#professor harry

[novelistrry]

Her mouth gawked open at how casually he said it was like it was completely okay for her eyes to be ogling him like he was a piece of meat. Every single time he wore that shirt, she felt guilty for the ways her eyes could have burnt holes through his chest. Now, she was thinking he wore that shirt so often on purpose— to make her squirm. She tucked her face into the neck of her arm to hide from him.

“Stop hiding from me. Want to see your bashful face,” he pulled her face from the neck of her arm and placed his fingers below the underside of her chin once more so she wouldn’t pull away. “Y’know if you were one of the seven dwarfs, you would most definitely be Bashful.”

With an eye roll and a defeated puff from her lips, she finally gave him the answer he was hoping for, “I’ll go with you.”

As much as he wanted to be delighted by her response, he wanted to confirm that she was positive she actually wanted to go. He didn’t want to force her into doing anything she was unsure of, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure,” Y/N stood from the chair and stretched out to rid the aches in her joints from sitting in one position for too long. “Do you think we could watch a movie?”

Or

Harry is a young professor and Y/N has never felt this kind of attraction before.

Disclaimer: There is only light editing and it is smutty in this part!

Word Count: 14k+

Part One

The Spring breeze brushed Y/N’s cheeks.

Sprawling out on a plaid picnic blanket with her and Niall’s favorite lunch items was her favorite way to spend Sundays, especially when the park was filled with laughter, butterflies, and blooming flowers. Sunshine covered the entirety of the park, seeping warmth that trickled deep into her skin and bones, and she was soaking up every ounce she could get. Sunshine made her feel happy, and optimistic even.

Niall sat there with a book in hand, reading something for pleasure, taking a pause from all the educational content he had consumed over the past few months. It was some book that he begged Y/N to read, telling her that she would absolutely fall in love with the characters, but Y/N was too preoccupied with the tension brewing in her own life, not leaving much room for her to brew over fictional characters.

With a few snaps and a couple grunts, Niall managed to pull her from her reverie looking disgruntled as his book lay askew in his lap. “Sheesh, what do I have to do to get your attention nowadays. Dye my hair brown and curl it?”

That familiar heat that normally crept up her skin, penetrating her cheeks and the top of her ears rose once more, and her sheepish smile remained as she swatted in his direction, not actually able to nudge at him because he was a little too far. Y/N and Niall hadn’t talked about the bar a few weeks ago. He didn’t know where she snuck off to after school or why she was coming home late at night. It’s not that she didn’t want to tell him, Niall just hadn’t asked. “Oh, stop that!”

A teasing smile played upon his lips, curling just slightly and his eyes gleaming enough to know that a snide remark was going to be hurled at her soon. “So what, you spend all your time with him now and he occupies your thoughts when I’m with ya?”

Pink lips curved up, matching the same teasing smile Niall had displayed across his face. A shimmer in her eye had him realizing he wasn’t that far off the mark with his assumption, though she wasn’t keen on confirming that with him. A floral-scented breeze blew through her hair as she inhaled sharply, filling her lungs with the clean Spring air, resetting her breath and her thoughts. “How would you know if I spent all my time with him?”

In a fraction of a second, Niall was sitting a little closer to her, the book he was once enthralled with falling off of his lap and closing on itself, losing the page he had carefully left it open on. His arm extended to nudge her slightly, pushing her in the direction of that floral-scented breeze she just couldn’t get enough of. Dandelions were growing in the grass, rose petals were falling from the bushes that paved the park sidewalks, and blue skies hung over them. It was an omen of goodness, she thought.

“You think I don’t realize how late you sneak through the door? I can hear ya!” He wasn’t speaking to her in an accusatory tone like she was sneaking behind his back because she wasn’t. He spoke to her in a tone that says I’m your best friend, I just wanna know what’s going on in your life, so she decided that she would give him a glimpse at how her afternoons are spent.

“He’s been tutoring me, that’s all. He found out I was failing abnormal psych and told me he can help me. It’s completely innocent, but he helps me after school…” She trailed off, leaving out the details that he drives her to his apartment where they lay her books out on the kitchen table and he goes through each concept with her, or that sometimes when they’re feeling a little tired, they lay her books out on the coffee table and sit together on the couch, elbows and knees brushing. She leaves out the fact that she stares at the way his mouth moves when he speaks, and sometimes he gives her a stern look, indicating that he knows where she’s looking and she needs to focus on the subject at hand. Besides the subtle and gentle brushes of bare skin, and the fact that she sometimes stares when she shouldn’t, it was a completely innocent thing.

“But you don’t want it to be innocent, is that it?” Niall asked, the judgment-free from his tone. Curiosity was interwoven between the syllables, but there was no indication that he was judging her for her…. Er… Feelings? 

Hummingbirds flew past them as she thought of an answer. A couple thoughts were swimming through her brain, but none that she wanted to share with him. No, she wanted to keep some of them private, just for her. She didn’t want to tell him about the kiss they shared, or the way her fingers would graze her lips the following week after their lips had touched ever-so-gently. She didn’t want to tell him that when she breathes in the citrus scents in the produce aisle at the grocery store she thinks of his minty citrus cologne, or how sometimes when he would lean in while she studied, her heart would thump a little harder and her skin would warm with a feeling she couldn’t quite place just yet. 

“I don’t think so,” was all she said, not giving any other information. That is all Niall wanted to hear, that she knew she was feeling something more than a bond between two colleagues. If he was being honest with himself, he was a little worried for her. A professor and TA isn’t the worst combination, eventually, when the semester ended, she would no longer be his TA, but she had never expressed a crush even throughout undergrad. Hell, Niall didn’t think she had very much experience with guys, but that would never be an appropriate question to ask her.

