Your A-Team, Your Endgame - silverkiiwii (2024)

Chapter 1: Red Carpet

Chapter Text

Heaven! He felt as if he was in heaven. Exquisite, high-tech, perfectly organised fashion designer’s heaven. Harry had always dreamed of having a workspace as perfect as this. With dress forms lined up against the walls, left and right- ready to be pinned with beautiful, fresh, innovative clothes. Preferably his creations.

A dome-shaped ceiling adorned the beautifully lit modern warehouse, so endlessly long that Harry would never have to fight for space with those who worked alongside him or squint in poor lighting to make out the difference between two shades of red. Stood in the middle of the room, across three rows were nine long, cherry wood, sleek desks with two sewing machines and chairs each at the far corners of either side. Oh right! Nine desks. Made for eighteen people. That reminded Harry that he was not at his workplace in London. Nor was he searching for a potential workspace on this side of the world. He was at a studio in LA, ready to take part in a reality show design competition to determine the Next In Fashion . Yeah, that was the title of the show and each of those other eight workbenches belonged to the contestants he had to beat. Along with one other who would share his desk if he wants to even dream of having a workspace like this.

Two months ago when he had been sitting on his parents’ couch, stuffing his face with ice cream and fretting over his upcoming collection and the future of his label, an email popped up on his laptop with the invite to audition and participate in the first season of a new competitive design reality show.

It was supposed to showcase the next gen professional fashion designers to determine the best of the best. Harry had only been a little hesitant. If only because of his fear of abandoning what he knew and venture into the unknown. Gemma, who had been an avid participant in his ice cream stress party, had been nothing but thrilled. “You have to participate H,” she had exclaimed as if it had been the most obvious choice. It had been four years since he had started his label, 'The Pink' fresh out of fashion school and it was doing fairly well. He had had a chance to dress a couple of A-list celebrities. Hell, even James freaking Bond; Daniel Craig wore his suit to a press conference once but Harry had always been very ambitious. He had always wanted more, to do better, to be the best of the best. His goal had always been to be a household name. This drive had been the reason he had gotten into Central Saint Martins . But now he was stuck in a creative slump with no idea what step to take next. The investors were breathing down his neck for details about his next collection and all he had were scratched-out half designs and crumpled pieces of paper in his studio so yeah, maybe it had been the obvious choice to participate. Maybe, all he needed was some structure and to take it one step at a time and maybe this could be an inspiring experience for his elusive creativity.

Encouraged by his sister’s persistence and confidence in him, he had applied right there and then. Ten minutes ago, ice cream had seemed like the answer to all his problems, now the email felt heaven sent.

After he had responded in the affirmative, he had been called for a trial challenge at a mock studio they had set up in London since the main studio was in LA and their contestants were supposed to be from across the globe- with apparently quite a few shortlisted candidates based in London.

They wanted to see if he could design and sew following the format they’d have throughout the show. In his opinion, he had nailed it. He was a fairly quick sew-er and having a theme for the challenge helped narrow down his creative ideas which usually ran in a hundred different directions. The next part was the easiest. He had to sit down with one of the producers to see if he was charming enough for reality tv. According to his sister, he could charm the pants off a tree if need be.

He even tried once but no one needs to know that.

That’s how he stood backstage now, peeking at what was supposed to be their main workroom, where people were bustling about the place to get it ready for the first day of filming. Even unfinished, it looked better than all of Harry’s most extravagant fantasies combined. He was naturally a half hour early and most contestants were yet to arrive. As per their briefing email, they were supposed to meet with their teammates today as the initial rounds were supposed to happen in pairs. They were also given the option to form pairs of their own with mutual agreement in case they were already familiar with someone from the contestants’ list while the rest of them were supposed to be assigned their partners by the producers. Harry knew of a few people but none who hadn’t already picked someone so he naturally fell into the latter category. His apprehension regarding his potential teammate grew the longer he stood there waiting.

Will they get on with each other? Will their working styles match? Will their design styles match? What if they were a complete disaster at communicating with each other? What if he got someone who was a complete asshole who refused to listen to any of Harry’s input and the final clothes had none of Harry's personality in them? What if… Harry supposed there was a downside to being early. His nerves got fired up and he tended to worry too much.

He took a deep breath and decided to ask one of the people milling about if he could get a coffee somewhere. Thankfully there was a coffee station set towards the end of the studio and Harry quickly got himself a cup. It wasn’t the best. It was pretty watery but it wasn’t like he could go out to get one now so he had to make do.

It was almost time for the contestants to arrive so Harry made his way to the area he was told to wait in earlier.

Quite a few people had gathered there now. People stood there mingling and chatting and there was a clear distinction of those who stood there in pairs- probably being the ones who were competing together. Harry could spot a few familiar faces and waved his hello with a smile but the tightened knot in his chest didn’t let him move to greet them properly. They were probably also able to sense the nervous energy rolling off of him and figured they could have a proper chat later. It wasn’t like they hadn’t had a text check in after getting the contestants list. Harry stood a little off to the side, sipping his coffee and once again wondered about his teammate and if they had arrived yet. He didn’t even know who it was yet so it wasn’t as if he could ask around.

Luckily, he didn’t have to wait much longer, as a woman, who was clearly a part of the crew judging by her plain black t-shirt with the Next In Fashion logo and the headset perched atop her head.

“Right! So is everybody here? I’m Riley. I’m an assistant here,” she introduced herself as she called out for everyone’s attention.

All of them moved to form one group in front of her as Riley began to read out their names from her clipboard. She was simultaneously also announcing everyone’s teammates and Harry anxiously began to wait for his and his teammate’s name to be called.

“Harry Styles?” she looked up and he raised his hand in acknowledgement. “You’re partnered with Louis Tomlinson.” She looked up once again to record his presence as Harry too began to look for one Louis Tomlinson amongst their group but no one came forward. Great! He was partnered with someone who had no regard for time.

“Is he not here yet?” she frowned and began to fiddle with her headset, probably to inform the producers of his tardy teammate.

Was this Louis Tomlinson not serious about this competition? It was an opportunity of a lifetime for Harry! A chance to turn things around for his label with the prize money. Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars could change everything. Not to mention the shot at getting his name out amongst the audiences that were gonna watch the show. Annoyance began to stir in Harry when someone came rushing through the studio doors like a hurricane.

“Hi…Hi, Sorry I’m late. Louis Tomlinson. I’m one of the contestants,” the man in a white skull graphic t-shirt and denim jacket exclaimed. His skinny jeans hugged his thighs well and the first thought Harry registered was that this man was absolutely gorgeous!

Riley turned to him with a serious expression on her face, ready to tell him off but instantly melted a little at his sheepish expression and cheeky smile. Harry didn’t blame her.

“You need to arrive on time or else we’re gonna have problems. You’re partnered with Harry Styles here,” she told him firmly but gently and pointed towards where Harry stood, still a little dumbstruck.

“Yes ma’am.” Louis flashed her another cheeky smile and moved to stand next to Harry.

“Hey, mate. I’m Louis,” he introduced himself.

It was then that Harry noticed the accent. Oh! So Louis was British too and a northerner as well, Harry guessed. He still hadn’t said anything and was busy gawking at or rather, observing Louis. His eyes were so blue! Almost electric. He was probably starting to come off a bit creepy as Louis’ smile began to turn a little confused at Harry’s intense gaze and silence. He should really say something.

“Is being tardy your thing? I was here 30 minutes early, you know.” and wait, what? Why did that, of all things, come out of his mouth? He didn’t want them to fight. He wanted them to get along! They had to get along if Harry wanted to hold out any hope of winning this thing. But he also didn’t want to be walked all over the first day, which had unfortunately been the norm for him. He was working hard on learning how to set boundaries and not to lose his position in a working environment and well, you could say he struggled with his tone a little bit. Louis being that attractive certainly didn’t help. Harry mentally screamed at himself.

Louis’ mouth fell open a little and he lightly scoffed, “Well excuse me mate, I just arrived in LA yesterday due to a family emergency and hadn’t accounted for the LA traffic. I apologise for any inconvenience my 10-minute absence caused you.”

Perfect! What a great first interaction. Louis probably thought Harry carries a huge stick up his arse. Why was it that he could be perfectly confident and articulate with everyone except for the people he found attractive? Why did his brain decide to turn into Error 404 in situations he needed his wit and charm the most?

“Oh, that’s umm…yeah that’s okay.” Wow! He really was on a roll here, wasn’t he? Louis looked like he was going to say something but then he turned to face forward with a little huff where Riley had just finished calling out everyone’s names and pairings.

“Alright everyone. This is how today’s gonna go. First, you’ll be directed towards hair and make-up. Get yourselves sorted and then we’re going to let you into the main workroom and record your authentic reactions. It’s a pretty ace space. Tan and Alexa, your hosts and judges have arrived and will meet you there. They’ve got the majority of the script for the challenge reveal part so no need to fret much about that. Just be yourself.” Riley paused a bit to let them all absorb the information they’d been given and all Harry could think was how shooting for reality tv is such a weird process. It looked so seamless yet so much planning and a whole lot of editing , Harry bet, went into it.

“Now I’m sure all of you must have watched some kind of reality tv competition so for all the contestant commentary that you see interspersed with all the action, we’ll be recording those during your challenge. You’ll be pulled away for your team and individual bits to talk about specific moments and you’ll have to leave immediately. And I mean, immediately.” She raised an eyebrow to emphasise her seriousness and Harry was both intimidated and in awe.

“But don’t worry, we have assigned an equal amount of time to each of you and it is in addition to your challenge time, so it won’t be unfair. You’ll have proper prompts and directions for those so we’ll tackle them later, as they come. Relax, just enjoy the process. Designing is what you love to do, right? Any questions?”

After they all murmured their no's and shook their heads, they sat getting primped and buffed to look well enough for the camera. Harry’s mind was still on his interaction with Louis. To zero surprise of his own, he had completely bombed it and now he was worried that things were gonna be awkward between them. They were supposed to be a team and if they did not get on well with each other, it was going to impact their performance in the challenges. They had to be good at communicating otherwise it would reflect in their designs and then Harry could kiss his dream goodbye. He had to talk to Louis and try to apologise, so they could at least be civil together.

Those stupidly beautiful baby blues possessed the ability to leave him dumbstruck, but he had to try. For both their sakes. After all, it was Harry who had been rude, even though he hadn’t meant to be. Although it’s not like Louis hadn’t been at fault there. Harry was just going to have to be the bigger person.

Harry glanced towards the shut workroom doors where they all had to gather so their grand entrance could be shot. Louis was done with his hair and makeup and stood there chatting with a few other people who were also done with theirs. Harry was still sitting, getting his hair sprayed for god knows how long. His hair was fine for f*cks sake ! Surely a few flyaway curls weren’t gonna hurt anybody. He was going to tie them into a bun when they started working anyway. Like he always did. Nothing annoyed Harry more than his hair getting into his face when he was bent over, sketching a design or sewing with the utmost precision. He was still busy eyeing Louis when the make up artist tapped him on his shoulder to signal that he was done. He got off the chair and started walking towards Louis. The man stood there like the centre of the universe with everyone’s rapt attention on him. What was he saying that could be so interesting anyway? He was shining bright like the sun with his head thrown back in a laugh that brought crinkles to his eyes.

Harry reached the group and cleared his throat or at least attempted to. Clearly, it wasn’t loud enough to catch anyone’s attention. Why was he so f*cking antsy? He took a deep breath and decided to tap Louis on the shoulder. Here goes nothing!

Louis turned around and as he faced Harry, his smile fell into a neutral expression. Harry did not like that one bit but he still powered through.

“Umm… Hi. Sorry…I’m Harry. I wanted to apologise?” He gestured his head to the side and they moved away from the group a little as Harry kept speaking, “I think we got off on the wrong foot. It’s just. This competition means a lot to me and I can’t afford to be eliminated before it even starts. And well, it’s not like we had much of a choice for teammates so I’m kinda stuck with you. What do you say, you take this seriously and we form a truce? For the sake of the competition?” with this Harry extended his hand forward, ready to shake Louis’.

To his surprise, Louis let out a disbelieving laugh.“Was that supposed to be your apology? Who do you think you are? Better than everyone else here? And contrary to what you believe , I take this competition plenty seriously. It means more to me than you could ever know. I told you why I was late yet you can’t stop faulting me. If anything, I’m stuck with you! And you’re right we need to get along for the sake of the competition but that’s only once we’re inside those doors,” he gestured to the now shut doors of their workroom, “otherwise there is zero need for us to engage with each other.”

“Fine! Have it your way then. All I need from you anyway is good sewing and professionalism while we’re working. Even though it might be a little difficult for you to manage the latter.” Harry had pasted the fakest of smiles on his face which he was sure Louis could see through. Christ! This man was getting on the last of his nerves.

“Oh I think we’re both experienced enough in working with people we don’t like, to manage that ,” Louis replied through clenched teeth.

“Yeah and a little more experience never hurt anybody. Glad we’re in agreement” he said in the peppiest voice he could manage, quickly turning on his heels, without waiting for a response and walked away towards the main workroom where all the contestants had started to gather, ready to start the show. He was sure Louis was following behind with the way he could feel his steely glare at the back of his head. He could also hear Louis muttering, what were undoubtedly, some very colourful words. A tiny bit of satisfaction at having the last word made a smirk bloom on his face. The conversation hadn't gone the way Harry had planned, to say the least. Louis was f*cking infuriating and any hopes he had for a truce were now trashed.

How was it that in less than two conversations, Louis was able to bring out the side in him and that he wasn’t the most proud of. Harry prided himself on being able to stay calm during the worst of situations then why was it that Louis was able to make him lose his cool so easily and for no f*cking reason . All Harry could hope for was making it through whatever challenge the judges were about to throw at them as something akin to a team.

It looked like all the contestants had returned from hair and makeup, and now a couple of people from the production team were going through the group, attaching mics to everyone’s clothes. Harry, of course, was wearing a shirt from his own label, as he suspected were most of the other contestants. Who would want to pass up an opportunity to showcase their designs on a platform like this? It was a striped, short-sleeved, boxy silk shirt in baby blue– a piece from his graduate collection. He had paired it with black skinny jeans and chelsea boots, which he considered his wardrobe staple at the moment.

Riley once again stood in front of them with her clipboard and a stance that immediately commanded everyone’s attention.

“Alright everyone! This is it! In a couple of minutes, the doors will be let open and that’ll be your cue to enter. You’re free to look around, rifle through the desks a bit, check out the tools you’ve been given. Make sure to follow the cues you’re given through your earpieces. The judges will enter a few minutes later and then we’ll take it from there. Okay? Good luck then!"

She moved away and they were given their cues through the earpieces before the doors opened and they were walking in. Everyone let out genuine gasps of awe upon seeing the massive workroom lit up in all its glory. Even Harry, who had already been impressed by the unfinished room, was even more awestruck now. They’d all drifted towards various desks which were lined with drawers filled up to the brim with all the designing and sewing supplies a designer could ever need. All of them sported various degrees of delight on their faces as they checked out their workstations and Harry’s was rising progressively with each drawer he opened. There was one that had every kind of ruler you could think of, from french curves to L squares and everything in between. Another one was dedicated to art supplies,coloured pencils, brush pens, markers, it was all there in every shade imaginable, all of it organised by colour and one thing about Harry was that he was a sucker for a good organisation system. Then there was one for the tools, fabric shears, rotary cutters, pins and one for the cutting mats. They even had pull-out slabs for crying out loud.

Louis had of course not been with him but with the pair of guys he had been chatting with earlier. One of them Harry vaguely recognised as Zayn Malik, an avant-garde Streetwear designer. He remembers having had a conversation or two with him around Fashion Week. The other one that he couldn't recall the name of was dressed similarly to him in an all black vest and jeans combo, though accessorised with a leather harness around his chest and without a hat on his head. With how chummy they looked, Harry guessed Louis knew them from before the competition. Harry just hoped he wasn’t talking sh*t about him. They needed to present a united front, even if the reality was far from it. Harry himself had followed behind Jade and Leigh-Anne, an Urbanwear powerhouse duo from America. There was hardly anyone in the fashion world who did not know them, especially Jade. Harry had met her during New York Fashion Week two years back when they’d both foregone one of the afterparties to get drunk on champagne in her room while having a Friends marathon and eating all the sh*t snacks they could find. It had been the most fun he’d had during that week and they’d stayed in touch after that. It hadn’t taken long for them to become best friends, keeping each other regularly updated about their lives (There was hardly anything that Harry had not told Jade about and he knew the same was true for Jade as well) and then making sure to meet whenever Harry was in New York or Jade in London. He had gotten the chance to meet Leigh-Anne a few times too after hearing Jade go on and on about her favourite collaborator and best friend from home.

“Ooh that’s a little seam ripper,” Jade called about the tool in Leigh-Anne’s hand as he tuned back into the conversation. They were both leaning over the desks as Leigh-Anne sat on the adjoining stool.

Suddenly they hear a flurry of hellos! exclaimed from the opposite side of the studio that they entered from. They turn towards the commotion to see their judges, Tan France and Alexa Chung, impeccably dressed and looking every bit the part enter and walk to the space between, where the desks begin and a slightly raised and dimmed area, from where they walked in. They continue with their cheery greetings as the contestants reciprocate with their own and move to “gather ‘round” in front of them as instructed. Here goes!, Harry thinks.

“Welcome to Next In Fashion! We scoured the earth high and low to find the best and brightest designers in the world.” Alexa begins their welcome, seamlessly being interjected by Tan who then continues, “That’s you lot! Now we don’t know that much about you so let’s play a game of ‘ get to know you’ . Alexa, you wanna start?”

“Who here has been to a top tier fashion school?” Harry’s hand flies straight through the air in response to Alexa’s question.

Not to be a bragger but did go to Central Saint Martins for christs sake. He doesn’t think it gets any more top tier than that. He spares a subtle glance around and finds quite a lot of raised hands. They really did pick out the best of the best. He is surprised, albeit mostly out of pettiness, that even Louis’ hand is up. Just as a huh floats through his head while he keeps his face absolutely neutral outside, Tan directly prompts Louis to ask where he went.

“Central Saint Martins,” he answers with a proud smile that is met with cheers. Harry barely manages to keep his mouth from falling wide open. What are the f*cking odds that they went to the same fashion school? They had to have gone in different years since Harry obviously missed his annoying presence. Wow! He’s sure there is a joke to be made about fate here but no way in hell is he going to be the one to make it. The judges continue with a couple more simple questions like this. Who of you has dressed an A list Celebrity? Harry’s hand goes up again (so does Louis’ but who cares). He has dressed quite a few. Daniel Craig, Sam Smith, Florence Pugh, just off the top of his head. Once again, a couple of them are asked to give specifics. Taylor proudly name drops Beyonce while the man who had stood with Zayn and Louis earlier, that he now knows is Liam Payne names Iggy, Rita and Fergie. Harry is once again impressed and reminded of the fact that he is here with those whose creations speak for them and if he’s going to win, he absolutely has to bring his A game and give it straight to Louis as well because he can’t have him messing this up for him.

“I’ve got one last question for you,” Tan leads up, “Who amongst you is a household name?” Unsurprisingly, no hands go up. It’s why they’re all here, isn’t it? To have their clothes reach far and wide. Beyond the niche but occasional clientele?

“Maybe not any of you just yet, but for one of you that dream is going to come true very very soon!” Alexa builds up their anticipation and the two judges go back and forth, acting as narrators for the Netflix audience.

“Over the course of the competition, we are going to put you to test with challenges that span the entire fashion landscape and it’s not going to be an easy gig.”

“Quite frankly impossible to pull off alone which is why we are going to begin the competition in teams of two.”

They bounce off each other in an easy rhythm which, now that Harry thinks about it, must be rehearsed. They explain the format that the contestants were already made aware of prior to shooting where they have all been paired up with some being old collaborators, some old friends and some who fall into Harry’s category that have “joined forces for the common goal of winning fashion.” They next announce the prized goods they are all here for; a hefty sum of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars to invest in their collection and a chance to retail their designs on Net-a-Porte, the online luxury fashion site. Oh how Harry would absolutely kill for those! It will take his label to new heights and his clothes to fashion lovers around the world.

“Alright guys, this is the big moment! Your first challenge! It’s a fashion rite of passage and a fundamental look in any designer's portfolio.” Harry’s ears are perked as Alexa calls for their attention and starts to announce their first challenge.

“It has the ability to put a designer on the map for all the right, or all the wrong reasons! It can make or break careers! It’s the red carpet look!” Oh yes! Harry breathes an internal sigh of relief. He can work with that! He can absolutely work with that! High cut, unique, dramatic, red carpet looks are his favourite to design! Oh! He has a very good feeling about this.

Harry just hopes Louis isn’t too stubborn about this and hands over the reins on this one. They really can’t play ‘ who’s in charge? ’ here. The teams are meant to present one look each for a female model and his brain is already overflowing with ideas left and right! Harry absolutely loves gorgeously fluid, feminine looks and this challenge is right up his alley. But the deadline was one thing that was sparking his anxiety. They are meant to have the final outfit ready for the runway show the very next night. It was going to be tight producing something that usually took months upon months of design and craftsmanship in just two days. On top of that they were told that remarkable creatives from the industry were also going to be their guest judges.

Harry’s anxiety was spiking but he also loved a good challenge so hopefully this was going to be fun and too stress inducing. But that was the fun of the challenge innit?

“Now you have all the tools you need to succeed because…we have made sure of it” Tan teases and smirks while both judges look to their left and suddenly the previously darkened area starts to dramatically lighten up as the overhead lights turn on one by one. The room is full of excited gasps and cheers as shelves upon shelves of stacked fabric rolls come into view in every colour, pattern, material imaginable. A fully stocked fabrics and notions closet, all for them to use. They are even told that anything they need that might not be in there can also be arranged by the producers. Basically, the world is their oyster and if nothing else, just being able to work here was going to be an absolute dream of an experience.

✧✧✧

Louis has to say, the fabrics closet looks absolutely sick. The red carpet challenge has his nerves bungling. Glam red carpets are usually not his thing. He specialises in athleisure menswear, vintage-inspired sports silhouettes and sharp, perfectly tailored suits. What he also loves is a challenge and proving everyone, along with his own head, wrong. It’s a lifelong speciality of his.He has always been the too loud kid, the improper lad, the troublemaking chav. No one thought he could be a luxury fashion designer- too uncouth for the classy circles. But the thing he has always loved is giving the proverbial (well, literal too) middle finger to people, proving them wrong and clothes. He has always loved clothes and some might say the style of clothes he loves are not that not of the typical fashion designer’s. All things glam, bling and over the top are not for him. Louis has always been a firm believer that the clothes you wear should, above all, should give you a sense of confidence. They should make you feel like the very best version of yourself whenever you wear them, regardless of the kind of clothes you’re wearing. Louis draws his confidence from Streetwear, Athleisure clothing and the absolute love of his life- suits. So yeah, a red carpet look for a female model is…not a new territory per se, but a territory he doesn’t venture into often.

Maybe Harry could be of some help, they are a team after all. Yeah right! That man has not spoken two straight sentences to him. He just hopes Harry can take out the stick up his arse long enough to cooperate with him during the challenge and work together, otherwise neither of them are getting anywhere.

Louis’ adrenaline spikes as the judges start the countdown to begin their first challenge and like everyone, he scrambles to get to their designated desk where he meets Harry.

“So, red carpet! How do you wanna do this? Both of our personalities should be reflected in the design.” Louis’ thrown off a little by Harry’s genuine tone as if he truly wants to hear Louis’ opinion. He’s surprised and a little sceptical but he’s not about to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Umm…I am not that experienced with women’s red carpet looks but I don’t want this to be a traditional feminine gown. My expertise lies with relaxed silhouettes, streetwear and suits.” Louis explains and Harry moves to get the sketchbook and pencils out of the stationery drawer they rifled through earlier.

“Alright! So how about we include trousers? Does that work? With the top as a separate piece?” Harry takes a seat on the stool and pulls a hair tie off his wrist. Louis watches a little mesmerised as he gathers up all his hair into a bun in one smooth motion, exposing his long neck. It’s smooth, with muscles pulled taut as he’s got them stretched. Louis feels a little drool form in his mouth from all that staring. He mentally shakes his head to get him out of this trance. Damn Harry and his muscley, veiny neck. Whatever! As he begins to draw the trousers, Louis wonders if this is even the same person that he interacted with earlier.

“And what if we have a skirt over the trousers?”

“Three separate pieces. That’s ambitious.” Harry pauses his drawing to look at him with a raised eyebrow.

“I love a challenge,” Louis smirks, presenting Harry with one of his own.

“So do I.” Harry doesn’t back down.

“Well then, Harry Styles shall we get to it?”

Louis quips and he can feel the other corner of his mouth lifting. He loves that he has got a partner willing to aim high.

Harry gets back to sketching their ideas without a response but Louis catches the sparkle in his eye before he averts them. It seems they have both come to a silent agreement that if they really want to win this, they’ll have to suck it up and work together as a team. Or at least try to behave themselves while they are working.

As Harry finishes drawing up their sketch with consistent contribution from Louis, they head over to pick out their fabrics. It is true, sewing up three separate pieces before the runway show was ambitious and it was going to take every ounce of their talent and skill. As they take to perusing the different shelves for the perfect combination of fabrics, Harry points to a roll of black fabric, patterned with huge, red flowers and jests,“I actually don’t hate that.” He jumps and tries to touch the fabric, high on the shelf for emphasis, “That one!”

Louis is dumbfounded for a moment by Harry’s choice as it is so far out of Louis’ taste in clothing that he’s contemplating how to tell Harry in the gentlest way possible that in absolutely no way is Louis ever going to agree to use that fabric when Harry bursts out laughing.

“Your face looks so constipated. I was kidding but I’ll take that as a no.” Harry lightly pushes Louis towards the other shelf in jest as if they’ve been friends for ages and didn’t just hate each other’s guts an hour ago and Louis’ more confused than ever with this sudden change in Harry’s character.

They finally settle on their fabrics– a soft white satin for the top, a light blue satin for the trousers and olive green paired along with dark blue for the front and back of the skirt above. They carry the rolls of fabric to their desk, adding a few more for the linings and structuring of the pieces. As they settle down and organise their space, Louis gets started on making the trousers while Harry gets on with the skirt.

Louis is very happy with the design, which he did not quite expect to happen, what with this challenge being a little out of his realm and his impression of Harry. He expected to be a passive participant with Harry asserting his concepts and the final design reflecting none of him, just hoping to get through to the next round for the opportunity to show his skills.

It was indeed a pleasant surprise how Harry had not only asked for his input but genuinely wanted and incorporated it into the design.

He had to give credit where it was due, Harry was a good creative director. He could see why he was successful. Louis had googled him a little while getting his hair done. Just basic information, his brand (corny that he named it after himself), the kind of clothes he made (loud but pretty), and the google search had returned with a few headlines name dropping some impressive celebrities that Harry had dressed and Louis was lowkey impressed.

He has just finished tracing the outlines of the trousers on the fabric when they are instructed to step away for their team interviews. They are directed to a simple white floored room with a single white couch in the centre and a silver patterned wall as their backdrop. The camera crew is ready to shoot and Riley is standing there with her headset on. As soon as they both take a seat, she starts speaking,

“Hello boys. So we’re just going to ask you a couple questions and you have to answer directly into the camera. Alright? Let’s start.” Louis and Harry both nod and shift to get comfortable.

“When did you two meet? How are you getting along as a team? Don’t say ‘ today’ today because it looks extremely rushed. Say ‘other day’ or something, keep it vague.” Riley signals for them to answer and Louis takes the cue to begin,

“Umm..we just met the other day.” He’s hoping that came off as cheery rather than a complaint when Harry starts speaking.

“But yeah we’re…getting along, I’d say” Harry drawls slowly.

“It’s a struggle, yeah, but we’re both professionals so yeah we’re making it work.” He hopes his slight tone on the word professionals doesn’t translate to the camera but he knows Harry caught his jibe with the way he straightens up just a little. Louis doesn’t really know why he got snarky but the way Harry said they were “getting along I’d say” with that pause made his hackles rise a little.

Riley nodded from behind the camera, “That was good. Now, tell us about your design and a little about your thought process. Keep it short.”

Harry doesn’t seem to jumping to answer so Louis goes off on instinct and starts speaking,

“I do men’s and Harry does women’s wear so we're going to create a look that is actually separate pieces. A top, a trouser and a skirt. It’s ambitious, yeah. We love a challenge anyway.” He smirks a little and hopes that smug tone doesn’t come back to bite them in the arse.

“Now tell us about your individual designing styles. Harry, you start this time.”

“Okay…umm so for me, I put quite a lot of focus on the idea, really honing the concept of a design. I am the creative director of my own brand, ‘The Pink’ . My style is combining fluidity with glam and incorporating traditionally masculine details to more traditionally feminine items like skirts and dresses.”

“What I do is really all about finessing something until it is at its absolute best. I always push myself to see how deep my creativity can go. Comfort is always at the forefront of my clothes but what I do is push it forward through craftsmanship and refined fabric manipulations.”

Riley asks a couple more questions and then they are free to go back to their outfit. As they get to the table, Louis pushes everything to the back of his mind and Harry doesn’t seem too keen on conversation either so he throws himself into his sewing.

When he’s finished semi-stitching his trousers, he moves around the table to where their mannequin is stood to pin it up. Harry brings forth both panels of the skirt, ready to pin them as well. As they pin their respective pieces, Louis cuts up a piece off their top’s fabric to pin as well so they can judge the cohesiveness of the colours and how the whole outfit will look, once it comes to life. They step away and regard the dummy with contemplative looks. Louis thinks the trousers look off and he feels as if Harry has read his mind when he speaks up first.

“Do you like that pant? Are you sure?”

“I am not sure…” He trails off.

“I think it’s the colour. This shade of blue looks way too bright. Maybe we should look at darker options.”

“Yeah…We’ll have to bloody hustle to get this done on time. Anything else?”

“Hmm…looks good to me.”

“I’m worried about this being too light and this too dark with nothing else picking up on the top.” Louis gestures to the top and bottom of the outfit when suddenly an idea strikes him. “Wait! How about we do the trousers from the same fabric as the top? I feel the soft white will provide a nice neutral canvas for the skirt to shine.”

“Yeah! That’s…yeah. That could work!” Harry’s eyes seem to sparkle as he says this and Louis has a feeling that his own are not much different. He can feel himself vibrating with excitement. That rare feeling when you know you have just nailed a concept, or cracked a pesky code, that magical moment. They spend another moment, their sparkly eyes locked, when Louis stammers out,

“We should…umm…get to it. Not a lot of time.” He spares Harry a nod and turns away to get to the other side of the table where the white satin roll is kept. He scrambles to get started on the trousers. Redoing one third of their outfit is going to cost them a lot of time but it is also a risk they’ll have to take if they want to present something that is not going to get them eliminated straightaway. He’s still feeling a little weird from that eye intense contact with Harry. What the f*ck was that! He shakes a little to get the jitters off him and gets to cutting.

✧✧✧

Louis has just finished pinning the fabric to the pattern he drew for the trousers, and is about to cut the fabric along the markings when the judges call out for everyone’s attention.

“Everybody, listen up! Tan, myself and his beautiful sneakers; we’re here to tell you, you only have one hour left till the end of day one. Get to it!” Alexa hollers and various degrees of haste spreads through the room. Everyone quickens the movements of their hands, rushing to get their garments as close to completion as possible. Louis locks eyes with Harry and he is sure that the urgency mixed with panic he sees there is reflected in his own eyes as well. There’s just one hour left and they haven’t even started on the top yet. They both know they have a mountain to climb but also that they are going to keep going till their last breath, leaving no stone unturned and no effort reserved.

Louis mentally curses and moves to the sewing machine while Harry takes the half done skirt up to the dress form. Both panels of the skirt are unattached and it still needs the horsehair braid to be hand sewn, pleats be made, along with the pockets and the zipper attached. Louis’ a bit worried about all of it but well, it is what it is. They’ve bitten the piece so they’re damn well gonna chew it!

He goes at the sewing machine like a beast and per the clock, they have only fifteen minutes left when, without looking up, he asks Harry,

“Where are you at with the skirt?”

“Umm…the horsehair braid is done. Pleating, pockets and zipper left. Also need to attach both panels. You?”

“Waistband and hem left.” Their hands don’t stop moving and before they know it is sixty seconds to go and Louis moves around the table to put the trousers on the dress form. The skirt is already pinned and Harry is hunched over the desk in his peripheral vision and when gets up, he sees him scribbling something on the backside of their, currently non-existent, would-be top with a fabric chalk. Louis raises a sceptical eyebrow and moves to peer over Harry’s shoulder.

“What are you doing?” He asks and sees DO NOT REMOVE FROM MANNEQUIN written on the top. Harry moves to their dress form without an answer and Louis is about to call him again when he speaks up.

“What? We can’t leave her topless.” He says as he haphazardly pins up the fabric where the top is supposed to go. Oh my god! He’s such a dork. Louis just snorts and shakes his head.

“Alright everyone! Tools down!” Alexa calls out from the front of the room and they both step away from the dress form. “Sadly that’s it but tomorrow is the runway day so get some rest”

“They’re not gonna be able to sleep.” Tan interjects with a wave of his hand. Ehh! He’s right. Louis knows himself, he is not getting any sleep tonight. He’ll be lucky getting a few hours amongst all the tossing and turning he’s going to do. Nothing a coffee or a red bull won’t be able to fix, come morning though.

“Stay up all night and worry about it and we’ll see you tomorrow.”

The hosts give overly enthused goodbyes playing on the nerves of poor ‘ol contestants, and exit towards backstage. Right! Guess that’s day one. They all look around at each other for a moment wondering what they’re supposed to do when they’re all collectively given their cues to exit the same way.

As they move backstage, Louis can feel Harry hovering behind him. He should really say something but he has no idea how to even start a conversation. He doesn’t want to disturb this tentative peace they’ve established. But they have to talk before tomorrow. Strategise. They can’t go in blind again. They have been given time, essentially a pause in the game, right before the end. A free pit stop, right before the final lap of the race. They’d be foolish not to utilise it.

As he’s about to turn to Harry, Riley rushes over with the audio techs who begin removing everyone's mics.

“Great first day everyone! If you'd all just give us a minute to remove your mics, you'd be escorted to the cars waiting outside to take you to the villa you'll be staying in whilst shooting takes place, as was stated in your contract. The terms still remain the same. You're not allowed contact with anyone outside to prevent the leaking of information or spoilers. The villa unfortunately does not have eighteen single rooms for each of you but fourteen so a few of you might have to share. Sorry about that. The cars will be back to pick you up tomorrow at 8am sharp so be ready. That is it for today. Goodnight, see you tomorrow.”

Everyone says their good nights and Louis wonders if she is always such a spitfire and talks in monologues. She sure knows how to command the attention of a room. One member of the production team gestures for them to follow her, presumably to the cars.

There are five cars and they all pile in. Everyone is mostly silent, reeling from their first day and anxious about the next. Louis gets into a car with Zayn and Liam in the backseat when one of them nudges him to follow. His head is swimming and he’s just going through the motions at this point. His mind is a mix of anxiety about how they're going to finish their outfit, his impending talk with Harry, how that will go, the results tomorrow and whatever else he can't pinpoint at the moment. Zayn and Liam, having known him since university, know to just leave him be whenever he needs his moment like this. He's taken the window seat, resting his head with his eyes closed.

When they arrive at the villa, Liam nudges him with a raised eyebrow.

“You okay? Wanna talk?”

“I’m okay. Just need to talk to Harry.” Louis assures Liam as he looks around for the man himself. He knows he won’t rest easy without a concrete action plan deciding exactly how they are going to tackle day two. He sees Harry entering the villa as the last of the cars arrive and decides to approach him right there and then.

“Hey Harry! We need to talk.” He looks a little startled and a little wary which well, Louis’ not gonna bite!

“Yeah. Sure. umm… balcony?” Harry looks around and gestures to the glass doors on the right and they step out onto the wooden deck. Louis starts speaking as soon as Harry shuts the sliding doors behind him.

“Look. We need an action plan for tomorrow. None of the pieces are finished and we haven't even started on the god forsaken top yet. I doubt we will get a whole working day tomorrow, what with the runway show and everything. We simply can't go into this without planning otherwise we’ll be presenting an incomplete dress and then they’ll send us packing–”

“Whoa Whoa Whoa. I thought you were supposed to be chill.”

“I am chill. When I’m working alone and can stick to my plan.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Well we are running behind. I’m almost done with the pants; your skirt’s still nowhere near done and the top–”

“Pants take half the time that skirts do.” Harry cuts him off and Is he a child? Analysing who did what when they’re supposed to be a team?

“Yeah. And I did them. Twice.”

“Well you wouldn’t have had to if you hadn’t messed up the first time.”

“Excuse me. I didn't mess up the pants. We had an idea and it didn't work. I was the one that came up with the f*cking solution to fix the bloody pants!”

“Whatever! Do you want me to rush the skirt and botch it? I’m working the fastest I can.”

“Fine! Take your time then, your majesty. I'll get started on the top tomorrow once I’m done with the pants.”

“Get it right the first time please.”

“Ugh you’re such a pain in my arse!” Louis groans, on the brink of pulling out his hair.

“Well, you’re no walk in the park either.”

“What the hell is your problem? First you say I’m not serious enough for the competition, then when I try to talk strategy with you, you act like a whiny child complaining about all the things I did wrong. Can you f*cking act like an adult and not someone who’s been put into a team for the first time? This is not the Harry Styles show.”

Something flashes in Harry’s eyes. Regret? Hurt? It flits away too fast for Louis to catch and he’s too worked up to stop now. “You know what. Save it. Whatever horrible apology you were making up. I don’t need it. Just f*cking…complete your skirt tomorrow. I’m going to bed.” Louis turns away and storms inside.

Who does Harry think he is? He is fuming inside when he enters the living room to find only a couple other contestants lingering around bar Zayn and Liam who are sat on one of the couches. He moves towards them and plops down on the couch beside Zayn.

“Uh oh looks like the chat did not go well,” Liam remarks.

He scoffs and says with an eye roll, “Tell me about it.”

“Yikes! That bad?” Zayn raises an eyebrow.

“I don’t wanna get into it right now, please.”

“Gotcha! Let’s just eat and we’ll head upstairs.” Liam gets up and they both follow, ready to head to the buffet set up for them in the kitchen.

“And lucky for you! We’re rooming.” Liam puts his hand around Louis’ shoulder, pulling him into his side.

“Just like old times!” Zayn finishes the sentiment and puts his hand around his other shoulder.

At this moment, Louis is really grateful to have his boys there with him and thanks the powers that be for making Louis come across Liam’s flyer looking for roommates, right after his planned accommodation had fallen through during his first week of university. They had become inseparable ever since, moving to become flatmates during fashion school as well even though they had gone to different ones.

They pile up their dinner and move to the wooden deck with their plates, in part for Louis wanting some fresh air even though it flares his annoyance a little, being right where he had his argument with Harry. They can’t keep shut just like whenever they are together and Louis can’t help going off on a tangent(once or twice) about Harry. Though, only because they are the only ones out there, he doesn’t want other contestants getting wind of their problems and he trusts Zayn and Liam with his life. Afterwards, they head up the stairs to their room together and Louis’ exhaustion doesn’t even let him take in the room. He just knows there are three single beds and he falls into the nearest one and as soon as his head hits the pillow, he’s out like a light.

✧✧✧

When they get to the studio the next day, it isn’t much different. They had piled into the cars that were ready for them at eight am as instructed and were rushed into hair and makeup as soon as they arrived. Harry doesn’t know how to feel about his argument with Louis last night. He has to be the most frustrating, confusing human Harry’s had the displeasure of encountering. The only way for him to get through this competition sanely was to just steer clear of Louis as much as possible. He really doesn’t want anything to do with that man any more than he has to. He was just going to “complete his skirt” as Louis so eloquently put.

