"When a man is denied the right to
live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to became an outlaw."

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Chapter 6: The robbery

Louis walked down the dark streets as Zayn and Harry tagged along.

He wasn't really sure why Harry tagged along yet. He was just there and, despite Zayn clearly being pissed about why he wouldn't leave, Louis didn't want him to go.

They would talk about small insignificant things after Louis arrived from work, Harry would crash on the couch when he came home late and yesterday he had bought strawberries.

So there they were, in the cold night of Bradford, walking down a dim-lighted alley full of graffiti covered buildings.

Their steps were slow and relaxed, as Zayn smoked while comtemplating the drawings on the bricked walls and Louis and Harry discussed the movie they previously watched.

This particular Monday everything was quiet. It was a work day and people were already inside their homes, probably sound asleep. The three, however, bought some pot and planned to, after smoking a bit of the batch, head to a sketchy burger place Zayn liked.

Above all else Zayn felt like he had to leavs his anger behind after his severe spat with Louis. Maybe it was wrong of him to tell his best friend. It ceirtainly wasn't Louis's fault and Zayn was putting his weight on Louis. He knew it wasn't reciprocal. Maybe he ruined everything.

He still loved him, and it was painful to watch Louie being so infatuated with another male. Zayn kept wishing there was a 'but' to that sentence and that misery, but there wasn't. At least he didn't feel empty anymore, he felt invadaded with pain. Although the thought of doing drugs was one he contemplated often.

So that conclusion came the only thing he felt good about. Loving Louis was bad for him because he felt empty. Now that he got rejected, the world, however dark and cold, felt full of possibilities. Like that caramel boy that walked in the store, and took his shirt off for a shoulder tattoo of one of Zayn's drawings. He almost couldn't concentrate.

Now that was a possibility! Even if Zayn didn't ask him his number, or they barely talked because it was either do his job or get absolutely lost in each other's eyes.

He immediately regretted letting that possibility go.

"Don't you think so, Zayn?" Louie asked trying to include him in the conversation, perhaps for feeling guilty about all this.

"Whah?"

Zayn looked up, from his thoughts, without a clue of what they were talking about.

"That monologue in the movie." Louis said.

"What about it?"

"Don't you think he was lying for the most part?" Louis insisted in bringing him in their talk. He knew Zayn was just a quiet person, but he couldn't stop worrying about how things were going up in his head and he was also afraid to ask. His head couldn't stop wondering if this was the end of their friendship or just a rough time.

"Nah, he wasn't lying." Zayn shook his head before looking at the road in front as Louis tried to make eye contact with him.

Was he overthinking this? "That is the mystery of the movie, Lou." Harry reminded him, smiling. Louis's insides churned. The beautiful boy that he could get basicallg nothing out of, had manage to find somewhat of a pet name for him. Lou.

Zayn ignored what Harry said. "He says the truth because that is the way he frees himself. They just pass her doubt to the viewer but he didn't need to lie in that part. Actually, what he needed was to say the truth." Zayn answered throwing the butt of the cigarette to the left.

Silence fell. Simply because neither Louie nor Harry thought of things in that light. It felt like a breakthrough.

They all walked staring at the ground, merged in their own thoughts, until hearing an allarm. Loud and invading. It almost scared the crap out of Louie.

They started turning to each other liks lost ants before Zayn collapsed against someone.

His pupils dialated when he noticed who it was but Liam was way too worried and stressed to think about Zayn, or sex, or anything right now.

"Liam?" Louie said before performing further examination of the situation.

Police sirens went off. "Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!" Liam yelled, his clenched fists punching at thin air and his feet banging on the floor. "Run."

And on instict they all sprinted, following Liam. It was confusing, and it all happened so fast.

Not that any of them had never ran away from the cops before, but when they did they had clear motive.

What was happening? What the fuck was happening?

A black van pulled up making the guys jump back surprise. Except Liam who vigorously opened it's back door and hopped in, letting the others enter even though they weren't quite sure as to why the hell they were doing it.

"What the fuck, Liam?" Louis yelled as Niall drove off making them lose balance and fall on their bums.

"I didn't get it, Niall." Liam said ignoring the hysteria and confusion of the others.

"What? Then why did you leave?" He yelled.

"I don't understand what is happening." Harry whispered close to Louis's ear.

"Why did we follow him?" Zayn hissed.

