summer break means no classes (even for louis — who is now on track with his schooling, caught up with everyone else, and has a chance of graduating early if he keeps passing these exams with flying colors), wild parties, day drinking, and freedom.

louis, niall and zayn are all three the top male dancers of the club. they have gotten spotlight nights where they do a longer round of stage dances — three to four songs instead of just one full song or a mashup between two — and private shows were a hit with them. if a certain dancer was part of spotlight night, they usually went home with more money than imagined. louis made ten grand off of one stage performance because of his new stage name, obsession with garters, and coming on stage with hickeys on his thighs and ass. he makes them think he's a whore, and loves the outcome.

when a customer asked why he decided not to go by tommo on stage now, he only pointed to the owner of the club. "he started it." he told them.

he explained they have been together for eight months now and just live life the best they can. harry has this minor obsession with louis stripping on a pole, louis gets a head rush any time he watches the cash till run up to multiple zeroes in the total count, it's a win-win.

bartending became a mastered craft. louis spent two weeks strictly behind the bar, then worked a set schedule with mitch just to make sure he has a steady routine since he is versatile within the club. instead of doing random break coverages and bar shifts when nobody else can work it, he is guaranteed behind the bar on mondays. thursdays, fridays and saturdays are his floor nights, because that's when he makes the most money.

niall didn't lie when he said business was slacking last year because this year is completely different. there are lines rounding the club at all times, full of customers waiting to come in and party with a bunch of strippers. college kids, the social butterflies, the alcoholics; you name them, they're probably there. louis can't count how many times he's seen harry help liam and ty bounce up front and search everyone to let them in.

on top of things in their personal lives that have changed, things have changed between harry and louis in the club as well. anything louis needs, harry drops what he is doing to get done if he can.

one time, louis texted harry and told him niall was being extra annoying so the underboss marched his happy ass into the locker room, gave niall a noogie, made him apologize for torturing his bunny, and walked out as if nothing ever happened. if liam were to find out about harry's antics, harry would be a dead man. even if niall was the instigator. he can't blame him, though — he backed louis up during a petty argument with cara over why pineapple pizza was atrocious. louis was against it, cara was for it. cara told harry to sod off because he eats cheese pizza, he wouldn't understand, and to stop supporting louis' "ridiculous, tasteless argument just because he's pretty."

("not just because he's pretty," harry backfired. "my lou is a genius, always has been, always will be.")

if louis is having a hard time at work, harry fixes it. smoke breaks for them two are taken together so that louis is not venturing around alone, and buddy systems are harshly enforced.

dancers are to roam in pairs of twos. they don't have to be together at all times, they don't have to do shows or socialize together, but if you see a dancer alone, stick around. check in with them. offer to walk them to their car if they need something out of it, walk to the locker rooms together, and make sure to not let them out of your sight until someone else can pop in.

louis is higher than a kite when he walks into inferno on a quite lovely thursday. his hair is a mess, his lips are bitten a pretty red, and he's 99% sure his legs are going to give out. harry walked in right behind him with the biggest love bite on his neck. anyone can look at them and tell they just done something ungodly, stoned or not.

harry stops him at the doorway and smooths his hair down for him, wrapping a loose arm around his shoulders. "you gonna make it?"

"i'm gonna make it big," louis tells him, sighing happily. "tonight is going to be the best night of our lives."

"i like that attitude." harry hums. "have fun. i love you."

"i love you." louis stands on his tiptoes to kiss him twice, biting harry's lip when the man squeezed his ass.

"oi! hand's off!"

harry holds the middle finger from his free hand up in the direction that the shouting was coming from. louis laughed as he pulled away, turning his head to look at niall.

"pda is inappropriate in the workplace," niall scolds, cocking his hip against the bar.

"care to remind me how i found you the other night?" louis smirks. niall's eyes widen. his face grew red and the poor boy couldn't form a proper sentence at the slap in the face of monday. "thought so."

"we didn't expect-"

"public display of arousal is much more different than public display of affection, you slut," louis teases. "it's okay though. that's what parking lots are for, right, h?" he looks back up at his partner.

harry pursed his lips as he stroked louis' back. "i am not in this conversation."

the smaller man accepts the response and kisses his cheek before sauntering to the locker room. niall followed suit, still embarrassed by louis calling him out for his actions in front of his employer.

