Dancing and Dissension

Booze and Bandaids (they fight drunk)

Louis took a second to shoot Harry a little glare as he heard him scoff at his first attempt, going right back to trying to pull on Harry's thumbs with even more determination this time. He tried it time and time again with Harry's voice in his ear, finally meeting Harry's approval. "You guess? Is that meant to be encouraging?" He sighed, watching as Harry moved to step in front of him now that he was released. He furrowed his eyebrows at Harry's comment, pushing the man's hand away as he tap his chin. "I'd like to see you try and do any of the steps I can do." He murmured, tired of Harry downplaying it like it was nothing. "And I've been just fine for years." He reminded him, giving him a look as he instructed him to have a go at him. He threw his first punch after being nagged enough, frowning as Harry just knocked his hand away. He took Harry's instruction and kept going, getting better and better as their lesson continued on. He followed Harry out of the ring when they were done, letting out a little laugh at Harry's mention of next time. "Yeah, maybe." He told him, not making any promises even if they both knew he'd come back around eventually. He waved Harry goodbye, keeping it brief as Harry seemed to be in a rush to leave and he'd already taken enough of the man's time. He held his bag close to his body, walking back to his place and shaking his head to himself as he processed his first lesson. He still didn't know what to think of it, but he was more willing to actually learn something now compared to when he first walked in. He could say that much at least.

(The next few weeks were filled with awkward waves on Harry's behalf and avoidant glances on Louis' part. Each time Harry would stop the other boy to ask about next practice, he was met with half hearted excuses or just straight up dismissal; so eventually he stopped trying entirely. Harry was slowly forgetting about Louis, spending every day in the studio, coming down extra hard on his students considering there was a tournament coming up in a week or so. Harry refused to be embarrassed by even a single loss. He was in the studio now, finishing up his general lesson and panting for air as he closed up his speech that he ended up saying at least a few times a week. About what makes a man a man, and a mouse a mouse, such and such. After the building was cleared, one student was left behind and hesitantly approached Harry. He then asked the boxer if he'd like to come to a 'small get together' at his girlfriend's house that evening. Harry laughed, at first, not having gone to a party in over a year. Wasn't his scene. But then he thought about the free booze, the weed, the music... and was eventually giving him a solid maybe to his question. By the time Harry had went home, it was already thirty minutes until the party. He took his usual ice bath, and decided to give it a go. He couldn't remember the last time he got out of the house just for the sake of doing it. He picked out a white silk button down and a simple pair of black jeans, paired with his expensive loafers that rarely saw daybreak. After about an hour after the time the party was set to start, Harry was finally out the door, arriving at the house to see the yard full of people and the house practically jumping with music and lights. He sighed to himself, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. He wasn't ready to interact with all of these people. He decided he would stay for a few drinks and bounce. He stepped out of his car, placing a stogie between his lips and lighting up before he entered. The man found the drinks first, pouring a mixed drink and downing a shot. It didn't take long for his student, Owen, to find Harry standing alone in the kitchen. "Teach! You made it!" He playfully tapped his shoulder and was met with a deadpan expression from Harry. On his arm was a beautiful girl he didn't recognize in the slightest.

Louis wasn't sure what had gotten into him, but he spent the next week avoiding Harry as much as he could. It was easy for the first while until Harry would stop him and ask about practice, leaving him scrambling to find half assed excuses that Harry never bought anyways so he started declining just to make it easier for them both. It wasn't Harry's fault, the thought of stepping it up just felt like something he wasn't ready for and he was also just too stubborn for his own good. Eventually Harry had given up and it didn't make any sense, but Louis found himself feeling disappointed deep down, even if he was the only one to blame. He never let himself dwell on it, leaving the studio to go right home without running into the other boy. When he walked into rehearsal at the end of the week, the girls were talking about a party being thrown that night at one of their houses. He agreed easily, promising he'd make it and they got on with the rehearsal. Once he got back home, he showered and took his time styling his hair and getting ready for the night out. It'd been a while since he'd gone out as well, intending on making the most of it. He got dressed in a pair of black skinny jeans, oversized band tee and a denim jacket to throw on overtop. He slipped his shoes on and soon enough, he was on his way and arriving to the party not much later. He grabbed himself a drink and went off on his way to find Serafina, the dancer from his studio hosting the party. "Serafinaaaaa." He sang playfully, greeting the girl with a wide smile before glancing over at her boyfriend. "Hi, Owen. Nice to see you." He greeted him, finally letting his eyes trail over to the other man standing there with them. He squinted as he realized it was Harry standing there with Serafina's boyfriend, clearing his throat and standing up a bit straighter. "Harry, hi. Didn't realize you were going to be here." He murmured, giving him a small smile to be polite.