Young & Beautiful

leaving Louis a little blank.
“If you ask me questions, I’ll answer honestly,” Zayn’s gentle, glossed voice prods, and though
his eyes never leave his canvas, Louis knows he’s trying to help him, trying to ease him into a
conversation he doesn’t quite know how to go about.
Louis begins to open his mouth.
“But only in regards to myself—situations that concern myself, and general knowledge. I won’t
disclose any information that’s Harry’s own right to disclose. All right, mate?” he asks, but it’s not
really a question, and he now dips his brush into a thick mess of gold as he stares at Louis head
on.
Well shit.
There go all the questions.
But Louis nods anyway, admiring Zayn’s principles and morals and unyielding loyalty, and a
small smile lightens his expression as he watches the beautiful boy before him. “All right,” he
agrees.
And Zayn goes back to painting, quietly and steadily.
So. Here it is. But where does Louis start?
“I’m-I’m not sure if you know about the past couple days?” Louis begins, tugging the sleeves of
his pale gray sweater over his hands, giving himself cozy little paws. He focuses on them,
glancing occasionally up at Zayn who continues his work.
Zayn remains silent, impassive. Louis isn’t sure if that’s a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’—Zayn’s always been
hard to read—so he doesn’t waste any time in wondering, merely plows on as he scrunches his
sweater paws.
“I feel badly,” he continues, and he knows his voice sounds so unlike him, all serious and trepid,
so he clears his throat and attempts a stronger tone. But it just comes out more disquieted. “I
thought, maybe, if I knew more about him, I could...understand him better? I don’t know, Zayn. I
just…” He bounces his paws together, flicks his hair out of his eyes, smoothes out his features. “I
think we could be mates, yeah? But I need to know what’s…wrong.”
He glances upward as he says the last word, and Zayn nods, just barely, eyes focused, listening,
and understanding.
“So, I was wondering.” Louis stares at him, dropping his paws to his sides, letting his hands break
through the sleeves. “Could you tell me everything you know about Harry. In regards to you.
What’s your story, that sort of thing.”
Hopefully that was in the realm of safe questioning.
Louis waits.
And Zayn smiles. “Good question.” Louis relaxes. “We went to school together, me and Harry.
Since young lads.”
“All right. Were you friends?”
“Yeah, of course. Good friends. We’d grown up a bit together, cuz we were in the same social