"Papa?"
"Yes, baby?"
"What does arrogant mean?"
Harry sighs, folding one of Katie's jumpers and setting it down on his bed. "Don't worry about it, Em," He says gently, shaking his head. "Just know you're not, okay?"
Emily's quiet, folding one of her pairs of leggings. The only time Harry ever gets laundry done is early in the morning, and Emily had happened to wake up a bit early as well. "Are you?" She asks after a moment.
"Hm?" Harry questions, folding one of his own shirts.
"Arrogant," Emily says. "Daddy said you were. He said we both were."
Harry puts the shirt down and sighs, looking up from the laundry and trying to think of what to say. "Your dad is a really good person," He says after a moment. And he does still believe that, to a degree. "And he loves both of you a lot, and equally. I think sometimes...he gets upset with me. And he takes it out on you, but he doesn't mean any of it."
"But why does he get upset with you?" Emily asks. "You're not mean to him. Is it because you broke up with him?"
Harry blinks, a bit taken aback. Never as he ever mentioned "breaking up" with Louis to the girls (it wasn't so much breaking up as it was throwing all of his belongings out the window). "I...no." He says after a few seconds. "I didn't break up with him. We both agreed we would be better off as friends than in a relationship."
"But you're not friends," Emily says. Harry feels as though there isn't a single parenting book out there that could prepare him for this conversation.
"Listen, babe," Harry says quietly, and Emily looks up at him. "Daddy and I have a complicated relationship compared to other people's parents, and I'm sorry. I know sometimes it makes things harder for you and Katie."
Emily's quiet for a second. "It's not your fault though," She says. "It's always Daddy's."
Harry swallows thickly. All he wants is for her and Katie to have the dad they deserve. "Why don't you go get ready for school?" He says, practically whispering.
"He's not a good person if he's mean to you," Emily says.
"Em," Harry nods towards the door. "School. Let's go." Emily pouts, but she obeys him and crawls off his bed. Harry stands there, staring down at the unfolded laundry in the laundry basket. He pulls his phone out of his pocket and sets a reminder to call his lawyer once he gets to work.
♛
"Really?" Harry asks, deflating a little. He sighs, leaning back and closing his eyes. "No, I know, it's not your fault." He knew it would be expensive to hire a lawyer, but he wasn't expecting it to be this expensive. "Um, I'll call you back and let you know, thanks. You too."
He hangs up the phone, licking his lips. At least he knows Louis doesn't have the money for a lawyer either. Until he can come up with it he'll just have to deal with it himself. He hears a throat clearing in front of him, and he looks up to see Luke standing there.
"Sorry didn't mean to scare you," Luke says, giving him a grin. Jesus, he is beautiful. Harry can feel his cheeks heat up. "Was gonna ask if you wanted to run down the street and get a coffee with me, but you look a bit stressed, so. Maybe an herbal tea instead?"
"Uh, yeah," Harry gives him a small smile. "Sure, sorry."
"No worries," Luke shakes his head, his smile softening. "Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, no, everything's fine," Harry assures, standing up and grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair. "Today would just be a really good day to win the lottery."