“As long as you’re being safe, I’m happy that you feel so happy,” the response was honest. He was happy, though a tad nervous like mentioned before, but happy to see her so consumed with the sunshine, the flowers, and the hummingbirds that swirled around them. He thinks maybe, just maybe, her sweetened mood might be the force that brought Spring on so suddenly.

“Thank you, Niall,” she said slowly, “I am happy.”

____

“Are you understanding this?” Harry pointed to words in bolded letters that read mood disorders. His tongue flicked out across his bottom lip as he lowered himself from the couch to the floor, criss crossing his legs so that he was adjacent to the book Professor Smith required in his class (it happened to be the same one Harry required, so he knew the book like the back of his hand and it made the lessons with Y/N so much simpler). 

A puff blew from Y/N’s lips as she eyed him, the words he was speaking weren’t registering in her ears. It seemed that with each passing day, she became more flustered with the proximity of him and more restless each time their skin brushed or she watched his tongue wet his lips— something she had never quite experienced. To her own embarrassment, she had googled the symptoms and Google had told her she was experiencing a kind of attraction she had probably never experienced before. Y/N thought back to the few people she had a crush on years ago and realized that they just made something bubble in her tummy, but never made her feel the way she felt when she looked at Harry. She felt so jumpy and jittery around him, she was beginning to think something was wrong with her. Quickly, she clicked out the tab and then cleared her search history, although she knew that no one was going to be able to look through it beside her. She just didn’t want to be reminded of the fact that she had googled something that made her feel so virginal.

It was true, she had only ever kissed one person other than Harry. She didn’t have half the experience Harry had, and she probably couldn’t even convincingly say she had a quarter of his experience either. The boy was named Kitt, and she met him at a summer camp they both attended in high school. At the end of the camp, right before she was shipped back home, Kitt planted one on her. She didn’t feel for Harry the same way she felt for Kitt, her relationship with Kitt felt childish in comparison. She wanted to feel Harry, really truly feel his mouth against hers. Not the way he kissed her in the office to cheer her up, make her feel better, and soothe the horrid thoughts that were rifling through her brain. She wanted a kiss where she was attentive, where she could explore every inch of his mouth, and where she could—

“Are you even listening to me?” He asked her, pushing his face into his hands. At first, she thought maybe he was losing patience with her, but when he nudged her with his elbow and sent an angelic smile (the kind of smile that would make a person drop to their knees), she knew he was only teasing her.

Embarrassment flooded through her as she was caught, once again, not paying attention to the concepts he was trying to teach her and rather drifting off into daydreams about him. The sun was setting, the natural light in the living room slowly dimmed as they shifted from day to night, and she knew that their time together for the night would be coming to an end soon. She should have really been listening to him, taking in each sound of his voice, the way his deep voice wrapped around the consonants and vowels, but she just couldn’t help it. Ugh, she just couldn’t focus.

“I’m sorry,” she answered him genuinely. She was sorry for not listening. He was taking so much of his free time to help her learn and she repaid him by not listening. How could she tell him that the way his eyes locked with hers, sultry and tempting sent her spiraling into daydreams she didn’t want to pick herself out of? How could she tell him that when she watched his tongue flick over his lips, she thought of the way his lips felt against hers and how she wanted to feel that again? She wouldn’t tell him that, so she settled on the next best thing and put her face in her hands to hide from his concerned stare, “I’m just having trouble focusing.”

With caution, he shifted his body and brought himself back onto the couch so that he was sitting next to her once more. Harry had been noticing the way she was in and out of their conversations, sometimes completely immersed and other times floating away so high that he thought he would have to bring her back down with a butterfly net. Usually, he tried not to make her feel too bad about it, he didn’t want her to think that she was upsetting him, because she wasn’t. But, this was the second week of her floating to space as he talked. Sometimes he would catch her right before she slipped into the reveries it was hard to bring her out of, but today she was long gone and he was beginning to feel anxious over her lack of focus.

“I know you are,” he reached over and hooked his fingers on the inside of her wrists, pulling her hands away from her face so that she would look at him. He didn’t want to treat her like a damsel in distress of any sort or like he was some hero trying to save her from her own thoughts— that’s not what was going on at all. He just wanted to understand her better, to figure out where her brain was running off to. “Won’t you tell me why?”

There it was again, that soft voice that makes her admit things she otherwise would have been so unwilling to do. Fingers caressed her cheek lightly; his fingers. Without much thought, she tilted her head into his fingers, begging for his touch without actually saying anything. It was dangerous, he knew it was. The last time he crossed a boundary with her, he told her it couldn’t happen again, and though she occupied most of his thoughts, it had been a month since the kiss, since he pushed her up against the wall of the bar and she licked his finger, and he wasn’t willing to cross that boundary again even though he wanted to. 

“‘Can’t stop thinking about you,” she mumbled, her eyes fluttering close as his fingers brushed against her cheek in soft strokes. With so much delicacy, with so much precision, he gave her one last stroke of the cheek before tucking his hands in his lap. Y/N’s eyes which were peacefully shut as she soaked in the brief skin-on-skin contact abruptly opened at the lack of physical touch.

“I see,” his tone shifted to one that was more guarded, one that was less like the cheerful, sweet Harry she had gotten so used to over the past month. “You just really need to understand this stuff.”

