Devil in Your Smile

Chapter 18, Bittersweet Memories

I wrote this while waiting on Harry's new song, sleep deprived and jittery, so forgive any mistakes I've made.  If you find any, comment and let me know:) 

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LOUIS POV

I let Niall enter, opening the door all the way, and watch as he sets the system up. Once he's connected the wires to the gigantic T.V that's mounted on the wall, he tosses me a remote and asks "What game did ya wanna play?" I look at the games that he's laid out, only recognizing one so I choose it, pointing at the green case. "Fifa? It's been a while since I've played that one, should give you the upper hand, but I'm still gonna beat ya. I never lose." I hide my smirk, settling in on the bed and waiting for him to put the disk. He climbs onto the bed with a controller in his hand, and we both wait as the game powers up. When it starts, I toy around a bit by pretending not to know the controls, until Niall is beating me. I stop acting clueless and focus in, immediately scoring a goal. After the first one, things go downhill for Niall. I score point after point without struggle. After two 're-matches' Niall gives in, accepting defeat. I smirk at him as he pouts a bit, until his face breaks and he smiles at me. He gets up from the bed, and says "I'm gonna leave the system in here for you, if you need me, you can text or call, or I'm right across the hall from you, alright?'' As he's talking, he goes to the night stand and pulls out a pen and paper, scribbling down a number. Deciding I can trust him, I grab his arm before he can leave. "Niall, I need a favor from you. It's nothing major but if you agree, it's something that no one else can know about." Niall immediately nods, face now serious. I tell him what I need, leaving out why it's important. "In my house, there's a fake vent in the back of my closet, and there's a backpack in there that I need with me." He looks confused, but agrees nonetheless. With that information, he's gone.

☠☠☠

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Louis sits up after Niall leaves, hearing the click of the door. When he knows he's alone, he throws the covers from the bed and gets to his feet. He goes to the pile of bags on his bed, digging through them until he finds his pack of cigarettes, then cracks his door open and sticks his head out. Once he sees that it's clear he quietly walks down the hallway and makes his way to the back door in the kitchen.

He slides open the glass patio door and steps onto the porch, taking a cigarette out of its pack. He sits on the stairs, looking at the fenced in backyard. He can see other buildings, maybe houses, but the lights are off so all he can make out is an outline. He looks into his package for a lighter, always shoving one inside, but sighs when he finds nothing. Before he can get up to go outside, the door slides open behind him and footsteps tell him someone is walking towards him. He turns to see who it is, and Zayn appears in his vision. Louis moves over, and Zayn silently sits down next to him, pulling out cigarettes and a lighter of his own. He looks at Louis and sees that he doesn't have a lighter, so he holds his own out, offering it to Louis. He takes it, lighting his cigarette, and then hands it back to Zayn, nodding his head once as a silent thank you. They both sit in silence, staring out into the darkness while smoking. When Louis is finished, he stays put, not wanting to go inside yet. Zayn does the same, but reaches into his pocket and pulls out a ziploc bag and rolling papers. He looks towards Louis, motioning towards the items, and Louis nods his head, agreeing to smoke. Without exchanging words, Zayn breaks up the weed and rolls a blunt. He puts it between his lips, and lights it, blocking the wind with one hand and holding the lighter with the other. Louis watches as Zayn inhales, holding it in for a few seconds before exhaling and passing it to Louis. They go back and forth like that, taking turns with the blunt until it burns down. Once it's almost gone, Zayn takes one last puff, holding it out for Louis to take, but he declines, and watches as Zayn stubs it out and puts it into his cigarette package. After a minute, Zayn speaks up, voice cutting into the silence. "Why are you up so late? What woke you up?"