Escape (Larry Stylinson AU)

Chapter 1

Louis sat on the midnight train to Boston staring out the window, at this point it was useless to try to get any reasonable amount of sleep. Across from him sat an elderly couple cuddled up against each other, catching some sleep themselves. Louis continued gazing out the window, his thoughts consuming him.

He had left Liam, his roommate to look after his art studio in New York for him while he was gone. With any luck, he'd come back and a few paintings would be sold, however he wasn't planning on going back to the city for a while. He needed time to solve his problems as well as get over Eleanor, his ex-girlfriend. He allowed his mind to drift to Eleanor as he did evert now and again when he let his guard down for a moment. Her face when she told Louis that she thought it would be better for them to remain as friends. Her brown eyes downcast and her hair not styled, a frown etched onto her usually smiling face. Apparently she had found someone much better that Louis. Unfortunately, Louis became attached very easily and had already been planning their future together. Their kids, where they would live and even what school their children would attend. He loved El, and he knew it would take a while for him to get over her.

They had broken up nearly a month ago in mid-December, just a few weeks before Louis' 21st birthday. Louis had ended up going to the bar on his birthday with Liam and getting so hammered that Liam had to drag him home, Louis calling out Eleanor's name to people on the street. Christmas was spent with a hangover, his only present from Liam as well, as his family's packages hadn't been delivered from Doncaster yet. Louis had ended up falling asleep at 8 pm on New Year's Eve, with no New Year's kiss to start of the year with good luck.

The train stopping snapped Louis out of his thoughts. He hadn't even heard the conductor announcing the next stop. He looked out the window and stood up, collecting his bag and exiting the train after waking up the couple sat across from him. Boston was a lot different from New York; there weren't nearly as much public transportation. He looked up the nearest hotel that was within his budget on his iPhone and set off walking.

Louis passed many high end retailers on his little walk. The train had let off on the good side of the city, thank god. He really wasn't in the mood to be mugged at 2 am in the morning. Someone had attempted to mug him once before, after work one day that he had dressed up particularly fancy. He sported a black eye for a week and a half, but he left with all of his possessions. Going to the gym once in a while definitely had its perks.

He walked until he found the hotel, the Paris Inn. It stretched far up into the sky, and appeared nice enough from the outside. He approached the door, hoping that it would be open. Luckily it was, and he stepped into the warm hotel, leaving the cold January air behind him. He walked across the lobby to where the front desk was located. He rang the bell on the counter and waited for someone to help him. Looking around the lobby, he noticed the fireplace in the corner as well as the well-equipped breakfast area to his right. A lady walked out from a door behind the desk, looking like she had just woken up, which she probably had, seeming as it was 2:30am.

"Yes, do you have a room for one?" Louis timidly asked. There weren't many more hotels in this area, and he didn't have enough energy to walk to find another one.

"That will be 159 dollars, please" she said bluntly. She wasn't exactly easy on the eyes with her large mole below her right eye as well as the gray roots of her hair that were showing, and she seemed grumpy to have been awoken at such a time in the morning, so Louis swiped his Chase card and the lady handed him his key. "You're in room 106, down that hall." She pointed to the hallway to his left.

"Thank you." Louis said before starting down the hall to his room. He quickly opened the door with the key card, letting the door close behind him. He freshened up in the bathroom and then striped off his gray sweatshirt and his green t-shirt under that as well as his jeans, shoes, and socks until he was left in his boxers and collapsed into the bed, quickly falling into a dreamless sleep.

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Short but whatever ily all

xx Hannah