Dare To Love

18 - Painted Nails

Louis stepped out of the Faculty of Arts building on Monday, immediately gritting his teeth against the strong gusts of wind that blew his hair back from his forehead and entered his winter coat. He could hear his mum's voice reprimanding him for not wearing a hat and a scarf, but he hadn't taken the wind chill into account when he'd gotten dressed that morning and he'd been quite tired.

At least, he was on his way to his room. A few more minutes and he'd be able to curl up under his warm blankets and hopefully start Liam's suggestion of Stranger Things.

He put his hood over his head and shoved his hands into his pockets, grimacing as the strong gusts of wind blew in his face.

When he felt a hand on his shoulder, his first instinct was to shake it off and throw a frown at who ever was trying to slow down his pace and keep him in the cold longer. But, when he turned his head, lips already twisting down, he was met with green eyes and a bright smile - his cheeks and the end of his nose tinged pink from the cold.

"Hey," Harry puffed, sounding like he'd been running.

"Hey."

They hadn't said a word to each other since their drunken kiss in the elevator, mostly on Louis' behalf since he'd practically avoided the topic like the plague every time he was left alone with Harry. He took another look at Harry, and it almost knocked the breath out of him. The sunlight hit him just right, touching the ends of his lashes and the dip of his lower lip and the place where his hair falls across his temple and curls against his cheekbone, casting a halo around his curls in bright yellow.

"Are you done with classes for the day?" He asked, wincing when the cold wind blew across his face.

"Yeah, I'm done for the day," Louis answered, nodding. "Are you?"

"Yep."

A long silence fell between them as they stood together in the cold, nothing but the sounds of traffic and wind echoing around them. The moment dragged until it was almost awkward, both of them shuffling in place, until Harry looked up at the exact same time that Louis did, their eyes locking together.

Stomach flipping, Louis quickly cleared his throat. "So, what's up?"

Harry's eyes widened slightly. "Oh, yeah!" He exclaimed. "Are you going home, right now? Like going back to your dorm?"

Louis tried not to think too hard about Harry going out of his way to catch up with him. "Yeah," Louis told him, shoulders curling in when the wind permeated through his scarf. "Why?"

"Can I maybe come with you?" Harry asked, flashing him the cutest rendition of puppy dog eyes that Louis had ever seen. "I was wondering if I could come hang at your place for a while until Niall comes back. I forgot my keys this morning, Niall isn't answering his phone, and I'm locked out of the building."

Louis thought for a moment, biting his bottom lip. He'd wanted to be alone for the rest of the day, but he couldn't leave Harry alone in the cold.

"Unless you have other plans," he rushed to say, grabbing the back of his neck. "If you do, then it's no big deal. I'll go ask Li-"

"No, no. I don't have plans. Of course, you can come home with me."

Harry's face lit up in seconds, his curls plastered against his forehead with the way his beanie was pulled down low to cover his ears and the wind, and for a brief second, Louis forgot about the fact that he was standing in the freezing cold. But then the wind swept in again, and he remembered.

Louis swung his backpack over his shoulder and began walking backwards toward the large building that was his dormitory hall.

"Come on," he said, motioning for Harry to follow him.