Chapter 9

Chapter 9 Saturday 9No, Louis, I'm not doing it. You can't persuade me, whatever you do, okay?It was the Saturday later when Louis had the troublesome task on his hands of trying to persuade Harry to do something he -even though Louis protested that inside he wanted to do it desperately- was claiming he didn't want to do. They were back in the comfort of the piano room, as per usual, and after performing their routine clinking of the piano keys together, Louis had set upon that tricky task.It was a particularly joyous, happy tune this week. Nothing at all including heavy clunking of the keys or the lower notes of the piano; they were all high pitched, staccato notes. The quickness of the speed made their hands tangle together in a messy sprawl of fingers. Although the tune was messed up and turned into a high pitched squeal of madness, the two boys just giggled it out. They weren't embarrassed by their mistake; they weren't annoyed; they were amused.For Louis, he was particularly proud when their fingers mangled together. He was actually overjoyed. Of course the noise wasn't pleasant, but Harry's reaction was the seed of the pride. Harry didn't freak; he didn't scare. He didn't zone out into the world of misery and taunt. He did the exact opposite. When Harry froze as they made such a noise, Louis suspected that the cheerful mood that the joyful tune brought would dissipate as fast as Harry's good mood would.Last time, Louis didn't know the boy. He didn't know his problem; he didn't know the hurt inside that was so thickly covered up. He didn't like him, nor did he have an unusually large crush -that sounded so childish, Louis thought, it was more than a childhood fancy on the school's most popular kid- on the boy.So, really, what was Louis to expect? When the same happened last time, Harry clammed up, and Louis was worried the same would happen. This was for two reasons. Reason one: he had no clue what to do. He proved his inexperience in dealing with Harry's 'problems' when he took him to the gig all those weeks ago. Yes this would have been of a lesser accord, not as serious, but it was important nonetheless. If Harry's mood had decreased dramatically, then Louis had this need to make it all better. And he didn't know how to do that when the boy was so freaked out. Reason two: if Harry did freak out, then maybe Louis hadn't made as much of an impact on the boy's life as he thought. If he freaked out whilst in the presence of Louis, then surely he wouldn't be as bad as he was at the gig? But if he was as bad, or even worse, then Louis' mind would have ran into overdrive, thinking of all the things he could've done better to make the boy trust him more for times like this.All this thinking, however, was irrelevant.Harry giggled. Fucking giggled. That in turn made Louis giggle too, but that's beside the point. He giggled. How adorable is that? It was a little bubble of bliss popping out his mouth. Did Harry really want to make Louis die, every time they saw each other, of his cuteness? Louis thought he did; he must've been doing it on purpose.It had the same effect on Louis as that booming laugh on the top of the hill many weeks ago did. It made his heart swell and he grinned through his returning giggle so much it hurt his cheeks. It was almost flattering that Harry had the confidence to smile and laugh. With him.So they giggled and smiled, chuckled and blushed, grinned and bloomed. It was just...lovely, a lovely few hours.Backtracking to the Sunday morning after 'the club incident', it was a wary time for Louis. He wasn't sure whether Harry would be awkward or annoyed at him and completely diminish his forgiving streak for the older boy. He woke up, Harry wrapped in his arms sleeping peacefully. At first, it was a bit of a shock. The blue paint of the walls was a shock to his system firstly. When his eyelids creaked open, covered in that film of sleep, the blue blur confused his mind. His walls weren't blue; in fact, they were a bright shade of white, and he'd only repainted them a month or so prior so they couldn't have discoloured that quickly. The light blue shade reminded him of his old bedroom in Doncaster, washing a wave of reminiscing memories over his mind. He remembered waking up time and time again, staring at that blue wall in front of him and almost praying to it that it'd close in on him and he wouldn't have to get up for school. But then he tended to get a text from Zayn with either some confession about the party last night or a rudely pleasant wake up call.When he realised he wasn't in his room, the next thing he noticed with the heavy weight he was holding onto. It wasn't bone crushing; it was rather light actually. It wasn't as light as a pillow though, which was something he tended to do when he got lonely. He, subconsciously somehow, sometimes manoeuvred the pillow in between his body and snuggled into it as if it were a person. It was always particularly embarrassing when he woke up in that position along with a wet stain seeping into the material. And no, it wasn't piss.His eyes floated down in curiosity to the lingering weight. He spotted the brown curls that were splayed over the pillow, and just like