Don't Let Me Go || l.s.

Chapter 25 - Emotion Runs High

A/N: This will probably go to 30 chapters, and then a sequel. How exciting.

You never know who around you is keeping a secret. It could be the man carrying four grocery bags in his left arm with a crying child in his right. Maybe it’s the girl you see around school who, outside of school, constantly has earbuds in her ears. You wouldn’t know unless they personally told you. And you surely wouldn’t think that it would be someone near and dear to you, or more specifically, your boyfriend.

Louis didn’t think anything of Harry keeping quiet in the library during their fifth week of school in a study period, he figured that maybe he was just tired. He didn’t think anything of Harry cancelling out on their plans a few days later that were to go sit on the hill and do homework together; figured that maybe he just didn’t feel up to it. (They both got like that at times.) But the thing that made Louis find out that Harry was truly hiding something, and it wasn’t just his imagination, was whenever he found him walking down the sidewalk. Crying.

“Harry?” Louis called out as he stepped out of his front door to check the mail holder, but caught sight of his curly haired boyfriend walking up the driveway before he had a chance. Harry’s head slowly raised up, and there were visible streaks of tears on his reddened cheeks, fingers linking and unlinking nervously.

It hurts Louis, physically and emotionally, to see his own boyfriend so broken. And he didn’t have a clue what was happening. “Babe, come here,” he spoke quietly and opened up his arms, his boyfriend’s taller body suddenly colliding with his, strong arms wrapped around his torso. “Shh.” Louis whispered on the top of Harry’s hair as his body shook with sobs, backing towards the wooden front door. As they entered the house, Louis nudged the door shut with his foot before craning his neck back to take a look down at his boyfriend who had his head buried on his chest. “You need to tell me what’s wrong, dear, come on.”

Harry shook his head, taking a deep collective breath and letting it out shakily, raising his head fro Louis’ chest, who automatically wiped the tears on his cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. “Can . . . can we talk up in your room?” Harry croaked out, clearing his throat with his arms wrapped around his upper abdomen.

“‘Course,” Louis reached down and linked his fingers with Harry’s, leading him up the stairs and down the hall. A booming noise sounded from a room that Harry was walking past, making him flinch away and stare wide-eyed at Louis, green eyes glossy with unshed tears. “That’s just Fizzy. Go to my room, I’ll be there in a few.” He urged Harry on with a kiss to the cheek and a gentle pat on his back. Harry soon obliged, nodding his head and entering Louis’ bedroom which was two rooms away from Fizzy’s.

Louis heaved out a sigh, rubbing his palm against his forehead frustratedly. The older Fizzy continued to get, the more rebellious she got. The week before that, she had gotten grounded for sneaking out, and was now confined to her bedroom until further notice. Coming into the teenage girl years was nothing Louis was new to, because Lottie, who had turned 15 over a month earlier, had went through something similar to what Fizzy is going through. Except Lottie kept away in her bedroom and mouthed off, nothing like the way Fizzy had started to act. 13 years old and wearing too-tight clothes and black makeup that had went ‘missing’ from their mother’s vanity.

He tapped his knuckles on the door, calling out her name over the music and grumbling profanities once it seemingly got louder. Twisting the knob, he pushed the door open and took in sight of the pig-sty that was her bedroom. Clothes astrewn everywhere, the closet door that slid to open was off its hinges with spray paint on it. He felt like he was in a horror movie named Teenage Sister Gone Awry. Fizzy was laying on her bed, legs crossed as she bobbed her head along to the music that was booming from the stereo perched atop her dresser.

“Fiz.” Louis groaned and stumbled through the heaps of clothes on the floor, kicking some to the side before reaching her dresser and turning the music down to where they could barely hear it. She looked up from her cellphone and stared at him. If looks could kill.

“Hear me out before you threaten to throw me out of the window. Harry is over, and he’s been crying, and I need you to keep it down. For him, yeah?  This is for Harry’s sake. I can put up with your bull, but he can’t. Not right now. So keep it down, please.” Louis watched her glare lessen as she set her phone down and sat up straight, scratching the top of her head. “Is he alright?” She asked quietly, and wow, Louis hasn’t heard her speak that sincerely in weeks, or speaking without a rude comment coming out.

Louis stepped towards her bed and took a seat on the edge of it, staring forward at her open door. “I hope so. I went out to check the mail and he’s coming up the driveway, just . . . crying. So I need to go and talk to him.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’ll keep it down.” Fizzy smiled a small smile towards the eldest sibling and placed her hand gently on her arm. “Uh, when mom and dad get back, can you tell them that I’m sorry? I’ve kind of been ignoring them lately,” she said sheepishly before releasing the gentle grip and unlocking her phone. “You need to tell them yourself, Fiz. Love you.” He pressed a kiss to her blonde hair and stood up, making his way from her room and shutting the door behind him. It was quiet in the house as he walked down the hall and into his bedroom where the door was wide open, and Harry was sitting with his back pressed against the wall, knees brought up close to his chest.

Harry’s head rose up once hearing the familiar footsteps and he couldn’t even manage a forced smile, dropping his head down to his knees. “What is it, love?” Louis asked as he climbed up on his bed and crawled on his knees towards Harry, sitting beside him with his legs crossed.

It was silent between the two for a few minutes, the only sounds to be heard were dogs in a distant from his open window and their quiet breathing. Harry finally shifted in his seat, as his bottom was starting to numb, and tapped his fingers gently on Louis’ thighs.

“My mother told me the news before I came here, and she was just as emotional as I was. My father is getting extradited to London from California for a court date for charges for the uh, rape, you know?” Harry breathed in deeply and let it out slowly, raking his fingers through his curls. “I’m the victim in the case. Therefore, I’m going to have to go to the stand and speak on my behalf. Will you . . . will you come with? It’s two weeks from now.”

Without any second thought or hesitation, Louis spoke. “I promise you, that you won’t go through this alone.”