state of flux (2/2). ot5/ofc, nc-17.
See header post for more details.
Niall goes very serious very quickly, as Max lies down on her back, pulling him in close, and Louis finally tosses Niall the condom. He mutters something to himself that sounds like, "Jesus, okay, this is happening," and then fumbles with it, tearing the packet and sliding the condom on while the others stand there and watch. He strokes between her legs-Harry can just see the movement of his arm, can tell that's what he's doing. "Did-did Harry get you ready?" he asks quietly.
"Mmm," nods Max, shifting to wrap her legs around him. "He's good at that."
"I know," says Niall, and then immediately flushes pink and turns his head to look at Harry, who stares back at him.
"Who told you that?!" he demands.
"Nobody," Niall mumbles. "Never mind."
"You guys know way too much about each other," says Max, but it doesn't seem like she minds. Her friendly teasing is cut off by a gasp as Niall pushes inside of her, sliding in deep, and the boys can see the way his thighs tense from behind. For a few moments they adjust, Niall thrusting in slowly and Max settling into it, her legs tight around his hips, her toes curling behind his back. And then Max is patting the bed beside her, saying, "It's a little lonely over here, do you want to-?"
Liam goes first, climbing onto the bed and lying down beside her, settling his head on the pillows, and she smiles, leans in to kiss him. Zayn follows, but instead of lying on her other side he goes next to Liam instead, budging him up a bit so he can lie alongside him.
"How about that blowjob, hm?" Max says to Louis, patting the space on her other side again, and Louis gives her a grin and goes over, getting onto the bed a little awkwardly next to her head, on his knees, while Niall continues to fuck her, his thrusts quick and shallow.
Harry hangs back, stepping aside to get a better view as Niall slows down so that Max can reach out and take a hold of Louis's cock, and-he feels like he needs to look away but he can't, his eyes fix on them as Max leans in, laps teasingly at the head of Louis's erection, grinning up at him. Louis smiles down at her but there's something shaky and uncertain in it, and Harry really hopes they can make this good for him, because he really wants them all to enjoy this, doesn't want anyone left out. Max takes Louis into her mouth, stretching her lips around him-Louis's not that thick but he's quite long and she can only take him about half the way in, wrapping her hand around the base to make up for it, stroking him and gradually building up a rhythm. Harry watches as Louis's face goes tight, his forehead crinkling as he tips his head back a little, mouth opening into a gasp of "Fuck." His hand hovers out like he wants to put it on the back of her head but he hesitates and pulls back again, pressing it awkwardly to the pillow instead, his other one lightly resting on her torso just below her breasts, fingertips against her skin but palm raised.
Harry reaches down to take his own cock in his hand, squeezing tightly at the base of it to try cool this ache-he doesn't want to wank to this, uncomfortable at the way the scene before him is making heat swirl somewhere in his gut. He's not stupid, he knows there's always been something with him and Louis, something undefined and different and stronger than basically anything else, but it's not something anyone's ever been able to put a name to, and he's given up trying because, well, it's been years now, they've settled into whatever they are, and Harry has accepted that whatever it is it's not going to change. And it's not even that he wants it to, really, because it's how they are and he loves how they are, but-as he watches Louis's cock sliding between Max's lips, slick now, shining with her saliva, he feels something prickling in him like if anything could shift their relationship into some new category, it has to be this. He watches, tries to swallow down this feeling, and then he suddenly becomes aware that someone's watching him, too.
"Hazza," says Zayn, "c'mere."
Harry swallows, dragging his eyes away from Louis and Max. The only available space on the bed is right next to Louis, really, and he can't-he just can't.
"Uh," he says croakily, and then makes a beeline for the armchair beside the bed on Louis's side. He sits down in it gingerly, eyes immediately drawn to the plane of Louis's bare back, the curve of his arse, the way he can see the muscles clenching under the skin as Max sucks him. His throat feels really dry, suddenly, and he tries to watch Max instead. He can only see her lower half, the gentle swell of her tummy, the way Niall is clutching at her thighs to hold them up as he fucks into her, and it's a pretty nice view, though he'd like to see her face as well, see how she's reacting to it-and then he remembers the way her face looked a moment ago, her mouth stretched wide by Louis's cock, her eyes closing as she worked him over and-Harry shifts on the armchair, hand going to his own erection once again.
Liam lies close to Max, feeling the warmth of her pressed against him. He's kind of impressed right now, by the way she's managing to take Niall's cock and please Louis at the same time, and for a while he just watches, appreciating it and sort of-keeping watch, almost, like he needs to make sure this is going smoothly. Not that he thinks Niall or Louis is going to hurt her, but this has to be kind of overwhelming and he wants to make sure she's managing. She really seems to be, though, and Liam reaches out to touch her, fingers spreading out over her soft stomach and creeping lower, through the pale downy hair between her legs. Niall sort of jumps at that, as Liam's hand inadvertantly brushes his lower stomach, but then he realises what Liam's doing and says, "Yeah, give her a bit."
Liam's fingers find her clit and he brushes over it lightly, trying to feel out how sensitive she is, not wanting to hurt her. She makes a noise in her throat, muffled by Louis's cock in her mouth, and she's tilting her hips up gratefully into the touch so Liam strokes a little harder at the slick nub, keeping his eyes on her so he can check her reactions. She seems just fine, cheeks going pink, sweat gathering in the dip of her throat. She's still managing to suck Louis off but Liam notices then that Louis isn't as hard as he was at first. He's not gone soft, but it just seems like he's struggling somehow, his face looks tense and he's holding his body awkwardly, uncomfortably, and Liam really hopes he can get into this.
"All right, Lou?" comes Zayn's voice from beside Liam; they're clearly on the same wavelength.
"Yeah," Louis says, his breath hitching, and he gives them a little smile. He glances down at Max, "Yeah, multi-talented, this one."
Max pulls off him, licking her lips and laughing, but she's clearly noticed that he's struggling a bit too, and she takes a break, stroking him instead, wrapping her hand around him and letting him buck gently into it. Louis closes his eyes and tips his head back, fucking her fist shallowly, his breathing heavy but steady, and Liam watches with something like relief as his cock grows harder again. Liam works circles on Max's clit and he meets Harry's eyes-Harry's sitting back in the armchair, fingers dancing lightly over his cock like he doesn't quite want to flat-out wank to this but he needs some stimulation. He flashes Louis a grin but he looks oddly overwhelmed too and Liam thinks it's strange, seeing as the two of them seemed the most laidback about this, the ones most likely to be throwing themselves into it. Maybe Louis wouldn't do it sexually, perhaps, but Liam's surprised not to hear more rude comments from him, surprised he's not trying to rile them all up, and he thought Harry would want to be much more involved in the action, not happy to just sit back and observe.
Then again, nothing about this situation is predictable.
Suddenly Niall is groaning, his hands falling from Max's thighs and pressing out into the mattress, fingers outstretched, as he buries deep inside her, coming deep and trembling. Liam's hand gets trapped between their stomachs as Niall leans forward like that, the weight of him crushed against Liam's knuckles and he can feel Niall's pubic hair a little scratchy against the back of his hand. He lets out a little surprised sound, but Niall is groaning so loud it drowns him out.
"Can I go next, babe?" Zayn speaks up pretty much as soon as Niall has recovered, as soon as he's weakly pulling himself back up and slipping out of her.
"Sure," Max says, and Niall squirms out from between her legs, his own like jelly as he gets to his feet and fumbles with the condom.
Zayn shifts around, moving from beside Liam, clambering over him to replace Niall, his knees fitting right into the indents in the mattress that Niall's left. Zayn leans over to grab the condom box from where Louis left it on the bed, and Liam is momentarily kind of transfixed. Everything has gone quiet, everybody thinking about the fact that this is really happening, Zayn is going to fuck Max right after Niall has-and then Zayn is closing in, guiding his cock into her, slow and sure. It's only when he's fully sheathed inside and he bumps against Liam's hand that Liam even realises he left it there, gently resting against Max, his fingers gone still. He pulls it back like he's been burned, not even knowing why, and Max makes a little sound, part pleasure from the way Zayn is filling her up and part disappointment at the loss of Liam's fingers.
She nudges him gently with her elbow. "Oi," she says, giving him a dazed grin, and Liam feels like he's hyperventilating.
"Sorry," he says, "sorry, sorry, uhm-"
He slides his hand back over her, forgetting completely about Harry and Louis and barely noticing when Niall slumps down beside him where Zayn was a moment ago. She's even wetter now, perhaps turned on by having Zayn right after Niall, and Liam's fingers glide right over her clit instantly, slipping down and suddenly touching Zayn's cock just as he's easing out of her to push back in-Liam's fingers dart back up and he feels his face go hot; he tries to focus on her, rubbing in tiny circles again but Zayn is going really fast, pounding into her hard and there's so much movement, slickness between her legs making everything slippery and Liam keeps feeling it, brief sudden touches, fingertips going from the softness of Max to the incredible firmness of Zayn, so stiff and hard. He's vaguely aware that Max isn't really managing to wank Louis off terribly well anymore, distracted by Zayn's hard thrusts, her fingers loose and rhythmless around him. Liam wonders if this is how Zayn always fucks, ruthless, and he thinks of the times they've roomed next to each other in hotels with thin walls and he's heard this sound, the sound he can hear now, a headboard being knocked rhythmically against a wall. He flushes. He didn't even realise what that was until now.