that, everything came rushing back.It took him a few minutes to gather his thoughts, but soon enough he relaxed back into the bed, back into Harry. He remembered how he'd nervously approached the house, the acceptance from Anne, the huge heart-swelling hug from Harry when he greeted him, the tucking the boy in, the chat with Anne, the distressed boy pulling him upstairs, to the final moments of falling into sleep with the boy in his arms.Harry had somehow turned around during the night and his head was snuggled into Louis' neck. His soft breaths were hitting off the skin, goosebumps rising around the area that it victimised. His lips were parted a little, his mouth being a bit ajar. There was a quiet purr sounding through the silent air from Harry's lips, just loud enough to be heard.Louis wondered if he was being creepy, as he stared at the boy who was fast asleep, but he couldn't help looking at how peaceful he looked.He didn't seem as young as he did in the early hours of the morning. He looked older, more mature. It wasn't like he'd suddenly turned wrinkly with a beard, but he just didn't look so childlike. It was as if the switch in his mind that turned him so childlike during panic had been flicked off, and he'd returned back to his more mature self. His features were light and carefree, but his jaw looked so prominent and chiselled, and his lips looked so pink and raw, and his skin wasn't perfect and still had some blemishes.He looked gorgeous.Louis almost felt like something had happened the night before, something far from innocent. It hadn't, obviously, but the way he was looking down at the boy and feeling so much admiration for him, he was surprised when his thoughts returned back to normal that he hadn't just had sex with his boyfriend - after all, it was a tendency of his to do such thinking after said activities.The calm serenity was broken, however, when a - Louis didn't know how to describe it, really, it was an odd noise - snort of some sort, mixed with a grumble and a groan sounded from Harry's sleeping form. Well, not sleeping as of then, because his eyes were fluttering open. During this sleeping noise, Harry had managed to flip himself over so he was lying on his front, his face pressed into Louis' shoulder. His nose and lips were squished against the flesh, only the sides of his face visible. Harry's nose was a little chilly on Louis' warm skin; it felt rather nice, very real.Little flashes of green flickered through the milky skin of Harry's eyelids, opening for less than a second and closing for random lengths of time until they opened and closed regularly every few seconds in a blink.Louis could only see one of his eyes as Harry's face was squashed against his flesh, but he saw the way they slowly registered his surroundings. They froze in shock and stared at the tanned skin when they realised that the skin of his face wasn't resting on a cushiony pillow, it was actually flesh. He could feel the lack of breath hitting off his arm when Harry froze too; it was like his whole body couldn't stop the reaction to the new 'pillow' he had. He obviously registered the hold that was around him, and he tensed to a stiffness.Slowly, his body rolled over and his eyes peeped under hooded lids to see Louis. Louis tried to grace his lips with a reassuring smile, hoping it didn't come out creepy. It seemed to work, as Harry seemed to sigh in relief - or at least Louis hoped it was relief, it was too genuine not to be - and give a tiny nod of a greeting, offering a little tug at the lips before turning his face back into the pillow again.Louis frowned down at him, confused by his dismissive actions. He expected at least some kind of reaction: an angry expression, a hurt expression, maybe if he was really lucky an overjoyed expression - although he knew that was unlikely."You alright, Haz?" Louis didn't realise how croaky his morning voice was until he spoke just then. Well, croaky sounds too frog-like; it was just really rough and so different to his soft, high tone he usual composed himself with. It cracked on the first word, evidence that he hadn't used his vocal chords in hours and that they had been coated in sleep. He coughed to rid him of said thickness, and repeated his question with more clarity.Harry just harrumphed heavily into the pillow.Well, Louis thought, that was insightful.Silence dragged on for a few minutes as Louis thought of what to say. Harry's deep breathing fanned through the air as he stuffed his face into the pillow and his breathing became laboured.Although he wasn't getting much of a reaction, Louis appreciated the little bit of recognition he got before; he could've been completely ignored by the lad. At least Harry wasn't mad at him. He didn't seem to think that Louis had taken advantage of him. And the stiffness in his body was only because it was a shock to feel arms around him; it didn't continue when he noticed that it was Louis. He was going to be moody, Louis knew that, and tiredness seemed to come as a package deal with that. I mean, he even smiled a little, what more could Louis want?The pull of hunger in Louis' stomach sparked a conversational idea off. "Are you hungry yet? D'you want some breakfast?" his