they meet when louis is 18 and liam 29. louis works in a little cafe and liam just really wants a greasy cheeseburger after a long day of meetings.
no one quite understands how they work, since liam is ten and a half years older than louis. for the first six months of their relationship everyone is convinced that louis is just a phase. all rich men want a pretty young thing on their arms after all. for a while louis is pretty sure that’s exactly what he is to liam.
he feels out of place at all of liam’s high class functions - the expensive suits making him want to claw out of his own skin. and louis of course is ostracized by all the snooty middle aged wives who treat him like they can smell the lower-middle-class on him through the pricey cologne liam bought him.
his mom looks at him like she’s worried when he tells her about liam. she says he should be careful. all his friends keep telling him that an age gap that big is slightly creepy. and everyone looks at him like they expect him to be terrified of liam.
he’s ready to call it quits. sure that he doesn’t need to be treated like this just to be with a man who’ll probably lose interest a few months anyway.
then one day louis has had a particularly gruelling day of classes and liam is supposed to be on some business trip in dubai and really all louis wants is to go home and sleep. when he gets back to his flat, though, liam is sitting on the floor by his door looking disheveled with his shirt collar unbuttoned, tie loosened, and sleeves haphazardly rolled up.
"hi," liam says looking up at louis.
louis stands shocked, gaping for a few moments before he replies, “hi. you’re supposed to be in dubai.”
and liam doesn’t respond for a while - looks at louis like he’s trying to drink him in. like he’s absolutely desperate to touch him, taste him, breathe him.
"fuck," liam finally breathes out, “fuck i missed you so much.” he pushes himself up from the ground and then he’s standing right in front of louis, cupping louis’s face in both his hands.
louis can’t help turn his cheek into liam’s left hand where the cool metal of his watch presses into louis’s skin. it’s familiar - reminds him of being on his back with liam hovering over him, liam’s hands braced on either side of louis’s head and one of louis’s legs thrown over liam’s shoulder as he fucks into him.
he looks up to see liam staring back, inches from his face.
"i was in and out of meetings and i just- i kept thinking of you, you know?" liam says brushing a thumb across louis’s cheekbone. “i was thinking about what you were doing, how your classes were going, and if you remembered to eat lunch or do your laundry. and i was going out of my mind because you’re under my skin and i don’t even want to try to get you out.
"i needed to tell you that. i needed to tell you that i missed you and that you’re like. fuck you’re everything, louis. you’re everything and i think i’m going mad over you."
louis probably shouldn’t think that liam is adorable. he shouldn’t be calling liam an earnest puppy in his head because louis is a goddamn teenager and liam is a fully licensed adult with his own company and people who fucking work for him. but they’re standing in the narrow hall of louis’s dingy little student housing complex and liam looks like the spitting image of a dog that got caught out in the rain.
"they’ve invented mobile phones, you know," louis means for it to come out snarky and sharp, but it just sounds soft and fond. "you could’ve called. didn’t need to fly back just to tell me you missed me."
liam shakes his head, “i needed to see your face. fuck you’re so beautiful. you’re beautiful and i have no idea what’s wrong with me.”
and louis kind of wants to cry because he’s never felt more wanted and needed and safe and warm in all his life. he settles for reaching up and hooking his arms around liam’s neck so that he can kiss him.
it’s definitely not as hot or dirty or desperate as any of the other kisses they’ve shared. but it’s probably the best kiss of louis’s life and it makes his whole body light up, sends tiny electric shocks through his veins, sets off fireworks behind his eyes.
when they pull away, liam’s forehead is pressed to louis’s and they’re nose to nose louis right into each other’s eyes and breathing hard.
"you’re in love with me, you idiot," louis says.
"you’re in love with me - that’s what’s wrong with you," he explains.
"oh?" liam asks, his voice is thin, frail like if he tries to speak any louder he’ll just break apart.
"yeah, you are. but that’s a good thing because i’m in love with you too. we can be mutually insane together," louis smiles.