"God, that's good," Max moans, and it sounds like her accent is coming out stronger now as she's starting to lose control a little. "I'm really-I'm close, Liam, Liam, please," she pants, turning her head to him, her hand falling from Louis's cock. He nuzzles into her, determined now, rubbing at her clit and feeling the way it pulses against his fingers with her heartbeat. Her stomach muscles are tensing and she's grinding down against Zayn and up into Liam's touch, until finally she's choking on a gasp and seizing up, clawing at Liam as she comes and then shuddering, breathing fast.
Liam withdraws his hand slowly and finds that it's shaking like mad, even worse than Max is, and he looks up at Zayn and sees that Zayn's grinning at him, like he's proud and, god, they did this together, brought this girl to orgasm with a joint effort and Liam doesn't know why but that's blowing his entire mind right now. He only realises he's smiling back at Zayn when he feels his cheeks aching.
"Nice job, lads," says Niall in a sleepy voice, resting his chin on Liam's chest and grinning round at everybody.
Louis tries to grin back at him but he's clenching his fists and his heart is pounding stupidly; he can't fucking stay hard and it's so stupid because this entire situation is amazing, the kind of dirty fantasy people always have but never actually expect to happen in real life and now it is and he can't even enjoy it properly because he's so stressed out. It's not like Max isn't doing a good job because she is, she's amazing, her mouth felt so good especially considering she was managing to suck him and get fucked at the very same time. But he just can't, he can't get into this somehow. It's not like it's the first time, it usually takes him a little while but this is so much worse, it feels so off. And it must have something to do with the other lads being here, but he can't work out what. It's not nerves, not stage fright or something like that, he's so comfortable with them that it couldn't be. If anything, he thinks, their presence should make this easier, but they're his friends and he doesn't want to just flat-out leer at them all. They all seem reasonably comfortable with this situation so far and he doesn't want to risk changing that.
Max glances up at him, looking sympathetic, and Louis hates that, he doesn't want her pity. But she seems to realise that, trying to be casual about it, not make a big deal of the fact that he's gone soft even in such an insanely arousing situation. "Want my mouth again?" she asks.
"Yeah, babe, thanks," he tells her, and he wants to apologise but he doesn't want to draw any more attention to how embarrassing this is.
She starts mouthing at him again and he does get harder, grows firm against her lips until she can pull him back into the slick heat of her mouth and it's good, but it's-it doesn't feel like he's going to actually be able to come, he doesn't feel like he's working towards that, it just feels nice and that's it. He tries to watch Zayn fucking her, see if that helps, and it does a little-Zayn looks hot, his torso covered in a slight sheen of sweat and his hips working, and Liam's licking at one of Max's nipples, his pink tongue rolling over it and teasing it, and Niall is resting against Liam looking totally fucked-out and it's a good look on him somehow. He still feels like it's not okay, though, to be watching them like this when that's not what this is supposed to be about, and he feels-just-wrong for needing to perv over his best mates in order to make the arousal throb a little stronger in his bloodstream, when they've got this fucking fantastic girl right here and she should really be enough for him.
He's so busy berating himself that he doesn't notice Harry's gotten up until he feels him, feels the mattress dip and then Harry closing in behind him suddenly, a strong arm wrapping around his middle and a chin hooking over his shoulder. He sucks in a lungful of air so quick he almost chokes on it.
"Hey," Harry says softly, and Louis can hear the smile in his voice but mostly what he can hear is just the blood rushing frantically in his own ears. His heart rate speeds up almost dangerously; he can feel Harry's soft curls tickling his cheek and-fuckfuckfuck Harry tilts his hips forward and Louis can feel his cock, stiff and full against the small of his back, a hot ache pressing into his skin.
"Haz, fuck, what are you doing," he hisses and it comes out sharp and fast and almost angry.
Harry nuzzles against him and Louis digs his fingernails so hard into his own palms that it hurts like hell. Harry says, "Saying hi. Got lonely," and his voice is all rough and so fucking close to Louis's ear, and Louis is instantly rock hard in Max's mouth and suddenly that soft velvet heat of her mouth is blissful. Harry has fixed this in mere seconds, sending that off feeling tailspinning into something fucking starry-eyed and perfect and it's too much; Louis can't feel all of this at once.
He actually feels light-headed with it; he's vaguely aware he's making these weak little sounds but besides Harry, and besides Max's mouth, he can hardly focus on anything else. The rest of the room-shit, the rest of the world melts away, all that matters is the firmness of Harry's body curved against him, his familiar smell, and that hard line of his cock pushing into Louis's back, hot and insistent. He feels Harry's fingers stroking at his stomach then, slow and sure and encouraging, and Louis comes so suddenly and so hard he thinks he's going to lose consciousness-his hips jerk forwards and his nails cut into his palms, and everything whites out completely for a few seconds. Then he's trembling and Harry is holding him still and murmuring, "Got you, Lou," into his neck, and Louis's own breathing sounds completely hysterical and ridiculous.
"Holy shit," says Max thickly, swallowing hard and then wiping her lips with the back of her hand-or just covering her mouth in shock, Louis can't tell, everything is still kind of blurry and his body is aftershocking like crazy.
"Yeah," says Harry to Max, and he gives Louis a tight squeeze and god, the continued proximity is really not helping here.
"You okay, Tommo?" comes Liam's voice all friendly concern, and jesus, Louis almost forgot he was even there but now he sees him, propped up on his elbow and looking at him with worry in his eyes.
Louis tries to make words but he's still struggling just with the whole breathing thing, so it takes a while. "Yeah, fuck," he manages eventually, and he reaches up to wipe the sweat from his forehead, his movement making Harry shift back a little-and Louis wanted him to do that, feeling completely hypersensitive, but now that there's that little bit of distance between them he finds he doesn't like it. His voice sounds all shaky and he tries to regain control over his own body, chuckles, "Yeah, wow, you lads are missing out on some pretty sick blowjob skills, let me just say."
Liam's face gives nothing away, but Niall-who's still resting on Liam, using him as a sort of human pillow-is grinning and looking extremely doubtful, like he knows it's not just Max's mouth that brought on such an intense orgasm. Louis prays he's not going to say anything, and thank god, he doesn't.
"Why, thank you," grins Max, though she's looking up at him a little knowingly, and Louis's just glad she's not saying anything else, god, so fucking glad-he's hit by the reminder that this is a stranger here, that she could easily make things really complicated with just one wrong word. They're putting so much trust in her tonight, so much.
"Zayn," Harry says, with sudden urgency in his voice. Louis can feel him moving behind him like he's agitated, jittery. "Zayn, can you-are you almost there, 'cause-can I go next? Li, is that all right?"
"Yeah, absolutely," says Liam, with ridiculous graciousness. "I don't mind."
"I need to sit down," says Louis in a small voice. He honestly feels faint, and completely stupid for it, but it's true. He extracts himself from the group and throws himself down into the armchair, and then sort of curls in on himself, trying to get his hands to stop shaking. One of them is stinging like crazy and he looks down to see that his nails did actually break the skin; there are two little angry-red crescents there at the base of his palm. What the fuck.
He's barely aware of it when Zayn comes, kinda staring into space, but he hears the long low moan and Max murmuring something sweet and dirty, and snaps out of his daze as soon as he sees Harry's moving, rolling on a condom and taking Zayn's place between Max's thighs. Harry's leaning down over her, covering her with his body, pressing together skin against skin and he's so much more intimate with her than the others were but Louis finds that it doesn't make him-it doesn't make him jealous or anything, he likes it somehow, likes how attentive he is to her.
Harry kisses her, licking into her mouth, hot and messy and Louis's in such a haze he doesn't even think of it until Harry says, "You taste sweet," his voice soft but loud enough for Louis to hear.
Max snickers a little, squirming against him. Their eyes are locked on each other. "Funny, considering what I just swallowed."
Harry's eyes dart up to Louis, then, so sudden, and Louis's heart jumps. "Not that funny, really," he says, slow and deliberate, and keeps his gaze fixed on Louis for so long that Louis itches to look away just to escape the intensity of it.
He wants to make a joke, say more like salty, actually or something dumb like that but he's literally speechless and it takes him so long to come up with any words that too much time has passed by then. God, Harry could taste him in her mouth and he liked it, and what-what's that supposed to mean? He watches in a daze as Harry spreads Max's legs wider and nudges his cock into her-Louis catches a glimpse of it before it pushes in, flushed red and shining at the tip and so big. Louis knew it was, but it's never looked larger than it does right now, sinking deep into Max's cunt, opening her up. There's an ache in him, watching Max bite her lip as she takes it.
Niall regards them with curiosity, eyes flicking back and forth between Harry and Louis as Harry starts to fuck Max and Louis watches intently. He's not entirely sure what's just happened here but it feels huge, like something is going to change after this, and-he didn't really think about that until now, didn't think about how this might affect the five of them, how their friendship might actually change as a result of it. It's not gonna be bad, he knows that; they're just going to be brought even closer together, probably, but it's strange to think that's even possible.
"Are you okay?" Harry asks Max quietly, reaching up to stroke her hair back from her face and caress her cheek gently. She nods. "All right if I go a bit faster?"
"Yeah, you're good, it's good, you-" Max says and then cuts herself off, her voice changing a little when she continues, "you feel really good inside me."
Niall frowns. She didn't say that to him or Zayn, and all right, Harry's bigger than them but-it seems like she's saying it for another reason. Then he sees her eyes flick to Louis, and, all right. Maybe that's the reason. Maybe it's for Louis's benefit. Niall's stomach is doing something strange and fluttery and for the first time tonight he feels like something is going on here that he shouldn't watch, but he can't quite stop, resting on Liam and trying to shut his eyes 'cause he is sleepy, kinda just wants to doze-but he keeps flicking his eyes open again just to check how things are progressing. And every time, Louis is still staring, all curled up in a ball on the armchair, his knees tucked in to his chest, his eyes dark with something like want. Want that he doesn't know how to handle.
