[Harry]

I gulped as I heard his footsteps coming closer to the kitchen where I was standing, facing the fridge. He was not going to be happy, I was sure of it. That was why I didn't turn around when he entered the room but stood still with closed eyes, waiting for him to open his mouth.

"What's going on?"

To my surprise, he didn't sound angry at all, just bitter. This had me frowning, and I turned around so I could face him. He was standing in the door frame, leaning against it while pinching the bridge of his nose.

"What do you mean 'what's going on'?" I asked, closing the fridge to focus fully on him.

He looked at me as if I were dumb. "You know what I'm talking about, Harry. Don't be stupid."

"Well, if you're talking about the fact that I'm dating Niall, then there you go. That's what's going on."

He let out a frustrated sigh and walked over to me so we were standing face to face. His intention was obviously to intimidate me, like always, but he should know better by now that I did not find him intimidating... well, not usually at least.

"But, why?"

A frown was still visible on my face. "Well, why are you together with Eleanor?"

"Because I like her obviously..." He said but didn't sound too sure if you asked me. It was as if he was trying to understand what I was getting at.

"Well, then I am dating Niall because I like him."

His jaw clenched, and he looked away from me for a second. "Why are you doing this? And to him out of all people? He's done nothing to you, yet you go around making him think that you like him, when in reality--"

I took a step forward, staring him right in the eye. "Sure, I may not like him as much as he likes me, but I'm trying here, okay? I might be mean and stupidly selfish, but I can't go around pining after you when you don't want anything to do with me, now can I?"

It was the first time in my life I witnessed Louis being speechless and a bit taken aback. He opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. However, it didn't take too long until he had collected himself... unfortunately. "I haven't said I don't want anything to do with you."

Well, that was the stupidest answer I could have gotten.

I raised my eyebrows, looking at him incredulously. "Are you even serious right now? The last thing I remember is you telling me that you don't want to risk your father hating you if he found out you and I are a thing."

"Well, yeah. Sure, but can you hear anything about me not wanting to do anything with you in that sentence?" He was refusing to make eye contact with me, staring at something behind my back instead.

I could feel anger boiling up inside me. "Don't you dare go that way. We both know exactly what I'm talking about. We have barely even spoken to each other since that evening, so I'm pretty damn sure what you told me meant that you didn't want anything to do with me, now don't you think?" I asked, looking at him knowingly.

He bit his bottom lip, and I could practically see how he hated being in this situation. I knew him, and if there was something he despised, it was being at a disadvantage.

He let out a sigh and finally turned his head to lock gazes with me. "Look, Harry, I know what I said was stupid, especially after kissing you and all that. I also know that I can't go around thinking that you will like me forever, but fuck, I can't help but get jealous when I see you with Niall, especially since he can't shut the hell up about how absolutely perfect you are. You know I'm trying here as well, right?"

Now it was my time to be speechless. I did not expect that at all. "I... I didn't think..." I trailed off.

Well, I did know he had been jealous when he saw me and Niall, but I never expected him to confess it. This was so out of his character that I could barely understand that it was Louis standing in front of me right now.

He raised his eyebrows, taking another step forward so I had to take one back in case I didn't want to be too close to him. "You didn't think what? That I hate to hear my best friend gushing over you? That I hate the feeling of even seeing you, knowing you aren't mine? Well, I fucking do, if you wanted to know."

With newfound determination, I furrowed my eyebrows together. "Then why aren't you doing anything about it?"

He looked away for a second, only to look back at me with bitterness. "Because I know there's nothing to do."

Now that made me angry.

Without knowing really what I was doing, I grabbed his shoulders and backed him up against the wall across the room, pushing him against it. "How dare you even say that? You know you could've done things, but you refused to. I understand that you did it because you're scared that your father is going to hate you. That's totally fine, but then you shouldn't go around complaining about how things are now," I snapped.

Again, he looked taken aback. Not only by my sudden forwardness but also by my words. I guess he didn't know that I had it in me.

He didn't say anything for a couple of seconds. For a moment, I thought he wasn't even going to answer me, but then he looked me deep in the eye as if he was searching for something. It was also then he said something I never expected him to say at that moment. "Why do you have to be so fucking irresistible?"

And then he grabbed the collar of my shirt and pulled me forward so he could press his lips against mine. I was so shocked that my eyes widened in surprise and I felt numb in his embrace. My brain couldn't register what was happening, and that was also why my lips wouldn't move against his.

He let out a low grunt when he realized I wasn't returning the kiss and moved one of his hands to the back of my head to pull me even closer. It wasn't until I could feel the tip of his tongue against my bottom lip that it dawned on me what was happening, and to my great surprise, I accepted it with ease.

