pretty please (with sugar on top) - larry stylinson

32

Their last three days together flew by in a flash. It seemed like the seconds ticked away faster whenever Harry wanted them to slow down so he could enjoy the moment. He was happy and enjoying the end of his vacation, but the promise of a return to his normal life was a rude awakening. Worst of all, he was afraid to leave Louis and never see him again.

On Friday, they visited the aquarium where Louis' sister used to volunteer. Louis was affiliated with them, and helped them with a lot of conservation work, so the workers were very friendly and invited them to the back where they had the pleasure of getting up close and personal with the animals in captivity. All of them were there because they couldn't survive on their own, due to injury or sickness, and as soon as they were rehabilitated, they would be released to the wild.

Harry sat on the edge of the large tank which was twenty feet deep and the size of a tennis court, ripping off pieces of lettuce and throwing them into the water for the manatees. He didn't even think about the possibility of getting in the tank with them until the supervisor returned, brandishing two wetsuits for them to borrow.

It was an unforgettable experience. Harry had never worn a wetsuit before, let alone swam with a tank of manatees. They were ginormous up close, big and gray and swimming so gracefully through the water. They swam to Harry when he slipped into the tank, curious and friendly. He and Louis helped the workers clean the tank and retrieve one of the baby manatees for her daily medical checkup.

By the time the day was over, Harry was exhausted and happy and resting his head on Louis' shoulder, wet hair dripping, because he was so grateful for the entire day. He'd learned so much and even discovered a hidden interest of his. They went out to dinner at a rooftop bar with an incredible view of the ocean, and on the drive back to the house they plugged in Harry's phone and screamed the lyrics to the songs that came on shuffle, their voices lost in the roar of the wind.

Since Saturday was their last full day, they decided to stay on the beach rather than driving somewhere else and having to deal with the weekend traffic. They woke up and got out of bed early, going for a walk down the road to watch the sunrise on the bridge over Lover's Key. Louis spotted a pod of dolphins and they watched them pop out of the water every fifty meters before diving down again and showing up further down the shoreline. It felt like a movie scene, cinematic and just plain gorgeous.

On the beach, Harry felt flushed from the hot, burning sun shining bright on his bare skin. He was a little sweatier than usual, and debating jumping in the ocean to cool off, when he looked over and caught Louis staring at him.

"What?"

Louis pressed his lips together, "Nothing." But Harry had already caught the flare of his nostrils, the dark of his eyes. Alrighty, then.

"I'm gonna go for a swim," he informed, stretching out his long legs before standing up from the lounge chair. If there was one thing he would get out of this week, it was the pleasant tan of his skin. His acquaintances back in NYC would be jealous, just like his future self would be jealous of his current self. It was difficult not to dread going back to the city.

"Be careful."

"I've got nothing to worry about, I know you'll keep an eye on me," Harry teased, throwing a wink back at Louis for good measure. It was a little too tempting to sway his hips as he walked towards the shoreline,, but the sand made it hard to keep his footing, and he stumbled unattractively before righting himself and pointedly ignoring Louis' laughter.

The water wasn't as refreshing as Harry would've liked, but that was alright because after a minute of wading up to his knees, Louis charged after him and nearly tackled him into the surf. They rolled around in the waves and laughed and shrieked and definitely swallowed too much seawater. Harry wasn't even mad about getting his hair wet, if it meant giving Louis a piggyback ride, or doing handstands with him in the water.