cuddle, cheat, repeat // larry

xii

"n-niall?" louis spoke hesitantly.

he heard a sigh from the other end. "hey, mate. happy birthday."

louis let out a breath of relief. "niall, oh my god, i am so so sorry, i don't know how to make up for what i've done, i've been a wreck these past few days... i'm just so-"

"louis, it's okay. you're okay. i'll admit i was a bit... taken aback by your actions, but i just needed some time away from you, from the world. i know you were just hurt and needed to let out your anger, so it's okay. now how bout you and li take your dumb arses over here and we can catch up? celebrate your birthday?"

smiling profoundly and with tears of joy brimming his eyes, louis replied gleefully, "yeah! yeah, of course! we'll be right over!"

he quickly slipped on a pair of white converse and headed out, dialing liam's number on the way to his car.

-

louis clutched his stomach, nearly dying of laughter.

"i told them louis, i swear! i guess they thought it was spelled the other way... i should've clarified, damn it."

the trio burst out laughing again as they stood over the birthday cake that read:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOUIE!

"you, my friend, are the epitome of stupid. the definition of dumb. the perfect example of-"

louis was interrupted by his ringtone blaring out "nasty freestyle" by t wayne, immediately causing niall and liam to stand up and hit that whip, proceeded by doing the nae nae.

louis scoffed, throwing his phone on the ground, never mind who was calling. "please, let the queen show you how it's done."

niall and liam ooooooh-d momentarily before cheering as louis perfectly executed a dance routine of sassiness and swiftly moving limbs.

"yaaaaaasssss louis yaaaaasssss!"

"slay, mom!"

"my queen!"

liam and niall continued enthusiastically as louis ended the song by taking off his shirt and throwing it at them.

all was as it should be, for once.

-

upon returning home after an amazing day of eating unhealthy as fuck foods and doing idiotic things with niall and liam, louis changed into pajama pants and threw his shirt into the laundry basket.

as he lay in bed, he thought about how lucky he was to have loyal, fun, and kind friends. but, of course, along with thoughts of niall and liam came distant thoughts of harry. louis wondered how harry was doing. how were him and zayn? were they dating? had harry really forgotten all about him? would harry ever forgive him?

louis eyes wandered towards the corner of the room, where he caught sight of his old notebook and guitar. he thought about his songwriting times and how he would always turn his feelings into chords on the guitar and thoughts in written words in his notebook.

he walked over and picked up his guitar and notebook, sitting down on his bed and flipping through the worn out pages. his heart skipped a beat when he came upon the song he had written for harry. he remembered wanting to sing it to him for his birthday next year and imagining the look on harry's face when he did.

louis gripped the guitar firmly, positioned his hands, and strummed the first chords.

"i got a heart, and i got a soul,

believe me i will use them both.

we made a start,

be it a false one i know,

baby i don't want to feel alone.

so kiss me where i lay down, my hands pressed to your cheeks,

a long way from the playground...

i have loved you since we were eighteen,

long before we both thought the same thing,

to be loved and to be in love.

and all i can do is say that these arms were made for holding you oh,

i wanna love like you made me feel when we were eighteen."

louis sat for a few moments, thinking about harry and how foolish he was to have not been content with the perfect boyfriend he once had.

little did he know, miles away, harry was thinking about him too.

-

harry sat in an almost identical position as louis, on his bed, holding a guitar, and with a songwriting notebook in front of him.

"i'm like a crow on a wire,

you're the shining distraction that makes me fly, oh.

i'm like a boat on the water,

you're the rays on the waves that calm my mind, oh every time.

and i know in my heart, you're not a constant star.

and yeah i let you use me from the day that we first met, but i'm not done yet,

falling for you, fools gold.

and i knew that you turn it on for everyone you met, but i don't regret,

falling for you, fools gold."

harry cursed before dropping his guitar on the floor and falling back into the bed. he knew he should do something about his heartbreak, maybe call louis and talk to him about it, or distract himself in one way or another, but all he could do in that moment was cry. cry because he wasn't enough for the man he loved. cry because he lost the one thing he loved most. cry because louis, his louis, was never coming back.

"harry, what do you want for din- harry?"

zayn hurriedly sat on the bed next to him and held him, letting him cry into his shirt.

"what's wrong, my love? is it louis again? do you miss louis?"

harry nodded into his shoulder.

"i miss my louis, today's..." his eyes widened as he pulled out of his embrace. "today's his birthday, today's louis' birthday!"

"why don't you give him a call and wish him happy birthday then? sort it all out?" he stroked harry's hair soothingly, kissing his forehead.

"i tried earlier today, but he didn't answer... he obviously doesn't care about me anymore and wants nothing to do with me. i mean, that's why he cheated in the first place, right? because i was too boring for him?"

"hey now, i'm sure that's not true. for all we know, louis could be in your same exact position right now, heartbroken over the fact that you haven't talked to him for weeks."

and really, he was.

-

a/n: ok words cannot even express how sorry i am for not updating in nearly a year

i've just been trying to focus on school and now that it's summer, i think i can update more regularly now!

hope you liked this chapter bc it was fun for me to write for a multitude of reasons lmao

i love you guys so much im so sorry loves :(

-m