A Piece of His Heart / larry uni AU

chapter seven

"Louis!"

As if on cue, her voice carries across the small cafe. It reaches Louis in an instant, rushing friendly warmth over his wind-blown skin.

He meets her sweet gaze, "Cassandra!" and she grins like she's not seen him in years, she saw him yesterday, "How's Arch treating you this afternoon, love?"

So, it's pretty easy to get close to someone when they're dating your semester partner. And fueling your addiction, of course. Still, her bun bobs atop her head as she skips down the length of the counter, away from the till, a lid-less latte steady in her small hands.

"I've served the same woman three times since ten," She replies once she's come to a stop, her plum coloured lipstick catching Louis' eye as she talks, "Other than that, no complaints."

Louis steps up to the counter then, his eyes flicking upward to the clock on the wall, "What is it? Three..."

"It's half three, yes."

Louis snorts, shoving his hands into his pockets. "That's what I call customer loyalty."

She shakes her head, sidestepping to grab a plastic lid, "Or a caffeine addiction," she flattens it onto the cup, before placing it on top of the pastry display case and calling out for Jamie to come get her fourth latte.

Louis watches as a young woman steps up and takes the drink, smiling softly at Cassandra. As she leaves, Louis laughs lightly, "Replace the latte with éclairs and that's me, though. I'm that woman."

Cassandra has busied herself with leveling straws and sugar packets, "The caffeine addict?" she wipes her hands on her apron, then looks up in amusement, "Yes, you are that woman."

They laugh in unison, and Louis is suddenly reminded of why he came.

Cassandra is already getting to business though, "Right, can I get you something? Éclair? Tea? Donut—"

"Oh, no," Louis' eyes flick toward the kitchen doors, he pauses and she grins in anticipation, "I was wondering if Harry was in." 

A moment passes.

And somehow, she grins wider.

☆

"Isn't she..."

Louis pops his head out from behind a rack of freshly baked bread. Harry stands behind a table, putting his weight into rolling a ball of dough. He's dressed in an apron and headband, swaying side to side slightly, carrying the tune with ease.

"...lovely..."

Louis opens his mouth to greet the boy, but promptly closes it, the smell of warm dough nearly causing him to abort mission. He averts his attention to the golden loaves at his side.

"Isn't she..."

The boy's soft voice pulls him back. Right. Louis should be assuming the role of nuisance right now.

Louis steps into sight, and "Wonderful?" he asks, leaning am arm against the rack cheekily.

But his voice seems to pull Harry back too, as "Shit—" the boy looks up from his hands in an instant, his eyes wide with shock, stumbling backward into a tower of flour bags.

Then, it begins.

Louis' arm falls, right as one of the flour bags does, and "Shit, oh, fuck—" Louis rushes forward, his hands out in front of himself as if he has any chance of containing the mess, "Shit, it's—turn around!"