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Harry was walking down the straight road that led him home, a mere 3 minutes after he left the bar. He was barely a few hundred metres away, when his phone started to ring. He stopped in his tracks and opened his tote bag. It took him a few seconds of rummaging around until he found it, nestled deep down between his yoga stuff. It was just now that he noticed, he hadn’t looked once at his phone in hours, which was quite unusual for him. He looked at it and there was an unknown number on his screen. Weird, he never got called from a number he hadn't saved. Save for the weird marketing calls from other countries.However, because he was a curious person, he raised his right hand to his ear while using the left to brush a loose strand of hair out of his face. “Hello?” He answered the phone. “Hellooo… is theeere Harrrold, the witch with the maaaagic wand?” A high pitched voice asked in a weird accent. The voice was kind of familiar though. Harry held the phone away from him, looking at the screen again. “Louis? Is that you??” He asked, slightly unsure. It sounded slightly like him, but how could he know? They hadn’t really spoken that much.“Damnit, I thought I could trick you. Tried to be funny. Guess that was a flop.” Harry heard the amused voice of Louis coming through the speaker. He turned around, looking down the street towards the bar and saw him standing outside, waving back at him with a big smile on his face.“Yeah, that wasn't funny at all. And a bad accent, too. What even was that?” Harry chuckled, raising a hand in a questioning motion. Deep inside, he was really excited that Louis decided to call immediately after their little get together and didn’t wait 2 days. Or didn’t call at all. He had really enjoyed himself back in the bar, and was also surprised by himself to do something this spontaneous which was normally not his cup of tea. He was more of a at-least-three-dates-before-sex-kind-of-guy.“I don't know! Just tried to disguise my voice, Thought I could be funny. Didn't work well, obviously.” Harry could see him nervously rubbing the back of his head. “Anyway, here I am. Calling and asking you for a proper date! Only if you think that's not a bit forward of me this soon after… you know. What do you say? Am I having the pleasure of inviting you to a restaurant or the movies or whatever you prefer? Totally your choice! If you're up for it, that is.” Louis’ voice was fast and high pitched at the end of his little rambling.Harry laughed softly. He was surprised that this gibberish mess was the same person that fucked him senseless 30 minutes ago, but he was now very curious to get to know all the other sides of him. “Louis, slow down.” He started. “It would be lovely to go out with you. How does Saturday sound to you?”
“That would be great! My shift ends at 5. Can I come pick you up at, let’s say 7? I have to go back inside now, we have a few new guests.”“Yep, sounds fantastic! I'm really looking forward to it”, Harry said with a big smile. “I'll send you my address later on. Have a good evening, Louis!”“Can’t get any better. Bye Harry”
He saw Louis put his phone in his apron and waving at him, before he went back inside the wine bar. Harry quickly waved back then turned around and continued his way home, with a spring in his step, but nobody needed to know that.It didn't take long for him to arrive at his block of flats. He loved the area he lived in. Everything he needed was reachable within a 10minute walk. His flat was located in Richmond. He knew that it was one of the pricier districts, but thanks to a bit of luck in his life, he was able to pay the lease for his flat rather comfortably.
Harry opened the door to his home, stepping through and letting himself fall against the wooden surface after closing it. Letting out a little sigh, he stepped out of his shoes and placed them neatly within the row of shoes on the rack to his left. The keys were thrown in the bowl that stood on the entryway table next to the door, specifically purchased for storing them. He despised the hooks on the wall, rather preferred a nice looking bowl. He found this one, formed like a rose, with the pedals delicately painted on it, at one of the flea markets he visited regularly.Deciding that he definitely needed another shower, he sat his tote bag down to deal with the dirty laundry after he felt less sticky. Stripping bare on the way to the bathroom, he turned on the shower once he stepped through the bathroom door. While he waited for the water to turn to a pleasant temperature, he took a quick once-over in the mirror. His hair was a mess, his cheeks still a little flushed. There were a few faint marks, distributed over his whole body, mostly in the area around his hips. If he squinted his eyes, he could even make out the rough form of fingertips. He had a shine in his eyes that let him smile at his mirror-self. Reliving some memories from earlier, he stepped in the shower and made quick work of cleaning himself up and washing his hair, ignoring his half hard dick that was very interested in said memories.
After towelling himself dry, he stepped into comfy clothes and made himself a cuppa before throwing the dirty laundry in the washing machine. He sat down at his desk to take care of a few things for work that he wasn't able to do earlier that day before he had to leave for his yoga class.A little while later, after fixing himself a light dinner, he snuggled down on his couch, covered with a blanket and another cup of tea in his hands, a random series running on his tv. Barely paying attention to the voices on the screen, it didn't take long for sleep to overcome him, it had been a long and eventful day. He dragged himself up and to his comfortable queen-size bed in his room down the hallway. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, with piercing blue eyes dancing in front of his inner eye.+++“Harry, stop pacing around, you're driving me insane!” Niall sat on the edge of Harry’s bed, watching him run back and forth between his bathroom and wardrobe. Clothes were scattered all over the floor, hanging over the doors of the wardrobe. Harry was only in a pair of black lace panties, stripping out of a top, he then threw to the other 20 that already piled on the floor. They had been on a mission to pick an outfit for nearly an hour now and Harry was getting more and more frustrated. Picking underwear was easy, he didn't own a pair of panties or g-strings that he didn't like, so he just picked a simple black one. It was still beautiful, with lace around the edges and a tiny little bow in the front. He didn't know what to expect from the evening, if Louis wanted to come to his after or not. Not that he would mind if he did, but Harry wanted to get to know Louis better than just as a fuck-buddy and he had a feeling that it was mutual. Not that there was anything wrong with dating casually and just fucking around. But he had had enough of that in his life.“I can't! I have nothing to wear and look at my hair. It's a mess! Where are all my good clothes? Seems like I don’t have any! Should I wear make-up? No, maybe not. Or maybe a little. Yeah, just a little blush and a bit of mascara.” He once again made his way back to the bathroom, hastily putting some rouge on his cheeks, which was a difficult task considering how much his hands were shaking. He heard Niall enter the room, leaning sideways against the doorframe and watching him through the mirror.
“Mate, you need to calm down. Why are you so nervous? That man has already seen everything of you. Don’t stress yourself over clothes or how your hair looks. I’m sure he likes you anyway. And it’s not like you are ugly right now” Niall chuckled, pushing himself away from the door to spin him around, putting both his hands on Harry’s shoulders, rubbing them in circular motions. “Come on, breathe with me. Iiinn aand out. That's it. Again.”
He did what Niall told him and felt himself relax, the calming movement of Niall’s hands on his shoulders was helpful too. He knew that he was overreacting. He wasn’t an anxious person, never has been, he just wanted to be the best version of himself tonight. There had been too many frustrating first dates over the past few years, he wanted to get this one right.“I'm not particularly nervous, Nialler”, he said, escaping the soft grip of his best friend and stepping into his bedroom to rummage through the countless hangers in his wardrobe. “I'm just excited and want to look nice, even if he has already seen my best parts.” He turned around to look at Niall with a smirk on his face. He held up a sheer shiny blue blouse with a flower pattern on it that was barely visible. “What do you think about this one? I could pair it with my good pair of black skinny jeans”
“That could work!” Niall clapped his hands together and once again laid a reassuring hand on Harry's shoulder. “It's going to be great. Just be yourself. And text me as soon as your date is over! I fear I have to go now. Because I” he dragged out the word. “already have a boyfriend and he needs my attention tonight. A LOT of attention. Have fun!” With a wink towards Harry, Niall vanished out of the room.
“Tell Shawn, I said hi!” Harry yelled after him.“Will do! Bye, love ya.” He heard Niall shouting back.As Harry heard the front door fall shut, he took one last deep breath and dressed himself before he went back to the bathroom mirror to fix the mess he made with the blush earlier and to highlight his lashes with a light layer of mascara. He was still contemplating what to do with his hair when his phone signalled him with a ping that he had a new message. Harry rushed to his bed, where he discarded his phone hours ago and saw a notification for a message from Louis. The bartender just wanted to let him know that he was on his way to pick him up and that he would arrive in ten minutes. Harry scrolled back up to the earlier messages, to check if he really gave Louis the right address. They didn’t text much the last few days, both busy with work, so it was just a hi and how are you, the excitement about the date and of course, the address.
He quickly tamed his locks until he was satisfied with his look. He snatched his little black purse from the hook on the wall and after a glance in it to see if everything he needed was there, he stepped into the hallway and pulled on his black leather boots and a dark brown coat. He then leaned against the wall next to the front door and waited patiently for the doorbell to ring.It only took a couple more minutes until Louis was in front of the main entrance.
“I'm coming down.” Harry told him through the speaker and made his way out of his flat and down the few flights of stairs to exit the building. His heart thrummed in his chest as he stepped through the front door. There he was. Leaning against the wall with one foot crossed over the other, leg slightly bent at the knee. He had his hands in the front pockets of his jacket. Louis wore ripped dark blue skinny jeans and what seemed like a red t-shirt with a low neckline under his black jacket. Harry could even see the edges of his chest tattoo. His hazelnut-brown hair was swept up in a Quiff. He looked absolutely gorgeous.“Hey beautiful.” Louis pushed himself off from the wall and gave Harry a small hug and a kiss on the cheek. He took a calming breath, hoping that his knees wouldn't give in. Damnit, that man didn't only look gorgeous, he smelled also fantastic, too. There was a hint of sandalwood and orange blossoms, Harry already hatched a plan, when and where he would steal an item of clothing from Louis, just to be able to smell him all day. No, he wasn’t creepy.“Hey Louis, how are you?” Harry smiled at him.“I'm doing great! You? I have booked a table for us at that cute little Italian restaurant, Nonna's Garden, a bit further down from the bar. Is that alright?” Louis looked at him questioningly.“That's perfect, I like that one. I’ve already been there a few times. They make a great risotto! Do you want to walk there or should we take the car?”“I don't mind walking. It's nice out.” Louis smiled, letting his head fall back and took a deep inhale.Harry couldn't help but watch him in awe, his mouth hanging slightly agape. The stretch of his neck, the vein at the side of it, very visibly standing out and his sharp facial features, that he already admired earlier this week. Get a grip, Styles. The date hasn't even started yet.When Louis looked at him again, he had to sense Harry’s mental state, judging by the smirk on his face. “Well, come on. Let's go. Our table is waiting.”+++As they arrived at the small restaurant, Louis rushed to hold the door open for him and Harry blushed a little at the nice gesture, steppin in. They were greeted by the waiter as Louis gave the name on the reservation. They were led to their table, in a quiet corner right at the front window. They sat down opposite each other and thanked the waiter as they were handed the menus.“The chicken sounds great, what do you think, love? Have you picked something?” Louis looked at him over the menu after a while of skimming through the options.
Harry took another look at the menu before answering, not that he hadn't already picked something, he just needed a moment to calm his heartbeat that got a bit out of rhythm after hearing Louis call him ‘love.’“Hmm… I don't eat meat and I don't think that I’m in the mood for fish today. I think I’ll go with my earlier mention and pick the risotto. It is really good.” Harry closed the menu and laid it on the table. “Would you mind picking out the wine? You are the expert after all.” Harry winked at Louis and immediately wanted to slap himself. That was a cheap move, Styles. Very cheap.“Oh so you are a vegetarian? Or what is it called, when you still eat fish? I don’t want to sound rude, I just don’t know any people who don’t eat meat. Is there a specific reason for it? Okay, I'll stop rambling now, please say something.” Louis ducked down in his seat, holding the napkin in front of his face to hide the blush that crept up on his cheeks. Harry melted a bit at the sight, he was so cute.“You are so cute.” Shit, did he say that out loud? But Louis’ blush deepend and he decided that it was not that embarrassing after all. “It’s called pescetarian. And no, there is no specific reason for it. I just don’t like the taste of meat and if I can do something good for the animals and nature, then that's a good reason, too.” Harry smiled over the table at Louis, who gave up his hiding and listened intently instead.
Harry had just finished his explanation, as the waiter came over again. They ordered their food and Louis picked a bottle of white wine for them to share. “Goes great with the chicken and the risotto,” he explained.After the waiter brought and poured the wine, Louis lifted his glass and held it towards Harry for a toast. Their glasses clinked together and they shared a soft smile. “To a wonderful evening.” Louis said and Harry nodded his head and repeated the sentence, brightly smiling.“Now Harry, you know what I do for a living. What about you? Tell me something about yourself.” Louis propped his elbows on the table and rested his chin on his hands, his ocean-eyes held a curious look. Harry wanted to eat him.“Well, I had a bit of luck in my life. It sounds more arrogant than it is, but my parents are quite wealthy and in the circle they socialise in, it is normal for every child to have a trust fund. But I, for myself, never liked everything that came with the money, so I tried to keep my distance from it at a certain age.” Harry paused, to take a sip from his wine. Louis had made a good choice. “I went to university to study business and it took me years to figure out the best way to use the money I was given as soon as I successfully finished my degree. I then had the idea to support the health and food industries. Now I’m an investor for start-ups that produce healthy food and similar companies in this sector. I want to help small businesses that actually try to make a change in the industry. It's because of these investments that I have a lot of partial ownerships for several different companies.” He felt a bit proud at the thought of his achievements and Louis seemingly was, too. He could see it in his eyes. Harry cleared his throat and took another sip.“That sounds really great, Harry!” Louis was still smiling at him. “I would love to hear more about it. Do these companies all produce food or are there some that have other products in their assortment, like non-food items?”Harry excitedly continued to explain everything about the job he loved so much and Louis pestered him with questions. The minutes flew by while they chatted animatedly.When the food arrived, their conversation died down, both happily munching on their food, not eager to talk with their mouths stuffed full. The meal was fantastic, as expected. Even if they didn't talk, Harry had no choice but to take a glance at Louis in between bites, just watching him exist. Of course, Louis caught him looking more than once but didn't comment on it. He just smiled back at him, seemingly stealing one or two glances himself.
The silence between them was a comfortable one, accompanied with the chatter from the people at the tables around them.“Do you want to share a dessert with me?” Louis asked after the waiter cleared the table of their empty plates. The bottle of wine was nearly empty by now, their bellies full of good food and the happy feeling of their get together.Harry contemplated for a moment, taking a quick glance at the dessert menu. “The chocolate cake looks fantastic, but there's no way I can eat a whole piece after the risotto. So yeah, I would love to share. If you are up for the cake, of course.”“Sure, I'll never say no to a sweet dessert” Louis snickered and threw a long look at Harry, that could only be described as dirty and that left him squirming on his chair. To distract himself from Louis and his own thoughts, Harry looked around to find their waiter and waved him over to order the cake.

The cake was as delicious as it looked and despite their full bellies from the main course, they devoured the slice rather quickly. When the time came around to ask for the bill, Louis was the one winning the short fight about who would pay. Louis insisted on it though. After all, he was the one who invited Harry.
After paying, he put his card back into his wallet, Louis stood and held out his hand. “Let’s go then.” He smiled at Harry, who let himself easily be pulled up from his seat. He felt a bit warm from his wine and a little giddy. The evening until now was perfect, Louis a real gentleman. He didn’t even question where Louis led him as they exited the restaurant and made their way to a small park around the corner. Harry was glad to see that the way through it was illuminated.
“Are you up for a little walk around the park before I get you home again, Harry?” Louis asked. Of course, Harry wouldn’t say no to spending more time with Louis.
“It would be a pleasure, thanks for asking.” Harry smiled softly, and they continued walking.Their shoulders bumped against each other every few metres and their hands brushed every now and then. Harry couldn't say if it was intentional or coincidence, but he wouldn't dare to complain. And it made his stomach all fluttery.They chatted a bit about this and that. The conversation flowed easily. The weather was still nice, not too cold and the moon was shining brightly down from the night sky. Only a few clouds blocked the light every once in a while.
“What part of England do you come from, Louis? Your accent tells me that it has to be Yorkshire? Or am I wrong there?” Harry turned to face the older one. They had stopped at a bench under a big old tree halfway through the park to sit down for a while.“Yes, exactly. I'm born and raised in Doncaster. My mom still lives there with my step dad and my three younger sisters. The oldest of them is 21, she is very secretive with what she wants to do. She has a job at a shop in Donny at the moment but I don't think that that's what she wants to do the rest of her life. And the other two are identical twins, 15 now. Still in school and little menaces” Louis had a fond expression on his face, only partially illuminated by a lamp near the bench. “I don't get to visit them often, but I try to call them every few days. I'm really close to them, love them all to bits. What about you? Do you have a big family, too? A bunch of siblings running around?”“Not exactly. I'm from Holmes Chapel. I don't have much contact with my dad anymore since he left my mum. But that's okay. I don't dwell on it. My mum has a new partner for a few years now. He’s nice and good for her. And I have an older sister that actually lives in London, too. She moved here last year to live with her boyfriend. I see her from time to time when we are both free. But I always wanted a big family, never got it though. Maybe in the future I will have my own big one” Harry smiled shyly, glancing through his eyelashes over to Louis, with a little blush on his face.“That sounds lovely, darling. I'm a big family man myself, of course I want the same for me too. When the time is right and I have the right partner by my side.” He let the meaning of his sentence hang in the air.Harry took a deep breath, the conversation suddenly a lot heavier. More meaningful. He didn't know how to respond to that, so he just sent a smile towards Louis, then closed his eyes and enjoyed the fresh breeze on his face.Louis was the one that thankfully broke the silence. “Do you want to head back? It's starting to get a bit chilly. I don't want you to catch a cold.”“Yes, please.” Harry smiled at him and flustered a bit as Louis stood and reached out a hand to help him stand up, too. If neither of them let go for the rest of the way through the park, no one needed to know.+++“Where did you park your car? Or did you arrive on the tube?” Harry asked. They were already on their way back to Harry's place. It took him until now to note that he didn't know how Louis got to him in the first place.“I parked behind the bar. But don't worry about me. I'll walk you home first. It’s not that far” Louis glanced over to him, a shy look on his face. “If you don't mind, of course.”“Only if it isn't too much trouble. I mean, we just walked past your bar. You don't have to…”“I insist,” Louis interrupted. “Please.”“Okay then. This way” Harry laughed and led them back to his block of flats.As they arrived at the front door to the building, they stood opposite of each other, both looking a little unsure of what to do next.“I would ask you to come up, but I have a feeling you would politely decline my offer.” Harry rocked on his feet back and forth. “I just want to say that I had a lovely evening and I really would like to get to know you. If you want that, too…”“Yes, you are right. I would've declined the offer but just because I really want to get to know you, too. And I want to do this right. Don't get me wrong, what we had back there at the bar was fantastic but I want us to slow down on the funny business a bit. For now.” He winked at Harry.He felt warmth spreading over his cheeks, again. “Okay, let's do that.” Harry nodded but couldn't hold back to say. “For now.”
“Cheeky,” Louis laughed before he stepped forward and embraced Harry in a comforting hug. Harry melted into his arms but quickly gained his composure and hugged him back.After a few seconds, that felt like minutes, Harry felt warm lips ghosting over the corner of his mouth. “Good Night Harry, sleep well. I'll text you tomorrow.” Louis loosened the hug and stepped back.
“Good night, get home safe Louis.” Harry used all of his willpower to turn around and walk through the front door. Before he entered the building, he turned around one last time to wave at Louis, who still stood at the same place, looking back at him, hands in his front pockets again.
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Louis took a last look back at the building, then spun on his heels. He smiled to himself, walking down back to the wine bar. He felt like it was the right decision to not take the date any further this evening. He really liked this boy and couldn’t wait to see what the future would bring for them. He slung his jacket a little tighter around his upper body. It was late and it was even colder now than earlier in the park. He sped up his steps and after a few minutes he reached his car in the small car park behind the bar.
After the short drive home, luckily the traffic was non-existent at this time of day, he pulled into his parking space in front of the building he and Zayn had their flat in.He tiptoed through the front door of their shared home, not wanting to wake Zayn, in case he already went to bed. He rounded the corner of the living room only to find Zayn lying on the couch, some papers in his hands, that he was studying carefully.“Why are you still awake?” Louis asked, startling Zayn, papers falling from his hands to the floor.“Jesus, Louis. I nearly had a heart attack. Why did you sneak up on me like that? What are you doing here? I thought you would stay the night at Harry’s?” He wiggled with his eyebrows, while he ducked down to pick up the papers. Suddenly he straightened, his face turning into a faux shocked expression, a hand flying to his heart. “Or was the date that bad? Did he turn you down? Was he the problem? Was he boring or did he eat too noisily? Did he have other bad table manners? I know that that's a thing you hate”“Are you quite done?” Louis rolled his eyes playfully and shoved Zayn's legs from the couch to sit down on the now free space. “It was really good, Z. I like him.” A coy smile wandered over his face. “He is really nice and really good to talk to. And my god, he is really beautiful. And really, really sweet. You should see his dimples when he finds something so funny that he smiles wide enough for them to appear. Really cute”“That's a lot of really's, mate. When's the wedding? Can I be your best man?”
“You are an idiot, Zayn. Anyway, he said he wanted to invite me in, but he already had the feeling that I would've turned him down. And he was right, I really want to do it right this time. And go slow. Okay, slower. “He grinned at his best friend. “I want to get to know him. And thankfully, he is on the same page.” Louis smiled happily and let his eyes fall closed for a moment, thinking about those green eyes that had already consumed him back then at the wine bar. When he opened his eyes again, his gaze fell on the stacks of paper around Zayn. “Now why are you still awake, what is all this?”“These are the contracts and stuff for the exhibit I'm hosting. I totally forgot about them. You know how I get when I'm lost in my paintings. Always forget about that damn paperwork. And they are due on Monday, so I need to work through them and sign them. And I don't have time tomorrow, because I have the studio booked all day to get the last paintings done. That's why I'm still awake.” Zayn let out a sigh. “But I'm on the last few pages now. Will go to bed soon. What about you?”“I think I'm turning in, unless you need help with this. I need to be at the Ark early tomorrow. We are crafting some things for the market next week. Trying to get a bit of extra money in. You know how tight it is at the moment,” Louis yawned, padded Zayn on the thigh and stood. “Good night, Z. Don't stay up too long.”“No it’s okay. Go to sleep and tell the kids I said hi and that I will come around soon. I already have a project in mind for them. Good night, Louis.”“Will do, they will be very happy to hear that.” With a kiss on Zayn's head, Louis made his way to the bathroom to get ready for bed. After brushing his teeth and a quick wash of his face, he wandered to his bedroom and stripped off his clothes. He climbed under the sheets with a content sigh and snuggled into his pillow. He let his mind drift to the memories of the past few hours. It really has been a good evening. It didn't take long for him to fall asleep with a smile on his face.

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Louis woke up early, as he often did on Sundays. Normally he would sleep as long as he could, especially when he worked the evening shifts at the wine bar but Sunday was his favourite day of the week. He sat upright in his bed, the sheets pooling around his naked waist, it was his preferred way of sleeping, completely naked. When he visited family or friends overnight, he had the decency to at least put a pair of boxers on.After stretching out his limbs, he rubbed his hands over his face and got up, stepped into a pair of grey joggers and made his way over to the bathroom. He quickly peed, showered and dressed in the clothes that he put there the evening before, a pair of blue jeans and a soft green Nike sweater, styling his hair in his signature Quiff. He contemplated shaving but decided that the stubbles didn’t look too scruffy yet.Trying to stay as quiet as possible, he tiptoed past Zayn's room and to the kitchen. Zayn would be asleep for a few more hours, Louis guessed. It was still fairly early and he stayed up way longer than him last night.Louis wasn't himself without his morning cuppa, so he made sure that there was always time for one before he had to leave the house for work or other appointments.He sat down on one of the kitchen stools at the island with his tea and a bowl of his favourite cereal, Lucky Charms (He knew it was kind of childish, but he couldn't care less). He scrolled through his work emails, reading a few but decided to answer them the next day. It was Sunday, after all.After he finished his breakfast, he put the dishes in the sink, deciding to take care of them when he got home later.He stepped in a pair of Nike trainers and grabbed his keys, heading outside to his car.His destination was, as on every (or was it each?) Sunday, the Youth House and Orphanage from the LGBTQ+ Youth Protection Society London. They gave it the name ‘The Ark.’ It was fitting, Louis thought, for a place where children, abandoned from home, mainly because of homo- and transphobia, could find a place to live and feel safe. Not every child had a full time place there. Some of them came there after school to find a few hours of peace or just a place where there were people who understood and accepted them. The Ark also functioned as a normal orphanage that took in children at every age. The house was mostly financed by donations and reliant on volunteers who came outside their normal work to help with the kids a few times a week.Louis had always been there at least 3 or 4 times a week for a few hours, but since he opened the wine bar, his shifts made it impossible to visit more than once a week, mostly on Sundays. He was determined to make big donations as soon as the bar was more successful to compensate for the loss of time and help he was able to offer them currently.It was a pleasant drive and after half an hour, the big house came into sight after the next bend and Louis parked his car at the rear of the property, right behind the back garden. The house was built in the last century, but kept up to date with renovations over the years. The building showcased intricate Victorian detailing, with ornate gables, bay windows, and decorative ironwork. The exterior boasted a time-worn reddish-brown brick facade, adorned with delicate climbing vines that brought bursts of colour. It was breathtakingly beautiful and fitting for the case.Louis exited the car, did a quick stretch to ease the stiffness from the drive and headed over to the fence. He didn't bother to use the front door as he had a key for the padlock at the garden door. He wasn't even fully through it, when he could already hear kids screaming excitedly and he happily watched them running towards him.Louis lost his balance as three or four little kids jumped on him at the same time. He toppled over and landed on his back. He sat back up and held his head as if he was in pain, but after a few seconds and the growing shocked expressions on the children's faces, Louis dropped his facade and the small crowd erupted in laughter.“I’ve missed you too, you little gremlins. Now, get off of me.” Louis was still laughing as he stood up and dusted off the back of his jeans. He was now crowded by a whole group of children at every age from 3 to 18. The younger kids were all talking over each other, everyone had something important to tell Louis or a new toy to show off.The older ones stood a bit further away, watching them with smiles on their faces. He would talk to them later.Louis tried to listen to everyone equally but it simply wasn't possible. After a few minutes he excused himself and went to find the home director. He didn't have to search long, because she was already standing on the terrace, watching him and the kids. She was a middle-aged woman, always dressed smartly, in some sort of dress or skirt with a blouse. Today it was an ankle-length floral summer dress with a dark grey cardigan that ended mid-thigh. She had her shoulder length hair up in a ponytail crested with a beautiful golden barrette. She always had a kind look on her face, today however, her eyes appeared sad and her lips didn't carry the usual smile.“Hey Eloise, how are you? You look a bit worried.” Louis observed.
“It's one of those days, you know. I'm glad you’re here. Let's go inside and have a talk.” She turned to the kids “Louis will come back out in a bit and play some games with you.” With that, Eloise beckoned Louis to follow her through the glass double doors and into her office a bit further down the hallway. On one wall there was a beautiful original fireplace surrounded with a decorative mantel. Along with a desk and stools, the room only hosted a Two-Seater on the opposite wall with a coffee table in front of it. On it was a tablet with cups and glasses along with a teapot and bottles of water.She motioned for him to sit down at one of the upholstered stools in front of her desk.“Do you want tea or something else to drink?” She asked while she made her way over to the small table to fix some beverages.“Thank you, darling. I'm alright. Just had a cuppa at home before I came here. Now tell me, what's got your beautiful face all wrinkled up this morning?”“Always so charming”, at least she let out a small laugh at that. She fixed herself a cup of tea and took her place behind the desk. “We have some financial problems. Nothing new with that but it's hard to make ends meet at the moment. It was already hard last month but it's even worse this time. We are desperately trying to find new sponsors and donors but you know how it is in the business world.” She sighed and let her head fall back against the headrest of her desk chair.“Is there anything I can do to help? I wish I could make a donation myself, but the bar doesn’t make enough in profit at the moment. But tell me what you need and I will see if I can help in any way.”
Louis was concerned, this community was really important to him. He himself was lucky enough to have a great family that accepted him without batting an eye after he came out. Sadly though he had a childhood friend who hadn’t been that lucky and ended up on the streets and in very bad circles. After he passed away from injuries during a street fight, Louis was destined to help kids like him before it was too late to save them.Eloise sent him a grateful smile. “I don’t think that there is much that you could do in this situation, Louis. But I appreciate your offer.” She took a sip from her tea, before she spoke again. “On the other hand… maybe we could create a few flyers and you could hang one up somewhere in the bar? I don’t know if it would make a big difference though.”“Well, we can at least give it a try. I would love to do that for you, darling.” Louis said. “Is there anything else we should talk about? Otherwise I'll go and see if some of the kids are up for a game of footie.” He grinned and stood up.“No, please go and have some fun with the kids. They are so happy every time you visit us.” Now she showed the first real smile, since Louis arrived. “I’ll let you know as soon as the flyers are ready. Or I’ll send one of the older children out to deliver a few to the bar.”
“That sounds great. I’ll see you later.” Louis went back the same way they came in and headed towards a group of older kids.
“Hey Ben, Joshua.” He nodded at two of the boys, sitting on the grass. “Are you up for a round of footie?”“Always, Mr. Tomlinson” They jumped up immediately, and Ben, a tall slim boy around 15 grabbed a football that lay discarded a few feet away.“How often do I have to tell you all to call me Louis.” He scolded jokingly, snatching the ball out of the boy's hands and darting off to the more open space on the other end of the garden.They played for a while until some of the younger kids demanded Louis’ attention. He went with them to help with some of the art they were currently making. That reminded him that Zayn had left greetings for them. Louis promised them that Zayn would visit them as soon as possible to finish the art pieces with them. When it was time for lunch, Louis made his way to the kitchen to help serve the food to the kids in the dining room. Eloise had found two older ladies, who had already retired and were more than willing to cook for the kids several times a week for free.Louis was always welcome to eat with them, and he was grateful for it. One less meal to worry about. He really wasn’t a fan of cooking. Not even if he was actually able to cook.
Time always flew by when he was with the kids and as Louis looked at his phone to check the time, it was already early afternoon and he needed to head back soon to check in with Jasmine at the wine bar. He didn’t need to work today, they were only open for the evening shifts on Sunday and Jasmine had it covered. He still needed to take a look at the inventory though, to complete the order they placed every Monday morning with their supplier. With the look on his phone, his mind drifted once more to Harry and he felt a little guilty that he hadn't already messaged him. He decided that he would do exactly that, as soon as he was in his office.With a last wave and a shouted goodbye towards the children and an even more enthusiastic response, he made his way back to his car, carefully locking the padlock on his way out again.

🧘🏻‍♀️🎀
Harry let himself fall back on the couch with a long sigh, draping his long legs over Niall’s lap. It was Sunday afternoon and Harry crashed into Niall's flat a little after noon bearing two large pizzas and demanded a friendship afternoon. They did things like that from time to time without giving the other one a heads up. That's why Harry had found Niall still lying in his bed, naked and wrapped around his, evenly naked, boyfriend, Shawn.
The two of them were together long enough that Shawn knew what was going on. He had kissed Niall longer than it would be necessary with Harry watching them and got up for a quick shower, then got dressed and was on his way out within 20 minutes. There was no need to feel guilty, he said, he had a family gathering that afternoon anyway. Shawn really was the best.They ate the pizzas and watched trash-tv without speaking much. Now though with Harry sated and sleepy, draped over him, Niall spoke up. “So, tell me. What's up with wine-boy? You didn't give much away with your message last night.”
That was true, but only because it was really late and he didn't want to disturb Niall and Shawn with whatever the two were up to. So he just told him that it went well and that he got home safe.“It was fantastic, but I really didn't expect anything else. He is respectful and a great listener. We never had any awkward silence, he's easy to talk to and god he is so beautiful, those eyes…” Harry knew he had a fond expression on his face and by the look that Niall gave him, he could tell that he noticed it, too.“That sounds wonderful, mate. I'm happy for you! It was about time that you found someone you're truly interested in.” Niall patted his legs friendly. “When are you seeing each other again?”
“We haven't talked about a second date yet. I'm still waiting for a message from him. I hope he didn't lose interest...”“Maybe he is busy, I'm sure he will text you. Why don't you make the first move? I mean there are no rules for who has to text whom first. Just go for it.” Niall encouraged him.“Yeah, you're probably right. I'll text him.” Harry reached over to the coffee table, where he put his phone earlier, and opened the chat with Louis.
Harry: Hey Louis, just wanted to thank you again for the wonderful evening yesterday, I really enjoyed our date 🙂 hope you have a nice sunday!

After mentalling hyping himself up, he pressed the send-button with a slight tremor in his thumb. Exhaling, he put his phone on the table again.“See, wasn’t that hard.” Niall grinned and patted Harry’s legs again to motion him that he wanted to stand up. “I need to piss. Do you want another beer?” He picked up the empty bottles on the table to discard them on the way to the bathroom.“Yeah, sure. But only one more. I want to be able to drive home tonight.” Harry stretched his body across the couch while he waited for Niall to return.
He heard Niall enter the kitchen and open the fridge, as the ringtone from his phone startled him. His heartbeat sped up, he reached for his phone and looked at the screen. Louis responded! “Niaall!”
Louis: Hey darling, I’m sorry, I didn’t text earlier, I was busy all morning and then had to go to the bar to check a few things. I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂 I did too 😌 How was your day?

Harry: Had a quiet day today, slept in, did some yoga at home and now I’m with my best friend Niall. Ate some pizza, had a few beers and watched movies 🙂

Soo… you asked last time, now it’s my turn. I’m being honest, I am a bit nervous… but do you want to do something with me again, maybe this week? 🫣

Louis: That sounds like a nice day! Of course, that would be great. I’m really looking forward to seeing you again 🙂 What do you have in mind? Just… it has to be next weekend, because I’m working the evening shift this week ☹️ maybe something during the day?

Harry: Oh sure, no problem! I’m just glad you said yes 🙂 I’ll think of something and text you the details?

Louis: Sounds great!!
Harry laid his phone back on the table and took a sip from the new bottle that Niall gave him in the meantime. He could see from the corner of his eye that his best friend was watching him intently.“What?” He asked, turning around to face Niall.
“Oh nothing, just… you have something on your face there, mate.” Niall grinned. “It’s called daydreaming, mixed with maximum fonding. He really gets to you, doesn’t he?”“Yeah, whatever.” Harry ducked his head down, trying to hide the blush in his face. His mind already rattled down dozens of ideas for the next weekend, taking mental notes to check the weather and what else he would need to make the date perfect. No, he wasn’t a control freak, just organised, okay?“Anyway,” He looked at Niall again, with the mission to distract him. “How’s work? Are you ready to take over the world?”“It’s only a company, Harold. Not the whole world. That would be the next step after overtaking the company from my parents.” Niall smirked. “But it’s going quite well. I mean, it’s a lot to take in. And I’ve only been there for what? 3 months now? It will get easier with time but it will still be a while until my father deems me ready to take over his position.”They talked for a little while longer until Harry needed to head home. It was going to be another long exhausting work week and he needed his sleep. Maybe he could text Louis again, just to say goodnight.+++It was Thursday now and Harry settled down at his desk, it was still dark outside, the sun was just about to rise. He couldn't stop yawning, it got a bit late last night. Not that anything held him up from going to bed, except for, you know, waiting for a response from Louis on his last text. He could've easily waited for the morning to read it but he seemingly was already whipped and turned into a giggling mess as he saw the little x at the end of Louis’ goodnight message that he sent him after closing up the wine bar for the night.
He started his workday by writing down a to-do list for the day. He did this every day, it helped him stay organised. Thankfully, there wasn't much on it today, he had an early zoom meeting with potential new clients and an appointment in the afternoon in a factory right outside of London. A little paperwork in between, and that would be it.The rest of the week had practically looked the same, one meeting after the other. Everyone wanted his attention, or more, his money. He had to make a few decisions on where his next investment would go, soon. Until then, more people would try to kiss his ass. It wasn’t the first time that he thought about his career choice and if it was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. He still had a big chunk of his trust fund but that was his ‘in case of emergency money.’At least he had the date with Louis in two days that he could look forward to and he had another yoga class tonight. Maybe he could say hi to Louis on his way there.His phone signalled an incoming request for a video-chat from his mum, which he immediately accepted. The face of a kind looking woman with green eyes and brown fluffy hair appeared on the screen. “Hi mum. It’s nice to hear from you! How are you?” He leaned back in his chair, propping his feet up on the desk.“Oh I’m fine, darling. How about you? Did I interrupt you during work?” Anne asked.“Yes, but it’s not a problem, I was just finishing something up. And iI have an appointment in an hour.” Harry assured her. “Is there a reason for your call, or -”“Why do I have to have a reason to hear what my youngest is up to?” She wondered, shaking her head in false anger. “No, I just wanted to see you for a second. I miss your pretty face. And I wanted to tell you that Robin and I are going on holiday next week. We will be away for ten days.”“Oh, really?” Harry asked, genuinely excited for her. And for her partner, who was almost constantly working. He was glad for them to finally have some time for themselves. “Where are you travelling to?”“We have a roundtrip planned with the car, starting in …”Just in this second, he had a notification popping up that Louis sent him a photo. He knew he should concentrate on his mum, but couldn’t help himself. He clicked on the notification and a picture of Louis appeared. It was a selfie shot in the wine bar from behind the counter. It was angled from above, Louis grinning brightly in the camera, his eyes crinkling on the sides. His hair was in a quiff but a loose strand found its way onto his forehead. He looked stunning in his black button up and the wine red apron.
“Earth to Harry!” The voice of his mother brought him out of his staring, he blinked a few times and switched the screen back to the video call. “You spaced out for a second there, darling. Looked all dreamy. Did you hear anything I said?”
“I’m so sorry, mum. I just got a message and was distracted for a second. Can you repeat it, please?” He felt guilty for a second but the face of his mother suddenly turned mischievous and he knew he had lost.“A message? Is there anything you want to tell me, darling? Who could possibly send you a message that got you all dopey?” She asked, teasingly.“Mum, please, don’t be nosey. I will tell you everything as soon as there is something to tell.” He pleaded. Anne sighed, looking a bit disappointed. He knew how much she liked gossip and she, too, wanted Harry to finally find someone whom he could truly be happy with. But for now it was enough that Niall already knew everything.
“Okay, then darling. I’m happy as long as you are happy.” She smiled at him.“I am, mum. Really.” He responded. “Now, please tell me about your trip again. I swear, I will listen this time.”This time, there was no distraction and Harry listened intently as his mum told him about their travel plans. They talked for another ten minutes before Harry had to excuse himself to get the rest of his work done and arrive at the yoga studio in time.+++On Saturday, Harry arrived first at the car park where they agreed to meet-up at 9am. The car park was right at the start of the hiking-trail they wanted to explore today. It was a short trail, easy to manage, since Louis was not the biggest sports fan on earth, besides football, obviously.
After their chat from last Sunday, they hadn't found much time to text. Louis was on his evening shift at the wine bar, so he was busy when Harry had time to text and when Louis had his freetime in the morning, he slept late and Harry needed to work. It was a bit of a hassle but they managed to exchange a few words every day, even if there were several hours between their responses. Harry caught himself more than once, smiling at his phone like an idiot while reading a new message from Louis.Despite the small amount of texting, the excitement over their second date was still high, Harry even got up an hour earlier than he had to, to prepare a few sandwiches and some other snacks for them. After he packed everything in his backpack, he still had enough time to make a fruit smoothie for them to share. He was much less nervous than before their first date, which he was thankful for because Louis was already late and Harry would've turned into a restless bouncy ball otherwise.10 minutes after 9, a car pulled up next to his own in the carpark. Louis exited the vehicle, a guilty look on his beautiful face. He babbled a string of apologies, but Harry just stood there, trying to keep himself from fainting. Louis looked like a walking snack with his tight black jeans (which he surely would regret wearing for a hike) paired with a dark blue zip-hoodie. His eyes looked tired, which made them appear even bluer than they usually were. His hair was not in a quiff today, it looked freshly washed and a soft fringe framed his face. He opened the trunk and pulled out a small backpack then finally made his way over to Harry.“I'm really sorry, I had to work really late yesterday and I seemingly turned off my alarm… well all my alarms, this morning. I hope you didn't have to wait too long?” Louis babbled, while he slung the backpack over his shoulders.
“I understand that, Louis. Really. Don't worry about it. And I didn't wait long.” He reassured him. He then pulled the smaller man in for a quick hug and smiled excitedly at him. “Should we?” He motioned to the path that led away from the cars to the hiking trail. Louis led out a small huff at the sight of the trail, which made Harry giggle, but followed along without further complaining.
Harry felt a bit guilty for dragging Louis out on a hike, when he obviously didn’t get enough sleep, but Louis assured him that it was fine and that he was actually looking forward to the view from the top of the hill.The first section of the path wound itself through a forest, the floor covered in pine needles. It was a peaceful atmosphere and the two of them walked side by side, chatting quietly with each other. Not that they actually needed to keep their voices down, it just suited the general atmosphere of their surroundings. Louis opened up about his charity work at The Ark, which sparked Harry's interest. He loved the concept of it and was as grateful as Louis that a place like this existed.
Every now and then one of them would stop to point out a beautiful landmark or a bizarre constellation of fallen trees along the way. One time a deer jumped over the path in front of them, which startled Harry, who immediately clung to Louis’ side only to let go with a stammered out apology and a cute flush of his cheeks.After another hour of walking, they reached a plateau on one side surrounded by trees, on the other, open to the valley beneath it.Harry took a look around “I think we should stop here for a bit. I brought something to eat.” He thumbed over his shoulder towards his backpack.
They found a bench between two tall trees that provided a stunning view over the nature surrounding them. Harry opened his backpack and laid out the snacks he brought between them on the bench. He also brought disposable cups with him which he filled with the smoothie. With a smile he held one towards Louis who took it and immediately sipped on it and took a bite from one of the sandwiches.“Wow that's amazing Harry. Did you make this yourself?”Harry ducked his head, smiling to himself. “It's not a big deal. I learn a lot from the companies I invest in. I'm regularly invited to different workshops based around food and I always loved to cook and bake anyway. I think that helps, too.”“That's incredible, I'm really shit at cooking. Not that I hate it or something, I just never create anything edible.” Louis laughed. It was a beautiful sound, a sound that made Harry all bubbly.
They enjoyed the homemade lunch and the view. Harry had always wanted to come here and was glad he was finally able to. It was a peaceful, quiet place and even better with the right company.“I fear we need to head back soon, love. My shift starts in a few hours…” Louis looked over to him with sad eyes, half smiling.Harry sighed, already standing up to put his belongings back into his backpack, “I know. Come on then, let's go. I think we already completed two thirds of the trail, so it shouldn't take too long to get back to the car park.”

