down at the shop, jonathan was preparing a client for a piercing when the chime of the doorbell rang through the building. he took a glance up and saw liam walk in with niall right on his heels. niall seemed nervous about something but liam kept reassuring it was okay, everything would be fine if he did what he was told to do and remained calm.

"is harold here?" liam walked behind the desk, looking at the appointment book. he peered over to his left and looked in the piercing room where jonathan finished marking the client's nose for his septum piercing.

"he just left with lou, they went to grab lunch before he had to take a test," the other man called from across the shop. "should be back in twenty or so."

"'kay."

liam grabbed a nearby pen and wrote something down in the book before returning to niall. "shop minimum is usually forty. harry will probably give you a discount, do it for free or double it because it's you." he shrugged. "he's indecisive."

niall snorts. "he's getting paid regardless. it'd be unfair to lowball him. he's bloody amazing."

nodding in agreement, liam shuffled his coat off and put it on the hanger by the door. "louis pays for every tattoo even if harry says no."

"well they're boyfriends, of course harry wouldn't charge him," niall says.

"i would charge you."

"we aren't boyfriends."

"i'd still charge you."

"wanker."

—-

the perks of dating a tattoo artist came in handy.

not only did you get to experience the art unfold in front of you at times, but sometimes you got to be the canvas for said art. louis loved getting tattoos, but refused to get any from anyone other than harry. there was something about the way he expressed himself within his pieces. the way his little room in the shop was covered in random drawings and posters. harry always tended to his clients in the best manner possible by keeping spare water bottles in the cooler, negotiating areas and colors and time outs so they can check the progress of their pieces. the atmosphere surrounding the man when he worked was what made it a better experience. liam had some nice work but he did most of the piercings compared to the actual ink itself.

no matter how many times harry protested that louis doesn't need to pay him for the smaller dabbles he etches into his skin (the most recent ones being the number 28 on two of his fingers and his zodiac sign behind his ear), louis somehow made his way into putting money in harry's wallet without him looking or leaving it with liam. that money paid for the expenses that came with the shop. it bought the ink used for tattoos, extra needles, rent to keep the shop in the area and more. harry could easily replace the money with his savings but that was for when he graduated and moved out. his aunt would hang him by his feet if harry pitched from his future's funds.

harry never brought work home unless it was his sketchbook or the shop tablet he used from time to time to attempt some digital art. he liked testing out new mediums, but sometimes they were a bit of a headache. half the time he turned in some drawings for extra credit in his art classes, but he got the drafts back so he could use them at the shop.

louis could sit there and watch him forever. the satisfaction written over harry's face when he finally finished a sketch made him melt. he knew how much his partner loved art. it was his happy place, his safe haven. it may have taken him a while to open that door but once it opened, it never closed.

there were plenty of times harry texted louis with ideas wondering if they sounded okay, and even more times he helped him reorganize his design book when new drawings made their way into different categories. louis liked that harry wanted him involved. he thought it was sweet.

when louis finished his school day, he went home to change into comfortable clothes and drove to the tattoo shop. it was his first night off in nearly eight days so he didn't have much time with harry other than walks to school or visiting at the end of their busy days. different wings of the university had different timed classes, lunch hours and study breaks. with winter break coming soon everyone is crunching time with studying for midterm finals and getting ready for the end of their semester. time is precious when you're in college.

harry and liam came to lucky strike to see louis as usual but it had been a minute since they saw him around the shop. they understood the circumstances though, being bombarded with school and work can make you feel burned out. harry was a prime advocate for space and taking time to recoup but he was still there for louis whenever he needed him. he didn't quite understand how much his boyfriend appreciated him for it because he was starting to feel guilty for being so distant. it didn't cause issues because they texted alot and still saw eachother when they could.

louis spotted liam's car in the parking lot and parked in the empty spot beside it, checking his reflection in the rearview mirror before stepping out. adjusting his glasses and sticking his hands in his pockets, he made his way to the front door and greeted everyone with a gentle smile when he stepped inside.

"my favorite human has arrived!" niall cheered. "just in time, too. i'm about to get tatted."

louis gave him a confused look. "you?" he scoffed and then glanced at liam, who had a devilish grin on his face. "no way, how much did liam bet you?" he asks niall.

"a whole super sized pizza and tickets for the new batman movie."

