Stronger

Chapter 18

LOUIS' POV

It was a small gathering, Seren had told me that from the start. What she hadn't told me, was that Zayn was going to be there.

I caught his gaze and my heart dropped, a glare forming as my eyes went to Seren. She sheepishly grinned at me, adverting her eyes between us, practically begging me to go talk to him.

Shaking my head, I snaked past him, finding Paige, Niall, and Micah all talking to a stranger in the kitchen.

"Louis!" Niall exclaimed, his words a bit slurred already from the seemingly few beers he'd downed since his arrival. His arm wrapped around my shoulders, leaning on me for support more than anything else.

"This is... uh-"

"Liam," the man introduced himself, reaching out his hand for me to shake.

"Yeah, Liam. He's Seren's new manly friend." Niall chuckled at that, throwing his head back as he laughed. "He better keep his hands off my woman though."

Liam's eyebrows raised, glancing over at Paige, who was standing next to him, rolling her eyes and smiling.

"He's protective when he's drunk. Ignore him."

"He almost beat me up once for helping Paige into the car after we all went to the club," Micah recalled, going into detail about the first night I went out with Zayn and them.

"I see you've met Liam," Seren said from behind me, making her way towards him, her arms snaking around his waist as she hugged him. Liam kissed her forehead, rubbing circles on her back.

The doorbell rang then, Seren rushing out of the room to answer the door. Paige and Micah pried Niall off of me, helping him onto the couch.

"I'm not even that drunk, babe," Niall told Paige, belching and filling the air around him with the smell of alcohol. I scrunched up my nose in distaste, looking over and catching a gaze I certainly didn't expect.

Harry.

My heart sped up in my chest, blood rushing to my cheeks and the overwhelming need to run up and kiss him rising.

I cleared my throat, waving to Charlie, who was carrying Ellie in a small car seat. She was beaming, but Harry was standing awkwardly, staring at her solemnly. He knew something, I could already tell.

Zayn smiled at Charlie, congratulating her on Ellie. He got to hold her, sitting down on the couch beside Niall.

"She's a beauty, yeah?" I asked, taking a seat next to him.

"Yeah," he muttered quietly, his eyes fixed on Ellie.

"Look... I... What I did was wrong, yeah, but..." I looked at Harry, and a feeling rose in my throat like bile. I craved his attention, and I had only one way to get it, "...but I really do love you."

Charlie scooped Ellie out of Zayn's arms in order to give the baby a bottle.

Brown eyes met mine, and a smile spread across my lips. Zayn's sighed, and I leaned in, our lips barely brushing, breath mixing, before I kissed him.

I felt nothing but contempt in knowing that Harry was watching and surely jealous.

We pulled away, and Zayn's eyes lit up, and he leaned in again. I shook my head, backing up a bit.

"Not here," I whispered. "Somewhere private. Let's go."

Our fingers interlocked, I led Zayn down a hall, unnoticed by the others in the living room. He was giggling like a girl about to lose her virginity.

I finally was able to find an available bedroom, dragging Zayn inside as I connected our lips.

Almost instantly was his hand snaking up my shirt in order to remove it, mine already working at his belt.

"Louis," he breathed into my neck as I laid him down on the bed, getting the zipper of his pants to finally undo.

"Shh," I whispered, kissing down his jaw, grinding my hips against him in order to tease him. His hands roamed to my bum, squeezing it as he let out a low moan.

"Don't be... a fucking tease... Tomlinson," Zayn huffed out, pressing himself against me.

That's when the door opened.

Zayn and I both perked up, catching gazes with Harry, whose eyes were wide.

"I-I-"

"Get the fuck out, man! What's your problem?" Zayn exclaimed, obviously angry that this was the second time he's walked in on us.

"I- I just needed a bathroom! Fuck!" Harry yelled, tugging at his hair. His eyes landed on mine, a glare forming. Our night together, he realized it wasn't what he hoped.

Come to think of it, so did I.

Zayn's lips touched the skin of my neck, gently sucking, beckoning me back to what I had started, but no longer was I in the mood.

"Harry?" I asked, rushing in the direction he went down the hallway. The sound of glass shattering caught my attention, a slur of profanities and mutters of pain followed.

"Fuck. Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck," Harry repeated, cupping his hand close to his chest.

The mirror in front of him was shattered.

"Seren's going to kill you," I practically whispered, Harry now noticing my presence in the doorway of the bathroom.

"That's the least of my worries," he told me, revealing what now was a bloody, broken-looking hand.