SHINYLOUIS

Camping

Title: Camping

Pairing: Harry/Louis

Warnings: Zayn does a very sexy lapdance, which may not be suitable for young readers. (But seriously, this is pretty tame.)

Summary: The five boys take a break from recording their first record to go camping. They play truth or dare and stuff. Harry and Louis find some stuff out. Some stuff happens with that. Super fluffy.

It had been a few months since X-Factor ended and they were currently in the process of recording their first album. Everything was moving very quickly for them and sometimes it just got too intense.

Louis came up with the idea to take a weekend to get away from everything. Liam suggested camping and everyone other than Zayn quickly agreed. It took some persuading, but he finally caved. As long as he didn’t have to kill his dinner, he said, he’d come along. So, they had scouted out a secluded area in the woods, away from everything and everyone else.

“Why are we doing this again?” Zayn complained, wanting nothing more than to go home to his video games and internet and central heating.

“We’re bonding. Shut up. It’ll be fun.” Louis said, dropping his bag before he helped Harry out of his heavy pack, which included one of the tents.

“Camping. I can’t believe I agreed to this.” Zayn set up a camp chair and sat down, rubbing his temples.

It had been a few months since X-Factor ended and they were currently in the process of recording their first album. Everything was moving very quickly for them and sometimes it just got too intense.

Louis came up with the idea to take a weekend to get away from everything. Liam suggested camping and everyone other than Zayn quickly agreed. It took some persuading, but he finally caved. As long as he didn’t have to kill his dinner, he said, he’d come along. So, they had scouted out a secluded area in the woods, away from everything and everyone else.

Harry was particularly excited about this idea. He loved camping and being outdoors, but he rarely got to do it. And he was excited to spend alone time with the four boys who had quickly become his best friends. They spent so much time together, but it was almost never just them. There were always dozens of other people around them.

They started setting up camp in a small clearing. They had brought two tents, five chairs, some firewood, a cooler full of drinks, and enough food to last them a month. Harry and Louis began constructing one of the tents while Liam tried to get Zayn to stop pouting and help him. Niall had wandered into the trees to find some branches for kindling.

“So, who’s sleeping with who?” Harry asked, trying to slip the plastic frame of the tent through the fabric openings.

“I call Harry!” Louis nearly shouted.

Harry laughed, a blush creeping onto his cheeks from the flattery.

“Can’t stay away, can you, Lou?” He smiled cheekily at his best friend.

“What can I say? I love you, man.” Louis patted Harry’s cheek affectionately, playing it up. Harry grinned wider into the touch.

“You can’t just call Harry,” Zayn griped, opening a beer bottle. “Because that means you get the two person tent and the rest of us will be packed together. I say we draw straws.”

Louis rolled his eyes, but agreed. Harry was annoyed, but he didn’t show it. Everyone knew he and Louis were the most comfortable around each other. If he had to sleep sandwiched between Zayn and Liam, he probably wouldn’t get much sleep. Louis was like his security blanket. He just always felt more relaxed when Louis was with him.

Niall emerged from the trees, arms stacked with branches and twigs. He dropped them by the firewood, then came to assess the tent construction. Harry and Louis were just finishing, stepping back to admire their work. Liam, however, who had been left to put up the second tent on his own after Zayn refused to help, was still struggling to put together the individual components, looking at the instructions as if they were written in Chinese. Everyone joined him, even Zayn who held the stakes and handed them over when someone called for one, and they quickly got the tent erected.

Zayn’s attitude lifted as he slowly drank his beer, relaxing into the situation. Soon, they were all laughing and joking as they got everything organized, taking breaks to kick around a football. Evening was approaching, so they decided to get the fire started. Niall got territorial over the fire building, taking it very seriously. Liam helped him when he could and Zayn took a few twigs, sitting in his chair and widdling them with his pocketknife.

Louis and Harry decided to take a quick walk in the woods before it got dark, promising not to stray too far.

“I think this was a good idea. I’m already starting to forget about everything,” Louis said, ducking to avoid a branch.

Their footsteps were noisy, crunching dead leaves and snapping small twigs with each step. Harry loved the sound. It was getting chilly and the air smelled like autumn. He breathed deeply, inhaling the crisp air.

“I’ve already forgotten.” Harry smiled as Louis glanced at him. Louis returned the smile.

