"Yeah and then she opened the door and fucking looked at me with that infuriating glare and was all "Oh, you're not getting any help from me you can go suck a dick" and I was so angry and scared and frustrated and of course I acted like a freaking little bitch," I say, slamming the cupboard door closed. "I had a golden opportunity to shove my foot so far up her ass her grandchildren will be walking funny but I decided that it was a good time to break down and cry. Louis had to practically drag my sobbing body away from the door."
On the other side of the phone, my dad sighs. "It's alright Trey. You were the bigger person and chose not to resort to violence."
"I didn't choose nonviolence! I was ready to beat the crap out of everyone. My brain just decided to shut down and prove to them how much of a puss-" my dad clears his throat in warning. "-bitch I am. It's so annoying because I know I can stick up for myself, you've seen me do it, but sometimes I get so awkward and let people walk all over me," I groan as I slump down on the couch. The other end is silent.
"At least you won't have to see them again."
"How do you know that? They pop up when I least expect them and I'm getting real sick of it."
Suddenly, there's a loud urgent knock on my door. I groan again and stand up to answer it. As soon as I swing it open Louis comes barging in, blue eyes wide in panic.
"Uh," I say, my mouth wide open.
"Can I talk to you?" He asks, his voice high.
"Uh," I say again whilst my dad laughs in my ear.
"I'll talk to you later, Trey. Goodnight love."
"Bye dad," I say at the same time as Louis says, "I need your help."
I end my call and gaze at him curiously.
"Depending on what it is, I'll help."
Louis wrings his hands and paces back and forth. I squint at him until I can't take his movement any longer.
"Louis!" I snap. "Stop moving and just tell me what you want!"
Louis shudders so hard I think his shoulders are going to dislocate. "John asked me..."
Oh no. I dread to know where this is going.
"...to babysit," Louis finishes with a whisper. I stare at him in disbelief.
"He wants you to babysit?" I echo. Louis nods. I burst out laughing. "You're getting stressed out because John wants you to babysit?? Oh my God." I clutch my stomach, my giggles coming in short, loud bursts.
"It's not funny! It's proper terrifying!" He yells, swatting at my arm.
"No it's not! They're little kids who need to play for about three minutes before they pass out. Dude, you need to chill."
"For the record, it's one little kid and I've been told she's the little devil," Louis crosses his arms over his chest, blue eyes trained on me. I snort.
"I highly doubt she's the devil."
"Let's go find out then. Come on, come with me." Louis grabs my hand and hauls me out of my flat. I try to ignore the burning sensation of our hands touching whilst I close and lock my door. Following Louis into the lift, I think of possible games to play with the little girl.
"Why did John ask you of all people to babysit for him?" I ask Louis, stepping out of the lift.
"Hey! That's offensive. How do you know I didn't volunteer for it?"
I look at him. "You literally just referred to the child as a devil."
He sputters for a few seconds before swiftly walking away, leaving me smiling. We hop into his car and start off down the street.
"Did you bring any toys with you to play with?" I ask, breaking the silence.
Louis glances at me quickly, panic written all over his face.
"The hell you mean did I bring any toys? Should I have? Oh God this is a mess," he whines. I laugh.
"Louis, stop my God. John obviously has toys at home I was just wondering."
I hear Louis mumble something about throwing me out of the car and I grin to myself.
A few minutes pass with nothing but the radio noise between us.
"You know, you could have at least changed your clothes. We are going to someone else's house you know. First impressions are everything," Louis teases me. I look down at my t-shirt and jeans and grin.
"Suck a duck," I retort. "I wasn't exactly planning on seeing anyone tonight. Plus, you didn't really give me a chance to do anything."
"'Suck a duck'? Did you just make a verbal typo?" Louis asks. I hear amusement in his voice and I turn to look at him.
"'A verbal typo'? What the heck is a verbal typo?"
Louis scratches the back of his neck. "You know when you make a typo in a text but like in speech?"
I stare at him for a few moments.
"You stupid idiot."
Louis laughs. "Yeah, love you too."
We're silent for the rest of the ride and my cheeks are bright red from his words.
***
We pull up to the house and quickly step out. I notice a car in the driveway and immediately steel myself for John's presence. We walk up to the front door and Louis pulls out a key and inserts it into the lock. As soon as we're inside, we're met by a huge German Shepard. It's silent, sitting in the middle of the hallway.
"Uh, I thought we were babysitting a child?" I ask, confused. Louis looks at me as if I've grown three heads.
"We are."
I point at the dog. "I hate to break it to you, but that is no human."
The words have no sooner left my mouth than a woman rounds the corner and stops short when she sees us.
