"ooh-la-la," zayn hummed, twirling his finger as a cue for the boy in front of him to spin. "look at all those layers! this is so cute on you."

he ran his hand through louis' freshly cut hair. "so soft, too. i love your hair. it's so pretty."

"thank you," louis beamed. "think harry will like it?"

"oh yeah. wanna send him a picture or surprise him?"

"i'll surprise him. he kinda knew how short i was wanting to go, so he's expecting it."

zayn fluffed the front half of louis' hair with his fingers and grinned. he mainly got rid of his dead ends, with a bit of a touseled shaggy look to follow.

"nail time?"

"yes, please."

the boys got matching manicures since they never go on "boy's days" anymore. having kids and all makes it kind of difficult to find the time to just chill out and be themselves for a little while. with zayn having two babies, it's even harder. when one's sick, the other is healthy until they catch what the other one had and it's back and forth from there. the twins are like day and night now. when one sleeps, the other is wide awake. once the second one conks out, the first is ready to tear the town apart with how much energy she has.

it's gotta be a twin thing.

"how are my girls?"

"they're great, for now. diana's got another tooth comin' in but it doesn't seem to be bothering her just yet."

"aw, bless her," louis cooed. "give her extra lovin's from me, please."

"will do. what's my olly been up to lately?"

louis tapped his feet in excitement. "he said mama last night."

"no way!" zayn gasped. "oh, my heart. he's not allowed to start talking. i need him to stay little and chunky forever."

"that's what i said! but it was the sweetest thing, zaynie. harry said he's been trying to teach him how to say it, and he finally did."

"olly loves his mama," zayn smiled. "he's a mama's boy."

"he sure is. i wanna find him some outfits while we're out, if that's okay."

"why, of course."

after their nail appointment, louis took a picture of their freshly painted baby blue nails and sent it to harry, who complimented the color by saying it matched his eyes. he asked to see his haircut, but louis told him he had to wait. the boss didn't like to wait and he knew that but it would be worth it.

zayn managed to get them into a shoe store and spent ten minutes deciding on which boots he wanted. they were the same style but different colors. he was stumped because he had plenty of outfits to match each pair. he finally said screw it and got both.

louis got lost looking at baby converses. he had to think about what colors olly already had before grabbing the blue ones and finding a blue pair of high tops for himself. harry told him to go crazy today. he didn't want to go too crazy, though getting matching shoes with his son made him think twice. he could have bought out the whole store if he wanted to.

they stopped for lunch about an hour and a half into shopping because it had already hit noon. the food court in the mall had plenty of options to choose from. zayn settled on chinese while louis opted for pretzel bites from a popular kiosk.

zayn squealed out of nowhere and showed louis his phone. "liam took a picture of the girls and olly napping together."

"how cute," louis gushed. "please send me that."

it's funny to think that when they first met, they had no idea about parenthood and now they're bonding over their kids. two years ago, zayn was working on getting louis to come out of his shell and to not be so nervous and shy around everyone. it's bittersweet, really. they've grown a lot.

after lunch, the boys decided it would be smart to go ahead and put what they already bought in the car that way they weren't carrying a million things around. zayn even found a closer parking spot so he pulled his car up and claimed it before they went back in.

they tried on clothes that they would never wear a day in their lives. had mini fashion shows with random pieces of jewelry. even went as far as climbing into a photobooth and taking childish pictures together. it was a great day to be a big kid.

louis stopped in his tracks when he spotted an adult store. maybe he should wait to go alone, or go with harry. then again his friend is also a submissive so it's not taboo or anything.

"oh, that's pretty," zayn gasps and points at the mannequin in the window that was wearing a pink lace bodysuit. "you need that."

"i do not."

"do too."

"you see this?" louis pointed at his tummy.

"don't make me shave your head. lou, you look great," zayn said. "have you seen yourself? you're killing the bod. having a baby made your butt bigger. your tummy is fine."

"think so?"

"what does harry say?"

"i caught him drooling over me the other day. literally drooling. i think i gave him a boner on accident when really i was just changing my clothes."

