KINGS & QUEENS - LARRY STYLINSON FANFICTION

MATT'S VISIT

Early in the morning, Matt lands in Phoenix. Louis isn't at the airport since Sia has given him a list of rules he's obliged to follow for the duration of Matt's stay. One of them is not be seen in public places with him. Jeremy and Rob went to the airport to pick Matt up who fell asleep in the car. In Louis' room he lays down on the bed to rest. "Are you very tired?" Louis asks him. He knows that jet-lags aren't easy to deal with. He flops down next to Matt.

"I am," he yawns, "but Rob told me to stay awake until the evening. He said it would be easier to adapt to the time difference so I'm trying to do that." He turns toward Louis and scoots closer. "I'm so glad to be here with you. I missed you so fucking much." He puts his head onto Louis' tummy and Louis puts his hand onto his.

"It's a wonder that Sia allowed you to come."

"Do you think there's a catch in it?"

"Probably the set of rules he gave us."

"Will Harry be here during my stay?"

"Yes."

Matt's face falls immediately. "Oh no," he says quietly, disappointment clear in his voice, "I thought it could just be us two. Maybe he's the catch."

"No, he's not. You'll like him, he's nice."

Matt frowns. "Since when have you changed your mind? Some weeks ago you talked differently about him."

"I know," Louis sighs. "I was an asshole and I didn't treat him well. I refused to get to know him and since I hated him so much. I was pissed at him, at Sia and the circumstances in general but I understood that it's not Harry's fault. In fact, he's just doing his job . . . like me." Louis lets his hand rake through Matt's blonde hair. "I've learned that by now. You know how stubborn I can be."

"Yeah, that's true. When will he be around?"

"Today, for the concert."

"But he won't stay in a room with us, will he?"

"No, he won't." Louis still hasn't told Matt that he sometimes shares a room with Harry.

"At least, so we can still have some privacy. I don't want to share you with him."

Louis pulls his hand away and gets up so that Matt moves too. "You aren't sharing me with him or anyone. That's bullshit." Louis hates those discussions about Harry.

Matt sits down with crossed legs. He takes Louis' hand in his and traces the skin with his thumb. "Sorry," he says. "I know you told me not to think about him and everything but I can't." He looks Louis in the eyes with a sad expression. "I think about you and him all the time."

Louis sighs. "We should do something to distract you from your thoughts. What do you think about swimming? I still have about two hours left before our appointments start. The hotel swimming pool is great, you'll love it."

Matt gives him a small smile. "Okay," he nods. "You're probably right."

Matt and Louis spend some time at the swimming pool and after that, Louis and his band have to complete different appointments. Matt accompanies Louis to most of them and spends the rest of the day at the hotel. Late in the afternoon, Jeremy drives Louis and Matt to the venue. "I'm so excited for the show," Matt tells Louis as they're on their way to the dressing rooms. "I haven't seen a show in ages, well at least a live show."

Louis puts an arm around his boyfriend. "And I'm glad that you're here." He gives him a kiss. "You'll like it. The atmosphere is so different in America since the venues are bigger. Not better, just different."

"I can't wait. Although I'd rather be with you only."

"I know, love." Louis opens the door to his dressing room and puts his bag down. "We can be together later. Are you hungry? The catering is great, we could have dinner before the show."

"I'm hungry, yeah. I hope they've made a yummy dessert."

"Oh Matt, you have no idea. Everything they offer is yummy, everything and always."

After eating, Louis and Matt join the other boys for the mandatory table tennis match before the show. Louis seems to lose the ping pong ball more than he usually does. He hits it into the net a few times so that Zayn and Niall start mocking him playfully. Still, the game is joyful and fun for Louis and also Matt seems to enjoy the game. When Louis hits the net for the third time within the game, Zayn stops playing. "Come on, Louis! What's wrong? You play like a beginner!" Zayn holds the small white ball in his hands and places his bat the right way. "Concentrate! Does Matt distract you too much?" Everyone laughs and Matt hits Louis' bum with his hand.

"Now he does," Louis says and gives Matt a smirk.

"You need to get out of here. Louis has lost his ability to play," Niall jokes.

"I agree," Liam and Zayn say unison what makes everyone laugh.

"Not true," Matt protests, "I'm his lucky charm!"

"Then do your job well at least!" Louis shouts playfully. As the game continues, Louis plays a little bit better but he stays unfocused as he can't do anything about it. Actually, it's not Matt who is distracting him but Harry or more specific: his arrival. Harry will be at the venue soon and that makes Louis nervous in a positive and a negative way. On one hand he's glad to see him again but on the other hand Louis is afraid of how he will behave around Harry with Matt being here. The feelings he has developed toward Harry are giving Louis a hard time. He remembers the kiss and how Harry held him close on his lap and the thought of that situation makes his tummy flutter. Louis worries about how he will react when he sees Harry, he's afraid of what Matt will say and he's afraid that he might not be able to interact with Harry the way he is used to when they're alone. Louis hates himself for thinking that. He shouldn't worry about these things, not at all. He should just focus on Matt, but he can't. As he takes a quick look at his phone, he sees that Harry has messaged. All of a sudden, Louis gets overwhelmed by a queasy feeling in his stomach. "I think I should pause," he says and puts the bat onto the table. "I feel a little dizzy."

Matt walks over to Louis and puts his hand onto his shoulder. "If you need fresh air we could go outside for a walk?"

"No, it's okay. Maybe I ate too much."

"Not too much, too fast!" Niall corrects Louis and earns a friendly nudge.

"Don't cross your bridges before you come to them, Niall," Louis says with a small smile. Then he turns toward Matt again.

"Are you sure? I'd really want to-,"

"No, stay here." Louis tone is slightly harsh. "Please," he adds softly as he notices that his reaction wasn't okay.

"Oh . . . okay. As you want." Matt takes Louis' bat. "If I don't win here, I'll win tonight," he whispers into Louis' ear.

Louis gives Matt a smile. "You're such a poser," he says and slaps Matt's bum as he did earlier. Matt whines playfully but smirks.

"Sorry for being rude," Louis excuses himself.

"It's okay. Call me if you need me."

"I will. Now go and show them your power."

Matt gets onto his position. "You should know I've played table tennis professionally for three years."

Niall whistles. "That was quite an announcement!"

"Ha!" Zayn says loudly, "I'm not a person you can intimidate with words. Come on, Matt, let's play, not talk." Everyone cheers and then the match begins. Louis watches the beginning of the game from the door. Zayn is good, really good but after some time, Matt gets the upper hand. His movements are fast, calculated and precise. As a result, he wins the first round within seconds only.

"Oh wow," Zayn says as he props himself up on the table. "That was impressive." He walks over to Matt to give him high five. "Now it's Niall's turn – or maybe you can try to play against Liam and Niall at the same time?"

"If they want?"

"Yeah, come on," Liam says and pats Niall's back. "It's a challenge." At that point, Louis leaves. He can still hear them talking as he slowly walks down the hallway.

"A challenge we'll lose but I'll try my best," Niall half-laughs.