"you are such an asshole for that," niall grumbled when he got to his locker.

"i was traumatized at the sight of my best friend's dick down your throat." louis shrugged. "at least i didn't tell harry all the details. he only asked me why i looked like i was going to pass out."

"i promised him i wouldn't do it anymore." niall bumps his head against his locker with a groan. "now i'm on emma duty for a week."

"what's so bad about my baby?"

"already told ya when harry went to england to go play idiot in tinfoil, that cat has razorblades in her mouth."

idiot in tinfoil. that's almost better than knight in shining armor just because one of harry's nicknames, of all names, is bloody idiot. he's gonna start calling him that from now on.

"she's pretty, tiny, and will rip you to shreds. all the more reason why you should love her."

louis did his makeup first so he wasn't standing in the locker room bare faced in lingerie, then changed into his outfit. doing a double take in the mirror, he spotted the imprint of harry's teeth on his hip from the parking lot activity. it'll fade, but the spot is still red with fresh indentions. animal. harry's an animal.

louis adjusts the neckline of his black fishnet bodysuit and makes sure that everything is covered before taking a step back. he's not one for thongs, but he definitely needed it for tonight's attire. his nipple piercings plus his navel ring twinkle beneath the lights surrounding the mirrors. the red bottom heels harry bought for him flattered his outfit as a whole. if only he were in here to see how he looked.

instead of dreaming, he sent a video of his outfit to his lover, who replied with "i want you to ride me in those heels. or step on me. i'm begging you. forgive me father, for i plan on sinning so hard tonight. amen."

harry's quite charming, actually.

niall whistled at the sight of his complete set. "haz is gonna eat you up when he sees you in this," the irish boy commented as he tousled his hair beside him in the mirror.

louis gives him a triumphant smirk through his reflection. "he bought the heels for me."

"we love supportive boyfriends."

"absolutely. now hurry up. we have a show to do."

multiples have been a hit thing, too, when it comes to stage shows. especially if it's all girls. they go more balls to the walls compared to the guys, going to the extremes of basically being live action porn. there has been quite a few times even louis felt like a traumatized virgin watching them to the point he had to hide in the locker room or find somewhere else in the club to disappear to while trying to get the images of cara giving a girl head out of his head.

it made them bank, though. usually if there's a segment with two dancers, that alone can make them walk out with ten grand a piece. three dancers, an easy twelve. more business, more money, and way more entertainment.

there was one time zayn and louis did another dom/sub roleplay on stage and they got requested for private shows for the rest of the night. louis' ass was sore from paddle spankings and harry nearly strangled zayn when he saw the purple marks on his boy's bottom, but money talks. louis made enough money from just that night alone to pay his car insurance for the rest of the year.

due to the high demand within the club, this means that louis doesn't get the easy opportunities to sneak down into harry's office any time he got the chance to anymore. he's always doing a show, or partnered with a buddy, or trying to take a drink of something for the first time in hours. that's the only shitty part about being top dog, is that he's always got somebody's attention.

at first he hated it because he felt bad for not being able to see his partner, but harry assured him that this is how it will probably be all summer and to not stress over it. business is booming on the clean side, so louis could only imagine the shit harry has to do behind closed doors now.

that's a different thing, also: blackwater. louis has attended rounds with harry more. harry has taken him to firing ranges to perfect his aim and shooting in case he ever had to use another gun, and louis now has his own pistol at his partner's house plus the one harry got for him on masquerade night.

in no way, shape, or form is louis affiliated with clique "business" but he is affiliated with harry. harry's business is his business and vice versa. if harry has to go on a trip, louis is the first to know — and possibly attend so he can explore. harry promised he would take him everywhere. if the underboss has to leave the club early to go tend to matters with one of the boys, he makes sure louis knows where he will be before he leaves. communication, communication, communication. it's worked so far.

their duo dance made the boys each pocket three grand because the club had just opened at eight. they've changed the hours from 10-4 to 8-4. come midnight, there will be ten thousand in louis' bag and by close, an easy fifteen. coming back to inferno and sticking with it has only increased his bankroll, and who is he to deny money? the night louis made $25,000 turned him into an unashamed money hungry bastard. harry chose his outfit that night, so he thanked him by tying his hands to the headboard and riding him until he saw god.

