"Harry ! Someone's here for you !" Jay calls from the front door.
When Harry gets up from his deck chair and steps inside, Diego is already sitting in the kitchen next to Jay who's serving him some tea. She's smiling to her ears and seems very interested in whatever Harry's friend is telling her.
"Hi !" Harry hugs him and sits down to have some tea as well.
He had made it clear he wanted to be just friends and Diego had gladly accepted, agreeing that it didn't feel like before. They kept spending time together though, enjoying how comfortable they are around each other and genuinely happy to reminisce.
Harry would normally go to his house, but Diego had insisted to pick him up to go see a movie no one else wanted to see but them, a three hour documentary about satellites.
"Jay, this is my friend Diego."
"Oh I know darling, we talked before you arrived. I didn't know you could set up a tent in less than a minute, it'll come in handy if we ever go camping !" Harry panics a bit, not knowing just how much Diego shared about the summer camp days.
"Yeah, and he's the best to find great spots to set them up, kissing on rocks wouldn't have been as great !" Diego chuckles and Harry chokes on his tea.
Jay on the other hand, still looks delighted and laughs with him.
"So you two were together ? Are you..."
"Oh no ! We're just good friends now. But this cheeky chap was my first crush !" Diego winks at Harry who's wondering how long it'll take to die if he stabbed himself with a teaspoon.
"How lovely !" Jay coos and Harry's not too sure what's happening. "You have to stay for dinner tonight ! I won't take no for an answer."
"Well, if Harry is okay with it...?" Diego turns to look at his friend who's been speechless and completely lost. He masks his confusion with a smile and tries to not give hundreds of 'what' as an answer.
"Sure..."
"It's settled then ! I hope you like bouillabaisse !" Jay claps her hands in anticipation.
"I practically grew up on my dad's boat. My blood is half seafood." Diego grins and Jay beams at that. "I think we should head to the movie now, but thanks again ma'am. I'm looking forward to tasting your cuisine."
"What a lovely guy ! And please, call me Jay. I'll see you both at seven. Have fun !"
Harry is certain he's entered an alternate universe. Sure, Jay had never said anything even remotely homophobic per se, but he just thought that with Louis hiding his sexuality and her being so strict and traditional...It just made sense.
He wonders if Louis knows that, wonders if he should tell him his mom just gave him her blessing to talk about his first boyfriend. But they haven't talked in days, and he doesn't really know how to say one word to him without a thousand more begging to go out.
They make it to the movie ten minutes late, but only miss the commercials and even have enough time to grab some pop corn. The movie teaches nothing new at first so Harry leans back in his seat, and rests his feet on the empty seat in front of him, to just enjoy rediscovering everything he knows already about the moon, with another perspective.
When they go back to Harry's, the table is already set up in the dining room, changing from the usual table outside that became unusable with the rain that hasn't stopped pouring all day.
"Diego ! How are you ?!" Des greets Harry's friend, pulling him in a warm embrace before walking him all the way to the dining room as he takes news of his dad.
Harry had never had troubles talking boys with Des. He didn't even need to come out for his dad to know. He was six when he asked him why the sister of the boy he liked called him names, and Des had been quick to tell him that these names didn't define him no matter who he chose to like, and to never feel ashamed for not liking girls like his friends did.
He had taught his children about boys, feelings wise and beyond, when they reached their respective age of curiosity, and didn't hesitate to look up how it'll work out for Harry, giving a completely different speech to his son and his daughter, with the same conclusion.
Anne wasn't as comfortable at first but quickly understood when she heard him talk about boys and girls from school and the difference in his voice or the smiles he had. It didn't make him any less of a wonderful child, so she accepted it as well.
Harry felt more than comfortable sharing everything with his dad. From his crush in middle school to his broken heart a few months ago. His dad had heard every story and every date and every feeling Harry could have or question, and would always give the best advice without ever judging his son.
So of course Des knew Diego very well, and he really was a nice guy, so he had no problem welcoming him in his home and treating him like his own son.
Everyone gathered progressively around the table and Harry sat next to Diego, facing his sister. Des was at one end between his children and Jay on the other between Lottie and the guest.
When Louis arrived after everyone, he spotted the extra chair added next to Gemma and faked a smile when Diego said hello, not very pleased to see him again.
"That's delicious !" The guest mumbled when he took a second bite of Jay's meal. She blushed and was about to start a deep conversation about cooking mussels, but Des coughed so she became very aware that he might not be into this sort of discussion.
They spend the whole dinner talking about Diego and his father and what it's like to live abroad and how he and Harry share the same passion for languages and long documentaries...
It's going just fine. Except for the looks Louis has been giving Harry's friend the whole time.
He uses a rude tone when he asks tricky questions, forcing awkward silences on the table even his mom can't keep from happening. He started to get annoyed at all the attention Harry's ex boyfriend was getting by his own family, rolling his eyes every time he spoke, and Harry's pretty sure it wasn't an accident when he dropped the salt holder in his bowl, splashing bouillabaisse all over his Persian green shirt and insisted he thought Diego was catching it already.
When Harry grabbed a napkin to dry him off and started rubbing his chest, not really thinking it through, Louis kicked Harry's shin, and that's one thing Harry hadn't expected to feel ever again.
"So Diego, how was summer camp back then? I'm sure it was incredible given the area." Jay asks.
"It was...interesting...very wild...the nature I mean." Diego chuckles, eyeing Harry to share a knowing look of what went down in the cabins at night. "We spent most days in the creeks, went hiking so much we could practically walk all the way home, and I still know how to make macramé bracelets in a snap !"
"S'not like it's the hardest thing to do..." Louis mutters, all sassy like.
"Louis !" Jay scolds, so he goes to fix his fringe before realizing he had a quiff, and it seemed to make him even more pissed off.
They finish the diner shortly after and Diego makes plans to come back to chat with Jay about choosing the best shellfishes to cook...She was just very persuasive and he was very polite.
When Harry hugs him goodbye and goes back to his room, he finds Louis sitting on the bed with his earphones at full volume.He wants so bad to reassure him that Diego is nothing but a friend, wants so bad to kiss that frown away, wants so bad to get in the same bed and talk for hours about random things and tangle their feet under the covers...But he just swallows and goes in the bathroom to brush his teeth.
He can still feel him though. He wants nothing but to go back there and taste his tongue for hours and never let go of his hands while he breathes against his neck. He wants to hear his voice and drown in it, let him say whatever he wants as long as he never stop talking.
He spits the remaining toothpaste and rinses his mouth before looking at the door. He wraps his hand around the doorknob as if to open it, but doesn't. He leans in instead and rests his forehead against the cold wood.
He gathers all the strength it takes to go out and pretend he's not craving every inch of that boy, every laugh, every smile, every tint of smell and every word that comes out of his mouth and lulls Harry into what Heaven must feel like.
When he finally comes out, Louis is smoking on the balcony, and Harry wonders if he gave up trying to replace smoking by jogging all of a sudden, or if he feels the same way Harry does and just has to create some sort of pain to distract himself from the one that's driving him insane.
Louis comes back after a while, probably thinking Harry fell asleep. But he hasn't been able to rest since the day he's been deprived of Louis' warmth. Louis lays down on his bed and crosses his arms under his head, staring at the ceiling in the silence.
