Second Chance

2

LiteralAngels is the one who suggested how the story should continue. ♥️

A week goes by and Harry has managed to calm down. Meeting Louis had really made him upset.

He's on his way to do a radio interview with Capital. He's not really in the mood but he can't put it off. Show business doesn't care about a broken heart. He made a tattoo when he was eighteen. Two drama masks where one is smiling and the other one is crying and with the letters, SNCL underneath it that stands for Smile now cry later. He just has to put on a fake smile and fall apart when he gets home, like he always has.

He parks his car outside the radio station. He's early. He gets out of his car anyway and locks it behind him. He keeps his head down as he hurries towards the entrance so he won't be recognized. He bumps into someone.
"I'm sorry." He says and looks up.

Familiar blue eyes meet his and he takes a step back.
"Hi, Harry!" Louis smiles.

"Louis." Harry grunts and tries to walk past him.

Louis grabs his arm to make him stop.
"Wait!"

"What do you want Louis?" Harry asks through gritted teeth.

"Ehm, just, can we talk?" Louis asks and kicks his shoe against the curb.

"We have nothing to talk about." Harry states, sounding irritated.

"There's so much I wish I could tell you but I literally can't." Louis sighs and stares at him intensely.

"I have no interest in hearing it. You fucking cheated on me and had a baby!" Harry growls, way too high. He's furious and he doesn't give a rat's ass if someone hears him.

Louis sighs.
"Everything isn't always as it seems." He says quietly before he turns around and walks away.

Harry stares at him in confusion. That was what he told him before they stepped into the office at Modest that day. What the hell did he mean by that?

Harry tries to shake it off and goes inside the station to do his interview. He's absent-minded the whole time. It must be the worst interview he has ever done. He has trouble answering even the simplest questions.  

Louis manages to get to his car before he breaks down crying. His whole body is shaking while he lets it all out. Harry really hates him and he can't blame him.

His younger self had held on to the delusional hope that Harry would refuse to believe that he would have cheated on him and called Modest out on their bullshit. He didn't.
Louis had then hoped that Harry would find a way to forgive him. He didn't.

Instead, Harry had left the band, left him, without as much as a goodbye. Louis had written a song about it on their last album as One Direction called Love you goodbye. He had hoped that the song would make Harry understand how much he loves him. It didn't.

Everything was hopeless. His life had been hard after that. Losing his mum and sister had absolutely destroyed him but losing Harry had been a whole other level of pain. He doesn't know how to fix what he has broken because he's still bound to a contract. He can't tell Harry anything.

He pulls himself together and backs out of the parking lot to go home to an empty house. He'll never get used to living alone.

The next part of the story is suggested by franzixidfc ♥️

Harry wakes up screaming. He's been tossing and turning the whole night, haunted by dreams about him and Louis. His brain apparently thought that it was a great idea to let him remember all the great moments he and Louis shared throughout the years. The last dream was a complete nightmare. It just played that day when he found out that Louis had cheated on him in a loop.

His whole body is covered in a cold sweat and his heart is pounding erratically. How could Louis let him find out like that? Was he really such a coward that he couldn't tell him in private? He must have understood the double betrayal that was thrown at him by letting Mr. Lucas break the news. Something isn't adding up.  

Harry looks at the time on his cellphone and counts the time difference to Los Angeles in his head before he calls Niall.
"Hi mate!" Niall's voice sounds over the phone and Harry realizes how much he has missed his Irish lad.

"Hi, how are you?"

"I'm good. You?"

"Ehm, I ran into Louis." Harry says with a sigh.

The line goes quiet.
"Hello?" Harry says.

"Oh shit! Are you okay?" Niall asks in a worried voice.

"I don't know to be honest. Have you seen him these last past years?" Harry wonders.

"From time to time." Niall admits carefully.

"Has he, ehm, has he talked anything about what happened?" Harry asks.

"No. I tried to ask him once but he flipped me off." Niall answers.

"Oh." Harry says, not knowing how to proceed.

"Yeah. He's different Haz." Niall says.

"Different how?" Harry asks.

"Dark. Moody. Angry. I can't for my life understand why he would sign with Syco. He hates them. He's not happy Harry and I think you're the reason behind it." Niall explains.

"Well, he cheated on me and had a baby." Harry snorts.

"There's something fishy about that. It doesn't make sense." Niall replies.

"What do you mean?" Harry asks.

"Come on, Louis loved you so much. Why would he cheat on you? With a girl? He's like super gay, no offense. And let's just say that he actually did that, not that I believe it, but anyhow, do you really think he would let you find out like that? Louis isn't that cruel." Niall says, getting worked up.

"He did let me find out like that." Harry snorts.

"I know, and it's just weird mate. Why? It doesn't make sense." Niall sighs.

"I don't know. Maybe he was too scared to face me himself?" Harry suggests.

"I don't buy it. I watched the two of you before the hiatus. Something isn't right, I'm telling you." Niall answers thoughtfully.

They talk some more. When they finally hang up Harry lays down in his bed again. That conversation only made him more confused.

What happens next?