They are directed to gather at the entry of the backstage area instead of the main workroom today. When they are given the go ahead, they enter and find the judges already waiting for them.

“Good morning everyone!” comes the cheery greeting from Tan with an equally enthusiastic response from them all.

“Your first runway show is in just five hours. Your dresses have all been moved to the backstage area so we can build the runway.” Five hours. Okay! This was going to be a circus, Harry mentally sighed. Eighteen people scrambling backstage to get their dresses done. It was reminding him of his days assisting during Fashion Weeks. Absolute chaos, nerves and adrenaline.

“From the looks of it, you guys have still got a lot to do so time is definitely not on your side.” Tell me about it. Harry was doing his equivalent of spot jogging before a sprint. Not like this was going to be much different than a sprint. “Your models will be arriving shortly and they're going to be ready for dress fitting so…Go! Go! Go! Go!” As soon as Tan finishes, they all rush towards their designated areas and dress forms.

There’s still this awkward, silent tension between Louis and him. They both just get straight to their work without a word exchanged and Harry isn’t particularly bothered by it as long as the work is getting done. He doesn’t need to make best buds with Louis. Even the idea makes his eyes bug out. What kind of nightmare would that be? Yeah, he definitely doesn’t want to know.

The skirt is coming together nicely. Harry stitches the waistband for the skirt, ironing out the hem of both the panels while he sees Louis working on the trousers out of the corner of his eyes, both moving as fast as they can.

He has finished sewing the front panel, when they hear a cacophony of noise spread through the room with everyone calling out “Models! Models! Models!” Harry looks over to the front of the room and sees exactly what he heard– a group of gorgeous models entering the backstage area, all with smiles on their faces. Did an hour pass by already? On instinct, he turns towards Louis and calls out to him.

“The models are here!”

“Yeah I see that.” An involuntary scowl forms on Harry’s face. Why does he even bother?

A pretty brunette with her hair tied into a ponytail makes her way up to them with a smile on her face. That must be their model.

“Hi! Nice to meet you. I’m Harry. This is Louis,” Harry extends his hand to shake while she introduces herself as Carla. Once pleasantries are exchanged, Harry gives her the gist of their progress and how they are running a bit behind so she might have to wait a little before they can try the clothes on her.

Everyone’s trying stuff on their models and ours is just standing there and I’m like, you might have to wait for a minute, darling.

–Louis Tomlinson, England

Once Harry finishes pleating the skirt, they can finally start to try the clothes on Carla and Harry feels a little bit of relief course through him. As she puts on the trousers, Louis helps her loop their makeshift top over her neck so they can get a vision of how the final thing will look like. Harry helps her put on the skirt and feels his heart drop.

“Umm…Louis, the skirt’s too small.”

“Oh.”

“Might as well just go home now,” Harry mumbles in his dejected voice. There is no way they were going to get everything done in time.

“Hey! No! We’re not giving up! We have a responsibility and we’re going to get this sh*t done! You start the alterations on the skirt and I’ll get the top done.”

Louis has a fire in his eyes when Harry looks into them and his determination fuels Harry as well. He’s right. They can’t give up. They are not going to!

Time passes and they feel every second as it gets closer and closer to the runway show. When they hear the words, “One hour to the runway show” announced, Harry is just finishing up the last of the stitches on the skirt and Louis is done with the top.

“This looks nice Harry.” Louis holds up the top and Harry agrees. He finally feels like they have actually pulled it together. A slow, cautious yet hopeful smile creeps over his mouth.

“Yeah? Should we try it on her?”

They exchange nods and Harry can see the relief in Louis’ stature, his shoulders that have relaxed just a bit and there’s a little bit of light in his eyes.

Finally, we’ve managed to get our stuff together. We’ve done the top, we've got the trousers, we’ve got the skirt and we’re gonna put it on her for the first time.

–Harry Styles, England

I’m really proud of us for pulling that off, I have to say. I mean for a moment, it really did not feel like we were getting it done.

–Louis Tomlinson, England

Carla does a mini walk once she’s got the whole outfit on. She looks absolutely beautiful and Harry thinks they might have an actual fighting chance with it and he's thrilled.

“Wow! That top actually works beautifully.” Harry states and it does.

Going from not being sure that they were even going to finish the outfit to having one that actually might end up being one of the top ones feels insane. Louis goes off to give all their pieces a final ironing and Harry heads with Carla to the makeup artists so they can figure out her hair and makeup.

Finally, comes the time for the runway show and all the models file into a line as instructed by the stage directors and the backstage area is suddenly deserted, save for the designers. Their main workroom is now a runway with a full audience on either side and their four judges sitting in the front row. Harry feels how he always feels before runway shows, like he is sending his babies out into the world. His clothes that he poured his blood, sweat and tears into, albeit this time, mixed with Louis’ are now going out into the world to be judged and critiqued and that is either going to break his heart just a little or give it new life.

They are watching through the screens backstage, all eighteen of them stood together as model after model walks out in extraordinary outfits that feel like they just keep getting better and better with each new one that is revealed. They really are competing with the best of the best here. Harry watches with bated breath as Carla walks out and suddenly two hands cling to his left arm holding on tight. Harry dares not move as he feels his heart rate quicken, whether it is due to Carla walking out or Louis clutching his arm like a lifeline, he does not know.

As the last model walks out, they all cheer simultaneously with the audience outside. It is done. It is over! They did it. They got through the first challenge. The models come backstage and both of them go over to Carla.

“Thank you so much,” Harry exclaims as he hugs her and steps back to let Louis do the same.

“You were amazing out there, love.”

The three of them make small talk till the judges come over to give their feedback and take a closer look at their dress.

“I not only love the idea but the execution as well. I love the colour choices here, how the blue mixes in with the green as well as the draping underneath.” Monique is the first to give her opinion and Harry has to agree, blue does mix well with the green.

“It is a very cohesive look and I don’t know how you achieved that by never working together and that just shows your strength as designers and as a team.”

Harry feels like he is on cloud nine. Once he felt like they should just give up and go home and now they were getting such positive feedback from the judges. He had to thank Louis’ sheer determination and the fire within him that pushed them both through.

“Thank you so much.”

“This really means a lot to us,” Harry says and it does. They’re both grinning like fools by the time the judges leave to go over to the other designers and they squeal like children with candy. They turn to each other and suddenly Harry has an armful of Louis to catch and he does and he still can’t stop grinning.

“You two are so cute,” Carla’s voice hits like cold water poured over their heads and they both freeze up before letting go. Mirroring awkward smiles come out on their faces as they both deflect to helping her take off the outfit so they can get it packed up in their designated bag.

Harry feels a little disoriented from all this whiplash of emotions. They go from fighting and wanting to rip each other’s head off to absolute silent treatment to jumping in each other's arms. Harry blames the high of receiving great feedback. It’s only the first challenge and Harry needs to bloody lie down.

They are once again ushered to their main workroom, this time for the results. It now has a separate platform for their judges to stand on, directly in front of their own little stage where there used to be the catwalk. Harry is absolutely astounded at how quickly and efficiently the stage designers work and how much goes into shooting a reality show.

“There were so many great designs but of course, there can only be one winning team.” Harry has his fingers crossed behind his back as Alexa builds up the suspense and Harry’s anxiety, but oh well…

“And after much discussion, that winner is…” She trails off once again as Monique Lhullier picks up where she leaves off.

“Niall and Perrie.” The pair embrace and everyone applauds them. Theirs was a black matrix style dress with a keyhole at the waist that opened up to a train, giving a dramatic reveal of the contrasting magenta fabric underneath. Harry is happy for the two of them as they get glowing praise from the judges.

“I have the unenviable job of delivering the bad news,” Tan begins and once again Harry feels his heart rate pick up. He is almost sure that they are not going home today after the positive feedback they received from the judges earlier but he still can’t shake the voice in the back of his mind that’s going, nothing is certain and you may very well be going home.

“The two teams that I am sorry to say that we have decided are at the bottom of the pack are…Isha and Elliot”

Harry breathes a momentary sigh of relief at not being the name to be called when Tan continues, “...and Mitch and Sarah. Please step forward.”

Harry feels the relief course through every part of his body this time. At the end, Isha and Elliot are eliminated on account of their fabric choice of snakeskin and satin just not working together and making the dress too uncomfortable for the model to wear and walk in. They all give their hugs and goodbyes to the two backstage. And just like that, their first ever challenge is over, giving them their first winner and their first elimination.

As they all pile up in the cars to take them to the villa, Harry is still floating between that feeling of relief for making it through round one and sadness for Isha being eliminated. From what he had gathered, piecing together, the judges’ comments and backstage jabber, Elliot had been an arrogant, good for nothing partner who had asserted his ideas, hadn’t offered any help while she worked alone with a nightmare of a fabric and on top of that refused to feel any remorse for getting them both eliminated. This makes him think of Louis, who sure, he hadn’t gotten along with that well, and sure their working relationship hadn’t been all bantering together, bouncing ideas off of each other; it had mostly been silent while they were working but at least he had been cooperative and willing to do his part.

He is silently gazing out the window while everyone chatters around him, recapping and dissecting every moment of the first challenge, discussing moments, experiences, outfits while Harry watches the city of Los Angeles pass by at night time. The lights of liveliness against the inky night sky give a special, beautiful feeling to Harry. A serene stillness fills him despite the movement. It often pushes him into a contemplative mood and this particular night, his thoughts flit around Louis who Harry feels he might have judged too harshly. His anxious anticipation on the first day coupled with the bafflement at Louis being late had thrown him incredibly off balance and his first instinct had been to get defensive and lash out. He doesn’t even know what the hell went wrong when Louis had come to him last night. One moment it was Louis who had approached him to discuss strategy and the next moment he was accusing Harry of being incompetent or was it Harry accusing him? He doesn’t know. All he knows is that it ended up being a screaming match before Louis had stormed off. Whatever it was, Harry decides he’s going to apologise to Louis, and this time, better than his last attempt. Jesus! He cringes remembering his snooty attitude. This apology is going to be a proper one, without taunts and snides.

They reach the house and Harry sees that theirs is the first car to arrive. Tiredness is reflected in everyone’s gait as they step out of the car. All chatter ceases and they make their way into the villa, moving towards their respective rooms. A silent agreement to see each other in the morning flows amongst them. Louis’ car must not be that far behind so Harry decides to go up to his room and get changed rather than lurk in the hall, ready to corner the poor lad as soon as he steps foot through the door.

He walks down the stairs wearing comfy clothes and he can hear the voices coming from the kitchen. As he is about to move closer to see if Louis is one of them, he hears him, clear as day.

“Ugh! Don’t remind me bro. Mr. Holier-than-thou with a f*cking stick up his arse. I don’t know how I got through working with him.”

This elicits a loud laugh from his companions and Harry really does not need to hear anymore. After all, who else could Louis have been talking about besides him. He trots up the stairs and right into his assigned room. Niall hasn’t come in yet and Harry is thankful. He is in no mood to talk and Niall is always up for doing just that. He was bloody pissed and he just needed to seethe in peace. Here he was, about to f*cking apologise to this man who had no qualms sh*t talking him to other contestants. Whatever went on between them, Harry would never air out their dirty laundry in front of others. They were a team and that meant something to Harry. Clearly not to Louis though. He was not going to waste any more of his headspace on that man. They got through the first challenge, rather nicely if Harry does say so himself and they can get through the others too without being besties. He throws the duvet over himself and falls asleep, thoughts about Louis still plaguing his mind no matter how hard he tries to purge them.

Chapter 2: Prints & Patterns

Chapter Text

Louis wakes up quite energised even though it is just seven a.m. which normally wakes all kinds of devils inside of him. Their first challenge had gone better than he had expected or hoped. The few spats he’d had with Harry too were expected, now that he thinks about it. They were working together for the first time, their nerves were high being in a reality show environment going into the unknown. There was bound to be some friction. They're both adults and he figures it was nothing worth festering upon. He feels more relaxed and settled today than he did before. He knows what to expect today and he feels calm in that knowledge.

A good night’s sleep after their wonderful results was bound to have improved Harry’s mood too. Zayn and Liam are already up when he finally gets out of bed and moves to the shower. Thankfully, it is empty and he doesn’t have to wait. He gets dressed in another one of his own designs. A black sweatshirt with his signature rose motif all across the back and his ‘28’ logo within the Yorkshire roses on the front. Nothing like getting free exposure to such a huge audience for your brand.

He makes his way downstairs to indulge in their catered breakfast and piles up his plate with scrambled eggs, two slices of toast, some butter and pours himself a cup of coffee. This was LA and they did not have his beloved Yorkshire tea and there was no way in hell that he was going to drink this weird Whole Foods tea. As he turns around with his food to move to the deck outside, he lightly bumps into someone.

“Oops!”

“Hi,” he grins brightly when he sees that someone is Harry.

Instead of getting his greeting answered, he sees a steely mask fall over Harry’s face before he walks away to the other side of the room. What? He feels so confused but he just shakes his head and moves out to the deck. He is on a high and he’s not going to let anyone bring him down. He falls down beside Zayn and Liam, stretching out his legs on the wooden deck.

“Hello boys!”

“Wow! Someone woke up on the right side of the bed,” Liam teases him with a smile and a raised eyebrow.

“Well Payno, we got glowing compliments on our dress yesterday and I, after a long f*cking time, helped make a dress that, not to toot my own horn, turned out absolutely gorgeous.”

“So everything is smooth sailing with Harry now, huh?” Zayn asks and Louis feels like straight up scoffing in his face but he knows that is only going to ruin his mood so he refrains.

“I mean I thought it was going to be but he just ignored me and walked away when I said hi to him earlier so…” He gives them a noncommittal shrug because what is he supposed to tell them when he himself is so uncertain?

“Maybe he’s not a morning person. You, of all people should know, making conversation before coffee is a crime!” Zayn has got a point. Not like he was going to stand and chat Harry’s ear off. It was just a hi but whatever.

“Unless you’re uncharacteristically chipper.” He very maturely sticks out his tongue at Liam’s cheeky jibe.

“Yeah maybe…”

They chat a little about the competition and some inane things for a bit until they’re told that the cars have arrived to pick them up and just like that it is time for their second challenge.

✧✧✧

They're once again told to enter before the judges and this time they quickly find their assigned desks to wait at. They all gather together once the judges arrive.

“Welcome back to Next In Fashion everyone! You made it through.” A little cheer follows Alexa’s greeting and she continues. “Earplugs in everyone because it’s about to get very, very loud in here because this next challenge is all about… ” She gives a dramatic pause to let everyone’s thoughts run wild and Louis’ mind is frankly blank. There’s just so many, too many possibilities. He’s just hoping this one is a little bit more in his realm than the last one.

“Prints and Patterns,” Alexa finally reveals and oh! Louis is intrigued about the different routes they can take with this. He’s normally not one for loud prints but he loves him some nice patterns.

“Ooohh…A couple of very different reactions,” Tan notes and yeah prints and patterns are not everyone’s cup of tea but Louis thinks they can be real fun when done right.

“Half of you were like yeah!! And half of you were like nooo.”

“Liam and Zayn, I know how much you love black. Are we freaking out you guys?” Louis’ eyes automatically flit to his two best friends upon Tan’s question and their faces look like they’ve swallowed a couple of lemons… each.

“Umm I’m not a big fan of print at all,” Zayn drawls and Louis stifles a snort. That’s an understatement. But he also knows the two of them are f*cking creative, especially when put together so he’s not too worried about them.

“In that moment, the fear just sort of washes over both of us.”

–Liam Payne, England

“Prints and Patterns’ sounds obnoxious to me. It sounds like this is going to be an ugly runway show. I’m thrilled!”

–Zayn Malik, England

“We want this to be an incredibly bold and vibrant runway show so… Let your imagination run wild!”

“For tomorrow’s runway show, we’ll once again be joined by A list celebrity stylist, Elizabeth Stewart along with a very special guest…” Alexa trails off to build up their anticipation as usual and when Tan jumps in with the reveal, Louis’ eyes bug out of their sockets.

“We’ll be welcoming Prabal Gurung!”

“SHUT UP!” blurts out the voice to his right. If Louis thought his reaction was of a psyched fan, Harry’s comment that just burst out of his mouth is a whole other level of fanatic. He’s barely holding back his squealing and looks like he’s about to melt into a puddle on the floor but everyone’s eating it up and well, it’s justified to be fair. Louis is kind of endeared.

“Yass! That’s the reaction we're looking for,” Tan says, snapping his fingers.

They have to design two looks this time and Louis is thinking if they had been down to the wire in the last challenge with one outfit, he has no idea how they are going to get two done in the same amount of time.

“And we made sure our glorious closet is full to the brim with every single print and pattern in every colour imaginable.” The closet lights up in the background of Alexa’s words and dear lord it is print mania! From simple to garish, mute to loud, stripes to spots, and everything in between, it truly is all there.

“And if you don’t like any of those prints, you can actually design your own. There on the right,” Alexa points, “is a digital printer so feel free to go crazy with that.”

“Time for your second Next In Fashion challenge to begin in 3..2..1… Go! Go! Go! ”

They all rush to their desks and as soon as Louis reaches theirs, Harry declares, “I wanna design my own print. I mean, I want us to design our own print,” Harry backtracks, a little embarrassed and Louis holds back his laugh.

“It’s okay Harry. You can draw the print. Everyone saw your reaction to Prabal’s name earlier. You're a bit of a fan, aren’t you?”

“Yes! He’s my idol and thank you. I want to show him my work, so bad .”

“And impress him, remember. We can’t have anything less, can we?”

“Yeah no. Yeah, absolutely!” Harry looks a little surprised like he didn’t expect Louis to respond like that. What? Nicely? He is very nice, thank you very much and he is a team player . He can see how much this challenge and designing for Prabal means to Harry so of course he’ll be accommodating.

“Okay, but Harry, this time we’ve got to have a strategy. A proper plan! We can’t just wing it with double the workload.”

“Yeah. I get it. What are you thinking?”

“We obviously can’t divide one outfit each and make them totally by ourselves. It’ll take too much time. How about we divide sewing duties? I’m fairly quick at it so I’ll do that today while you can do the rest of the things and then we can switch tomorrow or maybe regroup tonight?”

“Yeah that works! So now we’ve got to figure out a print,” Harry says as he once again grabs their design notebook and a pencil, like he did the first challenge. And honestly, Louis loves this creative director side of him, when he’s listening, open to ideas and willing to work together as a team.

“It’s really important we decide what prints we’re comfortable with and what’s not for us.” Harry seats himself on the stool and starts listing print and pattern categories as Louis looks over his shoulder.

“Floral?”

“Not so much as a print. I like them more as motifs.” They’re all over his designs, their hallmark feature.

“I can see that.” Harry says pointing to his hoodie with a little smile that tells Louis that he likes it. It makes Louis feel a little smug.

“Ok then, Animal?”

“I’m open to it.”

“Great! I was hoping you’d say that ‘cause I already have a design in mind,” Harry perks up and closes the notebook.

“Oh, do you, Harold?” Louis teases to watch Harry flush under his grin. He is not subtle, listing out something he knew Louis won’t go for before naming what he actually wanted them to choose. It is still very cute how his cheeks go rosy. For the outfits, they end up deciding on a hoodie, a top and two shorts, of which Louis is going to lead the construction. For the pattern, they decide to go for a black on white modern cheetah print that Harry gets to sketching on a tablet so they can send it off for printing.

Once their design is sketched, they move onto making their pattern pieces and cutting out the lining and structural fabric. It’s going a lot more seamlessly than their previous challenge and Louis is glad that they at least, are not taking a step backwards. When the design Harry sketched comes to life on fabric from the printer, it’s like watching magic happen. It’s absolutely gorgeous and Louis tells Harry as much.

“I love it, Harry. It turned out so pretty.”

“Yeah? I’m very happy with it,” Harry is grinning, a light blush brushing his cheeks. Louis can’t help but find the sight endearing, but he doesn’t have the time to reflect on that. They get to work according to their plan. Louis sits himself behind the sewing machine while Harry gets to cutting up the pieces for all their garments. They are working like a well oiled machine and Louis tells himself to savour this feeling for as long as it is going to last because surely they couldn’t have just become besties overnight.

This time when they get the one hour warning, they are much more calm and on track with their progress but it still rings some alarm bells in Louis’ head as he finishes up the last of the top he’s been given to sew. Harry is still pinning up the fabric to the sewing pattern for their hoodie, as he was when he handed off the pieces for the top to him.

“Harry, I’m done here. You gotta cut quicker, babe. Don’t pin it that thoroughly. Just enough so it doesn’t move.”

“This is not the first time I’m doing this, Louis,” Harry says in a weirdly calm tone, like he’s being annoyed by a five year old. Louis’ rolls his eyes knowing Harry is preoccupied with shears going through the cloth.

“I know. I know. It was just a suggestion,” he says, raising his hands in a placating manner.

When they get the five minute warning, they get to pinning up all their half finished pieces onto the dress forms. They still have a lot of work to do but it is much more manageable this time despite their actual challenge asking them to make twice the amount of looks. All because this time, they were two people working together as a team and not just two people working alone while just standing together.

“Rest up everyone. You’ll need your energy for tomorrow. Good night.” Alexa hollers as Tan and her take their exit.

Going backstage after bidding the judges their goodnight feels like a perfectly rehearsed routine he’s done thousands of times as opposed to the actual twice. But this time his eyes look around for Harry while getting his mic removed and find him right alongside Jade and Leigh-Anne, chatting away as they wait to pile up in their cars.

When they get to the villa, Louis’ car is right behind Harry’s as everyone is milling about the entrance and the living room before retiring for the night, Louis bumps Harry’s shoulder once he separates a bit from the group.

“So we did well today, eh? A proper team.”

“Yeah surprise surprise, I can actually work in a team without a stick up my arse thinking I'm holier than thou,” Harry replies with a grin but Louis can see that it doesn’t reach his eyes.

“What?” Louis is utterly confused.

“I heard you, Louis. It's fine, I know. I am a little high strung at times.” Harry gives a little shrug and the perplexed look still doesn’t leave Louis’ face.

“I still have no idea what you're talking about Harry.”

“When you were talking with Zayn and Liam after our first challenge about how I was Mr. Holier-than-thou with a stick up my arse. But don’t worry, I get it. I was awful to you when we first met and well, after that too.” Harry looks so deflated and Louis feels a very strong need to reassure him and see that sparkle return to his eyes.

“But Harry, I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about Elliott.”

“Elliot? But you haven't worked together.” Harry frowns.

“Yes, we have. When I was fresh out of fashion school and got my first design collaboration with a brand; Elliot had been their in-house designer. That night, we were talking about how his sh*tty attitude had gotten Isha eliminated and how he hadn't changed a bit as Zayn and Liam had been witnesses to his bullsh*t, being my closest friends since uni.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah oh . Though don't worry about it, you're still a pain to work with.” This time, however , he says it with a cheeky grin and a teasing lilt to his voice.

“Oh you're no walk in the park either.” Harry returns his grin echoing the words they’d said to each other earlier on, yet this time with very different intentions.

“Alright! I think I’m gonna head up to my room now. Get some sleep.”

“You still sharing with Liam and Zayn?” Harry asks.

“No. I’ve actually got a single now that Isha and Elliot have been eliminated.”

“Oh. Cool.”

“Yeah. Goodnight Harry. You too get some rest, you’ll need your energy tomorrow,” he says this with a wink and turns away to head upstairs.

“Goodnight!”

Instead of heading to his room, Louis pops out to his little “roof” that he had discovered while wandering last night. It’s this little platform just below the window at the end of the first floor hallway, wide enough to fit two people and low enough that when he sits down, he’s completely hidden from anyone walking around inside. He’d found his little personal space where he can sit, have a smoke and just get a little moment to himself. He feels too confined in the bedroom and everywhere else, there’s always someone, either already present or ready to join him before he’s barely made himself comfortable. And sure he loves people but he needs his moments to recharge too.

He crosses over the ledge and sits under the inky sky of Los Angeles. It’s a clear night and the full moon casts a silvery glow so fascinating it makes Louis sigh, revelling in the serenity. He loves night skies. There’s something so special about the calmness that settles over him when he’s sat under the moonlight, cool breeze tickling your skin. An involuntary smile forms on his face as he takes a deep breath, lighting up his cigarette. Suddenly he feels an all consuming itch to create, move his hands and pour this jumble in head onto his digital canvas. Visions of mossy green shining beneath the clear ocean water, the sun reflecting a palette of its shade and a smile, surrounded by dimples plague his mind. He’s immensely regretting not bringing his iPad with him. This is how he gets most of his ideas, introspective in the stillness of the night. And he knows he’ll lose this sudden fire, this itch to create will slip through his fingers like sand if he doesn’t scratch it right now so he stubs out his cigarette and climbs back in, rushing to get to his tablet.

He throws open the door to his room and grabs his iPad and stylus from the nightstand, right where he left it this morning. His hands get moving and the pen glides over his iPad as the design just pours out of him. He sketches and sketches and only an hour later, does he raise his head and take a breath as he signs his finished design with a LT along with the date, like he always does. Right there on his screen sits a suit jacket in forest green, cinched at the waist and flaring out at the hem. White pleated ruffles peek out of the sleeves while a black bespeckled skirt with tiered ruffles takes up the bottom half. A huge green lily sits on the lapel to complete the look and Louis’ first thought is holy sh*t, this will look fantastic on Harry . This obviously does not fall under his usual array of design and is so far left of what his brand's collections look like that he is dumbfounded looking at the outcome.

This outfit had basically drawn itself and Louis hadn’t gotten a single moment to take a breather and actually look at what he was drawing before he had finished. It was as if his hands had gotten a life of their own and what they’d ended up making, was something only meant for one wearer.

Louis is floating in a state of shock and surprise unable to understand the events of the past hour. It had been truly jarring looking at the final result after having what he could only describe as an out of body experience. Why had he made something with specifically Harry in mind? He had never felt so truly shaken in his entire twenty eight years of life. He can't comprehend his feelings besides feeling truly exhausted so he saves and exits the programme and falls under the covers, not ready to deal with this.

✧✧✧

The next day when they arrive at the studio, Harry’s buzzing out of his skin. Today he’s going to meet one of his idols. Even more, he’s going to get to show him a design, a pattern he created that’ll be adorning their designs. They’re all huddled together outside the entrance of the backstage area, waiting for their cue to enter and he feels as if he’s about to vibrate out of his skin. What if they don’t finish their designs on time? What if the judges; Prabal especially doesn’t like their clothes? What if today is a giant f*cking clusterf*ck and they’re sent home? He doesn’t realise his breathing has picked up and sweat has formed on his hairline until he feels a gentle hand on his left arm and Louis’ soft voice in his ears.

“Hey Harry, are you alright? You’re shaking,” he asks in the gentlest tone Harry’s ever heard come out of his mouth and concern is marring Louis’ features when he turns to look at him.

He takes a deep breath and manages to calm down a little before answering Louis.

“Yeah. Just…this challenge…showing Prabal my work means a lot.”

“I understand. I promise we’re gonna do our absolute best. Give it everything, yeah?” Louis’ reassuring voice settles something in Harry and the fact that he understood and didn't dismiss his worries makes him return Louis’ soft smile.

They all make their entrance to their awaiting judges.

“Good morning everyone. Welcome back to another frantic day in fashion.”

“We’re here to tell you tonight is your runway show. You have five hours left, your clothes are all here and your models are about to arrive so– chop chop chop, let’s go!” Tan’s voice is cue for them to rush to their dress forms and promptly get to work.

“Are you okay being the sewer this morning? I’m too jittery and I feel I’m going to f*ck this up,” Harry tentatively asks Louis even though they had planned to switch.

“Harry, you’re not going to f*ck this up. This is literally what you do for a living and I trust you.” Louis stresses the last part with so much conviction, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder before continuing, “though if you really want I can do it but you’re going to feel so much more proud of this thing if you’re the one to do it.”

The thing is Louis’ right. He’s not going to feel ownership and accomplishment in this unless he sits down and does it himself. He takes a deep breath and nods.

“Yeah, okay. You’re right.”

“Well well well, Harold looks like you have finally accepted the facts.” Louis says this with a sh*t eating that makes Harry roll his eyes and shake his head but also brings out a grin on his own face.

“Shut up Tomlinson. We’ve got a lot to do.”

Harry plops down behind the sewing machine and they get to work. An hour later when their models arrive, all four pieces are ready to be tried on before final stitching. This time they’re working with a gorgeously chiselled, tall Filipino man who introduces himself as Stephan and a beautiful woman with caramel skin and inky eyes named Raya. They both help the models into clothes and mark the measurements for final stitching. Harry accompanies them both to the make-up artists to get their looks sorted while Louis gets on closing up the seams.

This time Wren, their makeup artist, and him decide to go for minimal, nude makeup for both Raya and Stephen, wanting the loud prints to speak for themselves. They keep Raya’s natural afro shining in all its glory with just a thin, neon eyeliner over her eyes and settle on a quiff for Stephen. They leave the rest of the styling up to the accessories that they’ll put on the two of them at the end. He leaves Wren to work their magic while he finds Louis at the sewing machine.

“Hey Louis, you about done?”

“Yep, just finishing touches on the hoodie left. You can take the rest of them for ironing.”

Harry nods and does just that, gathering up their clothes and moving to the ironing board where fifteen minutes later, Louis brings him their finished hoodie. They finish up ironing when the forty minute warning booms through the speakers and they go over to Raya and Stephen who are now both done with their hair and makeup. They get them dressed and pick out long neon socks with sandals and a pair of sunglasses with neon rim for Stephen to hang on his collar. They put on silver chains around Stephen's neck with identical ones wrapped around Raya’s waist to connect the two looks together and when the five minute warning sounds, they are done with all they had to do.

“Aah! Look at them, this is a modern couple,” Harry gushes, prompting giggles from all four of them.

“Ah-ha, ah-ha we do look good together.” Raya says in a put upon smug voice while side hugging Stephen. They share another round of laughter and then Stephen and Raya are off to line up for the runway show while Harry and Louis gather around the backstage screens with all the other designers to watch their show.

As soon as Tan and Alexa announce Prabal’s name and he appears on the stage, Harry lets out an involuntary squeal that he covers up his hand only to incite laughter from the whole group.

“Are you about to faint Harry? Do you need some water?” Niall asks to everyone’s amusem*nt and Harry’s flushed cheeks.

“Shut up Niall.”

“He’ll be fine. He’s been crushing on Prabal since… as long as I’ve known him, now that I think about it,” Jade teases him with a smirk.

“Heyyyy. It’s not a crush. He’s just amazing at what he does and I happen to like it.” Harry defends himself to another round of snickering.

“Haven’t we all crushed on our heroes though? I know I have,” Louis says with a confident smirk, imploring anyone to disagree, and of course no one does. Rather, they nod along in agreement as the lights go out on the runway and the opening music starts, catching everyone’s attention as they brace themselves. Harry is thankful to Louis for taking the attention off him and gives him a grateful smile to which Louis smiles back as they too turn their eyes towards the screen.

The judges wanted a bold and colourful runway show and that is exactly what they got. From watercolour to cultural to cow-mouflage to their own, modern animal, it is all there in exemplary outfits that are a testament to the level of skill and experience of all the designers. This time when their models walk out, Harry’s breath still catches but he also smiles along with Louis, happy and proud of what they managed to accomplish.

Once the last of the models walk out, they all cheer and Niall hollers, “Let’s celebrate!” and they take out mini bottles of champagne from the fridge as they’d been instructed to earlier so the producers could shoot a little sponsored content. They cheer and knock their bottles together after which Louis and him retreat to their table to join Stephen and Raya, bringing along champagne for them as well. They chat for a while until it is time for their judges review.

“Hello hello,” greets the cheery voice of Prabal Gurung who’s accompanied by Alexa as they approach the foursome.

“Hi.” Harry squeaks out in an embarrassingly high voice and he has no doubt his face must be red like a tomato.

“This is Harry who was very excited to meet you. He had an incredibly enthusiastic reaction when we first announced your name.” Alexa introduces to Prabal and they shake hands where Harry grabs Prabal’s in both of his.

“Aww. Thank you.”

“I’m a fan, yeah.” And at this point Harry has accepted that his voice is just going to remain high pitched as long as he’s in Prabal’s vicinity.

“Thank you very much. That’s so sweet Harry.”

Louis exchanges his own hellos with Prabal, albeit much more calmly and they get to talking out their outfits.

“I love the construction here. With the time constraints, it’s incredibly impressive.” Alexa praises pointing at the hoodie on Stephen.

“Yeah. I think the print is very strong and graphic and your execution here is great.” Hearing Prabal’s words make Harry feel like he could actually fly if he were to take a leap from high up into the air.

“Thank you. It means a lot coming from you,.” Harry exclaims.

“Yeah. Thank you.” Louis restates his sentiment and smiles are passed around before the judges leave, wishing them good luck.

“Holy sh*t!” breathes out Harry clutching his knees as if all the breath had been knocked out of him and all three of them snicker.

“Oh he’s a proper fan, isn’t he?” Raya quips at Louis.

“Tell me about it. I’m surprised you managed to keep it in your pants Styles.” Louis looks far too delighted for his own good.

“Shut up.”

“He’s been saying that a lot these past couple of days,” Louis teases as Harry huffs.

“Heyyyy. Just teenage me is very grateful to him, okay?”

They all smile and nod in understanding as their teasing finally ceases and Stephen and Raya get to changing so they can get the clothes bagged up. They bid farewell to the two models as they wait to be called up for the results.

“Is there a story there?” Louis asks, breaking the silence.

“What?”

“Just… you know… you said your teenage self was very grateful to Prabal. So I was wondering if there was a story there. If you don’t mind me asking, that is.”

“Yeah… I wasn’t always very confident in my interests and what I wanted to do for a living, coming from a small town you know. Loving bold, frilly clothes and then wanting to make them for a living wasn’t exactly the ideal profession for boys. But then at sixteen, I saw his collection in Vogue and I was instantly fascinated by his bold prints and then my mind just fixated that yes! This is what I wanna do in my life .”

“That’s… that’s beautiful Harry.” Harry turns towards him to see him wearing a soft smile on his face and Harry thinks that is beautiful too.

✧✧✧

This time when they get called for the results, Louis is nervous but he’s not bricking it like last time. Not because he’s suddenly super confident that they’re going to win. No, that’s still very much a concern. But this time around he’s much more confident in the effort they put in, the way they put aside their differences this time. He's proud of that.

Jade and Leigh-Anne are announced as the winners of the challenge. The girls had been inspired by their cultures, beautifully blending Jamaican and Egyptian prints throughout their well constructed outfits. When the bottom two are being called, Louis’ fingers cross behind his back and he can feel Harry’s straighten up. He moves a little to his right, pressing his arm to Harry’s in solidarity. Fortunately, they don’t end up being in the bottom two yet Louis’ heartbeat picks up hearing Zayn and Liam’s name being called. They had designed Gwen Stefani-esque, plaid patterned looks which had not gone over well with the judges. He can’t lose his friends so early in the competition. He needs his support system and they are bloody good designers who deserve to be here. His fingers are once again crossed behind his back, perhaps even harder than when he’d had them crossed praying for himself and Harry.

“Maybe if we stay you’d see the shift because we don’t want to be known as Hollywood celebrity designers, we just want to be known as designers.” Liam posits when Tan tells them that the reason they find themselves in this position is because their designs had been too LA-esque when they were looking for global designs on a global platform.

“The team that is going home today is Michael and Jean. Zayn and Liam, you may step back in line,” Tan announces and Louis breathes a sigh of relief right alongside his friends.

“Michael and Jean, your garments were good but your prints were just not bold enough.”

“You know I think you guys could have gone bolder, it wasn’t loud, it wasn’t offensive, but it was very forgettable. In fashion, you have to create something that’s inspirational and aspirational and it felt today, maybe it didn’t work out but hey, it’s just the beginning of a big journey. Wish you all the best,” Prabal says.

As they call the day, they all move backstage to bid farewell to the French designers. They seemed like nice guys, though Louis had not had much of a chance to get to know them very well in such a short amount of time. Once Louis says his goodbyes to the two, he moves over to clap Zayn on his back where he’s stood together with Liam.

“Close call there, bro!”

Zayn sighs like it has just fully sunk in how this could have very well been their last night here.

“Yeah. You’re telling me, man.”

“I felt like I was about to throw up and when I did, it was going to be my heart splattered all over the floor.”

“Ew Leemo! Gross. No one needs to have that image in their mind,” Louis grimaces and at least Liam’s graphic image had changed the mood, albeit to something between horrified and disgusted.

“Anyway, you both better buck up, I don’t need you leaving me here all by myself.”

“Aww! Lou bear, you’d miss us?” Liam says in an overly sweet voice that makes him roll his eyes right up into their sockets although his no! Gets lost in Zayn’s next comment.

“But then you’d have Harry to bitch and moan to.”

“Pray tell what would I even bitch and moan about then?”

Liam smirks, “Maybe how you're obsessed with him.”

“I am not obsessed with him,” Louis scoffs. He really needs better friends who know what they are talking about.

“Really? Despite your ability to somehow turn every conversation into one about Harry?” Liam raises his eyebrow with a smirk.

“I do not do that! And it’s not my fault the lad has an annoying personality that drives me up the walls sometimes that I talk to my supposed best friends about. Just sometimes.” He didn’t talk about Harry that much.

“Uh huh.” This time it is Zayn the traitor making his disbelief known.

“Shut up. The cars are here,” he says and walks towards the said cars, ignoring the two sh*ts snickering behind him.

Chapter 3: Suits

Chapter Text

When they arrive for the third challenge, the group looks noticeably smaller than when they had first arrived. Even their desks have been rearranged to look more symmetrical in the extra space. Only two challenges have passed yet the group of eighteen becoming a group of fourteen feels significant; and after tomorrow, they’re going to become a group of twelve which doesn’t even seem real.

It feels as if it was only yesterday he’d arrived in L.A., rushing to get to the first day of filming after he’d had to delay his flight due to his mum urgently needing her appendix removed. He’d had half the mind to cancel his appearance altogether, uncaring of the repercussions when his mum had forced him to go, insisting she was fine and getting an appendix removed wasn’t anything life threatening. He’d begrudgingly agreed only after making sure the procedure had gone okay and her post-surgery care was sorted out. He knew Lottie, the eldest after him was more than responsible and capable enough and when both women, well five of them including Fizzy and the youngest twins, Daisy and Phoebe had ganged up on him and not only reassured that they were fine but also threatened bodily harm (mostly Lottie and Fizzy) if he didn’t leave, he had caved and hopped on a later flight. Not that he’d rested easy after that. On the second day, he’d buttered up Riley and gotten special privileges to phone home using her phone. His mum had been perfectly fine if only a little exasperated by his worries.

This time when the judges arrive to kick off their third challenge, they’re both dressed in suits; Tan in a denim blazer and pants and Alexa in a cream, double breasted suit with matching pants. Louis is trying very, very hard not to read too much into it in regards to what their next challenge might be but he is also praying that it is indeed suits. Even if he hasn’t ever made one, in a day and a half’s time and they are one of the most technical and challenging garments to create, they are still the ones he feels the most at ease making. Some would say it is weird but they are his comfort clothes to make. Something about the precise, methodical process just eases his mind like no other.

“We have seven teams remaining and one of you is going to become Next In Fashion and two hundred and fifty thousand dollars richer.” Alexa begins and Louis thinks he would very much like to be that designer.

“Today’s challenge is all about the iconic, showstopping, statement making…suit!” Yes! Louis mentally fistbumps at Tan’s announcement, confirming his hunch and his prayers.

“Harry and Louis, you’re a team that carries an experience in making suits.”

