flower crowns // l.s.

35½

Louis is in love. So much so that it scares him.

His heart races when he wakes to an empty bed, scared that he's been left, but then Harry comes out of the bathroom all sleepy and stumbles back into bed. Louis doesn't hesitate in wrapping an arm around his love to make sure he stays. 

Harry had been keeping to himself ever since the fight broke out. If it looks like the slightest disagreement will occur, he'll shut up and make himself look small. Louis doesn't mind not fighting, but he minds that Harry is holding back from speaking now. 

He's also been too nice. Louis has gathered, by this point, that this was new for Harry. Fighting. Louis wasn't sure what experience he had with it (and he's certain that whatever previous fights he's had has made him so quiet now). 

It feels like his heart physically aches when he watches Harry hunch down and press his lips together. And it's not like Louis hasn't tried talking to him, because he has. He just keeps doing it whenever confronted. And now, he just doesn't know what else would work. 

These frustrating thoughts enter his brain and he accidentally digs his nails into Harry's thigh when trying to push them out. Harry inhaled deeply and quietly whispered Louis' name. But Louis didn't know, was too caught up in frustration, until Harry's hand moved to cover Louis'. That snapped him out of his thoughts. 

"Huh?" He questioned, then felt what he was doing. He sat up and pulled his hand away from underneath Harry's. "I'm so sorry, I don't . . . I don't know why I did that." Louis huffed and rubbed his hand over his face. 

"It's okay, Lou. I'm fine."

Harry grabbed Louis' hand away from his face and smiled, showing him how fine he was. But Louis just looked down at the bare thigh and frowned when he saw the indents his fingernails left on his skin. "I'm sorry," he said again, this time much quieter. He repeated those words as he lowered himself down on the bed to be level with the marks he made. "So sorry," he whispered once more, before tilting his head down to kiss his thigh. 

Harry started to giggle. "Lou-ie!" He said between laughs. "Tickles!"

When Louis was finished and Harry was a laughing mess, he pulled away from the soft skin and moved to sit on Harry's lower stomach. Harry's long hair was a mess and it covered so much of the pillow; Louis loved it. He loved his green eyes and the tip of his nose, and his pink lips, and the faint color in his cheeks. Louis made a show of this by kissing every feature that made his heart melt (Harry made his heart melt, so you can imagine how long it took to get to his lips lastly). 

"I really love you, you know," Louis said after planting a big one on Harry's lips. 

"I love you too. Just not enough to endure your morning breath."

Louis gasped and laughed, and then moved away from Harry so that he could brush his teeth. Harry was laughing when Louis huffed and walked away, then turned back to glare at him. 

It was after breakfast when it happened again. It was over something really stupid. Harry mentioned how much of a hassle it was keeping up with his hair, then spoke up about wanting to cut it. Louis said he liked his long hair and that he didn't want it cut. Then Harry pressed his lips together, put his hands between his lap, and slouched over. Louis sighed and scratched at the back of his head. He wanted to ask Harry to stop doing that, but he knew he'd end up making things much worse.

So he left. Louis left and walked into his room to really think, because he couldn't think when Harry was like that. He couldn't handle Harry being sad and being so helpless. He walked around and distracted his brain, tried to conjure up new thoughts on how he could help Harry, but then he found himself sitting on his bed and reading over the letters his sister had sent. And the reason Harry is acting this way. The fight broke out over this. Louis groaned and rolled around on the bed and dug his face into the duvet, knocked the letter on the ground, picked it up, and then groaned again. He sulked and then paced. Tried everything to do distract himself.