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At first it was a joke.
Louis had nominated Zayn and Perrie for the school’s “Cutest Couple” yearbook award as a joke, and somehow it spiraled into something so much more than that.
They were the only sophomores nominated since usually only juniors and seniors are brave enough for the yearbook awards, and the first Perrie did when she found out they were in the running was slap Louis. The next thing was getting her friends together to help her win this without any of Zayn’s consent because god damn it Zayn if we’re not going to be the first sophomores to ever win anything.
With help from Niall, Leigh Anne, and Jesy, Perrie campaigned like crazy (similar to the way she had when she ran for Vice President in the fall, the girl had won that, so she was determined to win this too).
It was a god damned joke.
Louis reminds himself this constantly, even as he flips his yearbook open to the awards section and sees Zayn kissing Perrie’s cheek as she laughs under the title “Cutest Couple: Zayn Malik and Perrie Edwards.”
“You sly bitch,” he says to her when the lovesick couple joins him at lunch. She laughs and steals his yearbook away from him, sliding hers in his direction.
“If you don’t nominate us next year, I think she’ll wring your throat out mate,” Zayn confesses. “Pez wants to do a three year streak apparently.”
Louis’s eyebrows meet his hair line at this confession. He’s writing a cute little passage on the front page of her book, and he’s completely aware of what Zayn just said implies. But Louis’s also completely willing to bet his life that Zayn and Perrie will be the disgustingly cute high school sweethearts who get married fresh out of college.
When he says as much, Zayn rolls his eyes and retorts, “Maybe. But that’s definitely going to be you and Harry.”
Louis gets quiet as he finishes what he’s writing. “I don’t know Zayn…”
“Are you still not talking about it?” Zayn asks, somewhat gently but mostly obnoxiously.
“How would you feel if Perrie just moved across the country to attend one of the best law schools in the country?” Louis snaps.
“Not happening bebz,” Perrie pipes up, trading Louis’s yearbook for hers. “I met this girl, Jade, from L.A. We’re talking about becoming a duo. Maybe go on the X-Factor, maybe just go headfirst into the business, maybe get a music degree first.”
“Besides,” Zayn sighs, “how do you think Liam and Sophia feel? He’s going to Yale, same as Harry.”
“She’s going into NYU!” Louis nearly yells. “They’ll be on the same coast! I’m going to be stuck as a junior in high school, in San Francisco!”
“So just go to U Mass after we graduate, you could take a train to see each other on the weekends.” Perrie shrugs and stands up, walking toward Leigh Anne and Jesy’s table.
“Yeah, like my mom would let me leave the west coast,” Louis grumbles.
“Look, Lou. I love you, you’ve been my best friend for years now,” Zayn starts. “But you need to talk to your boyfriend. Isn’t it possible that he’s freaking out too? What if he think you won’t wait for him, that you’ll meet some other bloke. It’s not fair to either of you, and it’s straining your relationship.”
“Yeah,” Louis sighs, “maybe you’re right.”
…
“He’s going to leave me, Liam!” Harry yells a tad overdramatically.
“No he isn’t, Harry,” Liam replies for what seems like the thousandth time that afternoon.
“Louis hasn’t even talked to me, like really talked to me, in a week! He’ll hold my hand in the hallways and like, give me this fake half smile,” Harry blubbers. “Liam it took me months to ask him out I can’t have him leave me now!”
Liam raises an eyebrow. “Have you tried to talk to him?”
Harry stares at him for a moment. “Well, no, but-“
“Then you have no business saying he’s going to break up with you if you haven’t even tried, Harry,” Liam interrupts. “Mate, we’re leaving a week after graduation. That gives you ten days to get your shit together.”
“That’s the problem though,” Harry says, defeated, “we’re leaving in ten days, and I haven’t told him yet.”
…
“Louis,” Perrie whispers, “how are you feeling?”
“Honestly?” Louis laughs, borderline hysterical. “Pretty shitty. Pretty fucking shitty.”
“Lou, you still haven’t talked?” Zayn asks gently.
“He…He used to walk me to my classes you know?” Louis rubs furiously at his eyes. He refuses to cry over this. “But the past three days… I haven’t even seen him. He’s avoiding me. How cliché is it that our relationship is going to end on graduation day?”
“Harry isn’t going to break up with you Louis,” Perrie snaps. Both boys look taken aback at the sudden statement. In response, she rolls her eyes. “Let’s be honest with ourselves, Louis. Harry isn’t going to end your relationship! I’m tired of listening to you cry over something that’s so completely pointless! Just talk to him. It’s the least you can do.”