“Yeah but never in a day and a half,” Harry remarks with a slightly panicked grin and Louis agrees, but this is the opportunity to show their craftsmanship and why they deserve to be here.

“The architecture of a suit is incredibly intricate, so creating such a complex and comprehensive design in a day and a half is… well, it’s going to be a race against time.”

–Harry Styles, England

“Normally I spend weeks on a suit but this is something right up our alley so we have got to nail this!”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

Jason Bolden and Philip bloody Lim are announced as the guest judges. Philip makes f*cking killer suits so they have to leave a good impression on him. Each team has to make one suit and Louis feels relieved. One suit in a day and a half was going to be tight enough as it is; heaven forbid if they had been asked to make two.

“It’s up to you if you wanna work with a male or a female model, and you can design for them however you like.”

“The closet has been given a little lift to make sure it's suit-able for this challenge.” Tan clicks his tongue and the closet lights up right on cue to reveal it perfectly tailored to their challenge with all kinds of wool, linen, and cashmere along with bowties, pocket squares, canes, et al to spruce up their looks. They’re given the go ahead and they all rush to their desks.

It feels like a practised routine now when Harry grabs their sketchbook and pulls up a stool to sit on. He has a feeling Harry’s thinking along the same line judging by the way the corners of his mouth lift up a little while he takes his seat. He shakes his head as if to get into the zone.

“Finally a challenge that’s like ‘our thing’, am I right?” Louis smiles at Harry’s comment. They’ve come far from the time they first came here, thinking of them as a team, a unit.

“So which direction do you wanna take? Formal? Informal? Jazzy?” Harry kicks off their brainstorming.

“I think we should keep it formal. Put focus on our craftsmanship without too many bells and whistles.”

“I agree,” Harry nods. Generally, the suits I do, they’re very severe looking, like with a really strong shoulder.”

“Mmm Hmm. You make or break a suit from the top.”

“Exactly. But we’re gonna have to make our own shoulder pads.”

It goes pretty seamlessly from there and together they sketch out a design for a camel coloured, women’s, 80’s inspired power suit. A slim, cigarette style trouser and a tailored jacket with extreme shoulder pads being the highlight of their design. They are complicated but there’s almost nothing as chic as a well tailored suit.

The past two challenges have been good to them in the sense that yes, they haven't been eliminated but, on the other hand, they haven't won either. Now this challenge… this is the one Louis knows that they can win. They have to. This is both their expertise. If they don’t win this one, what is even the point?

“We gotta absolutely nail this you know?” Harry raises his head to look at him, nervously biting his lip.

“Yeah.” Louis nods solemnly. They both know it. This time, it can’t even be in the ‘good enough’ territory, it has to be perfect. They get the fabrics from the closet and Louis starts on the pattern pieces for the suit, all while conferring with Harry who begins work on making their shoulder pads.

“It comes with pressure, people thinking you can do well.”

–Harry Styles, England

“Even though we might be at an advantage in the way we actually know how to make a suit, we’re in our heads about how perfect it needs to be.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

“It’s coming up to five centimetres.” Harry mumbles with thread in his mouth, referring to the shoulder pads he’s building on the dress form.

“Have you put one extra in there?”

“Yeah, it’s probably the highest shoulder pad in the world.”

“But still not as high as your bun though, eh?” Harry instinctively reaches up to touch his bun upon hearing Louis’ comment.

“It’s cute. Suits you well.” Louis’ grin only grows, seeing a pretty blush bloom on Harry’s cheeks.

“Shut up.”

Louis’ delight just shoots through the roof whenever he sees the pretty pink on Harry’s cheeks, doubly so when he’s the reason for it. The atmosphere around their table this time is very different from before. They’re no longer working in an awkward silence but rather, a much more comfortable one which they don’t hesitate to break, actually collaborating on their designs and there’s even some gentle teasing thrown in there. A while later, the judges make a stop at their table.

“Harry and Louis.” Tan’s chipper voice raises their heads and they both greet the judges with hellos or in Harry’s case, an elongated hey.

“So what’s the plan guys?”

“There’s some serious tailoring going on here,” Louis replies with a cheeky voice.

“That’s the master pattern there.” Harry points towards the right of the table where Louis’ excruciatingly sketched pattern for all their pieces lay.

“Oh wow!” Alexa sounds impressed and it settles a little something in Louis that they made the right choice; putting forth their prowess in construction.

“We’ve got a nice extreme shoulder.”

“Very extreme,” Louis emphasises on what Harry just pointed out.

“Love extreme. Good luck!” Tan says and with that, the two judges leave their table and they get back to work. They get to cutting the various pieces of fabric for the outfit and Louis remembers the first time he ever made a suit or tried to since he had spectacularly failed and his mum had had to call up their neighbour, Mrs. Cooper for help salvaging it.

“What are you smiling about?” Harry asks. Louis hadn’t realised he had been.

“Oh, nothing. Just thinking about the first time I tried to make a suit. Completely botched it, obviously.”

“Care to share? It sounds like an amusing story.”

“It was for my senior dance. We couldn’t afford a suit for me then so I was supposed to arrange it from somewhere. By that point, I’d been sewing for a year– tops, pants, some dresses for me sisters but never a suit. I figured how hard it could be.”

“Oh boy!”

“I agree,” a chuckle accompanies his words. “So I got the cheapest black cotton I could find and got to sewing. The pants were fine but the jacket? That’s where catastrophe struck.”

“Come on. It couldn’t have been that bad.”

“It absolutely was. The lapels weren’t symmetrical. The shoulder pads were non-existent and the fit? It looked as if I had draped a tarp on a monkey.”

“Oh sh*t. Yeah that sounds bad. How did you save the day for little Louis?” Harry’s snigg*ring and the mirth in his eyes makes him look so beautiful that Louis doesn’t even mind his teasing.

“Hey! I wasn’t little. I was eighteen.”

“You’re still little.”

Louis rolls his eyes but he’s smiling right alongside Harry.

“Anyway, my mum had to enlist the help of our old neighbour, Mrs. Cooper and she saved the day for me. Otherwise, I’d have wasted the fabric, the money and still have ended up with no suit. I was so embarrassed, I put my entire focus on practising making suits for like months after that.”

“And now you’re an expert.” Harry says with something of an awed smile on his face which puts one on his own face as well.

The one hour mark announcement ends their moment and once again a comfortable silence falls upon them. They’d been chatting yet their hands hadn’t stopped working. Together, they start pinning up the various components of the suit on their dress form. With so many separate pieces, they need to have it all pinned before they can start constructing and when the time’s up for their first work day, they’re on track with their progress which is a huge relief for both of them.

“Okay designers, your work today is done! So please put those tools down.” Alexa’s voice sounds from the raised platform.

“Go home. Get some rest and we’ll see you right back here tomorrow morning.”

With that the judges leave and they too start to make their way backstage.

“So, today was good, yeah?” Harry asks, walking alongside him.

“Yeah, no hiccups, so far.” Louis raises his crossed fingers. Hopefully it stays like that tomorrow as well. They get their mics removed and head over to the waiting cars outside, as is the routine.

✧✧✧

“But you’re good at this you dickhe*d and I’m jealous.” Jade says. Harry is experienced in making suits but the girls are more or less winging it.

“I know. I do make a mean suit,” Harry says in a put upon snooty voice. He makes a show of inspecting his nails for extra effect which sends them all into a fit of laughter as they enter the villa, continuing their chat about the challenge and their day. Harry loves unwinding with his girls at the end of a workday, just like they did when they had been working as interns at Maison Margiela.

“So does your partner. How’re things going with him by the way?” Leigh asks.

“You aren’t in a pissy mood today so I’m curious.” Jade says with a raised eyebrow before he has a chance to reply to Leigh’s question and Harry cringes a little. Had he really been that transparent about his rifts with Louis?

“Things are good. We’re getting along.” They both nod and before they can say anything he asks, “Had I really been that transparent?”

“You know your grump face is obvious, but that’s just to us.” Jade says and yeah, the girls have always read him well. They had bonded over late night takeaway and the woes of being interns at a fashion house. That doesn’t just go away.

“We just met here so it was just simple misunderstandings and mostly us being on edge because of the competition. That was me anyway, but I think we’re past it now. I hope so at least.”

They move to their rooms to change and then meet up for dinner like every night; the three of them joining most of the other contestants on the huge circular couch in the middle of the living room with their full dinner plates. Some preferred to hang around the kitchen island and some took up space on the wooden deck outside. Harry would have loved to eat outside in the cool air but the first night, Louis had already been eating there with Liam and Zayn by the time he had come downstairs after changing. It had been right after their argument so Harry had left them alone and after that, it had just become an unspoken agreement. Harry inside and Louis outside.

To his utter surprise, he finds Louis standing at the bottom of the stairs when he comes down, looking like he’s waiting for someone.

“Hey. Waiting for Liam and Zayn?”

“You actually.” Louis says and Harry’s eyes bug out of their sockets in disbelief.

“Me?”

“Yeah. Want to join us outside? We can chat. It feels a bit stuffy inside. Your friends can join too, of course.” Louis rushes out and Harry’s surprise kicks up a notch with every sentence he utters which then quickly turns into delight.

“I– um we would love to. The girls must be coming down any minute.”

“They’re already down.”

“Oh great. Should we just go to the buffet then?”

Louis nods and together they move into the kitchen where all their meals are set up. He waves over Jade and Leigh to follow them from where they are sitting on the couches, probably waiting for him. He gets raised eyebrows from both of them, seeing him with Louis but he ignores their looks and keeps walking.

They grab their plates and Harry senses the girls come up behind him. He can practically feel the questions forming in their heads.

“Want to have dinner outside with the boys tonight?” He turns to ask them but pleads with an expression that he hopes conveys, Please say yes. We’ll talk later.

“Sure.” Leigh answers but her tone absolutely says ‘We’ll talk later’ as Jade nods along.

“Hey girls! How was your day?” Louis sidles up next to him after piling his plate with mashed potatoes from three counters over.

“Not as great as yours was… suitmasters.” Jade says the last bit with her eyes narrowed good naturedly and it makes a laugh burst out of Louis. It's a delightful sound. They keep chatting as they pile up their food and then make their way to the balcony. Zayn and Liam are already holding down the fort there and the four of them take their seats, passing around greetings. Louis plops down right beside Harry and they share a smile. The conversation keeps flowing with questions and answers from all sides and between the chaos, the two of them manage to squeeze in their own separate chats too. Harry is surprised to see how well they all get along. The tension between Louis and him had no doubt prevented all of them from getting together before today. Harry is extremely grateful for Louis’ offer for all of them to eat together. This might be the first time he has truly felt at ease during the competition.

Once their dinner is done, they retreat to their rooms, eager to get all the rest they can before tomorrow's runway show.

✧✧✧

When they arrive at the studio the next day, Harry is very eager to start working on their suit. He has a good feeling about today even if it is surrounded by a dull halo of anxiety. Once again they are welcomed by the judges backstage where their dress forms have been moved to and with the usual reminder that their models are set to arrive soon, they are given the go ahead to start working.

“I’ll put the trousers on her and work on those and then you work on the top?” Louis takes charge right as they reach their table, pointing to their dress form. Harry has come to realise how Louis is such a natural leader and he finds his ability to take charge so effortlessly, nothing short of admirable.

“Yeah. Cool.” Harry nods and they get to work. While he had felt the pressure of expectations yesterday, today, seeing as they are on course, he feels a little more at ease. He’s got suits in his collection, Louis has got suits in his collection and they’re good at them. They have also been getting along so that has definitely helped. He can see Louis and him becoming friends during the course of the competition though Louis being super cute and very much his type might hinder the cause a bit. But whatever, he can be friends with guys he finds a little attractive. Okay, a lot attractive but the point still stands.

They had chosen to design for a female model so an hour later they meet Sasha, another gorgeous model who will showcase their clothes on the runway. Once greetings are passed around, they start to try the clothes on her. Harry helps her put on the open top so he can check the final fit before he stitches it close at the back.

“Can we just try these on real quick so we can get it all tucked in?” Louis says of their half done trousers to Sasha and helps her into them.

“Ooh they’re very fitted.” Harry comments as he turns around. They look too stuck to the skin but thankfully, nothing that can’t be fixed.

“Yeah. I’ll have to fix them.” Louis helps Sasha out of them once they have tried on the jacket which still requires a fair bit of work. “Gonna do the waistband and pockets first.”

He nods to Louis and helps Sasha out of the top.

“What should we do with the makeup?” Harry asks.

“Something sleek probably; make her look like a boss lady.”

“Yepp. With bold eyes?”

“That works. Wren would no doubt bring the idea to life.”

“They are good, aren’t they?”

“Yeah. You mind going with Sasha? I’ll finish up the pants in the meantime.”

“Alright. Then we can get started on the jacket before I finish up the top.”

“Ace.” Louis nods and Harry goes along with Sasha to their designated makeup station.

“Hello darling!” greets Wren in their usual lively voice, passing around hugs to both Harry and Sasha. Harry explains their vision and they create Sasha’s look with slicked back straight hair, smokey eyes and just small, silver hoops to complement the look. He leaves them be and gets back to their sewing table to resume working on the top. Louis is almost done with the pants and together, they finish up the jacket.

“Just got to lock up the top and put interfacing on.” He calls out to Louis before going to the other side of the room to do just that.

Before they realise, it is thirty minutes to the runway show and they help Sasha, who is now done with her hair and makeup into the suit. Harry gets the jacket off the dress form and holds it out to Sasha, smoothing it out once it is on her shoulders.

“Hair in or out?” He asks Louis.

“Out. Definitely.”

Louis grabs the lint roller and starts to run it all over the clothes, just as the models are called to line up. Sasha walks away and Harry is just about to breathe a sigh of relief when Louis shouts after her.

“Wait!” Louis runs to her and takes out two sewing pins from her coattails.

“f*ck! I forgot to take them out.”

“It’s alright Harold.” Louis straightens up and Sasha continues to walk away.

“Thank god you spotted them.”

“Yeah. Now let’s go before it starts.”

They join the other contestants in front of the screen as they all wait for the runway show to start. It’s quite a short one with just seven looks yet it manages to cover a whole spectrum of suits from vintage to deconstructed to printed to formal; it was all out there, reflecting the personalities of the different designers. This time when their model walks out, Harry feels Louis slightly sway towards him and Harry leans into his touch. Besides the flutter he feels from Louis’ touch, he also feels a flutter of pride at what they have managed to make in just a day and a half. The suit looks really strong on the runway; it looks powerful. He knows such a result wouldn’t have been possible if they had remained at odds with each other.

They shoot their usual sponsored champagne content with a cheers of celebration while they wait for the judges to come backstage and review their outfits. When it’s their turn with the judges, Harry is feeling a mix between confidence and nerves, standing there with bated breath while he waits for their verdict.

“This is absolutely sensational!” Jason says right away and Harry breathes a sigh of relief as he feels a grin stretch across his face, one he can see mirrored on Louis. “It’s yummy, it’s chic, it’s smart. It’s like Thom Browne and Vauthier had a love child. I love it.”

“So you’re really on the fence huh?” Tan’s sarcasm in response to Jason basically waxing poetic about their suit makes delighted laughter spill out of both of them. Harry feels so light and floaty like he could fly if he were to jump out of a window.

“The details are so, so well considered. It’s extremely impressive and it was that bold shoulder that made me so excited when I saw it on the runway. If we took it away, I think it’s just a really nicely constructed suit but that my dears, is your jawdropper right there.” Tan’s praise just adds onto their delight and when he starts to remove his blazer to try their jacket on, Harry’s gratification just shoots through the roof.

Louis helps Sasha out of and Tan into the suit.

“Oh yeah. This is good.” Harry compliments him as he strikes a pose right and a pose left.

“You have room in there so that means I can fit in.” Jason says and Harry is speechless by how well their creation has been received. Tan even makes a show of leaving with their jacket on and the two of them can’t find it in themselves to back their joyous laughter.

The judges leave and Louis and Harry cannot hold back squealing like little kids on a playground

"Well done you guys!" Sasha says and the three of them fall into an embrace.

"Think we can win this one?" Louis asks with the corner of his lip between his teeth and sparkling eyes.

"Fingers crossed but I really hope we do.”

✧✧✧

They are called for the results and Louis cannot push down the hope of a win that is burgeoning in his chest. Not winning this one is going to crush him and he knows that is not a healthy attitude to have but he will pick himself up, ready to go again tomorrow, like he always does. He also knows that will happen with a little piece of his heart that he gave to this suit, chipped off. They file onto the stage and the judges arrive.

“Tonight was easily our greatest runway show so far.” Tan begins. “But we did come up with a completely unanimous decision. The winning team for your suit challenge is… ”

“Louis and Harry!” comes the collective voice of both their hosts and before he knows it, Louis turns to him and jumps into his arms, fitting there rather perfectly as Harry’s arms come up to hold him. As quickly as he’d jumped him, Louis falls back, clearing his throat and straightening himself, suddenly very aware of their audience.

He catches Tan’s knowing smirk before he continues with the judgement of their suit. “Your simple but incredibly made suit was the most beautiful and the most interesting tonight.”

“It was just cool, easy and chic.” Philip commends.

“Thank you so much.” Harry says.

“Yeah it really means a lot to us. We felt a huge amount of pressure in this challenge. We were just worried how we could accomplish the kind of suits that we’re used to making in such a short amount of time.”

“We’re really happy. Thank you!”

“I actually tried that jacket on and I was like, this gives me a sense of attitude.” Alexa says, squaring up her shoulders.

“Just so we’re clear, I get the jacket.” Tan cuts in, causing everyone to chuckle..

“We’ll stay late, we’ll make two.” Harry laughs away.

“Thank you very much.” Alexa says, giving a faux haughty look to Tan.

Louis is feeling a sense of fulfilment and pride beyond comprehension. Winning any challenge would have no doubt been amazing but winning this challenge specifically is a boost to his self confidence; a reassurance for eighteen year old Louis who poured his blood, sweat and tears into learning how to make the perfect suit after botching it so spectacularly to now win a challenge with those very skills he acquired.

The bottom two teams are called and they are– Krystle and Helen who had made a boho inspired suit that had seemed a bit too casual and busy to the judges along with Nick and Lou Teasdale whose suit had been Elvis inspired and incomplete due to them running out of fabric for the lining. The latter had butted heads a lot, even more so than Louis and Harry and very much on camera unlike the two of them. Nick had asserted his ideas in the first two challenges while for this challenge, instead of learning from their shortcomings and working together, they had turned the tables with Lou asserting her ideas, ultimately leading to resistance between their creative forces and producing a result that sends them home.

They say their goodbyes backstage and the rest of them pile into the cars as they do and set off for the villa, ready to recharge for their next challenge.

✧✧✧

Louis has just finished his dinner and is putting away his plate in the designated crate in the kitchen. They had all eaten together, the six of them outside on the deck like last night and it had been a riot louder than before, celebrating Louis and Harry’s first win. Yet despite their victory, Harry had remained very subdued and not spoken unless spoken to. Louis is wondering and frankly concerned as to what happened to give Harry’s mood a complete one eighty. Before he can go and ask, the man himself corners him with a panicked expression on his face.

“Louis, can we talk? Alone? Please?” He rushes out, three questions in one and this worries Louis even more. He contemplates leading him to the roof but he’s not sure about Harry climbing over the ledge in such a state. They guy hasn’t stopped twisting his fingers together since he appeared beside him. He is also not quite ready to share his special space with anyone.

“Let’s go upstairs.” He suggests and Harry merely nods before Louis keeps a hand on his back and leads them to his single room. If his math is correct, after today, Harry should also have his own room but he doubts the lad has gotten a chance to shift yet. Louis opens the door for Harry to enter and wastes no time before shutting the door and turning to him with concern and questions in his eyes.

“What is going on Harry? Are you alright? ” Louis finally asks after a few moments and Harry remains silent.

“What if we butt heads again? What if I’m too stubborn or you lose your patience? What if we can’t cooperate and make sh*t clothes and then we’re sent home? I don’t wanna go home because we can’t keep our egos in check like Nick and Lou today. I want us to be a team!” He says this all in one breath and Louis is worried if Harry doesn’t calm down, he’s going to start hyperventilating.

“Harry. Harry, love calm down.” Louis places gentle hands on his shoulders, urging Harry to take deep breaths with him and only when he seems to have calmed down a little, does he continue in a soft but firm voice because he needs Harry to get this through his head, “H, what are you talking about? We just won a challenge because we behaved as a team, not because we couldn't get our heads out of our asses. And I'll be the first to admit, whatever misunderstandings we had, it's in the past for me. I like having you as a partner now.”

Louis waits for Harry to digest his words and he can see the panic in his eyes dissipate and his breathing regulate.

“Oh! Yeah… It's in the past for me too and I like you too, by the way. As my partner...umm my teammate.” He stutters and then blushes which amuses Louis to no end. Harry Styles is one quirky fellow. Quirky and cute. Very cute.

Before Louis can undoubtedly give a cheeky remark, Harry moves away and bolts from the door with his stumbling, “Right, okay. I should go,” as his last words. It leaves Louis puzzled to say the least but he shakes it off and gets ready to fall asleep.

Chapter 4: Streetwear

Chapter Text

As Harry opens his eyes to the rising sun, he comes to terms with the fact that he would very much like to kiss Louis. On his very pretty, pink lips. For a long time. Just tasting what would be a flavour he would, no doubt become addicted to. And that man had not helped one bit in staving off this outcome. What was he thinking adding a fun personality to those f*cking blue eyes and gorgeous face? Harry was doing perfectly fine thinking of him as a callous arsehole. And then being reassuring and helping Harry calm down like he had last night? And how dare he jump Harry when they’d won, showing him they fit together perfectly? How could Harry be expected to not want to kiss him now?

Ugh! He groans and gets out of bed. What a miserable life, having a one sided crush on Louis Tomlinson.

Once he gets dressed and makes his way downstairs, he sees a few people already there. Huh. He figures he might have been early but the breakfast which has already been set up suggests otherwise. He grabs himself a plate, piling it up with some fruit, scrambled eggs and a couple slices of toast with jam on the side and moves out to the deck to eat. Since he has been given the proverbial entry to the place, he never wants an out. The fresh breeze caresses his skin as he takes a seat. The morning dew adorning the grass and the calming chirping of birds greet him as he spreads jam on his toast and begins to eat, his mind drifting to thoughts of one man.

When Louis had regaled him with the story of his first ever attempt at a suit, Harry had been thoroughly entertained by his storytelling but also been awed by the determination of an eighteen-year-old Louis to put in the work and improve, to get better and better. How had he terribly misjudged this man and thought he would be careless enough to throw away this amazing opportunity? And when he had reassured Harry after he had driven himself into a tizzy thinking about Lou and Nick getting eliminated because they had refused to get along, much like themselves, Harry had just about refrained from throwing himself at Louis. Currently, they were the only pair who had met on the show so clearly there had to be a pattern that he hadn’t thought about until Leigh had mentioned it during their drive over after the elimination. It had sent him spiralling thinking they were going to be next. He has no idea how he is going to spend the whole day without pouncing on Louis, or saying something extremely f*cking stupid.

He is about done with his breakfast, only a few pieces of fruit are left that he’s popping in his mouth, when someone plops down right beside him and a raspy voice graces his ears.

“Good morning.”

Harry very narrowly avoids choking on his melon upon hearing Louis’ morning voice that he can only describe as sinful before croaking out, “Morning” in reply.

“You got up early,” Louis remarks, referring to his almost finished plate of food.

“Yeah. Forgot to close the curtains. The sunlight woke me up.” Or well, thoughts of your lips but well, that's not relevant is it?

“So, feeling ready for today?”

No! “Yes.” Harry is resolutely looking at his plate instead of at Louis’ face.

“Umm…Harry, Please don’t mind me asking but are you okay? I mean, after last night? You left so abruptly. Did I say something wrong?” Louis sounds so distressed that Harry curses him for once again fueling his little crush problem.

“No, no I’m fine Louis. Thank you for calming me down, I was overreacting for no reason.” This time he turns to him, a smile on his face to assuage Louis’ worries.

“I wouldn’t say entirely for no reason. We did have a bit of a rocky start.” He shrugs and pops a piece of sausage in his mouth. How the f*ck is this man’s chewing cute?

“But we’re past it now, yeah?” Harry smiles and hopes this is the last they discuss of it, he can’t handle Louis being all sweet much more. It is annoying what that does to Harry.

“Mmm hmm” Louis mumbles with a close lipped smile while still chewing, yet it manages to make crinkles appear beside his eyes. Harry would very much like to feel those lines under his fingertips. The early morning sun is giving Louis a radiant, golden glow making him appear almost angelic and what the f*ck are these thoughts? Where are they coming from? He wants to bleach his brain. He needs to quit staring and get inside else who knows where his train of thought might lead him. Yeah, he needs to get away.

He stands up suddenly, startling Louis a little. “I’ll just go and keep this inside,” he gestures to the empty plate in his hand.

“Oh.” Louis looks a little perplexed at his haste. “Sure. Okay.”

Harry is already one foot inside the house by the time Louis finishes speaking and he continues to rush in.

✧✧✧

They are once again backstage, huddled together, ready to enter for their fourth challenge. Harry had not gone back outside to join Louis after he’d practically run away from there. He had just bidden his time, engaging whoever he could find, in a conversation or just moving around the frankly huge place until it was time for them to leave.

It’s not like he is going to start avoiding Louis now. No , he can’t do that when they are finally on good terms. He only needs a few moments to come to terms with his very recent realisation. He is going to be absolutely fine. He’s basically an expert at harbouring unrequited crushes being the quiet introvert with hardly any friends all his school life. He knows when he’s got no chance at being with the cute boys who are out of his league and Louis’ the same. He’s got absolutely no chance with him so Harry is just going to take what he is getting– Louis’ friendship and focus on bringing their A-game to the competition.

“What do you think the challenge is going to be this time?” comes the voice of the very person plaguing his thoughts.

“I have a feeling it might be an informal theme this time, like denim or something, just because we’ve had four straight formal themes, but who knows?” He shrugs. “There's so many possibilities.”

“Hmm…How would you be at ‘denim’?”

“I think I’d be fine.” Harry muses out loud. Just as he is about to say more, they get the message to enter. They only get a moment to stand at their designated desks before they hear the judges enter.

“Good morning, good morning. Gather around everyone. You know the drill by now.” Alexa calls out and they do just that.

“Oh my Niall! Those shorts are getting shorter and shorter.” Tan quips and everyone chuckles.

“I know.” Niall smirks.

“It will just be a tiny little thong by the time we finish.” Another round of giggles follows Tan’s reply before they refocus.

“Are you ready for your next challenge?” Alexa asks to a chorus of affirmation. “For the next two days, you’ll be working with a fashion art form that you see around you every single day; walking on every street corner, posted on every billboard and filling up your instagram feeds.”

“We are of course talking about…” Tan pauses to build up the anticipation as usual before he finishes, “Streetwear.”

Harry manages not to grimace. He is not experienced with streetwear to put it lightly. Being the opposite of what his true aesthetic is, he struggles to grasp its concept. He is hoping Louis can help them win this one. The cherry on top of the nightmare cake is that they are supposed to design two looks– one for a male model and one for a female model. This day could not irritate him more.

“Aside from every fabric under the sun, in that closet, we have added even more fun tools for your streetwear challenge.” Alexa says and the closet begins to light up.

“In there, you will find spray paints, fabrics, embellishments, rope and everything you could possibly need to spread your creative wings.”

The judges announce their guest judges for this challenge, Jason Bolden, and someone who is basically streetwear royalty, Pierre Moss’ Kerby-Jean Raymond before they are given their go ahead.

“So how do you feel about this challenge?” Louis asks as soon as they reach their desk.

“Not super excited. I mean I’m not really ever sure what streetwear… it’s really the opposite of what my true aesthetic is.” Harry is wrecked with nerves, struggling to express his thoughts.

“Don’t worry, we’ll get through. Streetwear can mean different things to different people right?” Louis asks and this time, he is the one to grab their sketchbook and Harry is very grateful to him for taking the reins. “Streetwear is really about self expression. They’re real garments based on real world situations with an edge.”

Harry smiles, calmed a little by Louis’ easy confidence.

“You have streetwear in your collection, don't you?” Harry asks as he grabs the other stool to take a seat beside Louis.

“Yeah, but it's football inspired, not exactly suitable for the runway.”

“Okay but still, what if we keep the theme sport related anyway? That could still bring out some aspect of self expression for you.”

And so Harry watches, his trepidation waning further as they flesh out their outfits while Louis sketches, taking inspiration from sporting design classics with a distinctly modern feel. Their male model is going to adorn a leather flight jacket with pants inspired by motocross trousers. For the female model, they are going to create a biker style pant with a varsity style jacket. Leather is technical fabric to sew and Harry hopes their construction acumen leaves a positive impression on the judges. As much as Harry was feeling intimidated by this challenge, Louis’ patience has helped him become a little more comfortable with their theme.

“It’s not going to look too simple, is it?” Louis asks as looks up from the sketchbook.

“No. We’re doing a lot here. We’re doing a lot.” Harry affirms not only Louis but himself too. He only hopes he is right.

They both fetch the fabric from the closet and get to sketching out their patterns once they return. Once again they have picked a huge f*cking mountain to climb, which is going to squeeze out every shed of their sanity. Sometimes he thinks his ambition is going to come back to bite him the arse one day and with having Louis’ ambitious nature right there to fuel his own, he doesn’t think they ever can decide to make something that doesn’t challenge them at every turn. He can feel the exhaustion that is no doubt going to hit him soon but then so is the adrenaline from pushing themselves to the limit.

✧✧✧

Two hours of their day one remain, and Louis is a ball of nervous energy, absolutely jumping off the walls trying to get everything done. From drawing up the patterns to making the structural lining of their pieces to then cutting up the panels of leather and finally the actual sewing, they have got a lot to do. He fears Harry is not faring much better either, judging by the frantic energy that is looming over their table like a nimbus cloud about to rain hell on them. Harry had already been unsure about this challenge and Louis had been the one to muster all the confidence he could find within himself to help Harry feel more at ease. Though now, he is second guessing everything in his head, able to feel the stark contrast in the atmosphere from their previous challenge.

“Should I add a bit more volume in ‘em?” Louis asks out loud, gesturing to where he is making the structural lining for their pants.

Harry raises his head, raking his eyes up and down the dress form, contemplating for a moment before he replies. “No, I think they are nice as is.”

“No, I think I should add a bit more volume.” What if they fall flat on the runway? That would be a nightmare!

“Louis, we don’t have time.” Just as he is about to open his mouth to argue, Harry looks straight into his eyes and imploringly says, “Trust me.”

And he is right.

He’s going to have to trust Harry too. They are both relying on each other this time and he has to trust Harry’s judgement to make the right call when he is too frazzled to make it himself. Louis continues working on the pants for their female model while regularly checking up with Harry and his progress with the male model’s pants.

“You’re done with your patterns?” Louis asks.

“Yeah.”

“You’re putting leather down the sides?”

“Two panels, like, inserted into the leg.”

Louis nods even though neither of them bothered to look up or pause their hands to talk. Louis barely gets a moment to take a deep breath before he is moving on to cutting up the leather for their jacket and the fur that is going to line the collar as well as the cuffs. His only respite, however momentary, comes when not long after, the judges make a stop at their table.

“Harry and Louis, you look really hectic. What else have we got to do?” Alexa asks.

“Sew this entire leather jacket.” Louis pipes up.

“Ooh. Leather isn’t easy to sew.” Tan remarks.

“No, it’s really not.” Harry chuckles though the panic on his face reflects the seriousness of his words.

“We’ve decided to do panelled leather to make it easier.”

“Really clever.” Tan looks impressed.

“This is what we do.”

“Harry, you do look slightly like you're in a tornado. Your usually immaculate bun has gone all loose now.” Tan says and sure enough Harry’s haggard state is proof enough of their panic. Loose strands from his bun are framing his face, beads of sweat marr his hairline and a rosy flush graces his cheeks. Louis thinks he looks rather beautiful.

“There's a button missing. Are we okay?” Alexa worries.

“I don't know what's going on right now.”

“We’re gonna leave you to it. You look like you really have a lot to do.” Tan notes as they both turn to leave.

“Hoping for good things.” Alexa’s retreating figure calls out.

“Thanks Alexa.”

As soon as the judges have their backs turned and are safely out of earshot, Harry bursts out laughing and Louis can’t help but join him.

“Is it too bad?” Harry asks through the laughter, making a circular motion around his face.

“Nah. You’re still pretty.” Louis says, intensifying Harry’s blush and his own delight. The only reply that Harry can manage is to just sputter before getting back to work, prompting Louis to do the same. Though, not without plastering a grin on his face at the adorableness of Harry’s reaction.

Soon enough they hear the one hour warning before the end of their day and the frenzied energy returns to their table.

“We’re basically at the end of the day and we have not even cut out most of the things.”

–Harry Styles, England

“And because it is leather, we can’t just glide the scissors through the fabric, we have to meticulously cut it, which is taking time.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

They are both frantically cutting out all of their pieces, determined to get them done before their time’s up for the day. Louis is sweating through his jersey top, his breath short as if he has just run a marathon though arguably he hasn’t done much less than that.

“f*cking hell Harry, I’m really panicked right now.”

“I know.” Harry’s agitated voice echoes his sentiment as they both keep going without a thought of slowing down.

“That is it everyone. Tools down,” comes the vaulting voice of Alexa from across the room as they take a step back, finally breathing in deep, done with all they could manage to get done through the day.

“You’ll have a bit of time tomorrow to finish your looks so we’ll see you then. But for now, good night!” Tan follows up as both the judges take their exit, soon followed by the contestants.

“Jesus! That was something.” Harry huffs as they move backstage.

“Yeah,” Louis chuckles. “Though we still made it out in one piece, lost buttons notwithstanding.”

That leaves Harry giggling as he reaches up to pull the hair tie off his bun, flipping his hair over and shaking them out with his hand before straightening back up, parting them on his right. If Louis thought him tying his hair in a bun was weirdly hot, this takes the cake. Long, curly locks, slightly damp from sweat frame his pink face and Louis bites his lip to keep from blurting out something utterly stupid like the honest thoughts running through his head.

They get into the waiting cars, still different ones, to make their journey to the villa and Louis gets to thinking about their day. How when they started, Harry had been wrecked with anxiety of the unknown and Louis had taken it upon himself to guide them ashore. And when Louis had felt untethered by the what-ifs plaguing his mind, Harry had anchored him, calmed the storm of thoughts and kept them on course. A true mutual partnership, a far cry from the immature, ill-tempered squabbling that had characterised their initial days of acquaintance. It brings a smile to his face, secure in the belief that there was nowhere but forward for the two of them.

Back at the house, all six of them once again gather at the deck with their dinner plates, filling the space with lively conversation, all of them speaking over each other, going from talking about their challenge to lives at home to hilarious anecdotes from working in the fashion industry. It reminds Louis of his home back in Doncaster, the dinner table livened up by six of his siblings all speaking at once, pure chaos and joy. It brings a smile to his face, just thinking about it and with laughter surrounding him, he misses home just a little less.

One by one, as they start gathering up their plates, ready to retire for the night, Louis too moves inside, instantly missing the cool air.

“Did you have another fight with Harry?” Liam questions as they move away into the kitchen, Harry and Jade the only ones still lingering outside.

“No. Why?” Louis asks, perplexed.

“He looks ready to murder you.” Liam subtly looks over towards Harry and sure enough, his gaze on Louis is intensely unwavering.

“Or well, f*ck you senseless. Has been the same all through dinner,” Zayn chimes in, smirking, before Louis can think of a reply.

“What? Shut up. He does not want to f*ck me senseless.” That would be absurd!

“Then you can f*ck him senseless,” Zayn counters without missing a beat.

“Nobody is f*cking anybody senseless.” Even the mere notion is enough to make his eyes roll up into their bloody sockets.

“Doesn't mean you don't want to though.” Liam looks way too smug, the traitor . He really ought to make new friends.

“I'm leaving.” Louis deadpans. He is not going to dignify their idiocy with responses anymore.

✧✧✧

Harry is still very much annoyed by the tingly feeling that has been ever present since his realisation that morning but has been absolutely wreaking havoc since they all sat down for dinner. Watching Louis be loud and animated while telling his stories, teasing Liam just to get a rise out of him and having that small, soft smile on his face had made warmth rush all through his body. His stomach is still doing tiny somersaults even though Louis has long gone inside. And no, it is not a crush. He is not a teenager, thank you very much.

He is now the only one still on the deck. He had stayed back under the guise of wanting some fresh air before turning in for the night when in truth he hadn’t wanted to risk running into Louis without the buffer of their group or the competition, without actually making it seem like he was actively avoiding Louis. He was not .

Deeming the coast to be clear, he gets up and slides open the doors to go inside. Most of the people have gone to bed and only a few dimmed lights still stay on. He only sees Niall and Perrie… making out in the mostly darkened corner of the living room that he rounds to reach the stairs. Well, that’s certainly a surprise. He quickly climbs the stairs and as he shuts the door to his room, an inadvertent sigh of relief escapes him. He cringes, feeling bad for being relieved at successfully avoiding Louis.

He changes into his pyjamas and as he is about to get into bed, a knock sounds on his door. Furrowing his brows, Harry gingerly steps towards the door, opening it to find Louis on the other side. As soon as he opens the door, those blue eyes that he frankly thinks are sinful lock with his own. Harry feels his breath quicken and for a moment it feels as if time has stilled to give them this moment, everything ceasing to exist but the two of them. Louis seems to have been caught up in the stupor too. Harry feels warmth rush to his cheeks which is when he sputters and shakes himself effectively breaking the spell that had fallen over the two of them.

“Hi… Umm what are you doing here?” Harry flounders trying to get a hold of himself.

“Oh hi. Yeah Umm.. I actually came to talk to you about our designs tomorrow?” He trails off into a question at the end, still looking a little flustered, probably by Harry’s creepy staring and okay, of course Louis’ visit would have something to do with their challenge. What else could he be knocking at Harry’s door for? He needs to get a grip! He takes a deep breath before answering.

“Okay. What about them?”

Louis takes a look around the corridor, seemingly looking for anyone roaming out there.

“Can I come in? It’s just, it should kinda be a secret.”

Harry is confused yet intrigued so he moves aside to let Louis in and shuts the door behind him.

“So… I was thinking what if we do a surprise dramatic moment at the runway tomorrow? Just to, you know, elevate our designs a bit.”

“What were you thinking?” Harry somehow knows he won’t have come here without already having a concrete idea in mind.

“How about adding a parachute attachment to the leather jacket that will be stuffed in the pockets and then pulled out with a dramatic flair?” Louis is practically bouncing on his feet, emphasising the dramatic potential of his idea with equally dramatic gestures.

“It’s quite insane to try and do it in the time we have.”

“When have we not been insane?”

“Well, can’t argue with that I suppose.” Louis’ excitement and that wretched sparkle in his eyes had already thrown out any possibility of Harry turning the idea down. “Okay, if we have spare time tomorrow, we’ll do it.”

Louis squeals and puts his arms around Harry's shoulders in delight, rising a bit on his tiptoes. He pulls away just as quickly as came into Harry’s space.

“We will Harry. We’ll make it happen!” His voice cannot contain his enthusiasm and it makes Harry smile.

“You’re quite excited about this aren’t you?”

“I do have a flair for dramatics, in case you haven’t noticed.” Louis says primly, the corner of his mouth forming a ‘v’. “Anyway, I should go now. Goodnight Harry.” Before he has a chance to respond, Louis is gone in a flurry leaving Harry reeling with the interaction.

The next morning when Harry makes his way downstairs, Louis is already at the buffet station getting his breakfast. Louis gives him a knowing grin, the thrill of sharing a secret and the anticipation of what they may or may not do today alight in his eyes.

“Good morning Harold.” He greets in a chirpy voice.

