When Liam got back home, he was happy to find that Louis and I could stand to be in the same room as each other again. He gave me a thumb up when Louis had his back turned, and I rolled my eyes.

Lou and I had returned once again to our bantering selves, with the addition of frequent kisses. To the other boys it likely looked like we were finally together, but we both knew better. We were only halfway there. For now, it was good enough to make us both happy.

Today was our flight back to London. We’d been out here to record, but we hadn’t gotten much done due to Louis and I not being able to work together. We got in some last minute recording this morning, but now we were packing frantically because they hadn’t told us what time we were leaving and a van had just showed up with the driver telling us we needed to go catch our flight. Would it kill management to be a bit more organized and actually tell us something?

I could tell it was driving Liam crazy that he didn’t have control of what was going on. He kept running his hands sharply through his hair, slamming doors and reopening them to close them softly because he felt bad. We were all stressed, but let me tell you: You do not want to get a stressed or frustrated Liam Payne under any circumstances. He’s absolutely mental.

When we all finally had our bags stuffed full and piled in the van, we clicked on our seatbelts and Liam let out a long, deep sigh. We all stared at him.

“What? That was really stressful for me, guys. Give me a break.” He pouted at us, and we all laughed.

Niall lightly chuckled, slinging an arm around Liam’s shoulders and nuzzling his face into his neck. “We know, Li. We can’t do anything about them not telling us when we were leaving. We’re done now anyway, calm down.” He dropped his voice lower, whispering something in Liam’s ear. A second later Liam was as red as a tomato and tried to hide it by burying his face in Niall’s freshly dyed hair.

“Ooh, Liam’s embarrassed! What did you say to him, Ni?” Louis teased. Niall had a slight flush too, I noticed. Strange.

“I just told him I’d do everything I could to embarrass him more if he didn’t calm himself… like grab his crotch the next time we’re onstage or make him rip his trousers again or something.” We all laughed even harder, Liam glaring at him.

“Shut up! You all would actually do something like that, so it’s not funny!” I just shook my head.

The five of us had fun messing with Liam for the rest of the van ride to the airport. When we got through our private security check and boarded the plane, we were handed our seat tickets. I was next to Louis, and across from us were Zayn, Niall and Liam. The moment we put our stuff down and settled into our chairs, Zayn was asleep with his head against the window. Niall tapped Liam’s shoulder, who then turned to whisper to Louis and I to take a look.

He looked so silly like that. Of course, that meant we all had to take pictures and tweet them. He would be so mad at us for it later, but it would be so worth it. It was just too funny to resist.

I wasn’t feeling so depressed today. My mood was drastically more lighthearted. I had come to terms with the fact that my heart was stubborn, and decided to ignore it for the time being. I had Louis, and that was more than I could ever ask for.

Speak of the devil, the man beside me jabbed a finger into my side and I winced. “Oi, Lou, why’d you have to do that?” I scowled at him.

“I was trying to get your attention ‘cause you were staring off into space. Pilot said get ready for takeoff.” I nodded, smiling at him gratefully and he smirked. Pushing my bag under the chair in front of me, I sat up to find his gaze snapping away from where my bum had been up a few seconds ago and his cheeks turning red.

“Boobear… were you just checking out my bum?”

“N-n-no way, Haz! Why would I be doing that?” He looked everywhere but me.

“I never said you had to stop, you know,” I winked cheekily at him and he rolled his eyes, cheeks still bright.

We snuggled into each other’s arms and slept away the flight. As I woke, I noticed the plane was coming down and I shook Louis awake as well. “We’re landing, Boo.”

He stretched his shoulders and rubbed the drowsiness from his eyes. “Wonder what we’re doing when we land?” I shrugged, having no idea.

I felt my phone vibrating and glanced down at it. I had a notification from Twitter. Unlocking it, I saw that Liam had tweeted a picture of something that was apparently “the cutest thing ever”. Clicking to open it, I gasped.

It was a picture of Louis and I curled up and asleep. I could feel my anger growing as I stared down at it. Liam had no right to share this with the world; it was a private moment!

Lou put a hand on my shoulder, gesturing to my phone. “What’s got you so riled up?” I handed it over and saw his face turn shocked and then murderous. “Let’s get him.”

As soon as the plane was safely on the ground we jumped up and towered over Liam. “What was that for?” I snapped at him.

“What was what for?”

“You know what! The picture!”

“The picture? You mean the one I took of- oh. Right, the picture.” I glared at him and he shrugged sheepishly.

“Why?” I practically shouted at him, and felt Louis wrap and arm around my waist.

“You two looked cute, and the fans love stuff like that. Besides, you know what they say about payback,” he smirked at me. I groaned; he was reminding me of how Louis normally acted.

“Whatever,” I muttered, stomping off the plane.

We collected our bags from the carousel and had Paul put them on those big luggage carts they rent. Liam sat on the front of one, which Louis pushed. Niall rolled another, while Zayn carried one of the heavier bags separately. I just walked along between the carts.

It was nice to be home again. When we first walked in, the five of us just stood in the entry, taking it in. So much had changed since we were last here; it was hard to imagine. Florida had really been a trip to remember.

I was in my room unpacking my luggage when Louis strolled in. When I say unpacking, I mean taking things out of the bag and throwing them either in a random drawer or on the floor of my closet. I’m not exactly the neatest person, but it’s more than I can say for Boo. He actually doesn’t bother to put anything near where it should be. I bet he just dropped his bag in the middle of his room and left it there. If it weren’t for Liam, his room would be unbearable.

“Hey Hazza,” he greeted me as he flopped down on my bed.

“Hey.”

“What are you doing?”

I snorted. What did it look like I was doing? “Unpacking, which you should be doing too. Are you leaving it all for Liam again? You really use him as a slave, the poor boy,” I joked, and he laughed.

“Yeah. It’s more fun when I’m here with you anyway,” he looked down, embarrassed.

“Don’t do that, Lou,” I reach over and lift his chin, “don’t hide your beautiful eyes from me.”

We sit there for a few minutes, taking in each other’s happy moods and the relaxation of finally being in our own home.

“Haz?” he asks, and I turn to finish what I was working on folding.

“What?”

“Can I, erm, sleep, erm, in here?” Come again?

“You want to sleep in my room?” I ask, and he nods. “Why? You’ve got a perfectly good one of your own next door.”

“But that one doesn’t have you in it,” he pouts, and I grin at him. Cheesy, but I still found it adorable. He wanted to sleep with me.

“Of course you can, Boo. You never have to ask.” He smiled back at me.

Flinging the empty bag aside, I flop down on top of Louis. “I’m tired.”

“Me too,” he yawned. I pulled off my shirt and trousers, and he did the same.

“Night, Boobear.”

His arms wrapped around me, pulling me into his chest. I rolled over to face him, and we tangled our legs together. This moment felt so perfect, so peaceful. I was at home. I didn’t mean in the literal sense, though I was actually at home. I meant in the emotional sense.

Louis was my home.