Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

‘Keep your head down and go,’ Liam thought to himself as he looked around at all the stalls set up around the library. 'You can do it. Just straight through.’ He held his breath and charged past the people waving flyers at him and trying to gain his attention, almost stumbling through the library doors. He blew his breath out again. “Made it,” he whispered.

“Hi.”

Liam nearly jumped out of his skin, head whipping to the side to see a blonde guy around his age standing beside the vacant front desk. “Um… hi,” he mumbled.

“New here?” the boys asked. “Me too. I thought hanging around in the library would help me make some friends with brains.”

Shifting uncomfortably, Liam replied, “That’s nice.” He tried to leave, but the boy started talking again.

“I’m Niall, what’s your name?”

“Liam,” he answered quietly, shuffling further and further away from the desk.

“Pardon?”

Liam cleared his throat. “Liam,” he repeated, not much louder.

“Well, good to meet you, Liam,” Niall grinned.

Nodding once, Liam scurried away before Niall could start talking again. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Niall hadn’t followed him, then blew out a sigh of relief before settling himself in the corner of the library furthest from the door. He set up his laptop and pulled up Tumblr. “Right.”

“Morning, Liam.”

Liam flinched a little as he entered the library on his second day of Uni only to be greeted by the bright smile of the blonde from yesterday. “Morning,” he mumbled. 'Head down and go,’ his mind ordered. He did exactly as it said, heading straight for his corner and setting his laptop up again.

Although he had been hoping to be left to blog in peace, Liam was suddenly made uncomfortable by company in the form of a cheerful blonde not ten minutes after he had sat down. “How’ve you been?” Niall asked.

Angling his screen away from Niall, Liam mumbled, “Fine.”

“That’s good,” Niall smiled. “What’re you doing?” He tried to look at Liam’s laptop screen.

“Nothing.” Liam shut his laptop, avoiding Niall’s eyes.

“Oh. Well, I’ll just let you get back to your 'nothing’.” Niall hopped up and headed away. “See you, Liam,” he called cheerfully over his shoulder.

“I just want to use the free Wi-Fi,” Liam mumbled, lifting his screen again and resuming his blogging.

After his third day, Liam realised he could access the Uni’s Wi-Fi in the cafeteria, which led him to sitting in there any time he wasn’t in classes. For the first couple of days, he felt a little bad for not going back to the library, but that guilt evaporated when he told himself that the cute boy looking for people with brains can surely make proper friends with more socially capable people. He had managed four weeks of no interruptions of his mindless scrolling when suddenly he felt a presence beside him in his corner of the cafeteria.

“Hey, Liam.”

A blush filled Liam’s cheeks. “Hello, Niall.”

“Haven’t seen you for, like, a month,” Niall commented.

“Busy,” Liam shrugged, keeping his eyes down.

“Hey, you’ve got Tumblr?” Niall asked, surprised.

Slamming his laptop shut, Liam blushed deeper. “Busy,” he mumbled, standing to leave.

“Hey.” Niall grabbed Liam’s arm and stopped him from leaving. “C'mon, I don’t bite.”

Liam glanced from Niall’s face to his grip on his arm, then slowly sat down again.

“There, see?” Niall gave him a grin. “What do you blog?”

“Uh…” Liam swallowed hard. “Just… stuff.”

Giving Liam a look, Niall asked, “What sort of stuff?”

“Like… movies and stuff,” Liam shrugged, fingers twisting together nervously.

“Same.” Niall grabbed his laptop out of his bag, opening it up and typing his password in. “See?” He turned his laptop to show Liam his screen, displaying his Tumblr dashboard. The first picture was of Loki from The Avengers. “My favourite, he is,” Niall grinned.

“Mine too,” Liam blurted out. “From Marvel,” he clarified quickly. “Batman from DC. But if I had to choose, Batman’s better than Loki.”

Niall tilted his head from side to side. “Eh, I just like Loki 'cause Tom Hiddleston is the most adorable man alive,” he shrugged. “Like, I could listen to him talking all day long.”

“Yeah…” Liam glanced to Niall, blushing all over again when he saw the blonde smiling at him.

“Y'know, you’re cute,” Niall chuckled, scooting Liam’s laptop to face him more. “Your URL’s batman4lyfe? Damn, you just keep getting cuter.” Turning to his own laptop, Niall went about following Liam’s blog. “There, that’s me,” he pointed at the notification that popped up on Liam’s screen.

“Lokiskisses?” Liam blinked a few times.

“Yeah, I write the fan fictions you’re always liking.” Niall giggled at the shocked and embarrassed expression on Liam’s face. “I’ve got a few regulars who like my stuff. You’re one of them.”

And Liam suddenly found himself unintentionally making friends with that cute boy from the library.

One week later, Liam was sat in his dorm room scrolling through his Tumblr dashboard when he noticed the little red (1) next to his inbox. He clicked the link with the odd feeling he knew who this was from.

Lokiskisses: Hey, Liam :) Are you busy around 4pm tomorrow ??

Biting his lip, Liam typed back a quick response and sent it privately.

Batman4lyfe: Why?

Lokiskisses: Wondering if you wanted to go for coffee aha :)

Batman4lyfe: Where?

Lokiskisses: ¯\_( ツ)_/¯ wherever

Batman4lyfe: Why do you want to?

Lokiskisses: Coz I like you and wanna hang out

Batman4lyfe: Why do you like me?

Lokiskisses: Why not ?

Liam paused. That was a very good question.

Batman4lyfe: What time?

Lokiskisses: 4pm

Batman4lyfe: Want me to wear anything particular?

Lokiskisses: Is that a yes ??

Batman4lyfe: Long as I don’t have to dress up

Lokiskisses: :D you could wear a potato sack youd still look amazing :P

Blushing and deciding to leave the conversation there, Liam closed his laptop and turned off his lamp. He snuggled down in his bed, telling himself those butterflies in his tummy were nothing and that Niall’s confidence was the only reason he accepted his offer. But he couldn’t quite wipe the smile from his face.

Chapter Text

“So,” Niall began brightly as he appeared beside Liam, “I didn’t realise until today that we’re in, like, three of the same classes.”

Liam hugged his books to his chest more, glancing a little nervously to the cheerful boy walking along beside him. “O-oh?”

Smiling at Liam, Niall chuckled, “We still going for coffee at 4?”

“Yeah,” Liam replied quietly, a light blush creeping up his face.

“Great,” Niall beamed. “Gonna dig out your potato sack, then?” he giggled.

“No…” Liam chewed his lip. “’M gonna go back to my room quick first.”

Niall glanced to his watch. “Well, it’s twenty to four, so I suppose I can allow that.”

With a simple nod of his head, Liam turned and dug his keycard from his pocket as he approached the dorms.

“Hey… you live here, too?”

Blushing a deep red for no particular reason, Liam asked quietly, “Do you?”

“No,” Niall giggled, following Liam into the building. “My friend Zayn does, though. And Harry, for that matter.”

“Oh…” Liam stayed silent as he headed to his room. “I’ll be back,” he whispered before quickly slipping into his room and not giving Niall the time to follow before closing the door and chucking his books at his bed. He blew out a long breath, roughly shaking his hands out to fight the tremors already wracking them. “There’s two other guys…?”

Shaking his head, Liam dumped his bag unceremoniously on his desk, pulling off his jacket and lazy T-shirt. He pulled his wardrobe open and stared into it, searching through his clothes. It was only a minute later that he was throwing shirts over his shoulder as he looked for just the right one. Then he stopped suddenly.

“Perfect,” he whispered, smiling to himself as he tugged the T-shirt over his head and pulled his jacket back on. Checking that he had his wallet and keycard, Liam took a deep breath and stepped out into the hallway again, where Niall was leaning against the wall waiting for him.

“Ready?” Niall asked with a grin.

“Think so,” Liam nodded, voice soft.

Niall linked his arm with Liam’s. “Great,” he beamed, leading Liam towards the exit.

It was only after they had been walking down the street for five minutes that Liam asked, “Where’re we going?”

“Dunno,” Niall shrugged. “You know anywhere good?”

“Um…” Liam looked around. He had been on a couple of walks to position himself, so he knew where a few places were. “We could… try there?” He pointed to a warm-looking shop across the road from their position.

“Okay,” Niall grinned, grabbing Liam’s upper arm and pulling him across the road. Liam let out a small yelp, Niall laughing whole way to the other footpath. “Come on,” he giggled at Liam’s stunned face, gently tugging Liam into the shop.

The homely smell of ground coffee and freshly baked goodies filled Liam’s nose, relaxing him instantly. He hummed pleasurably, closing his eyes. A giggle from Niall made him open his eyes again, a blush covering his cheeks when he saw the blonde holding laughter with a hand over his mouth.

“You’re so cute,” Niall whispered before leading Liam over to the counter.

Once they had both ordered and Niall paid, as he insisted and Liam didn’t want to argue, they found themselves a booth in the back corner of the shop. Liam tried not to, but he found that it was incredibly difficult not to stare at Niall when they were sitting opposite other another in the booth. “It’s really warm,” he muttered, taking his jacket off to give him an excuse to avoid eye contact with Niall for a few moments. He glanced up when he heard Niall gasp softly.

“Loki,” Niall grinned, pointing to the graphic on Liam’s T-shirt.

Shrugging shyly, Liam mumbled, “Thought you’d like it…”

“You seriously couldn’t get any cuter,” Niall gushed, clasping his hands under his chin. “Jesus, look at you. All blush-y and shy.”

Liam didn’t answered, twisting his fingers together on the table between them and fixing his eyes on his hands.

“Hey.” Niall reached over and covered Liam’s hands with one of his own. “It’s a good thing.”

“Thanks?” Liam didn’t raise his voice much more that a whisper.

Giving Liam a grin, Niall only retracted his hand when their drinks were brought over. But he hardly took his eyes off the brunette as he picked up his drink and sipped it.

Liam keep his eyes on his drink, breathing deeply through his nose to take full advantage of the beautiful smell of coffee. He blushed when he heard Niall giggle at him again. “What?” he almost whined.

“You’re cute,” Niall shrugged. “Can’t help it.”

Another blush coloured Liam’s cheeks as he sipped his drink again.

“So,” Niall began as he and Liam walked out of the shop after their two-hour coffee meet-up, “home now?”

“Yeah, I’ve got…” Liam bit his lip. “Uh, I’ve got-”

“A blog to run,” Niall smirked. “C'mon, let’s get you back to the world of Tumblr.”

Liam nodded once and led Niall back to the dorms, letting them in and heading upstairs to his dorm room. Once he opened his door, he paused in the threshold. “Do, um… you want to come in?” he asked quietly.

A blinding grin was all the answer Niall gave, following Liam into his room. “Nice,” he commented, looking around at the posters and mess.

“It’s a bit messy…” Liam mumbled, standing awkwardly as Niall sat himself down on his bed.

“Eh, tidier than my place,” Niall shrugged. “I like your posters. But you’re missing someone important.”

“I haven’t been able to find a good one that did him justice,” Liam replied, voice still quiet.

“No picture of Tom Hiddleston does him justice,” Niall chuckled. “You can’t capture that much perfection in a photo.” He sighed dreamily.

Liam laughed a little. “You really like him.”

“He’s sex on legs and adorable at the same time. Of course I like him.” Noticing Liam still standing, Niall patted the space on the bed beside him.

“I’m okay,” Liam declined, shaking his head.

Niall gave Liam a look. “Liam, it’s your bed. Sit down.”

Slowly sitting himself beside Niall, Liam mumbled, “Not used to having other people in my room.”

“Bit of a recluse?” Niall asked knowingly. “Don’t worry about it,” he giggled when he saw Liam blushing. “You’re sweet. It just takes a bit more effort to get close to you than a lot of other people.”

“Effort you didn’t mind putting in,” Liam noted softly.

“You’re cute,” Niall shrugged. “I wanted to get to know you.”

“Why do you keep calling me cute?” Liam asked.

“Because you are,” Niall laughed. “Look at you. You blush and go all shy and it’s adorable.”

“Adorable like Tom Hiddleston?”

Niall cracked up laughing, making Liam blush deeply. “Aw, Liam,” Niall cooed, wrapping his arms around Liam’s shoulders in a sideways hug. “Li, you’re adorable, but Tom’s set a pretty high standard. I’m not expecting you to meet that.”

Chewing his lip, Liam asked, “It’s okay, then?”

Pausing to inspect Liam’s face, Niall gave him a small smile. “You’re more than okay.” He leaned up and kissed Liam’s cheek.

Liam’s face flushed darker than it had all day. “Oh,” he whispered.

“Jesus, if I’d known you’d blush like that, I would’ve done that ages ago,” Niall laughed. He nuzzled his face into Liam’s neck. “Li, you’re so freakingcute,” he sighed happily.

“I’m still not sure whether or not that’s bad,” Liam mumbled.

“Oh, no, it’s good. It’s really good,” Niall chuckled, snuggling closer.

Chewing his lip, Liam tentatively laid his hand on Niall’s arm around his front, feeling the blonde kiss his neck in return. They were only sat that way for a few quiet minutes, but there was a sinking feeling in Liam’s stomach when Niall pulled away.

“I better get home, or my housemate might start panicking that I’ve been kidnapped,” Niall chuckled, standing himself up.

“Housemate?” Liam asked.

“Yeah, Louis. He’s in all the same classes as me. He was sat beside you in Studies of Classical Greats,” Niall explained, ducking to re-tie his shoelace.

“Oh…”

“Hopefully his boyfriend won’t be ‘round, or I won’t get a word out of him all evening,” Niall sighed.

“Boyfriend?” Liam asked, trying his best to keep the hopefulness out of his voice and just succeeding.

“Yeah, Zayn, he lives here.” Niall snorted as he stood up. “Well, he pays rent here. Dunno if he’s ever here, or if he’s actually at my place with Louis all the time. I swear, finding a moment when they aren’t either snogging or plotting pranks is so freaking difficult.”

Liam bit his lip as he planned how to ask his next question. “So… your housemate’s gay?”

“Yeah,” Niall shrugged. “So am I; it doesn’t bother me.” He paused for a moment. “Hold up, it doesn’t bother you, does it? 'Cause-”

“No!” Liam blurted out, quickly covering his mouth with his hands. “I mean… no, i-it doesn’t bother me, I was just… curious…” Blushing, he mumbled, “Was just making sure you were okay with… with me being gay…”

Niall laughed. “Liam, I’m about as gay as they come. I don’t care if you like screwing aliens, to be perfectly honest, as long as I have a look in.”

Frowning a little, Liam tilted his head to one side. “Huh?”

“As long as I have a look in,” Niall repeated. He laughed again when he saw the confusion on Liam’s face. “Liam, I didn’t ask you out for a coffee because I wanna just be friends.” He leaned down and kissed Liam’s cheek. “See you tomorrow,” he smiled, then left Liam’s room.

Liam just sat stunned on his bed for a moment, then blushed scarlet before bringing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. “Not just friends…” Face heating up impossibly more, Liam bit his lip to contain a smile.

Chapter Text

Liam had blushed lightly when Niall sat down beside him in their only lecture the next day, giving the blonde a shy smile when he gently knocked their shoulders together. He had found it incredibly difficult to concentrate on their lecturer’s talk, entirely conscious of Niall sitting beside him.

It was a few weeks on that their lecturer was discussing crescendos and decrescendos and their effectiveness in pieces, which Liam was having trouble focussing on with Niall constantly bumping their knees. The fact that Niall had sat on his right side and was left-handed also made things difficult; every time Liam reached the edge of his page, his arm would knock into Niall’s and send warmth spreading through him.

“So,” Niall began as they left the lecture theatre, “what he basically told us in an hour and a half was that crescendos and decrescendos are used to make sure the audience is awake? The music goes really quiet, then suddenly loud again to keep people from getting bored?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess…” Liam mumbled. Truth was, he had no idea.

“Huh.” Niall shrugged and looped his arm through Liam’s. “So, what now?”

“Um… well, I… I don’t think I have to be doing anything,” Liam replied quietly, eyes on his shoes.

Niall’s grip on his arm tightened. “Great,” he beamed. “You should come over to mine. We can watch The Avengers. Or Thor. Or Batman. Or all of them.” Niall breathed out a long sigh. “So many choices.”

Blushing, Liam whispered, “You want me to come over?”

“You can come over me anytime you like,” Niall replied, then stopped in his tracks. “Whoa, okay, that was way too forward.” He looked to Liam, whose mouth hung open in shock and cheeks were flaming red. “I’m so sorry, that was way too far.”

Liam was still shocked, completely unmoving.

“Liam?” Niall looked worried for the first time. “Liam, I didn’t mean to say that, I’m sorry. Have I freaked you out now?” When he received no reply, Niall hissed, “Fuck it!” He sighed heavily. “Look, can we forget I said that? Please? I still really wanna hang out with you, Liam, and you really need to say something or else I’m just gonna keep on rambling because, fuck it, I’m not gonna lose you over some stupid comment I should’ve kept to myself. I-”

“We can forget it,” Liam whispered.

Niall blew out a relieved breath, his shoulders relaxing. “Thank fuck. You still wanna watch movies?”

Liam nodded once, Niall grabbing onto his arm again and leading him off the campus.

After ten minutes of silently walking, Niall sighed, “You’re still freaked out, aren’t you?”

“Hmm?” Liam looked up, pulled out of his thoughts. “What?”

“You’re still freaked out,” Niall repeated.

“What? No, I was just… thinking,” Liam mumbled. “My mum sent me a message this morning… she wanted to know if I’d made any friends. ’M not sure how to answer.”

Niall frowned. “Why not? I’m your friend, aren’t I?”

“Yeah, but… dunno if you’re just a friend,” Liam replied quietly.

“I’m not just a friend?” Niall asked hopefully, his grin audible.

Glancing to Niall’s face, Liam shook his head. “Not just a friend.”

“Yes!” Niall punched the air and beamed up at Liam, walking closer to his side.

“That would be really obnoxious if you were anyone else,” Liam laughed quietly with a slight blush.

“But because it’s me it’s endearing and adorable,” Niall grinned.

“Like Tom Hiddleston,” Liam smiled.

Niall laughed loudly, throwing his head back. “You’re learning,” he chuckled, standing up on his toes more to kiss Liam’s cheek. Liam felt a small swell of pride.

“Lou, I’m home!” Niall bellowed when they stepped into the house. “You better be dressed! Don’t want to be scarring my guest with your indecency!”

“I’m always decent, dressed or not,” replied a blue-eyed brunette as he popped his head through one of the doors.

“That’s what you think,” Niall snorted as the brunette stepped into the hallway. “Liam, this’s my housemate Louis. Lou, this’s Liam.”

“Hi,” Liam greeted quietly, blushing under Louis’ stare.

Looking to Niall, Louis asked, “Where’d you find him? D'you have to crawl under his rock? He never talks to me, even when I sit right next to him in lectures.” He held his hand out to Liam, which he slowly accepted and shook. “Man, how the hell did you get to be friends with Niall?”

“I didn’t have much say in it,” Liam answered, making Niall laugh loudly again.

“Hey, shut up,” Niall scolded playfully. “You’re not s'posed to talk about how I dragged you unwillingly out of your cave.”

Louis rolled his eyes. “Jesus, Niall.”

There was a short knocking on the door behind them, Niall sighing and reaching back to pull it open. “Hey, Zayn.”

“Hey, Niall,” Zayn greeted, scooting past he and Liam to wrap an arm around Louis’ waist and kiss him.

“I see what you mean,” Liam whispered to Niall.

“Oi, lovebirds,” Niall interrupted the couple. “Snog all you want, but we’ll be watching movies in the living room and we actually wanna hear them. Keep the noise down, yeah?” He led Liam into the living room, half-pushing him onto the couch opposite a massive television screen.

“Whoa…” Liam muttered.

“Louis’ dad’s trying to make up for being a useless sod all his life by buying him all this expensive stuff,” Niall explained vaguely. “Hasn’t made Lou forgive him at all, but we’re not complaining about the nice TV and the house, so…” He shrugged.

“Wow… what does Louis’ mum do?” Liam found himself asking.

“She’s a nurse. But she doesn’t buy him this sort of stuff; she’s got six other kids to look after.”

Liam’s eyes widened. “Six?”

“Mm hmm.” Niall picked out a DVD from the selection and popped it in the player. “Lou’s got seven siblings. Six from his mum’s side and one from his dad’s. He doesn’t see his sister on his dad’s side, though, because his dad’s a bit of an arse. Which is why me and Lou get all this cool stuff. ‘Cause his dad’s still trying to make up for being a douche when he’s still a douche. He’s just a rich douche.” Turning to face Liam, Niall commented, “I’m talking too much.”

“Uh… not too much-”

“Liam, I’m talking your ear off,” Niall stated blandly, sitting himself down beside Liam and grabbing the television remote. “Just tell me to shut up when I’m harping on.” He noticed the apprehensive look Liam gave him. “Seriously, Lou tells me to shut up all the time. If you don’t tell me, I don’t usually realise I’m-”

“Niall, shut your gob!” Louis was standing in the living room doorway, attached to Zayn’s side with a look of amusement mixed with disbelief. “For fuck’s sake,” he laughed.

Pointing a finger at Louis, Niall told him, “You’ll keep a civil tongue in that mouth or I will sew it shut, it there an understanding between us?”

“You don’t pay me to talk pretty,” Louis replied simply.

Niall rolled his eyes, then looked to a shocked Liam. “Sorry, that’s-”

“Firefly,” Liam blurted out, too stunned to blush.

There was a short silence, then Louis sing-songed, “We’ll be off, then.” He pulled Zayn away from the doorway, but not before sending Niall a smirk.

“You watch Firefly?” Liam whispered in amazement.

“Used to watch it with me dad,” Niall shrugged. “He loved it. I introduced Lou to it because I told him to keep a civil tongue and he looked at me weird.”

“Doesn’t he always look weird?” Liam found himself asking.

Niall burst out laughing, clutching his stomach. “Oh, man… you're… you’re gold, you are,” he gasped out between laughs.

“Niall, watch your gorram movie and shut the hell up!” Louis yelled through the house.

“Only if you can keep your gorram mouth shut when Zayn fucks you into the mattress!” Niall shouted back. He smirked when Louis made an affronted noise, then pressed the 'play’ button on the remote to start the movie.

“Thor,” Liam noted as the movie began. “Should I be surprised?”

Scooting closer to Liam, Niall grinned up at him. “No. Just watch and love Tom Hiddleston. Fastest way to my heart, y'know.” He paused for a moment. “Well, that and maybe feeding me.” Without another word, he turned his attention back to the television.

As the second Thor film came to an end, Liam realised he had Niall cuddled right up to his side, the blonde’s head on his shoulder and arm draped over his tummy. He also noticed that he had his own hand resting on Niall’s wrist to keep his arm in place.

“Jeez, Liam, he twist your arm into watching that movie with him again?” Louis sighed dramatically as he entered the room, flopping down in one of the lounge chairs. “Seriously, I’ve seen this a thousand times, and every timehe’s drooling over Loki and cooing over how gorgeous he apparently is.”

Niall sat up suddenly, making Liam miss his warmth. “Apparently?” Niall asked incredulously. “That man is perfect.”

“Oo, careful, you’ll make Liam jealous,” Louis teased.

Blushing deeply, Liam mumbled, “’M not jealous.”

“Man, you so are,” Louis snickered.

“I’ll have you know that Liam likes Loki almost as much as I do,” Niall stated, folding his arms with a firm nod.

“Second only to Batman,” Liam added softly.

“Speaking of which.” Niall hopped up to change the DVD over.

“Nooooo, Niiiiaaaaaaaaaall,” Louis whined, sprawling himself out dramatically in his chair. “We watched Batman yesterday. All of them.”

Liam bit his lip and glanced to Niall, who was standing with his hands on his hips next to the television. “You watched all of Batman?”

“But Liam wasn’t here,” Niall pointed out. “So we’ll watch them again.” He sent Louis a satisfied smirk, which only grew when his friend groaned and covered his face with his hands.

“Niall, you suck,” Louis complained.

“Well, go find Zayn and do some sucking of your own,” Niall replied smoothly, taking out the Thor DVD and replacing it with the first Batman.

“But Zayn’s gone home to work on his art project,” Louis huffed, folding his arms.

Niall over-dramatised a gasp, clutching his chest with both hands. “You mean you’re not his only priority?”

“No, horrifyingly enough,” Louis replied, pulling a face before sulkily making himself comfortable.

Biting back a smile, Liam glanced over to Niall as he sat down again. His smile won out, however, when the blonde cuddled up to his side again and started the movie playing.

“They’re great movies,” Liam sighed as the credits for the final Batman movie appeared on the screen.

“Mm,” Niall hummed, nuzzling his face into Liam’s neck. It was just the two of them now, as Louis had grown bored after movie two and retreated to his room. “Wasn’t really watching, to be honest.”

“Why not?” Liam asked, sounding mildly horrified.

“Was too busy watching you.” Niall pressed a small kiss under Liam’s jaw, making the brunette shudder a little. “You were so wrapt,” Niall chucked.

Shrugging the shoulder Niall wasn’t leaning against, Liam mumbled, “I really like Batman…”

“Mm…” Niall kissed under Liam’s jaw again. “I really like you.”

Liam blushed. “Th-thank you.”

Moving up a bit further, Niall pressed his lips to the skin under Liam’s ear. “I like you more than I expected I would,” he whispered.

“O-oh?” Liam squeaked, blushing further.

“Yeah. You’re really good-looking and you’re actually into the same things as me.” One of Niall’s hands slowly lifted to rest at the side of Liam’s neck, his thumb stroking along the brunette’s jaw. “It’s not a common trait.”

Gulping nervously, Liam gripped his own knee tightly. “No?”

“Nope.” Niall just sat quietly for a moment, his thumb still rubbing at Liam’s jaw. “You look good with stubble,” Niall commented, thumbing at the light scruff that dusted Liam’s jawline. “Defines your face.”

Liam had to focus on forcing his breathing to remain even. “Thanks,” he whispered, not trusting his voice enough to speak with any volume.

Nosing at the stubble on Liam’s cheek, Niall murmured, “It’s a good feeling, too.”

Liam’s heart was beating hard against his ribcage. He felt flushed all over, but a little cold at the same time. A slightly dizzy feeling filled his head, worsening when Niall pressed a short kiss to his cheekbone.

“Are you okay?” Niall whispered. He pulled away a little when he received no response. “Liam?”

“I-” Liam cleared his throat, avoiding Niall’s eyes. “I, um…”

“Am I making you uncomfortable?” Niall asked, pulling away a bit more.

“A… a little,” Liam mumbled. When he felt Niall withdraw even further, he rushed out, “B-but I don’t… I… don’t want you to stop… just… dunno what to… how-”

“You don’t know how to reciprocate?” Niall guessed.

“Yeah,” Liam admitted, blushing more.

Smiling gently, Niall assured him, “You don’t have to.”

“But it… it feels weird not giving something back…”

“Well then…” Niall reached for Liam’s hand, guiding it to rest on his thigh. “We can start there,” he murmured, moving closer again and kissing at Liam’s neck.

Liam took a moment to appreciate the feeling of Niall’s lips against his skin, shuddering a little when the blonde started to make his way up his neck. As Niall kissed up over his jaw and around to his chin, Liam only realised he was squeezing his thigh when a small noise left the younger boy’s mouth. “Sorry, was that-?”

“Ssh,” Niall hushed, grasping the hair at the back of Liam’s head with the hand not holding the side of his neck. “I’ll let you know if I don’t like what you do. Just make sure you do the same, okay?” When Liam answered in the form of a small nod, Niall pressed his lips to the corner of the brunette’s mouth. “You need to let me know now,” he murmured, just a gentle instruction as he rubbed his thumb soothingly up and down Liam’s neck. “I know you don’t like talking and expressing how you feel, but I need you to tell me if this is okay.”

A shaky breath left Liam’s mouth, his eyes closing. He gulped, slowly meeting Niall’s eyes. “I…” When he couldn’t finish his sentence, Liam closed his eyes again and sighed at himself in irritation. “Sorry, just…”

“It’s okay, take your time,” Niall assured him, gently kissing the corner of Liam’s mouth again. “It’s not as easy as you’d think, asking for what you want.”

“It’s easy for you,” Liam whispered.

“But you’re not me.”

“I want…” Liam blew out a breath. “I want to… to kiss you,” he admitted, cheeks flushing bright red.

Giving Liam an encouraging smile, Niall murmured, “There, see?” He moved to face Liam a bit better. “Is now okay?”

“Now’s preferable,” Liam rushed out, biting his lip to stop himself from saying anything more.

“Okay,” Niall whispered with a smile. He leaned a little closer, all he needed to press his lips against Liam’s. Sighing through his nose, Niall held the back of Liam’s neck a little tighter.

Liam moved his hand from Niall’s thigh to his hip, a little nervous until the blonde opened his mouth and started to lap at his lower lip. He slowly parted his lips, allowing Niall to slide his tongue between them. A tiny noise escaped Liam’s throat, his hand gripping a bit tighter at Niall’s hip and prompting the blonde to press closer as their tongues rubbed and swirled together. It was only when Niall moaned softly into his mouth that Liam pulled back for air. Both boys were panting for breath, Liam barely managing a whispered, “Whoa.”

“I can do better than that,” Niall hummed cheekily, gently bumping his nose against Liam’s.

“You’ll have to show me,” Liam replied breathlessly, earning a grin from Niall.

“Not right this second, though,” Niall murmured. “I think I’ve blown your mind enough.” He pressed a short kiss to Liam’s mouth, giggling as the older boy chased his lips for a second when he pulled away again. “Down, boy,” he chuckled.

Liam frowned. “’M not a dog.”

“But you’ve got puppy eyes,” Niall cooed, grinning at Liam’s pout in response. “It’s getting late,” he noted, glancing to his watch. “Shit, it’s half past one in the morning,” he chuckled.

