Chapter Text
"Andy! Don't run!" Harry shouts from the kitchen as soon as the doorbell rings. He sighs when the footfalls don't slow down at all. Quickly wiping his hands on a kitchen towel, he makes his way to the front door.
"Hello, little lad."
Harry finds his boy hugging the omega on the doorstep.
"Pretty Boo!" The father winces at the volume. He is very sorry for Louis's ear, being directly in front of that. Oh well...
To his credit, the omega remains unfazed, as if he had expected it. He simply chuckles, his eyes crinkle. "Oh so it's Boo now," he teases the little boy, who in turn only grins wide at him, his dimples settling in.
Harry has a feeling that those dimples aren't going anywhere for the night.
He can relate.
Louis stands up, breaking his train of thoughts, and the alpha rushes to greet him. "Hi, please come in." Giving the pup a bored stare, he asks, "Andy, how is he gonna walk if you keep clinging to his legs?"
The boy, expectedly, pouts. "Oi, don't pout at me, mister!"
But even the omega knows it's useless, besides he doesn't mind one bit. He turns to greet the alpha. "Hello, Harry. Thank you for inviting me."
Waving it off, he asks, "Did you get here okay?"
In his periphery, the father hears Andy whine. Louis chuckles, shaking his head fondly at the clingy boy. He ruffles his hair in compensation.
"Yeah, Zayn and Liam were on their way to the doctor's so they dropped me."
Clearly, the adult conversation is too much for the pup, he runs away towards the stairs. Harry doesn't pay any heed to it, so the omega assumes it is normal.
"Is everything alright?"
Louis waved his worries away. "I am sure. Don't worry. Here," he hands the bag to the father, "for you," and they start to walk towards the living room.
"Oh, you shouldn't have." The bottle of wine sticks out of the bag and Harry might not admit it, but it has been a long time since he has relaxed. With wine.
Chuckling, the omega says, "and show up empty handed to a dinner? My mama would be appalled." He adds his hand over his chest to fit in the dramatics.
Shaking his head fondly at the drama, Harry murmurs a shy 'thank you'.
"DADDY!" Ofcourse it comes from upstairs.
"Oh Moon, what is he upto..." The father mutters to himself. Sighing, he smiles at Louis, "please, make yourself comfortable. I will go see what he wants."
With that, he puts the bag away and takes off towards the stairs.
Leaning against the doorframe of the pup's room, the father watches his boy. "Baby, you know it's not polite to hide in your room when we have guests over." Harry walks towards where Andy is sitting on the rug near his toys. "And it's Pretty Louis, why are you in your room?"
Andy whines, looking at his dad with wide eyes. "Help." He looks at the toys in front of him.
"Oh, so you did not clean your room yesterday when I asked you to. But ofcourse you cannot show a dirty room to Pretty Louis." Tutting, Harry shakes his head, messing with the little alpha. "What will he think?"
The pup whines more at his father's teasing, confused at what to put where so Pretty Louis will think it's pretty.
Oh this absolute love of a boy.
Sitting beside his son, Harry cards his fingers through the golden curls. "Andy, I think it's clean enough if you want to show him your room. I have to go see the dinner, yes?"
Now that his daddy is listening to him, he begins to pule. "But daddy, it's not pretty!"
"But it is," Harry insists. "It is your room. All your favourite things are here, ofcourse it is pretty." He bends down and kisses the boy's forehead.
"Really?"
"Yeah," and to Harry's credit, he says it with full confidence. While he does not want to show the omega a dirty house, he knows with surety that Louis will not mind a few scattered toys. If you ask him, it gives character to the room even. "I'm sure he will say the same."
Convinced, the little alpha pushes his head against his dad's lips once again, leaning against him for a moment. "Okay."
"Good, now come," getting up, he dusts his trousers, "it's bad to keep our guests waiting."
Rushing downstairs, Harry turns into the living room where Louis is looking at the framed photographs on the wall. "Hi, sorry." Louis waves it away, finally looking away from the pictures. "Would you like something? Tea, coffee, water?"
"I have juice!" Andy pops up from behind his father, adding the suggestion quite enthusiastically.
Harry nods, impressed. "Very right. We also have orange juice."
Smiling softly, Louis shakes his head. "Just a glass of water please, thank you."
The alpha goes to get that while the smaller alpha frolicks to the teacher. "Pretty Boo?" He calls out, blinking up dreamily at the omega.
"Yes, love?" Louis coos, giving him all the attention in the world.
"Do you wanna see my room?" The boy asks so sweetly, so eagerly, Louis could never even dream of saying no.
He bends down enough to get in the boy's eyeline. "Do you want to show me your room?"
Andy jumps, "yes!"
"Well then," the omega gets up, pretending to dust his pants, "I would love to see it." His antics end just in time for Harry to enter the living room with the promised water.
Louis graciously accepts it.
"Daddy, I show Pretty Boo my room!" The little alpha grins up at his father, ready to jump from excitement. He takes the omega's hand as soon as the water is finished, tugging him in the direction of the stairs.
Chuckling at the sheer enthusiasm, Harry mutters, "call for me if he ropes you into some game."
Snorting, Louis retorts back, "all I do all week is make up games for these tiny packets of super energy, I think I'll be fine."