hand rose up to cup the back of Harry's head, stroking it gently. His thumb moved slightly from side to side, rubbing the hair that masked just behind Harry's ear. He felt Harry's head push back a little into the touch as if to say he was enjoying the comforting stroke.Harry shook his head languidly and made a similar noise as before. He turned his face back to the side, facing Louis, and had his eyes closed for sleep."Do you mind if I go get something to eat? You look like you just want to sleep so it'll be easier if I'm not in the bed with you..."Harry seemed to have lost that clingy mood he was in the night previous and he just 'pffted' with an unconcerned scrunch of his nose. His face snuggled back into the pillow and he sighed out deeply, set to return to sleep.Louis nodded to nobody in particular, and muttered a 'right' as he decided what to do. He set upon clambering over Harry, trying not to wrestle him too much. When he pulled his arm from underneath the boy, he felt a surge of pins and needles when the blood rushed back into it; he hadn't even noticed the numbness Harry's weight left. His body slipped from under the covers and his nimble feet carefully took him over Harry's body and onto the carpeted floor with little trouble.With one spared look over his shoulder as he creaked the door open and slipped out almost silently, bar the click of the door, Louis slowly made his way down to the kitchen in search of some food, feeling somewhat pleased with Harry's reaction. Louis thought of it as a success.And then Louis found the leaflet, pamphlet, advertisement: whatever you want to call it. It was bright, garishly bright, and it used many a range of Word Art's finest; so overall, it wasn't the most attractive. But it caught Louis' eye, and that was the main point.Fair enough, Harry didn't directly give it to him; he didn't offer it to him on a golden platter. But it was so obviously sticking out of Harry's back pocket that Louis couldn't resist but snatch it from its confines. Before Harry had been able to react, Louis jumped from the stool and ran to the corner of the room. He held the leaflet right in front of his face, as if it were going to help him read it quicker and easier. His eyes scanned the page quickly as he saw Harry's figure stumble over to him, filtering the information as fast as he could.Sooner than anticipated, a hand slashed down on the paper and ripped it from Louis' hands. Harry hid it behind his back secretively, his face pouting in frustration."Aw babe, don't be like that," Louis whined, placing a pout on his lips to match Harry's. The younger boy's pout cracked a little as Louis imitated him, a restraining chuckle caught behind his twitching lips.He wound his arms around Harry's waist with a mischievous glint in his eye. His hands flapped around in search of the hands that clutched the leaflet. His arms kept flailing by Harry's waist, twisting the younger boy to the side so he was almost bending over. A laugh bubbled from Harry's lips as Louis continued to wrestle with him, all for that little piece of paper. Louis' fingers finally graced the flimsy material and latched onto it for dear life. It was, however, denied from him as Harry refused to let the older boy take it."Why don't you want me to see it?" Louis asked softly, detonating the playful mood into a certain calmness. Harry straightened his posture with a sigh, and shook his head almost remorsefully."It's only about the school talent show though, isn't it? How they need a replacement for an act who dropped out?" Harry nodded and shrugged, trying to act nonchalant and brush off the conversation."So why don't you want me to see it?" Louis enquired quietly. Harry sighed heavily and pulled away from Louis, slumping down on the stool and grasping the sheet of music from the stand. He nabbed a pen and scribbled on the back of it:Because you'll try persuade me to do it.Louis quickly snatched a pen from the lid of the piano and directed the paper towards himself.What's so wrong with that?Harry's expression wasn't too, well, expressive, but Louis could see the glint of incredulity in his eye.Because I don't want to do it?But whynot though?Louis sighed; he could tell it was going to be a tricky task already. Harry's eyes were streaming with determination as he scratched onto the page.Because I just don't want to....what's the big deal?The big deal is the fact I know it'll do you good but you're just ignoring me!Harry rolled his eyes and shot Louis a hard glare. He knew this wasn't an argument, and Harry's glare wasn't that of anger; it was just mild frustration. Louis was experiencing the same thing because all he wanted was for Harry to listen. Not to sound cocky, but Louis knew these things. He was in the entertainment industry, as such, and he'd performed a million times over; so he knew that this small talent show would be good for Harry.How the hell is everyone laughing at me a good thing?!Harry's glare was transfixed on the piano keys, staring downwards as he pushed the paper forcefully over to Louis. His curls cascaded a little over his face, but Louis could still see the bleak, set expression on his face.Louis felt a surge of sadness through his