AU where Harry truly believes in Destiny and Louis just happens to cross his path at the right moment. Featuring a world with the size of a stamp, Liam as the best friend ever, Niall as a social butterfly who knows everyone and Zayn who always knows...
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A sigh of relief escapes Louis when he opens the door. After hours of freezing outside, the warmth of the shop seems to be the most beautiful thing in the world. He is sure he's having the worst day in ages and it's not even noon. Even if by now he can at least feel his hands, he thinks he's probably the unluckiest person of all time.
The exact moment the door closes behind him, Louis realises he's in the biggest bookshop he has ever seen: there are Christmas decorations everywhere, even on the floor, and it almost makes him forget he's spending his favourite holiday away from everyone he loves. A lot of Christmas lights are hung along a stair handrail and everything reminds him so much of his mum and the way she usually decorates the entire house.
He still can't believe he's spending this time of the year so far from home.
Something inside him starts to move, like an eel dancing the macarena in his stomach, and Louis knows he needs something to distract him. He walks through the aisle, not sure what he's looking for, until he spots the music section. That bookshop keeps getting cooler and cooler; he could spend the entire day in there.
Louis has always thought shopping was therapeutic. He remembers a lot of occasions in which a new pair of shoes helped him smile again, much to the pleasure of Stan, who has always called him a princess for just that. Now, though, Louis thinks he could even accept being called the Queen of England by Stan: he needs to buy a new, shiny CD and treat himself. Nobody is there to judge him, after all. He stands by this huge shelf full of stuff and doesn't even know where to start looking. The thing is... Louis doesn't know what he wants to buy. He likes the searching, hunting that perfect piece of music or clothing or anything, really. He likes finding the needle in the haystack. He always knows when it happens: it's like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle that goes right into its place. He loves to touch tons and tons of stuff until something clicks in his head. It may be something he's going to love for eternity or hate a week after buying it; Louis is not very selective in his shopping. But, at least for now, he has to exclude the pop section from his quest because there is a pack of squealing teenagers staring at Justin Bieber's discography. Louis wrinkles his nose automatically. He's not a music snob, he really isn't, he just can't stand the lad.
He reaches the alternative rock section and, thank god, there are just a couple of guys there. Louis hates crowded places. He doesn't mind being surrounded by people, but there are those moments when he is in a cramped room and he feels like it's possible to hear the thoughts of every single person around him.
Louis looks around for a bit, reading the tracklist of the new Mumford and Sons CD, admiring the cover of a special edition DVD... but nothing really catches his eye. If shopping doesn't help, then nothing can. He turns abruptly, ready to go back to the cold streets of New York and to be stuck in a bad mood for the rest of the day, when something hits him.
