Pretty in Plastic (l.s)

iii

Harry stares at Louis' outfit, and can't help but wonder who designed it at the company. It's form-fitting, flamboyant, and feminine. Louis himself seems comfortable, but Harry knows the doll-turned-human will need a larger wardrobe.

First thing's first, though: a shower.

"I'm confused." Harry hears Louis mumble as he gathers a towel, and the smallest clothes he had (they'll still be baggy on Louis, though). "What's a shower?"

"You never—?" Harry stops. "It's where a light hose of water sprays on your body. It's supposed to clean you."

"I am clean. Squeaky clean." Harry politely takes his hand like he was guiding a child. Everything about Louis was childlike. When he takes him to the bathroom, Louis looks around and points at the tub.

"I use that." Harry blinks, and remembers Gemma's doll house he used to use. He would strip Louis, and put him in the tub, making water noises and pretending to scrub him. He'd then take a small piece of cloth his mother cut, and dry the doll off.

"Would you like to?" Harry asks, and Louis nods. Louis stands firmly before spreading his arms, and watching Harry. "What?"

"Bath time." Louis says, and Harry can tell Louis is thinking that Harry will wash him like when he was a doll.

"Louis," Harry says gently, "things are different now. You have to wash yourself."

"Oh." Louis blinks, and nods. "Okay, how?"

"Come here, I'll show you how to do this." Louis eagerly listens.

————

"Kala, I'm busy." Harry rubs his brow, and licks his lips. They need some chapstick. He holds Louis' hand when he feels the small boy easing away. They were currently in the mall, shopping for clothes, but Louis was constantly stopping and trying to sneak away to explore.

"With what? What're you doing?" The woman grumbles.

"That's honestly none of your business." Harry says formally. "I told you I wanted a break right now. I wasn't kidding."

"Harry," Kala purrs, "you know I adore you. I'm sorry if I upset you."

Harry feels his heart flutter a little at her words, but he says nothing. He just sighs, and thinks.

"I know losing your mother is hard. I'm sorry if I came off cold. I would never want to create distance between us. I always want you to find solace and comfort with me, not anger. Please forgive me." Kala's voice oozes honey, and it drowns and cools Harry's embers.

"I'm not sure." Harry mumbles. "I'm not over it yet."

"Are you being serious—" Kala takes a deep breath, and Harry can tell she's biting her tongue. "So, where are you?"

"At the mall."

"Oh, shopping? Sounds like my kind of trip."

"Not today, Kala. I'm shopping for... myself."

"I can always help—"

"Kala, no—" Harry notices Louis is easing away again, and sighs. "I have to go. I will call you later."

He hangs up before she can respond, and tucks his phone away. Using his other hand, he grabs Louis' waist, and keeps the boy in place. "What do you want to see?"

He ignores that his nose is just a centimeter from Louis' hair, and he ignores just how couple-like they appear to an outsider. Truthfully, Harry felt more like a father figure, a guider of sorts, and it would be too weird to see it any other way.

"Look at that top." Louis points, and Harry stares where Louis' painted nail was pointing. In the window of a small shop, on a male mannequin, sat a sheer blackshirt with ruffled sleeves and collar.

"You want to wear that?"

"Huh? Oh, no. That isn't for me." Louis giggles. "That's for you."

Harry huffs like it's a joke. "No."

"Why not?"

"That's so... fem."

"Clothes have no gender. What you look good in, is what you should wear." Louis turns to him with an offended, and somewhat challenging expression. "You will look amazing in that."

"That's an expensive top, and we're here for you."

"Money is only an issue for those who make it out to be one, and wearing this would make me happy so it is— in a way— for me."

"Where did that sass come from?" Harry asks, and Louis blinks.

"Sassy? I'm sassy?" Louis places a dainty hand on his chest as if the news was unbelievable.

Harry laughs. Clearly, the doll had a personality trait not even he knew about. Interesting.

"Please try it on."

"Alright, fine."

—————

Louis opens the door and walks inside, an exhausted Harry behind him. Louis stretches as he kicks his shoes off, and lays on the couch with a hum.

"Why on earth," Harry huffs and he uses his foot to close the door, and drops the bags on the floor, "were we in that mall from morning to close? Why?"

Louis yawns.

"My bank account is crying," Harry mumbles to himself, "my wallet feels robbed."

Louis closes his eyes.

"Half the mall is what's in those bags, Louis. Do you know that?" Harry huffs. "Half!"

He jumps when he hears a soft snore, and looks at Louis to find him asleep. His arm is thrown over his face, legs slightly bent to fit the small furniture piece, and his hair— for the first time in twenty-four hours— is disheveled.

Harry crosses his arms with a sigh. He looks at the bags then at Louis. Instead of waking Louis up, Harry regathers the bags and hauls them to the bedroom. There, he clusters them together on the closet floor, to be folded and put away another day, and undresses himself. His phone buzzes, and he sees a few texts from Gemma and Kala: neither of which he wants to communicate with.

He lays down, and pulls the sheets to his chin until he remembers that it's supposed to get cold tonight. He thinks about Louis, and goes to the living room with an extra throw. He puts it over the sleeping boy before going back to his own bed.

There, he thinks about why this is happening to him. He thinks about how today was the only day of peace and ease, and he can't help but think about the fact that the day most likely went that way because he was himself and was with someone who wasn't asking for him to change, expecting something more, and was just glad to be around him.

"I was enough today." He mumbles as he lazily blinks, and grins.