Fondly shaking his head, Harry let's them be.
🎀
"It's so lovely! Did you decorate it?" The omega takes in the decor. It's mostly disney coded, so Louis safely assumes that this is a Disney household- which he enthusiastically approves.
"Yeah! Daddy take me to mall and I saw this and then daddy got me matchy pajamas!" The boy excitedly opens his cupboard to show his teacher his pajamas. Thomas- makes sense with the boy's obsession with train toys. "An' an' aunnie Gemmy give me this for Christmas!" He holds up a train set high in the air and Louis has to rush to hold it so the contents don't spill over the boy himself. Once he's done showing that, he leaves the box with Louis and moves to his stuffed toys.
"And this is Jerry," he holds up the stuffed giraffe. "-And this is Thomas," he holds up the cat stuffie.
Opening his mouth, Louis contemplates what to say. He ends up asking, "like the train engine?"
"Yeah!" The pup gives him the brightest grin which honestly leaves him a little too buzzed.
"Gramma give me a Thomas puzzle!" The boy jumps back down from his bed to open another one of the small cupboards and pulls the box out from the clean pile on the rack, and spills the multiple pieces out on the floor.
Louis wonders how in the world does Harry keep this house so clean with this pup around.
Mid-thought, the little alpha pulls Louis to sit down with him as he starts doing the puzzle.
After what seems like five minutes, Andy is done with about half the puzzle on his own. Louis always knew that he is an intelligent boy, but seeing him do this puzzle at such speed leaves him astonished. "You're so smart. Probably the smart little lad I've ever met."
The boy flashes his dimples at the omega. "Gramma say I-"
"Says that," Louis gently corrects him.
"Gramma says that," he copies carefully before continuing, "I am like daddy. He smart too."
Smiling, Louis can feel his eyes crinkling at the ends. His own mama says it only happens when he is truly happy and who is he to question her.
"Your grandma is right. Both you and your daddy are smart lads."
Andy preens, adding, "you smart too."
"Am I?" Louis touches his heart, can feel it beating, loud and clear and he feels the gratitude run through it. "Thank you, little lad."
Nodding, the boy says, "plus, you give the bestest hugs."
Opening his arms, the teacher makes grabby hands at him. "Aw, come 'ere."
The pup's chest vibrates with a wobbly rumble as the boy rubs his nose against Louis's neck. "Pretty boo smell so good."
Louis forces himself to stop from pressing a bunch of kisses into the curls. "Yeah?" He murmurs instead, letting the hug go on, "you're gonna love the dessert."
Harry appears at the door just in time. "Come on, it's dinner time."
The pair separate from their hug, looking up at the alpha from where they are saying on the floor. "Okay, let's clean this up first."
Taking in the state of the room, Harry shakes his head. "Oh, it's fine, it'll take a lot of time."
Furrowing his eyebrows, Louis assesses the mess around them. "Not really. Andy, why don't we show your dad how fast we can clean up?"
To the father's astonishment, the boy starts singing something and gets to work. Faster than he has ever cleaned his room.
His jaw falls down as the room gets cleaner than it was before in mere minutes.
"What... what witchcraft was that?!"
Louis's eyebrows quirk up at him from the floor. "It's the clean up song. Did you not know about that?"
When there is no reply, he adds, "we do it every noon before the kids go home."
Andy nods along like it's common knowledge.
The father turns to the boy, feeling betrayed. "And you never told me such a thing exists?"
Much to Louis's amusement, the pup shrugs, giving absolutely no heed to his father. "Huh. Maybe I should send an email to all the parents about it."
Shaking it off, Harry starts walking out of the room. "Let's, um, let's eat. Hope you like chicken. Oh!" He turns around with wide eyes. "Is there something you don't eat? I'm so sorry, I should have asked you beforehand. Are you allergic to anything?"
And honestly, how could someone not be endeared by this alpha, Louis doesn't know.
"I eat mostly everything. Just don't give me too many peanuts."
🎀
"One, this is absolutely delicious. I haven't had anything this good since mama made me anything."
Harry blushes and thanks him for the praise.
"And two, now I finally know why he eats tongue-first," Louis giggles.
🎀
"Okay, so," Harry teases the boy for sometime, holding the paper bag behind his back while staring at his pup. "Pretty Louis brought something for you."
Andy gasps, "a pressie?!"
"Dessert, love," Louis chuckles at the jumping boy. "It's something people eat when they go camping."
"Camping?"
"Yeah it's when you go outside in a forest or a hill and make a tent and stay in it and make a bonfire and eat there."
"Huh?" Clearly, Harry is not a camping person.
Louis chuckles, opening the wrappers and showing the contents to the boy.
"Mashmallow!"
"Yeah it's marsh-mallow." Louis nods, opening the other packet.
"An' bikkis!"
"That's right." The omega boops the boy's nose. "Can you get me a fork?"
Wide-eyed and nodding, the little alpha opens a drawer and picks out a fork, handing it to his teacher.
"Thanks, lad. Now I want you to hold one biscuit in each hand and stay here."
The omega goes over to the stove and turns the gas on, roasting the marshmallow over it. When it's golden, he turns the gas off and brings it to the little alpha.
"Now we're gonna squish it between two biscuits. It makes it a s'more." He looks at Harry, explaining, "not really a thing here but my mama used to make us these all the time."