It seemed like they all did it but none of them really knew why. Their hearts just started beating really fast, the adrenaline pumped.

Liam and Niall kept on spatting as Niall drove which made the three other boys very uncomfortable.

"I wish I knew." Louis massaged his temple with the palm of his hand, closing his eyes and keeping his cool.

"Just pull over here. They're not on our backs any more!" Liam squeezed Niall's shoulder impatiently.

Niall rolled his eyes but did as told, because they had indeed mislead the cops.

"Who are these people?" Niall said when they parked, unbuckling and placing his knees on the seat to turn around and look at the back of the van.

"Niall?" Louis said as he recognised him.

"Louis? Okay, care to explain Payno?"

"I wasn't going to leave people in the crime scene, now was I?" Liam answered, widening his eyes like it was obvious.

"What crime scene?" Louis asked, scared they had killed somebody.

"Because they were witnesses? What? You wanna make them hostages?" Niall was, in his insides, calling Liam stupid.

"No, because they could be mistaken and end in jail!" Liam explained, and after Niall facepalmed himself.

"Are you stupid?"

"No, are you?"

"You are a fucking moron."

"Okay, what is happening?"

"Fuck, we are associated to a crime?"

"If you only explained things better!"

"CAN YOU PLEASE JUST SHUT UP?!" A collapsing yell evaded the small space and they all fell silent. Harry's veins popped out on his neck and he looked enraged.

All of them shut, surprised at the display, before Harry visibly calmed down and then smiled at Louis as to tell him to proceed.

He frowned, not expecting this following of events but soon got that it was the opportunity to clear everyone's confusion.

"Good. Now, one at a time." They all changed focus to Louis. "Liam, what crime did you two commit?"

Liam almost didn't get the cue to speak, so his eyes blinked a little when he tried to prepare the answer in his mind. "Um--- We robbed a-..."

"Don't tell them!" Niall grabbed Liam by the shoulder, struggling in his unconfortable position.

"Look, we are already way too involved. We are accessories to a crime we didn't commit. So what is your solution for this?" Louis asked crossing his arms.

"We're screwed." Liam took his hands to his head and sat on the floor of the van.

"Let's go to your dad's building and just figure shit out." Niall sat back again and turned on the car.

"What the fuck? No!" Louis stressed.

"We can't let you leave." Niall answered driving off, but Liam was still on the ground, freaking out.

"Did he mean kill us?" Zayn whispered to Louis.

"We're not going to kill you." Liam's voice sounded muffled from his looking down, hands on his face.

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Niall pulled into the small parking lot and parked close to the entrance. It was an old building with two floors that Liam inhirited when his dad died. It needed a lot of renovations and although Liam should have rented it all out by now, he was too lazy. So it was empty and Liam washed away the money he had left on his own fun instead.

"How are we gonna get them inside?" Niall asked.

This was an unsolvable problem. It felt like it was to say the least.

"We can just walk inside, we are not kids." Louis snarked.

"One at a time?" Liam suggested.

"Sure." Louis rolled his eyes.

Eventually, and with no resistance from their hostages whatsoever, they got into the first apartment which, other than three chairs, a table and an ancient sofa, was completly empty.

The walls were all covered in flowery wallpaper, that really old wallpaper with soft colors and the floors were practically all dusty wood.

Zayn and Harry sat on each end of the couch, as far away from each other as possible, while Louis paced around as they waited for Liam and Niall to come into the locked flat.

Zayn remebered the weed and immediately pulled the bag out to roll one.

"Do one for me." Louie said when he caught glimpse of Zayn with the bag and the grinder on his hand.

He walked quickly and sat in the middle of the couch, leaning forward and beating his foot on the wood repeatedly. Zayn rolled his eyes, although he was more than happy to provide for Louis, if Harry simply wasn't there.

Soon he was finalizing both by swiping the moist tip of his tongue across the paper and sealing it. Zayn handed one to Louis, who placed it in between his lips. Zayn grabbed the lighter, igniting Louis's and then his own.

Immediately they leaned back and tamed their stress. "Do you want some?" Louis turned to Harry who smiled looking at the boy's eyes.

"No, Harry can't have any." Zayn barked looking at both of them.

"Zayn, don't be a child."

"I'm fine, thanks." Harry politely declined which only made Zayn more pissed.

