No Regrets

*LIZZIE’S POV*

Instead of falling asleep on the bed as I so desperately wanted to, I pulled open my laptop and immediately began looking at flights. I needed to get away from him. My need for sleep could wait. Purchasing a flight to New Orleans that would be leaving at 6:00 am (a delightful two hours from now), I turned and began packing up my stuff. Stripping out of my dress from the club, I threw on a quick pair of black leggings and a loose white blouse before I shoved the rest of my belongings in my massive suitcase. I looked at it longingly… the suitcase I had packed for three romantic, fun filled weeks with my boyfriend… most of those clothes never even made it out of the bag. I had just gotten off the phone with a taxi service when I heard a knock on my door.

“Lizzie… please…” I heard Louis plead from the other side of the door.

“Is it just you?” I asked softly, trying to stay composed.

“Yes. Promise.” He said before I unlocked the door and let him in, closing it behind him.

“You’re leaving already?” Louis asked, his eyes wide with shock as he took in my changed outfit and packed bag. “But what about the rest of us? We want you here just as much as Harry does..?” I flinched at the use of his name.

“I’m sorry, Lou, I know this isn’t fair to y’all, but I just can’t be here right now. I just need some time and space.” I whispered as he took me into his arms.

“I’m sure he has some explanation, Liz, just please stay.” Louis pleaded desperately, but he and I both knew he was wrong.

“That’s the thing- h-h-he has no explanation.” I finally got out, my voice hiccupping from the crying. “And I can’t even look at him right now without just feeling.. without feeling…” I couldn’t get out the rest of the sentence before the tears started again.

“So I guess you really are leaving us this time?” He asked with regret in his eyes.

“Things are just too complicated. I can’t do this to the rest of you, or even to Harry and myself. We all need a break.” I said, gaining composure.

“I guess you’re right then, as much as I hate to say it,” Louis said with a small smile before pulling me into his arms. I stood there for a moment, fighting back tears before I finally pulled away. As I looked up, leaning against the now open doorframe stood Harry. The intensity in his eyes scared me. Louis looked up between the two of us before he walked out of the room, leaving Harry and me alone for the first time.

I stood there in silence, holding his glare for a moment before he finally looked away, his thumb reaching up and wiping the inside corner of his eye.

“Just, please, Lizzie, just don’t go..” he whispered, his voice cracking, walking towards me with his arms out. As he reached out to me, he tried to pull me into his strong, affectionate hold, but I pulled away from his touch.

“I can’t” I finally whispered before I left him, wheeling my suitcase behind me.

~~~~~~

THREE WEEKS LATER

*HARRY’S POV*

Lizzie still hadn’t returned any of my phone calls. For the first few days after she had left, I called her relentlessly, until the rest of the lads told me to stop and actually give her the space she needed. Since then, I had only called her once a day- exactly at 7:30 New Orleans time, regardless of my ever changing time zone. I left her voicemail after voicemail, but I couldn’t offer any explanation to make up for what I did. It truly was all my fault- and I had to face that.

I hardly left my room, except for when I had to go to an arena to get ready. Management had released a statement saying that I had caught some sort of infection, since I refused to do any interviews and was hardly seen in public.

The shows were the hardest though; every song reminded me of her. Sometimes, I would get one glorious moment when I would just get caught up in the song and forget about everything that happened- until I would look to her spot in the crowd and would be slapped with the reality that she wasn’t standing there, dancing and singing along as she normally did.

Now that it had been three weeks, I had a new plan of action. I had to get her back. Tomorrow, May 31st, was not only her graduation from high school but also her birthday. I planned on surprising her, and I couldn’t tell you how nervous I was, because two days later- that Sunday- we were all supposed to be flying out to London to do the final three shows of the tour in the O2 Arena.

~~~~~~

My breath caught in my throat as I walked up the final steps to the floor that Lizzie’s flat was on. I had no idea if she was even home, but I figured that if she wasn’t, I would just wait until she got here. I had no problem with waiting. However, it was 3:45 in the afternoon, a weird time, so I figured she would be here.

As I walked up to the door, I ran my fingers through my curls one last time before I knocked. My heart literally felt like a hammer beating at my chest from the inside. Slowly, the door began to open and I plastered my face with the biggest smile I could manage, only to see a short, middle-aged woman in a pants suit standing there.

“Hello! Are you here to look at the apartment?” She answered cheerily. It took me a moment to wrap my head around what she just said.

“What?” I stammered, “Where’s Lizzie? Uhm, Elizabeth Braddison?” I looked around her, over her shoulder, as if Lizzie would be hiding in the corner somewhere.

“Oh, sorry, you’re mistaken. Elizabeth Braddison moved out to London last week.” She said, watching my face for my reaction. She gave me the forwarding address that Liz left, and I thanked her before I quickly turned around and began to walk away before she could see the tears that I didn’t feel like explaining.

~~~~~~

*LIZZIE’S POV*

As I drunkenly stumbled into my new flat for the fifth consecutive time since moving in almost a week and a half ago, I almost tripped over a box that someone had placed at my front door.

Not caring, I unlocked the door, gave the box a kick inside, and turned around to pull in the guy who had come home with me- David.. No.. Daniel.. Devin..? Not caring what his name is, I wrapped my arms around his neck as he picked me up and carried me to the bedroom.

~~~~~~

Waking up the next morning, I reached over, only to be met with an empty bed. Not that I hadn’t expected this from a drunken one night stand, but I just missed waking up next to someone every morning. Shaking thoughts of him from my mind, I stretched and walked to the kitchen to make some coffee.

That’s when I remembered the box.

As I picked it up, I shook it around and found it surprisingly lightweight. Curious, I dug through my unfamiliar drawers until I found a pair of scissors and ripped the thing open. My breath got caught in my throat as I reached inside and pulled out a picture frame with an envelope.

The picture was of the whole group of us- me, Harry, Danielle, Liam, Eleanor, Louis, Zayn, and Niall. It was all smiles and happy with our arms wrapped around each other. I couldn’t remember when the picture had been taken, but I loved it. I set it up on my counter as the first picture in my new place before I took a deep breath and prepared myself for the envelope. I was somewhat shocked by the note- or more of what it was lacking. It was a simple message, signed by all the boys.

Just a little ‘Welcome to London’ present.

We’d love for you to attend our last show.
.xx
*signatures*

Looking back in the envelope, I saw the familiar concert ticket and backstage pass. Unsure of what to do, I quickly put down the note and envelope before I felt the seemingly omnipresent tears begin to slide down my cheeks again.

Notes