Teenage Runaway

Chapter 4

"If it'll make you happy." She smiled at him, spreading peanut butter on her sandwich bread.

"It will." He chuckled nervously, becoming aware of Louis' piercing eyes intensely watching them, not missing a beat.

"I've got to get back to work." Taylor said, taking a bite of her sandwich and making her way towards the door. "I'll be home around 5! That's um...17:00 in your guys' time?"

"Nice try, love." Louis laughed at her as she walked out the door. Making sure it was clear, he turned to Liam who had conveniently taken the seat next to him, already knowing that Louis would be interrogating him after what had just taken place in the kitchen. "So what was that all about, mate?"

"I think I've got myself a date tonight."

"It's about time, yeah?" Zayn chuckled. "You've had your eyes on her since we stepped off the plane."

"More like since I was fourteen," Liam said to himself.

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but his phone rang, interrupting the thoughts that were about to flow out of his mouth. He stepped into the hall, a smile popping up on his face when he read Lilly's name on his phone.

"Harry? Where the hell are you?"

"Well hello to you, too, Love." He chuckled to himself.

"Harry, I'm not fucking joking." The smile quickly faded from his face. "I'm at your flat and it's trashed. Where. The. Hell. Are. You."

"I can't tell you. It's not safe."

"Why isn't it safe?"

"I'm protecting you."

"Harry...I...I can't do this."

"But-"

"Goodbye, Harry."

He returned to the group, all eyes on him. "Who was that?" Niall asked.

"Lilly...she was asking where I was."

"What'd you tell her?" Louis asked, giving him a light smile.

"I told her it wasn't safe for me to tell her where we were or tell her why my flat was trashed. It's not safe. They could be listening to our phone calls and reading our texts."

"He's got a point." Louis said. He grabbed one of the empty plastic shopping bags that were lying next to the floor next to the chair. "Hand them over, everyone. Come on. Now." Eleanor sighed, and was the first to plop hers into the bag, Louis came second and soon everyone's phones were in the bag.

Harry took a seat on the ledge of the fireplace underneath the flat screen. "I think I just got dumped." He pouted. Zayn went over and sat next to him and patted his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, mate."

"There's nothing I can do about it now, I suppose."

"I'm gonna go hop in the shower while Bentley's asleep." Liam said, dashing up the stairs.

Taylor arrived home from work as soon as Liam came downstairs from his shower, a sleepy Bentley in his arms. His face lit up when he saw his mommy home from work, reaching out for her from Liam's arms. She brought him into her arms for a quick hug before Liam was tugging him away from her again, placing him on the floor as he ran off to play with his toys in the living room.

"I'll watch him while you go get changed."

"Thanks." She blushed, hurrying upstairs to prepare for her date with Liam that she knew they had both been waiting years for.