Harry was trying to reason with her, he really was and she knew it too. She wanted to cross her arms, turn her lips down into a gruff point, and tell him that she wanted to talk to him outside of all the studying. Maybe it was wrong, but she wanted to get to know him for who he was outside of a college professor. There were so many things in his home that made her think that he was quite possibly the most interesting being to ever walk the planet. Vinyls crammed into a bookshelf that was absolutely not made for vinyl but must have run out of room for his records on the measly shelves you can buy at the record store. The furniture wasn’t your typical ikea branded nightstands and sofas. It was much more intricate like he had spent his days going to vintage furniture stores, trying to find the coziest couch that matched his bubbly spirit. Y/N had never been so interested in the ins and outs of someone’s life, how they formed their taste, or how they decided their career path. The closest thing she could think of was how she hammered Niall with twenty questions when they first met. It was purely platonic, never any mutual attraction between the two. Obviously, Y/N knew he was a little pretty, but she was much more interested in being his friend than anything else. 

“I know,” she huffed out, furrowing her brows in frustration. A feeling of smallness washed over her, realizing that she admitted she thinks about him. A lot. Too much. And he responded by telling her she needed to understand the course contents. Of course, she knew that. “I’m trying.”

His lips twitched and though he knew he shouldn’t indulge her further, he liked to see her bashful gaze and the way she sucked in her bottom lip between her teeth and furrowed her eyebrows, attempting to give him the most thoughtful answer she could possibly think of. Honestly, Y/N was the type of girl that people could say was put through a time machine. She chose her words carefully, she picked her actions cautiously, and she was too mindful for her own good. But when it came to Harry, she felt so out of control of herself. It was massively infuriating. 

Against his own better judgment he asked her the question he knew he shouldn’t have, “What do you think of when you think of me?”

She pondered momentarily, tucking her bottom lip between her teeth, furrowing her eyebrows, and searching the crevices of her brain for a way to respond to him. She just spent the better half of the lesson with him, thinking about his lips and how they felt, but she didn’t let her thoughts go further than that. No, she barely tried to think about the way her tongue licked from the base of his finger and then swirled against the tip because she could barely handle where the thoughts might lead to. She didn’t want to admit it, not when he was so firm about the boundary they set in his office a month ago right after the kiss they shared. “I wonder what you’re like outside of school and tutoring. I look around your apartment and see all these intricate things and beautiful paintings, and it makes me wonder how you spend your free time.”

“That’s all?” He looked at her incredulously, wondering why she was so shy about daydreaming about how he spends his free time. Actually, he would have even gone as far as to say that he was disappointed. All she had to do was ask him, and he would cross that boundary with her once more.

“Yes,” she hummed out, slumping her shoulders forward and resting her elbows on her knees, “That’s it.”

“Well,” he responded, closing the textbook but not before dog-earring the book to mark their spot (one of Y/N’s biggest pet peeves was dog-earring a book instead of using a bookmark, but she guesses she doesn’t mind so much when it’s Harry who does it). “Can I make a deal with you?”

“That depends on the deal,” she quirked one of her eyebrows.

“If I tell you that we can spend some time together outside of studying, do you promise to try and pay attention a little more?” He asked, giving her the best deal she could have possibly thought of.

“Of course!” Excitement nearly burst from the pores of her skin, and she didn’t have it in herself to be mortified by the way she responded with such enthusiasm.

“It’s a deal, Darling,” he reached out his hand and grasped hers, shaking gently.

That’s how it began. That is how Y/N and Harry began spending so much time together, going on picnics, seeing movies, getting coffees at the shop on the corner of where his flat was located, visiting flower shops, feeding the ducks bread at the pond (though Y/N googled it and found out that oats are much better for ducks because if you throw the bread in the pond, it can rot and collect algae causing harm to the wildlife in the surrounding area). That is how Harry ended up keeping a 42-ounce container of oats in his car just in case she wanted to feed the ducks.

____

Bright lights shone in the sterile atmosphere, and Y/N knew she should have been paying attention after being called out by Professor Smith just last month, but it was only partner work with Mallory and Mallory didn’t mind that she was dazing off back into that far away land. Actually, Y/N noticed that Mallory was too, except when she peered over at Mallory, her eyes were narrowed, her fingers were gripping the desk tightly, and it was like she could physically see the color drain from her face. 

“Mallory?” Y/N questioned her friend, pulling Mallory from her thoughts. With care, Mallory set the pen on the table, then rubbed her eyes in a couple brisk moments. When she finally looked back at Y/N, she still didn’t have that signature warm look in her eyes. The kind of look that tells people “You’re safe with me.” It was gone, buried under deep gray clouds and Y/N could nearly see that the storm was brewing behind those eyes.

“I’m sorry, I have a lot on my mind,” she explained, her eyes still not meeting Y/N’s. The blank gaze was becoming alarming with each passing minute, and usually, Y/N didn’t like to push because she knew how it felt, and it was not a very good feeling, but she decided that she and Mallory had made good enough friends that it was slightly acceptable.

“Do you want to talk about it?” A question that was open, and couldn’t be classified as pushing because it was a close-ended yes or no type of question. If she said no, they would move on immediately and Mallory would never hear another peep out of Y/N regarding the subject. Prying just felt too invasive.

“I think Josh is cheating on me.” It turns out Mallory didn’t need any other pushing, because the words slipped from her lips so easily but with careful caution as she looked around the room, eager to see if anyone was eavesdropping on the pair (no one was, Y/N thinks Mallory just didn’t want the whole class to know her business, which was fair. She didn’t want anyone knowing her business either, but Professor Smith had other plans).

“Why do you think that?” The question Y/N asked was genuine, and filled with care. Y/N couldn’t imagine, what a horrible thing to think and how it must be weighing on Mallory heavily. Y/N thinks if she was kissing Harry all the time, and then found out he had been with other girls, it would feel like a knife right in her chest. But it was much different for Mallory. Mallory was in love with Josh, and from what Y/N gathered, Josh loved Mallory too. So how could he do something like that?