“Oh…” Liam bit his lip. “That’s late for walking home…”

“Then don’t go home,” Niall suggested quietly. “You can stay here tonight.” He gently threaded his fingers through those of Liam’s free hand.

“I… I guess that's…” Swallowing nervously, Liam whispered, “Yeah, I’d like that.”

Niall grinned. “Good. Couldn’t have you risking it by walking home in the dark. Won’t have that hanging over my head.” He kissed Liam’s cheek and stood up, lightly tugging the brunette’s hands to encourage him to stand. “C'mon, we should prob'ly get some sleep.”

Nodding in agreement, Liam stood, too, Niall turning off the television before leading him out into the hallway and down to the door at the end. “Is this your room?” Liam asked.

“Yeah.” Niall pushed the door open and gestured for Liam to head inside. “I’ll just be in the bathroom, back in a sec.”

So Liam found himself alone in Niall’s bedroom, staring at the various posters around the walls. The Script, Demi Lovato, Mumford & Sons… and Loki. There were several posters of Loki and Tom Hiddleston on the corner that Niall’s queen bed was pushed into, surrounded by photos of Niall and Louis and a number of others that Liam didn’t recognise.

“I see you’ve discovered my dark secret,” Niall commented from the door, making Liam jump.

“Posters?” Liam asked dumbly.

Niall laughed a little and shook his head. “I was being sarcastic. All the Loki and Tom,” he clarified.

Simply nodding, Liam looked back to all the posters. “Who are the people in the photos?”

“Friends from home,” Niall shrugged, sitting on his bed. “Miss 'em a bit. But I’ve got the photos.” Patting the mattress beside him, Niall asked, “You miss your friends back home?”

Liam sat himself down beside Niall and shook his head a little. “Didn’t have any friends.”

“What?” Niall’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Man, no wonder I had to drag you out of your cave! Liam, that sucks so bad, how come you didn’t have friends?”

Shrugging a little with his eyes on his hands in his lap, Liam mumbled, “’M too shy to talk to anyone.”

“Y'mean no one else ever tried to talk to you like I did?”

Liam shook his head.

“That’s why you kept looking at me like I was being weird…” Grabbing Liam’s hand tightly in his own, Niall stated firmly, “You don’t need friends at home. You’ve got me now.”

Biting his lip, Liam admitted quietly, “I’m glad I’ve got you.”

Niall beamed widely. “Good. Are you alright with sharing a bed?” Liam nodded with a blush, earning another smile from Niall. He pressed his lips to Liam’s cheek, then stood up and stripped off his T-shirt. “Do you have your other class tomorrow?” he asked as he searched through his drawers for a clean, looser top.

“Uh…” Looking anywhere but Niall, Liam replied, “No, it’s Friday mornings.”

“Great,” Niall said cheerfully, tugging his jeans off and pulling on sweatpants. “That means we don’t have to do anything tomorrow.” He noticed how Liam was avoiding eye contact. “Liam, are you…? Oh, wait, was me getting changed in front of you weird?”

“No,” Liam answered quickly. “I just… I’m not used to…”

Sitting beside Liam again, Niall murmured, “Sorry, Li. Wasn’t thinking.” He leaned closer and kissed Liam’s mouth, then patted his shoulder. “D'you wanna make yourself more comfortable, or…? 'Cause I can look away if you want me to.” Liam nodded, prompting Niall to stand and face the door. “Just tell me when you’re ready.”

Liam pulled off his T-shirt and kicked off his socks, thankful he had just worn sweatpants to their class that morning, then crawled under the covers and pulled the blanket up to cover himself. “I’m good.”

When he turned to Liam, Niall gave him a fond smile, but said nothing and flicked the lights off. He climbed under the covers with him, snuggling down and closing his eyes with a contented sigh. “Normally I’d talk your ear off for another hour or so, but I’m knackered,” he yawned.

“That’s okay,” Liam replied quietly, watching Niall nuzzle into his pillow.

“Mm… 'night, Liam,” Niall mumbled sleepily.

“Goodnight,” Liam whispered. He shifted a bit to make himself comfortable, closing his eyes and allowing himself to relax enough to fall asleep.

Chapter Text

When Liam woke the next morning, he felt much warmer than he had when falling asleep. He struggled to open his eyes, and once he had, the sight before him made him freeze. Niall had moved closer in his sleep, his arms now wrapped around Liam’s middle and face buried in the brunette’s chest.

Just as Liam was about to panic about how long he would be stuck like that, Niall’s head shuffled a little, an awakening sigh leaving him as his eyes fluttered open, eyelashes tickling Liam’s skin. “Liam?” he mumbled groggily.

“H-hi,” Liam whispered.

Niall looked up at him blearily. “Mm… hi.” Their position seemed to register in Niall’s head. “Oh, sorry,” he yawned, scrunching his face up as he did so. “Forgot to say; I’m a cuddler.”

“I-it's…” Liam took a deep breath. “It’s o-okay.”

“Are you sure?” Niall asked as seriously as he could while looking so sleep-rumpled.

“Yeah,” Liam nodded. “’M sure.”

“Good.” Niall curled his arms around Liam tighter, nuzzling his face into Liam’s chest again. “I like this. ’S warm.”

Desperately trying to keep his breathing steady, Liam could feel his heart beating rapidly.

“You sure this is okay?” Niall checked. “I can hear your heart racing…”

“Just a bit… bit nervous,” Liam admitted, very slowly letting his arms wrap around Niall in return. “Never done this with anyone before.”

“S'okay, I don’t bite,” Niall sighed contentedly, lips pressing a small kiss to Liam’s sternum. “Unless you’re into that sort of thing, then I can bite all you like.”

Liam blushed at the idea. “No. Please don’t bite me.”

“Okay,” Niall giggled. He moved his legs enough to tangle them with Liam’s, humming happily.

There was a short knock on the door, which was then opened not a second later. “Nialler, you up yet?” Louis asked as he barged in.

“No, fuck off,” Niall yawned, cuddling into Liam’s chest more.

Louis stared at Liam in surprise, making him blush a deep red and hide his face in the pillow as much as possible. “Well, then. Wasn’t expecting you to score that fast, Ni.”

“Shut up and fuck off,” Niall sighed, glancing over his shoulder to the door. “’S got nothing to do with you what I do. ‘Specially in my own room.”

“In my house,” Louis added, folding his arms and lifting an eyebrow.

“Louis, piss off.” Niall sent his friend a serious look, sliding one of his hands up Liam’s back to stroke his hair.

“Alright, whatever,” Louis huffed, rolling his eyes. “Come talk to me when you’re done canoodling.” He turned on his heel and left the room, closing the door on his way out.

Turning his attention back to Liam, Niall asked quietly, “Liam, are you okay?” When he got no response from the blushing brunette, he pressed a short kiss to his neck. “Was that too much? Liam?” Nudging his nose against Liam’s collarbone, Niall reminded him gently, “You said you’d tell me when you were uncomfortable, Liam, you need to talk to me.”

“He thinks we had sex, doesn’t he?” Liam mumbled into his pillow.

“Probably.”

Liam unwrapped himself from around Niall, rolling over to face the wall.

“Liam…” Niall sighed and scooted closer to the taller boy, lightly resting a hand against Liam’s back. “Li, what’s it matter what Louis thinks? He’s just being a prick, and he’s trying to embarrass me, not you.”

“But you’re not embarrassed,” Liam replied so quietly Niall barely heard.

“No, but it takes an awful lot to embarrass me. Lou knows that, but he still tries.” Placing a small kiss on Liam’s shoulder, Niall whispered, “We need to talk about this, Liam, I can’t just ignore it.” A long silence followed his words, making Niall sigh. He pressed a short trail of kisses from Liam’s shoulder to his neck, then rolled onto his back and rubbed at his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Great,” he muttered, staring up at the ceiling. “Trust Louis to come and bloody ruin everything.”

“Ruin what?” Liam asked softly.

“I’d made progress with bringing you out of your shell. You were kinda comfortable with me. Now Louis’ gone and embarrassed you, meaning I’m gonna have to start all over again,” Niall grumbled.

“Why not just give up?” Liam whispered.

“Because I don’t want to give up,” Niall replied, sounding like a pouting child. “I want to spend time with you, I want to be close to you. I’ll work you back up to where we were, I’m determined to, I just wish Louis had kept his gorram nose out of it.”

“Why do you want anything to do with me?”

Niall sighed heavily. “Because I really like you,” he replied pathetically. “And no one else talks to you and, God damn it, it makes me hurt to know people are quite happy to leave you feeling all lonely.” Folding his arms, Niall huffed. “People suck. But I really like you, Liam, and even if we’re just friends, I wanna hang out with you. I kinda wanna be more than friends,way more, but if I can’t have that I just wanna be around you. You’re a cool person, Liam. I like that you’ve let me see that.”

After a short pause, Liam said quietly, “My mum and dad always said I should never waste my time on people who don’t like me.”

“I… I do like you,” Niall insisted, gazing at Liam’s back and sounding genuinely hurt.

“I didn’t say you don’t.” Sighing a little, Liam asked, “Will Louis say anything about us sleeping in the same bed?”

“Who to?”

“Anyone.”

Shrugging one shoulder, Niall replied, “I can’t see why. Not really that important, is it?”

“Is it important to you?” Liam whispered.

“What? If he tells people, or us sharing a bed?”

“Sharing a bed,” Liam clarified, closing his eyes and holding his breath as he waited for the answer.

“Of course it is,” Niall half-laughed, eyes returning to the off-white of his ceiling. “It means you trust me, and there’s nothing more important than trust.”

Liam suddenly turned back over and pressed his lips against Niall’s, earning a tiny noise of surprise before the blonde’s eyes fluttered closed and his hands came up to rest on either side of the taller boy’s neck. Sighing happily, Niall found himself gasping for a breath with Liam pulled back.

“Wow,” Niall laughed breathlessly, stroking Liam’s jaw with his thumb.

Biting his lip, Liam realised what he had just done. “I-I… I’m s-sorry, I was-”

“Oh, no, no, no, you’re not getting out if it like that,” Niall chuckled, lifting his head to catch Liam’s lips with his own again, humming before breaking the kiss. “Don’t you dare apologise for kissing me, not ever, you got that?”

Liam gave a slightly jittery nod. “Just… what you said about trust-”

“Liam, if I didn’t trust you, I wouldn’t’ve had you come 'round yesterday,” Niall told him with a smile.

“If you let me finish…” Liam mumbled against Niall’s cheek as he placed a small kiss there. “What you said about trust. It’s nice to hear someone I care about talking about trust like that.”

A grin worked its way onto Niall’s face. “Someone you care about?” Liam nodded, his cheeks turning pink. “I’m someone you care about?” Niall asked quietly, his grin only widening.

“I… I wouldn’t be here if you weren’t.”

Niall started kissing at Liam’s throat, mumbling against his skin as he went. “And how did I achieve this highly-sought-after honour of becoming someone you care about?”

“Hardly sought-after,” Liam muttered, eyelids fluttering at the feel of Niall’s lips against his skin. “Y-you made an effort to talk to me, and then… I-I realised looking at you gives me butterflies in my stomach and makes me feel dizzy. Like, a good kind of dizzy, and sorta… like, floaty?”

Niall’s kisses had worked their way up Liam’s neck to his jaw, where he had to stop to coo quietly at the brunette’s words. “Liam, you’re so fucking cute.”

Cheeks flushing pink, Liam noted that he was the one on top of Niall, and that he could easily move away if he didn’t like what Niall was doing. It was at that point that he realised he really didn’t want to move away. Instead, he moved a little closer, shifting so he was lying more on top of Niall. “I like that,” he whispered.

“Like what?” Niall murmured, lips just resting against Liam’s jaw.

“The little kisses.”

“Well then,” Niall grinned, “I might just keep going.” He skimmed his lips over Liam’s skin, tilting his head a bit to kiss under the brunette’s jaw. “Hmm… it’s so tempting to leave a hickey.”

“No,” Liam blurted out suddenly, pulling back from Niall’s mouth.

“Ssh, I said it was tempting, not that I actually would,” Niall assured him. “Mind you, I’d love to leave my mark. Kiss your skin purple.”

Swallowing hard as Niall started gently kissing at his skin again, Liam asked, “Have you done that to people before?”

“Yeah.” Shrugging one shoulder, Niall asked, “Does it matter?”

“Not really. Just curious,” Liam mumbled.

Moving up so he was face to face with Liam, Niall whispered, “Does it make you jealous?”

Liam blushed and avoided Niall’s eyes. “A bit.”

Niall grinned up at the brunette. “You’re so cute,” he sighed.

“I can’t be that cute,” Liam muttered, eyes fixed on Niall’s shoulder.

“Yes, you can,” Niall chuckled, kissing Liam’s cheek. “Now, what do you want to do today?”

Opening his mouth a little in surprise, Liam stammered, “Y-you really wanna… s-spend today with me?”

“Of course I do,” Niall laughed. He pulled Liam down into a kiss, working his tongue between the brunette’s lips and exploring his mouth. He had to contain a smile when Liam kissed back eagerly. “I don’t wanna be away from those lips for too long,” Niall whispered when they separated for air.

Liam blushed bright red, ducking his head to mumble a shy, “Ditto,” against Niall’s neck.

“So, what do you wanna do?” Niall asked again, running his fingers through Liam’s hair.

“I like this,” Liam replied quietly. “Can we just do this for a while?”

“Sure,” Niall grinned. “But we might have to move a bit, 'cause you’re kinda heavy.”

“Oh, sorry!” Liam moved back quickly, only for Niall to grab his arm.

“Calm down,” Niall laughed, leaning up and kissing Liam’s cheek. “You’re so jumpy.” He rolled onto his side, tugging Liam down with him. “Come here.” Shuffling closer to Liam, Niall wrapped his arms around the brunette’s middle, hooking their legs together and nuzzling his face into the older boy’s chest.

Tentatively curling his arms around Niall and slowly relaxing, Liam leaned his cheek against the top of the blonde’s head. He closed his eyes and sighed through his nose, allowing himself to enjoy the moment.

“It this okay?” Niall checked, voice muffled by Liam’s chest.

“Mm hmm,” Liam hummed. “’S nice.” He felt Niall smile against his skin.

“Good.”

“Jesus, I was starting to wonder whether you two’d died!” Louis exclaimed as Niall and Liam wandered into the kitchen two hours later.

“No, we were having a lie-in,” Niall shrugged, pulling the fridge open. “You object to cold pizza for breakfast?” he asked Liam over his shoulder.

“That’s fine,” Liam replied quietly, arms wrapped around his own middle. He blushed when Louis made eye contact with him, infinitely glad he had pulled his T-shirt back on.

“Y'know, you don’t have to blush,” Louis told him with a raised eyebrow.

“Louis, shush,” Niall sighed, sitting a pizza box on the bench and flipping the lid open. “Dig in,” he smiled to Liam, grabbing a slice of pizza and taking a hearty bite. “What did you want earlier?” Niall asked Louis around his mouthful of pizza.

Louis wrinkled his nose distastefully. “I wanted to ask you something, but it can wait.”

“It obviously couldn’t wait until I was awake,” Niall noted.

“Well, it can wait now.” Louis grabbed a slice of pizza and slipped out of the room before Niall could scold him for pinching food.

“Prick,” Niall muttered, but he had a fond look on his face. He glanced to Liam. “Feel like a walk?”

Shrugging one shoulder, Liam kept his eyes down.

“Liam, what’s wrong?” Niall asked with a frown, moving closer to Liam and wrapping his arm around his hips.

“Nothing,” Liam muttered. “Still dunno how to answer my mum, s'all”

Niall raised an eyebrow at him, finishing his slice of pizza. “That’s not it, c'mon.” Kissing Liam’s cheek, he whispered, “We’re supposed to trust each other, right?”

Liam sighed and nodded his head. “Louis doesn’t wanna ask his question in front of me. That means it’s either about me, or something he doesn’t want me to know about.”

“Liam,” Niall sighed. “Lou’s an idiot. He’s prob'ly just trying to wind you up by saying what he said.”

Shaking his head, Liam mumbled, “People used to talk about me all the time. I got picked on a lot. I know when someone’s talking about me behind my back. They give me this look, like they’re waiting for me to leave before they can start gossiping again.”

Niall opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again. He led Liam into the living room and sat him down on the couch they had been on the day before, curling into his side and looking up at him. “What could people possibly find in you to pick on?” he asked in disbelief.

“Everything,” Liam whispered down at his hands in his lap. “My clothes, my hair, the way I walk… everything. Even the way I apparently scrunch my face up when I’m concentrating.”

“You do,” Niall told him with a small smile. “But that’s adorable. It’s cute.”

Liam sighed. “You think everything I do is cute.”

“Because it is. Those idiots you used to know were jealous, that’s all it is. They didn’t like how much better than them you are so they picked on you to make themselves feel better.”

Shaking his head, Liam mumbled, “You don’t have to lie to make me feel better, Niall.”

“I’m not!” Niall sat upright, making Liam turn his head so their eyes met. “You need to stop putting yourself down. Right now. The sooner you stop telling yourself lies, the sooner you’ll start feeling better about yourself.”

“But what is there for me to feel good about?” Liam asked.

“Everything! Everything about you, Liam. You’re smart, smarter than most people in our classes, and you don’t try or study or anything. This,” Niall continued, holding Liam’s face in both hands, “models would kill for his face. And your eyes, Liam, they make you look like the most adorable puppy to have ever lived.” Leaning closer to Liam’s face, Niall whispered, “And you kiss like no one I’ve ever met.” He stole a short kiss on the mouth. “And as for the way you dress, it might be a little geeky, but who isn’t a bit geeky? Everyone loves a good superhero movie, and they’re apparently geeky. You’re not, like, a nerd or anything, you’re just a bit geeky,” Niall shrugged. “Hell,I’m geeky. I know I am. It’s not a bad thing. And if it is, I really couldn’t care less, because it’s who I am.”

“But you’re so confident, it doesn’t matter if you’re geeky,” Liam sighed sadly.

“I’m only confident because I’ve got to the point where I know that it doesn’t matter what other people think,” Niall said seriously. “Really, why do other people’s opinions matter? It’s not like one person’s opinion of you is going to change your whole life.”

“Yours has,” Liam said so quietly Niall barely heard.

Niall sighed fondly and pressed another kiss to Liam’s cheek. “Mine only matters because I care about you and my opinion is positive. If someone thinks you’re weird, it doesn’t change whether or not you actually are. If someone thinks you’re a geek, they probably can’t see that they are, too. And if someone thinks you’re ugly, Liam, more fool them. They’re the ones missing out on being around such an amazing person. And they need their eyes checked.”

Liam managed a short, quiet laugh. He glanced down at his hands then back up to Niall’s eyes. “You really mean that?” he whispered.

“Why would I lie to you?” Niall half-laughed. “What would be the point in that?”

“To build me up and knock me back down again.”

Stroking Liam’s cheek with his thumb, Niall asked, “Why would I do that? I’m not the kind of person to derive pleasure from seeing other people hurt.”

Liam was silent for a few moments. “You really think all that about me?” he checked quietly.

“Yes, Liam, I really think those things about you,” Niall told him honestly. “And more, but I didn’t think you’d appreciate me ranting about how sexy you are.”

Biting his lip, Liam whispered, “Tell me.”

Raising an eyebrow, Niall’s lips twitched up into a smirk. “Alright.” He moved a little to sit half in Liam’s lap, resting his hands against the older boy’s chest. “For starters, that mouth of yours should be illegal. The little noises you make when we’re kissing… Every time I kiss you I keep thinking about all the other places I want to feel your lips and tongue. And your hands. God, your hands and arms… You’re really strong, Li, I don’t think you even realise it. You could pick me up and carry me 'round.” Bringing his lips to Liam’s neck, Niall whispered, “I’d love it if you carried me.” He moved his hands to thread his fingers between Liam’s. “Can picture these on my thighs when you carry me, kissing me with that sinful mouth.” Niall shifted to straddle Liam’s lap, moving the older boy’s hands to the backs of his thighs.

Liam blew out a shaky breath. “Anything else?”

“Mm hmm…” Niall tugged at the bottom of Liam’s T-shirt, prompting him to lift his arms and allow the blonde to pull it off. Guiding Liam’s hands back to his thighs, Niall rested his own hands against Liam’s chest again. “You look like a god, Liam. Fuck… I wanna eat you.” He lowered his head to kiss at Liam’s chest, hands sliding down to brush over his nipples before exploring his abs. Niall pressed wet kisses down Liam’s sternum, earning a tight squeeze of his thighs that pulled a soft moan from him.

Liam looked down at the blonde in his lap, nudging his forehead with his nose. When Niall glanced up at him, he repeated the action, making the younger boy lift his head. As soon as Niall was close enough, Liam caught his lips in a hard kiss. Niall’s hands came up to hold Liam’s head, mouth opening obediently when the brunette’s tongue pressed impatiently at his lips. Fingers digging into Niall’s thighs, Liam tugged him closer, their hips pressing together and causing moans from both boys.

“Y'know, you have your own room for that.”

Freezing, Liam didn’t dare look to the doorway, where he knew Louis was standing.

“Liam…” Still breathing heavily, Niall whispered in Liam’s ear, “Does his opinion matter, Liam? Is what he thinks really going to affect you?”

It took Liam a moment to answer. “No.” He turned his head and captured Niall’s lips again.

Niall’s eyes rolled back and he moaned against Liam’s lips as his mouth was invaded by the older boy’s tongue. He pressed his body as close to Liam’s as he could, moaning again as the brunette pulled him harder against him by his thighs.

“I’ll go somewhere else, then,” Louis huffed, the sound of his footsteps disappearing down the hallway.

“Li…” Niall breathed into Liam’s mouth, followed by a soft groan as their hips started rocking together. “Y-you're… ugh, f-faster…” He dived in for another deep kiss, feeling Liam grip his bum.

Liam’s hips started jerking up faster, his lips losing Niall’s as he sucked in a short shaky breath. “I-” He didn’t have the opportunity to finish his sentence when he felt his orgasm overcome him, Niall kissing him again and swallowing down his moan while he rode the waves of his pleasure. When he finished, Liam took a moment to get his breath back, just staring up at Niall. “You haven't…?”

“I can deal with that,” Niall dismissed, his breath still coming a little heavy as he squeezed his eyes shut to calm himself.

Biting his lips together for a moment, Liam came to a decision. “I wanna help.”

Niall opened his eyes and smiled down at the brunette. “Alright.” He shuffled back a tiny bit on Liam’s lap, tugging down the zip of his jeans. “You okay with helping me like this?” he checked.

“Yeah,” Liam answered quickly. He could feel his heart thumping hard against his ribs from nerves, but he really wanted to do this.

“Okay.” Niall pulled the waistband of his boxers down enough to free himself from them, sighing a little in relief. He watched Liam for a moment, who was sitting unmoving as he took in what was happening. Finding one of Liam’s hands with his own, Niall gently held his wrist and guided the brunette’s hand to his cock. “Nervous?” he whispered, kissing Liam’s cheek.

Liam’s hand twitched a little when Niall brushed it slightly against his erection. “A bit,” Liam admitted. “I don’t know… um, never done this for someone before…” He cleared his throat, cheeks colouring pink.

“That’s alright,” Niall assured him, slowly wrapping Liam’s hand around him. He kept his hand over Liam’s, then asked carefully, “You’ve done this yourself, yeah?”

Face turning bright red, Liam nodded once.

“Nothing to be ashamed of,” Niall whispered. “But it’s a lot like that. Don’t be scared, okay? Here.” Niall moved Liam’s hand up from base to tip of his cock, breathing out a shaky breath at the feeling before guiding it down again. After doing this a few times, he felt Liam taking more control, squeezing a little tighter at the head and making Niall shudder slightly.

“Was that good or bad?” Liam checked.

“G-good,” Niall nodded, eyes closing. His hand fell to his side as Liam gained more confidence in his strokes. “F-fuck…”

Liam swallowed his nerves and focussed on his hand, determined to make Niall feel good. He watched the flickers of pleasure dart across Niall’s face, repeating the specific movements that caused them and pulling a low moan from the boy above him.

“Liam, doing so good…” Niall’s hips were rocking slightly in time with Liam’s hand, his eyes tight shut. He leaned his head forward so his forehead was resting against Liam’s, short little pants escaping his mouth as the brunette worked him closer to his orgasm. “Yeah, yeah, yeah…”

Gulping and steeling himself, Liam whispered, “Are you gonna come for me?”

Niall groaned and suddenly came in Liam’s hand, his own hands flying up to grip the older boy’s shoulders tightly. “Yes!” he gasped, a look of ecstasy on his face. He shuddered, letting out a shaky breath as he floated back down from his high. “Shit…” he breathed out.

“Good?” Liam checked nervously.

Laughing breathlessly, Niall caught Liam’s lips in a long kiss. “I wouldn’t complain if you did that to me every day.”

“I… can if you want me to.”

“No,” Niall chuckled, carefully tucking himself back into his pants before nuzzling his face into Liam’s neck. “There’s more to life than great orgasms.”

Liam blushed a bit at the word, hoping Niall wouldn’t notice. “There doesn’t have to be,” he half-laughed.

Humming a laugh into Liam’s neck, Niall murmured, “I like you. Can I keep you? I like how you think.”

“Keep me?” Liam asked quietly.

“Not, like, chained up in a basement or anything,” Niall giggled, wrapping his arms around Liam’s neck and pressing little kisses to his throat. “Just have you around all the time. Like I said, I really like you, Li. Brilliant hand-jobs aside, I really like you.”

“I really like you, too,” Liam whispered. He brought a hand up to stroke Niall’s hair, earning a pleased hum.

After a long while of simply holding each other, Niall eventually pulled back. “You’re a mess,” he teased, gesturing to Liam’s clothes. Giggling at Liam’s flushed face, Niall tugged him to his feet. “C'mon, let’s get you cleaned up.”

Chapter Text

Walking into his lecture on Monday felt strange to Liam. He had spent the rest of Thursday with Niall, and since then had been working on a project for the class Niall didn’t take with him. Although he had finished it on Sunday with no hassles, Liam had felt stressed all of Sunday evening.

Sitting down in his regular seat in the lecture theatre, Liam felt the need to hold his breath as he waited for Niall to walk into the room. “C'mon,” he muttered to himself. “Get a grip.”

“Morning.”

Liam looked up as Niall greeted him cheerfully, the blonde sitting down beside him and setting up his notepad. “Hi,” Liam whispered.

“God, Lou was hell this morning,” Niall sighed, rolling his eyes as he pulled out a few more things from his bag. “Jesus, you’d think I’d killed someone. All I did was leave the milk on the bench overnight. And there was only a trickle left in the bottom, seriously, not the whole new bottle or anything. He’s such a gorram fusser.” Turning to look at Liam, Niall asked, “How was the weekend?”

“Was doing my project,” Liam replied quietly, shrugging one shoulder and keeping his eyes down.

Niall sighed heavily, shifting his whole body to face Liam more. “Do I have to start again from scratch?”

Gulping, Liam sighed quietly, “I don’t know.”

“It was only a few days.” Leaning in to Liam’s ear, Niall whispered, “How ‘bout we meet up 'round the back between this and our afternoon lecture?”

“I-I… um…” Liam blushed, twisting his fingers together nervously.

“Or not,” Niall shrugged. “But come 'round mine tonight, yeah? It’s my night to cook. Lou won’t mind.”

“You don’t have to keep being nice to me,” Liam whispered.

Niall smacked his palm against his forehead, then looked to Liam. “I wasn’t kidding the other day,” he said firmly. “For heaven’s sake, maybe I will chain you up in the basement if you go back to thinking like this every time we spend a couple of days away from each other. I hope you know I’ll be right back to snogging you as soon as I get you back in my room,” he added in a low voice, pressing a short kiss to Liam’s cheek before turning his attention to the front as their lecture began.

Liam didn’t learn anything in that hour and a half.

Although he was nervous, Liam allowed Niall to drag him home that afternoon. He found himself being pushed into the kitchen as soon as they arrived, Niall starting on cooking straight away.

“Lou’s class finishes at six,” Niall explained as he pulled a frypan from one of the cupboards. “By the time he gets home, he’s ready to kill, so I cook dinner before he gets back and he’s happy because he’s being fed. Basically, I don’t give him the chance to get shitty about his class.”

“Are you sure he won’t mind me being here?” Liam asked, chewing on his lip.

“Positive,” Niall replied airily as the doorbell rang through the house. “You couldn’t get that for me, could you?”

Liam glanced to the kitchen door. “Uh… o-okay.” He slowly headed out into the hallway and down to the front door. Swallowing nervously, he pulled the door open.

“Hi,” Zayn greeted when he came into view. “Thought I’d come over and surprise Lou when he gets back.”

“Um… okay…”

Zayn stepped up to the door, Liam awkwardly moving to the side so he could enter the house. “Niall!” Zayn called out as he kicked his shoes off.

“Kitchen!” Niall replied.

Following Zayn into the kitchen, Liam stood uncomfortably by the door as the two boys exchanged greetings and started chatting. He watched how easily Zayn talked to Niall, how simple he made it seem, feeling a twinge of jealousy.

“Li,” Niall sing-songed, holding a hand out to Liam and using the other to push around the meat and onion he had cooking in the frypan. “C'mere.”

“Um…” Liam shuffled over to Niall, the blonde pulling him closer and making the taller boy wrap an arm around his waist.

“It’s okay, Li, Zayn’s way nicer than Lou,” Niall assured him, holding Liam’s hand against his hip so he couldn’t let go of his middle.

“Why don’t you live with Zayn, then?” Liam found himself asking.

Niall laughed loudly, throwing his head back. “Yeah, Zayn, why don’t I live with you?” he snickered.

“You practically do,” Zayn shrugged. “And don’t make fun of my Lou.”

Smirking, Niall told him, “I make fun of your Lou all the time. He’s worse than I am, Zayn, you just don’t see it.” Sighing dramatically, Niall threw a hand to his heart. “You poor boy. So blinded.”