🍷🚬
It really didn’t take them long to make it the rest of the way back to their cars. They seemingly never had a problem keeping a conversation going, one of them always had something to say. Louis hoped it would stay that way for a long time. It was nice. The whole hike hadn’t been as bad as Louis first feared. The company made up for his lack of enthusiasm for a sports activity he didn’t necessarily enjoy. Even his tiredness was washed away after being in Harry’s presence for a short amount of time.Their conversation died down when they arrived at Harry’s car, a new model VW Tiguan. Harry unlocked the car and placed his backpack on the passenger seat before stepping around the vehicle again and in front of Louis.
Louis on the other hand eyed a small group of trees on the edge of the car park. He looked between Harry and the trees back and forth, fighting a little inner battle with himself. He knew what he wanted right now, but he also didn't want to fuck this thing with Harry up.
Harry looked a little lost, as he stood there next to his car, feet pigeon-toed, hands clasped in front of him. He looked as nervous as Louis himself was.
“Wow, a bit of tension here,” Louis laughed, trying to ease Harry's mood. He took a step forward, grabbing Harry’s hands in his. “Is it a good tension or a ‘I want to get away as fast as I can’ tension?” He looked questioningly at the taller man but had a smirk on his lips.
Harry inhaled sharply at the close proximity between them. He seemed to always get a bit shy when it even remotely came to sexual innuendos. “It… it’s a good one, I think. I’m just not used to this kind of attention. Haven't had much luck with this in the past. Dating and stuff” Harry’s face got a little flushed at his revelation.“Well, I guess we are in the same boat, then. Why don’t we make better experiences together then?” Louis took another step forward, their feet nearly touching. He looked up through his eyelashes (Yes, he knew how he looked like that, it was one of his secret weapons, but shhh) and raised a hand to drag his thumb over Harry’s lower lip. “Your lips are so beautiful, you know that? God, I really… I know, we agreed to go slow but… can I kiss you?”“Please, yes, please,” Harry’s voice was barely audible, eyes dropping to Louis’ mouth, while he licked his own perfectly shaped light pink lips.
That's all Louis wanted to hear, so he leaned in and connected their lips. The kiss was different to the one they shared nearly 2 weeks ago. It was a sweet one, almost innocent. Or that's what Louis thought it was, but Harry seemed to have a different plan. He dragged his tongue over Louis’ lower lip, demanding entrance. Which Louis willingly gave him. They let their tongues dance together, licking every corner, exploring the other's mouth. Harry tasted like the fruity smoothie he brought with him, and Louis couldn't get enough.
He sneaked a hand around Harry's waist and brought the other up to bury it in those sinful locks. Using the hand on his back, he brought himself even closer to Harry, nearly pressing every inch of his body against the younger one’s.
He felt Harry whimpering against his mouth and pulled away to see if he was okay. One look at his growing pupils told Louis that he was more than okay, and the hardening line that pressed against Louis’ hip confirmed his observation. He wasn't in much of a better state. His growing erection pressed against the zipper of his jeans. Why did he even decide to wear jeans for a hike?
He took another look around, seeing that there were no people around them at the moment, and there were only two other cars parked next to theirs. After eyeing the group of trees again, he looked back to Harry, who was looking in the direction of the trees, too.“Are you up for a little adventure in the woods?” Louis took a step back and held out his hand for Harry to take.Harry nodded excitedly and reached forward to take a hold of him. God, his hands were so big, Louis’ mind already drifted to the image of Harry's big hand and long fingers around his cock. He didn't have the pleasure of seeing it the last time. Maybe he'd have more luck this time. Before he could spin around to walk towards the trees, Harry took the initiative and nearly dragged him along until they were partially hidden behind a broad tree.Louis took over again and pressed Harry lightly against the bark of the tree. He wasted no time, and immediately pressed his body against Harry's. This time he tested the water, and began to roll his hips. The motion pulled a low moan out of Harry, who let his head fall back against the wood, mouth hanging open.It was a nice view but Louis had other plans for Harry's mouth. He used his thumb and index finger and closed them around the others chin, pulling him down and in for another kiss. It was all teeth and spit and tongue, but it was perfect.
He sneaked his free hand down between them to squeeze Harry's cock over his trekking trousers, which immediately twitched at the touch. Louis sighed in the kiss, the younger one was always so responsive. An observation he already made at their last encounter. He rubbed a little more until he decided that there were too many clothes between him and the treasure that waited in Harry's trousers.Impatient as he was, he opened the trousers and let his hand slide in to feel Harry’s hard length again, now with only the thin barrier of a pair of boxer briefs. While he worked over his cock, Louis let up from Harry’s lips and let his mouth wander over the sharp jaw down to the neck, leaving behind a trail of kisses. He heard soft moaning from above which spurred him on to suck a little more at the soft skin, careful to not leave marks that were too visible.
He fell down on his knees, pulling trousers and boxers down with him in one motion. Louis groaned at the sight of Harry's cock, standing hard and proud nearly touching his nose. He dove forward and nuzzled in the crook between Harry's thigh and his crotch. Taking him in one hand, he licked from the base to the tip before he closed his lips around Harry's erection. Both moaning in unison.
He worked up and down the impressive length, lapping over the slit on top and pressing his tongue over and over at the sensitive spot on the underside. Grabbing Harry's hips with both hands to keep him still, Louis opened his throat to swallow him down all at once. He found a comfortable rhythm and let himself bask in the feeling of Harry’s dick inside his mouth.
“Ahh, Louis, s… so good, I'm gonna… I’m close. Please. Can I?” Harry stammered, breathing harshly, his hands buried in Louis’ soft hair.Louis moaned happily around his cock, humming and nodding. He bobbed his head faster, letting the tip hit the back of his throat over and over again. It took only a minute more before warm cum filled Louis' mouth. He hurried to swallow everything. He then stood and licked his lips before he surged forward to connect their lips to give Harry a taste of himself.His own erection was still painfully pressing against his zipper, but Harry's hands were already working on opening his jeans and he exhaled with a sigh as his cock sprung free, his legwear pushed down to mid-thigh. He felt big warm hands working up and down his length and he broke the kiss to look down
but he quickly had to look away or he would've come on the spot at the sight. It was even better than he'd imagined.To their left side, they were thankfully (or not) hidden by a few bushes, because a group of people could be heard walking on the path nearby, happily chatting with each other.A surge of adrenaline shot through Louis’ body, right to his cock. After a glance at Harry's face, he could see that the younger man heard them too, and based on the twitch of his spent dick, he shared the spark of excitement. Very interesting.They were still too far away to actually catch sight of them or hear their quiet moaning, but the possibility alone made Louis’ heart race. Since he started to explore his sexuality after coming out as gay, he felt a thrill at the possibility of getting caught or even REALLY being watched while having sex or just masturbating on his own.
Sadly, he never had a boyfriend or sex-partner who was willing to explore this further, quite the opposite. One of his exes looked at him like he had lost his marbles as he finally found the courage to suggest getting a bit adventurous in their sex-life. After that, he was always too afraid to ask anyone again. But after the previous experiences with Harry, he had a feeling that that would change. He needed to talk to him about it in the near future. Honesty and communication was the key, after all.
Harry was now nibbling at his neck, for sure leaving some of his own marks. One hand was cradling his balls, softly massaging them while his other hand worked relentlessly over his hard length. He thrusted his hips forward, meeting the motion of Harry's hand. He came with a silent scream, biting down lightly in the soft flesh near Harry's collarbone.They kissed lazily for a few minutes, while they caught their breath. The people from before couldn't be heard anymore. After pulling up their trousers, they stepped out of the woods and walked up to their cars, fingers still intertwined.It was hard to say goodbye, so Louis opted instead for a nice long hug and a few more kisses. “I hope I'll see you again soon Harry. You know what? My best friend has an art exhibit next Wednesday. Would you like to come with me?”
“Yes, I would love to! I'm an admirer of art! Thank you for asking me.” Harry smiled at him, honestly excited, which caused a lot of fluttery feelings in his belly.
“Well then, I'm gonna pick you up at 6 o'clock. Goodbye Darling”He squeezed Harry’s bottom a last time, pressing another kiss on his lips before he parted from him and made his way to his own car. When he got in, Louis waved at Harry, who still stood behind his dark-blue Tiguan, waving back at him, his smile wide enough to show off his gorgeous dimples. Louis sighed happily, backed out of the parking space and drove off home, where he took a quick shower before heading to the bar for the last shift of the week.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Zayn was storming through their apartment like a whirlwind. He had been doing this for 30 minutes now, collecting things, changing clothes at least 4 times. Louis tried to support him as best as he could but nothing seemed to help with his nervousness. It was understandable. Tonight was his first exhibit alone and he had worked for months for it. He often came home long after midnight, working his ass off but he never complained about it. That was something Louis really admired about his best friend.

Louis really hoped that it would be a successful night for him and that people would buy at least a few paintings. He hadn't seen all of them, but the ones he had seen were incredible. They did a bit of advertising in the neighbourhood of the venue and in a few local newspapers but most of the guests tonight would be the ones with an invitation. Lots of other artists and art critics, a few reporters and Zayn’s friends.

“Zayn, babes. Would you come here for a sec and breathe with me? You are working yourself up too much. It's going to be a great evening! And I will be there to look out for you.”

He slung his arms around Zayn as soon as he plopped on the bed beside him and pulled him in for a tight hug. Feeling some of the tension in his best friend melt away, he smiled into his shoulder. “There you go, that's better. When do you need to leave?”

“Ten minutes ago.” Zayn sighed. “I'm going now. Please be punctual, I need you there.” He stayed in Louis’ embrace for another minute then pulled away reluctantly.

“I will be there in time, I'm picking up Harry on the way but I have a feeling he is the type of person who is rather twenty minutes too early than one too late.”

“Okay, see you there, babes. Can’t wait to meet your boy.” Zayn gave Louis a kiss on the head and off he went. “Not my boy!” Louis shouted after him, let himself fall back on the bed and took a deep breath. “Not yet,” he whispered to himself. After a minute, he decided to get up and start getting ready because one more minute on this bed and he would've fallen asleep.

+++

An hour later, he parked his car in front of Harry's building. Just as he arrived at the front door, a person exited the building, so Louis decided to go in and up to knock directly at Harry's apartment door.

After the first two knocks, he heard Harry running around on the other side of the door. “Just a sec.” He shouted and shortly after, the door opened and Harry stood at the door, topless and in just a pair of black skinny jeans with rips over the knees. His long hair fell in soft locks onto his shoulders and he had a tint of golden shimmer on his sharp cheekbones.

“Oh hi!” His face melted into a dimpled smile. “Didn’t we agree to meet at your car? How did you even get up here?”

“I’m sorry, there was a man leaving the building, so I just slipped in. Should I go downstairs again?” Louis backed away from the door, truly thinking he had done the wrong thing by coming up to his flat.

“No, god no, please come in! I was just surprised to see you up here. Come in!” Harry grabbed Louis’ arm with one of his big hands and pulled him in. “Just a minute! I’m nearly finished!” He said while rushing down a short hallway and disappeared in a room on the right. His bedroom, Louis assumed.

He stepped into the living room. It was very cosy, a big couch was positioned as a divider in the middle of the room facing the wall near the windows. Multiple shelves hung on the wall around a TV, filled with lots of books and other knickknacks, mostly souvenirs he assumed. Behind the couch there was a dining table, just big enough to host 4 people, soft leather stools were pushed underneath, 2 on each side. Picture Frames were cluttered on the wall on the right side of the room. Louis stepped closer to have a better look at them.

Most of them were of Harry with friends, one of a black and white cat and a few with an older brunette woman with a similar smile like Harry's. That had to be his mother. On another one there was also a younger woman with similar features. His sister? It seemed like Harry had a lot of fun in his life, just based on all the pictures in different places of the world, always surrounded by people. Louis was happy for him, his heart only growing bigger for the tall, soft man a few feet away.

Speaking of, Harry stepped into the room, now wearing a light golden button up matching with the shimmer on his cheeks. But he hadn't taken ‘button up’ too literally, because it was only halfway done. Not that Louis would mind. He even got a glimpse of the butterfly tattoo on his stomach.

“You look beautiful, darling.” Louis complimented, excited about the way Harry’s cheeks managed to pinken despite the golden blush.

“Thank you, you are not bad to look at yourself.” He winked, seemingly gaining his cockyness back, but it was gone as quick as it came, his movements stilling and he just looked in Louis' eyes with a sudden seriousness. Louis couldn’t do much but stare back at him, getting a bit relentless under Harry’s gaze. They took a minute to drink each other in, no words necessary. After a while, Louis shook himself out of whatever that was.

“Well, we should go. I promised Zayn to not be late. He’s extremely nervous tonight. Which is understandable since it is his first exhibit on his own.” Louis smiled and reached a hand out for Harry to grab, which he gladly did.

They took the stairs because it was just one floor to go down and left the building to go towards Louis’ car that he parked right at the kerb. He hurried to open the door on the passenger side for Harry, who smiled gratefully at him before getting in. He rounded the car and after getting in himself and belting up, he started the engine and drove off.

The drive to the exhibit was comfortable, they didn’t talk much, but Louis felt the other’s gaze on him more than once and he smiled to himself every time he caught him. After 20 minutes, they arrived at the venue but had to park a few streets away due to the lack of parking spaces in the area.

They were holding hands again while walking the short way over to where the exhibit was hosted. The venue was in a beautiful old building with exposed brick walls, metal railings in front of each window in the upper floors and an antique double door through which the two now walked in.

The room was not very spacious but big enough to host up to 200 guests and for Zayn to exhibit at least two dozen paintings. Those were hanging on all four walls of the venue as well as on partition walls that were situated throughout the room. Soft jazz music was playing over multiple boxes. Only a handful of people were there already, but the event had only just started. There was a gallery above them on the other side of the room with a glass bannister but there were no paintings on those walls and no people up there.

A few friends of Zayn had volunteered to be waiters for the evening, they were now walking around with trays of champagne glasses that they offered to the guests. One of them stood off to the side just inside the entrance, offering the champagne to the newly arrived.

“Here” Harry took two glasses, holding one of them towards Louis, who took it with a quiet ‘thank you.’ On their left was a small cloakroom where they gave their jackets to a nice woman in her mid-forties.

They clinked the glasses together with a fond look in each other's eyes and took a sip. It was good champagne. Louis knew it, he'd picked all the beverages for the evening himself. They didn't have a wine bar for nothing.

“Let's have a look around and then see if we can find Zayn. I want to introduce you properly this time.” Louis smiled devilishly at Harry, who, as expected, turned a little red, surely thinking about their first encounter.

They wandered off to the paintings on the left side of the room. In front of a very colourful piece, they stopped and admired it. Zayn’s style was a mix between spray and acrylic paint and the styles mixed together worked better than Louis had anticipated. This one was a scenery from a skate park, with graffiti on the walls and lots and lots of people skateboarding, chatting and of course spray painting. They tried to make out all the little details, which were insane before strolling to the next piece.

After a few more paintings, Louis saw Zayn standing with an older couple. They talked animatedly about the artwork that hung in front of them. His best friend looked great in his brown tailored trousers, the sky blue button up and the light brown jacket. He even went out of his comfort zone and got blonde streaks in his hair the day before. After a minute, he and the couple shook hands and Zayn gave them the best smile he owned. They left and Louis tugged Harry along towards the dark haired man.

“Looks like you got yourself a deal there.” Louis smiled brightly at his best friend. He was really happy for him, it was one step further to becoming the independent artist he wanted to be.

“Yeah, and they offered me an excellent price for it.” Zayn grinned mischievously while he stuck a little ‘sold’ sticker on the silver plaque under the painting.

“I'm really happy for you, mate!” Louis said. “Ah, now let me introduce you properly to my date. Harry, this is my best friend and partner in crime, Zayn Malik. Zayn, this is Harry Styles.” And with a nudge against Zayn's shoulder, he said. “Be nice.”

“I'm nothing if not nice, Lou.” Zayn had a sparkle in his eyes that left Louis suspicious of his intentions. “Hi Harry, it's really nice to meet you. Little Lou here won't shut up about you.” He winked at Harry and Louis tried to mentally stab him or cause him at least a big headache.

“Give me a break, I'm big!” Louis pouted and took a sip from his glass.

“Oh yeah, he is. I've seen it.”

Louis spat a bit of his drink out and turned to look at Harry with a shocked expression. Harry shrugged and took a sip himself, seemingly unbothered from the reactions to his statement. Zayn cackled out loud and held his stomach.

“Ohh I like him, Louis. You should keep him.”

Louis shook his head and searched around for a napkin. Harry took a hold of his wrist and said “I need to use the loo. I will look for a napkin on my way back.” He pressed a kiss to Louis’ cheek and wandered off. Louis touched the kissed skin with his fingertips, a stupid smile on his face. After a few seconds, he remembered that Zayn was still standing there and he looked over to him to see him eyeing him suspiciously.

“Cut it, Malik.” He sent a warning glare towards his friend, but he wasn't really mad.

They talked until Harry came back, a few napkins in his hand, like promised. Harry then started to ask Zayn questions about life as an artist, and Louis began to zone out. He knew all of it already. He opted for people watching over Zayn's shoulder instead.

“I'm sorry to bother you, are you the artist of the exhibit tonight? Zayn Malik?” Said a dark and low voice from behind Harry and Louis.

They both turned around to face a handsome man, slightly taller than Louis but not reaching the height of Harry. His brown hair was short and styled back, he had a trimmed beard and warm, brown eyes.

It was awfully quiet where Zayn was standing, so Louis turned around again to see his best friend standing there like a deer in the headlights, staring at the stranger. Louis chuckled and with an outstretched hand, he took a step towards the man. “Hi, I'm Louis Tomlinson, best friend and business partner of Zayn. I'm sure he will be able to introduce himself in a second.” He smirked.

The man grinned knowingly, a spark in his eyes as he took Louis’ hand but kept his gaze on Zayn. “Liam Payne. I'm a personal assistant and here on behalf of my boss to buy a painting as a gift for his parent's wedding anniversary. I actually already have a piece in mind…” He trailed off, waiting for a reaction from Zayn.

The latter seemed to have found his senses again, because he shook himself and stepped forward to greet the man properly.

Louis motioned for Harry to follow him and he left the two of them to their conversation. They took their time to look at more of the artwork, Harry in particular, was very fascinated by a painting of a cottage with a beautiful flowery garden. It was one of Zayn’s more “mature” works, if you could say so. It was an all acrylic painting but if you took a closer look it still had a few hidden trademarks of his usual work in it. Louis noticed that Harry could barely keep his eyes off it and made a mental note for a possible gift in the future.

“He really is a great artist. I hope that this evening pays off for him and that he will make a name in the art-world.” Harry whispered, still in awe about the painting in front of them.

Louis burst with pride at the kind words that Harry had for Zayn, when he was still a stranger to him. He watched Harry looking at the painting and something inside him stirred, a fluttering feeling right under his chest.

“He really is,” he said, clearing his throat. “His Ex-Girlfriend Perrie as well as me, always told him that his art is good enough to make a living off of it but he never believed either of us. I’m glad he finally sees his value.”

“Wait, his Ex-GIRLfriend?” Harry looked over to where Zayn was still obviously flirting with the handsome stranger. “I thought Zayn is gay?” He nodded towards them.

“No, Zayn doesn't really label himself, the most fitting would be pansexual. That's what he mentioned once. He doesn't really care about what's in other people's pants, it's the people he cares about.” Louis smiled fondly, looking over, too.

“Oh yeah, that actually makes a lot of sense.” Harry smiled, still looking towards the other side of the room. Louis watched him empty his champagne glass and put it down on one of the nearby standing tables. He turned around to face Louis, and he could see something flash over the face of the taller one. “You look really good tonight, Louis.” He complimented. “Very… hot actually.” He whispered the last words, looking around to see if anyone listened to their conversation. Suddenly his eyes went dark, his gaze drilling into Louis’ eyes. Louis had to blink a couple of times before he saw Harry taking a few steps forward until he was right beside him. Shoulders touching and felt him leaning closer. Harry's mouth was now only inches away from Louis’ ear. “Would you rather wait until you can take me home or will you let me blow you up there?” He whispered seductively.

Louis gulped, his heart rate picking up. “Where is ‘up there’?” He asked, taking a discreet look around the room.

“Just trust me and follow me in a minute.” Harry's flowery scent still lingered in the air, a ghost of his breath still at the nape of Louis’ neck, as he swirled around and slowly pranced his way through the groups of people standing around. He made his way towards the far corner of the room where a small staircase was tucked away. There seemed to be some sort of sign dangling from a chain, it was fastened to poles on either side of the staircase. As soon as Harry reached the chain, he took a look around to see if anybody besides Louis watched him, then sent a wink towards him and hopped over the chain. He was out of sight a second later.

Louis emptied his glass in one big gulp, took a deep breath and strolled off in the same direction. He watched the people around him but they were all in deep conversation or admiring one of the paintings, quietly discussing it. Zayn was nowhere to be seen, neither was the handsome assistant who stood with him earlier. Louis grinned at the thought of what the two could be up to. Zaun was always a bit too obvious with his intentions.

As he came closer, he read the sign on the chain. ‘No unauthorised access’ he sighed and without a second thought he stepped over the chain and hurried up the stairs.

As soon as he reached the upper level, he turned the corner and saw Harry leaning against the wall in front of him. It was some sort of alcove right before an opening that led to the gallery on Louis' right hand side.

Harry must have produced a hair tie from somewhere, because his hair was already up in a messy bun, a smirk tugging on the corner of his lips. Fucking menace. Louis took a deep breath and with 3 steps forward, his mouth found his way onto Harry’s.

They kissed lazily for a few minutes, while Louis let his hands wander under Harry’s shirt. He had easy access thanks to Harry’s aversion to actually buttoning them all the way. He dragged his fingertips over the delightful curves to the front and over all of the four nipples, perking up at the touch. Louis pinched the two main ones at the same time, which caused Harry to moan into the kiss. He felt Harry’s tongue sliding over his bottom lip, demanding entrance which he gratefully granted. After a little more kissing, Louis used one of his hands to gently bend Harry’s head to the side and started to leave a trail of kisses down the neck and over the collarbone. While he worked at a mark right on the front of Harry’s neck, he felt a hand searching his way down to palm Louis’ cock over his trousers.

Suddenly he was spun around at his waist and pressed against the wall and Harry was the one marking up his neck. Louis continued his exploration of the other’s body by letting his hands come around and grab that small perky ass of his. He pulled him in to finally get some needed friction for both of them. He let his waist move in circles, grinding against Harry’s crotch, producing the sweetest sounds out of the younger man.

Harry then backed up a little, which caused Louis to whine and pout but that was immediately washed away when he saw Harry falling down on his knees in front of him. Oh what a sight. He would never be tired of it.

He helped him to open his trousers and Harry pulled both them and his pants down to his ankles and suddenly he was in the same position as Harry a few days before in the woods. Louis chuckled at the thought, which caused a curious look from Harry. “Later,” Louis mouthed and motioned to his crotch, where his cock stood proud and ready, with a grin on his face. “You can continue.”

Harry nodded eagerly and took Louis’ cock in his hands, giving him a few tugs before he licked along the underside from the base to the tip, only to swirl it around before pushing the head into his mouth. He hollowed his cheeks and started bopping his head up and down. The loose curls framing his face bounced in the rhythm. Like Louis said, a sight to behold.

“How did you know that this place was here?” Louis whispered while holding back moans.

“I found it while I was searching for the bathroom earlier.” Harry grinned up at him before he put his mouth back around the tip of his leaking cock.

Louis threw his head back, biting on his fist in an attempt to keep quiet. He only partially succeeded. At least his moans were quiet enough to not be heard over the chatter of the 100 people and the music in the room beneath them. He could just pray that Zayn wasn't in one of the rooms on the other side of the gallery. Poor boy wouldn't survive a second encounter of this sort.

He buried both hands in Harry’s bun. Just to keep them there, but Harry stilled and looked up at him expectantly. “Why did you stop? Wait… what, really?” Louis moaned. Harry simply nodded as best as he could and put his own hand on Louis’ to encourage him. Oh god, Louis was about to faint. How was he meant to survive this man?

He took a sharp inhale and started to move his hips, only slightly thrusting into the warm wet heat of Harry’s mouth, just testing the waters. But Harry groaned and impatiently looked up again. He pulled off of him. “I’m not going to break, Louis, just fuck my mouth already.”

And with that he opened his mouth again in front of Louis’ cock and waited. With this encouragement, Louis didn’t hesitate anymore and took hold of Harry’s head again before thrusting in nearly all the way, hitting the back of his throat. The kneeling man let out a long guttural moan, pleasure shooting over his features. Damn, he really liked that. Louis let his hips rock back and forth, speeding up his thrusts, while tugging at Harry’s hair every time he pulled back. A sheen of sweat started to build on his forehead, the familiar heat started to coil in his abdomen.

He knew that he couldn't hold back much longer, so he picked up his tempo again and with a few more thrusts he came down Harry’s throat, who did his best to swallow all of it. Louis leaned back on the wall, giving himself a few seconds to catch his breath and to pull his pants and trousers back over his spent cock before he drew his attention back to Harry.

“Now stand up, babe. Let me take care of you” Louis grabbed Harry's hands and helped him to stand upright. His green eyes were glassy, pupils blown and his face slightly red. He met Louis’ eyes for just a second before he preferred to stare down at the floor.

Louis didn't think anything of it and wanted to reach for the other's pants, as Harry held him back and whispered. “It's okay, I've already… you know.” He motioned down with both hands and bit his lower lip, looking up at him again. His cheeks were now more flushed than 5 seconds ago.

“Oh my god, really? Oh my… where did you come from and why did it take me so long to find you?” Louis was stunned in the best way and pulled Harry in for a deep kiss. He could taste himself on Harry’s tongue which made it ten times hotter. It was hard for him to believe that he actually got the chance to meet this wonderful man and couldn’t wait for what the future would bring for the both of them.

“Thank god, you have black jeans on, darling. The stain is barely visible, and the shirt should hide it perfectly.” Louis smiled. He pulled on Harry’s shirt, making sure that it fell right.

“Now let’s head downstairs and look at the rest of the art. Then we can find Zayn and see if he will let us sneak away early.” Louis leaned in to whisper in Harry’s ear. “Maybe I could come up with you this time, because I’m not quite done with you yet.”

He could see the shiver that ran down Harry’s spine. He earned a flustered smile from him and a chaste kiss on the cheek. “I would like that.” he heard right next to his ear before Harry was gone, already at the stairs.

“Wait a bit and then come back down, I’ll wait around the corner in front of the paintings for you.” He whisper-shouted at Louis and hurried down the stairs.

Louis lingered around for a while before he made his way downstairs, too. Harry was waiting in front of the first painting that hung around the corner on the brickwall, just like he had said. He had another round of champagne in his hands for them and greeted him with one of his dimpled smiles. His eyes were still a bit glassy but at least his pupils were back to normal. They didn’t earn weird looks from the people around them, so he assumed nobody had heard them. It was a pity, really.

They didn't linger around for much longer, before they decided to track Zayn down, who magically appeared in the middle of the floor again, this time without the stranger, to say their goodbyes and head outside to make their way to Louis’ car.

+++

Louis parked once again directly in front of Harry’s building, they both held onto each other and giggled all the way inside and up to his flat. Harry fumbled with his keys for a second before he managed to open the door. They weren’t drunk but slightly tipsy and in a state where nearly everything was funny.

They left their shoes and coats at the door and went into the living room.

“Please, have a seat. Do you want to have a cup of tea, Louis?” Harry asked, still standing in the doorway.

“Yeah, that would be great, thanks.” He smiled warmly at Harry who spun on his heels and made his way to the kitchen. Louis walked over to the couch and let himself sink into the plush cushions. He sighed, letting his eyes fall shut. It was a very comfortable couch.

He startled awake as a gentle hand grazed his shoulder. He looked up and saw Harry standing over him, smiling down. Two cups stood on the coffee table in front of him.

He rubbed his eyes and sent an apologetic look towards Harry, who settled on the couch beside him. “I'm sorry, didn't mean to fall asleep. I'm awake now!” He cheered, reaching for his cup.

Louis took a sip from his tea, then cleared his throat, and turned to look at Harry. “Soo, can we talk a bit about this whole ‘I like the risk of someone seeing me while I do something sexual?’ thing? I can start if you want to.”

“Yeah please. You start. If I'm honest, these thoughts are kinda new to me and I would love to hear another perspective.” Harry responded and crossed his legs on the couch, facing Louis. He cradled his teacup in both hands and watched him intently.

“Hmm… okay… where do I start? You know how it is, when you masturbate but it's kinda taking forever to cum? One day I was in my room jerking off and I thought I was alone in the house, but my roommate came home early from visiting his parents and all of a sudden I heard him talking to someone right outside our door. The thrill of potentially getting caught made me finish within seconds. It was very intense and from that day on, even if I wasn't in the same situation, I always imagined that someone could walk in at any moment and the thought of it worked every time.” Louis finished, giving Harry time to think about what he said. He saw the wheels spinning in his head and sipped on his tea while he waited.

“That actually makes a lot of sense. I think I do that, too, but never really thought about it. It just happened.” Harry looked up at him with a half-smile. “But… I read a bit about it last week and all I saw were those creeps that flash their goodies at strangers. That's their kick. You are not one of them, are you?” Harry looked uncertain all of a sudden and started picking at his cuticles.

Louis smiled to himself, but he could understand where Harry’s worries were coming from.

“No, I'm not.” He lifted Harry's chin up. “There is a difference between a tendency to exhibitionism and exhibitionism disorder. The disorder is a mental health illness. Someone who likes to flash themselves at strangers in the street to shock and scare them against their will is disgusting. Compare that to people like us, who just like the idea of getting caught in inappropriate positions, the difference is we would never want to make other people uncomfortable or expose them to situations they didn’t consent to. I know Zayn caught us the first time we had sex but I know him and I knew he wouldn’t have been offended by what he saw otherwise I would have done everything in my power to stop him from walking in. There is nothing shameful about our desires and kinks as long as we are safe and respectful of others
.
I've heard of people that make pornographic films or become adult entertainers as a way of handling their kink.

So yes. I get a thrill from the thought that some random person could catch us, but in reality I don't actually want them to catch us. Like earlier at the venue, I wouldn't have minded if they heard us but I didn't want them to actually see us. I’ve never had a partner who was willing to explore my kinks more, especially regarding the possibility of having a consenting audience in a safe space watching us having sex. But honestly, I would really like to give it a try.” Louis’ cheeks pinkened lightly and he looked down at his cup. He wasn't afraid that Harry would think he's a freak but he also wasn't sure if he would desire something like that too. Having been rejected in the past due to his kinks, the disappointment would be too much to bear if Harry didn't feel the same.

Suddenly he had a lap full of Harry and felt his hands coming up to both sides of his head. He then got his face covered with little kisses.

“You don't need to be ashamed of what you like, Louis.” Harry said with a soft voice. “And I think… I think I want to try it, too.”

Louis’ eyes shot up to meet Harry's, finding nothing but sincerity in them. He had to blink a few times to keep the tears at bay.

“What? Really? You're not just saying that just to make me happy?” He asked cautiously.

“Yes, really! I always feared I was one of these freaks and I was scared to look into it further. But after your explanation, you’re right, I'm the complete opposite of them and I want to explore with you. But… let's start small. I don't want a whole ass audience to watch me yet.” He chuckled.

“Absolutely, darling. And we have to talk as soon as one of us is uncomfortable with what we're doing, okay?”

Harry nodded and gave him another kiss.

“And for now, I want to take you to bed and have good old vanilla sex. Just the two of us. Is that okay?” Louis deepened his grip on Harry's hips and searched for the answer in those endless green eyes.

“More than.” Harry leaned in to nuzzle against his neck, his loose locks tickling on Louis’ skin. “Please, take me to bed.”

That didn't need to be said twice and Louis managed to stand up with Harry still in his embrace. He let his arms slide under Harry’s thighs and he walked them down the hallway to Harry's bedroom, while Harry had his arms slung around him, holding on tightly.

As they reached the bed, he carefully put Harry down and immediately crawled over him, gently pushing him down to lay on his back. Louis took his time, unbuttoned the few buttons on Harry's shirt and let it fall open. He'd seen a lot of artwork this evening, but this was by far his favourite. After a minute of admiring, he bent down to claim Harry's mouth. He let his tongue glide over Harry's lips to demand entrance which was immediately granted. They kissed slowly while his hands explored the bare skin under him.

Louis kissed over Harry's chin down to his throat and all the way down to his belly. He licked around the belly button and mouthed on the little happy trail that led into Harry's trousers. With quick hands, he opened them and stood from the bed to chuck everything down at once and threw them in a random corner. Harry sat back up, freeing himself from his open shirt and watched Louis with a pout. “You have too many clothes on your body.” He complained.

Louis chuckled but got rid of his clothes within seconds and was back on top of Harry to continue his worshipping. He placed his forearms on both sides of Harry and started to slide their bodies together. The man underneath him was squirming delightfully when their cocks lined up and created the perfect amount of fraction. Louis nudged on the crook of Harry's neck who turned his head to give him more space so he could continue marking him up.

“Louis, please. I need you in me. Now.” Harry pleaded and groaned as Louis bit him playfully in the neck. “Ts ts, so impatient.” Louis tutted. “Where do you keep your stuff?” he asked, turning Harry's head by his chin, searching for his eyes.

“Nightstand, bottom drawer.” Harry continued squirming and Louis felt a hand sneak between them and a fist close around their cocks. He found what he was looking for and batted Harry’s sneaky hand away, backing up to kneel between long silky legs.

He coated his fingers and eased two of them gently into Harry. Louis watched Harry's face, scrunched in pleasure, his back arching away from the bed. After a few minutes, he pulled a condom on and laid down on top of Harry, one hand on his cock to guide himself into the now wet and warm heat that welcomed him willingly.

His thrusts were long and slow, while he whispered sweet nothings into Harry's ear. The hands of the man under him felt up and down his back in search of something to hold on to until they settled on his backside, pulling him further in with every thrust. Louis never felt so content during sex that wasn't kinky or quick or rough. It was everything.

They came together after what felt like a wonderful eternity of sparks and contentment. Louis let himself plop down on the bed beside Harry. Both took their time to catch their breath but their hands were still connected. Harry stood and left the room, but came back a minute later with warm washcloths.

After they wiped themselves down, they settled back into bed. Louis on his back and Harry tucked under his arm, head on his chest. They talked and cuddled and shared kisses for a little while.

But it didn't take long for Harry to fall asleep and Louis couldn't help himself. He took the opportunity to look at Harry's peaceful sleeping face for a bit. Only a little bit longer, then he would sneak out from under him to make his way home. Only 5 more minutes.

+++

Louis woke up from a ray of sunshine that fell through the slightly open curtains and shining bright in his eyes. He was disoriented for a second until he felt the weight of another body on him.

Harry's upper leg was bent at the knee and rested on Louis’ thighs, while his arm laid across his chest, hand draped over the left corner of his chest tattoo.

Did he really fall asleep? That wasn't planned, but he had to admit that it was the best sleep he had had in a very long time. He always slept better if he could share the bed with someone, so this wasn't really a surprise.

He looked down at the sleeping figure on his chest, he could feel the puffs of air brushing over his bare chest with every exhale of Harry. His bladder alarmed him to get up and he carefully shimmied his way out from under Harry. The younger man didn't wake up, just pressed the side of his face further into the pillow on Louis’ side.

He tiptoed quietly through the hallway in search of the bathroom. After he found it, he quickly washed himself with one of the guest towels that were rolled and neatly tucked in a container next to the sink. Since he didn't know if Harry had a spare toothbrush, he decided to skip brushing his teeth and wait until he was home. His hair was a mess, there was not much he could do about it at the moment.

Back in the bedroom, Harry had his head still buried in the pillow. Louis searched for his clothes and put them on as quietly as he could. He felt bad for sneaking out, but they never agreed that Louis would spend the night. And if he's able to slip out without Harry waking up, it wouldn't be weird between them.

His shoes were still laying near the entry, so he took a last look at Harry, fonding for a second. Then he turned around and walked towards the bedroom door again. Just as he went to pull it open…

“Where do you think you're going?’ A low raspy voice said from behind him. Fuck. What the… That was his morning voice? Ohhhh Louis was so fucked.

He turned to face Harry, who was now propped on one elbow, his hand under his head. He had sleepy eyes and a frown on his face. “I'm sorry, I accidentally fell asleep and I didn't want it to be weird this morning so I just…” He didn't finish the sentence while he thumbed over his shoulder toward the door.

“It's not weird, and I didn't mind that you fell asleep. Otherwise I would have woken you up three hours ago when I got up to use the bathroom. Now come back to bed, you are warm and I want cuddles.” God, this voice. Louis had his shirt off before Harry had finished the sentence. He got rid of his trousers but kept his pants on and crawled back under the covers that Harry held up for him.

As soon as he had laid down, Harry turned around and pulled Louis flush behind him by his arm. Louis didn't mind. He liked to be the big spoon. Not that he had to compensate for his size or something. It just felt nice to wrap himself around another body. Something like that.

“You really don't mind that I stayed the night? When do you have to start work? I'll be out of your hair by then.” Louis babbled.

“Lou, relax. I don't mind a bit. I quite like waking up next to you. If you would've been in bed.” A quiet laugh made Harry's body vibrate. “And I can work whenever I want. I'm my own boss, remember? As long as I don't have any meetings scheduled, I can do whatever I want to do with my time.” He turned his head around and made a kissy face.

Louis grinned, he lost the plot somewhere after Harry called him by his nickname. It sounded good with his sleep-driven voice. Something he could get used to…

“No kissy, darling. Morning breath. I didn't know if you had spare toothbrushes and I didn't want to search your personal stuff for one.” Louis gently squeezed Harry's hip.

Harry pouted, but only for a second, then let his head fall back on the pillow and just snuggled even closer to Louis. “Okay 5 more minutes and then we will go and brush our teeth, and take a shower. I’m still a bit sticky.” Louis couldn’t see it, but he could sense the cheeky smile on his face.

They managed to get out of bed a bit later than the 5 minutes, okay more like 20 but nobody was counting. Harry rummaged in the cupboard under the sink and retrieved a second toothbrush that he handed over to Louis. He was still naked as the day he was born, he seemingly wasn’t one to be comfortable in clothes for too long.

When they were finished rinsing their mouths, Harry started the shower and simply bent down to push Louis’ pants down and off him and dragged him in the shower with him. The water had a pleasant temperature and the shower was big enough that they could easily switch to stand under the shower head. They shared lazy kisses and used Harry’s body wash that smelled like beach and coconuts, to wash each other's bodies. This led into hotter kisses and touching in private places, which led to a full making out session and quick handjobs. Louis enjoyed Harry’s hand that was wrapped around both of their cocks, creating a blissful friction and it didn’t take long for both of them to spill their come over Harry’s hand.

After another rinse to get rid of their body fluids, Louis grabbed the shampoo that stood next to the bottle with the body wash and motioned Harry to turn around. He started to gently massage the shampoo in the other’s scalp, who melted under the touch. Harry hummed contently and after Louis rinsed the shampoo out, he returned the favour.

After they towelled themselves dry, Harry vanished out of the bathroom and returned a minute later wearing black boxer briefs and handed Louis a pair of similar black boxer shorts to wear.

He pressed a sweet kiss on Louis’ mouth. “Can I make you breakfast?”

“Sure, but only if you let me help.” Just because he couldn't cook, didn't mean he was totally useless in the kitchen. “I make an excellent cuppa!” He beamed.

“That's settled then, you make the tea, I'll make the food.”

After they shared breakfast, Louis helped clean up and they settled on the couch to watch a series and cuddle for a bit, before Louis had to go to work. It all felt very domestic, something Louis could really get used to.

When it was time for Louis to go, he hesitated. It was hard to leave the comfort that Harry provided him. However he knew that this wasn't the last time and therefore they shared a few more kisses on the doorstep before Louis headed out to his car.

+++

Louis didn’t have the time to go home before he needed to be at the bar, but thankfully he always had a spare set of clothes stored away in his office. So the first thing he saw when he got home after his shift was Zayn, standing in the doorway to the living room with both hands propped against his hips.

“Where were you this morning? Did you stay at Harry’s? Why didn’t you text me? You could've been hurt or something.” Zayn huffed, his forehead crinkled.

“Mom, what are you doing here?” Louis mocked, pinching Zayn’s cheek while he squeezed past him to let himself fall backwards on the couch over the armrest.

He let out a long content sigh. “Yes, I stayed at Harry’s. Well, it was not planned, I fell asleep while we cuddled after… you know…”

Louis propped himself up on his elbows, smirking at Zayn. “And I wanted to sneak out in the morning to not make it weird that I accidentally stayed the night, but he woke up and told me to stay. We had a nice morning and I forgot the time. It was too late to stop by here, so I went straight to the bar for my shift.”

“Sounds great, man! You really like him, eh?” Zayn had a warmth in his voice and in his eyes that Louis was thankful for.

“Yeah… I really like him. Is it too early to say that? It possibly is. But I don't care. He is such a gentle and caring soul. And his skills in cock-sucking are great, too.”

Zaun nearly toppled over from laughing, he seemingly hadn't expected the 180 that Louis took with his description.

Louis smirked, waiting for Zayn to catch his breath. “But jokes aside, I really think he could be it, Zayn. He even has the same… preferences. I never thought I would find someone who likes to be exposed to others as much as I do. But we had a really long conversation about it and we definitely want to explore it more.”