“I found underwear in the backseat of his car when I was looking for one of my earbuds that I dropped…” Mallory began gathering her thoughts, “they were tucked in between the seat and the floor, right next to where my earbud went.”

Y/N nodded in understanding, “I see, and you don’t understand why your underwear would be in the car.” 

“Well, no,” Mallory explained, trying to get Y/N on the same wavelength as her. “It wouldn’t matter if I found my underwear in the car. Sometimes we just need each other so bad. The issue is that it wasn’t my underwear. I have never owned a laced pair of red underwear with pink hearts embroidered. Never.” 

It suddenly clicked in Y/N’s brain. That wouldn’t make a lot of sense for Mallory to find a pair of underwear she has never owned in her life in Josh’s car. Y/N tried to think of ways it could be a misunderstanding, to reassure Mallory that maybe it wasn’t as it seemed. There was no way Y/N could spin it in her head that made Josh look less guilty than he actually was. He seemed very guilty. “Have you said anything to him yet?” 

Mallory shook her head and pressed her cheek against the coolness of the wooden desk, “Tonight I will. I think I just wanna be in my thoughts right now.”

Y/N whispered something small, telling her that she understood and did not fault Mallory for not wanting to talk about it anymore. Maybe Y/N was a little relieved at that because she didn’t know the first thing that would make someone feel better about that. She couldn’t tap into prior experience, she couldn’t pull from when she was cheated on because Y/N was never in a situation like that. Actually, Y/N couldn’t stop replaying that sentence Mallory had said that awakened a realization deep in the pit of her gut, it was fizzling like a volcano was ready to explode. Sometimes we just need each other so bad, was what Mallory had said. Those simple string of words laced together helped Y/N describe the way she had been feeling for Harry; restless, tense, and she felt like she just needed him so badly every time she saw him. It was a realization that what she was experiencing was an attraction like no other, but how was she supposed to tell him?

____

Harry hated it.

If there was one thing he couldn’t stand it was miscommunication; plain and simple. Or in this case, lack of communication.

He couldn’t even tell you how many nights they sat down, side by side at his kitchen table going over the textbook (at this point he wanted to throw it through the window, he was so sick of it) and ignored the tension that was growing between them. With each longing glance, the tension was nourished. They were watering it, he thought. They were causing it to grow bigger and bigger until one day it couldn’t be confined to the four walls and they were just going to explode.

Sometimes the tension grew when they weren’t studying too. Actually, that’s where it seemed to get worse. When they were out and about, she would do subtle things that would work him up. Make him wanna grip her hips and pin her against the wall again, just like the bar. God, the bar. He pushed the thought down, but a similar thought began to rise.

“No, Harry,” she shook her head and tutted her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Carefully, she wrapped her fingers around his and encased his hand in hers. She was trying to show him the best way to feed the ducks. “This is how you do it.”

“So now you’re the professor?” He asked her, watching the bashful gaze flutter upon her features as she tucked her cheek against his shoulder. She began shaking his hand, letting the oats fall out from in between his fingers. He did understand it, though, the technique she was teaching him was a lot better than the technique he was using which clumped all the oats together. Now the ducks could pick the oats off the ground with space instead of cramming against one another.

“I think you can learn a few things from me,” She retorted, finally dropping his hand from hers. It was a strange feeling he had. The feeling that he didn’t want her to let go, he didn’t want her touch to fade.

“I think I can too,” he replied, tilting his head to the side, admiring her compassion and thoughtfulness. He thinks that if he weren’t there with her, Y/N would have the ducks eating from the palm of her hand.

But, finally, the lack of communication had reached its breaking point. He couldn’t handle it anymore, he needed to hear her thoughts. He just needed her to talk to him. So, he slammed the textbook shut a little too aggressively, causing her to jump and glare at him with frustration. 

“I was in the middle of reading that!” Y/N’s glare persisted, but now her eyebrows were furrowed and her lips were flipped downward in a pout that told him she wasn’t happy with him shutting the book so abruptly and not giving a warning.

“Let’s talk,” he ignored the pout on her lips and the way her eyebrows furrowed in frustration. What he didn’t ignore was the way her fingernails nervously scratched at the table. Gently, he took her hands into his and shifted his body so they were facing each other. Her hands, still tucked tightly in his, were placed in his lap. It didn’t take long for him to note the way the pout wiped from her face as soon as she felt his skin against hers as if it was soothing for her hands to be in his.

“But you always scold me for talking when I’m trying to study!” She argued, trying to get to the bottom of why he wanted to talk. Y/N went through a mental checklist in her head of things he might want to talk about, but there was nothing so pressing that he needed to slam her book closed mid-sentence. She was finally passing Professor Smith’s class, she was keeping up with all her TA work in his class, and she wasn’t slipping into daydreams since her conversation with Mallory happened.

It took him a couple moments to respond. Instead, he admired her for just a second. She deserves admiration from time to time. Hell, she deserves admiration all the time. She was so cute he didn’t think it was humanly possible. If someone came knocking down his door and telling him that he was seduced by an alien and needed to report to NASA headquarters immediately, he wouldn’t have second-guessed it. He looked at her like she hung the moon, the sun, the galaxy, and everything in between.

“Will you quit staring,” she grumbled shyly.

“I just want to know how you feel, that’s all.” He was trying to be as straightforward as possible.

