Edward looks behind Louis out the small window put in place in their bathroom. "I did itbecause he's never known how to be happy. You can make him happy, petal."
"What about you?" Louis moves his thumb to the Adam's Apple on Edward's throat.
"We can share."
*NARRATOR'S POV*
Louis blinks away the sting of a hypothetical eye lash falling in his eye, and looks at Edward indisbelief. "Share?"
"Share." Edward confirms, a smirk curving the corner of his mouth so his dimple sinks partially onhis pale cheek. "It shouldn't be unappealing to you."
"Oh really?" Louis crosses his arms, or at least tries to before Edward nails him against his chest.
Edward drags his lips across Louis' ear and it provides a starting point for all the right shivers."Twice as much attention. Twice as much pleasure."
"Maybe that's not all I want." Louis turns his head with difficulty to look Edward in the eye, acasual clash of blue ice and green earth.
"What do you want?" The man taps the bandage around Louis' neck that's concealing the healingprocess of a scabbed bite mark. "Protection?" He laughed in a warm breath. "Warmth?" His armextends around Louis to unplug the drain and stand. "Love, petal? Is that what you want?"
Louis knows he wants a lot more than what these brothers can offer in their broken glory to him. Hetries to tell Edward this without needing to say a word, his eyes burning the message into thelandscape of Edward's mind. His body is lifted out of the tub and a towel is wrapped around him.
"Give us a chance." Edward tucks the loose end of the thick white towel into a secured hook underLouis' arm. "Maybe the desire of two mad men will be enough for you."
"You're not a mad man." Louis points out quietly, studying Edward's reaction as it evolves.The man smiles crookedly and touches his index to his lips in a motion to be silent about it. Edwardtakes Louis' hand, rolling the boy's smaller fingers between his own and leads him out of thebathroom. Harry is not in the bedroom but a vase is broken at his bed by the window.
"He can be a child at times." Edward speaks, switching on the light in their closet.
Louis thinks about the time Harry rocked back and forth on his bed in Briarville; the time he spentconvincing Louis at the very same window that he did everything for them. He had anunsettled way about him and the nervousness of a child being rejected.
"Don't let him guilt you." Edward pulls off clothing from random hangers. "He is very passionateabout everything he favours and now he favours you."Edward gives Louis black joggers and a white T-shirt that's bound to flow for miles on his bodyshape. It feels soft anyway.
"What about you?" Louis slips the shirt on first after forgetting to dry himself. "You always speakabout him."Edward starts to remove his wet clothing at last after Louis imagines they've become soggy andawful. Their eyes never separate even when Edward is stark naked and standing inches away fromhim.
"Twice as passionate." Edward runs the tip of his nose up the column of Louis' throat and when theboy's eyelashes flutter before closing, let's the stickiness of his lips slide across Louis' without akiss. "I'm all yours."
Louis' eyes fly open. "Mine?"
"All yours." Edward reinstates. "Why, petal, would you like me to belong to someone else?"
"Why would you...-" Louis reaches his hand towards Edward's cheek and stands on his tiptoes."You want to be mine in-"
"I am yours." Edward corrects. "My brother hasn't realised it yet but he's given himself to you along time ago."
"Why?"
"Simply because it is, petal."
"If you're mine then why won't you kiss me?"Edward's bemusement lights the sparkle in his eyes of dampened spirit. His smirk is frighteningwith the caps of white blades peeking out against the plumpness of his bottom lip.
"Would you likeme to kiss you, petal?"Louis' smile is a fair contender. It's small and soft, much like all his feelings at the moment. He tiltshis head to the sky a little so his nose brushes Edward's no matter which way they twisted.
"Are youafraid of kissing me?"They both wonder how a conversation derailed so intricately onto the in's and out's of their kissinglife. Edward's brows furrow together at Louis' question, forming three worry lines on his forehead.He is hesitant and he's always excellent at hiding it."Because of these." Louis touches the exposed tip of Edward's deadly canine with his delicatefingertip.
Edward takes Louis' hand away from his face and does the strangest thing that can happen at thatmoment. Louis' seen fifty too many strange things with these brothers. He nips at the nail of Louis'thumb before sucking the appendage between his lips.Louis gasps and tries to jerk his hand back to his side but Edward may have accomplished what heset out to do. He extracts the lavender taste from his mouth and chuckles at the flabbergasted lookon Louis' face.
"I can do damage with these." Edward flashes his molars in a brief grin, and his eyes dart to thestrapped gauze featured on Louis' neck.
