Young & Beautiful

**
When Louis returns home late that night, clothes soaked with the cold and his skin flushed, fingers
numb, mind and chest buzzing with Harry’s smiles and Harry’s laugh as they raced back to the
school grounds, Niall is sitting at their table, suited up to go, a cigar resting between his fingers as
he texts.
“Home already?” Louis asks, raising an eyebrow. He sheds himself of his jacket and shoes,
immediately scrambling to his room for a sweatshirt.
“Haven’t gone out yet,” Niall smiles without looking up before bringing the cigar to his lips.
“Sorting through my options.”
“It’s nearly two in the morning!” Louis says, shocked. His skin is damp and prickly, burning with
the warmth of their flat. He thinks he can smell Harry on his clothes. Or maybe it’s in his head.
“The night is young, Tommo,” Niall says conversationally, before finally glancing up. “Where
were you, then? Left me and the boys on our own! Had to scrounge up dinner from the streets!”
“Funny,” Louis deadpans with an eyeroll, but suppresses his smile as he hears Harry’s laughter
echoing in his mind, remembers how he looked with the stars in his eyes. Fuck. “How are they
today? Haven’t talked to them.”
“Good,” Niall says simply. He puffs on his cigar, his smile widening impishly as he stares at his
phone. “And how are you today? Keeping busy fucking Harry?”
Louis almost trips over a stool.
“Wha—Goddammit, Niall, fuck! We’re—we’re absolutely not—“
But Niall is laughing hysterically, hearty and booming as his mouth unfurls smoke with each
burst.
“You’re so easy to upset!” he laughs, clapping his knee and leaning back in his chair. “Though
you were both mysteriously missing.”
“I hadn’t noticed,” Louis says dryly before pouring himself a glass of water, jaw set.
It’s probably best not to tell Niall where he was. Just…just because. Just because of rumors and all
that.
It’s not like that with Harry and him.
It’s not.
“I’m feeling pretty wasted though, Ireland. Gonna fall asleep standing up in a minute or so.” Louis
chugs his glass of water, lets it wash away his discomfort and annoyance as best it can. “So I think
I’m going to go to bed. You have fun though, tonight. Be safe and all that. Don’t wake me up
when you stumble home. Oh, and please don’t bring back anyone. They always stay till morning
and it’s so tacky and odd. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I despise sharing my Nutella
with strangers,” he sighs, long and suffering, and Niall barks out a laugh.
“Course not. I’m over all that. I don’t take my work home with me, Tommo. ‘M a changed man.”
Well. That sentence is fairly problematic, isn’t it? If Louis’ not careful, he’s going to have a real
prat for a best friend on his hands.