Coffee Boy

Chapter 8

Harry woke up, ready for another day of work. He took a shower and got dressed, grabbing a muffin on his way out. The fear of telling Louis haunted him all of last night and this morning. He arrived at the coffee shop, a little early for once, and got settled at the counter.

Norah and Liam had broken up a couple of days prior. After trying to get a reaction from Harry several times, and failing just as many, she finally gave up. This meant Liam was back to hovering over Harry's shoulder and being his usual, cruel self. During his break, Harry pulled out his phone and swiped to Louis' number. Clicking on messages, he stared at the keyboard, but was unable to write anything.

The days passed quickly and Harry started to feel panicked, almost like he would run out of time if he didn't say something soon. He came into the coffee shop on Friday, hoping to tell Louis that weekend. He walked through the door and suddenly froze at the familiar face he saw. Sitting upright on the couch was Oliver, his shoulders tense.

Once Harry walked in, Oliver immediately looked up, their eyes meeting. He looked as if he'd been waiting for Harry, and indeed he had. Harry sprinted behind the counter but Oliver was too fast for him.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" Oliver asked nervously. Harry quickly scanned the room, trying to find some sort of escape. "Umm..." he croaked, not wanting to lie but not wanting to tell the truth, either. "Please," Oliver begged. Harry could see how desperate he was, and knew this must be important. He nodded his head and they walked over to one of the couches.

They both sat down, Oliver anxiously bouncing his leg as Harry waited for him to say something. "I know you like Louis," he said suddenly. Harry was extremely taken aback. Oliver paused a moment before continuing. "You probably weren't expecting me to say that. But you make it kind of obvious if I'm honest." Harry's face became flushed, embarrassed by this set of news. "The thing is," Oliver continued, "I can tell that Louis likes you too." At this, Harry's eyes became as wide as saucers! Of course he'd had a hunch, but for it to be confirmed (and by the boyfriend no less) was absolutely crazy.

"How can you be sure?" he blurted out. Oliver let out a small, sad chuckle. "Oh come on, I see you guys when you're around each other. It's pretty easy to tell what's going on."

"And what do you think is going on?"

"Trust me when I say, you already know the answer to that." Harry ringed his hands together, uncomfortable having this conversation. He wasn't even out yet. But before he could think about it for a little while longer, Oliver started talking again. "But what I really wanted to tell you is that Louis and I broke up." Harry gasped loudly. "No. You can't --- . You shouldn't have --" he stumbled. But Oliver only shook his head.

"It's already done. And I want you to know that it's okay. Seeing you and Louis together, I know that we'll never have what you two have. I've needed to be honest with myself about this for a while now, actually. You and Louis have this unexplainable connection and I don't want to be in the way of that." Oliver looked into Harry's eyes, searching for a response.

Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing, though. Why was Oliver doing this??? Harry was about to interject when Oliver cut him off. "Please just listen to me. You need to tell Louis how you feel. And if me breaking up with him wasn't enough, I don't know what is." Oliver stood up and let out a big, deep breath. "Just talk to him. Okay?" He walked out the door and out of sight, leaving Harry alone with all this new information.

In an instant, realization hit Harry like a ton of bricks. Niall and Oliver were right, it was about time he told Louis how he felt. He jumped off the couch, breaking into a run. He could hear Liam's shouts in the background but ignored them as he fled for the door, throwing his apron to the ground. All he could focus on was Louis and finally being honest with him. He hopped in his car and raced down the street. Too hyper to wait for the elevator, he dashed up the stairs, skipping several steps on his way up.

Harry was now inches from the door. He stopped for a second, hesitant as his mind started to whirl again. This was it. It was now or never. He held up his hand and knocked on the door.