"But Mum, Dad, why can't you just let me go? Everyone will be there but me," Harry complains, begging his parents to allow him to go to Nick's house party tonight.
Even though Nick's parents weren't going to be there as usual, Harry isn't about to tell his parents that fact. Especiallysince they wouldn't let him go even more if they knew. And he is pretty desperate to go with all his other friends.
"Harry, we already said 'no'," Anne says sternly in return, stirring the pan of food on the stove.
"And you know our reasons," Des adds, washing his hands at the sink after he finished cutting the vegetables and meat.
"But you don't even know that all that stuff will happen for sure at the party," their son argues. "I mean, there probably will be some alcohol and stuff, but it's not like I'm gonna drink it."
"That's what you say now, right before the party. Once you get there, it'll be different and easier to accept drinks. We're only looking out for you, Harry. We don't want you to do something you'll regret at one of those 'parties'," Gemma declares as she walks into the kitchen and takes a seat on a stool by the island.
Her brother turns to her, glaring as he demands, "So, none of you trust me?"
"It's not that we don't trust you, Harry," Anne starts with a sigh, used to Harry's outburst as he is still a teenager.
"Then what is it? 'Cause you all know I'm eighteen, right? I can make my own decisions, yet here I am, actually taking time to ask you, my parents, if I can go to a party. I don't have to do this, you know?!" the young lad exclaims angrily.
"Watch your mouth there, Harry," Des scolds him with narrowed eyes. "We're your parents, and we deserve to be respected by you, young man."
Letting out a frustrated groan, Harry pulls at his hair and shouts, "Then understand me and let me go to Nick's party tonight! All you have to do is say 'yes' ! It's that simple!"
"The answer is still no," his Dad states through clenched teeth, tired of Harry's 'bratty attitude' towards his own family.
"Whatever," is all Harry snaps back, stomping out of the kitchen, up the stairs, and towards his room. He slams his door shut and locks it behind himself.
Without much thought, he makes his way to his closet and pulls out a duffel bag, stuffing whatever clothes he can grab quickly. He grabs some underwear and socks from the drawers of his dresser, letting out frustrated sounds from the way things turned out yet again with his family.
It's not like he wanted to argue with them again. But they never allow him to go out much or do anything fun with his friends. Apparently, his family 'don't approve of his choice of friends', but Harry has argued many times that his family never even gave them a chance. If only they bothered to actually get to know his friends, then everything would be fine.
Well, mostly everything.
Someone knocks on his door suddenly, making him freeze and stop packing for a few seconds as he holds his breath.
"Harry?"
"What, Gemma?"
"Do you wanna talk about all this?" she asks worriedly, knowing how impulsive Harry gets when fights like that happens.
Yes. "No. I - I just need to be alone right now, Gems. Please give me some time," he answers with some regret at being so harsh to his own big sister.
It's not like he ever really fights with Gemma anyway. They get along quite well, to be honest. But she also doesn't approve of his friends, agreeing with their parents that his 'friends' are 'bad influences' on him.
So maybe he does hold something against Gemma. But not as much as his parents.
"... Are you sure?"
No. "Yeah. Just leave me alone, Gemma. I don't - I can't talk to anyone right now, okay?"
"Okay," she returns softly, sighing and stepping away from his door. "Let me know whenever you're ready, yeah?"
Harry doesn't answer, feeling tears well up in his eyes. He knows he'll miss Gemma the most once he... leaves. He just can't stay here anymore and let his family control every single thing about his life. He should be able to make decisions of his own, and he's made one right now. No matter how impulsive of a decision it is, he decides to go through with it anyways.
Pulling out his phone from his jean pocket, he sniffles and dials a number he knows well enough.
"Hey," he greets shakily, wiping his eyes before continuing, "Can you pick me up? I need to get away from here. Doesn't feel like home anymore, to be honest."
~~~
"So... I'm glad you're going to my party tonight," Nick starts awkwardly, after just picking Harry up from his house to head back to his own. "You can help me set up before it starts in an hour.
"Mhm," Harry just hums in response, looking out the window of Nick's car with his bag on his lap.