"You should tell your mom about your sexuality." Harry suddenly says. He figures them not being able to be together is no reason to keep him from being himself around his family and everyone else if he feels like it.
"What ?" Louis whispers weakly.
"She doesn't have any problem with two guys together. You should tell her."
"How do you know that ?"
"She found out who Diego was to me. She wasn't even that surprised. And she didn't set me on fire. So I think you're good..." Harry says and thinks there's nothing else to add, so he turns around and faces the wall to fall asleep.
"Thank you." is all Louis says after a long while, probably keeping inside all the questions he has. "You didn't have to tell me that. So thank you."
Harry nods, knowing Louis' looking at him, and closes his eyes to get over yet another day fighting himself.
It feels like he's only been sleeping for ten minutes when he wakes up. Gemma and Lottie are yelling in the hallway and laughing too loud and Des keeps knocking on the door, so it's impossible to keep trying to sleep some more.
"Morning..." Louis says from the corner of the room, wearing a white tee and grey sweat shorts. "...um...we're going on a hike today..."
Harry doesn't say anything back and just watches Louis put his trainers on before going out.
He gets up and goes for his white gym shorts and black tee after a quick shower, slips into his neon yellow Nikes, and goes downstairs.
The drive to the nearest forest is filled with annoying road trip songs everyone sings but Harry and Louis, too focused on the windows. When Gemma keeps bumping into her brother and singing loud in his ear, he gives up and starts yelling random things they spot on the road. They then switch to a Britney Spears karaoke however, and Harry stays mute the moment Louis sings, the pitch of his voice hypnotizing and spreading in the car just to torture Harry.
They arrive after two hours and his butt feels a bit numb when he gets out, but he's excited to walk and breathe in the fresh air, and hear the leaves crack under his feet, and watch the trees swaying in the wind...
They're walking along the track specially made for hikers and enjoying the beautiful day and how empty the park is, educated by Des' knowledge of every bird and every tree and every little flower they can spot.
"Ouch !" Lottie winces as they start climbing a hill.
Harry and Louis immediately run to her and give her a hand when she hops on one foot. Their arms fight behind her back to carry her and they briefly look at each other before focusing back on her pain.
"It's a thorn ! It's in my shoe !" Lottie whines and both Harry and Louis squat down to get it off.
They both try to take the shoe and argue about who's going to do it, rushed by Lottie's whimpering.
When her foot is out, there's a massive thorn in her sock and they look at the shoe to see the hole that allowed the incident. Louis lets her lean on his shoulder and keeps her leg still as Harry picks the thorn out of her foot and throws it away before Louis can reach it.
"Thanks Hero !" Lottie sighs in relief and puts her shoe back on before joining the others, leaving her saviours to bicker.
"Just so you know, she meant me." Louis remarks as he gets back up.
"I was the one getting the thorn out."
"Only because you pushed me."
"I pushed you because you pushed me !" Harry shouted.
"Because that was my job ! I'm her brother !"
"But I'm her brother too !"
Louis didn't say anything after that and just kicked a rock, trying hard to pretend it didn't hurt his foot like hell, making Harry giggle in his hand.
"Oh shut up..."
When they turn around, they're alone. There's no trace of any member of the family and they have no idea which way they went. They start walking up the hill nonetheless, until they come across a double path.
"I'm saying right." Louis suggests.
"We always go left." Harry says and starts walking towards the path he chose.
"I don't see any footprint on the left. They went right." Louis insists, refusing to follow Harry.
"They're literally all over the track...We're going left." Harry turns to protest and keeps walking, expecting Louis to give in.
"Fine. You go left. I'll go the right way." Louis scowls, and starts walking the other way.
Harry tries to keep walking, but he knows that forest is gigantic and it's too easy to get lost. So he cusses and turns back.
"Wait !"
They've been walking for about twenty minutes when Harry recognizes the same weird bush they've walked past before.
"We're going in circles." Harry stops and brings his hands on his hips, exhausted by the blazing sun and lack of water. Maybe leaving his water in the car wasn't a genius idea.
"No we're not."
"We've seen that bush twice already."
"How can you possibly know that ? It's a fucking pile of leaves and we're in a fucking forest !" Louis is starting to lose his temper, surely aware they're lost.
"Because look at the huge flower in the middle. It looks like a penis Louis. Hard to miss."
"You're just too obsessed with dicks you see them everywhere, now let's keep going ! I don't want to spend the night on a horror movie set." Harry wants to laugh because it's a little bit true, but he doesn't want to admit it so he just rolls his eyes and follows Louis.
They keep walking for a while, until they spot the weird flower again as the brightness of the sun starts to fade.
"Fooking penis flower !" Louis yells at the sight of the red plant.
Instead of freaking out, Harry finds the nearest tree and sits down against it. He tries to get some kind of service on his phone for the hundredth time, but no bars appear. So he takes full advantage of the crisp air and mellow grass and closes his eyes to enjoy the nature while he's dying of dehydration.
"I think we're lost." Louis grunts.
"You think...?"
Harry keeps enjoying the wind, the nature against his back, and the leaves between his fingers. He can hear Louis walk towards the tree and sit down next to him, lighting a cigarette by the sound of it.
"What the hell ?!" Louis complains when Harry takes the cigarette out of his mouth and crashes it on the grass.
"Can't you just enjoy nature without choking on smoke for two seconds ? Where did you even fit that thing..." Harry frowns and goes back to leaning against the tree in silence.
The sound of the trees fighting the wind is almost deafening, in the most pleasant and soothing way. The soft breeze is brushing Harry's hair, and he doesn't have to look next to him to know Louis' fixed his fringe over fifteen times a minute.
Harry turns his head and squints to make out the shape in the distance, and is quick to get up as soon as he recognizes the water fountain. He jogs towards it and Louis must've seen it too, because he's right behind him.
It might just be water in theory, Harry feels like is being reborn. He tilts his head under the tap and lets it fall over his entire face, keeping his mouth open to drink it. He's careful not to wet his hair by holding them out of reach, and keeps his head there like a puppy in the rain.
"Take your time...s'not like I'm melting over here..." Louis mutters, arms crossed and roll of eyes nearly reaching the back of his head.
Harry puts his hands under the water one last time to wash the dirt, and steps aside to let Louis go.
He watches as he cups his both hands in the shape of a bowl and slouches to sip at it like a cat. He repeats the same gesture to splash his face with the water and drinks two more times before stopping the tap.
They stay quiet, enjoying a calm they hadn't been able to feel in a while and the cold water still dripping on their face.
They find a marble bench near the fountain and sit there to take full view of the coast, wishing they had gone for the beach instead of a hike as the finally fresh wind takes away the heat.
"I talked to my mom." Louis suddenly says. "She said she knew. She just thought I would tell her when I'd be ready."
Harry opens his eyes at that and turns to face him to see he's cracking a small smile.
"I couldn't sleep last night and was thirsty so I went to the kitchen and ran into her. We spent the whole night talking about it and she apologized for making me feel like I couldn't tell her about it. She never even believed in Eleanor. She just pretended not to make me uncomfortable. She said she wasn't okay with it at first, didn't understand it, but had talked to a priest recently who told her that love has no set rules and knows no standards, and that God is wherever love is....She said she'd be glad to meet whoever I'd choose to be with, as long as he makes me happy."
