You're Not My Brother: Larry Stylinson AU; Stepbrothers

Chapter 8~ Fixing a Friendship

Edited by: Supermaaan14

Louis POV

Almost another week passed by. Six days to be exact. Things were pretty chill. Nothing special had been going on really. I'd spent the whole weekend with Eleanor and her family.

"Hey, I'm going to the bathroom real quick. Go on in without me." I told her as we got to the cafeteria for lunch.

"Kay! Don't be long," she said, in her usually cheery voice.

I shook my head. That girl had way too much energy for her own good.

I wasn't really paying attention. I was too busy thinking about how well things were going.

That's probably why I bumped into Zayn.

He glared at me, "Watch where you're going." He started to walk away.

I was angry, "God damn it Zayn! What the hell is your issue?"

He stopped and turned around, "What the hell is my issue? My issue? My issue is you."

I rolled my eyes, "I don't give a crap. I'm so sick of your bullshit!"

His eyes flared with anger, "MY BULLSHIT?! What bullshit, Louis? Am I the one flaunting my fake girlfriend? Just to pretend I'm something I'm not. No. That's you Louis. That's you and YOUR bullshit. So, fuck off Tomlinson."

"Yeah, actually you are Malik. By the looks of it, it doesn't look like you've broken up with Perrie. Hypocrite."

"BECAUSE I'M NOT EVEN GAY! I LOVE PERRIE! NOT EVERYONE IS GAY LOUIS!"

"I NEVER SAID THAT, BUT THANKS FOR POINTING OUT THE OBVIOUS! YOU'RE JUST IN DENIAL!"

"I'm not in denial Louis. Liam and I are just really close friends. And, even if I wanted to break up with Perrie, I couldn't." Zayn actually looked kind of sad and part of me wanted to comfort him, but I'm an asshole so, I didn't and tried to continue the fight.

"Why? What excuse can you make up?" I asked.

"Perrie has cancer," he barely whispered.

Flashback: Zayn's POV

Louis got out of the car, slamming the door. I watched as he walked with Harry to their front door. Louis was making a huge mistake. I sighed. I guess I'd talk to him later.

My phone rang. It was Perrie. "Hey babe," I answered.

"Hey, Zayn," she sniffed. "Can you come over?"

She was crying. "Sure babe, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"I have something to tell you. I'll tell you when you get here. Can you hurry?"

"Um, sure. Already on my way." I put my foot to the gas pedal and sped to her house.

~~~~~

I rang the doorbell and the door was quickly opened by her mom.

"Come in, sweetie. Perrie's up in her room." I couldn't help but notice that her eyes were red and bleary.

I skipped steps on my way up to her room. The door was closed so I gently knocked. "Perrie?"

"Come in," she said.

I opened the door and saw Perrie crying on her bed. I sat down next to her and pulled her into my arms. She began to sob loudly into my shoulder. I rubbed her back and after a few minutes I got her to calm down a bit.

"What's going on?" I'm usually a calm person, but to say I was a little panicked wouldn't be a lie.

"Zayn." She took a deep breath.

"Yeah?"

"Remember all those days I felt sick and missed school?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, they finally found out what's wrong with me."

"And?"

""Zayn ... I have cancer."

"What?"

"I have cancer."

The words hit me hard. I couldn't speak; couldn't think. I felt the blood drain out of my face. The air went out of my lungs. I felt my hands start to shake. Suddenly the air felt cold.

"Zayn," she said, taking my hands, stopping them from shaking. "It's going to be okay."

"Are you going to start treatment? Chemo? Surgery?" I asked.

She shook her head, "No."

"No? What do you mean 'no'?"

"I don't want to feel sick all the time. I have, at most, a year left to live anyways."

"But, you can get better. It can help you. A year is a long time right?"

She just shook her head.

"So what are you saying?" My voice hitched in my throat.

She looked at me sadly, "Zayn, can I ask you a favor?"

I nodded, barely meeting her eyes, tears starting to fill my own.

"Zayn, look at me. Please," she pleaded.

I looked into her beautiful eyes, knowing that I had so little time left to see them.

"Will you help me make my last year the best year?"

Back to Present: Louis POV

I crossed the space between us in milliseconds when Zayn had finished his story. I hugged him. "God Zayn, I'm so sorry. So, so sorry."

"It's o-" He started to say.

"No it's not, it's not okay. I wasn't here when you needed me. I wasn't thinking of you, only myself. I'm supposed to be your best friend. I see why you replaced me with Liam. I'm so stupid. I'm such a fool. I know I'm a douche, but will you forgive me?"

"Maybe, but you have to fix things. Stop the Elounor shit, okay?"

"Okay, I will, I promise."

I realized that Zayn had less than a year left with the person he loved the most. What if something happened to Harry? I needed to take a chance.

He gave me a slap on the back. "Good to have you back, mate."

Author's Note: Eeep.