disconsolate || stylinson

chapter 3

glancing in the mirror, harry ran shaky a hand through his long hair, making himself look a bit more presentable. after waking up from his nap, harry's eyes had no longer been bloodshot and he had mostly calmed himself down. there was no doubt he would be thinking about his encounter with louis nonstop for the next couple months, but for now he just needed to forget that it happened.

harry slowly looked at his now rumpled outfit before pulling out a plain white shirt and black skinny jeans to match. it was basic, but it looked good and was nice enough for a christmas dinner.

as he sat down at his kitchen counter a few minutes later, he slipped his phone out of his pocket. he pulled up his messages with niall right away and shot him a quick text, informing him on the events of this morning. although he didn't really want to talk about it, harry was smart enough to know he should tell niall. it was better than keeping it bottled up inside, waiting for it to tear him apart.

to: niall horan
[2:55 p.m.]
saw louis this morning... it didn't go well. call me when you can.

mere minutes after harry pressed send, his phone began to ring loudly from his hands. he quickly answered the call, holding his cell phone to his ear as he headed down to his car.

"harry oh my god are you okay? what happened? it's been so long since the last time... what did he say? do you want to talk about it?" niall rushed out, bombarding harry with questions. he was talking a million miles an hour and harry could barely understand a word he was saying.

"niall, slow down, i can't understand you." harry pleaded, partially trying to stall the conversation. he had now reached his car and he yanked the door open, taking a seat.

"what happened? tell me everything." niall stated promptly, for once in his life cutting straight to the chase.

harry took a deep breath as he frantically started his car and began the drive to his mother's house. starting from the beginning, harry explained his entire encounter with his ex-boyfriend. by the time he had finished, almost a half an hour had passed and for the first time in niall's life, he was speechless.

"i don't know what to say." niall mumbled through the phone, sounding slightly shocked. "do you need me to come over? we could do something?"

"no it's okay, i'm heading to my mum's now for dinner. thanks though, i appreciate it." harry thanked his friend, he knew how lucky he was to have niall.

"did... did louis seem like he was genuinely sorry?" niall spoke suddenly, breaking a comfortable silence between the two. harry inhaled sharply but didn't answer, scanning his mind for the proper response.

had he? harry thought, playing the event through his mind once again. in the moment harry had been furious and upset, and he definitely hadn't been fully aware of the details of the situation. looking back though, harry remembered that louis had been crying. his voice had cracked when he apologized and he did seem sorry. that didn't mean harry was ready to accept it though.

"i- i don't know." harry lied, tears beginning to well in his eyes once again. niall was silent for a moment, but when he replied he sounded much more confident than before.

"look harry, i know you better than anyone, and i know that you are a good person. i wasn't there so i can't tell you if louis was genuine or not, but after all this time, i fucking hope he was. he has put you through hell and back, and if there is one thing you deserve it is an apology." niall spoke quietly, but his voice was firm and unwavering. as he comprehended niall's words, hot tears began to well up in harry's eyes.