Liam had to smile a little at the blonde beside him, moving a tiny bit closer and holding him tighter against his side. He could practically feel Niall’s joy.

Louis arrived home not an hour later, obviously pleasantly surprised to see that not only was his dinner prepared and waiting for him, but his boyfriend was there with promises that Niall and Liam very deliberately didn’t listen to. The four of them ate dinner together, then Louis and Zayn disappeared down the hallway, leaving Niall and Liam alone in the kitchen.

“You’re a good cook,” Liam complimented as he helped Niall clean up after dinner.

“Thank you,” Niall chuckled. “With how much I like to eat, you’d hope I was.” As Liam was about to start washing up, Niall stopped him with a hand on his arm. “We can do that tomorrow,” he smiled. He lightly tugged on Liam’s arm, leading him down the hallway and into his bedroom. “You remember what I said in class this morning?” he asked, sitting Liam on the bed.

“I don’t remember anything from that class except that you smelled nice and your hands were warm,” Liam replied without thinking. He blushed a little, watching Niall grin.

“It was something about me and you and snogging, if I remember correctly,” Niall murmured, settling himself so he was straddling Liam’s lap.

“Um…” Liam’s unease made Niall pause. “Should it be weird?” Liam whispered unsurely. “I mean, last time… we were… I-… my hand-”

“Liam,” Niall interrupted gently, holding the taller boy’s face in both hands. “It doesn’t have to be weird. We got really close last time, Li, I like that. Are you comfortable with us being that close?”

“Yeah…” Liam admitted, nodding.

“Then why should it be weird?”

Shaking his head, Liam pressed a kiss to Niall’s mouth. “It shouldn’t be weird.”

With a grin, Niall whispered, “Good.”

Liam had gone back to his room that night

with kiss-bruised lips and dishevelled hair, and, amazingly, Zayn by his side. They had chatted minimally about classes and their accommodation, and Liam had somehow ended up agreeing to a games night at Niall and Louis’. He had farewelled Zayn as he stopped at his door, the other boy heading on down to his.

Thinking about it all the next morning, Liam had to remind himself that he was being kind of sociable now. “It’s weird having people who want me around,” he whispered to himself as he stared in the mirror. He jumped slightly at a knocking on his door.

“Morning, you,” Niall grinned when Liam opened up. He stood up on his toes and kissed Liam’s lips quickly. “Thought I’d get in early,” he whispered. “Before you had the time to start doubting it again.” Pressing a long kiss to Liam’s mouth, Niall asked brightly, “You ready for class?”

“Huh?” Liam blinked a few times, a little dazed. “Oh, right.” He ducked back into his room and grabbed his bag. “Yeah, ready.”

Niall bit his lip and giggled a little as Liam stepped out of his room and pulled the door shut. “Did you forget?”

“Only because you were kissing me,” Liam mumbled, watching their feet to hide his blush.

“I really do blow your mind, don’t I?” Niall chuckled, grabbing Liam’s hand and threading their fingers together.

“So what if you do?” Liam’s cheeks were only darkening in colour. “Hang on, how’d you get in the building?” he asked with a frown as they stepped out and headed onto the campus.

Smirking, Niall told him, “Zayn let me in. Wasn’t happy about it, mind, but I wanted to surprise you.”

“Well, you did,” Liam assured him, squeezing Niall’s hand a little and earning a grin in return.

“Good.” Popping up on his toes again, Niall kissed Liam’s cheek as they entered the lecture theatre.

While he found their lecture quite interesting and definitely took down the notes he needed, Liam had a question for Niall swimming around in his head the whole time that kept popping up to the surface every ten minutes or so. He followed the blonde into the library so they could study for an upcoming test, but he really needed to ask.

“Niall?” he started once the two of them had found a table and set themselves up.

“Mm hmm?” Niall hummed, looking up at him innocently.

“It this… us, I mean, are we… like, what… what are we?”

Niall tilted his head to the side. “How do you mean?”

“Like…” Liam fumbled for his words, his cheeks reddening steadily. “Are we… dating, or seeing each other, or… just messing around or-”

“It doesn’t have a name yet,” Niall shrugged, reaching across the small table to pat Liam’s hand. “We’re just us. Once I’ve got you to loosen up a bit, we can settle more of what we are. Until then, we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing.” Giving Liam a sympathetic look and squeezing his hand comfortingly, Niall murmured, “We’ll work it out, okay? But I’m not going anywhere, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Feeling his shoulders relax a little, Liam just nodded. “We’d better study.”

Niall smirked, lightly flicking Liam’s fingers before retracting his hand. “You’re the one that distracted me.”

“You’ve been distracting me for weeks,” Liam replied, feeling half-nervous and half-brave.

“Oh, really?” Niall’s voice was teasing, a delighted grin on his face.

“Study,” Liam answered simply, biting his lip to contain his smile as his cheeks flushed pink again.

Chapter Text

“You blush too much,” Louis commented as he watched Niall and Liam talking quietly on the couch.

Liam’s cheeks only turned bright red.

“Jesus, Louis, can you leave him alone?” Niall sighed exasperatedly. “For fuck’s sake. Poor thing can barely handle me teasing him, he doesn’t need you having at him, too.” He pulled Liam’s head in to his chest, stroking the taller boy’s hair and pouting at Louis. “He’s just sensitive, aren’t you, babe?” Niall cooed, ducking his head to kiss Liam’s cheek.

“Stop it,” Liam mumbled, but his voice held no conviction, his hands grasping at the front of Niall’s T-shirt.

“See?” Niall sent Louis puppy-eyes.

“Ugh, you two are so gross,” Louis complained.

“Says you,” Niall scoffed, rolling his eyes. “At least we’re not sucking each other’s faces off, unlike some.”

Louis raised an eyebrow at them. “Are you trying to tell me that what I saw last week wasn’t you two sucking each other’s faces off?” he asked sceptically. “Because it looked like that and more to me.”

Glad his face was hidden so Louis couldn’t see the colour of his cheeks, Liam mumbled, “That was once. You and Zayn are every day.”

“There, see,” Niall smirked, poking his tongue out at his friend.

“Ignore them, babe,” Zayn suggested as he came up beside Louis, wrapping an arm around his waist and kissing him deeply.

“We rest our case,” Niall stated simply, lifting Liam’s head so he could see his face. “He’s just being a shit,” he assured him quietly, rubbing his thumb along Liam’s jaw.

Nodding, Liam whispered, “I know.”

“Go be sickly-sweet somewhere else,” Louis huffed.

“Go snog somewhere else,” Niall countered. “At least we won’t be making a mess.”

Louis narrowed his eyes, but dragged Zayn down the hallway nonetheless.

“We made a bit of a mess last time,” Liam pointed out quietly.

“Well, you made a mess last time,” Niall giggled, kissing Liam’s lips.

“You did, technically,” Liam corrected quietly.

“So did you,” Niall reminded him.

“You made me,” Liam mumbled with a blush.

Leaning close to Liam’s ear, Niall whispered, “And loved every second of it.”

“You loved doing that to me?” Liam asked in confusion.

“I loved knowing I could make you feel that good,” Niall shrugged, kissing Liam’s cheek. “You’re a tough person to get close to, Li. I love that you’ve let me in, and that I can do things to and with you that no one else can.” Rubbing his thumb along Liam’s jaw, he added, “Especially doing things to you. The way you react to me when I touch you and how you always want more kisses… it makes all the effort I put into getting to know you even more worth it.” He pressed his mouth to Liam’s, grinning when the brunette chased his lips with his own again. “I guess you like kissing,” Niall giggled, allowing Liam to claim his lips.

“Just you,” Liam mumbled between long kisses.

When their lips finally parted, Niall whispered, “It’s a safe way for you to tell me how you feel without actually saying it.” He smiled when Liam gave him a slightly confused look. “You don’t do well with words, Li. But you know you’re allowed to kiss me, so you do because it’s a wordless way of communicating with me.”

Liam bit his lip. “I hadn’t even thought of that,” he admitted.

“It’s subconscious,” Niall chuckled, pecking Liam’s lips quickly. “You’re not doing it on purpose. It’s cute, though.”

“Y'mean I’m cute subconsciously as well?” Liam whined.

Laughing loudly, Niall buried his face in Liam’s shoulder, hugging him tightly. “Yes, Liam,” he giggled, nuzzling the brunette’s collarbone. “You’re just cute, babe.”

Liam leaned his cheek against the top of Niall’s head. “Take your word for it,” he sighed, closing his eyes and taking in the moment.

“Good, ‘cause I’m right,” Niall grinned, pressing a few small kisses to Liam’s skin.

Sighing again, Liam just shook his head, hoping his blush wasn’t too obvious.

“So, I’m going home for mid-semester break,” Niall piped up as he and Liam walked hand in hand through the shopping centre nearest the university. “Will you come with me?”

Liam stopped suddenly, eyes wide. “W-what?”

“Will you come home with me?” Niall asked again. He squeezed Liam’s hand, then shrugged, “I want my mum to meet you.”

“B-but…” Liam stood speechless for a moment. “Uh… why?”

“You’re the closest thing I have to a partner and I want my mum to meet you. Because that’s what people do…”

“Is it… is it for her…” Liam bit his lip, “approval?”

Niall laughed loudly, drawing attention to them that Liam found uncomfortable. “No, Li, I don’t want her approval. Well, not really, but it’d be nice. I just want her to get to know you. You mean a hell of a lot to me, I think it’d be important to her.”

“It’s important… to her?” Liam asked quietly.

“Well, it’s kinda important to me, too,” Niall chuckled, giving Liam’s hand another squeeze. “But I know Ma would like to meet you. I’m her youngest, after all.”

Chewing his lip for a moment, Liam answered slowly, “Okay…”

“Yes!” Niall jumped at him and wrapped his arms around Liam’s neck in a hug.

“But I’ll be… terrified…” Liam whispered, gradually returning the hug by letting his arms curl around Niall’s middle.

“I know,” Niall murmured, kissing Liam’s cheek. “But I’ll be right next to you the whole time, I promise. And I’ll ask Ma not to be too in-your-face.”

“Thank you.” Liam simply stood hugging the blonde, appreciating the steadiness of his breath on his collarbone and the light tickle of his eyelashes against the skin of his neck.

“Right.” Niall pulled back to look up at Liam. “We were prezzie-shopping.”

“Yeah.”

Grinning, Niall stole a quick kiss before grasping Liam’s hand and walking on as though their conversation hadn’t even occurred. “I’m so stuck on Louis for his birthday,” he sighed, swinging their hands lightly between them.

Merely humming in response, Liam replayed their words and gulped. Mid-semester break was going to be interesting.

“C'mon, Li, or we’ll miss the train!”

Liam let the blonde drag him down the platform, a slightly giddy yet anxious feeling swirling in his stomach. “Doesn’t our train leave at eleven?”

“Yes,” Niall sighed exasperatedly.

“It’s only ten forty five,” Liam pointed out carefully.

Rolling his eyes, Niall stated, “Never run to-time, Liam. If you’re early, you never miss anything.”

Liam just let it be, hopping onto the train and following Niall through the carriage to some empty seats, which just so happened to be right opposite Louis and Zayn.

“Morning,” Louis greeted cheerfully, leaning against Zayn affectionately.

“Hello, again,” Niall chuckled as he sat down. He lightly tugged on Liam’s arm as an encouragement for him to do the same.

“All going the same way, then,” Zayn commented.

Shaking his head and clasping Liam’s hand tightly, Niall explained, “Liam’s coming home with me.”

Zayn raised his eyebrows. “Not going home for Christmas, Liam?”

“Mum and Dad have gone on holiday for Christmas,” Liam replied, his voice a little quieter than the others. “My sisters and I paid for them to go. It’s their Christmas present.”

“Aw, that’s sweet,” Louis cooed, beaming when Liam’s cheeks coloured pink.

“Don’t start,” Niall warned his friend, shifting a little closer to Liam.

“So, what are you sisters doing for Christmas?” Zayn asked Liam.

“They’re having Christmas with their boyfriends’ families,” Liam shrugged, eyes not quite meeting Zayn’s.

“So you’re all spending Christmas with your boyfriends,” Louis laughed. “Cool.”

Niall glanced up at Liam, then looked back to his housemate. “I’ve told you, Lou, me and Li aren’t boyfriends.”

“But you’re exclusive?” Louis checked.

“Yes,” Niall replied, making it sound as though this was obvious.

“Then you’re boyfriends,” Louis shrugged.

“That’s not what we’re calling it yet.” Niall gave Louis a hard look that he thankfully took, even if it was with a roll of his eyes. “You okay?” he whispered to Liam, squeezing his hand gently.

“Yeah,” Liam nodded.

The train headed off shortly after, the trip taken up by Louis and Zayn chatting. Niall had input every now and again, but he was more focussed on Liam, who barely said a word. As they parted ways with Louis and Zayn on the platform, Niall asked, “Is something wrong, Li?”

Liam shook his head, then glanced up at Niall and gave him a small nod. “’M nervous.”

“Aw, babe.” Niall stood up on his toes and wrapped his arms around Liam’s neck in a hug. “Mam’s gonna love you,” he whispered.

Arms subconsciously curling around Niall’s middle, Liam stammered, “B-but… there’s m-more than just your m-mum…”

“Look, my family will think you’re great. They already think you’re great from the things I’ve told them.” Kissing Liam’s cheek, Niall assured him, “It’ll be fine.”

“Okay…” Liam held Niall a little tighter. “Will you get me out if I need space?” he barely whispered.

“Course I will,” Niall promised. He pulled back a bit and pressed his lips against Liam’s, making the brunette blush. “Sorry, I just like being able to kiss you in public,” Niall murmured, stealing another short kiss before grabbing Liam’s hand and his luggage and leading the taller boy towards the street.

“How are we getting to your house?” Liam asked, pulling his suitcase along behind him.

“Well, we could take a taxi, but it’s just a few blocks away and taxis cost an arm and a leg.”

“Niall!”

The two boys turned to the call, Niall’s face splitting into a grin. “Dad!” He hurried over to the man waiting beside his car, letting go of his suitcase to hug his father. “You didn’t have to come get us.”

“Your mother would’ve made you walk, but I used the excuse that we needed bread and milk.”

Niall laughed and pulled back from the man. “Li!” Grinning as Liam slowly made his way over, Niall explained, “Dad, this’s Liam. Li, this’s my dad, Bobby.”

“Nice to finally meet you, Liam,” Bobby said cheerfully, holding a hand out for Liam to shake.

“Thank you,” Liam replied quietly, accepting Bobby’s surprisingly energetic handshake. “Nice to meet you, too.”

“You said you met him at the Uni,” Bobby laughed to Niall. “There’s no way you’d find someone with those manners there.”

“Well, I probably managed to find the only one,” Niall chuckled, grabbing onto Liam’s hand again.

Shaking his head with a smile, Bobby opened the boot of his car and lifted the two boys’ luggage into it. “Hop in, then.”

The ride to Niall’s parents’ house was short, and Liam stood staring at it once he was out of the car. It was a white-painted one storey home that looked like it was well taken care of. Nothing imposing at all. Not to anyone other than Liam.

“You okay?” Niall asked quietly as his dad carried their suitcases up to the door.

“Really nervous now,” Liam whispered, his stomach churning at the thought of walking through the door.

“It’s alright.” Clasping Liam’s hand tightly, Niall assured him, “I’ve got you.”

Blowing out a long breath, Liam gave a slow nod and they started up the path to the house. His hand gripped Niall’s harder as they stepped through the front door, his heart rate picking up when the door closed. With a gulp, he thought, 'No escape now.’

Just as Liam was about to ask Niall where the bathroom was because he was feeling sick in his stomach, a shorter woman came into the hallway. “Niall, honey!” The woman hurried over and pulled Niall down into an enthusiastic hug.

“Hello, Mam,” Niall beamed, squeezing his arms around his mother. He pulled back and grabbed Liam’s hand again. “This’s Liam. Li, my mam, Maura.”

“Liam, lovely to finally meet the boy my Niall’s been cooing over,” Maura beamed, quite happily pulling Liam into a short but heartfelt hug.

“I haven’t been cooing over him,” Niall muttered.

“Oh, darling, you’ve been gushing and sighing every time we’ve spoken on the phone,” Maura laughed, pinching Niall’s cheek teasingly. “I think cooing is probably an understatement.”

“Mam.” Niall gave his mother a pleading look, at which she laughed but let him be. Tugging Liam’s hand, Niall suggested, “Let’s get our stuff to my room, Li.”

Liam grabbed his suitcase and followed Niall down the hallway and into the second-last room. The walls were surprisingly bare, but the room looked generally lived in. “No posters,” Liam commented as he sat his suitcase against one of the walls.

“Nah, I took them all with me, didn’t I?” Niall grinned, dumping his suitcase at the end of his bed and flopping down in the queen mattress. “Couldn’t leave Tom behind, could I?”

“No,” Liam smiled softly. Swallowing, he noted, “Your mum… you were embarrassed.”

“She’s, like, the expert at embarrassing me,” Niall sighed, stretching out on his back.

“But…” Liam chewed anxiously on his lip.

Glancing over to Liam, Niall beckoned him over to the bed and half-pulled him to sit beside him. “She won’t embarrass you, babe. She’s me mam; she’s supposed to embarrass me.”

Slowly threading his fingers between Niall’s, Liam whispered, “But it’s really hard to embarrass you.”

“Liam.” When the older boy turned to look at him, Niall kissed him shortly. “You can come in here any time you feel like you’ve had enough, yeah? If it’s too much, just leave the room and come in here.”

Liam leaned against the blonde. “Any time?” he checked quietly.

“Well, maybe not in the middle of dinner or anything, 'cause that’d be rude, but yeah, any other time.” Niall squeezed Liam’s hand reassuringly. “The hard bit’s over, anyways.”

“No, the hard bit’ll be them trying to find out about me,” Liam mumbled. “When they wanna know about my family and where I grew up and what I’m studying and how long we’ve known each other and when we got together and we’re not even together, you’re just spending time with me because… I dunno, because you pity me or just like the idea of me or-”

“Liam!” Niall was sitting with his eyes and mouth wide open in shock. “Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare go thinking that.” Shaking his head, Niall added, “And we are together.”

“But you told Louis-”

“I told Louis we’re not boyfriends,” Niall clarified. “And… and I only said that because I didn’t think you wanted us to be that.”

Staring down at their hands between them, Liam asked quietly, “Do you want us to?”

Niall leaned closer and kissed Liam’s cheek. “Yeah, I do.”

“Me too,” Liam whispered.

Lifting Liam’s head, Niall grinned widely. “Really?” Liam simply nodded in response. Throwing his arms around Liam’s neck, Niall kissed him wholeheartedly. “You want to be my boyfriend?” he whispered excitedly.

“Yes,” Liam replied, his cheeks tinting only a few shades pinker.

“Li…” Niall was beaming, pulling Liam into another energetic kiss. “I’m so fucking happy right now.”

Liam had to smile at Niall’s enthusiasm. “Me too.”

Giving Liam one last kiss, Niall blew out a breath to calm down a little. “We should go back out,” he half-laughed. He pecked Liam’s cheek and hopped up off the bed, grabbing Liam’s hands and practically dragging him back out to his parents.

“So, Liam,” Bobby began as they sat eating dinner, and a cold fear gripped Liam’s gut. “What’s your story?”

“S-story?” Liam asked with a worried frown.

“Where you’re from, what you do, that sort of thing,” Bobby explained.

“O-oh, um…” Feeling Niall’s hand on his thigh under the table settled only a few of Liam’s nerves. “I-I’m from Wolverhampton. Born and raised.” He swallowed nervously and glanced to Niall for encouragement, which he gained in the form of a smile. “I’m doing music and sound engineering classes, same as Niall.”

“So, you met in class?” Maura asked.

Liam shook his head. “We, uh… met in the library.”

“Niall went into a library?” Bobby asked in amusement.

“Shut up, Dad, I read,” Niall stated, poking his tongue out at his father.

“Name one book you’ve read,” Bobby challenged.

“To Kill A Mockingbird,” Niall replied, a smug look on his face.

Raising an eyebrow, Bobby smirked, “What was it about?”

“Not killing mockingbirds,” Niall grinned, “which is what you thought I’d say. It’s about a girl, Scout or something, and her brother and friend from next door and some creepy bloke down their street. And her dad was a lawyer-type person and had to defend this coloured guy who was being accused for assaulting a woman he didn’t touch.” Frowning in thought, he added, “I think the coloured guy got killed, too.”

“I’m impressed,” Bobby nodded. “You’ve read one whole book in your life.”

Rolling his eyes, Niall repeated, “Shut up. Besides, it’s not like Greg’s read any more books than me. It’s just the way your children are.”

“Oh, Greg will be here on Christmas Eve,” Maura remembered. “They’ll stay the night so they’re here for presents in the morning.”

Liam frowned a little. “They?”

“My brother, his wife, and their kid,” Niall explained. “Theo’s cute, you’ll love him.”

But Liam just sat chewing on his lip. The rest of the meal was spent with the Horans chatting easily, Liam eating quietly with his eyes down.

“Li, what’s wrong?” Niall whispered when they walked into the hallway.

“You didn’t say there’d be so many people,” Liam mumbled.

“I didn’t wanna scare you away.” Sighing, Niall wrapped the taller boy up in a hug. “You’ll be fine. If Greg’s being an arse, I’ll just tell him to piss off. And Denise is the sweetest, she won’t say anything embarrassing. And Theo, well, he’s not even two.” Kissing Liam’s cheek, Niall whispered, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I didn’t even think about it.” He grabbed Liam’s hand and gently tugged to encourage him down the hall, then sat the brunette on the edge of his bed and pushed the door shut.

Staring down at his hands in his lap, Liam said quietly, “I don’t know if I can do this.”

“Do… do what?”

Liam looked up at Niall, who looked uncharacteristically scared. “The big family Christmas…”

Niall let out a loud sigh of relief, his eyes closing and shoulders relaxing. “Jesus…” Slumping down beside Liam, Niall half-laughed, “I thought you were talking about us.” He threaded his fingers through Liam’s, squeezing his hand tightly. “Don’t do that to me,” he huffed with a fake scowl.

“Sorry… Why would you think I meant us?”

“Because…” Niall sighed heavily. “I dunno, I thought maybe you thought I lied about who’d be here or something, and that you thought I’d abused your trust.”

Shaking his head, Liam replied, “You wouldn’t do that.”

A bright smile spread across Niall’s face. “You got it…” he whispered, a look of wonder crossed with excitement dawning in his eyes. “You finally get it!” Grabbing Liam’s face in both hands, Niall kissed him heartily. “You finally get it,” he giggled, stealing several short kisses.

“Get what?” Liam asked a little breathlessly.

“You finally believe me. You know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you on purpose, or upset you, or put you down…” Niall looked so happy he could burst.

“Course I believe you. No one’s ever made as much of an effort for me as you,” Liam admitted with a small smile.

Niall beamed, tackling Liam onto his back with giggles and little kisses until he was straddling the brunette’s hips. “I can’t believe I finally convinced you,” he whispered gleefully. “You finally understand.”

“Yeah,” Liam nodded.

Grinning, Niall pecked Liam’s lips over and over, their kisses slowly becoming longer and less giggly. It was just as Niall started sucking on Liam’s lower lip that they heard a voice from the door.

“Do you two want to come and watch X Factor with us?” Maura asked.

Liam froze up completely, but Niall just sat up a bit and looked to his mum. “Nah, we’re good.”

“Alright. See you in the morning, then,” Maura smiled, closing the door as she left.

Looking down at the boy below him, Niall assured him, “It’s alright, Li. Mam’s pretty chilled about this sort of thing.” He rubbed Liam’s shoulder in the hopes he would relax a bit.

“But she… sh-she saw us…”

“Yeah, she’s seen worse,” Niall shrugged. “She walked in on one of Greg’s past girlfriends giving him a blowjob once; a bit of kissing isn’t gonna change the way she looks at you.” Smirking, he explained, “Walking in on a blowjob didn’t even change her view of Cass. You could’ve had your hand down my pants and she wouldn’t’ve cared.”

Liam’s cheeks turned bright red. “You’d think she’d learn to knock.”

Laughing, Niall explained, “My mam doesn’t believe in knocking. Says if it happens under her roof, she deserves to know about it.”

“I don’t think I like that philosophy,” Liam mumbled.

“Well, she and Dad are gonna be watching X Factor, then they’ll go to bed. She’s said her goodnight, so we shouldn’t have any more interruptions.” Kissing Liam’s cheek, Niall added, “And I’d really like it if you could relax a little.”

Blowing out a long breath, Liam whispered, “I’ll try.”

“Li,” Niall sighed, pecking his lips. “C'mon, we were fine. Nothing’s changed, babe.” He sat stroking Liam’s hair soothingly. “No one’s judging you, we’re fine. You’re okay.”

Liam wrapped his arms around Niall’s middle, burying his face in his neck and talking several deep, slow breaths. “We’re okay,” he nodded.

“Yeah, we’re okay,” Niall murmured, kissing Liam’s temple. “C'mon, let’s lie down properly.” He manoeuvred them so he could lie on his side with his head on the pillow, Liam doing the same so they were face to face. “We’re all good,” Niall hummed, cuddling into Liam’s chest.

“Yeah,” Liam breathed out, curling his arms around the blonde. He sighed and buried his face in Niall’s hair, smiling at the now-familiar smell of apple-scented shampoo.

“And when Greg brings his family tomorrow, you’ll still be fine, Li, because they’ll love you,” Niall assured the taller boy, shuffling so his nose was settled in the hollow of Liam’s throat.

“That’s tomorrow…” Liam whispered, shoulders tensing.

Rubbing Liam’s back, Niall replied, “Yeah, but you’re gonna be fine, 'cause I’ve got you.” He smoothed his hand over Liam’s shoulders until they relaxed again. “Is it some kind of anxiety you have, Li?”

Liam blinked, glad Niall couldn’t see his paling face. “H-how’d you mean?”

“Like, a social anxiety,” Niall clarified, bringing his hand to the back of Liam’s neck and stroking his thumb up and down slowly.

“I-I… You think there’s something… wrong with me?” Liam stammered.

“No!” Niall blurted out, pulling back to look up at the brunette in shock. “No, Li, I don’t mean that. Even if you did have a social anxiety, I’m not about to up and leave you.” Kissing Liam’s cheek, Niall explained, “It would just… it’d just explain a few things.” Taking in the look on Liam’s face, he dismissed, “Forget it. Forget I said anything, Li.”

“But if-”

“No, Liam, I don’t think there’s something wrong with you,” Niall cut in, finding Liam’s hands and grasping them tightly in his own, holding them to his chest. “I don’t, I promise you. I was just curious, but it doesn’t matter. It upset you, so we’ll leave it alone, yeah?”

Taking a moment to gauge Niall’s expression, Liam pulled him back in close to his chest, nuzzling into his hair again. “You’re too good for me,” he mumbled, closing his eyes. “I don’t deserve you.”

“On the contrary,” Niall hummed, cuddling close. “I’m exactly what you need, Li.”

Chapter Text

Liam was sitting on one of the couches with Niall snuggled in his arms when the doorbell rang, suddenly finding his lap empty as the blonde scrambled to his feet. “I’ll get it!” Niall yelled through the house before the sound of the front door lock clicked loudly. A cheer went up, causing Liam to climb to his feet and head over to the living room doorway. He slowly peeked around into the hall, where Niall was hugging a taller man.

“How’ve you been?” the man asked Niall as they pulled back.

“Great,” Niall grinned, earning a laugh from the man. “And how are you, mister? Hey?” he asked the small child in the arms of a blonde woman.

“Who’s this, then, Ni?” the man asked, and Liam froze when he noticed he was looking directly at him.

Niall headed over and grabbed Liam’s hand, waving the three newcomers into the living room. “Li, my brother, Greg, his wife, Denise, and little Theodore, my nephew,” Niall explained. “Guys, this’s Liam, my boyfriend.”

An unexplainable swell of pride filled Liam’s chest when Niall described him that way. He squeezed Niall’s hand, sending him a small smile when the blonde looked up at him.

“Boyfriend, eh?” Greg asked, looking Liam up and down. He stuck his hand out. “Good to meet you, then, lad.”

Accepting Greg’s hand with his own trembling one, Liam replied with a quiet, “Thank you.” He retracted his hand as soon as the handshake was over, nervously hiding it behind his back.

Niall gently nudged Liam with his elbow, gesturing with his head for the brunette to sit back down. Once he had rigidly done so, Niall settled himself against his boyfriend’s side while his brother and family took the other couch. “Theo,” he called lightly, grinning with the small boy looked to him. “Come here, you.”

With wobbling steps, Theo made his way over to his uncle. “Ni,” the little blonde stated.

“That’s me,” Niall beamed. “Look at you walking all on your own.” Lifting Theo up into his lap, Niall gushed, “Aren’t you clever, eh? Such a clever boy.” The praise earned him a gummy grin from Theo.

“He’s missed you,” Greg told his brother. “He’s used to seeing you every second day, what with how often you used to come over.”

“I’m allowed to like spending time with my nephew,” Niall defended with an amused smile. “Aren’t I, Theo? I’m allowed to see you, hey?” He blew a raspberry against Theo’s neck, earning a squeal and bubbly laugh.

Liam just watched his boyfriend with the small boy, a fond smile forming on his face.

After dinner, Niall grasped Liam’s hand and led him into the living room, sitting them down at one end of one of the couches. Liam gulped as the rest of the family entered the room, already fretting about being forced into conversation.

“So, how’d you two meet?” Greg asked, pointing two fingers at Niall and Liam as he settled himself on the other couch with Denise and their sleeping son.

“In the campus library,” Niall explained. “I was trying to make some friends with brains. Instead I ended up with this one,” he laughed, kissing Liam’s cheek. “Not that you don’t have a brain,” he added.

“A studier?” Greg asked Liam.

Swallowing hard, Liam shook his head slightly. “I… was just after the free Wi-Fi.”