"there's your answer. get the damn set or i'm getting it for you."

louis slowly walked into the shop, ignoring the bodysuit that was haunting the back of his head. he browsed through other aisles of lingerie and found some cute panties he could wear from time to time. he also may or may not have gotten his hands on some toys. who knows if he'll use them. they just looked lovely.

zayn stalked behind him. from behind, he showed him the inappropriate candy in his hands. one hand held a package of penis lollies while the other had little hard candies in the same shape.

"you're gross. i want these." louis took the suckers with a flushed face.

"they had vagi-"

"uh-uh. don't even say it."

"-na gummies that were flesh colored and all-"

louis scrunched his nose. he'll take the rainbow dicks, thanks. harry will probably laugh about it then ask zayn why he conned louis into getting sex candy, but he won't be upset. he's got a dirty mind too, afterall.

"anyways," louis cleared his throat. he pointed to the black thigh high socks with the lace trim. "yes or no?"

"i'm not gonna tell you no to anything you want to get today unless it involves the color orange."

"why?"

"'cause orange is a repulsive color."

"no. orange can be a good color if it's the right shade," louis argued softly. "neon orange is tacky. regular orange is good. burnt orange...i like burnt orange. like, when the leaves change color and it's that super dark orange, that's good."

the other boy tipped his head to the side. "okay. i'll give you that. get the socks."

louis grinned and grabbed a black pair, also getting his hands on a pink and white pair. the pink and white pair were very thin striped with white lace. he could go all out and get the matching bralette and panty set with it too, but he wasn't too big on the bralette straps. plus he liked being bare chested. it gave harry a lot of room to work with.

he walked out of the shop with four bags of outfits, toys, candy, and other odds and ends. he spent the most money in there for sure. harry's going to see the charge and wonder what happened.

on the way home from the mall, they stopped at another shopping outlet that had the best baby clothes, in zayn's opinion. louis usually buys everything online because they don't have what he wants in stock at certain stores, but he had never been to this one before. zayn gets clothes for the girls here all the time, he told him. this was his favorite place.

when louis got inside, he could see why. not only were these clothes absolutely to die for, but they had really expensive brands for maybe half the price, brand spanking new. with littles, it's so easy to mess clothes up and stain them, so they really try not to get the super pricey outfits unless they're for special occasions. and truth be told, their three usually chill out in everyday attire like onesies, shorts, or pajamas, so it wasn't worth the hassle spending all of this money on clothes they weren't going to wear a lot. with fall and winter coming soon, though, louis had to stock back up on warm clothes for his son. and thanks to zayn, he's about to go wild.

he spent two hundred on stuff that would have originally made the entire purchase about four to six hundred. he got clothes, toys, decorations, and even snagged some really cute baby hats. one was a bucket hat, one was a beanie with little ninja turtles on it, and one was just a solid black beanie with a smiley face on the front.

"i could go broke in here."

"you and me both," louis said in awe. "okay. i gotta stop spending money or harry might lock me in the house forever."

"he gave you his card for a reason, babes. he wants you to spend money."

"but..." louis pouted. "i don't want to spend too much."

zayn quirked an eyebrow at him. "you do realize he lets you spend his money because he doesn't know what else to spend it on besides you and olly?"

"well, i...yeah, but still."

"didn't the man bid a million to get you out of the academy, anyways?" zayn proceeded, with a teasing smirk. when louis nodded, he said, "alright then. he gave you the card to blow, so blow it."

"haircut, nails, food, baby clothes...my stuff...uh, i think i spent a lot. not a lot a lot, but enough," louis chuckled. they may or may not have had to lower the back row of seats in zayn's car to fit all of their bags.

"well...i have one more place i was wanting to go, and then we can go back. if that's okay with you."

"that's okay." louis nodded. "take me on another adventure."

—-

harry had to cover his eyes so he didn't see louis. the boy said it was a surprise, and meant it. he made him hide his face before he even stepped foot into the bedroom.

he grinned at the sound of hushed laughter and said, "hurry up. i've been dying to see this."

"okay, okay," louis breathed heavily. "you can look."

when harry peeked through his fingers, his hands flew to his mouth. louis' hair was one thing. the little stud in the side of his nose was another.

zayn rocked back and forth with a sly smirk, hands behind his back. he, too, was sporting a new nose piercing. he now had one on each side.