"I remember this."Louis covers the bandage with his hand, dipping his head to be greeted with the sight of his barefeet on fine carpeting.
Edward picks up on Louis' uncomfortable vibe and regrets saying anything,but goes for trying to make up for it."I don't want to do it again." Edward tells the truth, removing Louis' preventative hand.
Louis grabs the joggers off the rack where he'd placed them, hurrying to pull them over his legs. Hispresent companion watches in vague amusement as the boy tries not to fidget with the hem of theshirt he's got on.
"Why did you do it?" Louis asks while he exits the closet after the air within it becomes rife withtangible tension.
"I may not be clinically unbalanced-" Edward holds his arm out, motioning to his own bed for Louisto crawl into. "-but I am still a man. What and who is valuable to me, most or least, must meanabsolutely nothing to others so that they don't try to take it from me."
His body tucked between the mattress and soft comforter, Louis curls into an appropriately sizedball. He sniffs and turns his back to Harry's unmade, messy bedside half of the room. Edwarddoesn't linger long and when he's out of sight, Louis feels the panic settle."Where are you-"
"I'm here." Edward draws the heavy curtains closed and comes back to the King bed with justboxers on. "Harry won't come near you here."Louis' expression scrunches up. How is he lying on a bed so near to Harry's going to keep him awayfrom the lunatic?"We made a promise, a pact if you will."
Edward folds one leg under his other as he seats himselfnear Louis. "He will not go near my bed and I won't go near his."Louis nods, relaxing minutely against the luxurious pillows.
They're perfectly soft and frame hisbody from the shoulders up the way it should. He can still hear the aftermath of the racket Harrycaused downstairs, as it is obvious the man is raving mad at the product of his plan.
"A clever promise." Louis commends sweetly. He is hardly a mass under the covers and Edward isdeeply tempted to cloak his small presence with his body.Instead he smiles in appreciation at Louis' approval and wakes up again to walk to the other side.He pulls back the covers and Louis holds his breath while Edward gets in under the warm sheets.
"What are you-"
"This is my bed, petal." Edward flashes him a decent crooked smirk.Unable to help it, Louis' amusement and his personality from circumstances where he's morecomfortable shines through.
He giggles. "Stop interrupting my questions."
Edward gets close enough to him so his laugh is audible under his soft volume. He's fascinated withLouis and wants to keep his distance but also get close enough to consume every bit of consent theboy offers him.
"How many people have you done this with before?" Louis asks, a hand tucked under the side of hisface.
"What would you call this?" Edward questions, coy as ever. Louis rolls his eyes and shrugs.
"Cuddling?"Edward's eyes widen comically although he doesn't mean to, the green dilating across a largersurface area.
"Cuddling, petal?"Another shrug from Louis.
"You've never cuddled before? You sound terribly disadvantaged."
"I'm afraid I am, petal."Louis doesn't waste time and reaches his arms across the distance and does what he shouldn't dowith a right mind.
He wraps his arms up and around Edward's neck, dragging himself over the spacewith bunching sheets around him. The older male doesn't react much besides take a moment to besurprised, then reel Louis in with his inhuman strength.
"Is this all I've been missing out on?" He feels the press of Louis' little body against his, and itmakes his heart beat a little faster but nothing noticeable from the exterior.
There's a small laugh under his chin that pushes Edward to wind the other jobless arm around Louis'hips.
No argument.
No resistance. He swallows his sigh of relief and turns it into a regular breathout. Louis remains perfectly still with his forehead against Edward's chest, mapping out the frecklesand dimples between muscle points.
He's certainly surprised when Edward didn't push him away so he took a little comfort in theblanketing presence. His fingers were curled inwards towards his palms and he knows Edward canfeel the brush of his eyelashes when he blinked.
The thing about Edward's body was that it's so terribly ideal. He has a straight back with justenough strength in muscle to make a person exposed to it melt into baking butter. Now, held upagainst him Louis can see how Edward would be a nice suitor to anyone he chose.
"Why is your hair so blond?" Louis hates silences so he decides to fill it.
"So blond?" Edward mimics in mockery.Louis feels the need to offer an amusing explanation.
"Ordinary blond doesn't cover it." Edward's laughter shakes his shoulders just the slightest and Louis takes some pride in knowing hehasn't lost his sense of humour even in tough times.
"This is our natural hair colour, petal." He explains casually, then a short burst of laughter leaveshim. "Harry dyed his hair because he thought it suited him better."
"Oh." Louis finds this interesting. "Good on both of you."
