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When One Direction announced that they would be taking a break following the release of their upcoming fifth album,

(out Nov. 13), the news was met with mass hysteria stoked primarily by headlines implying that the break is a cover for a permanent split. Only time will tell whether that ends up being the case, but the remaining four members — Louis Tomlinson, especially — have been optimistic about their future as a band. 

Regardless, the upcoming hiatus is a reality and the members of One Direction are looking forward to a bit of relaxation. In a conversation with EW, Tomlinson, 23, reveals that while he has no plans to make music for himself, he’s “very excited” about what’s next — in particular, his Syco imprint. “Being my age and being able to be in a position where I can help people out and give opportunities to other people is the most exciting thing to me. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I do aim to have a couple months’ downtime to see the family, go home, do all that stuff, but yeah, I do hope to be busy, as well.” (He surely will be — Tomlinson has a baby on the way, and will appear on this weekend’s 

U.K. He’s also made it clear that he’d like to join the judges’ table next season given his passion for discovering new talent.) 

As the band’s most prolific songwriter — having slightly more credits than frequent songwriting partner Liam Payne — Tomlinson hopes to “do some writing” during the break, as well. “I enjoy that, with Liam. But it’s all kind of up in the air at the moment,” he tells EW, adding, “We definitely will. I’m sure we will.” 

As for whether he’s feeling any upcoming separation anxiety, Tomlinson agrees that writing together during the break should sort that out. “Yeah, exactly,” he says with a laugh. “And I’m sure we’ll all see each other over time. No doubt about that.”

In a recent interview, Tomlinson “pledged” that the band would return. “We’ve had a very intense schedule,” Tomlinson responds when asked by EW to expand on his frequent assurances to fans that this is not the end for One Direction. “Five years, five albums, four tours … I’m sure it appears alarming when we say we’re going on a break, but in reality, it’s such a normal thing. If you look at other bands and other artists, they [go on breaks] all the time. It really isn’t as big and dramatic as it’s been made out, but our intention and our love is for the band and that’s always going to be the case.” Adds Tomlinson, with a laugh: “I hope so, anyway.” 

“I think we deserve a little break,” he continues. “In reality, it’s going to be an exciting time for all of us to do our own thing and it’s actually very exciting for each other, you know? It’s going to be exciting for us as individuals to see what we each end up doing. And I’m of course going to be very supportive of that and that’s the idea that’s pretty exciting, as well.” 

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