Burn to ash

Chapter 19

When he and Harry finally emerge from his hotel room, it's nearly eighteen hours later. They've barely slept, they're both sore and covered in love bites and bruises from head to toe. But Louis knows from the way he looked in the shower-fogged mirror as they get ready to head over to the venue that he's never looked happier in his entire life.

Harry's glowing too. And it's a special kind of knowledge, to realize that Louis is the one that's made him look this way.

They finally make it over to the venue-and they're cutting it so close, Bernard shoots the pair of them a withering look. "I see you've finally decided to make it out of bed," he says.

Louis is in way too good of a mood. He's not a young man anymore, but the number of orgasms he's had in the last eighteen hours would prove otherwise. So he just rolls his eyes and ignores Bernard. He's probably just jealous. Everyone wishes they looked this well-fucked, even Bernard.

The others are a little harder to ignore.

Niall literally falling off the couch, a can of soda clattering to the floor and exploding sluggishly all over the floor, might be explained by the fact that Louis and Harry are holding hands when they enter the green room, or it might be because Louis knows just how smug they currently look.

"I can't believe," Niall exclaims in awe, still on the floor and in clearly no hurry to move himself or the Dr. Pepper that's fizzing all over his jeans. "It's actually happened. You two finally got your heads out of your arses."

Harry's blushing, all bashful despite the fact that his neck is littered in marks from Louis' mouth. He looks like a kitten and a sex animal all at the same time, and it's a look that makes Louis want to drag him back to the bedroom and not leave for a solid week.

Unfortunately they've got to finish this tour. Then Louis has every intention of making up for lost time. He's even been thinking about the two of them going on a little trip, maybe somewhere sunny and hot, and just honeymooning for a week. Basking in the sun and nothing else but each other.

Then Niall looks closer and nearly falls back over, cackling. "How many times did you two fuck?" he asks between giggles, mostly because Niall's never really had a filter and anything he did have, Louis knows he and Harry destroyed long ago.

"Uh," Louis stutters.

"Don't worry, we're really not interested in your sex life," Zayn says from behind them and Louis glances back to see a genuine smile on his friend's face. "Just glad that everything worked out."

"Of course it did; they're soulmates," Niall retorts. "Besides, I've been watching them. It was inevitable. Louis couldn't stay away."

"I guess that means I win the money," a third voice chimes in and there's Liam, looking even smugger, if that was even humanely possible.

"What?" Louis exclaims loudly. "What money?"

Harry turns to him, blushing even redder. "You mean, you didn't know about the bet?"

Louis is flabbergasted. "You were betting on if we'd get back together?"

"Actually," Liam corrects, "it wasn't if but when."

"And you all bet on this," Louis asks. He turns to Harry. "Even you?"

"I knew about it. I didn't actually bet," Harry says gently.

"Why the hell not?" It comes out before Louis can stop it. Maybe he's just happy with the world right now. Two months ago, this might have pissed him off royally, but now he's just amused by how silly their friends are.

"So Liam obviously won," Louis says before Harry can be foolish enough to answer that question. His answer might either send them back to the bedroom or make him cry, and Louis can't handle either of those right now.