“Glad to hear that, mate. I'm really looking forward to hearing more about it!” Zayn stood up to grab some pamphlets from the coffee table. “Now, should we order Pizza or Chinese?"

They ended up ordering chinese and after they ate and emptied a few bottles of beer, they settled on the couch to play FIFA. After his third round of winning, Louis suddenly remembered something. He put his controller down and turned to face his friend.

“So tell me Zayn, did you get the number of that sexy assistant you talked to yesterday? What was his name again?”

“His name is Liam. And yes I got his number. And also a

number

.” Zayn ducked his head, his cheeks suspiciously pink. He smiled like a madman, too.

“Zain Javadd Malik! Did you get laid last night by a stranger you met 5 minutes before?” Louis' eyes widened with a faux expression, his hands pressed to his chest.

“As if you never did that.” Zayn gave him a pointed look. Well played. There was a time in his life where he would go home with a stranger more often than not, but to his defence, that was ages ago. He had changed a lot since then. Well, at least since Harry walked into his bar.

“Okay, okay. Was it worth it? Was he good?” Louis wiggled with his eyebrows, a grin splitting his face. “Are you going to see each other again or was it a one off?”

“Not that it's any of your business, but yes. It was one of the best lays I've had in a very long time. And yes we'll see each other at the weekend. We texted a bit today but before you get too excited, it is only casual. We both don't have the time to invest in a proper relationship so we decided that we should leave it at that.”

“Well, you are both adults. If you think that's the best way then enjoy it while it lasts.” Louis smiled, hugging his best friend sideways. He gave him a kiss on the temple before he got shoved away with a ‘off me you sap.’

They played another few rounds before they decided to settle under a blanket and watch a movie. Halfway through it, they both fell asleep on the couch, legs tangled together. These were Louis’ favourite evenings.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🧘🏻‍♀️🎀
It's been 48 hours give or take since he said goodbye to Louis. And he missed him. Even if they texted a lot since then, he still missed him, his presence and his warmth. And since their talk about kink exploration, Harry knew that he was already in deep. Nobody had ever given him a safe space to explore what he would like in bed. He had more than once used his time before falling asleep fantasising about things he wanted to try, which often led to a self-love session, cause the fantasies always made him horny. This, with Louis, was a good thing. He trusted him and he wanted to try all the things with him. It should scare him really, but he felt nothing but excitement for what's to come and a lot of stupid butterflies that made themselves a permanent home in his stomachHe tried to ignore them by putting music on as loud as he could without disturbing the neighbours and danced his way through the kitchen while he prepared vegetables and a bit of chicken (only for Louis) for dinner this evening. He had invited Louis over so he could cook something proper for him, knowing that the man mostly lived off of takeaway and frozen meals.After he put the diced carrots and bell peppers in containers and the pre-cut chicken on a plate, he placed them in the fridge and went to the bathroom for a quick shower.He was supposed to meet Niall in an hour and his impromptu concert slowed down his process of getting ready immensely.Harry met his best friend in front of the shopping centre where Niall said he wanted to go, he needed a new outfit for his first meeting with Shawn's parents. Despite dating for over 7 months now, Niall never got the chance to meet them in person other than a few Videochats. They still lived in Canada and with Niall's job, he wasn't able to join the trip with Shawn in spring to visit them.They recently made their way over to London to stay for a few days before visiting other places in Europe and he was beyond nervous. Harry did everything he could to keep his best friend somewhat calm.After 5 different shops, Harry declared that they needed a break and went over to a small food stand to buy sandwiches and cold drinks for both of them. They sat down on a bench under a tree and did some people watching.It had become rare these days that the two of them had some quality time together, Niall was very occupied with learning all about the family business from his father and of course, there was his boyfriend, too. Harry would never complain about that, he supported his best friend as best as he could and was happy every time they could meet up.Harry nudged his best friend. “You look a bit tired, babe. Is everything alright?”“Yeah, I think so.” Niall sent him an exhausted smile. “It’s all a bit much these days. My job within the company is hard. I’m really trying to learn everything I need, but I have the feeling that, for my father, I’m not doing it well enough or fast enough or whatever. Then the visit of Shawn’s parents. Don’t get me wrong, I love him to bits, but he drives me crazy with this. Everything needs to be perfect and neat and I just want a week somewhere alone where no one bothers me.” He put the sandwich aside and buried his face in his hands with a groan. “I sound like a horrible person right now, don't I?”Harry sighed, putting an arm around over Niall's shoulders. “You are not a horrible person, Ni. You just have a lot on your plate right now and I totally get that it all can get a bit too much at times. Have you tried talking to your dad about the pressure? I’m sure it’s not as bad as it seems. You always tell me what a great father he is and that he always supported you. Maybe it would help if you tell him how you're feeling. And in regards to Shawn, seems like he is extremely nervous about the visit too? Has he never brought boys home before?”Niall straightened up and took a sip from his can. “I don’t know. It seems like my father has been under a lot of pressure himself the last few months, he never talks to me about it. I barely see him when I’m in the office. He’s always in meetings or out for appointments. Everything I know, I learn mostly from one of his assistants. And no, Shawn has brought other boys home before, but with the move to London and his own flat and everything, I guess it’s just different and he always tells me how serious he is with me and talks a lot about the future.” Niall’s gaze went a bit dreamy and Harry had to bite back a laugh.Niall was always dreaming about his future and his dream wedding with his prince on a white horse. It seemed like he might actually get that in the near future.After a few more shops, countless outfit changes and honest opinions from Harry, Niall found something he was satisfied with. They left the shop after Niall paid for the clothes and were heading out of the shopping centre, towards the car park when they passed a shop that made Harry stop in his tracks. “Oh, wait, Niall, I want to go in here,” and he pulled Niall into a cute boutique that sold lingerie.Niall groaned but agreed, he himself had forced Harry in enough boutiques today so he shouldn't be the one to complain.Harry had long ago given up being embarrassed about buying women's underwear and lingerie in public for himself. He was used to the weird looks he got from the salespeople and other customers. Some days he wouldn't even bother to correct them when somebody asked him if he would buy it for his girlfriend.He wanted to buy something special to surprise Louis with and it would also be the perfect opportunity to talk to him about his feminine side. Louis had already noticed a few things on him that weren’t typically masculine but he hadn't seen him in a skirt or dress yet. He was nervous to talk to him about his fluid gender identity but on the other hand, he was sure that Louis would take it well.This was actually one of his favourite shops, they had a great selection and the shop assistants were actually all really nice to him. He looked through the clothes rail of different bralettes and further down where the sets were hanging. Niall was off to the mens section to buy a new set of boxers for himself.Harry found a few things that he liked and wandered off to the changing rooms. He gestured to Niall where he was headed and closed the curtain of the small cubicle behind him.After trying on a few things, he decided on a baby blue bralette made of silk with beautiful lace in the form of a butterfly on the back. The cups were shaped in a way that gave the illusion of him having a bit of cleavage. There was a pair of matching silk panties too. A thin lace framed them, cutting high enough on the backside to show off his dainty buttcheeks.He couldn’t wait to show it to Louis, maybe this evening… for sure this evening. It would be a great starter for the conversation he had planned.When they arrived at their cars, Harry pulled Niall in for a long hug. “You know you can call me anytime when it gets too much, okay? Now go and have fun with your parents in law.” He pinched him on the butt and waved him goodbye before he got in the car and drove off.+++Louis arrived on time and Harry skipped to the front door to push the buzzer for the main entrance. Rocking on his feet, he waited patiently behind the door until he heard the knock on the wood. He ripped the door open and fell into Louis’ arms who huffed in surprise before looping his arms around Harry’s waist.“Hey babe, did you miss me?” He chuckled and Harry let him go but pulled him in by the hand before closing the door. “Very much” Harry confirmed between the kisses he left on Louis’ face.“Come on in, food is ready in five minutes. Do you want wine?” Harry called, he was already on his way back to the kitchen, leaving Louis in the hallway.He stirred the sauce one last time and was tasting it with a small spoon, when Louis embraced him from behind and pressed a kiss on his neck. “Hmmm… smells good, love. Can I help with something?”“Yes actually, can you open the wine bottle and pour it into the decanter? Corkscrew is in the top drawer to your right. Thank you.”Harry finished serving up the food and carefully brought the plates over to the living room and placed them on the dining table. He had already lit a few candles, on and around the table which created a lovely atmosphere but it was still bright enough to eat without switching another light on.Paolo Nutini was singing softly over the speakers near the TV and the conversation between them flowed easily while they enjoyed the food.After they washed up and cleaned the kitchen, they settled on the couch with another glass of wine.“Darling, you know how I told you about the volunteer work I attend every Sunday?” Harry nodded. “Do you want to come with me to see the kids tomorrow morning?”Harry jumped excitedly up and down. “Of course I want to come with you! I can't wait to see what it's like. And maybe I can help? Playing games with the kids or reading to the littlest!” His mind was already spinning with ideas.Louis grinned at him. “I'm sure the kids will love you. And we will find something for you to do, if you want to help. Now come sit down and cuddle with me. I've missed you so much.”He didn't need to be told twice before he threw himself at Louis and attacked his mouth. After sharing a few lazy kisses, Harry put on a random series that they both already knew, so that they wouldn't miss anything if they weren't looking at the TV all the time…After a while, Harry knew it was time. He had thought this conversation through and well, here it went. He took a deep breath.“I wanted to talk to you about something. After our talk last time, I realised that it's easy to talk to you about stuff that makes me uncomfortable, so I think I should be honest with you…” He could see fear blooming in Louis’ eyes, so he added. “Before you freak out, it has nothing to do with you, you did nothing wrong, relax.” He grinned.“This is about me, and who I am. I want to show you a big part of me and I am actually a bit scared of how you will take it.”He could see Louis start to relax his shoulders, nerves still visible at what Harry might say next.“I mean, as long as you are not a criminal or doing any other illegal stuff, it's hard to believe that anything could scare me off, darling.” Louis put a hand on Harry's thigh, which instantly relaxed him, too.“Okay, so. I don't actually know how to start this, therefore I want to show you something first and then talk again, alright?”Louis nodded, and Harry took both of their glasses and put them on the coffee table before he moved to straddle Louis’ lap.“Hi,” he breathed and started to unbutton his shirt, which atypical for him, he had buttoned with only one to spare. He could see the realisation about what he was wearing in Louis’ eyes with every button he opened until he let the shirt fall down his back.Louis gulped and let his fingers hover over the silky material. His eyes raked over every inch of his chest. Harry felt like he was standing under a spotlight but he loved the attention. And based on Louis' gaze, he knew that his reaction was what he hoped for.“Oh darling, you look breathtaking. Can I touch?” Louis asked, finally looking up to meet Harry's eyes.“Of course, you can always touch me, Lou.” He felt his cheeks pinken up and he grabbed one of Louis’ hands to distract himself. He brought his hand to his back to let him feel the lace of the butterfly. Louis’ eyes widened and he looked around him to catch a glimpse of his back.“Absolutely gorgeous. Was that what you were worried about showing me, babe? Because I absolutely love it!” Louis was still exploring the bralette.Harry giggled before he cleared his throat and let his gaze fall down. “Well yes, but that's not all. I… I actually like to wear feminine clothes, like skirts and dresses and stuff.” He nervously tucked a loose strand of hair behind his ear. “I see myself as some sort of genderqueer. I don't feel the need to change anything about my body or my pronouns. I like how my body looks. I just want to feel pretty on some days, more feminine, and that's when I wear these types of clothes.” He took a deep breath and looked up to see nothing but adoration in Louis’ eyes and his own eyes immediately teared up in relief.Louis brought one of his hands up to wipe away an unshed tear. “Whatever makes you happy, makes me happy too, darling. I see nothing wrong in wanting to wear feminine clothes. I bet you look stunning in a dress and I can't wait to see that.”Harry barely let him finish speaking before he urged forward to kiss him. “Thank you so much. You don't know what that means to me.”Harry settled back down on the couch but he stayed pressed up on Louis’ side, one arm of his lover over his shoulders. He covered them in a blanket since it was a bit cold with nothing but the bralette on his upper half. They settled on watching a rom-com and emptied the bottle of wine. After that, Harry took Louis to his bedroom where he showed him the rest of the outfit.+++Harry was woken up by raindrops drumming against his bedroom window. He groaned and glanced at his phone. He still had 2 hours before the alarm would go off. He turned back around and tightened his hold on Louis, trying to snuggle deeper into his chest. The other was still sleeping calmly. His chest heaving under Harry’s head with every inhale.He listened to the rain pouring down. Normally that would calm him and he would instantly fall asleep but he was a bit nervous about their visit this morning. After half an hour of trying to fall asleep again, he decided to get up and at least be a bit productive. Careful not to wake Louis, he dressed in one of his silky robes and tiptoed out of the bedroom and into the kitchen.After restless minutes of pacing around the kitchen, an idea formed in his head and he was determined to make it happen. He quickly collected all the stuff he needed and put it in various bags. After that he decided that there was enough time to make a full English breakfast, too. Just as he finished loading the food on the plates, a sleep ruffled Louis walked into the kitchen, just in his boxers.Still with the pan and the spatula in his hands, Harry just stood there and admired his b… Louis. He admired Louis. Harry shook his head and quickly turned around to put the pan into the sink, trying to hide his thoughts and his pink cheeks.“Good morning, darling. Why are you already up? And what are those bags out in the hallway that I nearly broke my neck, while stumbling over?” He rubbed his eyes with both hands while simultaneously rubbing the underside of his left foot on the top of his right one and wasn't that the cutest sight ever.“The rain woke me up and I couldn't fall asleep again. So I decided to pack a few things to keep the kids entertained and make breakfast for us.” Harry loaded up the plates and placed one on the breakfast bar in front of Louis.He rounded the bar and placed a kiss on Louis’ cheek. “Why don't you go and put something on that unfairly hot body, before I lose all my decency and let you fuck me right here in the kitchen.”Louis’ eyes widened and he saw his throat bob, mouth falling open. Harry couldn't hold his amusement and burst out in a loud laugh. He pinched the still shocked Louis in the butt and gave him a little slap on top of it. “Now go while I make us some tea.”After breakfast, they took turns in the bathroom and dressed themselves in comfy but decent clothes. Then they hurried through the rain to Louis’ car. After loading all of Harry's bags in, they drove off towards the Youth House.They arrived shortly after 10 am and Harry hoped that Louis couldn’t sense how nervous he actually was. This was a very important part of Louis’ life and Harry wanted to be the best version of himself. He was usually great with kids, but you never know. Some of them had had a hard time in their short lives and not all of them trusted strangers easily. Which was understandable.They crowded together under one umbrella as they hurried from Louis' usual parking spot to the garden door, which he opened with his key. They made their way over to the double glass terrace door and Louis knocked loudly on the frame. Chatter could be heard from inside which intensified as a woman opened a door to the hallway and smiled as she saw Louis standing outside.
“Hello Louis. That's really bad weather you bring with you today, but I see you also bring a ray of sunshine.” At these words she looked at Harry with a huge smile and friendly eyes. He liked her immediately.Louis also looked at him before he cleared his throat and introduced them. “ Harry, this is Eloise, she is the home director. Eloise, this is my b… friend Harry. He is here to help me a bit today.” Oh would you look at that, it happened to Louis too and Harry wasn't a ray anymore but the whole goddamn sun.Harry turned Elise's offer for a handshake down and pulled her in for a hug instead.“It's nice to meet you, Eloise! Louis’ told me lots of wonderful things about this place.” He smiled at her and took a look around. “How can I help?”Elise laughed. “I like enthusiastic people.” She winked at Louis. “Can you cook? One of our kitchen fairies couldn't make it, she's sick.”Harry clapped his hands together happily. “Yes I can! Where is the kitchen?”Elise showed him to the kitchen and introduced him to the other “fairies.” He helped them prepare the food for lunch while Louis was god knows where.He did come visit right before food was ready though to steal bits here and there and to steal kisses when the women weren’t watching.There were more kids than Harry imagined and it made him sad to see that so many weren't welcome at home because of who they identified as, but the more he watched them, the more he saw how happy they were here. Everyone had a smile on their face and the older kids helped the younger ones with the chores they were assigned to.After lunch, he, Louis and Eloise stood together once again to plan the activities for the afternoon. Harry then remembered that he still had the bags in the car and hurried off to grab them.When he returned he whispered in Eloise's ear so the kids wouldn't hear him and asked for permission to use the kitchen. She nodded and patted Harry's cheek. “That's really nice of you. The children will be very happy.”Harry turned and wandered off to a group of kids. “Who wants to bake some cookies?” He asked loudly. There was an instant screaming of excitement and soon he was surrounded, questions and statements flying towards him from every direction. He turned around to see Louis and Eloise standing there, watching them with big smiles on their faces. He winked at Louis and let himself be led to the kitchen by a little girl named Lily, the rest of the crowd following them on their heels.He showed the older ones how to make the dough and helped the younger ones with theirs. Lily was plastered to his side, never leaving him for one second. He didn't mind. She was a sweet girl. She told him that she was four and that her favourite animal was a frog. Louis walked by at this moment and seemed to have overheard them because he muttered under his breath “Oh that's why she won't leave your side.”Harry looked after him, confused. But Louis just sprinted off, gambling before Harry realised what he just said. He shook his head and turned to Lily, and crouched down in front of her. “Lily, darling. Do you think I look like a frog?” He asked her with a serious expression.Her eyes widened and she responded. “No Harry, I think you look like a beautiful princess…. A frog princess.” She giggled into her fists and darted off just like Louis did. However she had short legs and Harry reached her after a few metres, starting to tickle her until they both fell to the ground, holding their bellies because they were laughing so hard.Harry wiped away some tears and saw Louis standing over them, hands on his hips, shaking his head.Harry stood up, moved over towards the flour, grabbed some and returned to dump it over Louis’ head. “You sir, are a bad influence for these kids.”The laughter intensified again and the rest of the afternoon went by in a finger snap. After they finished baking multiple trays of cookies (and burned only some of them), the whole group wandered over to the big living room where Harry beckoned the kids to sit in a half circle in front of him on the floor. He situated himself on the couch and started reading books to them while they all happily munched on their cookies. The older children sat a bit further in the back but were still listening to what Harry read, meanwhile Louis was outside with some of the teenagers, playing footie.There were a few tears when they said their goodbyes to the children but Harry promised them that he would visit again and soon all eyes were dry again and the pair got in the car and drove home.Later that evening, Harry and Louis were cuddled up in Harry's bed again and reliving the day.“Thank you for taking me with you, Lou,” Harry linked his arm with Louis’ and put his head on the other’s shoulder for a second. “What you’re doing for the kids there… it's so important and I really want to help out a bit in the future, if that’s okay with you?”He lifted his head and saw Louis smiling at him. “Of course, babe. The kids loved you and we need all the help we can get. Thank you.” Louis chased his lips for a short peck. “Good night, darling.”“Good night, Lou.”+++Harry was excited for his Thursday night yoga lesson. He felt like he needed it a little extra today. The only sad thing was that he couldn't go his usual way and pass the wine bar because he went straight to the studio after an out of house appointment with a possible new client. He would go past there on his way home though, so that was good.The session was, as expected, perfect and Harry was just the right amount of exhausted.After the shower (thankfully with no other people around again) he dressed and made his way home, quietly whistling to himself.The butterflies in Harry’s stomach intensified the closer he was to the bar. It was silly, he wasn't even going in, but the anticipation of just seeing Louis was enough to spark his nerves. As he arrived at the first big window, he took a glance inside. It was busy tonight, which made Harry smile. He was happy for Zayn and Louis, that the bar was doing so well.When he walked past the second window, his eyes caught Louis’, who instantly stood straight upright and waved enthusiastically at him. Harry bit back a grin and waved back, no less enthusiastically.Later that evening, Harry had just settled with a book and tea on the couch, when his phone rang. It was still in his tote bag that he had mindlessly thrown in the corner when he came home from his yoga session. He got up and went over, bending down to grab it from his bag and just as he pressed the green button to answer his foot got stuck in one of the handles and he stumbled a few feet forward, his phone falling out of his hands and onto the floor.“Darling?” Harry heard from the speakers. He rushed down to pick his phone up and held it to his ear.“Yes, hey hi, sorry. I somehow lost control over my legs and my phone fell to the floor,” he giggled. “Hey Lou, how are you? How was work?”“Babe, you need to be more careful with those Bambi legs,” Louis chuckled through the speaker. “I'm alright. Work was good. Had a lot of customers again! It's really going great at the moment.”Harry could sense his excitement and it melted his heart. It was not the first time that he started to put Louis’ happiness before his own. That man deserved the whole world.“There is another reason why I'm calling besides hearing your beautiful voice,” Louis pulled him out of his thoughts. “Zayn was here earlier and we thought we could all go out on Saturday. Including Niall and Shawn if they want to. What do you think?”“That's a great idea. It has been too long since I was on the dance floor.” Harry was mentally already planning his outfit. “I'll ask Niall tomorrow, but I'm sure they're in!”He hesitated for a moment.
“Lou? Would it be okay if I wear a dress? I always wanted to wear one in a Club but I always feared it would be a bit too much, given I was alone most of the time I went to one. Not totally alone, Niall was with me, but… you know… without a partner.” He was glad that Louis couldn’t see his face right now, burning from mentioning the word partner out loud.“Of course you can wear a dress, darling. If that's what makes you happy then I strongly encourage it.” Harry could hear the smile in Louis’ voice and that was the moment he fell, deep. But not physically.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🍷🚬

Louis and Zayn arrived at the Club ten minutes early and waited in front of it for the others to arrive. Liam had already called ahead and informed them that he would arrive a bit later because he had to finish something up at work.

It was a fresh evening but not too cold. Louis was dressed in black jeans with rips over the knees and a simple black T-Shirt. He wore a thick denim jacket with a white fluffy lining over his shirt. His feet tucked in a pair of worn out vans. Without socks, of course. Zayn was dressed similarly but had a leather jacket on instead of a jeans one.

They share a cigarette, blowing smoke into the cold night air. Zayn just handed him back the fag as he looked over Louis’ shoulder, his eyes growing wide, mouth going slack. He nudged Louis and put a hand on his shoulder to spin him around and bring his attention to whatever was behind them.

“You lucky bastard,” Zayn muttered and Louis felt thunderstruck. It took all his willpower not to faint the moment he laid eyes on Harry.

He radiated confidence, strutting beside Niall in heeled boots, his long legs covered in patterned tights, a dark blue dress peeking out under his black tailored coat that he left open. The dress ended mid-thighs and seemed to sparkle under the street lights. His hair looked extra soft, the long locks bouncing with every step, framing his beautiful face.

Oh god, his face. He had a hint of pink blush on his cheeks, combined with dark blue eyeshadow, not too much though, and maroon lipstick. A small black purse hung from his right forearm, swaying softly with every move. Louis’ mouth went dry and he needed to clear his throat more than once to be able to speak again.

He suddenly felt very underdressed in the presence of the goddess that now stood in front of him.

“Darling you look breathtaking,” he complimented, taking a closer look at Harry who was now standing right in front of him.

“And he means it literally. Didn't breathe for a good minute there.” Zayn chuckled amused from behind him.

Louis shot daggers at his best friend but took it with humour. “Mate, I remember that you saw him first and your jaw was nearly on the ground.”

“Can you blame me? He looks fantastic.” Zayn shrugged and turned to focus his attention on introducing himself to Niall.

Harry looked very amused at the conversation between them and leaned forward to press a chaste kiss on Louis’ cheek. A hint of the same flowery perfume that he already detected at the exhibit wavered in the air again.

“You look great, too.” Harry took Louis’ hand in his and pulled him towards the entrance. “Let’s go in, boys. I’m freezing my balls off in this dress.” He chuckled, opening the front door of the Club.

The Club was a decent size, not too big. There were lots of booths lined on the left and right sides framing a spacious dancefloor and on the far end was a long bar that stretched over nearly the whole wall. There were already a few people dancing to the rhythmic beats of the music.

The four of them made their way over to an empty booth on the left hand side. Harry and Niall immediately went over to the bar to get some drinks for them while Louis and Zayn watched the people on the dancefloor.

“Niall, where is your better half? I looked forward to meeting him tonight, too.” Louis asked as the two men returned with their beverages. The absence of the blonde’s boyfriend didn't go unnoticed.

“Yeah he would've loved to come, too. But his parents are leaving on Monday again and they wanted to have a last family evening with everyone.” Niall shrugged. “He will join us next time.”

The conversation flowed between them as if they had all been friends for a long time already. Zayn and Harry had bonded over the more artistic topics, which Harry seemed to be very interested in. Niall was an easy going person, always a joke on his lips and Louis thought that there was nothing in the world that could ruin the good mood the blonde boy was constantly in.

“Ahh there he is, the man of the hour.” Zayn announced kindly, sliding out of the booth to welcome the man that had just approached them.

“Harry, Niall. This is Liam…”

“No way!” Niall screamed from where he was sitting, scrambling out of the booth and throwing an arm over Liam's shoulder. “What are you doing here, mate?”

Zayn, feeling confused, looked from one man to the other and then over to Louis and Harry who were in the same state. “Erm … what's going on?”

Liam chuckled. “Zayn, Niall is my boss. I'm his PA. He is the one I bought the painting for. And Niall, this is the man I told you about.”

“The world is a shoebox and I'm wondering why we didn't puzzle the pieces together earlier.” Louis laughed, handing Liam a beer that they had already ordered for him. “Let's toast to all the little coincidences.” He announced, raising his glass and waiting for the other's to join in.

It didn't take long for them to shake off the confusion and clink their glasses together, falling into an animated conversation again.

When the opening notes to “Girls just wanna have fun” started, Harry clapped his hands together excitedly and pulled one after the other onto the dancefloor. Some easily, some needed more convincing. Louis was the latter. He wasn’t very good at it nor did he like dancing in particular. But it was Harry, so he said yes. And it was fascinating to watch him.

Harry looked utterly beautiful, swaying his hips to the music, the hem of his dress flowing around his body like it was made out of water. Louis reached out a hand, waiting for Harry to grab it so he could spin him towards himself. Close enough for their hips to touch, they continued moving to the rhythm, one of Harry’s sinfully long legs wrapped in dark stockings positioned itself between Louis’ legs, and if he didn't know better, he would think that this leg was purposefully rubbing over his crotch in slow motion.

He let his hands wander over both sides of Harry’s waist to come to rest on his hip bones. They stayed like this for a while until Louis noticed that Harry got squirmier with every second passing. He looked up to find the younger’s lips between his teeth, his eyes shining and pupils blown. Louis had felt his erection through the dress for a while but only now realised how far gone his boy already was.

He brought his hand up to cup Harry’s neck and pulled him down so that he could comfortably speak in his ear. Or scream, because it was really loud around them.

“What do you need?” He looked at him again, waiting for an answer. Harry rested his head on Louis’ neck and he immediately felt soft lips exploring his skin, leaving trails of kisses up to his ear. “Need you, please.”

Louis tried to make Harry look at him, but the man just continued his work over his throat and to the other side of his neck. Considering it was easier to just let him have his way and it felt good, he just asked: “Would you want me to take you home or to the toilets? It’s your decision, darling.”

As if Harry had waited for these words to hear, he immediately pulled away from Louis' neck, grabbed his hand and dragged him off the dancefloor towards the toilets. Guess that was his answer, then.

They barely made it into one of the stalls, when Harry was already all over him. Nothing to complain here, though. “I have a surprise for you,” Harry whispered in his ear, letting the fine hairs at the back of his neck stand up.

“What is it, darling?” Louis moaned out, while Harry was attacking his neck. He craned his head to the side to give Harry more room to work with.

“You … will … have … to … find … it … out … for … yourself.” Harry said between kisses. “But before you do that, I have a request. Could you call me H tonight? Feels more fitting for my current mood, gender wise.”

“Of course, darling.” Louis smiled softly at him, pulling him in for a passionate kiss. “Are you still okay with he/him or would you prefer something else?”

“He/him is fine, Lou, Thank you for asking. But I wouldn’t mind you using words like girl or princess during sex.” Harry smiled bashfully.

“Everything for you, darling. And thank you for telling me. Now where is my surprise?”

“I said, you have to find it out yourself,” H protested cheekily. “But I’ll give you a hint.” He grabbed Louis’ hand that was currently buried in H's curls and brought it to the small of his back. “Now, search.” He whispered.

Louis explored H’s back up and down but couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. Suddenly he had an idea, but… H wouldn’t… would he? Louis reached down to pull up the hem of the beautiful dress and found a pair of silk panties under his tights. He moved his hand inside both layers until he could feel a piece of round shaped metal. His breath hitched and he let out a whiny noise.

“H, babe. You are incredible.” He brought the hand that was currently not occupied in H’s panties up and cupped his chin. “Now kiss me and then turn around and let me have a proper look.” Then he connected their lips together.

They sadly didn’t have much time for intense kissing, not the way Louis liked it but he was eager to see what H had hidden from him. He let go of Harry’s lips with a sigh and spun the man around, so that he was now facing the wall in front of him. “Arms up, Hands on the wall.”

H did what he was told, and voluntarily spread his legs a bit. He is being a good for him. Louis let his hands roam over Harry’s back down to the hem of the dress and lifted it up to expose his plush backside. Louis’ mouth watered and he crouched down, pulling the panties together with the tights down with him. He was now eye-level with a sparkly matching hot pink diamond that was attached to a silver metal buttplug currently buried in Harry’s hole.

Louis gave the plug a flick, and another, pulling some nice sounds out of Harry but he wanted to have a taste.

“You are being such a good girl for me, H. Now keep still.”

He pulled the plug out in a quick motion, wrapped it in toilet paper and let it vanish in H’s purse before he dove right in, licking a broad stroke over his puckering hole. H must’ve used flavoured lube to insert the plug, Louis guessed from what he was tasting. He twirled his tongue in every direction, licking inside, feeling the hot walls all around him, making H squirm under his hands, which rested on the little love handles H had on his hips.

He inserted a finger next to his tongue, searching for H’s prostate. With the other free hand, he reached around to find Harry’s already rock hard cock hanging between his legs, precome dribbling from the tip. As he found what he was looking for, H cried out, slapping a hand over his mouth to keep more noises inside. “Please Louis.” He muffled through his fingers. “I… I won't last, so close. Want you inside, I’m ready.”

Louis had mercy with him, but it was in his own favour. His cock was throbbing in his jeans, more than ready to get some attention.

“Did you bring some condoms in that purse, too?” He asked, already hurrying to open his trousers.

“I have, but I got tested 2 weeks ago and if you're clean, too…” H let the rest of the sentence hang in the air. “I really want to feel you inside of me - afterwards.” His cheeks flushed beautifully after this confession.

“I last got tested a month before we met, but I haven't been with anyone in the meantime. I guess I can fulfil your wish tonight.” He bent forward to whisper the last sentence in Harry's ear, enjoying the shiver that ran through the younger one's body before he stood up again and shoved his trousers down together with his pants. Without wasting any more time, he lined himself up behind H and pushed in until he bottomed out. He found a steady rhythm and started pounding into a whimpering H, who still had his hand in front of his mouth.

Not long after, Louis felt the familiar pull inside him and reached around once more to grab H’s cock, stroking him with quick motions. H came with a silent scream, biting his fist to keep quiet and Louis toppled over the edge shortly after, spilling into H’s tight heat.

They gave themselves a few seconds to regulate their breathing before Louis bent down to grab the butt plug out of the purse and pulled out just to replace the emptiness with the plug again, keeping his come inside of H. He nearly got hard again at the thought that H would walk out like this.

They shared a few lazy kisses and made themselves presentable again before stepping out of the stall, one after the other. After washing their hands, they made their way to the main room again.

H immediately went for the dancefloor, pulling Louis with him. The other 3 boys weren’t in sight, probably at their booth from earlier again.

“I'm gonna grab some drinks for us, okay? You wait here.” Louis screamed in H's ear. The younger one nodded and Louis walked backwards towards the bar and watched H closing his eyes and swaying to the music, letting the beats pump through his body until he was swallowed by the mass of people around him. They were both slightly tipsy but far from being drunk. When he reached the bar, he waved the bartender towards him and ordered two more of the cocktails they had before.

When he got the new glasses, he made his way back to the dance floor. He smiled when H got in his line of sight but the smile immediately fell when a tall bulky man neared H from behind. The young man seemed to not realise at first, that there were hands on his hips that didn’t belong to Louis, and as his alcohol-induced brain registered what happened, he tried to scramble away from the hold the man had on him. His eyes were wide and panicked looking around for someone familiar, but the man didn’t seem to get it and tried once more to lay his hands on H’s body.

Louis was hurrying through the mass of bodies, all unaware of what was happening a few feet away from them. The cocktail glasses laid shattered on the floor, liquid flowing around the shards. Louis had dropped them when he saw what the man’s intentions were.

Just as he arrived next to H, the man reached out for his boy again. Louis was seeing red and dragged Harry behind him, the younger one instantly clinged to his back, searching for help without needing to say a word.

“Lay your hands on my boyfriend one more time and you’ll never be able to use them properly again.” he spat out, shooting daggers at the bulky man. He wasn’t by any means intimidated by the height difference between them.

The man just laughed at him. “Maybe your ‘boyfriend’ shouldn’t dress up like a whore and dance around on the dancefloor alone if he didn't want anyone to lay hands on him. He’s too pretty for you anyway, that little doll. Let me have my way with him and I’ll show him what a good time is.” He made another step forward, grinning devilishly.

“Clothes are not an invitation you fucktwat, and neither is dancing alone. Also, he clearly said no. Now step away.” Louis’ blood was boiling but he tried to stay calm for H, who was still clinging to him.

The man just kept on laughing, letting out a string of more insults. When he tried to step around Louis to get near H again, that’s when Louis snapped and he rushed forward to connect his fist with anything he could reach on this man’s body. Before his fist found its target though, his arms were held back by someone behind him, looking around he saw Zayn with a bitter expression on his face and angry eyes focused on the stranger. He tried to fight against his best friend, but Zayn had a tight hold on him and suddenly Liam was between the opponents, making himself tall and staring at the bulky man with dark eyes. “Fuck off and leave my friends alone. Security is on the way.”

Liam wasn’t much taller than Louis but his muscular body surely made an impression and the other man turned around with a huff after spitting more disgusting words towards H and vanished into the circle of people standing around them who had now focused their attention to the scene happening amongst them.

Zayn let Louis out of his hold and he rushed to H, pulling him into a tight hug. “It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you. Are you alright, did he hurt you?”

H still looked shocked, but the scared expression was gone from his face. He shook his head reluctantly, still looking in the direction where the man disappeared. Louis could feel his body tremble under his hands.

H mumbled something but the music was too loud to understand him. “Do you want to go home, darling?” Louis asked gently. H’s pleading eyes and his nodding was enough to make Louis move. He thanked the boys profoundly for their help, grabbed their coats and escorted Harry out of the club, calling an uber on the way. H stayed tucked into Louis’ side until they were in the safety of the car.

They arrived at H’s flat shortly after. They were both exhausted but Louis wanted to talk to H about what had happened and wanted to make sure that he really was okay.

“Babe, are you sure you’re okay? That was a dangerous situation. I’m glad I could step in before he went any further.”

H smiled at him with tired eyes. “It’s okay Lou. I’m used to these situations when I’m out and dressed like this. It won’t stop me from going out again in a dress. I made my peace that there are assholes like him out there. Still shocked me a little, though.”

“Yeah but you shouldn’t be used to it. It makes me angry to think that stuff like this happens all the time, just because some stupid prick can’t deal with his genderphobia.” Louis paced around the living room. He couldn’t help it. The whole situation made him furious.

H stopped him and slung his arms around Louis. “Calm down, Lou. I’m glad you were with me and I hope you will be there in the future for these kinds of situations, too, but I'm fine.” He kissed him softly on the lips, which finally helped Louis to calm down.

“Now come on, let’s go to bed, I’m exhausted. And I want to get out of these tights and bra. They may look sexy but they are not really comfortable” H stated, already fumbling with his dress on the way.

Louis chuckled and followed him into the bedroom.

“But you looked really beautiful out there on the dancefloor tonight, babe,” Louis said as he watched Harry unzip his dress in front of the mirror.

“Thank you, Lou. It means a lot to me that I can express myself with you. Whether it’s H at the club or Harry at home with you, I really appreciate that.”

“Of course, darling,” Louis said sweetly. “But can you please hurry now? I want to cuddle with you and fall asleep with you pressed against my chest, and you undressing is simply taking too long for my liking. Want you close.” Louis pulled out his lower lip, showing his cutest pout.

Harry laughed softly and hurried undressing.

+++

The morning was quiet, and slow. They both had a bit of a hangover and the events from the night before still occupied Harry’s mind. Louis did everything he could to keep him as comfortable as possible and they talked about everything except the previous evening. The talk from last night about it had been exhausting enough, especially mentally.

They finished tidying up the kitchen from their extensive breakfast and Louis just put the last plates on the drying rack while Harry went over to fold the blankets from the couch.

“Wait,” Harry stopped in his tracks, looking over to him. “Did you call me your boyfriend yesterday?”

Louis’ heartbeat picked up, his face flushing red. He had hoped Harry wouldn’t remember his little slip from last night. It was too early for this kind of conversation. Or was it not? He looked carefully at Harry, trying to assess his reaction when he slowly nodded.

“Yes, yes I might have. Is that alright? I know everythings still new between us and maybe it’s all going a bit too fast but it kind of feels right for me. What do you think? Please say something.”

Harry stood still in the same spot, looking at him curiously. Then he quickly moved forward to hug Louis, who had to take a step to balance himself by the force that pushed him backwards.

“Yes Louis, I really want to be your boyfriend.” He murmured in the crook of Louis’ neck. ”I don’t care if it might be too early for some people. I've thought about it for a few days now actually. I’m really glad for your slip up.” Harry pulled his head back and grinned at him, both dimples popping.

Louis’ heart was doing somersaults and he brought both hands up to cup Harry’s face and finally kiss his boyfriend properly for the first time today. “Come on, let’s cuddle up on the couch, boyfriend.” If Louis hadn’t thought that Harry's dimples could get any deeper, he was now proven otherwise.

Later that Sunday, Harry asked a question Louis wasn’t prepared for.

“Lou, after our talk about the kink exploration, I thought a lot about it and I came up with an idea. You obviously can say no, but I think it would be a good way for us to start.”

Louis nodded slowly, curious what this idea might look like. “Go on then, love.”

“You told me about your talk with Zayn and I thought, what about you and me shooting a little ‘private’ film and then giving the tape to Zayn to watch, if he is up for it?” Harry twisted a bit to look up from Louis’ chest on which he was currently lying, his cheeks pinkened up a bit, clearly a bit embarrassed about his suggestion.

Louis actually thought about it though and not that he would tell anyone, but he had a similar idea a few days prior, too.

“I’m sure he will watch it, and I love the idea! Always wanted to do something like this, if it’s pictures or a video. But, you know, never had the right company for it. So if you really want to do this, then I’m game.” He smiled and pressed a kiss on Harry’s head.

Harry fumbled with one of the two rings he was constantly wearing. “Can… can we do it today?”

Louis chuckled. “Someone’s eager. Yeah sure, let’s shower and then you can look for the camera and see if the battery is charged.” He nudged Harry to make him stand up before he got up himself.

+++

“Before we start, I just want to make sure that you are really okay with this?” Louis looked over to Harry, who had just draped himself over the bed, waiting for his final decision.

“Yes, Lou. I’m sure.” Harry smiled up at him, letting his free hand seductively roam over the lacy fabric of his Neglige.

“Okay, then. Let’s get the party started.” Louis smirked and pressed the little red button on the side of the camera then went over to join Harry on the bed.

(author’s note: to be continued ;-))

+++

It was Monday and Louis had just got home from his shift at the wine bar, surprised to find Zayn home. He hadn't expected him until at least late in the evening. Zayn had a lot of work to do since the exhibit. He had a few commissions and some interviews for art magazines.

“Hey mate, you're home already? Did something happen?” Louis asked, a hint of concern in his voice. He feared Zayn could overwork himself, it was easy for him to get lost in his paintings. Forgetting to eat and drink properly while working on a new project.

“Nah, all good. I just decided that I needed a break, that's all.” Zayn smiled at him from where he was sitting at the dining table, flicking through a magazine that lay in front of him.

Louis got changed into something more comfy before he settled on the couch, wiggling around because he couldn’t find a comfy position to sit in and he was a bit nervous, too.

“Zayn, can we talk for a minute?” Louis asked hesitantly. Zayn nodded, joining him on the couch. “What's up, mate?” He asked.

“You remember the talk we had about the situation in the wine bar with Harry?”

“How could I forget that?” Zayn chuckled, his face heating up again just like it did during the mentioned conversation.

Louis entered their apartment late this evening. He purposefully had prolonged his workday to give Zayn space to stomach everything he saw earlier. Louis wasn't even sure if he was home already or still in his studio, but with a glance at the shoe rack in the hallway, he saw that the shoes Zayn wore earlier were neatly lined up next to the other's. He took a deep breath and entered the living room.

Zayn was sprawled out on the couch, watching trash tv and fiddling on some persistent stain spots on his fingers. It was a nervous habit of his.

“Hey mate.” Louis could see his friend jump a little at his words. He turned around to face Louis, his cheeks red.

“Oh he.. hey Louis” He trembled out, clearly nervous. Louis would spare him the embarrassment about starting this topic.

“Listen Zayn, about earlier… I'm really sorry that you saw us … like that. If I would've known that you would actually come through the door… but the thought of you being in the other room… yeah, I’m sorry”

“It's okay, Lou. Really. Nothing to be sorry for.” Zayn got up from the couch, his face now burning red. He walked over to the shelf in the corner that was filled with books and picture frames, suddenly very interested in the items as if he was seeing them for the first time.

“Still, I’m sorry. You were clearly shocked and uncomfortable, which is more than understandable. I just want to assure you that something like that won’t happen again and I would be very grateful if we could pretend that it never happened, and you can stop looking at me like you did when I entered the room a minute ago.”