veins, pricking his skin with worry.Was that truly what Harry thought would happen? Why would he even feel the need to think that? What put that thought in his mind? Just...why?"Harry," Louis almost whimpered. As he went to talk, Harry snatched the paper back to him and scribbled on it grittily.I don't want your sympathy, okay? I don't want any fucking pity or sadness on my behalf. And don't patronise me either because I've had enough of that to serve me for a lifetime. I don't want that from you of all people.Louis felt his heart sink. He couldn't really describe why his heart dropped to the pit of his stomach, but he presumed it was the fact that Harry seemed so persistent in his words. Like he was sick, tired and exhausted of the pity. Louis wasn't sure what to say; he had so much buzzing around in his mind, but nothing seemed to conform into coherent words.It was the lack of confidence that stuck through to Louis' core. He'd never had that problem; confidence was just threaded through his genes, but here was a boy with little to no confidence. Everyone he'd associated himself with was loud and sometimes slightly arrogant: that's what half the students in his Uni were. That's what they had to be to get by. But Harry wasn't experiencing that, and Harry was Louis' main focus.Eventually, Louis settled on simplicity:They aren't going to laugh at you, Harry...Harry scoffed out loud, like Louis' words were total bullshit.Of course they will. I'm not that stupid, Lou. How do you know they will though? You're incredible, Harry. They aren't going to laugh at someone with so much talent like you have. If anything, they'll be stunned into silence.It took a while for Harry to reply. At first he just stared blankly at the paper. Then, once he'd picked up the pen and put the nib to the sheet, he didn't move it. He just sat there, staring. Finally, after he spent time writing, but then scribbling out his words, he spoke out:But they don't like me...Louis felt his heart shatter. He shut his eyes tight closed. He breathed in deeply through his nose to calm his burning emotions that were avalanching through his body.It was so simple: so short - but not so sweet.It exerted so much...so much loneliness, sadness, regret and a splash of bitterness. Although it wasn't said in spite or aggression, it was said in somewhat sorrowful confession. Louis could imagine the words floating in the air; the way they'd be written in a dull light grey, a gradient of light blue washing down the dreary colour to the bottom of the letters. The font would be droopy but strong and still have some form, the way that the words were sorrowful but Harry had the power to admit them. They'd swish through the air but keep sinking, sinking down until they rested in Harry's heart and chained themselves there. Louis wanted to be the key to unlock those words. He wanted to take them and smash them into little shards. He'd throw them out, throw out Harry's unconfident and pessimistic view on the people he went to school with. And then he'd replace them with his name; so Harry would have him in his heart to remind him that somebody outside of his home cared for him."Harry," Louis repeated, similarly to before. "Don't say that, please."Don't say what? You know that's what's going to happen. They aren't going to cheer and clap for someone they fucking hate. They'll boo me and jeer at me and I really don't want my school life to be any worse than it is.Fuck, Harry. You don't realise how good you are, do you? Regardless or not of whether you're best fucking buddies with them, they aren't going to deny that you can play really bloody well. It'll be great for you, Haz, it really will. You'll gain so much confidence and you'll make your Mum so so proud.No, Louis, I'm not doing it. You can't persuade me, whatever you do, okay?You'll make me proud..Harry sighed loudly and ran his fingers through his messy curls in despair. He shot Louis a cursory glance as he did so, and let out a low and quiet growl of frustration.Don't do this, Louis. Don't guilt trip me into doing this, please.I'm not guilt tripping you! I'm just telling the truth! I'd be so proud of you Harry. I can't even tell you how proud I'd be. C'mon, Haz, you know deep down that it's a good idea. You know that you'd feel so proud of yourself and so much more confident once you'd done it. I know deep down that you want to do it.Harry repeated a similar reaction to what he did before, sighing and gripping at his brown locks. His face looked torn: undecided and nervous.I don't think I can do it, Lou. I know what you're saying, and some of me agrees with you, it does, but I don't think I can actually...do it...You can, baby, you can. Think of how good it'll be after; think of the feeling you get when you play in this room, but then times that by ten because I know from experience that afterwards, the feeling is practically euphoric.I just...it's scary...I know it is, I've been there, remember? I practically do it for a living. I may come across confident, but I still get nervous before I go up on stage, no matter how small the performance is. But I have people around me who support me and wish me luck and make me feel so...so confident to kick everyone's