Greg laughed loudly at that, Denise hushing him lightly and gesturing to Theo, who was still completely asleep on her shoulder. “How’d you spend your time using the Wi-Fi?”

“Tumblr,” Liam mumbled, feeling a nervous coil in his stomach relax as Niall wrapped his arm around his middle.

“Oh, that thing Ni spends all his time on,” Greg nodded in understanding.

“I do not,” Niall scoffed.

“You do spend a lot of time on that website,” Maura pointed out from the other end of Niall and Liam’s couch.

“Not as much anymore,” Niall protested. “I’m almost always with Liam now.”

All eyes turned to Liam again, who ducked his head and blushed.

“You two spend a lot of time together, then,” Bobby commented.

“Yeah, so?” Shifting closer to Liam, Niall reminded his father, “That’s what people do with friends.”

Frowning slightly, Greg pointed to them. “I thought you two were more than friends.”

“We are,” Niall sighed, rolling his eyes. “We started out as friends, though, dunce.”

“Oooooh, friends to lovers, then,” Greg smirked.

“Oh, shut up.” Niall shook his head at his brother with a slight look of amusement.

“So, Liam, do you have any siblings to fight with like these two?” Maura asked as a deliberate change of subject.

“Two sisters,” Liam nodded, keeping his eyes down. “We don’t fight, though.”

“No?” Bobby asked in surprise. “They older or younger than you?”

“Both older.” Liam had started tugging on the hem of his shirt, twisting it between his fingers.

Bobby’s eyebrows rose. “Well. I always fought with my siblings, older or younger, but especially older.”

“I’m good friends with my sisters,” Liam whispered.

“Speak up a bit, lad,” Greg chuckled. “Can’t hear a word.”

“I’m g-good friends with my sisters,” Liam repeated a little louder, his fingers tugging more incessantly at his shirt.

“That makes one of you,” Greg laughed. “Me and Ni are always at each other. All in good fun, of course.”

“Bull, you tease me for no good reason,” Niall huffed, pouting.

“’S funny, though,” Greg snickered.

“You’re as bad as Louis, you are,” Niall told his brother. “Only Lou picks on Liam more than me, now.”

“Because he blushes?” Greg guessed, smirking a little when he saw Liam’s cheeks darken in colour.

“There’s nothing wrong with blushing,” Maura piped up. “Good sign you’re alive.”

Snorting, Greg asked, “How?”

Maura rolled her eyes at her eldest. “Blood flow.”

“Well, there’s a couple of other forms of blood flow I reckon Ni’s had something to do with to prove Liam’s still alive,” Greg laughed.

Liam suddenly stood and quickly left the room, eyes on the floor and head down.

“Li…” Niall sighed and hung his head. “Alright,” he huffed out, heaving himself to his feet. “D'you reckon you can play nice next time?” he asked his brother with a hint of irritation. “He doesn’t do jokes like we do. Unlike the rest of us, he actually gets embarrassed.” Heading down the hall after Liam, Niall slowly pushed his bedroom door open to find the brunette sitting on the edge of the bed with his back to the door. “Li?” he prompted gently, closing the door behind him and carefully approaching the bed.

Liam didn’t move, his head down and shoulders slumped.

“Liam?” Niall crawled over the bed to kneel behind his boyfriend. “Li, I’m sorry,” he sighed, placing his hands on Liam’s shoulders and squeezing lightly.

A shaky breath in make Liam’s shoulders shudder. “I couldn't…” he choked out.

“Hey, I know why you left,” Niall murmured, rubbing Liam’s shoulders soothingly and pressing a kiss to the side of his neck. “It’s alright, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“But they were just joking and… Why did it have to feel so… so…humiliating?” Liam asked helplessly.

“Because that’s just how it feels when you’re the butt of the joke,” Niall sighed. He wrapped his arms around Liam’s middle and perched his chin on Liam’s shoulder. “You were right to leave, Liam, what he was saying wasn’t funny. Joke or not. If it upsets you, you don’t have to listen to it.”

“He was insinuating that… that we…” Liam blushed hard and couldn’t finish his sentence.

“We have,” Niall shrugged. “But that has nothing to do with him, does it? And does his opinion matter?”

Blowing out a slow breath, Liam shook his head slowly. “No.”

“No. Especially since it was coming from my brother,” Niall half-laughed. Noting that Liam still looked miserable, he whispered, “There’s nothing wrong with being embarrassed. I like you regardless.”

“I can’t believe you put up with me being like this,” Liam breathed out, turning his head to look into Niall’s eyes. “Thank you.”

A smile spread across Niall’s lips as he pressed a kiss against Liam’s mouth. “Do you want to go back out?”

Considering it for a moment, Liam shook his head. “It’d be more embarrassing going back in. Especially if he wants to apologise and bring it back up again…”

“We can stay here, then,” Niall murmured, kissing the side of Liam’s neck again and burying his face there.

“You can go back and talk to your family,” Liam told him, a hint of guilt creeping into his stomach.

“No, babe, I’d rather be in here with you,” Niall chuckled. “As you can probably tell, my family are a bit nosey. If I’m in here spending time with my wonderful boyfriend, they can’t keep asking questions.”

“But they’ll make assumptions,” Liam mumbled.

Laughing, Niall corrected, “They’ll make assumptions simply because we’re both sleeping in here. It doesn’t matter, because we know they’re wrong, and they’re just making themselves look stupid if they tease us.”

Liam turned on the edge of the bed and pulled Niall into a proper hug, nuzzling his face into his hair. “You help me so much,” he whispered.

“Only because you let me,” Niall hummed, rocking them gently from side to side.

“Is everything alright in here?”

Liam jumped slightly in surprise, causing him to fall off the bed, taking Niall down with him. They hit the ground with a thud, followed quickly by, “Oof!”

After a moment’s silence, Niall started laughing, pulling himself up to sit so he could see his mother standing in the doorway. “Yeah, we’re okay,” he chuckled. Watching Liam scrambling to sit up, Niall bit his lip to contain himself, but ended up bursting into laughter.

“Sorry if I gave you a fright, there,” Maura apologised, trying to seem as sorry as she was but still looking amused.

“S'okay,” Liam mumbled, cheeks turning bright red.

“Aw, Liam.” Wrapping the brunette up in a hug, Niall assured him with a chuckle, “We’re not making fun of you.” He pulled back and looked Liam in the eye. “But it was a bit funny.”

Sitting quietly for a moment, Liam finally cracked a smile. “It was a bit.”

“I am sorry,” Maura repeated. “I just wanted to make sure you were both okay. We were expecting you to come back and got a bit worried when you didn’t.”

“We’re alright,” Niall nodded, absently bringing a hand up to stroke Liam’s hair. “We might stay here, though. I think Li’s probably had enough people-time for one day, and he’s gotta prepare himself for tomorrow. Save his strength and all that.”

“Fair enough,” Maura chuckled. “See you two in the morning, then.”

“‘Night, Ma.”

“Goodnight,” Liam smiled shyly.

With a wave, Maura pulled the door closed.

Niall looked back to Liam and giggled. “We fell on the floor.” He leaned in and kissed Liam’s lips, loosely tangling his fingers in the taller boy’s hair.

“What was that for?” Liam asked when Niall pulled back, a little confused.

“Do I need a reason to kiss my boyfriend?” Niall countered, stealing a short peck.

“No…” Giving Niall a small kiss on the lips, Liam whispered, “I like it when you call me your boyfriend.”

Grinning, Niall whispered back, “I like calling you my boyfriend.”

Liam leaned in and pressed their lips together, bringing his hands up to rest on either side of Niall’s neck. He felt Niall melt against him more as he opened his mouth and sucked gently on the blonde’s lower lip. When Niall worked his tongue into Liam’s mouth, the taller boy felt the nerves in his stomach about the next morning evaporating.

When Niall finally withdrew from the kiss, he hummed, “That was nice.”

“I don’t feel so worried about tomorrow,” Liam murmured, lightly brushing his nose against Niall’s.

“There’s nothing a good snog can’t solve,” Niall chuckled.

Frowning a little, Liam corrected, “Except things like cancer…”

“Shut up,” Niall giggled, pecking Liam’s mouth. He pulled himself up onto the bed, patting the space beside him to encourage Liam up, too. As soon as he had Liam within reach, Niall pulled him into another kiss. “Tonight, these are mine,” he mumbled, lightly nipping Liam’s lower lip.

“Okay,” Liam whispered, closing his eyes and allowing Niall free reign of his mouth.

Chapter Text

“Boys. Wake up.”

Liam groggily pulled his eyes open, looking up at the blurry form of Maura standing beside the bed. “Hmm?”

“It’s nine o'clock,” Maura smiled. “Time to get up.”

“M'kay,” Liam mumbled.

“I’ll give you time to get up.” With a nod, Maura left the room.

Shifting his head, Liam came to realise that Niall was asleep on top of him, the blonde’s face pressed into his neck. “Niall,” Liam yawned. “Niall, wake up.”

The only response Niall gave was a small snuffle.

“Niall… wake up, babe. It’s Christmas.”

Humming, Niall lifted his head and blinked sleepily up at Liam. “You called me ‘babe’,” he smiled, eyes only half open.

With a light blush, Liam whispered, “Yeah, I did.”

“I like it,” Niall giggled, leaning up and giving Liam a soft kiss on the lips. “And after last night, I’ve decided kissing you is my new favourite thing.”

“What was your favourite thing before?” Liam asked.

“Eating.”

Liam smiled and sat them up, Niall ending up sitting sleepily in his lap. “Merry Christmas,” Liam whispered, kissing Niall heartily.

“Merry Christmas,” Niall mumbled against Liam’s mouth.

Once the two boys had dragged themselves out of bed, they made their way down to the living room where the rest of Niall’s family was gathered, all still in their pyjamas. “Here they are,” Bobby grinned as the two boys sat themselves on the floor beside Greg and his family.

“Sleep well?” Greg asked with a smirk.

“Yes, actually,” Niall replied, leaning his head on Liam’s shoulder. “Been dead to the world since nine thirty last night.”

“Nine thirty, eh?” Lightly jabbing Niall in the ribs, Greg asked, “What’d the two of you do for two hours?”

“We talked, like normal people,” Niall yawned, ignoring his brother’s insinuation and taking Liam’s hand.

Nodding with a look that blatantly said 'I don’t believe you’, Greg pressed, “Just 'talked’?”

“I snogged him, too. Does it matter?” Niall sighed, squeezing Liam’s hand when he felt him tense a little. “Guess what, Greg? We have living, breathing proof that you’ve had sex with your wife.”

“Ah, are you sure?” Greg asked, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

Denise smacked her husband around the back of the head, effectively shutting him up.

“Are we actually giving presents today, or are you two happy to keep arguing?” Maura asked, rolling her eyes when Niall gestured to the tree. “You stop picking on your brother,” she instructed Greg, poking him in the back with her toes. She stood up from her seat on one of the couches to head over to the tree, choosing a neatly-wrapped gift and handing it to Theo. “There you are, little man.”

Eyes opening wide, Theo looked up at Denise, whose lap he was sitting in, and then back at the present.

“You haven’t been allowed to touch these, have you?” Niall chuckled, watching his nephew’s hesitance.

“You can open it,” Denise assured her son. “I’ll start you off, okay?” She pulled up one of the piece of tape holding the paper together.

Once he had been shown, Theo quickly picked up on how to open presents.

As the family handed each other gifts and opened them, Liam was a little surprised to be handed something. “You didn’t think we’d let you have Christmas with no presents, did you?” Maura laughed at the confusion on Liam’s face.

“Thank you,” Liam said quietly, turning the gift over in his hands.

“Unless you have x-ray vision, you might have to open it to find out what’s inside,” Niall chuckled, kissing Liam’s cheek. “C'mon.”

“Do you know what it is?” Liam asked his boyfriend as he started carefully unsticking the tape.

Niall laughed. “Well, probably, since they wouldn’t’ve known what to get you if I didn’t suggest things.”

Slowly pulling the paper aside, Liam removed what looked like black material from the wrappings. Unfolding the material, he had to smile. “A Batman t-shirt?” he asked Niall, who shrugged.

“Hey, you have Loki,” Niall pointed out. “I figured you needed Batman, too.”

Looking over to Maura, Liam smiled, “Thank you.”

“You’re so polite, Liam, you put my boys to shame,” Maura laughed.

Reaching under the tree, Liam handed Maura a small gift. “For both of you,” he explains, looking at both of Niall’s parents. “Since you’re letting me stay here and all…”

Opening the present, Maura and Bobby shared a look. “Did you ask Niall what our favourite chocolate was?” Bobby asked suspiciously.

“No…?” Liam frowned a little.

“Did you get rum and raisin?” Niall laughed, wrapping an arm around Liam’s waist and kissing his cheek with the brunette nodded slowly. “You are too good.”

“Lucky guess,” Liam shrugged, blushing a little from the attention. He turned back to the tree and picked up another of his gifts, handing it to Theo, who was far more interested in the wrapping paper than any of his gifts so far. “This one’s for you, Theo,” he explained with a smile.

With his already well-practiced skill, Theo pulled the paper off the present with a satisfying 'RIP’. His attention went straight to the paper as it had with every other gift, but Denise took notice of the object in her son’s lap.

“Look at this, Theo,” she whispered, picking up his gift. “Bubbles.” Unscrewing the cap of the mixture, Denise lifted the wand and blew a string of tiny bubbles.

Theo was instantly mesmerised by the bubbles, reaching for them and inadvertently popping a few with his fingers. He blinked a few times in surprise when the bubbles disappeared as he touched them.

“They popped, Theo,” Denise explained. She blew a few more, touching one with her finger. “Pop.”

“Well, that’ll keep him going for hours,” Greg laughed, taking one of Theo’s chubby little hands in his own as he watched him gazing at the bubbles. “Great choice, Liam.”

As the gift-giving went on, Niall handed Liam a flat, square gift. “Merry Christmas,” he whispered.

Careful not to tear the paper, Liam unwrapped a CD case. The cover was clear, the disc simply reading 'Liam’ in Niall’s handwriting.

“Listen to it later,” Niall murmured, leaning closer to Liam’s side.

“Okay.” Picking up his last gift, Liam passed it to Niall, his hands trembling slightly. “Merry Christmas.”

Niall, ever graceful, tore the paper in a similar fashion to Theo, but paid far more attention to the contents than the wrappings. Inside was a slightly worn-looking notebook and a jewellery box, Niall taking quick comfort in the fact that the box was too large to be for a ring. Deciding to open the box first, he clicked the lid up and inspected the necklace inside. On a simple black cord, there was a small pendant. “Loki’s helmet?” he asked, looking up at Liam.

“Yeah,” Liam nodded, chewing his lip nervously.

“Liam, that’s so cool,” Niall grinned. He lifted the necklace out of the box, clipping the clasp together around his neck. “Thank you.” Turning his attention to the notebook, Niall flipped it open to the first page. A grin crept up his face as he briefly read through the pages, then closed the book up and gently sat it to the side before hugging his boyfriend. “Thanks, Liam,” he whispered, burying his face in Liam’s neck. “I’ll read it properly later, but maybe you could sing a couple to me sometime, too.”

Blushing a bit, Liam mumbled, “Maybe.”

“Oh, was that a no, then?” Niall chuckled.

“Maybe.”

“Boys.”

Pulling back and turning their attention to Maura, the two boys noticed her watching them with a smile.

“It’s almost time to start cooking,” Maura told them, hopping up from her seat and heading to the kitchen.

“Oh, Christmas is, like, a whole day of cooking and eating here,” Niall explained to Liam.

“Before you guys go anywhere.” Greg handed each of them an envelope as Denise carried Theo into the kitchen after Maura and Bobby.

Liam was a little cautious as he opened the card inside the envelope, and rightly so as he barely managed to keep himself from reacting when he saw what was taped to the inside.

A condom.

'Liam,

Merry Christmas. Thought I’d give this to you since you’re more likely to think about it than Niall. Not trying to embarrass you here, just looking out for you.

Greg

And best wishes from Denise and Theodore :)’

Closing the card and slipping it back inside the envelope, Liam replied with a quiet, “Thank you,” before sitting the card on top of his small pile of gifts.

“C'mon,” Niall grinned, pulling Liam to his feet and tugging him into the kitchen. “This is the fun part.”

It turned out that Maura and Bobby’s kitchen wasn’t made for six adults and a small child. For the past half hour, Liam had been standing in the corner of the room doing very little, feeling more and more as though he was just a hindrance.

“Um… maybe I should…” He pointed towards the door.

“You don’t have to, love,” Maura smiled.

“No, really,” Liam insisted. “I’m only in the way.” He squeezed out of his corner and almost made it to the door when Denise grabbed his arm.

“You couldn’t take Theo, too, could you?” she asked hopefully. “He’s not being much help, either.” She flinched as Theo tugged on her hair.

“U-uh… sure…”

And so Liam found himself sitting on one of the couches in the living room with Theo perched in his lap, looking up at him expectantly.

“Okay,” Liam breathed out.

“Have bubbles?” Theo asked.

Nodding, Liam agreed, “Let’s have some bubbles.” He picked up the mixture from beside the couch and unscrewed the cap, pulling the wand out and blowing a flurry of tiny bubbles.

“Bubbles.” Theo clapped his hands excitedly, watching as the next collection of bubbles swirled around in the air. “More bubbles.”

Holding the wand towards Theo, Liam asked, “Do you want to try?”

Theo sucked in a deep breath and blew, but combined with the mouthful of saliva in his mouth, he only ended up dribbling.

“Hey, you’re blowing your own bubbles,” Liam chuckled, simply using his sleeve to wipe Theo’s mouth as the little boy giggled. “Like this.” He gently blew cool air at Theo’s cheek. “You try.”

With a little less finesse, Theo managed to just blow air.

“Alright, now let’s make some bubbles.”

Taking another deep breath, Theo blew at the bubble wand, eyes lighting up when a flurry of bubbles swirled out in front of him. “Bubbles!”

“Well done,” Liam grinned. Watching Theo blowing more bubbles, he decided, 'Maybe this won’t be so bad.’

By the time he had finished his part of readying lunch, Niall we well and truly ready to change out of the clothes he had slept in. He was about to head out of the kitchen to do so, but stopped in the doorway.

On the floor in the living room, Liam was lying on his back with Theo sitting on his stomach. Niall watched Liam pick Theo up, sitting himself up just enough to perch the small boy on his knees, then laid on his back again and let go to allow the little blonde to slide down his legs and onto his stomach again. Theo was giggling madly, Liam grinning and laughing a little, too.

Niall sighed fondly, leaning against the doorframe and watching his boyfriend with his nephew.

“That’s sweet,” Denise murmured, standing beside him.

“Yeah,” Niall hummed. “I’ve never seen him that relaxed around other people before.”

“Theo has that effect on people,” Denise chuckled. Heading into the room, she spoke up, “Thanks for that, Liam.”

Liam didn’t even flinch, sitting up with Theo in his lap. “There we go, mate,” he smiled, ruffling Theo’s hair.

“Come here, baby boy.” Denise lifted Theo up into her arms. “Did you have fun with Liam?”

“Yes,” Theo nodded.

“What do you say?” Denise prompted.

“Thank you, Liam.”

Grinning up at Theo, Liam replied, “That’s quite alright.”

Making his way over to Liam, Niall held his hands out for him and pulled him to his feet. “Come this way,” he whispered, leading Liam back to his bedroom by his hands.

“What?” Liam asked as Niall pushed the door shut.

Niall wrapped his arms around Liam’s neck and kissed him, keeping their lips pressed together for a good minute before pulling away. Liam blinked in surprise at the action. “You were so cute just now,” Niall giggled. “With Theo. You were so relaxed.”

Shrugging one shoulder, Liam half-laughed, “A toddler isn’t going to judge me like an adult will.”

“He would if you were as shy with him as you are with people our age,” Niall told him. “You just didn’t think he would, so you weren’t nervous enough to act all shy.” Kissing him again, Niall murmured, “I liked seeing you like that.”

“Really?” Liam asked quietly.

Niall sighed, resting his cheek against Liam’s shoulder. “Really,” he murmured against Liam’s neck. “I kinda more than wish you’d be like that with me.”

“I… thought I was…”

“You try, I know you do,” Niall whispered, rubbing a hand up and down Liam’s back. Leaning back, he pressed a short kiss to Liam’s lips. “C'mon, we should get ready for lunch. Should be about half an hour away, so we have time for showering.” He turned to start gathering his clothes for the day.

“Um, can…?” Liam suddenly decided against finishing his question and shut his mouth, eyes on the floor.

“Liam, you can say anything you want to me,” Niall reminded him. “Ask me anything. I’m not gonna judge you. Hell, I’m less likely to judge you than Theo is,” he half-laughed, a hint of sadness tainting his words.

Taking a deep breath, Liam wrapped his arms around Niall’s middle and kissed his forehead. “Can we shower together?” he asked softly.

Niall held Liam’s face in both hands and looked him in the eyes with a growing smile. “I’d like that,” he nodded. Pecking Liam’s cheek, he whispered, “C'mon, then.”

Both boys gathered clean clothes, then Niall led Liam by the hand into the bathroom, turning the lock once they were inside. “Why’d you do that?” Liam asked.

“So you can’t get away,” Niall replied sarcastically. “So my family don’t walk in on us, you dork. I’d be locking the door if it was just me in here. Jesus, don’t want Mam or Denise walking in on me showering,” he chuckled, pulling his sleep-shirt over his head.

“Not your brother or Dad?” Liam’s question was clearly to distract himself while he took off his own top, a blush starting to colour his cheeks.

“Nothing they haven’t seen before,” Niall shrugged. Pausing for a moment, he added, “Same goes for Mam, actually. But no way would I want Denise walking in on me in the shower; she’d never talk to me again, she’d be so embarrassed.”

Slowly stepping out of his sweatpants, Liam asked, “Denise gets embarrassed?”

“Believe it or not, Liam, everyone in this house gets embarrassed,” Niall laughed, shucking both sweats and boxers. “It just takes the right person and the right circumstance. And even then, it can be really hard to embarrass some of us.” Glancing to Liam’s red face as the brunette kept his eyes away from his body, Niall assured him, “I don’t mind if you look.”

Liam’s face only heated up more. “I know you don’t,” he mumbled.

Walking up to his boyfriend and settling his hands on the taller boy’s hips, Niall whispered, “It’s just us in here. Just you and me. And I’m not judging you for anything, Liam.”

“You say you’re not, but you can’t help it. It’s subconscious, we all judge everyone and everything we see,” Liam muttered.

“Liam, you asked if we could do this,” Niall reminded him gently, stroking his thumb along Liam’s hipbone. “If you don’t-”

“I do,” Liam said quickly, meeting Niall’s eyes. “I want to do this with you. But…” Blowing out a breath, he admitted, “I’m still nervous. I want to, but I’m nervous.”

“Well then…” Niall slipped his thumbs under the waistband of Liam’s boxers. “Let me help. That’s what I’m here for, remember.”

Liam nodded his head, closing his eyes as he felt Niall slowly pulling his boxers down. He stepped out of them, holding his breath.

“Liam.” Niall pressed a kiss to the brunette’s shoulder, making him open his eyes. “There, see? All good.” He stood up on his toes and stole a quick kiss. “C'mon, we better shower before lunch actually starts.” Grabbing Liam’s hand, he led him into the shower and started the water, both of them standing back until the water warmed up.

Watching as Niall wet his hair and started to scrub shampoo through it, Liam felt his shoulders relax a little. Once Niall had rinsed the suds from his hair, Liam wrapped his arms around him, settling his chin on the blonde’s shoulder.

“Hello,” Niall giggled, turning his head to steal a short kiss.

“Hi.” Liam just stared at his boyfriend for a minute, earning a curious look.

“You okay?” Niall half-laughed, going about washing his arms and chest.

“Yeah,” Liam hummed. “Just reminding myself how lucky I am.”

Niall gave the brunette a look of confusion crossed with amusement. “Whatare you talking about?” he chuckled, patting Liam’s hands, which were clasped over his stomach.

“I’m really lucky I have you,” Liam murmured, pressing his face into Niall’s neck. “You’re too good to me to be real.”

“Well, I hate to break it to you, but I’m very real, Liam.”

“Good.”

After a while of silence, Niall suggested, “Let’s get you clean, then we can dry off and get dressed and go have lunch, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Liam nodded, reaching for the shampoo.

Turning to face Liam, Niall told him, “You’re a strange boy, you know.” He lathered some soap in his hands and started washing Liam’s back, shoulders, and arms. “Lucky for you, I really love strange things.”

“Does that mean you really love me?” Liam asked quietly.

Both boys were still as the water rushed over them, then Niall turned the taps off. “Y'know, I think I do,” he nodded, looking up at the boy with him. “I think I love you.”

Liam wrapped both arms around Niall and hugged him close, hiding his face in the blonde’s wet hair. “I think I love you, too,” he whispered.

Niall had to smile into Liam’s chest. After taking a moment to soak in their little confessions, Niall murmured, “We better get out to lunch.”

Chapter Text

After a lunch of turkey and many roasted vegetables followed by several desserts, all with a side of belly-laughs and cheerful conversation, the family separated up. Maura and Bobby insisted on cleaning up, Greg and Denise retreated to Greg’s old room with a sleeping Theo, while Niall and Liam collected up their gifts and made their way to the blonde’s bedroom.

“Do you do this every year?” Liam asked with a slight frown, letting Niall gently push him onto the bed.

“Course,” Niall shrugged, sitting their gifts on his old desk. “Since me and Greg were little. Mam and Dad would clean up after lunch, and me and Greg would go play with our new toys. Changed a little as we grew up, but not much. But the last few years, Greg’s had Denise to spend the afternoon with, so I’ve been on my own around this time every Christmas,” he explained, sitting beside Liam on the bed.

“On your own?”

“Don’t look so sad, Li,” Niall chuckled, kissing his cheek. “It’s nice to have some time on your own. ‘Specially after a morning like we’ve had. It’s that part of Christmas where Horan’s take a break from each other so they don’t kill each other before the end of the night.”

Liam nodded slowly. “Guess that makes sense.” Taking Niall’s hand, he asked, “How many years have you had to be on your own?”

“Well, Greg started bringing Denise along to Christmases when he was nineteen, and I was fourteen then, so four years,” Niall deducted. “About that age was when I went through that 'I hate everyone’ stage, so being on my own was probably a good idea,” he laughed.

“'I hate everyone’ stage?” Liam frowned.

“Yeah, every teenager goes through it,” Niall shrugged.

Shaking his head, Liam countered, “I didn’t.”

“Well, every teenager goes through a phase where they either hate everyone, or they hate themselves,” Niall stated with a nod.

“Oh.” Liam stared down at his hands in his lap. “Guess that explains it, then.”

“Why?” Niall asked in confusion.

“I hated myself.”

Niall sighed and wrapped his arms around Liam’s middle from the side. “You need to see yourself through someone else’s eyes,” he murmured. “Namely mine.” He kissed Liam’s cheek, then stood and took the CD from the neat little stack of Liam’s gifts. Pulling out his laptop, he put the disc in and sat the computer on the bed behind them.

“What are-?” Liam started.

“Ssh,” Niall whispered, curling his arms around Liam again and settling his head on his shoulder.

The quiet sound of an acoustic guitar came through the laptop speakers, then a familiar voice.

“Am I asleep, am I awake, or somewhere in between?

I can’t believe that you are here and lying next to me.

And did I dream that we were perfectly entwined?

Like branches on a tree or twigs caught on a vine?

Like all those days and weeks and months I tried to steal a kiss,

And all those sleepless nights and daydreams where I picture this.

I’m just the underdog who fin'ly got the guy,

And I am not ashamed, and I will tell you why.

Truly, madly, deeply I am

Foolishly, completely fallen.

And somehow you’ve caved all my walls in,

So, baby, say you’ll always keep me

Truly, madly, crazy, deeply in love

With you.

In love

With you.”

Liam looked to Niall, who was gazing up at him with a smile as the song continued on. “You recorded yourself singing for me,” he whispered. Listening to a few more of the words, Liam asked, “Did… did you write this?”

“The day after you stayed over,” Niall nodded with a dazed smile. “I was just lying on my bed thinking about how you’d been there with me. I’d woken up wrapped around you in my bed, and I loved it.” Meeting Liam’s eyes, he noted, “Murray loved the song.”

Eyes widening, Liam asked, “Is this the song you wrote for class?”

“Yeah,” Niall chuckled. “Murray said it was great and gave me almost full marks.”

“Almost?”

“Reckoned the bit about finally getting the guy was a bit clunky,” Niall shrugged. “And he said if I wanna make a job out of writing, the songs kinda have to be hetero-normative.” Snorting, he shook his head. “Screw that. I’ll write love songs for my boyfriend if I want.”

Liam reached behind them and stopped the music before the next song could play. “I wanna listen to it all properly when I’m on my own,” he explained. Kissing Niall’s lips, he whispered, “Did you write all of them?”

With a slight smile, Niall chuckled, “Sadly not. That would’ve been a bit of a stretch. There’s a couple of covers on there, but I picked them all very specifically.”

“Yeah…” Sighing, he leaned his forehead against Niall’s. “It’s the best Christmas present ever.”

Lightly bumping their noses together, Niall whispered, “Reckon you could sing me one of the ones you gave me in that book?”

“I… I guess I could…” Blushing, Liam headed over and picked up the book, then sat down beside Niall again. “It might sound a bit funny without music…”

Niall hopped up and grabbed a shiny acoustic guitar from beside his desk. “Not my good one,” he shrugged, strumming it gently. “Only cheap, but it’ll do.” Liam showed him the music he had written. “Right, let’s see.” Looking down at his hands, Niall plucked a few of the notes. “I think I can manage it,” he grinned. He noticed the page in front of his didn’t have the lyrics. “Do you need the words…?”

“No, I know it,” Liam mumbled with a blush. “Sing it a lot to myself.”

With a smile, Niall quietly started to play the music in front of him, then Liam began to sing.

“Don’t try to make me stay,

Or ask if I’m okay.

I don’t have the answer.

Don’t make me stay the night,

Or ask if I’m alright.

I don’t have the answer.

Heartache doesn’t last forever;

I’ll say I’m fine.

Midnight ain’t no time for laughing

When you say goodbye.

It makes your lips

So kissable,

And your kiss

Unmissable.

Your fingertips

So touchable,

And your eyes

Irresistible.”

Liam shyly shuffled closer to Niall, sitting behind him with his arms around his middle and singing quietly in his ear.

“I’ve tried to ask myself

'Should I see someone else?’

I wish I knew the answer.

But I know if I go now, if I leave,

Then I’m on my own tonight.

I’ll never know the answer.

Midnight doesn’t last forever;

Dark turns to light.

Heartache flips my world around, I’m fallin’

Down, down, down, that’s why

I find your lips

So kissable,

And your kiss

Unmissable.

Your fingertips

So touchable,

And your eyes

Irresistible.

It’s in your lips

And it’s in your kiss.

It’s in your touch

And your fingertips.

And it’s in all the things,

And other things,

That make you who you are

And your eyes

Irresistible.

It makes your lips

So kissable,

And your kiss

Unmissable.

Your fingertips

So touchable,

And your eyes

Irresistible.”

Niall stopped playing and turned his head to look at Liam. “Li, that’s beautiful,” he whispered.

Liam’s eyes widened when he noticed the tears on Niall’s face. “Niall, you’re crying…”

“I know,” Niall half-laughed, lightly knocking their foreheads together. “How can I not when there’s someone so wonderful singing beautiful words at me?” He sat his guitar on the floor and turned to Liam, holding his face in both hands and bringing their lips together. “You’re so precious,” he sighed.

Leaning in for another kiss, Liam admitted, “I wrote that one after I stayed the night with you, too.”

“Well, I guess snogging is a good song-writer,” Niall giggled, stealing yet another kiss. “Funny how we both had the same idea for Christmas presents.”

“Both wrote each other songs,” Liam smiled.

“Were any of these the one you submitted for class?” Niall asked, picking up the book.

“Yeah.” Flipping through the pages, Liam showed Niall the lyrics he had written.

“Better Than Words?” Niall asked with a small frown. “Hang on, are these all song titles?”

“Mm hmm. Except for the chorus. I wanted to see if I could do it, and Murray really liked the idea.”

“You Make Me Wanna…?” Niall raised an eyebrow at the brunette, making him blush.

“It worked,” he mumbled, staring at his hands.

“Far out, Liam,” Niall laughed, kissing his cheek. He sat the book aside and climbed into Liam’s lap, nuzzling his face into his neck. “I love you.”

Feeling his chest swell with pride, Liam whispered, “I love you, too.”

Liam was quite surprised that the Horans’ Christmas dinner was such a quiet affair, but he supposed after the lunch they had all eaten, a less intense dinner was probably a good idea. The seven of them sat around the table eating leftovers from lunch and chatting calmly, in stark contrast to the talks and laughs of lunch.

“So, Liam, where are you living at the moment?” Bobby asked.

“On campus,” Liam replied, still a little uncomfortable with having everyone’s attention. “Same building as Louis’ boyfriend.”

“Gosh, you poor boy,” Maura laughed.

“Nah, Lou’s got Zayn 'round our place all the time,” Niall shrugged, waving the notion off with his hand. “The whole building would hear them otherwise.”

“Oi, innocent ears,” Greg reminded his brother, gesturing to Theo sitting in the highchair beside him.

Snorting, Niall chuckled, “Living with you, I’m sure he’s heard worse than that.”

“Definitely,” Denise sighed, rolling her eyes at her husband.

“So, Liam, you said you have sisters,” Bobby continued, trying to pull the conversation back on course.

“Yeah,” Liam nodded. “Ruth and Nicola. They’re having Christmas with their boyfriends’ families, and my mum and dad are on holiday. It was their Christmas present from me and the girls.”

“That’s sweet,” Maura cooed. “Our boys wouldn’t do that, would you?” she smirked.

“Where would we send you?” Greg asked.

Maura nodded her head. “Fair enough.”

“Wouldn’t you want to go home?” Liam asked tentatively. “Like, to Ireland?”

“It’s been a long time since we went home,” Bobby smiled ruefully.

Glancing around the table, Liam realised that this was probably a sensitive topic, then stared down at his food.

“When are you two heading back?” Maura asked Niall and Liam.

“Tomorrow,” Niall sighed, propping one elbow on the table and his chin in his hand. “Lou won’t be back for another couple of days, though, so I’ll have the house to myself.”

“Bet you won’t,” Greg smirked, raising his eyebrows suggestively at his brother.

Niall shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t. Doesn’t really have anything to do with you, does it?”

“Alright, that’s enough,” Maura intervened before any major argument could ensue. “Greg, stop stirring your brother.”

Liam’s mobile started ringing at that point and he checked the screen to see who it was. “It’s my mum…”

“Go answer it, love,” Maura encouraged, nodding for him to leave the table.

Hopping up, Liam left the room and headed to Niall’s bedroom as he answered the call. “Mum?”

“Hello, sweetheart,” Liam’s mother Karen greeted through the phone. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, Mum.”

“How was your day?’ Karen asked.

Liam had to smile. "Great,” he murmured, sitting on the edge of Niall’s bed.

“Glad to hear it,” Karen told him warmly. “And thank you so much for doing this for me and your father,” she sighed fondly. “You and the girls. Christmas in a lovely little cottage with no one around to disturb us… You certainly know us well.”

“Course we know you well, Mum.” Glancing over to his gifts, Liam said quietly, “Niall recorded a CD for me. Of him singing. Some covers, but mostly songs he wrote himself.” Feeling a warmth spread through his chest, he added, “Songs he wrote for me.”

Karen sighed on the other end of the line. “He sounds like a sweet boy. I’d love to meet him.”

“I know you would…” Chewing his lip, Liam whispered, “I love him, Mum.”

“Liam…” Karen blew out a laugh, then sniffled slightly. “Oh, baby boy. He must be a really special lad.”

“He is, Mum. He’s so special… And his family’s been so nice and… it’s been such an amazing Christmas. I got to spend Christmas with the best person I’ve ever met.”

Another sigh left Karen’s mouth. “You’ve always been such a careful lad. Always so protective of your heart. Niall must be magic if he managed to touch that heart you kept hidden away from the world.”

“Maybe he is,” Liam smiled, staring into space. “Maybe my Niall’s magic, and that’s how he manages to cope with me when I get awkward around people or can’t take it when people make fun of me.”

“Your Niall?”

Liam blushed deeply. “My Niall,” he whispered.

The two of them stayed in an understanding silence, then Karen sighed again. “Well, I’d better let you get back to your wonderful magician. Love you, Liam.”

“Love you, Mum.” Hanging up, Liam took a moment to smile to himself, then headed back out to the table.

“How is she?” Niall asked as Liam sat himself back down.

“She’s loving her holiday,” Liam explained quietly, grabbing Niall’s hand and squeezing. “Her and Dad.”

“Great,” Niall grinned.

“It’s nice to know they’re enjoying themselves,” Maura agreed with a smile.

“Yeah.” Liam drew a few senseless shapes on the table with his finger, only half-listening to the conversation around him.

Squeezing Liam’s hand, Niall whispered, “Are you feeling okay?”

“Hmm?” Looking up, Liam noticed Niall watching him. “Oh, yeah. Just thinking about something Mum said.”

Niall raised an eyebrow at that, but let it go.

The family soon stood from the table and began the process of washing up, excluding Denise, who took Theo to bed. With five of them working on it, the dishes were done in no time and the group moved into the living room, Bobby turning on the television.

“Polar Express,” Niall explained to Liam as they settled together on the floor. “We watch it every year.”

“We do, too,” Liam whispered with a small smile.

Wrapping his arms around Liam’s middle and resting his head against his shoulder, Niall murmured, “Perfect.”

“Today was really nice,” Liam commented, siting on Niall’s bed as his boyfriend changed into clothes for sleeping.

“I’m glad you liked it,” Niall grinned, pulling on his T-shirt before flopping onto his back on the bed. “I loved having you here.”

Liam gazed down at the blonde, brushing his fingers over Niall’s cheek. “When I was talking to Mum… I called you 'my Niall’.”

“Really?” Niall asked, his smile showing all his teeth.

“Yeah. My Niall. No one else’s.”

Sitting up, Niall pressed his lips against Liam’s. “I love you,” he murmured. “I really do.”

“I love you, too,” Liam whispered, leaning their foreheads together. “I wasn’t expecting all this,” he breathed out, closing his eyes. “I went to Uni expecting to spend all my time either in classes or on Tumblr. I wasn’t even planning on making many friends, but… you, you kinda… forced yourself into my life.” Looking into Niall’s eyes, he continued, “And I’m so glad you did. You’ve showed me there’s more to life than shutting people out. That people can be fun and affectionate and happy and nice. You’ve been looking after me since the day I started letting you in. I never asked you to, you just did it. And it’s so lovely, Niall.”

Niall gave a small, adoring sigh, gently pushing Liam onto his back and leaning over him. “You’re so cute, Liam.”

Liam sighed and closed his eyes. “And I’m still cute.”

“You are,” Niall giggled, pressing little kisses to Liam’s cheeks. “Getting all sweet and sentimental. I love it, Liam, and it’s cute as fuck.”

“But that’s not cute,” Liam frowned slightly.

“It would be if you were involved,” Niall whispered, kissing his lips once before settling beside him. “We should sleep. Catching the train home tomorrow.”

“Mm.” Liam rolled onto his side and curled an arm around Niall’s waist, earning a grin before the younger boy cuddled into his chest. “'Night, Niall.”

Pressing a small kiss to Liam’s sternum, Niall whispered, “Sleep well, Liam.”

Chapter Text

“Home sweet home,” Niall sighed as he dropped his luggage on the floor just inside the door of his and Louis’ house.

“Are you glad to be back?” Liam asked, carefully sitting his own suitcase down.

Smiling over his shoulder, Niall admitted, “It’s nice to get away from my family. I love them to bits, but they’re a bit intense.”

“When does Louis come back?”

Niall smirked a little, wrapping his arms around Liam’s waist. “Why do you ask?” he countered cheekily.

“Wondering how long before I’ll be blushing again,” Liam mumbled.

“Liam…” Rolling his eyes fondly, Niall assured him, “You don’t have to blush. I mean, it’s adorable when you do, but Lou only says what he does because he knows how you’ll react.”

“I know… I can’t help it though.”

Pecking Liam’s lips, Niall told him, “It’s really cute.”

“How did I know you were gonna say that?” Liam sighed, leaning his forehead against Niall’s.

“Because you love me and spend all your time with me,” Niall giggled. He stole a short kiss, then grabbed Liam’s hand and lightly tugged to lead him down the hall. “Mam can’t walk in on us here,” he murmured as they entered his bedroom, sitting Liam down on the edge of his bed and straddling his lap. “You don’t have to worry when we’re here.”

“Yeah…” Liam rested his hands on Niall’s hips, looking up at the blonde. “Um… I-I…”

“Liam?” Niall brushed Liam’s hair back from his face. “If you feel uncomfortable-”

“No, just…” Liam leaned his forehead against Niall’s and sighed. “It’s just hard to… We’re still really… new. I’m not used to it.”

Niall chuckled a little. “Li, you’re never gonna get used to it. The day you get used to it is the day we won’t work.”

“I don’t wanna get used to it, then,” Liam whispered, smiling slightly when Niall grinned widely.

“You just need to relax,” Niall murmured, rubbing his hands over Liam’s shoulders. “Just relax.” He started slowly kissing at Liam’s neck, running his fingers up through his hair and down his neck.

Liam closed his eyes and let Niall touch him freely, sighing quietly as he felt the blonde’s teeth nip under his jaw. His shoulders slowly relaxed, his hands subconsciously lifting to hold Niall’s waist more securely.

“Mm, hello,” Niall hummed, sucking a few light marks into Liam’s jawline. “Not letting me go, eh?”

“No,” Liam mumbled, turning his head to catch Niall’s lips in a kiss. “Mine.”

Grinning, Niall whispered, “You bet.”

“Liiiiiiaaam,” Niall sing-songed, knocking on Liam’s door. “Li!”

Liam rolled on his desk chair over to the door, pulling it open before rolling straight back over to his laptop and returning to his assignment.

“Well,” Niall half-laughed. “Hello to you, too.” He walked in and closed the door behind him, heading over to kiss Liam’s cheek. “What’re you working on?”

“Something for Music’s Mathematics,” Liam replied distractedly.

“Oh, that class I don’t take,” Niall nodded. He sat himself on Liam’s desk beside him laptop, watching his boyfriend work. “Anything I can help with?”

“Probably not,” Liam shrugged. He kept his eyes on the screen, his fingers clicking away at the keyboard.

“Okay…” Niall stared around the room for a while, kicking his feet lightly, then blew out a sigh. “D'you wanna watch a movie?” No answer. “I’ll let you pick,” Niall added hopefully.

“Niall, I really need to finish this,” Liam mumbled, avoiding Niall’s eyes. He knew the second he looked at him, he’d change his mind.

“C'mon, Li, please?” Niall begged. He hopped off the desk and wrapped his arms around Liam from behind, squeezing him tightly. “Please?”

“Niall, I have to get this done,” Liam insisted, almost whiney.

Huffing out a dramatic sigh, Niall flopped down on Liam’s bed. “What do I do, then?”

“Go home?” Liam suggested.

Niall seemed a little startled by that response. “Oh.” He slowly climbed to his feet. “I'll… I’ll go, then.”

Merely nodding in response, Liam continued on with his assignment. He barely heard Niall leave the room and close the door softly behind him. He sighed and rubbed his eyes, then went back to his typing.

Liam had just finished typing the last word of his assignment when another knock on his door reached his ears. He stood and pulled the door open, eyes widening a little in surprise to see Zayn standing on the other side. “Oh… hi.”

“Can I talk to you?” Zayn asked, not directly avoiding eye contact but not initiating it either.

“Um… yeah, sure.” Letting Zayn into his room, Liam scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “Just finished an assignment.”

Zayn plopped down on Liam’s bed, burying his face in his hands.

After a minute of silence, Liam asked carefully, “Are you okay?”

“No,” Zayn replied bluntly, sitting up to finally meet Liam’s eyes.

“Oh, um…” Liam was twisting his fingers together to smother his discomfort.

“Look, I know I’ve just dropped myself on you, but I need to talk to someone about this, and it used to be my sister, but since I came out she doesn’t talk to me anymore and I can’t keep bottling it all up or I’ll fucking explode.”

Liam blinked. “Okay…” He slowly sat beside Zayn. “Well… how come you don’t, uh… talk to Louis?”

“I can’t,” Zayn mumbled, staring down at his clasped hands in his lap.

When there was not further explanation, Liam asked, “Why?”

“We had a fight.”

Liam’s eyebrows shot up. “But… you two are, like, the perfect couple,” he blurted out. “You’re always on the same page and you’re never mad at each other.”

Zayn gave a short, humourless laugh. “Yeah, well.” He sighed heavily. “We were at his place last night, and we’d been having a really lovely night. Y'know, dinner and movie date, then we walked back and cuddled at his… But he started talking about our families. Like, I get on real well with his family, they’re great. But he wants us to start having something to do withmy family and… well, like I said, when I came out… let’s just say they’re not my biggest fans.” Running his hands through his neatly-styled hair, Zayn huffed out, “He kept insisting, though. And I told him it would be a bad idea, and he just didn’t get that it doesn’t matter how fucking prefect he is or how much I love him, they’re not gonna like him because he’s a guy and we’re together and…” Zayn buried his face in his hands again.

“That…” Liam bit his lip, awkwardly putting his hand on Zayn’s shoulder. “That really sucks.”

Zayn blew out a disbelieving laugh, giving Liam an almost amused look. “That’s all you can say?”

Blushing hard, Liam dropped his hand and stared down at his lap. “I’m not very good at comforting people,” he mumbled.

“Like this.” Zayn wrapped an arm around Liam’s shoulders and squeezed lightly.

“Okay,” Liam nodded, giving Zayn a small smile.

“And really, you did a great job,” Zayn assured him. “You just sat and listened. You have no idea how much I wish Lou would do that when I talked to him about this sort of thing. When I feel like I can’t bottle stuff anymore, I talk to him usually, but he likes to ask questions and doesn’t let me go at my own pace.”

“Well… maybe you need to talk that through with him,” Liam suggested with a small, one-shouldered shrug. “And… I dunno, maybe, like…”

Zayn smiled at him. “You’re allowed to suggest stuff,” he encouraged. “I’m really stuck. If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t be here.”

“Well… maybe…” Liam took a deep, steadying breath. “Maybe you need to tell him you just need to talk. Especially about this family thing. I mean, knowing Lou, he wouldn’t keep his mouth shut for longer than ten seconds, so you’ve gotta get him to shut up so you can just talk and explain. I can imagine he jumps in a lot, especially if you were arguing.”

“Yeah, he does,” Zayn chuckled. He lightly knocked his shoulder against Liam’s. “I might try that. Thanks.”

“No worries,” Liam shrugged, a blush slowly colouring his cheeks.

“Really, Liam, thank you,” Zayn said seriously. “It’s been a while since I’ve been able to just vent.”

Smiling a tiny bit, Liam whispered, “Any time.”

Zayn patted Liam’s shoulder and headed for the door. “I was kinda surprised Niall wasn’t here,” he commented.

“Yeah, I had to finish my assignment,” Liam sighed, rubbing his temple. “He was here, but he wasn’t letting me work.”

“You sent him away?” Zayn asked in surprise.

“Well… not really, just…” Liam bit his lip. “Have I upset him?”

Thinking for a moment, Zayn shook his head. “Nah. It’s Niall, he’ll be fine.” With a wave of farewell, Zayn left the room.

Chapter Text

Liam frowned when Niall didn’t show up for their lecture the next day. He waited until the end before pulling out his phone and texting him.

‘You weren’t in class. Are you okay?“ – Liam’

By the time he had returned to his room, Liam still had no reply. Dumping his books and grabbing his wallet, he headed off to Niall and Louis’ house. 'If he’s sick, he might be asleep,’ he reasoned.

"Hi,” Louis muttered when he pulled the front door open. He looked Liam up and down, then huffed and stomped off into the house, leaving the door open for him. Liam cautiously entered the house, feeling the tension as he stepped inside.

“I’ll just be…” Liam trailed off, pointing down the hall. He withered a little at the glare Louis sent him, hurrying off to avoid this angry gaze. Knocking softly on Niall’s bedroom door, he waited a few seconds before quietly pushing it open. “Niall?” he whispered.

Niall was lying face-down on his bed, arms over his head. He didn’t respond when Liam closed the door and headed up to the bed.

“Niall?” Liam carefully sat on the edge of the bed, gently resting his hand between Niall’s shoulder blades. Swallowing hard, he asked, “Did I upset you yesterday?”

There was a small sniffle, then Niall slowly lifted his head. “Yeah,” he croaked. “You did.”

Liam suddenly felt terrible. “Niall, I’m so sorry, but I-”

“No,” Niall interrupted, pulling himself up to sit. “No, I know why.” He reached over and grasped Liam’s hand loosely. “I know I was being a pain. I deserved what you said, and it’s not like you were really that rude about it, but…” Clearing his throat, Niall scrubbed at his eyes with his free hand. “I hadn’t had a great day yesterday,” he explained quietly. “Louis was short with me in the morning, then I just felt really out of it during classes and… and Mam c-called…” Niall sniffed back tears. “Sh-she called and said Dad’s in h-hospital and… and then when I tried to talk to Louis about it, he just fucking exploded at me and started yelling and shit, so I went to you and…”

“But… but you sounded… so cheerful…” Liam stammered, horrified.

“I hate letting things get to me,” Niall whispered.

Liam scooted right up beside Niall and wrapped him up in his arms, burying his face in his hair. “I’m sorry.”

“You didn’t know,” Niall mumbled into Liam’s neck. He sighed out a shaky breath, hugging Liam tightly.

“Why’s you dad in hospital?” Liam asked quietly, rubbing his hand up and down Niall’s back.

“He-” Niall choked on the words and had to stop, squeezing Liam tightly. “He was in an accident. Truck r-ran a red light and h-hit him.”

Keeping his arms tight around Niall, Liam whispered, “Louis had a fight with Zayn. He wasn’t just being a dick, he was upset, too.”

Niall let out a sobbing laugh. “You’ve never called him that before,” he sniffled with an attempted smile, wiping his tears.

“Couldn’t think of another way to say it,” Liam shrugged. He moved his hands to Niall’s face, looking into his eyes. “Are you okay?” he asked quietly. “I don’t like seeing you crying. You’re supposed to be the confident one, remember?”

“I’m not superman,” Niall reminded him with a sniff. “I’ve got feelings, too.”

“No, I know,” Liam rushed out. He leaned his forehead against Niall’s. “It hurts when you cry, though.”

Closing his eyes with a small sigh, Niall breathed, “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Liam murmured, kissing Niall’s nose and earning a little giggle. “You look really tired…”

“I didn’t sleep much last night,” Niall admitted.

“Get some sleep now, then.” Liam guided Niall to lie down on the bed, petting his hair.

“Stay with me?” Niall whispered, clutching Liam’s wrist.

Nodding, Liam laid down with him and wrapped his arms around his boyfriend. “’M not going.”

“Thank you.” Within two minutes, Niall was sound asleep.

Liam stayed rubbing Niall’s shoulder soothingly for a while, then dug his phone out of his pocket. “He needs this,” he whispered to himself, tapping away at the screen.

It was around six in the evening when Niall woke up, and ten minutes later saw he and Liam shuffling into the kitchen. Louis was leaning against the bench beside the stove, head in his hands.

“Hey, Lou,” Niall ventured carefully.

With a deep sigh, Louis dropped his hands and gave his friend a half-smile. “Hey. ’M sorry for being such a prick.” He held out his fist to Niall.

Lightly punching Louis’ fist in return, Niall checked, “You’re right now, yeah?”

“Yeah. Me and Zayn kinda fell out. We’re gonna talk it through proper later, but I kinda knew I stepped over some sorta line. He’s never got like that at me before.” Shrugging one shoulder, Louis admitted, “I shouldn’t’ve taken it out on you, though.”

“Didn’t feel so great anyway,” Niall mumbled, leaning into Liam’s chest.

“Why?” Louis looked genuinely concerned at his housemate’s unusually flat behaviour.

“Dad was in a car accident.”

Louis’ eyes popped open in shock, then guilt filled his features. “Shit… Niall, god, I-”

“You didn’t know,” Niall interrupted with a slight shrug.

“No, I feel really bad now.” Heading right up to Niall, Louis pulled him into a tight hug. “’M really sorry.”

“S'okay,” Niall whispered. He sighed and closed his eyes, burying his face in Louis’ shoulder.

Liam felt a small pang of jealously, but headed off to answer the door when the bell rang. “Zayn,” he greeted with a nod, letting the other boy in.

“Liam,” Zayn replied. He headed straight through to the kitchen. “Lou?”

The speed at which Louis’ attention shifted from Niall to Zayn was almost insulting to the blonde. Clearing his throat, Louis rubbed Niall’s shoulder and pulled away. “Zayn.”

Zayn vaguely pointed down the hall, merely receiving a nod in response before he and Louis disappeared from the kitchen.

“Okay…” Niall looked a little lost now, standing in the middle of the kitchen with Liam in the doorway. He moved over to his boyfriend, wrapping his arms around him and earning a whole-hearted response. “Past couple'a days’ve been weird as fuck,” he mumbled.

“Yeah,” Liam agreed, rocking them slightly from side to side.

Sighing, Niall supposed, “We should eat something.”

Liam felt a twinge in his gut at Niall’s lack of enthusiasm in the idea of food. “Okay.”

Liam ended up staying the night with Niall, but woke early to sneak out. He left with a soft kiss to Niall’s temple, leaving the blonde to sleep longer.

He ran most of the way back to campus, hurrying through his building to his room. “Eight thirty, eight thirty,” he muttered over and over as he grabbed his bag and quickly started packing clothes into it. Once he was satisfied with what he had crammed into his pack, Liam slung it over his shoulders, checked he had his key, wallet and phone, and ran back to Niall and Louis’ house.

“The fuck, Liam?” Louis grumbled when he answered the door. “Texting people at fucking six in the fucking morning?”

“Sorry,” Liam mumbled, scooting down the hall to Niall’s room. He entered and softly closed the door behind him, sitting his bag down beside the bed. Once he was sure Niall was still sound asleep, he found the blonde’s bag and started on packing.

Ten minutes later, Liam stepped out of his shoes and crawled back under the covers of the bed with Niall, allowing the younger boy to curl into his chest. He let him sleep for another hour, simply watching the blonde sleep peacefully.

“Niall,” Liam whispered eventually, rubbing his shoulder. “Niall, wake up.”

“Hmmmmm…?”

Kissing Niall’s forehead, Liam murmured, “Wake up.”

“Don’ wanna,” Niall mumbled.

“Come on, Niall, I need to show you something.”

Niall groaned but sleepily sat up. “Better be good,” he grumbled.

Hopping up and handing Niall a pile of clothes, Liam urged gently, “We’ve gotta get going.”

“Why?” Niall asked sleepily, slowly changing his clothes and stepping into his shoes. “Where’re we goin’ so early?”

“You’ll see,” Liam replied, grabbing both of their bags and leading Niall out of the house.

“Liam, what the hell time do you call this?” Niall whined, wrapping his arms around himself and shivering at the chill morning air.

“Seven thirty,” Liam half-smiled, grasping Niall’s hand and continuing down the street.

Niall dropped his head onto Liam’s shoulder as they walked. “I’m in love with an idiot,” he muttered. He had his eyes shut for most of the walk, startling when Liam stopped them. “Where are we?”

Liam was showing something to a man in a uniform, then led Niall forward again without a word.

Looking around himself, Niall asked Liam, “Why’re we at the train station?”

Once they were on the train and seated, Liam allowed Niall to lean against his side. “Go back to sleep,” he suggested gently, kissing Niall’s hair.

“No, you’re gonna tell me where we’re going, first,” Niall stated, rubbing at his eyes.

“We’re going to your home.”

Niall’s eyes widened. “We're… what?”

“I’m taking you home so you can see your mum and dad…” Liam was suddenly nervous of Niall’s frozen expression. “Sorry, was that-?”

“You’re fucking perfect, Liam Payne,” Niall breathed out, wrapping his arms around Liam’s shoulders and burying his face in his neck.

“That’s okay?” Liam checked, resting his hands on Niall’s back.

“It’s more than okay,” Niall whispered into Liam’s neck, a couple of tears escaping.

“Niall?” Liam panicked, feeling the tears tickling down to his collarbone.

“You,” Niall sniffled, pressing a kiss against Liam’s neck, “are amazing.” He lifted his head to look into Liam’s eyes. “Thank you.”

Liam gave him a small smile. “Just don’t cry, it looks like I’ve done something bad,” he mumbled.

Laughing a little, Niall sniffed and wiped his tears. “Sorry.” He glanced around the train. “It’s not like there’s anyone around to judge you.” Cupping Liam’s jaw, he added, “And does it matter what other people think, anyway?”

“No,” Liam whispered with a smile.

“Exactly,” Niall chuckled, nuzzling into Liam’s neck again. “I’ll go back to sleep now, if that’s still an option.”

“Okay,” Liam half-laughed. He felt a warmth in his stomach from the knowledge that if Niall was being funny, he was feeling at least a little bit better.

No sooner than Niall and Liam had arrived, Maura was ushering them out of the house and driving them to the hospital. Niall had become serious and sad again, which made that awful tugging feeling in Liam’s gut return. He grabbed Niall’s hand and squeezed supportively, receiving a weak smile in response.

It wasn’t long before they had arrived at the hospital and were heading down corridors to the room where Bobby was being looked after. Niall held his breath and closed his eyes as he stepped through the door, only opening them when Liam whispered his name. “Dad…” he whimpered.

Bobby was lying on the bed, covered in bandages. His skin was a sickly white, his eyes closed.

Slowly approaching the bed, Niall grasped his father’s hand. “Dad…?”

After a deep sigh, Bobby’s head shifted a little and he mumbled incoherently.

Niall’s eyes popped open wide. “Dad?”

“Niall?” The word was raspy and weak, but definitely there.

“Dad!” Niall was so thrilled he didn’t know what to do with himself.

“Niall, why… are y-you… here?”

“I had to come see you,” Niall half-laughed, swiping away the few tears that dared to leak from his eyes.

Liam, who was standing at the end of the bed, felt an arm slide around his middle. “Thank you,” Maura whispered in his ear. “I was so worried about him. He always pretends things don’t bother him when they really do. He really needed this.”

“I know,” Liam nodded, voice quiet. “A few other things happened, too. I found him crying.”

“Gosh…” Squeezing Liam’s hip, Maura told him, “You’re amazing.”

Cheeks turning pink, Liam mumbled, “That’s what Niall said on the train.”

“Because it’s true.” Standing up on her toes to kiss Liam’s cheek, Maura watched her son and husband talking quietly, a tiny smile on her face.

Chapter Text

“So, he’ll be okay?” Liam checked once they had returned to the house and Niall was sitting on the end of his childhood bed.

“He’ll live,” Niall nodded. “There’ll be a few scars, but he’s gonna be alright.” Looking up at Liam, Niall made childish grabby-hands at him. “Come here,” he pouted. When Liam sat beside him, Niall climbed into his lap and nuzzled into his collarbone. “Want my Liam,” he mumbled babyishly.

“Your Liam?” Liam asked quietly, a small swell of pride inflating in his stomach.

“If you’ve laid claim to me, I’m laying claim to you,” Niall replied resolutely. He shuffled until he was sitting with his legs wrapped around Liam’s hips and arms circling his neck. Planting a kiss on Liam’s lips, he stated, “Mine.”

“Why am I property?” Liam asked with a small frown.