Max starts stroking Liam's cock, slow, like maybe she's sorry he's having to wait so long, wanting to give him something in the meantime, and Liam is making these little whimpery noises that are oddly cute and Niall realises after a while that he recognises them, that he's heard them coming from Liam's bunk on the tourbus before. He smiles at the thought, at the fact that they're all so stupidly close that they're not even really learning too many new things about each other in this situation. It's kinda nice. Zayn's sitting up by Max's head, and he's actually in a sort of weird position, Niall realises now, almost like he's keeping his legs tucked out of the way on purpose so that Louis can get a better view of Harry with Max. He catches Zayn's eye and tilts his chin, indicating Zayn's legs, and Zayn just smirks, eyes flicking to his right towards Louis for a split-second.
Zayn is actually starting to get cramp like this, but he can tell Louis wants to watch, is staring like he never did with the rest of them. He's not gonna say anything about it, not gonna make a big deal of it-he just leans back against the headboard and lets his eyes fall closed, tired, letting Harry do his thing. It's kind of interesting with his eyes shut actually, he can just hear everything, Max's soft whimpers and Harry's moans and the repetitive slap of skin on skin as he fucks her, and those little helpless sounds Liam's making like he does when he's jerking off in his bunk at night.
And then suddenly he hears Max's voice, too. "He's watching," is all she says, simple and not much more than a whisper, but Zayn's pretty sure the tension dial gets flipped to about a hundred in an instant.
"Mm," Harry hums, not giving anything away.
Zayn opens his eyes just a tiny bit, sees that Harry's right down over her, her legs hooked right around his waist, his face barely an inch from hers as he stares into her eyes. His hands are flat on the bed either side of her, biceps bulging as his hips thrust. Zayn wants to look at Louis, too, see how he's reacted, but somehow he knows he shouldn't, doesn't want to do anything to interfere with this.
"You like it," Max breathes now, and Zayn snaps his eyes shut again, his chest feeling tight. She's really taking a risk here, pushing things, and it reminds him of something. There's a long pause; Harry says nothing, but Zayn thinks he can hear Harry speeding up, fucking her with a little more urgency. "You like that he's watching you," Max whispers, and Zayn realises in a flash what's familiar-she's acting like Louis. He realised they were similar right from the start, all sparkly-eyed mischief and boldness, but right now it's more obvious than ever because this is exactly the kind of thing Louis does, pushing something even when he knows he probably shouldn't, just because he's curious and he wants to see what'll happen. And Zayn can't help but smile to himself because of course that's why Harry likes her so much, why he fell for her so instantly.
"Yeah, feeling his eyes on you?" Max murmurs, so quiet Zayn wonders if Louis can even hear.
Harry goes tense at her words. God, she's right, she's so right. He can feel Louis's stare burning into him and it's making him want to be better, making him want to fuck her so good, show Louis what he can do. He can't say it though, can't admit to it. He dips his head enough to catch her mouth with his, nips gently at her bottom lip, playful and giving her a little smile after, just a slight curl of his lips like he's telling her yes without having to voice the word. She smiles back, wide, and he shoves into her hard, making her grin turn into a gasp. She feels so fucking good around him, hot and wet and perfect and she's so gorgeous, looks even prettier like this, her hair messy and spots of colour on her round cheeks. He likes that she's keeping her composure though, that she's taking all of this in her stride even though it's so intense, that she can still tease even in such a tense situation and it's almost like she's playing with them, in charge of this. It's hot.
He snakes a hand down between them, holding himself up with the strength of one arm now so he can get at her clit, wanting to make her come again because she really, really deserves it. Deserves an orgasm for each one of them, really. He knows he's doing this for Louis too, though, wanting Louis to see how he can make a girl come-and it doesn't take long, Max is oversensitised already and in mere moments she's clenching around him, her hips bucking up and her whole body going taut. Harry lets out a groan that sort of wavers, she's so much tighter around him now, pulsing and fluttering around his cock and he feels like he's toppling on the edge, and out of the corner of his eye he can still see the intensity of Louis's gaze. He's struck by the sudden urge to return it, but he doesn't want to make Max feel like he's ignoring her, just using her as a prop while he explores-whatever this is, with Louis.
But then Max says, "Look at him," breathless, her voice hitching high. "It's okay."
And that's what Harry needs-he turns his head to the side, eyes locking with Louis's instantly, and that's all it takes; he buries himself deep and loses it, a broken moan torn from his throat, and he tries to keep his eyes on Louis but they close instinctively and when he opens them again Louis's are squeezed shut. He tries to gather himself together, kisses Max again and tells her she's amazing, and she gives his arm a squeeze and throws the compliment right back at him.
"Liiiam," Niall chirps then, "'s your turn finally."
Niall looks really sleepy and Harry chuckles as he lifts up onto his knees, reaching across to ruffle Niall's hair before he peels off his condom carefully. He's not sure what to do after that; everybody's shifting positions and he kind of feels like he's in the way and before he knows what he's doing his legs are leading him towards Louis, shifting him aside so they can both sit in the chair together. Louis's skin is warm and damp against his and the closeness feels comforting, despite everything that just happened. Or maybe because of it.
Liam has been aching for this for longer than he's willing to admit but somehow now that his turn is here he's too overwhelmed to actually do anything. He's not sure what it is, just-something about watching Harry and Louis, the way they have this invisible sort of thread attaching them all the time, apparently even when Harry is having sex with somebody, and the way Max quietly encouraged it, kickstarted something that all five of them have been tiptoeing around for years. He just feels suddenly like he loves Max or something. He doesn't think they've really connected, she's a little brazen and loud for him, makes him feel kind of nervous, but-suddenly he's so thankful for her courage, because she's done all of this with such ease, bringing them all so much closer together when Liam thought they were already as close as they could ever be.
He finds himself with his face between her legs instead of his cock, sudden, like this is his instinctive way of showing his gratitude. "Can I?" he asks, breath ghosting over her slick flushed skin.
"Wow, fuck, yes," is her response, and she reaches down to comb her fingers through his hair in encouragement.
He starts to lick at her, long strokes of his tongue over her folds and it's different somehow, and his mind is such a mess that it takes him a little while to work out that what he's tasting is them, Harry and Zayn and Niall, something sharp and masculine in the soft sweetness of her. He pulls back instinctively with the shock of the realisation. The full force of all of this just hits him suddenly, that they're never going to come back from this and he doesn't want to ever come back from it, and they're watching him now and he can taste all of them on his mouth-
"Poor Danielle," says Harry then, interrupting Liam's internal freak-out.
"Yeah, I'm not sure it actually counts as eating someone out if your mouth is on them for ten seconds and then you just stop abruptly for no apparent reason," Louis adds, and Niall and Zayn crack up laughing.
Liam should be pissed, probably, but the friendly mocking tone of their voices is a comfort, it calms him down and brings him back to earth and reminds him that the five of them can get through anything as long as they're together. He just pulls a face at them and goes back to work, finds himself chasing that taste inside of her, liking it, and thinking about how Harry's cock was just right here where his tongue is, how he can feel that she's stretched from it and maybe aching a little from his size. He can hear Harry and Louis muttering to each other and he's pleased that it sounds light-hearted, even though he knows Harry's probably telling Louis that Liam's doing this all wrong or something-he was so worried it was going to be tense between them but they're slipping back into their usual dynamic, worlds revolving around one another, going right back into that casual orbit like Max hasn't disrupted a thing. He knows in his heart that she probably has, but as long as it hasn't knocked them out of sync then it can only be positive.
He feels that rush of love towards Max again, and he wants to get her off, show her how much all of this means to them.
"Don't you want to fuck me now, darling?" Max asks, though, her breathing laboured as she ruffles his hair a little. "You've been waiting ages."
"I want you to come again," Liam confesses, flicking his tongue against her clit and watching as her hips jerk.
"You can make me come with your cock inside me," she says assuredly.
Liam blushes, and Louis says, "I wouldn't count on it," and Zayn chucks a cushion at him.
Liam sits up and reaches for the condoms, and she pulls herself up too, leaning into his shoulder as he gets the last one from his box-and he shakes his head, smiling to himself as he realises the significance of the fact that they're managed to use up all of his remaining emergency condoms in this one night. And then once he's got it on, Max is taking him by the shoulders, nudging gently at his chest.
"She wants to be on top, Liam," Zayn tells him, and Liam thinks oh, and lies down right away, his head on the pillows right next to where Zayn's sitting.
"Doesn't have much faith in your spindly little ruts," Louis comments, and Max just sticks her tongue out at him as she straddles Liam, reaching down between her legs to guide him inside of her. He sinks in easy and it's good, so good; he feels all this tension flowing out of him that he didn't even realise was still there, knows he's going to feel wonderful for at least a week now, on top of things again. He hears himself moan embarrassingly loud, and when he looks up Zayn is grinning down at him.
"Been a while, right, Liam?" he teases, and Liam can only nod and grin like an idiot-Max is this hot, tight press all around his cock and she's riding him, hands on his chest as she rocks against him, keeping him deep but giving him just enough friction. And it makes it so much better somehow that they're all here with him, even if they're making fun of him, he doesn't care-Zayn is grinning down at him and Harry and Louis are curled together in the small armchair, Harry resting his head on Louis's shoulder, and Niall is nuzzling into Liam's side again, already starting to doze off.
