than the sunlight

When I'm down you pull me out of my dark hole and help me get back my life control. You'd follow me to the end of the north pole. Javy, you have the sweetest and kindest soul

After finishing up the song with both choruses again, they all bowed down and thanked everyone for coming tonight. They left the stage and Pablo immediately praised them for the great gig. Evan also came over to them and showered them with compliments. This felt all surreal to Louis. They had managed to survive their first gig in an actual bar with actual real people watching them and he had barely noticed anyone. He definitely couldn't wait for the next gig.

Suddenly, Louis felt a slight touch on his shoulder and realised someone was tapping him there. He turned around and was met with a beautiful looking Harry, who was smiling at him. Harry, who Louis could really see now without the lights blinding him. Harry, who was wearing the t-shirt with the huge rose on it underneath his blazer. The t-shirt he had forgotten at Jake's place after hooking-up with him. The t-shirt he had gotten back just a while ago. The t-shirt Louis had gifted to him years ago and was now soiled by Jake and their bed actions. Louis tried to ignore all of this. It was just a freaking t-shirt. Why was that pissing Louis off so much? It didn't make any sense.

"You were great" beamed Harry brightly at him.

"Thanks, Haz" smiled Louis back at him.

"The songs were amazing. The last one was funny. An interesting idea to put two songs together. Looks like Zayn and you really have a special bond" sounded Harry actually genuine about this and that surprised Louis a lot.

"That we have. He is my best friend and has a special place in my heart. I would kill for him, as foolish as that may be" confirmed Louis sweetly.

"That's cute and not foolish. By the way, that other song was um ... interesting. Very sad but wonderful at the same time. Never heard that one before. When did you write it?" asked Harry awkwardly and Louis knew which song he was talking about.

"A while ago. Needed to get that off my chest. You know, letting it all out to move on. Didn't really w ...".

"I'm sorry to interrupt you but can I borrow my boyfriend for a second? You'll get him back" appeared Luke next to them and Louis could immediately hear in his voice that something wasn't right.

"No, of course. I um ... need to go back over there anyway" coughed Harry and pointed behind him.

Louis looked into that direction and spotted a black-haired guy sitting at the table where his friends have been before. In disbelief, Louis watched how Harry walked over to him and offered him a sexy smile and that guy seemed to be gone for him already. Harry really had guys falling to his feet everywhere and it looked like he was already getting over Josh and trying to find someone new.

"What's the matter, Love? You look unhappy" focused Louis his attention on his boyfriend.

"Would you be happy if your boyfriend wouldn't even so much as glance at you the whole night because he was too focused on someone else?" looked Luke pointedly at him and Louis could see the hurt in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Luke. I don't know what was going inside my he ...".

"But I do" cut Luke him off. "All you cared about was Harry tonight. You even sang a song for him".

"Huh?" blinked Louis at him.

"Oh, c'mon. Just admit that Fool For You was about Harry and for him as well. You literally stared at him in awe the whole time. I'm your boyfriend and not Harry but you wrote him a song and not me" replied Luke upset.

"I didn't write a song for him or about him in that way. It's just a song, Luke. It meant nothing. I don't want Harry to be my boyfriend. I have you. Why should I choose him over you?" cringed Louis inwardly at his words. Yesterday he chose Harry over him in a heartbeat but now things were different.

"Because you still love him" answered Luke simply, shocking Louis with his words. "Don't even try to deny it. You were with him yesterday, weren't you?".

"Yes, because he broke up with Josh and we tried to cheer him up. That's what friends do. Don't tell me you wouldn't cancel on me if Cody would go through a break-up?" reasoned Louis his actions.

"But Cody isn't my ex-boyfriend".

"Fake-boyfriend" corrected Louis him.

"Whatever. I don't love Cody like you love Harry" reworded Luke his statement.

"I will always love Harry. He will always be in my life and you can't change that. But that doesn't mean I wanna be with him. I told you how it is and you said you understand me. Was that a lie?" clarified Louis honestly.

"No, of course not. It's just ...".

"That you don't trust me" gave Louis him no chance to finish his sentence and Luke stayed silent. "I see. Well, you can trust me. I'm gonna be honest with you. Harry kissed me yesterday but I didn't kiss him back. I didn't want to and I felt nothing I shouldn't feel. He was very vulnerable and was seeking comfort and I was there. It meant nothing. He means nothing. I only wanna be with you".

"Really?" breathed Luke out quietly.

"What exactly?" tilted Louis his head aside in question. He had said a lot and couldn't know what exactly Luke was referring to.

"Harry kissed you but you still wanna be with me?" asked Luke overwhelmed.

"Yes" said Louis simply. Too many words could ruin everything because Luke was good at overthinking.

Luke just hugged him but didn't say anything. Louis felt like there were still things left unsaid but he chose to ignore it and just enjoy the moment. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Harry going back over to this black-haired guy and what? Wasn't he sitting already there with him? Where did he come from? Has he been with Zayn and Aria? Hopefully, he didn't hear their conversation. Louis didn't want things to be weird between them again. Luke being worried was bad enough. He didn't need more problems on top of that.

The top wouldn't be his place tonight anyway. He felt that in his guts on their way out of the bar a little while later. Never would Louis be able to forget about everything that was said tonight and really be solely focused on Luke. He couldn't shut his mind up, so he knew Luke needed to take over tonight and something about this made Louis feel strange. That wasn't right. Even thinking this wasn't right. Doing it would be so wrong and he finally began to understand what Zayn meant. It was unhealthy and not right.

 Maybe Luke had noticed that too and that's why he said goodbye to Louis before he went home alone without an explanation. Walking home through the dark, Louis tried to clear his head and get the picture of Harry and that new guy flirting shamelessly for two hours out of his head but it was stuck there. Maybe better because it showed Louis again that he was doing the right thing when he said he would always choose Luke. Harry wasn't into him and even if, he would always find a replacement for him in a heartbeat. The kiss meant nothing and their words meant nothing. That's what they would always be. Nothing. 

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So, Harry and Louis are nothing? Louis chose Luke and Harry is already hitting on someone else ... How could this possibly end?