In a swirl of flashing lights [ls]

⋅•∘☽we come to life when it turns dark☾∘•⋅

As the moonlight filtered through the bay window, Louis wondered if this was the last time he'd see it amplify the paradisiacal glow on his much-endeared friend's face. His heart clenched at the sad yet brave smile he receives. The soft smile that always threatens to break on his face; the one he is fortunate enough to see right now- might be the last one he gets to witness in person. The toothy grin that he cheekily passes around to everyone, couldn't hold a candle to this genuine smile that makes Louis' heart bleed out gold.

The wise thing to do would be to allow himself to drink the smile in silence and let the stars bless upon the last tryst before all is taken away from him.... but pragmatism just doesn't become of him.

"Louis-" his pleading sobs rang in Louis' ears as he weakly tugged at his arm to pull him towards himself but he didn't budge. Harry opens his mouth to speak but seals it close as Louis grits his teeth. Unfair!

"You didn't even deem me worthy of informing that you were gonna leave the very next day after our group visited the carnival." He just had to let it out. "I can't believe it! Everyone knew this but me." His spiteful words left no doubt that he was indeed hurt, coiled by a shaky tone that gave away that he was more afraid than angry. Afraid to an extent that made his tears prickle and burn his cheeks in a hot flush as he stunted a pathetic attempt of putting up a fight to ease the hurt from a soon-coming goodbye.

It would be so easy if Harry just countered his accusations by stating that he owes nothing to Louis and leaves before he crumbles completely in front of him. Alas! it seems like he had to make sure Louis had a breakdown right there.

"You were the most difficult one to tell this to. I knew you'd get like this," the response lacked any kind of sense of emotional distance- something that could have really made this so much easier. He pulled Louis into his chest, this time facing no sort of resistance by the boy. He rested his chin on his head. Their signature embrace. Broken sobs were soothed by gentle rubs on the back. "I didn't know how to bring this up with you, Blue."

Their daily romps weren't supposed to end so abruptly. They shouldn't have... Even his worst nightmares had been generous enough not to project such a thought in his mind- the kind that makes one lie awake at night, feeling numb but conscious enough to feel the deep-settled scars in one's heart.

He lifted his head a little to look him in the eyes and tell him that he'd have a piece of his heart clawed away when Harry left the city, only for it to collide with Harry's chin. Oops!

"Perfect! you just rammed your head right into my jaw," his mock-harsh words were followed by him dramatically cupping his jaw and pouting at him. This furball and his pathetic attempts at making jokes to ease the unendurable sting.

"I thought it was my job to create unhelping jokes in a serious situation," Louis crossed his hands in front of his chest and tilted his head to analyze him.

"You weren't doing your part very well, so someone had to step in. Plus it diverts one's attention from the turmoil towards my stupidity." Harry's response was followed by a mischievous grin. He's never getting over these dorky replies. He pulls Louis towards himself again and the boy can't help but sigh peacefully as Harry rests his hand on his back and rubs soothing circles there.

The comfortable silence soon rolls in and none of them dares to do anything about it.

Right now, he'd beg the angels on his knees to freeze this moment. To trap the two of them in a time loop where the way he pulled Louis into an embrace- plays out for infinity and everything else remains irrelevant, fades in the background. The way Harry wipes his tear-stained cheek with the back of his hands (despite his own eyes being glossy) is going to scar him forever.

"I cried on Niall's shoulder at the carnival. Had to be brought back home as I felt too jittery there- like I'd throw up so bad. It's never happened before. Not the throwing up part, I mean that's happened a lot!" Harry halts his rambling to see if Louis is listening to him. Feeling him intently doing so, he continues. "We gotta deactivate our carnival blog too. I thought you'd be here today for our tradition but you weren't there and-" he buried his face in Louis' shoulder and whispered like a wretched secret. If they weren't sitting in a room so quiet, Louis would've never caught on to the words he whimpered in between sobs and uncontrollably erratic breathing, "...not see you before leaving."

As if feeling like they weren't close enough, Harry further pressed his face into the thin material of Louis' shirt. Louis could feel his shaky breath on his skin. It had no business making the boy shiver at the brush of his mouth.

Louis sucked in a deep breath before inching his finger to touch his soft curls. "I would have never missed this evening if you told me. You'll be gone tomorrow..... Haz," he felt a teardrop roll down from Harry's eyes and stain his shirt. He felt pathetic for whining to Harry when the boy crawled in through the window with a heavy heart. As if he was the one who'd be uprooted from his whole life and forced to move to a new city. Harry had to! Having known that the boy wasn't a fan of change, it struck him how hard it would become for him to cope with such a major one. And to make it all worse he'd have no friends to count on there. Louis can't fathom his curly feeling lonely in a big new city when he'd be unable to do anything about it from here, from Forelsketown.

Louis held him even closer and let him weep on his shoulders. It was time for him to be brave for Harry and to make sure that he left the city with a strong resolve to have a beautiful life- even if it was far away from his own. Choosing against saying anything just yet, he kept shushing Harry- discouraging him from speaking anything while he struggled to breathe. When this didn't work he gently pressed the palm of his hand on his mouth- altogether blocking all the pessimistic things he had to articulate. Louis willed himself away from letting out a mewl as he felt Harry's lips ease against his fingertips. He was desperate to say something but Louis didn't grant him that. Instead, he let Harry cry on his shoulder, till he couldn't produce any more tears.

He held him for his life until Harry's staggered breathing rate came to normal and he wasn't gasping for a breath anymore. Pouring him a glass of water, Louis didn't let go of him until he had downed it and was able to support his own weight. He looked rather composed now, if Louis hadn't seen him undergoing a panic attack a few minutes back- he would have never guessed the severity of it. It made his heart twist in a manner that he had to shake his head in order to shake the feeling away. His red-rimmed eyes made Louis want to curl him up in a safety blanket- away from this mindfuck.

"I would give everything to visit the carnival one last time with you," Louis confessed in a hushed tone. He sensed that Harry must be ready to leave from the way the boy was fidgeting.

"Mind staying awake past your bedtime?" Harry wiggled his eyebrows at him instead. Louis almost choked on his spit at the implications.

Was he for real life suggesting that they-

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