Got the sunshine on my shoulders - by: hattalove

chapter twenty five

Harry breathes a sigh of relief the second mum's car rolls down the driveway. He leans against the door just in case, and peers out through the window until he's sure he sees it disappear between the trees.
"All right, love?" Louis asks, coming up behind him. There's a split second of a thick silence, of hesitation, but then he presses himself to Harry's back and wraps an arm around his waist, just like he would have years ago. The kiss he presses against Harry's shoulder blade makes all the tension there disappear.

"Yeah," Harry smiles, leaning into Louis's warmth. "She was just being a little..."

"Nosey?" Louis suggests. "Suspicious?"

Harry laughs. "Yeah."

"I mean-she knows you better than anyone. I'm sure she could tell that something was different."

"That's what I'm worried about," Harry sighs. He tries to press even closer, and Louis has to take a step back under the weight of his body. He does bring his other arm up to wrap around Harry's chest, though, so he'll consider it a win. "I have no idea how to even being explaining all this."

Another kiss, this time on his nape. The warmth of Louis's lips seeps underneath Harry's skin, unfurls in little tendrils across his entire body.

How had he ever gone without this?

"We don't have to figure that out now," Louis says. The way he says we makes Harry a little weak in the knees. "She doesn't need to know yet, nobody does."

The anxious coil in Harry's chest tightens a little.

He sighs, and turns around in Louis's arms so they're face to face. Louis tucks a few hanging strands of hair behind his ears and looks up at him, gentle, concerned.

"I know it's literally been an hour, and that-that I haven't exactly given you a lot of reasons to trust me with this, with us, but-"

"Harry," Louis interrupts. His hands on Harry's face feel endlessly soothing, but still-

"Let me finish, please," he says. He's just got to lay this down somewhere - ideally right here, in the front room, where it'll stay sat on the doormat and let him get on with his evening. "I just wanted to tell you, again, that I love you. And that-if you don't want to tell anyone yet because you're not sure it's permanent, that's obviously your choice and I don't want to try and change your mind but-"

"Harry," Louis says again, even softer than the first time. He'd bit his lip as Harry stared speaking, clearly determined to let him say his piece, but here he is, petting Harry's hair, tugging on the collar of his t-shirt, squeezing his hip, everywhere.

"It's permanent for me," Harry says. It's the absolute, honest truth.

Louis sighs, and pats down Harry's t-shirt where the collar has peeled away from his chest. "It's permanent for me too," he says, so quietly Harry has to strain to hear it. "I, um. I don't want you to think that I don't trust you, it's not that, but like I said - it's going to take a while."

He's smiling when he looks up at Harry, and it's not as sad as Harry had been expecting. He returns it, and leans forward to press his lips to Louis's, just a peck, but even that much makes him shiver.

"Do you want to stay?" Louis asks.

"Do you want me to?"

They pull away, just far enough to look each other in the eye. Louis takes one of Harry's hands in his, and kisses the back of it. Harry's seconds away from bursting into a fresh bout of tears.

"I'll always want you to, darling," Louis presses into the hollows in-between his trembling knuckles. "Always."

Something shimmery and alive crawls up Harry's spine, explodes in front of his eyes like a supernova. He sways in place.