Edward rubs Louis' back once from shoulder to base. "Do you actually want to sleep, petal?"
Louis' yawn is perfectly timed and Edward shifts his gaze to observe the 'O' shape forming onLouis' lips and the flutter of his eyelids. He settles into the shape he had made previously and let'sthe exhaustion from days drill into his system.
The boy is asleep when Edward whispers to him. "Why don't you dream of me?"
* * * * *
A crash wakes Louis up just moments after Edward wakes up before anything can happen.
"Don't-" Edward tried to stop his fuming brother from acting out.
"How dare you?!" Harry, in clingy navy jeans with faded knees and nothing else, topples thedesk beside the door.
Louis knew the sight he'd be met with if he turned around and how much it would scare him, but hemoved his body anyway. Edward tried to hold him back from falling over the edge with his vine ofan arm pressing into Louis' tummy under the bunched up shirt he donned.
"Brother, calm down." Edward pushed himself up to be propped on his palm.
"No!" Harry bellowed. His nostrils were flared and his eyes were wide enough to be intimidating.His fists were curled with enough ferocity to have the vein in his neck bulging.
"Fuck!" Harry punched the wall to release some of the coils of nagging demons drenchingthemselves in the thought pools of his mind.
Louis has never seen a person so angry.Edward sighs behind Louis, giving up the fight he's been trying to avoid. He probably have lockedthe bedroom door when he closed the windows and shut the curtains. He could also have not gotteninto bed with Louis - his petal - but how could he deprive himself?
"Why did you take this from me?!" He felt well and thoroughly shaken up by the restriction of hisown honour to the pact he and his brother made.
The wear-and-tear of his mind was escalatingdangerously.Louis touched Edward's forearm before the man could speak. He sat up too and Harry's eyesfollowed every motion of his body like a hawk.
"Love?"Two heads roll in his direction at that moment in frozen time. Louis knows what he's doing.
No, hereally doesn't but that's what he's telling himself after hearing everything Edward told him aboutHarry. Louis heard Edward's voice in his head and that's what gave him the final push.Harry seems to be having the hardest time processing Louis' vocal endearment. His anger fans outso suddenly Louis fears he's going to collapse.
The redness falls from his complexion and isreplaced by confusion. Vivid, perplexing confusion.Time resumes itself because Harry has decided how to respond and the heartbroken look in his eyedies along with Louis' trepidation and Edward's fear.
"Love?" Harry's bottom lip starts to wobble and Louis doesn't have a clue on how to react tothis.How does one respond to a psychopath with a quivering lip and temper of hot coal?
Louis kicks off the covers from where he was suspiciously tucked in quite neatly and Edwardjust....let's him go. There's a flare of something not pretty in Edward's chest as he watches Louis getcloser to his ticking time bomb of a sibling. He doesn't let it show because if he didn't want this, hewould not have told Louis those things.
"You okay?" Louis doesn't touch Harry the way he's brave enough to with Edward.Harry spoke with an unfairly low volume, leaving Louis to listen carefully or miss a word
. "Youcalled me love."Mr. Mercurial. Louis changes Harry's name in his head from Grizzly to that. It's far more apt.
"I did,didn't I?"Edward was there suddenly, standing behind Louis without being too near to the boy. He's just asecurity measure. Harry hardly notices him and that's a first for everyone. He'd rather bury his facein the promising soft pudginess of Louis' tummy, so that's what he does.
"Harry?" Louis croaks.He refrains from touching the arms squeezing his waist or the face hiding in his abdomen. Heflinches at original contact but the bitter memory of when Harry 'inspected' him during their firstmeeting comes floating back unwelcome. Harry had pointed out something on his tummy andclearly, the infatuation stuck.Edward's words come back to him as well. Be firm, he said. Louis bites his lip and looks atthe man behind him but is met with empty eyes and no words.
"Harry." He reaches behind him without a front of hesitation and unclasps Harry's slim hands. "Letgo."His voice is edgier and a little more no-nonsense. Harry's heartbroken expression returns when helooks up at Louis from his kneeling position. Louis remains resolved.
"Why?" Harry has his wobbly lip in action again and he looks breathtakingly convincing with hisdismay.
Louis opens his mouth and to keep a squeak from escaping, he bites the inside of his cheek.
Harry takes his as a small victory and valiantly tightens his hold now on Louis' curvy hips. "I don'twant to."Before Harry's face can touch ground with Louis' tummy again, the boy steps back and incidentallybumps Edward's chest. He doesn't mind that and pulls Harry's hands off his body with force. Hisrebuke makes Harry scramble to his feet so he's back to six foot something and scary.