He observed Zayn carefully, who seemed to relax a little. He was still facing the shelf in front of him. After another long minute of silence, Zayn finally turned around but directed his gaze on his feet, then cleared his throat.

“It’s … it’s not that I was uncomfortable,” He whispered. “I … I kind of liked what I saw. I couldn’t get the image out of my head and I went to the studio, and I… Oh god, this is so embarrassing”

“It’s okay, you don’t need to tell me anything, Zayn. If you are not ready to, we can continue this conversation some other time, or never if that’s what you prefer.”

“No, I want to talk about it.” Zayn responded, his voice more sure now. “Please don’t laugh at me, or think I’m weird, okay? I'm telling you this because you are my best friend and I really need someone to talk about this. Okay, so I went to the studio and as I said, I couldn’t get the image of you two out of my head, and I got off on it. I even wished I had seen more before I stumbled out of there like an idiot. I think I like to watch. Not like a creep, spying in other people’s bedrooms. Just watch. I know there are clubs and parties for that. Maybe I should give it a try.”

Louis let his friend speak as long as he needed to, relieved that the situation was solved and he could now focus on making his friend comfortable again.

“You don’t need to be embarrassed for what you like, Zayn. I, myself, need to sort something out, too. Because I kinda liked you seeing us.” He grinned at his best friend, making Zayn smile for the first time since he came home. “I’m sure there is a safe space for exploring kink and I’m happy to help with research and stuff if you want me to. Now come here and give me a hug, you idiot.”

Zayn stumbled into his arms, staying there for a good amount of time.

“Harry and I talked a lot about this and what we like and so on. We found out that we both like to be watched, on a consented level, by others while being intimate. Now, we both don't have much or any experience, therefore we decided to take it slow. One small step after the other. The first step was to film ourselves while… doing stuff…” Louis paused for a second, encouraging himself for the next part. “And the next step is to give the video to someone to watch it… now here is my question. You told me that you, maybe, are into watching? And we both trust you so… would you take the tape and watch it some time? No pressure, really. And we wouldn't take it personally if you don't want to do it.”

Louis was glad that Zayn interrupted his little rambling by putting a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. “I can do that. It’s a good way to figure things out for myself, too. And I need to find a way to explain it to Liam. That video would be a good way to strike up a conversation with him about it. Because even if our current arrangement is great, I actually really like him and I would love to bring a part of myself and my kinks in it, too. And even if he is not interested, I want to watch it”

“Okay then, I have the USB in my room, I'll bring it over to yours and put it on your desk. You don't even have to tell me when, or even if, you watched it. If I'm honest, just the thrill that you COULD have seen it is exciting enough. God, why is this so embarrassing.” Louis laughed, burying his face in his hands for a second and then busying himself by doing what he just said and hurried over to his room to grab the stick.

He carefully laid it on Zayn’s desk before he went back to the living room to give his best friend a tight hug. Then they settled down to watch a movie and it didn't take long for Louis to get sleepy. While the TV was the only light and noise source in the room, Louis whispered: “Please tell me, when you watched it.”

Then he fell asleep and didn't see the fond expression Zayn gave him.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🧘🏻‍♀️🎀

It was Sunday afternoon and Harry was exhausted. A long weekend was about to come to an end and Harry has been on his way home for an hour now. He was glad that he decided to take the train instead of the car. The possibility of falling asleep behind the wheel would have been too high. Now though, he had his head leaned against the window and was looking out at the scenery flying by. The landscape around London was beautiful and he enjoyed the rare sight he was getting since he didn't leave London very often these days.

The music flowing out of his headphones muffled the noise from the passengers around him and his eyes kept falling shut every few minutes. He was glad that the seat beside him was still vacant despite the train being quite full. At least nobody tried to make small talk with him. The workshop was very interesting and he had a lot to think about and even a few ideas for some of his clients to improve their productivity. He really needed to write some of those ideas down or his tired brain would’ve forgotten them by the time he was home.

That's how he spent the rest of the train ride and later after he changed into the tube, tapping away in his notes app.

He exited the tube station, tiredly taking the last metres to his apartment complex. His eyes fell on a hunched figure that was seated near the entrance. He rolled his eyes, not in the mood to deal with a beggar. He took a deep breath and neared the man. But as the man looked up at him, his mood did a 180.

“Louis! What are you doing here? Stand up, the floor is cold!” He offered a hand to Louis to help him stand up. Harry immediately pulled him into a tight hug, sighing as he caught a hint of his familiar scent. He felt the smaller man chuckle against him.

“I'm happy to see you, too. Now off me you big oaf. You are crumbling your dinner.” Louis backed up a bit, a huge smile on his face, his eyes glistening happily. Harry's gaze fell on the brown take away bag Louis held in his hand and his stomach growled with anticipation. He was so tired that he hadn't realised how hungry he was.

“Thought I'd surprise you. And I guessed that you could be hungry after the trip.” Louis explained and Harry couldn't stop smiling.

“This is the best surprise I've ever gotten. I'm really hungry, thank you very much. Let's go up then.”

They spent a quiet evening on the couch, devouring the take away food and Harry happily chatted about the weekend and described every single idea in all details to Louis who sincerely showed interest in Harry’s work.

“Sounds like you had a great time there, babe. I’m really happy for you! I think I should look into some workshops like this but only for beverages myself” Louis smiled, pulling Harry closer to him, so he could rest his head on Louis’ chest.

“I am, really! You can learn so much new stuff, sometimes I can’t believe how they come up with all these new inventions and revelations. Oh!” A memory shot through Harry's brain, causing him to sit upright and look at Louis. “You know what? There is another workshop in around ten days. I think on the 7th and 8th of June. I have the pamphlet for it somewhere in my bag. One second.” He scrambled off the couch and in the hallway to rummage through his backpack until he pulled out a folded paper with a triumphant “Aha” and made his way back to Louis.

“Look, there is a timeslot for wines and sparkling wines on there!” He pointed to an image on the backside of the pamphlet practically shoving it into Louis’ face. “I need to attend this one because it has additional courses to the one from this weekend. Why don’t you join me? I can put a belated registration in for you! It will only be two days and I already have a hotel room. But it’s weekdays and I don’t know if you are free to go, you know with the shifts in the bar… ” He knew he sounded a bit too eager, but what could he do? He was just very passionate when it came to his work.

Louis chuckled, pulling the pamphlet from his hands. He read the passage about the course for wine attentively, while Harry bounced his feet nervously.

“That sounds very interesting, darling. I’ll have a look at the shift plan tomorrow and see if I can switch a few shifts with Jasmine around. Maybe Zayn would be willing to cover for me, too. I mean, the bar would benefit from this workshop, too.”

Harry was beaming at Louis by now. “That would be great! The hotel is really nice, and I found this chinese restaurant not far away and…” Harry continued his rambling about the weekend until they both were too tired to keep their eyes open any longer.

+++

Louis was able to make it to the workshop by finding a replacement for him in one of Zayn’s friends who had already helped out at the exhibition. He was very grateful for that and told Harry that he needed to find a way to thank him profoundly after they were back in London again.

The day of their departure had come and while Harry took a last look around in his flat if everything was turned off, Louis was loading their bags in the trunk of the car. He grabbed his tote and left the flat, locking the door behind him.

He joined Louis in the car, who leaned over the armrest to give him a quick kiss on the lips. He ducked his head, smiling to himself. After he secured the seatbelt, Louis started the motor and steered the car out on the road.

The ride was rather uneventful, they had music playing softly over the radio, Louis humming some of the melodies under his breath. Harry enjoyed the peaceful atmosphere, looking out of the window at the scenery flying by.

After merely two hours they arrived at their accommodation for the next two nights. A cute little hotel with a lot of charme. They both grabbed their duffle bags out of the trunk after they found a free parking spot and made their way to the reception desk. Harry had them checked in quickly. He even got the same hotel room he stayed for the first workshop a few weeks ago.

The room was spacious with a four-poster King Size bed made out of dark wood and a seating area with two cosy armchairs and a small table between them. The bathroom included a big bathtub which Harry took extensive advantage of the last time he was here. And he already had plans on doing the same this time, but with Louis.

They put their clothes away in the built-in wardrobe on the right side of the bed, and freshened up before leaving the hotel again to find something to eat for dinner.

Harry led them to the cute little Chinese restaurant he told Louis’ about. It was a family business, open for nearly 40 years now. That’s what the server, a small chinese woman with a kind face, told them. She seemed really proud and didn’t hold back sharing more information about her family and the restaurant. Not that Harry would have minded. He loved to learn new things about people, no matter if he knew them or not. And Louis didn’t seem to mind either, he just looked at him with an amused face every now and then.

The food was fantastic, too and they enjoyed their meal in silence. When Harry asked for the bill to pay, the nice lady brought both of them Sake to try. On the House. Of course, she told them that her husband produced the Sake on his own. They toasted one another and downed the beverage as if it was a shot. It tasted great, even better than a few ones, that Harry tried on his trip to China years ago. Louis insisted on paying the bill (“Harry, you already pay for the hotel, let me get this one, please”) and they thanked the lady for the hospitality and made their way out and walked in the direction of the cinema. The idea to watch a movie there came from Louis, who had a mischievous smile on his face.

+++

The room where their chosen movie was showing, was on the smaller side. And as the movie had started, only 5 other people were with them. Louis led them to seats in the last row, multiple free rows between them and the next guests, an older couple.

The movie was not what Harry had expected, and it was hard to concentrate on what was happening on the screen. Not only because of the lack of interest on Harry’s side but also because there was a sneaky hand wandering up and down his thigh and it was rather distracting. Not that he would’ve minded, the movie was boring anyway.

It got interesting when Louis picked up his jacket from the seat beside him and draped it over Harry’s lap before sneaking his hand under it to fumble with the button of Harry’s jeans.

Harry drew in a sharp breath as Louis pulled his cock out of his underwear which was semi-interested by now. A thrill of excitement shot through him, making the fine hair of his neck stand up. Louis pumped him to full hardness while leaning close to his ear. A breath ghosted over his neck.

“I bet you like that, probably wish that everyone could see what I'm doing right now.”

An embarrassed sound escaped his throat and Harry looked around if anyone had heard his whimper, but no one turned towards them so he exhaled, turned his head and whispered bach in a hushed tone. “Lou, what are you doing? There are people! I thought we would go slow! What if they actually see what we are doing?” His voice sounded more panicked as he intended to. And his dick clearly had a different opinion in this current situation, already leaking precum from the tip, what a traitor.

Louis stilled his hand for a moment, looking Harry in the eyes as best as possible in the low light. “Babe, this is not us exploring our kink in public. This is me giving you a sneaky handjob under your jacket in an almost empty cinema with a bit of dirty talk. Relax and enjoy it.” He added with a warm smile in his tone. “Are you okay with it? I’ll stop if it makes you too uncomfortable. But i promise you that no one will catch us”

“Don’t” Harry whispered, taking a shaky breath and lay a hand on Louis’ over the jacket, nudging him to continue. “Was just a bit unexpected. Please continue.” He added, with a bit more confidence in his voice.

Louis started to move his hand again, and Harry had to admit that it did feel very good and tried to relax into his seat, biting his lip to prevent more loud sounds from escaping his mouth.

With every expertised twist and every stroke over the tip of his cock, Harry got more and more squirmier in his seat. Louis continued to rile him up with words alternating with nibbling on his earlobe and after a few more minutes and an especially deep press into his slit, he came with a shout which he managed to muffle by lightly biting into Louis’ sweater covered shoulder.

While he tried to steady his breath, he actually had to watch Louis bringing up his come-covered hand to his mouth, who then proceeded to lick every finger clean while calmly watching the movie. Well, that certainly didn't help bringing his heartbeat to a normal rhythm.

He tucked himself back into his trousers just as the house lights went on again and they left the cinema with a flushed looking Harry and a very obvious bulge in Louis’ jeans.

They took an uber back to their hotel, Harry constantly giggling in his post-orgasm haze. Clinging to Louis the whole way back and up to their room, Harry couldn’t wait to get his hands on Louis properly, returning the pleasure he experienced earlier.

As soon as the door to their room was closed, Harry spun around to pin Louis to the door and hurried to kneel in front of him, eager to get Louis’ trousers open and his still half-hard cock out of his pants. There was a soft thump when Louis’ head fell back against the door before he felt a hand sneak at the back of his head.

“Babe, you really don’t need to do that. This was about you, not m … argh.” Louis moaned as Harry started pumping his cock to full hardness, nibbling and licking at the trimmed hair around his base.

He loved that Louis was this considerate but THIS was for Harry’s pleasure, too. Had Louis forgotten how Harry came in his pants like a teenager just from giving him head? The memory of what happened at the exhibit spurred him on and he took him all in now, bobbing his head at a punishing pace, not stopping when the tip constantly hit the back of his throat. He couldn’t help but moan at the feeling, sure that Louis could feel the vibrations in his whole crotch.

Louis kept one hand in Harry’s locks, while the other came down to feel where his cock disappeared in Harry’s warm mouth and oh my god, that alone could get Harry hard again. He looked up as best as he could, seeing Louis already stare down at him, the blue in his eyes nearly gone, mouth hanging open in pleasure.

“You’re doing so well, babe. Feels so good, I don’t think I can hold out much longer.” He groaned, and Harry hummed happily. “Can I… hmmm… can I come on your face?”

Oh yes, please. Harry instantly pulled away, mouth wide open, tongue out looking up at him like he hung the moon and the stars. Louis took hold of himself and after a few quick strokes, he shot his load all over Harry’s face in long white streaks.

Harry closed his eyes, trying to lick some of the come up from around his mouth, as he was pulled up from where he knelt.

“You are amazing, darling. Can’t believe you’re real. Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.” Louis smiled warmly at him, pushing a stray strand of locks away behind Harry’s ear.

+++

Louis hurried a few steps forward, to open the front door before Harry reached it. What a gentleman, Harry smiled and threw an air kiss towards Louis. They stepped into one of the seminar rooms of the catering company, where rows of stools were lined up. On the far end of the room was a whiteboard situated, a desk with a chair tucked under next to it. They arrived with 10 minutes to spare and the room was already swarmed with people, all animatedly chatting in small groups scattered throughout the room. Harry recognised a few faces from the previous workshop and nodded towards a man and two women with a friendly smile.

He picked two free seats for them in the middle section and sat down, looking through the flyers that were distributed on each of the stools. Most of it was advertisements and some coupons for different Online Shops.

They were just in time, nearly a bit too late after they spent the early morning getting lost in each other and the feeling of spending a night together, all tangled up under the sheets. Eventually, Louis was the one that hurried them up to get ready and down to the centre.

The morning was filled with speeches from various people from every section of the food and health industry as well as a podium discussion between nutritionists, doctors and scientists about the quality of convenience food and how to make it healthier but also keep it affordable for everyone.

Harry listened very intently but his eyes wandered over to Louis from time to time who was obviously not as much interested in the discussion that currently took place on the stage as himself. Harry didn't mind, he knew that all of this could be a tad boring for people whose passion lay somewhere else.

The end of the podium discussion was the end of the morning program and they were led to a big dining room where a buffet was already settled. It was some sort of all-you-can-eat buffet with dishes from some of the speak-holders and companies that sponsored this event.

The food was delicious and Louis and Harry made their way back to the hotel with full bellies and a groaned “I don't want to see food ever again in my life. I ate way too much” from Louis.

+++

After they took a short nap to let the food settle a bit, Louis was on his way to his lecture for “Wine and the modern culture around it” and Harry decided to use the few hours of break in between the courses they attended together to treat himself to a mini impromptu spa treatment. He always brought face masks and small bathroom bombs with him when he was out of town for more than a day. And there he was now, in a bathtub full of bubbles, a mask on his face that smelled like a tropical fruit mix and a glass of champagne on the border of the tub that he ordered from room service.

After he climbed out of the tub, he wrapped himself in the fluffy towels that were provided from the hotel and dug out nail polish in a beautiful shade of rose to paint his toe nails. He waited a few minutes while sitting rather uncomfortably on the edge of the tub before he decided that the paint was dry enough it was safe to pad over to the bedroom and get dressed.

Well dressed was a bit over exaggerated. He covered the private parts of his body in delicate lace lingerie that he brought with him for “special occasions”. It had nearly the same colour as his toenails. He actually intended to wear this outfit tonight for the dinner to surprise Louis afterwards, he just wanted to try it on one last time.

He connected his phone with the portable speaker he brought with him, selected his favourite playlist and started to sway his hips to the beat in front of the big mirror on the wall facing the bed. He let his hair fall out of the towel, moving his head slightly from side to side to shake out his wet curls. Harry wasn't a man with overflowing self love but he liked to watch himself in the mirror from time to time, moving his body in sensual motions. Especially when he wore beautiful lingerie like he did right now. These were the moments where he felt the most connected to his feminine side and one day he would build up the courage to do it in front of Louis.

Harry moved his hands up and down his body, feeling out the fine material with his fingertips, sighing with how good it felt. He was completely engulfed in his dancing and the music that he didn't hear the door open and close until he heard a surprised gasp from behind him.

He swirled around, heart beating out of his chest but calmed down instantly when he realised that it was Louis standing there, with big eyes and his mouth hanging open.

“Oh hi” he said, blushing furiously. “Erm.. yeah you shouldn’t have seen this until tonight. Well, surprise.” He laughed, spreading his arms and doing a little twirl. Louis still hadn’t moved. “Do you like it?” Harry asked sheepishly.

Louis finally managed to break free from his state of shock and literally rushed over to Harry, roaming his eyes up and down his body.

“You look like an angel. Absolutely stunning! Please turn around once more. Slowly.”

Harry did what he was told, and turned around excruciatingly slowly, making sure to push his ass a bit out when he turned his backside to Louis. “It’s one of my favourite outfits,” he commented.

“Oh it’s definitely one of my favourites now, too.” Louis said, his breathing was a bit heavier than normal. “It’s a pity that I don’t have the time right now to properly worship it but we have to be at the centre in 20 minutes for the next course.” he pouted, making puppy eyes.

“But…” Louis’ eyes glistened and his gaze turned mischievous. Harry shivered from excitement. Louis always had great ideas when he had that look on his face. The older one wandered over to one of the armchairs, sat down and brought his hands together, rubbing them slightly before he spoke up again.

“Why don’t we try something? But first… I need you to tell me if you feel more like H or Harry, today babe.”

“Harry is fine, thanks Lou.” Harry’s heart made a jump at how considerate Louis was with Harry’s gender identity. It made him feel very appreciated. “What do you have in mind?”

“Well, why don't you go and find a plug in the left pocket of my duffle bag as well as a bottle of lube. Be a darling, and grab those. Then I want you to kneel on the back, ass facing me while you work yourself open nice and slow and then stuff yourself with the plug. Then you get yourself dressed and we will go through our program and when we are back here, I will fuck you into oblivion.”

Harry couldn’t move. He just stood there, blinking at Louis. His dick was already very interested in Louis' words but his brain needed some time to catch up with the rest of his body. He then nodded eagerly. “Yes please, yes. I’m just… going to do that now.”

Nearly stumbling over his own feet, he made his way to Louis’ bag where he found the items and took them with him to the bed. He made quick work of coating his fingers in lube and shoving the string of his pantie to the side. Sinking in, two fingers at once, he moaned at the intrusion. It didn’t take long for him to pump his fingers fully in and out at a quick pace.

As he heard a disapproving tsk tsk from behind him, he stilled his fingers and turned his head to look behind him, seeing Louis shake his head. “I said slow, didn't I, darling?”

Harry’s cheeks flushed, he nodded and mumbled an apology, continuing to move his fingers, now at a much slower pace. He tried to put on a great show, moaning and groaning every now and then until he felt loose enough to put the plug in. He took it from its place beside him and coated it in lube too before he reached behind him again, slowly pushing the plug in. As it was nestled nicely between his cheeks, he pulled his panties back and stood up. He turned around with wobbly knees to see that Louis was already standing right next to him, a gentle smile on his lips.

“You did so well, babe. Looked very nice from where I sat. Can’t wait for tonight.” He pulled him in for a deep long kiss, the effect from Harry’s show palpable against Harry’s thigh.

+++

Harry was a little squirmish on the way back to the centre. The plug inside him shifted with each step and grazed his prostate every now and then. This would be a long afternoon. And he would need to make it through the evening cooking session, too. But he wanted to be good for Louis and also wanted to prove to himself that he would be able to do this.

They entered the large kitchen area with the last few people and found an open spot near the back on the left side. In this course, held by some famous baker, they were shown how to make their own fitness bars. They were divided in four groups, every group had a different recipe and at the end, everyone could have a sample from the other groups.

Harry was very excited for this course, with his passion for all baked goods and stuff. It was a fun course, even Louis did as best as he could. Most of the time, he let Harry do his thing but he was very helpful with handing over ingredients or wiping down the surfaces. Harry even forgot the plug in his ass, which then instantly reminded him that it was still there by lightly pushing against his prostate.

The bars all tasted fantastic and Harry took pictures of all the recipes to write them down neatly for his recipe-folder as soon as he was home again.

After the course they could decide if they wanted to participate in a cooking course with dinner or if they went out to take their dinner in a restaurant. Harry’s original plan was to take the course and enjoy a self made meal, but the events of the afternoon and the constant pressure he experienced from the plug inside him, made him change his mind.

He wasn’t even sure if he had enough appetite for dinner anymore. Louis seemed to sense the distress he was in and thankfully just took his hand and led him out of the room.

“I know we wanted to do the cooking course, but I think you’ve changed your mind, haven’t you?” Louis looked at him, understanding pouring out of him. Harry let out a deep sigh.

“Yes, please.” He smiled at Louis and tucked himself against his side while they made their way out of the centre, Louis’ arm slung around his waist.

+++

Back at their room, Louis laid him carefully down on the bed and crawled on top of him. He could see the desire in Louis’ eyes and he used both hands to make him fall on him, Lips connecting, He immediately deppend the kiss, demanding entry with his tongue. He couldn’t wait a second longer to start, being tortured by a plug for hours now.

He let himself get undressed piece by piece, while Louis peppered him with kisses on every part of his skin that got exposed. When he was completely naked, feet planted on the sheets, legs spread slightly open, Louis just stood in front of the bed, eyeing him up and down.

But Harry didn’t have the nerves to take it slow right now, so he pushed himself into a sitting position and pulled Louis close again, already fumbling with the zipper of Louis’ jeans.

“Lou, I like how you look at me, really. But right now, I want you to fuck me. I can’t take any more of this. Please, fuck me.” Harry pleaded, finally managing to push Louis’ legwear down.

“Okay babe, I’ve got you.” Louis chuckled, while stripping out of his sweater, kicking the trousers and pants to the side. After a trip to his bag to grab lube and a condom (just to spare the sheets some stains, Louis said), he returned to Harry, who was now laying down again, hands crossed behind his head, observing Louis.

His boyfriend pulled the condom on after giving himself a couple of strokes and climbed back on the bed, between Harry’s legs, pushing them apart. He saw him looking down at the plug before bringing a hand down to push it slightly in. Harry took in a sharp breath at the feeling but it was gone again as Louis pulled the plug out in one swift motion.

He then lined himself up with Harry’s hole and slowly pushed himself in. After bottoming out, he settled on a steady rhythm, hard and fast just like Harry wanted.

Harry threw his head back in pleasure, he closed his eyes and felt Louis’ hands roaming around his body, tweaking his nipples, grabbing his hips to pound in him even harder. He knew that this would be more of a quickie but he couldn’t care less.

Suddenly, Louis pulled out and Harry whined at the loss. He watched him get off the bed. “Lou, what -”

“I got the impression this afternoon that you liked that mirror over there very much.” Harry looked in the direction that Louis motioned with his hand and his eyes fell on the big mirror in front of which he had danced just a few hours earlier. He gulped.

“Please be a darling and position yourself in front of it.”

Harry got up at the speed of light, his legs a bit wobbly. He stood in front of the mirror and put his hands on both sides before he watched Louis get behind him and enter him again. He let his head fall down at the Intrusion but suddenly got yanked back at his hair, forced to look in the mirror again.

“I want you to watch yourself the whole time, okay?” Louis whispered next to him.

“Yeah, okay.”

It was kind of mesmerising, watching himself instead of catching glimpses of his boyfriend behind him. He couldn't keep his eyes from his flushed face, his glassy eyes and his hair that bounced slightly with every thrust.

“I'm close, babe. Come whenever you're ready.” Louis groaned and Harry could see Louis’ hand coming to the front and taking a hold on Harry's cock.

He watched in awe as Louis’ hand worked over him, the tip of his cock disappearing over and over again in his fist and after a few minutes, Louis bent over to kiss him between his shoulder blades. “Come for me babe, I know you’re ready.” He panted in his ear and that’s all it took for Harry to let go and let his orgasm hit him, white streaks of come painting the mirror. Louis followed him quickly and crushed down on his back, just for a second before he steadied himself with his hands on the wall, too.

After they caught their breaths again, Louis pulled out gently. Harry turned around and Louis immediately embraced him in a hug. “I’m going to run us a bath, darling.” He quickly pecked Harry’s lips and then he was gone. Harry could hear him rummage around in the en-suite followed by the splashing of water. He let himself fall back onto the bed again, just laying there for a second , drifting in a light sleep until Louis shook him awake. “Up, up babe, water is ready.”

Harry looked at him with sleepy eyes, pouted and stretched his arms out to make grabby hands. He was too tired to get up by himself. Louis laughed softly and just hoisted him up in his arms, carrying him the short way over to the bathroom. After he helped him into the warm water, Louis settled himself behind Harry in the big bathtub, covering Harry’s upper back in kisses.

Harry sighed at the gentle kisses, letting his head fall back against Louis’ shoulder.

“I liked your idea with the mirror.” he said, turning his head to kiss the side of Louis’ neck.

“Yeah? I liked it, too. Felt like being a little spontaneous.” Louis smiled, and laid a warm hand on Harry's stomach, just resting it there.

“I like spontaneity.” Harry giggled and closed his eyes just enjoying the closeness to the man and the warmth of the water. They would call room service later to order something for the missed dinner.

+++

The second day started slowly. The trip to a nearby fruit plantage was set to start at 10 am. They would take a bus from the centre and stay there for a few hours. After their return, the convention would be concluded with a last group discussion.

Harry and Louis took advantage of the free time, slept a little longer than normal and ordered a big breakfast up to their room because neither of them could be bothered to go down to the breakfast room. They both preferred to stay half naked and enjoy the food in bed, Harry couldn’t resist doing some overly cheesy feeding of Louis with some of the food.

They reached the plantation an hour after departure. It was a big plantation, rows of trees as far as one could look. A long sandy driveway led to a beautiful farm with a main house, two smaller buildings and a big barn. Multiple tables and benches were situated in front of the open barn doors. That’s where they exited the bus with the instruction to gather around and wait for their instructions.

The Owners of the farm, a couple in their fifties, stepped out of the main house to greet the group. After a short introduction of themselves and the history of the farm, they got the instructions for their assigned activity for the day.

They split up in groups of six people and after picking up buckets, they were shown to the part of the plantation where they found the right trees. Harry and Louis were in the group for the apples and made their way over to their assigned part together with 4 other people, a woman and three men.

After only 10 minutes both of their buckets were nearly half full despite the fact that Harry took his time to choose apples who were in nearly perfect condition. Louis on the other hand just tossed every apple in the bucket that didn’t look too mushy at first glance.

Harry was just in the process of observing an especially beautiful fruit as he felt hands sneaking around his waist and a smaller body pressing against him. He smiled and turned his head to the side, so that he could look at Louis. “Hi there, you done already?”

Louis shook his head and smirked. “No, not really. Just missed you.”

Harry honked a laugh, “Babe, I was literally just 5 feet away from you.” He tipped Louis on the nose with his free hand.

“I know.” Louis shrugged, then motioned for Harry to turn around in his arms, which he happily obliged to. “But I missed your lips, too.” He said, connecting their lips for a split second.

Harry sighed, going in for a few more kisses, as he was suddenly backed up against the tree trunk he was previously harvesting the fruits from. He took a quick look around if any of the four other people were in their close proximity but he could only see the backside of one of the men a few rows away.

Louis was already working on putting marks on Harry’s neck, pressing himself against him, one leg between Harry’s thighs. He connected their lips again and the kisses became faster and sloppier, Harry sighed, putting a hand around the backside of Louis’ neck, pulling him in a bit more. He got lost in the feeling of Louis’ lips on him and hands all over him.

But as Louis tried to rut up against one of his thighs, Harry came to his senses again and tried to back away a bit. “Lou… Louis, wait. I… I’m sorry, I’m not really comfortable with doing this here. It’s a bit too… much. Too many people, too close by.”

He blushed, his gaze falling to the ground. He was a bit ashamed, and feared Louis’ reaction to his rejection. He felt Louis take a step away and he nervously started to pick his cuticles.

It took only a second before Louis was back with him, stopping Harry from fidgeting and tilted his chin upwards with his other hand so he had to look at him. Louis didn’t look angry or disappointed and Harry already felt a bit better.

“Hey babe, no please don’t be sorry. If anyone has to apologise, it’s me! I should’ve checked in with you beforehand. I got a bit carried away. I’m really sorry. And I’m really proud of you for speaking up and telling me that you are uncomfortable.” He took another step forward and pulled Harry in for a hug.

Harry immediately melted at the touch and buried his face in the other man’s neck. “It’s okay. It was just a bit overwhelming for a second there. And it’s very risky out here,” he muttered.

He then came out of his hiding place and kissed Louis, a bit slower this time. “Come on, let’s get the buckets full and back to the farm. I’m hungry.” He smiled broadly at Louis and they both went back to their original task.

Back at the farm, they could pick their own fruit variations to create different sorts of smoothies, testing out and discussing the flavours. Harry got lost in his ideas, there were already 10 different glasses in front of him with samples he put together, his mind constantly rattling down new combinations. And he made Louis try them all. He knew that Louis wasn’t a big fan of fruits in general, but he didn’t seem to mind, taste testing all the different samples. He gave Harry detailed feedback and Harry wrote it all down.

It was a nice afternoon, the weather was pleasant and so were the people around them. They made a lot of small talk, some of them especially interested in Louis’ wine bar. Harry watched him tell them every single detail about the process of opening the bar all while having the proudest of all smiles on his face. Harry had to turn around and busy himself with something else, his tummy made all this funny fluttering stuff.

“Oh I just remember, I don’t know if I already told you.” Louis was suddenly beside him again, tapping him on the shoulder. The people he previously talked to, had wandered off to their own table again. “You know that empty store right next to the bar?” He started, Harry nodded in agreement.” They put up a sign that it’s free to rent! I think it's been there since the start of the week? I’m not sure. Anyway, after this whole trip here, there’s this idea in my head, that it would be a great location for something like, I don’t know, a smoothie/breakfast bar? I’m sure it would get great traffic in this area!”

“Louis! That is a great idea! But wouldn't it be too much with you already managing the wine bar? I mean not that you weren’t capable of it but two businesses is a lot!”

“Oh I didn't think of me when I had that idea, darling. I thought maybe you could… you know.”

Harry was at loss for words. He never really thought about having such a business of his own. The thought of it was exciting, he couldn't deny that.

“I… I mean, I could think about it?” He said hesitantly.

Louis immediately hurried to explain. “Not that you should do it! I don't want to put any kind of pressure on you! That really wasn't my intention.” He looked apologetic, a hand on Harry's forearm. Harry melted a bit at that, Louis was always so thoughtful. He pressed a kiss on his boyfriend's lips. Just because he could.

“Don’t feel bad, Lou. It just came a bit suddenly, But I will definitely give it some thought.” Harry smiled sweetly.

The rest of their time at the plantation flew by and suddenly they were back at the hotel, packed and ready to drive back to London again. Harry went to check them out, while Louis took their bags to the car. Louis was the one driving again and Harry played DJ with his phone connected to the car.

“Thank you for taking me with you, Harry. I had a lot of fun these last two days. And I definitely needed the change of scenery after all these months of working so hard to get the bar rolling.” Louis squeezed his thigh gently, letting it settle there.

Harry smiled, looking out of the window, like he did on the train the other day. But this time, he wasn't tired. Not a bit. He was happy and excited for what's to come and the big plans they had. Together.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Harry was whistling to himself while mopping the floor in the living room. He already checked off everything on his to-do list for today and now he was cleaning the apartment hopefully in time before Louis would arrive later. He invited him to come over tonight, in hopes that he maybe would stay another night or even the whole weekend.He wouldn’t want to be too presumptuous, since it was only yesterday that they got back from the conference trip. it’s just that he really enjoyed his time with the man, it was easy being around him, being himself.And they had this mysterious meeting with Zayn and Liam on Saturday evening. He didn’t know what that was about, Louis just asked him if he had time for it. Which would be another reason for Louis to stay over because the pub where they would meet up was closer to his apartment than to Louis’. And Niall asked if they wanted to play a round of footie on Sunday afternoon with him and Shawn. It looked like they would have a really busy weekend.He was just wringing out the mop after he finished cleaning the floors, when he heard someone knock on his flat door. He towelled his hands dry on the dish towel he had thrown over his shoulder earlier and hurried down the hallway to open the door.Louis stood in the hallway with a bright smile on his face and two large, brown take away bags in his hands. “You didn’t tell me exactly what food you would like, so I went to that Korean place down the street from my apartment and bought a little bit of everything,” he chuckled while squeezing past Harry, but not without stealing a kiss from Harry’s lips.Harry smiled fondly at him, while he closed the door and followed his boyfriend into the living room. Louis unloaded box by box on the coffee table and Harry used the time to put the cleaning stuff away and get them some beverages and silverware.Harry had never eaten from this specific restaurant and tried a bit of every box, moaning softly here and there when the taste was exceptionally good. He could feel Louis watching him and turned on the couch to face him. “Wha?” He asked him with his mouth still stuffed full.“Nothing babe, just … the last time you made that sort of noise because of something in your mouth… it wasn't food.” Louis smirked, then took another bite of his chicken, imitating Harry's moaning.Harry snickered, slapping his hand playfully on Louis’ arm. “You are insufferable, mister.”“And insatiable, too.” Louis winked.They continued eating their food while throwing jokes at each other and after Harry cleared up the table and put the leftovers in the fridge, he joined Louis back on the couch with two fresh bottles of beer and immediately cuddled up against him.He sighed, pulling back again to look at Louis. “I’m really happy right now, Lou. I’m very comfortable with you and I don’t take that for granted.” He repeated his thoughts from earlier.Louis beamed at him like a lightbulb. “I’m glad to hear that, baby. I’m very happy, too! Come here,” and with that, he pulled Harry back against him and kissed him deeply.They kissed lazily for a few minutes while Louis held him securely in his arms. Neither of them challenged the other to pick up the pace or make it dirtier, their tongues just danced a happy slow dance.As they separated again, he was faced with a very tired looking Louis, eyes nearly closed.
“I'm sorry, babe.” He suppressed a yawn behind his hand and looked over to him apologetically. “Is it okay if we don't have sex tonight? I'm properly knackered from the week with our trip and work and all that.”Harry smiled, bringing a hand up to cup Louis’ cheek. “That is totally fine with me, Lou. Not going to lie, I am quite tired, too. Come on, let's get you to bed. I want to be the little spoon.” He grinned, stood up and pulled Louis with him. They kept their hands intertwined until they reached the bathroom, where they separated to get themselves ready for bed. His bathroom wasn't very spacious, therefore they had to take turns in brushing their teeth and getting ready.Harry was first in bed, making himself comfortable. He faced away from the door, making sure there was enough space on the bed for Louis to slide in behind him. He heard the lights switching off and the door of the bathroom closing, steps on the floor, the creaking of the bedroom door and he felt the dip of the bed and the warm half naked body that pressed against him. An arm wrapped around him, a warm hand on his stomach pulling him in even closer. That was the last thing he remembered while sleep came over him quickly.
🍷🚬
Louis woke up, momentarily panicking because he couldn’t move until his sleepy haze vanished and he realised that it was just Harry who draped himself tightly around him during the night. He closed his eyes again, enjoying the closeness and the peace. He couldn’t remember a time in his life where he was this content. It must’ve been a long time ago.It was already light outside, and also rather late he noticed as he took a glance at the clock on his phone. He still had a few hours until he needed to be at the bar for his shift, but he would rather spend them with Harry in a wake state. He would let him sleep for a few more minutes before waking him up. Contemplating between watching Harry sleep or scrolling mindlessly on his phone, he decided rather quickly against the latter.He carefully pushed some loose hair out of Harry’s face before settling his hand down on Harry’s upper arm, stroking it in slow circles.He clearly lost track of time because the few more minutes turned into half an hour. Harry just looked too peaceful to disturb him. And Louis didn't have to because Harry started to stir and stretched his limbs out before letting out a big yawn and blinking up at Louis with sleepy eyes.“Hey babe.” Louis greeted him. “Did you sleep well?”“Hmmpf.” Harry grumbled out and hid his face in the crook of Louis’ neck.“Clearly not a morning person today.” Louis chirped. “Come on, babe. Let's get up. Want to spend some time with you before I need to head out for work.”That caused Harry to be wide awake. “Ahh shit, I forgot you need to work today. Yes, let's get up. I'll just take a quick shower.” He sat upright and nearly fell out of the bed in an attempt to get up as fast as possible.Louis chuckled, watching as Harry hurried out of the bedroom before he got up himself. Just pulling on his track pants, he made his way to the kitchen and started the kettle. He took care of their tea and setted the table, as long as Harry was in the shower. Maybe he could help him with making the food, too. Improving some of his cooking skills. Even if it was just eggs and bacon. He was just pouring the water in the cups, as he heard his phone going off in the bedroom. He hurried to reach it before the call ended, an unknown number on the screen.“Hello?” He accepted the call. “Yes I’m Louis Tomlinson.” He heard the bathroom door opening and a few seconds after, Harry was entering the room, a towel loosely wrapped around his hip, his hair still wet and with a curious look on his face.“Yes, Monday would be great. In the morning if possible. 9 o'clock? Perfect. I'm writing it down. Should anything interfere with the appointment, I will give you a call. Thanks again, Mrs. Collins. Have a nice weekend!” He ended the call, still feeling the piercing gaze of Harry on his back.He turned to face Harry who looked at him questioningly. “What was that about?” He asked while leaning against the doorframe, water dripping on the floor from his wet locks.“That, my darling, was the Real estate agency for the empty shop next to the wine bar. I sent in a request yesterday to visit the location. Just to have a look. Get a feeling for it.” he smirked at Harry's surprised but happy face and he knew he made the right decision. “Are you free around that time or should I call her back to reschedule?”“Let me get dressed and my hair dry, then I'll have a look on my calendar. But I can't remember having any appointments on Monday morning. I'll let you know in a few minutes.” Harry pushed himself away from the frame, pressed a kiss on Louis’ cheek and vanished towards the direction of the bathroom. Seconds later, Louis could hear the hair dryer blowing.Louis ended up not having to reschedule the appointment with the agent and soon he was on his way to the bar for his shift, leaving a sulking Harry, lying on the couch, behind.He wasn't mad at Louis for having to work, he was just sad for not spending the next few hours together, too. Louis thought it was cute and with the promise to come over as soon as his shift ended to get ready together for the evening with Zayn and Liam and a long lingering kiss, he left the apartment.+++Louis pushed the door to the pub open and stepped aside to let Harry through first. It wasn’t very crowded tonight, which he was thankful for. Therefore the noise level was at a point where you could speak to one another without shouting. And he had a feeling that they would have a serious conversation tonight, after Zayn’s behaviour a few days ago.
“Louis, do you have a moment?” Zayn stood in the doorway to his bedroom, where he was currently changing clothes before he went to work.

“Of course, what is it?” Louis stopped what he was doing in order to give his best friend his full attention.

“I really don't want to say what it is about, just that it's important to me and Liam fully supports me in this idea.” Zayn started. “Please, could you ask Harry if he has time Saturday evening to meet at the pub down the street from the bar? We want to talk to you both together about something.”
He looked down, fiddling nervously with his fingers. That was very uncommon behaviour for him. It piqued Louis' interest.

“Yeah, sure. No problem, mate. Not going to lie, I'm really curious now what this is all about. But I respect your wishes and I will ask Harry immediately. I'll text you later, alright?”