Louis grins at the look on Liam's face, the way he looks like this is the best thing he's ever felt in his entire life, and it's funny and oddly sweet really, and god, Louis loves them all so much, his boys.
Zayn says, "Does it feel good?" and his voice is strangely low, meaningful, and Louis knows he doesn't mean, does she feel good? but does it feel good to finally give into this? It's a loaded question, somehow, maybe because they all know how wound up Liam gets and it's good to see him let go.
"Yeah," Liam says, voice high-pitched, and Max is smiling fondly down at them, keeping quiet now, letting them all have this, these moments amongst themselves as she rolls her hips and grinds down against him, brings herself closer.
Louis leans into Harry, and tilts his head up to look at him and smile. "Doesn't have much of a technique, does he?" Louis whispers, grinning wickedly.
"Oi, you wouldn't be saying that if he was inside you," Max snaps, and-well, all right, she wins again, because that shuts Louis up sharpish.
Harry giggles, yawns, wriggling about and getting more comfortable in the little chair.
"I'm not going to be able to last," Liam says, his voice sounding worried and apologetic.
Max strokes at his chest, running her fingers over his skin soothingly. "It's all right," she says, "I'm-" her breath catches and she moves a little quicker now, with more purpose, her tits bouncing, "I'm nearly there."
Liam begins to buck up into her, spurred on, his hips lifting up from the bed, and then her nails are digging into his chest a little and she's still, then shuddering, then heaving forwards and panting. Louis cheers, pumping the air with his fist, and Harry joins in, laughing, and Niall offers a sleepy "Wooooo!" without opening his eyes.
"Are you close, Liam?" is all Zayn says, his voice with that strange tone again, pressing.
"Mm," Liam forces out, weakly, and he seems flustered, and Louis leans forward a little to see that Zayn is keeping eye contact with him, looking down at him, watchful and almost-adoring?
Max seems exhausted now but she keeps churning her hips for Liam, her eyes flicking back and forth between him and Zayn with curiosity. Liam is holding onto her, his hands clutching at her as he drives into her from below, and they see his fingers clench tighter and then he's gasping out, "Yeah, I'm going to-" and he comes with a whine, hips snapping up and then dropping down again heavily.
Louis cheers again and everybody joins in, ridiculous and exaggerated until Liam is laughing weakly and the colour of a tomato. Louis feels a surge of love for him in that moment, that Liam did this at all, probably agreed to it as much for their sake as his own. Louis pats Harry gently to get him to move aside, gets a sleepy smile in response, and then pulls himself out of the armchair to climb onto the bed and snuggle into Liam. On an impulse, he leans in and presses a wet kiss to Liam's cheek, and Liam squeaks and somehow manages to go a shade darker. All right, it was maybe a bit close to his mouth, but they all kiss each other like this all the time.
Louis supposes context might matter sometimes, though.
"Ughhh," he groans, seeing Liam's shocked expression. "Can we just go to sleep now and freak out about all of this later? Like maybe in ten years?"
Niall is barely aware of things now, their voices drifting in and out all echoey, but at this he manages a "Yeah, I vote for that."
He forces his eyes open and sees that Max is clambering off Liam and starting to remove his condom for him, but he bats her hand away. "No no, I'll do that, you can rest."
Max laughs at him. "You're sweet," she says, and then flings herself down next to Niall, leaning in to kiss his back warmly and make his tummy go all squirmy.
Liam gets up and starts pottering about, gathering up all the used condoms and disappearing into the bathroom with them. He comes back after a moment with an actual damp flannel, going round and mopping at them all. He goes to Max first, who laughs loud and open, offering her cheeks and her chest for him to wipe down. Then it's Zayn, who just grins at Liam sort of adoringly and sits back, lets himself be looked after. When Liam comes round to Niall, Niall is about to summon the energy to make fun of him for it, but then the cool cloth touches his forehead and he just moans instead. Louis bats him off, and Harry insists on taking the flannel from Liam because "I can manage that myself, I think," and the last thing Niall is aware of before he falls asleep is Louis allowing Harry to dab Louis's forehead with it.
"Are we actually going to all be able to sleep in here?" Zayn asks. The bed is pretty huge, but it still seems kind of doubtful, and he just hopes no one is going to have to go back to their own rooms because he really, really needs to be with them all right now. It would just feel wrong to leave after something like this. He remembers Louis saying I feel like something monumental just happened back at the club and he smiles to himself because yeah, actually, it did in the end.
"Yep," is Harry's only response.
"Will we fit?" Max asks.
"We'll make ourselves fit," Louis tells her and she giggles.
"We should brush our teeth," Liam says, prodding at Harry. Zayn knows Liam fusses over them like this anyway, but it's like it's been increased by the hugeness of what happened to them tonight-taking care of them calms him down. It's a fair point, though, and they do all keep toothbrushes in each other's rooms anyway because spontaneous sleepovers always happen a lot on tour.
"I don't usually carry a toothbrush in my purse," Max points out, yawning.
"I have a spare," Liam offers, and Zayn chuckles. Of course he does. "What? I brought it in case my electric one dies unexpectedly."
"Loser," says Harry fondly, and then heaves himself to his feet. "All right, we're going."
"Gotta keep our dental hygienist here happy," adds Louis, getting up too and poking Liam in the ribs.
The two of them file into the bathroom and Max follows, and Liam folds his arms, giving Zayn a Look.
"Fine," Zayn sighs, grinning at him and pulling himself off the bed. They both glance at Niall, but exchange looks and silently agree that neither of them can bear to wake him up. He looks so peaceful. Zayn just decides not to sleep next to him in order to avoid the morning breath.
He and Liam head into the bathroom and Liam elbows him gently, just a slight touch, getting him to look at him.
"Are we okay?" he asks quietly, just before they reach the doorway-Harry, Louis, and Max are all chatting in there already, Louis sitting on the countertop and swinging his legs, talking around the toothbrush in his mouth as Max gets Liam's spare one out of its wrapping and Harry pours himself some water.
"Yeah, 'course," Zayn tells him, grinning, and Liam grins back with something like relief, and Zayn pushes down some rising feeling in his chest, makes it sink again.
It's hard enough fitting the five of them into the ensuite, so Harry's not sure how they're going to cope with six of them in Liam's bed, but-when they get back in there it's surprisingly easy. Zayn rolls Niall over to the edge so that he and Liam can be beside each other, and Max next to them, and then it's Harry between her and Louis. They all have to be squeezed in very close-Liam says something about sardines as he reaches over Niall to switch off the light-but it's nice, Harry likes it. He needs to be close to them right now, after everything that's happened, and he sighs happily in the dark, facing Max and feeling Louis roll over behind him, curl in like that, spooning him.
He stares at Max in the dark, eyes adjusting until he can make out the features of her face, and he thinks about the fact that just hours ago she was a total stranger and now she feels like one of the most important things that has ever happened to him. He wonders what's next. Usually, after one night stands, they want the girls to go back to their own lives, to never meet them again, because it feels safer and easier that way, but-the thought of never seeing Max again just seems wrong. He wonders if they could meet up again before the tour is over, not to have sex-he doesn't feel like that's necessary after tonight-just to take her out for a meal or something, so they can thank her for this. He hopes she knows how much they appreciate it, how much tonight means.
And he's thinking about all of them, because this girl has brought to light something none of them has ever really questioned before, something about their claustrophobic closeness that has always made people curious for reasons they never understood. Maybe they just assumed it was normal, in their own private, confusing little five-person world, but-maybe it's not. Harry doesn't even know what it is exactly, he just knows it feels better now that it's beginning to be addressed.
The thought keeps nagging at him and it's making it hard for him to relax and fall asleep. He thinks the others already are, he's slept with them enough times to know the signs-Niall was out like a light already, of course, and Zayn's totally dead to the world now too, and Liam's making those annoying little breathy sounds that mean he's drifted off. Louis's breathing is steady, his heartbeat slow against Harry's back.
"Max?" Harry whispers.
"Yeah?" she murmurs sleepily, and he sees her open her eyes, roll over onto her side to look at him properly. "Can't sleep? Me neither. My body's exhausted but my brain is like-" she makes some kind of hand gesture that Harry supposes is meant to mean she's got a lot of thoughts whirling around in her brain. It's pretty cute.
"Me too," he tells her, keeping his voice low so as not to wake the others. "Listen, I just wanted to, you know...thank you. This is a really big deal for us, I think, and...I just wanted you to know. It means a lot."
She regards him carefully for a long moment, or at least he thinks that's what she's doing-it's hard to tell in the dark and he can't quite follow her eyes. Then she says, quiet and sure, "You should tell him, you know."
Harry's heart does something odd in his chest at the words. He feels suddenly much more aware of Louis curled around him, Louis's arm thrown over his bare hip under the thin sheet Liam pulled up over them all. "I know," he says.
"Are you going to?" Max asks gently. Harry suddenly realises what's odd about her gaze; it's like she keeps glancing behind him, and Harry's heart leaps into his throat now with the realisation that Louis might not be asleep after all, that she might be looking at him. He tries to keep calm, but the blood is racing through his veins now.
"He's," says Harry, picking his words carefully, knowing that Louis might be listening. "He's very important to me."
Max nods and says nothing, like she's waiting for more, and somehow it makes Harry feel hot and flustered, all of this, everything they've just done and everything they are and what might come from it, the future stretching out wide and scary and exciting ahead of him.
He smiles shakily, and his voice is shaky too when he says, "I don't know. Yeah. Maybe I will."
End.
(editing to say that this is the ACTUAL END, no sequels from me for this one, sorry guys!)