"You broke your promise." Louis has to keep himself together when thinking about Anthony and thetree out back. "Promises are very important to me, Harry."
Edward suspected Louis would take an approach like this so he schools his exposure into calm andcollected. Harry is much more twisted and not in any way is it something desirable with angerissues and attractive stances. He feels caught up in a horrible web and it scares him, as frighteningas he already is.
"I-I'm sorry, petal." He's helpless, like a fish out of water, as he appears more forthcoming andsweet. "I won't do it again."
"You won't?" Louis presses. It's not enough to make a regular Joe promise but Harry's not a regularJoe.
"Won't." He even shakes his head to validate his word. "Ever."
"Good. Thank you." Louis swallows hard, the lump of emotions and accomplishment. He's a bitshaky after what he's done so boldly, explicitly confident.
Edward resurfaces to the land of the living at that moment. He sets his hands on Louis' waist,fanning his fingers out on the slender structure and feels the bump of ribs under his press. Harry'seyes dart to where he's touching Louis but he's not so angry now because Louis and he are on goodterms.
"Good job, petal." Edward whispers in Louis' ear, mysteriously wet lips grazing the fine hairs of theboy's neck.He's not even trying to be dark and seductive in any way but Louis has to fight himself to not shuthis eyes and moan.
Harry doesn't know if he's allowed to touch his petal yet so he asks."Can I....?" He's already in the tiny bubble space they've created for themselves so that's all that'smissing.
Louis shivers at Edward's hands moving lower and nods just quickly enough to be noticed. Edwardlatches onto his neck away from the bandage and his arm snakes around Louis' front. Harry leans injust enough to flatten his hand at the base of Louis' back, his lips trailing up the safe side of theboy's neck.
The texture of goosebumps makes him groan and Louis has to throw his head back to allow themmore access. Edward slips his hand under Louis' shirt and tilts his head away from Harry's so theirlips meet. It's a blinding moment for Louis when he recalls the struggle of getting Edward to kiss him. He feels the hesitation even now when his tongue flicks the impenetrable barrier of Edward'sclenched teeth.
Harry knows he can't kiss Louis' lips yet and it bugs him above any measure. He wants to be asclose to the boy as his brother is but he's smart enough to know Louis wants his proven loyalty first.In this stead, he sticks to using his mouth on surfaces of Louis' skin to get a reaction. At some pointhe does something right because Louis mewls and his hand around Harry's wrist tightens.
Edward doesn't loosen up until Louis moves a hand to the side of his face and experimentally runshis tongue along the pattern of teeth. He reaches gum and the man is weak enough at this stage toopen his mouth for this kiss. Louis loses the fight for dominance after that and with Harry's handsroaming uncensored, he let's Edward do as he pleases.
The raunchiness of their interaction dims when Louis realises that it's the middle of the day on aweekday. He pulls himself away from Edward's insistent and persistent lips, as well as Harry's wellbehaved paws that hold onto his sides.
"I need to get back to work." Louis announces with a tired sigh. He simply cannot imagine goingback to work after the day he's had.
"I'll drive you." Harry offers first. He's got blown-out pupils and extra red lips that are puffy fromall his ministrations on Louis' body.
"You don't have a licence, brother." Edward reminds him, amusedly glancing over Louis' shoulder.Louis giggles. Harry shrugs like it's no big deal and Edward clears his throat.
"I'm going to get dressed." Louis squeezes his way out of the cage he was caught up in.Harry flops down onto his own bed like a teenager who just got his crush to kiss him. Edward lickshis lips and stands at the foot of Harry's bed, waiting to be noticed.
Harry sits up at the displeasurehis brother is making him face in such abundance.He knows that he's in for a kind of punishment when his brother returns because Edward was - andstill is - very particular about things concerning Louis.
Freelancing is not allowed and Harrymanaged to derail himself quite freakishly."I know." Is all he tells his older brother.
"Good."
* * * * *
"What on Earth happened to my car?!" Louis shouted to the many people surrounding hisAudi the second he jumped down from the Rover.
Louis' Audi's windscreen was smashed with the brick in question still sitting in the deep crater itcreated. The driver's side window was cracked and a scrape deep enough to expose the innards ofthe vehicle ran along both the passenger side doors.
The nuns that were standing idle and useless scurried away while Reverend James stuck back toexplain to Louis what happened with Dr. Murs and a staff nurse. All three sets of eyes passed fromthe expectant face of Louis to the new appearance of Edward.