Harry doesn't really know what to say without his extreme happiness showing, threatening to lead him somewhere he's been avoiding to go. Yet at the same time, he can't help feeling anger. He knows it's selfish, but he can't help being mad at the fact that he would've had a chance to be with him if they had met in other circumstances, cursing the universe and every little thing that led him to where they were trapped right now.
He can't help being angry thinking about the fact that Louis can now freely be with someone he wants, just as long as it's not him. And that sucks.
He gets up without a word and starts walking further into the forest, far from the lit track. Louis follows him in silence and he's not sure if it's to not lose him and find himself alone or if he means to say something else, but he doesn't look back.
"You could at least say you're happy for me ?" Louis yells from behind so Harry can hear him despite the distance between them.
"I'm happy for you." Harry says, voice deep and dry .
He keeps walking but is stopped by Louis turning him by the shoulder.
"You don't have to throw me a party, but I was expecting a bit more !"
"But how am I supposed to react ?! What do you want me to say ?!"
"I don't know, 'congrats on the coming out Louis and for talking to your biggest secret for the first time to your mom' would've been nice ?!"
"Oh, then congratulations on your coming out Louis ! Now you can be with everyone you want but me ! Or maybe you'd prefer: Congrats on the freedom Louis ! Have fun letting someone treat you how I should ! Or no no ! Better yet: I'm so happy for you Louis ! Now you can live with your mom's blessing to forget about us !" Harry says between his teeth and walks away.
"But you know why it's like this !" Louis follows him. "And you act as if it's any different with you..."
"What ?!" Harry turns.
"You think I like watching the way Diego gets to look at you ?! Or the way he gets to touch you without having to check if anyone saw him ?! You think I'm happy someone else gets to spend a day with you not worrying about what will happen next ?!" Louis has turned red and is spitting in fury, voice hitting Harry like a hammer.
Harry looks down and is seconds away from crying. He knows it's the truth, and he can't bear it. They're both eventually going to have to let someone else in their life and pretend none of this ever happened, pretend every bone in their body isn't craving the other the second they enter the same room.
He can't look up, can't face him, and he's taken aback when he's gently pushed against the tree next to him.
Louis is keeping his waist still against the trunk and locking his forehead with his and Harry can feel he's on the verge of flooding his cheeks as well. They don't look at each other though, just keep breathing heavily in each other's face.
Harry wraps his hands around Louis' neck and they keep fighting the urge to get closer, keep fighting the urge to forget what they're reminded of everyday. But there's no force strong enough to keep them apart right now, and they both come to the same conclusion when they press their lips together.
They're kissing like the world is about to end, like they're sharing their last breath and anything can come and destroy them any second.
Louis brings his hand on the back of Harry's head as the latter pulls him by the hips, digging his fingers in the skin. He doesn't take time to be gentle and just tilts his head back by pulling his hair in one move to suck on his neck.
Harry lets out a loud and deep groan as his head falls backwards, and he walks his hands on Louis' back before dragging his fingers deep along his ribs, making him groan the same.
They quickly go back to kissing sloppily, nibbling and licking and barely making any effort to close their mouths to properly smack their lips, more interested in a mess of tongues than a soft peck.
They keep swallowing each other's breaths and attacking each other's back and hips and arse and they might sound like raging animals right now, they've been containing themselves and controlling their every move for too long. So now that it's just the two of them, they don't even waste time trying to think about anything other than devouring each other.
Harry lets go of Louis' back to grab his crotch and starts massaging the growing bulge over his sweat shorts. He can't bear the distance though, can't bear how far he still is, so he slips his hand into his boxers and keeps rubbing his hand against Louis, enjoying the speed at which he's hardening against his palm.
He turns them around when he feels him hard enough and drops to his knees, not waiting for Louis to say anything before getting his shorts and boxers to his ankles. He kisses his thighs and licks them like Louis had for him, biting the flesh as he would for the smoothest piece of fruit...and they most definitely must be looking like animals when Louis screams under Harry's teeth.
Harry moans just by feeling Louis' thighs in his hands and in his mouth, and he's a bit breathless when he feels Louis' erection poking his cheek. He looks up to see Louis staring at him as he touches himself, stroking his hard-on while Harry enjoys his thighs.
Harry keeps his hands strong behind them and gets his face even closer to Louis' throbbing cock, parting his lips as he stares at the tip, just waiting to take him any time he wants him to. He feels Louis' hand push his hair back and closes his eyes to almost purr and match the movement of Louis' hand caressing his head. He looks up and opens his mouth wider, allowing Louis to guide himself in, never breaking eye contact.
Harry is already drooling and he can't keep his eyes open as he tilts his head in every direction to suck on Louis' length from all angles. He keeps sucking as he brings one hand to Louis' balls and makes sure everything is being taken care of as he gets lost in Louis' hand in his hair, massaging his scalp as he gets him off.
Louis pinches his lips to keep his moans from echoing in the whole forest, but he ends up cussing on a roll and repeats just how good Harry is being at this, which doesn't help the latter who's trying to suck properly with no distractions.
"I don't want anyone else Harry..." Louis whispers, making Harry slow down and make a loud kissing noise when the gets him out of his mouth. He means to say something back, but he just rubs his thumb on the tip and licks Louis' shaft instead before sucking again. He hollows his cheeks when he starts feeling the first drop of cum against his tongue and sticks his tongue out further to get all of him to reach this throat.
He can tell Louis' trying hard not to thrust into his mouth, and removes his hands from Louis' inner thigh to grasp his arse and push him forward slightly, making sure he knows he's allowed to fuck his mouth a bit if he wants to.
So Louis does. He only moves gently and makes sure he doesn't take over Harry's role, but he does.
Chopping noises are coming out of him as Harry deepthroats, and the latter is pretty sure he's not hallucinating when he hears him pray. It might be the last moment Harry would've thought he'd hear someone beg for forgiveness, but he can't say it doesn't pass as a reason to suck even harder, giving Louis a proper reason to ask God to excuse what they're doing.
He takes him all the way down, twirls his tongue in the most obscene way possible, and keeps moaning and getting his own saliva all over his face trying to enjoy every inch of that man.
Louis is tugging at a handful of his hair and pulls him away, but, as much as that pull wrecks him inside, he's not missing out on tasting every bit of him.
He brings Louis' leaking cock right back into his mouth and makes his hand meet his mouth before backing away a bit and sticking his tongue out, applying just enough pressure as he slides his hand up and down to get Louis' cum to jet down his throat.
He licks Louis' head one last time as he gets him through his orgasm, and whimpers when Louis is still holding on to his hair whilst moaning against the tree.
He pulls Louis' shorts and boxers back on and stands up, wiping his mouth with his thumb and sucking the remaining cum on his fingers.
Louis kisses him, letting him know he has no trouble tasting himself on Harry's tongue, and reaches down between them to return the favour. Harry sweeps his hand away though, and leans closer to his ear to whisper.
"That was your party, Lou."
They're lying on the grass after a quick trip to the fountain when they hear voices calling for them. Harry's snuggled up against Louis' chest, walking his hand under his shirt and drawing patterns with his fingers. Louis is caressing his neck, and it takes them a few seconds to find the will to stop.
They stand up and brush the grass and dirt off their clothes before following the voices, walking slower than they would have a few hours ago.