“Thanks, man. Means so much to me.”
Louis shook himself out of the memory and hurried to follow Harry into the pub. They were the first to arrive and secured a table in the far left corner, furthest away from the speakers. He waved at the barkeeper, Ed, sending him a friendly smile. He got to know the redhead a few months ago when he was a bit tipsy and frustrated because the plans for the bar didn’t work out as they planned and they had to reschedule the opening night to a few weeks later. He poured his heart out to the friendly man, while nursing one beer after the other. That’s how they became friends, or at least that’s what Louis hoped it was between them.They hung their jackets at a hook on the wall behind them, just as Ed brought two pints to their table.“Hiya Lou, long time no see! How are you?” Ed put the pints down at the table and embraced Louis for a short friendly hug. “And who is this?” He asked with a nod towards Harry. “Well aren't you a pretty one?” He wiggled his eyebrows and Harry blushed slightly under the attention.Louis chuckled and turned to Harry. “Ed, this is Harry, my BOYFRIEND. Harry, this is Ed, the owner of this pub and a friend of mine. He has a wife and two children at home, so don't worry.”Harry blushed beautifully, reaching for the outstretched hand of Ed to shake it. “It's nice to meet you.” He said, ducking his head under the attention.Ed beamed, looking back at Louis. “Well can't blame me for admiring the art, Louis. It's nice to meet you too, Harry.” He added honestly.“If you want to admire some art, Ed, go and ask Zayn about his latest piece. Aaah speak of the devil. There he is.”And really, just in the moment, Zayn and Liam entered the pub with searching eyes that lit up as they found their friends. They made their way over to them, greeting each other with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Louis introduced them to Ed, who took their orders in return.“Be right back with your beers, lads. And if you are here for a while tonight, I will play some acoustic songs later this evening.” He clapped his hands together and turned to vanish in the direction of the bar.“Oh, yeah!” Louis exclaimed while pointing a finger towards the barman. “He is a great singer! Fantastic voice. I'm here regularly after I close the bar for the night just to hear him sing. I always wanted to bring Zayn along but every time I asked him, he was too engulfed in one of his paintings.” He threw Zayn a pointed look.They took a seat opposite of Harry and Louis and after Ed brought their drinks, they toasted to a good evening and their friendship.As the next round of beer was brought to the table, Zayn cleared his throat to get everyone's attention. Louis immediately cut off the conversation he had with Liam and turned to face his best friend, he could see out of the corner of his eyes that Harry scooted forward on his stool a bit and crossed his arms on the table.“Well, here we go. You both know about my… preference. As well as I know about yours. And Liam here is willing to support me, even if it isn't really the same for him. He even watched the video with me.” Zayn beamed at Liam. “And we have an idea that we wanted to share with you, see if you would possibly be on board. But only IF you are ready. No pressure here really.”Louis chuckled, reaching across the table to lay a hand on Zayn's shoulder. “Mate, please stop rambling and spit it out. I get that you are nervous but hey, it's just us!” He sent him a reassuring smile while pointing back and forth between him and Harry, then motioned for him to continue.“We wanted to know if you are up for a couples evening with a bit of fun. Well to be specific, you” Zayn waved his hand between Louis and Harry “have fun and we have some of our own… by watching you.” His face was heavily flushed and his gaze was now glued on the table, while Liam rubbed his back, a hint of a grin in his face.Louis wasn’t shocked. Not even for one second. He kind of expected this kind of proposition from his best friend after he studied his behaviour in the last couple of weeks. He looked over to Harry, who already turned to him, glistening eyes and a smirk on his face. And yes, that was to be expected too, he thought.Turning around again to face the other two, Louis said “I think we should make this happen. Did you already have a date in mind? And I think we should lay down some ground rules for it, just to make sure everyone is comfortable with the situation.” Louis smiled and took a sip of his beer, watching his best friend take the deepest breath of his life and his shoulders dropped down again, visibly relaxing.Liam pulled him in a sideway hug and kissed his cheek. “See, I knew there was no need for you to be so worried!”If Louis didn't know better, he would've almost assumed that there was more than friends with benefits between the two.“I thought we could have a look into our calendars right now and decide on a date. And yeah, I think rules are a good idea.” Zayn smiled softly.And that's exactly what they did. Afterwards the conversation was much lighter again, everyone updated the others on what's new and they had a couple more drinks. Louis recognized that Harry grew giddier beside him, his cheeks a bit flushed and he had his lower lip red bitten, again.“What’s up, babe?” He whispered as low as it was possible with the loud music around them. He rubbed Harry's lower lip gently with his thumb. “And stop biting your lips, darling.” He added gently.“Nothing.” Harry’s face got even redder. “I just, I keep thinking about our conversation and now I have all these images in my head of what it would be like and what we could do and what they would do, and… now I’m a teeny tiny bit horny.” He whined a bit and made pleading eyes at Louis.“Haha, okay darling, I see. I think we should head home, don’t you think?” Louis chuckled, already jumping off the bar stool. Harry nodded eagerly, following him to put their jackets on. They said their goodbyes to Liam and Zayn, and waved Ed off with a promise to come back soon and listen to him play.+++Harry was clinging to him since they left the bar to head home. They stumbled here and there, both on the drunker side now, pausing every few steps because one of them was pressing the other against the next possible surface. The whole conversation from earlier had made them both a little more than a bit horny and the way home was longer than both of them wished for. They just stumbled past the Italian restaurant where they had their first date, as Harry took his hand and yanked Louis with him over on the other side of the street into the park they walked in weeks ago.Harry was going so fast with his long legs, that Louis nearly had to jog to keep up with him.“Babe, where are we going? This isn’t the way home! What’s going on in that beautiful head of yours?” He chuckled, while trying to stop Harry from strutting across the park. The only response he got was giggling. He shook his head, grinning, what a dork.They reached the bench where they sat during their first date. The one with the big old tree behind it. And that’s where Harry was pulling Louis. Behind the tree, to a point where the street lamp beside the bench couldn’t quite reach anymore and everything was basked in near darkness. Louis didn’t have much time to process what was happening as he suddenly was pressed against the trunk and had a lovely tipsy Harry nibbling and licking on his lips, kissing up and down his jaw. Hands fumbling to open his jeans and pushing them down. One large wet hand encompassing both of their cocks at one, pumping at a relentless speed.When did he get his hand wet? Louis couldn’t bring himself to care enough to wonder any further, it just felt too good. It was too much all at once and at the same time not enough. He pushed his hands under Harry’s sweater, searching his way up to his boyfriend's sensitive nipples, pinching and rolling them between his fingertips. Harry moaned into their sloppy kiss and tightened the hold around their dicks.After a couple more powerful strokes, they came nearly at the same time, with the names of one another on the lips, spilling over Harry’s hand. They stayed like that for a bit before it got a bit chilly around their legs. Harry looked around for a bit before he shrugged and wiped his hand on the gras. They both tucked themselves back in and made their way back home in a much calmer, sated mood.+++Sunday morning flew by. After downing a lot of water and some Aspirin, they headed out to the Ark to help Eloise with the kids. They had a wonderful time and Harry once again made himself useful in the kitchen while Louis played with the kids. Louis couldn't help but notice that despite the constant smile on Eloise's face, the worried crease between her eyebrows grew deeper every time he saw her. He was sure that it was still about the financial situation but he just didn't know what else he could do. He hung up the flyers that a few of the kids brought by a week ago but other than that… He made a mental note to phone her during the week to talk to her properly, only the two of them. They ate lunch with the kids and said their goodbyes, heading out to a football field 15 minutes away to meet the other boys.Niall and Shawn were already kicking a ball between them lazily as they arrived. “Hey booooys.” Niall shouted excitedly running towards them and threw himself in Harry’s arms. Shawn followed him with the football under his arm.Louis got a kiss on the cheek too before he finally got properly introduced to Shawn. Despite dating Harry for a few weeks now, they never got to meet each other. He was instantly charmed by the tall man with the short wavy hair and the warm brown eyes.“Nice to finally meet you, Shawn. You were missed on our boys night out.” He told him while pulling the taller man in for a hug. Shawn grinned down at him, clearly pleased by the warm welcome.“Yeah, it was a pity. But I don't get to see my parents very often these days. I am glad for every minute I am able to spend with them.”“Totally understandable, mate. My family is nearby and I still love to spend as much time with them as possible, no worries” Louis nudged his shoulder before snatching the ball out of Shawn's hands and storming off towards the goal.They got to play a few rounds of footie, where it was made ultimately clear that Harry and Shawn were just there to look great, while Louis and Niall fought some serious battles over the ball. They didn’t really have a goal to shoot at, it was more a one on one battle about who shot the ball out of the field first. But it was fun either way and soon they were all sweaty and heavy breathing, sitting on the side of the football field, drinking water and chatting about everything and nothing.Louis and Shawn shared some interest in music and currently were discussing the latest record of Twenty One Pilots while Harry and Niall sat close together, whispering to each other. It had to be a very interesting conversation judging by Niall’s facial expressions. Louis didn’t mind their secrecy, either Harry would tell him later on what this was about or it was none of his business and that was fine with him, too.They all enjoyed the conversations and the warm afternoon sun and only headed home to wash the sweat and dirt off themselves as the sun began to set at the horizon.+++Monday morning was a bit hectic because they woke up too late, but that was really no one’s fault. Not Louis’ who turned off the alarm one too many times nor Harry’s who didn’t let Louis get up because he demanded just one more cuddle over and over.But they arrived at the location with ten minutes to spare and Louis made use of the remaining time to quickly hop in his office in the bar to look something up. Harry scrolled mindlessly through his phone. Mostly on Pinterest to get some inspiration for possible interior ideas.Just as Louis joined him again, they saw a woman in her mid-thirties, wearing business attire, walking in their direction. She had glasses on and her dark-brown hair up in a bun. The briefcase in her right hand swung lightly with her steps.She smiled friendly as she approached them. “Hello, I’m Mrs. Collins, the real estate agent responsible for this property. Who’s the gentleman I had the pleasure of talking to on the phone?” She looked between the two before her gaze settled down on Louis, who took a step forward.“That would be me, nice to meet you.” He shook her hand in greeting and then gestured to Harry. “This is my boyfriend Harry, he is the one that’s mainly interested in this property. I actually rent this one next to it. The Grapevine.” He explained, watching the agent's eyes go wide in recognition.“Oh right, I was in there actually, once or twice. It’s nice what you did with the room. My colleague was the one that handled the deal, actually.” She said excitedly. With an invitation hand motion she gestured towards the entrance of the empty building. “Well, why don’t we start the tour?”The shop front was not as impressive as the one from the wine bar but the windows were still big enough to put a nice display for advertisement behind it. She walked up the two stairs to the door and unlocked it before she let the two men step in first. The main room was not big but spacey enough to fit a few tables and a bar in it. It looked quite similar to Louis’ wine bar. It had to be the same architect for both buildings.“On the far left is the door to another room and an en-suite bathroom and over here are the toilets for the guests. You'll find the kitchen behind the door over there by the counter. In the kitchen are two more doors. One leads to the back garden and the other door leads to the cellar beneath us. Plenty of storage down there.” She explained while pointing to the door to the kitchen in the back.Louis stood in the middle of the main room, watching Harry inspecting everything, he could nearly see the wheels in his head spinning with all the possibilities. It was beautiful to watch.“There is an apartment above us, it’s currently rented. But the renter is a quiet one.” She explained while pointing towards the ceiling. “He knows that the shop will be busy again soon but that shouldn’t be a problem as long as it’s not transformed into some sort of fancy night club.” She chuckled at her own joke, shaking her head afterwards.“I can assure you, that’s not what I have in mind.” Harry smiled friendly. “I actually want to open a smoothie bar with healthy drinks and snacks and stuff. The vision is there but nothing is finalised for now.”“That actually sounds like a really good idea. I heard far worse in the last week. One person told me she wanted to make a tattoo/reptile shop out of it.” She raised her eyebrows in horror, clearly no fan of reptiles - or tattoos, Louis couldn’t tell. “Anyway, let’s continue with our tour, shall we.”They took a detour through the rooms in the basement, which was mostly for storage like the agent mentioned. But they also found two industrial sized fridges that looked very intact and Mrs Collins told them they were free to use if they rented the shop.After they made their way up and out of the shop again, Louis and Harry said their goodbyes with the promise that they would make a decision by the end of the week. They waved her off and turned to walk in the other direction towards Harry’s home. Harry happily chatted about everything he loved about the shop and how it could look like and what he could sell there. Louis knew that the decision was already made, but he wouldn’t say anything until Harry came to him by himself.+++“She didn’t call today either. What is she waiting for? I bet, the shop is already off the market and she is ghosting us or something.” Harry paced through his living room until Louis stepped in front of him to stop him in his tracks. It was late and he was tired after his evening shift.“Babe, please calm down. She will be calling back, I’m sure of it. It didn’t seem like there were many other people interested. Maybe she is just busy. Let’s just go to bed and see what tomorrow brings.”After hours of discussing and talking about whether or not it would be profitable to actually open a Smoothie Bar in this area, they came to the conclusion that it was worth a try and Louis had left a message on the mailbox of the agent the day before, telling her that they would like to rent the shop.
Harry had already put multiple checklists together of stuff that needed to be done and things that he wanted to purchase. And the folder on his phone with decoration inspirations was filled with more and more pictures. Louis didn’t have the heart to tell him that he might be too hasty, but on the other hand, if it wouldn’t be this shop, it definitely would be another one.“Yeah, I know you are right. It’s not that big of a deal. I’m sure she is just busy.” Harry tried to reassure himself. “Come on, let’s get some sleep, I have a few meetings with clients tomorrow morning.”And truth to be told, Louis got a phone call the next morning, even before Harry had to leave for his first meeting. They would be able to rent the shop immediately if they wanted to. Harry made a few air jumps through his apartment, and Louis had to will himself not to laugh out loud at Harry’s expressions while he was still on the phone with the agent. They made an appointment to sign the contracts and receive the keys for the next monday. Harry was still giddy as he left the apartment half an hour later and Louis sat down to do some research himself about owning a food shop. Not that Harry had to know anything about it, Louis just wanted to make sure he could support his boyfriend in the best way possible.+++Monday came quickly, and soon, Louis and Harry were on the way to the empty shop once again. Louis managed to schedule the appointment with the real estate agent for midday so he could go over to his wine bar straight afterwards to open up for the afternoon.Harry had a spring in his step for the whole way down the street, throwing more ideas at Louis. They already spent nearly all Sunday putting a plan together for the renovation and looking up the craftsmen they would need to do certain jobs. Harry had a whole list he wanted to go through in the afternoon to see if anyone was free to be hired on the spot.Louis wasn’t able to visit the Ark, Eloise had told him on a phone call last Friday that nearly the whole house was down with a stomach bug and that he shouldn’t come by. Therefore he was more than happy to listen to Harry’s rambling and threw some tips and tricks of his own in that he learned during the time of the renovation of the wine bar.Mrs. Collins was already waiting for them and they immediately went inside to finish the paperwork. Harry signed the contract and handed the agent a check for the deposit. She pulled a keychain with multiple keys out of her briefcase and explained the function of every key while showing Harry the corresponding door, which led to another quick tour through every room. The whole appointment didn't take longer than 20 minutes and Louis had a bit more time left before he had to open the bar.After Mrs. Collins left the building with the best wishes for Harry’s business and the offer to call anytime if there was a problem with the landlord. It was really nice to offer that, Louis thought, as it was already a finished job for her.Louis went through the rooms with Harry again, slower this time. Harry had pulled out a notebook to write down everything he noticed that he hadn’t seen before. All in all, they wouldn’t need to do much renovation and Harry was pretty sure that he could open in less than two months. He was more excited than a kid on christmas morning.
Together they made a solid plan on how to start with the renovations and soon Louis made his way over next door and Harry went home to start with calling the craftsmen.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Louis was filled with anticipation and Harry was a nervous wreck. He had never seen him this nervous and he asked him numerous times the last few days and especially today if it was okay that they were doing this. Harry had always reassured him that it was what he wanted and that he was just nervous to do something wrong or not being good enough for the other two to please. Louis pulled out his best motivational speech after and Harry’s mood was a lot better every time.

He also made Harry recite the rules they decided on, together with Zayn and Liam a few days ago, to calm him down.

Nobody will touch a person from the other pair.
If anybody needs a break or wants to stop, they will call red and everyone stops immediately. It is encouraged to colour out at any point, if needed.

Comments and suggestions are allowed and encouraged, from either party
No explicit talking to people outside of the group about this evening without the consent of the others.

It was just a handful of rules but they all thought it was enough, even Liam who they didn't know that well. But the trust was mutual, they discussed it.

Now the evening had arrived and the two of them were preparing some last minute things like appetisers (Louis’ part. Yes he could do that, it wasn’t actually cooking) and redecorating the living room a hundred times (Harry’s part).

Harry jumped at the sudden sound of the doorbell, but recovered fairly quickly and welcomed Zayn and Liam into his home with his usual friendly mannerism. He led them into the living room and motioned for them to sit down on the bean bags. He asked them what they would like to drink and vanished into the kitchen. Louis had already settled down on the couch with a beer, the appetisers presented on beautiful plates on the coffee table.

They fell into easy conversation after Harry handed out the drinks. Zayn talked about that new project he wanted to do, maybe combined with another exhibition at the beginning of the next year. He already had a few artists in mind to join him.

“Oh and I actually wanted to discuss this project with you that I want to do with the kids at The Ark. Maybe Sunday in a week? You said that times there are rougher than normal and I thought maybe they could need a bit of a distraction and they also could try to sell some of the pieces for some pocket money.”

Louis tried to listen to what his best friend was so excited about but he was distracted by Harry who he could feel shaking beside him and he started to be worried about his boyfriend.

“That sounds like a great idea Zaynie, I really think we should put our heads together within the next few days! Now if you would excuse us for a moment.” He announced that they would bring a fresh round of beer and pulled Harry with him out of the room. As they arrived in the kitchen, Louis closed the door. He stepped in front of Harry, taking his shaky hands in his own. “Darling, you're shaking. Is everything alright? Should we cut this whole thing short?”

Harry shook his head firmly. “No, god no. You already know that I'm nervous. And all that small talk doesn't help me calm down. Not to mention that I'm very excited despite being this nervous.” He pushed one of Louis’ hands down to his crotch. “And my body seems to be excited, too.”
And yes, he was half hard already. “Please, can we start now?”

“Yes, babe, let's do this.” Louis smiled, tightening the hold on one of Harry’s hands in his, pressing a kiss on the backside of it and pulled him gently back into the living room, where Zayn and Liam were chatting quietly. He positioned his boyfriend in front of the couch and pulled the coffee table to the side to create more free space between them all. He then went back to Harry and turned him, front facing the other men. He stood behind him and wrapped his hands around him to get access to the buttons on Harry’s shirt, which was mysteriously buttoned nearly to the top, again.

“My boyfriend here is a bit impatient as it seems.” Louis announced loudly, causing the other
two to end their conversation and turn their bodies to face them. “And I’m not one to deny him pleasure.” And addressing Harry he said. “You really want to show them what’s underneath there, don’t you?”

Harry nodded eagerly and tried to get his fingers on the buttons of his shirt, but Louis batted his hands away gently. Zayn and Liam studied them carefully. Good, let’s give them something to look at.

Louis took his time to undress Harry, revealing the gorgeous lingerie he wore under his clothes. Harry wanted it to be a surprise for Zayn and Liam, because neither of them knew about Harry’s passion for dessous. It had the desired effect as both of them sat there, staring with slightly open mouths, their gazes lingering on every inch of Harry’s body.

Kissing down Harry’s body, he stepped around him to give his nipples some extra attention while undressing him completely. Harry had his head thrown back, his hands gripping Louis’ biceps on both sides.

After Harry was fully naked, Louis leaned in to kiss his boyfriend tenderly. He pulled back, speaking loudly enough for both Harry and their audience to hear him.

“Undress me, love.”

Harry snapped back to reality, quickly undressing Louis and worshipping his body along the way. As the last of his clothes fell to the ground, Louis let himself fall back on the couch, spreading his legs slightly. He lazily stroked his cock while Harry got down in front of him, a bottle of lube in his hands. He batted Louis’ hand away and immediately swallowed him down, settling for an excruciatingly slow rhythm while fumbling the bottle open blindly, pouring some of the liquid on his long fingers. Harry used his unlubed hand to spread his own buttcheeks and tease his rim with the other fingers.

Louis wasn’t able to see much of what Harry was doing, his boyfriend had himself on full display only for their guests to see, but that was okay. This show wasn’t for him. While Harry expertly sucked his cock freehanded, he let his gaze wander to the two men on his opposite. They both had freed themselves of nearly all their clothes, only the pants were still on. He could see bulges in both of them, clearly affected by all this. More by Harry than Louis, that he had to admit, was it Harry who did most of the work so far. Speaking off, the same just pushed two fingers into himself, followed by a vibrating moan that shot right into Louis’ balls. A wave of pleasure washed over his face and he locked eyes with his best friend, who managed to look away from Harry at the deeply pleased sound that escaped Louis’ mouth. Zayn had started to palm himself through his pants and worked over Liam’s with his other hand, too.

“That’s enough, babe.” Louis pulled Harry carefully off his cock and motioned for him to get on his lap. “I want you to ride me now, You think you can do that?”

Harry made a happy noise, nodding his head and positioned himself new until the tip of Louis’ cock poked his hole slightly. Poor boy, his pupils were blown, nearly no green in sight, his dick was leaking steadily as he sat himself down in one swift motion until his ass rested on Louis’ thighs. Louis groaned at the sudden heat and pressure from his boyfriend's hot walls around him.

“You look so beautiful like that, bouncing on my cock. Do you know that?” Louis panted, looking up at Harry. He was a sight to behold with his shiny eyes, the red-bitten lips, his flushed face and the sweaty shine over his forehead, More and more curls fell out of his bun, creating a halo around him. Harry nodded, biting hard in his lower lip to suppress a grin. He pulled him down to a messy, filthy kiss, always putting on a bit of an extra show tonight.

After they parted, Louis announced loudly “We are quite rude to our friends, withholding them from the sight you are. All they see is your lovely backside. Time to change that, don’t you think, darling?” Harry nodded eagerly, nearly jumping from Louis’ lap to turn around on unstable legs and placed himself down on his cock again, now facing Zayn and Liam, who were clearly pleased by the change of things. He spread his legs widely, wrapping his feet around Louis’ calves to steady himself.

Louis took hold of Harry’s hips and helped him push down on his cock even more. Every now and then he looked around Harry to see what the others were up to. Liam was currently sitting in front of Zayn, clearly sucking him off. Zayn's eyes were fixated on the point where Louis and Harry were connected, his breath coming out as pants through his open mouth.

After a really short time, Zayn made himself sit a bit more upright, pulling Liam on his lap so he could straddle him much like Harry's first position but without penetrating Liam.

“Louis, I think you should fuck him from behind, Harry on all four on the couch.” Louis heard Zayn announce, his best friend bending around Liam to look at him.

And Harry straight out moaned at that. Loud. Louis was a bit taken aback but it took him just a second to recover and his surprised look turned into a smirk.

“Well, darling, you heard our wonderful spectator. Get on your hands and knees and put that cute little ass in the air for everyone to see.” Louis gave him a slap on his left arsecheek and helped Harry get up and move around.

Louis positioned himself behind Harry, pushing in again, thrusting his hips forward hard, over and over again. Harry produced a string of wonderful sounds that caused Louis’ balls to tighten up, heat coiling in his belly. He glanced over to the other pair, it seemed like one or both of them jacked them off at the same time. They didn't hold back with their noises either and Louis felt a bit sorry for Harry's neighbours. But only for a second, Harry's moans pulling him into the scene again.

They were now all nearing the edge, Louis felt his own orgasm building quickly, he reached down in front of Harry to touch his neglected cock, stroking him hard in the rhythm of his thrusts. Harry came with a shout, come splattering all over the couch beneath him, a few streaks even managed to reach his belly.. Shortly after, Louis heard Zayn and Liam coming nearly simultaneously, heavy breathing filled the room. That was all it took for Louis to relax, knowing all of the others were satisfied, and let his orgasm hit him while he gripped Harry's hips again.

Silence fell over the four, their breathing calmed down quickly and the room started to fill with awkward tension. Louis couldn't let that happen. He gently laid Harry down on the couch beside him, letting him cuddle against him, an arm draped over the younger's shoulders.

Zayn and Liam were in a similar position, looking quite blissed out. Even Liam seemed to have enjoyed it. “Well, I guess that was better than I would've expected. Not that I knew what I had to expect.” Louis chuckled.

The others laughed, too. The tension was broken. Louis got up carefully, making sure that Harry wouldn't fall over with the sudden space beside him. He was still a bit out of it.

Louis walked to the bathroom to grab the already laid out wash clothes and a few towels, as well as bottles of water from the kitchen before he returned to the other's.

After they all cleaned up, dressed and hydrated themselves, they rearranged the seating area to make a big pile of pillows and blankets. They all felt the need for closeness. That's how they ended up on the floor intertwined with each other, cuddling and watching a cheesy romcom on the TV.

Louis, who lay on the outside of the pile of limbs, looked over Harry to the other two, where it was very silent. Liam laid on Zayn's chest, mouth hanging open, snoring silently. Zayn had his arms around him tightly, he fell asleep, too. Friends with benefits, my ass, Louis thought. He himself had his arms around Harry too, now nuzzling at his neck. “Thanks for tonight, babe. Meant a lot to me.” He whispered.

Harry turned his head, smiling back at him. “I loved it, Lou. I wouldn't mind doing it again.”

“Really?” Louis backed away from Harry’s neck to look at him with a half surprised look. “I’m glad that you said that. There were moments where I really wanted to go all out, do more stuff, prolong it. But I feared that it would be too much for the first time. Maybe we can talk about it in detail sometime. And repeat it, if the other two are up for it.”

At that Harry turned around and looked fondly at the pair next to him. “They are really cute together, I think they would fit really well. In a relationship, I mean. Just like us.” He smiled up at Louis, dimples on full display.

Louis was so lucky.

🧘🏻‍♀️🎀

It was the next evening as a hurricane named Niall stormed into Harry's flat, bearing a six pack and a bag full of food. He was his usual chipper self as he surprised Harry, who had just stepped out of his shower after his yoga session, as the doorbell rang.

“Good evening Harry, how are you? Come on, put something on your gorgeous body, nobody wants to see that. Ah well, who am I kidding. Anyway, join me on the couch when you're ready.” With that, Niall jumpstepped the other direction into the living room.

Harry stood dumbstruck in the hallway, wrapped in a towel, still with the doorknob in his hand, door wide open. He shook his head, closed the door and went into his bedroom to put some comfortable clothes on.

He towelled his hair dry as good as it got and made his way to the living room to join his best friend.

“So tell me, why do I have the honour of your presence on this wonderful evening? Where's Shawn?” Harry asked, already digging into the veggie burger and fries that Niall brought with.

“Do I have a reason to visit my best friend? I missed you mate.” Niall said, with his mouth full of food. Harry held his hands up in surrender, just chuckling at Niall's reaction. “And Shawn is on a business trip. He will be home tomorrow evening. Just wanted to spend some alone time with you. Feels like ages ago that we did that.”

“That was like two weeks ago, Nialler.” Harry laughed, opening a beer for both of them. “Well then, let's toast to a lad's evening.” They clinked the bottles together and took a sip before they kept eating again.

Harry just finished clearing the table of their food and the already empty bottles, as Niall cleared his throat. “Well actually, there was another reason for my visit tonight.” He bounced slightly up and down on the couch, eyes shining bright as he looked over at Harry.

“Spit it out, mate. What is it? You look … excited?° Harry asked, a bit unsure, as he sat down next to his best friend.

“Shawn asked me to move in with him!” Niall nearly screamed, clapping his hands together excitedly. Harry screeched, throwing himself in Niall’s arms. He hugged him tightly, genuinely excited for him.

“Wow Niall, this is great news! I hope you said yes?” Harry looked at him suspiciously, lightly side-eyeing him. Niall looked back as if he lost his marbles. “Of course I said yes, you douchebag,” he responded followed by a slap on Harry’s upper arm. “I enjoyed my time alone in my apartment, but on the same property as my parents… it is time to get away from there.” He laughed, sipping on his beer.

“So, when are you moving? Do you need help? I could ask Louis, too.” Harry babbled.

“Yes Curly, I actually wanted to ask you two if you could help us. But… It will already be in two days. This Saturday to be exact. Now that I have the opportunity to get away, I can’t wait a day longer. It’s okay if you are busy or something.” Niall made puppy-eyes at his best friend and it was hard to reject him when he looked like this.

“Well, aren’t you eager?” Harry chuckled. “I have time, of course. For you always. I’ll ask Louis if he can help, too. Now tell me everything. When did he ask you, how did he do it? What are you bringing with you? Are you guys renovating?”

Niall laughed, opened himself another beer and began to rattle down the answers to all the questions Harry had.

An hour and another two beers later, Niall got quieter and quieter. After a while, he just stared at the wall, sighing to himself. Harry was searching for something to watch on the tv as he noticed his best friend's behaviour.

“Is everything alright, mate?” He asked, putting a hand on the other’s shoulder.

“What? Oh yeah, just a bit exhausted. I think the adrenaline has worn off. You know, from Shawn asking me to move in and everything. Work is just a bit much at the moment. My dad is stressing about how I have to learn more and faster and that I don’t do enough. What am I supposed to do? I already work nearly every free minute of the day. I’m excellent in the training program. I really don’t know how I can do even MORE.” He let his head flop back on the couch, staring at the ceiling above him.

“That sounds hard, mate. Are you sure you want to follow your dad’s footsteps?” Harry asked. He noticed that the long hours of work and the harsh words of his dad took a toll on the Irish. But Harry couldn’t do much more than be there for him if he needed someone to talk to. His knowledge of the business Niall’s dad was in was limited, therefore he was not the right contact person for good advice.

“I mean, it’s a good job, good money and normally it’s fun, too. I don’t know why my dad is suddenly so caught up about my training and me finishing it as fast as possible. He even managed to move up my assignments in a few weeks. But that means I have to work twice as hard and faster to get everything ready in time. I just hope that he is a bit more chill once I complete the training. I barely see my boyfriend anymore. Don’t know when it’s the last time I saw him in daylight.” Niall finished his rant with another deep sigh and plopped over to lay his head in Harry’s lap.

“I really wish I could help you somehow. I hate seeing you like this.” Harry said, gently petting Niall’s hair.

“It’s okay. There is nothing you can do. It will get better eventually.” Niall responded, tapping Harry’s hand. They stayed like this for another hour, silently watching tv, only a sigh from Niall was to be heard now and then.

Later that evening, Harry brought Niall to his apartment door, hugging him goodbye. “It will be okay, I’m sure of it. Everything will turn out for the better.” He kissed Niall’s temple and shooed him off. Niall went down the hallway and turned around to wave before he disappeared down the stairs.

+++

Louis picked Harry up at 9 in the morning on Saturday, a smile on his face and a bag with croissants on the passenger seat. They drove over to the estate of Niall’s parents, where they were expected half an hour ago. There were boxes piling in the driveway near the big double-garage, waiting to be loaded in the cars. Shawn just came down the flight of stairs next to the garage with another heavy looking box in his arms.

Louis parked the car and they both exited it to greet Shawn, who put the box to the other ones before stepping over to greet them. “Hey guys, thank you so much for coming! We have most of the boxes down here already. Niall is waiting up there to bring some of the furniture down. My brother should be here soon with the transporter.” Shawn smiled at them, hugging one after the other before he motioned them to lead the way up to the apartment, which was built on top of the garages, away from the main house. Niall had loved it, because he had his privacy while technically still living on the same ground as his parents.

The three of them walked up the stairs together and through the open door in Niall’s apartment. The hallway was packed with more boxes, they barely found a way through it and Niall was still piling boxes after boxes into the small entryway. “Babe, slow down please. We don’t have a way out if you keep up with your tempo.” Shawn laughed, shaking his head about the eagerness of his boyfriend to move out as fast as possible.

“Can’t wait to get out of here.” Niall responded happily. His mood was way better than two days ago in Harry’s apartment. “And I really don’t know where all this stuff is coming from. I can’t remember owning this much.” He sighed and grabbed a box from the hallway, making his way out of the door.

After a few rounds of bringing boxes down to the driveway, a black transporter pulled next to Louis’ car and a young man hopped from the driver seat. Clearly Shawn’s brother, based on the facial similarities. He greeted them and they immediately started to load the transporter.

It took them a few hours and several rounds of loading and unloading the transporter until they were done. They all drove over with their own cars after the last round of loading.

After the last boxes found their way into Shawn’s apartment, they decided to order food and Niall was on his way to buy beer, but not before dropping a comment along the lines of ‘who doesn’t have beer at home, good that I now live here, too’ and snatching a kiss from the boyfriend.

Shawn's living room, no, Shawn's and Niall’s living room, was big, nearly twice the size of Harry's already decent one and there was a big lounge area with lots of possibilities to sit, lay, hang around. A TV was missing, instead there was a big pull down screen and a projector attached to the ceiling.

Harry was the last to use the bathroom to wash the sweat and dust off and just as he emerged from the bathroom, the doorbell rang to announce the pizza delivery. They took a seat and dove into their pizzas like starving wolves. It had been a long day and they were all exhausted. But they had managed to move all of Niall’s stuff into his new home within one day.

+++

Half of the big living room was already covered in paint, thankfully protected by big white linen sheets that hung on every surface and on the walls, as Louis and Harry entered the Ark the next day. They could hear the squeaking and laughing from a few feet away already as they just passed the garden door. Curious as Harry was, he speeded up his steps, stepping through the back door and immediately making his way to the living room, pulling Louis with him.

Around 15 kids, dressed in white painting overalls, hoods over their heads and clear goggles on to protect their eyes, were running around with various paint bombs in their hands. The sheets had all sorts of colours and patterns on them, broken balloons covered the floor.

Pop music was thrumming out of different boxes, and in between all of it was a very colourful Zayn, littered in paint. He was dressed in a painting overall, too. “Out, out before you end up as a target, too.” he shouted towards them, clearly having the fun of his life there. Louis barked out a laugh and hurried out of the room pulling Harry with him, as advised by his best friend. And indeed, as soon as Louis closed the door behind them, they heard the dull bang of a balloon against the wood.

Louis shook his head fondly, which pulled a laugh out of Harry. But instead of asking Zayn if he needed any help, which he clearly didn't, Harry followed Louis into the kitchen to greet the ladies there. Harry decided to help them with lunch, already rolling his sleeves up to wash his hands. Louis wandered off in the direction of Eloise's office after giving Harry a quick peck on the cheek and leaving a few playful comments towards the other women in the room.

After half an hour, Zayn entered the kitchen, now without the overall and the googles, but part of his face was still speckled with paint. He took a bottle of water out of the fridge and emptied half of it at once.

“You alright there, mate?” Harry asked, smirking at him. Zayn rolled his eyes at him, but it was a playful move. “These kids are pure horror, Harry. Pure evil, I tell ya. They were supposed to throw the balloons at the sheets on the walls. I looked away for one, ONE second and they started a balloon-paint-war.” Zayn threw his hands in the air in defeat, causing a bit of water to spill out of the bottle. After a deep sight, he looked at Harry with a peaceful gaze. “But it was a lot of fun, too. And the results are great! After lunch, we will cut out pieces of the fabric that look especially good and make a big art piece out of it. I hope I can sell it at my next exhibit.” A grin spread over his face at the thought.

“That sounds fantastic, Zaynie!” Harry turned around to put the tray with cut up potatoes in the oven. “Maybe Louis and I can help. But on the other hand, I think Louis already made plans to play footie with the older kids. But I am free to assist.”

Harry was great with kids, and he knew it. Since he was a little kid, he always wished for younger siblings, but his wish was never fulfilled. He was more than happy to help Zayn with his project. Maybe he could do another reading session for the younger kids afterwards.

Just in time for lunch, Louis emerged out of the office with Eloise behind him. They joined Harry and Zayn at their table. Louis must’ve told Eloise about Harry’s plans for the empty shop because she used the time during the lunch to interview him about every detail of his plan. He didn’t mind, he really liked the middle aged women with the always perfect hair.

Harry kept his promise to help Zayn with his project while Louis was outside kicking ball with two of the older boys and a girl who was new in the house, only arrived a week ago. She got kicked out of her home by her step-dad after her mum had passed away. It was an incredibly sad story that had Harry nearly in tears as he heard of her. She was a brave 15 year old who integrated herself quickly into the community.

After most of the pieces of fabric were cut out, Zayn gathered everything together to put it away safely. It was getting late and the kids had started to lose their concentration. They decided to continue the project another time and Harry gathered everyone around the couch to read a book for them.

Harry enjoyed his time in the house immensely and didn’t dare to think about what would happen if the thing between him and Louis wouldn’t work out. Would he still be able to come here and help out? He shook himself quickly to get rid of the thoughts, stood up to put the book away and made his way out of the back door to Louis, who now sat in the grass with a few kids around them, chatting happily. He plopped himself next to his boyfriend in the grass, a hand resting on Louis’ thigh, smiling at him as he looked up at Harry.

“Everything alright, darling?” Louis asked him.

“Yes, Lou, more than.”

+++

Monday

Harry was at the shop for the better part of an hour now, trying to take the chipped paint down from all the wooden surfaces. He decided to get started with the renovations as soon as possible, even though he didn’t have all the professionals at hand yet. He postponed all the meetings that were scheduled for the upcoming week to concentrate on the new shop. He wanted to take every unnecessary thing down before the carpenter arrived on Thursday. He was scraping at a very persistent piece of paint as Louis entered through the front door with two large cups of coffee in his hands.

Harry stood up straight, sighing loudly. “You are heaven sent.” He said, plucking a cup out of Louis’ hands, immediately taking a sip. “And you too, of course.” He winked, giving his boyfriend a peck on the lips. Louis was on the late shift this week and immediately agreed to help as much as he could without neglecting his own business (Harry had insisted on it, he knew that Louis would go all out to find a replacement for him in the bar only to find more time to help Harry).

Louis put his own cup down on one of the windowsills and took a look around. “I can see the vision you have here. I think it will look great with the floorplan you made. Now, how can I help?”

Harry looked at his checklist that he made the day he got the keys for the shop. “You could take all the accessories down in the bathroom. Like the toilet paper holder and stuff. I want to clean the tiles next and foil them in another colour. They are thankfully not damaged or anything.”

Louis nodded and grabbed a few tools that Harry brought with him, making his way over to the bathrooms.

They worked in silence nearly the entire morning, checking different things from Harry's list, and he already made a note to bring a radio with him, or at least portable speakers. Music made everything better, even renovations.

At the time that Louis had to go home for a shower before he needed to work, they had already done a lot. A carpenter was there to speak to Harry and Niall showed up with sandwiches for lunch as another thank you for their help on Saturday. Harry was satisfied with everything and after changing into clean clothes that he brought with him, he made his way over to the wine bar to enjoy a glass of his favourite wine and chatted with Jasmine until her shift ended and Louis took over.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🍷🚬

“Have you seen my black jeans? You know, the very tight ones” Louis heard Harry shouting, all the way from the bedroom to the couch he was currently laying on, mindlessly scrolling through his phone. He refused to stay in the bedroom where Harry was currently stress-packing. It looked like a battlefield over there. He seemed to have a habit of scattering his clothes around when he didn’t know what to pack or to wear. It was cute in a slightly weird way.

“I think it’s still in the washing machine, babe. But I don’t know. This is your apartment. And you don’t need to show off your assets. It’s only my family.” He shouted back, not looking up from his phone. He switched to Candy Crush, trying to finally crack that one level he was working on for a few days now.

“Just… just your family???” A very ruffled Harry appeared on the doorway, his shirt pushed up a bit, hair standing in every direction. With a look at Louis like he had lost all his marbles, he said, voice strained with stress. “It is not JUST your family, Lou. I’m seeing them for the first time. And it’s a whole weekend!! I want to make a good impression and yes, it is stressing me out a bit!” He pushed his hair back, breathing heavily. A desperate look spread over his face.

“Babe, if it’s too much for you, I already told you that you don’t have to come with me. Sure it would be ten times better if I had you with me and could show you off to my family, but I wouldn’t enjoy it if I knew you were uncomfortable.” Louis put his phone down on the coffee table and opened his arms. “Come here, let me cuddle you for a moment. You can go back to your chaos in a second.” He said lightheartedly.

Harry immediately hurried over to him, plopping down in Louis’ lap, burying his face in his boyfriend's neck. He breathed deeply in and out a few times while Louis rubbed his back with both hands, holding him tightly.

Louis got the call from the oldest of his younger sisters, Lottie, on Tuesday. She apologised approximately a hundred times, said she already wanted to call earlier but had too much going on. She asked him if he was free for the weekend for a visit at home. She wanted to throw an impromptu Family weekend with a “surprise.” Louis, the good brother that he was, immediately rearranged the shifts for the weekend and asked Harry if he wanted to join him.

The younger boy hesitated for a second but under the promise that Louis was sure that they all would like him, he said yes. Now here they were. It was Friday morning, they needed to be on the road in 2 hours and Harry was nowhere near a fully packed suitcase. Louis’ duffle bag stood ready by the door where he left it earlier as he arrived to pick him up and apparently help him pack.

Harry calmed down quickly and with another sigh and a quick peck on Louis’ lips, he disappeared towards the bedroom again.

+++

It had to be a miracle that they were on their way in time. With all the stuff packed and securely stuffed in the boot, a fully dressed Harry beside him, Louis finally took a deep breath for the first time in hours, gripping the steering wheel tighter. He would never admit it, but of course he was nervous, too. But if he started to show it, Harry would have a full blown panic attack. He was wriggling around on the passenger seat, his right leg bouncing up and down relentlessly. Louis reached over to him and rested his left hand on the restless leg, which seemed to calm Harry down significantly. Hmm, interesting.

The drive was rather unspectacular, nearly no traffic at this time of day. They used the time to listen to their favourite music, learning that they liked a lot of the same artists. Louis was fascinated by the way Harry belted out the lyrics to every song, his singing voice was really good. More than once, Louis stopped singing along and just listened to his boyfriend. All nervousness seemed forgotten, at least until Louis turned the car to the left and parked on the driveway in front of a beautiful and cosy looking 2-story house, the front garden was neat, rows of flowers lined the driveway and the path up to the steps leading to the front door.

“Here we are.” Louis smiled, looking over to Harry, who was back to bouncing his legs, his hands rubbing back and forth over his jeans. “Hey babe, it’s okay. I promise, they will like you.” Harry nodded shortly, taking a deep breath.

Louis exited the car and opened the boot to get their bags. It took Harry another few seconds to join him and grab their two duffle bags. They made their way to the front door and after a reassuring kiss on Harry’’s cheek, Louis pressed the button for the bell.

It took a few moments until a middle-aged woman with shoulder-long brown hair and bright but kind blue eyes opened the door, squeaking when she saw her son standing in front of her.

“Louis! I didn’t expect you this early! What a nice surprise. Come here, darling.” She opened her arms, and Louis didn’t need to be told twice. He was still a bit of a mummy’s boy (even if he would never admit that). He hugged her tightly until she let go again, turning towards Harry. “And who do we have here? You must be Harry.”

Harry blushed under the warm attention he got. “Yes, that’s me. Hi, nice to meet you.” He extended a hand, rather awkwardly. But Louis’ mum slapped his hand away lightly and tucked him into her arms, too. “I’m Jo, and we don’t do handshakes in this family.” She winked at him and motioned to follow her into the house. “The twins should be home soon, Mark is in the garden, scrubbing the grill for tomorrow.” She said with an eye roll. “I don’t know how a grill could get any cleaner than ours, but at least that man is kept busy.” She chuckled before she raised her voice “Lottie! Your brother and his boyfriend are here. Come down, please.”

Jo disappeared into the kitchen, letting the two men standing in the hallway. The walls were cream-coloured and plastered with picture frames showing the whole family in different stages of their lives. Harry immediately started to study all of them.