____

He wanted to know how she felt? Since her conversation with Mallory, she tried to find the words she would tell him. Y/N knew it wasn’t healthy to keep it bottled up and locked away. In fact, with each passing day, she felt like she was going to burst. Eventually, they were going to have this talk and she knew it was coming. No matter how much she thought about it, she didn’t think she would ever fully prepare for it. Obviously, after she and Harry shared the kiss, they talked about it and how it couldn’t ever happen again, but besides that, they both chose to ignore that it ever happened.

She popped her mouth open ready for the words to come out, but when they didn’t, she closed her mouth once more. Y/N did this a few more times, noting how patient Harry was with her. She thinks she might be the luckiest girl to be able to talk to someone so patient and kind.

“I was talking with Mallory,” Harry stiffened at the sound of Mallory’s name so she quickly revised the thoughts that poured from her brain and straight out the fountain that was her mouth, “Not about us! About her and her boyfriend. She thinks he’s cheating on her, but she hasn’t gotten to talk to him yet…” Y/N’s words faded out as she tried to figure out how to phrase this without sounding needy.

Y/N decided the best way was to start from the beginning, so she continued with her story, “Mallory said she dropped an earbud, so she was looking in the backseat of her boyfriend's car for it and found a pair of underwear that didn’t belong to her. Well, at first I thought it was because why would there be underwear in his car, but then she explained it wouldn’t have been that weird to find her underwear in his car because I guess sometimes they sleep together in the car. She told me they only did that when they felt like they needed each other badly,” she paused momentarily, once again trying to locate the words. “I think that’s how I feel about you. A strong desire.”

A strong desire? What was she thinking? She replayed the words, feeling so stupid for even saying them out loud. Y/N had admitted that she desired him but didn’t think he would return that same desire. How could he? The look on his face was unreadable, and she was suddenly hyper-aware of the room around them. She could feel the lights penetrating through the top layer of skin warming her up, she could hear the sound of the fireplace under his television crackling, and she could see the way his eyes flickered between her mouth and then back to her pupils. She may have messed up something go—

As if he was plucking a delicate flower from the grass, he pulled her body closer to him. She was off the chair and back in his lap in mere seconds, the same way she was back in his office when they shared the first kiss. Completely straddling him on the dining room chair, she was all too aware of how exposed she was in his position. She was reminded of the feel of his thighs between her legs once more. This time the kiss wasn’t gentle and filled with tears, it was more longing and wet. He pinched the sides of her hips with a such delicate precision that her mouth dropped open, just slightly to let him in.

Her prior kisses played on a loop in her mind. They had never felt like this before. This was pure desire, no doubt about it. His tongue caressed the inside of her mouth, and he tasted like the juice he was drinking as they studied. A soft and subtle notion of cranberry filled her mouth, and when she took a deep breath through her nose, she smelled his minty citrus signature scent. 

Tongues colliding, she felt as if she could transcend from her body. And for a second, she thought she may have left her body and watched the two of them go at it from an outside perspective. It was sensual the way they moved together as if the two of them were one and the same. A piece of art carved from the same stone. 

When his tongue retreated back to his own mouth, allowing her to feel the inside of his, she let a small moan escape, the vibration snaking its way up her throat and into his mouth. He could have melted then and there. The sound embarrassed her just a little bit. The moan—or whimper, really— was filled with such desperation and corrupt desire she couldn’t help but feel a small twinge of shame in the pit of her gut.

She pulled away, her face burying into his chest so that she couldn’t see the look on his face. “Sorry.”

He stroked his fingers up and down her sides, slipping beneath her shirt to feel her skin and she let out a small gasp at the feel of his fingers brushing against her sides. “What are you sorry for, baby?”

“You said we couldn’t do it again, remember?” She tacked on the end of her sentence to jog his memory. As if he had forgotten what he told her in his office a month ago about how they needed to place a boundary. Clearly, it wasn’t going to work so why deny them the pleasure of each other’s company even further?

“Is this what you want?” He pulled her face from his chest, using one of his fingers to support the underside of her chin. At this moment, he wanted eye contact with her, he wanted to make sure she was telling him what she wanted. He didn’t want to guess or have to read between the lines; he had to know. Did she want him?

“I want this,” she puffed out a breath, sleepily fluttering her eyes. “Really, I want this.”

“I think,” he breathes slowly, bringing his finger to her lips and wiping off the residue of his mouth. He had half a mind to leave it there for him to admire under the dim kitchen light, “I want to do this with you too. We just have to be careful.”

“Right,” her sleepy eyes settled upon his brown curls. “No one can find out.”

“It’s not that,” he shook his head and grasped her hands once more, bringing their hands enclosed together to his chest. She could feel the thump of his heart against her chest, “I want to protect you here.” And she knew he meant her heart.

Stars circled around them, enclosing them in their own bubble against the word. It was at this moment she took the time to look at him, really truly see him for what he was. She had done it once before when she first met him, but she tried not to do it again to keep her heart from fluttering at an alarmingly fast rate. But now she felt like she could appreciate his beauty for what it was; she was comfortable with that. Harry’s jaw was sharp and clean-cut like he was cut from stone. The apples of his cheeks were kissed by angels, pink and rosy. His eyes were a clear green, the type of green that flourished in the forest and faeries hid in. He wasn’t just handsome. No, he was more than that. Truly, he was beautiful. A spark twitched in her chest, an appreciation that he wanted her the same way, too.

“Stop looking at me that way,” amusement flickered in his eyes, but longing swam in his bones as her gaze studied the intricacies of his facial features. 

Confusion appeared on her face, “What do you mean?”

“Stop lookin’ at me like I hung the moon and the stars, and make the earth spin on its axis.” He was only teasing her, and it was something she was still trying to get used to. Sometimes, Y/N was a very literal person, and couldn’t pick up on teasing or sarcasm on the first go. She had to dissect the conversation a little more before she could be certain teasing and sarcasm were at play.