As they get closer, Louis pulls Harry by his hand, hiding them behind a tree to peck his lips, just one last time before they go back to reality.
"I don't wanna go." Louis says, angry at the world.
They keep sharing chaste kisses and make the moment last as much as they could, trying to ignore Des calling for them.
"Are we mad ?" Harry murmurs.
"Yes. But I'm not sure I care about that anymore."
"I'm not sure I care about that either..."
*****
"No ! You're doing it wrong !" Louis shouts and takes Harry's plate away from him. "It's cheddar first, then crisps, then bacon, then tomato and then mustard ."
"Lou, it's just a sandwich..."
"Did you just insult the Tommo Treat ?!" Louis gasps and Harry bursts out laughing as Louis tickles him for making fun of his 'siiiiiiiick snack'.
Harry places the last slice of bread on the mountain of toppings and opens his mouth wide enough to take a good bite, sticking his tongue out and squinting his eyes.
"So ? So ?" Louis asks excitedly, staring at Harry chewing, crumbs of salt and vinegar crisps falling everywhere on the counter.
"Fuck. Me." Harry moans with his mouth full and Louis fists bump the air, whistling loud beats as his happy song, a series of rhythmic 'pew pew pew' as Harry struggles to swallow everything. He chokes a bit on the mustard and starts coughing, quickly pretending to still be bothered by the condiment to make Louis rub his back under his shirt a little longer.
"Alright ?" Louis asks and Harry puts the sandwich down to kiss him as he nods.
They finish eating their sandwiches in the kitchen, feet tangled under the table as they talk about Harry's life in London.
"It's fun to live with your best friend, we get to share everything and I always have someone when I go home to chat and stuff, so it's cool." Harry shrugs. "Not to mention Niall's the best roommate you could ask for. We've known each other since we were kids so we know the other's habits and pet peeves and we have absolutely no boundaries."
"And you don't get homesick ?"
"Naaah ! I love my dad and my sister, but being away for a long time makes you enjoy your days at home even more; forces you to learn how to make it on your own and kind of see what you've been warned about all this time." Harry finishes his sandwich and leans back in his chair to show his belly, rubbing the bump the heavy snack created.
"I was thinking about getting my own place...But I don't have any answers from anywhere yet so I'm not sure where I'll be."
"Where did you apply ?"
"Everywhere in Manchester. You'd think having graduating from a good university would open doors and stuff...or maybe I'm just not as talented as other people, I guess." Louis shrugs.
"Stop that ! I've seen you on that stage, you were incredible." Harry leans on the table, taking Louis' hand to crack his knuckles and replaying in his head the video Louis had showed him after he'd begged to let him see his eighteen year old self play Danny Zuko. Harry had a crush on him growing up, so seeing Louis impersonate him was about as close as he could get to making out with his teenage crush.
"I don't know..."
"Maybe you could just search somewhere else ? Like, in a city with more opportunities ? And more unique stages ? And black cabs ?" Harry tries to be subtle but Louis started smirking the second he saw the way he smiled.
"Are you asking me to come to London, love ?"
"I'm not asking you to come...I'm just saying you might get lucky there...professionally." Harry acts as innocent as he can.
"I guess I don't have a choice then, for the sake of drama of course." Louis kisses Harry's hand with a soft grin, and keeps pulling funny faces when he catches him staring. The latter is resting his head on his arms and just looks at Louis, just admiring what he is like...
"Are you going to Liam's tonight ? I've hear him call you all morning while you were sleeping." Louis says after a long silence.
"Dunno..."
"Is something wrong between you two ?"
"Not really, no." Harry untangles their hands and feet to stand up and grabs his water bottle in the fridge.
"Is it too personal ? It's okay if you don't want to tell me..."
Harry shakes his head and drinks a bit before walking towards Louis when he stretches an arm. He lets him pull his hand gently to make him sit on his lap, rubbing his back under his shirt just how he likes it.
"He saw us in the kitchen when we were getting ice the night at his place..." Harry confesses and Louis stops caressing his back.
"What did he see ?"
"Enough, I guess...I haven't been talking to him much since. He looked at me like I was making the biggest mistake of my life and I can't deal with his parenting."
"Shit...What did you tell him ?" Louis asks and drinks from Harry's bottle when he offers.
"That nothing was going on...That's why I can't face him again. He knows when I'm lying."
"But you can't avoid him for the next what...six days left ?"
"I guess..." Harry pouts and Louis is quick to start rubbing his back again in a comfortable silence.
"Did you get your results yet ?" He asks, and Harry likes how he always remembers every single thing he talks about, even when he's falling asleep and just mumbling words.
"Um...Yes."
"And ?!" Louis widens his eyes, probably wondering why the hell Harry hasn't told him about passing the year or not.
"I haven't looked at it yet." Harry shrugs.
"Gimme your phone."
"What ?" Harry tries but Louis is tending his open palm to him with a pout, so he just sighs and gives in.
Louis scrolls through Harry's emails - because there was apparently a day Louis memorized Harry's phone password and decided going through his personal information was nothing but normal – and stops when he finds it. He flips the screen and uses his pinky to align Harry's name with the results. And he stops smiling.
He checks several times and Harry just knows what that means.
He'd been shitting his way through finals since he started and it was finally starting to backfire. He knew he hadn't done his best on the last test and hadn't attended enough extra courses to make up for it.
The thing is, it was a prestigious and very selective institute. You can't redo the year, can't risk missing any exam, can't risk failing. There's no second chance, no time for your lack of knowledge and mastery, and no room for mediocrity. That was part of the reason why Harry wanted to attend it in the first place, and prove himself he was capable of achieving what he had always wanted.
"I'm sorry baby..." Louis pouts, pressing his mouth on Harry's shoulder. Harry drops his head down and starts wondering how many burgers he can make in a minute, because that would become very useful in the next few months. "...I'm sorry you're gonna have to spend another year in that institute."
"Wait...what ?" Harry looks up immediately to see all of Louis' teeth in the biggest grin of all times.
"You passed ! With the jury's honours for fuck's sake !" Louis adds, slapping Harry's head with the magazine on the table.
"What ?!" He frowns and takes his phone from Louis' hand to check himself, because there's just no way. But Louis isn't joking and he did pass and he did have the best score out of the entire year and he doesn't have to apply for a job in a fast-food yet as a back up plan.
"I fucking passed !" Harry shouts and reads the email another twenty times, hooking his arm around Louis' shoulders to not fall from shock.
"You are so smart." Louis compliments as if he's already rehearsing the speech he'll give Harry when he'll watch him get on a stage to receive his Nobel Prize.
"What do I get for that ?" Harry giggles.
"Whatever you want, gorgeous." Louis coos and Harry leans down to kiss him, wrapping his arms around his neck to smile in his face because, even if he could actually get whatever he wanted as a reward, sitting on Louis' lap and see the look he's giving him right now would still be number one on his list.
When they hear the minivan park on the gravel outside, Harry pecks Louis' lips a few more times before getting up to clean the mess they've created making the Tommo Treat.
"We're baaAAAAAAaack !" Des announces as an opera singer when Jay and him enter the house.
"In the kitchen !" Louis shouts after giggling at Harry's dad's singing skills.
"How was the party ?"