"A patient had a small tantrum." Reverend James gave everyone a wry smile but Louis was havingnone of it.
"So you allow patients to vent their anger on your staff's personal property?" Louis didn't yell but ittook a great deal of energy to contain it all.
"He got loose, Louis." Dr. Murs steps in. "Ran out of the psychiatric ward and did this beforeanyone could get to him."Louis looked at the car he worked towards buying and now has to pay thousands in repair feesbecause these people can't keep their nurses on high alert.
He wanted to cry. "Crap."
"The foundation running this institution will be happy to pay for all the damages." Reverend Jamestried to patch things up.
"Half the fees." Louis clarified, looking the Reverend in his eye.
"The other half goes towardsemploying more vigilant keepers."He knew he was out of line by saying that but he was so angry he couldn't bring on the feeling ofregret.
That's his first ever car that's been in his name and he's had it since he was eighteen. It had aspecial place in his memory so sue him for lashing out.
"I will write you a cheque later." Reverend said, still so polite but even he has glanced thrice overLouis' shoulder.Louis nods stiffly.
He hates taking money from anyone who isn't his father for his allowance andDr. Murs with his salary.
"The tow truck is here to take it to the best garage in Middleston." Dr. Murs has his hands in hispockets, sticking the strong winds whipping his white coat just to see a former patient a little longer.
"I'll sign the papers and be back then." Louis spins around on his heel and pointedly ignores thesympathetic look from Edward. "Don't do that to me."Such simple words spoken everyday by people of foreign and native lands but this time it's enoughto have everyone looking.
Dr. Murs forgets to close his mouth and the cold bites his sensitive teethat the nerve. Edward smirks and turns around with Louis to meet the tow truck driver.
"You're sad and I'm sympathetic." Edward says to him, watching Louis' hand dart across pages as hesigns his initials.
"Then stop it." Louis hands back the clipboard. Even the mechanic is staring. "Oh for crying outloud."The mechanic ropes and clips Louis' Audi's bonnet to the hook at the back of his truck. Edwardsteps in front of Louis to get his full attention.
"Thanks." Louis mumbles as his car is dragged out of the parking lot by an old truck with newprints.
"Hey, petal." Edward extends himself and reels Louis into his arms. "I'll pick you up later."
Louis shakes his head and closes his eyes to keep his eyeballs from freezing in the howling wind."It's fine."
"You mean to catch a lift with that Liam friend of yours?" Edward doesn't have much on besides awhite shirt with three buttons at the top to create a V-neck, black jeans and boots. "If so, I shouldtell you that I'll be here at four and if you're not here I will be very pissed off."
A giggle bubbles out of Louis unexpectedly and he separates from Edward to look up at him. "I'll behere."Edward puts his three fingers in his jeans front pockets.
The air blowing so violently has messed uphis hair and left it flattened to the side. The red colour burst of his lips drew back over his teethwhen he was amused and it was a beautiful enough sight to be terrifying.
* * * * *
Louis had a pile of work awaiting his return when he was seated at his desk again. Someonebrought his plan for the day to his desk and scratches were everywhere indicating time changesfrom when he was gone.
He frowned as he tried to decipher the correct times before entering themin his diary.His phone with half its battery life left sat dead at his side while he sorted through paperwork andfiled the final report on Perrie the Landscaper.
She's due to be discharged tomorrow into the custodyof her mother and Louis is thankful he doesn't have a last meeting with her.He has two meetings to be completed by three o'clock if he's going to have their reports done byfour the latest. He does not see that happening with the amount of time he has to spend editing Dr.Murs' schedule for outdoor activities according to each patient's requirements.
"Lou?" Dr. Murs disturbs his quiet work time as a floating voice.
"Yes?" He stops reading the chart's fifth page with rubs his eyes tiredly. His eyes lift from the page to his employer standing there with two mugs, setting one down next tohis left hand.
"It's already two, Louis."
At that moment Louis' phone buzzes with the alarm he set to remind him that he needs to be on themove at this time. He thanks Dr. Murs and grabs the files he set aside for his meetings, his phoneand mug of plain black coffee before leaving the office.
His first meeting is with the late Edmund's cell mate, Rico. He also requests that two male nursesfollow him inside rather than dead beat police officers. For the first time, he sees a bead of worryrush across their eyes. He finishes with Rico in time for his second meeting across the block.
Thispatient is Natalia and she's a very quiet one, so Louis tells the nurses to let him handle this on hisown. Natalia is a girl a few years older than Louis and has the awful habit of biting her hair so all the tipsare spit-covered and matted. Louis sits across from her all the same and keeps his valuablebelongings on his lap.
"Hi, Natalia." He greets her with a warm smile.
Her vision flickers to life like she had her eyes closed this whole time and looks at him curiously."Louis?"
"That's me." His smile broadens. "How do you remember me?"
"How's your neck?"
His smile fades significantly. "Fine. Why do you ask?"
"Everyone knows what happened to it." She crosses her legs on the hard steel chair. "Some peoplethink you're satanic now, others want to be like you."
"We're going to talk about you now, alright? How have you been since I last saw you?"
"They say you shouldn't fuck them both. You'll die if you do."
"Natalia." He warns, but they're both aware already of the lingering nurses outside with sedatives."We're talking about you."
"There's a weird smell in my cell at night." She abruptly changes topics and starts staring out thebarred window. "Like damp wood and blood."
"Every night?" He asks, not bothering to jot down points as his phone records the conversation. Hewishes he hadn't finished that entire mug of"Every night. Do you have a smoke?"
"You know you shouldn't be smoking, in here or anywhere."
"The nice nurse guy....Buddy gives me a smoke-" She replies smoothly. "-right before hecomes into my room and sticks his hand down my shirt."
Louis stares at his patient with mixed feelings. "He rapes you?"
"Every night." She repeats her answer from before. "Check the cameras, if they haven't erased thefootage."
* * * * *
Harry groans and remains plastered to his bed on his front. He's well aware that he can't fight it butthat doesn't mean he will go easily. That was his initial gusto but now he's just exhausted and thesweat draining out from his pores has turned sticky over his wait.
"What the fuck were you thinking?" Edward had the whip around the lowest concave of Harry'swaist. He tugged on the handle he gripped tightly when he got no response.
Harry's got no energy left in him because even if he does visit the gym and creates an excellentstamina for himself, there are days when he just forgets to go. That now meant him lying pliant andbare with his breathing reduced to frantic gasps.
"You want me to guess?!" Edward is slightly breathless himself. He stopped himself fromdoing the usual routine of taping Harry's mouth shut while he fucked him, only because he wantsanswers now.
"I wasn't thinking." Harry mumbles, biting his pillow in the midst and saliva getting all over theunique fabric.
"What?" Edward yanks on the leather whip so hard that if Harry didn't buck up and kneel, it wouldhave sliced his skin.
"I wasn't thinking!" Harry crowed, his knuckles blistering white while he groped for something tohold onto.Edward sighed and undid the loop of the whip roping Harry in. The latter male collapsed back ontohis sheets like a hollow vessel.
"Hurt?" Edward asks as he tosses the whip aside and tries to stop Harry from shuffling away fromhim.
"My arse." Harry grumbled, not bashfully.
"You deserved it."
"I know."
* * * * *
Checking the camera footage regarding Natalia's issue is the first thing Louis does after his timewith her is up. He plays nice with everyone because he isn't exactly sure which male nurse is Buddyso with permission from Reverend James, he searches through overnight footage.
There's evidenceof the rape occurring each night in Natalia's cell and Louis raises the question on why none of thiswas being reported.Reverend writes to the board of managers and donors about this, as well as firing all the culprits thatadd up to four people. It becomes one of the most gruelling days of Louis' life when at 15h43 he'snot anywhere near being done for the day.
He allows Dr. Murs to handle the affairs of Natalia's casewhile he completes her file in his office with the recording of their interview and transcript ofreport.Most of the workers are gone home and all the night shift employees are making their way in. Dr.Murs stayed in late with Reverend and Louis had joined their little intervention when he deliveredNatalia's patient file to them. They quizzed him and documented things from his witness eye-view.
"The police are coming in tomorrow for an official statement." Dr. Murs made certain to look atLouis. "Can you make sure she's ready to do that?"
"What time will they be here?" Louis asks.
"Twelve."
Louis takes out his calendar on his phone and makes a note of that. For a Friday, tomorrow isn'tlooking pretty enough to be worth celebrating. He excuses himself to finish the patient file of Ricoby uploading their interview and doing his professional write-up on it.
"Got a second?" Liam knocks on Louis' door with his knuckle.
"The next person to interrupt me is getting shot." Louis doesn't look up from his screen. "Have aseat."
His phone rings and Liam laughs as he sits himself down in the chair opposite to Louis at his desk.Louis holds up his finger and checks the caller identification on his iPhone, frowns and answersanyway.