Niall goes very serious very quickly, as Max lies down on her back, pulling him in close, and Louis finally tosses Niall the condom. He mutters something to himself that sounds like, "Jesus, okay, this is happening," and then fumbles with it, tearing the packet and sliding the condom on while the others stand there and watch. He strokes between her legs-Harry can just see the movement of his arm, can tell that's what he's doing. "Did-did Harry get you ready?" he asks quietly.
"Mmm," nods Max, shifting to wrap her legs around him. "He's good at that."
"I know," says Niall, and then immediately flushes pink and turns his head to look at Harry, who stares back at him.
"Who told you that?!" he demands.
"Nobody," Niall mumbles. "Never mind."
"You guys know way too much about each other," says Max, but it doesn't seem like she minds. Her friendly teasing is cut off by a gasp as Niall pushes inside of her, sliding in deep, and the boys can see the way his thighs tense from behind. For a few moments they adjust, Niall thrusting in slowly and Max settling into it, her legs tight around his hips, her toes curling behind his back. And then Max is patting the bed beside her, saying, "It's a little lonely over here, do you want to-?"
Liam goes first, climbing onto the bed and lying down beside her, settling his head on the pillows, and she smiles, leans in to kiss him. Zayn follows, but instead of lying on her other side he goes next to Liam instead, budging him up a bit so he can lie alongside him.
"How about that blowjob, hm?" Max says to Louis, patting the space on her other side again, and Louis gives her a grin and goes over, getting onto the bed a little awkwardly next to her head, on his knees, while Niall continues to fuck her, his thrusts quick and shallow.
Harry hangs back, stepping aside to get a better view as Niall slows down so that Max can reach out and take a hold of Louis's cock, and-he feels like he needs to look away but he can't, his eyes fix on them as Max leans in, laps teasingly at the head of Louis's erection, grinning up at him. Louis smiles down at her but there's something shaky and uncertain in it, and Harry really hopes they can make this good for him, because he really wants them all to enjoy this, doesn't want anyone left out. Max takes Louis into her mouth, stretching her lips around him-Louis's not that thick but he's quite long and she can only take him about half the way in, wrapping her hand around the base to make up for it, stroking him and gradually building up a rhythm. Harry watches as Louis's face goes tight, his forehead crinkling as he tips his head back a little, mouth opening into a gasp of "Fuck." His hand hovers out like he wants to put it on the back of her head but he hesitates and pulls back again, pressing it awkwardly to the pillow instead, his other one lightly resting on her torso just below her breasts, fingertips against her skin but palm raised.
Harry reaches down to take his own cock in his hand, squeezing tightly at the base of it to try cool this ache-he doesn't want to wank to this, uncomfortable at the way the scene before him is making heat swirl somewhere in his gut. He's not stupid, he knows there's always been something with him and Louis, something undefined and different and stronger than basically anything else, but it's not something anyone's ever been able to put a name to, and he's given up trying because, well, it's been years now, they've settled into whatever they are, and Harry has accepted that whatever it is it's not going to change. And it's not even that he wants it to, really, because it's how they are and he loves how they are, but-as he watches Louis's cock sliding between Max's lips, slick now, shining with her saliva, he feels something prickling in him like if anything could shift their relationship into some new category, it has to be this. He watches, tries to swallow down this feeling, and then he suddenly becomes aware that someone's watching him, too.
"Hazza," says Zayn, "c'mere."
Harry swallows, dragging his eyes away from Louis and Max. The only available space on the bed is right next to Louis, really, and he can't-he just can't.
"Uh," he says croakily, and then makes a beeline for the armchair beside the bed on Louis's side. He sits down in it gingerly, eyes immediately drawn to the plane of Louis's bare back, the curve of his arse, the way he can see the muscles clenching under the skin as Max sucks him. His throat feels really dry, suddenly, and he tries to watch Max instead. He can only see her lower half, the gentle swell of her tummy, the way Niall is clutching at her thighs to hold them up as he fucks into her, and it's a pretty nice view, though he'd like to see her face as well, see how she's reacting to it-and then he remembers the way her face looked a moment ago, her mouth stretched wide by Louis's cock, her eyes closing as she worked him over and-Harry shifts on the armchair, hand going to his own erection once again.
Liam lies close to Max, feeling the warmth of her pressed against him. He's kind of impressed right now, by the way she's managing to take Niall's cock and please Louis at the same time, and for a while he just watches, appreciating it and sort of-keeping watch, almost, like he needs to make sure this is going smoothly. Not that he thinks Niall or Louis is going to hurt her, but this has to be kind of overwhelming and he wants to make sure she's managing. She really seems to be, though, and Liam reaches out to touch her, fingers spreading out over her soft stomach and creeping lower, through the pale downy hair between her legs. Niall sort of jumps at that, as Liam's hand inadvertantly brushes his lower stomach, but then he realises what Liam's doing and says, "Yeah, give her a bit."
Liam's fingers find her clit and he brushes over it lightly, trying to feel out how sensitive she is, not wanting to hurt her. She makes a noise in her throat, muffled by Louis's cock in her mouth, and she's tilting her hips up gratefully into the touch so Liam strokes a little harder at the slick nub, keeping his eyes on her so he can check her reactions. She seems just fine, cheeks going pink, sweat gathering in the dip of her throat. She's still managing to suck Louis off but Liam notices then that Louis isn't as hard as he was at first. He's not gone soft, but it just seems like he's struggling somehow, his face looks tense and he's holding his body awkwardly, uncomfortably, and Liam really hopes he can get into this.
"All right, Lou?" comes Zayn's voice from beside Liam; they're clearly on the same wavelength.
"Yeah," Louis says, his breath hitching, and he gives them a little smile. He glances down at Max, "Yeah, multi-talented, this one."
Max pulls off him, licking her lips and laughing, but she's clearly noticed that he's struggling a bit too, and she takes a break, stroking him instead, wrapping her hand around him and letting him buck gently into it. Louis closes his eyes and tips his head back, fucking her fist shallowly, his breathing heavy but steady, and Liam watches with something like relief as his cock grows harder again. Liam works circles on Max's clit and he meets Harry's eyes-Harry's sitting back in the armchair, fingers dancing lightly over his cock like he doesn't quite want to flat-out wank to this but he needs some stimulation. He flashes Louis a grin but he looks oddly overwhelmed too and Liam thinks it's strange, seeing as the two of them seemed the most laidback about this, the ones most likely to be throwing themselves into it. Maybe Louis wouldn't do it sexually, perhaps, but Liam's surprised not to hear more rude comments from him, surprised he's not trying to rile them all up, and he thought Harry would want to be much more involved in the action, not happy to just sit back and observe.
Then again, nothing about this situation is predictable.
Suddenly Niall is groaning, his hands falling from Max's thighs and pressing out into the mattress, fingers outstretched, as he buries deep inside her, coming deep and trembling. Liam's hand gets trapped between their stomachs as Niall leans forward like that, the weight of him crushed against Liam's knuckles and he can feel Niall's pubic hair a little scratchy against the back of his hand. He lets out a little surprised sound, but Niall is groaning so loud it drowns him out.
"Can I go next, babe?" Zayn speaks up pretty much as soon as Niall has recovered, as soon as he's weakly pulling himself back up and slipping out of her.
"Sure," Max says, and Niall squirms out from between her legs, his own like jelly as he gets to his feet and fumbles with the condom.
Zayn shifts around, moving from beside Liam, clambering over him to replace Niall, his knees fitting right into the indents in the mattress that Niall's left. Zayn leans over to grab the condom box from where Louis left it on the bed, and Liam is momentarily kind of transfixed. Everything has gone quiet, everybody thinking about the fact that this is really happening, Zayn is going to fuck Max right after Niall has-and then Zayn is closing in, guiding his cock into her, slow and sure. It's only when he's fully sheathed inside and he bumps against Liam's hand that Liam even realises he left it there, gently resting against Max, his fingers gone still. He pulls it back like he's been burned, not even knowing why, and Max makes a little sound, part pleasure from the way Zayn is filling her up and part disappointment at the loss of Liam's fingers.
She nudges him gently with her elbow. "Oi," she says, giving him a dazed grin, and Liam feels like he's hyperventilating.
"Sorry," he says, "sorry, sorry, uhm-"
He slides his hand back over her, forgetting completely about Harry and Louis and barely noticing when Niall slumps down beside him where Zayn was a moment ago. She's even wetter now, perhaps turned on by having Zayn right after Niall, and Liam's fingers glide right over her clit instantly, slipping down and suddenly touching Zayn's cock just as he's easing out of her to push back in-Liam's fingers dart back up and he feels his face go hot; he tries to focus on her, rubbing in tiny circles again but Zayn is going really fast, pounding into her hard and there's so much movement, slickness between her legs making everything slippery and Liam keeps feeling it, brief sudden touches, fingertips going from the softness of Max to the incredible firmness of Zayn, so stiff and hard. He's vaguely aware that Max isn't really managing to wank Louis off terribly well anymore, distracted by Zayn's hard thrusts, her fingers loose and rhythmless around him. Liam wonders if this is how Zayn always fucks, ruthless, and he thinks of the times they've roomed next to each other in hotels with thin walls and he's heard this sound, the sound he can hear now, a headboard being knocked rhythmically against a wall. He flushes. He didn't even realise what that was until now.
