On My Own (l.s. AU)

Chapter 1 - Home?

Four months after the Tomlinsons found Harry...

Louis POV

'LOOUUUIS! WAKE UP!'

I know this voice.

'Go away.', I groan and roll over to lay on my other side. Why can't my family accept that I want to sleep a little longer?

'Mum said I shall wake you up. Get up now!'

'Fizzy, stop it! Please.', I say, pulling the blanket over my head.

'Louuuuu...', she whines, trying to pull the blanket off me.

Thanks to being eight and a half years older, I'm also stronger. Obviously. And I really thought I had succeeded, but then she started jumping on my bed.

'Fiz, please, just five more minutes.', I say.

'Not going to happen, we know five minutes in your world is an hour in the actual world. Get up Louis, mum said you need to go and wake up Harry.', she answers, throwing herself on me and nearly hugging me to death.

Why didn't she say that before?

I immediately sit up straight, lifting her up along with my upper body. She gets a quick hug, then I'm out of my bed, slowly walking over to the room next to mine.

It's Harrys room.

Mum got custody of him, after his dad went to jail, since Harry was fifteen back then. Now he's living with us for a few months and we got quite close. He is scared of being touched though.

Also, I know nearly nothing about the time before we found him. I'm aware it must have been bad and I wanted to ask him once, but then I remembered mum saying I shouldn't.

~~~

'He's going to tell you when he is ready, you know that, right? I know it's hard for you seeing him sad sometimes and not knowing what's going on. But he has been shot by his father, who is in jail now. His mother left him and didn't want him back when he needed her and now, he's with a new family in a place he doesn't know. Give him some time, Boobear.', she said to me.

I smiled at her nodding my head at the same time. She was right. I'll give him time.

~~~

That was the moment I realized he needed some space. And I gave him the time.

It must have been scary to wake up in the hospital with an (nearly) unfamiliar person sitting next to your bed, holding your hand. But I will always remember the moment he just squeezed my hand a bit and gave me a small smile.

That was the moment I swore to myself I would do anything to protect him.

But back to now. I'm standing in the doorframe and can see Harry under the sheets of his bed. He looks comfortable, almost peaceful. Those moments are rare, but this small smile on his lips reminds me that even the saddest people can be happy.

I moved closer to his bed, trying to make not too much noise. I came up with my own method to wake him up. There are a few songs he really likes, so I sing to him, every morning.

This morning again. I slowly take his hand in mine, lower my voice and start singing.

'Make a little conversation,
so long I've been waiting,
so let go of myself and feel alive.'

I stop for a minute, looking at Harry who is still lying next to me, eyes closed. So, I continue.

'So many nights I thought it over,
told myself I kind of liked her.'