asses that I put on the best performance of my life every time. You can do that, Harry.I can't though! I don't have those people there to help me, not like you do. I don't have an endless string of friends telling me good luck, telling me to break a leg but they know I'll be amazing anyway. The people in the crowd aren't my friends. I know they aren't my enemies, but they aren't people who like me. I don't have that support!Fuck, Harry, you do. You've got your Mum, and I'm sure Gemma could spare some time to come and support you, or at least call you. Even Robin! Robin's there to send you a text from whichever fancy country he's in now, just to wish you luck. And you've got someone who just wants to see you happy, someone who just wants to see that smile that he knows you'll shine after the performance because it's the smile which makes him burn with bliss and it's the smile he wants to see every single day; you've got me.Harry's sparkling green eyes peeked up through his long eyelashes at Louis. They searched his face, scoping out Louis' expression for any insincerity that he knew wouldn't be there, but he had to check. In all honesty, the words made Harry's heart burst in his chest. His breathing almost felt constricted as he read through the words, his breaths becoming thicker with every word.Harry felt cared for. And it was a wonderful feeling.Louis' face expressed nothing but honesty, no hint of a lie. He meant it, from the bottom of his heart. A tiny tug at the lips was confirmation that he didn't need to force it out of himself to say such kind and meaningful words; they were all natural when it came to Harry.Harry's expression to Louis spoke out: "do you really mean that?""I really do mean it, Harry, so much it's kinda unreal," he chuckled dryly.Harry still had a look of indecision on his face, like he was having a mental battle with himself."Just go for it, Harry," Louis urged softly.Harry picked up his pen and quickly scribbled on the page:You'll definitely be there?"Every single second," Louis said truthfully, pronouncing every syllable to make it obvious that he was going to do as he said.Harry nodded, almost questionably, like he wasn't sure whether he should be agreeing or not."Yeh?" Louis said, all wide eyes and encouraging smiles.It took Harry a few minutes to conjure up his definitive answer, but before Louis knew it, Harry was nodding with more determination than before; telling him that, yes, he was going to perform in front of the school. And Louis had made that happen.Friday 9Louis spotted Harry from afar; he could spot those distinguishable curls from any distance. He scuttled through the school gates, past the groups of people making their way into the school grounds. He could only see the back of Harry, leaning against the car, and could just make out the figures of two women beside him. He quickened his pace, his Converse padding on the gravel as he got closer. He could see Anne's body as she was standing facing him, but he couldn't see the other female face as her back was facing him. But he had an inkling as to who it was.He noticed Anne's eyes glance over to him, and then her gesture his entrance to Harry. Harry's head shot around immediately, along with the girl's too. His face lit up with a happy and relieved expression, and he scampered over to Louis quickly.Louis took in the younger boy's outfit as the boy approached him. He'd wanted Louis to help him choose what to wear, but with late practising on a Friday, Louis didn't have the chance to call over. He trusted Anne to make the right decision if Harry was stuck, and it seemed like she had. Because Harry was performing, he couldn't look sloppy. He had to look smart, that was what he was told. Louis knew it was a monumental moment for Harry, to show himself in different attire to his school clothes for presumably one of the first times -especially when all eyes would be on him-, but with the smart dress code he couldn't really stray from the usual school wear.However, he wore a crisp white shirt that looked thick and had the small, dark blue Abercrombie&Fitch logo on, tucked into his low slung black skinny jeans which were held up by a brown belt. Louis thought he looked gorgeous, hot, fit, and any other word which just screamed sex. The way the shirt was tucked in and his pants were low extenuated his long torso, which Louis had so many times admired. Maybe it was becoming some sort of, at the risk of sounding crude, fetish he had with the boy.Louis couldn't hold back the grin on his face, white teeth baring in all their fineness, and he pulled Harry into a hug straight away. Harry didn't fight the hug, only because he was evidently nervous as hell. His breathing was ragged and his hands were shaking as they came to rest on Louis' back."Hey, hey," Louis began softly in Harry's ear. "Calm down, Haz, it's going to be fine."He pulled back to see Harry's face in full view. The younger boy's face was cast downwards with his curls falling over his eyes. Louis hesitantly placed his finger under Harry's chin, and raised it to normal level slowly. Harry's green eyes were shut softly, scared to open and face reality."Look at me," Louis whispered. Harry shook his head