"Full of old people talking golf and politics. Exciting !" Des exclaims, making Louis laugh, and Harry doesn't know how to tell him his dad is actually being serious. He truly loves hanging out with his friends from here and he was glad to bring Jay to his golf buddy's wedding.
"You're home early though..." Harry says, trying not to sound too disappointed about that. But he was really enjoying making out in every room and hearing Louis call him his baby all day so...eh
"We started feeling a bit sick...I think those oysters were nothing but bad news !" Des frowns, visibly nauseous.
"Are Gems and Lottie back yet ?" Jay asks, holding her stomach.
"No, not yet..." Louis shakes his head and, as if on cue, the door slams again.
Gemma had asked her dad to talk to Jay and let them go shopping together and stop by the hair salon. It had been a hard battle, but Des eventually managed to get her to allow her daughter to get a new hairdo and get clothes she actually liked.
The girls are chatting and giggling until they enter the living room facing the kitchen, drowning under bags they immediately drop.
When everyone in the kitchen turns to see them, there's the most intense silence they've all ever experienced.
Lottie has her naturally blond hair died in silver, her face looks radiant with the make up she's sporting, perfectly contouring her face and bringing out the unique blue of her eyes with a subtle turquoise eyeliner, nude lips and glowing cheeks.
She's wearing a white crop top fitting her shape nicely, not swallowing her chest at all and stopping right above a pair of high waisted blue double gauze shorts with yellow dots, flowing over her tanned thighs and giving a casual yet classy touch to the summery outfit.
She's standing on white wedges laced around her ankles, allowing a full view on her recently painted toenails, a beige colour matching the shade of her skin. To sum up, she looks drop dead gorgeous, and the smile she has on her face is the best accessory she could have gone for.
Gemma is squeaking and throwing her arms everywhere around her stepsister as if to show off her work, waiting to receive a prize for best stylist of the century.
While Des, Harry and Louis hurry to turn her in every direction and submerge her with too many compliments on her new look, Jay is still silent and hasn't moved at all from the kitchen.
When everyone calms down and notice she still hasn't reacted, Lottie's smile fades and is replaced by the fear that her mom might highly disapprove. Harry and Louis look like they're ready to be used as a double shield to protect her, and Gemma is holding onto her dad's bicep, probably digging her fingers to make him save her if Jay threatens to behead her.
Instead of scolding her daughter and blaming Gemma for turning her into an even more gorgeous sixteen year old ready to break hearts, she steps closer and brings both hands to her mouth to hide how wide it gets, eyes watery as she takes a look at Lottie.
She runs her hand through her edgy grey hair and brushes her fingers at the hem of the crop top as if to feel the fabric.
"You look so beautiful..." She whispers as if to remark it to herself.
"You think so ?" Lottie says haltingly.
"Well, these shorts are going to be strictly reserved for home and this dye better fade before school starts and-" Jay starts, already ruining the moment with restrictions, but Des clears his throat and tilts his head to imply something only Jay can understand. "I mean...You look stunning sweetie. I'm very proud of you."
Lottie hugs her mom and it's a bit too overwhelming so Gemma sobs in her other hand, fingers deep into her dad's arm who's not sure if he's sobbing from the precious mother/daughter moment or from his own daughter's sharp nails reaching his veins.
Louis and Harry watch the scene and absentmindedly wrap their arms around each other, Harry squeezing Louis' shoulder against his side and Louis' arm around Harry's waist as they 'awwww' in unison.
When they're all done witnessing Lottie's milestone moment of her life, Harry and Louis quickly drop their arms away from each other and make sure no one noticed their moment of weakness.
Everyone's about to go back to their own thing, but Jay suddenly smiles even more when she stops sobbing, ready to announce something.
"While I'm overwhelmed with pride for Lottie, I want you all to know how I don't mean to be so strict or reluctant to try and accept new things...I'm just really used to traditions and want to make sure you grow into someone you're proud of. But, seeing you..." She cups Lottie's cheek. "...and you..." She looks over at Louis. '...grow into whoever you feel like you need to be, and look so beautiful when you let it show, I really want to tell you that, I don't know everything, and I may not know the right thing to say or do sometimes...but I love you and support whatever makes you truly happy. And, as someone very clever told me, that's the only thing I really need to do."
Harry feels his heart stop when Jay winks at him. He doesn't have to look at Louis to know he's about to cry, and this moment is about as unexpected as the entire Lost series.
He hooks his little finger with Louis' discretely, because there's no way he's not telling him somehow how happy he is for him right now.
"And Boo Bear, please, never feel like you need to hold yourself back for me. Or anyone."
Louis looks at her and nods, trying to stay put and not melt into a puddle of tears, only contained by Harry's gentle tug on his finger.
"Thank you mom...I won't and...I want to honest with every one of you..." Louis states, with a sense of confidence that makes Harry wish he had a chair to fall into behind him.
Gemma, Des and Lottie turn to him, and Harry's sister is literally going to be responsible for the amputation of her dad's arm at this rate.
"I know I told you I had a girlfriend I made vows with but...truth is..." He takes a deep breath. "I'm gay." Louis lets the heaviest sigh out after the word, as if he'd dropped the heaviest weight he's ever had to carry. Because he had. He takes off his chastity ring and fidgets with it before placing it on the table next to him.
"WHAT ?!" Gemma shouts with the most high pitched voice to ever exist, and punches her dad in the stomach as a reflex, making this heartfelt moment a bit too physically painful for Des.
"But...wh...It all makes sense now !" Lottie looks like she's just had an epiphany, and Harry makes a mental note to ask her about all the awkward discoveries she must've questioned over the years.
Everyone looks surprised and gasp...everyone but Harry. He has no clue which surprised face he should go for, since that's a news he sort of knew about a little bit...But he's also astonished by Louis coming out to not only the Styles, but his own family as well.
So he deals with it the only way he can.
"I guess I'll have to return the souvenir dress I got her then ?" Harry overdoes it and awkwardly brings his fists on his hips and kicks the ground. "Darn it !"
Louis must be glad Harry's that quirky and dramatic in general, because he would've been caught within seconds.
"I'm so happy you felt comfortable enough to tell us that Louis ! Come here everyone ! Massive group hug !" Des sings as he hops with his arms open to gather everyone in them.
They're all squished and can barely tell who's touching whom, but Harry digs his thumb in Louis' back, and Louis looks at him over Lottie's head, crinkles turning his eyes in two lines of eyelashes.
"Is it the right time to tell everyone Lou's not the only guy in this house who enjoys the male population ?!" Harry shouts in the air, everyone still hugging and suffocating each other while he stands one head taller than every single one of them.
"Literally everyone knows Harry ! This is not your time !" Gemma flicks her brother's forehead with her fingers and enjoys his loud 'heyyyyyy !' while everyone else bursts in laughter and agree. He's just never been very good at hiding who he is.
"But it is though ! Harry passed his year ! With honours !" Louis says before he can keep it any longer, voice muffled in the hug.
"What ?! Congratulations son !" Des shouts, patting Harry's head as he squishes Gemma in the hug a bit more to reach him.
They keep celebrating all the pride flowing around and the happy tears and endless hugging, and decide they are quite the family...But a proud one.
*****
"I'm more of a Patrick Dempsey kinda guy, y'know ?" Harry pouts.