As soon as he's done speaking, Andy is already halfway done. The rest, Louis helps him, watching Andy's expressions change in awe of something so simple.
"Now, blow a little air on it because it's hot, and take a bite."
Both the adults see his face shift to recognition mid-chewing and shush him before he could choke trying to talk in all the newfound excitement.
As soon as he is done swallowing he jumps.
"It smells like Pretty Boo!"
Laughing, Louis feels a rush of love flow through him. "That's right! I don't smell like pie, I smell like a s'more. Well, more like warm biscuits and roasted marshmallow."
Harry's low chuckle reaches his ears from behind. "It is a unique one. Can't blame him for getting confused."
Sensing the alpha shift behind him, the omega tenses. Realistically, he knows that Harry wouldn't touch him in that way, not without his explicit permission at least but the faux anticipation, the mere possibility throws all the other thoughts out of his mind.
His body knows, it knows well enough that the alpha is hovering behind him, close enough to touch yet somehow forbidden. His tummy somersaults when Harry brushes against him in lieu of going past and leaning against the table.
Suddenly, the little alpha wraps his arms around Louis's legs.
Andy. Right. Focus.
🎀
"Look at him." Louis murmurs, resting his chin lightly on top of those soft blonde curls. The baby smell, a mix of baby powder mixed with Harry's and a bit like himself even- the omega savours it.
And Harry knows, he knows how precious his boy is, yet he looks down, softly smiles, trying to hide his fondness. "I know. When I watch him sleep, I momentarily forget how crazy he drives me everyday."
Laughing, the teacher nods. "I want to say it's not that bad but..." The omega shrugs. He is well aware of how insanely energetic this boy is, he sees it everyday.
"But really, he's only this small once. You will miss this time." He definitely will. Who knows if the little alpha will want his hugs anymore. He is surely going to save all the cuddles he can in his memories.
"No, undoubtedly," the alpha agrees immediately.
"I mean," Louis shakes his head to himself incredulously, taking another look at the boy. "I've known him like, four months and he has already grown so much. I don't know how you do it."
"It's probably the hardest part of parenting."
The father softly adds, "thank you."
"What for?" Louis shakes his head, determined. "I should be thanking you for such a lovely meal and an even better company."
The voice gets stuck in his throat somewhere. Harry clears his throat and tries again. "For being so kind to him."
"Harry." The omega doesn't understand how to stress it enough. Andy is important to him, more than he has a right to be, but he is. "I love him."
A rush of air passes out of Harry's lips as they turn into a sad smile. His green eyes flicker up to hold Louis's. "You can love him but still want your space. I know he can be a lot. Toddlers are a lot."
Chuckling softly, Louis shakes his head once again. "A lot in the best way. He is a pup. I love him and I do not want space."
When the alpha doesn't look back up, he reaches out to touch the back of his hand. "Hey."
He waits till the green eyes meet his own. And on some level, Louis understands the wetness in those eyes- not completely, but he likes to think he understands the relationship between a parent and a pup to some extent.
"You're doing great, Harry." He squeezes the alphas hand once.
The alpha releases a quiet, shaky breath, "it's just," a wet chuckle leaves his mouth, "we met you what- four? four months ago and..."
"I met you both four months ago and now I cannot imagine a day where I don't hear his sweet voice calling for me." That brings a smile out of Harry. Louis obviously mirrors it, obviously. "Your pup's a charmer."
"Thank you."
Trying to lighten the mood, he teasingly adds, "and I think he gets it from his dad."
Louis considers himself successful when the father's cheeks turn pink.
"Thank you."
He watched the omega shift his arms.
"You must be tired, let me." He extends his own to take his sleeping boy into his lap.
But Louis dismissed it. "It's fine. He looks so cute like this." The omega puts his cheek against the pup's head once again, snuggling into him.
At that, the alpha quirks his brow. "What do you mean 'like this'?"
That startles Louis. He looks at the father, opening his mouth. "I- I mean he always looks cute but like, he's always running around and I never get to sit and just look-" the omega stops his blabbering when Harry starts to giggle. "Hey!"
He starts laughing out loud. "I'm not even sorry, that was so adorable."
Pouting, Louis grumbles, "he is right. You are a meanie."
"I regret nothing."
Squinting his eyes at the alpha, he says, "you will when I tell him."
"Hey! That's not fair," Harry pouts.
The omega shrugs, well, as much as he can with a pup in his arms. "'S not my fault your pup loves me."
Chuckling, Harry leans sideways against the sofa. "I... guess. I mean, I don't even blame him, he has excellent taste."
That leaves the omega blushing. He doesn't know how to reply, so he lets the comment hang.
"I think I should, um," he looks towards the window, "I should get going."
Harry's smile falters a bit but he nods. "How are you gonna go back?"
Watching the rain come down, the omega worries his lip, contemplating his options. "I can call a cab."
That thought makes Harry frown. "It's raining heavily and those cab drivers are sometimes really reckless."
"I could call Liam," he says the other alternative. Safe, reliable. Doable.
"I can drop you," Harry says, frowning at the window, not listening to the omega. As if frowning will make it stop raining.