“Because you’re perfect, and I’ll bite the fingers of anyone who touches you,” Niall nodded firmly.

“’M not perfect,” Liam mumbled, cheeks flushing pink.

Kissing the brunette again, Niall murmured, “That’s exactly why you are.” He leaned their foreheads together, stroking his thumb up and down the side of Liam’s neck. “You don’t take credit for what you do, Li. I would’ve stayed at home and felt miserable if you hadn’t brought me back. And I would’ve pretended none of it bothered me at the same time. But you practically dragged me out of the house while I was half asleep and brought me back to see my dad.”

“I didn’t drag you…” Liam settled his hands on Niall’s hips. “I just… I wanted you to be okay. And you needed to see your dad to be okay.”

“Even I didn’t realise I needed to see him ‘til you brought me back,” Niall chuckled, burying his face in Liam’s neck. “You helped when I didn’t know how anyone could.”

“I’ll always help you,” Liam whispered.

Grinning, Niall tightened his grip on his boyfriend. “You’re so much more confident than before. So much stronger.”

“Because of you,” Liam pointed out.

“All I did was support you,” Niall chuckled, fingers dancing up and down Liam’s spine. “You did the rest.” He sighed happily, pressing his lips to Liam’s neck. “My hard work paid off.”

“Guess so.” Liam moved backwards until he was leaning back against the headboard of the bed. “Will your mum mind how long we stay?”

“Long as we help pay for food, I don’t think she minds,” Niall shrugged. He lifted his head and fitted his lips together with Liam’s, sighing through his nose and lightly toying with his boyfriend’s hair.

“Are you two alright with pizza for dinner?”

Liam nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden voice at the door, making Niall laugh. “Pizza’s fine, Mam,” he assured her.

“You scared the life out of me,” Liam breathed out, leaning his forehead against Niall’s shoulder while he waited for his heart rate to settle back down.

“Sorry,” Maura chuckled.

“S'alright.” Blowing out a long breath, Liam lifted his head. “Forget where we are.”

Snorting, Niall giggled, “You do know that makes it sound like we spend all our time snogging, right?”

Liam kissed Niall’s cheek. “Would that be bad?”

“I’m going to order these pizzas,” Maura told them, leaving them with a smile and fond shake of her head.

Niall looked like he could burst with excitement, pulling Liam into a long kiss. “You were so fucking chilled just then, I’m so proud of you,” he mumbled against Liam’s lips.

“You make it sound like I was completely useless before,” Liam muttered, silencing any reply Niall had planned by kissing him again.

Bobby was up and about again in under a week, so he and Maura saw Niall and Liam off at the train station. “Come back whenever you like,” Maura told them, hugging both boys tightly.

“We should probably catch up on our classes first,” Niall half-laughed. “But we’ll be back.”

“You better be.” Smirking, Maura added, “And Liam shouldn’t have to drag you home next time.”

Niall groaned at the reminder; no one was letting him be on this subject. “C'mon, Li, we’ve got a train to catch.”

“Bye,” Liam farewelled Niall’s parents with a smile and wave as Niall dragged him towards the train. “We’re not gonna miss it, Ni, the train doesn’t leave for another ten minutes.”

“Better to be early than late, Liam.” Niall found them seats and tugged Liam’s arm to make him sit. “You’ve been teasing me,” he mumbled, folding his arms and pouting.

“What?” Liam asked in surprise.

“You and Mam. You’ve been picking on me.” Pulling his phone out of his pocket, Niall commented, “I almost preferred you when it took ten minutes to get you to talk.”

Blinking a few times, Liam twisted his fingers together in his lap and swallowed hard. “Oh.”

Niall glanced to his boyfriend. “No, no, Li, I was kidding,” he half-laughed, leaning his head on Liam’s shoulder. “Liam?” Niall sighed when the brunette didn’t respond. “Liam, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that.” He pressed a kiss to Liam’s cheek. “I guess I forget sometimes that you still need reminding that you’re perfect.”

“I’m not perfect, Niall,” Liam muttered.

“Could’ve fooled me.” Niall sent his boyfriend a smile when he looked at him. “There’s nothing wrong with you the way you are, Liam. I do miss the blushing, though.”

Liam huffed out a sigh when his cheeks heated up. “Niall…” he complained.

“There it is,” Niall beamed. “You’re so cute, Liam.”

Hitting his head against the headrest of his seat, Liam groaned, “Niall.”

Niall’s only response was to laugh.

“And where the fuck have you two been?!”

Niall didn’t even flinch at the furious voice that greeted them when they returned to his and Louis’ house, but Liam jumped a foot in the air. “We were with my Mam and my Dad,” Niall replied simply, heading straight down the hall to dump his bag in his bedroom.

“And you didn’t answer your phones because…?” Louis demanded.

“Because Liam left his charger in his uni room, and I didn’t want to,” Niall shrugged. “Gimme a break, Louis, I was worried about my dad.”

Louis huffed in annoyance. “Just fucking tell me where you’re going next time,” he muttered stomping off down the hall.

“Why’s he care so much?” Niall asked Liam as he started unpacking his bag.

“Because he’s your friend?” Liam asked with a slight frown. “I know I’d’ve been worried.”

“But that’s you,” Niall told him with a fond smile. “You care, you just do. Lou doesn’t.”

“Obviously he does,” Liam shrugged. “I mean, you do live together. He probably wanted to know where his housemate was.”

Niall sighed and nodded. “I guess. But still, no need to be so snarky.”

Jumping when his phone rang as soon as he plugged it into the charger, Liam quickly answered it with, “Hello?”

“Liam? Are you home?” Zayn asked carefully.

“Um… I’m at Niall and Louis’. Where’re you?”

Zayn sighed through the phone. “Can I talk to you? I know you’re not the greatest at comfort, but I just need someone to tell this to.”

“O-okay…” Liam looked to his boyfriend. “Gimme a bit to get back. I’ll come knock on your door when I get back, yeah?”

“Thank you, Liam. Seriously.” With that, Zayn hung up.

Wrapping his arms around Liam from the side, Niall asked, “Who was that?”

“Um, Zayn.” Liam frowned at his phone before setting down on Niall’s desk to charge a bit more. “He wants to talk to me. And if Louis’ shitty mood is anything to go by, I’d say they’ve had another spat.”

Niall frowned deeply at that. “They never used to fight. Ever.”

“Well, the first one was about family, so…”

“Oh…” Niall bit his lip. “Yeah, Zayn’s family’s always been a touchy subject. But… Louis’ not stupid. He never makes the same mistake twice.”

Raising his eyebrow, Liam stated, “Louis picks the same bone with me every day.”

“That’s not a mistake,” Niall chuckled.

Liam grumbled, wrapping his arms around Niall’s shoulders. “Great,” he mumbled into Niall’s hair.

“Don’t worry about it.” Standing up on his toes, Niall pecked Liam’s lips. “You should go talk to Zayn, then.”

“Are you sure…?” Liam checked, biting his lips nervously.

“Hey, I just had nearly a whole week with you. I’ll be fine.” Separating them, Niall chuckled, “Go on, I’m sick of the sight of you.”

Liam paused, then reminded himself that his boyfriend was joking. “Fine,” he sniffed indignantly, making Niall burst out laughing. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Course you will,” Niall snorted. “You think I can go a day without seeing you?”

Unable to control his grin, Liam stole one last short kiss before heading out of the house, making sure he was quiet but quick when passing Louis’ bedroom so as not to disturb him. Especially with where he was headed.

“Liam, hey,” Zayn greeted quietly when he opened the door to his room. “Come in.”

Liam slowly entered Zayn’s room, glancing around at the various drawings stuck to the walls, most of them of Louis. “These are cool,” he commented to fill the uncomfortable silence that had settled over them.

Simply shrugging his shoulder, Zayn sat on his bed and nodded to the spot beside him for Liam to do the same.

“So… uh-”

“I tried talking to Louis about the listening thing, and he totally lost his head at me,” Zayn blurted out.

Shaking his head slowly, Liam repeated, “Listening thing…?”

Zayn sighed heavily, then started again. “Y'know how I said you were great at listening to me?” Liam nodded silently. “You said I should talk to Lou about it. But when I did, he exploded at me, telling me not to be selfish and that it’s an unrealistic expectation and all that.”

Liam bit his lip, shifting a little before venturing, “Maybe he’s not been in a good mood…?”

“It’s Louis; unless he’s having sex, snogging, or teasing someone, he’s never in a good mood,” Zayn stated blandly.

“Well… yeah, okay,” Liam agreed regretfully. “But-”

“No, he’s just pissed that I asked him to do something differently.” Zayn huffed out a sigh and rubbed his hands down his face. “He drives me insane,” he whispered.

Pausing for a moment, Liam asked carefully, “In a good way, or a bad way…?”

“Both.” Zayn flopped onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. “I love him so much, but he’s got qualities that drive me up the wall. Why do I love him so much?” He looked up at Liam helplessly. “It’s so ridiculous. He annoys the hell out of me, Liam, why does it always make me feel so shitty when he’s not around?”

Shaking his head, Liam admitted, “I don’t know.”

Zayn sighed and closed his eyes. “I guess you’ve been to the house. You’ve seen how pissed he is?”

“Yeah,” Liam nodded.

“Does he say anything about me when he’s in a mood?” Zayn asked. “Like, whinge about me or…?”

“Not really,” Liam replied, bringing his feet up onto the bedframe and wrapping his arms around his knees. “He shuts himself in his room and doesn’t come out, and snaps at anyone who tries to talk to him when he’s getting food or whatever.”

Zayn sat up. “Really?”

“Yeah. Goes all hermit-y.”

“But… I do that.” Zayn frowned. “He used to parade around shouting about whatever it was that’d pissed him off. I was always the one that locked myself away from everything.”

Shrugging one shoulder, Liam supposed, “Maybe you’ve rubbed off on him.”

Zayn snorted, smirking at Liam. “I’ve done that more than once.”

Liam felt his face flush hot at his unintended innuendo. “I didn’t mean that,” he muttered.

“No, I know,” Zayn chuckled. He seemed to realise something. “I never used to do that. I’d think those things, but Lou was always the one to go outright and say them.”

“How long’ve you two been together?” Liam asked.

“Almost a year.”

“Well, you spend a lot of time together. Maybe you’re both changing to be more like the other. Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.”

Zayn just hummed in consideration. “I think I’m gonna talk to him,” he decided.

“Okay, well… be careful,” Liam advised nervously. “Please.”

Giving Liam a rueful smile, Zayn hauled himself to his feet. “Right…” He glanced to Liam. “You gonna come, too?”

Liam shook his head. “Me and Ni have just spent almost a week solid with each other.”

“Break time,” Zayn laughed. He let Liam leave the room first, the two of them heading down the hallway. “Thanks for having a chat,” Zayn sighed as they reached Liam’s door.

“No worries,” Liam shrugged, a faint blush colouring his cheeks.

Zayn wrapped his arms around Liam’s shoulders and hugging him tightly, then headed off with a short wave.

“Good luck,” Liam muttered under his breath before ducking into his room.

Chapter Text

“What did you say to Zayn?” was the first thing Niall asked as he sat down beside Lam for their first lecture.

“What do you mean?” Liam asked with a small frown.

“I mean ‘what did you say?’,” Niall repeated. “By god, he and Lou were at it like cats and dogs last night!”

“What… fighting?”

Niall nodded his head, still looking a little disbelieving. “And once Zayn did the whole storming out, dramatic exit thing, Louis came barging into my room effing and blinding about how it’s all your fault and I should stop seeing you.”

Swallowing hard, Liam’s eyes dropped to his book. “Oh,” he whispered.

“Don’t even think about it,” Niall warned, grabbing Liam’s hand tightly. “Just… what the hell did you say? Lou was livid.”

“I just… Zayn was saying last week how he was so glad I just sat and listened to him, because Louis always puts his fifty pence worth in whenever Zayn’s having a rant.” Chewing on his lip, Liam explained, “I suggested he talk to Louis about it.”

Niall cringed. “Oh.”

“And then when we got back from your parents’, Zayn wanted to talk about the fact that Louis has lost it at him again.”

“And you suggested they talk it out?” Niall guessed.

“Well… yeah.”

Sighing, Niall kissed Liam’s cheek. “That might work for normal people, but not with Louis. If you wanna get through to him about that sort of thing, you’ve gotta expect at least three explosive denials before he even considers that he’s wrong.”

Liam leaned his chin in his hand, elbow braced on his knee. “Does Zayn know that?”

“Zayn’s never tried to tell Louis he’s wrong before,” Niall hummed, shaking his head slowly. “So no.”

“Dammit.” Liam buried his face in his hands and groaned. “Why can’t I do anything right?”

“Liam, don’t be stupid,” Niall scolded, wrapping both of his arms around one of Liam’s. “You took me home to see my dad, you twit; you did that very right.”

Liam shook his head. “But this Zayn and Louis thing-”

“Is one thing you go wrong,” Niall cut in. “One thing, Li.”

“But-”

“But nothing.” Niall covered Liam’s mouth with his hand. “Stop putting yourself down.”

Closing his eyes, Liam sighed. Glancing to Niall, he pressed a kiss to the blonde’s palm, making him smile and take his hand away. “I’ll try,” he whispered as their lecturer hurried into the room spluttering apologies and beginning.

“No.”

Niall and Liam both jumped at the sudden voice as they stepped through the front door of the house. “What?” Niall half-laughed at his housemate as he sat down the grocery bag he was carrying and kicked his shoes off.

“I don’t want him here,” Louis stated firmly, pointing an angry finger at Liam.

“Well, tough,” Niall replied with a raised eyebrow.

“No,” Louis very nearly growled. “This is my house, and I don’t want him here.”

“Lou, I live here, too,” Niall pointed out, hands on hips.

“Only because I let you,” Louis snapped.

Rolling his eyes, Niall pulled his shoes back on. “C'mon, Li.” He grabbed the grocery bag and Liam’s hand and led him out of the house again, pulling the door shut behind them. “We’ll just go to yours instead.”

“Now he’s mad at you, too,” Liam mumbled.

“No, he’s just lashing out at everyone because he hasn’t been laid for two weeks,” Niall said matter-of-factly. “Seriously, Li, it’s not your fault.”

“I feel responsible, though.”

“Well, don’t.” Niall leaned up to kiss Liam’s cheek. “You were trying to help a friend. Your advice didn’t work, but that doesn’t mean you made the fight. It just means that Louis’ a bit of an egotistical arsehole.”

The rest of their walk was silent, Liam letting them into the building.

“Alright, which way is the kitchen?” Niall asked, looking down the two directions of the corridor. “It all looks the same to me. Only reason I can find your room is because Zayn gave me directions.”

“It all looks the same to everyone,” Liam smiled, leading Niall in the opposite direction to his room and around a corner. “This is the kitchen.” Swiping his key card, he pushed the door open and let them in.

“How come the kitchens have locks?” Niall asked incredulously.

“Less chance of people stealing each other’s food,” Liam shrugged. “There’s two kitchens. I’m not really sure. I just know it’s a pain when you forget your card and you’re locked out of everywhere.”

Putting the grocery bag down on the bench Liam gestured to, Niall frowned. “The bathrooms don’t need key cards, do they?”

“No,” Liam chuckled, starting to sort through the food they had bought for dinner. “They just lock from the inside, like public toilets and stuff.”

Niall nodded in understanding. “So, where’s your cooking stuff?”

After cooking, eating, and cleaning up, the two settled themselves in Liam’s room, curled up on the bed watching The Avengers on Liam’s laptop. As the movie came to its end, Niall yawned and rubbed his eyes, his head on Liam’s shoulder. “’M so tired,” he mumbled.

Squeezing Niall’s shoulder, Liam tentatively suggested, “You could stay here tonight, if you wanted.”

Niall turned his head to smile up at his boyfriend. “I’d like that,” he murmured. “Means I don’t have to talk to Louis, either.” He leaned up and kissed Liam’s lips. “Is it too early to go to bed?”

“No,” Liam smiled. He closed his laptop and took it over to his desk, then grabbed some clothes for Niall to change into.

Once the two of them were changed and squeezed into Liam’s single bed, Niall mumbled, “Do we have class tomorrow?”

“What day is it?”

“Today was Tuesday, I think,” Niall yawned, nuzzling his face into Liam’s neck.

“Then no, we don’t.” Kissing the top of Niall’s head, Liam heard the buzzing sound of a mobile ringing. “Is that yours?”

“Don’t care,” Niall shrugged slowly, sleep heavy in his voice. “'Night, Leemo.”

With a slightly confused smile at the nickname, Liam whispered, “'Night, Niall.”

Liam woke from his sleep to the sound of knocking on his door. He groaned a little.

“Ignore it,” Niall mumbled into his shoulder, eyes still closed.

Rolling onto his side, Liam pulled Niall into his chest more, the blonde curling into him. “Ugh, go away,” he grumbled as more knocking filled the room.

“They will,” Niall sighed, fingers curling in Liam’s T-shirt.

Eventually, the knocking stopped, both boys breathing out relieved sighs. “Okay,” Liam hummed, kissing Niall’s hair.

After a short while of silence, Niall piped up, “Liam?”

“Hmm?”

“No classes today, right?”

“Right.”

Rolling Liam onto his back and straddling his hips, Niall grinned, “So we could just stay here all day and do absolutely nothing.”

“We couldn’t,” Liam chuckled as he settled his hands in the small of Niall’s back. “We need to feed you, or your stomach will eat itself.”

Niall sighed. “Very true. First world problems.” He laid his hands on Liam’s chest and pressed their lips together, sighing through his nose. He shivered a little when Liam deepened the kiss, gladly welcoming the brunette’s tongue into his mouth.

After a few minutes of lazy kissing, Liam pulled away. “C'mon, we should get some breakfast,” he murmured, stroking his fingers through Niall’s hair.

“Mm hmm.” Niall pressed one last kiss to Liam’s mouth, then rolled off him to hop off the bed. He had forgotten, however, that Liam’s bed was smaller than his own, so ended up rolling straight off the edge and onto the floor. “Ah!” he yelped before grunting at the impact with the ground.

“Ni?” Liam looked over the edge of the bed, biting back a laugh as Niall giggled up at him.

“Oops.” Pulling himself to his feet, Niall held his hands out, Liam taking them as he stood from the bed.

Liam paused for a moment, just gazing at Niall wearing a shirt three sizes too big for him and sweatpants he had to hold up with one hand. His hair was rumpled and his eyes still carried traces of sleep.

“What?” Niall asked with a small laugh.

“You look really cute,” Liam chuckled, wrapping both arms around Niall’s middle.

Niall looked affronted. “I do not.”

“You do so,” Liam laughed. Pecking Niall’s lips, he told him, “You look all soft and cuddly.”

Pouting, Niall replied firmly, “I’m not cute.”

Liam shrugged. “You are, but I won’t argue with you.” He picked Niall up and spun him around, earning a thrilled giggle and huge grin. “I love you,” Liam whispered, pressing a long kiss to Niall’s mouth.

“Hmm… love you, too,” Niall hummed against Liam’s lips, his arms coming up to wrap around his neck. One hand quickly dropped to hitch his sweatpants up.

Resisting the urge to coo, Liam asked, “Food?”

“Food,” Niall confirmed with a kiss and a smile.

The two of them headed out into the hallway, Liam making sure he had his key card with him before closing the door and leading Niall towards the kitchen. As they entered, they saw Zayn leaning against one of the benches waiting for the kettle to boil.

“Morning, Zayn,” Niall greeted cheerfully, swinging the hand he had linked with Liam’s.

Sighing, Zayn turned to pour boiling water into his travel-mug. “Mornin’.”

“Zayn’s not a morning person,” Niall explained to Liam with a smirk, watching his boyfriend pull some cereals from his cupboard.

“Zayn’s not an 'any-time-of-the-day’ person,” Zayn mumbled, staring at his mug while he waited for his tea to steep.

“Zee, Lou’s not the easiest of people to get along with,” Niall sighed, watching the moping boy’s back. “I live with him, I’d know. There’s a reason I stayed with Liam tonight, other than the fact that I love him.” Throwing his boyfriend a smile, which was wholeheartedly returned, he explained, “Louis wasn’t gonna let Liam into the house. Not a hope in hell.”

“Because he reckons it’s Liam’s fault that I want the chance to say how I’m feeling without Louis putting his opinion in.” Zayn stirred his tea briefly, pulling the teabag out and throwing it in the bin. “He reckons I’ve never thought before about how much I’d love to just tell him things and get stuff off my chest without being interrupted and corrected. I know how I’m feeling, I don’t need Louis telling me that, no, I’m actually feeling something else. I don’t need to be corrected when I say my family won’t like him no matter how hard he tries. And I can’t stand the way he insists it’s me, not him, that’s causing the problem.”

“Well.”

All three boys turned to the new voice. “Louis,” Niall noted, turning his attention back to Zayn.

“How’d you even get in?” Liam asked, unsure as to whether he wanted Louis to hear him or not.

“Harry let me in,” Louis replied vaguely. He took a few steps forward, eyes meeting Zayn’s. “So it’s got to the point where you bitch about me behind my back?”

“Oh, grow the fuck up, Louis,” Niall scoffed, turning to face his housemate. “Your boyfriend’s upset, if he’s even still your boyfriend. I know you’re used to talking when you like or you’ll never be heard, but have you ever stopped to think that maybe that’s how Zayn feels now? That he’s not heard because you keep talking over the top of him? Bloody hell, if it’s 'come to’ anything, it’s that we’re fighting over this in Zayn and Liam’s kitchen at eight o'clock in the fucking morning when anyone from this building could just walk in. The next step will be an all-out scream-fest in the middle of the uni. Just stop being a dick.”

Louis glared harshly at Niall. “Did I ask for your opinion?”

“Did Zayn ever ask for yours?” Liam countered, feeling the physical slap Louis’ gaze imparted.

“Louis, you’re a self-important prick,” Niall stated. “Learn to keep your fucking mouth shut and you’ll find people will stop getting pissed at you.” With that, he collected the two bowls of cereal Liam had organised and carried them over to one of the tables, sitting himself down and starting to eat.

Avoiding Louis’ eyes, Liam followed Niall over to the table, feeling a little of the tension in his shoulders relax when his boyfriend took his hand.

“Don’t ignore me,” Louis growled, fists clenched.

“What’re we gonna do with today, Li?” Niall asked, spooning more cornflakes into his mouth.

Liam shrugged one shoulder.

“We’ve got all day…” Chewing as he thought, Niall suggested, “Picnic? Weather looks good enough for it.” He nodded to the wall of windows beside their table.

Nodding, Liam smiled, “That’d be nice.”

Niall grinned, lightly bumping his shoulder against Liam’s.

“Niall, don’t ignore me,” Louis said louder.

“We should go to that park fifteen minutes away. There’s a walking track, we could do a lap or two after lunch,” Liam explained.

“I like the way you think,” Niall chuckled. “There’s a duck pond there, too, right?”

“Niall James Horan, turn around and look at me,” Louis demanded, a hint of desperation in his voice.

“I think there is,” Liam nodded.

“Great! We can feed the ducks!” Niall cheered.

Frowning a little, Liam pointed out, “Feeding them bread is actually bad for them.”

Niall rolled his eyes. “Don’t be a killjoy,” he giggled, kissing Liam’s cheek. Nosing at Liam’s cheekbone, Niall whispered, “C'mere,” capturing Liam’s lips in a kiss he was willing to return.

“Niall!” Louis turned. “Za- Zayn?” Realising Zayn must have slipped out while he wasn’t watching, Louis ran for the kitchen door. “Zayn!”

The door slammed closed behind Louis, Liam pulling back from Niall’s lips. “Was that the right way to handle it?” he whispered nervously.

“With Louis, there is no right way,” Niall sighed. “You just have to try different tactics until you find something that seems to work.”

Chewing on his lip, Liam noted, “He sounded really upset.”

“Well, now he knows how the rest of us feel,” Niall pointed out. Cracking a small smile, he commented, “What you said was pretty cool, though.”

“When?”

“When Louis asked if he wanted our opinions, and what you said about Zayn not wanting his. It was surprising, and it shut him up.” Pecking Liam’s lips, Niall murmured, “I was really proud of you.”

Liam blushed. “Really?”

Grinning, Niall chuckled, “You were so cool about it. Just came right out with it.” He lightly nipped at Liam’s lower lip. “So proud of you,” he whispered into Liam’s mouth before kissing him deeply.

The sound of the kitchen door opening reached their ears, then, “Oh…”

Breaking their kiss, Liam glanced to the door, then blushed deeply, clearing his throat.

“Sorry, guys,” the boy at the door half-laughed, heading to his cupboard. “As you were.”

Niall just giggled and continued eating his breakfast as he watched Liam’s cheeks only darkening in colour. “Maybe later,” he whispered in Liam’s ear.

Chapter Text

“Here?” Niall suggested, pointing to a spot in the middle of the wide expanse of grass. “Plenty of space.”

Liam nodded and slid his backpack off, pulling out the picnic blanket they had packed and handing it to Niall to spread out. They then unpacked their food; chicken wraps, chocolate muffins, and strawberries.

Niall spread himself out on his stomach the blanket, taking a bite out of his wrap. “S'nice to get out and do something together,” he commented as they sat enjoying the warmer weather. “I mean, I’ll never get sick of cuddling and watching movies, but it’s nice to change things up a bit.” He glanced to Liam, who was staring into space thoughtfully. “What’s up?”

“Just thinking,” Liam hummed.

“A penny for your thoughts, good sir?”

Smiling a little, Liam looked down at his food. “I was just thinking… You and Zayn talk about Louis being grumpy because he hasn’t had sex for a while. Sex generally improves people’s moods for a while, doesn’t it?”

Niall nodded his head once.

“I’m just wondering, since you’re so cheerful anyway, what you’d be like.”

A grin flashed across Niall’s face. “Well, you’ve kinda seen already from when we’ve had a bit of fun,” he told Liam with a wink. “But after sex I get in one of those moods where you’d have to tell me someone close to me died to get me down.” Poking Liam’s side, Niall asked, “What about you?”

Liam blushed lightly. “I don’t know.”

“Oh… oh.” Niall eyes widened. “Sorry, I didn’t think-”

“It’s okay,” Liam smiled. Shrugging one shoulder, he explained, “I just needed to find the right guy.”

Niall’s face brightened at the implication. “You’ll be glad you did.”

“Cocky,” Liam laughed.

“That’s not what I meant!” Niall smacked Liam’s arm as the brunette kept laughing at him, but couldn’t help smiling at how relaxed his boyfriend was. “I meant you’ll be glad your first time is with someone who matters to you, not someone you met at a party when you’d had a couple too many beers.”

Tilting his head curiously, Liam asked, “Is that how you…?”

“Yeah,” Niall admitted. “And it wasn’t that great.” Snorting, he shook his head. “Scratch that, it sucked. It was really terrible, and I was so sore afterwards I couldn’t walk properly, because the guy hadn’t prepped right and…” Niall sighed heavily. “I was just grateful he’d been wearing a condom and I didn’t end up with some nasty disease.”

“So…” Liam started carefully, “how many times have you… y'know…?”

“Uh… maybe, like, six?” Niall frowned in thought. “Yeah, about that. All different guys, but hey, no one’s perfect.”

“So you bottomed every time?”

Niall raised an eyebrow at his boyfriend, but nevertheless answered, “All but once, which was when I decided I prefer to bottom. Can I ask why we’re having this talk about my sex life in the middle of the park?” he half-laughed.

Shrugging, Liam admitted, “It feels safer out here. Like… we’re not talking through a big thing in a small room. It just feels less scary.”

“Less pressure?” Niall guessed.

“Kinda,” Liam nodded.

“So… my next question; why’re you so curious?”

“Because we’ve been together for a little while and I feel like it’s something we should know about each other,” Liam explained.

Niall nodded acceptingly. “That’s the most innocent reason for us to be taking about this,” he chuckled.

“I’m just curious,” Liam replied, a light blush dusting his cheeks.

“I know, I’m sorry.” Niall grabbed Liam’s hand. “Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah.”

“Before me, had you ever kissed anyone?”

Eyes on his hands, Liam nodded his head. “Yeah… two. The first one was a girl from school, which was pretty much when I realised that women aren’t my taste. I think I was about fourteen. The second one was when I was sixteen, I’d gone to this disco thing my school was running because Mum thought it’d help me makes some friends. This guy a few grades above me started talking to me, and we ended up outside kissing. But a few of his friends saw and he pushed me away and started acting like I’d made him do it… So, yeah.” Shrugging, Liam gave his boyfriend a half-smile. “I’ve saved most of my kisses, as well as my virginity.”

“For who?” Niall asked with a slight smile.

“I’m not 100% sure, but I know who I’d like my first to be,” Liam murmured, a soft smile on his lips and in his eyes.

Niall sat himself up and scooted closer to the brunette. “Come here, you,” he whispered, claiming Liam’s lips with his own. He tempted Liam’s mouth open, smoothing his tongue along the back of the brunette’s front teeth.

“Go be disgusting somewhere else, fags!” someone yelled before Liam felt something hit him in the back of his head.

“Ow,” he muttered, pulling away from Niall to press a hand to where he had felt the collision.

There was a chorus of laughter that disappeared as the perpetrators ran away.

Sighing, Niall sat up and scooted around to sit behind Liam. “Let me look.”

Liam sat still while his boyfriend inspected the back of his head for any major injury. “Why do people think that’s funny?” he mumbled.

“Because they’ve got no sense of humour,” Niall told him, kissing the back of Liam’s neck. “C'mon, we can finish eating later. Let’s go for that walk, yeah?”

“Okay,” Liam nodded.

The two of them packed up their picnic and Liam slung the backpack onto his back. He smiled a little when Niall took his hand and led him onto the walking track. “I kinda miss going for walks,” Niall murmured after a while.

“What do you mean?” Liam asked.

“Well, I used to go on walks with my mam sometimes. Y'know, just ‘round the park, but it gave me a chance to catch up with her, y'know?”