"Excited about it? 'Cause I am."
Not responding, Harry sighs and leans his head on the window. Nick looks over, worried about him, but he doesn't know how to comfort the younger lad. Harry could only wish that he could.
He really needs it now.
When they finally reach Nick's house, Harry drops off his bag into the guest room he usually stays at whenever he needed to get away from home. Now, it would be his room more permanently.
Until he finds his own place; that is.
Nick is already setting things up downstairs by the time he gets back to help. They finish just in time, when people start streaming in and barely acknowledging his presence for the likes of dancing and drinking instead. They barely even greet Nick, who is the host of the party; mind you. That is at least out of respect to do, right?
"Let loose, Curly. Have a drink," Nick slurs to him, clearly he has already consumed some drinks himself when the party has barely started.
"No, thanks. I don't want nor need any alcohol right now especially," Harry answers quite rudely.
"One sip. You won't regret it."
"I said I don't want a drink, Nick."
"Suit yourself, then. No need to get pissed at me for wanting you to have fun. You're just standing here alone, when you should be dancing and chatting someone up," the older lad declares, before letting out a burp, then a giggle because of it.
Pushing him away, Harry says, "I need some fresh air. Keep having fun, Grimmy." Whether Nick hears him or not is beyond his knowledge.
Walking out into the backyard, he takes in a deep breath to hopefully clear his head. He immediately regrets it when he unintentionally breathes in some smoke. Coughing into his hand as his eyes water, he glances to the side and catches sight of someone he doesn't know smoking a cigarette.
Great. Just what I needed. To get second-hand smoke and some lung cancer, he thinks with a grimace.
"Want one?"
"Excuse me?" he asks in confusion, noticing the other lad looking over at him. "Are you actually offering me a cigarette ?"
"Yeah," the other says simply. "There's no one else here."
Harry snorts and looks away from him. "You know how bad that is for you, right? Cancer and all."
Shrugging in response, the other lad lets out a puff of smoke from his mouth and chuckles. "That's what you have to say? You know, for someone as hot as you, you don't do much 'bad' things, do you?"
"You don't even know," Harry responds softly, leaning his head back against the wall.
"Then why don't you do something 'bad' right now... Like me. Or maybe I could do you," says the other lad, staring at Harry predatorily.
Gulping and taking a step towards the door, Harry stammers out, "N- no, thanks. I really rather not... especially with you."
"You sure? You don't look certain," the other lad challenges with a smirk, making his way closer to Harry as he tosses his cigarette somewhere too close to the house.
It doesn't even seem like he put it out properly, since Harry swears he sees the cigarette butt still glowing orange -
"My name's Patrick. What's yours?"
"None of your business," Harry snaps back, quickly walking back in the house.
Unfortunately for him, this 'Patrick' person isn't just giving up on Harry that easily. He has a hold on Harry's arm right now, pulling the curly-haired lad to a stop near the door leading to the backyard they just came from. Letting out an annoyed grunt, Harry pulls his arm away and steps back from Patrick with a glare.
"Don't touch me."
"Then come back outside with me and - "
Thankfully, Patrick gets cut off by someone yelling. Not being able to hear the rest of what he's saying, Harry only has a second of relief before he realizes what the person who interrupted is screaming:
"FIRE! There's fire by the kitchen!"
"What - " is all Harry manages to say before everyone reacts and start making their way out.
They push and shove their way out, muttering or screaming to get the hell out of there before they all die. Harry gets pushed against the wall behind him suddenly, getting his breath knocked out of him. When he catches his breath and looks around, there's only a small group of people running out the backyard door across from him, not paying him any attention in favour of saving themselves.
Feeling heat coming from somewhere near his left side, he turns his head and finally sees this so-called 'fire' that person was screaming about.
It is definitely fire that's quickly spreading around in the kitchen. The curtains by the backyard door catches on fire almost immediately after his observations, flames flicking out and burning the fabric.
A piece of the burning curtains lands near Harry's foot, some flames flicking out to burn him slightly. He curses and steps away, keeping his legs at a far enough distance to not touch them again.
Get out. I need to get out of here, he thinks wisely, finally getting himself to think as clearly as possible in this situation.
