fine line

𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚛𝚝𝚎𝚎𝚗

"Wake up, sleepyhead!" Taylor's voice says in Harry's ear, way too early to be acceptable. Harry groans and turns his face in his pillow. "Come on, Harry, you can't stay in bed forever."

Harry relents only when Taylor starts to tickle him. "Okay, okay, I'm awake!" he says. "What time is it?"

"It's almost two in the afternoon," Taylor informs him. Harry tries to sit up but collapses again immediately, his head pounding.

"Jesus, what did I drink last night?"

Taylor raises an eyebrow. "I don't think you want to know."

Harry nods, knowing he probably doesn't.

"There's tea and Advil in the kitchen. Niall's there too."

"Because nothing cures a hangover like a hyperactive leprechaun," Harry mutters, which startles a laugh out of Taylor.

"You'd be surprised," she says, grinning. Harry decides not to question it. At least, not right now.

Ten minutes later, he's bundled up in his favorite knitted blanket on his sofa, a cup of tea in his hands and his head feeling slightly better. Niall is on the sofa next to him and Taylor's sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Tay," Niall says, handing his phone to her. She takes it and stares, eyebrows raising. Then she blinks at Harry.

"That's...interesting." Taylor hands Niall's phone back to him. They both glance at Harry.

"What?" he wonders, looking back and forth between them.

Niall clears his throat. "Harry, what do you remember from last night?"

Harry searches through his memory, even if it's making his headache worse. "Um...sitting at Louis' table...annoying him...getting really drunk...throwing up in a toilet...winning a Grammy."

"Any specifics?" Taylor asks. "Like, what you said in your speech, maybe?"

Harry tries to think, but his memory's too fuzzy. "...No."

Taylor shares a look with Niall. "Okay, Harry, I'm gonna just..." she gets up from the floor and sits between him and Niall on the sofa, moving closer to Harry and pulling out her phone. She navigates to Twitter, and at the top of her feed is a post from one of Harry's fans. He can tell by the handle. stylishstyles509.

The post is a video, and there's a caption, too, but Taylor clicks on the video too quickly for Harry to read the words.

The clip is of him on stage receiving the Grammy.

"...I'd like to thank my mum, of course, and my sister. And Louis, who inspired the song. My manager Jeff and..."

The video cuts, and Taylor shows Harry the caption underneath it.

his INSPIRATION????? for watermelon sugar??? what kind of 'friends' are you, harry?!?!?!

Harry gasps. "No."

Niall laughs. "Yes."

Taylor looks at Harry worriedly.

"How many of these are there?" Harry asks helplessly.

Taylor sighs. "Everyone. On Twitter, Instagram, everywhere. They think you and Louis are a thing."

Harry sets down his tea and puts his head in his hands. "Shit."

***

"This wasn't supposed to happen," Jeff says, pacing behind his desk chair.

Harry watches him with a blank look on his face. "Believe me, I'm not any happier about it than you are."