"you've corrupted my boy."

"did not."

"did too!" harry gasped. "look at him!"

"i have, all day. he's so cute," zayn gushed, moving to pinch the younger boy's cheek.

harry got out of bed and beckoned his fiancé over. louis took nervous steps, eyes lowering to their feet.

the boss tipped louis' head back and took a good look at him. he brushed his thumb over his left cheek, ran his fingers through his soft, fluffy hair, and smiled.

"pretty," he murmured. "looks good on you, baby."

louis and zayn both let out sighs of relief.

"thank god," louis muttered. "thought you would be mad."

"nope. i wish i was there to see it, but i love it. expected ears or a belly button piercing first, but this works."

"he didn't want to do it until he watched me get mine done," zayn said. "i had an appointment. they were able to squeeze him in last minute."

"did you tip the piercer good?"

"mhm."

"atta boy." harry kissed his head. "you know olly's gonna try and take it out, right? and it can come out in your sleep?"

"zee already told me. i'll be super careful, i promise."

harry nodded and looked over at zayn. "evil."

"hey. he said he spent too much money, i didn't think he spent enough." zayn put his hands up in defense. harry's shrug and nod made him (quite literally) pat himself on the back. "see, zayn? always knew you were a genius."

the boss chuckled and wrapped his arms around louis' shoulders loosely. he hadn't seen him all day and just wanted to love on him. "do you need help bringing stuff in?"

"please, my arms might fall off," louis groaned. "where's my baby?"

harry nodded towards the doorway. "he was still tired when we came home so he's sleeping."

"well, he needs to wake up. mama got him all kinds of stuff."

"i'm sure he'd love to see them when he wakes up. we don't need a mini cranky louis. big cranky louis is already a handful."

"i'm not that bad," louis scoffed.

"sure." harry kissed the top of his head. "come on."

after loading everything in, harry agreed that louis didn't buy enough. he expected double or triple the amount of shopping bags, honestly. he tried to peek inside the bags that came from the adult store and pouted when louis told him he wasn't allowed to look. of course he has more surprises. that boy is full of them.

zayn left after sneaking into the nursery to say hi and bye to his nephew, promising they'll have a shopping date soon. he thanked harry for letting him steal louis for the day and said he'll make sure he spends his entire bank account next time.

louis showed off olly's new stuff, getting excited all over again when harry started cooing over the shoes and hats. he loved the matching converses and said blue was a good color for him. both of them.

louis grabbed the black bags from the adult store next, chewing on his bottom lip. instead of pulling everything out one by one, he set the bags in order from little to big and just pushed them over to his partner. as expected, harry got a kick out of the candies, making sure to announce he wanted the pink one. louis could have the rest. he loved everything that the submissive bought. he would have asked for a fashion show, but it would have been useless. louis would have been bent over the edge of the bed after the first outfit.

"i have a meet tonight with the lads at nine," harry said softly. "when i get back home, we can organize everything. sound good?"

louis nodded as he put all of the bags on the floor so he could lie back and stretch his legs. he did a lot of walking today and his poor feet were starting to hurt.

"did you eat today? or do you wanna start dinner early?"

"i ate at the mall. what were you thinking for dinner?"

shrugging, harry rested his hands on louis' legs and gave them gentle strokes up and down. "maybe order pizza, or i could just have myself a good serving of you."

the smaller boy let out a squeak before clamping his mouth shut. his face went blood red. that came out of nowhere.

"oh, don't you start. you did this."

"shhh."

harry tapped his legs and moved to get on his knees. he crawled between louis' now bent knees and pinned himself above him, brushing his hair out of his face.

"pretty baby," he hummed.

"stop it."

harry kissed his nose. "never."

louis puckered his lips then in a silent request, and his partner was quick to give him what he wanted. he relaxed as he got his kisses, resting his hands on the boss's shoulders.

he nearly whined when harry pulled away, instead bubbling into laughter when the dominant said his old man bones were starting to give out and dramatically dropped onto him. he flung his limbs around him and allowed himself to be flipped over, now laying on harry's chest instead of harry laying on him.

he wiggled down to comfort, nuzzling his face against harry's neck. he breathed him in, sighing softly when harry's hands rubbed his lower back.