"God, that's good," Max moans, and it sounds like her accent is coming out stronger now as she's starting to lose control a little. "I'm really-I'm close, Liam, Liam, please," she pants, turning her head to him, her hand falling from Louis's cock. He nuzzles into her, determined now, rubbing at her clit and feeling the way it pulses against his fingers with her heartbeat. Her stomach muscles are tensing and she's grinding down against Zayn and up into Liam's touch, until finally she's choking on a gasp and seizing up, clawing at Liam as she comes and then shuddering, breathing fast.
Liam withdraws his hand slowly and finds that it's shaking like mad, even worse than Max is, and he looks up at Zayn and sees that Zayn's grinning at him, like he's proud and, god, they did this together, brought this girl to orgasm with a joint effort and Liam doesn't know why but that's blowing his entire mind right now. He only realises he's smiling back at Zayn when he feels his cheeks aching.
"Nice job, lads," says Niall in a sleepy voice, resting his chin on Liam's chest and grinning round at everybody.
Louis tries to grin back at him but he's clenching his fists and his heart is pounding stupidly; he can't fucking stay hard and it's so stupid because this entire situation is amazing, the kind of dirty fantasy people always have but never actually expect to happen in real life and now it is and he can't even enjoy it properly because he's so stressed out. It's not like Max isn't doing a good job because she is, she's amazing, her mouth felt so good especially considering she was managing to suck him and get fucked at the very same time. But he just can't, he can't get into this somehow. It's not like it's the first time, it usually takes him a little while but this is so much worse, it feels so off. And it must have something to do with the other lads being here, but he can't work out what. It's not nerves, not stage fright or something like that, he's so comfortable with them that it couldn't be. If anything, he thinks, their presence should make this easier, but they're his friends and he doesn't want to just flat-out leer at them all. They all seem reasonably comfortable with this situation so far and he doesn't want to risk changing that.
Max glances up at him, looking sympathetic, and Louis hates that, he doesn't want her pity. But she seems to realise that, trying to be casual about it, not make a big deal of the fact that he's gone soft even in such an insanely arousing situation. "Want my mouth again?" she asks.
"Yeah, babe, thanks," he tells her, and he wants to apologise but he doesn't want to draw any more attention to how embarrassing this is.
She starts mouthing at him again and he does get harder, grows firm against her lips until she can pull him back into the slick heat of her mouth and it's good, but it's-it doesn't feel like he's going to actually be able to come, he doesn't feel like he's working towards that, it just feels nice and that's it. He tries to watch Zayn fucking her, see if that helps, and it does a little-Zayn looks hot, his torso covered in a slight sheen of sweat and his hips working, and Liam's licking at one of Max's nipples, his pink tongue rolling over it and teasing it, and Niall is resting against Liam looking totally fucked-out and it's a good look on him somehow. He still feels like it's not okay, though, to be watching them like this when that's not what this is supposed to be about, and he feels-just-wrong for needing to perv over his best mates in order to make the arousal throb a little stronger in his bloodstream, when they've got this fucking fantastic girl right here and she should really be enough for him.
He's so busy berating himself that he doesn't notice Harry's gotten up until he feels him, feels the mattress dip and then Harry closing in behind him suddenly, a strong arm wrapping around his middle and a chin hooking over his shoulder. He sucks in a lungful of air so quick he almost chokes on it.
"Hey," Harry says softly, and Louis can hear the smile in his voice but mostly what he can hear is just the blood rushing frantically in his own ears. His heart rate speeds up almost dangerously; he can feel Harry's soft curls tickling his cheek and-fuckfuckfuck Harry tilts his hips forward and Louis can feel his cock, stiff and full against the small of his back, a hot ache pressing into his skin.
"Haz, fuck, what are you doing," he hisses and it comes out sharp and fast and almost angry.
Harry nuzzles against him and Louis digs his fingernails so hard into his own palms that it hurts like hell. Harry says, "Saying hi. Got lonely," and his voice is all rough and so fucking close to Louis's ear, and Louis is instantly rock hard in Max's mouth and suddenly that soft velvet heat of her mouth is blissful. Harry has fixed this in mere seconds, sending that off feeling tailspinning into something fucking starry-eyed and perfect and it's too much; Louis can't feel all of this at once.
He actually feels light-headed with it; he's vaguely aware he's making these weak little sounds but besides Harry, and besides Max's mouth, he can hardly focus on anything else. The rest of the room-shit, the rest of the world melts away, all that matters is the firmness of Harry's body curved against him, his familiar smell, and that hard line of his cock pushing into Louis's back, hot and insistent. He feels Harry's fingers stroking at his stomach then, slow and sure and encouraging, and Louis comes so suddenly and so hard he thinks he's going to lose consciousness-his hips jerk forwards and his nails cut into his palms, and everything whites out completely for a few seconds. Then he's trembling and Harry is holding him still and murmuring, "Got you, Lou," into his neck, and Louis's own breathing sounds completely hysterical and ridiculous.
"Holy shit," says Max thickly, swallowing hard and then wiping her lips with the back of her hand-or just covering her mouth in shock, Louis can't tell, everything is still kind of blurry and his body is aftershocking like crazy.
"Yeah," says Harry to Max, and he gives Louis a tight squeeze and god, the continued proximity is really not helping here.
"You okay, Tommo?" comes Liam's voice all friendly concern, and jesus, Louis almost forgot he was even there but now he sees him, propped up on his elbow and looking at him with worry in his eyes.
Louis tries to make words but he's still struggling just with the whole breathing thing, so it takes a while. "Yeah, fuck," he manages eventually, and he reaches up to wipe the sweat from his forehead, his movement making Harry shift back a little-and Louis wanted him to do that, feeling completely hypersensitive, but now that there's that little bit of distance between them he finds he doesn't like it. His voice sounds all shaky and he tries to regain control over his own body, chuckles, "Yeah, wow, you lads are missing out on some pretty sick blowjob skills, let me just say."
Liam's face gives nothing away, but Niall-who's still resting on Liam, using him as a sort of human pillow-is grinning and looking extremely doubtful, like he knows it's not just Max's mouth that brought on such an intense orgasm. Louis prays he's not going to say anything, and thank god, he doesn't.
"Why, thank you," grins Max, though she's looking up at him a little knowingly, and Louis's just glad she's not saying anything else, god, so fucking glad-he's hit by the reminder that this is a stranger here, that she could easily make things really complicated with just one wrong word. They're putting so much trust in her tonight, so much.
"Zayn," Harry says, with sudden urgency in his voice. Louis can feel him moving behind him like he's agitated, jittery. "Zayn, can you-are you almost there, 'cause-can I go next? Li, is that all right?"
"Yeah, absolutely," says Liam, with ridiculous graciousness. "I don't mind."
"I need to sit down," says Louis in a small voice. He honestly feels faint, and completely stupid for it, but it's true. He extracts himself from the group and throws himself down into the armchair, and then sort of curls in on himself, trying to get his hands to stop shaking. One of them is stinging like crazy and he looks down to see that his nails did actually break the skin; there are two little angry-red crescents there at the base of his palm. What the fuck.
He's barely aware of it when Zayn comes, kinda staring into space, but he hears the long low moan and Max murmuring something sweet and dirty, and snaps out of his daze as soon as he sees Harry's moving, rolling on a condom and taking Zayn's place between Max's thighs. Harry's leaning down over her, covering her with his body, pressing together skin against skin and he's so much more intimate with her than the others were but Louis finds that it doesn't make him-it doesn't make him jealous or anything, he likes it somehow, likes how attentive he is to her.
Harry kisses her, licking into her mouth, hot and messy and Louis's in such a haze he doesn't even think of it until Harry says, "You taste sweet," his voice soft but loud enough for Louis to hear.
Max snickers a little, squirming against him. Their eyes are locked on each other. "Funny, considering what I just swallowed."
Harry's eyes dart up to Louis, then, so sudden, and Louis's heart jumps. "Not that funny, really," he says, slow and deliberate, and keeps his gaze fixed on Louis for so long that Louis itches to look away just to escape the intensity of it.
He wants to make a joke, say more like salty, actually or something dumb like that but he's literally speechless and it takes him so long to come up with any words that too much time has passed by then. God, Harry could taste him in her mouth and he liked it, and what-what's that supposed to mean? He watches in a daze as Harry spreads Max's legs wider and nudges his cock into her-Louis catches a glimpse of it before it pushes in, flushed red and shining at the tip and so big. Louis knew it was, but it's never looked larger than it does right now, sinking deep into Max's cunt, opening her up. There's an ache in him, watching Max bite her lip as she takes it.
Niall regards them with curiosity, eyes flicking back and forth between Harry and Louis as Harry starts to fuck Max and Louis watches intently. He's not entirely sure what's just happened here but it feels huge, like something is going to change after this, and-he didn't really think about that until now, didn't think about how this might affect the five of them, how their friendship might actually change as a result of it. It's not gonna be bad, he knows that; they're just going to be brought even closer together, probably, but it's strange to think that's even possible.
"Are you okay?" Harry asks Max quietly, reaching up to stroke her hair back from her face and caress her cheek gently. She nods. "All right if I go a bit faster?"
"Yeah, you're good, it's good, you-" Max says and then cuts herself off, her voice changing a little when she continues, "you feel really good inside me."
Niall frowns. She didn't say that to him or Zayn, and all right, Harry's bigger than them but-it seems like she's saying it for another reason. Then he sees her eyes flick to Louis, and, all right. Maybe that's the reason. Maybe it's for Louis's benefit. Niall's stomach is doing something strange and fluttery and for the first time tonight he feels like something is going on here that he shouldn't watch, but he can't quite stop, resting on Liam and trying to shut his eyes 'cause he is sleepy, kinda just wants to doze-but he keeps flicking his eyes open again just to check how things are progressing. And every time, Louis is still staring, all curled up in a ball on the armchair, his knees tucked in to his chest, his eyes dark with something like want. Want that he doesn't know how to handle.