A moment later, a petite woman with long blonde hair stormed down the stairs and threw herself into Louis’ arms, who stumbled back a bit due to the impact. “It's nice to see you, too, Lots.” He chuckled.

He held her an arm’s length away from him. “Look at you, you look so grown up.” He said, his voice loaded with emotions. It was not THAT long ago that he saw her, but still, she looked a lot older and wiser than the last time he visited. “Oh and this,” he made a step to the side and pointed at Harry, “is my lovely boyfriend, Harry. Harry, my sister Lottie.”

He watched them both greet each other. Harry was a fast learner and hugged her without the earlier shyness he showed towards Jo.

“He is even more beautiful than you said, Lou.” She laughed as she saw a blush creeping up on Harry’s face. “Oh come on, you must be told how gorgeous you are on a daily basis.” She chuckled.

Louis laid an arm around his boyfriend's waist and kissed his cheek. “I do. Regularly.” He smiled at his younger sister, who stood in front of them, arms crossed in front of her chest, a fond look in her eyes.

“Well aren't you two just the cutest.” She pinched Louis’ cheek. “Let's go in the garden for a bit. Dad is still back there and I made fresh lemonade. You can put your bags away later, when the twins are here.” She turned around and made her way towards the back door. Louis and Harry abandoned their bags in the hallway and followed her, the idea of fresh lemonade was too tempting.

They stepped onto the terrace and greeted Mark, who was still occupied with his grill, before they took seats and Lottie gave them both a glass of lemonade. It was delicious. They exchanged news about what had happened the last few weeks and Lottie was very interested in Harry's new business idea. They talked about it for another hour, oftentimes interrupted by questions or comments from Louis’ stepdad, who only followed half of the conversation. This led to funny misunderstandings.

After the twins got home and introduced themselves with lots of “awww, so sweet” and whispered “he's so cute” followed by teenage giggles, it was time to bring their stuff in Louis’ room and change for dinner.

“Here we are,” Louis announced as he opened the door to his childhood room, stepping aside to let Harry in. “It’s not much, but it contains basically my whole childhood and teenage years. And it still looks like it did the day I moved out.” he chuckled. Harry stopped in the middle of the small room, his legs almost bumping into the single bed that was tucked in the left corner. It really was not a big room. “It looks cosy in here, Louis. I wouldn’t think any less of you, just because of how you grew up and how many things you own,” Harry told him softly, coming closer to Louis until their toes touched. “I like it,” he said, kissing him even softer.

Louis cupped Harry’s face with both of his hands and deepened the kiss until he remembered where they were and why they were up here in the first place. He cleared his throat. “We should, err - put our bags away and change clothes,” he said a bit awkwardly while he rearranged himself in his trousers. Harry blushed slightly and nodded.

+++

Louis’ stepdad had made a reservation at their favourite restaurant in Doncaster. It was the place where they celebrated lots of milestones throughout their lives. Birthdays, good grades, sports achievements and lots of other things. The owner knew them well and had always given the children something sweet like a lollipop after dinner. That had always been a highlight for them. The twins still got them sometimes even if they were 15 now and grew out of the sweets-age.

Louis was seated next to his mum and Harry on his right side, who chatted almost the entire time with the twins who sat opposite of him. As far as Louis could hear, they were talking about the newest gossip in the famous world and exchanged hair and make-up tips and tricks. This made Louis’ heart swell a bit. Hearing how easy the twins accepted Harry’s liking for the more feminine stuff.

The food was excellent, as always and after Louis won the fight with his stepdad over who would pay the bill, the owner came over with sweets for twins and with a wink towards Louis, he also put a sweet in front of Harry, who's eyes lit up like a child’s on Christmas day. He picked up the sweet from the table, pressed it against his chest and turned to Louis “I got a treat!” he shoutwhispered excitedly and Louis just sat there fondly shaking his head.

+++

The space in Louis’ single bed was tight but he didn’t mind if that meant he could snuggle even more against Harry’s backside. The younger one was a bit tipsy on wine and sighed happily, wiggling his ass against Louis’ crotch. Louis tried to ignore it as best as he could but the grinding got intenser and Harry’s sounds turned into something way dirtier. “Darling, you need to stop that,” Louis said with not much heat behind his voice. “I’m already half hard and we can’t finish what we start. There are a lot of people in the rooms surrounding us.”

He tried to back away but he was met with the wall after a few inches. And of course Harry followed him immediately. “But I’m already hard and I want youuuuu,” he whined. “I’ll be quiet, I promise!”

“How bad do you want it, darling?” Louis asked.

“Soooo bad, Lou. Want you. Want you all the time. Pleeease,” Harry pleaded.

That cheeky bastard knew that Louis had a weak spot for whiny and desperate Harry. “You don't make any sound. If I hear any loud noises coming out of that pretty mouth of yours, I will stop immediately. Do you understand?” Louis asked, already scrambling off the bed to search for the small bottle of lube he packed, just in case.

“I promise, Lou. Now, hurry up,” Harry whined while making grabby hands towards his boyfriend. “Tsk, tsk” Lous tutted. “Not so impatient, baby. You're going to get what you want”

Louis got back into the same position as before, his cock now fully hard, too. He gave himself a few strokes just to get some of the tension off and slapped Harry's butt afterwards as the younger one let another impatient grunt out.

Just as Louis wanted to open the bottle, he contemplated and opted for another move. He moved closer to Harry so that his mouth was right next to the other one’s ear. “I’m going to give you a real challenge now. I want you to tell me if it gets too much and I will move forward to fucking you. Alright? But the same rule. You stay as quiet as a mouse or I will stop altogether and you don’t get to come until after this weekend.” Harry whimpered under him but nodded anyway. “Yes, want that, anything. Just do it.”

Louis chuckled, but did as he was told and shuffled down the bed and motioned Harry to turn onto his belly. He got between his boyfriend's legs and caressed his calves before he pushed them further apart, then grabbed both sides of his hips to bring Harry’s perky ass closer to him and up in the air. Harry gasped at the sudden movement but then situated himself on his knees, his head still laying on the pillow, his arms on both sides of his head bent at the elbow, his hands folding over his head.

The room was dark except for the small lamp that stood on the bedside table, but Louis saw enough to get a bit lost in the view before him. It took a wiggle of Harry’s bum to shake him out of it. He shook his head, smiling fondly before he dove right in, not wasting any more time. He knew it would be hard for Harry to keep quiet but that didn’t mean Louis would hold himself back at any moment.

He started slowly by just nibbling and licking at the skin around Harry's hole, circling closer and closer until he was nearly right at it. Harty started to squirm under him but managed to keep quiet. For now.

Louis put his attention on the back of Harry's thighs because he knew how sensitive his skin was there. The perfect spot to rub his beard on while placing open mouthed kisses all over them, sucking and nicking the skin slightly with his teeth.

He brought a hand up to play with Harry’s balls for a while, fondling them and tugging slightly, he could feel the precome dripping down from the tip of Harry’s rock hard cock. Bringing his attention back to the important stuff, Louis dipped down and licked straight over Harry’s hole, which fluttered beautifully under the impact. He licked over it time and time again until he tightened his tongue muscles and dipped right into it. Harry seemingly couldn’t hold still any longer and rocked back and forth, fucking himself on Louis’ tongue. Louis used both of his hands, to spread Harry’s ass cheeks further apart, which helped getting even deeper into him.

The younger one struggled more and more to keep quiet, his sounds muffled by the pillow. Louis decided to have mercy with him. He wouldn’t want Harry to be any louder or he would have to keep his promise to stop. And he was now at a point where he really wouldn’t want to stop. He sat back on his heels, grabbing the bottle of lube from beside him and poured a good amount of it on his dick, smearing some of it around Harry’s spit-wet hole.

He gave Harry a silent warning by slapping his ass lightly, before he buried himself balls deep into his boyfriend, sinking down all at once, which drew a loud gasp out of Harry. It was immediately rewarded with a slightly harder slap on Harry’s bottoms. “What did I say?” Louis asked, but with not much heat behind it. “Sorry,” Harry mumbled into the pillow. “I'll stay quiet.”

All riled up from the rimming before and the steady rhythm Louis built up, nailing into Harry’s prostate with every thrust, it didn’t take long for both of them to spill their load. Louis let himself fall beside Harry, who still had his head half buried into the pillow, but now more to the side, so that Louis could see his face. “That was great,” Harry muttered, all blissed out with a dopey grin on his face. Louis chuckled, bringing an arm around Harry's back to pull him closer. “That it was,” he responded, showering his boyfriend in little kisses all over his face, which made the younger one giggle.

“I’m gross,” Harry whined and tried to get up. “I need a shower.”

But Louis beat him and was already in a pair of boxer shorts before Harry could even sit up. “You stay put, I'll bring you a washcloth and clean you up.”

Afterwards, Louis got out of his boxers again and snuggled back into bed, now spooning Harry. “Good night, baby. Sleep well.” he told him with a kiss between his shoulder blades.

But Harry was already asleep.

+++

Saturday morning started as hectic as Louis remembered from the days he still lived in the house. The only bathroom in the house was permanently occupied by a family member, switching places as soon as someone left the room. Jo and Lottie were already busy preparing breakfast for everyone.

Harry immediately jumped in to help them and Louis did what he could do best - making tea. He knew exactly how everyone in this family liked their morning cuppa.

He listened to the women chatting with Harry over everything and nothing, asking him questions about his life and his family. As soon as the cups were all ready to go, Louis jumped in for the rescue and asked Harry to help him carry all the cups to the table in the dining room. Harry looked mildly thankful for it and on the way over to the table, he whispered, “No offence but at that rate, I really thought they would ask about my love life next.” He chuckled, putting the cups he carried down on the wooden table.

“I'm sorry for that, babe. I know they can get a bit nosy. Just tell them when it gets too much, they will understand.” Louis did the same as Harry before he got over to his boyfriend and put his arms around his waist. “But for the record, you are doing great so far, darling. Thank you for coming with me.” Louis smiled at him, and got on his toes (No one needed to see that) to press a gentle kiss in Harry’s lips.

“Come on, let's finish setting the table. I'm hungry.” Louis let go of Harry's waist just to grab one of his hands and pulled him back to the kitchen.

After breakfast, they looked over Lottie's checklist, and everyone got one or two tasks that needed to be done before the party started, which would be at around 5 pm.

Harry and Louis were in the kitchen, filling various balloons with gas and attached them to strings.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you, the fair is a week earlier this year. Maybe you could take Harry there, show him a bit around.” Jo was elbow-deep in the water, scrubbing the dirty plates. “The twins want to go tomorrow afternoon, too,” she gestured with one hand vaguely towards where Daisy and Phoebe were, dripping water off her arm all over the floor.

Louis’ face lit up. “That is actually a great idea!” He turned to face Harry. “It's just a small one, but we always have a ferris wheel and the atmosphere there is great! We should totally go.”

Harry seemed excited, too. “I love fairs! I would love to see more of the city. I remember that we were here once when I was little. But I can't remember why. I need to ask my mum about it.”

Louis walked over to the living room, where the twins were watching TV. “Hey girls, I heard that you two wanted to go to the fair tomorrow. Mind, if Harry and I would join you?”

Daisy clapped her hands together excitedly “Of course you can come with us! Right, Pheebs?” She looked over to her sister, who was just popping a gum bubble.

“Yeah, whatever.” But it sounded more like a bored grunt. “But only if you buy us ice cream,” she said, smirking devilishly.

Louis rolled his eyes. Teenagers, he thought. “I think that should be manageable.” With that, he turned and went back to the kitchen. “Well at least one of them is excited,” he chuckled, joining his mum at the kitchen table, who finished cleaning and was now making a crossword puzzle while sipping another cup of tea.

“Where is Harry?” he asked while peeking at the puzzle to see if he knew a few of the answers.

“I told him he could store the balloons out in the shed until Lottie is ready to arrange them however it pleases her,” Jo told him. “He is a nice guy, your Harry.”

Louis looked up to see his mother smiling gently at him. He sighed. “Yeah, I know. I have no idea what I did to deserve him.”

“Don't let your light shine any lower than you really are, baby. You're wonderful just the way you are. And you two are a good fit. You seem to really like him, don't you?” she teased, raising her eyebrows slightly.

“Yeah, very much. I think he is the one. Maybe, I don't know. God, please don't tell anyone I said this,” Louis groaned, burying his face in his hands, slightly ashamed by his admission.

He heard Jo getting up and stepping around the table, she bent down to sling her arms around his shoulders, resting her head on his back. “I'm not telling anyone, I promise. I'm just very happy for you.” She kissed his head and got back to her seat and her puzzle, dropping the topic altogether. And at the right time, too. Because Harry was just re-entering the kitchen, now empty-handed.

+++

Afternoon had arrived and Lottie was all over the place, shouting orders to her poor family members. It was rare that Louis saw her that stressed, he wondered what those mysterious news could be that made her this nervous. But he didn’t question her about it, instead he did his best to help her and everything was settled an hour before the party officially started.

Several family members, distant cousins and lots of Lottie’s friends from her old school and workplace arrived over the span of two hours. There were a lot of introductions and soon the place was filled, groups of people were scattered all over the garden and the house. Louis found himself standing in a group of school-friends of Lottie, whom he vaguely knew from the time he still lived here. The conversation was interesting and Louis tried to be a part of it but he was a bit distracted. Harry was out and about to entertain the little ones that were under the guests. Luckily it was warm enough for a round of water balloon fights.

The kids were screeching everytime one of them was hit by a balloon, they tried to run away from Harry, but he still managed to get them. That didn’t mean he wasn’t wet either. Quite the contrary. He was dripping. His wet locks were clinging to his neck, a single strand was plastered to the side of his face. His light-blue T-Shirt was nearly see-through, his nipples perking up, the shorts embraced his thighs in the best way - Focus, Louis! He mentally slapped himself and turned to the man who stood next to Louis and looked at him as if he was waiting for an answer. Louis couldn’t even recall that he was asked a question. Whoopsie.

Lottie joined him, nervously looking around. “Hey little sister. Why are you looking so worried? Everything is going great so far.” Louis nudged her and sent her a warm smile.

“Yeah, I know,” she responded. “It’s not that. It’s … you know … I have a feeling that a certain someone from my past will show up,” she raised her eyebrows and sent Louis a look to try to make him understand who she meant. And Oh.

“How would he even know about this party?”

“How did he know where my last job was?” Lottie countered.

“Hmm yeah, good point. I will keep my eyes open. Please try to relax and enjoy your party. You are surrounded by a lot of people that are on your side,” Louis argud, and laid an arm around her. “We will be there for you.”

Later, Louis helped his step-dad with the food on the grill, and Harry joined them after changing into dry clothes and putting his hair up in a bun. What a pity.

They had two long tables brought out on the terrace and it was just enough to fit everyone. The chattering died down during the meal, just the kids couldn’t get up fast enough again to go and play in the garden.

Louis was just leaning across the table to grab a piece of bread as Lottie stood up next to him, clinking her knife lightly against her wine glass. Immediately everyone went quiet, and Louis turned on his seat to face his sister, who had a bright smile on her face.

“Well… erm.. Hello, family, friends,” she said, nodding her head to a few people around her. “I was a bit vague on my invitation about what this meet-up exactly is and I don’t want you to keep on guessing. My best friend Laura, who can’t be here tonight because she has a shift at the pub downton, and I, we are going on a 9-month-trip through Europe, starting a week from now, next Saturday!” she said, nervously waiting for the reactions of her guests. After a few moments of silence, cheers erupted and everyone stood up to get around the table to congratulate her and bombard her with questions. “Hey, one after the other,” she laughed. “I will answer all your questions after dinner. I just wanted to say that I am going to miss you all so so much, that’s why I wanted you all here together tonight. I know I won’t be away forever but 9 months is still a long time.” Her voice broke and she wiped a tear from her eye. “Please, have a seat, continue eating, I will chat with all of you after.” She looked around the table, her gaze settling on every single person who was here for her today until she reached Louis next to her.

Louis couldn't stop smiling while he tugged his sister in for a big hug. This was something she wanted to do since she was a little girl. Since their first holiday as a family of 6. Jo and Mark had saved their hard earned money for years in order to make this trip. Louis remembered that he was 15, a raging teenager who would rather spent his time with his friends than go on vacation with his family. But he knew that his mom would need help with the twins who were just 2 at that time, so he swallowed his frustration and went with them without arguing.

But he also remembered the look on Lottie's face when she looked out of the airplane window to see the big mountains of the alps they overflew or her bright smile when she took the first steps on the Sicilian beach. Ever since then, she dreamt of travelling the world. When she was old enough she would pick up mini jobs to fill her piggy bank. She never spent her money on typical teenage stuff like all her friends would do. And now she was finally able to fulfil her dream, or at least part of it with the trip through Europe.

Later this evening, they all sat down around a bonfire they prepared the day before and Lottie told them everything about their plans. They wanted to travel by train most of the time to capture as much scenery as they could and they already knew about a few farms who offered day jobs, so they could earn a bit of money during their trip.

Half an hour later, the conversations died down and Lottie leant her head against Louis’ shoulder. He laid an arm around her shoulder and squeezed her lightly. “I’m going to miss you, older brother,” she whispered.

Louis felt a knot in his throat and coughed quickly before he responded. “I’m going to miss you, too, Lots. But hey, you’re not going to be away forever, will you?” he asked teasingly and turned his head towards her, raising his eyebrows in question.

She smacked her hand against his chest softly. “No, of course not. Well, maybe I will find my Prince Charming in one of those countries, who knows. But I still need to get back to my job and save money for my next adventure. You look pretty happy right now, too. He’s a good one, isn’t he?” She bent over to look around Louis to Harry who chatted with Mark about god knows what.

Louis threw him a quick glance, too, before he smiled fondly at his sister. “Yeah he really is. I still don’t know how I got this lucky to meet him. He’s nearly too good for me.”

“Hey no, nothing of that. Don’t sell yourself short. You are a good catch! You just never met the right one. He is so much different than anyone else you brought home before. You are good for each other.” She smiled before she kissed his cheek and got up on her feet. “I need to check on grandpa. See if he needs anything. And then I’ll meet up with Laura at the pub. We need to finalise our plans,” she said excitedly and went off to search for their granddad.

+++

After a quiet Sunday morning, everyone was still tired from the evening before, Louis and Harry made their way down to the fair with the twins. It was a rather short way and they opted against taking the car because it would be a nightmare finding a parking spot in the centre of the city.

20 minutes later, they arrived at the fair, lots of people already mingling around, looking at all the different activities and food options.

“Soo, girls, what do you want to do first? Take a look around, or directly to the ferris wheel?” Louis asked, taking a look around.

Daisy looked at Phoebe and said, shuffling her left foot a bit. “Would you mind if we meet up later to go on the wheel together? A few of our friends are here and we want to walk around with them first.”

“Oh yeah sure. But don’t leave the fair, please.”

“We won’t,” Phoebe assured him and with a “See you later, brother,” and a nod to Harry, off they were.

Louis and Harry made their way in the opposite direction, strolling from one stand to the other. Harry tried his luck with the throwing rings and managed to get a little bear, with a pink nose and pink ears, who wore a little red dress with a sparkly heart on it. It had a small carabiner attached to a loop at the top of its head and Harry wore it proudly at one of the loops of his jeans.

Some time and a shared bag of churros later, Louis checked his phone to see that Daisy texted to arrange a meeting point and time. After they rejoined, they walked up to the other side of the fair where the ferris wheel was located.

It was on the smaller side and sadly had only two seats per cabin but neither of them was really bothered by it. Louis and Harry got into a cabin first and Daisy and Phoebe took the next one that came to a hold in front of them.

The ride started and at first they went a few turns in a slow speed until the wheel stopped with Harry and Louis’ cabin right at the top. The view from up here was gorgeous and Louis pointed out different spots all over the city, telling Harry stories about his life. He had nearly forgotten some of them, only remembering now that he saw the city from up here. He had a good childhood, he realised. And he couldn’t wait to show his own kids where he grew up - someday.

Louis could hear the twins giggling behind them and was glad that they seemingly enjoyed themselves. They normally didn’t get to spend much time together with Louis living and working in London but it was a great afternoon so far and he couldn't wish for more than just sitting here, his sisters nearby, one hand intertwined with his gorgeous boyfriend and a fantastic view to look at.

After a few more minutes, the wheel started to move again and 2 rounds later, they were motioned to get out again. They all felt a bit wobbly on their feet after the long ride and searched for a food stand with benches and tables to get something to eat and sit together for a moment.

Even Phoebe was opening up more and more to Harry now and after he got them their ice-cream, as promised (he insisted that he bought them instead of Louis, as some kind of peace-offering for the teenagers. And Louis granted him the wish more than willingly, watching their interactions fondly), she didn’t leave his side for the rest of the time at the fair.

+++

In the evening the family was gathered in the garden, again. The twins read books, Lottie was writing down her 369th to-do list for her trip and Harry left a few minutes ago when his phone rang. Louis was sitting at the table, answering a few emails for work. His mother brought plates outside to deck the table.

“Mum, do you need help preparing the food?” he asked, putting his phone down.

“No honey, we have enough leftovers from yesterday. Mark needs to grill some meat but other than that, we are all settled, you stay put.” She kissed his head and went back inside.

He still felt bad since he had nothing else to do, so he stood up to join his step-dad at the grill, seeing if he could need some help, as he saw Harry coming back into the garden, seemingly searching for something. Or someone, because his eyes lit up as they locked their gaze. Louis smiled fondly, Wasn’t he just the cutest boy on earth. Instead of going to Mark, Louis changed directions and met with Harry halfway. “What’s up darling? Are you looking for me?”

“Yes, actually. My mom just called me. No, nothing happened,” he added quickly, noticing the concerned look Louis had to have on his face. “She just wanted to check in, see how far along I am with the renovations and all. Said she missed me. And I told her that we are actually up here in Doncaster to visit your family. Well, let me say, she was a bit offended at that. She wants to meet you, too,” Harry chuckled. “I told her that we will make sure to visit her in the near future, if that is okay with you.”

“Yes, of course we can do that. I want to meet her, too! And Robin. And your sister, if she is available,” Louis rattled down, his brain running twenty miles a minute. “Actually, you know what. Why don’t we go there right after our visit here? If that works out, that is. I’m sure Zayn wouldn’t mind covering my shifts,” he stopped talking because Harry looked a bit puzzled. “Babe? Is it too much? We don’t have to, It’s your family, you decide!”

Harry took a step forward and pulled him into his arms, hiding his face in his favourite spot in Louis’ neck. “You are by far the best boyfriend on earth. I… yes, let’s do that. I will call my mum back right now. Ask her if it’s okay with them. I don’t think that Gemma is there at the moment but we can always visit her when we are back in London.” Harry smiled brightly at him and with a peck on his lips, he sauntered off again to make said call.

Louis pulled out his own phone, hoping that Zayn wasn't in a painting-trance where he usually didn't hear his phone, if it was even in the same room with him. But after 3 rings, Zayn picked up. “Hey mate, what's up? Did anything happen?”

“No, no, everything is fine, Z.” Louis hurried to assured. “Just wanted to check in and see how things are going at the bar.”

“Yeah, it's going great. Jasmine has everything under control! Don't worry, just enjoy your time up there.”

“That's another reason I'm calling. Harry just asked me if we want to extend our visit and drive over to his parent's house in Holmes Chapel tomorrow!” Louis smiled, staring at the ground beneath him. “Could you maybe manage another 2 days without me? I think I will be back for my shift on Wednesday.”

“Ohhhh already meeting each other's families. It's getting seeeerious.” Louis knew that Zayn was only teasing him, but he still needed to defend himself. “Well, maybe. And? I like him. Very much, that is.”

“I know, babes. I'm only teasing. I can see the way you look at him.” Zayn's voice softened “and he has the same look on his face, you know?”

Louis blushed slightly at that and took a quick look around if no one had seen it, before stepping further away from his relatives. “And,” Zayn continued, “I think he is really good for you. It's been a long time since I saw you this happy.”

“I AM happy” Louis confirmed, a grin spreading over his face. “Soooo, can I count on you? I swear I'll make it up to you!”

“Lou, don't worry. I've got it. Go and impress your future parents-in-law,” Zayn chuckled.

“Oh god, why am I suddenly so nervous. Thanks, mate. I'll see you on Wednesday!”

“Don't be, you're a great guy. Bye, Lou.”

Louis ended the call just as Harry joined him again.

“My mum is very excited that we want to visit them. She said we can stay as long as we want,” Harry laughed. “But I told her that we need to get back on Wednesday.”

“Really? That's exactly what I told Zayn. That's some telepathic shit right there!” Louis giggled, pointing two fingers back and forth between his and Harry's head.

Later, as they lay in bed, limbs all tangled up, they reminisced about their weekend here together and Harry reassured him that he had a really good time and that he already loved Louis’ family. Louis was glad that he thought that way, and soon he fell asleep with his boy in his arms, dreaming about a wonderful future, preferably together.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🧘🏻‍♀️🎀

Harry lifted the last of their bags in the trunk and closed the lid before he went back into the house to find Louis so that they could say their goodbyes.

He had a great time here with the Tomlinsons. Everyone welcomed him with open arms, especially Jo. Harry could see where Louis got his gentleness from and that he hadn’t really had to hide some of his manners and sides over the weekend was like a fresh breeze. He couldn’t wait to see them all again. He really bonded with the twins because they had a lot in common, even if it took Phoebe a little bit longer to warm up to him. He had always wondered what it would be to have a big family, not that he would have had it any other way in his life. But he was more than sure that he wanted a big family of his own in the future. Preferably with Louis.

Speaking of the devil, there he was, standing in the hallway, just parting from his mother. Harry could see from his side view that Louis had wet eyes, and pulled him in for a sideways hug, kissing his cheek gently. “Thank you very much for your hospitality, Jo,” he said, smiling friendly at Louis’ mother.

“No problem, darling. You are welcome here, anytime! It was so nice to meet you, Harry!” she responded and opened her arms for a hug, which Harry gratefully accepted.

After a lot of hugs and a few tears on the mother’s side, Harry and Louis got into the car, this time with Harry on the driver's side. The drive to the house of Harry’s mother in Holmes Chapel wasn’t long and they listened to music from Louis’ phone, singing quietly along and enjoyed the scenery outside the car, which both of them didn’t get to see much these days.

But after only 45 minutes, Louis broke the non-speaking silence, nodding towards the sign for a parking lot. “Would you mind parking there for a second?” he asked, looking at Harry expectantly.

Harry was a bit confused, but he guessed Louis would need the Loo or something like that. “Everything alright?” he asked nevertheless.

He didn't get a real answer, just some mumbled words and a half-hearted nod of the head.

Harry decided not to question it any further and set the ignition to the left leaving the main street. The parking lot was fairly empty, rows of trees separated different parts of the lot. There was also a small building in the middle with public bathrooms.

“Over there, please,” Louis pointed at the parking space at the far back of the parking lot. Harry steered the car towards said spot and as soon as he put the car in park and cut off the engine, he had an over eager boyfriend in his lap, straddling him. He hadn't even realised that Louis took his seatbelt off.

“Woah, slow down, Tiger,” Harry laughed as Louis' hands roamed all over his body then fumbling with the buttons on Harry's shirt.

“I … don't … want … to … slow … down,” Louis answered, planting kisses over Harry's chest as far down as possible in the cramped space between the seat and the steering wheel. “I waited two whole days to get my hands on you again, I was practically horny every single second,” Louis whimpered, getting back to kissing Harry with passion. Not that he would complain. It was fucking hot, having Louis all desperate and whiny, grinding in his lap.

Louis pulled away once more. “Please, if you don’t get your hand in my pants in the next few seconds, I might explode,” he begged, his eyes staring glassy into Harry’s. And who was Harry to deny a request like that? He quickly opened Louis’ trousers and stuck his hand down Louis’ pants, where he found a half hard cock, waiting for attention. He pumped him quickly to full hardness, not breaking the open-mouthed kissing between them.

Louis still tried to grind against his hand, panting into his mouth. God, he never saw anything hotter. Harry used his free hand to open his own trousers, and guided Louis’ hands, that were still exploring his chest and nipples, down south until Louis got the message and took Harry’s now just as hard cock into both of his hands, wrapping one around the base and the other around the tip, squeezing and twisting them expertly. Harry nearly saw stars, he couldn’t remember the last time someone had given him a handjob this good. He almost forgot that he had a task at hand (quite literally), too.

He got back to pumping Louis with quick strokes, sliding his thumb through the slit every time he could reach it and not long until he felt warm cum spilling over his hand. Louis had his head now buried in Harry’s neck, panting hard. He also had let go of Harry’s dick in favour to stabilise himself with both hands on Harry’s shoulders as his orgasm hit.

Harry didn’t mind, he gave his boyfriend a bit of time to come down from the high, before he grabbed him by his chin to force Louis to look at him, while he licked his fingers clean. One after the other. Louis, blissed out as he was, whined loudly, staring hungrily at him. When he was done cleaning his hand, he pulled Louis in by the chin for a breathtaking kiss, letting him taste himself on his tongue. He loved being the one in charge this time, even if he preferred Louis bossing him around in the bedroom.

“I think you have a job to finish, Lou,” he said cheekily, pointing down with his eyes. Louis nodded excitedly and got back to the mindblowing handjob he had started. Louis didn’t break eye contact either until something or someone distracted him and his gaze wandered behind Harry.

“There are people walking behind our car, I think one of them looked in our direction, too,” Louis whispered in his ear. And that was, to no one's surprise, what tipped Harry over the edge and he shot his load over his bare chest and Louis’ fingers, who did just the same as Harry did 5 minutes before.

They cleaned themselves up with a few paper tissues, Louis found in the hand compartment and tucked themselves in. Louis was still in Harry’s lap. “Wow, that was - wow,” Louis said, seemingly lost for words. Harry chuckled and kissed the tip of Louis’ nose.

“Yes, that was - by far - the best handjob I received. Thank you for that,” he grinned, kissing his boyfriend again. “Loved the spontaneity. And that you let me be the one in charge this time. I didn’t know you were one to give up some control.”

Louis smiled. “If you want to be in charge more often, you should say something, darling. I won’t lie, I like to be in control and tell you what to do, and what not. Only when it comes to sexual stuff, of course. But sometimes, it’s nice to be cared for and not to think about what comes next.”

Harry could fully understand that. He was the exact opposite, which was another reason for why this between them did work so well. A grin spread over his face at the thought of that.

“I really don’t want to be in charge more often. Yeah, I think I like it if it happens sometimes. Spontaneously, like today. But in general … I like the subby part more,” he blushed at the admission and ducked his head, averting his gaze from his boyfriend's eyes.

“I’m glad that you think like that,” Louis said, gently tilting Harry’s head up with his forefinger. “No need to be ashamed, darling. We fit really well, don’t we?” he grinned, which brought Harry to smile back, even brighter.

“Yes I think so, too.”

They kissed lazily for a few more minutes, enjoying each other's company before it was time to face yet another family.

+++

The Twist’s house came into sight shortly after they continued their journey and Louis was in nearly the same state as Harry a few days earlier, sliding nervously back and forth on the passenger seat.

“Hey, Lou. Look at me,” Harry said, and Louis stopped his movements, turning on his seat to face Harry. “I could tell you the same thing you told me on Friday. But you know it already. My mom loves you already, just by the stories I told her. I’m sure she will be completely enchanted by you as soon as you step through that door there,” he pointed up the stairs to the front door of his parent’s house.

Louis nodded, took a deep breath and opened the door. They went up the stairs, hand in hand and just as Harry reached for the bell, the door flew open and his mum exited the house with a squeal. “Harry, there you are. Oh it’s so nice to see you, darling. I’ve missed you.”

Harry shook his head fondly, but happily accepted the hug from Anne, holding her tight. He missed her, too. It had been way too long since he was able to visit her. He made a mental note that that would change in the future.

“Mum, I’ve missed you, too.” He losened the hug and stepped aside to introduce Louis. “This is Louis, Louis this is my Mum.”

Louis took a step forward and held his hand out towards Anne. “It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Twist,” he said politely. She took his hand with both of hers and smiled at him. “Please, call me Anne. No need for formalities around here. I looked forward to meeting you, Louis. I only heard good stuff about you,” she winked towards Harry, who just rolled his eyes.

“Please, mum. Don’t embarrass me,” he whined, looking at Louis apologetically, who just grinned at him in return. Menace.

“I'll try my best,” she offered, holding her hands up in surrender. “Now please come in. You are right in time for lunch. Robin will be back later today after work. I prepared the guest room for you two.”

Louis quirked an eyebrow at him. “Well,” Harry laughed. “I guess your mum is a bit more nostalgic than mine,” he said with no heat behind his voice. “She made Gemma’s room into a gym and mine into a guest room as soon as we moved out, didn't you?” He nudged his mum at the shoulder.

“You said that you didn’t have the intention to ever move back here, and I needed the space,” she chuckled. “Come on, now. I’m starving and I made your favourite dish.”

They ate a good home-cooked meal, and Harry enjoyed every bite of it. It was rare that he could get near a cooked meal from his mother. And she was an excellent cook. Louis complimented the food multiple times which caused Harry's chest to swell with pride for his mum.

Harry offered to do the dishes afterwards, declined Louis’ help and shooed the two of them out of the kitchen and towards the living room, each a steaming cup of tea in their hands.

It was going great so far, his mum and Louis seemingly getting along great, the laughter coming from the next room only confirmed his thoughts.

He joined them with his own cuppa as soon as he finished cleaning the kitchen, sinking into the cushions of the two-seater, pressing himself into his mother's side. Sue him for wanting some motherly love from time to time, even at his big age.

The afternoon flew by and soon, Harry's step dad came home from work. After another warm welcoming introduction, they decided to sit down for a round of Monopoly which stretched far into the evening and ended in giving up, because nobody seems to be able to win over the monopoly. They absentmindedly finished 3 bottles of wine during the game, leaving everyone a bit tipsy and giggly.

Harry made it his task to lead a very happy and giddy Louis to his bedroom. The older one swayed a bit in his step, his cheeks flushed with a nice shade of pink, his lips wine-stained. It was endearing, really.

“I still don't get how you can be tipsy that easily from a bit of wine. You own a whole wine bar,” Harry wondered, watching fondly as Louis tried to get rid of his clothes, stumbling over his trousers that pooled around his ankles.

“Just because I own a wine bar, young Harold,” Louis slurred, “doesn't mean that I get to drink it often.” He held a finger in the air, to back up his point. He then tried to tap his finger against the tip of his nose, which he horribly failed. Harry decided to take pity on him and helped him out of the rest of his clothes, getting rid of his own and managed to get them both into bed without any further ado.

+++

Soft light spilled through the curtains the next morning, causing Harry to stir awake. He tried to turn around, but Louis’ arms engulfed him in a tight grip. But the movement was enough to wake Louis up, judging by the heartfelt groan that came from behind Harry's head.

The grip loosened up a bit and Harry chuckled, now able to face his grumpy boyfriend.

“Do you have a hangover, babe?” he asked innocently.

“Why are you shouting?” Louis whined, burying his head into the pillow. But he still pulled Harry closer to him, tangling their legs together.

“I'm not shouting, you are just old and had too much wine,” Harry whispered jokingly in his ear.

Another groan escaped Louis’ mouth. “As soon as I am able to move without my head exploding, I will tickle you to death,” he threatened. It was true, Harry was very ticklish and Louis managed to find two of his more sensitive spots in the last few weeks.

“Come on, old man. Let’s get some water and painkillers in you, shower and get dressed. I want to parade you around,” Harry smiled at his grumpy boyfriend, who didn’t seem to be pleased with the offer. Eventually he got up and after two big glasses of water and a long shower, he did indeed feel better.

Harry decided to take Louis out for breakfast to his favourite coffee Shop and afterwards they made a trip all over town, accompanied with stories from Harry's youth. He showed Louis the spot by the river where he got his first kiss. With a girl, that was. And then the wall where he got his first kiss from a boy, sneakily in the darkness of the night, hidden from everyone else. That's when he knew for sure that girls were not for him.

After a few hours of strolling around town, they fetched Thai food for the three of them and made sure there would be enough left-overs for Harry’s step dad when he came back from work. As soon as they entered the house, and placed the food on the kitchen table, Anne rounded the corner and poked Harry in the chest.

“Your sister called this morning. I told her about your visit and she ordered me to tell you that you should call her as soon as you are back in London. She misses you.” Anne gave him a pointed look.

“I have a phone, you know?” Harry said, a bit offended. “She could text me anytime if she wanted to.”

“Darling, you know how she is with this phone thing. Please approach her this time,” Anne laid a hand on his shoulder, looking at him pleadingly. Harry sighed but nodded and towards Louis he explained: “My sister is not a fan of phones or social media in general.”

Louis laughed. “Good for her. I'm not the biggest fan of social media either. But each to their own, I guess. My sister, Lottie, for example, loves Instagram and TikTok and all that. She told me yesterday that she wants to document their whole journey there to hopefully make a bit of extra money.”

“Oh, where is she going?” Anne asked, she seemed to be genuinely interested.

“She and her best friend, Laura, are going on a trip to Europe. Several months, several countries. I don’t think they have an exact route or timetable. It’s more of a Let’s-see-where-it-leads-us trip. I’m a bit worried, she will always be my little sister. But she is a grown-up now, and I’m sure she will be fine.” Harry was at least 75 percent sure, Louis said it only to convince himself that everything would be fine. But no one needed to know that.

“That sounds very fascinating, Louis! I hope you will keep me up to date with her journey. I’m very intrigued now!” Harry’s mother smiled and Harry’s tummy went all fluttery. It sounded like she wanted Louis to be here in a few months time. And it seemed like Louis had the same thought, judging by the look on his face and the slight blush that made his way up to his cheeks.

The rest of the day flew by, they spent the evening looking through old photo albums when Harry was little. Harry tried to protest against it, not yet wanting to show Louis all the embarrassing pictures of him as a child, accompanied with even more embarrassing stories. But Louis convinced him that it couldn’t be worse than his childhood pictures and that’s how he ended up sitting on the floor in the living room, his ears burning red. At least the other three had fun. All in all it had been a nice evening and the hardcore cuddling from Louis later in bed made up for the embarrassment he felt earlier.

On the other hand, Louis was the first boyfriend, Anne wanted to show the pictures. She had never done that with anyone before. That had to mean something, hadn’t it?

+++

After a full English breakfast that Louis insisted to make for them (he learned a lot from Harry the last few weeks), they thanked Anne thoroughly for the hospitality and made their way back home.

Harry insisted that they first drive to the shop to see what the workers did during the time he wasn’t there. He had asked Niall to look after the shop and that everything was in order, and he trusted him with it. He also didn’t hear anything negative from his best friend, but he wanted to make sure himself that everything was in order.

They used the parking lot behind the wine bar and parted ways in front of the wine bar. Louis wanted to get some things from the office to prepare for the next day.

Harry made his way over to the entry and unlocked the door, stepping into the main room. Everything seemed to be fine, he went from window to window, examining the new sills that had been installed the day before. He was very satisfied with his choice, it looked great.

He went into the kitchen to fetch a glass of water, but stopped in his tracks as his foot stepped into a puddle of water.

“What the…” He looked around, trying to find the source of the water. There was a path leading to the bathrooms and Harry hurried over to the door, pushing it open. There was even more water on the tiles, the floor nearly covered in water. It seemed to come from the men’s bathroom.

After further inspection, it seemed to be a leak from one of the bathroom sinks. Harry went back into the main room and towards the door that led to the basement. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and called Louis while running down the stairs to find the main pump.

“Hey babe, do you already miss me? It hasn’t even been 5 minutes,” Louis teased on the other side of the line.

“Yes, Lou. I have this big longing in me to be with you every second of the day,” he mocked. “No, something is wrong with the water pipes. There is water everywhere! Can you please come over?”

He hadn’t even finished the sentence, as he already heard rustling on Louis’ side. “I’m there in a second, babe,” Louis said and hung up.

Harry had found the pump in the meantime and with the little knowledge he had, he actually managed to turn off the water.

Louis was entering the shop just as Harry came back up from the basement. He led his boyfriend over to the bathrooms.

“Well, that gives the word wet room a whole new meaning,” Louis chuckled. Harry couldn’t hold back a grin himself. He was glad that it didn’t seem that bad. Louis turned around to him “I think we should fetch some buckets and towels to dry this up before the wood in the main room gets damaged.”

They managed to find some towels and sponges in one of the cabinets in the kitchen and buckets in the office and went to work.

Harry just picked up another wet towel to wrench it out over his bucket, as Louis passed him suddenly. He startled and accidentally threw the towel towards his boyfriend, landing on his chest. Louis squeaked and jumped, trying to get away from the cold wet towel. “Why did you do that?” he wondered, looking at Harry questioningly.

Harry had a hand in front of his mouth, his eyes big. “That was an accident!” he justified, holding his hands up in surrender. Louis’ shocked expression turned into a mischievous one, and he slowly bent down to the bucket that stood by his side.

Harry knew what was about to happen, and spun on his heels, trying to get away from Louis.

He went after him, with a dripping wet sponge, his shirt clinging to his body where the towel caught him. And Louis, who was way more agile and had more coordination than Harry, managed to catch up to him way too quickly, sticking the wet sponge down the back of Harry’s shirt. He squealed and shook himself in an attempt to get rid of the item in his shirt. But Louis had him in a tight grip from behind, causing the water to make them both even more wet by pressing himself against Harry’s back.

They stumbled over the bucket full of water and fell to the floor, Harry on top of Louis, still laughing wildly. It took them a few more minutes to calm down, and suddenly the atmosphere shifted to something more serious. They stared each other deep in the eyes, and even if Harry wanted to, an invisible force kept his gaze on Louis. He could see his eyes softening, a glimmer of something shooting through them. It made Harry’s stomach whoop, a thousand butterflies starting at the same time.

He shook himself out of the stare, and got up to kneel between Louis’ legs, pulling him up into a seating position. “I think -” He cleared his throat. “I think we should finish cleaning up and get something to eat. I’m in the mood for a good movie and some cuddling.” Harry smiled at Louis, who nodded and got up to his feet.