Harry’s foot slipped on a pile of leaves and he lost his balance, but Louis was right there to grab him by the waist, keeping him upright. When Harry had righted himself, he thanked Louis, noticing that the older boy left a hand resting protectively at the small of Harry’s back.

“Clumsy bugger,” Louis teased.

Harry didn’t even respond, enjoying the warmth on his back from the familiar hand. As they walked, they pointed out cool looking plants and the occasional wild animal. But soon, the sun started setting and they decided to head back. It only took a few minutes before they were out of the woods and could see flames flickering nearby from the fire. Louis’ hand dropped away from Harry’s back, leaving goosebumps on the skin it had covered.

Dinner was pre-made sandwiches and chips. They drank beer as they ate, silently staring into the fire, hypnotized by the movement of the flames. Harry felt peaceful, a small smile playing on his lips as he sat and drank. The heat from the fire whipped at his face, reddening his cheeks. The only sound was the crackling from the fire and the tree branches knocking together from the soft breeze.

“Let’s play a game,” Louis suggested, inching his chair closer to Harry’s until they were touching. Harry wished they didn’t have armrests so they could cuddle up together. Even with the heat from the fire, his back half was cold, and he would love to press it up against Louis’ warm chest.

“Oh! That reminds me!” Zayn got up, facing away from everyone for a moment while he fussed with something. When he turned to face them, he held up his fist, which had 5 small twigs in it. “We have to draw straws! There are two long sticks and three short ones. That’ll decide our sleeping arrangements.”

Harry rolled his eyes. Zayn moved in front of Niall, letting him choose first. Niall drew a short stick. Then, Zayn moved to Louis, who drew a long stick. Harry was next and he prayed that he would get the other long stick and they would get their way even with this silly little game. Unfortunately, as he pulled on the twig, he saw that he had chosen a short one. He tried to mask his disappointment. As Zayn moved over to Liam, who drew the last short stick, Louis leaned close and whispered to Harry.

“That sucks.” He stuck out his bottom lip, pouting.

Harry gave him a half smile, shrugging, then reached up and pinched his bottom lip.

“I’m sure we’ll survive somehow.”

Louis’ eyes twinkled before they both returned their attention to the other boys. Zayn sat back down next to Liam, looking pleased with the results of the sleeping arrangements.

“So, now can we play a game?” Louis asked.

“Like truth or dare?” Niall actually seemed excited at this thought. Harry chuckled at the situation. A bunch of teenage boys playing truth or dare around a camp fire.

Zayn groaned, but didn’t refuse. Everyone else agreed.

“I’ll start!” Niall declared. His eyes scanned the others and landed on Louis. “Truth or dare, Tomlinson?”

Louis sighed, picking truth.

“Have you ever had anal sex?”

Louis’ eyes narrowed.

“Like, with a girl?”

“Yeah.”

“No. No, I haven’t.”

Zayn quickly piped up, excitedly telling a story about his first experience with anal sex. As he spoke, Harry leaned over to whisper into Louis’ ear, making sure everyone else was distracted by Zayn’s story.

“Did that change your answer?”

“Huh?” Louis asked, confused.

“When you asked if he was talking about anal sex with a girl. Did it change your answer?”

Louis blushed wildly, but answered with a quick and emphatic no. As Harry leaned back, his eyes caught Louis’ and he smiled softly at the blush on Louis’ cheeks. He reached over and patted Louis’ knee.

“Louis! Pick someone!”

Apparently Zayn had finished his story and was ready to move on.

“Okay, Zayn, truth or dare?”

“Dare, obviously.”

Louis thought for a moment, weighing his options. He decided on what he thought would be the most entertaining option.

“Do a lapdance for Liam. Hold on, I get to pick the music.” Louis pulled his phone out of his pocket, scrolling through his songs.

Zayn laughed, while Liam covered his face with his hands, shaking his head. Zayn got up and did some stretches, pretending to warm up. Niall moved his chair closer to get a good view.

When the music started playing from Louis’ phone, everyone laughed. It was “Only Girl (In The World)” by Rihanna. Zayn must have been buzzed from the alcohol, because he immediately started moving his hips, bending over Liam seductively, and running his hands over Liam’s chest. He rolled his hips, throwing a wink at Liam. When the chorus started, he threw his leg up, letting his foot rest on the armrest. He thrusted at Liam’s face, running a hand slowly down his own chest until he stopped it on his crotch, grabbing it crudely.