"Really ? I think I saw you more like the John Travolta in Grease type. Like, bad boy attitude but big heart." Lottie admits and Louis and Harry smirk at each other in the mirror, because she is most definitely right.
They're all gathered in the girls' room, since Des and Jay are busy being sick from the bad oysters and the boys didn't really feel like hearing their trips to the bathroom through their walls.
They had been going through the several purchases of the day and Harry had insisted to try out the cherry pink nail polish Lottie had bought. Gemma was used to her brother trying out her nail polish or stealing her hair ties, or forcing her to braid his hair, so now it was the Tomlinsons' turn and she looked thrilled.
Lottie was therefore painting Harry's nails on the floor whilst Louis was braiding his hair, sitting on the bed right above him, legs on each side of his back. He had experienced growing up with a sister obsessed with styling head toys and strong blackmailing skills, so it was nothing new.
Gemma was lying on her stomach on her bed behind Louis, reading them a magazine in the meantime, going through quizzes on what kind of guy is good for them, and basically just enjoying a night full of girl talk and gay insight to end this eventful day.
"Next question: what do you first notice in a guy ? And, please, no inappropriate answer. This is a family friendly environment." Gemma says, eyeing her brother because she just knows him all too well. "Smile, hair, style, height or eyes ?"
"Height." Lottie whispers, concentrating to not paint Harry's skin.
"I'll say...hair." Louis chooses and pretends he doesn't feel Harry staring at him in the mirror.
"Is there eyelashes ?" Harry asks.
"Nope. Not a choice. Eyes maybe ?" Gemma suggests.
"Okay, that too." He nods and Gemma writes down everyone's answer including her own, agreeing with Lottie.
"Next. I hate guys who are..." She starts, putting her pen between her teeth. "...Super clingy ? Rude ? Too cocky ? Mammas boy ? Or jerks ?"
"Too cocky." They all say at the same time and cry laugh a bit before continuing the quiz.
"Characteristics you want him to have: Ambitious, intelligent and risk-taker ? Strong, dependable and kind ? Rebellious, rugged and dangerous ? Attractive, high maintenance, pretty boy ?...or doesn't matter ?" Gemma says and looks up.
"I like rugged..." Harry says, dramatically looking into the distance, only to check if the description matches Louis. Which it does in his opinion.
"I like dangerous..." Louis says the same way, for the same reason.
"Okayyyy..." Gemma sings, putting the respective symbols she chose for everyone next to their answer. "And you Miss Charlotte ?"
"I was thinking I should say ambitious or kind...but let's be real, I'll probably go for the pretty boy." She giggles and they all join her.
"I'll go for the dependable kind dude." Gemma says before going to the next questions.
They all find out quite a lot about each other, including what matters the most in a relationship or what's their favourite celebrity couple or the best place to hang out...
"Ouh, I like this one: which iconic movie couple do you wanna be like ?...Mr and Mrs Smith ? Rose and Jack ? Bella and Edward ? Bonnie and Clyde ? Or Allie and Noah ?"
Gemma asks and taps her pen on her chin as she looks up to think.
"The notebook. Definitely Allie and Noah." Lottie says immediately.
"I think I'll say the same." Gemma nods. "You boys ?"
Louis is slowing down his braiding process to think about this and Harry might be pulling a straight face, he's been dying inside.
Louis' fingers are the most gentle, careful fingers he's ever felt and he tugs at Harry's hair just enough to keep the braids still, not too much to hurt him – even if he wouldn't be opposed to that in other circumstances – and brushes his fingertips against Harry's neck every time he's done with one, against his ear when he curls a wild lock, and his forehead when he brings back the fringe he had let go of. At this point it's a miracle Harry doesn't have a boner in front of his sisters.
"I think dramatic like Rose and Jack." Harry chooses.
"Really ? I was thinking more Bonnie and Clyde for the passion and crime..." Louis says as he bends down to get a minuscule invisible rubber band.
"Well...It's not like you can't choose different answers..." Gemma raises a brow in confusion as to why they're debating on a mutual agreement for their individual answer.
"I'll go Rose and Jack. Because their love become so strong that they go through anything to stay together no matter the conventions. They don't care if they're not supposed to love each other according to social rules, they ignore it and live the most beautiful love story." Harry explains, more to Louis than anyone else. But they probably shouldn't know that.
"Okay...Titanic for Mr I get-too-invested-in-movies..." Gemma rolls her eyes.
"But they don't get to be together at the end." Louis protests and stops styling Harry's hair.
"No..." Harry agrees and turns to look at Louis as he speaks. "...but only because of external factors, not because they didn't love each other enough. They didn't get to spend their whole life together, but at least they sincerely enjoyed every second of what they did get to share before fate made it impossible."
"Guys...It's just a silly quiz...It's not that deep..." Gemma tries to remind them while Lottie has been sitting agape, holding the nail polish brush in the air when Harry waved his hands to make his point.
Louis and Harry have been fixing each other for a while now and the atmosphere is getting a bit weird for Gemma and Lottie who don't really know what to do, or say, or why their brothers are fighting over a dumb test in a magazine giving twenty five tips to wear disco pants in autumn.
"I'll go with Rose and Jack." Louis changes his mind and goes back to braiding the lock he had dropped. Harry smiles in victory before turning around, giving Louis rubber bands to keep his braids from collapsing.
"So last question – fucking finally – is...the perfect first date: the park ? Movies ? Romantic dinner ? Beach ? Or at his place ?"
"The beach." Harry and Louis say at the same time and they really don't know how to be more obvious than that.
"Copycat !" Louis scolds to make the suspicion fade, and he might regret pulling at Harry's hair to hard when the latter covers his crotch with the stuffed animal Gemma got for Evan.
"The park for me !" Lottie exclaims.
"And his place for me..." Gemma says and swings her feet behind her as she writes it down.
"On a first date ? Really Gems ?" Harry says with desperation in his voice.
"You answered 'bed' for favourite place to hang out, so don't come for me brother !" Gemma threatens him and they all giggle while she's figuring out the results.
Harry has shifted from between Louis' legs to lying with his head on Lottie's lap on the floor, keeping his hands above him as if to rest on an invisible piano, waiting for the nail polish to dry.
Louis' legs are somehow intertwined with his – because there's apparently not enough room on the whole carpet – while he's leaning his back against Gemma's bed, and they're enjoying how everyone sort of accepted that they get along now, well enough to be comfortable around each other and sit a bit too close.
It turns out Lottie should go for the class clown, Gemma for the jock who will turn out to be a sensitive teddy bear, and Harry's sister announces her 'brothers' got the same result.
"You're a down to earth person, someone people love to be around. You should date guys who are funny, who make you smile all the time and compliment you. You're also into passion and adventure and deserve nothing but a genuine lover: your perfect guy is someone like you."
"Awww !" Lottie coos, shaking Harry by his shoulders as Gemma gives her 'this is so cute I'm going to cry' pout to Louis. "I'm jealous. I wanted passion and genuine lover too !"
"Don't worry Lo', it's impossible to find such a perfect match in real life, these boys are as doomed as we are !" Gemma jokes.
Harry and Louis try to not look at each other, because they're pretty sure the smile they'd have would be as good as saying that they actually already found everything they need in a guy...