Smoke is indeed rising, and he knows he only has a few minutes - more like seconds, now that he really looks at how big and how fast the fire is spreading to the rest of the house - to get out of here. He can see the flames flicking out to touch other surfaces, like the walls and floors near the living room now -
His eyes catch the sight of something familiar, yet something he wishes he didn't see.
The cigarette... Patrick just threw it in the house carelessly - Stupidly, he thinks with a hazy mind.
Coughing from the increase of smoke, Harry forces himself head towards another exit; the front door, possibly. He stumbles out of the kitchen and passes by the living room, calling out to anyone else who could possibly still be in the house with him.
When he gets no response in return and just ends up coughing some more, he realizes that it's just him who is stupid enough to still be in here. Everyone else is already out and safe... But me.
He sees the front door somewhere in front of him, but it seems way too far. Harry feels as if his lungs are giving out with the amount of smoke now; along with the increasing heat surrounding him.
It feels as if the whole house is already on fire, including him.
The last thing he sees is a blur of motion as someone calls out to him and carries him out as quickly as he can.
Nick, maybe?
But he'll have to wait until he gains consciousness again to find out who it really was that saved him.
I would be forever grateful, he promises distantly in his mind as he blacks out.
~~~
The first thing Harry hears once he gains consciousness is an annoying beeping near his head. He frowns and furrows his eyebrows, slowly blinking his eyes open. All he sees is a too bright light and he vaguely knows he's in a white room. But that's all he can register before it's too much and he feels like a headache is coming on.
Then he hears a new voice; one he definitely doesn't know. Maybe it's a doctor? Perhaps a nurse? he thinks.
As slowly and cautiously as he can, Harry opens his eyes again and blinks through the brightness. The difference this time is that he squints through the pain and looks to where he heard someone saying his name.
Instead of seeing a doctor with a white coat on or nurse, he sees a man dressed in - ... Is that a firefighter uniform? But what would a firefighter be doing here? And how does he know my name? He is saying my name, right?
"... Hi?" Harry says hesitantly with a huskier voice than usual, so he clears his throat right after and waits for a response from the other person.
"Hello, Harry. My name is Liam Payne, and I am the captain firefighter of the town," the drop-dead gorgeous man introduces himself, holding out a hand for Harry to shake.
Not wanting to be impolite - and not because he wants to know how this firefighter's hands feel like, nope - Harry holds out his hand stiffly and takes hold of Liam's hand awkwardly. He doesn't even shake the older lad's hand, being too busy thinking about how firm of a grip Liam has and how strong it feels to just hold onto it like this.
Hmm... I feel some callouses on his palms. Probably from his job, right? I mean, he's a damn fit firefighter, who works his a** off to save peoples' lives from fires, he thinks dazedly, smiling softly and staring at their hands.
Speaking of fires and saving people from them... What happened after the fire in Nick's house? How did I get out?
... Did Liam save me? I hope so.
"Um, Harry? Is everything alright?" Liam asks, slowly pulling his hand away and making Harry frown at the loss of contact.
"I - What happened?" the curly-haired lad questions in return, finally looking up and into Liam's brown eyes.
Woah. Definitely did not expect his eyes to be so - so warm, welcoming, and that really nice brown colour... What is that colour, anyway? Light brown? Chocolate brown? Hmm... Guess I'll have to ask him, then.
His lips are nice, pink, and plump. Another nice feature on that gorgeous face of his. With that cute button nose and bushy eyebrows... Gotta love those eyebrows.
Wait. Is he talking right now? What is he saying?
"... - team and I managed to get to the house in time before the fire spread to the top floor. I quickly made my way into the house after I heard someone say there might still be one last person in there. I found you in the hallway leading to the front door and picked you up. You must have passed out from the overwhelming amount of smoke and heat, so I got you out of there as fast as I could," Liam explains patiently, even though Harry only heard about half of it. "The rest of the team took out the fire, and thankfully there weren't any casualties. Besides you, of course. You're really lucky to be alive, Harry."
"Great," the younger lad breathes out in embarrassment.