Max starts stroking Liam's cock, slow, like maybe she's sorry he's having to wait so long, wanting to give him something in the meantime, and Liam is making these little whimpery noises that are oddly cute and Niall realises after a while that he recognises them, that he's heard them coming from Liam's bunk on the tourbus before. He smiles at the thought, at the fact that they're all so stupidly close that they're not even really learning too many new things about each other in this situation. It's kinda nice. Zayn's sitting up by Max's head, and he's actually in a sort of weird position, Niall realises now, almost like he's keeping his legs tucked out of the way on purpose so that Louis can get a better view of Harry with Max. He catches Zayn's eye and tilts his chin, indicating Zayn's legs, and Zayn just smirks, eyes flicking to his right towards Louis for a split-second.
Zayn is actually starting to get cramp like this, but he can tell Louis wants to watch, is staring like he never did with the rest of them. He's not gonna say anything about it, not gonna make a big deal of it-he just leans back against the headboard and lets his eyes fall closed, tired, letting Harry do his thing. It's kind of interesting with his eyes shut actually, he can just hear everything, Max's soft whimpers and Harry's moans and the repetitive slap of skin on skin as he fucks her, and those little helpless sounds Liam's making like he does when he's jerking off in his bunk at night.
And then suddenly he hears Max's voice, too. "He's watching," is all she says, simple and not much more than a whisper, but Zayn's pretty sure the tension dial gets flipped to about a hundred in an instant.
"Mm," Harry hums, not giving anything away.
Zayn opens his eyes just a tiny bit, sees that Harry's right down over her, her legs hooked right around his waist, his face barely an inch from hers as he stares into her eyes. His hands are flat on the bed either side of her, biceps bulging as his hips thrust. Zayn wants to look at Louis, too, see how he's reacted, but somehow he knows he shouldn't, doesn't want to do anything to interfere with this.
"You like it," Max breathes now, and Zayn snaps his eyes shut again, his chest feeling tight. She's really taking a risk here, pushing things, and it reminds him of something. There's a long pause; Harry says nothing, but Zayn thinks he can hear Harry speeding up, fucking her with a little more urgency. "You like that he's watching you," Max whispers, and Zayn realises in a flash what's familiar-she's acting like Louis. He realised they were similar right from the start, all sparkly-eyed mischief and boldness, but right now it's more obvious than ever because this is exactly the kind of thing Louis does, pushing something even when he knows he probably shouldn't, just because he's curious and he wants to see what'll happen. And Zayn can't help but smile to himself because of course that's why Harry likes her so much, why he fell for her so instantly.
"Yeah, feeling his eyes on you?" Max murmurs, so quiet Zayn wonders if Louis can even hear.
Harry goes tense at her words. God, she's right, she's so right. He can feel Louis's stare burning into him and it's making him want to be better, making him want to fuck her so good, show Louis what he can do. He can't say it though, can't admit to it. He dips his head enough to catch her mouth with his, nips gently at her bottom lip, playful and giving her a little smile after, just a slight curl of his lips like he's telling her yes without having to voice the word. She smiles back, wide, and he shoves into her hard, making her grin turn into a gasp. She feels so fucking good around him, hot and wet and perfect and she's so gorgeous, looks even prettier like this, her hair messy and spots of colour on her round cheeks. He likes that she's keeping her composure though, that she's taking all of this in her stride even though it's so intense, that she can still tease even in such a tense situation and it's almost like she's playing with them, in charge of this. It's hot.
He snakes a hand down between them, holding himself up with the strength of one arm now so he can get at her clit, wanting to make her come again because she really, really deserves it. Deserves an orgasm for each one of them, really. He knows he's doing this for Louis too, though, wanting Louis to see how he can make a girl come-and it doesn't take long, Max is oversensitised already and in mere moments she's clenching around him, her hips bucking up and her whole body going taut. Harry lets out a groan that sort of wavers, she's so much tighter around him now, pulsing and fluttering around his cock and he feels like he's toppling on the edge, and out of the corner of his eye he can still see the intensity of Louis's gaze. He's struck by the sudden urge to return it, but he doesn't want to make Max feel like he's ignoring her, just using her as a prop while he explores-whatever this is, with Louis.
But then Max says, "Look at him," breathless, her voice hitching high. "It's okay."
And that's what Harry needs-he turns his head to the side, eyes locking with Louis's instantly, and that's all it takes; he buries himself deep and loses it, a broken moan torn from his throat, and he tries to keep his eyes on Louis but they close instinctively and when he opens them again Louis's are squeezed shut. He tries to gather himself together, kisses Max again and tells her she's amazing, and she gives his arm a squeeze and throws the compliment right back at him.
"Liiiam," Niall chirps then, "'s your turn finally."
Niall looks really sleepy and Harry chuckles as he lifts up onto his knees, reaching across to ruffle Niall's hair before he peels off his condom carefully. He's not sure what to do after that; everybody's shifting positions and he kind of feels like he's in the way and before he knows what he's doing his legs are leading him towards Louis, shifting him aside so they can both sit in the chair together. Louis's skin is warm and damp against his and the closeness feels comforting, despite everything that just happened. Or maybe because of it.
Liam has been aching for this for longer than he's willing to admit but somehow now that his turn is here he's too overwhelmed to actually do anything. He's not sure what it is, just-something about watching Harry and Louis, the way they have this invisible sort of thread attaching them all the time, apparently even when Harry is having sex with somebody, and the way Max quietly encouraged it, kickstarted something that all five of them have been tiptoeing around for years. He just feels suddenly like he loves Max or something. He doesn't think they've really connected, she's a little brazen and loud for him, makes him feel kind of nervous, but-suddenly he's so thankful for her courage, because she's done all of this with such ease, bringing them all so much closer together when Liam thought they were already as close as they could ever be.
He finds himself with his face between her legs instead of his cock, sudden, like this is his instinctive way of showing his gratitude. "Can I?" he asks, breath ghosting over her slick flushed skin.
"Wow, fuck, yes," is her response, and she reaches down to comb her fingers through his hair in encouragement.
He starts to lick at her, long strokes of his tongue over her folds and it's different somehow, and his mind is such a mess that it takes him a little while to work out that what he's tasting is them, Harry and Zayn and Niall, something sharp and masculine in the soft sweetness of her. He pulls back instinctively with the shock of the realisation. The full force of all of this just hits him suddenly, that they're never going to come back from this and he doesn't want to ever come back from it, and they're watching him now and he can taste all of them on his mouth-
"Poor Danielle," says Harry then, interrupting Liam's internal freak-out.
"Yeah, I'm not sure it actually counts as eating someone out if your mouth is on them for ten seconds and then you just stop abruptly for no apparent reason," Louis adds, and Niall and Zayn crack up laughing.
Liam should be pissed, probably, but the friendly mocking tone of their voices is a comfort, it calms him down and brings him back to earth and reminds him that the five of them can get through anything as long as they're together. He just pulls a face at them and goes back to work, finds himself chasing that taste inside of her, liking it, and thinking about how Harry's cock was just right here where his tongue is, how he can feel that she's stretched from it and maybe aching a little from his size. He can hear Harry and Louis muttering to each other and he's pleased that it sounds light-hearted, even though he knows Harry's probably telling Louis that Liam's doing this all wrong or something-he was so worried it was going to be tense between them but they're slipping back into their usual dynamic, worlds revolving around one another, going right back into that casual orbit like Max hasn't disrupted a thing. He knows in his heart that she probably has, but as long as it hasn't knocked them out of sync then it can only be positive.
He feels that rush of love towards Max again, and he wants to get her off, show her how much all of this means to them.
"Don't you want to fuck me now, darling?" Max asks, though, her breathing laboured as she ruffles his hair a little. "You've been waiting ages."
"I want you to come again," Liam confesses, flicking his tongue against her clit and watching as her hips jerk.
"You can make me come with your cock inside me," she says assuredly.
Liam blushes, and Louis says, "I wouldn't count on it," and Zayn chucks a cushion at him.
Liam sits up and reaches for the condoms, and she pulls herself up too, leaning into his shoulder as he gets the last one from his box-and he shakes his head, smiling to himself as he realises the significance of the fact that they're managed to use up all of his remaining emergency condoms in this one night. And then once he's got it on, Max is taking him by the shoulders, nudging gently at his chest.
"She wants to be on top, Liam," Zayn tells him, and Liam thinks oh, and lies down right away, his head on the pillows right next to where Zayn's sitting.
"Doesn't have much faith in your spindly little ruts," Louis comments, and Max just sticks her tongue out at him as she straddles Liam, reaching down between her legs to guide him inside of her. He sinks in easy and it's good, so good; he feels all this tension flowing out of him that he didn't even realise was still there, knows he's going to feel wonderful for at least a week now, on top of things again. He hears himself moan embarrassingly loud, and when he looks up Zayn is grinning down at him.
"Been a while, right, Liam?" he teases, and Liam can only nod and grin like an idiot-Max is this hot, tight press all around his cock and she's riding him, hands on his chest as she rocks against him, keeping him deep but giving him just enough friction. And it makes it so much better somehow that they're all here with him, even if they're making fun of him, he doesn't care-Zayn is grinning down at him and Harry and Louis are curled together in the small armchair, Harry resting his head on Louis's shoulder, and Niall is nuzzling into Liam's side again, already starting to doze off.
