Wrong Place To Rob [L.S.]

Fourteen:

I will protect you.

~~~

"What deal was Zayn talking about?"

It wasn't a long drive, so as soon as his breathing had calmed down, Louis asked him about what Zayn had yelled at Harry.

"He just- he kind of tried to threaten me so I wouldn't hurt you and, I told him I'd do anything to save you." He looked over at Louis a few times between focussing on the road. "I won't hurt you, ever, I'll protect you Louis."

Louis swallowed and nodded.

As he thought about everything that had been going on he actually did consider this the craziest part. He thought about Zayn helping Liam and Niall right now. Niall, how damn scared he was of him. Of course, after what he did to him it was kind of normal to be afraid but Niall's macho attitude and loads of smirks didn't exactly help.

"Where are we going after picking them up?"

"We have a spare hideout in case something would go wrong, like now. We're gonna pick'em up, hopefully they did what they had to do already, and drive over there," Harry tried not to rush his words as his hands were clenched around the wheel. He looked over at Louis, "Lou, I- Please understand I can't tell you where exactly it is. I already promised you and will keep my promise that I will do everything to protect you. From everyone and everything, Niall too, I'd fight him if I had to," He swallowed and looked deeply in Louis' eyes again, "that's how much I care."

Louis just kept looking down at his hands in his lap. He didn't really know what to say. He knew Harry meant it when he said he cared and if he was being honest, it did some things with the fluttering bug kind of things in his stomach. But Harry'd once again also pointed out he wasn't free. Not at all, he wasn't even allowed to know where the hideout was located and he really didn't know what to expect once they got there. Would he be locked again? Bored? Starved out?

He figured Harry probably didn't want to do that to him anymore, but then that led to a bigger question. Would he be allowed to walk around the house? Would he lock his room at night? Were they to sleep in the same room? In the same bed?

Louis startled out of his thoughts as the car came to an abrupt stop. Harry unbuckled himself and turned to Louis before getting out of the car, "Stay here, I'm gonna get them. Don't pull attention and if something happens, run, leave us behind, we'll figure something out."

"Harry are you- leaving me alone?"

"I'll be back soon, don't worry."

"No I mean, aren't you- aren't you scared I would...?" he trailed off, making up his own mind what would or could happen.

"Am I supposed to be worried?" Harry then breathed with a frown, catching up to what Louis was referring.

Louis was deep in thought but Harry mumbled he had to hurry so, knowing he needed more time to think about leaving or not, he shook his head no as a promise to stay still. Harry's lips curled in a small smile to confirm he trusted him and pecked his lips before leaving the car in front of the house and just stepped inside since the door was open.

So there he was, sitting alone in the car, keys gone but he could open the door from the inside. He could just leave right now if he wanted to, with that breaking his promise to Harry but what was a promise in this world? How did he knew Harry always told him the truth? Could he really trust anybody? He kept thinking and the streets were empty the whole time but when he saw a little kid running with ice cream in his hand he yearned for the kid's freedom, however silly it might've sounded.

He did want to leave, and realisation hit him as he looked over at the house, standing still with no hint of people being inside, maybe fighting, or just talking, maybe already dead.

He did want to leave and he thought it would even be kind of stupid not to. He was captured, a prisoner, he'd been abused and tortured. The burning in his stomach increased at the memory and his eyes almost became watery when Niall's smirk popped in his head again. Niall was still in the game.

Liam seemed calm at first, and then actually was like dangerous but then did absolutely nothing. Louis didn't understand what Liam was so his conclusion was that Liam was not dangerous, but also wouldn't help him out if something happened, if Niall happened.

Niall though, Niall was dangerous. Niall was a monster, that was for sure. it was Niall who tortured him and laughed while doing it. It was Niall who wanted to kill him first thing after catching them. It was Niall who didn't want to give him food those two weeks and it was Niall who yelled at Harry for keeping Louis alive. It was Niall that made him want to leave the most.

He looked over at the kid again until he was sure. He pulled at the door handle and pushed the car door open just a little. He watched the kid run a few meters and then jump into a woman's arms, his mother obviously. She smiled and kissed the little boy on his cheek as the boy giggled and licked his ice cream. Louis lightly smiled and stepped one foot out of the car, knowing he had wanted out of this situation for so long, he couldn't blow this chance.

The moment his second foot was placed on the ground his smile faded. A man had his arms wrapped around the woman's waist and she smiled back at him before setting her kid down to go play again and turning in the man's arms. They kissed and it genuinely looked like they were happy. They were free together.

Louis wanted that. Louis wanted to be free so badly right now but still something stopped him from leaving the car behind and run like he never had before. He wanted to leave the car behind, to leave the house, Liam and Niall and those apparently somewhat guilty people inside that house behind. He wanted to fucking leave and live his life like he was supposed to. He wanted to leave the nightmare but he knew it became some sort of dream every time Harry kissed him or touched him or even just looked at him.

It also popped up in his head how especially that last kiss before getting out of the car reminded him of one of the last episodes he saw of the show he was watching before all this, two boyfriends heading to the store and one pecking the other in their car before getting out. It was an oddly similar situation but the weirdest part was that he got an oddly similar feeling.

They weren't boyfriends though.

Harry was no boyfriend material.

His mind didn't make sense, none of his thoughts right now made sense because he was slowly getting back in the passenger seat of the car and closed the door. He didn't understand anything right now, especially not himself. How could he not leave, how could he fight that urge for freedom, how could he put himself back in the spotlights of the torture room just because he couldn't leave one stupid, curly haired, gorgeously eyed, living beauty behind.