The Artist

4.

Louis' alarm went off at four. He laid in bed facing the ceiling until a quarter after before hauling himself out of the warm blankets. Harry was still sound asleep with his face down in the mattress covered by a pillow. Louis let him be.

His work uniform was hung up neatly in his closet. It consisted of all black attire with a white apron that was embelished with a little green teacup in the center. He dressed himself without care, knowing Harry was asleep and would be for quite some time. His jeans went up and hugged his waist and his curves, and his polo shirt fit snug on his tiny torso. 

By four forty-five, Louis was in the bathroom brushing his teeth and washing his face. He still had enough time to have his own cup of tea before he'd have to wake Harry and tell him that he was going to leave for work. 

It was almost five twenty, and the coffee house was only a block or so away, so it wouldn't take that long to get there a half hour after five. Louis sat down his cup and walked back into the bedroom where he could hear soft snores coming from within. 

"Harry," Louis patted his shoulder to wake him. "Harry, you need to get up." Harry rolled over and wiped his face. He looked up at Louis.

"Why? Do you know what time it is, Louis?" 

Louis stood with his hands on his hips. "Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. And it's time for me to go to work. You can stay here until I get back if you want, or you can go wherever you need to."

Harry nodded and sat up in the bed. He stretched and yawned before he spoke again. "I think it's funny that you're trusting a total stranger to stay in your house while you're gone. You're crazy." Harry laughed.

There it was again. That laugh that drove Louis mad. He wanted oh so badly to be against Harry's chest to feel the laugh vibrate through him. 

"I'm not as crazy as you are. I don't pick fights late at night in the pouring rain and try to get my ass handed to me."

"No," Harry corrected, "but you are crazy enough to let that same man sleep with you." Louis' face brightened. He could feel heat coming from all over his body. How had he known just what to say to make him fall to pieces? He made every part of Louis melt. 

Snapping back to reality, Louis looked at his phone to check the time. Five thirty-eight. "Shit! I'm late for work!" He took off down the hall, grabbing his keys from the hook on the wall before rushing out the door. "I'll be back later tonight! Stay put!" He slammed the door and locked it behind him. 

His car was waiting for him in the parking garage, and he knew he'd have to get to work within a milisecond before he'd be given any grief. The car started with a faint purr and Louis took off down to the coffee house. 

When he got there, El was barely tying her apron around her waist and pulling her hair into a ponytail. "You're a bit late, Tomlinson."

"I don't want to hear it." Louis walked past her to get behind the counter and start all of the machines. Eleanor walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. 

"I miss being able to hold you like this. And kiss your perfect lips." She took her finger and touched his bottom lip, sending a tingling feeling thorugh it. 

"El, I think you forget who broke up with who. So just lay off, okay?" El didn't let go of him. She just laughed her sultry laugh and squeezed him tighter. 

"We don't open for a few more minutes." she whispered. "How about a quick one in the back?"

That crossed Louis' invisible line. He tugged her hands off of his body and pushed her back. She didn't go far, but she tripped along the way and had to grab the counter for support. El looked at Louis in confusion. "Louis, what did I ever do to you? I was a great girlfriend!"

"And I'm not saying that you weren't! We lost our spark, that's what was wrong!" El stood back and hung her head. "And sex just wasn't keeping that spark alive anymore. You really need to accept the fact that it's over and deal with it." 

Eleanor walked away to the opposite counter. She wasn't going to face him anymore. Louis felt proud of himself for finally taking the initiative and standing up for himself. He was glad that he got El to back off, but he would never be able to tell her the true reason- that he had just come up with- why they broke up. 

Louis' shift ended early, so he went to a market not far from the shop to pick up some things for dinner. He didn't know what Harry liked, nor did he even know if he'd be staying for dinner. He took the chance anyway and bought enough of everything to make whatever he could.

When he got home, Harry was still there. He was sitting on the couch watching a movie. Louis couldn't make out what it was but it sounded like the Titanic. Harry must've found my DVD collection, he thought. 

"Hey," Harry called from his seat on the couch. "How was work?"

"Boring as usual, thank you for asking." Louis took the bags of groceries into the kitchen and placed them on the counter. He could see Harry from the corner of his eye looking up to see what was in the bags. 

"I don't know what you like, so I bought a bunch of different things."

"You didn't have to do that," Harry said standing up and walking into the kitchen. "I'm not picky, and I didn't know if you were going to let me stay or not. If you want, I'll help you with dinner."

Louis looked at Harry. He looked tired still, maybe even depressed. "You sure? Because you don't have to. You're my guest."

"Well, it's the least I can do since you took me in." He smiled his Cheshire Cat smile, the one that made his green eyes shine. Louis nodded and handed Harry a pot and a bag of pasta noodles. He took them to the stove and began to work. The water was boiling in the pot, and the noodles waiting patiently by the burners. 

"Lou, you seem tense." Harry walked up behind him and rubbed his shoulders. "What happened at work?" 

While Louis was working on creating his own pasta sauce, he fell apart from Harry's touch. "Just drama. I don't want you to worry about it, Harry." He tried to focus on mixing the sauce rather than the hands working wonders on his shoulders. 

"It's no bother to me. I'd like to hear about it, bad or not." 

"It's my ex, Eleanor. We broke up almost a year ago and she just wouldn't back off. I told her that I couldn't stand that she was still trying to win me back."

Harry stopped moving his hands, Louis begged on the inside for him to continue. "Did you break up with her?" Louis nodded. "Well, then she should've left you alone in the first place. You didn't want her anymore, and she should accept it." 

"I just feel bad for the way I talked to her this morning. I understand we had good times together before but it's just not the same. There was no spark later on." Harry understood. He let go of Louis' shoulders and tended to the boiling pot to add the noodles. 

When dinner was ready, Harry and Louis sat in the living room together on the couch. "Here," Harry said picking up the remote and restarting whatever he was watching earlier. "Dinner and a show." He smiled and Louis smiled back, his cheeks turning rosy. 

"I figured this is what you were watching," Louis stated as he watched Titanic's opening scene. 

"It's a classic." Harry's eyes didn't leave the screen even as he fed himself the pasta."Nothing like a forbidden romance, huh?" 

Louis looked down at his plate, moving the noodles around with his fork. "Yeah." He looked at Harry. He was so sweet and mysterious. Here he was, caught in his own forbidden romance.