Here he is, crushing on probably the most attractive firefighter ever, and Liam is telling him that he could have died for still being in the house. Not that he was accusing Harry, because he really isn't and wasn't even meaning to sound like it. He just explained what happened, and Harry's overthinking things, isn't he?
"You only got a few slight burns on your legs, but they aren't the worst. They'll heal in time and won't leave ugly scars or anything like that," the brown-eyed man assures him, since he can tell that Harry is quite upset from something he said. "You'll be okay and can leave the hospital after a week."
"Okay," Harry whispers, looking down at his hands and playing with his fingers childishly.
"So, uh... Your family is waiting outside, and they want to see you after me. I'll get going now," says Liam awkwardly, heading to the door and holding the knob. "I hope you feel a lot better, Harry. And don't get too down and blame yourself for the fire. It's not your fault, right? You weren't smoking a cigarette and threw it out mindlessly."
How did he know that? Harry thinks in confusion, eyeing Liam.
"How did you - "
"Patrick confessed after we took the fire out. You're not in any trouble, Harry. Just focus on feeling better, okay?"
Liam leaves the room then, giving Harry about five seconds to breathe and take in all that information before his family piles into the room. Preparing himself to be yelled at, he shrugs his shoulders up defensively and waits for the yelling.
Fortunately and shockingly for him, all he gets from them are hugs and kisses, telling him how worried they were about him and how happy they are that he's okay. Harry just sits on the bed and let them hug him, wincing slightly when they accidentally touched his legs. But it wasn't that bad, so he isn't complaining.
"... - happy you're alive, sweetie," he hears his Mum say with tears on her face.
"We were so worried when we didn't find you in your room," Gemma states, looking down at him with tear-filled eyes that she wipes away quickly before they fall. "We thought you went to one of your friend's house, so we just hoped you'd come back home soon enough.
"But then we saw that some of your clothes were gone, and your room was messy... Oh, Harry, we thought we lost you for good after we got a call from the hospital," Anne finishes as she's crying.
"I - I'm okay, Mum. I didn't get hurt that badly," Harry assures, since he feels guilty for making his family worry so much.
His Dad lets out a heavy sigh, taking a seat on a chair beside his son's bed. "That doesn't mean we still can't worry about you, Harry. After we got the call, we rushed straight over here and waited for the doctor to tell us how you were. That took about three hours of waiting, although we see that you aren't that bad."
"Liam said I was lucky to be alive, since I blacked-out at the house," the young lad responds softly, looking down at his hands in shame.
He doesn't think he deserves his family's sympathy and care after the way he treated them. But here they are, visiting him at the hospital and making sure he really is okay after surviving a house fire because of that stupid party he just had to go to.
"Who's Liam?" Gemma asks before he could apologize for his childish-ness last night. "Is he your boyfriend?"
"Huh? No, Gems! He's the firefighter that was just in here. He was the one that saved my life," he replies, blushing as he continues to play with his hands on his lap.
"Ah. I see. So, you want him to be your boyfriend then? 'Cause I can do that for you, you know? I can always call him back in here and ask him if he's 'single and ready to mingle' with you, my dearly beloved brother. I bet he'll say 'yes'," she teases, but has that glint in her eyes that says she's not exactly kidding.
Eyes widening in recognition of that look, Harry sits up and grabs her arm just as she stands up from sitting on the edge of his bed. No way am I about to let my sister embarrass me in front of that god-of-a-fireman! he shouts in his head.
"NO! Gems, don't you dare do that! You'll scare him off before I even get a chance to - "
" - sleep with him?" his sister suggests with a wink.
"N- no!' he denies, although his face turns red as their parents stare at him in shock, because they really didn't know about his 'sexual active-ness', did they? Whoops.
"Harry Edward Styles!" his Mum shouts.
~~~
A MONTH LATER...
Feeling a lot better, although it really only took about a week for his burns to not hurt with every step he took. They really weren't that bad, as Liam said. As long as he's still alive and able to freely walk about with his whole body intact, then life is good.
... Isn't it?
At least, not as good as Harry thought it would be after his parents let him go out again.
