Where We Belong

Chapter 24

EIGHT MONTHS LATER

After a long and tiring search for his idiotic generic black bloody suitcases, walking through the arrival gate and pinning down two familiar faces almost instantaneously is, just— fucking needed. He has to take a second, just to swallow and blink a few times, before he's certain he won't break out in tears, and then he picks up pace and marches right for them.

Eleanor hits him first, hard and with all her weight. "Daaaaaarling!" she squeals, arms swinging round his neck, "oh my god, oh my god, oh my god," she exclaims, plastering wet kisses all over his face, "bloody hell, I've missed you." She pulls back, just to punch him in the arm, "you fucking idiot, who goes on holiday for eight fucking months?"

Louis chuckles, rubbing at the sore spot. "Holiday and holiday... I've been working quite a bit."

"Porked out quite a bit too," Zayn says from the sideline, thumbs in his pockets, weight tipping back and forth on his feet.

"Oh, shut up and come here, you awkward sod," Louis grins, throwing an arm around him.

They slap each other an adequate amount of times on the back, then call it quits on the hug and pull back.

"No, mate, you actually look good," Zayn says, and it looks like it hurts to get through his teeth, "you look really, ehm— fuck, I've missed you."

Louis laughs. "Missed you too, Zayn. — Not that I've had that much of a chance to, what with you Skyping me every other day."

"Try every third week," Zayn mutters, as he forces Louis to allow him and Eleanor to take all his luggage, "for someone who knew literally no one in New York, you sure as fuck went out a lot."

"Isn't that how you get to know people?"

Zayn shrugs a shoulder. "Don't mean you can't text me first every now and then."

"I did," Louis exclaims, "I did, you're impossible to satisfy, this is—"

"Anyways, I love you, Louis," Eleanor cuts in saccharinely, "no matter how much or how little you text me."

Zayn scoffs and begins to lead the way toward the exits.

"Did you even notice I was gone, really?" Louis asks.

"Sure I did," Eleanor exclaims, "sure I did, I missed you all the time, darling. My life is nothing without you."

He glances at her, eyes narrowing. "What's going on?"

"What do you mean, I'm just happy to have you back, babe!" She looks at him like he's crazy, but she's a horrible actress and she knows it, so she drops it almost immediately. "Okay, fine, Idris is driving. He's parked outside."

Louis sighs. When Eleanor broke the news that she was actually kind of still sort of seeing Idris once in a while, two weeks ago, Louis didn't mind it. He hasn't met Idris a whole lot of times, but the guy seems nice enough. Well-meaning. That doesn't mean Louis hadn't hoped for a bit of one-on-two time with people he's actually missed while being gone.

"Whyy?" he whines.

"He's missed you like crazy," Zayn replies, because apparently, he's been listening in from where he's paving the way through masses of sweaty vacationer's for them, "he hasn't stopped talking about you once in the past eight months."

Eleanor snort-chuckles. "No, actually, I went on the piss last night and I'm still a bit drunk, so he offered to drive. — And don't give me that look, it's not my fault your flight came in at fucking shit AM in the night."