I'm having your baby

10

They were in a constant battle with their old management and label pleading to them to be able to come out but they wouldn't listen. Harry had to see Briana pretending to be the mum of their child. Louis got papped with Freddie but he could never take him outside and it broke him. What kind of parent never took their kid to the park? They tried their best to make his childhood as normal as possible, building a playground at the back of their house and made sure to visit friends and families so he didn't have to be at home all the time.

Dunkirk premiered in July and he did a lot of interviews.
His solo career was doing well too. The fans loved his first album and he started his first tour in September. Louis and Freddie went with him. Their personal life was a well-kept secret and they both saw the length their old management went to keep it that way.

Freddie was luckily unaware of the strange situation they were in. He was a happy child. Full of energy. He looked just like Louis and Harry loved that. He had started talking, mostly baby talk but he learned new words every day. He called both of them dada and Harry smiled every time. He loved him more than anything and if he would have to, he would give up everything for his family.

Louis was doing better. Being able to focus on their family had helped him cope with the grief of losing his mother. Harry lost his stepdad to cancer as well and it hit him hard.

Harry had really tried his best to encourage him to write songs but he couldn't decide which sound he was going for. He did another collab with Steve Aoki and their song Just like you was released in October. Since they released it through Steve's label Simon couldn't say anything and Louis decided to make the best of it. He knew that their fans looked into everything, especially the Larries so in addition to the music video he made sure there was a lyric video also and he hid a lot of clues referring to the situation he and Harry were in. They spent a lot of nights trying to find suitable articles to have in the background and Harry let the team that made the video photograph his eye which they later transformed into a graphic one. Louis was very pleased with the result and Simon was pissed. A win-win situation really. Simon retaliated by bringing Eleanor back as his beard.

He decided to ignore it. There was another song that he needed to write but he struggled to find the words. His mother's absence was a constant dull ache in his chest. He wanted to honor her in a song but words didn't seem to be enough. Harry helped him brainstorm what he wanted the song to sound like and then the words just came spilling out of him, but it had to be perfect so he took his time.

In November it was time for Freddie's birthday. They couldn't believe that he already had blessed their lives for two years. They gathered their friends and families to celebrate him and Freddie was smiling the whole time.

Christmas arrived and with that his birthday. He was turning 26 and had no idea how that happened. It felt just like yesterday that he was a nervous eighteen-year-old that auditioned for the X-factor. A lot had changed since that but things were also the same, like his love for Harry. As usual, his dear husband had gone completely overboard with the celebrations.
They spent Christmas with their families.

New year's eve came and went. Harry was set on a second album. His management gave him a new beard in 2017, a model named Camille. They had both hoped that a new management would mean the end of fake relationships but this was how the business worked, and they justified it by saying that Harry needed someone to write his songs about. Well, he already had that. The same person he had written all his songs about since he was sixteen.

Harry's tour continued and Louis and Freddie went with him. Sometimes they hired whole places just to be able to do things as a family. It was still tearing Harry apart that he publicly couldn't acknowledge their son, the son he had carried, the son he loved so much. Soon he would be asking questions. How did you explain to a child the situation they were in? Harry felt like a lousy parent.
"You're a wonderful dad Harry. Stop beating yourself up over something that's out of your control." Louis tried to comfort him.

They had hired a bunch of expensive lawyers doing everything in their power to get out of their contract. So far nothing was working.

They tried their best to balance work with their home life. Harry was constantly feeling guilty for working as much as he did and Louis assured him that it was okay. Freddie was happy and Harry gave him his full attention whenever he could. Due to Louis' flexible schedule, they were able to make it work.

2018 flew by fast. Freddie turned three and they were still closeted. Briana posted several photos and even some videos of Freddie, all of them photoshopped. The fandom was questioning why Louis was never seen with his son, calling him a deadbeat dad. That hurt. He was a very present father but away from the public eye. He didn't want to put Freddie in the spotlight. They were trying to give him a normal life, a normal childhood. So far Freddie didn't know anything other than that he had two dads that loved him. They both worried about the day they had to explain everything to him. They didn't even know where they would begin. They wished that they could shield him forever.

Harry started 2019 by returning to the studio to write and record a new album. To Louis' surprise, Simon gave him the clearance to make his first solo album as well and he felt excited about music for the first time in a long time. He had been able to finish the song about his mum, Two of us, and decided to release it as a single. They shot a music video and he felt good about it. Maybe the song could help someone process grief? He was finally in a good place mentally.

He had just finished a meeting to discuss the release when Lottie called. Freddie was dancing around singing at Louis smiled fondly at him.
"Hi Lotts, you should see Freddie right now. He's so adorable."

"She's dead!" Lottie interrupted him. She sounded hysterical.

Louis went cold and he stopped in his tracks.
"Who is? Lottie? Who's dead?"

"Fizzy! They just found her in her apartment." Lottie cried.

"Where are you?" Louis asked. The ground just opened up and swallowed him whole.

"At home. The twins...Louis you have to come home. I can't do this alone." Lottie sobbed.

"Of course, alright. I'll get in the car." Louis said. He had shut down completely. He couldn't believe it.

He hung up the phone and picked up Freddie and carried him to the car and made sure to put him on his car seat and buckle him up. He took a seat at the driver's side but his hands were shaking so much that he would put them both at risk if he tried to drive to Doncaster. He picked up his phone and called Harry. Luckily he answered.
"Haz. I need you. We need to get to Doncaster now. You have to drive. I'm in shock." He said monotonously.

"What happened?" Harry asked worriedly. He had never heard him sound like that.

"Fizzy is dead." Louis replied.

"What? How? What do you mean she's dead? She can't be dead!" Harry screeched.

"I don't know how. You can't freak out on me now Hazza. Pull yourself together and come and get us. We're outside my studio." Louis said.

"I'll be there in five." Harry promised.