it's been a fast paced night. louis has mingled, observed, smoked three cigarettes and done a round of shots all before midnight. he got paid $400 just to have a twenty minute conversation about extinct animals, and after doing a private show with four guests, he's ready to go home. he almost called in tonight just because shark was conked out against him, snoring away. it nearly pained him to move the cat and take a shower before coming to work.

louis hears a familiar whistle that makes his face heat up. "you're telling me i am in love with this beautiful creature right here?"

he spins his chair around and smiles up at his boyfriend. "i'd hope so, yeah."

harry grabbed the back of his chair, spinning it in a fast circle, and took a seat next to the now laughing stripper. "you look absolutely stunning, love."

"i know a guy who likes to spend money on promiscuous clothing for me." louis shrugs. "as long as i'm not paying for it, i'll take whatever he throws my way."

"you never told me you had a sugar daddy."

"no?" the smaller man pouts. "damn. thought i did. sorry, baby. i'll warn you next time."

harry grins before pulling louis' chair closer to him. he leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "thanks for the heads up."

"anytime."

—-

"in my four years of stripping, i have had quite the bit of freaky fucks ask me to do some of the strangest shit," niall sighs as he leaned against his locker. "but this one takes the fuckin' cake just because of how painful it was."

"what happened?" louis looks at the fellow dancer through the reflection of his mirror.

"he asked me to step on his dick in heels."

the smaller man winces. "oh, ow..."

niall holds up a roll of cash. "guess who fucking did it, too?"

louis' eyes bulge out at how thick the wad was. "holy mother of fuck, niall!"

"hey! five grand is five grand, babe. that lovely gentleman just paid my rent for two months. i'm not complaining. call me pecker wrecker from now on, please."

"i will never, ever call you that."

"why not? we got juicy booty, payne train, dopple banger-"

louis turns around and throws his makeup bag at niall. "nobody says any of these except for you."

"lies. zee calls you juicy booty just as much as i do. and he called liam payne train first."

"i didn't need to know that!"

niall laughed loudly as he put louis' items in his cracked open locker for him. "as if you don't have a name for your lover boy. what do you call him?"

"something normal," louis grumbled. "i'm done with you already."

"yeah, yeah, whatever."

louis huffed as he stepped out of the locker room, the sounds of heels clicking against the flooring echoing around niall's short laughter.

"i wanna go home," louis hears his best friend huff as he appeared by his side.

"what happened?"

"nothing. i just miss my bed."

the smaller stripper grins. "poor zaynie, his lover is at home while he works his ass off to maintain a steady household."

"i know. that lucky bitch gets to stay at the house all day doing absolutely nothing. no job, no bills, just chilling. i'm quite envious."

"aren't we all?" louis chuckles. "shark and emma just eat, sleep, and play. poor kids have no idea what it's like out in the real world."

"fuckers."

"right. anyways," louis sighs as they stop at the bar. he asks michael for two lemonades, one no ice, and hands the one without the frozen pebbles to his mate. "i miss you. we need a boys night."

"we do," the dark haired man hums. "i miss you. sonic misses his uncle lou. are you free sunday? i have a date with liam tomorrow and saturday is obviously filled by our lawful exotic duties. being hot is a struggle."

louis whines around his drink. "it really is. my feet hurt from these heels but harry bought them for me and they're so lovely. to answer your question, i think i am free. unless my boyfriend decides he wants to kidnap me."

"heard, harry's a thief. i'll cut his hair if he keeps you away from me any longer."

"no!"

"wanna bet?" zayn picked up the scissors sitting in a cup on the other side of the bar. he opens and closes them repeatedly. "snip snip, bitch. tell him to let my lovey come home for a night or i'll let my hedgehog bite his balls."

"he will."

"he better. bring shark boy with you."

louis finishes his drink before tending to a table with a group of boys surrounding it. checking in, asking how their night is going, and he and zayn end up sitting at the two empty chairs there. they talk, they laugh, they watch stage shows, and zayn coaxes a private show out of the pretty hazel eyed boy that was paying a lot of attention to him. the stripper shot a wink to everyone else before guiding the man to a boyfriend room by his hand.

"he's always that smooth?" the younger boy sitting to louis' right asks.