"you're easy to please," louis joked. "where's my boyfriend?"

liam pointed toward harry's corridor and louis carefully made his entrance in. he didn't want to startle the lad he came to see so when he noticed he was getting everything ready for a client (more than likely niall), he waited for harry to finish up before slipping his arms around harry's shoulders from behind and planting a gentle kiss to his head. harry didn't jump at the action, relaxed at the touch. he could sense louis' presence by the faint smell of lavender. jean gave louis some stress relieving essential oils to help him ease his nerves through this time of the year. she was once a college student herself, she knew what it was like.

harry gave louis' arms a stroke and tilted his head back to press his lips against his chin. his skin was so soft, so warm but still cool to the touch from the mid-december weather outside. he's had a long day at work doing pre-mades and tending to appointments. he just wanted to lay in bed with his favorite person in his arms and snooze the night away. the younger lad moved louis' arms carefully and stood, turning around to pull louis close to him. his boyfriend was quick to tuck his face in the crook of his neck, always feeling at home when he was around. even though they had just seen eachother earlier in the day, they always have withdrawals when away from one another. that puppy love stuff.

"they're so cute it make's me physically ill," louis overhears liam say to niall. "harry is smitten over him."

niall elbowed the man in the side for his first comment. "leave them alone li. harry's happy for the first time in forever. leave the lovesnails be."

"it's lovebirds, nialler," louis chuckles when he heard the comment and pulls away from harry. niall's cheeks flush red and he clears his throat, worming his way into harry's workspace so he can get this over with while liam put the money in the cash drawer for niall's tattoo. forty for the minimum price since it was small and wouldn't take long, a twenty as a tip for harry and five for 'liam tax' for getting him the appointment. liam was such a bugger, but it was his way of showing affection.

niall mentioned that liam's part of the deal was that he got to choose what he wanted, but liam was the one to choose the location. that's what niall was nervous about the most, aside from how bad it would hurt. louis explained to him once before that some places hurt worse than others. it also depends on shadings, whites, and if the artist is heavy handed. harry was pretty gentle, but one hell of a perfectionist.

harry gave louis a kiss before sitting back in his chair and putting a new pair of gloves on. louis sat in one of the extra chairs on the side of the room, anxious to see what the adventure of their night was going to be like. liam is not the type to make such irrational decisions, but a bet is a bet. they're college students with no action in their lives and niall doesn't use his brain half the time so he really screwed up big time on this one.

"i haven't been face to face with another ass since we pantsed you on the first day," harry signs to his best mate once liam comes in. he sighs with a shaken head and goes to brush his hair out of his face but doesn't since he couldn't contaminate his gloves. seeing his struggle, louis comes to him and pulls his hair back with a hair tie and pats his shoulder softly before pulling his chair up to sit beside niall.

liam clasps his hands behind his back with a smirk. "niall, drop your pants."

taken back by his statement, niall says the first thing that comes to mind. "you couldn't at least take me out on a date first?"

louis covered his mouth and stifled a laugh. he looks at harry, who is amused by niall's reaction once he learns that he is about to be naked from the bottom half in front of three other dudes and whoever else decides to walk in the shop within the next twenty minutes. telling himself 'a bet is a bet', niall makes everyone turn away so he can adjust his clothes and lays on his stomach on the recliner so harry can begin the project. stupid liam and his stupid ideas.

harry cleans the area liam points to and presses the transfer paper down, peeling it back up to reveal niall's image choice. niall was very proud of his heritage, being one of the only irish students in their school and being the odd one in a group of brits he had for friends. it was ironic of him to do this but it made perfect sense.

harry gets to work, trying his best not to laugh at the fact he is doing a tattoo on his own friend's bosom because he was dumb enough to make a bet with his other friend. he wondered if niall did it because he liked liam. it wasn't a secret there was chemistry between the two of them. they were practically joined at the hip just like he and louis were. louis frequently adverted his gaze between the artist and the client, photobombed liam's picture of the moment before them and taking a picture from his point of view just to mess with niall. this was going to be something he could never live down.

after harry finished coloring the tattoo in, he added finishing touches before cleaning the area with the special soap and let louis snap another photo of the final product to show him. niall exclaimed he felt like he was on fire from the stinging but it wasn't really that bad, it was mainly from the adrenaline of getting his first tattoo. harry sealed a piece of plastic covering over niall's new ink and let the lad put his clothes back on before louis showed him the picture.

and there it was, a tiny four leaf clover that will forever remain on his ass, of all places.

"i really hate you right now," the blonde says to liam, who shrugged smugly and thanked harry for participating in the bet. niall did thank him as well for being accountable on such short notice and taking the time to tend to liam's 'dumbass ideas'. louis sent the image to niall's phone and continued to laugh as niall fussed about liam and how stupid he himself was for making the bet with him to begin with.

"you know what," niall turned around. "you lot can kiss my irish ass."

—-

i know this seems like a filler chapter and it kind of is but sometimes i really laugh at myself, i thought this would be great for the storyline so here it is. (: