{Harry and Louis meet in uni and both think they're straight, until they don't}
Louis: 21
Harry: 18
Word count: 2502
•••
"Mum, you need to stop crying."
"I'm sorry, hun," Anne wiped at her eyes.
Harry let out a little laugh and pulled his mum into a hug.
"It'll be Christmas break before you know it," he told her.
"I know."
"Okay, I should really go in now."
The two finally pulled apart and Harry put his bag over his shoulder and grabbed his suitcase, giving his mum one last wave before he walked towards the school.
He was incredibly nervous for his first day of uni. He'd moved pretty far away from his hometown and his friends and he was terrified that he wouldn't meet anyone new.
"Um, I'm Harry Styles," Harry told the person sitting at the front desk.
As the person looked through the computer to find Harry's information, the nervous boy looked around the crowded room.
There were several different groups of people, most of them also here for their first day, but some were clearly in at least their second year. They didn't look as scared.
"Louis! Got another freshman for ya!" The guy behind the counter shouted.
"Oi! Comin'!"
Harry turned towards the voice to see a shorter boy walking over, with his brown hair in a messy quiff, a little stubble on his face and bright blue eyes.
"Hey, I'm Louis. I'm a third year, I'm gonna be giving you a quick tour and showing you your room. Let's go."
Harry just nodded and followed him towards the elevator, his eyes somehow finding their way to the older boy's ass. Harry quickly snapped out of it, furrowing his brows in confusion.
Well, that was weird.
Once the two got on the elevator, Louis let out a little laugh, then said, "Sorry, mate, I just realized I didn't even ask your name."
Harry looked over with a small smile. "I'm Harry."
Louis had the same tiny smile as he nodded in acknowledgement.
"What're you studying?" Louis followed up with.
"English. I wanna be a teacher."
"That's cool. I'm in theatre."
"Really? I thought about going in that direction too."
"It's pretty fun. I love acting."
Before Harry could respond, the elevator doors opened and Louis nodded his head towards it as a silent 'let's go'.
Harry followed Louis down the hall then and they made two right turns before Louis stopped at a door and used a key card to get in.
"And this is your room. Looks like you beat your roommate here so you get first dibs on which room is yours," Louis said with a laugh.
"Sweet."
Harry left his suitcase and bag in the main area and wandered into each of the rooms, finding them to be pretty similar and just opting for the one on the left.
"Ready for a tour of the campus?"
Harry nodded excitedly. "Yeah, let's do it."
As they toured around the campus, the two really hit it off. Talking to each other was just so easy, it felt like they'd been best friends their whole lives.
And Harry thought maybe college wouldn't be so bad after all.
~
"Harry!"
Harry groaned and pulled the covers over his head as Louis jumped on his bed.
"Wake up!" Louis urged.
"Go away, I'm asleep."
"No you're not, get up," Louis yanked the covers off, his eyes lingering much too long on the boy's half naked body.
Harry groaned and rolled onto his back, one arm over his forehead as he looked up at Louis.
"What do you want, Lou?"
"There's a Halloween party tonight and you're coming, so we need to find costumes."
"I have so much shit due in the next few days-"
"C'mon, Haz, you're in uni! The parties are what it's all about!"
Harry sat up on his elbows and looked at Louis with a raised brow. "You sure it's not about the whole getting a degree so you can get your dream job?"
Louis rolled his eyes. "Stop being a buzzkill, and get up so we can get costumes!"
"Fine."
~
"I cannot believe this is the costume you picked."
"What? Miley Cyrus is awesome."
Louis let out a laugh and shook his head, before the two entered the loud house.
The music was blaring and it was absolutely packed, each person wearing a different costume. Pretty much all the girls were wearing what Harry could only assume was lingerie.
"C'mon, let's get a drink," Louis leaned over to basically yell in Harry's ear, which sent a shiver down the boy's spine, but he ignored it.
So instead the two just went to get their drinks and headed to the dance floor.
And well, hours had passed and several drinks later, Harry lost Louis and he stumbled off upstairs to find him, too many girls touching his bare stomach on the way there.
He found him in the bathroom, curled around the toilet and most of his white makeup smudged away from his mouth.
