Walk That Mile

Chapter 1: Twelve Days Before (Prologue)

TWELVE DAYS BEFORE

Chicago, Illinois

Louis Tomlinson is on the rooftop of the LondonHouse Chicago when he gets the email. He's halfway to tipsy with an attractive guy smiling at him from across the bar and the city lights dancing around in the background. He means to swipe on a text from his sister but his finger slips to the email notification from FrontGate Airlines instead and opens the message.

He reads it twice, blinking hard to make sure he's reading it correctly. Most of the words mush together but a few stay clear: unsuccessful, bankruptcy, delayed refund. It reads up and down like he's screwed.

"The fuck?" is what he actually manages out loud, catching the attention of Niall Horan who always seems to be closest when Louis is having a problem.

"What?" Niall asks, slipping the black straw in his whiskey coke between his lips.

"My airline went bankrupt," Louis says, flashing the screen in Niall's direction.

Niall lets the straw fall from his mouth. "I told you not to book on an airline no one has ever heard of."

Louis groans and clicks the lock button on his phone, forgetting to check the text from Lottie altogether. "The tickets were cheap," he mutters.

"So what are you going to do?" Niall asks unhelpfully.

"I don't know," Louis moans, draining the rest of his drink and putting it on the ledge behind him. "Quit school?"

Niall's laughter is a bark and Louis rolls his eyes. "Yeah, right, Tommo. You just made it through four years at the University for Spoiled Children and now you're starting fucking law school. Don't back out now."

"Southern California," Louis corrects needlessly. "University of Southern California." Niall definitely knows where he goes to school; he just chooses to be insufferable.

"Buy a ticket on a functioning airline," their friend Sam chimes in from across the semi-circle they've formed.

"Yeah, I guess," Louis says with a shrug while trying not to roll his eyes.

The whole point was to not blow money on a flight back to school in LA and now that's exactly what he'll be doing anyway. It's not like his summer internship is paying in cotton candy but there are preferable ways to spend his money than on a plane ticket.

"I'm going to get another drink," he tells Niall. "And then I'm going to get really drunk to forget this has happened at all and you can be in charge of reminding me in the morning." He winks at Niall's protesting squawk as he twirls his way through the crowd to the bar.

It's only when he comes back to his friends that he smells trouble. Niall's eyes go wide as he pulls Louis close into his side, excitement fluttering on his lips.

"Oh god," Louis says. He can smell the misplaced enthusiasm dripping from Niall – knowing him for nearly ten years has done that much.

"You haven't even heard my idea yet," Niall says with a quick eye roll. "Just listen."

"Are you starting an airline that flies your best friend back to campus for free?" Louis grins and then lets it slide off his lips. "Anything else, I'm not interested."

"Shut up, and hear me out," Niall says with a sigh. "I have this friend – "

Louis interrupts before Niall can go any further, "Do I know him?"

"No. I met him at my internship."

Louis makes a buzzing sound with his mouth, shaking his head. "I'm going to stop you there, Ni. Love you but anyone you met at a museum internship is not for me."