Louis grins at the look on Liam's face, the way he looks like this is the best thing he's ever felt in his entire life, and it's funny and oddly sweet really, and god, Louis loves them all so much, his boys.
Zayn says, "Does it feel good?" and his voice is strangely low, meaningful, and Louis knows he doesn't mean, does she feel good? but does it feel good to finally give into this? It's a loaded question, somehow, maybe because they all know how wound up Liam gets and it's good to see him let go.
"Yeah," Liam says, voice high-pitched, and Max is smiling fondly down at them, keeping quiet now, letting them all have this, these moments amongst themselves as she rolls her hips and grinds down against him, brings herself closer.
Louis leans into Harry, and tilts his head up to look at him and smile. "Doesn't have much of a technique, does he?" Louis whispers, grinning wickedly.
"Oi, you wouldn't be saying that if he was inside you," Max snaps, and-well, all right, she wins again, because that shuts Louis up sharpish.
Harry giggles, yawns, wriggling about and getting more comfortable in the little chair.
"I'm not going to be able to last," Liam says, his voice sounding worried and apologetic.
Max strokes at his chest, running her fingers over his skin soothingly. "It's all right," she says, "I'm-" her breath catches and she moves a little quicker now, with more purpose, her tits bouncing, "I'm nearly there."
Liam begins to buck up into her, spurred on, his hips lifting up from the bed, and then her nails are digging into his chest a little and she's still, then shuddering, then heaving forwards and panting. Louis cheers, pumping the air with his fist, and Harry joins in, laughing, and Niall offers a sleepy "Wooooo!" without opening his eyes.
"Are you close, Liam?" is all Zayn says, his voice with that strange tone again, pressing.
"Mm," Liam forces out, weakly, and he seems flustered, and Louis leans forward a little to see that Zayn is keeping eye contact with him, looking down at him, watchful and almost-adoring?
Max seems exhausted now but she keeps churning her hips for Liam, her eyes flicking back and forth between him and Zayn with curiosity. Liam is holding onto her, his hands clutching at her as he drives into her from below, and they see his fingers clench tighter and then he's gasping out, "Yeah, I'm going to-" and he comes with a whine, hips snapping up and then dropping down again heavily.
Louis cheers again and everybody joins in, ridiculous and exaggerated until Liam is laughing weakly and the colour of a tomato. Louis feels a surge of love for him in that moment, that Liam did this at all, probably agreed to it as much for their sake as his own. Louis pats Harry gently to get him to move aside, gets a sleepy smile in response, and then pulls himself out of the armchair to climb onto the bed and snuggle into Liam. On an impulse, he leans in and presses a wet kiss to Liam's cheek, and Liam squeaks and somehow manages to go a shade darker. All right, it was maybe a bit close to his mouth, but they all kiss each other like this all the time.
Louis supposes context might matter sometimes, though.
"Ughhh," he groans, seeing Liam's shocked expression. "Can we just go to sleep now and freak out about all of this later? Like maybe in ten years?"
Niall is barely aware of things now, their voices drifting in and out all echoey, but at this he manages a "Yeah, I vote for that."
He forces his eyes open and sees that Max is clambering off Liam and starting to remove his condom for him, but he bats her hand away. "No no, I'll do that, you can rest."
Max laughs at him. "You're sweet," she says, and then flings herself down next to Niall, leaning in to kiss his back warmly and make his tummy go all squirmy.
Liam gets up and starts pottering about, gathering up all the used condoms and disappearing into the bathroom with them. He comes back after a moment with an actual damp flannel, going round and mopping at them all. He goes to Max first, who laughs loud and open, offering her cheeks and her chest for him to wipe down. Then it's Zayn, who just grins at Liam sort of adoringly and sits back, lets himself be looked after. When Liam comes round to Niall, Niall is about to summon the energy to make fun of him for it, but then the cool cloth touches his forehead and he just moans instead. Louis bats him off, and Harry insists on taking the flannel from Liam because "I can manage that myself, I think," and the last thing Niall is aware of before he falls asleep is Louis allowing Harry to dab Louis's forehead with it.
"Are we actually going to all be able to sleep in here?" Zayn asks. The bed is pretty huge, but it still seems kind of doubtful, and he just hopes no one is going to have to go back to their own rooms because he really, really needs to be with them all right now. It would just feel wrong to leave after something like this. He remembers Louis saying I feel like something monumental just happened back at the club and he smiles to himself because yeah, actually, it did in the end.
"Yep," is Harry's only response.
"Will we fit?" Max asks.
"We'll make ourselves fit," Louis tells her and she giggles.
"We should brush our teeth," Liam says, prodding at Harry. Zayn knows Liam fusses over them like this anyway, but it's like it's been increased by the hugeness of what happened to them tonight-taking care of them calms him down. It's a fair point, though, and they do all keep toothbrushes in each other's rooms anyway because spontaneous sleepovers always happen a lot on tour.
"I don't usually carry a toothbrush in my purse," Max points out, yawning.
"I have a spare," Liam offers, and Zayn chuckles. Of course he does. "What? I brought it in case my electric one dies unexpectedly."
"Loser," says Harry fondly, and then heaves himself to his feet. "All right, we're going."
"Gotta keep our dental hygienist here happy," adds Louis, getting up too and poking Liam in the ribs.
The two of them file into the bathroom and Max follows, and Liam folds his arms, giving Zayn a Look.
"Fine," Zayn sighs, grinning at him and pulling himself off the bed. They both glance at Niall, but exchange looks and silently agree that neither of them can bear to wake him up. He looks so peaceful. Zayn just decides not to sleep next to him in order to avoid the morning breath.
He and Liam head into the bathroom and Liam elbows him gently, just a slight touch, getting him to look at him.
"Are we okay?" he asks quietly, just before they reach the doorway-Harry, Louis, and Max are all chatting in there already, Louis sitting on the countertop and swinging his legs, talking around the toothbrush in his mouth as Max gets Liam's spare one out of its wrapping and Harry pours himself some water.
"Yeah, 'course," Zayn tells him, grinning, and Liam grins back with something like relief, and Zayn pushes down some rising feeling in his chest, makes it sink again.
It's hard enough fitting the five of them into the ensuite, so Harry's not sure how they're going to cope with six of them in Liam's bed, but-when they get back in there it's surprisingly easy. Zayn rolls Niall over to the edge so that he and Liam can be beside each other, and Max next to them, and then it's Harry between her and Louis. They all have to be squeezed in very close-Liam says something about sardines as he reaches over Niall to switch off the light-but it's nice, Harry likes it. He needs to be close to them right now, after everything that's happened, and he sighs happily in the dark, facing Max and feeling Louis roll over behind him, curl in like that, spooning him.
He stares at Max in the dark, eyes adjusting until he can make out the features of her face, and he thinks about the fact that just hours ago she was a total stranger and now she feels like one of the most important things that has ever happened to him. He wonders what's next. Usually, after one night stands, they want the girls to go back to their own lives, to never meet them again, because it feels safer and easier that way, but-the thought of never seeing Max again just seems wrong. He wonders if they could meet up again before the tour is over, not to have sex-he doesn't feel like that's necessary after tonight-just to take her out for a meal or something, so they can thank her for this. He hopes she knows how much they appreciate it, how much tonight means.
And he's thinking about all of them, because this girl has brought to light something none of them has ever really questioned before, something about their claustrophobic closeness that has always made people curious for reasons they never understood. Maybe they just assumed it was normal, in their own private, confusing little five-person world, but-maybe it's not. Harry doesn't even know what it is exactly, he just knows it feels better now that it's beginning to be addressed.
The thought keeps nagging at him and it's making it hard for him to relax and fall asleep. He thinks the others already are, he's slept with them enough times to know the signs-Niall was out like a light already, of course, and Zayn's totally dead to the world now too, and Liam's making those annoying little breathy sounds that mean he's drifted off. Louis's breathing is steady, his heartbeat slow against Harry's back.
"Max?" Harry whispers.
"Yeah?" she murmurs sleepily, and he sees her open her eyes, roll over onto her side to look at him properly. "Can't sleep? Me neither. My body's exhausted but my brain is like-" she makes some kind of hand gesture that Harry supposes is meant to mean she's got a lot of thoughts whirling around in her brain. It's pretty cute.
"Me too," he tells her, keeping his voice low so as not to wake the others. "Listen, I just wanted to, you know...thank you. This is a really big deal for us, I think, and...I just wanted you to know. It means a lot."
She regards him carefully for a long moment, or at least he thinks that's what she's doing-it's hard to tell in the dark and he can't quite follow her eyes. Then she says, quiet and sure, "You should tell him, you know."
Harry's heart does something odd in his chest at the words. He feels suddenly much more aware of Louis curled around him, Louis's arm thrown over his bare hip under the thin sheet Liam pulled up over them all. "I know," he says.
"Are you going to?" Max asks gently. Harry suddenly realises what's odd about her gaze; it's like she keeps glancing behind him, and Harry's heart leaps into his throat now with the realisation that Louis might not be asleep after all, that she might be looking at him. He tries to keep calm, but the blood is racing through his veins now.
"He's," says Harry, picking his words carefully, knowing that Louis might be listening. "He's very important to me."
Max nods and says nothing, like she's waiting for more, and somehow it makes Harry feel hot and flustered, all of this, everything they've just done and everything they are and what might come from it, the future stretching out wide and scary and exciting ahead of him.
He smiles shakily, and his voice is shaky too when he says, "I don't know. Yeah. Maybe I will."
End.
(editing to say that this is the ACTUAL END, no sequels from me for this one, sorry guys!)