; adjective; attractive in a delicate way without being truly beautiful or handsome.

If you were to compare Louis to any type of animal, he'd probably look like a tiny, little, baby hedgehog but act like a dainty, little turtle.

A hedgehog because, well, have you seen him? Especially in the mornings when his hair is all spiky and soft. Such cuteness.

And a turtle because when Louis is threatened, upset, hurt, or in any mood that isn't positive, he ducks himself into his shell to find his happy place. All things fluffy and soft and colorful to mask the feeling of panic in the pit of his tummy.

Which pushes Louis into the comforting head space of his to get away from the negative.

"Darcy, I love you the same amount as I love Darwin, alright? Just because you guys are twins doesn't mean one of you gets less love. Alright, Pretty Kitty?"

Louis pets the soft fur on the kitty's head, its stuffed brother sitting in his lap, as he whispers nonsense to her. Her wiry whispers tickle his cheeks and he giggles, setting her down before picking up Darwin. The twins were two black and white kitties that he bought for him and Zayn (one for both) but ended up keeping them for himself.

Louis was the smallest he's been in a long time. Thankfully, he wasn't too small. Zayn didn't need to supervise him constantly, only hourly checks. But he's small enough to be wearing a pink onesie (with little soccer balls all over it) and to be drinking from little juice boxes (His sippy cups were dirty and Zayn was still asleep when he woke up so he had to settle for just juice boxes).

After he was waxed (because before he had Harry and now he has no Harry), he avoided Zayn's persistent questioning and shut himself in his room, seeking comfort in his soft, fluffy animals (Except for Joan. She keeps asking about "the man with the curls and heart eyes for Louis").

("Louis, what happened to Curly? The one that always gave you heart eyes.", "He's on vacation.", "He should've taken me. Anything to get away from you and see that man tan even more.")

Louis definitely did not grow jealous of his stuffed shark. Definitely not.

He rolls onto his back, moving all of his stuffies out of the way as he grabs Floyd and lays her on his tummy. Her claws dig into the fabric of his onesie as he strokes down her scaly back slowly.

"Hey Flo, how're things with that cute little lizard that keeps sitting on the window sill? It's the middle of September, shouldn't it be hibernating or something?" Louis giggles, blushing as he mentions Floyd's suspected boyfriend(/girlfriend. Her sexuality was still being determined).

"I'll dress you up for your first date! Harry taught me how make flower crowns. I'm sure I can make you a tiny one..."

Curly hair, tanned skin, pretty tattoos, deep voice, green eyes, pink lips, long legs, big hands--

"Red and white? I think those are cute colors," Louis nods his head in agreement with himself. Smile and continue to talk. Stop yourself from thinking. Don't think.

Louis had googled 'Ways to get over an ex-boyfriend'. If you ignore the fact that they kept referring to him as a girl, the advice he was given was pretty helpful. Eat ice cream (Zayn is buying that now), hangout with your friends (check, hello stuffies), delete the ex-boyfriend's number (when heck freezes over, sure), and 'get over him because you're an independent woman and you don't need him' (... How about we not and say we did?).

Louis still didn't understand why Harry did it, couldn't think of anything he'd done recently that would upset him. He thought they were getting along well, well enough for Louis to fall in like with him (not yet love, but pretty close). He'd wracked his brain the last twenty-four hours trying to find something he might've done wrong.

Did I forget to shower?

Did Harry find my panties?

Did Zayn tell Harry that I sometimes suck my thumb?

"Zayn, you son of a business man," Louis groans, sitting up in bed.

He doesn't wait for the blood to finish rushing through his head before he trudges toward Floyd's home ("Cage sounds barbaric, Zayn.", "No, cave is barbaric. Why not call it her glass dome?", "Sounds too isolated. I'll stick with calling it her home.", "Home is a feeling, not a place. Or home could be a person, Lou.", "Bye Hallmark." (Liam and Louis took to calling Zayn Hallmark because he says cheesy Hallmark card quotes)).

Louis feeds her a cricket, then locks her back into her glass paradise. Usually, Louis lets her bathe in the sunlight on his windowsill (That's how she met the mystery lizard) to help her get a nice tan and attract possible lizard friends and spouses. But today it was raining, and though Louis was inside, his cheeks were about to get soaked.

Floyd's not supposed to see him cry.

"Louis, stop staring at your phone and get your bum in the living room. Soccer is on and I bought you tons of ice cream."

And that's how Louis found himself perched crisscross applesauce beside Zayn on the couch, his own pint of vanilla bean ("Vanilla bean for the bean.") ice cream in his lap, as he screams at the television.

If Louis weren't so small at the moment, he might understand that it was Manchester United vs Manchester City, not just the 'blue guys and red guys'. But that's fine. He's happier than he's been within the last and Zayn's happy that he's happy (even though he might be getting a call later about a noise complaint).

"No! Don't pass the ball right there! You'll let the red guys get it-- Oh my gosh! What did I tell ya? You should've listened," He shakes his head in mock disappointment, eating another spoonful of his ice cream.

Chuckling, Zayn takes another sip of his beer, glancing over at Louis before he focuses back on the game, "You're truly something else, Tomlinson. What am I gonna do with you?"

"You're gonna-- Are you kidding me? Where's the foul on that ref?"