"Louis! I'm so glad you could make it! Thank you so much for babysitting Rory tonight. She's in the lounge watching the telly." The woman is gorgeous; tall, slender with a beautiful blue dress on and ridiculously high heels. Her brown eyes find me instantly and I feel the need to hide in the corner because of my outfit choices. She smiles warmly.
"Hi! You must be Trey! I'm Melinda, John's wife. He has told me so much about you!" She reaches out and clasps my hand. I'm taken aback. John spoke to her about me?
I am at a loss for words for a few seconds until she continues. "But I didn't realize you would be coming here tonight. I thought it was only Louis." She looks between us and I see Louis' cheeks go pink. My heart collapses at the sight and I turn my attention back to the woman.
"Right, well Louis came to my flat in a frenzy because John asked him to babysit your daughter and he said that maybe your daughter was the dev-" a hand is slapped over my mouth before I can finish my sentence.
"It was a last minute decision," Louis states simply. Melinda nods and grabs a purse from the hallway table.
"Well then, if you don't mind I'm to be leaving. Rory has been fed and washed. Her bedtime is half eight and I would appreciate it if her schedule remain as is. She has a million toys I'm sure she wouldn't mind playing with. John and I should be back around midnight. Thanks again you two!" And with that Melinda is off, flying out the door. I am about to speak when I realize Louis still has his hand on my mouth. He realizes it too because he immediately takes it away.
"Sorry," he mumbles.
"It's ok. Now, let's go meet this devil."
Louis shushes me and I snicker walking into the lounge. On the sofa is a little girl around seven, long brown hair twisting and twirling with curls. She's dressed in matching tops and bottoms and her eyes are glued to the TV.
"Um... Rory? My name is Louis and this is my friend Trey. We're here to watch you tonight," Louis says softly. Rory turns around and looks at us, her eyes a vivid green. I gaze at her, finding bits and pieces of Melinda and John in her facial features.
"Hi," she says her voice soothing and melodic. God, this girl is going to be a heartbreaker.
"Hey Rory," I say, plopping down next to her. "Do you want to play any games?" I ask shutting off the telly. Rory studies me, her eyes seemingly seeing into my soul. I'm instantly uncomfortable. This girl is dangerous even at seven years old. I wouldn't be surprised if people just gave her things because her eyes were so irresistible.
"I don't like games. I want to play football."
My face must resemble that of complete and utter shock because Louis snorts, clapping a hand over his mouth.
"What about reading a book? You like doing that right?" I ask. I'm dubious about the answer.
She shakes her head. "That's for before bedtime. I want to go outside and play football." This time she stands up and I realize just how tall she is for her age. She walks over to the other side of the room and picks up a bright pink football.
Oh Lord.
No.
"What about watching a movie? Listening to music? Karaoke?" I'm pleading with her now. She shakes her head every time. I groan in frustration.
"Give it up Trey. What's wrong with her playing a little footy?" Louis asks.
I glare at him. "She's just had a shower! Unless you want to, I'd rather not wash her after she gets all sweaty!"
Understanding lights Louis' eyes but before he can react, Rory is running and hopping outside, the football tight in her grip. Louis and I simultaneously moan.
"What kind of kid doesn't like games? Or reading books?" I ask aloud. Louis just shrugs, holding open the sliding door for me.
We watch as Rory gives a little scream and kicks the ball hard into the net. She's good for a seven year old.
I turn to Louis. "That's your kid."
He gives me a startled glance. "Sorry?"
"She is what your kid is going to look like, act like, everything. She is an exact replica of you."
And looking at Rory I could tell that Louis could tell it was true. She had the same build. The same colour hair. The same avid fascination with football. Hell, she even the same kick. The only noticeable difference was the colour of her eyes.
"That's ridiculous!" Louis stutters out a few moments later.
"Is it?"
Louis grows silent as we continue watching Rory punch the ball into the goal. She's fallen down a couple of times and her pajamas are streaked with grass and dirt. I hold back a sigh. Guess there's no getting past the bath.
"Are you guys going to play with me?" She asks after she notices us just staring at her. I look over to Louis and he shrugs.
"Why not?" He says and smiles. I glance down at his mouth briefly before mirroring his grin.
Yeah, why not?
