Leaving Las Vegas (h.s)

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HARRY AND LIAM were polar opposites.

Liam was the son of the police chief back in their old town. He was also the product of Harry's mother infidelity.

Harry and Liam did get along at first. They were half brothers after all.

But that begun to change when Liam found out about Harry's father double life. They were 14, walking home from school, talking about girls and their sport teams. Harry had already begun to deal by that time, he made a little name for himself among the younger adults thanks to Rey.

His father's police cruiser was parked in an alleyway. Harry knew to ignore this, as his father had warned him to do so. Harry wanted to continue walking but Liam stopped. Liam knew of Rey, his father complained of this thug all the time. But here was Harry's father, watching this drug dealer do his business.

"Harry what the fuck is your dad doing?"

"He's doing nothing. C'mon man, let's go home." Harry tried tugging his backpack but Liam wouldn't budge. His eyes were fixated on the scene before him. Before Harry could yell at him again, Liam begun to run towards them.

"Mr. Styles what the hell are you doing? My dad is looking for this guy. Why aren't you bringing him in to the station?" Liam hissed towards Harry's father. Harry's father clenched his jaw while sending daggers to his son.

"Who the fuck is this kid Peter?" Rey asked Harry's father.

"This is my wife's other kid. Liam mind your business I'm doing procedure. Go home your mom is probably worried."

"This isn't procedure Mr. Styles."

"Liam shut up and let's leave. Leave my dad alone." Harry was frustrated and begun to drag Liam away by his backpack. Liam didn't mutter anything and was silent the whole walk back towards the house.

Later that night, after dinner, Harry heard his father yelling. He had been fired. The chief was going to take his mother away for Liam's sake. He wanted to leave Harry motherless because his father was going to have nothing.

Harry resented Liam from that day forward.

•••

Blue grew up in California.

California made Blue sick. The romanticization of this state was beyond words. It was a shit show simply put. Overpopulated and overhyped.

Blue had her entire life planned out. Ever since she was a little girl, her mother would take her to the museums and point out paintings. She would explain these meanings of these paintings. Blue was never artistic despite her mother praying she would be.

When Blue was 16, she had met the man she presumed would be her husband. Her mother adored him and she believed the reason she stayed with him was because of her mother. She wanted her mother's approval on everything because she felt she had failed her in some way. She had her colleges lined up for her. She was going to study dance and some form of business like her mother did. She would then have two children, preferably named something artistic to honor her mother. She always wanted to be a grandmother.

Once her mother died, so did her dreams and aspirations.

She barely graduated high school, broke up with her boyfriend, and moved away.

She spent a couple months couch hopping until she settled on moving to Las Vegas.

Las Vegas called out to her in a way she couldn't explain. She knew she would stick out like a sore thumb, she was never a party girl. She stuck to herself, her head always down in a world of people who held their head up.

The manager of the club, Antonio, was a friend of her mom. At first she wanted to bartend. She lacked the confidence needed to become a dancer. Antonio convinced her otherwise and the rest is history.

This has been her story for the past 2 years now. She enjoys her life.

But perhaps leaving Las Vegas wouldn't be the worst thing.

•••

Harry killed a man when he was 17.

That man was Liam's father.

He felt like it was last thing he needed to do before leaving their small town. After all, he was the reason why his parents separated and the reason why his father went crazy.

After his father lost his job, his mother left the house. Liam's father had always been her second option, something to fall back on because she knew Harry's father would someday be caught. The only thing Harry was grateful for was his mother not selling his father out when the chief asked her if he knew about his involvement with criminals.

Harry knew his father could have been more careful, parking in just an alleyway was asking to be caught. But Liam added fabrications into his accusations as well, something that pissed off his father even more.

His father went on a rampage, he kissed Harry on the forehead goodbye one summer morning. Harry believed he was going out to the town to find a job. However that was far from the truth.

His father instead went to kill Liam. When he couldn't find Liam, he knew what he needed to do to hurt the two that cost him everything.

Harry's father killed his mother. Then killed himself.

The newspaper went crazy over this story. His world flipped upside down in a matter of seconds. People suddenly cared about Harry, the poor orphan. The boy who lost his two parents. Liam and his father turned their backs away from him, blaming everything on him.

Rey encouraged Harry to kill Liam. But as his father plan failed, so did his. Liam's father was caught in the crossfire of the rage instilled in Harry's heart.

Harry remember the way he pleaded for him. Begged him not to do anything. That he was sorry. When the blood splattered across his face, Harry had his first look into how the color red would color his life.

He loved the color red. The way it represent his power and strength. No one would ever get in his way again.

Liam never figured out who killed his father, not yet anyways.

Harry figured out Liam was in love with a woman, a girl named Blue. He stalked them for months. He knew what he needed to do.

The last piece of hurting Liam was to hurt Blue.

After he got his revenge, he would leave Las Vegas.

He just didn't know hurting Blue would result in hurting him.