It wasn't until halftime that Zayn and Louis could have an actual conversation. Louis was taking a short break from screaming and Zayn was allowed a break from holding back laughter at Louis' screaming. It all worked out good.

"Where's Liam, your au pair?" The blue eyed boy asks after his potty time, watching Zayn throw away the rest of their snack trash. He really would help but the couch secretly has magnets that attract Louis' bum to their comfy cushions. And he really can't do anything about that, can he?

The beer bottle in Zayn's hand hisses as he twists it open, "Ah, he had plans tonight. Guys' night at the bar with a few lads that he met at the internship; Ed, Luke, Niall--"

"Niall, as in Niall Horan?" Louis' neck cracks at the speed that he turns his head to look at Zayn, giving himself whiplash. If Zayn is dating Liam, and Liam is friends with Niall, Louis could contact Niall through Liam and find out from him what's the matter with Harry.

"I don't know, mate. He'll be over tomorrow if you'd like to ask him."

"Niall's coming over!"

"Not Niall, Liam. Who's this Niall guy? Is he a predator? A playmate of yours I should know about?"

Louis blushes and squeals in embarrassment, his hands flying to his ears as his eyes widen, "Zayn! No, no. Niall is just a friend of a friend."

That just about kills Zayn. He chokes on his beer as he laughs, curling over into himself. He coughs, snorts, and cackles, mimicking noises that you'd hear in the zoo. Louis' cheeks have returned to their normal color and his eyes are narrowed into slits by the time his older friend is a panting mess on the other side of the couch.

"Louis... Man," Zayn sighs, trying to catch his breath as he glances at the smaller boy, "you're amazing. I love you, Kiddo."

"I love you, too," Louis smiles, his glare softening. Zayn was absolutely the best.

He glances back at the television to see the players spreading back on the field like little worker ants. The excitement slowly builds, seeing as the score was tied 1-1. It was going to be a really intense second half.

"This wouldn't be a friend of Harry's, would it? This Niall guy?"

Louis glues on his most perfect poker face and keeps his eyes trained on the screen.

Zayn leans a little closer, his voice soft and slow (Not like Harry's though, his voice is deeper), "What happened to you two? I was expecting grandchildren."

"The game is back on," His voice is neutral as he dismisses the topic. He's done enough crying today. All he wants now is to watch a nice game of soccer with his best bud.

Thankfully, Zayn drops the topic and focuses back on the game, but it's too late then. The air is already so thick with tension you could cut it with a knife.

Until, of course, the referee gives the next yellow card.

"You call that a trip!"

"Shh, shh. Louis is asleep," Zayn whispers as Liam comes storming through the front door. The game had ended more than a few hours ago but Zayn couldn't move himself from the couch, glancing over at his sleeping friend every so often.

Liam smiles and leans down, kissing Zayn softy before he scoops Louis up into his arms as if he weighs nothing. Zayn navigates them down the dark hall while Liam escorts the child, only bumping his head against the wall twice.

("Watch it, Liam. You're carrying a precious jewel.", "The only 'precious jewel' in your life is my rock hard cock.", "Bro, that was such a bad pun.")

Louis' stuffies end up all over the floor around his bed as Zayn makes a space for him. Louis' dumped onto his bed messily, Liam tripping slightly on Hally, the cow stuffy. The couple lean on each other, watching the smaller boy sleep for awhile. Nothing creepy, of course not.

"Hey Liam, how close are you to this Niall character?" Zayn threads his fingers through Liam's ever-growing hair. They're back in Zayn's room by then, clad in just their boxers. Liam's body was causing half of Zayn's body to go numb but it was all good.

Liam's fingers drag down the ridges of Zayn's torso, tracing random patterns, "Zayn, Niall is a pasty little Irish leprechaun that plays golf. Totally not my type." He flicks Zayn's nipple playfully.

"No, not like that. I think Niall is a friend of Harry's."

"Louis' Harry? The hippie that he called Daddy?" Liam's head lifts off of Zayn's chest, shifting so they're face to face, bodies on the side.

Zayn nods, "Yeah. Louis and Harry had a fight to the point where Louis came home crying last night."

"Louis cries? I don't think I've ever seen him not smiling."

"Me and you both, babe."

Liam trails his fingers down Zayn's arm, his fingers dancing in the palm of Zayn's soft hand. Slowly, he intertwines their fingers. Quiet nights like these remind him of the days back in high school spent in Zayn's bedroom in the dark. They would share silent whispers and soft kisses, telling each other everything about themselves from little facts to big secrets.

"I could ask Niall about Harry. Maybe he knows why they're fighting," Liam suggests, shrugging his shoulders.

The dark haired boy leans closer, the tip of his nose brushing his boyfriend's, "You'd do that for Louis?"

"Even though the little shit said I wasn't Daddy material, I still love him... Like a brother."

"Aww, Li. I love you," Zayn coos, tilting his head up just a tad to steal Liam's lips in a sweet kiss. And maybe it's because of all the alcohol but Zayn gets this overwhelming feeling of just pure happiness. He doesn't want to be sap (Lowkey, he's such a Lifetime movie fan), but he'd be content spending the rest of his life with Liam.

"I love you too. Forever and always."