“I think you did,” she hummed and his chest thumped faster against her hands. Y/N liked that she was making him do that.

Rose-colored blush presented on his cheeks, and with a successful feeling stirring inside her, she pressed a kiss to the tops of each cheek.

“Do you think I could tell Mallory?” If there was one person Y/N wanted to tell, it was Mallory. Well, Niall too, but she knew that she didn’t need to ask Harry about that. It’s not like Niall was one of his TAs too.

“Yes, Sweetheart. I think that would be fine,” without hesitation, his lips collided with hers once more, but the words he murmured when he pulled away caused a breath to catch in her throat, “You’re very pretty.”

____

Tomato sandwiches were currently Y/N’s hyper-fixation meal, and as Mallory talked and Y/N listened (no surprise there), she gnawed on the edge of her sandwich. 

The pair had been eating lunch together in the cafeteria. Mallory was fighting a rough breakup, and Josh would not stop texting her. At one point, Mallory handed Y/N her phone and told her to just scroll through. It was a series of apologies, ‘it will never happen again’, and ‘I need you.’ Y/N was proud that Mallory basically told him to swim in the stream of his own tears, then blocked him. After Josh realized Mallory blocked him from texting her, he moved to other forms of communication, but this time he was no longer texting her apologies and they were actually quite alarming messages.

“Do you wanna hear what I think?” Y/N asked before giving unsolicited advice. If Mallory didn’t want to hear what Y/N was thinking, she wouldn’t just spring that information onto her. Through the course of the past couple of weeks, Y/N began collecting her thoughts on the situation. She didn’t want to give advice or put in her two cents prematurely, but as the situation between Mallory and Josh got worse and worse, Y/N was sure her thoughts on him wouldn’t change.

“Of course I do. You’re my friend,” Mallory insisted, waiting for her to give some humbling advice. It wasn’t often Y/N asked Mallory if she could offer her thoughts on the situation. As time went on, Mallory noted that Y/N wasn’t the talkative type. While she always had great things to add to the conversation, if she didn’t want to speak then she wouldn’t. Sometimes Y/N only wanted to listen, and that was okay with Mallory. In truth, Mallory thinks they balanced each other well.

“I think you dodged a bullet,” Y/N said a little loudly over the sound of sports players rushing into the college cafeteria, heavy cleats clicking against the tile sounding louder as they passed by the pair trying to enjoy their lunch in peace. “And you’re my friend, too,” Y/N added at the end there.

“You’re right,” A sorrowful sigh escaped from Mallory’s lips, indicating to Y/N that even though she was right, Mallory was still sad about it. Y/N really, really didn’t want her to be too sad over a guy that was proven to be disgustingly manipulative. Maybe Y/N wasn’t the best judge of character, a little too trusting, but the red flags Josh was displaying toward Mallory were enough for Y/N to know that his intentions were not very good.

“What did you think of my friend Niall?” Y/N asked. After Y/N and Niall got home from their “double date” (she used that term very loosely), Niall wouldn’t stop talking about how funny Mallory was. He kept saying that she was better than the comedian they had all saw before the nightclub came to life, and that next time they should put her on the stage. He also kept saying that she was very pretty, and Y/N noticed the sheepish glances he threw in Mallory’s direction throughout the night.

“He was very fun to be around,” Hesitation was laced in Mallory’s tone, and if Mallory didn’t know any better, she thought Y/N and Niall were finally together. “Are you guys finally together?”

“No! Ugh!” Y/N threw her hands up in exasperation, dropping her tomato sandwich back on the paper napkin she packed in her lunch pale. “I want to set you guys up on a date. I don’t like Niall like that! Actually, I’m seeing someone. He’s not my boyfriend or anything, and he might not even really like me like that, but he likes to kiss me.”

Mallory paused for a moment, scrunching her nose and finally nodding her head in response to Y/N, “I would probably like to go on a date with Niall. If he’s chosen you as a best friend, I know he’s got good taste.”

Y/N’s cheeks warmed, “Well, then, good. Because I know Niall would like to go on a date with you.”

Mallory backtracked for a moment, the words Y/N spoke finally processing fully in her head, “Who are you seeing? And, I think the term you’re looking for is hooking up. If you guys don’t actually like each other like that and it's purely physical.”

Purely physical? Is that what she wanted? Y/N brought her voice to a whisper, glancing around to see if anyone was trying to listen in on their conversation (they weren’t) before murmuring, “Harry.”

Mallory’s face didn’t drop in shock, her face didn’t contort with disgust, but her eyes sparked with delight. “You might be the luckiest girl alive.”

____

“Now when you read this concept from the book—”

“Would you go out with me, Mallory, and Niall on Friday? We’re going to play putt-putt, and I’m trying to set them up,” Y/N interrupted him, surprisingly for the first time during their one-on-one lesson today. It wasn’t that she wasn’t paying attention, but about ten minutes ago, she realized her attempt to set Niall and Mallory up was going to turn into her being the third wheel. Now, there was nothing wrong with that, but she had a feeling once Niall and Mallory got their hands on each other, they wouldn’t take them off. If Harry agreed to come along at least she could use him to escape during the date, and it would be fun to see how he gets along with her friends. Obviously, Harry and Mallory get along well in a work-type setting, but she wanted to see how they could get along as simply friends.

With delicacy, he shut the book. If there was one thing Harry could pick up on, it was when Y/N’s brain was becoming overloaded with information. She couldn’t retain an information dump the way he could, so he adjusted to the way she learned best because all he wanted was for her to be as comfortable as possible. Sometimes he thought about the way, with teary eyes, told him she didn’t want him to think she was stupid. He never wanted her to feel that way again.

