A Not So Fun Fair (L.S.)

• 7 •

Louis proceeded to feed Harry spoons of the yummy food. While the younger one was chewing properly, which he only did because Louis scolded him for swallowing too fast, Louis managed to get a few bites from his own plate.

Again, Louis held a spoon of food in front of Harry's puffy lips but this time Harry didn't open his mouth. He looked up to the older boy and murmured: "'M' full". Louis' lips formed to an o-shape and he exclaimed: "You're full? Nah, that's okay! Would you like to go up and get ready for bed then?".

Harry listened to Louis' words and shook his head frantically. He didn't want to go up to his room. At least not by himself. He was still convinced that Carrot would be super mad at him. Maybe he would even try to hurt him in his sleep for not bringing him a friend. He loved Carrot so much and he felt so sorry, considering that Carrot was alone most of the time. He was in need of a friend and Harry couldn't even do that little favour for him.

Well - Harry tried. He really did. He was just too dumb, too weak, too stupid to win a stuffie. Those thoughts came crushing down on him and he didn't realize that tears were pooling in his eyes again until he felt a thumb wiping the first tears away.

"What's the matter, darling?" his mum asked. Her tone conveyed worry and fear. She knew that she could trust Louis but she was still in the dark about all the things that had happened at the funfair.

Harry tensed when hearing his mother's voice. He needed to get his grip together.

'You're a big boy! You're a fucking big boy' he told himself and flinched at his own thought when the f-word was mentioned.

"Hey, you're okay" Louis tried to soothe him upon the flinch. His left hand made its way behind the boy's back to caress his warm skin. He expected a reaction. Any reaction would have provided relief for his aching heart but Harry sat there like some sort of stone.

In reality, his thoughts were racing. He tried to get a grip together. He had probably already embarrassed himself in front of the guests and he needed it to stop. So he sat there, spacing in and out of thought until he came back to his senses.

All eyes were on him now and to say he felt uncomfortable was an understatement. His mum's eyes held worry while he was sure to spot amusement in Edwards' friends' eyes. "I-I think I'll go upstairs" he rushed and wriggled out of Louis' gentle grip. It clattered for a few seconds when Harry bumped the dining table with his hip but once the noises had subsided, all that was heard were heavy footsteps running upstairs.

Anne's and Louis' eyes met. Both felt like drowning in the tension so Anne put on a smile and asked: "Does anyone want dessert?".

Upstairs, Harry had locked his door once he entered his room. "I'm such a fuckup" he murmured to himself. He was pressed with his back against the door and kept his gaze to the floor while his lungs caused his chest to sink and rise heavily.

He sighed and pushed his body away from the door. Then he just stood there, in the middle of the room. He was not tired at all but he was exhausted. What a terrible feeling. He just let his eyes wander around his room until his gaze feel on carrot, who was safely tucked under his bedsheets.

He shrieked and turned away. Immediately, the fuzzy feeling started to conquer his mind. Harry couldn't help but think about how he left carrot here all alone. And he didn't even manage to bring him a friend.

His hands wiped at his eyes as he murmured: "I so sowwy cawot. Hawwy no..Hawwy no wanna" he struggled to find his words and as he tried to continue his talk, the words erupted in sobs. He turned around and approached the rabbit stuffie.

"Hawwy sowwy!" he cried and carefully lifted the stuffie up to give it a gentle hug. Fat tears rolled down his cheeks as he sobbed. His heart was breaking for carrot. He must have felt so lonely.

Whereas his body felt tense in the beginning, his muscles now started to soften and he felt the exhaustion creep up like the monsters under his bed at night. Slow but steady.

A loud yawn escaped his mouth and his eyes started to droop. "Hawwy go nigh nigh now" he whispered to himself and put carrot back onto his bed. He would join him in a minute.

First, he took off all of his clothes and threw them on the ground before heading to his wardrobe to pull out his favourite onesie. It was pastel pink and had many pretty flowers printed on it. He even owned a matching binky, which he snatched from his bedside table before sliding it between his soft lips.

He started sucking on the silicone before he even touched the bed, which added to the difficulty. After a final gaze around his room, he jumped onto his bed fast, so the monsters under the bed didn't have a chance to grip onto his feet.

His arms welcomed carrot in a tight hug and then, Harry pulled the sheets over his body.

"Gu' nigh cawwot" he whispered and pulled his binky out of his mouth, which was already wet with drool, to give carrot a kiss to the head before he put it back in. After some minutes, he was out like a light.

He was so fast asleep, that he didn't even notice the door opening.