Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

"Hm, so what is it I heard about you not completing the work that miss Neva gave you?" Louis asks the pup, looking for his cereal.

The pup whines at the topic but answers nonetheless. "Missed pretty Lou." He pouts and looks at his feet dangling from the little trolley.

He frowns, turning to face the boy. "Did she not tell you I was on a leave, love?"

"She say you are sick!" Andy exclaims, getting more upset by the second. "An' an' then daddy say you are busy!"

"I was a little, very tiny bit, sick and yes I was busy as well. But that doesn't mean you will not do your work." The omega moves closer to where Andy is sat and caresses his hair.
"Don't you want to learn so many new letters and numbers, hm?"

He only whines, clutching Louis's t-shirt in one hand. And Louis melts... Moon knows what kind of power this boy has over the omega. He moves closer to the boy, letting him be for the moment. The little pup was worried for him. Oh Moon.

"You were worried for me?" He asks gently, watching Andy prop his chin against Louis's belly.

The pup keeps pouting but nods in lieu of an answer.

The omega is sure his eyes are nothing but wide and open as he coos, "oh darling. I am fine. You don't need to worry about me. Ever." He leans down and boops the pup's tiny nose. He wonders if that is the one feature of his face that he got from his mother. Dismissing that thought, he tells the boy, "you are my favourite boy and I could never leave you."

"But miss Neva say you are sick!"

It takes the omega one second to look at the wobbly lip and he is lifting the pup out of the little buggy and holding him on his left hip. The boy immediately leans into his chest, curling his tiny fist around his collar tightly.

"Pup, I was, but it was only a little fever, just like you got sick, remember? I didn't want to come to school because I didn't want you or anyone else to catch it too." Realistically, the omega knows it's a lie, he couldn't go to the school in his heat but how does he explain that to a four year old? "Now I'm all better."

Andrew whines nuzzling his face in the omega's shoulder. His whines grow louder when there's no scent comforting him.

Worried, Louis shushes him gently. Ultimately, when the pup doesn't feel any better, the omega scratches his own neck lightly, happy when he gets a hold of the neutralizer patch and rips it off his skin.

The effect is immediate! The little alpha takes a deep, deliberate breath, relieved to finally have the homey scent again. Louis watches as Andy nuzzles into his neck, greedily taking lungful of his extra heady scent- being post-heat and all.

Finally, the pup having settled down, Louis changes the subject. "Now, how about we cuddle and you help me shop while you tell me all about what you got up to with your family, hm?"

He feels the boy nod before Andy remembers something and gets all excited, almost screaming into his teacher's ear.
"Daddy an' I make pie!"

"Pie?"

"Yeah! 'Cause pretty Lou smell like pie!"

Huh, interesting.

He chuckles, "pup, I do not smell like pie."

Looking down, he finds wide green eyes staring up at him, his tiny head shaking from side or side, "nuh uh. Like pie!"

Moon, this precious pup. Louis doesn't have the heart to tell the boy that he is confusing between pie and... well, maybe he hasn't yet had a chance to eat it.

"He fell asleep." Louis smiles looking down at the boy sleeping peacefully in his arms. Harry picks up the omega's shopping bags while Louis carries the boy as they walk to the car.

"You could've called me, I would have taken him. You go through so much trouble for him, Lou." The father pouts, and much like his pup, Louis finds it absolutely adorable.

"Don't be silly. Your little pup is no trouble at all." The omega caresses the boy's chubby cheeks with a knuckle. "But I scented him a little. We were talking about school and he got very distressed. Poor boy wouldn't stop whining till he scented me."

He keeps glancing at the alpha to gauge his reaction. Thankfully, Harry didn't seem angry. In his periphery, Louis sees him nod slightly as he puts the bags inside the car trunk.

"Thank you. Let me take him, you must be tired."

Louis waves it off, going to hand the boy over to his father. But the moment he pulls the sleeping pup away from his neck, he whimpers, gripping the omega's t-shirt tighter from where his grip had loosened in his sleep.

"Shh, baby boy." Louis bounces the sleeping figure lightly. "It's just daddy."

Not that he expected any response, he was quite surprised when the pup nuzzles into his neck, deeply inhaling his scent. He settles down immediately.

Gritting his teeth nervously, Louis looks up at the father, trying to gauge his take on the situation.

Harry's face remains impassive, much to the omega's discomfort.

"Harry... I..."

"It's okay," Harry whispers despite seeming unsettled.

Louis tucks the whining boy into the carseat. His heart breaks when he sees the little alpha trying to search for his scent even in his sleep.

How did the boy get this attached to his scent so quickly?

He stands up straight, busy in trying to soothe the pup by caressing his cheek.

"Is there any plush toy on the seat?" Harry asks from behind him.

The omega looks around and leans over to pick the penguin plushy.
Turning back around, he finds Harry with his hand out, so the omega hands the toy to him and lets him handle his pup.

He watches as the alpha scents the toy thoroughly and tucks it in the pup's arms. Andy settles down considerably with his nose buried in the soft wool of the toy.

Both the adults settle themselves in the front seats and there's an awkward silence lingering around ever since Harry tried to take Andrew from Louis.

And Moon, Louis can't take it anymore.

"Harry... I, um, what you said about being worried about him getting too attached to me- er, he is, he clearly is." He fiddles with his hand before rambling again, because he cannot take the awkwardness. "And I don't know how it got to this point because there's a reason I wear neutralisers, right, I just- really don't know how..."

