Boxer (Larry)

42

"Can we please talk things out, Louis? Please? I know I've asked thousands of times through text and in your voicemail but please. You mean the fucking world to me and you're pregnant with my kid! I love you so much. I can't do this without you." He says.

I sigh and look at him. His appearance certainly suggests that he isn't lying. It's evident that he hasn't slept and even now tears are about to spill from his dulling green eyes.

"When are you up?" I ask.

"Fifteen minutes." He informs me. I nod.

"Meet me at that restaurant down the street in an hour." I tell him. He lights up and nods.

"I'll be there. I promise." He says.

"You better be. And, um, good luck." I say. He smiles.

"Thank you."

I leave and get in my car. I fix all of my makeup and turn the air conditioner on. It's almost July, and though it is dark outside, it's hot. After about forty five minutes, I start the car and drive to the restaurant I saw that's about three blocks away. It's a very casual place, and it's got a decent amount of people in it. Not too crowded, but not deserted either. Perfect.

When I take a seat at a booth, a waiter asks if I'd like a menu or something to drink. Harry should be arriving in about five minutes, so I order two lemonades.

"Do you want a menu?" He asks.

"Not yet; I'm waiting for someone." I say. He nods.

"Okay." he nods.

He leaves to get the drinks. I'm alone again, but not for very long. Harry walks into the restaurant and looks around for a moment before he sees me. He walks over and sits across from me.

"You look beautiful." He tells me. "But tired. I can see the bags under your eyes even if they aren't obvious." He tells me. I nod.

"Thanks and yeah, I've had trouble sleeping." I admit. I might as well. Besides, it doesn't look like he's had much more luck.

"Me either." He chuckles once.

"I can see that." I tease him.

He smiles at me. It's a genuine smile, the second one I've seen since I started talking to him. I haven't genuinely smiled once, but I'm not sure if he's noticed or not.

"I'm sorry, Louis. I'm so sorry. I don't even know why I did it. I'm not going to come up with some stupid excuse. It just happened. I'm so sorry." he starts ranting. The waiter comes back with our lemonade and then puts two menus down.

Neither of us bother looking at them yet.

"I believe you, Harry. I know you're sorry." I sigh. He lights up a little bit.

"Do you think there's any chance you could forgive me? I know it's hard and it's early, but if you could give me one more chance, I swear with everything I have that it'll never happen again." He tells me. I think for a moment.

"You know, Harry? It really hurt me a lot. I felt so betrayed and absolutely destroyed. Worse than when Ashton did it. If I wasn't looking at you, if this was over the phone, I'd say no right away. But I'm looking at you. You've clearly been miserable and crying. And I can hear and see that you do care. So I'm going to give you another chance." I state. He grins and leans over the table to kiss me.

"I love you." he says.

"I love you more." I reply.