*****
"I'm blind ! I'm blind !" Louis is screaming, hopping on the spot and wiggling his hands in distress.
"Stop moving so much or it'll happen !" Harry scolds. "Tilt your head back !"
The water washes over the coconut-y foam on Louis' eyelids, helped by Harry's light thumb wiping it away.
"Open your eyes." Harry instructs, waiting for Louis, who is still squinting and refusing to. "Open your eyes or I won't kiss you anymore."
Louis' eyes are suddenly wide open, shampoo free and bright.
Harry giggles and wastes no time before pecking his lips, earning a mischievous scrunching nose and a quiet chuckle.
They've been taking a shower for the past fifteen minutes and the most productive thing they've done so far is washing Louis' hair and creating Elvis Presley's pompadour with the foam, all while singing Blue Suede Shoes in a spectacular duet with the handheld shower head as their mic.
"You're too tall, squat down." Louis taps Harry's shoulder to make him lower a bit so he can wash his hair.
"I'd be happy to squat and get a perfect little butt like yours Lou, but my legs are going to break if I do that."
Louis' face turns into a sad and adorable begging pout, as if he had just been denied the remote-controlled car he asked for his birthday.
"But !" Harry raises a finger, unable to resist the sad kitten in front of him. "I can kneel."
Louis' smile is immediately back on his face, looking smug and turning to get the bottle of shampoo behind him.
When he turns back around, Harry's on his knees, as he said, but not in the direction Louis had expected. He's looking up at him, face inches away from his inner thigh, and giving a soft and innocent look.
"J'ai constamment envie de toi, Louis." Harry says, pronouncing his name in one syllable with his effortless French accent, making Louis a bit weak in the knees, and everywhere else by the looks of it.
"What does that mean ?"
Harry just shrugs and strokes the back of Louis' thighs, kissing along his pelvis, eyes locked with the blue pearls looking down at him.
Louis puts the shampoo back down and kneels down in front of him.
"What does it mean ?" He repeats, a bit more serious.
He kisses Harry's neck, then focuses on his lips, hand sliding down his torso like the water pouring above them.
"You're not gonna tell me ?" Louis asks kindly, watching Harry smirk, apparently determined to stay mute. He palms him for what feels like an eternity, doing nothing but stroke him to get his blood to rush under his fingers.
Harry leans closer and kisses Louis' neck the same way he did, and mimics him again when he wraps his hand around his length, building the same pressure and testing Louis' limits staying quiet.
Louis seems to forget his curiosity for foreign languages when he kisses Harry and creates a very wet and very noisy mess that has them panting within seconds. They're both jerking each other off, doing the same gesture, yet in completely different ways.
Harry knows how to stroke gently and tease with a circling thumb on the tip while Louis is a bit too aware of how much Harry enjoys the rough but controlled slide of a confident hand.
They're moaning into each other's mouth, sound choked by the water crashing on the tiles around them.
"I'm always craving you." Harry whispers between them.
"What ?" Louis murmurs back, and Harry's not sure if he even understands English at this point.
"It means, I-I'm always c-craving you."
They speed up their hands and stop their last kiss to simply stare at their open mouths, cum blending with the water streaming loudly.
Louis drops his head on Harry's shoulder and the latter does the same, brushing his lips on Louis' glittering skin.
"If you don't speak French at least once a day from now on, I'm asking for a refund." Louis breathes in Harry's neck.
Harry giggles hysterically and rests his hands on the small of Louis' back before speaking again.
"Tes désirs sont des ordres, mon coeur."
/Translation: Your wish is my command, sweetheart./
*****
"Je prendrai la langouste, s'il vous plaît."
"What did she say ?" Louis asks when he leans against Harry's side.
"I will have the lobster, please." Harry answers as her sister orders for all of them.
"Oh...Then, can I try your drink, s'il vous plaît ?" Louis tries, making Harry chuckle and like him even more in French.
"No...For me, it'll be s'il te plaît." Harry corrects. "It's less formal. Although, oui, you can have my drink."
Gemma, Harry and Louis decided to go out for lunch near "La Promenade des Anglais" and enjoy a fancy meal on the terrace of "Le Méridien" with a gorgeous view on the sea. Lottie was doing summer homework and their parents had to sort out a few things for the wedding and the new house, so they decided to stay home with her and go through papers and guest lists confirmations.
"Teaching him some French, brother ?" Gemma asks when the waiter leaves.
"When in Nice..." Harry shrugs.
"Aurevoir, mon coeur !" A young woman calls after a boy next to them as she walks away.
"Mon coeur." Louis repeats with his strong English accent. "You've called me that before, what does it mean ?"
Harry widens his eyes and just prays his sister hasn't heard that, because she couldn't let this one slide.
"What ? No way. You must've confused it with something else. Mon coeur literally means 'my heart', as in 'my love'. Harry wouldn't have called you that !" Gemma laughs hysterically. Louis nods and knocks his shoulder with Harry's and gives him the kindest smile he's ever seen with flushed cheeks.
They keep teaching him a few words in French, waiting for the food, and Louis tries to keep up, but he's often distracted by the look Harry's giving him, ready to lean in any moment to kiss him and make him scream in French at the top of his lungs.
"Oh my god. You have to try this, Cheeky Chimp ! I can promise you: you will die. It's that good !" Gemma insists Louis tastes the lobster she ordered, already stretching her arm over the table to feed her step-brother.
"Fuckkk..." Louis moans with his eyes closed when he takes Gemma's fork, and sinks into his seat as if he's actually dying. Harry bursts out laughing and might be cackling too loud when he sees the shock on Gemma's face, wondering why her brother is laughing at Louis like he's the funniest person alive.
"What do you have ?" Louis asks Harry, mouth still half full.
They're sitting next to each other and, their chairs might be stuck together already after constantly scooting closer, they still feel like it's not enough proximity, so they do everything they can to become one person.
Their arms get on the other one's armrest, their shoulders are somehow brushing despite the gap created by the chairs, their hands keep touching on the table, and they're about as incapable of not looking at each other as they are incapable of not smiling with fond when the other one is talking.
"Sole meunière." Harry says but Louis is still frowning, waiting for an explanation. "The fish is cooked with lightly browned butter, served with lemon juice and parsley. It's my favourite." Harry says and doesn't have to offer Louis a bite because he's already picking the chunk of sole Harry had already cut.
"Mmmmmh...!" Louis moans even louder and longer, while Harry's absentmindedly staring at his lips with his mouth slightly open. "I'm never leaving this place !"
They keep eating everything and Louis and Harry might as well have ordered for two. They keep picking at each other's plate: Harry grabs a salted fry near Louis' burger and Louis digs his fork in Harry's mash; Louis sips at Harry's cocktail and Harry sips at Louis' coke. All of that in front of Gemma who, they hope, is thinking her brothers just grew to like each other after all.
"What's Evan doing ?" Louis asks while they wait for dessert.
"He's in law school like me, we're in the same year. He wants to work in Environmental Law and I'm planning on trying out journalism next." Gemma answers, looking blissful to talk about their future. "I miss him so much...I'm so used to being with him twenty four seven..."
"I can imagine..." Louis mutters.
"Do you have a secret boyfriend ?" Gemma smirks and Louis straightens up, putting some distance with Harry's side he was leaning against. "I mean, I know you only came out the other day but, have you been dating a guy without anyone knowing ?"