"Lou, are you okay?" Harry asked as he sat down with him.
Louis let out a small giggle and sat up, leaning against the cupboard. "I threw up, but I feel great."
"I should get you back to your dorm." Harry grabbed Louis' waist time try to help him up.
"Harry, can I tell you something?" Louis asked, as he leaned all his weight against Harry's side, barely able to stand on his own.
"Sure."
"I met this girl and we went upstairs, but I couldn't.. y'know.. perform. What do you think that means?"
Harry felt his heart tug at the thought of Louis with a girl, but he shrugged it off, as he got his arm around the boy's waist to get him out of here.
"I don't know, Lou, was she ugly?" Harry joked and Louis laughed.
"No, she was so pretty," Louis slurred out, letting out a hiccup after. "I don't know, I just couldn't get it up. Am I weird?"
"No, you're not weird. Maybe you just weren't in the mood."
"Yeah, maybe."
But they both knew deep down that wasn't the case at all.
~
"C'mon, Lou, just get in bed," Harry groaned, as the boy clung onto him.
"I'm not even tired," Louis whined, finally falling down onto his twin sized bed.
"Yes you are. Now go to sleep."
"Wait, can you stay?"
Harry looked down at Louis, who had the biggest puppy eyes and he couldn't possibly resist, so he sighed and nodded.
"Sure, I'll stay. But I'm stealing a shirt."
"Yay," Louis smiled, as Harry grabbed a shirt from his drawer and then squished in beside the older boy.
Harry felt so awkward being this close to Louis and both of them being as drunk as they were. It made his stomach feel funny and it wasn't from the alcohol.
"Can we cuddle? I'm clingy when I'm drunk," Louis said with yet another hiccup.
Harry couldn't even respond before Louis was pretty much laying on top of him, his face buried in the younger boy's neck and definitely getting white face paint all over him.
Harry felt his heart beating faster and faster as his arm moved to Louis' waist.
"Harry?"
Louis' breath hit Harry's neck in such a way that caused goosebumps to rise on his skin, and Louis noticed, even if he was incredibly drunk.
"Yeah?" Harry basically squeaked out.
"I think I like boys. Especially ones that look like you."
Harry's breath got caught in his throat at that and his grip around Louis tightened.
"Wh-What?"
Moments passed of Louis' silence, until Harry heard soft snores and felt short puffs of air hitting his skin and he realized Louis had fallen asleep.
After laying there for way too long just wondering what Louis possibly meant, Harry finally decided he needed to sleep too.
And it was one of the best night's sleep he's ever gotten.
~
When Harry woke up the next morning, they'd somehow switched positions, so Louis was behind him with an arm draped over his waist and his head buried in Harry's hair.
Harry didn't know what this feeling in his stomach meant, he didn't know how to deal with it. Until he met Louis, he thought he was straight, but now the boy was giving him butterflies and making his heart feel like it was going to explode, and when they touched, his skin was on fire.
Like right now, with Louis' arm across his waist and his body against his back, he felt happier than he had in a long time. But how was he supposed to tell Louis that?
Harry's memory from last night was a little foggy, but it was slowly coming back to him. Did Louis tell him he liked boys? Boys that looked like Harry?
Harry let out a deep breath as his head was spinning with thoughts and aching slightly from drinking too much the previous night.
Eventually, he gently moved Louis' arm off of him to go use the bathroom and try to clear his head a little before Louis woke up.
After doing his business and washing his hands, he looked at himself in the mirror and ruffled up his tangled hair, which had traces of Louis' white face paint all through it.
Sighing, he left the bathroom and stopped in his tracks when he saw Louis was sitting up awake, most of his makeup smudged off - and in Harry's hair.
"Oh. Hi," Harry said.
"Morning," Louis yawned. "Can't believe I slept in this makeup," Louis groaned as he rubbed at his face.
"Do you have makeup remover? I can help you take it off."
Louis looked over at Harry, who was still standing across the room by the bathroom, and nodded with a tiny smile.
Louis then got up and went to the bathroom, where Harry followed him in. He pulled out a container of makeup wipes and leaped up onto the counter, as he handed them over to Harry, who was still incredibly nervous about all his newly discovered feelings.
