songs for this chapter:
(I know I’ve never done this, but if it’s something you guys like, please comment and let me know and I’ll make it a regular thing with the sequel!)

Beautiful Day - Marie & the redCat

Without You - Lana Del Rey

Home - Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros


HARRY’S P.O.V.


I’m honestly worried about Louis. He always seems to be questioning my feelings for him and I can’t imagine why on earth he would do that. I know I’m fucked things up in the recent past, but we’ve been stronger than ever in the past few months. If I could say anything positive about the shit I put Louis through, it would be that it’s made us a little more serious. I suppose I can only speak for myself, but I think we have both grown up in the past year.

So, why is he always trying to get me to confirm my love for him as if he’s insecure? Not that I mind.

“Harry, are you ready? We can’t miss the ferry, love.”

I nod to myself in the mirror as I put away our last minute items: toothbrushes, toothpaste, hair
wax, and a comb.

“Yeah, I’m coming.”

This little getaway was more than perfect, but it was definitely short lived. I want to pause time and stay here in this quaint cabin with my perfect boyfriend, and only un-pause life when we miss the lads or our family. Or singing. I know I’d miss performing. But, if I had to, would I give it up for Louis? In a heartbeat.

“Babe! We won’t be able to grab food on the way if you don’t-“

I round the corner of the doorway and toss the small bag of items onto the bed near the suitcase.

“I’m ready.”

I grin kindly and walk over to kiss Louis gently on the forehead.

“Since when are you the one in a rush to get going? I’m usually dragging your ass around from
one place to the next.”

He flushes and scurries over to the bed, placing the last few things into the suitcase before zipping it.

“I just don’t want miss the ferry so we aren’t late for dinner with the boys.”

Dinner with the boys? That’s news to me, but it’s possible that he told me and I just wasn’t paying attention.

“I’m not sure I like this new punctual, organized Louis.”

I wrap my arms around his waist and press my hips against his bum so he can feel the semi I haven’t been able to shake all morning. I suppose that’s what happens when you wake up next to a greek god who won’t let you touch him in the shower because he’s suddenly on a schedule.

“Get used to it, Hazza. I’m a new man.”

He tries to wiggle away, but I hold him there and ruffle my nose in his long, wispy hair.

“You’re keeping something from me, more like. C’mon, Lou. Why can’t we stay a little longer? It’s
so beautiful here, and I haven’t had nearly enough alone time with you in this big, comfy, secluded bed.”

He chuckles and I loosen my grip so that he can turn to face me.

“Harry, our bed is secluded too.”

“Not like this. There’s no one for miles.”

I trail soft kisses down his neck and feel him shiver under my touch, but he quickly pulls away and finishes zipping the suitcase.

“Sorry, Harry. We can come back soon; I promise.”

I huff and start lifting the other bags onto my shoulders.

“Okay, okay. Obviously there’s something you’re hiding, but I’ll stop prying.”

I walk out of the bedroom and hear Louis sigh. I smirk to myself, sort of excited at the prospect of whatever surprise he’s trying so hard to keep.

We both skim over the rest of the cabin, checking that we have everything before locking up and loading our things in the car.

“I’ll drive, boo.”

Louis stops in his tracks as he’s about to sleepily open the driver’s door.

“You sure, babe? I don’t mind...”

I close the trunk and circle the car to meet him in the middle.

“No, I want to drive. It’s pretty early and I know you’re tired. You’re getting to be an old man now,
you know. You’ll be 22 next mon-“

“Shut up, Hazza. I know how old I am.”

He’s about to continue scolding me for calling him old, but I lean over to kiss him chastely.

“Like I just said, I want to drive. The trip is over, Lou. I can start taking care of you again. Though
this was all really great, I miss the satisfaction of making you happy.”

He chuckles and hugs my waist tightly, his forehead resting on my shoulder.

“You always make me happy.”

There’s a moment of comfortable silence, during which I softly caress his back and kiss the top of his head. Then, he squeezes a bit harder before pulling away completely.

“But, I will let you drive because I’m tired... From so much love-making and late nights, not because I’m old.”