Liam sat, watching the display in horror. He kept shaking his head in protest at the whole situation. The other three were nearly in tears from laughing so hard. Harry was shocked that Zayn was going all out for this dare. He had expected some lame half attempt, but this was almost impressive.

When the song came to a close, Zayn reached down and kissed Liam’s beet red cheek before taking his seat beside him. Harry, Louis, and Niall all applauded the performance, whooping loudly.

“I’m never going camping with you lot again,” Liam said, staring blankly ahead.

“Oh, you loved it.” Zayn winked and blew a kiss in Liam’s direction. Liam finally cracked a smile, rolling his eyes, which Zayn responded to by grinning. “Okay, so I get to pick now. Harry, truth or dare?”

Harry thought hard about it and decided that truth would be safer at this point.

“After that… truth.”

Zayn nodded, pursing his lips. He rubbed his chin absently as he thought. Finally, he decided.

“Have you and Louis ever kissed?”

Harry’s face contorted in surprise that Zayn would use this as his question. He scanned the faces around him and was surprised to see that Niall and Liam were looking at him with genuine curiosity. Only Louis looked as thrown off as he was.

“No! Of course we’ve never kissed,” Harry said incredulously.

“Really?” Niall asked, disbelieving.

“Really! Why would you think that?”

“You’re just… You’re really close. And, I mean, you just seem attracted to each other. We just all assumed you fooled around a long time ago.”

Harry and Louis both sat still, eyes wide, in shock from this discovery.

“You thought we fooled around. Harry and I. Fooling around. Wow. Okay.” Louis mumbled to himself, shaking his head.

Silence hung over the group for a few moments before Zayn spoke again.

“So, that’s a no.”

“Yeah, that’s a no.” Harry finally turned his gaze to Louis, whose eyes met his. They didn’t say anything. They just stared at each other for a moment before looking away.

“Okay, let’s move on. My turn, right?” Harry wanted to get past that awkward moment as quickly as possible.

Everyone seemed to shake it off and focus on the game again, but throughout the evening, Harry’s mind kept wandering back to the realization that their closest friends thought he and Louis were secretly more than friends.

After a while, truth or dare turned into just telling stories and chatting. They were all fairly drunk, laughing uproariously at everything. Harry leaned back in his chair, letting his head droop to the side until it was resting on Louis’ shoulder.

Sometime after midnight, Liam announced that he was heading to bed. Zayn followed soon after, heading to the other tent. For another half hour or so, Niall stayed up until he finished his beer. The fire was dwindling at this point, mostly just hot coals remaining.

“Okay, I’m heading to bed. Make sure you put the fire out before you guys go to sleep. There’s water over there.” He gestured to a jug of water by the cooler. “Night.”

Harry and Louis both said goodnight. Without the heat from the fire, it was dark and cold. Harry shivered slightly, wanting to go get his sweatshirt, but also not wanting to move. He tried to cuddle as close to Louis as possible, but the armrests prevented him from getting close.

“Cold?” Louis asked.

“I’m alright.”

But Louis got up, pushing Harry’s head off his shoulder. He went to his tent and emerged with two blankets and a large pillow. He lay one of the blankets out on the ground, a few feet from the fire, and dropped the pillow on top of it.

“Come here,” he said, gesturing for Harry to join him.

Harry walked over to the makeshift bed and lay down, Louis joining him immediately and covering them both with a thick blanket. He wrapped his arms around Harry, pulling him close, sharing his body heat.

“That better?”

“Yeah, so much better. Thank you.”

Harry grinned up at Louis, who smiled warmly, rubbing his hand up and down Harry’s back. They lay in silence for a while, cuddled together. Finally, Louis pressed a kiss to the top of Harry’s head and lay back flat, looking up at the sky.

“We should do this camping thing more often.”

“Yeah, we definitely should. This is perfect.”

Harry was still pressed into Louis’ side, in that nook between Louis’ arm and body. He let his eyes fall shut. Louis’ fingers rubbed light patterns into Harry’s back as his eyes scanned the sky, full of brightly shining stars creating a soft glow around them.

“I think maybe I understand.” Louis said softly, as if he didn’t actually know he was speaking aloud.

“Understand what?” Harry asked, eyes still closed.

“Why they all think there’s something going on between us.”