I mean, by now, he thought he could have seen Liam again after that one visit to the hospital. Well, there was that other time when Liam came by to check how Harry was doing the day after, but that didn't seem like enough still. At least, Gemma wasn't there to embarrass him. He'll forever be grateful for that.
"You know," Gemma starts as she takes a seat beside her brother on the swing at the front porch, "The fire station isn't that far from here. It's like, a five minute drive from here."
"... Okay?"
Rolling her eyes at him, Gemma elaborates, "You can always go see Liam. Like, now."
"I - I never said I wanted to see h- "
"Oh, stop lying to yourself and go over there. Mum, Dad, and I are sick of your moping around. Go get him, Harry. I'm sure he can't wait to see you either."
"But what if he's busy? Like, you never know when emergencies happen."
"Stop making up excuses and go see him."
When he opens his mouth to protest again, Gemma raises her hand to stop him from speaking. He closes his mouth and huffs in annoyance, knowing his sister really is right. Maybe he can just go see Liam right now. For, like, a minute or so. Depending on if he's busy or not -
"Oh my god. You know what? Let's go right now. I'll drive you there and abandon you so you have no choice but to talk to him with no way home. Maybe he'll take you home, who knows?"
"Didn't you just say it's only five minutes away?" Harry asks as Gemma grabs his arm and drags him to her car.
"It's about a five minute drive, but whatever. You're still going."
"Gem, - "
"Just get in the car, Harry."
During the short drive to the fire station, Harry is rambling on about how bad of an idea this is, but Gemma keeps ignoring him and turns up the volume of the radio to drown him out. She happens to think this is a brilliant idea, so her brother just has to shut up and deal with it. This is for his own good, she thinks with a mischievous smirk on her face.
"Okay. Here we are," she declares as she parks her car in the parking lot by the fire station.
"No - Oh, god. Gem, I can't go in there."
"Yes, you can. Now get out and stop being weak. He's probably waiting for you."
"What if he's not even there? Just drive us back home. Please, Gem. I can't do this. This is too much. It's so embarrassing."
"How is this 'embarrassing'? You haven't even done anything yet."
Harry just shakes his head and grips the seat beneath him. "Gemma, please drive us back home. My heart's gonna explode if we keep staying here. Can't you hear it? 'Cause I can, and it hurts. My chest hurts - "
"Unbelievable," his sister cuts in, unbuckling herself before getting out of the car.
"Wait! Gem, where are you going?! You can't just leave me in here! I'm gonna die from panicking! Gemma!"
Pulling the passenger door open, she looks down at him with a pointed stare. "Get up, Harry."
"What? No! Gemma, I'm not - "
"Get out of my car and go talk to Liam. Don't wimp out on me."
"How can you say that? I'm your brother!"
"Harry, I'm counting to three. If you're not out of my car by then, I'll make a scene and tell everyone that you're trying to steal my car."
"That's not gonna work on me, Gems. I'm not a child - "
"One... "
"Gemma, I'm not - "
"Two... "
"Fine, fine! God," Harry exclaims as he unbuckles himself and gets out of the car with shaky legs. "Is it just me or is the ground shaking? Is there an earthquake happening? Are we gonna die now?!"
Gemma rolls her eyes again and pushes Harry towards the fire station. "You're absolutely ridiculous."
"But I can totally feel the ground shaking!"
"It's just your legs! Now keep walking and go look for Liam."
"You can't make me do this! Isn't this illegal or something? It has to be illegal, right?"
"I knew I should've brought some duct tape," she mutters under her breath as they reach the station.
Looking around at the inside of the building, she pulls Harry along as they walk further inside in the hopes of seeing Liam or someone to ask. Luckily for them, there's a firefighter standing by a fire truck, leaning back against it as he's using his phone.
"Um, excuse me?"
"... Hi? Can I help you?" the firefighter asks in confusion.
"Actually, yeah. You see, my brother here is looking for Liam. We were hoping - "
"She was hoping. I didn't - she forced me to come here," Harry corrects, earning a glare from his sister, who continues anyway.
" - Could you tell us if Liam's here?"