I chuckle and catch the keys as he tosses them while walking away, circling to the other side of the car. Once we’re both inside, I glance at Louis to make sure he buckles and as if he’s reading my thoughts, he rolls his eyes and fastens his seatbelt.

“Y’know, getting older doesn’t have to be a bad thing. I mean you’ve kinda got nice dad hair and a bit of dad scruff. I could start calling you daddy if you’d like.”

I tease him as I start the ignition. Louis scoffs and runs a hand through his growing messy hair.

“I can’t have you doing that, Harry. You’ll ruin the name for our kids.”

I try not to visibly swoon, but it’s pretty difficult whenever he talks about us having a family.

“You’re right. I can’t be giggling and blushing every time little Edward calls you daddy, now can I?”

He grins cheekily and rests one hand on my thigh as I pull onto the vacant narrow road.

“No, you can’t be doing that, babe. So, I’ll be daddy, then? What are the kiddies gonna call you?”

I smile widely, because our future kids are my new favorite subject and I’ve put some thought into this.

“Well, the way I see it daddies are the fun, goofy ones. You don’t see anyone calling their stern old father, daddy. I think I’ll definitely be the more stern one of us two.”

He laughs a bit too loud and grabs my thigh gently.

“Oh come on, Harry. You don’t have one stern bone in your perfect body.”

I raise an eyebrow in his direction and quickly return my focus to the road.

“Perfect, huh?”

I can see Louis rolling his eyes out of the corner of mine and I remove one hand from the steering wheel to collect his in it.

“Anyway, I’m not opposed to daddy, but what’ll you be, then? Definitely not father or just plain old dad. No, you need something special.”

I grin to myself and run my thumb over his hand softly.

“I was thinking papa, yeah?”

He gasps and nods his head frantically.

“I love it! It suits you, too. I guess our kids are just gonna be stuck with two fun, goofy dads. We’ll
have to aim for some structure, though.”

“Eh, they have their uncles Liam and Zayn for that.”

We both laugh and I easily picture Liam being overprotective and Zayn always worrying about
them getting hurt.

“They’ll be alright between all of us.”

I nod in agreement and pull into a tight parking spot next to the bakery I went to yesterday.

“Yeah, and we’ll be kick-ass dads.”

I lean over and peck Louis’ cheek before turning off the ignition.

“I’ll just go in, Lou. People probably shouldn’t see us tog-“

I’m interrupted by my phone ringing loudly. I look down and mouth mum as I answer. Louis motions to the store and starts to get out while I try to focus on my mum’s enthusiastic greeting loud in my ear.

“Harry, love! I miss you so much. How are you, dear?”

“I’ll get you something, babe.”

Louis whispers and I nod, remembering that my mum is probably growing impatient.

“Hey, mum. Sorry that I’ve been MIA for a few days. Lou surprised me and we’ve been in Ireland.”

“I know, hon. You think he didn’t tell me first?”

I scoff and wonder what else they’ve been conspiring together.

“I should’ve known. I don’t know how much I like you guys talking behind my back.”

She laughs and changes the subject quickly.

“So, tell me about the trip. He showed me pictures of the cabin, but I wanna know everything.”

“I’m sure you don’t want to know much of anything actually.”

She coughs and chokes, but finally catches her breath and chuckles awkwardly.

“Yeah, I suppose you might be right. Well, I just wanted to check in. I miss you, sweetheart.”

“Miss you too, mum. We’ll come visit soon. Love to you and Robin.”

“Love to you and Louis too. See you.”

I smile and end the call just as Louis returns with our breakfast. He breathes deeply when he’s
settled in his seat and hands me a cup of coffee, setting his tea in the cup holder.

“Pretty sure someone snapped a photo of me in there. I tried to get out fairly quick.”

I turn the car on and curse under my breath as we pull away. Hopefully, we don’t already ruin
everything that’s gotten better recently. That isn’t exactly something we can worry about right now.

“Well, nothing we can do now. Let’s go home, Lou.”

He’s silent for a while, staring out the window at the crashing waves on the coast.

“Yeah, let’s go home.”