Louis vehemently shakes his head. "Andy is sleeping. It's okay, I can call-"
"Tomorrow's saturday," the alpha cuts him off, turning to look at him. "If you don't have any plans, why don't you stay? It's late now and I will drop you back home whenever you want tomorrow," he offers.
"Oh." Louis blinks at him, rolling the words in his head. He has never stayed over at an alpha's place. Obviously Liam and Zayn's house doesn't count. He has never been to an alpha's house alone either. It's not like he has parents offering him dinners all the time, but still! He has never had a boyfriend or a girlfriend.
"I can't overstay my welcome," he stutters instead.
"I insist," the alpha reassures him. "Please think over it." He requests, taking Andy from him and going upstairs to change him and put him in his bed.
Turning back towards the window, the omega sighs at how fast the rain is coming down. He would like to avoid going out at all if that's possible.
And it's not as if Harry would do anything wrong to him. No. He trusts him that much, he trusts his own instincts. Don't get him wrong, he does have a little crush on the alpha but at the end of the day, it is an alpha. He has to be cautious.
He looks at the window again. The rain seems to be coming down harder with each minute. Yeah, he can't ask Liam to drive like this.
So when Harry comes back down, he whispers an 'okay', chewing on his lower lip nervously. "Um, I should let them know so they don't worry." He fiddles to open his phone, texting them.
"They're good friends." Harry says, asking him if he would like some wine he brought earlier.
Nodding, Louis goes back to reading the messages.
Have fun ;)
Shut up Z!
Relaxing, he puts his phone back into his pocket. Louis turns to the father, chuckling, "they are me second set of parents. Mum's words, not mine."
Harry hands him a glass, getting comfortable on the sofa. "How did you guys meet?"
"Zayn and I met on the first day of college. We were in the same course and he was swearing at something, became best friends pretty much then and there." Louis smiles at the memory, sipping at the wine.
"And Liam and I shared a class in my fourth semester, I think? I was having some friends over and I invited Liam's friend who dragged Li with him to our apartment." Giggling at the hazy memory, he recounts, "now, I don't remember much from that night but I do remember throwing up in the bathroom and Li handing me water." His voice becomes softer. "He made sure everyone went home safely. Funny thing, I didn't know Zayn was home because he never liked parties much, I thought he had gone to his friend's but guess who I found cooking breakfast the next morning?"
Harry lets out a dramatic gasp, grinning. "Nooo!"
The enthusiasm infects Louis too. "Uh huh. Apparently they literally just 'slept together'," he adds the finger quotes, "because Li wanted to take him out properly."
The alpha's face melts into awe. "That is so sweet."
Louis nods, gulping down another sip of wine. "Sickeningly. And now they have been married for a year. They are just so perfect." He gives a chef's kiss.
"That's lovely." Harry smushes his face against the backrest. "It's so rare, innit? Finding love at such a young age."
"It is." Louis copies his position, gulping more wine. "I'm happy that they did. They deserve it."
"You're..." Harry sighs, pouting.
"What?"
"You deserve that too. I mean-" Harry waves the glass around his face, "you're amazing, Lou. But you talk about them so- wistfully. If you want, you deserve all that love just as much."
"I've, um," a humourless chuckle leaves the room awkward, "I've never really been, er, lucky in that department."
A furrow appears between Harry's brows. "Why?" The omega in front of him is literal perfection. How could anyone not want him?
"I've told you. I'm too loud, too opinionated to 'keep an alpha' or shit like that."
Scoffing, the alpha mutters something under his breath. "I want to say words that are not appropriate."
The omega's lips quirk up at that. Cheeky alpha. "It's the sentiment that counts."
Harry shakes his head as if to clear the fog in his alcohol coated brain. He is a lightweight, he will admit. But that is only because he doesn't drink too often. "If an alpha's character is so fragile that he has to supress others' opinions, you probably don't even want to go out with that guy."
"See, you get it!" The omega almost jumps, the wine in his glass sloshing a bit, but he pays it no mind. The man in front of him just agreed to something rare. "Where do I sign guys up so they can learn to become more like you?"
"Please don't waste your time and energy on such knotheads, they are not worth it." Harry knows his breed all too well. "And I promise you, you will find a person who will love you for your too loud opinions."
"Thank you," Louis tries to sound as genuine as he can. "But I'm too tired to even talk to alphas, you know what I mean," he confesses. "I don't want to have a whole conversation and f- fry my brain over and over again because people don't have common sense or emotional depth."
"Hey! We're having a decent conversation," Harry pouts at the thought of this being an inconvenience to the omega. His eyes widen at the thought, and he adds, "I hope."
Everting his eyes to his lap, the omega bites down on his smile. "Yeah, yeah we are."
"There are mature people out there and you're young, you have time."
Tilting his head, Louis looks at him intensely. "You talk as if you're not young."
Chuckling, the alpha replies, "I'm thirty, darling."
"And?" Louis is proper appalled at the sentence. Mostly because of the 'darling' but let's skip that. "Thirty is young, Harold. Who is feeding you all those wrong age limits?"
"My bad back, I would say." Reminding of which, he adjusts the pillow behind his back. He will regret his posture tomorrow morning. But that's just for the future Harry to deal with.
"Just get an orthopedic mattress and do some yoga," Louis says dismissively.
