Hands On Learning

34. good luck

Mr. Styles

When the man had finished his meditation, he felt much more calm and grounded. He was at peace, if only for a short while. He went upstairs and showered, humming a quiet tune to himself that he couldn't remember where he'd heard before.

He'd just gotten dressed when he heard a knock on the front door.

"Who the hell?" he muttered as he went to answer it. He stopped walking several feet from the door. What if it's someone I shouldn't let in? What if it's Louis? Or Shawn?

He stood in the foyer, arms at his sides and motionless, debating on whether he should peek out the window to see who the visitor was, and risk letting them know that he'd heard the knock.

He sighed and decided to look. There sat his friend Niall on the steps, patiently waiting for him to answer. The man breathed a sigh of relief and opened the door. The blonde turned to look at him, his face patient and serene.

"Hey, Harry!" Niall greeted him, maybe a little too enthusiastically. "I thought you could use some company and good food." He stood and raised a pizza box, presenting it to Harry as if it were the holy grail. Mr. Styles snorted.

"You're probably right," he conceded. "Come in." He stepped back and Niall breezed past him, making himself at home in the kitchen and preparing their frozen feast. Harry followed him.

"Define good," he asked.

"Calm down, Scrooge," Niall teased. "It's organic." The blonde faced him for a moment and did jazz hands, getting a chuckle out of the other. "Oh and I brought O'Douls, you know the non alcoholic beers? I noticed you haven't been drinking lately. Figured I'd join you tonight."

Harry nodded. "Yeah, I have. I like myself better without it. Sometimes I can be an angry drunk, and that isn't who I want to be."

Niall nodded and cracked open two beers. He handed one to Harry and they clinked them together for a cheers.

"So," Niall asked after taking a sip. "I wasn't sure if Louis told you he got the interview? It's this Friday. He mentioned it in gym class and thanked me for the help."

Harry couldn't help his surprised expression and set down his drink. "He hadn't. That's great news," he said thoughtfully. He didn't know why he was surprised that Louis hadn't told him. After all, they were on a break and obviously not talking to one another. Regardless, he didn't like being left out of the loop, or Niall knowing more than him.

Niall spoke again, interrupting his thoughts. "That was cool of you to help him out. Like I said the other day, he seemed kind of off lately. Maybe that's what was bothering him."

"Well, he lacked guidance. Especially with no father figure in his life."

Niall's eyebrows raised. "I wasn't aware of that."

Shit.Harry recovered smoothly. "Oh, yes he mentioned he would write about his sister being the most influential person in his life, and that his parents split, in his application essay. He wanted feedback."

"I see." The oven beeped, signaling that it had been preheated, and Niall slid the pan of pizza into the oven. Soon the kitchen filled with the savory scent of cheese and bread. Harry felt lucky to have a good friend here, though he really needed to be more careful when they talked about Louis.

Niall stayed after they'd finished eating, watching the golf game at low volume on tv while Harry did his work. He wasn't sure if Niall thought that he was on the verge of a breakdown or something, or was simply keeping him company like he said earlier. Either way, it was nice to have someone around. He didn't feel lonely.