"smooth like butter, baby," louis grins. "been my best friend for ten years and i still can't figure out how he does it."

"the body modifications." the red haired man in the middle on the other side says. when they all introduced themselves, louis and zayn learned his name was atticus. "he looks adventurous. probably a closed off individual that expresses himself by other sources. was he an art student by any chance?"

"jesus christ," louis sputters. "yes, actually. when we were in high school he got a scholarship for a free ride to one of the finest art schools in england."

"figured as such."

"how could you tell?"

"i took more into analyzing when i studied psychology," atticus shrugs. "wanted to go into the fbi until i understood just how crooked the justice system was, so i opted for being a children's therapist instead. i do minimal social work, but i work with foster kids a lot."

"oh, wicked! i'm studying gen psych right now." louis rests his chin on his hands. "i dunno what i want to do with it just yet."

atticus takes a once over at louis and leans back in his seat. "your friend's tattoos are near sleeves. yours just cover odds and ends."

"they're covering up a lot of scars." louis mumbled. "past traumas and such."

"i have a few like that." garret, the boy on louis' right, shows the flamingo tattoo on his arm. "i was stabbed. got it covered up once it healed."

"got one kinda similar." louis pointed at the now healed stag tattoo he got when he got his belly button pierced. "i got shot. had to get stitches and it left a gnarly scar."

"shit's crazy, innit?"

"absolutely."

louis feels atticus paying attention to him with solid concentration, so he quirks an eyebrow at him. "wanna see my ass tattoo?"

atticus laughs. "saw it when you came to the table, mate. i dig it."

"thank you," the stripper smiles. "i bet my boyfriend that i would get his name tatted on my ass if he beat me in pool one night."

"but instead of his, you just put 'your name'."

"the sheer disappointment on his face was lovely."

atticus chuckles. "i think you would do great working in the psychology field. any branch, if i'm being honest."

louis nearly blushes. "really?"

"you want my honest opinion?"

"give me an analysis first." louis spots his boyfriend perched up at the bar. he twinkled his fingers at him before returning to the conversation at hand.

nodding, atticus swirled his drink in his hand. "you're a trauma survivor. i could see it before you even mentioned your scars. you love freely, yet sometimes don't get the same affection in return. were your parents together when you were a kid?"

"they didn't get together until i was about nine." this guy.

"you hold an intimidating demeanor," the analyzer adds. "you are strong, but i bet you doubt yourself quite a bit. you've been held to higher standards more times than you would like to admit, maybe."

he's hitting the nail on the head. "are you sure you don't work for the fbi?"

"positive," atticus chuckles. he gives the stripper a soft grin. "you'd fit right in with adolescents."

—-

"tommo!" louis hears from the bar after leaving one of the small private cubicles. he snaps his head to the left and makes eye contact with michael, who waves him over. louis tells niall he'll be at the bar, then heads over.

"you've been requested by harry," the bartender says. "he said only if you are free, to go back there and see him. otherwise, do your thing until then."

louis thanks him and pats the bar before walking over to niall. "boyfriend called. can i go?"

"use protection please." niall walks him toward the back hallway. once they arrive, niall stays behind to watch him enter the office.

"there he is," harry smiles when he sees louis. "hello, gorgeous."

louis returns the soft grin as he locks the door and wiggles onto his lap when he made it to the desk. "hi. mikey said you summoned me."

"i did. i missed you."

crooning, louis leans forward to give him a kiss. "you can always come see me, you know. you're practically a hermit back here."

"you're working," harry shrugs. "can't let me be a distraction. i got you something."

"ooh," louis' eyebrows raise while harry shuffled through his desk. "gimme gimme gimme-"

"easy," the younger man laughed. he pulls out a box and holds it in front of louis. "you don't have to wear it if you don't want to, you can put it up so it doesn't get damaged, but i thought it was cute. probably because i personalized it, so i'm gonna be cocky. i loved how it turned-"

"you talk a lot," louis giggles. "it's cute."

harry shushes him by clamping a hand over his mouth. with the hand holding the box, he flips it open and louis' eyes light up at the sight of a necklace. harry reveals that it's a locket. it's a plain black heart locket, but inside are two photos: one of emma and shark, and one of harry.

louis turns his head and kisses his cheek. "i just love you."

harry cheeses. "you like it?"