weakly, a furrow forming between his eyebrows."Harry, look at me," Louis repeated, sound coming through his voice.After a scrunch of his features, Harry finally cracked his eyes open into the depth of Louis' blue orbs. Louis stared right back at him, not allowing Harry to break the eye contact for the first time since they'd met.Harry needed it; he didn't want to stop it. Louis' eyes were pools of aqua that had reassurance, hope and pride floating on the surface as specks of green and gold. They seemed endless, like the colour went on forever and ever.Harry hadn't looked in many eyes, but he was sure these eyes in front of him were the best you could find.Louis, on the other hand, had seen the green orbs before him already, but that wasn't to say he'd seen them so close. He'd had flashes, glimpses, of the beauty. It sound cliché and cheesy, but Louis couldn't help but immerse himself in the perfect shade of green that drenched Harry's wide eyes. They shone with inexplicable worry, but had a hint of ambition.Louis could've stared in them for days."You listen to me, Haz," Louis' quiet voice was shaky and weak. "You are going to do perfectly in there, I just know you are, so don't go get all panicky on me, alright?"Harry nodded tentatively before shrugging and shaking his head as if to say "it's not that though..""What is it? Tell me, babe," Louis urged delicately.Harry's eyes reluctantly glanced to the side, flickering around the school entrance where there were gatherings of students who were, perhaps, waiting for their friends. They stood in their casual clothes, laughing and joking, big smiles on their faces. They looked smart enough, bar a few of the boys who didn't even look like they wanted to be there but had been dragged along by their girlfriends. His eyes lingered on them with sadness and concern."Is it them? Are you worried that the other students won't want you here?"Harry's nod was meek and almost guilty. His attention turned back to Louis and he ducked his head and sucked in his bottom lip."Oh, Haz. You've got to get some confidence into you. They won't mind, silly, you're allowed to come to these things; it's your school life too." Louis noticed Anne and the girl making their way over to the boys, edging slowly as not to interfere. "And anyway, I don't see them having the guts to perform, do you?"Louis shot Harry a cheeky grin, patting his shoulder reassuringly, and turned to greet Anne. He hugged her tightly, melting into the motherly embrace."Thank you for persuading him, Lou; I'm so glad you did," Anne said gratefully as they pulled away."My pleasure," Louis smiled sincerely. "Gotta get some confidence into this little rascal don't we?" he said, pulling Harry into a head lock playfully and ruffling his hair around into a mess. Harry wriggled around in the position and broke free. He had a jokey pout on his face that was curled upwards at the ends as his hands scrambled to sort out the mess Louis had made with his hair.He heard an unfamiliar chuckle and his eyes locked onto a girl with, well, very familiar looking eyes. They were similar to the ones he'd just stared deeply into, -although not as perfect, because really, nobody's eyes could be as perfect as Harry's, really- and as he scanned her feature, he notices hints of Anne bursting through."Louis, I don't think you've met Gemma before, have you?" Anne said friendlily."No, I can't say I have," he stepped forward towards the fashionably dressed, pretty girl. "Louis Tomlinson," he offered with a smile."Gemma Styles," she said with a sweet smile whilst surging forward to embrace Louis in a welcoming hug."We should probably get going now, it's nearly show time!" Anne cheered joyfully. She linked her arm through Gemma's and pulled her over to the entrance. Louis sent Harry an encouraging glance and threw his arm over the younger boy's shoulder, guiding him over to the building.As they entered the hall where the performances would take place, Louis spotted that the seating had the majority of it filled. There were students and parents scattered around, but it was mainly students. Some of them were engaged in deep conversation, gossiping excitedly, and some were just aimlessly staring around the room as they waited for the show to begin.As the family, plus Louis, entered, Harry's head suddenly lowered and his eyes were cast down onto the ground. Louis wanted nothing but to pull his face up and feed him an ounce or two of confidence so that he didn't have to feel the need to clam up, but he soon realised why Harry was so shy. Heads turned towards them and an instant disapproving look etched upon some of the students' faces. They looked the boy up and down, judging him. Some of the lads whispered over to their mates, pointing towards Harry with a mocking expression.Louis was baffled as to why some, not all, of the teenagers would be so utterly ignorant and judgemental. Yes, he hadn't been in schooling for a few years, but he was sure it was never this bad at his school. Maybe he hadn't taken the time to notice some of the quieter students; after all, he did have quite a big presence and that might have overpowered his remembrance of the shier teenagers. But still, it wasn't normal to