Amour

Chapter 3

Harry’s POV

I silently sat in my chair questioning what I could’ve possibly done to deserve this torment. I swear I’m a good kid, I really am. Okay, maybe I wasn’t exactly as holy as my parents would like me to be, but I was still pretty well behaved. Even the worst of all sinners did not deserve to be put through this hell.

Louis had been tolerable so far but I didn’t expect it to last long. He sat quietly humming to himself as the leader gave us directions, only glancing my way on occasion. All I could do was hope and pray he would remain this way and not antagonize me.

“Harry, may I speak with you for a moment?” The group leader questioned. I nodded and followed him into a separate room, eager to get away from Louis. “Am I in... trouble sir?” The words felt foreign coming out of my mouth. “Oh heavens no boy and you can call me Chris.” He spoke as he closed the door. “Oh okay. Then why exactly am I here Chris?” I wondered. “Well Harry, I wanted to talk to you about a certain member. I’m sure you’ve seen the newest addition to the church, Louis? He doesn’t exactly fit in here. Which is actually where you come in.” I gulped at his words. This couldn’t be good. “And what exactly do you want me to do here?” I nervously asked. “I’m not sure if you’ve heard about his history, but to make it simple he’s a trouble maker. He sort of has a reputation around town for misbehaving. I believe all he needs is some guidance and a positive role model.” Chris smiled. “Um I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” I quickly protested. “Oh nonsense, everyone knows you’re the most eligible person, Harry. You’re the perfect example of a well-rounded faithful child of the lord. Plus I have already discussed the matter with your father and he agreed. He said something about you needing to socialize with more kids your age.” I began to panic. There was absolutely no way this could end well.  “Sir I really don’t thi-” I began to object. “Nonsense it’s already decided. As a future leader of this church you need to start taking on more responsibilities and your first duty is to lead this boy down the lord’s path.” I huffed at Chris’s words. “From here on out you are to spend lots of quality time with Mr. Tomlinson and ensure that he finds his way through the church. I know this is a difficult task, but we believe in you Harry.” Chris stated as he patted my back. He turned and left before I could even protest. What I was supposed to do? There was no way I could stand hanging out with Louis, let alone “help him find God”. I sigh and run my shaky hands through my messy curls.

I knew I had to go back to the other room before people became suspicious but I was in no way, shape or form ready to face Louis. I was utterly petrified but at the same time a part of me was almost… excited? No no it couldn’t be. There’s no way I could possibly feel any joy about this situation. There’s no doubt in my mind I will be faced with endless ridicule and torment from him until my dad deemed him “faithful”. The sooner, the better. So I might as well get this over with as quickly as possible. I stride out of the room before my doubts can keep me any longer. I take a deep breath before pushing the door open and reentering the room.

Of course there he is, staring at me, almost expectantly. I walk over and resume my spot next to him. He stares at me in silence, not breaking eye contact. “So, uh what are we working on?” I ask to break the silence. Louis drops his eyes to the paper in front of him. “This load of bullshit.” He says before picking it up and crumpling it into a ball, tossing it into the nearest garbage. My jaw drops slightly for a moment before I quickly gather myself. Well, helping him follow the right path was sure off to a great start. “What’d you do that for?” I ask in annoyance. Louis just rolls his eyes and kicks his feet up on the table. “You don’t seriously expect me to do any of this do you? This entire thing is a joke.” He snickers. I tried to hide my annoyance but clearly it wasn’t working judging by the smirk beginning to form on his perfect face. “Look this would a whole lot easier if you just cooperated. Obviously neither of us want to be here so can you at least pretend to give a crap about any of this so we can get this over with.” I retorted. Louis leaned forward in his chair and rested his hands so that they were barely touching mine. Even the slightest touch sent volts of electricity through me. “Oh but on the contrary young Harry, there is no place I’d rather be. And for the record, I don’t like easy. I enjoy a good challenge. A little fight is always fun, not that they ever last long.” He added with a wink. Like usual, I was left speechless by him.