This House (l.s.)

8

"Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you: you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for" –Bob Marley

"What do you want for dinner, Joshy?" Louis asks, pushing the cart down the aisle of the grocery store. Harry is performing a surgery on a patient today, and he always shows him proof when he's got a long day. He brings home the file and explains it to Louis and it seems like he's got a little bit more emotion back. It's been two months, and things are quiet. They still aren't sleeping in the same bed, but therapy is going well.

Joshua looks up at him with big blue eyes and giggles, his teething ring fit in his mouth. Louis smiles down at him and sighs. He thinks he might make a chicken dish with a fresh kale salad. He walks down the vegetable aisle and looks to the side, reaching for what he needs. He feels a cart bump into his side and he winces, looking to see what asshole wasn't paying attention.

"Whoops, didn't see you there," Nathan smirks.

"Oh. It's you," Louis swallows, turning back to the kale.

"How is your marriage? Has he left you yet?" Nathan asks with a mocking frown.

"No, he hasn't, and he hasn't run back to you, either, so I think I'm winning," Louis says, refusing to make eye contact.

"He cheated on you, so obviously not everything is peachy with you and your fucked up family."

"Alright, that's enough. I've got my baby with me, what kind of jerk are you? Harry is never going back to you, so you should just give it up. Find another family to try to tear apart because this one is patching up just fine," Louis snaps.

"I bet Harry told me he loved me more often then he told you, though. That's got to hurt, yeah?" Nathan says, grinning devilishly. "Told me you stopped caring about him and I was there to care for him when you weren't. That's rough, innit? Knowing your husband is better off with someone else?"

"Don't you dare talk to me like that. I did absolutely nothing to you, you were the one who went after a married guy. If you're heartbroken, I have no sympathy for you. You knew what you were getting into. I want you to stay out of all of our lives and move on. Be a grown up for once," Louis says harshly, narrowing his eyes and pushing his cart away.

After Louis finishes shopping and puts the baby in his car seat, he gets into the drivers seat and he cries. Harry loved someone that wasn't him, even if he doesn't love him anymore. It's not fair, none of it is fair.

He hears Joshua babbling behind him and says "Dada?"

"I'm okay, sweetheart," Louis sniffs. "We're going to go home now, okay?"

"Hoooome," Joshua sings and Louis smiles wetly. At least he has the best kids in the entire world.

Louis cooks dinner with Joshua playing in his high chair and Gabriella sets the table. She tells him all about her day at school and her new friend Cody. Louis responds at all the right times and tries to be as animated as he can, but his whole body is tense from the encounter at Tesco's. He knows he has to talk to Harry about it but he doesn't know how he's going to go about it. Everything has been so difficult in the past year and a half and Louis is drained.

"Is Papa going to eat dinner with us tonight?" Gabriella asks.

"Yeah, sweetie," Louis says, looking up at the clock above the sink. "He should be home in a few minutes."

"Are you still mad at him?"

"No, sweetie, not anymore," Louis says softly, mixing the salad.

"Why do you fight a lot, then?" she asks.