Chapter Text
Louis doesn't realize he's being pushed until his body is unintentionally colliding with others around him and his friend's voice, Niall, seem to go farther away. His wrist is caught by the tight grip of his friend, his small body being pulled back against the tide of people rushing towards the stage.
"If I lose you here, I'm not going to miss the show looking for you." The Irish accent of his companion is emphasized by the loud tone of his voice, trying to communicate amid such loud environment.
Louis offers Niall one of his sarcastic smirks; "Thanks lad, really comforting."
Niall laughs, the lights around them are bright and turned towards the crowd, the stage covered by a big screen that will probably be pulled up by the time the concert starts. Louis sighs, the amount of bodies around them being a lot for him to adjust, especially after hours waiting in line to get inside the arena. Louis is convinced that he is the best friend in the entire world just for agreeing to go to this show, only to be a company to the Irish lad.
"C'mon, live a little!" Niall spoke by his side, hands still grasping his arm, holding him still in the spot that Niall felt was the best. It wasn't far from the stage, a good few feet away, enough where he could see the speakers on the edge of the structure and spot the security employees that circled the fence.
Louis glanced at his friend, watching his familiar blue eyes shining with expectancy. He grinned, genuinely this time. "Trying. I'm surprised you can even breathe right now."
Niall ignored his comment and peered at the stage, spotlights beginning to fade away slowly and screaming fans at the fence becoming wilder by the second. The yelling got louder when images flashed on the big screen in front of the stage; Louis' head ached just from the screaming alone, and the sight of flashing LED lights in a huge screen made him want to double over in overwhelm.
"You alright?" Niall questioned, not taking his vision out of the screen. Louis replied a quick and loud "Yeah," and turned around again to watch the screen be lifted, revealing, meter by meter, the complete stage.
Screams were loud, too loud, Louis thought he wouldn't be able to make it. Suddenly, the thought of being lost and farther away from the main point of the concert felt like a good idea, until the music began playing and the yelling reduced into a melodious and joyful sound. Louis removed his hands from his ears and peered the stage, watching the band come to life and the musicians play their instruments skillfully.
In the middle, in the spotlight, there stood a man, the lead singer and performer, one he had learned was Harry Styles. Louis remembers seeing the lad's name, splattered around the news, social media and magazines. He'd seen his face before and his voice was familiar to him, being that his best friend Niall was, clearly, a big fan.
Louis watched countless videos of him - most of them forcefully by Niall - to an extend that he believed that he had heard enough from the man to know that his music was, in fact, good. He enjoyed a few tunes, had a couple favorites, but the entire experience of being there in front of him and his band didn't bring as much joy as it did Niall.
However, seeing his friend having the time of his life there, was enough to make him stay. So, he turned his vision to the stage and watched as the man sang with ease, his smooth grasps on the microphone stand and awkward, yet entertaining dancing demonstrated his customary routine with the stage.
The first song was a banger - Louis believed - and by the end, it had him bouncing his head, shyly following his dancing feet. Niall yells at the top of his lungs several times in a short spam of minutes, so much that Louis is absolutely sure that he'll hear his friend complaining about having lost his voice during the next following days. More songs play in, and Louis grows acclimatized with all the noise around him, his mind settling into the figure of the man on stage, wrapped around a pink suit that had most fans shouting for.
Harry interacts a lot with the crowd, Louis notices. The performer talks in between songs, comments on the fan's dancing and screaming in a way that shows appreciation. Also, his catching skills are keen when he grasps onto random objects that are thrown to his direction, which has Louis amused to watch the singer's quirky manners that shines through him, transparent even when he's in front of a good amount of people.
In one instance, during one of the songs that Louis knows and enjoys and is singing along, Harry's eyes are scanning the crowd, looking for nothing in particular, until Louis can physically feel the pressure of an unfamiliar stare towards his frame. He isn't sure if the performer is actually looking at his direction; he can't even see it clearly, there's too many lights, too many people, he even thinks that there's some sort of fog around. Louis comes to the conclusion that the singer is probably getting blinded by all the lights and so his eyes dart around, as the songs continue, and he turns to dance and grab at his guitar on other songs.
Louis' mind is calmer by the entirety of the rest of the performance that ran by smoothly, and Niall's throat - Louis is sure - is raw by the end of it. Harry, the singer, begins to say his farewells, when Niall pulls at Louis' wrist again. "Lou, we have to go to the exit."
"Why? Something's wrong?" Louis asked.
Niall only shakes his head as a response and continues to pull him towards the back, guiding them both at the exit. Harry's voice can still be heard, then the drums are hit a few more times as an exiting beat, and then the fans are the only source of noise again. The lights are bright again and the stage is empty when the pair reaches the exit, the security there holding the doors open.