“That’s a good idea, darling. I’m pretty knackered from the last few days,” Louis responded. “I’m just taking the damaged furniture down to the basement. I’ll take care of them within the next week.” Louis pecked his lips and went over to the bathroom.

Harry sighed, his cheeks were hurting from how much he was smiling, but he didn’t mind. It felt great. He looked around to see what he could do and decided to take care of the numerous garbage bags.

“I'm taking the trash out real quick,” Harry shouted down the stairs leading to the basement, where Louis went a minute ago, a small wooden cabinet in his arms. And indeed, he heard Louis shouting something back that sounded like ‘okay’

He collected all the full garbage bags that lay scattered in the shop and walked through the kitchen using his shoulder to crank the backdoor open. The big can was on the far left corner of the backyard hidden behind a few bushes.

Harry was nearly there when he heard a quiet noise from somewhere under the bushes, a little squeaky and very high. But he had his hands full of trash bags so he couldn't look for it. He just threw the last bag in the can as he heard the sound again, this time louder and more whiny.

He went over to where he thought the Sound would come from and got to his knees to look under the green. “Oh. My. God. What are you doing under there, sweety?” He cooed, looking at a tiny fur ball. The little cat was shaking, looking back with big round eyes. It backed up a bit, hissing at Harry but didn't run away. It was dark grey with beautiful blue eyes and it had white fur socks on 3 legs.

He carefully reached out to her by holding his slowly towards her. He didn't dare to go all the way rather letting her (or him) come to him. After a few moments, the kitten reached her head a bit forward trying to sniff at Harry's hand but he was still a bit too far away.

The little one got braver and took a few tiny steps forward until his nose touched the very tip of Harry's pointer finger. Then she went forward and nudged her whole head into his hand. He petted her for a few moments and was even able to pick her up. He used this to confirm that it was indeed a she. She even stopped shaking and looked up at him with a curious expression. Harry carefully pressed her against his body and turned around to hurry back into the shop.

“Louis! Lou, where are you? Look, look it was finally my time! The distribution system chose me!” Harry stumbled through the door, his toes getting stuck at the door frame. He quickly made sure the kitten was still safe in his arms, then he looked up, his eyes searching for Louis. Said one just rounded the corner, looking a bit puzzled at him. “The what chose you? What are you talking about, darling?” His eyes fell on the little bundle in Harry's arms. “Is that a CAT?”

“It is, indeed! Why do I hear a resistance in your voice?” Harry asked, a bit offended. He tightened his grip around the cat, pulling it closer to his chest.

“There is no resistance,” Louis responded. “I'm just… not a big fan of cats,” he admitted, ducking his head slightly.

“How… why… how can you not like this?“ Harry asked, holding the kitten in front of him towards Louis, pouting a little. “Look how cute she is,” he cooed.

Louis took a careful step forward, inspecting the kitten carefully. Harry could see the resistance in his body melting away, the closer he got to the cat.

“Well this one is cute, I guess?” Louis stated carefully, but the sparkle in his eyes gave him away. Harry wouldn't call him out on it, though. He wanted to see how long it took Louis to admit it on his own.

“I'm keeping her.” Harry made the choice the second he laid eyes on that poor scared bundle. He always wanted a cat but the time had never been right. This time, the cat distribution System chose him and he would never say no to destiny.

“Well - if that's what you want. I think she will have it good with you,” Louis said a bit hesitant but then smiled at him and closed the distance between them, offering the cat a hand to sniff at.

Harry watched fondly, how the cat allowed Louis to pet it at the head and under the chin, it even started to purr a little. “I think she likes you,” Harry giggled.

Louis looked up at him, a glimmer in his eyes. “Whatever,” he shrugged. “Do you want to stop at a pet shop before we go back to your flat?”

And with this offer, Harry knew that he and the little one had won Louis over already. He almost did a little jump of joy. Now he just had to find a suitable name and make an appointment at a vet office to get the kitten checked.

They decided to leave the rest of the cleaning for the next day and headed out to Louis’ car, driving to the nearest Tesco to get at least some food and a few toys for the little cat. They spent the rest of the evening playing with the kitten and of course, Harry found a name for her in no time. Bluebell, because of her big blue eyes and the sweet noises she made, every time she demanded cuddles. This evening, Harry went to bed with his boyfriend’s arms around him, a purring kitten in the crook of his arm and an even fuller heart.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🍷🚬

“Ouch! Harry, she scratched me. Again!” Louis complained while rubbing the spot on his arm where Bluebell grazed his skin.

“She has tiny little claws, Lou. Don't pretend that she ripped your whole arm off.” Harry laughed, coming over from the kitchen and grabbed the little kitten from the couch where it was lying on her back next to Louis, still trying to paw at him.

“Well, maybe not. But it still hurts,” Louis pouted. He watched Harry pet Bluebell who instantly started purring. “I guess she doesn't like me. Like, at all. Thinks I'm her personal scratch tree or something,” he crossed his arms in front of his chest and pouted some more.

Harry found the cat two days ago and now that Louis came to terms with her living with Harry, it was just unfair that the cat despised him. And he was not really mad at her, but if it would get him some pity from his boyfriend, who was he to deny himself such a thing.

“Lou, babe. She likes you very much. She wants to play with you. That's how she shows you her love and affection,” Harry chuckled and ducked down to give Louis a kiss but Louis turned his head and the kiss landed on his cheek.

“Weird way to show it,” Louis complained. He didn't know much about cats. He had always been a dog person. They had a dog when he was a child and someday when he had more free time, he wanted to adopt an older one from a shelter. He had to admit that a cat was way less time consuming and yes she was cute. If she would keep her damn claws to herself.

“I will call her Wolverine from now on, just so that we are clear,” he pointed at the kitten with a warning tone in his voice. “Little minx.”

Harry led out a barking laugh, covering his mouth with his free hand. “You are ridiculous, babe. Come on, dinner is ready. Let's go eat. And you will get your dinner, too,” he cooed and booped Bluebell's nose.

Louis sighed and followed Harry to help put the food on the plates. To be exact, he put the food on the plates and Harry fed the cat and crouched down next to her to watch her eat.

Yes, it was endearing, okay? And Louis could watch Harry watch the cat for the rest of his life if it meant that all of them would always be this happy.

Louis forced himself to move and took the plates in the living room, placing them on the coffee table. They had decided to make an exception and eat in front of the TV tonight so that they could watch the new episode of the Great British Bake off in real time. Eventually, Harry followed him before the food was cold, just as the episode started.

After dinner, they decided to finish off the evening with a walk around the block. It was still kind of warm outside and the sun had just started to go down. They talked about this and that, Harry complained that the workers weren’t fast enough and that he had to put in some extra work in the next few days to get everything back into schedule.

Louis offered his help, as he had a bit of time this week and could do with some change in his daily routine. They agreed on the next afternoon and returned back to the apartment to enjoy another cup of tea before bed. With the cat, of course.

+++

Later this week, they were both hands deep in renovations. They made good progress in the shop but there was still a lot to do until opening day. And Harry had finally decided on an exact date for the opening. When he wasn't working or renovating in the shop, he spent his time planning the party and creating the invitations, as well as the layout for the menu and the flyers he wanted to put out as soon as the shop was open.

Louis was fascinated how Harry managed to juggle everything so easily. He would've already been massively overwhelmed at this point. He did his best to support him and provided him with food and foot massages, because he now spent more time in Harry's flat than his own. He tried not to think about what that meant too much…

He was painting the walls on the other side of the room while Harry nailed a wooden panel along the walls on floor-level. His task was a bit boring and his thoughts started to wander off.

It didn’t help that Harry wore one of his tightest pairs of blue jeans and that he was currently on all fours with his behind pushed out. He was so concentrated on his work that he didn't notice how Louis’ eyes stayed on his ass longer and longer. Which caused the paint roller to slip and he covered the front of his shirt in lavender paint. Damnit.

Louis felt the front of his pants getting tighter and no, that's not how that would go right now. They needed to get things done today and it was already getting dark outside. ‘Cute little kittens, cute little kittens’ he thought, while rubbing some of the paint off with a towel.

Yeah, that didn't help much. Not for the big spot on his shirt or the growing erection. Especially not since Harry let out a soft moan here and there when he changed positions to prevent back pain. No, that didn't help at all.

“Babe,” Louis said, and he couldn't help the whiny tone in his voice. Harry looked up at him, a few loose curls covering his face.

“What's up, Lou? Do you need a break? I think I need one. My knees start to hurt a bit.” Harry let himself plop down on his ass and rubbed one of his knees. Oh sweet innocent darling.

“No I don't need a break, but I certainly need you if you stay much longer in that position with your cute ass in that fucking tight jeans literally staring at me.” Louis let out a desperate laugh and accentuated his words with a not so subtle reposition of his nearly hard dick.

Harry's eyes fell down to the bulge in Louis’ grey sweatpants and his eyes grew bigger. Even in the dimly lit room, Louis could swear he saw that man blushing. Which was accompanied with a sweet giggle, as Harry got up and put the hammer down before he crossed the room.

Louis leaned back against the wall, the part that was not freshly painted, and broadened his stance by slightly opening his legs. That’s where his boyfriend came to a hold, before hotly claiming his lips with his own.

“I want to help you out with your little problem down there,” Harry smirked, grabbing between Louis’ legs.

“Oi, not so little,” Louis exclaimed before a moan escaped his lips, caused by Harry’s expert fingers that were now massaging his balls through his sweatpants.

“I know, I can feel everything through those damn thin trousers,” Harry moaned and started to rub against Louis’ erection. But Louis pushed him away a bit before kissing him again and laid his hands on both sides of Harry’s hips, carefully pushing him backwards until his calves hit the low bench in front of the windows. All while not losing the connection of their lips.

Harry tried to pull his oversized shirt over his head but Louis stopped him. “No babe, keep it on. You will look so hot with nothing on but that.” With the quickly fading sunlight and the few light bulbs that sparsely lit the room, it was now too dark to make out Harry's face entirely but he was sure, the younger one was blushing a bit more the way he ducked his head.

He could feel the gaze of his boyfriend on him as he hunched down to open the pair of jeans
Harry wore, pulling them down and off together with his pants. The younger one's cock was now tenting his t-shirt that easily reached mid-thighs. Louis stopped for a second to just admire the view. He was not sure if he would ever get enough of it.

Louis threw Harry’s pants and trousers careless on a pile to the side. Thankfully most of the “dirty” work upfront was done and the floor was surprisingly clean. He was sure Harry kept everything tidy between different jobs.

Then he stood back up, and started getting rid of his own clothes. Very slowly. He knew what this would do to Harry, he could hear him panting a bit already. He decided to be a bit mean and stopped pulling down his sweatpants.

“Be a darling, and turn around. Hands on the window above your head and legs a bit apart. Yes, like that. Watch the street for me.” Louis continued stripping down, while Harry did what he was told. “Is there anyone out there right now? Anyone walking by? It’s a pity that the lower half of the window is covered, isn’t it?” He could see Harry shivering in the low light of the street lamp from the other side of the road. The one on their side of the street was broken. He already called someone to get it fixed, but at this moment it worked in their favour.

“Too bad that the lamp is broken. Nobody is going to see you, standing there so pretty at the window with your flushed face and the desperate look in your eyes.” Louis was playing a dangerous game, his words were meant to make Harry queasy, but they riled him up, too.

He stepped forward and let his hands slide over the back of Harry’s thighs, upwards under the shirt and over the curve of his perky ass. Louis massaged both globes thoroughly, enjoying the little sounds his boyfriend made. He let one hand wander to the front to take a hold on Harry’s massive erection, pumping him at a crucially slow pace, while dropping to his knees.

Louis wasted no time to dove right in, licking and sucking at the soft skin around Harry’s puckering hole. “Hmm, tastes so good. Let’s get you nice and wet for me, baby,” he murmured in between kisses. He slid a finger in next to his tongue, up to the first knuckle, just slightly teasing.

After a few minutes, he fished blindly for the bag he left in this corner when he came. He knew that there was still a travel sized bottle of lube in there somewhere. They were just way too horny all the damn fucking time.

He flipped open the cap of the bottle after he finally got it out and coated two of his fingers. He inserted them carefully into Harry and spread the lube around the edges of his tight, pink hole. Harry moaned softly and arched his back to get more of Louis’ fingers in.

Once Louis was satisfied with his work, he stepped behind his boyfriend and lined himself up before he slowly pushed in halfway and after he made sure that Harry was comfortable, he bottomed out swiftly. This caused Harry to slam his hand against the window, moaning loudly.

Louis stopped his movements and bent over to look at Harry's face, who slightly winced. “Everything okay, babe?”

“Yes, everything is alright, I’m just a bit sore from yoga class,” Harry chuckled. “But I can take it.” He turned his head fully to wink at Louis, who shook his head, slightly amused about his boyfriend.

“Okay then,” he stated and pressed a soft kiss between Harry’s shoulder blades before he let his hip snap forward and after a few thrusts, he alternated between long and slow drags and fast pistoling movements until he broke a sweat. His forehead must be glistening by now, and his hands slipped more often from Harry’s hips.

Harry seemed to notice his effort and stopped him after a few minutes, pulling himself off of Louis’ cock. He turned around and motioned for Louis to take a seat on the low windowsill before he climbed on his lap and sat down effortlessly, cock sliding into him without resistance and instantly picked up a nice rhythm. Louis steadied him with his hands on Harry’s hips, his feet planted flat on the ground which made it possible to meet Harry’s thrusts. He reached to the front with one hand, to pull up Harry’s shirt until his cock sprung out.

He then studied Harry’s face, whose gaze was now glued on Louis’ eyes. His lips were parted and shiny with spit, his hair damp and even more locks had formed, especially right around his face.

“Why aren’t you watching the street anymore, babe?” Louis asked, not accusatory but firm.

Harry’s gaze moved quickly to look over Louis’ head and outside again. “‘m sorry,” he mumbled.

“It’s okay, darling. Just tell me what you see okay? While I continue to watch you bounce so prettily on my cock. You look so beautiful. Can you see yourself in the reflection of the window? Can you see how debauched you look for me right now? Absolutely gorgeous.” Louis continued to compliment him, while he let his hands wander over Harry’s back under the shirt. Every now and then, he sneaked one of them to the front to play with one of the four nippels, which always caused Harry to move faster for a moment.

Louis couldn’t decide which view was more mesmerizing. Harry’s face, pleasure written all over it, or his cock, bouncing between them with every thrust and painting precome on Louis’ belly.

After a few minutes, he heard Harry murmur something, more slurred than actually spoken.

“What was that, darling? You need to speak up a bit.” Louis took Harry’s face in both of his hands and directed his gaze back to him as much as it was possible with the constant up and down motion.

“I need to come, please, Lou. Can I? Can’t hold it any longer.”

“Of course, darling. You don’t need my permission. We didn’t discuss this beforehand, didn’t we?” Louis asked and pulled him in for a kiss.

“But I want to come together with you.” Harry pouted, still not losing the rhythm.

“It’s okay, babe. Next time. Go ahead, I’ll help you a bit,” Louis promised.

He grabbed Harry by his hips again and pistoled his own upwards in a brutal pace until Harry lost it and came with a long moan, painting the wood of the bench pearly white.

Louis noted that Harry’s legs were a bit wobbly, as he carefully stood up from his lap a minute later.

“Babe, you can’t stand like that. Kneel in front of the bench, facing the window and support your arms on it. And be a darling and pull your shirt up so I can see your beautiful arse while I make a mess out of you.” Louis softly commanded.

Harry instantly obeyed and fell on his knees, taking in the requested position, while he pulled up his shirt until it rested on his shoulder blades.

Louis started to jack himself off while his gaze alternated between Harry’s perfect ass and the street outside. What he would give for anyone looking into the window right now. Maybe Zayn would be up for it again soon. It would be perfect. The thought of it in combination with the beautiful view to his feet, let him topple over the edge quickly and let him paint Harry’s back with white strings of fluid.

+++

Louis got the number of a caterer from Jasmine. She hired him for previous events she hosted and said he was the best. He already talked on the phone with him and made a vague plan as Louis told the man what he imagined food-wise. And that's where he was headed now. The caterer had a small restaurant in the mall downtown and Louis needed to make some last decisions for the buffet for his wine tasting evening. He was a bit nervous about this whole thing. It was the first event since the opening night that he hosted in the bar. They had limited the number of guests to 20 people.

The whole thing was planned out until the last minute. They had 10 different wines to taste. The charcuterie boards were what they needed the caterer for, together with a small buffet full of finger food.

He opened the door to the restaurant and was immediately welcomed by a friendly looking man in his fifties, wearing the uniform of a chef. He was shown to one of the tables, where they sat down and started to go over the menu that the chef had planned out after their short phone call.

After everything was finalised, Louis thanked the man thoroughly and left the restaurant with a bit less pressure on his shoulders. He stood there for a moment and took a deep breath. Everything would work out fine.

It was still early, he had another two hours until his shift started and decided to spend the time in the mall that was just a few hundred metres away. After buying a coffee from one of his favourite stands in the mall, he strolled by different stores, admiring the displays in the windows.

One store caught his eye, especially one item displayed out front. It was a beautiful moss green silk robe that ended mid-thigh with a broad but delicate lace-border at the bottom. Even the rope had lace embedded. He stood there in awe, picturing Harry wearing it. The colour would match perfectly with his eyes. And Louis was quite sure that he saw a similar coloured panty in the back of one of Harry’s drawers.

He didn’t hesitate one second and went straight into the store and searched for a sales woman to ask for help. Ten minutes later he left the store, not only with the robe, but with matching stockings and a garter belt. He really hoped that Harry really owned that pair of panties, otherwise he would simply go back and buy them too.

He didn't know yet when he would present them to Harry, so he decided to keep the bag in the back of his closet for a spontaneous gift giving moment. When the time felt right.

+++

Evening had arrived and with it the first of hopefully many wine tasting events that would be hosted at The Grapevine. Louis walked through the room to check everything one last time and Zayn started the playlist he put together for the night. Soft instrumental music soon floated through the air. They tried to create an atmospheric ambience with the lights and Louis thought they were quite successful.

Harry must've thought so, too, judging by the fascinated look on his face as he stepped through the front door. He offered to be a waiter for the evening. Louis was very thankful, that way he could give Jasmine the evening off. She helped him out often enough the last few weeks when he changed his shifts, mostly because of Harry.

Together they prepared a few appetisers, with which they wanted to welcome the guests. The closer the clock moved to 7, the more Louis felt like he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t reconcile being this nervous at their opening night a few months ago. He decided that he needed a few moments alone and vanished into his office.

Louis was still pacing through his office as the door opened and Harry entered the room. The presence of his boyfriend immediately calmed him down a bit but not enough to stop walking. It took Harry’s tight embrace to finally stop and melt into the arms of his man.

“I’m so fucking nervous, H. What if they don’t like the wine? Or the food? Or my hostility? Or…” he bit his lip to stop rambling and tried to concentrate on the feeling of Harry’s hands that rubbed softly up and down his back.

“Maybe… maybe I can help you take your thoughts somewhere else for just a moment,” Harry whispered in his ear. A shiver ran through Louis’ body.

“And how would you do that?” Louis asked, not sure how Harry would actually manage to distract him at this moment.

“Well, first of all, I’m going to do this.” Harry kept one hand steady on Louis’ back while he used the other to open the button of Louis’ smart trousers and pulled down the fly. Before Louis could comment, Harry had his hand already in Louis’ boxers and started to massage his still flaccid cock. And oh. Well, this could actually work.

“And then, I’m going to do this.” Harry took the quickly filling cock firmly in his hands and started pumping. Within a minute, Louis was rock hard and he could feel himself leaking precome. He slung his arms around Harry’s neck and buried his head in the crook of it, panting softly.

And it felt like a fucking deja-vu as the door to the office opened and Zayn walked into the office, seemingly looking for Louis. “Oh, sorry,” he exclaimed, wanting to turn and leave again but changed his mind within a second and closed the door, leaning against the wood.

Louis had come out of hiding, and Harry had stopped his movements on Louis’ cock for a second and they both watched Zayn for a moment. He just stood there smirking and letting his gaze wander down between the two before he searched for Louis’ eyes. “This okay?” he asked.

And god, yes. This was more than okay. Louis hadn’t thought it would be possible to get even harder, but this situation was such a huge turn on and he had a hard time stopping himself from not coming on the spot. Harry must’ve felt Louis’ cock twitching in his hands, because he was the one that actually answered Zayn.

“Oh, I think it’s more than okay,” he smiled sweetly and immediately continued pumping Louis’ cock. His grip now even firmer, every up-motion followed by a skillful twist of his hand that left Louis open mouthed and moaning. He didn’t put his head back down, instead decided to keep his gaze on Zayn, whose trousers started to look a little tight in certain areas.

Suddenly, Harry was whispering in his ear again. “It’s nearly time for the guests to be here. I think we should show Zayn how it looks when you come, since you were buried in me the last time he watched us.”

Harry let his thumb slide through Louis’ slit and after another powerful pump, Louis came all over his hand, while he still watched Zayn. He could see him staring at the mess over Harry’s hand. He even had the audacity to lick his lips, before he rearranged himself in his trousers, threw a wink at Louis and left the office without saying another word.

In the meantime, Harry had packed Louis back in his trousers and had vanished in the bathroom to clean up his hands. It took him only a minute before he was back, embracing Louis again. All while Louis stood there, still trying to understand what just happened.

“And?” Harry asked, smiling softly at him.

“And … what?” Louis looked at him puzzled..

“Did I manage to distract you? Ease some of the nervousness?”

And oh… Harry actually managed to shut Louis’ brain down for a good ten minutes.

“Yes, babe. You did so well. I would love you to distract me anytime you want,” he smirked at him before pulling him in for a kiss. “Thank you. It helped a lot. Come on, let’s go back outside. You were right, they should arrive soon.”

And really, the guests started to arrive promptly at 7 pm. Louis stood by the door to greet everyone personally and Harry offered them a glass of champagne and directed them towards a table where a few starters were situated.

Louis went around the room and tried to make a few minutes of polite conversation with every single guest before they were led to their places at the table. He recognised a few of the guests from the everyday business. One of them was a regular guest that came in 3 to 4 times a week, always with a different book. He always drank the same wine, always one glass, that took him nearly two hours to empty. But Louis liked him and was glad that he always came back.

Half an hour later, Harry stood at the counter and rang the bell. That was Louis’ cue to ask everyone to come to the table. After they all had taken their seats, Louis walked in front of the counter and rang a little bell. Zayn joined him to stand by his side.

“Once again, good evening Ladies and Gentlemen. It's our,” he motioned between Zayn and himself, “pleasure to welcome you in our bar for the first official wine tasting event. When we opened the bar a few months ago, we hadn’t thought that it would actually go so well and that we would have an event like tonight this soon into being in this business. I couldn’t imagine having a better business partner by my side. So thank you Zayn, and thank you all for coming.”

The guests knocked on the table in approval, some of them nodded their heads.

Zayn cleared his throat before he spoke up. “Thank you, Louis. It’s always a pleasure to be by your side and ‘watch’ you do what you do so well.” He turns to Louis, his gaze dropping down to Louis’ crotch and away so quickly that no one except for Louis noticed and he smirked. A blush creeped up Louis’ cheeks. Facing the crowd again, Zayn continued, “It’s always mesmerizing. You are a real inspiration. Here’s to a nice evening.” He smiled politely at the guests before he turned around to walk behind the bar but not without throwing Louis the most dirty look he possessed.

Louis felt heat creeping up his cheeks but quickly contained himself and smiled warmly at his guests. “We have ten different exquisite wines for you tonight. With each glass you'll get a small note with the details on it, that will also be presented verbally by me. We also have provided for your culinary satisfaction.”

Louis motioned to his left where the buffet was situated. “I hope we will all have a pleasant evening together.”

+++

Louis decided to keep the bar closed the day after the wine-tasting. It was a very successful evening. Everyone praised the wines he selected and even the journalist who was present yesterday said that he would write a great review about the wine bar and its owner (the wink he gave Louis didn't go unnoticed, but ignored) for the magazine he worked for. Louis was very grateful, of course but it left a bitter aftertaste.

He shook himself at the memory and decided to clean up the bar quickly to have the rest of the day free. Maybe he could go and see what Zayn was up to in his atelier. It felt like he hadn't seen him in ages. Yes, he would definitely do that.

After the bar was squeaky clean again, he looked through the shelfs behind the bar and made a list, which bottles needed to be restocked.

His phone started to ring just as he was carrying up a box of wine bottles from the basement.

He put the box down on the counter and fished in his front pocket for his phone, hurrying to pick up as he saw that Eloise was the one calling him.

“Hey Eloise, what’s u…” his words got stuck in his throat as he heard sniffling and sobbing from the other end of the line. “Eloise? Darling, what’s going on?” he started to get worried and began pacing from the bar to the front door and back. “Please, talk to me.”

“We … Louis,” another sob. “We are ruined, I think I need to close the house,” Eloise pressed out before she was helplessly crying again. It broke Louis’ heart, hearing her like that. He needed to find a way to calm her down to get some answers out of her. But that wasn't possible over the phone. “I’m coming over, right now!” Louis decided and after promising that he would be there right away, he hung up and locked up the shop then ran to his car.

Louis arrived at the Ark in record time, and was through the garden door and at the back entry within a minute from parking the car. He for sure broke some speed limits, but couldn’t care less. He knocked at the wooden frame loudly, rocking nervously back and forth on his feet.

When he saw Eloise nearing the door through one of the windows, he took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down a bit. It was enough that one of them was already a mess, Louis needed to stay level-headed for her.

He took a closer look at her as she opened the door. Her normally so perfect hair was a mess, the ponytail crooked, her eyes were red rimmed, a single tear still visible on her cheek. That was all he could see before she flung herself into his arms.

“Oh Louis, it's horrendous. I don't know what to do. These poor kids,” she choked back a cry and buried her face into Louis’ chest.

“Shhhh, it's going to be okay. We will find a solution,” Louis assured her before he tightened his arms around her, his hands stroking her back in comfort.

After a minute he offered. “Come on, let's go inside and into the kitchen. I'll make us some tea and you will tell me everything. From the start.”

He encouraged her to break the hug but still kept one arm around her as he led them both to the kitchen.

Eloise took a seat at one of the tables and after making them both a cuppa, Louis joined her and listened intently to her story. There wasn't much to tell. Basically, their biggest sponsor had a lot of problems themselves and couldn't afford the donations anymore.

The amount of those donations was what kept the light on and water running in the Ark, as well as it paid for some of the insurance for the house.

Louis tried to find comforting words, but he was a bit lost himself. He promised her to look into the numbers with her together the next few days to see if there was anything they could do. But for now, they comforted each other in silence, with small smiles and a friendly touch here and there. Time flew by and before he knew, the alarm on Louis’ phone rang, reminding him that it was time to work soon.

He hugged Eloise another time and promised her to be back the next day for some brainstorming.

It was hard to drive away and leave Eloise on her own but he had to be at work in a few minutes and he was glad that she at least stopped crying for now. He would check in later with her again.

He suddenly got an idea and pulled his phone out while entering the car. As expected, Harry answered the phone after less than 10 seconds.

“Hey Lou, what's up?” Harry asked, he sounded a bit out of breath.

“What are you up to right now? You sound like you'd run a marathon,” Louis chuckled.

“Yes, actually. I was running. But you make it sound like I have no stamina whatsoever. I will tell you that is not the case. I'm very much able to run for a few kilometres.”

Louis let out a soft laugh at the outburst of his boyfriend. “You are ridiculous, babe. But yes, there is a reason I called you and I fear it's not a good one.”

“Oh no, babe. What happened? Is there something with the bar? Zayn?” Harry sounded really worried, it made Louis’ heart melt a tiny little bit.

“No, everything is fine with the bar and with Zayn, I think so at least. No, it's - it's the Ark. Eloise called me, crying. I immediately drove over to her. They lost their biggest sponsor and she fears that they need to close the facility in a few weeks.”

A surprised gasp could be heard from the other side of the line, followed by silence. “You still there, darling?” Louis asked carefully.

“Yes, yes, still here,” Harry hurried to confirm. “Just a bit shocked. I can't believe this. Is there something we can do?”

“I don't know yet, I'll need to think about it later. I really need to drive to the bar now. I just called to see if you could possibly come over here and keep Eloise company for a while. She has calmed down but I don't feel comfortable leaving her alone. And she will for sure need help with the kids today.”

“Yes, of course, Lou. I’m just hopping under the shower real quick and then I’m on my way!” Louis released the air that he was holding in as he got the confirmation from Harry.

“That’s wonderful, thank you so much! Please call me when you are on your way home again.” Louis started the car and backed out of the parking lot. “Listen, babe. I have to drive now. Hear you later, okay?”

“I will call you! Take care.”

Louis ended the call and drove to work, his thoughts ran 100 miles an hour. He needed to find a solution for this problem.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🧘🏻‍♀️🎀

Harry sprinted the last few metres from his car to the pub through the pouring summer rain, shaking himself like a wet dog before he pushed through the door. Once inside, he looked around searching for his best friend, who sent him a message earlier that just said “Pub, 8 o’clock,” and he knew something must be wrong.

He messaged Louis that he couldn’t make it to their date evening, because Niall needed him and Louis, the perfect boyfriend that he was, had wished him a nice evening and sent best wishes to Niall. And Harry knew that Louis had other things in mind too. It had been a few days since Eloise announced the bad news and since then, if he didn’t have to be at work, Louis did research after research, spending hours in front of the laptop or with his nose in law books.

Harry finally spotted Niall sitting at the far end of the bar, a half empty pint and multiple empty shot glasses in front of him. He was staring down at his beer, a defeated look on his face that didn’t change much as he registered Harry plopping down at the bar stool right next to him.

“You look like shit, mate. What happened?” Harry asked sympathetically. He waved at the bartender and ordered himself a pint, before he turned around towards Nialll to fully pay attention.

“I feel like shit, too. Everything is a mess,” Niall groaned, letting his head fall down on his crossed arms on the countertop. “I know now, why dad was pushing me this hard. But I guess that doesn’t matter anymore.”

“Why’s that?” Harry put a hand on Niall’s upper back, rubbing it slowly. His pint had arrived in the meantime and he took a sip.

“The company is bankrupt. There is no money left. My dad tried so hard to keep it above the water and now it looks like the ship has completely sunken. And not only are we in deep shit, there are others that relied on us. We regularly donated to multiple charities. One of them was this Orphanage, I can’t recall what its name was…”

Harry audibly gasped, covering his mouth with both of his hands, his eyes wide.

“What?” Niall asked, surprised by the outburst of his friend.

“Niall, this orphanage… that is the Ark, the house where Louis helps out every Sunday, the one where I was the last few weeks, too! Louis called me a few days ago saying that I should come to the Ark because the director, Eloise, told him that one of their biggest donors had to cancel all further donations. They most likely need to close the house and send the kids away.” He felt a big knot in his throat and tried to swallow it down, a tear threatening to escape his eye.

A sob escaped Niall’s throat, tears ran down his face. “That’s not what I wanted, I didn’t know anything about it. My dad was still keeping my knowledge about the company very shallow. You know that I tried to talk to him about involving me more, but he wouldn't hear about it. Oh god, if I had only known… I…”

“You couldn’t have done anything to prevent it, Ni,” Harry put a hand on Niall’s shoulder, rubbing it softly. “It’s not your fault. You’re not the one running the company. As you said, you barely knew the whole company. I know you said your Dad had kept you on your toes, especially those last weeks but even then… he still seemed to keep a lot from you. Did you ask him why?”

“Yeah… but he couldn’t really give me a satisfying answer. He murmured something of not enough experience and contacts and whatever. I think I shut my brain off after a few minutes. What shall I do know? I know that it’s not my fault, but it for sure feels like it…” Niall sighed and emptied his beer with a long gulp.

“We will find a solution. Louis is already doing some research to find a way to get money in. Maybe from the government. Or we find a new sponsor in time. Somehow…” Harry ordered two more beers for them. It was going to be a long night.

A few beers and really no solid solution for the problem later, they stumbled out of the bar, mood significantly lifted by the alcohol.

They walked, or more like stumbled, a few streets together until it was time to part ways.

“We … *hick* … talk tomorrow, okay Nialler? I'm sure Lou has already found something” Harry's words were slow and slurred but his best friend seemed to understand him.

“Talk, tomorrow, yes. Get home safe, Haz.”

Harry did make it home and to his bed, where he fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes. But not before typing a good night message out to send to Louis. It may have had a very dirty undertone and more mistakes than he could count.

+++

Harry woke with a pounding headache, and the fact that he actually had to get some work done today let him fall back onto his pillow with a groan.

He had forgotten that the plumber wanted to come by the shop today to look after the piping in the bathrooms. And that was only one point on his very long To-Do list.

But first of all, he needed a hot shower. Afterwards he went to the kitchen and made himself a coffee which he usually didn't drink but today, he needed one.

After a quick breakfast which he only ate to get something in his stomach, he sat down at his desk and scrolled through some business emails when a message from Louis plopped up.

“Hey darling, hope you’re not feeling too much under the weather today 😉 . Just wanted to tell you that I have another meeting with Eloise today to look through the numbers again. I’m coming over to the shop after that. 😘

Harry smiled at his phone, quickly typing out a reply before he headed over to his desk to get some work done before he needed to drive to the shop to meet the plumber.

Louis brought bad news later that day, well at least it wasn’t good news. Eloise and him had worked through all the paperwork and the financial stuff and they now actually had a fix amount of money they needed to keep the Ark running for a few more months to give them time to find a new main sponsor.

“At least we now have something to work with, an actual goal to achieve,” Harry smiled encouragingly at his boyfriend who, at the moment, looked rather sad.

“Yeah, I know. But it is a big number. We really need to find a permanent sponsor,” Louis sighed, while he ruffled a hand through the hair at the top of his head, which was now significantly longer than it was a few weeks ago.

“And we will, I’m sure of it. But I think we both need a bit of a distraction right now. Come on, let’s go for a walk. It’s still nice outside and I found this new café that sells delicious ice cream.” Harry stood up from the couch and pulled Louis with him.

It really was nice outside, the sun was still up and a summer breeze floated through the air. Harry and Louis walked hand in hand through the neighbourhood until they reached this cute little café Harry had talked about. It was managed by a nice older Italian lady and her son.

They bought way too big portions for both of them and sat outside, where some tables had been arranged. Harry could see how Louis visibly relaxed with each minute passing, while he ate his ice cream and watched the people who walked by. They both enjoyed the silence. It was the perfect ending for a stressful day and as they were finished and walked home again, it was like they both could breathe a bit easier.

+++

Later this week, Harry was on his way home from his weekly yoga-class. The way home felt never ending and his steps slowed down with every metre. He nearly dragged himself to the front door and up to his flat.

He let out a deep sigh as he dropped his tote bag in the hallway and toed of his shoes. The class today had been extra exhausting and it didn’t help that he was already tired from working, renovating, worrying about the Ark,caring for his cat, and other… sports. Not that he would want to miss this sort of sport but everything at once got a bit too much and all he wanted right now was a very long, very hot shower.

He closed the bathroom door behind him, letting himself plop against it for a second. Then he undressed himself. Just as he wanted to free his hair out of his bun, Bluebell started to scratch at the door and meow. After taking a few deep breaths, he opened the door.

“Bluebell, what do you want, girl?” As expected, she just looked up at him with her big round eyes and meowed even more. “Oh right, I guess you are hungry, aren’t you? Okay then, if I can have a quiet shower afterwards. Come on, let’s get some food in your bluebelly.” He giggled a bit at his bad joke.

He slung a towel around his waist and made his way to the kitchen to feed the cat. After she was munching on her food contentedly, Harry made his way back to the bathroom. His gaze fell on the bathroom mirror. The towel hung very low, showing off his abs that he flexed just a little bit more. His sweaty hair was still in the bun. He looked sexy. He decided that Louis needed a picture of this moment and picked up his phone from the bathroom counter where he left it earlier. He quickly snapped a few pics, then used his free hand to push the towel a bit lower in the front, keeping his hand there. He took a few more pictures and immediately sent the best ones to Louis.

He didn’t wait for a reaction, too desperate for the shower. Inside, he let the warm, nearly hot water run down his back. With every minute passing he felt his body relax more and more.

He knew what he had to do next and he knew that Louis wouldn't like it. But he had thought a lot about the situation with the orphanage and it was necessary that Harry at least gave it a try and he knew that Louis would understand and hopefully accept his offer in the end.

After he was done showering, he put the fluffiest clothes on that he owned and hid under the covers before dialling his boyfriend's number.

Louis picked up after just a few seconds.

“Hey darling, you have a great timing. The last guest just left the bar. I just cleaned everything and then met up with Zayn in our flat. Do you want me to come over later? But it could take a while.”

“No, Lou. It's fine. I'm already in bed. I'm really tired from the last few days. I just wanted to make you a proposition and I want you to listen before you say no, okay?” Harry suppressed a yawn and rearranged himself into a sitting position in bed, the duvet had started to suffocate him.

“Okay, darling. I'm listening.”

“I think what the Ark does is great. For the LTGBQ Community, for the locals and foremost for the kids. I didn't know it existed before I met you and I thought about it a lot. I'm ashamed that I have never thought of doing charity for our community myself and I want to change that as soon as possible. Not to make myself feel better but to help others. I still have a lot of money from my trust fund and I want to invest it into the Ark. There would still be a lot to work through but I'm sure that we can save it.”

When Harry was finished explaining, there was only silence on the other side of the line.

“Lou? Are you still there? Please say something.” Harry worried a bit that he had crossed a boundary. He nervously nibbled on his lower lip while he waited for a response.

“Yeah, I'm still here. Just needed a second to process that.” Louis said carefully. “Darling, that is such a nice offer. But I can’t accept it. It’s way too much money. And I’m sure Eloise wouldn’t, either. She is way too proud for such an offer to take. We will find a different solution. We have to…”

“You’re probably right, but I can’t just sit here and do nothing. There are so many kids that need the help and the shelter. We can’t just throw them out on the streets…” Harry grew more and more frustrated, his free hand mindlessly messing up his curls.

“Let’s get some sleep and I will come over tomorrow, maybe we can brainstorm some ideas?” Louis offered.

“Yeah, let’s do that. I’m free for a few hours before your shift starts, just text me when you’re coming over, okay?” Harry couldn’t hold back a yawn and he shuffled deeper under his blanket.

“I will, babe.”

After they wished each other a good night, Harry ended the call and threw his phone on the other side of the bed before turning around.

Harry turned the light off and searched for a comfortable position to sleep in, as his phone announced a new message. He sighed and squeezed his eyes close, but his curiosity got the better of him and he grabbed his phone. The message was from Louis.
Louis: Just saw the pic you sent me earlier. Damn, babes. 🫦 You look so fit 😌 can't wait to see you tomorrow. Sleep well 😘
Harry giggled softly and put his phone down again. His mood had increased a lot by now and he was able to quickly drift off in a peaceful sleep.

+++

As promised, Louis came over the next day, laptop and a notebook in his hands. They situated themselves at the coffee table in the living room and after Harry made them each a cup of tea, they sat down to get to work.

“Maybe we could put advertisements out to find new sponsors or write letters to every big company in the county…” Harry listed a few of his ideas that he gathered before Louis arrived. “Or maybe print more flyers, host a talent show.” He laughed a bit at his last idea.

“Haha, would you show us some of your talents, too, then?” Louis winked at him, while he pulled some papers out of a folder. “I actually have some ideas written down, too. Come on, scoot a bit closer to me. I’ve missed you.”

Harry immediately plastered himself against the side of Louis’ body and looked curiously at the papers.

The next hour they spent discussing some ideas, writing down new ones, discarding others. Harry also got a text from Niall who asked if he could help with something and if he should bring something to eat.

“When’s Niall coming over? I need to leave in an hour for my shift and I am staaaarving.” Louis let his head fall back against the couch and looked at Harry with puppy eyes.

“He just texted me that he is on his way, you will survive it,” Harry teased him, crawling into his lap. He was just being the thoughtful boyfriend, who wanted to distract Louis from his hunger. It was absolutely not selfish as he started to leave kisses all over Louis’ face and neck until their lips found each other. To avoid it getting too heated, they just kissed lazily and enjoyed the closeness to each other until they ultimately would get interrupted by the doorbell.

Niall arrived just as promised a short while later, bearing pizza. He also had his laptop and a notebook with him. After greeting each other, they all sat down on the living room floor and ate in silence. Everyone was lost in their own thoughts, only the expression on their faces now and then revealed what they were thinking.

Louis finished his pizza and after saying goodbye to Niall, and a very lingering goodbye to Harry, he made his way out of the flat.

Now that there were only two of them left, they decided to move to the couch. The papers, where Louis and Harry wrote their ideas down, were still spread out on the coffee table.

Niall took his time to read through all of them. Harry made them some tea in the meantime.

“There are a few really good ideas on there, Haz!” Niall commented, holding up one of the papers. “Maybe we could even do a few of them. But we need something really big to start this whole thing off and then roll out the other ideas.”

“Yeah, I know. I mean, there is no harm in printing flyers and maybe some newspaper ads. I don’t think that they will pay off but we can at least try.” Harry carefully put the two cups down on coasters in the shape of flowers and took his previous place next to his best friend.

“What do you think about the gala idea? I know it’s a lot of work and it would be on a very short notice. Do you think we could pull it off to get the money to the Ark in time for it to not be shut down?” Niall’s face was scrunched together in concentration and he was constantly playing with a strand of hair behind his ear.

“Hmm…” Harry had already thought about this idea, too. But they really didn’t have much time to plan anything…

He pulled at his lower lip as he stared into the void, thinking about it. “Maybe, I’m not sure. It would be a lot of work in a very short time. And we would need a room that’s big enough. I’m not sure if we can find a venue that we don’t need to book months in advance. And what about catering? It’s wedding season. They are all probably overbooked. And we would need to think of a program. Something to keep the guests entertained.” Harry rubbed his face with his hands. The whole situation was so frustrating.

“I could ask Liam for help. He is really good at stuff like that. Planning and managing and all. Maybe he has some connections.” Niall had already pulled his phone out and was typing quickly.

