Love in a photograph

V111

Gemma hugs Louis first at the train station, and though she claims she's equally excited to see both of them, Harry knows that she's thrilled to see Louis again. She lets Louis in the front seat of her new car on the way home, and Harry crams all of his long limbs into the back seat.

"What do you think?" she asks, glancing at Harry over her shoulder. "Bought her myself. Weekend trips into Hastings will be so much easier now, right?"

"I can't believe my sister owns a Ford," Harry says, shaking his head in disbelief. "And that she forced me to sit in the back of it."

"I told you you could have the front!" Louis says, turning to smile back at him. "I'm much smaller, anyway, you should-"

"Hush, Louis, you're our guest," Gemma says. "And you might as well be a saint in our household, for all you've done for Harry. I still can't believe you let this whiny child move in with you," she scoffs, glancing over at Louis.

"He's perfectly wonderful," Louis says, not taking his eyes off of Harry. "And he only whines sometimes."

"I do not whine," Harry whines, pouting at Louis. "I'm a good housemate, aren't I?"

"The best," Louis assures him, reaching back to squeeze his knee. Gemma rolls her eyes and then they're off, the car lurching away from the curb.

"Sorry, I'm not a very experienced driver yet," Gemma says, jerking the car around a corner so quickly Harry could swear they're only on two wheels. He grips the door quite hard to ground himself and Louis just grips his own thighs, like he doesn't want to offend Gemma by actually needing to hold onto something.

Luckily, the road back to Hansen is mostly straight, and Gemma only swerves around a couple of potholes. She comes to a screeching halt in the driveway and Harry falls out of the car immediately, resisting the urge to fall to his knees and kiss the ground.

"Harry, grab Louis's bags," Gemma says, opening the trunk of the car for him and then grabbing Louis by the elbow to drag him inside.

"I can get my own bags," Louis says, but Gemma is already halfway inside with him. Harry waves him off and then starts pulling their luggage out of the car, trying to drag it all inside in one trip. They didn't exactly pack light; they're here for four months, and neither of them care much for laundry.

Louis has already been seated at the table with a snack by the time Harry gets inside, dropping all of their bags by the door. Harry can't help but laugh at the scene, seeing how uncomfortable Louis looks between Gemma and his Ma with a plate full of fried potatoes in front of him.

"Oh, hello Harry, my only son," Harry mocks loudly, closing the door behind himself and moving a few bags out of the way. "How was your first year of college? Oh, it was great, Ma, thanks for asking. Oh, Harry, won't you sit down for a moment? You always work so hard! Oh, Ma, you're too kind-"

"Oh, hush!" Harry's mother laughs, rushing over to pull him into a crushing hug. "I'm so proud of you. I want to hear all about it over supper."

"I was thinking I could take Louis around the farm before supper," Gemma says, giving Harry a look. "You should go see Pa."

Harry nods, his stomach dropping a little. Gemma ushers Louis out the back door, snack still untouched on the table, and Harry shuffles over to his Ma where she's getting supper started on the stove.

"Is he doing any better?" Harry asks, voice quiet. "Pa, I mean? He's not worse, right?"

Ma purses her lips, squeezing Harry's arm gently. "He looks worse than he is, I think. He'll be so happy to see you," she says, giving him an encouraging smile.