"missed you," he said.

"i missed you, baby. did you have a good day?"

"so good. i had so much fun."

"good. you needed it. and if you ever need to do it more, just let me know. you do a lot, and you deserve breaks. i won't ever tell you no."

"can we get another cat?"

"...okay, i won't tell you no to going shopping."

"but alice needs a friend!"

"alice has olly. another cat would be like having two of him."

louis groaned. "no fair."

"sorry, babes."

"no you're not."

"you're right." harry hissed when louis nipped at his neck. "biting me won't get you your way, mister. watch it."

"or what?"

"or that ass is mine. one cat is enough for now. we can get another one when olly is bigger and won't try to eat their tail."

"promise?"

"i promise." harry even stuck his pinky finger out. they sealed the deal with a pinky swear, and the boss lowered his hands to massage louis' bum. "has to be another girl, though. boy cats are jerks."

"whatever works, i just want another cat."

"you'll get another cat, just not right now. i haven't even seen her today. i think she's hiding again."

"did you check the fridge? she likes to lay up there. or she's in olly's room."

"she might be. i caught her sleeping in the rocking chair yesterday. i think she guards him."

"as long as she stays out of the crib, i'm okay with it."

louis nearly dozed off from the booty rubs and gentle kisses to the top of his head. harry gives great cuddles and he always pampers him when they're laid like this. he's a sucker for it.

his head perked up at the sound of shuffling on the baby monitor. he waited a few seconds, smiled at the little sneeze that olly had let out, and scrambled out of bed.

harry remained still in his spot, lip jutted out in a pout because the boy was warm and smelled so sweet. his snuggles made him so happy. and then he just had to up and leave him. how rude.

he listened to the soft chatter through the monitor and grinned when olly said hi to his mama. louis still can't get over the fact he's saying that word now, and knows who his mama is. olly is louis' boy for sure.

nudging the bedroom door open with his hip, louis walked in with their little one clung to him.

he changed olly's nappy quickly and put his shorts back on him, lifting his shirt up to blow raspberries onto his tummy. the baby was still trying to grasp being awake, but he was grinning around his pacifier. he blew onto his belly again a little longer this time, chuckling when the boy let out a sleepy laugh.

"i missed you today, olly pop," louis said, poking his fingers into olly's sides. he poked up and down his body, poking his belly and thighs and even giving them little squeezes. "i heard you had fun with uncle liam and the girls, though."

"he had a blast," harry hummed. he adjusted himself to where he was propped up against the headboard and crossed his ankles.

"good deal." louis fixed his son's clothes and picked him up so he could move to lay beside harry. he laid on his back, keeping olly sat on his tummy. he had the boy's tiny hands wrapped around both of his index fingers for extra stability.

harry wiggled closer and nuzzled his face against louis' shoulder. he gave it a gentle peck before draping an arm over the younger one's hips, right behind olly, that way he was touching both of them.

"don't mind me. just wanna snuggle with my boys."

louis grinned and pulled oliver down to his chest. he stroked the boy's back, giving him loads of love and attention. olly was definitely okay with it, judging by the way he immediately curled up to his mama and bunched his shirt up in his hand.

"hi, bubba," harry cooed to his son now that they were eye level. he leaned over to kiss his little nose, and sighed when the kid smacked him in the face. "i love you, too, asshole."

"'ey."

"don't you 'hey' me. you started it." the boss argued. "you are my son, meaning you are guaranteed to be a little hellion."

he inched closer to the boy and kissed his cheek. "and that's perfectly fine by me."

—-

i didn't know where to end it lol i kept getting stumped so i just left it at that

hello hello! how are you?

i've been trying my best to write as much as i can but i do work 2 jobs so i don't have a good work-hobby balance anymore like i used to. :/ i'm sorry. adulting sucks balls. i wanna be a kid with no responsibilities again.

i'm not too sure how many chapters we have left before we finally wrap iai up - i have no idea what i'm even doing at this point. i'm kinda just...here. 5 years later and my brain still just blanks out on me when i wanna do something. WHY.

anywho. apologies for the long a/n. hope this fluffy chap made up for it <3 okay love you byeeeee