Habit

Chapter 10: You & I

The final night of the tour had arrived faster than Y/n had ever expected. The crowd's excitement was palpable, echoing through the arena as the boys wrapped up their final set. Lights flickered across the stage, and the cheers and screams of the audience swelled around her. But Y/n couldn't focus on the music anymore. Her eyes were fixed on one thing, one person—Louis.

Everything she had been running from, all the confusion, the hesitation, and the unspoken tension, had built up to this night. It had been weeks, months, maybe even years, of silently burying what she felt for him. But now, it was time.

She had tried to convince herself that she was just caught up in the whirlwind of the tour, that maybe it was just the late nights and the chaos that made her heart race whenever he was near. But no more. Tonight, it was all real. Her feelings for Louis were undeniable, and she could no longer pretend otherwise.

She stood backstage, the familiar hum of the crowd still echoing in her ears, but her mind was miles away, racing with thoughts of him. There was no more pretending, no more hiding from the truth. Louis was the one.

The final song echoed in the distance, the sound vibrating through the hallways. Y/n's heart skipped a beat when she heard Louis's voice over the comms, a sign that the night was finally drawing to a close. She took a steadying breath. It was time to face him.

When the last notes of the song reverberated through the arena, the crowd erupted into a thunderous applause, and Y/n felt the familiar rush of adrenaline flood her system. But it wasn't for the show. It was for him.

Moments later, Louis appeared, stepping through the backstage curtain like he was walking right into her soul. His eyes found hers almost instantly, locking onto her with that familiar intensity. The world around them seemed to fall away, the noise, the lights, the chaos of the tour—all of it dissolved as if they were the only two people left on earth.

"I've been waiting for you," Louis's voice was low and quiet, but the words felt like a promise.

Y/n's pulse quickened. The weight of everything between them felt heavier now, as if it could crush her if she didn't finally speak.

"I think we need to talk," she said, her voice steady, though inside, her heart was pounding.

Louis's expression softened, the tension that had lived between them for so long flickering in his eyes. He nodded. "I agree."

They moved together through the backstage area, past the crew packing up, through a door that led to a quiet room. The world outside faded into nothing. It was just the two of them now, standing on the precipice of everything they had avoided for so long.

Y/n took a deep breath, her gaze meeting Louis's. There were no more words to dance around it. The silence stretched between them, thick and heavy with the weight of their feelings.

"I don't want to hide anymore, Louis," she whispered, her voice barely audible but raw with emotion. "I can't do it. I can't keep pretending that I don't feel the way I do."

Louis's face softened, but there was still that unreadable look in his eyes. He stepped closer, close enough that Y/n could feel the heat of his body, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat.

"I've never wanted to hide from you," he murmured, his voice soft, vulnerable. "I've always known what I feel for you. But I was scared. Scared of ruining everything we've built, scared of messing it all up. But I don't want to be scared anymore."

Y/n's breath hitched. The words she had waited to hear were finally coming, and they felt like the most beautiful thing in the world.

"Louis, I've spent so much time trying to push it all down. But I can't anymore." She stepped forward, her voice shaking with the weight of her confession. "I love you. I've always loved you."