escape // harry styles

one.

Our last day of school before spring break was too cold and rainy. Louis picked me up in his car to bring me over to his apartment so we could celebrate with his friends.

I look around the sky, and notice there are no more dark clouds, but it is still raining as hard as it was before. That's what I don't understand. Why is the sky still so sad but it's light again?

"How was school, love?" Louis asks, looking over at me with a sparkle in his pale, blue eyes. I just shrug.

"I'm just happy I get a break," I mumble, taking a deep breath afterwards.

"Likewise," my best friend said, chuckling a bit. "At least we can have some fun, yeah?"

We arrived at his flat within ten minutes. Before we entered, I could already tell there were many people in there. Louis shoved the key into his locked door and grinning at me before opening it to the big house party.

"Hey, hey, hey," he boomed, standing in the center of his living room. "Let's fucking party!"

"Yeah!" Our mutual friend, Niall cheers, clinking a bottle of beer with Liam, who just so happens to be next to him. I sit down on the couch, next to two of Louis' mates playing Fifa. I've never been a fan of Fifa or beer, but I'm just here to make Louis happy. Niall runs along the bar in the kitchen to get some more alcohol, as if he needs any more. 

There is so much going on in this house I feel as if everything is going in slow motion. Cheers coming from the people playing football, bottles clashing, music booming through the walls. I fight a whiplash from the chaos. I'm just here to make Louis happy.

I keep my mind steady on the song that is playing. I can't come up with the name right now, but I hear it on the radio a lot. I think I need a drink. 

I pry through the crowd of rowdy men watching football and sit on the closest stool by me. Louis is near me. I can smell his signature sweet cologne. 

"Louis," I call, trying to overpower the music.

"Yeah, yeah, over here, darling." His feathery hair nearly gets lost from the crowded kitchen of tall boys. We lock eyes and he smiles at me.

"I need a drink." I nearly choke on my words as I speak, making me nearly inaudible. My tipsy friend's eyebrows raise up and his eyes widen.

"Woah, we've got a badass in the house," he teases.

"I'm serious."

"It's just a bit of a banter, love!" Louis laughs. I try to ease up and release the tension in my shoulders. "I'm glad you've trying to have a good time." He squats under the bar, and I hear a bottle open. He rises again and hands me a glass of alcohol. 

"Try this, you won't even know it has anything in it." I sip it and to my surprise, I'm nearly in love with the taste.

"This is really good," I breathe out, laughing at myself. I hide the pain I feel when the drink burns all the way down my throat.

"Really? Great! Have as much as you'd like." And just like that, Louis was out of my sight, finding another place to have fun.

Even though I feel woosy, I don't stop drinking. The burning sensation I feel eventally goes away because I'm either used to it, or my body is just numb. The party has yet to break, and if anything, there are even more people than before. It's almost like there are double the people, like sets of twins. The types of songs changed from pop to hip hop, making the atmosphere thicker with energy. I danced with Niall for a while until I nearly fell since I was drunk off of my ass. There are some people dancing on tables, but some are puking outside on the balcony. I hear motors outside, but I'm almost sure that it's just the city streets that are alive since it's Friday. I have lost track of time. I can't be that late, though. A roll of toilet paper rolls through the living room, and I just watch as it slowly loses its material and it spreads across the floor. No one is playing Fifa anymore, but I think it's because someone broke the television. There is no anxiety in my body. It's all drained out through the Malibu sitting next to me.

A force bumps me into the bar that I am back at. I catch a glimpse of someone nervously trying to apoligize. His blonde hair looks as if it was styled before, but it has now gone flat due to rummage and too much fun. All I see in his blue eyes is anxiety, something I have grown to be familiar with. I smile at him though, hoping to make him happy.

"What's your name? Are you Louis' friend?" My voice is smoother than normal. "Are you even legal?" I giggle uncontrollably.

"I'm Luke, and that's none of your business," he claims, sliding his hands into his pockets. We both laugh, but I do a little harder than I should. I look up to the very tall boy, who must be around a foot taller than me. I notice his eyes again.

"Your eyes are like the ocean. I really like beaches. I want to learn how to surf. Louis always said he would teach me—" Suddenly my stomach churns. Someone has opened a bottle of alcohol, which doesn't agree with my stomach at all anymore. "Oh, God."

I can't control anything, not even where I puke. When I look up, Luke is standing right in front of me, not even knowing what to do. The cheese puffs I ate earlier are plastered on his black Vans, making me groan in disgust. I'm not sure who is looking at me right now, and I don't really want to know, so I keep my face covered with my dark brown hair that is knotted up around my head. 

"Hey, Mar-" Louis walks through the siding door and abruptly stops. "Oh, no." He rushes to my aid and orders Luke to slip off of his shoes so Louis could wash them thoroughly until they are spotless, because that is just how Louis is. Turns out no one was really paying attention except for the people right next to me, but they really didn't care as long as what I ate after school wasn't all over them.

"Luke I'm sorry, I—"

"It's okay," he sighs, curling up his toes through his socks that are also black, along with his ripped skinny jeans and his graphic tee. I sit back down in the stool and fold my arms. I can no longer move. I'm stunned. This is a really good way to mess up how to meet a guy, right? My throat burns, but I choke down my frustration. All I want is a nonalcoholic drink. I think I am dehydrated. My head is pounding and I think I need to lay down.

"Louis, I need some water really bad," is all I can make out. I watch as Louis looks at me with a faint frown on his face. I didn't notice but my cheeks are wet and now my eyes are probably bloodshot.

"Of course, love." He brushes his auburn hair off of his forehead and grins.

"I'll clean these shoes right when I get back, but first, I have to take Marley home." Louis grabs his keys off of a hook next to the fridge and grabs my hand.

"C'mon, M. Let's go home. I think this is enough for one night."