Harry’s eyes opened and he lifted his head slowly to look up at Louis. Louis finally tore his gaze away from the sky and looked down at Harry, smiling.

“I mean, look at us, Harry.”

Harry paused before letting out a chuckle. He supposed they did look more like a couple than friends in that moment.

“Yeah, I guess. I still can’t believe they all thought that and never said anything.”

Louis agreed, swallowing audibly. He fidgeted a bit before speaking again.

“Do you think… I mean, only if you want to, but… Do you think maybe we could try it? Just to see what it’s like?”

Harry sat up enough so he could look into Louis’ eyes.

“What do you mean?”

Louis bit his lip, looking painfully embarrassed.

“Kissing.”

They stared at each other silently while Harry processed this. Louis was asking to kiss him? Louis was asking to kiss him.

“We could try that, yeah. Why not?”

Harry tried to act casual, but his heart was racing. He lay his head back down next to Louis’ so their noses were practically touching. He couldn’t tell who was moving in, but he assumed they both were. He tilted his head and felt their lips meet.

Louis’ lips felt warm against his and Harry pressed into the kiss a bit deeper, loving the warmth. Their mouths moved together, not pushing too far, but not wanting to separate. Harry let his hand move instinctively up to Louis’ cheek, cupping it lightly, his thumb rubbing against the soft skin. Louis’s hand ran down Harry’s back lightly.

Harry pressed a last soft kiss into Louis’ lips before pulling back, moving his hand from Louis’ cheek, down to his arm.

They both looked at each other, unsure of what to say, expressions falling somewhere between happiness and lust and nervousness. Finally Louis spoke.

“Well, I thought that was rather nice.”

Harry immediately burst into laughter.

“What’s funny?!” Louis asked, punching Harry’s shoulder.

“’Rather nice’. Jesus, Lou, we’re not talking about the appetizer course in a fancy restaurant.”

Louis cracked a smile, chuckling a bit as Harry’s laughter died down.

“Okay, fine. That was fucking amazing. Is that better?”

Harry nodded, his eyes shining brightly.

“That’s better, yes.” His hand traveled up to Louis’ fringe, gently pushing it away from Louis’ eyes. When he continued, he spoke with uncertainty. “Do you think that’s something you’d want to do more of?”

“Right now or just in general?”

“Both.” Harry smiled shyly.

Louis smiled and placed a light kiss to Harry’s lips before responding.

“Yes to both.”

Harry’s smile was as bright as the stars in the sky above them. Their mouths met again, this time more confidently. They kissed for what was probably a much longer length of time than it seemed. Finally, fatigue took over and they parted.

“Can we just sleep here, like this?” Harry asked, hopefully.

“Well, I’m not going in there and cuddling up next to Zayn now,” Louis said, smiling.

Harry got up to pour water over the still warm coals, then rejoined Louis. He kissed him once more, a sweet, lingering kiss that he could still taste as he drifted off to sleep, with Louis in his arms.

As consciousness crept into Harry’s mind, he shifted slightly, feeling a body against his chest. His eyes opened slowly, remembering the events of the previous night. He and Louis were spooning, Harry pressed against Louis’ back, their legs tangled together. Harry’s arm was draped over Louis’ waist.

He closed his eyes again and squirmed, nuzzling his face into the back of Louis’ neck. He pressed a kiss there, causing Louis to twitch a bit. Harry heard Louis’ breathing change as he woke up.

“Morning,” Harry whispered, eyes still shut tight.

“Morning,” Louis responded hoarsely.

He reached down and squeezed Harry’s hand in his, pulling it up to his chest. Harry pressed in closer, leaning down to kiss right behind Louis’ ear.

“Don’t turn around because I’m sure I have gross morning breath.”

Louis laughed lightly, pulling Harry’s hand up to his mouth and kissing his wrist.

“I’m sure I do, too.” They lay in silence for a moment before Louis sighed. “I like waking up like this.”

“Me too.” Harry smiled into Louis’ neck, feeling pure happiness radiate through his body.

At that moment, Harry heard someone clearing their throat behind him. He felt Louis tense up in his arms as he rolled back, looking in the direction of the noise. When he turned his head, he saw Zayn, Liam, and Niall all standing there, silently, with smirks on their faces.

“Truth or dare, Harry.” Zayn said, his eyes twinkling with barely contained laughter.