_________________


The ferry was uneventful. Louis booked an express boat back home. Supposedly, the other was meant to take longer as a more enjoyable trip. We still had a cabin in the ferry, but it only consisted of a couch and table. We cuddled on the couch and Louis fell asleep on my shoulder for about an hour.

He insisted on driving the way home. I fought him on it, but his new argument was that he got a nap in and that I didn’t. I was a bit tired, so I slept half of the way home. When I wake up, it’s well past lunch time.

“Lou, I’m hungry.”

“Yeah, I was about to stop for drive-thru. That okay?”

Supposedly, he’s still in a rush. I’ll be disappointed if it really is just for dinner with the guys. I’m surprised he hasn’t given anything away yet.

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

After getting McDonald’s, I convinced Louis to let me drive the rest of the way. We made it home
in an hour and a half, leaving a few hours until dinner time.

“We should shower and get ready. Wear something nice, Haz. No headscarves.”

He’s dropped some of our bags on the floor just inside the door and I scoff at his lack of
appreciation for my style.

“Why no headscarves? I like them.”

I can’t say that I was actually planning on wearing one, but I feel the need to act more offended than I am. I’m sure I can get something out of it.

“Because Harry, we’re going somewhere nice and they don’t really scream semi-formal attire.”

I pout and walk to our room with the remaining bags. I place the suitcase on the bed and unzip it, retrieving the left-over clean clothes to put back in the drawers. Louis flops back onto the mattress and watches me unpack our things.

“You can go have a shower while I unpack, Lou.”

He shakes his head and pulls one of our pillows to his chest.

“I want to have a shower with you.”

I try to hide the smile forming on my lips, turning to toss our dirty laundry into the basket by the dresser.

“I saw that grin, Harry. C’mon, I’ll get the water running.”

He hops off the bed and jogs to the bathroom. A few seconds later I hear the water running and
his soft humming. I peel off my layers of clothing and throw them in the hamper before joining him in the bathroom, wearing absolutely nothing.

His silhouette is flawless through the fogged glass of the shower. I slide the door open and walk into the steaming hot shower to find him running his hands through his hair as water runs over his head. I step forward while his eyes are still shut and cup his hips with my hands, pressing my body close to his.

“You know I’m going to wear a headscarf now, right?”

My lips ghost over his and he closes the distance by lifting onto the balls of his feet. We kiss
slowly and passionately, the water rushing over both of our bodies. Louis slowly pushes me back until I’m against the wall firmly. The moment my skin touches the cold tile, Louis begins to sink to his knees, his palm easily working over my hardening cock.

“I was counting on it, my stubborn boy.”

I begin to speak, but the moment his lips wrap around me, I lose all thought process and rest my head against the wall, shutting my eyes tightly as moans escape my mouth uncontrollably.


________________


LOUIS’ P.O.V.


I adjust my blue tie, having a silent pep-talk with myself in the mirror. Today has had me on edge non-stop. Harry knows that I’m up to something, but it doesn’t really matter, because it’s less than an hour until it’s all going to happen anyway. I switch places with Harry and while he puts on the floral headscarf that actually accents his suit nicely, I sneak into the closet. I retrieve the small box from one of my shoes and place it in my pocket.

“Lou!”

I smile and walk back into the bathroom to find Harry still hard at work, adjusting the material on
his long wavy hair.

“You called?”

His eyes meet mine in the mirror and he grins. That grin reminds me of when we first met. Harry
was sixteen and I was so in love, so very fast. I’m sure it was this exact grin that was so irresistible.

“Does it look okay like this?”

I walk over and stand behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist and kissing the back of his shoulder.

“Looks perfect. Too bad I’m gonna make you put it on as a blindfold in the car.”

Now he actually does seem a bit surprised.

“Seriously? I’d much rather you do that in bed.”

I smack his bum and begin to walk back into our room to put on my shoes so that we can leave.

“That can be arranged too, but we need to leave now.”

He follows me and sits on the edge of the bed while I make sure I have everything.

“Do I get any clues?”

I shake my head and extend my hand to him. He gathers my hand in his and stands up. We walk together to the front door and I find the keys to his car.