"Louis. You don't-" he cuts himself off with a sigh, starting again. "He is," the father agrees. "But I cannot blame you for taking care of him. He is a pup and pups get attached..."

Harry looks out his window, away from the omega and Louis just doesn't know what words could comfort him.
Moon, he doesn't even know if he should be the one comforting the father.

But then Harry speaks up again, his voice heavy in a way which makes his inner omega whine. "It might be because he doesn't have any omega around. My mum is an omega but she lives a few hours away, not enough contact for, um, for a pup, for him." Gulping his emotions down, the alpha turns to face him. "He loves you, he does. And I don't mind." The alpha tries to smile but fails miserably. "You're great at what you do, you are caring and kind, certainly very kind to my boy. I don't mind that he got attached to you."

"But?" Louis prompts, already feeling overwhelmed. He cannot imagine how Harry must be feeling.

The alpha turns to face him properly. "What about next year, when he doesn't have you around five days a week?"

And Louis can only blink. Because he has no answer to that. He hadn't thought that far. He doesn't think he ever would have if the father hadn't brought it up.

"I can't let my pup go somewhere I can't bring him back from. He is four. He never had a mum. And while I do coddle him, I cannot fill up that space." It physically pains the omega to see Harry struggling with this.

Whatever it must have been, Louis is sure it wasn't this alpha's fault. He loves his pup too much to remove him from his mother at birth.

"What about when he won't find you in his class? Just this week, he hasn't done any work in the class because you weren't around, I'm not blaming you Louis, I just-" Shutting his eyes, Harry rubs his face in an attempt to calm down- and maybe clear his throat so it doesn't hurt to speak.

"What about then?" The alpha whispers.
"It is cruel to let him bond with you only to separate you both. He is a baby. My baby. I cannot do that to him. And your omega is going to hurt too. I cannot do it to you either, Louis."

"Harry..." Reaching forward, Louis's hand stops halfway, unsure of whether or not he should comfort the alpha. His omega is screaming at him to do it but his brain is hesitating.

He drops it back into his lap, hoping that the alpha didn't notice.

Shaking his head minutely, he starts, "I don't- you're right. You are his father, whatever you decide for your pup will be done. Do you want me to put boundaries between him and me? There's another class for lower kg-"

"All he talks about is you. About how your hugs are so soft or how you give him extra stickers. It makes his day. You make his day."

And Louis almost cries. Almost. He whispers, "he makes my days better too, you know." Gnawing at his lip, he contemplates whether to tell the alpha or not but decides that he has nothing to lose. "The first time we met, an idiot commented about how I won't ever be able to keep a man because I was too difficult, too loud. Your sweet pup mended my day and my heart." Looking up, he meets the green eyes that are furrowed now. "Because who cares if some knothead doesn't like me, a pup does and that must mean I'm doing something right."

This time, he watches as the alpha reaches out and enclose one of his hands between his huge ones. Maybe he did notice.

"You're not difficult, Lou." Harry says it with such conviction, Louis almost believes him. But then he remembers how many times he has heard it.

The omega just chuckles with no humor. "Wait until we have a conversation about equality."

The alpha shakes his head at the self-deprecation. "I'm sure my opinion won't budge. It's not your fault that you have to fight for basic human rights."

Louis looks down at his lap not knowing how to answer and gulps, sparing a look at the pup sleeping in his car seat.

The father catches it, softening immeasurably at the sight of the omega checking up on his pup. "How can I take that away from any of you?"

Louis squeezes his hand once, trying to show how much it means to him. "What do you want then? How can I help?"

"I..." Licking his lips, the alpha tries to buy some time to articulate his words. "I cannot demand you for anything but you're always welcome to call, or come over for dinner any day after the school year is over, keep in touch. If you have the time, ofcourse. But you don't have to, if that is a- if that's not what you plan yourself getting into, that's completely fine. But in that case, I would... like you to not hug or scent him."

"Harry," The omega shakes Harry's hands, trying to get the man to look at him. "I want to be in Andy's life in whatever way possible. And if it takes a few dinners and facetimes to see the pup, I'm more than willing." He tries really hard to convey how much Andy means to him and how unhealthily attached he has gotten to the little boy.
"I love your pup. He is... he loves love. And I would be honoured to be a part of his life. I've seen him grow so much in a couple of months and there is nothing I want more than to see him grow more."

"Thank you," whispers the father.

Shaking his head, the omega gives him a little smile. "Thank you for letting me in his life."

Just as the alpha is about to start driving, Louis says, "you're a good father, please don't doubt yourself." Louis stops the alpha from interrupting him with a shake of his head.
"I know it. I know how it is to only have one parent. But I also know she did everything she could and more for me. And I know you're doing that too. So don't doubt yourself. I know a good parent when I see one because I know how they are like."

And Harry just- he can't not hug him.
"Thank you," he murmurs into the omega's shoulder, too full of emotions he hadn't let anyone see in a very long time.

Louis- sweet, sweet smelling Louis- thankfully, hugs him back just as tightly. "You don't have to thank me for stating the obvious, love."

He feels Harry subtly nuzzle into his shoulder and Moon, he almost laughs at how similar both the alphas are. Weirdly, he doesn't mind. He doesn't mind at all.

"You don't smell like-"

Louis laughs out loud giving the alpha one last squeeze before pulling away. He takes in the green eyes widened in embarrassment, lips supressing a squeal.