almost // l.s

seventeen

harry wanted to bang his head against a wall. or several. the anger and pain tearing up his insides was too much to bare. it didn't help that yesterday, louis' nineteenth birthday, had been one of the happiest days of his life. christmas had never seemed so dull.

he was currently sitting on his boyfriend's bed, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, as louis sat downstairs. his time was being consumed by someone neither one of the boys wanted to see- mr tomlinson. louis' father. the man was a sight for sore eyes, as his son had put it, and his business was falling too. right now, however, he was yelling abuse at his eldest child about how disgusting his life choices were.

and harry could hear every word, every phrase, every slur. it was so horrendous, and he knew that louis would just be taking it like a champ. shrugging his shoulders, letting the words slide off. but he was also aware that later the boy would cry into his neck and mourn the situation. harry wished he didn't have to suffer- if only louis' dad was accepting.

the verbal abuse lasted too long, and harry hoped beyond belief that louis hadn't been hit. god, what would he do if the man harmed him even more. he'd probably kill the man without a second thought. 

after a while, louis stumbled up the stairs almost drunkenly and sat beside harry.

"he's gone," he whispered.

harry breathed deeply, "let it go, louis."

and he did. he sobbed and shook and balled his eyes out onto the collar of harry's shirt, the dampness quickly seeping into the younger boy's skin.

"he ruins everything," louis mumbled, "i wish he'd just go away."

"or we could," harry suggested casually, not really thinking about the words until they'd left his mouth.

louis looked up, smiling despite the watery content filling his eyes, "a boy can dream, hazza."

harry sighed, "i was serious."

the older lad locked glances with his boyfriend once more, "really?"

"yeah."

louis' father hadn't been around permanently since he was seven years old and jay got full custody of all her children. louis, lottie, felicite and the twins. harry hadn't spent much time with his sisters, but he knew they were as well adjusted as louis, despite not having a dad. louis once claimed that his gayness was assisted by the fact that he was surrounded by girls all throughout his childhood, and couldn't put up with any more. harry had laughed hysterically at that.

"imagine if we just left," louis said wistfully, "what would happen?"

"dunno."

"i did have an idea a few months ago," he continued, "that me, you and the boys could put our wallets together and get a house somewhere. perhaps by the university i'm going to next year. then we could all get jobs, go to school and be happy, starting a new."

harry nodded, "that's a very good plan, tomlinson."

"i thought so."

-

"merry christmas!" niall, louis, liam, harry and zayn exclaimed in unison around the eldest's family's table. the day had taken a happy turn, one which louis was very grateful for, and his mum was currently cooking a very nice meal. each and every one of louis' siblings had come home for christmas- they lived with their grandparents- and the house had never been so noisy. harry was almost overwhelmed. the sudden change in situation, plus all the girls was a lot. 

"right!" louis suddenly announced, "harry and i have something to say."

niall gasped, "you're engaged?"