act such a way. Harry wasn't getting bullied in school, he knew that, but this kind of reception wasn't nice at all. Just because Harry had probably never gone to any of these events before didn't mean he couldn't do now.Anne and Gemma seemed oblivious as they faffed around finding the seats they were allocated, but Louis couldn't help but notice every face that seemed surprised to see Harry there. It wasn't as if they were going to jeer the boy, or anything of the similar, but it made it look like Harry wasn't meant to be there. Their shocked faces might have been because of the tight arm that Louis had wound around Harry's waist. He didn't realise when it had wandered downwards, but he suspected it was in comfort when Harry dropped his head."You okay?" Louis whispered into Harry's ear as they slowly walked over to the door leading backstage. Harry's head was still directed at the floor but he nodded nonetheless. They stopped at the stairs that led to it, and Louis stood in front of the younger boy."Hey," Louis said quietly over the bustle of the audience. He did as he did before, gently lifting Harry's chin up so he could look at the boy's face properly. "I want you to listen to me, okay? I want you to listen to everything I say next."Harry looked at Louis in agreement, turning up his lips into a promising smile."This is all from experience, okay? So like, believe me, I know how you feel right now. Forget everyone in the crowd. Forget all those bastards there and focus on your performance. Immerse yourself in your music, Harry. Lose yourself in it. If you need support, then look towards me or your Mum, or Gemma if you like, but I can assure you that you don't need us. As much as you think you do, you don't. Because you're strong inside, Harry; you're a fighter. You've got that determination and you've got that motivation to make this the best performance you'll ever give. You should see how amazing you look tonight, Haz. You look like a real performer; you look absolutely gorgeous. Just believe that you are, because I know from the bottom of my heart that you are a performer and that tonight you'll show everyone what you're made of."(x) The stage was dark except for one spotlight blaring down onto a piano which stood silent. The piano was on a slant, and the curly haired boy's poised fingers could be seen from the seat Louis was in. Harry's head was drooped forward; Louis could see his back contracting and relaxing as he presumably breathed in to calm his nerves.His head flickered up and his eyes searched for those bright blues. It wasn't long, merely seconds, until he connected with them. Louis made sure that his eyes were soft, exerting nothing but support, encouragement and pure pride. He was proud of Harry even just sitting there, regardless of the fact his fingers hadn't pressed down on the keys. Harry had never done this kind of thing before, so it was a big step for him; that in itself made Louis' heart swell because he caused that; he encouraged the boy to do that.Once Louis had filtered so much belief into Harry, the boy returned to the keys, focussed and drenching himself in the piano and the piano only.It started off relatively slow, soft presses on the keys which set the mood of the piece. It was a plain tinkling, simple but had complexity behind it from the extra notes added to complete it. It was a somewhat mellow, sinking-heart type of mood. You could feel your heart beating with every base note, swaying with the sounds. It wasn't long before the higher notes came into play, displaying Harry's ability to hold both the deep undertone but carry out the blurred sharpness of the higher pitched. It was gentle, how he played those notes, not too much pressure so to keep the song in its drifting mood.Harry's head was down, hiding his face, but Louis knew his eyes would be tight shut. His expression would be relaxed, except for the squeezed closed eyelids which would be pensive because of his need to feel only the music.It was simple enough, when concentrating on the higher notes. But this simplicity didn't seem to be frowned upon in the room; it was actually mesmerising. The room was deathly silent. Every eye was focused on the single boy. Every ear was tuned in to the sounds floating out of the piano. Every mind never wanted it to end.And then it got complex. The notes were fast and the speed in which Harry's fingers moved was inexplicable. He did it with such ease, like it was second nature to be so experienced at the tender age of 16. Harry's head wasn't as still as it was when the softer notes approached; it was swaying with the force of his fingers. It was like the musical energy was surging through his veins and causing any possible part of his body to move and succumb to such entrancing sounds.It returned to its quietness and it's serenity for a little, the perfect balance between bursting passion and simple love for the instrument. The passion returned again with quick tinkling fingers, gradually slowing down over time until it ended on the perfect chords.The room was silent. Jaws were dropped and tears filled eyes. Those tearful eyes mainly belonged to Louis, Anne and Gemma, because, God, Louis was practically weeping with