Harry pulled out a wipe and started on Louis' forehead, trying to be as gentle as possible as he wiped off the remaining makeup.
"Sorry it got in your hair," Louis said softly, reaching up to touch a strand of white hair on Harry's head.
"It's okay."
Louis kept watching Harry's face as he cleaned off his makeup, his stomach flipping every time their knees touched.
Louis was confused about his feelings too. He was sure he was straight, he'd had a handful of girlfriends before and he really liked all of them, but Harry.. he was special. He made Louis feel giddy and he may have loved those girlfriends at the time, but none of them made Louis feel this way.
Harry threw away a wipe and grabbed another to finish off Louis' cheek and chin and when he was done, the two locked eyes.
"Okay, you're all clean," Harry told him and Louis nodded, but neither of them moved.
"I should probably shower," Louis said eventually.
"Yeah, me too."
They were so close, just one movement and their lips would be together.
But Harry had no idea if that's what Louis wanted. He just wasn't sure.
So he stepped back and gave Louis a small smile before he left the bathroom.
He'd never felt like this before.
And as he walked towards the door, his heart was hurting.
He didn't want to walk away if Louis wanted him too.
Reaching for the doorknob, he looked back to see Louis standing in the bathroom doorway watching him with a hint of sadness in his eyes.
Harry looked down, taking in a deep, nervous breath, and then back up at Louis.
"Are we friends?" Harry asked, then paused, contemplating what he was about to say. "..or more?"
Louis didn't say anything, just started to walk towards the nervous boy, whose hand was still on the doorknob.
Harry tried to keep his breathing under control and he felt his heart pounding in front of his chest as Louis stood in front of him, clearly nervous himself. And then he put his hands on Harry's waist and leaned up slightly so their lips were closer than they'd ever been.
"Lou, what are you doing?" Harry breathed out.
His head was spinning and Louis was so close to him.
Louis just shushed him, before he leaned in all the way and closed the gap between them, joining their lips in a soft kiss.
Harry let his eyes fall shut, his hands moving to Louis' shoulders, as he kissed him back.
It felt so different kissing a guy, but it felt right. Louis' lips were thin and soft, similar to a girl, but he just felt more rough - for lack of a better word. And Harry enjoyed someone else leading the kiss for once, someone holding his waist, making him feel safe. And he enjoyed even more that it was Louis.
Louis moved one hand up to Harry's cheek as he deepened the kiss, gently pushing him against the door and pressing their bodies even closer together.
As their tongues met and Louis' hand trailed under Harry's - well, his - shirt, Harry felt himself hardening in his extremely tight underwear.
So he pulled back with a heavy breath, resting a hand on Louis' chest.
"Sorry but if we keep kissing like this, I'm gonna bust through this spandex," Harry said and Louis broke into a loud laugh, which made Harry's stomach flip.
"That's okay, Haz, we can stop."
The two just looked at each other and then Louis reached up to tuck some hair behind Harry's ear, causing him to look away to hide the blush rising on his cheeks.
"Can I take you out tonight?" Louis asked, so Harry looked back over, trying to hide how giddy he was getting.
"Depends. As friends? Or more?" Harry teased.
Louis let a smile take over his lips as he let out a soft laugh. "Definitely more."
Harry smiled too. "Then yeah."
"Okay, I'll come pick you up at 6?"
Harry nodded, as happiness fully took over his body. "I should probably go. I need to shower."
"Yeah, me too," Louis reluctantly stepped back, letting his arms fall to his side.
Harry reached for the doorknob again, but this time he had no doubts about his or Louis' feelings.
"I'll see you at 6?" Harry confirmed and Louis nodded, a small smile still on his lips.
And Harry couldn't help himself as he leaned in for one last kiss.
"Okay, I'll see you then," Harry said and Louis was full on grinning now as he nodded.
"See you then."
"Bye, Lou."
"Bye, Haz."
So Harry finally opened the door and left, letting out a huge sigh of happiness once the door was closed, his body leaning against it to support his weak knees.
And Louis was on the other side doing the exact same thing.