with venom on your tongue » l.s.

EPILOGUE | LOUIS & HARRY

| LOUIS

Louis gently placed each of the envelopes in front of him on his bed. He stared at them all laid out while nervously twisting his fingers together.

Princeton. Yale. And lastly, Harvard.

All three early decisions came in at the same time, waiting for him in his mailbox when he woke up this morning. Initially, he felt like they couldn't come soon enough. He was antsy to know whether he got in or not. Now that they were here, he couldn't get himself to open them. He was anxious and nervous because so much of what he'd been working towards all these years was leading up to this. He wasn't sure he was ready to look at them yet.

Plus, he wasn't in that same mindset anymore, when all he'd cared about was college and class rankings. Louis' priorities had shifted so suddenly within the last few weeks. He didn't feel like the same person anymore, but he could also feel the old him somewhere deep inside, trying to claw up his throat and remind him of what should be important to him.

His phone buzzed beside him on the side table and Louis picked it up when he saw Harry's name on the screen. He accepted the call and felt silly as a blush crept up his neck. They hadn't even spoken yet and he was already feeling all fluttery inside.

"Hello," he greeted.

"Hi, Lou," Harry replied, his voice tinny over the speaker. "Are you busy?"

"No. What's up?"

"I have a proposition for you, but I don't know if you'll say yes. And if you don't say yes, I think that'd make me really sad."

A slow smile crept up on Louis' face. "Well, I won't be able to tell you unless you ask me."

"Well," Harry started. "My family's got this cabin up in Vermont. It's one we all share. My extended family goes from time to time and I've gone with my dad as well. I was wondering if you'd want to go with me."

"Oh," Louis breathed out. "This break?"

"Yeah. I was thinking tomorrow morning?" Harry answered apprehensively. "I know it's your birthday, but I promise it'll be fun. Road trips are always a good time and it's really relaxing up in the cabin. I just thought we'd spend time together. Unless you've already got plans. If that's the case, I understand."

"I don't. I wasn't going to really do anything. But, Harry, are you sure? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Everything's fine. I just — I don't really want to be here."

"I get it," Louis said, staring down at his green bed sheets and tracing patterns over them. "You don't have to explain. I'll go with you."

"Really?" Harry asked, his tone laced with disbelief.

"Yeah. Of course."

"Fuck yeah! I promise it'll be a good time."

"I'm excited," Louis laughed. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"I'll pick you up at seven sharp."

"Okay, sounds good. How long will we stay? Just so I know how much I should pack."

"A few days, if that works for you."

Louis nodded before realizing Harry couldn't see him. "That works for me."

Harry exhaled into the phone. "It means a lot that you're going with me."

"Harry, of course, I'd want to spend my birthday with my boyfriend. Trust me. This is no hardship."

"Still getting used to you calling me that," Harry giggled. "I miss you, boyfriend."

Louis squeezed his eyes shut as he fell back on his bed, giddy and red in the cheeks. "I miss you, too."