“I’ll text Louis, he needs to give me Eloise's phone number. I need to ask her first. Maybe she will think the idea is shitty,” Harry worried and searched for his own phone.

Oh shit, they were really doing this.

+++

Eloise, in fact, did not think that the idea was shitty. She actually thought it was a fantastic idea. But she was, like Harry, worried that they wouldn’t manage to get it all organised in time.

But with the help of Zayn and his connections to the art world, they managed to book the same room Zayn used for his exhibit on short notice. On a very short notice. 6 days, to be precise. There was a cancellation and they were able to snatch that date before anyone else on the long waiting list. Zayn, the saint that he was, even offered to show a few of his pieces again. The money from possible sellings would go 100 percent to the Ark. He even promised to finish the piece of art that he started with the kids from the Orphanage.

Harry kissed him on the mouth as he heard the news, platonically of course. It still earned him a ‘wtf'-look from Louis, followed by an amused smile.

They immediately made invitations and sent them to the biggest companies in town. Harry also sent a few to companies he was involved with as well as some of the wealthier friends of his parents.

Niall and Shawn were able to organise tables and chairs and everything else they needed, furniture-wise. Shawn’s brother loaned them his van that they already used when Niall moved in with his boyfriend.

The kitchen-fairies volunteered to cook the 3-course menu and Harry promised to help with the preparations. Louis and Jasmine organised the beverages and they created multiple playlists for some musical background throughout the evening.

It seemed like they really had everything under control, mainly because Liam kept an eye on the whole planning and them all on their toes. He made sure that everything was ready in time and that they hadn’t forgotten anything. All that was left to do is cross all fingers that the gala would be successful.

+++

In no time, Friday had come and Harry had just finished blow drying his hair as Louis arrived at his flat.

He had a decent sized package as well as his duffle bag in his arms. Harry eyed the package curiously, while Louis marched right down the hallway and into the bedroom.

“Is it okay if I take a quick shower here? I brought my outfit, too. Just really messed up my time schedule today….” Louis sighed loudly, while dropping the items he carried down on Harry’s bed.

“Yeah, of course, go ahead! I already showered, so you can take your time,” Harry smiled and gave him a quick peck on the lips, while his eyes stayed glued on the mysterious bag.

“Great, but first… I see you staring at it, love. Go ahead and grab it. It’s a present for you. Nothing special, just saw it and thought of you,” Louis smiled coyly, his hands clutched together behind his back.

That’s all Harry needed to nearly sprint the short distance to his bed. He kneeled on top of the covers next to the bag and carefully pulled it closer to him.

Harry opened the package with shaking hands, too giddy from the anticipation. He suspected what was in it, since he had to specifically put on that one thong in that specific colour. But he still let out a gasp as his eyes fell on the gorgeous robe that he pulled out of the box. He let a hand run over the fine material, feeling the softness under his fingertips.

He eyed the garter belt and the stockings at the bottom of the box and his face flushed red. He wasn’t used to this level of commitment from a partner for his feminine side and the fact that he got this lucky with Louis brought him instantly to the verge of tears. Again.

“I thought you could put it on under your clothing for the gala tonight. Just if you want to, of course.” Louis said. He sat on the bed next to the box, with shiny eyes and a gaze that Harry could only interpret as… no Harry, stop it.

“And when we’re back, you can take your clothes off and put the robe on for approximately 10 seconds before I rip everything off of you.” Louis smirked and Harry blushed. That sounded like a really good plan.

“I agree that you can take them off after 10 seconds, but you will definitely not rip them apart, they are way too pretty.” Harry exclaimed while he let the stockings slide through his hands, admiring the details on them.

“Yeah, you're absolutely right, sweetheart.” Louis agreed and stood up. He gave Harry a peck on the cheek and walked towards the bathroom. “We have to get ready now. I ordered an Uber for an hour from now. That way we can both have a drink tonight.”

Harry smiled after him, always so considerate. He hurried to get rid of his clothes, but took his time to try on the gift. He was glad that he decided to shave off his leg hair earlier in the shower. The stockings went smoothly up his legs and fit perfectly. He even put the robe on, just for the time that he needed to put a really light makeup on.

When he entered the bathroom, Louis was stepping out of the shower, a towel around his waist and his upper body still glistening with water. Harry took another towel from a hook on the wall and began to dry up his boyfriend. Louis tried to protest but Harry shushed him and Louis didn't argue any further.

After Louis blow-dried and styled his hair and Harry finished his makeup, they both went back to the bedroom to get dressed. Louis in all black. A black dress shirt and a very nice fitting black suit with double rows of buttons in the front.

Harry really wanted to put on a dress but ultimately chickened out and decided on a white button up with ruffles down the front and a white suit with a delicate flower pattern all over it. He felt pretty in it so he could live with the compromise.

+++

They arrived at the venue half an hour before the gala would officially start. Zayn was already hurrying around, arranging the few art pieces he brought with him. The room didn’t look very different from a few weeks ago except for the round tables that were situated throughout the room, leaving space in the middle of the room for speeches and some dancing later this evening.

Liam used his connections to organise four beautiful golden chandeliers which now hung from the ceiling, casting the entire room in a soft golden light.

Harry had to bite back a smirk as he saw Louis looking in the direction of the hidden nook above them.

They decided beforehand to NOT repeat the scene from back then, since there were a lot of kids present tonight and the cause of this evening was a very serious one. They needed to stay focused in order to make it a successful one. But that didn’t mean that they weren't allowed to relive the memories in their heads for a short moment.

Some of the older kids that lived at the Ark had volunteered to help with the decorations, some of them even offered to work as servers. The boys trusted them all and so they gave them a chance and they were more than grateful for it.

As promised, Zayn had brought multiple of his paintings and the big colourful piece that he had made with the kids. Eloise had explained their critical situation to at least the older kids and they worked twice as hard to make the piece a special one. This way they could help in even a small way to save their home.

Harry was surprised how many guests actually came despite the short notice. It warmed his heart that so many people were interested in the story of the Ark and maybe even in the ways they could help save it.

Before the first course of the menu was served, Eloise stepped on the stage together with Harry and Louis who stood a bit to the back and everyone stopped their conversations to give her their full attention.

“Good evening, ladies and gentleman,” she started. “We from the Ark would like to thank you for being here on this important evening. We are pleased to see so many of you here today. The Ark is a project I started many many years ago and it is now my whole life. Sadly, it is not possible to run such an organisation without help from the outside. Be it money or labour. We are glad to have so many helping hands in our house that make our lives and the lives of the kids easier. Speaking of the kids… they wanted to be involved in this evening and they worked all week on a presentation that they now want to show you all. Please kids, come to the stage.”

15 kids of all ages made their way to the stage while Louis installed a canvas and a projector.

The first slide of the presentation was a cover art with a text that said: “Our life at the Ark” surrounded by lots of colourful handprints.

One after the other, the kids now stepped forward and told short stories, each accompanied with a picture to help show how they experienced life at the Ark.

Even Lily, who was glued to Harry’s side since they went on the stage, now stepped forward to grab the microphone and another picture lit up the screen. This time it was a view from the backyard, kids were running around and in the middle of it, Lily and some of her friends who currently were in a water fight. The sun was shining and everyone was laughing.

Lily held the mic in front of her mouth and a little unsure she started: “I love water fights in the summer and I love my friends. I love that I always have them around so that I am never alone.” She searched for Harry, who smiled at her encouragingly. She continued, and this time her voice was firmer. “I really don’t want to lose my home, and my friends.”

She handed the mic over to Eloise before she ran back to Harry’s side, burying her face in the side of his leg. He gently stroked her hair and whispered some encouraging words to her while the rest of the kids told their story.

At the end of the presentation, not a single eye in the audience was dry and the room erupted in applause. The kids made their way back to their seats again and Elois thanked the people once again for coming and wished them all to enjoy their meal.

The food was great, but Harry hadn’t expected anything less from the women in the kitchen. After the dessert, conversations spiked up again and the boys went from table to table, making small talk with potential sponsors.

Thankfully, someone had the great idea to make an area with toys and games to keep the kids occupied. Jasmine, the angel that she was, had volunteered to use her minivan to drive some of the younger children back to the Ark, since it was already way past their bedtime, and they had started to fall asleep with their heads on the tables or sprawled out on the floor in the play-corner.

Another few hours of music and great conversations later, every guest had left and the only ones still there were the boys and Eloise. They sat around one table, quietly chatting with each other and reminiscing about the evening. They all had a good feeling, and Eloise had more than one check in her purse.

+++

At home, they went directly to Harry’s bedroom. Harry stripped quickly out of his clothes and put on the robe Louis gifted him. He knew that it was late already but he just wanted to feel the material on his body once more. He also didn’t mind how the thought of him wearing something so exquisite, so … feminine … made his belly all tingly.

He just loosely fastened the belt of the robe as he turned around to see Louis also stripping out of his clothes, back facing him. He currently had a tank top and a pair of very tight boxers on. Harry couldn’t help but stare at the perfect round, firm globes of Louis’ behind.

“Have you ever bottomed?” he asked, and shit did he really ask that out loud?

Louis turned around and caught him staring. Oh yes, he was indeed still staring, but now Louis’ crotch was in his line of sight. He quickly shook his head and lifted his gaze to Louis’ face, who looked very amused.

“Where is that question suddenly coming from?” Louis asked curiously.

“I just… we never really talked about it and I was just wondering.” Harry tried his best to look innocent but apparently failed miserably, as Louis knew exactly why Harry had asked.

“Is my backside so appealing to you, that you want to give it a try?” Louis grinned. “But to answer your question, yes I have. Years and years ago. I liked it but since then I have always dated guys who were more into bottoming and I like topping, so…” Louis shrugged his shoulders and took a few steps closer to Harry. “Do YOU want to top?”

“I mean… someday, maybe?” Harry said, a bit unsure. He really wanted to try it. Truth to be told, he had never been the one on top, but lately, the idea had crossed his mind a few times. “I’m curious how it feels. I never… topped. I love rimming, and I fingered a few guys. But none of them wanted to go all the way and I also never felt the need to. So yeah… someday.”

“Sure, darling. Just tell me when you’re ready for it.” Louis smiled gently and placed a sweet kiss on the tip of Harry’s nose. Harry blushed slightly at the affection he received from his boyfriend. He couldn’t wish for someone more understandable than him.

“Do you want to go to bed, babe? Are you tired?” Louis asked, already turning to make his way over to the bed.

“Well, actually… you promised me something like ripping this robe off of my body.” Harry ran a finger suggestively down the front of the satin robe while he bit his bottom lip and looked up at Louis through his eyelashes.

“Aaahh, yes I said that, didn’t I?” Louis chuckled. “I also remembered that YOU said all of that,” he gestured up and down Harry’s body. “is too pretty to rip it apart. But I can gently take it off, if you want me to.”

“No, I want to keep it on. I feel really pretty in it. But I want you to take your clothes off. Want to make you feel good.” Harry went over to Louis and gently pushed him backwards until he fell down on the bed.

“You sure?” Louis asked, while pulling his tank top over his head and throwing it aside.

“Yes, I am,” Harry reassured him, while crawling on top of him. He helped Louis to strip off his boxers, before Harry made himself comfortable between Louis’ legs. He admired his now naked boyfriend for a short while, before he spoke up again.

“But I would feel a lot better right now, if you could call me… you know, like you did back then, when I wore that dress.” H blushed deeply, he was still a bit uncomfortable with voicing out loud what he liked.

Louis looked confused for a moment until it hit him and he smiled at H. “Oh you want me to call you H? And babygirl?”

“Yes, please.”

“Hmm… always so polite,” Louis’ smile softened. “Of course, I can do that, baby. Thank you for telling me.” Louis reached out his arms to pull H on top of him and kissed him gently.

H used this position and started to plant kisses all over Louis’ neck. He slowly made his way down to the collarbones where he gently nibbled at the skin and brought up a hand to play with one of Louis’ nipples which caused his boyfriend to shiver under him, letting his mouth fall open in pleasure.

H continued his way down south, caressing every centimetre of skin on his way. Louis’ crotch was now directly under his chest and he could feel the hardening length pressing against his pecs. He could feel Louis buck up to get some friction in the bit of cleavage that H managed to build up through months and months of muscle training.

“Hmm, darling, your tits feel so nice against my cock.” Louis moaned, bucking up his hips another time.

And wow, that went right to H’s own cock. He whined against the soft skin of Louis’ abdomen. That had been unexpected.

“Do you like that, darling? Like when I call them tits?”

H blushed and looked up to Louis who was already watching him. “Yes, very much.”

“Good girl, now continue.” Louis buried one of his hands in H’s soft locks and gently pushed his head down and further south. “I think my cock would like to feel your lips, too.”

God, that man would be the death of him.

But he was a good girl after all, and did what he was told. He took Louis’ now fully erect cock in his hand and licked from the base up to the tip before he gently suckled at the slit.

He let his tongue swirl around the head before he took him fully into his mouth. Louis still had his hands in H’s hair and was slightly pulling at them every now and then. H started bobbing his head, alternating between going all the way down and staying right at the top. He knew that that would drive Louis crazy and by the noises he made and the way his whole body tensed up, he knew he was right.

He used his other hand to play a bit with Louis’ balls, massaging and gently tucking at them. H stopped sucking his boyfriend off to slide down the bed just a bit to get deeper between Louis’ legs. He planted kisses on the insides of Louis’ thighs, even sucking a few bruises into the skin. Testing the waters, he got closer and closer to his main goal, and since Louis didn’t stop him, he dove right in and started with kitten licks right above Louis’ puckering hole.

“Oh my…” Louis moaned out loud, tightening the hold he had in H’s hair. “Yes, right there, ugh.”

H doubled his effort to please his boyfriend, which caused his own rock hard dick to start leaking precome in his thong. His body had never been this affected by pleasing previous partners. But he couldn’t help but be massively turned on when he knew that he was the one giving Louis that much pleasure. And, well, the praising helped, too.

He now added a finger next to his tongue, not quite passing the ring of muscles, just teasing the entrance a bit. After a few minutes, he looked up to find Louis with his head thrown back, eyes closed, the hand that was not in Harry’s hair was closed tightly around his own cock, slowly pumping.

“Lou, can you please give me the lube from the nightstand?”

H watched Louis looking at him, his eyes hooded, his mouth still hanging open, softly panting. H could see the wheels in his head spinning until he suddenly seemed to realise what H just said. “Oh sorry, yeah sure.”

Louis reached over to grab the lube and handed it to H, who uncapped it and covered his fingers with a generous amount of it.

He got back to a comfortable position after he used his clean hand to squeeze himself through the delicate fabric. God, he was so hard. He sighed in relief before he turned his attention back to his boyfriend.

H took Louis’ cock back in his mouth, just resting it there and simultaneously pushed one of the lubed fingers into Louis’ hole.

He now started bobbing his head in the same rhythm as he pumped his finger in and out. Without losing tempo, he added a second finger next to the first and oh the sweet sounds he pulled out of Louis. He never heard him be so vocal before.

Especially when he turned his fingers and crooked them slightly until he found the small bundle of nerves. It might have some time passed since he last did this to someone else but he still knew how to, apparently.

“H, please. You're being so, ugh, good for me. I can't hold it much longer. God, soo good,” Louis cried out, which encouraged H only to increase his tempo and massage Louis’ prostate a bit harder until he felt his boyfriend's hole tighten around his fingers and his body stiffen before he came down H's throat in hot spurts.

While Louis came down from his orgasm, H suckled every drop of come from his slit while he once again used a hand to get some much needed relief of his swollen cock. But it felt too good and he couldn't stop himself from rubbing his length a bit more. Truth to be told, he was so worked up that it only took a couple of strokes to ruin the fabric possibly forever.

+++

Two days after the gala, Harry was again knee deep in renovations, the opening day for his smoothie bar was creeping closer and there was still so much to do. At least he was now able to finish painting the walls.

Suddenly, the door of the shop flew open and Harry accidentally dropped the paint roller.

“Dear Lord, Louis! You scared me,” he complained, clutching a hand over his heart. He ducked down to pick up the roller and quickly searched for a towel to remove the paint stain from the floor.

“I’m sorry, babe. I’m just so excited!” Louis hurried over to him, grabbed him by the waist and spun him in a circle, which caused Harry to nearly topple over with the impact.

“Whoa, what’s going on?” he asked, gently pushing Louis back a bit.

Louis waved some papers in front of Harry’s face. “Zayn and I just finished counting everything we earned at the charity gala. IT IS MORE THAN WE NEEDED. MUCH MORE!!”

Harry’s mouth dropped open, he couldn’t believe what he just heard. Did they really make it? He grabbed the papers from Louis’ hands and stared at them, trying to make sense of what he was reading. There it was. Black ink on white paper.

“We… we really did it!° he gasped, tears forming in his eyes. This was amazing. He blinked at Louis, who now stood next to him, one arm around his waist again, his eyes sparkling.

“Yes, babe. Do you want to come with me to the Ark to tell them the good news?” Louis asked, already grabbing the paint roller Harry was still holding to put it aside.

“Yes, of course I want to come with you! Let me just put something on that’s not full of paint… no wait. I don’t care. Let’s go!” Harry grabbed Louis’ hand and dragged him to the door.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

🍷🚬
They arrived at the Ark a short while later, and Louis hadn’t even shut the engine off, when Harry already opened the door and jumped out of the car.“Heyyyy, no headstart!” Louis complained jokingly and hurried to follow after his boyfriend who was already waiting at the garden door.“Ha!” Louis exclaimed, letting the key to the lock dangle in front of Harry’s face. “No way in without me.”Harry raised an eyebrow and chuckled. “Well, if you don't let me in, I’ll just start screaming. That way, Eloise will come out and open the door.”Louis stuck his tongue out at Harry before he swiftly opened the lock and swung the door open for Harry to step through. He was a gentleman, after all.They hadn’t even reached the door when it opened for them. Eloise stood in the doorframe, her worried look turning into something brighter as she sensed the mood from the two.“Hey you! What a surprise. What are you doing here? Lily came running into my office, saying that princess Harry had just arrived,” she laughed and pointed over her shoulder where Lily was peeking around the office door.Louis chuckled and saw how Harry waved at her and beckoned her to come over to him. She didn’t need to be told twice as she was flying into his arms only a few seconds later.“Hazzyyy! I’ve missed you!” she said and without waiting for a response, she pulled him with her over to the living room. “Can you read a book for me?”Harry turned to Louis, grinning and shrugging with his shoulders while he happily let himself be dragged away.Louis watched them fondly, thinking how cute Harry was with kids and how they… before he got shaken out of his thoughts by Eloise’s voice.“Let’s go to my office, shall we?” She gestured for him to go first and they made their way over to the room.Louis sat down on the couch while Eloise took place behind her desk. He pulled the papers out that he brought with him and cleared his throat.“Well, I did a bit of maths and went through all the numbers and… ‘drumroll’ we did it! We made enough money to make it comfortably through the next months which gives us enough time to find a new permanent sponsor!” Louis could see tears welling up in Eloise’s eyes while he spoke and he wasn’t finished as she already stood and rounded the desk to pull him in for a tight hug.“That’s amazing, Louis!” she sniffled. When she pulled away from the hug, she used the sleeve of her sweater to wipe away the wetness on her face. “I can’t thank you enough. You and your friends for what you did for us. This means so much to me and I can’t wait to tell all the kids. They were so worried that they could lose their home and now…” another fresh wave of tears interrupted her speech.“Hey… shhh… we made it,” Louis smiled and pulled her in for another hug. “Now we can focus on the future. And we will find a new sponsor.”He showed her the papers he brought with him and after a while they stood to search for Harry who was still patiently reading books. A small group of kids had surrounded him and were listening intently.Harry looked up at them and lifted a finger to signal them that they should wait a moment. He finished the last sentences of the book before he closed it and looked around him.“That's it for today, kids,” he announced and surprisingly only got a few sad faces in response. “I need to do some grown up stuff now,” he pulled a face which caused the kids to giggle and they quickly found something new to play with.Harry joined them and he also hugged Eloise. “I'm so glad that we could collect enough money. I hadn't known what to do if we didn't…” he smiled at Eloise and Louis could see that his eyes were shimmering with tears again.They spoke a little while longer until it was time to return to the shop to get more renovations done.+++Louis and Harry were on their way to a “special club” as Zayn had called it. The plan for it came up a few days ago, when Harry was knee deep in renovations and Louis came over after his shift to bring him something to eat and to pitch an idea.
“Hey babe, how’s it going? The colour of the window frames look great!” Louis stated, letting his gaze roam around the room.

“Hehe, thanks, Lou. I like it, too. Why are you so chipper today?” Harry asked before greeting Louis properly with a kiss.

“Zayn called earlier and asked me something, and I really like the idea. Makes me a bit giddy, if I’m honest,” Louis confessed. “But I’m a bit nervous about what you think about it.”

He really was. He knew that Harry was by far not at the point in his kink-journey than Louis was and he didn’t want to spook him.

“Yeah?” Harry looked at him curiously. “What was it?”

“He told me about this club that he and Liam went to last week and he wanted to ask us if we want to join them next time, which would be Friday. It’s… well, it’s a sex club and they have options where people could watch … you know, us having sex.” Louis felt his cheeks blushing more and more and he for sure must be red like a tomato as he finished speaking. He watched Harry’s reaction which was certainly not a negative one, as he slightly stood taller and his eyes sparkled a bit more.

“Oh… yeah, sounds good,” Harry said, but it came out a bit hesitant.

“Are you sure? You don’t sound convinced.”

“Yeah… I mean, it’s a lot. I’ve never been to this sort of club before but I’m curious to see it. And I think I would like us trying it out. But I have to admit that I’m nervous.”

“Oh darling, me too. It’s a big step and we’ll be in this together, okay? And if either one of us don’t feel comfortable, we won’t do it again,” Louis assured him, happy that Harry agreed to do this.

“Okay, Lou, I trust you,” Harry smiled.
And here they were, a few days later and parked Harry’s car next to Zayn’s on the small car park in front of the very unsuspicious looking two story town-house. Never in his life could Louis have guessed that there was a whole sex club in there.All four of them exited their cars and walked up to the front door. In order to get in, you needed to ring a bell and give a password to the bouncer who opened the door. It felt a bit like they were in one of those agent movies but Zayn and Liam handled it with an ease as if they were visiting the club for months already when in reality, they had been here only two times before.They walked through the front door into a small foyer with a wardrobe for jackets and a counter where you had to sign some papers. Behind the counter stood a woman in an elegant, very short and tight black dress. She smiled kindly at them while she handed each of them a clipboard and a pen. They had to sign a NDA and fill out a form with some data.After she explained the policy of the establishment, she took their coats and beckoned them to go into the next room, which was a dim lit bar with a dance floor and some tables that were scattered around the room.They made their way over to the bartender and ordered their drinks. Louis knew that Harry was nervous because he couldn't stop moving parts of his body. Either tapping his fingers or his foot, or twisting strands of his locks.They chose a table close to the dance floor. A few people were already hotly dancing with each other. Harry was chewing on the straw of his cocktail and Louis was gently rubbing his back. He couldn't deny that he himself wasn't a bit nervous, too. But a lot less than his boyfriend. He was actually kind of excited for this. It was a big step in their relationship and he had fantasised about this very often in his life.Harry and Liam went to the dancefloor after they finished their drinks and just danced for themselves to the beat of the music, while Zayn and Louis went to the bar to grab a second round. But Louis decided to just grab two sodas for him and Harry since he didn’t want them to be too tipsy for what they wanted to do soon.A short while later, Harry came over to signal Louis that he was ready now to go upstairs and after Louis confirmed with the woman at the reception that a room was available for them, they went upstairs, Harry tightly holding on to Louis’ hand.The second floor was divided into multiple rooms, two of them had big windows right by the door. The receptionist didn’t tell him which room they should take, just that there were free ones.Open doors signaled the guests that the rooms were free to use and Louis immediately looked for an open room with a window. Luckily both of them were free at the moment, so he chose the second one from the stairs and led Harry towards the open door by gently putting a hand on his lower back.Harry’s eyes still held the curious look from earlier in them, but with a bit less nervousness. He looked excited, his steps were more confident.The room was simple. A bed on one side and a small dresser on the other. There was also a chair with a table. Some snacks and bottles of water were provided from the club, as well as lube and condoms which were situated on the nightstand.Louis closed the door behind them and noticed that the curtains in front of the window to the hallway were still drawn shut. Good. He wanted to check in with Harry and get him in the right mood before he opened them.Harry was standing in front of the bed, looking at his feet. Louis stepped over to him and used his knuckle to push Harry’s chin upwards until he looked at him.“You okay, babe,° he checked and pulled him in for a kiss as soon as Harry nodded.The kiss got heated quickly and soon, tongues were involved and some clothes were shed. Louis pushed Harry back until he was laying flat on the bed, only in his boxers.Louis went to the window and looked back at Harry, who nodded shortly. He turned to open the curtains and could already see that a small crowd of spectators had formed in the hallway. Zayn and Liam must’ve told everyone what was going on. There weren't more than 10 people but the thought of actual strangers watching them sent electric waves through Louis’ body.He went back to the bed and climbed on top of him and immediately started kissing down the side of Harry’s neck while his hands roamed all over the younger one’s body. Harry had his arms slung around Louis’ back and his legs hooked over Louis’. He was quieter than usual but every now and then a soft moan escaped his lips.Still, it didn’t feel like usual and when Louis let one of his hands wander down to Harry’s boxers, he could feel that Harry wasn’t even half hard. Which was extremely unusual at this point of them making out.Louis had his back to the window, but he studied Harry’s face closely. Louis saw the younger one’s eyes slip to the window regularly and he could feel him getting more and more antsy under his hands.When it came to a point, where Harry didn’t respond to any of Louis’ touches anymore and his breath was more and more shallow, he searched eye contact and silently asked him if everything was okay. Harry whispered something, which Louis couldn’t quite understand.“Please, I can’t. I… we need to stop,” Harry whispered again and this time, Louis understood him.Louis got up from the bed and went wordlessly to the window, threw Zayn a knowing look who responded with a short nod then he closed the curtains, shutting the people in front of it out. He turned around again to face Harry who now sat on the edge of the bed, hands in his lap, his head hung low.No, Louis could absolutely not have this. He quickly went over and sat next to his boyfriend, pulling Harry’s hands in his lap. “Baby, can you please look at me?” he said gently, waiting for a response.Harry slowly straightened his posture and turned to look at Louis. He looked devastated, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. “Louis - I’m so sorry, I can’t do it. I really thought I could but…” his voice broke and his lower lip started to wobble.Louis pulled him in for a sideways hug. “No babe, you did nothing wrong. Everything is okay. Let’s get dressed and go home and then we will talk about it without people around us, okay?” He stood up and grabbed their clothes, helping Harry to dress himself again.Harry sniffled a bit before he straightened his shirt. “And you are not mad?” he asked, nearly whispering. Louis’ heart was breaking a little bit with how guilty Harry looked.“Harry, darling. I am not mad at all. I am proud of you for telling me that you needed to stop. You should always know your limits. We just need to have a more detailed talk about it so that I know what it was that bothered you, okay? And I want you to know that I will never be mad at you for showing me those limits,” he kissed Harry’s hands that he held in his again.After they were fully clothed again, Louis led Harry to the door and opened it. He had to admit he was a little nervous himself but as they stepped out of the room, nobody was standing in the hall except Zayn who led them to a door at the far end. There was a staircase behind the door that led to a back exit, where Liam brought Louis’ car to the small back alley. Louis could kiss both of them for their help but first he had to look after his boyfriend who was still very quiet.They drove home in silence, as Harry was blankly staring out of the window, nervously playing with his fingers. Louis opted against saying anything until they were in the comfort of Harry’s flat, which thankfully didn’t take long.Louis led Harry up into the flat and into the living room. They both sat down on the couch and Louis pulled his boyfriend into his arms, just holding him.A few minutes passed as Harry started to sniffle again. His shoulders were slightly shaking and Louis gently pushed him back into a sitting position but kept a hand on his leg.“What’s up, darling? Are you ready to talk about what happened?” Louis asked gently.“I … I don’t know. I just… I’m sorry that I disappointed you,” Harry sobbed and covered his face with his hands.“Hey, hey. Why would you have disappointed me? You did nothing wrong. I’m glad that you told me that you were uncomfortable with the situation,” Louis argued, and put his other hand on Harry’s back to rub it gently.“It's always me who chickens out, you have to be mad at some point. You told me how your exes never wanted anything to do with this side of you and now… I did the same” Harry argued, his face still buried in his hands.“First of all, I am not mad at you. I want to understand you, I want to understand what's going on in that pretty little head of yours,” Louis said, keeping his voice gentle and low. He needed Harry to understand that nothing that he did had been wrong. “We are a team here. It’s new for both of us! Second, what do you mean with ‘always’?”Harry looked up at him with an expression that said ‘you know what I mean’ “Well, back then when we were at the workshop, the day we went to pick apples and today!”“Babe,” Louis sighed, he stood from his place next to Harry in order to kneel before him. He took Harry's hands in his own, “that was two times. That's nothing! Everyone has their own level of comfort. Just because I would be okay with what happens at the club, doesn't mean that you have to! It is okay if it's too much for you. It's okay if it will never feel right for you. You have already given me so much. More than I could've ever dreamed of. You changed so much in my life and I will forever be grateful for that. Now can you look at me for a second before I say something really important?”Harry sniffled and rubbed his eyes a few times before he put his hands back in Louis’ and hesitantly looked up at him.“There you are, my sweet boy,” Louis leaned forward to give Harry a kiss, glad that he no longer looked like he was on the edge of fainting.“I love you.”“Wha…” Harry stared at him with his mouth hung open. “You… you love me?”“Of course, I do. How could I not? I have felt this way for a long time now, I just thought it would be too early to say it,” Louis felt his cheeks heating up. It had been ages since he last confessed his love to someone.“Say it again.”Louis chuckled. “I love you, Harry Styles.”“I love you, too, Louis Tomlinson,” Harry’s eyes looked a lot brighter again and Louis exhaled deeply.“Please don’t ever feel obligated to do something that you’re not comfortable with, darling. We will go with your pace and even if we never get there, there’s a lot of other things we can try,” Louis wiggled his eyebrows in an attempt to ease the situation a bit. And it worked! Harry laughed again, and Louis wiped away the few strands of tears from Harry’s face.“Okay,” Harry agreed and surprised Louis by pulling him in for a short kiss. “Can we go to sleep now? I'm exhausted.”“Of course, darling, Let’s get you out of these clothes and into bed.”
🧘🏻‍♂️🎀
The last week of renovations had been exceptionally stressful and Harry was more than relieved as the paint brush made its way over the wall for the last time. He let it fall back into the paint, and sat down only to end up lying on his back on the wooden floor and stare at the ceiling. He couldn't be bothered right now to put away the brush and the paint properly. Even when it dried up, who cared at this point. He turned his head to take a look around the bar. He still couldn't believe that they were finally done.Louis would be on his way over from his shift next door really soon, so Harry decided after sighing really loud for a few times, to get up and wash his hands before he took the champagne out of the temporary mini fridge they had set up to always have cold drinks available during the renovations.Tomorrow, they would bring in the rest of the tables and chairs and after that, he had two more days to decorate everything and sort all the ingredients he needed. The opening day would be on Friday. Everything was organised, family and friends were invited and flyers had been handed out on the street and at local shops. The interest was high and the more feedback Harry received, the more nervous he got. He always told himself that Friday wasn’t really open for the big masses, that would be on Monday but still…Louis had to calm him down at least three times a day and it got a bit embarrassing but he couldn’t help it. This was a big step for him and he wanted it to work out at the end.Only minutes after his shift had ended, Louis walked into the shop and Harry immediately pressed a glass with champagne into his hand.“Woah, let me arrive first,” Louis chuckled but already raised his glass for a toast. “It looks great in here, darling. I’m so proud of you and what you did with this room. To you, for working so hard and to a great start in your career as a shop-owner.” Louis smiled at him so big, that his eyes crinkled just the way Harry loved it.They clinked their glasses together and took a sip. With the lack of furniture, they just sat down on the floor again and reminisced about the whole renovation-process until it got dark outside and they closed everything up and went back to Harry’s flat.+++Friday had arrived and with it the big opening day. Harry would open the doors to his smoothie bar at 10 am and was running around like he lost his head, rearranging stuff and checking for the millionth time if he had ordered enough drinks and ingredients for the smoothie bowls. He also baked a trillion cookies and made various food samples that he wanted to give out to people walking by.Louis had been a big help during all of it, and was now next to Harry in a cute apron, helping him prepare food that had been ordered by the guests.They worked together side by side behind the counter and at some point Harry just stopped and watched his boyfriend juggle all the orders with such ease, it was fascinating. He even put the bowls together like Harry showed him the days before and it looked fantastic.“Move in with me,” he blurted out. What the - where did that come from. He slapped a hand in front of his mouth and watched as Louis stopped in his tracks and stared back at him.“What did you just say?” Louis asked, a half-full bowl in one hand, a spoon full of quinoa in the other.“Move in with me,” Harry repeated, with more confidence this time. “You are already there most of the time. I want you to live with me. I love you, I want you with me all the time. Please move in with me,” he felt warmth creep up his cheeks and ducked his head.He watched nervously as Louis put the bowl and the spoon down and took the few steps over to him. Louis grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him. A bit too long given their current surroundings, but Harry forgot about all that for a moment.“Yes,” Louis whispered against his lips and he couldn't help but break into a big smile.“Yes, I want to move in with you,” Louis stated, “but - I need to talk to Zayn first. I can't just let him hang in the air with the lease for our shared flat. Once we've found a solution, I'll pack my bags and annoy the crap out of you with my presence.”Louis smirked and kissed him one more time before he turned his attention to the food bowl again. Harry laughed, the nervousness washed out of his body and was replaced with relief.
“Great!” He said and looked through the room to find his mother and Robin. They hadn't gotten enough attention from him today. But before he could step around the corner, Louis was next to him again.“And H?”Harry turned around with a ‘hmm?’“I love you, too,” Louis smiled fondly before smacking Harry’s behind lightly. “Now go and tell your parents the good news,” he winked.Louis just knew him too well. Harry chuckled and shook his head slightly before finally making his way over to Anne and Robin. He hugged both of them before he stood to his mother’s side, letting his gaze waver through the room.His mother put an arm around his waist. “It looks great here, darling. You've outdone yourself!” She complimented sincerely, it seemed like her eyes were a bit shimmery.Harry tightened their embrace a bit, squeezing her hip and planted a kiss on top of her head. “Thank you, mum! It's better than I would've imagined.”“But I have a question, just because I am your mother and mother's tend to have worries they need to voice out loud,” she explained. “Are you sure it doesn't get too much to handle with all your other work?”Harry knew that the question would come, but he could understand the worries from his mother.“I've got everything under control, mum.” He smiled. “I purposefully didn't schedule any meetings the next two months and I don't need to be constantly on call for the companies. And I will search for help for the bar so that I don't have to give up all my partnerships with the start ups. But if the bar does well, I will give up some of them. And I still have more than enough reserves, money wise.” He hoped that his explanation was enough to soothe his mum's worries. He had thought about it for days before he signed the lease for the bar and with some juggling, he finally had a thorough plan on hand.The hours flew by and soon, all the samples had been handed out, the people were fed and happy, the conversations flowed easily and Harry couldn’t wipe the smile from his face. He stood behind the counter and his emotions were all over the place. It had been a long day, but a successful one. And he couldn’t wait to get started for real on Monday.“I am so proud of you, darling,” Harry felt hands sneaking around his waist and Louis’ comforting voice right next to his ear. He could feel the warm breath in his neck, tickling him a bit. He leaned into the touch of his boyfriend and soaked in the atmosphere of the room. It had calmed down a bit, only a few people still lingered around.Zayn and Liam were chatting animatedly with Niall and Shawn in a corner and a few of their family members were scattered at the tables and the buffet. The day had gone great, everyone had a compliment or a few nice words for Harry and his new business.He couldn't say that he wasn't nervous anymore for the first “real” day on Monday but his heart was a few pounds lighter after all the positive response today.Sighing, he snuggled a bit more into the arms of his boyfriend. He could feel the gaze of Louis lingering on the back of his head.“What?” He asked shyly, brushing a lock behind his ear.“Nothing,” Louis told him, his voice buttery soft. “Just can't believe you're mine.”“Am I?”“For as long as you'll have me.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

A year later

“Where are the newlyweds?” Niall barged into the flat as soon as Louis opened the door.

“Not married, Niall,” Louis rolled his eyes and closed the door behind his friend. They all grew much closer within the last year and Louis was glad that he could call him a good friend now. As well as Shawn and Liam.

“Well, you should be! Just like meeee.” At that, Niall held his hand up with a shiny golden ring proudly displayed on his ring finger. Shawn and him got married a month ago and since then, Niall used every opportunity to tell everyone about it. Repeatedly.

It had been a tough year for Niall. After his father had to close the company, Niall managed to get a job in one of the competing companies. He was now in proper training with very good prospects to become a big CEO. He even managed to take Liam with him as his personal assistant. Which Liam was very grateful for.

“Just ask him to marry you already, Lou. I bet he is waiting for it.”

“Would you tone it down a bit, jeez. He is just a few rooms over,” Louis shushed. “Of course I will ask him. I have been planning on marrying him since the day I met him.” Louis watched Niall’s expression change to a very sappy one and was back to rolling his eyes.

“It was just a very busy year and I want us to enjoy it. Give me a few more weeks,” he winked. Of course he had already planned everything in detail but not all the wheels had been spun yet. He also hoped that Harry wouldn't ruin it by proposing first.

Their relationship had evolved to a well-oiled partnership, they even got to live out their kinky side a bit more, as Harry had been ready to try the club out once more. They went there a few weeks after their first attempt, just to get a feel for it and watch some people interact. A week later, they had their first real scene there and everything went perfectl. Since then, they had been regular visitors at the club. Periodically accompanied by Zayn and Liam.

Lucky for him, the doorbell was ringing again and Niall jumped to open the door because ‘that's Shawn, he just parked the car.’

Louis used the opportunity to join Harry and the other guests in the living room where a big buffet had been organized. They originally didn't plan to throw a big housewarming party but since everyone had helped them out so much in the last few months, Harry and Louis just thought they would earn a big thank you.

After the man that rented the flat above the smoothie bar had moved out and the bar did exceptionally well since day one, Louis and Harry decided to make a generous offer to the owners of both buildings and they had accepted to sell their properties.

Harry was even able to give up some of his partnerships that took a big amount of time. He only kept the silent partnerships and two of the companies that he was more involved in. He also was able to hire two students that helped him out in the smoothie bar a few times a week. He and Louis also had time to pay the Ark regular visits. It took them a while but eventually they found a main sponsor for the orphanage and thankfully everything was back to normal.

And now, here they were, after a few months of renovations, the two smaller flats were finally combined into one big, homey flat.

“Hey Lou, there you are. Who was at the door?” Harry asked, as Louis stepped to his side, sliding an arm around his waist. He gratefully accepted the champagne glass Harry offered him and took a sip before he responded.

“Just Niall and Shawn, they will join us any second,” he smiled and pecked Harry’s lips before he turned his attention to Anne and Robin whose conversation with Harry he had interrupted with his arrival. “Hey you two, how are you? Do you want something to drink?” he offered.

“Nice of you to ask, not like my son here,” she teased and raised an eyebrow towards Harry.

“We will go to the buffet in a second, darling. I just wanted to tell you both how wonderful the flat turned out. It’s so much spacier now. And the living area? Fantastic. I think we need to renovate soon, too, Robin,” Anne joked, nudging her husband in the side. He let out a grunt of disapproval and everyone broke out in a laugh.

After an hour, most of the guests had arrived and the atmosphere was great. Niall had offered to play DJ and he did his job really well. Harry and Louis sat together with Zayn and Liam in a corner and played a card game. After some ups and downs, Zayn and Liam finally got their shit together and admitted that they both wanted a relationship. Liam even moved in with Zayn, since Louis didn’t live there anymore.

The doorbell announced another visitor and Louis went to answer the door once again.

His jaw almost fell to the ground as soon as he saw who was standing on the other side.

“Oh my god, Lottie! What are you doing here? We didn’t expect you back from your backpacking trip for another two weeks!” His voice broke into a squeak. “You look fantastic, come in, come in. Oh and you brought Laura with you. Great to have you both here. Mum and Mark will be so excited!”

“Louis, take a breath for me please,” Lottie laughed. “We have seen everything we wanted to see and were both a bit homesick. That’s why we are so early. And I wanted to surprise you. With our visit and.” She smiled shyly and looked down between her and Laura, where their hands were intertwined.

Louis followed her gaze and audibly gasped before he slapped a hand in front of his mouth. He stared at her and pointed between the two. “What’s going … are you … two … what?” he stuttered out. “Are you a couple? When did that happen?”

Just in this second, Harry joined Louis and looked at him like he lost his marbles until he saw who was standing in the doorframe and the wheels turned in his head.

“Oh my god, what? Lottie, are you two together?” Harry asked.

“That’s what I asked!!” Louis exclaimed, still staring at his sister.

“Would you two calm down please?? There is a reason we didn’t tell anyone until now,” she whispered. “I wanted to tell you first, Lou. Before I shock my parents for the rest of their life.”

Louis laughed. “I don’t think that they will have an issue with ANOTHER gay child.”

“Queer,” Lottie responded. “I don’t know my label yet. Neither does she. We will go with queer for now.” She looked at Laura and smiled softly.

Louis’ gaze softened at the sight. He always thought that his sister had bad luck in love. The men she dated were assholes or they simply didn’t fit well. Hopefully it will be a better match with Laura. He just wanted her to be happy.

“Come on then, let’s find our parents and then I want to know everything that happened in the last months,” he said before he motioned them towards the living room area.

Harry accompanied the two while Louis closed the door before he followed them. He stopped at the entryway to the living room and overlooked the little crowd that had formed in the room. All his friends, his whole family and the love of his life, they all were gathered together.

He had a good life.

They would have a good life.