Harry snorts, "with that one running around and jumping on my bed all the time, yeah no."
Blinking at him, the omega asks, "so, like, what? You don't date at all?"
Rolling his eyes, Harry sighs, "c'mon Louis, nobody wants a dad."
Louis fish-mouths for a second before bursting, "have you met omegas? Or seen a mirror? Ever?"
Flushing red, Harry looks down, not quite looking at Louis's eyes. "Alright. I- um, I am very much of a romantic. Always have been." He picks at a stray thread, throwing his own the floor. "And you know, I wanted a picket fence house and a backyard and pups and everything even back in college." Finally he looks up. "I dated a lot but I dated to marry, you know what I mean? And the omegas I dated wanted a career- which is like, completely understandable, like, obviously they studied so hard to get into a good college and it's only reasonable that they want to do something with that degree. And it's fine if family wasn't their priority, who am I to judge." He shrugs, taking the last sip before putting the glass on the table.
"I dated again when I started with my job. But no one ever clicked, you know? And I don't see myself settling down with someone I am not on the same plane with."
"Ofcourse," Louis nods.
"So I went ahead and had him. So what if I don't have an omega? I got my picket fence-ish house and my backyard and my pup." He doesn't stop, intending to get it all out, all at once before he loses his confidence. "If someone has to come along, we can meet them along the way. Till then, I have a lot to be grateful for."
The father watches the omega, sitting there without any comment. He feels the need to fill the silence.
"I mean sure, I flirt with people I like but it's very rare that I go out with them."
Holding his breath, he gives the omega two more seconds before asking, "would you please say something?"
"I have no words." Louis sees Harry pause and start to wilt, he sits straighter, rushing to correct the alpha, "no, no no no! I don't mean that in a bad way. I mean it in the best possible way."
He opens his mouth, hoping the words land right. "To have a pup on your own, to make your own family, that's- that's really brave, Harry. I can only hope to have this much faith in myself and..." Looking into those green eyes, Louis hopes his sincerity shows. "I really admire you for your outlook in life."
"You mean that?" The alpha asks, a bit of insecurity flowing into his voice. "You don't think it's stupid and I rushed into it?"
Louis's face turns into a question mark. Why would Harry ever doubt himself? "You wanted it and you went and grabbed it. You took what you wanted from life. Do you regret doing it all so young?"
"No," a solid answer comes immediately.
"Then why would it be stupid?" Shifting closer, Louis puts his hand on the alpha's arm, rubbing his thumb over the sleeve in hopes of providing comfort.
"You are giving him such a good life. He is safe, he is loved, he goes to bed with a full tummy and a heart full of love. How could it be wrong?"
Sucking in a deep breath, Harry lets himself feel vulnerable, lets his insecurities show, because for once, it feels okay to do so.
"And what if someday I meet someone I really like but they resent the fact that I had him on my own, what then?"
Louis shakes his head no. "You won't like somebody like that. Besides, he is too wonderful to be disliked." He says it with such confidence, Harry accepts it for his word.
"How can anyone take a look at those matching eyes," blue meet green, "and dimples," they fall to his cheeks, "and curls," he wonders if they are as soft as they look, as Andy's, "and not want to see them and then some more?"
"Do you?" The alpha is so close. If he leaned further closer, he'd be touching Louis's nose. But somewhere, somewhere deep into this conversation, with all their inhibitions gone, he wants to risk it. He wants to risk asking and knowing and- he really wants.
"What?" It comes out a half-question, half-disbelief. Louis's eyes snap back to the alpha's.
Gulping down his insecurities- because honestly, this is the last chance to back out- Harry asks, "do they make you want to see a bit more?"
I'm only an omega. He almost says it, planning to play it off as a joke. He could blame it on the wine or his slippery tongue, but he knows, he can't lie. "Yes."
"Lou..."
Louis takes a deep breath, murmuring, "'Harry..." He chances one look at the alpha's eyes, glimmering green, head tilted down, looking at him so intently.
Harry gulps, his lips parting a little, his breaths getting heavier. "Have I- have I ever told you that you're beautiful?" Green eyes follow the patterns and ridges of the omega's face, as if learning the curves and shadows by heart. "From your cute button nose and your eyes- oh Moon your eyes," he murmurs to himself. "How alphas aren't lining up at your door, begging for a moment of your time, is beyond me."
"Well, neither are you," the omega mutters, a strange melancholy surrounding his words. His mind hadn't grasped the words before they flew out- that's what you get for shoving everything at the back of your mind!
"Louis..."
Louis can see the pain it causes him to hold back, to take that deep breath and shut his eyes. He shakes his head, leaning it back against the sofa. "You're so..." Harry's voice is watery, Louis's omega wants to soothe it, soothe him. "Young."
Blinking, the omega repeats the words he just heard. "Young?" How old does he think I am?! Moving back, he looks at the man. "I'm twenty-three!"
Harry finally opens his eyes, looking at his arm where the ghost of Louis's touch lingers. "And I'm thirty." His eyes flicker to the omega's, pleading. "With a pup."
"Right," the omega scoffs. "And what omega likes a caring, hot dad who is also kind and understanding and doesn't oppress others' opinions and is actually decent?!" There goes the soft, heartfelt conversation.
