Prince Not-So-Charming And His Tipsy Princess (l.s)

Chapter 4

It was nearing dawn at the club. Zayn had already gone home much earlier but his friend was still there, swishing about on the bar stool and talking about one topic, then another. Louis listened attentively until Hazz suddenly stopped, then smiled slightly to himself at the shy little wave he was sent.

"How long have I been talking?" He looked a little too insecure and Louis didn't like seeing him that way. So he sent Harry a warm smile, one that made his breath hitch- but in a platonic way because Harry definitely wasn't starting to enjoy the bartender's company a little too much.

"Not long enough. It's been interesting listening to your trains of thought going anywhere and everywhere, to be honest. You've got quite the mind." Harry swallowed because he had very little memory of what he had just been talking about but unlike most people, Louis didn't seem fazed by it. His expression was actually the opposite and that was more of a confidence boost than Harry knew he needed.

"Yeah, umm thanks." He shrugged in reply and Harry mimicked him without thinking, confused but happy when a small, gorgeous smile tugged at Louis' lips.

"And you only had one drink, too, meaning it must be like that in your head a lot. Sounds like quite a ride."

"A 24/7 roller-coaster is more like it," Harry quipped, giving Louis the 'you have no idea' look. It was strange to see someone on the other end of the spectrum because unlike Harry, his mind was pretty much blank and foggy for the most part. It had been since he was a teenager. He cringed at the thought and returned his full attention back to Harry before anything about his past came up. "The boss is mad, you know. Says you aren't buying as much as you usually did."

"Yeah, well, that's because I'm always too busy talking to you...! Awesome, huh? It's kind of weird, actually. You don't want to know how bad I could get before... Huh. I guess I'm changing thanks to you, Monsieur Tomlinson." Louis cocked his head to the side, a bit weirded out by what seemed to be awe in Harry's eyes. He hoped he was wrong but that was pretty unlikely.

He really should have tried to distance himself but it was a little too late and a little too hard, now. Harry was too much of a sweetheart to be ignored or pushed away, even when he gave into curiosity and asked Louis a random question about his life. There was just this sincere enthusiasm radiating off of him as he asked, like he genuinely wanted to know so Louis could never bring himself to refuse any question of his.

"Bad Harry. Where did you learn my surname from, then? Out with it, lad."

"Nowhere! I- umm- totally have never asked Liam about you when you're not at work or anything..." Harry flushed slightly and Louis chuckled. Louis made him feel small, sometimes. With anyone else, that would frustrate Harry but this was Louis Tomlinson and it just got him flustered, instead. That was never a good sign. "What is it you do when you aren't here, anyway?"

"If you're trying to ask me out, you can stand to be a little more direct, sweetheart." There he went, flushing again. It was so easy and so, so pretty a sight. Louis caught himself staring and went back to wiping down the bar. "Well, I don't do much as a person. If I'm not here, I'm chilling, watching something, reading shit, writing shit, basic hobbies. Just trying to feel 'n' all. Oh, yeah, or I'm at online college or doing assignments."

Harry seemed to freeze at the feeling part. That was weird because people either glossed over that kind of thing or used selective hearing to block it out of their memory. It made him realise that Harry really was listening to him and that felt incredibly strange but lucky for him, Hazz didn't bring it up. "Wow... You're in college. I... Didn't even bother going."

"Don't blame you, really. In the long run, it feels kind of pointless but well, everything does." He said that just to test it out for a reaction and there it came. Harry looked up at him this time and Louis could read the confusion and possible concern in his eyes. It was funny that Louis could somewhat tell how Harry was feeling these days, as with the reduction of his alcohol intake, Harry showed his true emotions more and didn't just go around drinking and flirting.