"Yeah, I guess." Louis nods shyly. And Harry is a bit surprised so he sits up as well.
"How cute ! How is he like ?" Gemma rests her elbows on the table and places her chin on her linked fists.
"Well, he's..." Louis looks down at his napkin on the table and smiles. "...great."
"That's it ? You're talking to me Cheeky Chimp. Tell me everything." Gemma insists.
Louis and Gemma had bonded over the trip, especially since Louis came out and she was able to see the true side of him. They get along and share the same sense of humour, and she had started calling him Cheeky Chimp for the amount of Coco Pops he ate. And it just truly felt like they were brother and sister.
"He's smart. Very smart. A bit of a nerd as well. Which I like." Louis smiles softly and Harry sits back and gets comfortable to listen to the rest. "He's not a loner, but he does like his alone time a lot, so I feel privileged that he'd rather spend the whole day with me, even just watching a movie, instead of reading a book he's been trying to finish for months."
The sea air is rushing with the heavy breezes and the sound of the waves from afar is beyond relaxing, seagulls filling the occasional silence as Louis takes his time to describe his 'boyfriend'.
"What else ?! What else ?!" Gemma hurries.
"He's quite family oriented, loves to spend time with his siblings and knows how to cherish every moment spent with them." Harry is frowning with his hand over his mouth, because if he lets himself grin, he's pretty sure he'll stretch his cheeks too much to pass as normal.
"He's also very funny, even though not everyone thinks so. And I think I'd spend my life trying to make him laugh just to hear that weird sound he does." Louis chuckles and Gemma is smiling in adoration.
"Is he hot ?" Gemma smirks while Harry stays silent, eyes on the armrest he's fidgeting with. Louis licks his lips and looks up in the air before answering, smirking a bit too much.
"He is. He's very handsome. But not just as in a 'that guy's so hot' kind of way...It's more all the little things that make him...him. Like, how soft his skin is in some places yet very muscular in others, the way he stands and makes it look like he's going to fall any second, the barely visible freckles on his cheeks that I wouldn't even have noticed if I didn't spend so much time staring at him..." Louis must realize he's getting a bit carried away, because he clears his throat as soon the desserts arrive.
Gemma went for her usual crème brûlée, Louis chose the chocolate fudge cake filled with a strawberry coulis, and Harry ordered profiteroles, as he always does when he comes here.
"How did you guys meet ?" Gemma asks after the first bite of her French pudding.
Harry starts to panic a bit then. He doesn't know how to save Louis. H tries to think about something and opens his mouth to his rescue, but Louis is already speaking with ease.
"In the tube." Louis starts, scooping the vanilla ice cream on the side of his plate and licking his now freezing lips. "It's kind of a funny story actually..."
"How ?" Harry finds himself asking, completely ignoring his melting dessert.
"He was having a quick nap and had stretched his legs in front of him, all the way to the seat across from his. I didn't want to wake him up, but it was the only empty spot, so I tried to discretely stride over his legs, and ended up knocking them, because I apparently have the tiniest legs in the world compared to his..."
Harry's about done with the story already. Not because he doesn't like it, not because Gemma is getting suspicious, but because there's absolutely no trace of lies in Louis' voice, and he's a bit confused and overwhelmed and too hot...yes...this terrace is getting way too hot, and he's about to faint.
"What did he say ? I bet he was all bloody prince charming like and holding you as you fell or some shit !" Gemma asks, digging her spoon into her cream.
"Total opposite actually. I thought I'd pretend nothing happened, but then he asked me to apologize and I was a bit distracted by his eyes to say what I really wanted to say. So I ended up being rude as a nervous reflex..."
"What happened after that ?" Harry asks as if he weren't one of the protagonists, genuinely wondering what was next.
"Well..." Louis sighed before digging his spoon into Harry's melting chocolate ice cream sprinkled with grilled almonds. "I didn't think I'd see him again, so I didn't think much about it. But then I walked into him in a coffee shop. I was only in the city for a few days so I didn't see the point of trying to know his name or stuff like that, and he seemed a bit out of my league anyway, so I kept the rude act. I was about to apologize, but then I saw the way he looked at the girl working there and thought he was probably not even into guys, so I wasn't really sure what to do. The only couch available was right next to him though, so I figured God was mocking me a bit."
"Did you talk then ?" Gemma asks.
"Not so much...And I thought that was it. But fate just doesn't give up, apparently, so then I met him in the bathroom of a random bar while I was...um..."
"Fuck." Gemma seems to understand.
"We went our separated ways after that, so I sort of let it go."
Gemma is almost finished with her cream and Louis has been able to eat the majority of his cake, but Harry is somehow still working on his second ball of ice cream filled dough.
"Harry, if you don't eat that thing it'll be an ice cream soup..." Gemma raises a brow at her brother as the latter twirls his spoon in the corner of his mouth, forgetting he had food to put on it. "Anyway, when did you introduce each other then ?"
Louis starts to get nervous at that so Harry reckons he knows everything from this point. He's quick to find a distraction, and gives him a hand to get out of Gemma's tricks to make him talk.
"Do you like the cake ?" Harry asks, loud enough to cover Gemma's snort.
"Yeah, you should try it. You might enjoy the strawberry..." Louis smiles and goes to stroke Harry's hand on the table but quickly drops his hand on his lap.
"Harry, can you eat Louis' food in silence, I'm trying to keep up here !" Gemma doesn't give up.
"We met on holiday. Our families knew each other so it was kind of a fortunate coincidence." Louis grins. "At least to some extent..." He says low enough that Gemma doesn't hear. "Turns out he was gay as well after all and liked me, for some reason, so...yeah."
"Are you in love with him ? " Gemma doesn't lose track of the conversation.
Harry immediately looks at Louis' reaction, and he unfortunately cannot read that one. He doesn't say anything, doesn't smile, doesn't even pout...He's looking at his spoon getting the last bite of pudding and doesn't show any expression whatsoever. So Harry decides he's done with that topic.
"Gemma ! Stop harassing him !" Harry scolds, threatening her with his spoon.
"Alright ! Alright ! Sorry Cheeky Chimp, I shouldn't have pushed you to tell me so much..." Gemma apologizes.
"No, you're fine."
"You sound like you are anyway..." Gemma sighs and ends the conversation on this.
On the drive home, Harry stays silent as his sister and Louis chat about random things he doesn't care about. He doesn't care about much right now except one thing.
Should he tell Louis ?
Should he tell him he had been thinking about him the second he opened his eyes to see this scruffy fringe and blue eyes being too sassy for his own good ?
Should he tell him he only argued with him in that coffee shop to keep interacting with him ? Should he tell him how glad he was to have him sitting next to him, even in silence, just to see the way he used his pinky to scroll down his screen instead of his thumb like everyone else, the way he drank his coffee, scrunching his nose as he swallowed ?
Should he tell him how happy he felt for some reason to see him in that pub, no matter the context, just glad to get to see him again ?
Or maybe he should tell him how he felt his whole world crashing around him when he met him again, wishing he had stayed in London and waited a lifetime to run into him again in a completely different scenario...
But what Harry wonders the most is what Louis would have answered to the last question. And if, just like him, he fell truly, madly and deeply in love with the stranger from the Northern Line.