"i love it," the smaller man takes a deeper look into the locket, smiling when he realizes the photo of harry was a photo louis took of him on their chicago trip last october.

harry had noticed that louis was snapping photos of him, so he flipped the camera off. it was a clear shot of him dressed in comfy, warm clothes, and a black polished middle finger pointed straight at him. the photo of the cats was most recent, though, louis could tell because of the pink and blue polka dotted collar around emma's neck. he bought it for her about two weeks ago. the cats were both laid on the couch together, shark's head laid on emma's back.

"i'm gonna hang it in my car," louis murmurs. "you have your babies on your desk, i have my babies in the lexus."

"sounds perfect," harry says against his shoulder. "are you hungry? it's getting late, you need to eat."

"i am feeling kind of snacky," the stripper hums. harry opens the bottom left desk drawer, the drawer louis has hidden his snacks in for when he wants something to eat on, and grabs a bag of chips and a pack of fruit snacks for him. he kicks the mini fridge under his desk open and wheels them back, making louis squeak, and grabs a gatorade for him. he's gotten used to having new things around the office, thanks to his partner. his office is stocked up on snacks and drinks because there are sticky fingers in the back lounge.

louis remained cuddled up against harry's chest while he shared his snacks with him. it was peacefully quiet in the office compared to the wild party out on the floor.

"i miss this," harry admits, resting his chin on top of louis' head. "miss coming in to a destroyed office and you're nowhere to be found 'cause you made the mess."

louis giggles behind his hand. "those were the days."

"remember when we had the stapler war?"

"i bet they wondered how much crack we did that night."

harry laughs and gives him a squeeze. "i will proudly tell them no crack was involved. just us."

louis hums, moving to press a kiss to harry's jaw. "i love us."

"i love us, too." harry kept the locket tucked in his desk so louis doesn't lose it. the man would lose his head if it weren't attached to his shoulders. "saw you made some friends earlier," he comments.

"they were pretty cool." louis hums. "one of 'em studied psych so we talked about a lot of stuff."

"oh?"

"he did psychological analysis. said he works with kids."

"bet those poor kids don't know their therapist goes out to see hot, half naked bunnies on thursday nights." harry smirks.

louis bats him on his arm. "they don't need to."

the underboss chuckles as louis roots his head into his neck. the smaller man seemed at ease right then. harry wanted to ruin it by tickling his sides just so he could hear his laugh, but decided against it. "did you learn anything, my little genius?"

"kind of? he said i would work well with adolescents, so like, kids from ten to nineteen, but i think i would do better as a general therapist with any age. cognitive behavior therapy and whatnot."

"or somatic therapy."

"maybe." louis shrugs. "i honestly just want to raise our cats out on the countryside and drink wine while watching horror movies."

"i'll take the countryside into consideration. it'll keep my babies away from this madness i call a life."

"sucks for you, 'cause i've lived this madness before." louis mumbled. "never expected to deal with it again, but now i know what i'm doing. it kind of worked out in my favor."

"this isn't a life to glorify, lou."

"i'm not glorifying it. it's the truth. i'm just saying that i wouldn't panic this time."

harry swallows whatever lump in his throat as he holds his boy a little tighter. he's working on it.

"zayn wants to kidnap me sunday." louis murmured. "might con him into taking me to the beach."

nodding, harry kisses the top of his head. "kick sand in his eyes when you get the chance."

"you are so mean." louis pouted. "never could i hurt my zaynie."

"i'll do it for you."

"harry!"

the clique member laughed, causing louis to huff at his antics.

"bring me home a crab, please," harry hummed.

"a crab?"

"yes. i'll name it sebastian."

"you are ridiculous."

"but you love me."

"sure do." louis pressed a soft kiss to the man's adam's apple. "a fuck ton."

harry grinned and asked, "wanna come to seattle with me next tuesday?"

"now what kind of question is that?"

"did you want me to just wake you up and tell you to pack your shit, we're going on a field trip?"

the smaller man nodded. "best way to do it."

"i got you monday night then."

—-

hello hello!

this was a filler chapter with a bit of insight to a SHIT TON of things. how was it?

thoughts on louis & atticus's conversation?

what does harry mean by he's "working on it"?

what do you think is going to happen next?