Nothing Without Love

Louis POV

The morning was filled with a little adventure, Stan ended up a little sea sick as the waves started to get a little choppy the further out that we went. Because of his nausea we headed in a little earlier than we had planned but I was getting tired out in the middle of the ocean anyway. The sun beating down, the waves, we didn't really even fish, it was all about Stan and I chatting.

You forget about how much you miss your friends when you're apart for so long. Life sweeps you up so easily in this industry, you forget whose been there for you since the beginning. Since before the beginning.

Sometimes I spend a lot of time thinking about life. You're surrounded by people that constantly say they care about you but if you fall from grace as I have a few times, they're nowhere to be found. They're gone like dust in the wind.

Stan always stayed, he always answered the phone, he's always up for anything I suggest. He'll meet me anywhere. But he's always up for doing nothing at the same time. My sudden fame never interested him, I'm sure he enjoyed the lavish vacations, but he was always good just to play FIFA and eat pizza all weekend.

We pull up to the rental and see that the other car is still there. I'm exhausted from getting up at 3:30 in the morning but I always have a sudden energy burst. We strip our shoes before we head inside, all of them wet along with our pants from having a kid moment on the beach. The water was colder than I remember it from the last time, we didn't get far into the waves before we decided to skip it.

“You think they're sleeping?” I whisper before we even head in. A habit of mine as I was scolded quite a few times for entering a house loudly when my mum had little babies sleeping. Hell hath no fury like a sleep deprived mother.

“Maybe, Davis sleeps like a champ though. He sleeps through anything. You could slam the door in his room if you wanted and he wouldn't know the difference.” He laughs and opens the door, dropping his shoes at the front.

I'm envious of Stan. And Niall, and Liam, Harry, Zayn. I might never admit it but I'm truly envious of friends that have found happiness. My mum spent so much time investing herself in other men that it created an unhealthy example for me. It's not that she meant to do it. She wanted happiness. Everyone deserves it. She didn't always make the best relationship choices but she always took care of me and my siblings. We were always first. Always.

I scan the open area to not find Josie anywhere so I follow Stan as he heads up the stairs to I presume change clothes and maybe take a nap. He's always been one for sleeping. My room door is open a crack so I quietly sneak in, I know already that the wood floor creeks to the right so I have to be careful not to disturb anyone in side. I've learned that Josie is a bit of a beat when tired, it's best not to wake her.

She lays their sleeping, the room as dark as it can be with lighter blinds and shades. I stand memorized by her. I can only see her back, as she's faced the other way, her long brown hair falling across her and touching the sheets. The way her waist falls in but I can still see her body moving up and down with every breath she takes. I don't tend to watch people as they sleep but I can watch her. I could watch her for what seems like forever. But I don't want to be creepy.

I walk to the closet and grab some fresh shorts, tossing my pants flat on the closet floor, slipping the shorts on quickly, a wave of exhaustion sweeps over me as I make up my mind quickly and and pull a blanket from the foot of the bed, pulling it over both of us as I scoot as close to her as possible draping my arm over her waist. Her body is warm, even with a thin layer of clothes on. I bury my face in her hair, it smells of lavender. She moans quietly as she subconsciously scoots her body next to mine and snuggles into me as I drift off into sleep.

I wake by myself. It doesn't surprise me as I sit up and rub my face. Sleep has almost overcome me but I know that if I continue to sleep I'll be up all night. Story of my life. I laugh to myself as I've thought of a few memories from song names I've just thought of not on purpose.

Noise in the adjacent bathroom has turned my attention to the door that swings open.

“Hey. You're awake.” She smiles warmly at me as she walks around the bed to the closet. She's changed from earlier. She was wearing a thin sweater and shorts, now replaced by a sheer mint dress and brown sandals, her hair in soft waves to the side.

“Yeah. How long have you been awake?” I ask.

“Just an hour. I thought I'd wake you from the shower but I didn't, then the blow dryer, but I didn't. Apparently you were tired.” She opens the shades and lets the lights in, my eyes squinting as soon as possible. “Did you know you talk in your sleep?” She smirks at me as if she knows a secret that I don't know.

“What did I say?” I ask, suddenly worried that I've said something crazy and out of line.

“Oh nothing. I just didn't realize that you had such admiration for me and my sexy body.” I can tell my face is all the sudden red and I feel completely mute, I have no idea what I'm suppose to say. My body is frozen. Her laugh startles me quickly. “I'm just fucking with you Louis. But damn. I guess I know how to shut you up.” She laughs.

“You witch!” I flip the covers off me and race of the bed as she starts running away towards the balcony. I quickly grab her at her waist and swing her around as she erupts in laughter.

“Uncle! Uncle! I call uncle!” She yells as I continue to tickle her sides. Thankful to her sharing because before this trip I wouldn't have known that she was incredibly ticklish on her sides. She gasps for air between fits of laughter, “Stop! Stop!” She laughs and I let go, she spins around and I notice that we're close, almost face to face and I find myself pulling towards her.

A few pounds on the door pulls our attention away from the moment and I can hear Stan, “Hey! We don't want to hear you two, we get it! We're leaving in twenty minutes!” I can hear foot steps walk away from the door as I notice that Josie has stood from her knelt position and the moment we almost captured is now over. I twist my face and roll my eyes to myself, disappointed that this is how our moment has ended.

“What's going on?” I ask, brushing the invisible dirt off my knees.

“Oh, um, we're just going to dinner. Apparently they found a sitter for Davis so we have the night just for adults, Stan wants to get drunk.” She chuckles to herself. “Sorry, I was going to tell you when I came out of the bathroom but teasing was much more fun.” She shows a shy smile as she brushes her curly hair over her shoulder.

“Right, so I should shower and get dressed then.” This moment we had almost shared has now turned awkward between us, me struggling for words almost.

“I'll just meet you downstairs.” She walks past me and closes the door softly as I groan to myself. No matter how old I get, I swear I still feel like an adolescent conversing with a female. I'm okay in the moment but once it comes to it, if I know that the moment is in fact a moment. I clam up and act stupid, I don't know what to do with my hands, my body, my words come off all weird.

Notes

Shorter than I remember...I'm trying!!! Enjoy! And I'll get to writing!

xoxox