My arms went around his neck as I pressed my body against his so his back hit the wall behind him. You couldn't even fit a piece of paper between our chests, that was how close we were as our heavy breaths mixed. Louis seemed more than pleased with this and trailed the hand that wasn't on my neck to the small of my back. It went under my shirt to rest on my bare hip, and to say I got goosebumps by the touch would be an understatement. I felt shivers running through my entire body.

I had waited for this since the night of Ed's party. The last time we kissed, to be more specific. However, this was even better than the last time. It was hotter and if possible, even more passionate. His tongue eventually pried my mouth open to slip between my lips, and I let out a loud moan when it came in contact with my own, swirling around it.

My fingers gripped his hair, and I couldn't help but pull at it a bit. So many hormones ran through my body at the moment and I just wanted to be as close to him as humanly possible. Louis let out a grunt by the touch, moving his lips to press kisses to my jaw and down my neck, finding a spot there that made me feel limp in his arms. God, what this boy did to me.

He switched our positions so he was the one pressing me against the wall, for better access and more dominance, I assumed. Another loud moan escaped my lips as he let his teeth sink into my skin and create a hickey on my neck. Considering his harshness, I assumed it would definitely leave a mark.

After that, he pulled back for a second to gaze into my eyes. "You really are beautiful. You know that, right?"

His words made my cheeks go red, and my teeth sunk into my already puffy bottom lip. He let out a low chuckle at my reaction and leaned in to press another kiss to my lips, not caring about the fact that I was biting one of them. I instantly reacted and reciprocated it, feeling like a helpless little boy that obeyed his orders.

Before he or I could do anything else, though, a voice interrupted us and suddenly Gemma was in the kitchen. "What's happening boys?"

Luckily, Louis had quick reflexes, so he pulled away from me before she had entered the room together with Devon. He looked at me with wide eyes before turning to her with a blush on his cheeks. "Eh, nothing's happening. Harry and I were just about to make some food, right?"

I cleared my throat, still feeling flustered by what happened just a few seconds ago. "Yeah, right. We were about to make some toasts. You want some?" I asked, uncertainty lacing my voice.

Gemma looked at us suspiciously, probably assuming that was not what we had been about to do at all. "You sure about that? Harry, your hair is practically everywhere and your shirt is wrinkly."

I looked down at my shirt and noticed she was in fact right. It wasn't even falling down my hips but was kind of unfolded above them. "Well, I had P.E. as my last lesson, so that's why it's all wrinkly," I said but made sure to fix it and run my fingers through my hair so they weren't all over the place.

When I was sure Gemma wasn't looking, I sent Louis a glare, blaming him for making me look like this. If she assumed things had been going on, it would all be his fault. However, she seemed to drop the topic there because she walked over to one of the cabinets. "You were about to make some toasts, yeah?" She pulled out a bag of bread and opened the fridge to fetch the butter, ham and cheese.

When neither Louis nor I replied, she rolled her eyes. "Let's make them together."

To say I was confused would be an understatement. Gemma was not one to just drop something like that. She usually questioned you until she got the answer, but apparently not this time. Or, she was just waiting until it was just the two of us to interrogate me.

No matter what, I accepted it and was just about to walk over to her when Devon took a step forward and reached his hand out to Louis. "I believe we haven't met. I'm Devon and you must be Louis, right?"

Louis stared at his hand for a second with a frown on his face, probably contemplating how he should react to the gesture. Much to my relief, however, he eventually reached forward to shake it. "Yeah, that's right."

Devon's lips turned into a playful smile. "I've heard a lot about you."

I could see Louis' Adam's apple wobble as he swallowed hard. He glanced at Gemma who had her back turned to us while spreading butter on one of the toasts. "All good things, I hope," he replied in an attempt to sound cheeky.

Considering the situation, I would say he actually managed pretty well with it. Well, this was Louis after all, and the Louis we all knew could be very cheeky when he wanted to, so it shouldn't have surprised me.

Devon let out a laugh as he stepped over to put his hands on Gemma's shoulders. "To be honest, not quite."

Louis didn't seem surprised, and he shouldn't be considering he knew Gemma wasn't a very big fan of him, but I could still see he disliked the way Devon said it, as if he was trying to make fun of him. Devon now had his back turned to us as well, and I could see how Louis' fists clenched together while he took a threatening step forward.

The last thing I wanted right now was to see him fight my sister's boyfriend in our kitchen, so I reached forward to grab his wrist and pull him back. He turned to me, and I just shook my head with a warning look on my face, implying that it wasn't worth it.