Louis sniffles, but straightens his posture, wiping the unshed tears away. “O-ok. I’ll talk to him. God, I hope you’re right Pez.”
Zayn chuckles, “It’s Perrie, Lou. She’s always right.”
Louis nods. “I’m going to the gym, try to find Harry. I’ll see you guys during lunch.” The couple wishes him luck as they walk down the hall to their shared chemistry class. Louis takes a deep breath and determinedly sets off toward the gym, where all the seniors hang out on the last day of school.
Oh god, I’m about to end my relationship, he thinks, but his steps don’t falter for a second as he opens one of the heavy double doors.
The senior class is milling about, some sitting on the bleachers, signing each other’s yearbooks and taking pictures that’ll most likely end up on Snapchat or Instagram. It takes Louis only a few moments to spot Harry. His boyfriend is on the top bleacher, surrounded by a bunch of his senior friends that Louis never bothered to know and Liam.
He’s getting a serious case of cold feet all of a sudden, and he really wishes he’d joined his friends in chemistry class or maybe gone to see Niall in his Spanish class. But it’s too late, because his boyfriend spots him and waves him over with a level of enthusiasm only Harry could be capable of on such a sad and otherwise emotional day.
“Louis!” Liam greets him. “What are you doing here?”
“Yeah, Lou,” Harry practically whispers, “what are you doing here?” His face holds a small smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Louis’s never seen Harry cry, but there’s a first time for everything he thinks.
“H-Harry,” Louis gulps, “can we talk? Alone?”
His boyfriend glances at Liam, who sends a supportive smile, before nodding and standing up. He steps down from his seat, taking Louis’s hand, and they both shuffle out of the gym and down the hallway. Once they get outside, Harry drops Louis’s grip and they stand in silence for several moments.
“Don’t leave me,” Louis finally whispers, looking straight at the parking lot before them. “Please, please don’t leave me.”
He closes his eyes when Harry sighs, but goes rigid when Harry wraps his arms around him.
“Louis, I’m moving to Connecticut in a week.”
Louis feels like he’s been punched, right on his blind side. He feels like Harry ripped out his heart and stomped on it. He also feels pretty fucking betrayed.
“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Louis demands, ripping himself out of Harry’s arms, his voice quiet but dangerous.
“I was going to!” Harry scrambles to recover, trying to pull Louis back and pouting when his smaller boyfriend won’t budge. “But then you started getting distant, and I was too worried that you were going to leave me that I just totally put it off and-”
“Wait,” Louis interrupts, “you thought that I was going to leave you?” He shakes his head. “It’s the other way around. You’re supposed to go to law school and forget your high school fling and find a nice boy to marry except I don’t want that to happen and-“
“You think this is just a fling?” Harry sounds hurt, and Louis’s heart breaks around the edges.
“No!” Louis groans. “But you’re supposed to! You’re supposed to, and that sucks because you’ll never want what I do from this…”
“And what is it that you want Louis?” Harry whispers.
Louis genuinely thinks for a moment before he speaks. “I want long term, I want hot cider when we go apple picking in the fall, I want tea on Christmas morning in front of whatever tree we have, I want to plant a garden in the spring, I want to go swimming in the Pacific Ocean in the summer. I want to celebrate my birthday with your family and to go on trips to celebrate our anniversaries. I want to follow you out to Connecticut as soon as I can, and I want to spend every waking moment with you Harry Styles. Because…Because I love you, and of this I am absolutely certain.” He takes a deep breath, awaiting Harry’s laughter and rejection.
He is not expecting to be kissed.
And wow, is he kissed.
Usually they take their time kissing, slow and languid, passionate but not overzealous. This kiss is frantic, desperate, and filled to the brim with love.
“You’re such an idiot,” Harry sighs when they pull apart. They’re pressed together now, Louis’s arms locked around Harry’s neck and the larger boy’s hands encompassing his waist.
“I know I’m an ass,” Louis starts. Harry hums an agreement, a hand slipping down to cheekily squeeze his bum. Louis giggles before carrying on, “But please don’t leave me.”
“Louis,” Harry says, “I love you, and I could never ever leave you. Wait for me?”
And yeah, it might not be fair to ask Louis of so much, but Harry’s always been a little greedily selfish, so he allows himself this one time.
Louis giggles, pecks Harry’s lips once, and responds, “Always.”