“Could we make another deal, Darling?” Harry’s fingers grazed the underside of her chin, pushing it up just a tad so he could get a full view of her face. Viewing her face in full was a must for him, he was constantly imagining that face when she wasn’t around.

“I am open to making a deal,” the words came out slowly, her head nodded with each syllable, and she tended to like the deals he made with her because there was always some sort of benefit for the both of them.

“If I come with you to see your friends, would you come with me to see mine on Saturday?” He didn’t want to pressure her into coming. In fact, he thought about asking her but decided against it because he didn’t want her to feel obligated. When she brought up the question about him tagging along with her, Mallory, and Niall, he thought maybe he was in the clear to ask her a similar question about meeting his friends, but then her face fell in what he thought was… Hesitation? 

“What’s the occasion?” The pressure was applied to his fingertips as she glanced down at her hands in her lap, and she began picking at the sides of her fingernails. She wanted to meet Harry’s friends, but she was nervous about being around large groups of new people. At least when she hung out in big groups with Niall, she had him around her at all times, and by now, she was so used to Niall’s friends, it wasn’t uncomfortable to strike up a conversation with his pals.

“It’s a wine night. My friend Mitch is hosting this time. It’s basically a small party. We wear nice clothes, drink wine, listen to music, and catch up. It’s proper fun,” Harry was trying to make the environment as calming and fun as possible, realizing the hesitation on her end was just nerves.

“Nice clothes?” She questioned and had to physically stop herself from picking at her nails by grasping at the edge of the table otherwise she would make her skin go raw.

“Not super nice, just not sweatpants and jumpers since it won’t only be our immediate friend group. Sometimes we do that when it’s purely game night, drinks, and a movie,” he explained, and he knew exactly what to say to get her to agree so he added at the end, “I’ll even wear that satin shirt you like. You know, the one that has my tattoos peeking out. The one you drool over.”

Her mouth gawked open at how casually he said it was like it was completely okay for her eyes to be ogling him like he was a piece of meat. Every single time he wore that shirt, she felt guilty for the ways her eyes could have burnt holes through his chest. Now, she was thinking he wore that shirt so often on purpose— to make her squirm. She tucked her face into the neck of her arm to hide from him.

“Stop hiding from me. Want to see your bashful face,” he pulled her face from the neck of her arm and placed his fingers below the underside of her chin once more so she wouldn’t pull away. “Y’know if you were one of the seven dwarfs, you would most definitely be Bashful.”

With an eye roll and a defeated puff from her lips, she finally gave him the answer he was hoping for, “I’ll go with you.”

As much as he wanted to be delighted by her response, he wanted to confirm that she was positive she actually wanted to go. He didn’t want to force her into doing anything she was unsure of, “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure,” Y/N stood from the chair and stretched out to rid the aches in her joints from sitting in one position for too long. “Do you think we could watch a movie?”

“Anything for you,” he spoke softly and honestly, the gentle tone ringing in her ear like music. His voice was a symphony made just for her, “You know that.”

____

The words that tumbled from Y/N’s lips in the middle of the movie really caught Harry off guard. It was her delivery, actually, that had him furrowing his eyebrows and asking her to repeat the statement one more time just in case he heard it wrong. It was unprompted, there was no sign indicating that’s how she was feeling (specifically at that exact moment), and the look on her face was of shock like she hadn’t meant to say it; it just kind of slipped out.

“I said,” She cleared her throat and he felt her cheeks heat beneath his fingertips as she spoke. The pair were uniquely sitting on the couch. Harry was sitting with his legs kicked up on the coffee table, and Y/N was sitting with her head in his lap and her legs taking up the rest of the unused couch space. As they were watching the movie, Harry would stroke her cheeks or run his fingers through her hair just to feel her, “I would like to do more than kiss.”

If Harry was trying to keep a composed face, free of shock or confusion, he was almost positive he was failing. His lips and eyes felt too numb to actually realize how he was looking at her. How could he lie and say he didn’t want to do more than kiss either, he just wasn’t sure how to initiate it given their circumstances— and why would he deny her what she wanted?

“What do you want to do, then?” He spoke the words clearly, that lustful tone leaking past his lips and soaking her with it, 

“I’m not,” she began, pausing for thought, “As experienced as you, I think.”

Harry nodded, encouraging Y/N to continue. He could tell there was something on the tip of her tongue, the words she was failing to formulate stuck in the back of her throat, begging to come out. 

“Well, I just think...” she picked her head off the warmth that was his lap, “You’re very good at teaching. Would you teach me? I want to be good for you.”

It turns out that Harry was going to make her work for it, he was going to make her say the words out loud. His ego was slightly inflated by her gentle words, calling him a good teacher and asking him to teach her. Harry didn’t like assuming, but from what he was understanding, she wanted to teach him how to feel good and make other people feel good. Though, Harry didn’t think she would need much teaching as half the time he has to go close his eyes and take a few deep breaths to will his stiff cock away.

“Teach you what, Darling?” His fingers were grazing the inside of her thighs, telling her he knew exactly what she wanted from him. He was just slightly devilish, wanting to hear the filthy words fall from her lips. 

Sighing, she moved her thigh into his touch. Begging, pleading, wanting... “Please don’t make me say it, Harry.”

“Are you gonna be a good girl for me? Hm?” Harry continued to work his fingers up her thigh until it rested just above the button of her pants where he was waiting to help her out of her pants. At this point, he was no longer assuming, he knew exactly what she wanted; she wanted to hit that sweet spot, she wanted him to get her there, to ride it out on him and hit that euphoric state right in front of him. 