Although after a few drags Zayn would've probably not even care and offer weed to Harry himself.

"I don'oh even know whoh we got ourselves into." Zayn spoke, raspiness showed in his low voice.

"I know them from a long time ago.
I'll fix this." Louis assured, relaxed, leaning back.

"How- how do you know them?" Zayn was curious. Of course, he was. He longed for information of the bloke that made him even shier, if that was possible.

"We went to high school together." Louis said. "Well me and Liam did, and then Niall came from Ireland a couple years after I met Liam and joined our class."

"Ow. How come I've never met them before?"

"They went to other colleges and we fell apart." Louie explained. It was a rather boring story. It saddened Louis actually. And now things just took a turn for the worse. "I think I may have a solution."

"Okay, what?" Zayn jumped up slightly.

"Just stay sharp."

The door swung open and in came Niall with some tech junk filling his hands. Liam walked in as well and locked the door with a key, before stuffing it in his front pocket.

Niall dropped it all carefuly on the table, including his lap top and started setting it up.

"You're smoking pot?" Liam asked when he sniffes the air.

Niall would've noticed but he was way too focused on his task, as usual.

Zayn nodded. "Make me one?"

"Liam, there is no time for that now!" Niall snarked and he typed away furiously, until finally he breathed really loudly, plopped down on a chair and groan in what sounded like blissful release.
"Okay, good. No one is tracking us."

"Excellent." Liam smirked, speaking loudly. "So there is time!" He pointed out, turning his head to the hazel eyed boy and winking his eye at him.

Zayn's eyes widened in surprise and he looked down, readying everything as he smiled.

Louis frowned, confused at the display. Could this day turn anymore unexplainable?

"The police only showed up because the alarms went off. And since Niall turned off the cameras inside the bank and around that street, there is no way of knowing what really happened." Liam walked closer to them and explained.

"How about forced entry?" Louis raised an eyebrow.

"I unlocked and locked the doors with no way of getting traced or registered." Niall spoke up, although his eyes didn't leave the screen.

"Fingerprints?"

"Gloves." Liam waved his hands to show them.

"Witnesses?"

"Other than you three?"

"Okay, I heard enough." Louis got up and walked closer to Niall. "If this all checks out you will not even be approached by the police." Louis put both his hands on top of the table hovering over Niall who sat on the other side.

"So?" Niall looked up at Louie.

"So, you tried to rob a bank and we know that. We have levarage over you, because you are not going to kill us..."

"How does he know we that?" Liam asked Niall, his tone tired.

"Well, we were close to a bank, some restaurants and a lot of old empty buildings when you showed up. You said robbed before, and you practically just confirmed it." Louis said making everyone impressed at his insightfulness. Niall and Liam, without wanting it, already had given him the high ground.

"It was an easy assumption." Louie shrugged, before turning around and siting on top of the table with his front to the sofa.

Zayn waved the blunt in Liam's direction and he smirked getting up to head over to the boy.

"Hey, Zayn. Didn't you have your lighter in the right front pocket?" Louis asked and Zayn's brain just clicked.

"Nah, it's right here." It was actually laying in his lap with the rest of the things. Liam leaned slightly downwards for Zayn to ignite it. He placed a hand on Liam's hip and quickly the other boy was puffing away, walking back to his place overly pleased.

"Zayn has really meticulous fingers. That how he rolls them so perfectly." Louis pointed to Liam's face. "You got it?" Louis asked to his best buddy who smirk and showed a set of keys.

"What the fuck?" Liam asked getting up, and when Niall noticed he did as well. Zayn handed it over to Louis and he guarded it in his grip safely.

"Well it seems like you two are at a disavantage. We have all the information to throw you under the bus plus the keys to exit. Now, we can either negotiate so this can roll smootly for you, or we can turn you in." Louie smirked proudly. "So... what is it gonna be?"

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QUESTION #1: What is it gonna be?

QUESTION #2: This is a less reflective chapter, but did you like it's vibe?

QUESTION #3: Zayn is jealous of Harry, but is Harry jealous of Zayn?

A/N: OiOi!! Long chap, hah :) My babies won awards, Hazza started touring, Nialler too! And that Harry tweet about the tour was so Louis that wrote cus: OiOii is Louis! BTW changed the cover. Do you like it or do you prefer the other one?

See you next time!