Songs For How You Taste | l.s.

Chapter 14

warning: mature content

Harry and Louis both admittedly had a bad week. To be fair, it was the week of their finals and it wasn't easy.

On Monday night, Louis cancelled on Harry. The day before, Harry and Louis sat on Harry's couch and made a schedule for Louis to keep him on track – it had all his deadlines and blocked out lunch and study breaks and dinner. But Louis was running way behind his schedule. His 20-minute break turned into a long YouTube deep dive watching Robert Pattinson's most iconic moments. And Louis' essay wasn't finished, he was going to have to turn it in late. So, he had to text Harry that he was sorry but couldn't make it to grab dinner with him.

Tuesday, Louis was stuck in the studio, finishing his steel sculpture for his studio class. He tried to get Harry down to the Arts building to sit with him, but the second the two of them walked in, the TA overseeing studio hours that day turned Harry right around. The studio was limited to students who had the class.

Harry had his Biology final on Wednesday. He prepped his study guide the night before, set an alarm for early in the morning so he could review before class. He even made fresh guacamole. But his alarm didn't go off, he woke up late. The rain was beating down all night and a mud slide left the front steps of his porch covered in thick, grey mud. His professor cast him a sympathetic look when she handed him his final test, looking down at his caked up white vans and the mud drying on his favorite pair of jeans.

The day before their date, Thursday, they saw each other in class – but they never got the chance to talk. They had their final for Public Speaking, drafting a speech and demonstrating the knowledge of how to use a mind palace. Harry finished his test first and decided to wait for Louis to finish up in the hallway. But his phone rang, a three-way call with his mum and sister. Gemma was complaining because her fiancé, Raphael, wanted her to spend the holidays with his family in France – they go every year she said. She was stressed and upset and didn't know how to handle it. She called them because that's just what they do; the three of them always handled everything together. Harry wondered during the phone call – as you do. His feet carried him outside, and he walked in circles around the quad.

So, when Louis got out of the test, he was ready to tell Harry that he definitely aced it and that he was positive Harry did too so they should get drinks from Roasted Bean. But Harry wasn't in the hallway. He sent him a quick text, asking where he was. But by the time Harry got off the phone and checked his texts, he had to go to poetry seminar for their final reading.

I'm so sorry, it's time for my poetry sem x

It's fine, I'll just go finish up my sculpture. See you tomorrow. What time?

Let's meet at La Tavola at 7 xx

In all honesty, Louis finished his sculpture on Tuesday. But he didn't want Harry to feel bad. So, he got himself a tea and watched highlight clips of the Kardashians to make himself feel better.

It didn't last long though.

He went to his final critique for his studio class at three; that was their final – a peer review. And his metal abstract sculpture was lacking emotion, which was the fucking point, and boring. Louis spent almost two entire weeks bent over a blowtorch, welding the steel into a perfectly molded ribcage, stretched like a ballet dancer. The professor said he wasn't sure the piece exhibited his technique to his full potential when Louis did exactly as the professor asked.

He was fuming, stomped his way straight to Bell Tower and into his room, right past the concerned eyes of Zayn studying at their dining table. Louis' fast fingers fumbled with the jeans that he was trying to shove off to replace with a soft pair of plaid pajama bottoms. He ripped open the zipper on his bag, dragging the laptop out, and threw both himself and his laptop onto his bed. He wrapped the big comforter around his shoulders and turned on The Great British Baking Show – the most wholesome reality show he knew of.