“My name’s not really Harold, you know. It’s just Harry.”

“Nah but Harold’s cuter. You’re just a little Harold,” Louis says, smiling wide.

“I’m bigger than you Lewis.”

“It’s not the size that matters, Harold,” He says faux innocently, batting his eyelashes and Harry’s face heats up at the innuendo.

“Shut up. Move over. Let me get my sausages.” And as soon the words leave his mouth, he realises what he’s said and beside him Louis doubles over laughing, actually making the ha-ha-ha sound as his eyes crinkle in the corners, even deeper than when he smiles.

“Harr Harr. You're twelve.” Harry deadpans.

“Hey. You’re the one who said it,” Louis says through his laughter, his face full of mirth and Harry can't help but grin even as he rolls his eyes.

As soon as they finish their breakfast, they get into the waiting cars and head to the studio where Tan and Alexa greet them, repeating a version of their usual script before giving them the ‘o ahead to start the challenge. As soon as they reach their designated area backstage, Harry initiates a quick progress check-in before they begin.

“So where are we at?”

“I need to give some body to this jacket so I’m gonna do a facing and maybe a lining for it and then sew the collar on.”

“Funnily enough, I need to make an entire top.” Harry says drily causing them both to chuckle.

✧✧✧

Louis is determined to work his hands as fast as they allow to get their jacket and pants finished so that he can have time to work on their surprise element. He feels it in his gut that they need to do it. That is what is going to zhuzh up their look.

An hour later, when their models arrive, they greet Omar, a hunk of a man with tan skin and a blonde buzz cut and gorgeous Jane with her long, inky black hair and matching eyes. The two of them help the models into the clothes so they can get the idea of the final fitting. Jane’s top needs to be cinched at the waist a little and the waistband of Omar’s trousers, taken in. Satisfied with their notes, Louis lets the two get changed before accompanying them to hair and makeup, which is not going to be anything too elaborate considering they will be modelling streetwear. He leaves them in Wren’s very capable hands and returns to finish up their outfits.

When the an-hour-to-the-show reminder rings, Louis is almost done while Harry is sitting on the sewing machine, finishing up the top.

“So I’m just gonna put the cuffs on the trousers, and then I’ll do the next thing.” He calls out to Harry who is a little over to the back, towards Louis’ right, where all the sewing machines are set up.

“Waistband or the other thing?” Harry asks with a raised eyebrow.

“The other thing.” A smirk blooms on his face from all the sneaky talk.

“Okay.”

“Oooh… the secrets.” Liam calls from where he is peeking around his dress form; Zayn and his work area being right in between Louis and Harry’s.

Louis just gives him a smug look, raising his eyebrows to say, you’ll see before he grabs the necessary fabric and moves over to the empty space at the back, spreading out the huge piece of material on the floor, kneeling there to measure and cut it.

“I finished my jacket, I finished my trousers, so why not do an extra surprise? I think we can just about get it done before the runway.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

Louis is proven right in his estimations of completing their surprise just in time for the runway show. Jane and Omar are dressed and ready, Harry taking over while Louis was getting their surprise ready. The five minute call sounds when Louis brings over Omar’s jacket, the parachute material stuffed in its pockets. He helps Omar put on the jacket and steps back with Harry to admire the finished looks on both of them. Louis moves closer to Omar to explain what he is supposed to do out there.

“So keep your hands in your pockets as you walk out, yeah?” Louis whispers as Omar does so right then and his eyes widen upon feeling the fabric there. “And then, as you reach the halfway point, just pull it out, with like a flair. It’s about four feet long on each side.” Even when whispering, Louis doesn’t let the dramatic inflection of his voice waver.

Omar nods his assent, an excited gleam in his eyes.

“Alright you too, good luck!” Harry says as he moves in to hug the two of them and Louis follows suit. The models are called to line up and Omar and Jane take their leave.

Harry releases a deep, relieved sigh. “You actually managed to get it done huh?” He sounds a little awed.

“Told you I would.” Louis smiles. He just hopes it is received well by the judges.

“You’re the crazy determined type, aren’t you?”

Louis just shrugs in response as he starts to move towards their runway viewing area. Harry is pretty accurate in his observation; Louis is someone who never backs down once an idea takes root in his mind. He has to see it through to completion.

“Come on Harold. Gotta see that dramatic flair on the runway.”

He hears the huff Harry lets out and feels his eye roll yet it only makes him grin.

The music begins on the screen as the runway lights up; the backdrop as well as the floor screens look like an English garden of the royals from the Victorian era. As the models begin to walk out, Louis is practically vibrating with anticipation. Omar and Jane are supposed to be third in line and when it’s their turn, Louis’ hand automatically gravitates towards Harry’s and he clutches it tight. He feels Harry’s warm fingers wrap around his, squeezing them once and Louis’ heartbeat skyrockets for an entirely different reason. Harry’s hand is softer than he expected and large, engulfing his own. He gulps, the warmth of Harry’s hand spreading through his whole body. He tries not to react, focusing hard on keeping his breathing under control.

Omar and Jane start to walk out and just as they reach the halfway mark, Louis holds his breath, crossing the fingers of his hand that is not holding Harry’s. His ears fill with gasps and cheers coming from their fellow designers as Omar throws out the fabric in a dramatic flair, just like he had imagined, creating the perfect parachute effect. Louis’ mouth is probably stretched a mile wide and when he looks over at Harry, he sees the expression mirrored on his face.They’re still holding hands and neither seems too keen to let go.

“So that was what all the sneaky talk was about?” Liam asks, his expression impressed and Louis just winks at him but then his eyebrows rise, pointedly looking at their enjoined hands. Warmth returns to Louis’ cheeks and he ignores Liam’s look, turning his head back towards the screen.

“It looks good, man.” Zayn pats him on the back and Louis pulls his hand away from Harry, trying to be inconspicuous about it. His hand is tingling as he crosses his arms to suppress it, his gaze steadfast ahead where the fourth team starts to walk the runway.

The show finishes soon after and as Omar and Jane return, the four of them move over to wait for the judges.

“You think we did good?” Harry asks, biting his lip. Truthfully, Louis doesn’t know. He is as nervous as Harry. Probably even more, but he is hopeful. That is all he can be right now.

“I hope so.”

They don’t get to continue the conversation as this time, they are one of the first teams to be reviewed. Tan makes his way over to them with Kerby-Jean Raymond in tow and greetings are passed around.

“So how’d you find the challenge?” Tan asks.

“We wanted to use classic sports staples as our inspiration.” Harry motions as he begins to list, “A varsity jacket, flight jacket, biker pants.”

“These pants are leather as well?” Kerby asks, pointing to the pants on Jane.

“Yeah.”

“The craftsmanship of the leather is really well done.” Kerby praises and the knot in Louis’ stomach begins to loosen a little. “I think that it was really ambitious of you guys to take two days that you had to work with some of the toughest materials that can possibly go through a sewing machine.” An unwitting snort leaves Harry’s mouth and Louis just grins. Yeah, they’ve already established that they are insanely ambitious, or maybe just plain insane.

“I honestly commend you for that ‘cause I would’ve never done that. The stitching and everything is really impressive, even the splash of flair you had on the runway.”

“It’s the idea of a parachute.” Louis chips in.

“My only concern is that the graphic lines on the pants make it look a little dated. If you’d gone a step further and rounded your lines out, this would’ve been a slam dunk.”

“So we’ll leave you with that.” Tan says, speaking up for the first time.

Louis and Harry thank them as they leave, exhaling twin sighs of relief and one look into each other’s eyes sends them both into a giggle fit.

✧✧✧

While they are waiting to be called for the results, Harry’s mind is elsewhere this time– on micro-analysing all his interactions with Louis throughout the day. The man himself has gone off to chat with Liam and Zayn since Harry had taken his leave to use the washroom. The morning had started with Louis making innuendos at him and ended with him quite possibly feeling uncomfortable when Harry had clutched his hand a bit too long. Maybe Louis hadn’t been making innuendos specifically at Harry and he is just an innuendo kinda guy. His sister is the same; finding innuendos in anything and everything. It had made for some very perplexing conversations that had left Gemma laughing and Harry wondering what hilarious thing had been said until he was old enough to understand.

What had he been thinking? Clutching Louis' hand like that? Louis had probably just grabbed it out of excitement, seeing their surprise come to life. Why did Harry have to keep holding on to it? Hadn’t he already creeped Louis out enough last night with his staring? Stupid, stupid Harry!

Harry is forced to stop berating himself when they are called to line up for the results.. He goes and takes his place behind Louis in the single file of all the contestants. Harry is still a little in his head, but with how their review with the judges had gone, he is about sure that at the very least, they are not going home. So he lets himself disconnect a little. He is proven right when Zayn and Liam are declared the winners and Helen and Krystle are sent home. The boys get praised for consistency and harmony between their two looks as well as the overall design while the girls’ designs had totally fallen flat on the runway and little about them had impressed the judges.

They take their exit and Louis pats both the boys on the back in congratulations, or smacks them more like it as both of them wince yet laugh. Harry figures they must be used to it. Louis is loud and boisterous, putting his arms around both their necks and calling for celebrations for his friends all the way to the villa. Harry can’t help but be infected by his energy. No one is immune to Louis Tomlinson’s enthusiasm.

They go up to their rooms to change before they meet back downstairs for dinner. Harry takes a little extra time, needing it to get his overwhelm under control and centre himself before he joins everyone else for dinner. He breathes in deep and compartmentalises everything that was making him overwhelmed aka his interactions with Louis and puts it into a box locked at the back of his mind. He is not going to dwell on it. He is just going to focus on the now and not over-analyse every single thing after it happens.

He changes into a simple grey t-shirt and black sweatpants and exits his room. When he descends the stairs, he glances at the balcony and finds everyone outside. He quickly grabs his dinner and walks over to join them. All his breath gets knocked out when he opens the sliding doors and sees Louis standing, in middle of animatedly telling a story dressed in f*cking light blue shorts and a white t-shirt. What’s worse is that he stops talking when Harry steps foot outside and now everyone has turned their heads towards him, witnessing the meltdown he is having in that very moment looking nay gawking at Louis with his wide eyes and open mouth.

“You okay Harry?” Louis asks, looking a mix between amused and concerned which is what snaps him out of the trance.

“Yeah…yeah sorry.” He blushes and promptly takes a seat beside a snickering Jade, elbowing her to make it stop.

He begs the powers that be to not let any more attention be called to him and by some miracle they listen as Louis continues with his story of which Harry does not register a single word. He is busy staring at Louis’ thighs that are now directly in his line of vision. He wants to bite them. Who the f*ck allowed him to dress like that for f*cking dinner? Does he think he is f*cking modelling for Adidas or something? Harry is annoyed at how crazy the shorts make him. They are short .

When Louis sits down, likely finished with his story, ( Harry doesn’t know! He wasn’t listening! ) the shorts ride up, revealing even more of those enticing thighs. Louis tucks the bottom of the shorts under him, effectively hiding his view which makes Harry bite his lip, barely keeping himself from moaning. He internally sighs and forces himself to look up only to find Louis’ eyes already on him. sh*t! He probably caught Harry ogling his thighs. He raises an eyebrow in question and Harry could not have controlled the blush that spreads on his cheeks even if he wanted to. How much more can he screw up? Seriously? Throughout the rest of the dinner, he is determined to keep his eyes on his dinner plate or on anyone else besides Louis and it is f*cking difficult when he is sitting right across him. But Harry still does it. He should be f*cking rewarded for that.

As soon as he is finished eating, he stands up. He figures he might have been a little abrupt with his movements with the way everyone is staring at him.

“Are you okay Harry?” He has been asked that twice this evening but this time the question comes from Liam who looks genuinely concerned.

“Yeah, yeah. Just tired. I think I’m gonna go to bed.” He needs to get out of there. “Congratulations you guys!” He addresses Liam and Zayn and determinedly does not look at Louis as he waves everyone good night and scurries inside. He deposits his used plate and practically runs upstairs, not only shutting but locking his door before falling face first onto the bed. He groans loud into the mattress before shutting his eyes, willing sleep to take him. Tomorrow could not come sooner.

Chapter 5: Underwear

Chapter Text

Louis is leaning against the kitchen island sipping his coffee with Liam when he catches Harry coming downstairs from the corner of his eye. He bites his lip in apprehension. He has been worried about Harry ever since he left dinner so abruptly. He hadn’t engaged much in conversation either. Maybe going to Harry’s room had been too much but he had to propose the idea of them doing the surprise to him. Yet he could have in fact waited till the morning but then hugging him on top of that? Maybe that had been too much, especially when Louis had already jumped him once? And then clutching his hand like he had? Maybe, no, definitely Louis was being too obvious and he needed to reign himself in.

“Hey Louis. Liam.” Harry greets, picking up his own plate for breakfast.

“Hey. Sleep well last night?” Louis replies, trying to gauge his mood.

“Yeah. You?” He smiles, putting two boiled eggs on his plate as Louis carefully watches on, looking for any sign of last night’s unease.

“Yupp.”

They make inane small talk while eating their food until it is time to go. Louis is relieved that Harry does not seem like a spooked animal anymore that is about to run off any moment. He even laughs at Louis’ stupid quips while Liam merely rolls his eyes at them. Those moments make Louis feel like a kid flying high on the swing. Harry’s laughter is the best drug.

They reach the studio, ready for their next challenge. Louis is feeling really lucky having made it this far in the competition and he knows he could not have done it without Harry. Having made it halfway through, he now more than ever wants to make it all the way to the end. Going home at this stage would be like queueing up for hours to get your hands on the most gorgeous fabric at slashed prices and then having it snatched from right under your nose. He really really does not want that.

Tan and Alexa once again enter with a flurry of energy and greetings as all the contestants gather together to stand in front of them.

“We have only five teams left and the heat is about to get turned up.” Alexa makes a motion to mimic turning a dial.

“Your next challenge is going to be all about… underwear!” Tan pauses to let the words sink and Louis is a little daunted. Creating good underwear for women is challenging due to there being so many different body types and having grown up with four sisters, he knows how important it is to do justice in terms of comfort and support.

“We want to see lingerie. We’re talking sexy, fully conceptualised designs. A matching bra and underwear set isn’t gonna be enough. Neither is a pair of simple boxer shorts.” Alexa explains.

“We’ll be asking you to make two looks, designing for one male model and one female model and you can dress them however you want.”

The judges announce the guest judge for the challenge – the supermodel and former Victoria’s Secret angel, Adriana Lima and reveal their closet which has been stocked full with trims and embellishments fit for their challenge. They are given their go ahead and as soon as Harry and him reach their desk, they start brainstorming.

“What if we play with gender boundaries in this one? Like it doesn't have to be a lacy bra and panty for the woman and a monochrome boxer for the man.” Harry proposes, once again with his pencil poised on their sketchbook.

Louis nods with a contemplative look. “What do you think about doing some sort of boxer-y pant for the woman but in lace and a bit butch but also feminine?”

Harry gets that excited gleam in his eye that says he is very much onboard with that plan and immediately starts sketching. Building on the same concept, they sketch out their look for the man– silk shirt and shorts along with a lacy camisole underneath which is going to be inspired by a woman’s camisole set. To the woman’s look, they add on a velvet dress with a see through window that will show the underwear underneath.

“With this challenge, we are thinking about how we can mix gender boundaries and how womenswear can inspire menswear and menswear can inspire womenswear.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

“Hopefully, we put out a good example of how clothes exist outside of the gender binary and they’re just clothes meant to have fun with.”

–Harry Styles, England

“Have you ever made a bra?” Louis asks once they are done with the sketches of both the outfits.

“Umm… no. But I have done womenswear obviously so I somewhat have an idea of the structure and fit?” Harry says a little unsure.

“Hmm… the fit and support are extra important here because it is for an extended size lady so just be careful with that.” Louis stresses imploring Harry to keep that in mind.

Harry nods and they go to the closet to fetch the fabrics and return with a beautiful baby blue roll of silk for the male model’s outer fit and darker, midnight blue lace and net for the camisole matching the colour to the fabrics of the woman’s undergarments.

Louis gets started on the shirt and shorts while Harry begins with the gown for their female model. They work in a comfortable silence and more often than not Louis’ gaze wanders off towards Harry. He looks gorgeous with his head bent over sketching the pattern pieces while an errant curl falls out of his bun to frame his face. The way he has rolled up the sleeves of his shirt to show off his tattooed arms makes him look insanely hot. While Louis is no stranger to tattoos, having more than thirty on his own body; on Harry, they somehow seem like beautiful pieces of art decorating his arm whereas his own arm looks like a sketchpad with random doodles. He likes it that way but suffice to say Harry’s make him a little crazy. His shirt is unbuttoned to his chest showing off yet another sexy part of him made even sexier by the birds tattooed on his pecs. Louis would not mind giving those a lick. Just a little taste. He can’t see beyond that but he knows there is another tattoo hiding there with the lines that are peeking out. He desperately wants to know what it is.

He is not distracted that much by Harry. He still focuses on his work. With only a couple hours left till the end of day one, he is done cutting out the pieces for the shirt and the shorts, ready to move on to sewing them. Just as he is picking up his pieces to have a seat at the sewing machine, Harry calls him over to the other side of the table where he is standing in front of the dress form.

“Imagine it a bit longer and then imagine this window.” Harry gestures to the hem of the dress he has got pinned up.

“I think this black is nice. It could work.” Without thinking, Louis leans over Harry to pin up the fabric that has come loose on the other side of the dress form’s waist. It is then that he catches a whiff of a flowery scent mixed with the musk of sweat coming from Harry and his brain freezes while his heart jolts in his chest. He quickly pins the fabric and takes a step back, willing himself not to actually sniff Harry like he wants to. When he looks up at Harry, he finds his eyes wide and cheeks rosy. sh*t! Louis just sputters and goes back to the other side of the table while Harry nods and turns his head to face the dress form. He gulps and desperately tries to forget how his co*ck had twitched at the barest inhale of Harry’s intoxicating scent. Could he be more embarrassing?

He throws himself into making the garments, focusing on the movement of the needle piercing the fabric and threading the two pieces together. It brings a sense of serenity in him and it is only when he moves on to meticulously cutting the lace and net for the camisole, does his mind completely betray him again by planting in images of Harry in lacy lingerie in his head. He feels hot under the collar, warmth running from the tips of his ears to the ends of his toes; his co*ck letting him know how much it approves the idea. Louis feels mortified at his body’s reactions like he is some horny teenager looking at his first p*rn magazine. He blows out a deep sigh and shakes his head to rid himself of the titillating images. Get a grip, Tomlinson!

He carries on cutting the lace keeping his mind laser focused on what his hands are doing to avoid his it going rogue once again. Soon the countdown till the end of day one starts and he pins up all his pieces on the dress form and watches Harry do the same before they take a step back, done for the day.

Once back at the villa, he runs off to take a shower before dinner, the warmth from his errant thoughts still lingering. He turns on the shower at a moderate temperature and strips his clothes before hopping in. He bends his head, letting the cool water run over his back while he closes his eyes and wills this frantic energy to leave his body.

Instead of cooling him down, standing there naked under the water has the opposite effect and the thoughts of Harry in lacy lingerie return fullforce, raising goosebumps all over his skin and increasing his arousal tenfold. A moan he is helpless to control spills out of his mouth as blood rushes to his co*ck. He squeezes his eyes shut trying to focus on the opposite of Harry in lingerie, which is like his grandma in lingerie. Oh my God! No! He is horrified as soon as the thought pops into his head. He cannot be thinking about his nan while naked and half hard. He takes a deep breath and resigns himself to his fate. He is really about to wank to the thoughts of a man in lingerie he met, not even ten days ago. But he is not going to enjoy it! He is not! He is going to be clinical and quick.

He whimpers as grabs his dick, moistened with water and starts to pull in quick motions. Before he knows it, his mind conjures up images of broad shoulders looking delicate in lacy straps, long, curly hair caressing them like a soft breeze blowing over flowers in a garden. Pecs, the perfect size for his palms and inked with tattoos framed by a sweetheart neckline of lace enhancing their shape leading down to a perfect waist just calling his hands to grab it and leave indents for days. Louis’ breath quickens thinking of running his palms over that gorgeous body, followed by his mouth, worshipping it for hours, making a mess of its owner, reducing him to writhing at his mercy. He runs his palm over the head of his dick, imagining the most perfect pair of lips mouthing at it as sinful green eyes, full of mischief gaze up at him.

He turns his head into the bicep of his other arm, trying to muffle the moan threatening to spill and tightens his grip, creating a twisting motion as he pulls, inching ever closer to his release. He sees that wicked tongue peek out in his imagination and take a lick at the precum now steadily dribbling from his co*ck like he has seen it so many times during dinner before Harry puts the food in his mouth. Though in the visuals playing in his mind, he puts in something very different. He grunts, steadily chasing his pleasure, caressing the sensitive bundle of nerves residing in his head with the tip of his thumb on every downward stroke. Just then, the final visual that topples him over the edge pops into his head. He pictures Harry’s very hard co*ck covered in lace, angry and throbbing where he is still kneeling in front of Louis, just waiting its turn for release. He comes with a long, drawn out groan, biting his shoulder, as spurts of come fall onto the tiled floor, being washed out by the shower water.

He slowly calms down his breathing, the reality of what he has just done setting in on him. He hangs his head groaning deep, this time in frustration at his actions. He will never be able to look at Harry the same, knowing what he has done. Not that he wasn’t moving ever closer to the line between platonic and not but now he leaped across it, full force. He huffs and finally gets to the real purpose of a shower, quickly cleaning himself and getting out, hurrying downstairs lest everyone starts wondering about his whereabouts.

He pulls up the sleeves of his hoodie that he had donned, feeling a little chilly after his prolonged shower as he rushes down the stairs, two at a time. He takes a peek at the deck and finds everyone already out there. f*ck! He dreads making an abrupt entrance like Harry had last night. Wait… Could Harry have been late due to the same reason Louis was? No! He is not going there! He does not need thoughts of Harry wanking in the shower, all wet and horny while he sits down with everyone.

He steps out with his full dinner plate, “Hello everyone! Started without me I see.” He sniffs exaggeratedly, hoping to stave off the looks and questions he would have inevitably gotten.

“Well, we were not the ones taking our merry time coming downstairs.” Liam rolls his eyes as everyone snickers.

“I wanted to feel fresh before having my meal. Sue me Liam.” He retorts as he takes a seat beside him, rightfully pinching the man for his sass.

Liam swats his hand away with a scowl as everyone goes back to the conversation which was debating if tequila or vodka gave the worst hangovers. Tequila, obviously. Louis had once gotten drunk on tequila shots and danced only in his boxers at his first uni party while standing on a table he had specially dragged onto the middle of the makeshift dance floor. He had then proposed to seven different guys, still half naked while Zayn and Liam had recorded every second of it, giggling behind the camera, drunk themselves. Louis had not remembered a single moment when he had woken up the next day after blacking out for sixteen hours straight. He had not drunk a single drop of tequila since.

Needless to say, he recounts the story out loud making his argument in favour of tequila being a demonic spirit. He is almost at the end, reiterating his point when his eyes fall upon Harry and a blush creeps up his neck, making him lose his train of thought as he falters his sentences and spits out his conclusion. He quickly pulls his gaze away from Harry’s face that had looked as if he had been hanging onto every single word coming out of Louis’ mouth before he had started sputtering. Liam, the sh*thead, obviously notices and nudges Louis with his elbow.

“Are you two taking turns acting weird during dinner?”

“Shut up!” Louis grits out, glaring at him with his side eye.

The conversation continues, moving on to different topics until everyone is done with their food and start to declare their plans to retire for the night, starting with Jade who is then immediately accompanied upstairs by Harry. Ultimately, Louis too takes his leave but instead of his room, decides to go to the roof to have a smoke. Sitting under the night sky, in serene silence he smokes his cigarette before heading off to his room. He falls asleep as soon as his head touches the pillow, his dreams plagued by luscious curls and deep green eyes.

✧✧✧

When they arrive at the studio the next day, Harry is undoubtedly nervous. Today, he has to make the bra for their female model which he has never done in his life. He is stressed about getting the fit right and what would happen if he fails at that. He is going to apply all the knowledge he has with making dresses, hoping that is enough to tide them over. He had confided in Louis about his anxieties earlier in the morning and he had done his best to assuage them, reassuring Harry that they can do it, that he can do anything he puts his mind to. Harry had believed him in that moment but as they had taken their place backstage, waiting for their cue to enter, those worries had returned to the back of his mind. He takes a deep breath as they all start entering the backstage area to meet the judges where they once again remind everyone that they have five hours left till the runway show and their models would be arriving shortly before they are allowed to start their work.

Straightaway, Harry moves to sit on the sewing machine with the slip dress he had been working on yesterday. He needs to finish that before he can start working on the bra and the boxers.

Harry starts to panic a little going through the mental checklist of the things he has yet to do.

“Louis, I don’t think I’ll be able to finish this.” His voice comes out strangled even though he tries really hard not to let his panic show.

“You will. You will definitely be able to finish this.” Louis says with absolute conviction like he has zero doubt in his mind while Harry can’t get rid of his.

“I really don’t think so, Lou. I’ve got to do a bra and a boxer.”

“I’m gonna do the boxer. I’m almost done here and I can also help with the other bit. Just take a deep breath, we can do this, yeah?”

Harry does just that, breathing in deep before he answers. “Yeah,” this time with a little more belief.

Harry is very thankful for Louis at that moment. Whenever he’s ridden with doubt or insecurities thinking, ‘oh we’ve bitten off too much’ or ‘we can’t possibly do this’, Louis is always like, ‘no, we can do it; we have to’ and his determination pushes Harry harder and makes him believe too, that yeah maybe they can do it.

They work in tandem, as fast as they can, trying to get done as much as they can before their models arrive. Once Harry clasps the bra on the dress form, he steps back to take a look at it and dare he say, it looks good. He feels proud at his first attempt. He calls Louis over to show him and fiddles with his lip in anticipation as he steps back to wait for his reaction.

“This looks great.” Louis’ voice is full of amazement and it makes Harry grin. “This is like a real bra.”

Harry honks out a laugh and falls into giggles at Louis’ comment as the man too joins in. Harry is extremely relieved. All he hopes now is that it fits their model well. He doesn't have to wait much to find that out as soon, the models arrive and they meet Ava with the prettiest big, dark eyes, deep brown skin and a shaved head accompanied by Remi who is a little shorter than Ava, sporting a straight fringe of black hair and a lean figure.

They hold up long fabric roles as makeshift curtains for the models to dress behind and once they do, Harry starts checking the fit on Ava and Louis does the same with Remi.

“Do you feel supported? Do you feel good?” Harry asks and Ava wiggles her chest to check before nodding in affirmation. He exhales a sigh of relief, feeling an enormous amount of pressure lift off of him.

“In terms of fit, actually everything worked out really well. We were nervous because neither Louis nor I have done underwear before so we weren’t sure if that was gonna work.”

–Harry Styles, England

The models leave to get their hair and makeup done while Harry and Louis work to finish up all the pieces. It’s an hour to the runway when they do their final fitting to see how all the pieces have come together and check for any changes that need to be made.

“Yeah this is good ‘cause you can see the boxer from the back.” Louis says, referring to the dress on Ava.

“Yeah. A little peek-a-boo moment.”

Harry is doing the final pinning on Ava, making sure everything stays in place on the runway when the sixty second countdown starts. Louis exclaims and quickly fetches the black pumps, putting them at Ava’s feet. They send them off with good lucks and join the rest of the contestants to watch the show.

Ava and Remi are first to step out on the runway as the backdrop depicts a wall exploding along with flame machines going off on the walkway. The runway is designed to be as hot and steamy as their theme. It looks spectacular when their two models walk out and Harry feels giddy watching their vision of fluidity come to life on the runway. All the designers present great designs and he knows this one is going to be a close one to call.

They all cheer the end of another great show before it is time for the judges to review their designs up close.

Harry and Louis wait along with their models, giving them a quick once over to check if everything's in place before the judges arrive. Alexa and Elizabeth Stewart approach them with smiles and greetings.

“This was the first time either of you made lingerie so tell us about your looks.” Alexa asks.

“We wanted to bring forth fluidity and play with gender binaries in this challenge so for her we created a matching bra and boxer set…” Harry starts explaining before Elizabeth pipes in.

“Can we look at that? We didn’t get a chance to see it on the runway.”

Harry helps Ava lift up the hem of the dress so the judges can take a look at the boxers.

“Oh my god they’re beautiful!”

“Those are great.” Alexa joins in on the praise.

“So it’s like a mix between sporty and feminine; boyish and non-boyish.” Louis describes.

“On the men’s look, can we see the camisole underneath?”

“So with this, who’s to say that a man can’t wear lace?” Louis prefaces before helping Remi take off the shirt.

“I think it’s awesome.” Alexa admires.

“You did a great job.”

“What you’ve done so well here is that balance between masculine and feminine and how it has played out.” Harry is trying very hard not to let his grin split his face in two. It means the world to him that their vision has translated so well with the judges. Bringing out fluidity in clothes is something he is extremely passionate about and having brought that forward through something he has never made before makes his heart soar.

“I just wish we could see more of those knickers because they’re so brilliant.” Alexa adds.

“And a pop of the baby blue on her would’ve been amazing too, to connect to the two looks.” With that last remark, the judges bid their farewell and as they leave, Louis and Harry embrace their two models in thanks.

When it is time for the results, Harry gets a heavy foreboding feeling in the pit of his stomach. He feels unnerved stepping onto the stage. He crosses his hands at the back, fisting his palms, willing this feeling to go away.

“The talent in this room, at this point, is undeniable but only one team can be the winner and that team is…” Alexa builds up the suspense before announcing the winner. “Michael and Isaac.”

As applause breaks out for the pair, Harry too joins in, pushing through his unease to stay in the spirit of the competition. They’ve won their first challenge and Harry is happy for them. Their design had followed a multi-coloured, stained glass pattern on a high waisted panty and bondage inspired bra for the woman and a brief paired with a sleeved muzzle for the man. Harry had loved how very, very gay and colourful it had looked on the runway.

The dreaded moment arrives when Tan starts to announce the bottom two teams and Harry’s body clams up with tension once again. His heart is thudding a mad rhythm in his chest and all he can do is chant in his head, please let us be safe, please let us be safe.

“The first team that I would like to step forward tonight is…” Harry wants to scream at Tan for his deliberate pauses. “Niall and Perrie.”

Harry doesn’t even get a full moment’s respite before Tan announces the second team and his heart drops.

“Jade and Leigh-Anne.”

f*ck! f*ck! f*ck! This is not any better than him and Louis being at the bottom. sh*t! Even though he is not religious at all, in that moment, all he can think is that he should’ve prayed for his best friends too. Losing them at this stage would be losing his biggest support system and he knows how much this opportunity means for the two of them as well. They deserve to be here and they cannot be going home tonight. Harry crosses his fingers behind his back and waits with bated breath along with his friends.

“The team leaving us tonight is…” He can only cross his fingers tighter. “Jade and Leigh-Anne.”

Harry’s heart breaks for his friends and he purses his lips to prevent the tears from falling right there and then. He’s a fairly easy cryer so he can’t really keep them in but the least he can do is save face on camera.

“This was an amazing experience. Having the opportunity to experience this competition, with not one but two of my best friends has just been the best part really.” Jade says with emotion cracking up her voice, gesturing at Harry as she says the last part and he is powerless to stop the tears that silently fall from his eyes.

“I’m just so glad I did this with you. I couldn’t have seen myself doing it with anybody else.” Leigh says, her own eyes teary as the girls embrace and the judges give them their gratitude and goodbyes.

They all silently exit the stage and as soon as they are out of the spotlight, Harry hugs Jade tight, both of them sobbing into each other's shoulders.

“I am so sorry, love.” He opens one arm, beckoning Leigh to join in as well. “Ugh! But I hate you for leaving me so soon.” He groans, pulling his arms tighter around the two of them.

“Oh but we’re leaving you in really good hands.” Jade whispers into his ear, her voice taking a teasing lilt. “Really sexy, veiny hands. Like you once described.”

He pulls from the embrace, his face warm as he pouts. “I hate you.” He did not wax poetic about Louis' hands. He did not!

“So you’ve said.” Jade is now smirking, wiping her tears, as Harry feels the mood lighten.

“Come on now, wipe your tears. We’re gonna miss you and you’re gonna be smashing it after we leave. Having lost your biggest competition tonight after all.” Leigh pats his cheek with a wink as they embrace for one last time before the girls leave to say goodbye to everyone else and soon he is getting into the car without his two favourite people.

✧✧✧

Ever since they have gotten back, Harry has been looking down and subdued. Understandably so. If Louis had lost Zayn and Liam today, he would not have been in the best of moods either. But Louis hates seeing those dimples disappear from Harry’s face and his eyes losing their sparkle. They have been sitting on the deck with their full dinner plates for more than thirty minutes now and while the three of them have wiped their plates clean, Harry has yet to actually put any food in his mouth. They have all tried distracting him with anything and everything but the most they've gotten out of him is either a tight-lipped smile or a nod. Louis has shared worried glances with both Liam and Zayn multiple times now. Their circle does feel incomplete without the girls but Louis has a feeling that the bond they had all formed here is not one that is going to dwindle outside of the show.

Louis feels this all consuming urge to ease the boy’s pain, to cheer him up and see a smile back on his face. Jade had whispered, “take care of him” when they had hugged goodbye and he had promised her that he would. He very much intends to keep that promise. Louis doesn’t know how this curly-haired, bambi-legged man has come to mean so much to him in less than ten days but he has. He really has. And so Louis forms a plan in his head. One that is sure to put a smile on Harry’s face or at least he has faith that it will.

He quietly steps inside, giving looks to his friends telling them to stay put. He pads over to the kitchen. He wraps some garlic bread and a slice of pizza in some napkins (the dinner theme had been Italian tonight). He stands just on the threshold of the balcony and beckons Liam and Zayn to come inside.

“Harry, you wanna go inside?” Zayn gently asks him as Harry looks up.

“Yeah. I'm not really hungry.”

Louis steps aside as they all file in. He waits for Harry to keep his unfinished dinner plate in the kitchen before approaching him. He corners him just below the staircase.

“Hey Haz, you wanna come with me for a moment? I wanna show you something.” Using the nickname feels right as Louis asks his question in the gentlest voice possible.

Harry looks up at him for a moment, contemplating before something shifts in his eyes and he nods. “Yeah. Okay.”

Louis cheers mentally before gesturing at Harry to follow him upstairs. Once they reach the top of the staircase, Louis leads them both to the end of the hallway on the right instead of either of their rooms on the left.

“Where are we going?” Harry asks.

“Just trust me.”

When they reach the window to Louis’ special roof, he pops it open and crosses one leg over the ledge.

“Louis! What the f*ck are you doing?” Harry shrieks, grabbing his arm.

“Relax. There’s a platform just underneath. Wide enough for two people. Come on.” Louis soothes him as he puts his palm over Harry’s, squeezing it once in reassurance.

“Are you sure? This seems completely mental.”

“Just trust me.”

“You’re saying that a lot today.”

“Then maybe you ought to listen.” Louis smirks and climbs outside, perfectly landing on the platform, half of his torso still coming up over the window ledge.

“See, completely safe. Now hop over Harold, don’t be a chicken sh*t.” Louis tries to appeal to Harry’s competitive side and it works as the man rolls his eyes and gestures at Louis to move over.

It takes a little effort and a point where Harry gets stuck straddling the ledge, struggling to cross his other leg over but eventually he makes it down on the platform.

“You’re mad. I could’ve died!”

“I’m supposed to be the dramatic one Harold. You were not about to die.” Louis takes a seat with his legs hanging over the platform. “Are you just going to keep standing over my head the whole time?”

Harry crosses his arms with a huff but takes a seat.

“You look like a frog right now.”

“Have you brought me here to insult me all night?”

“Nah, not all night.” Louis nudges Harry with his shoulder, grinning extra hard just to be a little sh*t. “Look at the sky, Harold.”

Louis watches as Harry tilts his head up, the scowl still firmly in place on his beautiful lips. He thinks he is forever going to remember the moment a light breeze blew, ruffling Harry’s errant curls that had come loose from his bun while the scowl slowly melted from his face and a tranquil expression took over his features. The lines on his forehead disappeared like drawings on sand washed away by the waves. Slowly a small smile begins to form on his face as Harry closes his eyes and leans back, letting the cool air wash over him. Louis would dare not move his rapt gaze away from Harry. He was absolutely transfixed.

“You know it’s considered rude to stare.” A small smirk graces Harry’s lips, his eyes still shut as his voice startles Louis out of his reverie.

“You’re one to talk.”

Harry’s cheeks take on a rouge tint that he can spot even in the dark. The man truly blushes so very easily and Louis relishes whenever he’s the reason for it.

“Well, you can’t blame me too much.” His eyes are still closed, his arms and legs crossed while Louis’ gaze never wavers.

“Neither can you. Blame me, I mean.”

“Thank you for bringing me out here. I love night skies,” Harry says, slowly opening his eyes and meeting Louis’, his voice a mere whisper that Louis would have missed had they not been the only ones outside in the quiet of the night.

“There's a certain…”

“...serenity to them.” Harry finishes Louis' thought perfectly as he just smiles and nods while bending his right knee to rest his head over.

For a few minutes, all they do is smile and stare into each other’s eyes as if all the answers to all their questions lie in there. Maybe they do. Until Harry breaks the silence once again, though not really since his voice is still a mere whisper, just loud enough to travel across in the silence.

“I didn’t mean to be all moody, but it’s my best friend you know.”

“Hey, I get it. I probably would have had a similar reaction if Zee and Li would have been sent home. Though, far louder and snappier than yours, I would say.”

That gets a chuckle out of Harry. Louis feels his lips inadvertently stretch wide too.

“We met in New York two years ago. It was Fashion Week and Jade convinced me to bail out of this afterparty to have a Friends marathon with champagne in my hotel room. At first I looked at her like she was nuts for suggesting we miss out on such a great networking opportunity but then she’s such a ball of energy, you can’t say no to her and honestly, I had zero regrets. We’ve kind of been inseparable since.”

“I agree with her. I’ll take a hotel room Friends marathon with champagne any day over another tedious afterparty where you have to pretend to understand what an absolute nightmare it is to have to purchase another condo when you do not have enough space to store your persian rugs.”

Harry sputters out a laugh of disbelief, “What?”

“Yes, that is an actual conversation I once had.”

“Jesus Christ!” They both cackle at the hilarity of the uber rich being, that out of touch with reality.

The conversation never dulls from thereon. Harry even eats the food Louis had packed for him, his appetite having returned with the lightened mood. As Harry eats, they talk about everything, family, friends, lives back at home, their childhood, their fears, embarrassing moments, their dreams and plans after the competition. Louis realises conversation with Harry comes so easily. He opens up to the man like he hasn't opened up to anyone ever, certainly not anyone he has known for less than ten days. The more he knows about Harry, the more he feels himself click with him and wants to know even more.

Suddenly his eyes land on the watch tied on Harry's wrist and he gasps as he reads the time there.

“Holy sh*t, it’s past midnight!”

“What?” Harry eyes widen with disbelief and he whips his wrist over as if he thinks Louis is pulling a prank on him. “f*ck me! Where did the time go?”

Louis very pointedly ignores the first part of his statement. “Yeah. We've been here for more than three hours. That does not seem real.”

Harry shakes his head with a smile, still incredulous. “We should get back. Gotta wake up early tomorrow.”

Louis feels a little flash of disappointment at their time being cut short and mentally face palms himself for pointing out the time, but Harry is right. They do have to wake up early and they cannot be at anything but their absolute best for the first day of a challenge.

Louis pushes himself up in one go and climbs over the ledge, waiting for Harry. The other man puts his hands on the window ledge, trying to push himself up but just grunts unable to do so.