"Is this for an emergency? Because you know you could've just called the emergency number on the phone...? And Captain Payne is at a meeting right now. But he should be finished soon, I guess," the firefighter replies.
Feeling relief flood through him, Harry says, "Well, that's too bad. We'll just get going now - "
"This is kind of an emergency, actually," Gemma explains, tightening her grip on Harry's arm. "My darling of a brother really wanted to see 'Captain Payne' and thank him personally for saving his life a month ago. Can't you do something about letting this beautiful moment happen?"
"Gemma - Um, she's lying, sir. I don't need to see Liam right now. She's kinda crazy, so she thinks this is a good idea, when it really isn't. But, um, thank you for your... service. Let's go, Gems."
"Didn't I tell you to stop being weak?"
"This isn't about 'being weak'! You're acting like a crazy person right now! Let's just go."
"No way! I'm not letting you miss your chance at true love! Now suck it up and let me do the talking, okay?" she hisses at him, before looking back at the firefighter with a scary and fake innocent smile. "Could you be so kind and call your captain here? It's for a very important reason. Don't you believe in true love, mister?"
The firefighter just blinks at her, not really sure what to do. "Um, I - I can try to call him here then."
"Thanks."
"Oh my god. You can't just treat them like that, Gems!"
"He's fine. And at least it got him to actually help us out," his sister says dismissively, reaching out to fix Harry's hair. "Now, try to look presentable to your future husband, will you?"
"What? - Ow! Did you just pull a hair out?!"
"Yeah. It was annoyingly sticking up and wouldn't stay down. I did you a favour, so you should just thank me - "
"Harry?"
Freezing at the sound of that person's voice, Harry and Gemma look at each other with wide eyes before simultaneously turning their heads to look at the person. It may have been a month since the last time they've see each other, but Liam still looks as handsome as he did back then. Gemma just tilts her head to the side and observes Liam, who feels quite uncomfortable under her gaze.
"L- Liam... Uh, hi," Harry stammers out.
"Hi. What are you doing here? And how are you? Well, your legs, I mean. They look fine to me, but - "
"Oh, dear lord," Gemma mutters at Liam's rambling.
"They're fine. I'm fine - It has been a month, so... I can walk just fine," Harry answers, blushing madly as his sister looks between him and Liam with a grimace set on her face.
"Yeah, yeah, you're both fine. Now can you stop this awkwardness and talk to each other properly? I'm sure you've got a lot to catch up on. I mean, a month without seeing each other, and you're acting like you're complete strangers to each other. Man up, both of you!"
Liam coughs into his hand awkwardly before he says, "Well, we kinda are strangers."
"Yeah... 'Strangers'," Harry states in agreement.
"But you're not 'complete' strangers. You've met before!" Gemma argues.
"For like, five minutes... At the hospital. And he saved my life, but I passed out at the house before I could really see him... Can we go now?"
"No, Harry," his sister snaps back, then turns on Liam and gives him a stern look. "You, 'Liam the firefighter who saved my brother's life', need to man up and properly court him."
"Gemma!"
"I - I... Um, 'court him'?" Liam questions, taking step back when Gemma approaches him suddenly. "What are you - "
She pokes a finger against his chest, ignoring how solid it feels as she nearly yells at him. "You know exactly what I mean, Liam! And my brother only deserves the best! You better court him properly, or god so help you, 'cause I might just kill you if you don't!"
"Oh god. She doesn't mean that!" Harry interjects, pulling Gemma back.
"I don't understand - " Liam starts.
"Don't be a jerk, Liam! You ask my brother out right now, and take him out to some fancy date, 'cause he likes that cheesy, romantic s***. He's a softy, you know?"
"We're leaving now," Harry declares as he tries his best to pull Gemma away from Liam.
"No, no, no. I'm leaving. You're staying right here until he asks you out. And make sure he's begging you, on his knees, like he can't live without you. That's how a real man does it, Harry. Don't be afraid of the truth! Embrace what love brings!"
"You've completely lost it."
"Shh, young one," she shushes him, covering his mouth with her hand. "Just stay here and wait for him to declare his undying love for you."