***
"Alright, whoever gets this last goal wins!" Louis announces, his blue eyes set and determined. For the last hour, Rory, Louis and I have been playing a somewhat dysfunctional game of football. After I suggested we make teams, Rory had instantly attached herself to my side, claiming girls were always better than boys. I liked this girl more and more. When we were on offense, Rory took the ball up whilst I was the goalie. When we were on defense, Rory was the goalie and I was against Louis. This led to many jabbed stomachs, slapped faces, scratched arms and the occasional swear word we would water down into "dang flabbit" or "fungal gitis". Not that any of them were actual phrases. Louis was left to fend for himself as both the goalie and midfielder. Admittedly, I took advantage of his one-man team sometimes and took some dirty shots at him and the goal. But he deserved them.
Maybe.
Anyway, this is the last chance to finally eliminate Louis as a contender. We are tied, both teams at three. I am bringing up the ball because Rory claims she was 'entirely too pooped for her age'. Whatever the hell that means. She is lying down in the goal, her head craned to watch me. I slowly bring up the ball and Louis tracks my every move. Just as I pass what would be the midfield line, Louis comes out of his net. He meets up with me and we commence our dirty play. I shove his shoulder trying to get passed him and he almost trips me up. I manage to regain my footing and run after the ball that is now a metre away. Louis is right on my tail. I dribble with the ball a bit, trying to find an opening between Louis and the goal. Behind me, I can hear Rory yelling at me to 'kick the bloody ball' and I can't help but laugh. Louis' blue eyes are twinkling in the fading light and that is enough to distract me. He steals the ball from in front of me and I chase him down. Before I have a chance to think, I launch myself at him and tackle him to the ground, the ball flying right towards Rory. I land on top of Louis and we both let out a whoosh of air. Rory scrambles up and stops the ball.
"Rory!" I yell. "Take the ball! I have him down!"
As soon as Louis hears my plan, he immediately starts to wiggle underneath me. I clamp my hands on top of his arms and urge Rory on again. She doesn't hesitate. Flying past us she launches the ball right into the goal as Louis and I continue to wrestle.
"You--cheater!" Louis shouts from under me. I look down to see him with a full blown grin on his face so I know he doesn't mean it. I cheer along with Rory at our win and she dances around us singing about how girls are unbeatable. I have to say I agree. I'm laughing and singing along whilst I stare down into Louis' eyes. He's managed to flip onto his back and I'm so close to his face I can see every freckle. My breath catches and I'm hyper aware of the parts of our bodies that are touching. Rory disappears and it's just me and Louis. Still on top of one another. I clear my throat and quickly get up, brushing off my pants and shirt. Louis sits up and does the same. We're silent for a few moments and I can feel my cheeks burning up.
"Sorry," I mumble a few seconds later. Louis clears his throat.
"It's alright."
We get up and head into the house to find Rory guzzling a bottle of water. As we come into view her face brightens. She's covered in a sheen of sweat and her previously curly hair is straight with humidity.
"You guys are the best babysitters ever!" She yells, her little fist up in the air. Louis and I laugh and Louis ruffles her hair.
"Nice goal, R. Are you playing footy on a team?" He asks. Rory shakes her head.
"Mum and dad say I can do it next year because I'm too small."
"Maybe if they actually saw you play they wouldn't think like that!"
She giggles and snuggles close to Louis. I see a faint pink colour on her cheeks and realize she's blushing. Rory is blushing.
Same.
Louis and I learn that Rory is fully capable of taking a shower herself. At that, we both breathe a sigh of relief. I doubt she wants two strangers staring at her whilst she's naked. As soon as she skips to the bathroom I turn on Louis. He's hopped up on a stool drinking from a juice box. When he feels my stare he glances over.
"What?"
"You made her blush." I state.
He nearly chokes. "I what?"
"You made a little seven year old girl blush. How does that make you feel, Tomlinson? Knowing Rory has a crush on you?" I tease him. His blue eyes widen.
"I did not make her blush! She's just all sweaty and stuff."
I snort. "Yeah sure thing Tomlinson. Believe what you want." I take a sip from my juice box and look at Louis. He's looking at me with a glint in his eye and I cough.
"If Rory blushing means she has a crush on me, does that mean you have a crush on me because you always blush when I'm around."
This time I actually choke. I suck in too much juice and it goes down the wrong pipe and I'm spitting juice everywhere for a solid two minutes. All the while Louis is just smiling at me in that infuriatingly endearing way I just want to rip off his face. When I'm able to bring in a sustainable amount of air I just glare at Louis.
"No." Is my short answer and Louis chuckles.
"Yeah sure thing Marcus. Believe what you want," Louis repeats my own phrase and it sends my heart fluttering. I glower. Jerk. But he's a cute jerk.
A/N. This is one long-ass chapter (not proof read) and you should love me for this. PLUS I updated within a weekend how excited are you?? Ok, this hopefully makes up for the 3 months I was gone. Alright. Enjoy some more Trouis-ness.