"Hello?" He gives the caller his full attention and sits back in his chair, batting Liam's hands awayfrom his keyboard.
Edward held his phone against his ear as the wind cruelly whacked anyone in the face as theywalked, jogged and dodged. "I believe I was promised your presence outside this institute of mentaldeterioration."
Louis felt an eye roll coming on along with a smile at his computer screen. "How did you get mynumber?"
"I asked someone."
"I'll be out in-" Louis glances at the time at the corner of his screen then Liam's pout. "-twentyminutes. Is that okay?"
"You get nineteen." Edward chuckles and hangs up.
Louis blows out a stubborn exhale with his bottom lip jutted out."Sorry 'bout that." He apologises to Liam and gathers the work he'll have to do at home. "What didyou want to talk to me about?"
Liam drops the set of coloured pens he was playing with and Louis sets it atop the pile of work hehas. He brings Louis up to date on everything concerning Edmund's case. There's no newdevelopments but Liam spent the day meeting the coroner, Edmund's cell mate who Louis also mettoday, the nurses who went in and out of his cell. "There are no cameras in the section." Louis informs Liam on their walk out after locking his office.
"Why not?"
Louis shrugs. "Lack of funds is the reason we get."
They walk down the hall together with just the noise of their shoes clanking on sticky linoleum.Louis does a mental check of everything he's supposed to have and curses in a very PG way whenhe realises he left the USB containing his interviews back in the office.
"I'll um...see you tomorrow?" Louis waves to Liam as he rushes back down the hall the way hecame.
Skidding to a halt, Louis tries to keep his handful of papers from falling to the unhygienic floors. Hetucks them all into his bag, spending a moment in the quiet shadow in the crook that's part of thepassageway.
He's extracting his keys from his front pocket when a foul smell reaches his nose andmakes him momentarily gag from the pungent power it packs.He covers his mouth and nose as he finally gets the key into the knob and shoves it open. Flippingon the light switch, his office was illuminated again as well as part of the hallway he'd just exited.
Standing behind him for the entire duration of his key-fumbling and file-juggling experience, was aperson lean enough to bend over his height. If Louis had turned around instead of immediatelygoing to his desk space, he'd have seen the face of this person who had a nightmarish curve to bothhis eyebrows, an upper lip that was torn to raw tissue at the side and hair that stood at all angles.
Itwas purely a face bred to terrify people to death.Louis grabbed the lidless USB under the Verbatim brand name and dashed out the door again. Hislocking process was more efficient and with the stench absent, he was out of there in no time.
"Eighteen minutes!" Louis had to shout above the screeching of the wind circling him and the figureleaning against a familiar Range Rover.Edward shook his head and opened the passenger door for Louis to hop in. It took a few triesbecause of the luggage Louis had and that the wind seemed to have a nasty life of its own with apersonal vendetta to trip him into having a concussion.
"Where's Harry?" Louis makes himself as comfortable as he can. The Styles is a family that looksafter their assets, an obvious indication being that there isn't a scratch or bit of litter in this giantvehicle.
"Tied up at home." Edward keys in the ignition and the engine's purr of life is hardly there.
Louis stares at Edward's unyielding face as they pull into traffic. "Do you mean-"
"Not literally, petal." Edward relaxes once they're on the highway and sits back in his seat with onehand on the steering wheel.
"Hmph." Louis chews the inside of his bottom lip as he turns his attention to his iPhone.They drove in silence for three solid minutes while Louis checked a few messages from Niallinforming him that he had a late shift at the bar tonight.
They'd just passed onto an off ramp by thetime someone spoke again."Petal?"
"Why do you call me that?" Louis locked his phone before the giant battery cell could flicker andannoy him.
"Well-" Edward stops at the red light a cross-road away from Louis' apartment complex. "-answermy request and I'll tell you."
"It's always about deals with you." Louis notes out loud, his pout on full display. He remembers atime - days ago - when he'd never have been this comfortable with Edward. "Why can't you just tellme?"
"The fun always lies in what greatness you can achieve with the smallest of bargains."
"Is that a quote?" Louis stops himself from crossing his legs.
The force of habit is something thatnow makes him fidgety when one leg isn't angled differently from the other."You can quote me, should you wish."
"Such a charmer." Louis muses with brief laughter. "What is your bargain, Styles?"
Edward side glances at him with a crook in the curve of his mouth to depict his obvious amusement."I propose, in exchange for the answer to your question, you accompany my brother and I onanother date."