Harry looks at him, looking tired, his mind forgoing everything the omega just said. "Seven years is a big gap."
Louis puts the empty glass away and rubs his hands over his face. "You said you're open to someone joining you along the way." The omega looks into his eyes, suddenly feeling too sober for the full glass of wine he cleaned in the last twenty minutes. "Are you?"
"And give you a toddler at twenty-three? Because that is not in question." He leaves no room for debate at the end.
"If you could want a family at twenty-three, why can't I?" Exasperated, Louis runs his hands through his hair. "And I am not going anywhere from his life, in case it wasn't clear enough. I'm in his life anyway."
Harry suddenly goes quiet. "And what if that's it?"
Truly confused, the omega asks, "what do you mean?"
Fiddling with his thumb, the alpha asks, "what if it's only him that your omega connects with?"
"Oh Moon!" Muttering something, Louis tries to dampen down his frustration. "I teach a class of twenty four-year-olds, five days a week and here you are, testing my patience. If it was just about him, your scent wouldn't have triggered my heat! Would you stop pushing me away?!" He starts again after taking a deep breath. "You wanted me here, you asked me to stay, Harry, you know you like me, and I want you to stop being scared and accept that it's okay and that it is very mutual."
Reaching towards the omega, Harry whispers, "I don't want to mess this up."
Louis meets his hand halfway, holding it tight. "You won't. We won't," he promises just as softly, just as carefully.
"It's not just about me," the alpha reminds him with a warning.
"I know. I know Andy's in this just as much."
"Are you sure?" Harry asks one last time, desperately praying that if he confirms it enough times, it will stay true.
"I am." The omega squeezes his hand in a pledge.
Shakily breathing, Harry lets the words wash over him, lets the impact hit him in the best way. Gulping down nothing, he leans forward, eyes on the blue ones at all times. He can hear his shaky inhales, can smell the agreement on Louis. The delicate hand in his tightens just a bit when their noses touch. The omega's warm breaths, just as unsure with anticipation, spill over his lips and Harry cannot, for the love of anything, hold himself back for one more second.
His lips crash over the omega's. He hopes he can convey his devotion to Louis's lips. Lips that should not, should never, stay away from his. One hand immediately curls around the omega's thin waist, keeping his body close, and the other hand cups his jaw to keep their lips together lest they ever break apart.
Louis's thighs clench around nothing, and the butterflies in his tummy soar too high, hands holding onto the alpha's arms for support and before he knows what's happening, Harry's soft lips are on his again, coaxing his lips to part and when they do, sucking hard on his upper lip. If you ask Louis, he would deny ever making a noise but Harry's hand only pulls him closer, their chests flush against each other as he continues to kiss the omega breathless.
A small whimper falls out of the omega's lips, so sweet, so delicate- it makes Harry stop and admire it. His lips press quietly against the corner of Louis's, breathing him in.
"Alpha," Louis barely whispers before a loud rumble comes out of Harry, pressing against the omega's chest, filling his soul up.
"Precious omega," the alpha drags their lips together, not handling their separation well- not even to breathe something that's not them. "Has anyone ever told you how sweet you taste? Sweeter than your scent."
Louis whimpers when the alpha moves away. "Harry-"
Warm hands cup his face, lips hovering inches away from his own. "Louis- baby- I want you. I want you so much."
The omega breathes in air, trying to will his heart to slow down, at least enough to let him hear what the alpha is saying.
Harry gently caresses his cheekbone. "Having your number one fan in the form of my four year old doesn't help. All he does is yap about how pretty you are, how nice your voice is, how good you smell and how your hugs are better than mine." The alpha runs a thumb over his eyebrow, prompting him to open them. He finds the alpha's eyes moist, his cheeks a little too red in certain places and his voice a bit too wet. "For months, Lou, for months, all I've heard from my pup is how much he loves you- my pup who doesn't like many adults- you have him absolutely wrapped around your finger. Do you even realise how crazy that makes me?" Shutting his eyes, Harry shakes his head, chuckling.
He leans forward, resting their foreheads together. "That you look like you do, you smell like you do and Moon, you are so kind, so beautiful inside out. Do you see what you do to my heart every time you and Andy are together?"
"Harry," Louis whispers, leaning into the warm touch. He follows the warmth, letting their noses touch, even if fleetingly.
"Lou," the alpha rumbles, trying so hard not to mindlessly let his instincts take over. He needs to tell Louis, he needs. "Dropping him off and picking him up is the highlight of my day because I get to see you smile. And on good days, make you laugh, make your eyes shine-"
The omega shuts him up with a kiss. He doesn't know how much more he could listen before his heart comes bursting out of his chest.
He can feel Harry's lips stretching into a wide grin, the kiss turning useless. The alpha makes sure to kiss him twice more before pulling back. More than before. So much distance- ugh. "Will you want for me to court you, omega?"
Louis blinks at him for a good few seconds, it takes him that much time to recover from the kiss and understand the words, before his jaw drops open.
"Before answering, please- please Lou, sleep on it." Harry's hands move down to hold his hands. "It isn't just one of us. It's both of us. I'm thirty. And- and it cannot be just your decision. Your omega has to be on board- for Andy."
He really hopes he is getting across to Louis. He has to lay down all the facts and conditions before he hears the omega's answer. There is no scope for leaving space for any sort of even the tiniest misunderstanding.
