The Painter |l.s|

-4-

^The summertime and butterflies All belong to your creation^

"Hi Harry?" Louis said in more of a questioning tone than a stating one.

"What are you doing here? Do you want to see our picture it's really pretty, well I think it is." Harry rambled. Louis found it somewhat cute that Harry had a smudge of white paint on his cheek. He saw that Harry also got some paint in his chocolate curls.

"I was just going to stop by and hang out with Zayn, but if you two are busy with your art thing I can leave." Louis said already turning around.

"No, no stay. You could like give us tips or something." Harry said walking over to Louis pulling him over to where Zayn was sitting on the floor. A very confused Zayn, Louis might add.

"Wait you guys know each other?" Zayn said raising an eyebrow.

"Niall, my friend, introduced us," Harry explained continuing painting.

"Wait Niall knows Louis?" Zayn squeaked.

"Wait, you know Niall." Harry laughed.

"Well yeah, he is my best mate other than Louis!" Zayn exclaimed.

"Small would huh?" Louis Laughed walking into the kitchen. He opened the fridge grabbing a water bottle.

"You guys want anything?" Louis shouted.

"Want anything H?" Zayn asked Harry. Harry shook his head 'no' and continued painting.

"Nope." Zayn shouted back.

"Good cause I wasn't going to get you anything." Louis chuckled plopping down next to Zayn.

"Then why'd you ask?" Zayn scoffed.

"I don't know." Louis said taking the cap off of his water bottle and taking a big gulp.

He noticed Harry in the corner of his eye watching him. He took the bottle away from his lips and gave Harry a confused expression. "Need something Harry?" He asked. Harry shook his head looking down at the canvass. A blush slowly creeping up his neck because he was caught staring.

"What are you painting?" Louis leaned over so he could see the whole thing.

"Harry's really good at painting flowers so we're painting a meadow with some person sitting in the middle of it." Zayn said taking Louis' water bottle and taking a swig.

"Cool," is all Louis said watching Harry paint yet another flower onto the white background.

The room was filled with comfortable silence until Louis had this horrible idea. It wasn't really an idea he just started to think about people in flower crowns because he was thinking about the flowers they were painting and that reminded him of Liam's flowers and that  reminded him of Liam in flower crowns and so on. So Louis thought it'd be a good idea to ask if Harry wore them.

"What?" Harry asked looking up at Louis with a smile on his face.

"Do you know what a flower crown is?" Louis asked again. Zayn had gone to the bathroom leaving Harry and Louis alone.

"Yes!" Harry said his voice cracking with excitement.

"Do you wear them?" Louis said twisting the now empty water bottle in his hand.

"All the time. Just uh not in public anymore." Harry said looking away from Louis.

"Why not?" Louis asked not thinking.

"No reason." Harry said poring more paint onto the stained plate.

"How old are you Harry?" Louis said touching the part of the painting that was dry.

"Seventeen." Harry said dipping the paint brush into the green. "How old are you?" Harry asked swirling the brush around in the paint.

"Twenty." Louis said watching as Harry painted a what Louis thought was a stem of a flower.

"You're old," Harry giggled.

Louis gasped placing a hand onto his heart in a dramatic way. "I am not old!" Louis said.

"Well not that old but you're older than me so you're old." Harry stated looking at Louis through his lashes.

Just then Zayn walked in wiping his wet hands on his pants. "So what gender do we want?" Zayn said sitting down next to Harry.

"What?" Harry and Louis said in unison.

"For the painting," Zayn said pointing to the picture.

"Oh, um, boy." Harry said pulling out a picture from his pocket. "I took this at the park and asked if I could paint him for my project." Harry said a light blush spreading across his face. Louis tried to see who it was but Harry had it at an angle where he couldn't see it.

"Nice," Zayn said grabbing some paint brushes that were lying next to Harry.

It wasn't long until a comfortable silence fell upon the room. Harry painting in flowers and Zayn painting the boy Harry suggested. Louis was sitting watching the two boys paint. Louis started to notice how Harry would furrow his eyebrows when he was concentrating. He also noticed how Harry would push his curls out of the way smearing the wet paint that was on his hands onto his forehead.

"Jesus Lou, take a picture it'll last ya longer!" Zayn said laughing. He reached over smearing a big blue line onto Louis' face.

"Zayn!" Louis screeched wiping the paint off with his hand. "Gross, it's cold." Louis mumbled.
He glanced at the plate that had multiple colors of paint on it. A glint of mischief gleamed in his eyes as he reached over putting his hand flat on the plate.

"Hey Zayn?" Louis asked taking his hand off of the plate looking at it with a smirk.

"What?" Zayn asked not looking up from the painting.

"Does this paint stain?" Louis said turning his hand around.

"No why..." Zayn said finally looking up, just to get a multicolored hand print on his face.

"Louis!" Zayn yelled wiping at his face laughing. Harry looked up to see Louis smirking and running his clean hand through his hair. Harry looked over to Zayn and laughed seeing a smeared hand print on his face.

"Oi! what are you laughing at curly?" Louis said running his hand across Harry's face. Harry gasped running his own hand across his face and smearing it back into Louis hair. Harry giggled as he used the paint as hair gel to make Louis hair stand straight up in the air.

Zayn moved the painting into the kitchen. Knowing Louis for seven years is a bonus, because Zayn knew a war of paint was about to take place in his living room. As if on cue he heard a loud squeal and Louis' laughter coming from the living room.

In the living room Louis had a tube of blue paint in his hand squeezing it above Harry's head.

"You're buying me more paint." Zayn said pointing at Louis.

"Oh come on Z," Louis said standing up hands behind his back. "We're just having some fun," Louis said engulfing Zayn in a hug running his painted hands all over Zayn's back.

"Louis I know what you're doing." Zayn said. Little did Louis know Harry was sneaking up behind him with the plate covered in paint.

Next thing Louis knew he once grey sweat shirt is now tie-dyed.