“Put one of your legs over the ledge when you push yourself up.”

Harry just nods and follows Louis' instructions. He boosts himself up with another grunt and this time manages to get one leg over the ledge but then he gets stuck just there hanging half over the window. Louis wants to laugh at how cute this lanky man looks as if he has never had to sneak out of windows in his entire life but he refrains knowing that will certainly not go over well with Harry.

“Here, I'll pull you in.”

Louis grabs onto Harry's arm and the one leg he has managed to get over the window and pulls. Harry's face has gone red from effort and he looks like a very adorable frog, pouting and puffing his face up.

They both grunt, and with a final pull, Louis manages to pull Harry in but when he does, Harry’s body falls right on top of him, toppling him over and he lands on his back with a huff with Harry lying right over him.

Louis takes a deep breath as once again their eyes lock, and as blue meets green, he feels time stop. Harry's face is hovering right over his, mere inches between them. The man makes no move to get off him and as his tongue glides over his lips, slicking them up with spit, Louis' eyes trace the very path. He has no idea who moves but suddenly they're a lot closer, even more than before, the tiniest movement capable of connecting their lips. He closes his eyes, feeling the barest brush of Harry's lips but before he can push himself up for more, he hears the click of a door down the hallway and apparently so does Harry. He feels the weight of the man disappear, leaving him cold on the floor. He scrambles to pull himself up, standing to meet Harry.

“Umm… we should uh go to our rooms. Sleep! Yeah, goodnight Louis.”

Harry scurries down the hallway and into his room before Louis can even react. Louis stands there a bit gobsmacked, wondering what the f*ck just happened before he too retreats to his room, shaking his head.

Chapter 6: Rock

Chapter Text

Louis cannot stop thinking about last night. How Harry and him had almost kissed. How he’d been so close to tasting those luscious, pretty pink lips like he has dreamt to since he first saw them. But Harry had pulled away. In fact, he had run, just like he had done before and Louis was confused.

There were times when Louis felt like he wasn’t alone in his feelings. The times when Louis would catch Harry staring at him just a little bit too long and he got a feeling that the thoughts going through Harry's head weren't entirely appropriate. Best were the times when Harry knew he had been caught and would turn away with the most adorable blush taking over his face. The times when he’d be recounting some insane story and Harry would look at him so attentively, like he was hanging on to his every word as if Louis had hung the sun, the moon and the stars. The times when they’d get caught up staring into each other’s eyes, losing all sense of time for a few moments, sending shivers up Louis’s spine, shortening his breath until one of them would look away, feeling all too much. Louis relished in those moments because they gave him hope that maybe Harry too felt something, that maybe, Harry too wanted him in the ways that Louis wanted Harry. But now he felt that maybe not. Maybe it had all been in his head. Mere wishful thinking.

It could also be that maybe, Harry had thought someone was coming and that's why he had run. There were so many maybes that Louis was going crazy speculating. He groans into his hands before throwing the covers off of him and getting out of the bed with a sigh. He is just going to observe Harry today to find out whether it is all in his head or that Harry does in fact feel the same but still ran away. In which case, he’s going to find out why.

He stretches, popping his back with satisfaction before he starts getting ready to go downstairs. When he enters the kitchen to get his breakfast, he takes a look around to see if he can spot Harry, but the man is nowhere to be found, not even on the deck outside. Louis fills up his plate with a bagel, some cream cheese on the side to spread later, a baked potato and some scrambled eggs before he moves out to the deck where he looks out for Harry’s appearance. He is finished with his meal yet Harry has still not come downstairs. Louis has half a mind to go upstairs and look for him but he resists, fearing he might be coming on too strong if he does. So he waits. He waits and Harry still doesn’t show up and soon the cars have arrived and it is time to leave. Louis is seriously beginning to worry now. Is Harry even okay? Has no one else noticed that he’s missing?

Just as he is weighing his choices to either create a ruckus asking around in panic or say f*ck it and run upstairs to drag Harry down himself, he spots the man sprinting down the stairs. Harry is pulling up the sleeves of his green jacket that he has paired with beige corduroy trousers and a white t-shirt with some sort of slogan written on it in red. Louis gets no chance to approach him as Harry actually runs past them and gets straight into the car with Michael, Isaac, and Perrie, like his tail is on fire. Louis is just standing there blinking in a state of shock that he shares with Liam, Zayn, and Niall who give him an eerily identical look, raising their eyebrows in question. Louis is f*cking pissed now as they all get into the other waiting car. That bastard strategically waited to come downstairs till the last possible moment and took Niall’s place in the car(not that it was a preset, just understood), all so he could avoid Louis. What a f*cking child!

They are adults for f*cks sake. They should be able to have a mature conversation, even if it was an awkward one about how they almost kissed. If Harry doesn’t feel the same, it is fine, he can tell it to his face and Louis would back off without any hard feelings. It’s going to hurt a little but it is what it is. No one can force feelings. What he is not going to do is let Harry avoid him like a chicken sh*t, skipping meals and holing up in his room and then running to where they’re going to be surrounded by cameras with no choice but to pretend everything is normal. No. He is going to have to admit it to Louis’ face whether he reciprocates Louis’ feelings or not .

A plan takes root in his mind as their car weaves through the roads of Los Angeles, void of too much traffic early in the morning. Louis is going to gauge what Harry feels for him, if anything at all, and see how he reacts to Louis’ presence. He knows he can’t have built up those moments all in his head so today, he is going to observe Harry’s reaction and see if his hypothesis was true after all.

As they are lined up backstage, waiting for instructions to enter, Louis judges Harry.

“Quite in a rush this morning, weren't you?” His voice comes out a bit snarkier than he expected and Harry whips his face to him looking like a deer caught in headlights.

“Umm…” As Harry flounders for an explanation, Louis barrages on.

“Or maybe you have been since last night.” Guess he is more annoyed than he thought.

Harry's eyes bug out even more (if that was even possible) and his whole face flushes bright red. Before he gets a chance to respond, they're given their cue to enter.

“Let's just focus on the challenge.” That is the last thing he says to Harry before they start moving.

Maybe he shouldn't have said anything before their challenge as it might make things tense between them once more. But then again, he has never been known to keep his mouth shut. If they could work together while wanting to punch each other’s faces, he has faith they can power through whatever this is. He can see Harry throwing him nervous glances every other second through his peripheral vision but now he is the one pointedly avoiding the man now that the cameras are rolling. He doesn't want to become entertainment fodder when he is here to showcase his designing skills.

The judges enter hand in hand, Alexa donning a long leather dress and Tan in a black leather jacket over a cheetah print blouse and skinny jeans.

Immediately Niall’s voice pipes up, “Oh! Is it leather?” upon seeing them. They all gather in front of the judges and having worked with the fabric already, Louis thinks Harry and him would be in a very comfortable position if it indeed is leather.

“Good morning you guys. Welcome back to your home away from home.” Tan’s bubbly voice is met with chuckles.

“Today’s challenge is all about…Rock!” Alexa announces and everything from excited gasps to pained winces sound through their group. Louis falls into the former category.

Rock has just so many possibilities. There’s punk, there’s grunge, there’s alternative, there’s glam and it’s not just music genres, rock is about attitude. Louis is prickling with excitement thinking of all the directions they can go with this one. Music, specifically rock music, is his other love after fashion. Live concerts make him feel so alive and he can’t wait to incorporate that love into his clothes.

“Rock and Roll is not afraid of experimentation and neither is fashion. It’s loud, crazy, rebellious, rambunctious. It’s even a little bit dirty and grimy. Just how I like it.”

“For this challenge, we’d like to see designs that really embrace this energy.”

They once again have to design two looks, one for a male and one for a female model, dressing them however they want. The judges announce their guest judge for the challenge– Christopher Kane and reveal the rock-n-roll-esque closet full to the brim with leather, grommet, studs and skulls.

They are given the go ahead and they convene at their designated desk. Harry still looks apprehensive and Louis is pissed and annoyed but they need to focus on the challenge.

“Louis…” Harry begins in a timid voice but before he can continue, Louis holds up a hand to stop him.

“We’ll talk afterwards. Right now, I need your focus on this challenge.”

Harry nods and takes a seat, ready with a pencil poised on a fresh page in their sketchbook.

“Soooo, rock…” The idiot has a cheeky smile on his face and Louis can’t hold back his chuckle even as he rolls his eyes. Harry is so annoying!

“When I think of rock, I think of live music. Concerts. That’s where it truly comes alive doesn’t it?”

“I remember my first concert. It was just something else travelling alone to Manchester for the first time to see The Script. Well, almost alone. My sister was with me.” Harry’s smile is wistful like he can picture himself in the room but Louis’ mind is still stuck on Manchester and The Script.

“Which year was this?” He tries to keep his voice as calm as possible but inside, Louis feels Harry’s answer has a very real possibility of causing an explosion inside him.

“Umm…2009?”

“What the actual f*ck? I was there too!”

“What?” Harry’s eyes bug out as he looks to be falling on the same wavelength of emotions flowing through Louis.

“Yeah mate, that’s… that’s mental.” Louis shakes his head, still in disbelief. He is really not ready to think of the f*cking implications.

A flicker of something passes through Harry’s face and for a moment it looks like he’s going to say something but then he just rapidly blinks as if to talk himself out of it.

“We should talk about the designs.” Louis raises an eyebrow at Harry’s abrupt change of topic that Harry determinedly ignores. “You were saying concerts, yeah? We should really take concerts as inspiration.”

Louis narrows his eyes but follows Harry’s segue. “I was quite into collecting concert tickets as mementos but these days everything is f*cking online. Anyway, I was thinking of leather scraps and then we can add them on top of the garment like a collection of ticket stubs that’s like cascading, quite heavy and full.”

“Oh I like that!”

They build up the man’s look based on the idea as Harry begins sketching. They are going to dress their model in a navy blue wool top and bottom with leather safety-pinned ticket stubs.

“For the woman, I’m thinking, an oversized coat.” Harry looks up at him with his tongue digging into his cheek in thought.

“What are you thinking in terms of fabric for that? Leather?”

“I mean, you know I’m all for the leather ‘cause I think it’s really emo.”

They sketch out the woman’s look and gather their fabrics before sitting down to sketch out the patterns. Louis subtly keeps glancing up at Harry because he can’t help himself, but nine times out of ten, he catches Harry staring right back at him. But the man averts his eyes every single time their eyes meet. He finds something unusually compelling about Harry in his ‘work-mode’ with his hair tied up in a bun, those slender neck muscles on display. More times than not, Louis gets the urge to either lick the area or dig his teeth in. Maybe he can do both, leaving little marks on that milky white skin. Today he has to resolve this… tension between them. One way or the other. Else he is just going to go mad fantasising about Harry.

Louis is deep into cutting their ticket stubs and attaching safety pins to them when Harry’s voice calls him.

“Lou… Sorry I meant Louis.” He looks adorably flustered at his slip.

“It’s alright. Lou’s fine. We’re friends, aren’t we?”

“Yeah. Friends.” Harry’s voice sounds pinched and Louis wants to inquire further but he realises they are surrounded by cameras and he refrains. Harry is so confusing, hot one minute, cold the other. On one hand he avoids Louis like the plague after their almost kiss, as if he wants to forget it even happened. On the other hand, he looks like he has swallowed a lemon at the idea of them being just friends. As if he wants to be more.

“What were you saying, love?”

“Oh. Umm… I just wanna make sure what we’re doing is rock and roll enough.”

“We’re doing a patchwork leather jacket. It’s really rock and roll. And we’ve got safety pins on it.” Louis holds up one of the finished ticket tabs. “It’s cute, no?”

“Yeah. Pretty.”

“We’d like to design these looks with a strong sense of craftsmanship.”

–Harry Styles, England

“We came up with this idea of making little leather ticket stubs that would then be pinned all over the looks.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

Louis gets sucked into his sewing, moving on to making the top and trousers after cutting out what he thinks are enough ticket stubs to create the cascading effect. His fingers feel cramped so he flexes them, releasing satisfactory pops. He knows he shouldn’t be doing that, having received enough reprimanding from his mum through the years but he can’t help it. The pops feel too satisfactory to give up.

“I can’t believe we’re doing a full panelled leather jacket.” Harry’s incredulous voice sounds immediately after their three hour warning.

“You have decided to do a very complicated jacket.”

“I didn’t think it was!”

“At what point did you not think?”

“Louis.” Harry sounds genuinely put off, stretching out his name with a pout on his face. Louis is helpless to the giggles that slip out of his mouth which only serve to deepen Harry’s pout. “I thought we were in this together.”

“I thought so too.” The comment just slips out of his mouth.

“We are.” Harry stresses, his voice surprisingly earnest as he implores into Louis’ eyes and suddenly it feels as if they are no longer talking about this jacket.

He holds Harry’s stare a moment longer before he nods. “I’ll… I’ll help you Harold. I’m here.”

Harry nods back and they once again go back to work, this time with Louis’ determination to talk it out afterwards, even more intensified.

“Leather is notoriously difficult to work with. You can’t unpick it because it leaves holes. It has to be right the first time or else you ruin the whole panel.”

–Harry Styles, England

Louis has just about finished the basic structure of the pants when the one hour warning sounds. Hearing the final hour-mark warning for the day always ignites a sense of urgency in Louis even if they are remarkable on time for a change. He knows they can’t slack off. This industry just doesn’t allow for it. Any number of things can go wrong at the last moment. Wardrobe malfunctions happen like delayed trains.

“Right. That's the jacket’s front.” Harry holds up the piece after a while.

“That looks nice.” Harry has joined two panels, one grey and one black to make the front. “God, it is big, isn't it?”

“Yeah. It's huge. I told you it was huge.”

Everything is coming along nicely for their challenge. Louis feels only a little bit of apprehension looking at all the loud and bold colours that the other contestants have chosen while they have gone for something subtle. Before he can worry too much, Alexa calls out the warning for the last ten minutes that they have left of day one.

They quickly put their names on all the things and pin everything on their dress forms for tomorrow. Especially with everything in separate pieces this time, they really don't want anything to get lost.

“Okay, tools down, everyone. The workday is over.” Alexa hollers and they all take a step back exhaling sighs of relief almost in unison.

“Your models will be here in the morning and so will we. Go home, catch some Z’s and hopefully dream of winning. Good night to you all.” Tan takes Alexa’s arm and the judges exit hand in hand, everyone bidding them good night.

The contestants too start to exit and Louis’ mind wanders once again to his impending conversation with Harry. He starts to doubt if he should have even brought this up. What if the conversation goes south? The competition is still going on. They still have to perform as a team. What if they can't recover from this and Louis has ruined it for both of them? All because he, once again, could not keep his mouth shut and wanted something more. If history is anything to go by, that has always been his problem. Always wanting more, something real while his partners all wanted a body to warm their bed. Maybe Ray had been right when he'd called him needy. After all, it had only been eleven days since Harry and him had met. It did seem unusually early for him to catch feelings for someone yet it felt like he had known Harry forever. Especially after last night on the roof. It was not as if he was asking Harry for his hand in marriage, he wasn't even asking for Harry to be his boyfriend though that was definitely what he wanted. No, all he was asking for was a chance. A chance to explore this thing between them. Call him cliche but he felt a spark. A spark he is certain one doesn't feel often. He sure hasn't felt it before.

Zayn knocks his shoulder into him. “You okay?” It is then that Louis realises they are standing outside in front of the waiting cars. Somehow, while lost in his thoughts, he had gotten backstage, had his mic removed and was now ready to get into the cars. Harry is also giving him a look that somehow makes him look confused, concerned and hurt like a kicked puppy at the same time. Louis needs a moment to brace himself before he has this ‘talk’ with Harry so he grabs Zayn’s arm and pulls him behind himself to get into the car. He might’ve looked like an absolute lunatic to Harry but well, small sacrifice so he doesn’t look like a lovesick, blubbering moron later. Harry probably got the hint to stay away as Liam and Niall climb in next.

“Hey man, is everything okay between you and Harry? If you don’t mind me asking, that is.” Niall asks, fastening the seatbelt of the passenger seat.

“Harry?”

“Yeah. It’s just that he ran to get away this morning and now you did the same. I assumed it was about each other.”

Louis exhales a deep sigh. “You’re right. It is. I mean meeting on a reality show is a weird enough situation as it is and then being teammates on top of that. I don’t know, it’s a bit much. Trying to navigate all of that while maintaining face in front of the camera and not letting it interfere with your performance. Sorry, don’t mean to dump this all on you.”

“Oh! I’m in the same boat, buddy.” Niall lets out a somewhat self deprecating laugh.

“Wait, what?” Three voices cry in unison as Niall looks a bit startled at the sudden volume.

Louis looks over at Zayn and Liam beside him to find the two of them leaning forward with bugged eyes, probably just like him.

“You and Perrie?” Liam manages to ask amidst their shock.

“Yeah.” Niall’s cheeks pinken a little and he turns to stare out the window. “I mean, it’s a little complicated. She thinks starting a relationship now would be a recipe for disaster and that feelings for someone you meet on a reality show are probably just a product of proximity.” Niall sounds more downtrodden with every word he utters.

“Do you think that’s true?” Louis asks cautiously. Perrie’s fears suddenly influencing his own.

“Not for me, no. I know my feelings for her are real or at least I think I do. Obviously, I can’t guarantee it won’t go to sh*t ‘cause that’s the risk with every relationship but not because I met her at a reality show. I think my feelings would not have changed had I met her at a park or something. I don’t know, I can’t really explain it but like if you know–”

“– you know.” Louis finishes the sentence wistfully.

“Yeah.” Niall’s smile is soft and Zayn and Liam are passing weird looks between each other which means they’ve got their weird telepathic communication going on. Most probably about him, like it always is. Louis mentally rolls his eyes.

“Thanks Nialler.” Louis smiles and sits back.

“So what’re you gonna do now?” Zayn asks.

“Try to talk. Not much else I can do right?”

Just then the car comes to a stop as they arrive at the villa. Louis takes a deep breath before stepping out behind Zayn. He is not going to let Harry avoid him, nor is he going to do that. They are going to talk like the adults that they are. Harry’s car hasn’t arrived yet but Louis figures they can’t be that far behind and waits in the foyer. He is not going to give himself the chance to lose his nerve.

“You gonna be okay?” Liam asks as they make their way inside.

“Yeah. I’m gonna wait for Harry here. Hopefully we’ll both join you in a bit for dinner.”

“Good luck, bro.” Zayn and then Liam give him hugs before they go ahead.

Louis doesn’t have to wait long before the car carrying the rest of the contestants pulls into the driveway. He takes deep breaths to keep himself calm. Harry steps out, his bun now untied, long tresses of curly hair falling over his shoulders. Louis really wants to have a chance to run his hands through them.

Louis is a little hidden behind the entrance wall so Harry hasn’t really spotted him yet, giving him the perfect opportunity to take in the man. Harry looks not much dissimilar to himself when he stepped out of the car– a little downtrodden and he’s looking around for someone. Louis dares to hope that it is him. Just then, Perrie rounds the car and pulls Harry into a hug, whispering something in his ear while he nods. She leaves him with a kiss on the cheek. He wasn’t aware they were that close. Louis narrows his eyes and waits for Harry to make his way inside.

Harry is the last to step into the foyer and as soon as he does, Louis grabs his hand and drags him upstairs. He is not going to let either of them chicken out of the conversation. Harry doesn’t protest and comes rather willingly. Maybe he too wants to clear it up, once and for all. Louis leads them to his room. They need privacy and he doesn’t trust Harry to climb out on the roof right now. He pulls Harry into the room and shuts the door behind them. He takes a deep breath before turning around to face Harry. This is it! He may have been hasty, too eager and now this conversation is going to decide their fate, not only with each other but in the competition too.

“We need to talk.”

“I'm sorry.” Louis is about to interrupt when Harry raises a hand to stop him. “No, please let me apologise. I really shouldn’t have done that.”

Oh! So Harry regrets their almost kiss. Louis knew this was a possibility but he really did not expect the conversation to go this way. Once again, he was too needy. Louis feels his heart sink to the bottom of his stomach right there and then.

“No, no. It’s alright. There’s no need to apologise.” Louis feels the tears coming but he is not going to let them fall in front of Harry. “We’re good then and umm… I feel really tired and I think I should sleep.”

“No, no Lou! It’s not like that. I–” Louis really cannot let Harry try and let him down easy, acting all nice about it. He would never recover from the embarrassment.

“You don’t have to explain Harry. It happens. Sometimes feelings are just not reciprocated.” Louis cuts him short, managing to paste a small smile to not come across too rude.

Harry lets out a frustrated huff as if he is being terribly inconvenienced. Louis scowls in response.

“Will you f*cking listen?” Harry takes two steps with those long legs of his and before Louis knows it, grabs his face and smashes their lips together.

For a moment, Louis is too stunned to respond before he thinks holy sh*t! He then winds his arms around Harry’s waist and starts to kiss him back in earnest. The kiss is slow and deep like Harry is trying to convey his truth, determined to explore every crevice of Louis’ mouth. Louis feels like Princess Mia experiencing a truly foot popping kiss. Yes! He loves cheesy rom-coms. Sue him! Louis moves his right hand to Harry’s back, pulling him closer. He wants this kiss to go on forever but their stupid bodies need oxygen to survive and Harry pulls back, still keeping his hold on Louis’ face.

“I was apologising for running away, you idiot. I kind of freaked out that you might not feel the same. But when you snarked at me for running away, I thought maybe I was wrong and there was still hope.” However cliche it may sound, Louis can only describe Harry’s face at that moment as soft. Fond.

“Oh.” A smile rivalling Harry’s in delight stretches across Louis’s face as he bites the corner of his lip in a vain attempt to contain it.

Harry brings his thumb to Louis’ bottom lip, tracing it before he pulls it from the grip of his teeth with a pop. Louis is barely keeping himself from dramatically swooning into Harry’s arms. How is it that suddenly he’s the one falling all over himself while Harry is all sexy and confident and suave. It does not make sense.

“Well that is good then. Wouldn't want you to try and run too far on those bambi legs anyway. You’d trip and fall and then I’d be left with a broken nosed teammate.”

“Just a teammate?” Harry’s voice trails off suggestively.

“Very smooth.” Louis smirks.

“What can I say? There’s just something about having you in my arms.”

Louis his cheeks warm. “So, like you wanna give this a chance? For real?”

“Yes. I’m kinda a little crazy about you.”

“Just a little?”

“I’m sure it will grow because you, Louis Tomlinson, are one enchanting man.”

“Enchanting, eh?”

“Bewitching, even.” Harry places a tiny kiss on Louis’ nose and he positively melts.

“Okay, enough flattery. But seriously though, do you want to do this proper? Like, even beyond the show?”

“Yes Lou, I wanna date you. Wine you, dine you, woo you properly so then when I ask you to be my boyfriend, you can’t say anything but yes.”

“You don’t have to woo me. In case you failed to notice, I’m kinda crazy about you too. But yes, I want us to date too. See where this goes though I don’t have much doubt about where this will go.”

“Great! So I look forward to taking you on our first date, Louis Tomlinson.” With that, Harry extracts himself from Louis’ arms and throws him a mock salute, standing half in, half out the door.

“Wait!” Louis’ mind catches up. “Where are you going?”

“I wanna woo you proper, remember.” He throws a cheeky wink to deliver his point.

“But what if I wanna kiss you some more?” Louis pouts to make it convincing.

“Patience, my darling, is a virtue.”

“Eh. Virtues are overrated.”

“Shut up. Let me have this, will you?” Harry gives him an exasperated eye roll but his grin remains unfazed. “Now I'm leaving before you can bring out those puppy eyes.”

Louis huffs in mock annoyance. “Fineee. If you must.”

“Goodnight Lou.” Harry throws him an air kiss that Louis returns with a grin and a good night of his own before Harry finally leaves, shutting the door behind him.

Louis immediately falls on his bed, squealing into the mattress. This was all he wanted and then some. Harry being so charming made him weak in the knees, and had him feeling like a teenager with their first crush which was showing signs of turning into something. He honestly could not believe luck. Harry was there not only reciprocating his crush but he. wanted. too. woo. him. No man has ever wanted to woo him. Louis was going to turn into a pile of mush from all this charm.

The blush on his cheeks and the stretch of his lips doesn't lessen as he finally gets himself up from the bed, only to get changed and fall into it once again, dinner be damned. He's willing time to go faster with all his might only so he can see Harry again.

✧✧✧

Harry is still floating in disbelief over last night. Yesterday morning, he was determined to avoid Louis. He wanted to desperately stave off any awkwardness that was inevitably going to arise due to their almost kiss the night before. He imagined Louis would probably want the same. He thought he had gotten lost in the moment and failed to control his emotions. He hadn’t contemplated the possibility even in his wildest dreams that Louis reciprocated those emotions. Safe to say, he had been slow on the uptake and when Louis had been annoyed and pissed at Harry for running away instead of relieved and indifferent, it was as if a light bulb went off in his head that maybe he had been reading Louis and the situation completely wrong. He then panicked that maybe he had ruined his chance and decided he had to make sure that Louis knew it had all been a misunderstanding.

The past twenty four hours had been an absolute rollercoaster of emotions yet he somehow still made it to the other side with the best possible outcome. He got a chance with Louis and he’d be damned if he doesn’t make the most of it. But what can he do when they’d be taking part in the competition during the day and stuck in the villa during the night. He needs his creative horses to come up with a mind-blowing idea, stat! He promised Louis wooing and he has to deliver on it. He needs to see those bloody blue eyes sparkle, their corners crinkle and Louis’ cheeks to flush red in their adorable way. Think! Think! Think!

Just as he is about to give up and recruit some external help, an idea pops into his head. The Roof! That is where it went wrong the last time, well kind of, but still they shared a pretty special moment there and with his limited options, he knows he can make a great night of it for the two of them. He’ll just need a little help.

Harry makes his way downstairs and he thanks all the powers that be when he doesn’t see Louis anywhere. Don’t get him wrong, he is dying to see the man but first, he needs to do some concocting to get a date arranged for the two of them. He spots Zayn and Liam on one of the sofas and plops down on the sofa beside theirs so he can also keep an eye on the stairs in case Louis makes an appearance.

“Hey mates!” He cheerily greets them. Zayn narrows his eyes as if he is assessing Harry while Liam looks unsure on just how to react to this unexpected greeting. They both still return his greeting, albeit tentatively. “I was hoping I could get just a little bit of your help.”

“And why should we help you?” Zayn butts in before Harry can finish.

Harry is taken aback by Zayn’s hostile tone but then he realises Louis must’ve certainly talked to them and judging by their attitudes, he guesses they haven’t been caught up to last night’s developments yet.

“Oh. Umm Louis and I talked last night actually and we’ve agreed to give this… us a chance.” A grin automatically takes up residence on his face by the end of the sentence.

“Oh that’s great!” Liam cheers.

“Don’t mind him, he’s a bit of a romantic. A hopeless one at that.” Zayn rolls his eyes and Liam elbows him in response. “The point is you still ran away. Why?”

“Honestly, it was a bit of a misunderstanding. I thought there was no way Louis could possibly return my feelings and I wanted to save him the awkward letting me down easy thing. Clearly, I’m a bit of an oblivious idiot in these matters.”

“Hmm… occasional oblivious idiot is fine, deliberately indifferent is not.” Zayn raises an eyebrow.

“Zayn!” Liam looks unimpressed by Zayn’s lack of tact.

“No, no, it’s fine. I get why you might be sceptical about me. But I get your point and I would never be indifferent towards Louis. I couldn’t be even if I tried. He is like the sun, he shines so bright. It’s as if the room lights up when he enters.”

“Oh boy, you’re already whipped aren’t you?” Zayn looks a little comical with his eyes that wide. “The sun does not shine out of his arse, man.”

“Anyway, you said you needed our help?” Harry mentally thanks Liam for saving them from digressing any further.

“Yes! I actually wanted to set up a little date for Louis tonight.”

“Where?”

“On the roof. It’s actually just a platform under the upstairs hallway window on the outside. But Louis and I call it the roof and don’t worry it’s wide enough.”

“Aww. That sounds really nice, Harry. What did you need our help for?”

“Oh when we come back here tonight, can you please distract Louis long enough so I can set up there? Probably won’t take more than twenty, twenty five minutes.”

“He’d only be dying to talk our ears off about you.” Zayn shakes his head but he’s smiling.

“That’s definitely true and we’d be very happy to help, Harry.”

Harry knows he might be grinning like a lunatic but what can he do? “Thank you so much guys.”

Louis chooses the perfect moment to appear on top of the stairs. He is wearing a black turtleneck with red flowers which he has come to know as Louis’ logo, embroidered on the neck. His legs are encased in black skinny jeans that hug his thick thighs in a way that makes Harry salivate. He can’t take his eyes off Louis as he descends the stairs long enough to make sure he isn’t actually drooling. Louis looks a couple times before he spots Harry and as soon as he does, his face lights up a little. Harry is afraid Louis is going to give him a big head if he keeps reacting like that to just seeing Harry. Not that his own reaction to seeing Louis is that dissimilar.

Before Louis can take another step, Harry makes his way to the staircase. He thinks he can hear Zayn or Liam or both saying something, but his mind doesn’t register it as words. He might be being rude but he’ll make it up to them later. Louis greets him with his dazzling smile and a soft ‘hey’. Harry just about restrains himself from climbing Louis like a tree and just squishing him with all his might. It’s only been a day and it is possible Harry’s going a little crazy.

“Hey.” Harry lightly touches Louis’ hand with his as he smiles back.

None of them says anything, just keep grinning like idiots at each other and Harry truly feels like he’s back in highschool being tentative with his first crush.

“So are you excited for today?” Louis breaks the staring contest after a moment.

“Yeah. But it’s gonna be a little hard to focus now that I’m free to admire.”

“As if that has ever stopped you before from gawking at me like a serial killer looking at his next victim.”

“Aww no Lou, it’s always with the best intentions.” Harry grins.

“Lou sounds nice when you say it.”

“Oi stop flirting and come have breakfast. We have to leave soon.” Zayn’s voice effectively breaks the moment and they both start laughing.

“We were being quite disgusting, weren’t we?” Louis snickers as they both make their way towards the breakfast buffet.

“I won’t say disgusting, more like cutesy.”

“Shut up, Harold.” Louis rolls his eyes but his face is fond. “I may have a sweet tooth but all your sweetness is actually making me wanna barf.”

“Oh so you like it spicy then?” Harry lowers his voice to make his innuendo clear and smirks when the tips of Louis’ ears turn red.

“Ugh! People are trying to have breakfast here.” Zayn moans, glaring at the two of them while putting chicken sausages on his plate. This only serves to make them cackle.

✧✧✧

When they reach the studio, Harry subtly starts to look for Riley. She is very essential to the date he’s planning to arrange for Louis. He really hopes he can convince her to help him. He finally spots near the back, as always with a clipboard in her hand. Now all he needs to do is sneak away from Louis long enough to talk to her.

“Umm Lou, you go ahead, get your hair done, I just need to use the loo.”

“Oh okay.” Louis runs his finger across the back of Harry’s palm, grinning as he turns around and leaves.

Harry gulps and takes a deep breath before walking over to Riley.

“Good morning Ri.”

“Harry! Hi. Haven’t had a chance to talk to you in so long.” Riley pulls him into an embrace before stepping back.

“So how is the behind the scenes life going?”

“Oh the usual, just me trying to run a tight ship. How’s your challenge faring?”

“Like idiots we picked leather again so pray for us.” Harry giggles.

“I will. Anyway, what’d you need me for?”

“Oh I wanted to ask if I can get some fairy lights perchance?”

“For your challenge?”

“No, no, for something personal.” Riley raises an intrigued eyebrow and Harry elaborates. “Umm… I actually wanted to organise a date?” Harry can feel the warmth rush to his cheeks by the end of the sentence.

“For Louis?” Riley half squeals, trying to maintain her composure despite the excitement clear on her face.

“How did you know?”

“Please, Harry,” she scoffs. “You're about as subtle as a brick through a window.”

“Oh.” Harry sheepishly rubs the back of his neck.

“Yeah” Riley giggles. “Anyway, I can get the lights arranged but keep this between you and me, alright.”

“Of course! And thank you so much Ri. I owe you.”

“Don't worry about it. Anything for my favourite lovesick idiots.” She winks.

“Oh and can you give it to one of the drivers? I want it to be a surprise.”

“Of course. Now, go before we both get in trouble.”

“Thanks again.” Harry gives her a flying kiss and wave before going to their hair and makeup station.

✧✧✧

They are once again in front of the judges backstage, both impeccably dressed for their upcoming runway show. Alexa is donning a dark blue floral dress and Tan is once again in his signature look of a suit, this one black and double breasted. The judges reiterate the rules that they have five hours till the runway show and their models are due to arrive very soon before they are given the go ahead to begin with their designing.

Both Louis and Harry have switched to their work mode, ready to tackle the challenge head on. They recoup to discuss their plan of attack once before they start the actual work.

“You’re gonna work on the sleeve, I’m gonna work on the collar.” Louis takes the reins to keep Harry from getting overwhelmed. They have become so in tune to each other as if they have known and worked with each other for years rather than mere days. They go over everything they are yet to do– finishing all the leather tabs that are to go, making the connecting piece to attach the collar to the lapel on the man’s look and a whole lot of sewing on the woman’s jacket.

They get to work, moving their limbs to their limit to get everything done. An hour later when their models arrive, they are introduced to Cory and Ria. They try on the clothes and take notes about the fit, quickly moving on to finish the clothes. Once the man’s look is about done, Louis moves on to sewing the sleeves of the woman’s jacket.

“This leather is f*cking horrible to sew.” Louis grunts, trying to push the material through the machine. “It’s really heavy.”

“This leather is for handbags and shoes. Next time–”

Louis interrupts him before he can finish that thought.

“We’re not doing leather anymore, Harry.” Louis is done with this fabric being a pain in his arse, no matter how good the clothes come out to be.

“No. Next time, we’re making a play-doh look. I want full play-doh sellotaped to the body.”

Louis spends another few minutes grunting at the machine and cursing both their idea and the wretched fabric before he finally finishes the sleeve with a sigh.

“There you go. Done.” He lightly slaps down the sleeve in front of Harry, dramatically wiping his brow of imaginary sweat.

“Thank you.” Harry sends him a flying kiss. “I’ll be sure to reward your efforts later.” He winks. The motherf*cker winks! And Louis feels his face heat up at Harry’s unexpected open flirting. He turns around quickly and goes to check up on their models’ makeup looks to avoid flustering further. This version of Harry is really not good for his health.

Wren has styled Cory’s blonde hair to fall around his face in a messy fringe with smudged eyeliner around his eyes to give him the grunge vibe. The same will be replicated on Ria, bringing out her dark eyes as the rest of the makeup remains nude with her hair set in a wet look.

When the announcement for the hour mark sounds, Louis is frantically laying down the tabs on the man’s look, setting up the layout in which the tabs will be pinned.

“We’re getting towards the end of the challenge and we still haven’t put any of the leather tabs on yet.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

Louis is feeling the pressure now. For them to be able to take grunge to an elevated level, it all depends on how they safety-pin the leather tabs. If they don't get that right, they risk ruining the whole concept. This is stressing Louis out. He takes a deep breath, sends a little prayer into the universe and starts pinning the tabs one by one. When he is done, it just leaves enough time for their models to get dressed before they are called for the runway show.

Harry is done with the woman's jacket as well. He has even managed to fashion a little top for her.

“You and your ability to get sh*t done at the last moment.” Louis shakes his head, amazed once again.

“It's the pressure that pushes me.” Harry giggles.

They both join the other contestants in front of the screen to once again watch a runway showcasing the fits they poured their blood, sweat and tears into over the past two days. The dramatic music starts as the lights go down. The runway lights up in gold, glamming up the whole space as the first of the models start to walk out.

All the other designers have taken the opposite route than them, making each model that walks out louder and more extravagant than the one before. When their models walk out, they look much more understated compared to the others. This makes Louis a little nervous about how their outfits would be perceived by the judges. What if they think they are too simplistic? Or too muted? Or too safe? Louis likes their looks and their vision behind them. He truly hopes the judges are able to see and understand their perspective, their interpretation of rock and roll.

“Should we have gone a little more all out?” Louis shares his worries with Harry as the runway show finishes and they move to meet their models.

“But then that wouldn't have been true to us. I'm happy with our looks.” Harry reassures him with a smile and a squeeze of his hand.

“I am too. It's just the judges I'm worried about.”

“Don’t worry. If we love our creations, the judges will no doubt feel that and I don’t think they’ll be able to hate it then.”

“I hope so.” Louis nods.

When it’s time for their review with the judges, Tan and Elizabeth approach them.

“You guys.” Tan starts with a disappointing look on his face and Louis’ heart drops. “What were you thinking?” sh*t! “Just kidding!” The soul that had left Louis’ body for a moment returns as he and Harry both let out relieved laughter.

“Oh my god, you guys! It’s so well considered.” Tan praises after nearly taking the life out of them. “It’s understated rock and roll. It’s still sexy. It’s grunge, but you’ve made it sexy. It’s not very often I watch the runway and think, ‘I want those pieces.’ and I want every piece.”

“Thank you.” Harry grins and Louis echoes his gratitude.

“I love the proportions of this jacket.” Elizabeth commends “I think it’s incredible. I know so many people who would want to wear it. The colours are fantastic, and you recognise that a great rock and roll look can be jeans and a t-shirt. I especially love how you interpreted it. It came from your head and not from the collective conscious of what rock and roll is.”

“Thank you very much.” Louis beams.

The judges leave and this time when Louis falls into Harry’s arms, it feels like the natural order of things. There’s no awkward pull backs, stuttering or excusing it as heat of the moment. Louis is embracing Harry because he wants to, because they got glowing reviews from the judges and he wants to share his happiness with his partner. He might just be a professional one for now but Louis very quickly wants to change that.

They arrive for their results, lining up on the stage a moment before the judges take their place on the platform diagonally across from them.

“I never want to do this part but this is a competition and ultimately there can only be one winner.” Alexa starts off.

“The winning team is…” Tan pauses before he turns to the man on his right. “Actually, Christopher Kane, why don’t you tell us?”

“The winning team of tonight’s challenge is,” he too takes a pause that makes Louis want to scream. “Harry and Louis.”

Holy f*cking sh*t! Louis did not expect that! The first thing he feels is a buzz in his ears as his hands go up to his mouth to cover a gasp. The second thing he feels is a pair of arms that wrap around his shoulders as Harry pulls him into his chest, pulling him out of his shocked state. He returns Harry's hug and he feels a subtle kiss being dropped on his head before Harry pulls away.

“Thank you.” Harry breathes out to the judges.

“I’m so happy. Yeah, I don't know what to say.” Louis has a smile about a mile long stretching his mouth taut.

“I really loved how you executed designs that were true to your vision of a rock and roll star. No cliches and you also understood that a simple look can be a major rock and roll moment.” Christopher Kane compliments.

“I particularly loved the ticket stub idea and then how that was incorporated into both designs and how they worked so harmoniously together. Congratulations.” Alexa's special mention of the ticket stubs that mean so much to Louis because of how dear live music is to him just makes his heart soar.

“We are here alongside some amazing designers who do these huge, outrageous pieces of work and that's not our aesthetic and we're so happy that you saw what we wanted to convey.” Louis really hopes he can convey just how grateful he feels at that moment.

“You took me somewhere more than rock, you gave out a DNA, a part of your brand, which worked really well. I'm really happy for you.” Christopher Kane lauds them once again and after a round of applause the judges move on to the elimination part of the night.

This time they send home Michael and Isaac after putting them in the bottom with Niall and Perrie. Louis feels a pang of loss for the lads and even though he did not know them that well, they seemed like fun people he would enjoy having a pint with. They all move backstage and bid the two goodbye. Hugs are passed around and they all get into the cars to take them home. Louis gleefully grabs Harry’s hand and pulls him into the car after him. There is no way he’s going to let Harry travel in a separate car now. He feels all giggly like a highschooler as they both take their seats.