“I’m driving. Get in the passenger seat and cover your eyes, love.”


______________


“Are we there yet?”

Harry has asked me that same question about twelve times and it isn’t helping my nerves.

“Almost; just be patient.”

He wiggles in his seat and crosses his arms. His foot is tapping excitedly.

“I just want like a clue. You’ve given me nothing.”

I smile and reach my hand over to stop the leg that won’t stop shaking.

“We’re about to pull in, okay? There’s no point in ruining the surprise now.”

He huffs and leans against the back of the seat.

“Alright, fine.”

He whistles along with some song on the radio and I pull into the driveway, finding myself shaking now. The gate closes behind me and I look for a good spot to park. The courtyard is empty, but over the fence I can see a large amount of cars along the side street.

I can’t do this. Not if front of everyone. I should have just done it on that damned beach when it was just us. I’m beginning to freak out a little bit at the prospect of kneeling down in front of everyone who is close to us, which just so happens to be a lot of fucking people. I pull out my phone when my foot is on the brake, texting Eleanor that we’re here.

“Harry-“

I put the car in park and his head shoots up.

“What? Are we there?”

He looks like a lost puppy, his head darting around to get a clue as to where he is.

“Yeah, yeah we are. Can you just- Be still for a moment and let me talk.”

He turns toward me and puts his hands out in front of him for me to take. I place mine in his and before I say anything, I lean forward and surprise him with a soft, slow kiss. He moans sarcastically, but squeezes my hands. I can tell that he’s still impatient; I’m just anything but. I pull away and keep our hands together.

“Harry, I- I have this whole... thing, planned out and I’m starting to- I don’t know... Doubt myself.”

“Well, I’m sorry to break it to you, but you can’t blindfold me for twenty minutes and then not give me my surprise.”

I chuckle and trace random lines over his hands with my thumbs.

“I know; you’ll get the surprise. Just- um- I’m afraid I’ll embarrass myself and you’re the only person who can ever calm me down- like before shows and stuff.”

He smiles knowingly and leans forward to leave a kiss on my forehead.

“Can we ditch the blindfold? I promise not to look where we are.”

I bite my lip, but decide quickly that I trust him. I release my hands from his and lift the black and pink scarf from over his eyes. When he opens them, they meet mine instantly, not looking anywhere else even for a moment. Harry places his large hands on my cheeks and presses his forehead to mine.

“I don’t know what you’re about to do, Louis, but there’s no way in hell you’ll embarrass yourself. No matter what it is, I’m going to be proud of you. So, always remember that even if someone has something rude to say, I’m always proud. I’m always shining because you’re beside me. If anything, I’ll be the one to embarrass us, but I know you’re always there and that’s all that matters to me. That’s what pushes me to be myself, Lou.”

I feel tears stinging the corners of my eyes and that was everything I need to push me to follow through. He holds my gaze as a few tears fall down my cheeks, but his hands divert them and he brushes them away.

“I love you, Harry.”

He connects our lips briefly and sniffles.

“I love you, Louis.”

I pull my head away and reach up to fix the scarf on his hair. I know Lou will want to fix it when
she sees it, but it’s better than it was.

“Alright, just close your eyes for right now and let me come open the door, okay?”

Harry nods and closes his eyes tight, resting his hands on his thighs. I exit the car after taking one more long look at him. I walk around the car, checking my pocket for the ring and feeling the tiny box against my leg. When I open Harry’s door, I grab his hand and guide him out onto the pavers.

“Alright. Well, it’s quiet. So, I guess we’re not at a restaurant.”

I chuckle and stand next to him, intertwining our fingers together.

“Alright, Harry,” I watch his face intently, “Open your eyes and take a look at our new home.”

Harry gasps before he even opens his eyes, but when he does, his expression is something I’ll never be able to forget for as long as I live.

“Oh my god. Lou, it’s beautiful.”

His other hand clasps his mouth and I see his eyes beginning to water. He can’t look away from the house and I can’t look away from him. This moment; it just seems- perfect.
Fuck the plans. Fuck everything. Right here and right now is exactly what I want. I reach into my pocket without much thought and pull out the box, keeping his hand in mine as I kneel down on one knee facing him.