pride. When the applause erupted and Harry was heaved out of his musical pool of passion, drenched in his achievement, his face turned to the audience with shock plastered all over it. His eyes were widened with surprise before he noticed that that reaction was for him. And then he smiled, toothy and albeit just to himself as he flushed scarlet and looked down to the ground, but he smiled nonetheless.That was when the tears streamed a little faster down Louis' face because, fuck, he was so proud of his boy, more than he could ever imagine. Seeing him like that made Louis want to scream from the rooftops that Harry had just performed to around 300 people and he'd done it perfectly. When Harry scuttled off the stage, a quaint and pleased smile on his lips, Louis turned and clung onto Anne who was crying like a proud mother would. He wiped his eyes with a watery chuckle, but knew the feeling of pride wouldn't wipe away any time soon.It was a painful -that was the only way to describe it- twenty minutes that Louis had to wait for the show to end. One reason was that, well, let's just say this dance act was particularly cheesy. Pompoms and neon bright clothes weren't really Louis' thing, especially when the clothes were incredibly short on the girl's bodies and the dancing was more like grinding than dancing. The other reason, the main reason, was that he had to wait the excruciatingly long length of time to go see Harry. The boy was still backstage, and was only allowed to leave when the show had finished, so Louis had no way of telling him how proud he was until after the show. He considered sneaking off, pretending he needed a piss or something, but a curt glare from the woman in front when he told his plan to Anne was the decision maker that he really had to stay.When the show ended and people started filing out, Louis immediately jumped up, grabbing Anne's hand who grabbed Gemma's, and wound the three of them through the crowd to the door backstage. He opened the door and charged through the passing performers, looking for those infamous curls.Anne spotted them first, pointing him out and calling the boy with excitement in her voice. She rushed over to him and pulled him into the tightest hug she could, and for once it was returned with much vigour. Louis trundled over, not wanting to break the moment, and stood away from them, watching Harry interact with his mother. Gemma stepped in next, not giving her brother as long a hug but expressing as much happiness and pride as her mother did.The smile never left Harry's face.And then his jade green eyes flickered over to the lingering blue eyed boy. They lit up, thrilled. His grin turned into a closed lipped smile, but it was equally as bright. It was softer than the toothy smile, more sincere and with a hint of gratefulness. Anne and Gemma crept to the side and let Louis walk over to Harry. He struggled keeping his pace normal, when all he wanted to do was sprint and knock the younger boy down into a bone crushing hug, sprawled on the floor.When he reached Harry, he stood in front of him, eyes looking up a slight bit at the taller boy. He looked into those green eyes which seemed so susceptible to expression, and he made sure that Harry looked back into puddles of pride."I'm so proud of you," Louis whispered, finding that his voice was too weak to come out strong.Harry closed his eyes softly in acceptance, a content smile lighting up his face. When his eyes opened, they shone happiness.Louis couldn't resist it any longer and soon enough his arms were wrapped around Harry's neck and he was hugging him tightly. He felt long arms encase his back as Harry hugged back. His face was pressed into the warm skin of Harry's neck, as was Harry's to his. They stood in their embrace for as long as they could. It was as if their touching limbs were transferring the pride that Louis felt, and the gratefulness that Harry needed to express to Louis.They pulled away, reluctantly, and after a prolonged stare into the other's eyes and whispers of pride falling from Louis' lips, Harry randomly took Louis' right hand in his."What are you-" Louis started, but Harry held his finger up to quiet him.Slowly, Harry used a pointed finger to trace two letters onto Louis' palm delicately."T...Y" Louis read out as Harry tickled his palm with the letters. "TY?"Harry nodded brightly.Louis wracked his brains for the words starting with T and Y, but found none in his repertoire at that moment. His brain still wasn't up to scratch from Harry's emotional performance; it couldn't be expected of him to know any out of the ordinary words.Harry sighed a little, joking of course, and repeated the action, slower this time.And Louis gasped a little when he worked it out, looking up at the boy with hope from where he had stared at his tingling palm."Thank you?" he asked somewhat breathlessly.Harry nodded enthusiastically, grinning dazzlingly.Louis choked on his breath as he came to terms with Harry's actions and words. Again, he forgot about pre-warnings and jumped into Harry's arms. His legs wrapped around Harry's waist and his arms kept hold around his neck.He whispered into Harry's ear with utmost sincerity and honesty;"Anything for you."