“Yeah,” Liam hummed, squeezing Niall’s hand.

The two just wandered around the walking track, stopping briefly by the water to watch the ducks before heading towards the gates and onto the street.

“We spent an hour and a half just walking,” Niall chuckled as they meandered home.

“Was nice, though,” Liam smiled.

Grinning, Niall nodded, “Yeah, it was.” He stood up on his toes and kissed Liam’s lips, then started swinging their clasped hands between them.

“Should we go check on Zayn and Louis?” Liam asked cautiously. “Or at least Zayn?”

Niall bit his lips together, then nodded resolutely. “We’ll go see Zayn.”

It wasn’t long before they were back at the dorms, Liam leaving his backpack in his room on the way past before they headed down to Zayn’s room. Liam knocked twice, then waited.

A minute later, Niall piped up, “Is here there?”

Liam knocked again, but there was still no response.

“Maybe he has classes?” Niall suggested. “It’s a Wednesday, after all.”

Humming with a frown, Liam shook his head slowly. “Zayn’s only got classes on Mondays and Tuesdays; the rest of the week is self-directed.”

“Kitchen?”

“Yeah, worth a try,” Liam nodded, the couple heading down the hallway and around the corner to the kitchen. “Nope,” Liam frowned as they stepped inside.

Tugging Liam’s hand, Niall supposed, “He could be at mine and Louis’. If they’ve made up, they could be in the same room at least.”

So they walked to Niall’s, quietly opening the front door in case Louis was on his own and throwing a tantrum.

“Niall?”

Both boys froze at the fragile-sounding call. “It’s me, Lou,” Niall replied, creeping down the hall to poke his head through the living room door.

Louis was curled up on the couch with his knees to his chest, arms wrapped around his legs. His red-rimmed eyes were on the door, a small sniffle filling the silence in the house. “Ni…”

“Louis, what’s happened?” Niall asked gently, approaching his friend and sitting on the couch beside him.

“You were… you ignored me earlier, and Zayn snuck off, so I went looking for him and…” Louis took a deep breath and blew it out again. “He’s broken up with me, Niall.”

Squeezing his eyes shut, Niall had to put a sentence together before he said anything. “I’m sorry about what we did this morning, Lou, but I couldn’t think of any other way to get you to listen.”

“I know.” Louis sniffed and wiped at his eyes. “But he went back to his room, so I followed him, but he wouldn’t even open the door. He broke up with methrough the door, Niall.”

“That… that sucks.” Wrapping his arm around Louis’ shoulders, Niall looked up at Liam. “Li, could you go out and keep doing what we were before?”

Understanding exactly what Niall meant, Liam nodded his head and left the house. He reached the end of the front path and sighed heavily, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Right,” he breathed out. “Where would he go?”

Liam headed off towards the uni campus, then decided on the library as his first stop. He shook his head when he didn’t find Zayn there, then checked the Arts department. Still nothing.

“Are you looking for something?” asked the older lady in one of the empty Arts rooms.

“Uh…” Liam ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah, I’m looking for my friend Zayn.”

The woman’s eyes brightened. “Oh, Zayn. He’ll be on the hill, darling.”

“The hill?” Liam asked slowly.

“The hill out the back of the uni,” the woman explained. “Gives a lovely view. He goes out there a lot to think. Head through that door, then out the exit to your right,” she instructed, pointing to one of the many doors in the room with a smile. “I’m glad to see he has some friends. He’s awfully quiet in classes.”

Liam just gave her a polite smile and headed through the door she had pointed to, then out onto the hill she had been talking about. Sure enough, there was Zayn, sitting in a similar position to the one Louis had been in on his couch, gazing out over the view of the fields and forest behind the university. Walking quietly, he spoke softly, “Zayn?”

Zayn didn’t respond.

Sitting down beside his friend, Liam looked to his face. “Are you okay?” he asked, trying to sound as gentle and comforting as Niall had when he was talking to Louis.

Zayn’s eyes moved to Liam, giving him a look that asked, 'Do I look okay?’before returning his attention to the view.

Liam swallowed hard. “Louis told us.”

“Don’t,” Zayn muttered.

Eyes casting down to his hands in his lap, Liam noted, “You can’t just ignore it.”

“Why not?”

“Because…” Liam sighed. “Why’d you break up with him?”

“I can’t take it anymore,” Zayn whispered, eyes unmoving. “I needed him to stop following me around and whining every time I did something he didn’t like. It’s not fair for him to judge me on everything I do when he can’t take it when I do it back.”

“But you broke up with him through the door,” Liam pointed out.

Closing his eyes, Zayn admitted, “I couldn’t see his face when I did it.”

Maybe you should come see his face now,“ Liam half-laughed. "I’ve never heard him sound so… breakable.”

Zayn physically flinched. “Don’t.”

“You broke up with him because you were fighting,” Liam hummed. “Niall was telling me that fighting with Louis takes a long time. But you just have to wait it out.”

“How’re you s'pose to deal with Louis when he’s in denial?” Zayn asked, sounding a little desperate.

Liam shook his head. “Niall said you have to keep trying different ways until something works.”

The two of them simply sat in silence for a while. Glancing to the boy beside him, Liam thought about what he had said about comforting people. With that, he wrapped his arm around Zayn’s shoulders.

And Zayn burst into tears in his arms.

“How is he?” Niall asked through the phone.

With a sigh, Liam replied, “He’s been better.”

“Lou’s been crying again.”

“Yeah… Zayn did, too.” Chewing on his thumbnail, Liam admitted, “I feel really awful.”

“Why?” Niall asked, concern in his voice.

“Because they broke up, Niall. They looked so happy all the time and… and now they’re not together anymore.” Liam flinched when his chewing drew blood.

“It’s not your fault,” Niall reminded him.

“No, I know, but… it’s just a reminder that these things don’t always last forever.”

Niall chuckled a little. “Don’t be melodramatic, Li. They’ll get back together.”

Liam sat up on his bed, a frown on his face. “How do you know?”

“Well, I know that Louis’ accepted what we were all trying to tell him, and that he wants to apologise to Zayn,” Niall answered with a happy ring to his voice. “And if Zayn’s unhappy, too, I can’t see him saying no.”

Huffing out a sigh, Liam asked, “What if Zayn doesn’t want to get back with Louis?”

“Then they’ll work it out and go back to being friends,” Niall replied, his shrug practically audible. “And they’ll end up sleeping together again if they keep hanging out, so they’ll probably end up together again, anyway.”

Liam frowned a little. “I dunno that’s how people work…”

Laughing through the phone, Niall asked, “What would you know?” There was a silence, then he blurted out, “Holy fuck, that was so rude, shit, Liam, I’m sorry!”

“That… actually hurt,” Liam admitted quietly, picking at a loose thread in his sheet.

“Liam, I’m sorry,” Niall pleaded. “That’s my humour, but I should know better not to say that sort of thing to you.”

Swallowing hard, Liam hung up and turned his phone off, then curled up in his bed. Closing his eyes with a sigh, he attempted to sleep.

Liam ignored the soft knocking on his door the next morning, going about his routine of making sure he looked reasonable to head to the kitchen. He checked to make sure his books were in his backpack and he had all the notes he needed for the day, peeking out his window at the weather and deciding to pull a hoodie on; the kitchen was usually colder than the outside temperature, no matter the time of year.

When he stepped out of his room, Liam was surprised to find a blonde head he knew well resting against knees that had been drawn up to a chest. The head lifted when the sound of the door closing alerted him of a presence. Slowly standing up, the blonde moved closer and curled his arms around Liam’s hips, face burrowing into his chest. “’M sorry,” came a tired, mumbled voice.

“Hey…” Liam wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s shoulders, concern filling him when they shuddered at the intake of a breath. “Niall?”

“I didn’t even get to say goodnight,” Niall whined sadly.

“Ni…” Liam made to gently push Niall’s head back, but the moment his hand made contact with his boyfriend’s forehead, his eyes shot open. “Niall, you’re really hot.”

“’M tryin'a apologise, Li, but thank you.”

“No, Niall, your forehead…” Inspecting Niall’s face, Liam stated, “You need to go back to bed.”

“Nooooooooo, Liiiii,” Niall complained, clinging to Liam tightly. “You’re warm.”

“Niall, you’ve got a temperature. You need to go home.” Liam opened the door to his room to change, Niall following him in and still wrapped around him. “Niall, I need to change so we can get you home,” Liam reasoned.

Nuzzling his face into Liam’s chest, Niall whimpered, “Wanna stay here with you.”

Liam squeezed Niall tightly. “I’m gonna stay at your house with you, Ni, but we need to take you home. You’re not well.” Deciding to just make do and change with Niall still hanging onto him, Liam made quick work of making himself presentable before ensuring he had his keys and wallet on him. “Niall, hop up on my back, okay? I’ll carry you home.”

After much struggling, Liam was finally heading to Niall and Louis’ house with his droopy boyfriend on his back. “’M sorry, Liam,” Niall mumbled into his neck. “I didn’t mean to make you sad. I missed you.”

“I missed you, too,” Liam sighed, rubbing Niall’s leg comfortingly.

Pressing his face further into Liam’s neck, Niall whispered, “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Nialler.” Liam felt Niall’s arms around his neck tighten, wondering how much sleep he lost last night over Liam’s reaction. “I’m not gonna go to class today, I’m gonna stay with you until you feel better.”

“Thank you, Liam.”

As soon as he arrived at Niall and Louis’ house, Liam knocked on the door loudly.

“What he fuck are you-? Niall?” Louis’ voice switched from irritated to worried in just one second. “Ni, what’s wrong?”

“I made Liam sad last night, and I didn’t sleep very much, but Liam forgives me, so ’m okay, just sleepy.”

Louis raised an eyebrow at Liam.

“He’s got a temperature,” Liam told Louis as he stepped inside and kicked off his shoes. “He was curled up in my hallway all sad and droopy before, but there’s no way I’m letting him go to class like this.”

“No way,” Louis agreed, following Liam down to Niall’s bedroom. Watching the younger boy lie his boyfriend on his bed, Louis asked, “D'you want me to look after him?”

Liam shook his head as he tucked Niall into bed. “I’ll do it.”

Chewing on his lip, Louis noted quietly, “I never did that with Zayn.”

“I bet Zayn always hid when he was sick, though, and wouldn’t let anyone near him,” Liam pointed out, sweeping Niall’s hair off his hot forehead. “Do you want something to drink, Nialler?” he asked gently. Niall just nodded in response.

“I’ll get it so you don’t have to go anywhere,” Louis offered, already heading down the hall.

“Liam?” Niall mumbled.

“Yeah?”

“’M sorry.”

Kissing Niall’s temple, Liam assured him, “You don’t have to keep apologising, Ni.”

“No, but… but I’m sorry I got sick like this.”

Liam sighed adoringly. “You couldn’t help it, love, it’s alright.”

Peeking his heavy eyelids open, Niall whispered, “You called me 'love’.” Liam opened his mouth to respond, but Niall was quicker. “You should do it more, LiLi, I like it.”

“You need some sleep,” Liam chuckled.

“Glass of water, right here,” Louis announced as he returned, handing Liam the glass.

“Lift your head a bit, love,” Liam encouraged, earning a dopey smile and Niall’s compliance. He carefully helped the blonde drink, then let him rest his head on the pillow again.

“You need anything else?” Louis checked.

Stroking Niall’s hair, Liam shook his head. “Thanks, though, Louis.”

“Hey, I already lost my boyfriend, I don’t feel like losing my best friends as well.” With a sad shrug, Louis left the room.

“Why’d they break up, Liam?” Niall asked with a pout. “It’s not fair. Lou Bear’s all sad now, and Zaynie’s sad, and it’s just not fair. Why can’t everyone be happy, LiLi?”

Liam had to smile a little at his boyfriend’s ramblings. “It’s just not the way the world works, love.”

“But we’re happy.”

“Yeah, we are,” Liam murmured. He was slowly running his fingers through Niall’s hair, watching the blonde’s eyes flutter closed.

A soft knock on the door drew Liam’s attention. “I’m off to uni. You guys can use my notes,” Louis whispered. He gave them a wave before heading off.

“LiLi?”

“Yeah, love?”

Grabbing at Liam pathetically, Niall mumbled, “Cuddle me.”

So Liam climbed onto the bed so he was lying behind Niall and spooned him. “Better?” he murmured into the back of Niall’s neck.

“Thank you,” Niall nodded.

Chapter Text

Liam spent most of the day lying with Niall while he slept, drawing senseless patterns on his hip or stroking his hair. Louis had come home after his classes and brought Liam something to eat and drink, then left them be with a sad smile.

When Niall finally woke up, it was almost six in the evening. “Liam?” he mumbled.

“I’m here, love,” Liam assured him, rubbing Niall’s hip through the blankets.

“Feel like shit.”

Testing the temperature of Niall’s forehead again, Liam cringed when he realised it had only increased since the morning. “Looks like a fever to me. If you hadn’t slept, it would’ve been worse.” He kissed the back of Niall’s head, then sat up. “I’m gonna get you some paracetamol, okay? It’ll help bring the fever down.”

“Don’t go, Liam.” Niall gripped Liam’s T-shirt desperately. “Please, Li, I don’t wanna be on my own.”

“I’ll only be gone for a minute,” Liam assured him, gently prizing Niall’s hand from his T-shirt. “Ni, I just want you better, love.”

Niall mumbled a little, but begrudgingly let Liam go.

Pressing a quick kiss to Niall’s forehead, Liam hopped off the bed and made his way out to the bathroom to collect the paracetamol, then to the kitchen for a glass of water.

“How’s he doing?” Louis asked from the stove.

Filling a glass with water from the tap, Liam replied, “He’s been better.”

“Yeah, but so have I,” Louis pointed out with a huff. “That doesn’t tell me how he is.”

Liam looked to the other boy. “He’s tired and clingy, and his temperature’s gone up.”

Louis seemed for a moment as though he was going to snap back at Liam, but instead sighed and nodded his head. “Sorry.”

“Louis, I know you’re not feeling great, but Niall’s in worse shape than you right now,” Liam explained gently. “I can’t do anything about how you feel, because even if I tried you won’t let me, but I can help Niall.”

Shaking his head, Louis half-laughed, “Y'know, I think I would.”

“Would what?” Liam frowned.

“Let you help me.” Louis gave Liam a half-hearted smile and shrug.

Liam was stumped. The first time he had walked into this house, he had blushed and bumbled his way through the visit. Now, barely two months later, he seemed to be the only one capable of holding themselves upright. “Um…” He turned fully to face Louis. “That TV series you and Niall talk about…”

“Firefly?” Louis guessed.

“Yeah, that. You have it?”

Louis snorted. “Course.”

“Grab it and bring your laptop to Niall’s room.” With that, Liam headed back to his boyfriend, who way lying on his side, gazing pathetically at the door.

“LiLi.” He made grabby hands at Liam. “Come back.”

“Hold on, love, drink this first.” Once he had helped Niall swallow the paracetamol and drink the whole glass of water, Liam settled himself on the wall side of Niall’s bed and pulled him close to his body. “How’re you feeling?”

“Crap,” Niall mumbled.

“It’ll get better,” Liam murmured, kissing the top of Niall’s head. He looked up when Louis stepped into the room. “Sit down,” he encouraged, patting the free space on Niall’s other side.

“Liam, what’re you doing?” Niall frowned as Louis settled himself beside him.

“The three of us are gonna sit here and watch Firefly and keep you warm,” Liam explained. “Louis needs company and you need cuddles, and we all need something to occupy ourselves.”

Smiling into Liam’s side, Niall nodded his head once.

Hours later, as the three were holding their breaths watching Mal stumble around the ship with barely any oxygen left, Liam’s phone started ringing, making them all jump.

“Jesus Christ, Liam,” Louis breathed out, clutching his chest.

Quickly answering the call, Liam pressed his phone to his ear. “Hello?”

“Hey, Liam, are you free?” Zayn’s voice came quietly through the speaker.

“Uh… no, sorry. Niall’s got a fever, so I’m looking after him.” Liam petted Niall’s hair when the blonde sent him an almost delirious smile.

“Oh… right, sorry.” Zayn cleared his throat. “Um… I’ll talk to you later.”

“Okay, later.” Liam hung up and tucked his phone away.

“Who was that?” Niall asked, snuggling into Liam more.

“My sister,” Liam lied smoothly. “C'mon, let’s keep watching this. I need to know if he gets out alive.”

“You know he will,” Niall giggled airily. “There wouldn’t be any more episodes if he died, would there?”

“You never know,” Liam chuckled. “Wanna unpause it, Lou?”

Louis nodded and tapped the spacebar on his laptop to start the episode going.

Once they reached the end of the episode, Louis yawned and signalled for a break. “We should watch the rest tomorrow,” he suggested, stretching his arms and back. “I’m pretty sure it’s bedtime now.”

“Fair enough,” Liam nodded.

“But I’m wide awake,” Niall whined, pouting up at Liam.

“You’re tired, Niall, you just don’t realise it,” Liam told him, kissing his forehead. “‘Night, Lou.”

“'Night, guys,” Louis farewelled, trundling out of the room.

Niall frowned at his boyfriend. “’M not tired,” he insisted.

“Prove it,” Liam challenged. “Close your eyes and count to twenty.”

So Niall settled his head on the pillow and closed his eyes. “One, two, three, four…” Yawn. “Five, six… seven…” And he was out like a light.

Niall was still dozing when Liam woke up the next morning, so he carefully climbed out of the bed and headed to the kitchen. “Morning, Lou,” he greeted with a yawn, finding something to eat.

“Morning.” Louis turned away from his steeping tea to watch Liam. “Thanks for yesterday.”

“No problem,” Liam smiled, a light blush colouring his cheeks.

“No, really, thank you,” Louis insisted. “You didn’t have to let me join you and Ni. You got really into Firefly, too.”

Chuckling a little, Liam pointed out, “It’s really good.”

“I know,” Louis smiled. “And you even lied about who called you to make me feel better.”

Liam’s eyes widened and his mouth opened, but he couldn’t say a word.

“I know it was Zayn,” Louis sighed, finishing making his tea and taking a sip. “No one calls their siblings at eleven thirty at night.”

“Says who?” Liam mumbled.

“No, I really appreciate you lying,” Louis assured him. “You could’ve been a pain and given me stupid sorry looks and said it was him, but you didn’t. It was a pretty convincing lie, too, good job.”

With a slight laugh, Liam replied, “I don’t know if I should take that as a compliment.”

“Hey, I don’t give many compliments, take it while you can,” Louis smirked. “And this.” He handed Liam a key. “So you can come 'round whenever.” His face softened after a moment. “You’re a really good person, Liam. A better friend than I deserve. Niall’s really lucky to have you. He told me how you took him home to see his dad.”

“He wouldn’t’ve gone if I hadn’t made him,” Liam shrugged, taking a bite of the toast he had managed to prepare.

“I know.” Staring at the ground, Louis whispered, “It’s not your fault Zayn broke up with me. It not even your fault we started fighting. I don’t listen to people, he’s right, I just… When you grow up with four little sisters trying to steal your parents’ attention all the time, you do whatever you can to be heard. You tend to forget other people have voices, and then get grumpy when they use them.” Sipping his tea, he added, “And then there’s you. You listen to Niall, you look after him when he’s sick, you look after his best friend when he’s been a dickhead to you from day one… Seriously, I actually wish being nice like you was contagious. I feel like such an arse compared to you.”

Liam shook his head. “You’re not. You’re just… misunderstood.”

Letting out a breathless laugh, Louis sighed, “See, I’ve been trying to tell them for years, but do they listen?” He sent Liam a smile to let him know he was kidding.

“Well, I’ll let them know,” Liam replied, playing along.

Louis got that soft look on his face again. “You’ve changed heaps since I first met you, y'know.”

“I know,” Liam smiled. “Talk to Niall about that one.”

“Oh, I have,” Louis laughed. “Trust me, he knows how much you’ve changed.”

Their conversation was interrupted by a small, “Liam?” at the door.

“Hey, Ni, you didn’t have to get up,” Liam said gently, heading over and wrapping his arms around the fragile-looking boy.

“You weren’t there,” Niall mumbled, face buried in Liam’s chest.

“Sorry, I needed some food. I didn’t eat all that much yesterday,” Liam chuckled, kissing the top of Niall’s head.

“Me neither,” Niall said quietly. “My tummy hurts.”

“Let’s get you some breakfast,” Liam suggested. “Go back to bed, love, you look cold.”

“Wanna be with you, though.”

Before Liam could ask, Louis piped up, “I’ll get you breakfast, Ni, and Liam can take you back to bed.”

With a thankful look, Liam led Niall back down the hall and tucked him in under the blankets. He settled himself beside the blonde, Niall’s head on the pillow beside his hip, and stroked his boyfriend’s hair.

“What’s going on?” Niall asked, quietly but with a definite ring of confusion.

“What do you mean, love?” Liam frowned.

“Louis.”

“Oh.” Liam smiled, even more so when Niall shuffled over to settled his head on the older boy’s thigh. “He feels bad about Zayn. He was saying he wishes he was more like me.”

Niall hummed, nuzzling Liam’s leg briefly. “I love you.”

Testing Niall’s temperature with the back of his hand, Liam commented, “Your fever’s come down a little. Maybe we should’ve asked Louis for paracetamol and water, too.”

Just as Liam finished speaking, Louis came in with a bowl in one hand and a small packet and glass of water in the other. “Drugs for the fever,” he explained, allowing Liam to take the paracetamol, “water, and porridge with strawberries. I know Nialler generally likes milk on his porridge, but milk’s not good for you when you’re sick.”

“Thank you, Louis,” Niall yawned, then sat up a bit so he could use Liam’s lap as a table. He leant his head against Liam’s stomach, slowly eating his food.

“I can get my laptop and Firefly again?” Louis suggested as Liam popped a couple of paracetamol tablets out of the packet.

“Yeah, thanks, Lou,” Liam nodded.

“He’s being really needy,” Niall commented as he swallowed the tablets Liam gave him and finished off the glass of water.

Liam sighed and nodded his head, running his fingers through Niall’s hair as the blonde ate. “I think he’s lonely.”

Lifting his head a little, Niall asked, “Did you used to do that? Think of any reason you could to spend time with people?”

“Yeah,” Liam smiled sadly. “Usually to my sisters.”

Niall cuddled into Liam’s tummy more. “I love you,” he whispered. “’M not going anywhere.”

“Well, not like this you’re not, anyway,” Liam chuckled, earning a swat from Niall.

“Don’t you have that other class today?” Niall asked suddenly as Louis re-entered the room.

“Yeah, but I’ve missed half of it already,” Liam shrugged, patting the space next to him for Louis to sit. “I’ll catch up online.”

But Niall didn’t look comforted. “You sure?”

Rubbing his fingertips over Niall’s scalp, Liam assured him, “It’ll be fine. You’re more important than a class I can catch up on later.”

Niall gave his boyfriend a sleepy-looking smile, then turned his attention to Louis. “Firefly?”

“Firefly,” Louis agreed with a nod.

Chapter Text

By the end of the day, the three had watched the rest of Firefly and the accompanying movie, Serenity. Liam checked Niall’s temperature again and ruffled his hair. “You’re almost back to normal.”

“’M never normal, what’re you talking about?” Niall giggled into Liam’s shoulder.

Shaking his head, Liam kissed Niall’s forehead and sighed, “I should head back to my room. I’ve got a couple of things to catch up on, now.”

Niall pouted. “Awwww.”

“I’ll come see you tomorrow,” Liam promised. He stole a quick kiss from his boyfriend, then scooted past Louis to hop off the bed. “Louis’ll look after you.”

“Sure,” Louis shrugged. Wrapping his arm around Niall’s shoulders, he looked up at Liam and asked, “You still here?”

Snorting, Liam gave them a wave and headed off, patting his pocket with a smile when he felt the key there.

“Bye, Liam!” Niall called out. “Love you!”

“Love you, too, Niall!” Liam called back with a smile, pulling his shoes and jacket on before heading off out of the house. He hummed to himself the whole walk to campus, jumping when he nearly walked straight into someone at the door to his building. “Sorry.”

“S'alright, mate,” the other boy replied. “Hey, you’re Liam, right?” Liam nodded slowly. “Harry,” the boy introduced, sticking his hand out for Liam to shake. “Niall’s told me about you.”

“Scary thought,” Liam half-laughed, shaking Harry’s hand.

Chuckling, Harry commented, “He told me you were shy as anything, so I wasn’t sure if I got the right guy.”

Liam had to smile a little. “’M not like I used to be.”

Harry just nodded. “Well, sorry,” he half-laughed, waving Liam through the door. “Didn’t mean to stop you.” Just as Liam was about to walk away, Harry added, “Oh, you’re friends with that Zayn guy, right?”

“Yeah…” Liam nodded slowly.

“You might wanna go talk to him,” Harry suggested. “Wasn’t the happiest of chappies when I saw him yesterday.”

With a nod, Liam hurried away. He bypassed his own door and headed straight down to Zayn’s, stopping before knocking so he didn’t sound frantic.

The Zayn that pulled the door open was not the chilled, calm Zayn Liam had first met. This Zayn looked sleep-deprived and almost needy, not unlike Niall currently, Liam had thought. “Liam, I need him back,” Zayn whispered.

Liam studied Zayn’s tired state, then looked him in the eyes. “Now?”

Zayn nodded.

“Got your keys?” Liam asked, shifting his feet a little uncomfortably. When Zayn nodded again, Liam stepped to the side to let him out. As they headed down the hall, Liam asked, “D'you want me to come, too?”

“Please,” Zayn confirmed tiredly.

Liam glanced between his dorm door and Zayn, then nodded his head and followed him out the door of the building.

“’M I keeping you from sleep?” Zayn asked as the two wandered down to the street and towards Niall and Louis’.

“Nah, just study,” Liam shrugged, watching his feet with his hands deep in his pockets. “Missed my class this morning looking after Niall.”

“How is he?” Zayn asked conversationally.

Smiling a little, Liam nodded, “He’s feeling better. He was all clingy and tired this morning, but we spent a while watching Firefly and Serenity and his temperature’s come right down.”

Zayn nodded his head. “Never watched Firefly,” he commented.

“Really?” Liam asked, surprised. “Lou loves it. Him and Ni were quoting the best parts while we were watching.”

“I know Lou loves it,” Zayn sighed, kicking at the ground as they walked.

“Y'know…” Chewing his lip, Liam noted, “Lou’s been saying a lot that you and him never really did anything like me and Ni.”

“What, like watched movie or go on little picnic dates or look after each other when they were sick or cook each other breakfast?” Zayn gave a rueful smile when Liam nodded. “We didn’t. Not ever. We watched a film or two, but we never got to the end of them because we… got distracted.”

Watching the ground, Liam asked, “How’d you get together?”

“Went to the same high school, didn’t we? Me and Niall and Lou. Niall and Louis were inseparable, but at the end of our last year, me and Lou got really drunk at a party and ended up sleeping together. It’s disgustingly cliché, but that was it for us. We woke up together the next morning to the mum of the guy who ran the party looking at us with hands on her hips and stuff. We kinda… pretended we were together to get out of the awkwardness. After that, we just kept doing it. Lou and Niall had moved in together and I’d go ‘round lots, and nights would usually end with me and Louis in bed together. It just… we just became a thing.”

Liam nodded as he took this information in, turning them so they were heading up the front path of Louis and Niall’s home. “There’s more to life than sex,” Liam shrugged before unlocking the front door.

“Niall gave you a key?” Zayn asked, surprised.

Liam glanced back. “No, Louis did.”

A pained look crossed Zayn’s face. “Never did that for me,” he whispered.

Swallowing hard, Liam stepped inside and kicked his shoes off.

“Liam, is that you?” Niall’s voice drifted down the hall.

“Yeah, I’m back,” Liam called out. “Lou, can you come here for a sec?”

There was a shuffling sound, then Louis emerged from Niall’s room. “Yeah, what's…?” He slowed to a stop halfway to the door, his eyes stuck on Zayn. He didn’t even open his mouth, just stared at him.

“Hi,” Zayn whispered.

“Liam, what’s going on?” Niall asked as he poked his head through his door, blanket clutched around his shoulders. His eyes widened a little at the silent staring match.

Liam felt the need to start the conversation going before he was crushed by the awkwardness, but Zayn spoke first. “I’m sorry, Lou, please take me back,” he blurted out.

Without a word, Louis rushed up to him and wrapped his arms around Zayn, burying his face in his shoulder. He took a deep breath in, filling his lungs and nose with the smell of Zayn’s cologne.

“’M sorry,” Zayn repeated, clutching at Louis tightly.

“No, I was a dick,” Louis mumbled into his shoulder. “And you’re right. I don’t listen and I’m self-centred and I don’t know how to look after anyone that isn’t me, but I want to. I wanna try to do this properly, Zee.”

Liam slowly and quietly moved around the hugging boys, creeping down the hall and guiding Niall back into his bedroom. “Guardians of the Galaxy?” he suggested.

A grin spread across Niall’s face. “How are you so fucking perfect?”

“’M not,” Liam mumbled as he searched out Niall’s laptop.

“Shut up, Liam,” Niall laughed. “You just got our mates back together again, and you’ve been looking after me for way longer than anyone else would, and now you’re just casually suggesting we watch an amazing movie while our mates are having a moment in the hallway.”

“How much of a moment?” Liam asked, bringing Niall’s laptop and a handful of DVDs over to the bed.

Niall ducked his head out the door, his grin only widening. “They’re kissing. But, like, 'deep and meaningful’ kissing, not 'eating each other’s faces’ kissing.” Closing the door, he giggled, “They’re going all cutesy and nose-bumping.”

Frowning a little as he helped Niall back onto the bed, Liam asked, “Do we do that?”

“Don’t compare us,” Niall scolded lightly, swatting Liam’s thigh. “That’s what split them up in the first place.”

“For, what, a whole two days?” Liam asked with a chuckle.