“Harry.”

I seem to have gotten his attention, but when he looks at me, he begins to cry, a huge smile on his
face.

“Louis,” he barely gets out.

“You’re everything to me, babe. When I’m with you, it feels like nothing else matters. When I’m without you, though, it’s like my heart is breaking in half. I don’t want to feel that way ever again and I never want to let you go. This house is a place that I’d like to spend a very long time with you. I want to bring you here after our wedding. I want our children to come here when they’re born. I want to create memories here, just like we seem to do no matter where we are. Obviously, this all depends on what you want, but I think you’ll really like the house and, dear god, I’m babbling on and on.”

Harry chuckles and sniffs, wiping away tears with his free hand.

“To get to the point; Harry, will you marry me?”

Before I can do anything; open the ring box, even release my hand from his, he yells out, “Yes,
yes, yes. A million times- yes!”

“I didn’t even show you the ring, twat!”

He laughs and pulls me onto my feet, wrapping his arms around me in a suffocating hug.

“I’d say yes if it were a piece of string, you fool.”

I bury my face in his neck and hug back for a few seconds, savoring every aspect of this
moment.

Harry pulls away and kisses my forehead, still overly excited.

“I would like to wear it, though.”

I laugh to myself and open the box in my hand. Harry tries to grab it, but I swat his hand away and pull the ring out. I show him the jewels and specifically, the engraving.

“I got this one because the stones are-“

“-like our eyes, yeah? It’s so beautiful, Lou. It’s absolutely perfect. Just like you. And the inside, I
just- I love it so much.”

He cries some more and we hug and kiss for a few minutes in front of our new house.

“Hey, let’s go inside. There’s a lot to see.”

Harry kisses me once more and I lead him up the steps to the front door. It’s unlocked, of course, since everyone is already there, but Harry doesn’t catch on while consumed with bliss. When the door opens, I drag him down the front hall toward the drawing room in complete darkness.

“Lou, I want to see everything, though. Are you just taking me straight to bed, or-“

I fight back laughter at his last words before I turn the lights on in the large room.

“SURPRISE!”

Nearly a hundred people fill the room, glasses of champagne in their hands and dressed to the nines. Harry stands wide-eyed, taking it all in before leaning over to me and whispering, “I’m a bloody idiot.”

We both chuckle and I can tell that a few people in the front heard his remark, but it’s just the lads and our families. They’ve heard worse.

They’re all staring at us, waiting for me to make my move that I’ve really already made.

“Oh, um, I kinda already proposed and he said yes.”

Harry lifts his hand up and the room fills with laughter and squeals. Our mums rush forward first, crying and littering us both with kisses and hugging us a bit too tight. Then Zayn, Liam, Niall, Perrie, and Eleanor do the same, with a few less kisses and much less crying. Our siblings, all girls of course, won’t stop talking and we have to physically pull ourselves away.

We talked to so many people who mean so much to us. I even invited Nick. He’s not with his boyfriend anymore and maybe I enjoyed rubbing it all in his face a little bit.

Cara was there. She brought a new girlfriend, which surprised me a bit, but Harry seemed to already know. I tried not to show the relief I had that she was taken too.

Even Des came with his wife. He was a little standoffish, as per usual, but he warmed up quickly and even associated with Anne and Robin.

In all, that night was the most perfect night of my life thus far. I only knew one more night that would probably surpass it, and with a ring on Harry’s finger, I was positive of it happening in the near future. Nothing could have made me happier.

Harry’s last words to me that night, while he was riding me in our brand new bed were that he loved me and that he was proud of me. I fell asleep to the sound of his soft snores, keeping his body so close to mine, even though the bed could fit ten more people.

We stuck close together, just like we always will.


FIN

(until the sequel)

Notes

OMG ITS OVER... until the sequel ;)

Thank you all so very much for reading and I hope you are as excited as I am for the sequel:

Through Open Doors

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I didn't really edit this chapter... I just wanted to get it up because I know I've taken WAY too long to update. SORRY about that. I love you guys!!! Message me if you want :*