"Just sleep on it and know that you have the right to back off even during the courting. If your feelings change during then, I will understand."
Nodding, Louis turns that thought in his mind for a minute.
"Help me make my decision then."
"O-kay...?" Harry isn't sure how he can help but by Moon, if he isn't willing.
"What is your favourite colour?"
"Blue?" Harry says, confused at the abrupt change.
"What shade?"
The alpha taps the sofa. "This one." He bites his lip and suppresses his grin. "It was my favourite even before I saw your eyes. Now it's just..." he shrugs, trying to act nonchalant, "more favourite."
Blushing, Louis looks at the sofa, tracing Harry's finger. "Well mine was red growing up. But," he looks up with a teasing grin, "I've grown quite fond of mossy green recently."
Chuckling, Harry asks, "oh yeah? What changed your mind?"
"You know, just the earth and the sky-" he waves his hand around, Harry could not be more fond, "-green and blue, beautiful, omnipresent, unchanging, eternal."
Exasperated, Harry throws his hands up. "There you go, being even sappier than me."
Shaking his head, Harry chooses the next question. "What's your favourite food?"
Humming in contemplation, the omega says, "I do like tacos. But I absolutely hate avocados, can't look at an avocado, no." Grimacing, Louis shakes his head, as if the mere thought of an avocado repluses him.
"Why, what's wrong with avocados?" Harry frowns at the thought.
"They are like, trendy," the omega shudders at the apparent thought. "There's hundreds of better things to smear on your toast, why would you want an avocado?!"
Giggling, Harry points out, "they are healthy?"
Squinting at the alpha, Louis accuses him. "You have avocados in your fridge right now, don't you?"
"Um hm, that's what we both have most mornings," Harry snickers at the disgusted face the omega makes.
Shrugging, Louis says, "I love myself some coco pops."
"Everyday?"
"Everyday."
Too endeared to say anything else, Harry jokes, "I hope you aren't telling the kids that. Also, tomorrow I will make you a full English."
"It has been long since I've had proper breakfast," he admits at the thought of a full English breakfast. "Oh, also no beans. I will not eat beans."
Laughing, the alpha asks, "what's wrong with beans now?!"
The omega barely stops himself from gagging. "They taste so vile."
Still laughing, Harry tries to convince him. "Louis, they do not taste vile."
"I will not eat beans."
"Alright." Harry relents easily. He is obviously not going to make the omega eat something he clearly doesn't like. "Full English with no beans. Is tea okay, pretty boobear?" He teases.
At that, the teacher grins. "I love tea. But you have to make it with just a splash of milk and no sugar."
"I will remember that. I like mine with sugar better though."
The grin goes away, instead replaced by a hand splayed over his chest. "Harold! Your food choice are making me vary."
The alpha can only blink. He slowly nods, "alright alright, no more food talk."
He thinks of something else to talk about when- "Wait- what did you mean by my scent triggering your heat?"
"Uh..." The omega looks wide eyed at getting caught. "Did I say that? Um..." After a few seconds, he points out, "you drove me to my apartment- the first time."
Harry rolls his eyes at the obvious lie. "It was hardly three minutes."
The omega's cheeks turn red but he doesn't back out. "Your car smells of you really strongly."
Harry tilts his head, thinking. "Wouldn't that have triggered your heat that day itself or the next?"
Louis covers his face with his hands, groaning, "I don't know!"
"Huh." For some reason, the alpha doesn't believe him.
"What is your first memory?"
Harry, once again, startles at the sudden change of topic but complies nonetheless, thinking about it.
"I think it's of my sister. Running down the stairs and waiting for me. Nothing special or anything really elaborate, that's all I remember. What's yours?"
"It's me mum's." A small smile plays at his lips at the memory. "I think there was a cat at my nan's house, we were playing with him."
"Funny, my first word was cat."
Gasping, Louis excitedly tells him, "my first word was cat!"
Grinning, Harry says, "Andy's first word was baby because I called him baby. A little too much, clearly. And he referred to himself as baby all year."
Blue eyes look at him in awe. "Please tell me you have a video!"
And so they go through Andy's baby album on Harry's phone, sitting side by side.
"Oh Moon, he was so small," whispers Louis, his finger silently hovering over the screen as if to trace the picture.
The alpha smiles, eyes trained on the picture. "Was hardly the size of my forearm," he reminisces.
"Oh. He's..."
"I get it," Harry nods, swiping to see the next. It has been a long time since he has seen these. Suddenly it hits him just how much his baby has grown up. It doesn't feel like four years have passed, no. How could his baby fit in his arms one day and now he's running all over the place, allergic to sitting still for more than three minutes? They move on to the next picture.
Awkwardly chuckling, Harry covers his face with his hands. "Those are the most horrible pictures of me ever."
"Oh hush, you had a newborn." Louis shuts him down quickly, choosing to focus on the images. Precious is what they are. Harry holding a newborn Andy, barely any hair on his head, cheeks too chubby for his face, all wrapped up and sleeping in his daddy's arms. And ofcourse, there's Harry. His curls are long, much longer than now in the picture, even in a bun in a few, dark circles around his eyes, clearly tired but the dimples never leave. The omega is sure that the alpha was a clingy father- he probably wouldn't have let Andy out of his sight for more than a few seconds.