“So now I’m coming with you, huh?” Harry smirks.

“Well, you can go in the other car. I’m sure the others won’t mind your annoying company too much.”

“Hmm but I would rather annoy you,” Harry leans in next to Louis’ ear, “and kiss you, and get to know you and do lots more. Only with you.”

Harry’s whispery voice sends shivers up Louis’ spine and once again he is the one feeling uncharacteristically flustered in Harry’s presence.

“Mmm hmm let's get back first.” Louis nods and takes Harry's face in his right hand, patting his cheek.

They start moving because apparently everyone else has taken the other car. The whole ride is just them throwing each other sneaky, not so sneaky glances. Louis reaches out his hand to the middle of the seat, taking Harry's pinky finger in his own and steadfastly looking out the window. It seems stupid to hold hands when they're sitting in the backseat of a car yet he wants to. He wants to, so bad and apparently Harry doesn't mind it much as does just that. He wraps his long, warm fingers around Louis', firmly clutching his hand. Louis may or may not have a stupidly large smile on his face.

When they reach the villa, Louis is eager to get them alone. Not even to do anything illicit. He merely wants some time just for the two of them, even if all they do is talk. As soon as they get out of the car, Louis starts to pull Harry so they can go to the roof or maybe one of their rooms but Harry stops him.

“Lou, would you mind if I join you in a moment?”

“Oh! What happened?”

“Umm…nothing!” Harry blurts out way too abruptly. “Just wanted a smoke, that's all.”

“I didn't know you smoked. You never joined us.”

“No. It's… It's only a once in a while thing, you know?”

“Oh okay. I'll join you. Come to think of it, I'm craving one too.”

“No!” Harry shrieks and Louis raises an eyebrow at his reaction. Harry is acting weirder by the minute. “I mean I wouldn't mind, of course but it's just, would it be fine if I take a moment alone?”

“Of course it's alright Harry. You don't need to ask. Everyone needs their alone time.”

“Yeah. Yeah thanks Lou. I'll join you in a moment then we can go upstairs.”

“Oh upstairs huh?Quite an assumption to make.”

“As if you weren't dragging me there, just a moment ago?”

“Yeah, yeah. I'll see you inside.” Louis quickly pecks Harry's cheek and rushes inside without looking back, though he hears Harry's giggles clear as day.

✧✧✧

Harry breathes a sigh of relief when Louis goes inside. He really is terrible at lying. He grabs the fairy lights Riley had arranged for him from their driver and thanks him. Zayn and Liam are already inside since their car had arrived earlier so he hopes they have engaged Louis by now. Otherwise he won’t be able to sneak inside. Just to be sure, he peeks around the door into the foyer. Thankfully, Louis’ back is towards him and he is deep in conversation with his two best friends.

He sneaks upstairs and grabs the sheet and the pillows off his bed before rushing to the roof’s window. He feels a little nervous climbing out on his own without Louis to balance him but he takes a deep breath and powers through. He carefully drops all the items on the platform before putting one leg after the other over the ledge. Harry considers it a massive success when he manages to jump outside without falling over.

He quickly drapes the lights over the window pane in a way that they don’t become a hindrance when the two of them climb outside again. He spreads the sheet and places the pillows over it and then climbs back inside to grab the food.

He piles up two plates with enough food for the two of them and then contemplates a way to carry them both upstairs. He spots Niall coming to the kitchen and gestures at him to come closer while making a shushing motion urging him to keep quiet.

“What are you up to?” Thankfully Niall keeps his voice to a whisper.

“Will you help me carry this upstairs, please? I'll tell you on the way.”

Niall nods and takes a plate before Harry peeks a look at Louis, just to be safe. He finds the three friends on the couch now with Louis’ back towards him yet again. He gestures to keep quiet and follow him.

When they are safely out of earshot of the couch, Niall nudges him with his elbow telling him to start explaining.

“I have set up a sort of date for Louis?”

“Aww Harry!” Niall squeals and Harry once again shushes him in a panic. “That is so sweet! Louis’ gonna love it.”

“I hope so.” Harry rubs the back of his neck.

They reach the window and Niall pokes his head out of it, looking down at Harry's set up.

“What is this?” Niall gasps in awe.

“Louis showed me this place. Pretty cool, innit?”

Together they get the food outside, covering it with kitchen cloth that Harry had grabbed. Niall leaves him with a ‘good luck mate’. Now all that’s left is to get Louis. Harry's stomach is going rampant with butterflies. He feels something between wanting to throw up and wanting to scream his lungs out. He does a couple spot-jumps out of nervousness and then finally climbs down the stairs. This time Louis’ eyes find him.

“Oh Harry, I didn't see you come inside.”

“Umm I just had to use the loo.”

Louis nods. “Ready to have dinner?” He asks as he gets up from the couch.

“Actually, would you mind coming upstairs with me for a moment?”

“Sure. Let's go.”

Harry catches Liam's excited thumbs up and Zayn's smile behind Louis which he discreetly returns while mouthing a thank you behind Louis' back.

“Couldn't wait to get me alone, eh Harold?” Louis nudges him with his elbow once they're out of earshot.

“Something like that.” Harry takes Louis' hand and leads them upstairs.

Louis does not suspect a thing even as Harry leads them to the roof’s window. He probably thinks they're sitting out there like usual. Harry mentally giggles at the thought of Louis having no idea what he was in for.

Harry climbs out first before holding out a hand for Louis. He raises an eyebrow questioningly, looking amused.

“Just humour me.”

“Is it something special?”

“You’ll see.” Harry grins.

Harry helps Louis climb over so he doesn’t step on anything and revels in his gasp as he notices the setup.

“Oh my god!” The gasp turns into full blown surprise as Harry turns on the fairy lights, bathing them in a golden glow. “Harry! This is…” Louis just shakes his head, that special sparkle in his eyes.

“Have I finally rendered you– the Louis Tomlinson speechless?”

“Don’t look so smug but yes, you might have.”

“Welcome to our first date. I know it's not conventional but I really couldn’t wait till we were out of here to have a nice time with you.”

“Harold, it’s perfect.” Louis wraps his arms around his neck and Harry feels his heartbeat pick up.

Harry moves his hands to Louis’ waist and tentatively pulls him closer. Louis closes up the rest of the distance between their lips as he rises on his tiptoes. The kiss is a warm caress, their lips meeting in a slow glide as Louis' hands move to Harry's head, grabbing his curls and scratching his scalp. Harry simultaneously feels breathless and as if all life has been breathed into him. His whole body is tingling, from the roots of his hair to the tips of his toes. The touch of Louis' waist burns on Harry's hands where they connect, branding his skin.

Just as slow as he had started, Louis eases up the movement of his lips and pulls back. A soft smile rests upon his face and Harry feels weak in the knees.

“I couldn't wait till the date ended when it was so perfect already.”

“I didn't mind.” Harry would be foolish to.

Harry gestures for Louis to sit and before he can follow, Louis pulls his cushion towards himself, not leaving even an inch of space between them. Harry once feels that fluttery feeling and he thinks it might never go away as long as he is in Louis' presence.

Harry uncovers the food and offers a plate to Louis.

“I wasn't sure what you were in the mood for so I brought a little bit of everything.”

“Thank you for organising everything.” Louis lays a hand over Harry’s, giving it a gentle squeeze. “This is very unexpected and very nice.”

“Anything for you.” The gentle smile on Louis’ lips sparks one on his own. “Now, eat your food and let's do some typical first date things.”

“Such as?” Louis asks, raising his eyebrow.

“Twenty questions!”

“Harry.” Louis giggles. “That’s so cliche.”

“I love cliches and making it a game makes it more fun. Come on.” He playfully nudges Louis. “I’ll start, what's the dumbest injury you've had?”

“Oh god.” Louis groans. “It's a long list.”

“Here I thought I was the injury prone bambi.”

“Those long legs are a hazard. In more ways than one.” Louis’ gaze gets heated for a moment before he continues. “Anyway, I fractured my elbow once by running into a wall.”

“What? How?” Harry shrieks. He cannot come up with a single scenario where one could manage to run into a wall.

“Was racing with a few friends. I won.” That last bit seems extra stressed on and Harry is endlessly fascinated by what Louis' focus seems to be.

“You also broke your arm. Where the f*ck were you even racing?”

“It was only fractured to be fair but it was backstage after a fashion show. The finish line was too close to the wall.” Louis shrugs like this is the most menial piece of information ever.

“You're something else.” Harry shakes his head but he finds Louis endlessly adorable.

From there on, the conversation keeps flowing as they eat their food and with every new thing Harry learns about Louis, he grows more sure of the fact that he and Louis would make a great pair. The man is extremely witty and manages to make Harry honk out laughter rather ungracefully more than once. Harry feels suspended in time while talking to Louis. He knows hours are passing by but he feels as if Louis and him are at a standstill. He wants to stay in this moment forever. Just Louis and him. Forever. He knows it is a scary thought to have. Especially for someone you haven’t known for all that long. Someone you are still getting to know. Yet the thought, the possibility feels right.

The realisation that they are not in fact not the only two people in the world comes when the hallway lights behind them dim, indicating that everyone else has retired for the night. Harry feels it too soon that his night with Louis has come to an end. But he also knows they have to be up for the competition tomorrow so this is how it has to be. Sometime after they had finished their food, Harry had settled himself against Louis leaning his head on the shorter man’s shoulder as both of them stretched out their legs.

“It’s probably the time we should head in too.” Harry takes Louis’s fingers in his hand, playing with them. Louis has such gorgeous hands.

“Hmm. Probably.” Contradicting his words, Louis starts to nose his way down Harry’s cheek to his neck.

Harry’s eyes shut involuntarily, his breath hitching as he straightens his neck, encouraging Louis. The man starts leaving tiny, barely there kisses on his path and Harry tilts his neck further to allow him more access. The tiny butterflies in his stomach are wrecking complete havoc as he tightens his grip on Louis' hands.

“We could also probably stay right here”

“And what pray tell would we do here?”

“I think we should get a little more acquainted with each other.”

“We should or our lips should?” His voice comes out a breathless whisper as Louis continues his nipping at Harry’s neck.

“Both I think.” With that Louis captures Harry’s lips with his own, starting his torment on Harry’s well being with each slide of his lips.

The kisses are deep and slow, making Harry desperate as he tugs on Louis’ shirt, wanting to pull him into his lap. Louis heeds to Harry’s silent demands as he climbs over into his lap, raking his hands through Harry’s curls. He slides his hands to Louis’ waist as the shorter man presses Harry into the wall with his weight. Heat builds up in Harry’s core as a helpless moan escapes him, pulling his mouth away from Louis’. The man takes this opportunity to run his lips lower, nipping his path down Harry’s neck. He begins a suck on Harry’s skin at the base of his neck, probably leaving a mark. Little whimpers elude his lips and he struggles to catch his breath. Suddenly Louis pulls away, ceasing all movement. Harry opens the eyes he hadn’t realised had shut in the first place.

“Now that’s a proper goodnight. We can head in now.” Louis smirks.

Harry groans. “You’re such a tease.”

“Also it’s probably against the rules, fornicating in the middle of the competition.”

“Fornicating? Really?”

“Be a gentleman, Harold.”

“I just took you on a date.”

“Then lead me to my door and kiss me goodbye as is the proper thing to do.”

“Oh really?” Harry can’t help but smile at Louis’s antics as the other man nods primly. “Fine then, good sir, will you raise yourself from my lap so I can take you inside?”

Louis does just that and together they collect everything before climbing inside. They take the dishes downstairs and Harry takes the folded sheet from Louis as they reach the man’s door. Harry takes Louis’ hand, bending down to leave a gentle peck on his knuckles, acting like the proper gentleman Louis wanted him to be.

When he straightens up, Louis is looking at him with something akin to wonder in his eyes. “Goodnight,” Harry whispers because he doesn’t want to disturb the delicacy of the moment.

Louis whispers back and Harry gives him one last kiss on his cheek that leaves the shorter man biting his lower lip. He turns around and walks away to his room before he can get any more tempted by those sinful lips on that sinful man.

Chapter 7: Activewear

Chapter Text

Louis wakes up with the same content, fluttery feeling he went to sleep with. He feels as if today is the continuation of the dream that last night had been. Louis does not remember the last time any date or boyfriend had been so thoughtful, so romantic and so attentive towards Louis. He has always played that role without much reciprocity from his partners but last night Harry had not only taken the reins, but gone out of his way to make it a special evening for Louis. He did not have to organise a makeshift date for them, anyone else would have probably waited for the competition to end and arranged the conventional date at a fancy restaurant. Louis would have appreciated it regardless but the thought one could put in creating simple yet meaningful just cannot be compared. Harry had done that and it had taken up residence in Louis’ heart. The man himself had too. Louis thinks, rather he knows Harry has left a mark on him that he won’t be able to erase any time soon.

The thought isn’t as daunting as it would’ve been a fortnight ago. It’s as if Harry brings with hima sense of security he hadn’t really had in his previous relationships. There is also an odd level of comfort that he never felt the need to play a part in front of Harry ever since the beginning and it hadn’t gone away since they had confessed their feelings. In fact, it had only intensified. He has faith in the future and all he hopes is that it isn’t misguided.

He gets ready to go downstairs and as soon as he opens the door to his room, he comes face to face with a fist poised to knock. The fist falls away as his eyes meet pools of green that belong to a certain curly headed lad wearing a grin on his face. Louis feels like matching it with his own but he refrains.

“What are you doing here?” He raises an eyebrow as if he does not want to scream in delight.

Harry crosses his palms behind his back and gives Louis a coy smile. “I don’t know, maybe I just wanted to see a pretty face.”

“A pretty face?”

“Your pretty face.”

“Uh huh.” Louis nods his head, sceptical. “Well, now that you’ve seen this pretty face, you must want to go downstairs, right?”

“We can…” Harry drags out the word before taking a step forwards and running a finger from Louis’ temple to his chin. “But we could also utilise a little time inside your room.”

Louis’ feels his stomach flip a little but he’s not going to make it that easy on Harry. “Whatever would we do that for?”

“Lots of things.” Harry leans in close to his ear, lowering his voice to a whisper. “I could kiss you.” Harry drops a peck behind his ear to demonstrate. “Here.” He moves a little lower to his jaw. “Here” Harry moves his lips lower still to his jaw. “And here.”

“That’s it?” Louis’ surprised his voice comes out breathless.

“I’m down for anywhere you want.”

Harry barely finishes the sentence before Louis pulls him inside by the middle of his shirt, slamming the door closed. He presses Harry against it and captures his lips. The promise of what’s to come has Louis begging for more. He can’t possibly go slow now. He needs to taste every crevice of Harry’s mouth like he needs air to breathe. He takes and takes and Harry reciprocates with the same fervour, grabbing Louis’ face and pulling him in like even an inch of space between them is torturous.

The smell of honey and vanilla with undertones of a woody musk assaults his senses as he pulls back to catch a breath. Harry apparently isn’t feeling as breathless because he immediately starts sucking on Louis’ neck, overwhelming his senses. Catching his breath feels futile when Harry seems hell bent on stealing it. The man moves his hands from Louis’ face to his lower back, pulling him in further. A particularly loud moan escapes him as Harry nips at just the right spot, sucking the flesh. He is glad Harry is holding him up because he feels weak in the knees as if they have decided to turn to liquid all of a sudden. Harry runs his tongue over the tender spot to soothe it. He has no doubt left his mark.

“You do know we have to be in front of the camera, right?” Louis asks as he gets his bearings enough to pull back a little.

“Mmm hmm. Just thought we should match.” Harry grins and Louis’ confusion must have been clear on his face as a moment later Harry tilts his neck to the left, pulling back his collar. Right there sits a purple bruise adorning Harry’s neck like the most precious jewel.

Before Louis can reply, they’re jolted by banging on the door followed by Zayn’s voice. “Stop f*cking you two. We have to leave soon.”

Both of their eyes widen at the same time before they burst out laughing. The mirth makes Harry's eyes brighter and Louis has to force himself not to get lost in them. He gestures to Harry to stand aside so Louis can open the door. He finds a scowling Zayn on the other side with each of his hands on his waist looking like a parent about to chastise their children for being naughty. The truth isn't that far off if he thinks about it.

“We were not f*cking, thank you very much.”

“The twin marks on both of your necks say you very much wanted to.” Zayn points to their necks and raises an eyebrow at Harry who is peeking from over Louis' shoulder. Not that he has to peek much considering their height difference.

Louis should be blushing right now but he feels a rush of pride at the fact that Harry is going to be wearing his mark. He simply grins at Zayn and then turns his head to Harry, finding the man very much being the one to blush here. He feels fond for the man who although has become smug and confident in front of Louis, is still very much shy and blushing in front of others.

“You know you'll have to cover those up before we go, right? I'm pretty sure fornication between contestants is against the rules till the time you're in the competition.”

“Yeah Yeah.” Louis nods, then turns to the man behind him. “You have some concealer, Harold?” Harry shakes his head no.

“I’m sure Perrie must have it. Is she downstairs?” Louis directs his question to Zayn.

“Everyone but you two is.”

Louis grabs Harry's hand and pulls him behind him as he rushes downstairs. He goes straight to where he sees Perrie sitting on the sofa.

“Hey, P, do you happen to have some concealer and colour corrector?”

“You know what a colour corrector is?” Perrie seems surprised.

“I have five sisters. Four of whom are old enough to do makeup. Of course I know what a colour corrector is.”

“Okay then brother of the year, come with me.” Perrie rises up, motioning for Louis to follow who in turn waves a hand towards Harry to come along. “Why do you need makeup now, by the way. You know we’re going to get touched up at the studio before filming.”

Louis feels his cheeks warm. “Umm…” He chances a glance at Harry only to find him bug-eyed. “Oh it's just a mark.”

They reach Perrie’s door and she turns around, raising a sceptical eyebrow. “A mark? Where?”

“Okay but please promise you'll keep it on the down low.” Louis does not want to cause a scandal in the middle of the competition.

Perrie nods and Louis sheepishly pulls the collar of his shirt away to show Perrie the mark Harry left this morning.

“Ooooohhh” She smirks like it's the juiciest piece of news she's ever gotten. “Niall owes me twenty bucks.”

“What?” Harry's screech comes before Louis’ can.

“You were betting on us?” He asks instead.

“Yeah. Just a harmless one whether you two would get together before the competition was over or after.” She answers, casual as ever as she opens the door and Harry and Louis follow her inside.

“How were you so sure we would in fact get together at all?”

“Oh please!” She rolls her eyes. “You two were so obvious. Harry looked like he wanted to skin you alive half the time and bite every inch of your skin the other half. His stare was so intense.”

“Why am I the cannibal in every scenario?” Harry looks like a disgruntled kitten.

“See Harold, I knew your creepy love stare was going to be the death of us.”

“Oh, you weren't any better, boo.” Perrie looks over her shoulder from where she was rifling through her makeup pouch. “Although your stare was more dopey than killer.”

Louis finds himself at a loss for words as Perrie holds up their desired items.

“Here you go.” She gestures towards their twin marks. “Do you want me to help you cover those?”

“Uh yes please, if you don't mind.” Harry replies as Louis tries to shake off the sheepishness at being called out on his obvious lovesickness.

“Of course not. Take a seat.” She motions towards the end of her bed.

Perrie dabs a bit of orange and yellow colour corrector from a palette that she blends with a wet sponge before covering it up with some concealer and then blending that too. She then uses a white-ish powder to set all that. The bruise disappears like it was never there and Louis is once again amazed by the power of makeup. After his turn in the makeup chair or well, bed in this case, they all go downstairs.

After breakfast that is filled with teasing jabs from all four of their companions, making Harry and Louis’ faces permanently flushed as well as some near choking accidents, they all pile up in the cars to get to the studio.

They are all lined up outside the workroom, ready to enter when an unpleasant feeling begins to take root in the back of Louis’ mind. He pushes it away, convincing himself it is nothing besides his usual anxiety acting up. He looks over at Harry trying to find an anchor to the present. The curly lad has a beautiful smile on his face, dimples out as he is engaged in conversation with Niall. Harry’s smile proves to be contagious as it stretches one on his own face/mouth as the other man makes eye contact. Even as the feeling becomes a niggling presence at the back of his mind.

As soon as they enter the workroom, his fear materialises as they come face to face with six desks instead of three. Their teams are being split! Gasps sound around the room like falling dominoes as the realisation hits everyone.

“f*ck! We’re being split.” Niall states the obvious out loud as Louis’ eyes land on Harry only to find him already looking.

The apprehension he finds there flares his own anxiety yet he musters up, what he hopes is a reassuring smile for Harry. Even if this is going to be the first time in this competition, they have worked alone without each other's support their whole lives. Even if the past two weeks had made working with Harry a habit, something that was starting to come to him naturally. Even so, he is confident they can manage it on their own or at least that is what he’s telling himself. Despite the commentary running through his head telling him otherwise.

“Hey,” Harry grasps his hand, “it’s gonna be alright. Besides, am I not a pain in your arse?”

“I wish you would be.” He mumbles hoping Harry doesn’t catch it before whining in a clearer voice, “Harry, I just got you.”

“Aww baby, you still have me.” Harry lowers his voice so only his ears catch it. “And don’t worry, we’ll make good on your wish later.”

The f*cker is smirking while Louis feels blood rush to his cheeks. Louis smacks his arm with the back of his hand. “Shut up!”

“Lou, but for real, you’ve gotta stay calm okay?” Harry says in the softest voice and Louis feels like falling to the floor. Even when they’re going to be competing against each other, Harry is more worried about Louis’ performance than his own. “And don’t worry I’m still here. I’ll be pestering you at your desk reminding you to stay calm.” Harry grins.

“And you, remember, that even if you think you’ve bitten off too much and you can’t do it. You can do it. Alright? Whatever insane idea your mind cooks up, if you believe in it, you can do it.” Louis makes sure to put emphasis on his words.

Harry gets too in his head sometimes and he needs to be brought back down. While Louis used to be the one to do it, he’s not going to be able to anymore. It’s funny how they integrated into each other’s lives so seamlessly in only a matter of weeks that it feels weird to even imagine how they used to function without each other.

Just then they hear the voices of the judges as they enter. This time they’re doing jumping jacks and jogging motions interspersed with stretches as they walk towards them, wearing track jackets. Is the theme sportswear?

“Good morning everyone, there are just three teams left and we’re here to confirm what you already suspect,” Tan pauses in his usual manner to take in all their faces, “from this point on, your teams are over.”

“That’s right. Your adventure as a team ends right here.”

“From this point on, your teammate is going to become your competitor.”

“And we’re so excited!” Alexa claps her hands to drive the point home, “cause we finally get to see your individual voices. My gosh!”

“So Harry and Louis, right after you win the challenge as a union, we’re blowing it apart. How does that feel?” Tan asks and Louis holds back a scoff and a sarcastic remark that’s right at the tip of his tongue. Of course he feels great being separated from Harry!

“It’s going to be strange not working with Louis because I do really enjoy it.” Harry begins answering for them in a way that is much more appropriate. “I just already said to him that I’ll be going over to his station and being like, ‘Stay calm Louis, Stay calm.’ because that’s kind of how our partnership works. I keep him calm.”

They acknowledge his answer with nods as Alexa directs her attention towards a different former team.

“Niall and Perrie, you look nervous. What’s up?”

“Just our partnership worked together so well.” Niall answers but Louis feels he means so much more than he lets on.

“I love that you all love each other. You can continue to love each other but fight for it! Everyone of you.” Tan implores.

“We are ready!” Liam chimes in, throwing a smirk at Zayn.

“We’ve been going head to head for a decade.” Zayn is confident and Louis knows firsthand what he's saying is true. Both of their designing skills are so similar that they've always been compared with each other in the industry, especially when they were starting out. They were often competing with each other but it never affected their relationship even when the tensions were high.

“Yeah you have.” Tan looks delighted.

“It’s every designer for themselves now.” Alexa announces.

“I’m really gonna miss working with Louis. He pushed me as a designer and he brought out the best in me.”

–Harry Styles, England

“It’s the first time I’m gonna be solo in this competition and yeah I’m feeling fine about it.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

“There are six of you designers left and you’re about to compete for the first time as individuals.” Alexa reminds and Louis feels nervous anticipation bubble up inside him. “Because as you all know, only one of you will be the winner of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars and be named Next In Fashion.”

“It’s time for your next challenge.”

“Yeah, I mean I hope you’re all okay working up a sweat because today’s challenge is all about, can you believe it? Activewear.” Totally did not guess that!

“Yes, it’s not just for the gym. It’s also for the school drop off, brunch and even Netflix and Chill.”

“So Louis, the posterboy for Activewear,” Alexa calls him as everyone snickers, “I presume you go to the gym often.”

“No, I know nothing in the gym, no, but I do play football with the lads from time to time. The real one.” He chuckles.

“Activewear. That's kinda my thing so I know what it needs to have in order to function while still being fashionable.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

“Harry,” Tan calls as everyone's attention shifts to the man in question. “I assume by what you wear most days that your line’s all activewear.”

“Totally!” Harry nods in all seriousness. “When I work out, I wear a silk shirt, tailored trousers, some kind of cumberbund around the waist.”

His answer is met by laughter from the whole room.

“This is outside of my comfort zone so I'm a bit nervous for this challenge.”

–Harry Styles, England

“We want to see all of you create activewear designs that are both fashion and function.” Alexa explains. “And we'll be joined by a special guest judge who's an expert in all things activewear.”

“I mean I bet at least two of you are wearing their shoes right now. Joining us tomorrow is design guru and fearless leader, Josephine Aberg from Adidas.” A palpable anticipation spreads through the six of them.

Louis might have become the brand ambassador for Adidas if he were famous with the amount of clothes he has from the brand. Josephine knows her stuff so they have to bring out their best. The judges reveal the details of their first individual challenge. They have to design just one look and they can choose whether to design for a man or a woman. They reveal their fully stocked closet that has once again been curated in accordance to their challenge with extra knit, extra mesh and some fun too for them to personalise their looks. The digital printer is also back for them to take advantage of.

They are given the go ahead and after a longing glance at Harry, shooting him a discreet thumbs up, Louis moves to sit and sketch his design at his desk. Alone. He immediately misses Harry’s presence. How he would put his hair in a bun right about now. Louis’ neck automatically pops up to see exactly that but now at a desk right across from him. An errant curl falls down from Harry’s bun and he yearns to be the one to put it back. As if he felt Louis’ stare, Harry raises his head and their eyes meet. Harry grins finding Louis’s eyes on him and Louis feels his heart give a jolt in his chest. Harry gives him a look, telling him to focus on the work. He tries to appear stern by widening his eyes but fails to control the smile on his face. Louis still complies, still with a Harry sized gap in his workspace. He shakes himself to get in the zone and starts thinking about his design.

This is a true design challenge because it’s practicality, functionality and aesthetics, all in one. Louis has to consider fabric like never before. That might just be the most important decision he makes for this challenge. He thinks a bit before a concept pops in his head and he begins to sketch. Picking football as his chosen sport would be the safe bet but he wants to push himself because at this point in the competition, if he doesn’t push his limits, he might as well just hand in his gloves and go home.

After a while, things are going smoothly for Louis but he is worried about the chaos brewing at Harry’s station. He is just hoping Harry doesn’t get too up in his head that he ends up self sabotaging his designs.

The camera crew comes near his desk, an indication that it is time for the judges’ debrief with him. The judges do a couple lunges for the camera as they walk towards him.

“Hi Louis.”

“Heyy”

“So what’s your sport? What activity have you chosen?” Alexa asks as she perches herself on the edge of his desk as Tan stands beside her.

“I was thinking about rowing,” the judges seem understandably surprised and he goes on to explain, “because when I design my collections, I always think about British heritage. And even though it is not my aesthetic, I was quite fascinated by the culture around the sport. Especially in uni which is why I chose it and when I think about old rowing teams, I wanted to take elements of those looks and then make it into a modern activewear piece.” The judges look interested and dare he say even impressed and Louis carries on to explain his designs.

“So what I’m making is a long-sleeved, striped jersey with a neoprene legging and a ripstop short over the top along with a long, striped, neoprene scarf.”

The judges nod before Tan asks, “How did you get into this? Did your parents work in clothing, fashion?”

“No, my mum’s a midwife actually and she had me quite young so having just been the two of us for a long time before my sister came along forged a special bond between us. She has always encouraged me to follow my dreams, do anything I wanted to do. As for my creative sensibilities, they come from my nan. She was the one who taught me how to paint when I were younger.”

“Did your mum come to your shows?”

“Yeah, her and my step dad and my sisters whenever they don’t have school, they are always on the front row. I feel so incredibly lucky to always, always have their support.”

“Thank you so much Louis.” Tan smiles as Alexa hops down, ready to leave.

“Thank you. See you later.”

He continues drawing, cutting, stitching to get his outfit complete. Louis feels good about his offering. It had been an unconventional choice for him but this competition is about doing things differently, the way they have never been done before. And rowing is something he has never done before, nor has he ever thought about participating. But it is a sport that is a little part of his history and one he can aestheticise into runway looks so when the idea popped into his head, why not run with it?

“Louis, can I get your eyes for a minute?” Harry’s voice rouses him from where he had gotten deep into sewing.

“Yeah. Sure.” Louis nods and makes his way to Harry’s desk.

“I think it’s a mess.” Harry laments as he waves his hands towards his dress form. “It might just be a mess ‘cause I’m rushing it but then with the amount of pieces I’ve chosen to make, I have no option but to rush.” Harry’s voice goes higher and higher with panic as he speaks.

“Hey, take a deep breath. What’s wrong?”

“It’s really hard because I’m not a sporty person; I’m not used to working with these types of fabric.”

Though he’s no longer a teammate, Louis’ happy to help out Harry regardless. He wants to be there for him as a friend, for moral support, physical support. Whatever it is, Louis’ got his back and he knows Harry has got his as well. He helps out Harry in cleaning up his ideas for the design and reassures him that he can do it.

“Thanks Lou.” Harry seems much more calm now and Louis presses his thumb to the outside of Harry’s wrist before he leaves.

The judges announce the one hour warning and the usual franticness envelopes the room as everyone rushes to get their creations as far as they can before leaving all their pieces pinned on the dress forms for tomorrow.

Louis looks in doubt at the neoprene pants he just finished making. They seem really small, like comically small to be able to fit an adult man.

“Zayn, I think these pants are gonna be small.” He holds them up in front of his waist and they fall short from both the sides.

Zayn bursts out laughing, “Oh, my God!” Louis joins him as they both find the hilarity in how tiny the pants look on Louis’ waist.

“I hope they fit.” He wheezes out as their laughter dissolves before resuming his work.

If the pants don’t fit tomorrow, he’s gonna have to make an entire new pair. He lays down the dress form on the floor and starts to put the pants on it. He grunts with effort and stands the dummy upside down as he tries to roll down the pants on it. He huffs a breath after he successfully gets the pants on and straightens up the mannequin.

He gets to wrapping up his work for the day and pinning everything up on the dress form for tomorrow. The judges start the ten second countdown and they all step back once it finishes, done for the day.

“Designers, tools down. ” Tan calls their attention. “The workday is over.” Louis breathes a sigh of relief, looking at his dress form and feeling happy with what he has managed to get done. “We hope you used your time wisely.”

“So tomorrow is your Next In Fashion runway. We’ll see you in the morning. Goodnight.”

The judges exit and they’re then given the cue to leave as well. Immediately, Louis goes to Harry like a moth onto a flame. He had seemed tense all throughout the day and Louis could do nothing but throw him worried glances. The man still looks a bit downtrodden and Louis yearns to comfort him; bring a smile back on his face. He subtly touches Harry’s arm with his own, catching his attention.

“Hey, are you okay?”

Harry shakes his head. “Not here.”

Louis nods in understanding, wanting to give Harry space. He probably doesn’t want to draw unnecessary attention to himself. Louis will wait till it's just the two of them; he likes the idea being that safe space for Harry.

They get into the cars, Louis requesting the others to allow them a little privacy as he and Harry take a car for themselves. He grasps Harry’s hand in the middle, reassuring him of his presence and letting him know that Louis’ there, whenever Harry is ready to talk.

“I’m going home tomorrow.” Harry says, his voice cracking as he looks to be desperately holding in tears.

Louis tightens his grip on Harry’s hand. That is all he can do right now. “Hey, why do you say that? We still have tomorrow. Don’t decide the outcome before you’re done doing your part, love.”

“But I know Lou, what I made is gonna look like a lump of sh*t.”

“You have a great concept on your hands and I know you have the skills to execute it. You worry and worry, but you always pull through. I know you can do it. ”

“Not with this, it’s like a f*cking horror.”

Louis turns so he can directly face Harry. He touches Harry’s cheek, making him look into his eyes so he can see how earnest Louis is.

“Babe, listen to me, if you do not feel positive about what you’re doing, it’s going to reflect in your work. The only way you’re gonna produce something that you’re proud of is if you believe in yourself and what you’re creating. You get me? You can’t give up after coming so far, H.”

Harry holds eye contact with him for a while before he nods.

“Thank you Lou. I’m so glad to have you.” Finally a smile graces Harry’s face and Louis feels his mission accomplished.

They arrive at the villa and Harry’s mood starts to significantly improve as the night goes on. By the time they finish dinner, Harry is back to being his charming self. After they’re done eating, they all retire to their rooms and Louis pulls Harry into his. He doesn’t feel like separating from Harry just yet and it looks like Harry feels the same with the way wraps his arms around Louis as they stand just outside his door.

“Truly, thank you for being there for me today.” He drops a little peck on the side of Louis’ neck from behind. “I had honestly lost all hope and confidence in my fit.”

“Of course, H.” He palms Harry’s cheek. “Now, can we go inside or do you plan to cling to me outside all night?”

“Hmm, clinging to you inside does sound better.” Harry releases him and Louis opens the door to them inside.

He turns on the bedside lamp and removes his jacket.

“Hey, by the way, how did you get inspired by rowing? Did you used to row in college?” Harry asks and Louis turns around to face him.

“f*ck no. I couldn’t row for the life of me.” He plops down on the bed and pats the bed, gesturing for Harry to join. “My ex in uni used to be a part of the rowing team.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. I used to be quite fascinated by the old English culture around it plus their uniforms look great.”

“Ah! So you have a thing for boys in fitted uniforms.” Harry smirks and wiggles his eyebrows.

“Shut up.” Louis chuckles.

“Admit it Lou. Ya did.”

“Maybe I have a thing for my boys wearing clothes that I designed.”

“Oh. How come?” Harry pauses his eyebrow wiggling showing his intrigue.

“The team uniforms were revamped in my second year there and they organised a contest for the fashion majors. The winning design would then become the rowing team’s uniform along with a two hundred pound prize. I won.” Louis shrugs like it’s no big deal.

“That’s amazing, Lou. So will you ever design something for me then?” Harry smiles, so innocent and unaware while Louis feels himself freeze.

How is he supposed to tell Harry he has already designed something, specifically for him when they were barely speaking two words straight to each other? How f*cking embarrassing!

“Umm. Yeah, sure, sure.” He stutters out.

Harry gives him a questioning look. “You don’t have to. I was just kidding.”

Louis internally groans. He is going to have to fess up lest Harry get the wrong idea.

He sighs. “I actually did design something for you already.”

“Oh!” Harry lights up excitedly. “Show me, please. Please, Lou.”

Harry’s obvious enthusiasm makes Louis chuckle. He grabs his iPad from the nightstand and opens it up to the outfit he had designed for Harry. He feels nervous showing it to Harry. He had drawn this like a man possessed, without thinking much. What if Harry doesn’t like it? The timing of his creation is awkward enough as it is. He nevertheless passes his tablet to Harry who has been patiently waiting despite his giddiness.

“It was just a spur of the moment thing. Don’t worry if you don’t like it.” Louis twists his fingers in his lap as he waits with bated breath for Harry’s verdict.

“Lou! This is absolutely gorgeous! I would wear this in a heartbeat.” Harry’s voice is reverent as his eyes shine with delight yet Louis feels compelled to ask, “Really?”

“Yes!” Harry shrieks. “Were you really that nervous about my reaction?”

“Not really. I mean, yes I was nervous if you’d like it or not but it was to do with when and how I designed it that had me so anxious.”

“What do you mean?”

“Haz, please don’t be weirded out but I actually designed it not long after our first challenge. It was as if I was possessed by this vision of you in this outfit. That’s the only word I can use to describe it. It was insane. One minute, I opened my iPad to sketch and the next time I looked up, there it was, fully drawn and coloured.”

Harry had been intently listening all this time. When Louis looks to him to gauge his reaction, he finds his face completely void of the smile he had been sporting before, his pupils are blown and his gaze is unwavering on Louis. Before Louis can say something else, Harry grabs him by the back of his neck and pulls his face forward, smashing their lips together in a kiss that sends a sizzle of electricity through his body. Louis feels goosebumps rise on his skin as he scrambles to put his hands on Harry.

Harry is relentless as he attempts to suck the soul out of him through the kiss. His hands on Louis' shoulders get restless as he moves them to Louis' waist and attempts to pull him into his lap. Louis goes readily as he only breaks their kiss for a moment to take a breath as he straddles Harry's thighs.

“God Louis, I’m flattered. Only a fool would be weirded out. It is an honour to have been your muse. Can I call myself that?” Harry spits this out in one breath, eager to make Louis believe.

“Of course, you’re my muse.” Louis replies, voice extremely tender as he resumes their kiss.

This time their lips move in a slow cadence, memorising each intricate detail as their hands explore each other’s bodies as Harry finds home for his hands on Louis’ waist. The slow pace doesn’t last long as Harry’s mouth turns insistent. Louis gives as good as he gets, soon turning them both breathless. Harry breaks the kiss with a gasp.

“You looked so hot,” Harry attaches his mouth to Louis' collarbone where it is exposed above his tank top, “this tattoo peeking out, begging me to taste it.”

He feels Harry nip where he was sucking on his skin, moving upwards to his neck and behind his ear. Louis is helpless to stop the moan that escapes him as he feels a delicious ache in his shorts where his co*ck is hard and desperate.

“It's not my fault it was so hot today that I had to wear a tank and shorts on tv.”

“Mmm yes these thighs.” Harry groans into his neck as slides his right hand to his thigh, squeezing it with pressure. “Shame your arms were covered with a jacket.”

“I had to have some decency, Harold.” It is getting harder and harder for him to talk as Harry keeps sucking and licking on his neck. The hand he had on Louis' thigh has now moved to his ass, squeezing and pulling his cheek apart.

Louis groans and ruts forward, seeking some friction, some relief. Their hips press together as he feels Harry’s erection against his own. Louis thinks the moan he releases might just be p*rn-worthy. It is electrifying, feeling these sensations after such a long time. Even so, he has never felt them this intense, he feels his breath catching.

Suddenly, he is dropped flat on his back as Harry hovers over him, looking straight into his eyes with his pupils blown. He’s panting much like Louis.

“Don’t they have rules about this kinda thing?”

“I don’t know. I don’t care.” Louis breathes out. “Do you?”

“No. Only about kissing you.”

“Just kissing me?”

“Kissing you. Tasting you. f*cking you. Getting f*cked by you. Whatever you want.” Harry punctuates each wish with a peck on his face and he can’t take this teasing anymore. He just wants.

“Yes. Yes. I want.” Louis desperately nods.

“Which of it?”

“All of it,” he says even though he knows they don’t have stuff for half of it. They didn’t exactly come here expecting to hookup with someone. He is growing impatient by Harry taking his sweet time and decides to take matters into his own hands. “But for now let’s start by me, tasting you.” He suddenly flips them over and starts making his way down Harry’s body, determined to kiss every inch in his path. Pressing light kisses down his neck, nipping his collarbones before he reaches Harry’s nipples, taking one rosy bud into his mouth.