He let out a defeated sigh and visibly relaxed. Inside, I was screaming because I couldn't believe I out of all people had made him get on better thoughts, but I hoped I didn't show it on the outside because that would be a bit embarrassing.

Without a word, he sat down at the kitchen table and pulled out his phone while I decided to walk over and help Gemma with the toasts. Devon stayed by her side the entire time but didn't help. I assumed it was because he wasn't the best cook and didn't want to join Louis. However, that made me at least get some time to talk to him.

I had only met him once and that was when Gemma first brought him home a week ago. Louis had been at football practice, which was the reason why he hadn't met him before. Though, I couldn't exactly say that I knew him more than Louis did because we hadn't really talked to each other. He and Gemma spent most of the time in her room that evening, so now was a great time to get to know my sister's boyfriend.

"So, I heard you and Gemma met when you were partnered to make a project, is that true?" I asked just to make conversation.

I could see Gemma hold in a laugh at my lame attempt, but I decided to not care about her. Devon who had now moved his arms to around Gemma's waist instead put on a smile on his lips. "Yeah, that's true, although I liked her long before that."

He explained how he had been keeping an eye on her for at least a year, but that he had been too shy to go up and talk to her before that project. It was kind of cute to hear his story, and judging by the blush on Gemma's cheeks, she enjoyed hearing it as well.

It turned out Devon and I had some things in common, like for instance, he enjoyed school and had good grades. He wasn't much of a party-guy even if he went to a few of them now and then, and he wasn't much of a drinker either. It made me happy that I got along so well with Gemma's boyfriend, and she seemed glad about it as well. One person who didn't, though, was Louis. Through the corner of my eye, I could see him glare at us every once in a while while he was typing on his phone.

I decided not to care, though, because it wasn't his business that I wanted to befriend my sister's boyfriend. Sure, Devon clearly didn't like him, but that didn't mean I couldn't like Devon because of that. I mean, considering what Gemma must have told him about Louis, I probably shouldn't have liked him either.

Once the toasts were done, we all settled down at the kitchen table to join Louis who put down his phone when the plate was set down. Devon sat down beside Gemma, which left me no other choice but to sit down beside Louis. Not that I didn't want to, but I could feel the tension after what happened earlier building up between us. We hadn't even talked about it yet.

We plated our food and for a second, silence occurred, but Gemma broke it in a matter of seconds. "So, how's dating going, Harry?"

My eyes widened by her straightforward question, and I could see Louis tense at her words. I took a bite of my toast, pretending to think for a long time. "It's going just fine," was the only thing I said.

She quirked an eyebrow as her eyes trailed down to my neck. "Yeah, I can see that."

My hand flew up to where her gaze was set and my eyes widened if possibly even more. The skin stung, and I knew it was right there Louis had made a hickey about half an hour ago. Well, shit. "Ehhh..."

"So, who is he or she? Is it someone I know?" She asked excitedly.

Louis was frozen in his seat with no emotion whatsoever written on his face. I bit my bottom lip, knowing I had to come up with something to make sure no suspicion was set on him. "I don't know if you know him, but his name's Niall. He's in some of my classes."

I didn't know if I was the only one who could see how Louis' knuckles were all white around his glass of milk, but when I looked up, I could see Devon glancing down at it and knew that I wasn't. He was sabotaging my attempt to cover it up.

"Oh, that's nice. When do I get to meet him?"

Thankfully, Gemma didn't seem to catch on to Louis' behavior. She seemed too interested to hear more about Niall to care about anything else. "I don't know... We aren't that serious yet, but soon, I hope," I replied, trying to keep a straight face.

She nodded, taking a bite of her own toast before turning to ask Devon something. The rest of the time we ate was pretty tense. I could tell it was because of Louis because he wouldn't say as much as a word. Not that I expected him to after his greeting with Devon and just the fact that he usually didn't get on with either Gemma or me, but maybe I had hoped he would at least try to be nice. It was as if I felt responsible for him for some weird reason. It was very odd.

When we were finished, I got up to put away the dishes while Gemma and Devon exited the kitchen. Not only a second later, I could feel a presence behind me where I was standing at the sink, and I was suddenly turned around to face my stepbrother.

He was looking at me with this intimidating glint in his eyes that I had seen so many times before. However, this time, I could feel how it was actually starting to get to me.

"So, Niall was the one marking you up, eh?"

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Whoop whoop! Another chapter, and I am so enjoying this guys! It feels like I never took a break from writing this story, it all just floats on so well, and I love it. I hope you liked this chapter because I know I liked a little Larry action ;)

Stay tuned for more!

Pauline .xx