He pauses on a picture where both Harry's and Andy's cheeks are smushed together. He would have framed this.
Louis shoves that thought to the back of his mind faster than it came and locks that door. He chances a glance towards the alpha. He finds him looking intently at him. "This is beautiful, Harry."
His cheeks flush faster than his words fumble. "You're just being nice."
Nice, his ass. In his fashion, Louis rolls his eyes and shoves the photo in front of the alpha's face. "This is one precious photo if I've seen one." He goes back to staring at the picture. "You were a new dad, that's... that's really huge. Look at those dimples."
But Harry isn't looking at the picture, no. He's seen it thousands of times, it's one of his favourites too. He is looking at how the omega is looking at it.
No one has really insisted that that picture is beautiful. And objectively, it might not be pretty, but that does not mean it doesn't hold beautiful emotions- and this, no one has ever implied before.
Not until now.
He is so lost in his thought, it escapes his notice that Louis has been staring back at him. Getting conscious, he asks, "what?"
Looking away, Louis murmurs, "I don't think I've said this, but you're like, really pretty." His hand comes up to his face to scratch his nose. Harry suspects he has to somehow occupy his hands and hide his face behind the bold, um, comment?
He reels back to the actual content of the comment. An incredulous giggle escapes him. "I'm a thirty year old man!"
"And? You were a twenty six year old new dad too. Besides, thirty year old men can be pretty." Rolling his eyes, the omega shrugs, swiping to see the next picture.
Exasperated, Harry shakes his head dramatically, getting up from the couch. "I've kept you awake well past your bedtime. The sleep is getting to your head, innit?"
"I do not have a bedtime," Louis replies flatly with a look, but gets up nonetheless, following the alpha around the house.
Laughing, the father replies, "I do. And I have one pup to look after. Can't imagine looking after twenty everyday and not having a bedtime." He confesses, but really, it has to be a more physically tiring job than most.
They make their way up the stairs.
Behind him, the omega jokes, "that's 'cause I'm twenty three." Harry pauses for a second before moving again and even though Louis can't see his face, he immediately feels guilty. Maybe it's too early to joke about it.
"I'm just teasing, don't overthink it," he ends up adding.
Nodding, Harry turns right, walking into the hallway and opening the door, "here's your room. I'll get you a change of clothes." With that he leaves.
Louis watches him go to the left of the stairs, where there are two doors. One of them is Andy's, so Louis feels safe to assume that the other door leads to the alpha's.
Taking a deep breath, Louis turns around, taking a look at his own room. Dark bedsheet, dark comforter, a window opening towards the neighbour's house he guesses. He draws the curtains close. It irks him a little that the room doesn't smell like much. Most days that would be a good thing but it's not most days that he sleeps in Harry-The-Hot-Dad-Styles's house. And as his shameful past has proven, he would not mind getting access to that acai chocolate scent.
He hears Harry's footsteps echo in the hallway and soon enough he is back, offering him a plain black t-shirt and grey joggers.
They look soft, as if Harry had specifically chosen well-worn, well-loved clothes for him to spend the night in.
Taking the clothes, Louis looks up at the alpha and murmurs a thank you.
"These are soft," he couldn't keep his mouth shut, clearly.
And apparently Harry isn't feeling much shy either because he replies when he usually would have flushed and stuttered. No, he looks the omega straight in the eye and murmurs, "I made sure of that." His eyes flicker down to Louis's lips once, the omega catches it.
Clearing his throat, the father diverts the conversation. "Feel free to wake me up if you need anything."
"Thank you, Harry," Louis whispers, gazing into the alpha's green eyes.
As his chest rises with a sudden inhale, Harry returns the connection with just as much intensity if not more. "The pleasure's all mine."
Louis lets out a small whine, barely audible, before grasping the alpha's sweatshirt and pulling him into a kiss.
The alpha melts into the kiss, holding onto the younger man's lips like a vice, rounding an arm around his delectable waist to keep the omega steady.
Harry feels the eagerness in the kiss, how the omega's warm, thin lips are sucking on his own, his teeth are nibbling on the alpha's lips and there's only so much control a man can have.
His tongue barely grazes the omega's before he is pulling back. Louis whines- louder this time- chasing the alpha's plush lips, but he has no luck.
As if to tease him further, Harry presses their foreheads together. "Sleep on it, please Lou," he begs. "For Andrew and for your omega."
And Louis wants to tell him that ofcourse he knows, he knows!
But does he really?
How much experience has he had in dating single dads? Helping your mum raise your siblings must count for something but even in his feeling-riddled mind, Louis knows that it cannot compare to this situation.
That one thought keeps his mouth shut.
The alpha is right. He needs to think more about it. Perhaps even make a pros and cons list and as silly as that idea sounds, it will help. Maybe he should start with a call to his mum, that might be better- single mum and all that. Who better to run to than her?
"I'll um, I'll think about it," he promises to the alpha sincerely. It seems the right thing to say as Harry's face loses a bit of anxiety and worry. "Goodnight, Harry."
"Goodnight, Lou." The alpha fiddles with his hands, taking a step back. "If you need anything, I'll be in that room." He points to the door and leaves with one last look.