When they leave the arena and Niall is guiding them into an odd, long and crowded hallway that circles the structure; the Irish informs with a wide smile; "I bought meet and greet for us."
Louis is stunned, not aware of the information until the moment. "What?" He says, wanting to shout, but barely hearing his own voice. "Are you nuts? That shit is expensive."
"Yeah, so? Is not always that Harry Styles is in the same building as me. C'mon, it says it's around here,"
It doesn't take long to find it; it's a large, sparse room. It's the complete opposite of the ambient they just were in, tight and crowded and heating with screaming people. There's fans scattered, either buying merch or talking among themselves in groups, until a staff member shows up and announces that Harry will be out in a few minutes, and that a line should be organized calmly.
Niall pulls Louis once again, placing them in the said created line. Soon, the singer appears, along with more smiling people beside him that Louis believes are members of the band. Fans are gasping, some are crying, and the meet and greet begin. Pictures and signatures are being taken, along with warm hugs that Louis can watch happening in the front of the room where the band is standing. Harry is calm and patient with everyone, unhesitatingly wrapping his arms around his fans. Louis actually grins as he watches the interactions.
Almost half and hour passes when Niall is starting to silently freak out, hiding behind a sheer posture of confidence, but Louis is too familiar with the Irish's body language to know that his friend is slightly panicking as they get closer and closer to the singer. "Calm down mate, it's going to be alright, yeah? He seems really nice."
"He is, I'm just really excited." He says, his accent sharpening as it tends to do when he's nervous.
Louis pats his friend's shoulder in reassurance and glances up, realizing there's not many people in front of them before it's their turn. The line is shortening and soon, the pair is standing in front of the photographer and Harry, who is offering them a warm grin. Niall is the first one to step in, pacing with open arms towards Harry, who takes the embrace with a smile. Louis is grinning behind his friend, knowing how much that moment means to him, so much so, that he zooms out for a second and when he comes to realization, Harry is the one with open arms, as if waiting for him.
"Oh," Louis says to himself, approaching and taking the hug, feeling his own body being wrapped around long arms that don't let go of his frame until he pulls away first. He notices the singer is taller than himself as he looks up.
"Hi, how are you?" Harry questions, green eyes bright against the pink suit he's still wearing. "What's your name, darling?"
Louis hums, glancing over at Niall, who's smiling brightly. "Ahn, I'm good. I'm Louis."
"Nice to meet you, Louis." Harry says, pulling the pair in for a picture. The photographer is quick to snap a couple photos, as the managing staff behind him moves to organize the next people in line.
"Thank you. The show was really good, by the way." Louis comments, wanting to match the man's kindness, as he walks away to allow the next awaiting fans to take their turn.
Harry only smiles back warmly and his green eyes linger a bit longer in his figure, until his attention is caught by another round of fans and the pair dissipate from the room.
"I can't believe we just actually met Harry!" Niall says excitedly, guiding them towards the place where they would get their photo revealed.
Louis smiles. "Yeah, he was pretty cool to be honest."
"I told you!"
Niall goes into the another room to get their pictures, and Louis announces he's going to be waiting outside, wanting to grab a smoke before he drives them back to their respective places. Louis is pacing, almost lost inside the long and bright - almost too bright - hallways, until he is stopped by an unknown figure that seems to be struggling to catch their breath.
"Hey! You," The man approaches and plants a hand on Louis shoulder, removing it quickly after catching the smaller man's attention.
"Can I help you?" Louis asks, proper confused.
The man nods. "Yes, my name's Jeffrey, I'm Harry's manager,"
Louis' eyes widen, both in shock and confusion. "Harry Styles, you mean?"
"Exactly, anyways, he asked me to give you this." The brunet hands out a small paper, partly ripped and scrambled together, pushing it between Louis' fingers. "Your name is Louis, right?"
Louis nods and that's all the confirmation the man needs, before he's pacing off with a grin.
The smaller man feels stuck in place, standing in the middle of the busy corridor with a folded paper in his hands that seem to suck in all of his attention as he opens it with a mixture of rush and care, pacing aside to lean against the wall. He's frowning and trembling when he reads.
"Hi, it's Harry. Please, text me whenever you can."
Louis' blue eyes ran through an unfamiliar number that follows the short message. He shoves the paper in his pocket and Niall soon appears, the picture in his hands and a smile in his face. Louis is still struck with the surprising event when he glances at the photo taken. His eyes are glued to Harry's figure, his bright, dimpled smile and tousled curls.
Louis realizes that he's proper fucked.