The cure for pain is in the pain.
— Rumi
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Pre-note: Pls be nice to Harry. :^)
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Pain was something that Harry knew all too well. Whether it was unintentional pain that weighed on him, or it was physical pain that clawed and tore at his skin. In Harry's eyes, when pain subsided, it left room not only for healing but for improvement. When times get tough, pain can hold its own cure, it's own medicine.

This was not that kind of pain. He would describe it more as, dreading pain. The kind that sucks the life out of you and leaves a stinging feeling behind. There was no relief in the end, and there was no medicine.

It was just Louis appearing out of nowhere and Harry doing his job. It didn't matter what happened in the past, and it didn't matter what Louis did to Harry or vice versa because it was strictly business. Even if Harry was getting paid to do what he thought of like babysitting, that didn't have any effect on his true thoughts of Louis and the whole case of his kidnapping. On the bottom line, Harry didn't like this. He didn't like waiting on Louis, he didn't like being his personal bodyguard. But Liam's words struck deep inside him.

"I don't care what went on between you too because it clearly isn't my business. But when it threatens Louis and his safety, you are putting him in danger. Would it kill you to just put it behind you?" And a part of Harry thinks it would kill him.

Harry tried to spend his night in his truck but eventually moved to a room next to Louis'. The cold at the dead of night was unkind. His toes were frozen as well as his fingers, so he didn't hesitate to blast the heater on and curl under three layers of blankets.

On the other side of the thin wall was Louis awake. His eyes glued on the curtainless window that was by the bathroom door. The moonlight shone through, casting shadows on the deep blue carpet floor. The London boy hadn't slept one wink ever since he retired to his room all that time ago. He tried watching television but it only irritated him, the corny shows with horrible jokes, and the news channels were just making him disgusted and depressed.

Louis tugs his coat tightly around his body as the snow crunches beneath his boots. He walks to the big truck parked directly in front of his room. The blue sky greeting him with a couple of clouds scattered, the winds carrying the smell of the diner beside the motel along with the fresh scent of pine. Thank goodness it had stopped snowing. Louis wouldn't have been happy being trapped in his tiny motel room.

He knocks his fist lightly on the window, not wanting to startle Harry but didn't get any sort of reply. He knocks again, this time harder and cups his hands over his eyes before peering through the frosty window. He couldn't see all that much through the layer of frost on the glass.

Louis huffs and reaches into his pocket, taking out his glasses and cleaning the lenses with a soft part of his sleeve.

"You get locked out or somethin'?"

Out of surprise, Louis jumps and jostles himself so much that he drops his glasses. They clatter to the snow and sink in, disappearing in the white.

"Oh, sorry." The voice says again, the Canadian accent as clear as day. The person bends down and finds Louis' glasses in the snow. They blow off the little snowflakes and that was when Louis' sees the man's face.

He was a tall blond, a couple streaks of brown here and there. He had a strong jaw and a pointy nose. The man's eyes were dark brown, and he had dimples. He was a little cute in Louis' opinion.

"I'm so sorry. Didn't mean to frighten you." He smiles and shows off his perfectly straight white teeth.

"It's fine." Louis takes his glasses from the man's hand and slips them onto his face. He's about to walk back to his room, maybe wait for Harry to come knocking or watch some television but the man speaks up again.

"Your glasses are a little crooked."

Louis stifles a laugh and turns around. "Yeah, they're broken."

"Here." He reaches out and takes the glasses off Louis' face. That was when Louis noticed the tattoos on the man's hand. "I'll fix them for you." He grips the glasses tightly and twists his hands around. Louis' eyes widen when he hears a crack. The unknown man opens his hands to reveal Louis' broken glasses, one of the temples was certainly not connected to his glasses anymore. "Oh."

Louis doesn't have a chance to speak before the man is apologizing again. "I'm so, so sorry." He stares down at the broken glasses in his big hands. "I'll get them fixed, by a professional this time."

The London boy shakes his head. "It's fine—"

"No, it's not." The man says, determined. "I'll get them fixed and bring them back to you. Are you staying at this motel?"

Louis looks down at his snow-covered boots. "Not sure for how long."

"Oh, right. Sorry if I seem a little on the creepy side, that's not my intention. I'm sorry." He apologizes again. "Um, we can meet somewhere and I'll give them to you. I just feel terrible."

"You can just give me my glasses and I'll send you the bill if the money is what you're worried about."

The man laughs nervously, running a hand through his slightly messy hair. "I actually just want an excuse to see you again."

That shocks Louis. "You don't know me."

"Exactly, I could get to know you." The man offers Louis a small smile. "If you'd let me." He holds about a hand. "I'm Micheal."

Louis doesn't know why, but he finds himself agreeing to meet the man that goes by Micheal at "Metroally Cafe" in two days.

NOTE: gasp. a new male character taking an interest in a main character. Time for drama lol