cradle to grave

Louis's last day of primary.

Its the night before the last day of school, Harry's laying on Louis's bed besides him.

"It's not fair!" Harry's whines for like the thousandth time.

"Harry, we've been going to the same school for two years now. You're going to be OK without me"

Louis tells him, but without the same patient tone his had the first thirty times he's had to reassure the boy.

"No I won't!"

"You'll be starting the 3rd grade, you know what that means?"

"What?"

"That, you're all grown up now.  You don't even need me to ride the bus with you anymore"

"You're only saying that, because you know you're leaving me behind"

"And what do you want me to do, wait five years until you finish primary school?"

"Yes" Harry replies, dead serious.

Louis looks back at him, at a loss for words. He doesn't want to snap at harry, but Harry's being unreasonable.

"It's late, maybe i should take you home" Louis says finally.

"I'm sleeping over"

"Fiine, but I'm not running across the street in the morning to get your uniform"

"I'll do it myself, I don't need you" Harry huffs, getting under the covers trying to move as far away from Louis as possible.  Dragging the covers with him.

Louis wants to kick Harry in the back, or hit him with a pillow. But he doesn't, he just crosses his arms over his chest and stares up at the ceiling, ignoring Harry's little tantrum. 

A few minutes later, Louis hears quiet sniffling under the covers.

He tries to ignore that too, because it's not the first time Harry's cried over the fact that Louis is starting high school next winter.

He's been doing this for the whole week, sleeping over. Even though he claims he won't sleep over, stopping Louis from getting his uniform during the day.

Then at night, he sleeps over.

The sniffling gets louder, and Louis can't stop himself from moving closer to him.

"Haz I'm sorry"

"No you're not" Harry snaps.

"How do you know that?"

"You wouldn't leave me, if you were"

"Harry, my high school isn't really that far. And I'll see you after school and on weekends"

"And you won't go visit Liam and zayn instead?"

"Well I mean, sometimes i will." Louis doesn't want to lie to the kid, but he also wants him to stop crying.

Harry cries harder at his response, "oh come on harry..  how about we eat some ice cream and watch cartoons then?"

"I'm seven years old Louis, I'm not a child" Harry says, already getting out of bed.

Louis laughs, "Weren't you just crying because you can't go to school without me" Louis teases. 

Harry halts, seeming to be reminded why he's upset in the first place. Frowning, looking like he's going to bust into tears again.

"Whoeh whoeh,  I'm kidding okay, I'm I'm just kidding... ice cream. Let's go eat some ice cream" Louis says, pulling Harry by the hand towards the kitchen.

"Hey lou, I thought you guys were already sleeping" Jay comments, seeing Louis and harry walk into the kitchen.

"Harry's upset, so we're eating ice cream and watching cartoons till he falls asleep" Louis says, with pleading eyes at her.

Cause he knows his mother will not approve.

"Louis" she starts, with a warning tone.

"Mom please, i just got him to stop crying"

Jay sighs, "fiine fine, but don't eat too much ice cream and don't stay up too late" she tells them.

"Thanks mom, come on harry"

They eat their ice cream and watch cartoons. The exhaustion from crying, and throwing tantrums seems to catch up with harry no more than an hour later. So Louis carries him to his bed, tucks him in and gets in after him cuddling harry.

Soon falling asleep himself. 

***
All the seventh graders are excited, today is their last day of school. So the bus is particularly loud that morning.

"High school is going to be sick" Zayn says, soon as Louis and harry join them on the bus.

"High school is a very sensitive subject" Louis mumbles. 

"What why?"

Louis points at harry with his eyes.

"Oh come on, I told you, you should've stopped him from following you around a year ago. This wouldn't be happening if he hangout with kids him own age" zayn says, rolling his eyes.

"You don't think I tried" Louis hisses.

"No I don't, right liam?"

Louis stares at liam, who looks between Louis and zayn hopelessly.

"I mean, you do encourage his attachment to you Louis" liam says carefully. 

Louis gives a gasp of betrayal, "I... well... you know, he's been like a brother to me since he was a born" Louis defends, instinctively wrapping his arms around harry whose currently talking to niall.

They all still squeeze together on the back of the bus.

Harry subconsciously links his hand to Louis's, but doesn't turn away from listening to niall.

Zayn looks at the whole thing as if to say, "this is exactly what I'm talking about"

Louis huffs at Zayn's clearly self satisfactied facial expression.

"You're just like Gemma, and you liam... I feel betrayed mate " Louis says giving liam a glare.

"Well, I do understand.  I mean I know that you guys are really close.  I'm sure zayn just meant that, it would've been easier for both of you. If harry wasn't following you around every day at school" liam tries.

"Liam, don't put words in my mouth. That is not, what I said" zayn snaps, annoyed at Liam's inability to pick sides.

Liam sighs giving up on solving this argument. That's been going on for as long as he can remember.

"It's fine liam" Louis says reaching over zayn to bump liam shoulder with his fist gently.

Liam smiles at him, "thanks Lou"

Zayn rolls his eyes, "whatever" he mumbles.

"Zayn" Louis says, frowning at his best friend whose not letting up.

"What?"

"Harry's a child, and I can't just abandon him"

"It wouldn't be abandoning him, its letting him make friends his own age. But instead he waits outside your classes before lunch, meaning we have to eat lunch with him everyday. Doesn't take the early bus with the younger kids after school cause he's waiting for you.  And now, he's crying nonstop cause he's been attached to you at school everyday for two years"

Louis sinks his teeth on his lower lip, to will away the tears of frustration.  He knows that Zayn's right.

But when he turns to look at harry, he just can't bring himself to regret their bond. 

So he pulls harry closer to him instead, and doesn't say anything the rest of the bus ride to school.