“I know, it seems so stupid,” Niall grinned, cuddling into Liam’s side. “Now, c'mon, let’s watch this movie and hope we aren’t subjected to the sounds of them having sex.”

Niall sighed when moans and grunts eventually floated through the wall almost two hours later. “Bloody hell,” he muttered, hitting the wall once.

“At least we finished the movie,” Liam supplied hopefully, but Niall shook his head.

“If we were still watching the movie, we could just turn the sound up,” he pointed out. “This way, we’ve gotta listen to them.”

“At least they’re happy?” Liam more asked than stated.

Snorting, Niall told him, “They’d be happy bathing each other in chocolate and spending an entire day licking it off again. Doesn’t mean we wanna bear witness to it.” He hammered his fist against the wall when the two next door only grew louder. “'N it’s not like we make noise back at them.”

Liam laughed a little at that, then scrunched his nose up at a particularly loud noise. “We could.”

Niall raised an eyebrow at him. “What’re you suggesting?”

“Nothing,” Liam replied quickly, eyes wide. “’M just saying. We could. If we wanted to.”

Side-eyeing Liam for a moment, Niall rolled his eyes at the loud groan of satisfaction from the next room. He scooted a little closer to his boyfriend, nuzzling up under his jaw. “Do you want to?” he asked.

“Uh…” Liam swallowed nervously.

“You’ve got real confident about everything except this, eh?” Niall chuckled, pressing his lips against Liam’s throat. “I guess 'cause you’ve had practice with everything else.”

“P-possibly.” Liam curled his arms around Niall’s waist, relaxing into the soft kisses the blonde scattered over his neck and jaw. “Do you want to?” he asked quietly. He felt Niall’s lips curve up into a smile.

“Kinda, yeah,” Niall murmured, sliding his hand from Liam’s elbow to his shoulder. “Not if it makes you uncomfortable, though.”

Liam ducked his head a little and pressed a small kiss to Niall’s lips. “I want to.”

The grin Niall gave him was blinding. He shifted a little so he could see Liam’s face. “D'you wanna be the one making the noise?” he smirked. When Liam blushed scarlet, Niall giggled, “Didn’t think so.” He moved them so he was lying on his back with Liam hovering above him.

“Are you sure you feel okay for this?” Liam asked worriedly.

Nodding, Niall assured him, “There’s nothing a good orgasm can’t solve.”

Liam frowned slightly. “You said that about snogging.”

“Same thing,” Niall smirked, leaning up to steal a kiss. “Now, good sir, do with me as you wish.”

With a small nod, Liam ducked his head a little and started pressing small kisses down Niall’s neck. He nosed along Niall’s collarbone, his fingers skirting around the hem of his boyfriend’s T-shirt. “Can I?” he whispered shyly.

“Do whatever you want,” Niall murmured, petting Liam’s cheek. “If I don’t want you to do something, I’ll stop you.”

Liam swallowed hard, but brought Niall’s T-shirt up over his head regardless. Pausing, he lightly nudged the pendant resting against Niall’s chest.

“Loki,” Niall smiled, gently stroking Liam’s hair as they both took a moment to remember their Christmas.

When Liam brought himself back to the present, he kissed his way down Niall’s chest, stopping just below his navel to slowly tug down the blonde’s sweatpants. Taking a deep breath, he pulled Niall’s boxers down his legs, hating how hot his face felt as he took in the sight of his boyfriend’s half-hard cock.

Noticing the brunette’s blush, Niall ran his fingers through his hair. “Hey, you don’t have to-o…” he stuttered, eyes widening at the feel of Liam’s lips pressing against his dick.

“Is that alright?” Liam frowned, pulling back slightly.

“Yes,” Niall rushed out. “Sorry, you just surprised me.”

Taking that as positive, Liam ducked his head again and pressed a few more kisses along Niall’s length, watching it stiffen as his lips brushed over the head. He peeked his tongue out between his lips, giving Niall’s tip shy little licks.

“Jesus Christ,” Niall breathed out in a moan, head tipping back. A slightly louder noise left his mouth, making Liam flick his eyes up to make sure he was okay. “Christ, don’t look at me like that,” Niall groaned, flinging an arm over his eyes.

Liam was worried for a moment, but continued on the assumption that Niall was simply finding it more arousing. Which made him blush again. Sliding his lips around the head of Niall’s cock, Liam sucked gently, feeling his heart thud harder against his ribcage when his boyfriend moaned. He curled his palm around Niall’s length and stroked him slowly while he lapped and sucked at his tip.

“Fuck, Liam…” Niall moaned, one hand fisting in Liam’s hair while the other properly covered his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, yeah…” His breath hitched, hand tightening in Liam’s locks. “Liam-” He came with a grunt before he could finish his warning, hips jerking up and a long groan leaving his parted lips.

Once Niall had finished, Liam swallowed and lifted his head. “That was good?” he asked.

Niall huffed out a moan, pulling Liam up and kissing him deeply, tongue chasing the taste of his cum in his boyfriend’s mouth. “Was fantastic,” he mumbled against Liam’s lips, still panting. Both of them had to laugh when the sound of someone irately banging on the wall filled the room. Sighing in an attempt to compose himself, Niall asked, “How’re you so good at that?”

Cheeks turning bright red, Liam admitted, “My sister was talking to me about it once. She said to pretend it was an ice cream.”

“Fuck,” Niall panted, managing a breathy laugh. “You talk to you sisters about blowjobs?”

“No, she was talking to me,” Liam corrected. “I was sat wishing the floor would open up and swallow me.” Glancing to the satisfied smile plastered across Niall’s face, he added, “But I’m glad it didn’t.”

“Speaking of swallowing…” Niall threw the brunette a cheeky smirk and cooed when he blushed. “I wasn’t expecting you to. You didn’t have to,” he said with a sudden seriousness. “I don’t want you to feel like you have to do things you don’t like.”

Shaking his head, Liam tucked his face into Niall’s neck and mumbled, “I wanted to.”

Niall brought a hand up to brush through Liam’s hair. “You’re amazing, Li, I hope you know that.”

“Only because you tell me,” Liam replied, pressing a tiny kiss to Niall’s neck.

They stayed that way for a long moment, then Niall sighed, “’M getting cold.”

Liam pulled back with a small frown. “Can’t have that, not when you’re sick.” He helped Niall back into his boxers and sweatpants, then pulled his own T-shirt off before cuddling up with the blonde and covering them with the blankets. Once he had Niall’s neck pressed against his collarbone and his hair brushing under his chin, Liam sighed contentedly. “Really love cuddling with you.”

Humming happily, Niall murmured, “Me too.”

By morning, Liam was happy that Niall was better, and since it was Saturday they decided to get out of the house for a while. They spent the day just walking around the shops in the area, then went back to Liam’s room to eat pizza and watch movies on his laptop before falling asleep cuddled together in his bed.

But on Sunday morning, Niall and Liam were startled from their early-morning kisses by loud knocking on the door and a call of, “Floor meeting! Common room! Floor meeting!”

Liam frowned as he hopped off the bed and pulled a T-shirt on. “We’ve never had a floor meeting before,” he told Niall.

“Oh.” Niall slid his feet to the floor. “S'pose I might as well go, too, since I’m here.”

“Yeah.” Without bothering with shoes, the two boys headed hand in hand out into the hallway, following the flow of students to the ground floor common room. They found themselves a seat on the floor when they arrived, glancing around at the others from the ground floor, who all looked just as confused, and maybe more disgruntled, than they were.

“Morning, everyone,” Helen, an older woman and one of the accommodation officers, greeted with a slight smile. “I know it’s probably a bit early for some of you, but we wanted to tell you this now before you find out through social media.” She sighed and clasped her hands in front of her. “I know this will be hard for a few of you to hear, but it’s better you find out from me than Facebook.

"One of the people from this floor was involved in an accident late last night on his way back. He’s been admitted to the hospital, but things aren’t looking promising.”

Liam glanced around the room in an attempt to see who was missing. His heart dropped suddenly. “Was Zayn with Louis last night?” he asked Niall quickly.

“Yeah…” Niall’s eyes widened in horror. “No…”

“I know our injured resident wasn’t one for making friends, but a couple of you would know Zayn Malik,” Helen continued.

“Fuck…” Niall whispered.

Liam suddenly gripped Niall’s arm. “Louis.”

“Shit…” Niall patted his pockets quickly. “Liam, where’s your phone?”

“Uh…” Liam scrambled to pull his mobile from his pocket, hands shaking as Niall snatched it off him and quickly dialled Louis’ number.

Niall chewed his thumbnail as he waited, cursing loudly when it told him Louis’ phone was off. He jumped to his feet. “Which hospital?” he asked Helen.

“I’m not really allowed to tell you,” Helen sighed.

“Bull shit! Which hospital?” Niall demanded frantically.

Liam stood up and put a hand on Niall’s shoulder. “Please, Helen, we need to make sure Zayn’s boyfriend is okay.”

With a nod, Helen told them the name of the hospital.

“C'mon.” Niall grabbed Liam’s sleeve and the two ran from the room. “I need my phone,” Niall stated, stopping at Liam’s door. He huffed when Liam fumbled with the lock. “Come on, Liam!”

“I’m trying!” Liam finally managed to open the door, Niall hurrying in and grabbing his keys and phone before pulling the door shut again.

“Hey, wait!”

The couple stopped to see Harry running down the hall after them. “We’ve gotta-” Niall started.

“I know, lemme give you a lift,” Harry offered.

No questions asked, Niall and Liam followed Harry to the car park and hopped in the back of his SUV. Liam would have commented on how nice the car was, but was too busy worrying about Zayn and Louis to really think about it. “Please hurry,” Niall begged, chewing his thumbnail as Harry drove them out onto the road.

“I will.”

They were soon pulling up outside the hospital, Niall and Liam scrambling out and running through the doors. “Excuse me,” Niall blurted out as he nearly stumbled into the front desk. The woman behind the desk glanced up at him. “We’re looking for our friend Zayn Malik?”

The woman silently typed something into the computer to her left. “Room 207,” she told them. “But it’s only family-”

“His family couldn’t give two shits,” Niall muttered before dragging Liam by the hand toward the stairs. They hurried up the flights of steps to level two, then quickly found room seven because Louis was sitting silently on the cold lino floor outside of it. Niall sat himself down beside his friend and touched his shoulder. “Lou?”

Louis burst into tears.

Chapter Text

“And they don’t know if he’ll ever wake up,” Louis mumbled into Niall’s shoulder. It had taken a good half hour before he calmed down enough to explain what he knew, which wasn’t much more than Helen had told them already.

Rubbing Louis’ shoulder, Niall assured him, “He’ll be fine.”

“Don’t give me that optimistic bullshit,” Louis muttered. “He was crushed against a building by an out-of-control motorbike, Niall. It killed the rider.”

“But it hasn’t killed Zayn,” Niall pointed out.

“For fuck’s sake, Niall,” Louis huffed, pulling away from his friend. “He’s in there dying.”

Niall thumped his friend’s shoulder. “Stop being so fucking pessimistic,” he snapped. “I put up with you being all mopey for a week, but I’m not gonna put up with your shit now.”

“You didn’t see what I saw,” Louis retorted, a mixture of pain and anger in his eyes. “You didn’t see the blood, you didn’t hear the crash, you didn’t watch the rider break his neck when he hit the ground…” He full-body shuddered, hugging himself.

“Maybe not, but I’m not gonna give up on him.”

Liam, who was sitting on Louis’ other side, gently nudged both of them and gestured to the man who had just stepped out of Zayn’s room.

“And who would you lads be?” the balding man asked kindly.

“Housemates,” Niall replied before anyone else could speak. “Can we see him?”

The man shook his head apologetically. “I’ve told Louis here already that it’s only family-”

“You’ll be lucky to see them,” Niall muttered, folding his arms. “Look, you’d be better off paying his family to leave, if they ever bother to show up, so can we go see him? We actually care about him as a person rather than another follower of his parents’ religion.”

Mildly horrified by the way his boyfriend was speaking, Liam was about to reprimand him when the doctor sighed heavily. “We’ve had no answer when we’ve tried to call his home,” he supposed. “In you go. It’s better he has someone talking to him.”

“Thank you,” Louis breathed out. He stood and pushed the door open, slowly approaching the bed with Niall and Liam close behind.

“Oh my god…” Niall whispered, stopping a mere few steps into the room.

Barely registering the door click shut, Liam stared open-mouth at Zayn’s pale form. A blanket covered most of him, but the bruises and scratches that littered his hands and face were in plain sight. His right arm was in a cast, and the left side of his head, including his face, was covered in a slightly red-stained bandage. Liam startled a little when he suddenly felt Niall grip his arm. “Ni?” he checked quietly.

“Oh god, Liam…”

“Hey.” Liam turned Niall to face him rather than the bed. “Like you said, he’ll be fine, yeah? We just have to wait for him to recover.” He pulled the shocked-looking blonde into a hug, glancing over Niall’s shoulder to watch Louis, who was standing by the bed gazing at his boyfriend.

Louis sank into the chair to Zayn’s right, pulling it as close as he could to the bed. Wordlessly, he gently brought Zayn’s right hand up so he could trace senseless patterns on his palm with one hand, the other tenderly stroking Zayn’s cheek. He leaned closer and pressed the most heartfelt kiss Liam had ever seen to Zayn’s temple, then settled his head on the pillow and watched the side of his face.

“Louis?” Niall checked, voice shaky as he held onto Liam.

“We’d just started working things out properly,” Louis said softly. “We were s'posed to go to the movies on Friday. Go see a film and then have pizza somewhere. Our first date.” Tracing his fingers over Zayn’s lips, he gently pressed his nose against Zayn’s cheek and sighed.

“You can still go,” Niall told him. “Not on Friday, but when he gets better-”

“Don’t, Niall,” Louis whispered.

The three were silent for a while, when suddenly Liam’s phone ringing jerked them all out of it. “Shit,” Liam muttered, grabbing his phone and answering the call. “Hello?”

“Morning, sweetheart,” his mother’s voice greeted warmly. “I just thought I’d call for a chat. Are you free?”

Liam glanced around the room, noting that Louis was ignoring them again and Niall was gazing sadly at the hospital bed. “Um… well…”

“Are you alright, Liam?” Karen asked, concerned.

“M-mostly…”

“Has something happened between you and Niall?” Karen guessed.

“No, nothing like that.” Squeezing his arm around Niall when he felt the blonde grip him tighter, Liam told his mother, “There's… been an accident. We’re at the hospital.”

“Are you and Niall okay?” Karen checked hurriedly.

“Yeah. I guess.”

Tugging on Liam’s T-shirt, Niall asked, “Who’re you talking to, Li?”

“My mum.” When Niall nodded once, Liam returned to talking to his mother. “Anyway.”

“I don’t want to get in the way, love, so I’ll let you go.”

“No,” Liam said quickly. “Um… can you…?”

“You need a distraction?” Karen guessed.

“Yeah. Just hold on a sec.” Liam guided Niall out into the hallway and sat them down on a couch in a waiting area a few doors down. Switching to speaker phone and holding Niall against his side, Liam told his mother, “Alright, all good.”

After a short pause, Karen asked, “Who else is there?”

Niall glanced to Liam for an introduction.

“This is Niall,” Liam explained. “Ni, this’s my mum.”

“Hello, Mrs Payne,” Niall greeted, sounding surprisingly level for someone who had been as shocked as he had.

“Hello, Niall,” Karen chuckled. “Liam, your boyfriend is so polite. Just call me Karen, Niall.”

“He’s not polite, he’s just pretending,” Liam smirked.

“Oi! I can be polite,” Niall protested.

Laughing through the phone, Karen assured him, “I don’t think it matters how polite you are or aren’t, Niall. You’ve been so good for Liam that I can’t bring myself to mind.”

Liam blushed, which felt strangely unfamiliar now.

“You’ve gone all red, Li,” Niall giggled, kissing his cheek fondly.

“So, tell me, Niall,” Karen began, sounding as though he was settling herself in. “How on earth did you manage to touch the heart of my little boy?”

Niall laughed as Liam only blushed deeper. “I’m just stubborn,” he replied. “Wasn’t gonna let him get away.”

Leaning his cheek against the top of Niall’s head, Liam added, “And he watched Batman with me.”

“Oh!” Karen laughed. “I see.”

“And he doesn’t have a problem with my obsession with Tom Hiddleston,” Niall chuckled, his fingers curling around the pendant around his neck.

“Well, who doesn’t have an obsession with Tom Hiddleston?” Karen replied.

Niall grinned widely. “Liam, I like your mum.”

“The two of you should come around at some point,” Karen suggested. “When do you have a break next?”

“Not for a while,” Liam sighed. “But we have weekends free.” Glancing to Niall, he supposed, “We could make a trip of it. Y'know, head off on Friday after my class and come back on Sunday.”

Beaming, Niall nodded, “That would be great.”

“When do you think?” Karen asked.

“Well…” Liam’s face fell a little. “Probably not this coming Friday.”

Confusion filled Niall’s face, then he seemed to remember where they were and why. “Yeah,” he agreed, suddenly quiet. “Probably not.”

“We'll… we’ll let you know when it’s a good time,” Liam told him mother.

“Alright, love,” Karen murmured. “Don’t rush, though, okay? If you need to be there, stay there.”

“We’ll probably be here at least until Zayn wakes up,” Niall hummed.

A silence fell over them, then Karen spoke up, “I should let you both get back to your friends.”

“No,” Liam said quickly. “We…” Glancing to Niall and biting his lip, he added, “We could do with the distraction for a little while.”

Niall nodded his head as Karen replied with an understanding, “Okay.”

It was around nine thirty when Louis fell asleep on Zayn’s pillow beside him, which prompted a yawning Liam to guide Niall towards the door. “We should let him sleep,” he whispered, kissing the side of Niall’s head as the blonde rubbed his eyes tiredly.

“It’s so early, why am I so tired?” Niall yawned, waiting until Liam had quietly closed the door to Zayn’s room before heading off down the hall and stairs with him.

“Today’s been kinda stressful,” Liam pointed out, giving a nod to the receptionist as they left.

Niall shivered and hopped from foot to foot. “’S fucking freezing… shit, we’ve been walking ‘round all day with no shoes on.”

Liam had to laugh, guiding Niall through the car park to the street. “Yeah.” He wrapped his arm around Niall’s waist and the two leaned on each other as they began the walk home. “Guess we didn’t notice before 'cause Harry gave us a lift…”

Looking up at Liam with wide eyes, Niall realised, “Shit, Liam, we bolted out of the car and left Harry.”

“We didn’t even thank him…”

“We'll…” Niall sighed, rubbing his eyes. “We’ll find him tomorrow. ’M too tired right now.”

Although he didn’t seem sure, Liam nodded his head and led Niall back to the university dorms. He was just about to unlock his room door when he noticed a piece of paper poked under it. Unlocking and pushing the door open, Liam let Niall flop down on the bed while he picked up the paper and unfolded it.

“So tired…” Niall sighed, closing his eyes. He peeked them open again when he noticed that Liam wasn’t following him onto the bed. “Li?”

Liam lifted the note in answer. “’S from Harry.” He finally sat himself next to Niall, then read the note out.

'Liam (And Niall),

I hope you guys are alright, and your friend. You seemed pretty frantic earlier. Hope everything’s okay.

Harry’

“That’s that sorted,” Niall yawned. “C'mon, ’m tired.”

With a shrug of his shoulders, Liam curled up in the bed with his boyfriend.

Chapter Text

Liam was chewing the inside of his lip as he watched Niall plucking at his guitar strings, both of them sat on the blonde’s bed. He sighed as he noticed the slow, sad-sounding quality of the vague music Niall was playing. “Ni, are you okay?” he asked gently.

“No,” Niall replied simply, still watching his fingers as he continued to play. “It’s been two weeks, Liam.”

With a sigh, Liam nodded, “I know.” He wrapped his hand around Niall’s fingers on the neck of his guitar, stopping the sad little melody. “He could still wake up.”

Niall shook his head slowly. “My dad was in an accident and came out of it fine. Now Zayn’s been in an accident. Fate’s only gonna give me so many chances.”

“Don’t talk like that,” Liam sighed. “C'mon, let’s go check on them.”

Both boys hopped up off the bed and headed for the door, pulling shoes on before making their way onto the street and off towards the hospital. After ten minutes of silence, Niall asked quietly, “What would you do if you were in Louis’ position?” Glancing up at Liam, he elaborated, “If it was me in the hospital.”

Liam only spared it a moment’s though before he shuddered and shook his head. “I wouldn’t be good.”

“I wouldn’t, either,” Niall agreed. “If you were in that hospital I would be a bloody mess. I dunno how Louis keeps it together.”

“I guess… I guess Lou deals with things differently to us. When we’re upset, we hide from everyone. When Lou gets upset, he snaps and takes it out on everyone else.”

“So when he’s distraught, he bottles it up, where we would probably cry like nothing else,” Niall hummed. “Maybe.”

The two walked through the hospital doors and up the stairs towards Zayn’s room. Liam lightly bumped Niall with his hip as they approached the door, earning himself a small smile. That smile disappeared, however, at the sound of a shout from inside the room. With a worried look, Niall pushed the door open.

“How dare you?!” a furious voice screeched, making both Niall and Liam jump.

“If you care so much, where the hell have you been for the past two weeks?” Louis demanded. He was on his feet beside the bed, hands in fists and eyes blazing. “Where’ve you been all goddamn year?”

“I have three daughters to look after as well,” the other voice snapped.

Louis scoffed. “My mum has six kids to look after and still keeps in contact with me.”

“Hello, Trisha,” Niall offered nervously.

Trisha spun around to glare at Niall and Liam just inside the doorway. Her face softened slightly at the sight of the blonde. “Niall.”

“Liam, this is Trisha, Zayn’s mum,” Niall explained. “Trish, this is Liam, my boyfriend.”

The fire in Trisha’s eyes reignited. “Boyfriend.” She looked Liam up and down in disgust. “What does your mother think?”

“She’s quite happy for me, actually.” Heading over to Louis, Niall carefully placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “Calm down, Lou,” he whispered. “This’s why Zayn said meeting his family would be a bad idea, yeah? Sit down, c'mon.”

Louis didn’t move for a moment, then huffed out a sigh and slumped down into the seat beside the bed. “I just want to wait for him to wake up without having to put up with her bitching about my sexual orientation.”

“I don’t want my son associating with homosexuals,” Trisha stated, spitting the word out as though it was dirty.

“Well, this homosexual would rather not be associating with you,” Louis shot back.

“Louis.”

Everyone’s focus turned suddenly to Zayn, whose eyes were partially open and watching Louis.

“Don’t fight with her,” Zayn rasped, weakly clasping Louis’ hand.

Louis was so stunned he barely moved in response, then suddenly wrapped Zayn up in a hug. “Don’t you ever do that to me again,” he muttered.

Managing to bring a hand up to hold the back of Louis’ head, Zayn croaked, “No promises.”

“Zayn,” Trisha hissed.

Niall reached past Louis to press the call button for the doctor. “They’ll wanna have a look at you, mate,” he told Zayn.

“Why?” Zayn moved his arms as Louis pulled up. “How long’ve I been out?”

“Two gorram weeks,” Louis stated.

“Oh.” Zayn attempted to sit up, but hissed in pain and decided not to move. “Right. What happened?”

“Ah, Zayn, so good to see you awake,” the doctor grinned as he entered the room. “I’m Dr Forsyth, I’ve been taking care of you since you arrive. Well, not as much as Louis, here, has,” he added with a chuckle.

Glancing up at Louis, Zayn croaked, “That’s new.”

Louis raised his arm to give his boyfriend a playful slap, but decided against it and stuck with poking his shoulder. “I’m trying, remember?”

“Yeah, I remember,” Zayn smiled.

“Dr Forsyth,” Trisha spoke up, sounding more than miffed. “Can you please make that boy leave my son alone?”

Dr Forsyth glanced between them. “I’m sorry, ma'am, but unless Louis has done something illegal, I’m not really at liberty to ask him to leave.”

“I’m Zayn’s mother,” Trisha huffed. “I demand he be removed from the room.”

“Actually, as Zayn is over eighteen, he’s the one to make those calls,” Dr Forsyth replied carefully. “Zayn, do you want Louis here?”

“What kind of a question is that?” Zayn muttered. “Of course I want him here.”

Stamping her foot and looking rather childish, Trisha exclaimed, “Zayn!”

“Mum, can you just go?” Zayn sighed, rolling his head to the side and closing his eyes. “Your screeching might’ve woken me up, but that doesn’t mean I want you here.”

Before Trisha could respond, Dr Forsyth asked, “Could you just wait out in the hallway, Mrs Malik?”

Trisha huffed and marched out the door, slamming it behind her.

“Thank you,” Zayn sighed in relief.

“I deal with a lot of parents,” Dr Forsyth explained with a rueful smile. “It’s all in the eyes and the tone of voice.” Once he had finished checking the various machines Zayn was hooked up to, Dr Forsyth asked, “Do you feel any aching?”

“My head hurts,” Zayn replied. “And I feel kinda stiff all over.”

Nodding his head and taking notes, Dr Forsyth assured him, “The stiffness is probably just from lack of use. At this point, I’d say you will be up and about again in a few days. Just take things slowly.”

“Thank you.”

“Press the call button if you need me.” With that, Dr Forsyth gave the boys a nod and left the room.

There were a few moments of silence before Niall stated, “You didn’t half give us a scare.”

Louis snorted and squeezed Zayn’s hand tightly, reaching to the table beside him to grab a glass of water for his boyfriend. “Scare is an understatement. I was fucking terrified.”

“He sat beside you the whole time,” Liam told Zayn as Louis helped him drink a few mouthfuls of water.

“You did?” Zayn asked, looking up at Louis. “You sat with me?”

Rolling his eyes, Louis muttered, “Of course I sat here. What, you expected me to go along to my classes as if nothing was wrong? What if you woke up and I wasn’t here?”

Zayn had to smile a little. “Thanks, Lou,” he whispered, holding Louis’ hand to his lips and kissing it gently.

“This is fantastic,” Niall whispered excitedly in Liam’s ear.

“Yeah,” Liam murmured, smiling slightly at his boyfriend’s enthusiasm. “Yeah, it is.”

Chapter Text

“All done,” Liam sighed, slumping down onto his bed after letting himself and Niall into the room.

Landing face-down on the blankets, Niall groaned, “I hate exams.”

Liam had to laugh at little. “Don’t worry, babe, they’re finished now,” he chuckled, ruffling Niall’s hair.

“Only just. And we’ve still got seven more lots of exams before uni’s anywhere near over,” Niall mumbled into the blankets.

“Hey, be thankful that you didn’t have to do what Zayn did,” Liam murmured.

Niall grunted and rolled onto his back. “What, finishing off a folio of artwork in two weeks when everyone else had eight?” He opening his mouth to continue, but paused and closed it again. “Yeah, okay, you’re right.”

“He had a rough couple of weeks,” Liam commented, absently running his fingers through Niall’s hair.

Snorting, Niall added, “So did Louis.”

“Hey, to be fair, I think they both handled it pretty well. Did you see Lou when Zayn got back after handing his folio in?”

“Yeah, I heard them all night, too,” Niall replied wearily. He rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. “Whatever makes them happy, I guess.”

“You need to be happy, too, though,” Liam frowned. Hooking his hands under Niall’s arms, he lifted him into his lap and let the blonde curl into his chest. “Do you want to take a nap?”

Niall looked up at him with an unamused expression. “I’m not three. I’ll be fine.”

“Okay,” Liam chuckled, kissing the top of Niall’s head. He rocked them gently from side to side, his cheek resting against Niall’s hair. “How on earth did I find you?” he sighed.

“You didn’t; I found you,” Niall corrected, face pressed into Niall’s neck. “And if I’m not mistaken, you were very unwilling.”

Holding Niall’s tighter, Liam agreed, “That’s true.”

After a long silence, Niall asked, “Can I meet your mum over the break? She seems really nice.”

Liam smiled and nodded his head slightly. “Okay. She’s really keen to meet you, too.”

“I didn’t say I was keen,” Niall scowled, lifting his head to send Liam a slight glare.

“But you meant it,” Liam grinned, nuzzling Niall’s cheek. “You’re keen to meet my parents because then you’ll feel like you’re fully accepted.”

Niall huffed out a breath. “So what if I am?” he mumbled.

“It’s sweet,” Liam murmured.

“Says the one being all cuddly and cute,” Niall teased lightly.

Blushing ever so slightly, Liam mumbled, “I’m not cute.”

“You so are,” Niall giggled, turning his head to kiss Liam softly. “But that’s okay, because that’s the way I love you.”

“So sentimental,” Liam teased.

With a fond smile, Niall told him, “I’d always hoped I’d break you out of your shell, but I never thought I’d really get to know you as well as I do. It’s such a great feeling, knowing I’m the only one that really gets to see you like this.”

“There’s a good reason for that,” Liam smiled. “I love you.”

“Now who’s being sentimental?” Niall giggled, kissing Liam’s pout away. He settled his head on Liam’s shoulder, absently toying with the pendant hanging from his neck.

“You know,” Liam began, the hint of nervousness in his voice catching Niall’s attention immediately. “At the risk of sounding horrifically cheesy, it’s kind of ironic that our love of superheros is what made us click in the first place.”

“Why’s that?” Niall asked, looking up at his boyfriend.

“Because you saved me when I didn’t even realise I needed it. You’re like my own special kind of super hero.”

Biting his lip to contain a smile, Niall confirmed, “That is horrifically cheesy.” When Liam looked away, he added, “But it’s very cute. I think we’re both special kinds of super heroes, then,” he smiled. “Because you saved me, too.”

Liam met Niall’s eyes, the two of them sharing dopey grins and a quick kiss. “Thanks,” Liam whispered.

“No problem,” Niall chuckled. “Now, enough with all the soppy stuff; let’s watch Batman.”

‘I am so lucky,’ Liam thought to himself as he and Niall snuggled up together to watch the movie. 'And this is just the beginning.’