They have arrived in the underground parking lot for Louis' place but Louis doesn't move to get outand Edward doesn't move to aid him.
The brothers want a do-over from Louis?"A date?"
"Indeed."
"Where will you two take me?"
Edward takes a silent moment to consider this, his eyes following someone as they scurry across thegarage to the elevator bank. "Most probably something spontaneous and cliché. Do you agree to it?"
"When are you planning this....spontaneous and cliché date?" Louis gets the door handle betweenhis fingers and keeps it in a position of uncertainty.
"Tomorrow."
"I'll think about it." Louis opens the door and swiftly jumps down to the concrete ground.Edward gets off to follow the infuriating boy he calls petal regularly. He locks the Range Rover andlisten to the irresponsible screech of tyres trying to fit into parking spaces some blocks down. Louisgives him a quizzical look as he walks briskly towards the elevators himself, pushed on from hisusual cruise mode by the strong winds.
"Where do you thing you're going?" Louis jabs the correct button on the panel and rocks back onhis heels.
"I'm escorting you, petal."
"Is that necessary?"
"Who knows what peril may lie ahead?"The elevator doors slide open and Edward extends his arm towards its warm interior, usheringLouis in ahead of him.
Louis rolls his eyes and steps in, immediately finding his floor number onthe golden box of choices and presses it. Edward is about to end his internal argument on whether togo or stay when a pair of male surfer strangers - most likely from the skidding tyres - squeeze theirway in.He chooses to stay.
Louis doesn't seem to mind them or pay any attention to the drunken idiots swaying in theirstagnant positions. Edward's domineering nature to keep Louis tucked away for him and Harryleads him to winding an arm around the boy's waist just as the doors close.His subject looks up at him from the side of him that's away from the suspicious blokes with aconcerned and confused knitted brow.
Edward shakes his head very slightly and Louis almostconvinces himself to object to the controlling demeanour he's hidden under. That is only until one ofthe two others in their company shoves the other, and there's a fleeting thought of Louis' collisionwith a mirrored wall.Edward stops any such reaction by pulling Louis towards the back and the boy's clumsy tendencygets his shoe snagged in a dip on the ground. He stumbles and Edward seizes his hips before a fatallunge.
"Sorry, y'all." The shover apologies with a stifled burp and Louis' closer companion had his nosepressed to the feathery tuft of hair on his head.
"It's okay." Louis gives him a tiny polite smile and looks away at the ascending number above thedoor.It gets to the desired digit and Louis ignores the weight press of his bag, the struggle to maintain agrip on his slipping phone and locating his keys to hurry out of the iron cage.
Edward follows rightbehind him with soundless footsteps and the shuffling of his heavy grey coat halts with Louis whenthe boy's back faces him to unlock the front door.The first hand to touch Louis' body is Edward's right and it slides with more enthusiasm thanregular sensuality to the front, flattening over Louis' tummy.
His reaction is to drop his keys andgasp with a loud enough sound for it to entail an echo across the vacant hallway.Edward moves the tip of his nose to the hairline below Louis' ear. His body leans just the slightestbit forward and Louis' hands curl into his fists against the numbered door. He's doesn't know whatEdward's trying to accomplish in the middle of a public hallway but his otherwise motivatedbody let's him go ahead with it anyway.
The hand from Louis' front moves to one of his wrists, wrapping the fist up in a case of Edward'spaper pale fingers that hold onto him so tightly. Louis' lips fall apart and his eyelids slip shut at thewarm press of Edward's chest on his back. The broader shape of the former makes Louis feel likehe's tucked away in a corner even if they're simply standing indecently in a passage.
With Edward nosing along the line of well-trimmed hair and delectable soft skin, Louis releases asmall whimper from the cold dryness of his own mouth. He sucks his bottom lip into his mouth anduses his free hand to snake a path upwards to Edward's nape and bring him closer.
Public display of lewdness forgotten, Edward groans when Louis' fingers knot his hair and his faceis hidden so snugly in the crook of Louis' neck. His other arm forms a possessive belt around Louis'middle where the slender figure drives his temptation through the roof.
"Remember what I promised?" Edward stepped forward with his leg between both of Louis' thighs.The layer of jean cloth is not enough to keep Edward from feeling the crevice of the space betweenLouis' thighs and how it was tightening. He couldn't think of a person who would assume they wereinnocent at the moment.
"Hardest fuck of my life?" Louis grinded his hips and Edward made a guttural noise from deepinside his chest. "Bring it on."