Harry whines as his hands struggle to find purchase on Louis’ body, finally tanging in his hair. Louis sucks hard before baring his teeth in a light graze as Harry jolts, arching his back and moaning Louis’ name. He has never heard a sexier sound, making him even more desperate to have his mouth on Harry. He releases Harry’s nipple and continues to make his way south.

Reaching the waistband of Harry’s jeans, he looks up, finding Harry’s eyes already on him. He looks positively sinful like this. Laid out on the bed for him, his curls fanning on the pillow, framing his face like a halo.

He runs a single finger over Harry's bulge and he moans, his legs twitching under Louis' torso.

“Louis, please. Don't tease.”

“Oh.” Louis acts oblivious, doing exactly what Harry told him not to. “What should I do then?”

Harry groans, grabbing his hair in desperation. “Touch me. Please!”

Louis figures he has tortured Harry enough for the day. He unbuttons Harry’s jeans and lowers the zip over his co*ck, prompting a series of whimpers from Harry. He grabs the waistband of the jeans and lowers them along with Harry’s boxers, releasing his pulsating, hard dick from its confines. Harry moans in relief. After that Louis doesn’t waste time. He grips the base of Harry’s dick and pulls him into his mouth, making sure to breathe through his nose as he bobs his head, sucking the salty, musky length.

Harry is struggling to keep his thighs still, whimpering and clutching the sheets for dear life. Louis brings his hands to Harry’s thighs, gripping them firmly to hold him in place. Harry’s stomach is sucked in and his breathing is shallow as Louis sucks on the head of his co*ck, swirling his tongue around the slit.

“Lou” Harry pants. “f*ck I’m… I’m close.”

Louis takes Harry deeper into his mouth and sucks his cheeks in while he bobs his head. Louis fondles Harry’s balls with his other hand and he stiffens before coming into Louis’ mouth with a moan. Louis swallows and continues sucking every last drop out of Harry until he whines and pats Louis’s head to let go.

Louis takes his mouth away with a pop to see the most gorgeous sight on the bed. Harry’s skin is beautifully flushed and glistening as he lays there panting, slowly coming down from his org*sm. Louis can’t hold out any longer to get a hand around his own dick that has probably turned an angry red by now.

He puts a hand in his shorts and takes his co*ck out, moaning in relief at finally getting some contact on it. He immediately starts wanking it in quick, short pulls. Right before he falls off the edge, Harry grabs his free arms and pulls him forward. “Come in me,” he says before opening his mouth and sticking his tongue out in invitation. Louis thinks he might just die right there but thankfully he doesn’t. Instead, Harry’s erotic display right over the edge as he comes in long stripes, moaning loud as he spills into Harry’s waiting mouth. Some drops fall out, painting his lips pearlescent. Harry swallows everything as Louis falls back on his shins, breathing in deep to come down from his high.

The minx of a man then swipes a finger through Louis’ come on his face, collecting it before he pops the finger in mouth, obscenely sucking on it. Louis’ spent co*ck gives a feeble twitch as a weak moan comes out of his mouth.

“You’re going to be the death of me.”

“What a way to go, death by org*sm isn’t it?” Harry grins. “Though I wouldn’t want you to die. I quite like you alive, like this.”

“Naked and in your bed, you mean?” Louis chuckles. “Well, my bed but still.”

“Yes. I do like you clothed too but,” he runs one finger from Louis’ knee to where his shorts are bunched up, “this new version is quickly becoming my favourite.”

Louis rolls his eyes but he thinks the effect didn’t quite land with Harry’s response being giggling. He gets off Harry, the bunched up shorts now becoming uncomfortable. He goes to change and bring Harry a change of clothes too while the man lounges on his bed with a smile on his face. He goes to the dresser and removes his clothes before donning a pair of boxers and grabbing one for Harry. He also grabs a nightshirt and shorts in case Harry wants them.

He goes back to the bed to find Harry dozing off, his arms over his head and a little smile on his face. He looks like an angel and Louis feels tingles in his stomach. He doesn’t want to call them butterflies. He isn’t a teenager. But the description really might be coming close to what he feels looking at Harry. The way he feels happiness fill him, stretching an involuntary smile on his face and the way his heart picks up pace, he thinks butterflies fall short in describing it. He knows he is sure about this, about them,. He just needs Harry on the same page as him. He had said he wanted to woo Louis, date him but is it just casual dating-someone-you-like-for-a-while thing or does Harry see a future with the two of them? It might be early but Louis is serious about the two of them in a future kinda way. His heart is already in too deep and he doesn’t think he would be able to handle a casual fling with Harry that is inevitably going to lead to heartbreak. Better to end it sooner rather than later if that is going to be the case but that is something he can worry about in the morning. They have time.

He runs his hand from Harry’s cheek to his hair, gently rubbing his scalp. “Hey, sleepy head,” he coos, not wanting to startle Harry but he knows the sleepy boy would be more comfortable if he changes his clothes. Harry only hums in response which makes Louis smile as he continues running his fingers through Harry’s hair. “Love, you wanna change before you sleep?”

Harry scrunches his nose before he slowly opens his eyes. He nods and Louis hands him the clothes he brought, giving him the open choice to sleep however he prefers. Harry opts to just don the boxers before he proclaims he is the little spoon which suits Louis perfectly. Together they get into the covers and soon Louis is out like a light with a smile on his face feeling pure contentment after a long time.

✧✧✧

It is the incessant knocking on the door that rouses Harry from probably the best sleep he’s had in a while. He misses the arms that had wrapped around him last night. He had snuck out of Louis’ room in the middle of the night after having a mini freakout that Louis probably didn’t want him there in the morning when he’d gotten up to relieve his screaming bladder. He regrets it now. He had probably been overthinking. The knocking begins again, this time accompanied with an Irish voice.

“Harry, are you still in there? The cars are about to arrive mate.”

Did he oversleep? Harry rushes to open the door.

“You’re still in your boxers?” Niall shrieks. “I thought you were up here just brooding because Louis looked annoyed when I asked about you and wouldn’t say when I asked if you guys had fought.”

“What?” Harry is confused.

“Ugh I got distracted. We can talk about it in the car. Seriously, you are late. Get dressed and get down! Now!”

Niall leaves and Harry does as asked but his mind is still on Louis. Why would he look annoyed at the mention of Harry’s name after the night they’d shared? Maybe Niall had just gotten the wrong idea. Wait! A lightbulb goes off in Harry’s head. What if Louis is the one that has got the wrong idea? According to Louis, Harry had basically just snuck out in the middle of the night with no explanation and then failed to show up in the morning. f*ck!

He rushes to get downstairs and as he descends the stairs, coming into view of the foyer, he finds Louis getting into a waiting car right outside the door. He calls out the man’s name as he runs towards him but Louis fails to hear him and shuts the door of the car as he gets in and they drive off. Harry tries to not go into a state of absolute panic. Why did his mind always have to overthink? He should’ve woken up with Louis this morning like he wanted or atleast have set an alarm so won’t have overslept and had had a chance to talk to Louis in the morning.

Niall pulls him into the other waiting car and he's saying some words but Harry can't comprehend them. They reach the studio in silence and he gets out as soon as the car stops in a rush to find Louis and clear up any misunderstanding.

It is as if everybody is running late today so as soon as they reach the studio, it is chaotic as anything. Everyone is rushing around and before he can even think, he's being pushed towards the makeup chair by one of the crew. He looks around for Louis but before he can catch him, his face is straightened to face forward by the person doing his hair. He thinks he'll be able to get a moment with Louis after he's done here but he's wrong. He doesn't even get to go through the full hair routine that he'd grown accustomed to, just enough for him to look presentable for the camera before another crew member ushers him to the entrance of the backstage.

There he does find Louis, lined up alongside other contestants but before he can get a word in, the director starts the countdown for their entry so he's forced to keep his mouth shut. As they walk through, following their cue, the reason for his worries shifts from Louis to his half done outfit. If he doesn't get it right, he won't be able to worry about either anymore.

They meet the judges, dressed in their finest runway show clothes and once they reiterate the rules, they are allowed to kick off their designing for the day. Another point to this sh*tty morning, he now figures that his and Louis' desks are on opposite sides of the room with the make-up station completely separating so he doesn't even have eyes on the man. He wants to scream but he refrains and does a onceover of his outfit pinned to the dress form, trying to decide his plan of action for the day.

Yesterday had been hell. Never having worked with the fabrics or designed activewear, Harry had been a fish out of water, panicked and stressed about his survival, albeit just in the show. His vision of a basketball top with sleeves that pop off along with trousers that too pop off to become basketball shorts was looking like a distant possibility, harder and harder to achieve.

The fabric he'd chosen had failed him and now his outfit was looking like a grey lump of sh*t with zero structure to it. Harry feels the pressure to finish up everything in time. There's a huge list of things that are yet to be done. The side seams have to be sewn on the top, the closure has to be done on the sides of the pants, the pockets have to be finished, the waistband needs to be attached, it all has to be pressed, the pleat is yet to be done and Harry doesn't think he is going to be able to manage what he needs to do today while still making it look good. He is trying very hard to stay calm as he attempts to save the look and subsequently his arse in the competition. He starts by stitching up the top he had been unable to finish the previous day.

When the models arrive, he greets the gorgeous Sharon with pin straight dark hair that compliments her dark skin and brown eyes. He helps her dress and he feels like crying after seeing how bad it looks on her.

“I'm so sorry. It looks absolutely sh*t.” He puts his face in his palms, pressing his eyeballs trying to hold back the tears welling up there.

“Hey, no. I'm sure you can fix whatever you don't like.” Sharon puts a hand on his bicep, gently rubbing to calm him down.

But he knows. After seeing how the ugly fit can look so much uglier when worn by an actual human, he knows there is no way he is not going home tonight. The outfit is an absolute disaster. He feels the tears coming and he can't break down in front of the camera. He doesn't want to look like a fool in front of all these people, this is his livelihood. He runs outside, exiting the studio through the backdoor and rushing into one of the portable toilet stalls. He shuts the door and lets the cries come.

The camera crew follows him there because, of course they do and not a moment later, Riley knocks on his door.

“Harry, hey. Riley here. Are you right?” Her voice is soft and at least she sounds sympathetic more than pissed off. “Can I come in please?”

He thinks it might not be a request and doesn't want to get in more trouble than he probably already is in so he unlatches the door even as he keeps crying, sitting on the shut toilet seat. Riley squeezes inside and shuts the door behind herself.

“Hey, Harry, what happened?” She rubs his back in gentle circles.

“I'm going to look like an idiot.” He wheezes out amidst his sobbing. “I just don't know what to do, Riley.”

“I don't want you to give up here.”

“I've got an hour and forty minutes.” He cries out.

“You're gonna do it.”

He doesn’t want to look like a quitter on a show millions of people are gonna watch, his family’s gonna watch. No matter how hard things had gotten, he has never given up in his life and he doesn’t want to start now. So he raises his head and promises Riley that he’s gonna try to do something and she leaves him with more reassurances to clean himself up. He wipes his tears, blows his nose and splashes water on his face before running a hand through his hair.

He goes back inside and he finds Louis waiting beside his desk with Sharon, anxiously biting his nails. He feels like crying again with the happiness he feels watching him standing there. Louis looks up as if he hears him coming and his face twists into a concerned frown.

“Harry, are you okay?” He asks as soon as Harry reaches him.

“Yeah, Lou, I am.” He smiles before gesturing to the sh*t Sharon’s wearing. “But this is not. How am I supposed to fix this?” He waves his hands a bit wildly.

Louis nods and gives him a once over before he decides not to push. “The concept is there, the idea is there and the design was smart. It’s just been badly executed.”

“Yeah, but what can I do? I don’t think I’m gonna have time.”

“I think you can make something out of this.” Louis moves in front of Sharon. “Do a crop top thing and then tuck it in, because this looks nice.” He gestures to the pants.

Harry gets the idea based on what Louis is saying. “I’m gonna cut this off and then tuck this in,” he bunches up the excess fabric hanging off the top, “and that’s gonna be it.”

Sometimes you have bad days, sometimes you make bad decisions. The important thing is to not give up.

–Harry Styles, England

He thanks Louis, sincerely trying to convey how grateful he feels by squeezing his hand before he lets him go. Harry throws himself into finishing up the outfit as quickly as he can. Cutting, sewing, ironing, he doesn’t think he is even sparing time to breathe but he will once this is done. He’ll have all the time to breathe then. He knows this is not reflective of him as a designer but he always wants to do better. The day he starts feeling content with his work will be the day he stops reaching higher and growing as a designer. But that day is not today.

The one hour call sounds and Harry sends Sharon off to makeup to get a very natural look with minimal makeup in line with the sporty look and simple, straight hair flowing down her back. Harry gets back to finishing the garments.

It is time to try on the final look and once Sharon puts everything on, Harry thinks it still doesn't look the best but it also doesn't look as bad as before. He squats down to adjust the trousers and a laugh falls out of his mouth.

“I mean I don't wanna say it could be worse but I think it could be.” But it is what it is. He can't do much now. He's not happy with his work, he's disappointed in himself but he's gotta send it out now.

Harry does the final adjustments and the models are off to line up. He sighs, but not out of relief, well some relief at having finished but it's mostly out of resignation. He knows he's definitely in danger of going home. He had a look at everyone's outfits as the models lined up and if he has to guess, it is going to be down to him and Niall. He has made a pair of swimming tights along with a crop top. The top looked a bit too short and the tights ill fitting due to the technical skills of their former team being down to Perrie. Now that they were separated, it is obvious Niall had struggled, his forte being creativity and ideation more than the execution.

He goes to line up with the contestants when Louis stops him, coming from the same way Harry was heading.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah, just a bit pissed at myself for being overly ambitious again especially ‘cause it was only going to be me this time.” He feigns a smile before shrugging. “But it is what it is, like your tattoo says.”

“Harry, but if–” Harry cuts him off. “I don't wanna talk about this right now please, can we go watch the show?” Harry knows that if they talk right now, he's going to cry and he doesn't want to be red faced again in front of the camera. Once a day is enough.

Thankfully, Louis understands and they walk where the other contestants are. The intro for the show is being played as the runway lights up in a series of vibrant concentric shapes. The music builds and the models start walking out one by one. They cheer for every single one of them and when it’s Harry’s turn, he winces watching Sharon walk out, even as the other contestants do not skimp out on their enthusiasm. He knows he could’ve done so much better with just a little bit more time.

As the runway finishes, they shoot their usual sponsored content with the champagne cheers even if Harry doesn’t feel like celebrating. Small mercies that it isn’t his turn to do any other bits of sponsored content.

Soon it’s his turn for the judges review and he waits for them beside Sharon dreading what they’ll have to say. Tan and Josephine approach them and he gives them a smile he hopes doesn’t convey his real emotions.

“Harry, I know you weren’t excited to do activewear, and I wanna know how it went.”

“Initial idea was that this,” Harry gestures to the bottom of the trousers, “would popper on and be a simple trouser, and then there was meant to be poppers here,” he points to Sharon’s arms, “and a sleeve that never transpired.”

“Okay,” Tan starts, “you came up with an idea that was actually super, super smart. The plan was maybe too ambitious for one person. If you were still in your team,” Tan snaps his fingers, “you could’ve done this.”

Harry smiles, feeling wistful about how he and Louis were actually the dream team.

“I think the fabric was not the right choice.” Josephine remarks. “Especially for the pants. The colour, it doesn’t feel like it popped. Really, if you want to have a colour pop, your shirt is the colour pop. The grey just feels a little bit sad.”

Harry nods and thanks the judges for their feedback. The judges’ feedback really does not ease the dread he feels. In fact, the knot in his chest only tightens as he feels surer about the fact that he’s in trouble. He takes deep breaths and avoids thinking about it all, emptying his mind lest he starts panicking. All that was left now was to wait to be called to the stage for the results. It doesn’t take long for that moment to arrive as a crew member ushers them onto the stage in the order their clothes went out on the runway like always. And this becomes another first in the competition where Louis is not right beside him.

“Congratulations to you all,” Tan starts, “for making the most incredible activewear looks” Not me!

“The winner tonight absolutely blew us away.” Lexa exclaims. “The first individual winner of this competition is.,” she pauses, “Louis!”

Harry feels a grin form on his face as he claps hard along with the others, feeling extremely proud and happy for Louis. He is thrilled that if anyone won activewear, it was Louis.

He peeks a look at the man to find his eyes crinkled with happiness and Harry’s smile stretches wider if that was even possible.

“When the look stepped out, it hit the perfect balance between activewear that performs and fashion that would be at home on any runway in the world.” Elizabeth praises.

Harry feels pride in his chest at every compliment that Louis gets as if it had been directed at him. The man truly deserves every bit of the praise coming his way.

The happy feeling at Louis’ win doesn’t last long as the dreaded moment of the elimination announcement arrives.

“Two designers will step forward and one of you will be going home.”

“Please step forward,” Tan takes his horrid pause, “Niall.”

Harry crosses his fingers, bracing for the next name to be his.

“The next designer at risk of being eliminated is… Harry.”

Harry nods and steps forward at Alexa’s words, expecting them even as a gasp sounds from his right. He resolutely does not look at Louis.

“Harry, you were overambitious with this one, and you just weren't able to execute on your incredibly ambitious designs.” Tan says.

“Yeah.” Harry agrees. “I have a tendency to intellectualise and conceptualise a little bit too much.”

Harry feels the weight in his chest at the impending outcome of going home. Even as he loathes the idea of going home and not being able to achieve what he came here for, he also feels the aching despair of being separated from Louis.

“The designer that will be leaving us tonight is,” Tan’s voice is like a ticking clock counting down to his journey’s inevitable end. “Harry.” It feels like a balloon popping as what he had been apprehending becomes a reality. “Niall, please step back for me.”

“Harry, what have your highlights been in this competition?”

“Winning, of course.” He chuckles, even as he feels tears well up in his eyes. “And meeting Louis. Even though we did not get along in the beginning, I know I have met someone who is going to be an indispensable part of my life beyond the competition and for that I’m very grateful.” Harry finally sparesa look to his right, finding Louis struggling to hold back his own tears. “Stop it!” He points at him. Harry’s desperately trying to hold back fully sobbing here and that is not going to happen if he sees Louis crying. “It’s just been amazing being here with everybody.” Harry’s voice breaks and he wipes off the traitorous tear that falls down his cheek.

“Thank you, Harry.” Alexa smiles.

“Well, I hate to say it because you have been amazing but it is finally time to say goodnight to you. Thank you.”

Harry exits the stage and wipes his face off more traitorous tears. Riley comes over and offers her sympathies with a hug before ushering him to do a backstage interview of his thoughts.

“I’m obviously really sad to be leaving, but really happy for the experience. I stepped out of my comfort zone, mostly thanks to Louis. I usually work a long time on things, agonising over minor details. To work in such a quick manner… it’s definitely something I wouldn’t normally have done.”

-Harry Styles, England

He gets up from the interview chair to say goodbye to the other contestants. He has been told that all his things will be packed up and brought to the guest house all the eliminated contestants have been staying at since they will all be returning for the finale. Any stuff that remains, he will get a chance to collect after all the episodes have been shot. He is in no way allowed to disclose that information to the other contestants since they want to film their authentic reactions. It makes him feel so much better that the rushed goodbye he is probably about to have with Louis is not going to be their last interaction in the competition.

Suddenly, two arms wrap around him as a sniffling sound falls on his ears. “I’m going to miss you so much.” Louis cries.

Harry reciprocates the hug, pulling Louis tight to his chest, hoping to convey all the words he can’t say out loud right now. “Me too, Lou.” He turns his head into Louis’ neck, dropping a peck there. “But hey, now you’ve gotta try your hardest for the both of us, yeah? I know you can win this.”

They break apart the hug, still not letting go of each other’s arms. “I will.” Louis nods as he sniffles.

“It should be easy now that your biggest competition is gone.” Harry jokes, trying to lighten the mood.

It makes Louis chuckle. “Yes, I’m very glad to be rid of you.”

Harry goes to say more but a crew member calls out Louis’ name, telling him it is time to leave in no uncertain terms. Louis nods and Harry squeezes his forearm.

“Go. I’ll see you soon.” Louis feigns a smile, nodding and Harry wants to kiss him so badly but he knows he can’t right now and that fact is killing him. It’s like his body is being pulled away by the force of a hundred trucks when he wants to go the opposite way. Louis drops his hands away, starting to walk backwards. They keep holding eye contact until the very last moment that Louis has to turn away. Before he does, he holds up his thumb to Harry which Harry reciprocates as he sees a tear fall out of Louis’ eye. He wishes he could scream that he is going to be back in four days. He heart breaks seeing Louis run to the car, in a bid to hide his tears.

As the cars of the contestants depart, he is ushered outside to a waiting car of his own. He climbs in and the driver tells him that his luggage is in the boot. They drive off and arrive at a white villa, this one smaller than their main house. He goes inside and is immediately jumped by Jade.

“Oh Harry.” He hugs her back laughing. “I hate that you’re here because of what it means but I’m also happy to see you.”

“Me too. I missed you.”

“Come on. I’ll show you around. Everyone’s in the living room waiting for our new addition.”

“Why does this feel like you’re welcoming me to your prison group?” He laughs.

“Shut up.” Jade rolls her eyes and they go in. Harry immediately starts his mental countdown to reuniting with Louis.

Chapter 8: Military

Chapter Text

Louis wakes up with a dry mouth and crusty eyes. When they had left the studio last night, he had let tears escape him but he had composed himself for the most part. Liam and Zayn were constantly giving him concerned looks and then doing their annoying telepathy thing. They were treating him as if he was made of porcelain and he did not appreciate that. He had tried very hard not to, hoping their concerned looks would stop, but when they hadn't, he had snapped at them telling them that he was fine. Even if Harry's elimination had soured his win, he had won and that deserved celebration. He really wished they had alcohol then. He would be able to numb the pain of the Harry shaped hole in his chest even as he pretended to be over the moon over his win. He had to give his friends this, they had pretended very convincingly to buy Louis' act even if they had left the living room periodically to whisper about him or to snog each other’s faces off, he couldn't really be sure about the latter.

It had only been inside the four walls of his room that he had let the tears fall unabashedly. Last night had been an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. From the high of winning the challenge to the low of losing Harry so close to the end, not even a day after they had shared such a pivotal moment in their relationship. They hadn't even gotten a chance to talk about it. Louis' deep seeded insecurities were still wreaking havoc in his mind constantly making him question Harry; planting doubts in his head whether Harry actually felt something or was it just a hookup for him. Somewhere deep down he knows the voices in his head are just that– voices in his head and not the truth but when they pop into his head, he can’t help his worries.

He just wishes Harry was here with him so he could ask him all his stupid questions and he won’t have minded one bit, always reassuring Louis. The morning brought with it, a gloomy cloud that floats over him and he absolutely does not feel like getting out of bed and being creative. He doesn’t think numbness is a good source of creativity. He just wants a day of wallowing in his sweatpants, eating McDonalds and watching trash tv. Yet he knows, he can’t do that. He is not at home in London, he is at a competition and he has got to treat it as such. He wades through the fog in his mind and pushes himself out of the bed.

He goes through the motions of showering and getting dressed before going downstairs. He stops in the middle of the staircase, catching sight of Liam and Zayn whispering with worried frowns on their faces. He rolls his eyes. This has to be about him. He appreciates the care and concern of his friends but they need to give him credit that he is capable of handling sh*t and is not as fragile as they think. He pinches the bridge of his nose. He doesn’t need them walking on eggshells around him, being a further reminder that something is amiss or he is going to lose it. The only way he is going to placate them and get through the day is by pretending everything is absolutely dandy.

He takes a deep breath and climbs down the rest of the staircase. He goes to the breakfast bar before joining his two friends on the couch.

“Good morning boys,” he plops down across from them.

They look startled like deers caught in headlights and with both their brown eyes, somehow the effect is enhanced.

He can feel them having a silent conversation as he focuses on his breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast.

“How are you feeling today, Lou?”

Finally, it is Zayn who hesitantly asks the question. In the decade that Louis has known Zayn, the man has never once been hesitant with him.

“Perfectly alright, why?” He cuts up a piece of sausage, spears it on his fork then begins chewing..

“Lou, you know why we ask.”

“Oh! Because Harry’s gone?” He asks, keeping his voice casual as ever.

“Of course because of Harry! Louis, we saw how you were yesterday. We gave you your space but you can’t possibly expect us to buy your sudden,‘everything is great’ act. We’re worried about you.” Liam looks manic like he can’t comprehend Louis’ sudden change in attitude. Louis honestly can’t blame him.

“Harry has just been eliminated out of the competition, not my life, Liam.” He even surprises himself with the level of conviction in his voice, though in reality, he is in no way certain that Harry hasn’t been eliminated from his life. For all he knows, they might never meet again, or worse, it is Harry who does not want to ever meet again.

He keeps his focus on his food in a bid to not have another breakdown or let his panic show.

“Lou,” Zayn's voice is super soft and whenever he hears it this way, he wants to just cuddle up to the man and cry his worries out so he cuts him off. “I promise you, Z. I'm fine. All I want to do right now is focus on the competition and do what I came here to do– win this sh*t! or atleast try my damndest to.”

“Okay,” Zayn nods. “We won't push you anymore but just know that we're always, always here for you.”

“I know,” Louis smiles, “now can you two please stop worrying so much? It's getting weird watching your silent conversations.” Inside, he’s keeping himself from crying with all his mental fortitude. The boys roll their eyes and get up to have breakfast. Soon after, the cars arrive and they are being driven to the studio for their eighth challenge.

They get through hair and makeup before lining up outside the workroom as they have become accustomed to. They're given the go ahead and they enter to find just the five desks waiting for them.

“Here we go. It's getting smaller,” Liam says as they find their respective desks, waiting for the judges.

“Words I never, never like to hear coming out of anybody.” Louis deadpans.

“Niall, is there anything else new?” Liam resolutely ignores him even as the others laugh.

“Higher levels of anxiety,” the Irishman answers.

Before their banter can continue, the judges enter, once again with their high levels of energy.

“Morning everyone!” Tan's chirpy voice carries through the room.

“Join us!” Alexa waves them towards their usual spot of briefing.

“Hi everyone.Welcome back!” Tan turns to his co host. “Alexa, that's it, final five!”

“I know,” she says as if the time passed too soon and Louis agrees.

They started the show with eighteen people and now it has shrunk down to five. Louis knows it is definitely going to be more competitive than ever because everyone's going to show their best. This has become a high stakes game now. One tiny mistake now, and they'll become Sisyphus when his boulder falls down, right before the edge. So close to the finish line, yet so far away.

“I mean this competition’s really getting down to the wire now and there's so much talent in this room, but only two challenges are going to stand between you guys and the grand finale of Next In Fashion.” Alexa reminds them.

“This next challenge is all about a major fashion influence. It's a,” Tan clears his throat before continuing, “salute to great style.”

“Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry about Tan’s puns, but you're all sensing what's about to happen. Today is all about the military.”

Various reactions come from the room. Military is a tricky one and definitely not everyone's aesthetic.

“Do any of you like to use military-inspired pieces in your life, at all?” Tan questions.

Liam raises a hand before replying, “I did an all pink, military inspired collection, and then three weeks later, Beyonce wore it for the Tidal launch.” Yes! She did. Louis feels proud at Liam's name drop. It's Beyonce. He should shout it from the rooftops.

“Woo!” Tan gasps.

“Amazing!” Alexa marvels. “Military uniforms have had an undeniable impact on fashion from day one. I’m talking bomber jackets, cargo pants, jumpsuits, this kind of girdle area,” she gestures to the very item on Tan’s waist, “camouflage. So we want you to pull inspiration from military uniforms, in a way that honours its intended purpose but then, still makes it fashion.”

“Tomorrow is your next runway show. Alexa and I will be judging with stylist extraordinaire, Elizabeth Stewart, along with a design duo that put themselves on the map with their sharp, sophisticated and perfectly tailored sportswear.” Oh! Louis' ears are perked.

“We'll be welcoming from Public School, Maxwell Osbourne and Dao-Yi Chow.” Oh hell yeah! Louis loves Public School. They are such rule-breakers.

For this challenge, they have to each present one military inspired look. The judges once again unveil the closet that has all the embellishments, fabrics and everything they could ever need.

“Troops, Attention!” They all take up the attention position. “Your time starts

now!”

Louis rushes to his desk. It’s his second challenge without brainstorming with Harry yet he still feels the stark absence of the man as if he had never worked alone in his life. It was such a good collaborative experience, even when they were fighting so of course he misses it. This time, Harry isn't even in the same room for Louis to feel the support from his presence.

Louis pulls up a fresh page of his sketchbook and grabs some pencils. He draws up a trench coat, taking inspiration from the reason for its invention– the British military. He decides to do a denim trench coat, which would be quite oversized with binding exposed on the outside. With his design, he wants to pay homage to the medics who work in the military.

He takes a trip to the closet and finds a really beautiful blue shirting that makes him think of hospital scrubs, making it line up perfectly with his vision. He throws himself into his work which also serves the purpose of keeping his mind off of Harry. He knows if left alone with his thoughts, he would be agonising over every single interaction they had, dissecting it and convincing himself that it was all in his head. He’s a self saboteur of the highest degree so he draws, he cuts, he sews and he tries to keep his mind from wandering.

His hands are moving quickly and very soon he has got the trousers hung together, but there’s still a fair bit left to do. He hasn’t even started the trench coat that is realistically extremely f*cking complicated. What he has to do is find every single seam and use a strip of denim as tape and put it on every single seam. On top of that, he has to bind them before he can sew them together. He is feeling overwhelmed and cursing his past self for coming up with the idea.

Soon, the judges arrive at his table.

“Hello!”

“Louis,” Tan smiles.

“What are you making?”

“I’m doing a denim trench coat.”

“You're doing a woman’s look?” Tan looks surprised.

“Yeah, I am.”

“I'm surprised by that.” Louis feels smug. He’s happy he can still surprise the judges.

“Good.” Alexa says.

“I think because my brand is only menswear, I have to push myself in the challenge.” Louis explains, “I think it is time to take a risk.”

The judges look impressed and Louis feels affirmed that he made the right decision. He now continues his work feeling a little bit lighter.

Louis thinks it might be coming close to the end of the day when Zayn passes by his desk.

“How’s that binding going?”

“I'm nearly done. On my last sleeve,” Louis holds up the sleeve.

“Really?” Zayn looks amazed.

“Yeah,” Louis grins.

“Epic,” Zayn smirks and leaves to go back to his desk, holding up the roll of fabric he just fetched from the closet.

As the end of the day gets closer, Louis’ stress starts skyrocketing. He is nearly done with the trench coat and he thinks it looks good but in the back of his mind, he is not sure that the trench coat and the blue hospital scrubs go together. What is making him even more anxious is that he is not going to really know if it works or not, until he sees it on a model tomorrow. He feels like screaming. What was he thinking?

“Tools down!” Tan hollers and they all step back.

The judges bid good night and Louis sighs. This day has officially been too f*cking much! How he wishes Harry was here to cuddle him. His soft deep voice could send him to sleep in an instant which he knows sounds horrible but he means it in the best possible way. It’s just so calm and soothing, it would’ve melted today right off of him.

They get into the cars and set off for villa.

“f*ck! I’m knackered.” Liam moans from the backseat while Louis is resting his eyes at the front.

“Tell me about it,” Louis mutters. “There’s a chance I might have to make the pants and top all over again tomorrow.” Just thinking about it is giving him a headache.

“What? Why?”

“I don’t know if they work with the denim coat. Will see when I try it on the model tomorrow.”

Liam blows out a breath, “Well good luck bro.”

“A challenge isn’t complete unless you pull off some insane last-minute sh*t, is it?”

“Well, Zaynie, just hope I can actually pull it off this time.”

They reach the villa and Louis is in no mood for food or company so he tells the boys he’ll be turning in early tonight. After giving him their concerned looks and ascertaining that he is actually not hungry and not just skipping due to the stress of the day. Well, it is true that he is f*cking drained but it is also true that right now, he has no appetite.

Louis feels the heaviness in his body as he trudges up the stairs. He feels as if he is being weighed down by a ton of bricks while his mind is foggy yet very, very awake. He is tired to the bone but he doesn’t feel like he’ll be sleeping any time soon after hitting the bed. Him missing Harry, the possibility that he has botched his look with one wrong decision of colour as well as what it will mean in regards to him having to create the shirt and the pants from scratch once again has him feeling like screaming and crying at the same time. Yet, he knows that neither one of it is going to come out of him no matter how hard he tries.

Despite knowing that sleep is going to elude him, he changes and falls into bed. It is not as if there are many articulate thoughts running through his head either, it is just a montage of anxiety in the form of his half done outfit and various moods of Harry. There is a Harry in there that is blushing, a Harry that has a deep, concentrated frown on his face that makes him look like a frog, a Harry who is shyly putting a lock of his loose hair behind his ear, and so many more Harrys, all beautiful and swirling into each other. He shuts his eyes, hoping sleep comes to him soon and he is unaware when it finally does.

✧✧✧

The next day when Louis wakes up, his body feels rested and while the fog in his mind has lifted, it is now decidedly empty. He doesn't feel weighed down to the bed, making it physically tedious for him to get up but he still doesn't feel compelled enough to want to get up. He knows it's a crucial day today, especially for him with the way he had left things yesterday but he can't make himself feel fired up.

He sighs and hopes the adrenaline strikes when they get to the studio. He really does not want to go home now, so close to the sweet taste of victory. He cannot be going home just because his mind refused to co-operate on a crucial day. He will fight his mind as he is fighting the other contestants to get into the final and even win because he really, really wants that. He promised Harry he'd fight for the win, for the both of them and he wants to make good on his promise. He wants to win, not just for himself now, but for Harry too. It's insane how a man he met barely a fortnight ago has become so important to him. A man who was just supposed to be his competitor feels so much more now. Even if he is not present physically, Harry is always there on his mind, even when it is painfully empty, there is always space for Harry. Or maybe Harry just doesn't reside in his mind at all, maybe he resides in Louis’ heart. The thought makes him starkly aware of his increasing heart beat, steadily present against his chest. Why is this happening to him? He shakes his head rid himself of the implications before pushing off the bed to get ready to go downstairs.

Breakfast is fairly quiet. Even Zayn and Liam are not buzzing over him in concern. He supposes everyone is feeling the looming presence of the finals. The semi-finalists would be decided today and everyone wants their name on the list. They get to the studio and he feels his focus return, little by little and he feels so grateful. His mind starts running with thoughts and ideas for the challenge and even if it is not working at its full speed yet. Baby steps, it will get there.

They greet the judges backstage and after letting all of them know that their models would be arriving in thirty minutes and that they have just three and a half hours left, they are let go. Louis rushes to his assigned station and seeing his outfit, he still thinks he wants to change the entire look. The blue does not go with the trench and it feels as if they're conflicting ideas. He isn't sure that the denim and the blue work together and if he wants to make it to the final, he really needs to push himself and also take a bit of a risk.

“Oh,” he groans out loud to himself. “I just don’t know what to do.”

When the models arrive, he has Jenny try on the looks. Louis doesn’t love it so he brings the black fabric and holds it against Jenny’s torso to get an idea of how it will look. He thinks the black looks stronger so he just says f*ck it! And decides to remake the entire look in black. With the little time that remains, he’s gonna have to sew like a little bitch.

His hands are cramping but he cuts and cuts, wiping sweat from his brows. His hands are cramping but he carries on sewing, determined to finish the clothes. An hour passes and he is cursing himself, while sitting at the sewing machine, regretting every decision he has ever made that landed him here.

“Jesus!” He looks straight into the camera on his right, “this is the stupidest thing I’ve done in the entire competition.”

He flexes his hands, releasing loud, satisfying pops from his fingers. With every minute that passes, he feels the urge to scream his head off, intensifying.

“I feel more nervous today than I have done in any other challenge.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

The producers announce that only twenty minutes are left before the runway show.

“Why does it go so fast?” Niall moans.

“Because they are lying.” His response makes Niall chuckle as Louis runs off to get Jenny dressed in the pants and shirt he just finished.

The look is complete with a balaclava style headgear but without covering her face. Louis is doing the final adjustments in the last ten minutes when he starts to finally breath steady.

“It’s a miracle that I’ve got this look together. It’s not the standard I aim for but it could go down the runway in this state. I’ve seen worse.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

The models go off to line up and he is pulled into a group hug with all the designers.

“Oh my god, there’s only five of us,” Niall moans.

“This is horrible,” Louis joins in with his whining.

They all gather in front of the screen once again to watch the show. The music builds up the atmosphere as the runway begins to light up. Each week the stage designs are getting more and more insane. It’s like everyone is stepping up as they get closer and closer to the finale. This time the lighting is blue and white with the backdrop resembling tunnels of a mirror maze while the floor screens are showing floating clouds.

The models begin to walk out and when Jenny appears, the first thought that Louis has is that the black does not pop out on the runway, especially when compared to the other designs. Did he make a mistake?

As the runway ends, he feels apprehensive for the judges’ review. He’s praying this mistake doesn’t cost him his place in the competition.

“I am so confused,” is what Tan opens up with when he and Elizabeth come over to take a closer look at his outfit. “I left you yesterday and you had scrubs on, that were not far off the quintessential blue of the nurse scrubs and today we have a full black look under there. What's going on?”

“Yeah, it was like absolute hell this morning, but I knew that the blue look was wrong. I tried it on her and I was like ‘it's too much, it doesn't work.’ So today, I had to do an entire new top and trousers. I think it was the right thing to do because I'm much happier with this.” He hopes the judges feel the same.

“It was a bold, brave move but,” Tan pauses, “I really miss the blue” and Louis’ heart drops as he waits for the verdict. “I do. When I saw that you did it in black, I was actually very disappointed. I am not gonna lie.”

“Oh, no.”

“And I actually prefer the blue against this. Elizabeth, tell me what you think.”

“The tailoring on this coat is great. I love it. I like the simplicity of it. The military inspiration, maybe for me, was a teeny bit lost. I wish this was a slightly stronger collar, I wish it was just a bit sharper overall.”

Louis nods, taking in their feedback, while also feeling frustration at himself.

“The finishing is incredible.” Tan praises. “You had two days, but on the runway it was hard to read.”

“Black has to be very very strong to carry through on the runway. And so between the two colours, blue is gonna be better.”

“I truly truly hope that this doesn't cost you a place in the final four.” Louis f*cking prays for the same too.

“Good luck, Louis,” Elizabeth wishes him and they both move to take their leave.

“Thank you.”

Louis feels the weight of this challenge going to the results. Every muscle in his body is tense as he prays and prays to not go home.

“Just six of you left, and challenge after challenge you guys continue to blow us away. And tonight seeing your military look was so inspiring,” Alexa kicks off.

They announce Perrie as the winner and he is truly happy for her but his mind is zoned out while the judges praise her as his hands applaud of their own accord along with the rest of them.

“Congratulations Perrie, you are our first designer to make it into the semi finals. Unfortunately I cannot say the same for all of you.” Tan segues into the elimination for which they are all holding their breath.

“We are going to ask two of you designers to step forward. From those two, we will be saying goodbye to one of you. The first designer we would like to step forward is,” Alexa pauses and Louis counts every second with bated breath. “Louis.”

He nods and steps forward. He would be lying if he said he hadn’t been expecting this, even if he’d been praying for a different outcome.

“The next designer in danger of going home is Niall.” The man steps forward as Tan takes his name.

“Louis you are so good, it's painful to see you up here. The coat was a brilliant design but you obscured it with really sad fabric choices and it just sort of fell flat on the runway.” Louis nods along to Elizabeth’s words.

