strangers [l.s. AU]

12

The one thing Louis didn't want by the end of the night was a broken heart. He wanted to dance with his poetic and romantic mysterious man, he wanted to let loose, maybe even drink a bit, but he did not want his heart broken. It was the least desired outcome of the night. 

He showed up in a gorgeous halter dress, instantly drawing both guys and girls eyes away from their dates. The fabric was long, touching the floor, and a deep shade of blue, like the midnight sky. It had a slit near the bottom when his right leg stuck out, completely shaved. A pair of black painted toes were on display in a pair of silver heels, and Louis worked them like no other teenager ever could. His walk resembled one of  model's on a runway. Both confidence and hesitance radiated from his eyes, which seemed even bigger due to the half hour he had spent winging his eyeliner. A light blush tinted his cheeks at the endless gazes he received, and ignored the few cat-calls he could hear being chanted behind him.

Louis handed his ticket to the bouncer-looking guy- who was actually a freshman history teacher- and walked into the hallway that lead up to the gym, where the ball was being held. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a dashing Liam in a tux, or more importantly, his jaw dropping in his presence, and he decided to go up to the guy and have a word with him and his date, apparently Sophia, who was by his side. 

"Hi, Liam." His voice was loud, straining to be heard over the pounding music that was shaking the floor.

"Um, hey Louis. Why are you wearing a dress?" Liam's face had paled a bit and his breathing had been cut, leaving him looking like a fish out of water. 

"I think it looks pretty. Don't you?" Both Louis and Sophia stared at him expectantly, waiting for his reply. He stumbled over his words, trying to find something that would please his ex and his girlfriend alike. It was then when Louis realized that he had yet to introduce himself to the girl. She was dressed up in a short cocktail dress and had a wrap around her shoulders. She adjusted it with a painted nail when the small boy addressed her. "I'm so sorry. We haven't met yet. My name is Louis." He stuck his hand out. She took it with a small amount of resistance. 

"Sophia. It's nice to meet you, although Liam's never mentioned you." That caught Louis' attention. She hadn't known? He could play with this. "Are you one of his friends?"

"Well," Louis began, a large smirk now plastered across his face. "Liam is actually very special to me, do you know? Just a week ago, he had me pressed into the mattress, screaming his nam-"

"Who's your date tonight, Louis?" The big puppy-eyed boy had been the one to break the conversation, shaking his head and shooting the twink a look of death, and an almost guilty one towards his annoyed girlfriend, who looked about ready to shoot his head off.

"He's this guy I know, very tall, green eyes, complete romantic." Louis tried desperately to dodge the whole "name" part, knowing that he would look like a liar and pathetic if he could not produce one. 

"What's his name?" Ah. There it was. 

"Do you want to pick up the box of extra small condoms that you always used from my house tomorrow or next week? I'm free either time." A horrified Sophia, the poor girl, had finally taken as much as she could, and stormed off in the direction of the ballroom, Liam, thankfully, in tow. Louis snickered devilishly. He checked his phone one last time, making sure he hadn't received any texts before entering the party with one last sigh of reassurance and a breath check.

The gym was gorgeous. What had once been a wood floor filled with teenage sweat was now a tiled dance palette, complete with at least one hundred people quickly pulling out their moves to the newest Bruno Mars song. Tables scattered the room all around, each one with lavender and pastel balloons atop them. Glitter was everywhere. Lights flashed and a DJ was jumping up and down in the corner. A few people patted Louis on the shoulder as they passed him, saying hi, or they waved from across the room. No one came up and claimed the position as his date, though. He found himself choosing a seat and sitting down, patiently waiting for someone to offer him a dance. 

No one came, though. 

It was nine o'clock. Then it was ten. Eleven soon struck, and Louis had had a few drinks, danced with a few of the girls who complimented his dress, people who had also came alone or had been stood up seemingly like himself.

The lights were just dark enough so that none of them noticed the silent tears slipping from his eyes. He praised his waterproof makeup. 

The night ended with a slow song playing. Something about little things, Louis barely hears. He's just about had enough. Until he sees it. All the way across he room, he sees him. 

Harry Styles.

He's liked Harry for awhile, obviously. So, naturally, it crushed him when he saw another person in his arms. Another girl. He felt his heart clench at the sight, and then it was all too much. The Liam, the dance, the being stood up, and now this. His mascara was for sure running down his face, for even the waterproof element couldn't mask the hurt that ran from his teary eyes,  his dress suddenly seemed to sag too much, and Louis felt ugly. He felt ugly both physically and emotionally. How dare he believe that he could have feeling, a chance with love? Never.

And so Louis ran.

Just like Cinderella, Louis ran so fast out of the ballroom that you would swear it was just the wind that had accidentally bumped into you. The only difference between him and the princess was, he didn't leave a shoe. He didn't leave anything that gave his mystery texter any trace or sense that he was even there. He just ran, out of the school, down the streets that he wasn't even sure would bring him home. He didn't want to be seen. He didn't want to see.

Which explains why, when they came out from behind the corner, he didn't notice the figure standing in front of him, ready with a sack and an evil glint of a smirk. 

Plot twist? Not yet :)

XxGrace