Friends with Benefits

3

Louis handed him a beer and sat down next to him on the couch. He always sat next to him and Harry couldn't help but wonder why. Louis met his gaze and took a sip from his beer.
"So guys, I have an announcement to make!" Liam said.

They all turned their focus on Liam and waited.
"Chrystal and I are getting married!" Liam said with a grin.

They all shouted out congratulations and Niall petted Liams back in excitement.
"I expect all of you at my wedding as my best men. 27th of July. Save the date." Liam continued with a grin.

"Of course Li! We're so happy for you." Zayn said.

They all toasted for Liam and love and Harry took a big gulp from his bottle. He was getting wasted tonight. He was happy for Liam and a little bit jealous as well. He'd always wanted to find the one and get married, being a romantic by heart. Instead, he had spent a decade in love with the man beside him. He was such a lost cause.

They talked wedding plans and drank beers for a long while and then the question Harry had dreaded came. It was Niall who asked it this time.
"So when are you gonna find someone Harry?"

Harry just shrugged his shoulders, trying his best to sound casual.
"I enjoy single life." That was such a lie.

"Me too mate, me too." Louis said and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Oh, God, have you gone back to your old ways Lou? I'm telling you guys, living with Louis the first year of Uni was awful. He pulled a lot. Girls and guys were dragged into our dorm all the time." Liam said with a smirk. He was really drunk by now.

"Liam!" Louis gasped.

Harry spit out the beer he just drank. He was frozen in place. His mind tried to comprehend what Liam just said. Girls and guys? What? No way! Louis' bisexual? Why hadn't he gotten the memo? His mind was blown. He turned to Louis with his mouth hung open in shock.
"What? Are you bi?"

Louis huffed. He was angry.
"Yeah, thanks a lot, Liam! Why the hell would you tell them that?"

"Sorry, Lou. It just slipped out." Liam said apologetically.

"Why do you keep that a secret Lou? What the hell? We have known each other for ten years. How come this is the first time I hear about it?" Harry asked. He was really upset. Louis had sex with men in the past? He felt jealousy rush through his veins.

"Come on Harry, I never felt like I had to explain my sexuality. It's private. The only reason Liam knows about it is because we use to live together." Louis answered, sounding annoyed.

"You know that we don't care, right?" Niall said.

"I know that! I mean, Harry's gay and you guys never had a problem with that. I know you're not homophobic and I love you all for that. I'm sorry I never told you, okay?" Louis answered.

Harry was still staring at him in shock. Louis was bi? Louis met his eyes and smirked.
"I can't believe you're so surprised Haz. I had the biggest crush on you when we first met. You must have noticed."

Harry's eyes grew even wider.
"W.. What? Crush? O..on me?" He stuttered.

Louis rolled his eyes in response.
"You're gorgeous mate. Of course, I had but it's such a long time ago. No big deal."

"Right." Harry blushed.

His mind tried to process the information Louis just gave him. He had a crush? How come he hadn't noticed? Fuck! Things could have been so different. Harry just felt like crying.
"Why didn't you tell me back then?"

"I didn't want to make things awkward between us. Clearly, you didn't feel the same way." Louis answered with a sigh.

"But..." Harry started to protest but got interrupted by Zayn.

"This sounds like a private conversation. Do you want us to leave for a while?" Zayn asked.

"Naah, the conversation's over." Louis smirked.

Harry still couldn't believe it. All this time, Louis was bisexual AND he had a crush on him in the beginning? He had missed his chance. Oh God, he needed to cry so badly.
"I'm gonna go to bed." He mumbled and stood up.

"Already?" Niall questioned.

"Yeah, sorry. Didn't sleep much last night." Harry lied poorly.

The boys said goodnight and Harry headed to his room. Louis came running after him and caught up with him in the hallway.
"Wait! Are you okay? Are we okay? I'm sorry for telling you that. It was such a long time ago. I didn't think it mattered."

Harry sighed and dragged a hand through his hair before he turned around to face Louis.
"It's okay Lou. Nothing has changed."

Louis gave him a hesitating smile.
"Yeah?"

Harry decided to be honest. Well, not that honest.
"For the record, I had a crush on you too back then."

Louis's mouth fell to the floor.
"You had? You never said anything."

Harry rolled his eyes.
"I thought you were straight."

"I'm not!" Louis protested.

"Yeah, well, you never told me that. Just forget about it, Lou. I'm gonna go to sleep now. See you tomorrow. Okay?" Harry answered, trying his best to keep the sadness away from his voice.

Louis was staring at him intensely. Then he shrugged his shoulders and looked down on the floor.
"It was probably for the best anyhow. Good night Haz."

How could that be for the best? He could have had Louis! Harry couldn't handle this right now. He needed a good cry and some sleep. He walked into his room and closed the door behind him. Tears started to roll down his cheeks as soon as he was in the safety of his own room. He hated this! He wished that he has never known what he learned tonight. Fuck Liam and his blabbering mouth.