Harry blushes even more, and refuses to let Liam see him like this. Instead, she pulls Gemma's hand from his mouth and hisses at her, "You've watched way too many soap operas. I told you it was a bad idea!"
"No, no. This is the best idea I've ever had. Look! He wants you so bad."
"Let's leave now, please," he begs.
"Oh, please. I'm the only on leaving, okay? Be a good boy and stay with your long, lost lover. Love you, brother!"
With that, Gemma skips away, but not without blowing a kiss at him dramatically. Harry just stands there in shock, still facing away from Liam, who couldn't be more confused about what just happened. And Harry really can't blame him.
"First of all, I just wanna apologize on my sister's behalf. She's - she's gone mad, as you can tell. But she, I guess, meant well."
"So, you really came here so I could ask you out on a date?" Liam questions curiously.
"Well, I - You don't have to," Harry replies nervously, now turning around to face Liam again with a blush still on his face. "She kinda forced me to come here, but I guess I wanted to thank you... for saving my life a month ago. That was... very heroic of you."
"It is my job."
"Right... That's all I wanted to say, so I'll get going now," Harry concludes awkwardly, quickly turning around and walking out of the building as fast as he can.
He's just about to cross the street when he hears Liam calling out to him. His heart beats a lot faster now, in the hopes of Liam actually going after him to ask him out. But is he really gonna do that? What if he's not even the one calling out to me -
"Wait! Harry!"
"Please let this happen," Harry mutters under his breath before he turns around to face Liam.
"Okay, good. You actually heard me," Liam breathes out, running up to him and stops to catch his breath. "I wasn't about to let you leave without asking you something important."
"Like what?"
Smiling at the younger lad, who keeps blushing even more than he was before, Liam says, "I wasn't gonna miss this opportunity to ask you out properly."
"Oh god. If this is because Gemma was threatening, you don't have to listen to her."
"It's not - That's not why I'm asking. Well, sort of, but - I've been wanting to ask you for a while now. I didn't want to get in the way of you healing properly, so I didn't ask you before. And after you left the hospital before I could ask you then,... I didn't know where you lived."
"Um, that's - That makes sense."
"I hope so... So, would you - you know, like to go out on a date with me tonight? Or any other night? Whenever you free, that is," Liam asks nervously, scratching the back of his neck.
"Wow, oh my god. You're actually - This is happening right now?"
" ... Yes?"
"Then yes, I'd love to go out on a date with you tonight," Harry replies with a bright smile, hugging Liam suddenly.
The brown-eyed man is taken aback, but wraps his arms around Harry anyway. He didn't expect this, but why wouldn't he hug back? When he suddenly hears some clapping behind him, he feels like dying from embarrassment. He knows who are clapping behind him, and he refuses to turn around and let them see him blushing with Harry in his arms.
Way to ruin the moment, guys, he thinks sourly.
"Uh, Liam?"
"Yes, Harry?"
"Your - um, the other firefighters are clapping for us... Should we let go of each other?"
"Do you want to? 'Cause I can just fire them for watching a private moment like this," Liam suggests as a joke, tightening his arms around Harry.
He feels Harry smile into his shoulder as he buries his face there. "Nah, it's okay. You need them to keep saving people from fires. Where would I be without you and them? What you do is beyond anything I could ever do. You're amazing at your job, and just in general."
"You just met me."
"It's still true. I can't thank you enough for saving my life."
"Our date tonight sounds like a good start, don't you think?" Liam points out, pulling away far enough to look Harry in the eyes. "I really wanna kiss you right now, but do I have to wait until tonight?"
"I don't think I can wait until then. It's been a month, Liam... You should really kiss me right now."
A bright smile sets on both of their faces as Liam cups Harry's face and kisses him sweetly. Harry can't believe this is happening as his heart beats even faster than before against his chest. He's sure Liam can hear it; maybe even feel it. Even if he does, Liam doesn't show it as he tilts his head to the side a bit and deepens the kiss. Harry feels his knees buckle beneath himself, and decides it can't hurt to wrap his arms around Liam's neck to hold on to.
Yeah, definitely a good choice... And thanks, Gemma, he thinks briefly before focusing on Liam's lips against his. It was so worth coming here.