Have I Told You Lately? (l.s)

twenty-seven

03.12.18

---

May 22nd started out the same way any Friday normally would. Harry's first lesson of the day was Ancient Runes, and with exams starting in just two weeks, there was a low level of tension throughout the room. That ambience carried itself through the entire day and was especially noticeable in last period potions where the students were to individually brew a Draught of Peace in silence, with Professor Malfoy wandering around and taking notes as they did so. Thankfully for Harry, he was relatively confident with that potion and didn't feel as put off as the rest of the class. To the left of him he could see Louis reading his textbook silently, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He wanted to throw him an encouraging smile or whisper some sort of help, but Malfoy's piercing eyes were regularly set in his direction and he didn't want to get caught.

Once the bell rang to signal the end of the lesson, the students filed out quietly before bursting into loud conversation once they hit the corridor, discussing technique and what colours their potions had gone.

"How did you find it?" Harry asked, falling into step next to Louis.

"Could've been worse, I'm just glad this weeks over." Louis sighed, tiredly rubbing a hand over his face and looking at Harry with a weak smile.

Harry returned the smile and nudged their shoulders together gently. Before either of them could say any more, Niall appeared at Louis' other sighed and began talking loudly, pulling them both into the debate he'd been having with Zayn only seconds before. They continued talking as a group until the time came for them to split off, each of them heading off to their own dorms to put their bags down and get changed. It wasn't long after that Harry and Louis met up again and made their way up across the school toward the library to study together like they'd arranged.

They walked there in relatively comfortable silence, the general noise of the school and Friday afternoon conversation floating between them. Even the library was louder than it normally was, despite Madame Pince's frequent shushing sounds, most of the students were unable to whisper.

"Are you alright?" Harry asked Louis as they settled on to a table, each of them pulling out their own work.

"Tired." Louis replied in amongst a yawn.

"You sure that's just it?" Harry prompted, refusing to let the subject go.

"Yeah, I've just not been in a great mood today." He sighed in response, doodling on the corner of a piece of parchment that he was meant to be writing notes on.

"Why?" Harry put his quill down and turned to Louis, "What can I do to help?"

"A kiss and a cuddle wouldn't go amiss." Replied Louis, quietly.

Harry sighed, almost sadly, "Lou, not in here, you know that."

Louis breathed in deeply, he put down his quill and pressed the balls of his hands into his eyes, rubbing his face.

"Yeah." He said, picking up his quill again and turning back to his work, avoiding looking at Harry.

Raising an eyebrow, Harry watched Louis for a few minutes until he was sure the other boy wasn't going to lift his head and look back at him. It wasn't until Harry was engrossed in his own work that Louis glanced in his direction and sighed.

He was tired. Physically, from the intensity of his workload, and mentally, him and Harry had been seeing each other for nearly 6 months, yet Louis couldn't even call him his boyfriend. All he wanted to do was take Harry's hand whenever he felt like it, to kiss his cheek and lay his head on his shoulder when they were relaxing with their friends. But half the time he couldn't even look at him for too long, especially now Zayn was on his case, he felt as if he were under intense scrutiny with the disappoint of Harry looming over his shoulders.