“I so wish you hadn’t changed your mind this morning, to not do the blue scrubs.” oh how he agrees with Tan now! “If you had done the blue scrubs, this would have been a different conversation. Fair assessment?”

“No absolutely, I agree with everything you have said. I expected to be in this position tonight. I knew that I took a risk at changing it from blue to the black at the last minute. It didn’t have the same punch on the runway as it should have had. I would just really love to make it to the finals and show you what I can do.”

The judges give their feedback of Niall’s outfit which had lacked a presence of the theme and felt really simple for a semi-finale look.

“The designer that is safe tonight is,” Alexa pauses and clenches his fingers behind his back. “Louis.”

Louis feels relief like an overblown balloon that has just been popped,“thank you.”

“How are you feeling?” Tan asks.

“A whole mix of emotions right now. Like I know that I can do better and I didnt want to go out on this challenge. I’m just really grateful to you guys for giving me a chance.”

He steps back and the judges say their goodbyes to Niall before they are all let backstage. They form a tight group hug around Niall, squeezing him hard with promises to meet up again after the competition. They say their goodbyes and leave him to have a moment alone with Perrie. This time it is the sole car that takes them all to the villa. As the number of contestants gets smaller, the space everywhere feels bigger.

Louis had almost had the rug pulled from underneath him tonight and he vows to himself to focus tomorrow. Compartmentalise all his feelings, put them in a box and deal with them after the competition is over. His funk nearly cost him his place in the competition and really does not want to throw this chance away.

Chapter 9: Denim

Chapter Text

Yesterday had been a shock to his system, his heart had been in his mouth standing in the bottom two. It made him realise just how much he wants this. When he hadn't heard his name, but Niall’s, coming out of Alexa’s mouth, it was like getting a bucket of cold water being poured over him when he was burning up in the hot summer sun. He wants to win this and he is going to give it his all today.

When he gets downstairs, it is to find Liam and Zayn sequestered in the corner, bickering about something while trying to keep their voices down. Now he wouldn’t find it odd at all if he had not heard Liam say Harry’s name. That raises both his eyes and his ears.

He creeps over to them and stands right behind Liam.

“What are you two whispering about?”

Liam shrieks while Zayn gasps, startled and it makes Louis snicker.

“You scared the f*ck out of me!”

“Yeah, I got that.” Louis tries to compose himself but the laughter in his voice is still clear as day.

They both roll their eyes in remarkable synchronicity until Louis repeats his question and then they both freeze up. Something is definitely up!

“Sex stuff,” Zayn says at the same time as Liam says, “The competition.”

“Which one is it?”

“Sex. Definitely sex,” Liam half shouts.

“You’re planning on having a threesome with Harry?”

“What?” Liam screams, horrified while Zayn looks disgusted, which, rude!

“Well, you mentioned Harry while you were talking about,” he makes air quotes, “sex stuff so…”

“That was… that was after. The sex stuff conversation was definitely over by then.” Liam nods like he's convincing himself. Louis narrows his eyes.

“He did tell you we were talking about the competition.”

“Then why the f*ck did you say sex stuff?”

“To mess with you.” Zayn says like that should be obvious. “Obviously.”

He's not sure he believes them but Louis nevertheless lets it go.

They eat their breakfast before leaving for the studio. The atmosphere is full of nervous excitement. Everyone's buzzing with anticipation and Louis feels surreal to be here– in the semifinals! Especially after last night. He can't believe that he made it. So many talented designers and he is one of the four that made it to the last challenge before the finale.

He has just hopped off the makeup chair when Riley approaches him.

“Louis, there’s a call for you,” She holds out her phone for Louis to take and his first thought is to worry if it’s a call from home and something has happened to his mum or one of his sisters. Louis quickly grabs the phone, muttering a thanks before going off into a corner for some privacy.

“Hello.”

“Hey, Lou.” Hearing that voice just about brings him to his knees. His chest feels like it is about to burst with emotion. He looks over to Riley to see her smiling as he tries to convey his shock and his thanks. She gestures to tell him he has five minutes and then leaves him be as the hustle and bustle of the studio goes around him.

“Harry.” his voice comes out like a soft sigh of the name before he feels a tear roll down his cheek. He has missed hearing that voice.

“How are you? You’re almost through to the finals. I’m so proud of you.”

“I miss you.”

“I miss you too.”

“But how are you calling? We’re not allowed, are we? The competition is still going on.” He has so many questions.

“A few people were in cahoots. It was a very elaborate plan.” Louis can hear the grin in Harry’s voice as he attempts to make the story more dramatic than it is.

“Oh, was it?” Louis leans against the wall and

“Mm hmm, it was!”

“So this is what the treesome talk was about this morning,” Louis muses.

“What?” Harry laughs. “I leave for two days and you’re planning threesomes?”

“Shut up!” Louis chuckles before he recounts his conversation with Zayn and Liam this morning that sends Harry into a fit of giggles.

“Oh my god, I wish I had been there to see Liam’s face.”

“It had gone red! He was so flustered.” Louis thinks his face right now might not be that different from Liam’s with how hard he has been laughing with Harry.

They compose themselves as Louis sees Riley walk towards him from the far corner of the backstage area.

“Riley might be coming soon. She only gave me five minutes,” Louis says, a frown making its way onto his face.

“I know. It was very hard to convince her. Ultimately it was my undeniable level of adorableness that convinced her.”

“You’re such a dork.” Louis shakes his head; giggles escaping him once again. Not for the first time he wonders what it is about Harry that makes him act like a teenager with their first crush.

“Louis Tomlinson, will you be my boyfriend?”

Louis’ heart stops for a moment before beating up a storm in his chest. He can’t believe the words that just came out of Harry’s mouth. This is all he has wanted– for Harry to want them as much as he does, for this to not be a fling for him and here, Harry asking him to officially be his boyfriend. He feels like floating.

“How dare you ask me on the phone?” Louis pretends to be miffed as if there isn’t a mile long grin on his face. “I deserve romance, Harold.” Harry could ask him half asleep and he’d say yes.

“Of course you do, baby but I just couldn’t help myself.”

“Mm hmm. Alright, I’ll say yes. But only on one condition. Kissing me would be the first thing you do when we meet again.”

“I can’t wait to kiss my boyfriend when I see him again,” Harry’s voice is soft and Louis feels the resident butterflies go wild in his stomach again.

“Me too.” Before he can say anything more, he feels a tap on his shoulder and he turns his head around to see Riley with a slightly apologetic look on her face.

“Sorry, Louis but we gotta wrap this up. I gave you as long as I could.”

Louis nods in understanding. He is grateful for the time he got and he doesn’t want to push his luck.

“I’m sorry Harry, I have to go.”

“Of course. Good luck boyfriend, go get ‘em!” He is delighted to no end, being called boyfriend by Harry.

Louis bids him goodbye and thanks Riley for allowing them this call. They hug and Louis goes off to join the other contestants, with an extra pep in his step from talking with Harry. They are once again standing outside the workroom, ready to enter and he thinks it could very well be the last time he is stepping foot to work there. Louis realises he's going to miss all of this. Well, maybe not all of this. He's definitely not going to miss the stress. But working in such a beautiful space with a pretty closet for all your needs is something he is definitely going to miss.

“It's so strange. Just the four of us,” Louis says as he looks around the room that looks huge with all the empty space with just four desks left to occupy it.

“It's so quiet too,” Zayn observes.

“That might just be because Niall isn’t here.” Perrie chuckles but he can see it in the way the smile doesn’t reach her eyes that she already misses him.

They started this with eighteen designers and a full workroom where every station was packed. And now he is once again baffled at how he managed to reach the semifinals. Being able to say that he was the winner of ‘Next In Fashion’ would prove his worth. He is young and going into this not long after college would be absolutely huge for him.

The judges enter, bringing along their cheerful greetings.

“Good morning, everyone!”

“Look at all the space!” Tan looks around, waving a hand.

“Yeah.”

“The final four,” he marvels, as if in disbelief.

“I know,” Alexa shakes her head. “Congratulations on officially making it to the semifinals of Next In Fashion!” The four of them cheer, applauding themselves for getting through to here.

“This is the final challenge you guys are gonna need to survive in order to make it to the Grand Finale. Your final challenge will revolve around a very versatile fabric.” Tan smirks.

“I wonder if we have given it away in our outfits.” Alexa is wearing a denim jumpsuit while Tan is in a denim shirt and loose fit denim jeans. Holy sh*t! It has to be denim!

“Don't look at us.” Tan laughs as everyone else joins in.

“Yes, denim,” Alexa confirms for them. “It is one of the most worn fabrics in the world.”

When thinking about denim, obviously the first thing that comes to mind is a great pair of jeans but one can also use it for jackets, shirts, dresses, skirts, jumpsuits. It is the versatility that has made denim so popular.

“So tomorrow is your semi final runway where your denim creations will walk in front of us, Elizabeth Stewart and a very special guest.” Tan looks too smug. Oh god! Who have they brought?

“Joining us tomorrow at the runway is a designer of many talents, his work spans fashion genres, from red carpet to resort and of course denim. He has made a very, very powerful impact on the world of fashion. We will be welcoming, drum roll dear,” Alexa says as Tan begins to use the nearest desk to give her the drumroll. “As loud as you can,” Tan bangs harder before she finally announces, “Tommy Hilfiger!”

“WHAT?” The collective sound of four shell shocked contestants booms in the space.

“That's right, Tommy Hilfiger is joining us tomorrow.” Tan grins.

Tommy Hilfiger is one of the most famous designers. Who doesn’t know that name? When Louis thinks of Tommy Hilfiger, he thinks about the logo, the font. The man’s clothes are iconic!

The judges reveal the fashion closet which is full to the brim with staffs and staffs of denim along with bleach, patches, rivets, gromets and paint. They can go to town on this. They have to present not one but two denim looks, one for a male model and one for a female model. On top of that, both the looks have to be cohesive with each other. Louis is feeling the pressure already.

“The finale is so, so close and the stakes are higher than ever because four designers are all standing here in the semi finals but in the finale only two designers will be going head to head.” Tan announces and silence falls over the room. Louis mentally groans. If he was stressed in the last challenge, he is not sure how he is going to fare in this one.

“Show us why you really deserve to be in the finale!”

“Are you ready?” Tan askes. “The Next In Fashion semi finals start now!”

Louis runs to his desk and takes out the stool to sit on, opening the sketchbook to start brainstorming. This is the penultimate challenge and denim is an everyday staple but it is so complicated. If you get the grain wrong, the rise wrong, pockets in the wrong position, there are a hundred small ways it can go wrong. And because it has already been done in thousands of different ways, it is going to be a tough one to really think outside the box. He has got to impress the judges with something they have never seen.

“When I look at the denim and like all the colours, it really makes me think of the icebergs like the Arctic. I think it would be really nice to use everyone’s denim scraps to create Arctic scenes.”

Louis kind of hates denim with stretch in it because that means it has got elastane and it is not biodegradable. The fashion industry as a whole is a huge polluter. and in particular denim is really bad for the environment. This is something he feels passionately about and for him fashion is a platform to talk about things that he cares about. Once, during fashion school, he produced a collection about Brexit and instead of doing a runway show, he gathered all of his friends and they wore the collection and they stood outside the main fashion week venue with signs and placards that read things like, ‘we want to stay’ and that was his plea to the British public that they should vote to remain. He thinks it is important that if one has got a platform then one should use it for something positive.

He sketches out his designs. For the men’s look he draws up a white denim duffle coat with a detachable hood and a jersey polo neck underneath. For the women’s look, he is going to make a long denim dress with patchwork arctic landscape. He goes to the other designers to ask for their scraps.

He fetches everything off the floor and puts it in a plastic bin to bring it to his desk. He draws up the patterns and starts cutting up for both his looks. When he starts assembling the patchwork on his dress to resemble the Arctic, he feels he might be short on scraps so he goes to ask for more, bin in hand.

“Guys, I'm gonna need more fashion waste.” He looks at the floor around Liam’s desk and his eyes light up. “You have loads of scraps, sooo good!” He collects them all and moves to Zayn’s desk.

“Zayn, do you have any more?”

“Anything you can grab, grab it.”

“Thank you.” He points to the sleeve that Zayn has just finished sewing, “oh, maybe I'll take this little sleeve here, too. Perfect.”

Zayn laughs and shakes his head, used to Louis’ antics. He brings all that he collected to his table where after a while, the judges stop by.

“Hello!”

“So what's with the trash?” Alexa asks as Tan picks up his scrap bin to inspect.

“So I’ve asked everyone if I can take their scraps, because I am gonna use them to create a scene that looks like the ice caps melting. I really wanna talk about climate change because fashion is a huge contributor and I think it is important to talk about it. As a young designer, I’m like okay, what can we do to combat this?”

The judges nod in agreement, seemingly impressed with his ideas and he describes his designs to them.

“Oh those look mountainous.” Tan is back with his puns and Louis is cursed with one in his head that he just cannot keep in.

“Yeah it kinda took a lot of plain-ing around.”

The judges laugh before Alexa drags Tan away, faux exasperated.

There is an hour left till the end of day one when he is sewing the Arctic landscape scene into the front of the dress. He really wishes that he had glued it all down before he started sewing it because now it is all moving but then he thinks it kinda adds to the charm of the dress even if it takes a little extra effort from him to sew.

Louis has just finished pinning up his clothes to the dress forms when he hears Alexa’s voice from the front of the room.

“Okay fab four, tools down. your work day is over and tomorrow you have your denim runway.”

“We'll be deciding which two of you will be heading home and who will be catapulted to the Next In Fashion Grand Finale.”

“So go home and get some rest!”

“Good night.” Tan throws a mock salute and they’re off to the side of the stage.

Louis blows out a huge breath. He is so knackered, he just wants to fall in bed and sleep for days. Today was loads better than the previous two days. He got to sort out his head, had a chance to talk to Harry which in all fairness was the reason he was able to sort his head out. He is going to give his friends cuddles for days for reading him, and knowing him so well that they knew that Louis needed this. It made his creativity and designing flow so much better and after last night’s lifeline, he is glad he is in a headspace to fight for the win. Now all that is left between him and the Grand Finale is tomorrow.

✧✧✧

They are backstage once again, ready to take on their last day before the finale. Louis is feeling the buzzing in his veins as the four of them wait for their cue to enter.

“f*ck! This is nerve wracking, bro.” Zayn nudges him, blowing out a sigh.

“Tell me about it. I’m jumping out of me f*cking skin here.” Louis wrings his hands together.

“Please stop moving you two, you’re making me more nervous. I’m sure we’ll be let in soon.” Just then, they get the signal to go in and Liam’s words feel golden. Louis gives him a faux impressive look that only gets him an eye roll in return.

“Hello designers!”

“It's a huge day. And tonight is gonna be even bigger because it's not just another runway show. It is the semi finals of Next In Fashion,” Alexa stresses on her words. “You’ve got three and a half hours left to put the finishing touches on your designs, the pressure’s on so just get to work. Good luck!”

Today, what he needs to do is– make the top for the man. It needs toggles, it needs a hood and it needs pockets. He also needs to fit the jeans on him so he’s definitely feeling the pressure but also the adrenaline that is pushing him.

“This is my last chance to make it to the finale. Half of us are being sent home after this challenge. Everyone who’s left is really great. So I'm gonna push these looks to be the absolute best they can be.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

He gets to work and thirty minutes later, the models arrive and he tries the clothes on Ginny, a ginger model with beautiful freckles lining up her pale face and Blaze, with his dark, muscular skin and buzzed hair. He feels really good about how they are coming together. He notes the tweaks he needs to make and sends them off for hair and makeup rotation.

Tommy Hilfiger is judging this challenge and what Louis is doing on this is really different to what he does in his normal brand. He has never done something that is so, kind of hand done. And he is worried it might be too avant-garde for Tommy Hilifiger. He is the only one who was in the bottom two in the last challenge so he is going into this challenge with a bit more to prove than anyone else.

It is thirty minutes to the runway show and he is almost done with his outfits. Jenny’s look is complete and so is Blaze’s jacket. All that is really left is finishing up the pants that Blaze is going to wear. He goes at the sewing machine like a man possessed and twenty minutes later he is done with it.

“Just try this on” he holds up the pants for Blaze and he puts his legs through them one by one. He squeals when they fit perfectly and look great with everything else.

Today it is his turn to do the sponsored content for one of the mobile brands so just before Ginny and Blaze can leave for the runway, he calls them back.

“Okay. guys, good luck. Hang on. Let me just take a picture before you go.” He clicks their photos and he doesn’t want to toot his own horn but they look good. Whatever the verdict might be, he is proud of his work in this challenge.

“Beautiful.” He looks at the picture and asks them to pose for once again.“One more, Amazing.”

He sends them off with a quick good luck and all the designers once again take their place in front of the screen, ready for their last runway. The four of them watch with their arms around each other, cheering extra loud for each outfit, making up for what they lack in number with enthusiasm. As the show comes to a close, they fall into a group hug.

“Congratulations guys!” Louis cheers.

“Last runway together.” Zayn blows out a disbelieving breath.

“I'm not gonna cry,” Perrie vows even as there are already tears in her eyes, in all of their eyes really.

“No, we can't. This is so happy that we are all together. That's all,” Louis placates her, his voice choked up.

It is both both amazing and extremely f*cking weird how time passes. It feels as if it was so long ago that they had been a group of eighteen, here on their first day, split into pairs with people, either of their own choosing or ones that were blessed upon them by the producers that be. He guesses he has twice the thanks to give to the producers– one for blessing him with a teammate with whom he was able to push through all the team rounds successfully and second, for giving him a man he could definitely see himself fall in love with. Yet, when one actually thinks about it, it has only been a little longer than a fortnight since Louis first arrived in LA. Now isn’t that insane?

Louis adjusts Ginny and Blaze’s clothes a little, running a hand over their shoulders to remove any stray lint before the judges’ review. Now all he can do is wait. He loved how his outfits looked on the runway. He felt honest pride in his work this time, which he doesn’t like to admit to often, but he feels compelled to at least realise it for himself today.

Alexa, Elizabeth and Tommy Hilfiger arrive at his station and he hopes for the best.

“Louis, can you explain the overall vision?” Alexa asks.

“Yeah, I’m really conscious of sustainability. So I wanted to use all of the scraps to kind of create something that shone a light on climate change, and I wanted it to look like the Arctic landscape,” Louis explains. “I’ll be honest with you, it was a risk because it could look a little bit. ‘art school.’” Louis admits even if, maybe, he shouldn’t but feels like being honest here.

“I think the fact that you picked up the scraps was incredible.” Tommy’s comment makes a smile bloom on his face and he thanks him. “The fit looks great. I think the function is there and I've never seen this before. I mean, I’ve seen patchwork but not like this.”

“My label in London is a menswear brand so this is actually one of the first dresses that I’ve really kind of done.”

“Congratulations, you did a great job.”

“Thank you.” Louis feels that treacherous glimmer of hope that can break someone in a matter of minutes. He is going to have to contain it.

“I think I agree with Tommy,” Elizabeth starts, “I think you’ve made scraps look, not boho but couture-y. It's amazing. What I love about this dress is that it would be incredibly flattering for a lot of body types. We’re often looking for dresses that have interest up at the top, the whole dress could have been a patchwork and that would have been incredible.” That bloody glimmer is growing as Louis attempts to squash it.

“I really love the menswear look.” It is Alexa’s turn this time. “I think it’s so chic and elevated. The balance is fantastic. You’ve made it look very glamorous.”

“No small feat, I would say,” Tommy quips.

“Thank you!”

“Excellent, Louis. Congrats.” With Alexa’s last words, the judges begin to move away and Louis thanks them for all their compliments today. H’s trying very hard not to just start f*cking dancing right now. He is so happy his concept landed well but also no! He will crush the glimmer of hope before it can get too big to crush him as he waits to be called for the results.

“Okay guys, it’s a big night. Down to the wire here.” Tan welcomes them as they are wait for the results, which could in all possibility be the last time.

“We are on the brink of the finale. Nine challenges have gone by. This was the hardest decision we’ve ever made because you are equally all so darn skilled.” Alexa commends.

“Four designers, all spectacularly talented. However, only two of you can go through to the finale.”

“The first person taking a step into the finale of Next In Fashion is,” Someone should put a ban on Tan’s dramatic pauses. “Louis.”

Holy sh*t! He squats to the ground, feeling overwhelmed. He presses his palm into his eyes, desperately trying not to cry. He takes a moment before he rises up.

“Thank You. Honestly I’m shocked. Thank you.” The judges smile and nod before continuing ahead with their results.

“There is one more place in the finale and the designer taking next place is Zayn.” He cheers for his best friend. He is thrilled at it being Zayn who is going to be there with him tomorrow. He knows he maybe shouldn’t be playing favourites between his two best friends but there’s just a special connection he shares with Zayn.

“Louis,” It is Tommy Hilfiger who calls his name. “I’ve been in the denim business for 40 some years and every season I look for something new. And today what you were showing is something I have never seen before, using sustainability as the backbone so congratulations!”

Louis hopes he is smiling but he is so overcome with emotion– relief, happiness, surprise, gratitude. He doesn’t know where to start.

“And then there were two.” Tan smiles after sending Liam and Perrie backstage. “Louis, what's going through your mind, kiddo?”

“I can't believe it. You know the first pair of jeans I bought from my own money was from Tommy Hilfiger and now I’m standing in front of you, and you're telling me you love my jeans,” Louis shakes his head, “It’s like, what is going on? I am so grateful for all of the feedback and so proud of myself. For me, this is one of the highlights of the competition.”

“You two are going to the final!” Tan marvels. “That is a huge achievement you guys!”

The judges applaud them as they both join in.

“For the grand finale, we're gonna ask both of you to present us with a complete collection. Ten different looks.” Oh!

“And you will be doing it in three days.” f*ck! It took Louis more than a month to make his graduate collection. How the f*ck is he supposed to do that in three days? It is making him a little insane thinking this.

“This is your chance to really show the world your point of view as a designer.”

“We want to see everything you've got.”

“Tommy, is there anything you’d like to say to these guys before they head into this finale?” Tan asks the man.

“I would say good luck. Your first idea is your best idea!”

“Great advice.” Alexa grins.

“Go for it. Don't look back!”

The lights go down and the judges come over to wish them good luck once again and embrace them before they are let go backstage.

Louis puts an arm around Zayn’s neck. “The universe took ‘you and me until the end’ a little too seriously, huh?” Louis refers to the phrase Zayn had said to him once in uni during a drunken night out. Louis had remembered somehow and teased him mercilessly for being so corny until it did become the truth of their friendship. He still likes to bring it up sometimes.

“Shut up,” Zayn laughs. “But yeah I'm glad you’re the one I’m here with.”

They meet Liam and Perrie backstage who hug them tight with their best wishes before they leave for their last post-challenge sleep in the villa.

Chapter 10: Grand Finale: Part I

Chapter Text

Louis wakes up with nervous anticipation thrumming through his veins. This is it! The last and final challenge. Three days and his life could change forever. Three days of absolute hell before he can breathe easy. His hands shake as he pushes himself into an upright position on the bed.

“Zayn!” He shakes the man asleep beside him. It had felt weird to be sleeping in different rooms in this giant house when it was just going to be the two of them so they’d cuddled up in Louis’ bed and talked late into the night even though they knew they had to be up early for the competition and neither of them was a morning person. Louis had missed their deep chats. All that was missing was the weed and he'd have felt transported right to uni.

“Wake up you sleepy f*cker,” Louis climbs on Zayn's back like a five year old and shakes him awake.

Zayn groans and wiggles to get Louis off of him but he is not going to budge. “Wake up! We have to leave soon.”

“How are you awake so early or on time? Whichever it is.” He now swiped his hand backwards in hopes of hitting Louis but to no avail. “Get off me. I’m awake now.”

“It's still fun to annoy you,” Louis says even as he gets back to his side of the bed and Zayn rolls on his back. “Anyway, to answer your question– you might not believe this but some of us actually wake up when our alarms ring.

Zayn glares at him through his half open eyes. To anyone else, he might seem more intimidating but to Louis he just looks like a sleep rumpled, disgruntled cat.

“How are you feeling about today?” Louis asks.

“Nervous? It's like I know it's the finale and there's pressure but for me, I just gotta do what I gotta do– make clothes.”

“Yeah, ten fits in three days.” Louis grimaces. Just a regular day.”

“You know what I mean, Lou. ten fits is going to be hectic but fashion school was hundred different professors assigning a hundred different things at the same time and we got through that. We can handle this.”

Louis nods. “You're right.”

“I know.” Zayn smirks and Louis hits him with a pillow.

“Smugness doesn’t suit you.”

“Of course it does. I look hot as f*ck when I'm smug.”

Louis rolls his eyes and gets out of bed. “Now get up before I pull off the blankets and freeze your tit* off.”

“Okay mum!”

They get ready and set off for the studio after having breakfast. Louis now thinks it might not have been such a good idea to fill his stomach up with bacon. His nerves as they wait for the challenge to start, are wrecking his stomach and he fears he might throw up. Louis is surprised that Zayn is holding up so well but then again it has been a couple of years since he’s learned to handle his anxiety and he only gets better each day. Louis on the other hand doesn’t have daily anxiety but during important moments in his life, he gets too in his head. Thankfully, he doesn’t have to wait any longer.

“Give me five, we can do this.” Zayn says, holding up his hand and Louis claps it as they enter the room to find just two desks along with twenty dress forms, ten beside each desk, lined up for them.

“We’re in the final, I can’t believe I’m here.”

“I could potentially win two hundred and fifty thousand dollars which would completely transform my company.”

“Yeah, all you have to do is dress up all these mannequins behind you.”

They both laugh when Zayn makes a grimacing face as if he had forgotten that tiny detail.

“ Louis and Zayn!” Tan’s voice calls from the front of the room. He and Alexa walk towards them with their hellos that the two of them return.

“Louis and Zayn, congratulations, there are just two of you left! Can you believe it?” Alexa asks.

“No.” They both say together.

“I don’t know if this is really happening.” Louis shakes his head in disbelief.

“This is completely outside of my wildest dreams. I could never envision this when I came into this competition. From my grandmother teaching me to paint to going to Saint Martins to producing my first ever collection to seeing my first garments hung in a store... Everything feels like it has led up to this point.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

“Well, this whole competition really comes down to this moment. The Grand Finale.” Tan stresses. “That’s right, one of you standing here will be named the Next In Fashion.”

“One of you will be the winner of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars from Net-A-Porter, the world's premier online luxury fashion destination. Net-A-Porter is also awarding the winner the opportunity to retail their designs on the site, which is massive.”

“Louis and Zayn, are you ready for the rules?”

“Let's do this.” Louis nods.

“This is the mother of all challenges. We're gonna give you three days to make your entire collection. That means you need to do ten designs. Lovely, huh?” Tan asks. “To keep the experience as real worldly as possible, during your work days, you'll both have access to a team of three sewers. You’d be really hard-pressed, I think , to find a designer out there who sews an entire collection by themselves. They are indeed your fashion support crew but you need to know that you cannot consult them on anything creatively.”

They both listen to instructions intently while nodding.

“This is your chance to really show us, through your designs, who you are.” Alexa points at them.

“The only thing that we ask of you is that that final look within your collection really is a show stopping design. Save the best till last and make it count.”

“So no challenge introduction would be complete without Tan and I doing a little brag about our love child. The thing that we're most proud of in the show. It is of course the Next In Fashion closet.”

The closet is once again beautifully curated and anything else that they might need will be arranged for them.

Suddenly, a commotion starts up near the workroom entrance and all four of them turn their heads towards it.

“Everyone,” Alexa says as Louis goes still watching both their mums and sisters walk through the doors, “welcome our most special guests yet, your families.”

“I can’t believe it.” Louis gasps as tears spring to his eyes at seeing his mum and all his sisters. Even the little twins made the trip! Zayn's shock has mostly been silent.

Together they make a run for it and fall into the arms of their respective mums.

“My legs are shaking, I don't know if I can stand up,” Louis mumbles into her shoulder.

“You’re with your mummy, you can.” Jay pats his back, hugging him tight.

He wipes his face of the tears that had fallen before hugging each of his sisters before going to Zayn's family. They’ve all grown quite close to each other through the boys’ friendship.

“Louis, how do you feel right now, seeing your family?” Alexa asks.

“I just can’t believe it. I can’t believe she’s flown eleven hours, she hates flying.” Louis does not think much can wipe the grin off his face right now. Seeing his family here has pushed all his nerves to the back of his mind.

“You hate flying?” Tan asks.

“I wouldn't miss this for the world. We knew from the day you were this big,” She holds up her hand just below her waist, “that you were going to do something creative, and you’ve not stopped since that day. Keep on doing what you do, boo.”

“We’re all really proud of him.” This comes from Lottie and once again he feels moisture well up in his eyes.

“Come here,” He pulls all of them into another hug. The judges chat some more with Zayn’s family while he too can’ hold back his grin, keeping one arm around his mum, Trisha and one around his younger sisters, Waliyah and Safaa. His elder sister, Doniya unfortunately could not come due to her uni exams.

“Well it means so much to us that you guys have flown from across the world to be here,” Tan thanks them all, “and we’re gonna save you front row seats at the finale, but for now, families please wish these guys good luck and we will say goodbye to you.”

After a last round of hugs and goodbyes, their families take their leave.

“Seeing my family here has given me the push that I needed. My mum has been so supportive my whole life, so I want to do her proud now.”

–Louis Tomlinson, England

“Louis and Zayn, are you ready?” Tan asks and Louis feels the adrenaline rush through his veins along with the energy seeing his family had given him.

“The Next In Fashion finale starts now!”

“Good luck, little sh*t.” Louis smiles at Zayn from behind his desk.

“Good luck,” Zayn shows him a ‘v’ of his index and middle finger that to most people might mean the victory sign but for the northerners is just another way to flip off someone.

Louis brings out his sketchbook and starts planning his collection. For him, this challenge is really the first chance he’s had in this competition to express his true vision, and he already knows what he’s gonna do. It has been in his head for the whole competition. He has always been in love with the theatre even since he played Danny Zuko in his high school’s production of Grease. And today, he is going to take inspiration from, ‘Bright Young Things’. They were a group of high society socialites in London during the 1920s and they did crazy fancy dress parties where one could be whoever they wanted to be. What he is going to do is create a collection where every look will be a different character to embody that spirit.”

“I've come up with a lot of ideas but really it's like ten men’s looks.” Louis moans to Zayn. “I think I need to do a dress.”

“Yeah.” Zayn agrees.

“Can you make something for me?” Louis asks.

“You're not gonna wear it.” And what?

“I would wear it!” Louis is offended by any allegation otherwise.

“When? Halloween?”

Louis just gives Zayn a stink eye and gets back to his work. A while later, after he has sketched out some of the things and created some patterns for them, he calls for his assigned sewers. He greets Layla, Chris and Al.

“Oh guys, we’ve got a lot to do”

“Alright.” They snicker at his dramatics.

“What I’ve started with today is like my base pieces,” he begins to explain his plan of action for today, “so like there’s a pair of jeans that we’ll do a few different colours of and some silk shirts we’ll do a few different colours. I’ve done the pattern for the jeans and the shirt. We can just start now, whilst I figure out what the rest of the collection is gonna look like.”

His strategy for making the collection is to start at the base. Trousers, jeans, shirts and jerseys and then he’ll build on top of that. His collection is going to comprise of four women’s looks and six men’s looks. Today he is going to focus on his strength which is the men’s looks.

“Let’s just get cracking,” He says to his team.

When he works on his collections normally, he is not the one sitting behind a sewing machine, sewing the whole thing. There’s always a team and today he has got an amazing team as well to help him produce the collection and he has faith that they can do this together. He needs their help if he is going to get this collection done in three days.

“Hello, Louis.” Alexa’s voice comes as the judges arrive at his desk.

“Hi”

“So this time, ten looks. The world is your oyster.”

“It is.”

“What are you choosing for your theme?” Tan asks.

“There’s a lot of different things going on here. Each look is going to be a different character.” He explains his vision to them and they leave to go over to Zayn’s desk. They keep on working and Louis feels as if he is back in the last of the days before Fashion Week. As the time ends for their first day, he and Zayn leave their clothes as if they are back in London leaving their offices only to come back the next day. They return to the villa and collapse straight after dinner, absolutely exhausted.

Chapter 11: Grand Finale: Part II

Chapter Text

It is nearing the time for the runway show on the final day and Louis is feeling overwhelmed. He has got a lot to do. He hasn’t finished any looks yet. It’s the day of the runway show and he has still got to make one look from scratch.

Yesterday, he had made his showstopper based on this idea of elegant evening dresses that are kind of deconstructed. It is going to be a 50s style dress inspired by Cecil Beaton’s photographs who was a part of the Bright Young Things. It is going to be as if they have cut it and twisted it around. It will be made in stiff, shiny, silver fabric, so it can really puff out and then cut it away at the waist and then twist it around as if she’s been to this party and she's lost her skirt and then she’s had to sew it back on.

Taking into account the time they had, they actually managed to make a lot of clothes.

“It's more important for me to get all the looks constructed,” he says to his team “but we've got to finish the looks as well. Can you write a list please, as we go along? It's a lot of work to do in one day.” Chris takes out a pad and Louis starts to list off things.

“The coat needs tuxedo buttons, paint edges and the vent needs pressing,” He walks around to each dress form, inspecting each look and listing off whatever needs to be done. “Fit trousers, finish top and skirt, add buttons, collar on jersey, trousers need poppers on, paint edges, top stitching round the edges, needs pockets, needs buttons and a hem, the only thing that is completely finished is the white cumme*rband.”

They all start working on the incomplete things, Louis moving frantically between them while he works on things on his own too.

The two hour announcement sounds and Louis is freaking out a bit. There's still a lot left for him to do.

Forty minutes before the runway show, twenty models arrive and after trying on all the clothes on them, he takes notes on all the adjustments that need to be done before accompanying them to the hair and makeup artists. He coordinates with them for all the makeup looks and leaves them be.

“Okay so just remember that your walk is strong. It’s powerful.” He wishes all the models luck and sends them off.

Before he can take a breath, he feels a pair of arms around him and he is about to jostle them and scream before a voice that makes him weak in the knees caresses his ears in a soft whisper.

“Hey boyfriend.”

He turns in Harry’s arms as he loosens them and immediately pulls the taller man into a kiss. Harry’s lips feel like life has been breathed into him. With every lick, every nip, this kiss fills him with a buzz so strong he feels it from the tips of his hair to the tips of his toes. He can’t believe Harry is actually here and he tries to pour every single second of longing he has felt for the past week into the kiss before he breaks it. He has to make sure with his own eyes that Harry is actually real. He pulls back and they just keep looking into each other’s eyes for what feels like eternity.

“God I hated looking into your eyes.” Harry groans, breaking their trance.

“What? Why?” Louis asks bewildered.

“They always captivated me, knocking my breath away.” Harry whispers, looking into his eyes like he’s revealing a precious secret.

Oh! “And now?”

“They still take my breath away but I no longer have to be subtle about getting lost in them.”

“Oh yeah?” Louis asks, feeling his heart race.

“Yeah. They're mine to gaze into, for however long I want.”

“Jesus Harry!” Louis breathes. “Give a man a warning before you say these things.”

“It’s the truth, baby.” He grins.

Louis’ face feels on fire. “Anyway, sweet talker, how are you even here?”

Harry releases him before he explains, “All the contestants are here to watch the finale. It’s supposed to be a surprise but I just snuck here to wish you good luck, which reminds me, I should not be here and your show must be starting so,” he drops a peck on Louis’ lips, “good luck. I’ll be cheering for you.” And then he runs off.

Louis is reeling from the interaction when Zayn taps him on the shoulder.

“We did it bro.” He opens his arms for a hug that Louis readily jumps into.

“I’m so proud of us,” he shrieks.

“Me too.”

They pull apart and Zayn asks, “was that Harry I saw running out?”

“Yeah. All the contestants are here. He snuck in to wish me luck.”

Zayn coos, “You are so whipped,” pinching him in the side, and Louis tries to dodge him as much as he can.

“Do you want to miss out on our runways? Let’s go!” Louis starts to walk towards the backstage screen while Zayn keeps snickering behind him.

They watch the show and Louis feels surreal about what they managed to accomplish. Three days and they made an entire collection of clothes. The stage effects are absolutely Grand Finale worthy with showstopping music and even fireworks. They fall into an embrace, even shedding a few tears each. They are finally done!

They are called to the runway and are met with a loud applause that plasters a grin so huge on Louis’ face. He rakes his eyes over the audience and finds his family, all the contestants and Harry who is beside Liam, struggling to stay in his seat with excitement. He is in absolute disbelief that this is happening.

“Louis, let’s start with you,” Alexa says. “Incredible work. We are so impressed. How are you feeling?”

“I can’t believe it’s done. That’s like the craziest show I’ve ever done. It felt amazing.”

“And as you know we have your family with us here today, hello family, how are you feeling?” Tan waves to his mum and sisters. His first thought is that he cannot wait for them to meet Harry after this.

“I’ve never experienced anything like this, and I would not have missed this for the world.” His mum looks like she is holding back tears.

“Louis, you are amazing. We love you so much.” Lottie screams and he chuckles, so overwhelmed with love.

“It's hard to put into words how much this whole experience has meant to me and how much it has changed me as a person. And thank you for having me.”

“And thank you for being here with us. You blew us away,” Tan praises. “We are honestly so proud of you.”

“Alright everyone let's hear it one more time for Louis Tomlinson.”

They take Zayn’s thoughts about the competition and talk with his family much like they did with Louis’. Trisha is not faring much better than his mum when it comes to keeping her tears in.

“Louis and Zayn, you came to this competition with a hunger to win, and now here you are in the Grand Finale.”

“There's been much discussion. And we have reached our final decision.” Tan says and Louis grabs Zayn’s hand, holding on tight.

“For one of you life is about to change forever in the most incredible way, the winner of Next In Fashion is…” Alexa trails pauses and Louis feels his heart launch into his throat. Congratulations Zayn Malik!”

Louis screams and jumps Zayn, so beyond happy for his best friend.

“I am so happy for Zayn, he is a worthy winner. His collection was just magical. This experience is gonna change my life. It’s renewed my energy. It’s made me remember who I was when I started my brand. I'm not taking home two hundred and fifty thousand dollars but what I am taking home is much more than that.”

– Louis Tomlinson, England

They call the cut on the cameras and Louis embraces Zayn once again. “I'm so happy for you!”

“Thank you Lou.”

As everyone comes up to congratulate Zayn, he goes in search of Harry. He finds him chatting with Niall.

“Hey, Haz!” He approaches them. “Nialler.”

“Louis, how was it?” Niall hugs him. “Your collection was so good!”

“Thanks Niall.” He smiles. “Can I steal Harry for a second? I promise we'll be back in a few.”

“Sure. Who am I to keep you lovebirds apart?” He grins.

Louis takes Harry a little away from all the chaos before facing him. Harry beats him from saying anything when he pecks his lips.

“I'm so proud of you! You did amazing! So so good, even if you didn't win.”

“Thank you Haz. And honestly, I am very happy for Zayn. He deserved the win.” He smiles. “Anyway, I wanted to ask if you wanted to meet my family? It will be totally alright and I won't be mad if you're not ready.”

“Of course.” Harry agrees without a thought.

“I meant as my boyfriend.” Louis clarifies.

“I got that, Lou and the answer is still yes. Obviously, I would love to meet my boyfriend's family.”

Harry doesn't know how much not obvious this was but then again, Harry has proved to him that he counters every experience with men that Louis has ever had. And that is where Louis thinks he won the jackpot even if he did not win the competition. He honestly can't wait to go out in the world and experience life with Harry. He has a feeling he is about to be proven wrong a lot and even if normally, he hates that, he doesn't mind it that much with Harry. He is ready to be wrong all his life if he gets to have that life with Harry.