With a shuddering breath, she responded, “Yes, yes... I’ll be good. Just please.” Her fingers reached for her button, gently touching Harry’s own fingers, and her pants were off in a matter of seconds. She thinks she heard something about him saying she was so good for begging him for it, but the words didn’t register as he gently pulled her across his lap so that each leg was on either side of her thigh. Her wet center was directly on his thighs, and if she knew any better, she could have come right on the spot. 

“Would you look at that?” His fingers strode up her slit covered by the fabric of her white panties, “I can see you straight through your panties, Darling. How long have you been this soaked?”

He prompted her to start rocking against his thigh, so she did as she was told and began moving up and down. The friction was enough to make her let out a noise she had never heard from herself before. As of now, she wasn’t embarrassed, just full of wanting, needing, and lusting. She would be embarrassed by her desire and the sounds she mewled atop his thigh later, but for right now, she just wanted to feel good. 

With one quick motion, he was stimulating her clit, making her feel so many things, so many emotions, she could barely handle it. She continued to rock against his thigh, and if she didn’t know any better, he may have shifted his leg upwards so that she was getting the best possible access to his leg. This was going to be her new obsession; she was going to stare at his thigh at school and wonder what it would feel like for him to take her right into his office, she was going to drool over it while they studied and beg him to let her feel good because she can’t focus until he lets her come. 

“Those are such pretty noises,” he commented when another moan slipped past her lips and her head threw back as he gripped her hips and brought her closer to his crotch. 

She looked down, taking in his cock through his sweatpants. God, he was so pretty. Hard against the fabric of his pants, and the tip was leaking just enough for her to notice through the gray cotton. 

He glanced down at what she was staring out, a smirk playing across his lips. She was simply everything. So good, so sweet, so attentive. “You’re gonna come just by looking at my cock through my pants?”

She didn’t have it in her to feel ashamed when she felt this good. All she could think about is how he would feel inside her, how his lips would feel around her neck. Even... how his hands would feel around her neck, claiming her as his own. In response to him, she just moaned and mumbled something— slightly incoherent, it took him a moment to decipher— “Want to feel your cock inside me.” 

____

Harry was over the moon with the phrase that tumbled off her lips in her pure, unadulterated need for him. As much as he wanted to give her what she asked for. She was such a good girl, she deserved the whole world. He wasn’t sure how well she would be able to take it now. Y/N was already overstimulated by his thigh and his fingers circling her clit when she let out an unrestrained moan, threw her head back, and her thighs tensed around his, he knew she was going to come. But, he wanted her to hold out, just for a little bit.

He couldn’t help it; she looked so pretty like this. She looked like she was made for him, like a puzzle piece that fit on his thigh so well, there was no possible way the pair weren’t made for each other. Longing glances and looks filled with need had been exchanged by Harry and Y/N for quite some time, sometimes in between classes he’d have to give his cock a proper tug, otherwise, he would have been walking around stiff— and aching— for the rest of the day. He wanted her so much, it was unbelievable. But, Harry wanted her to make the first move, he wanted her to be sure this is what she wanted, and when she finally looked at him with that needy gaze, he knew he had to give her what she asked for. 

“You’re not ready for my cock, baby. You’re so needy, hm?” It was slightly condescending, and what did it say about her that tightness in her belly coiled when he called her needy? He was right, she was needy. 

“Can I move against your cock the way I am now? With your pants still on? Need it. Really need it,” Her words were jumbled together, separated by moans filled with desire as she moved in up and down motions against his thigh. He knew if he gave her what she wanted, she would come right then and there, as soon as her core touched the hardness of his cock, and maybe he was a little selfish for it, but he wasn’t ready for her to get there. 

“That’s not how you ask, Angel. You know your manners. Use them.” The slight reprimand made her toes curl, and when he realized that she liked it; liked being reprimanded and it was definitely getting her off, he stopped her rocking motions by digging his fingers into her hips and giving her a pointed look; the same look he gives her when she’s not paying attention while she’s studying. It sent waves through her, and she felt like she was floating on a cloud. 

“How do you ask?” He prompted, encouraging the words he wanted to hear.

“Please, may I?” She tried to rock once more, but his fingers kept her in place. A sensual gaze lingered on her features, looking him up and down like she could swallow him whole, and how could he say no to that? 

“Good girl,” he brought her left leg over his other leg so that her pussy was in full contact with his clothed cock. Before she started rutting against him, moaning, and throwing her head back in pure carnal desire, he decided he would give her a little incentive. “If you hold out for me, give me ten more minutes of seeing you look so pretty as you rut this pussy against my cock,” one of his fingers moved from her hip where he was holding her in place to the slit of her pussy and worked it’s way over, slicking his finger with his wetness and popping it in his mouth to see how good she tasted, “I will let you watch while I run my hand over my cock and make myself feel good, hm?”

A jumbled yes came from the back of her throat, and he used his fingers that were against her hips to help her find her rhythm against his cock. He could have come right there at the sight of her, but he was good at holding off, good at edging himself. It was something he wanted to teach her how to do. How to get to that good place, then rip herself away from it. In the end, all of the frustration makes the orgasm worth it. 

She tried to last, she tried to make those ten minutes, but she just couldn’t. With a cry, she warned him, “Harry... I can’t. I can’t wait. Please.” 

“That’s okay, baby,” Harry comforted, letting her know that it was okay. He would teach her how to stave off soon enough, but right now he was more concerned with her feeling good and comfortable. 

That was all it took her to that nice place. As her orgasm filled her body, lingering in her bones and warming her skin, she came against him. Pulling away as her nerves were overstimulated and sensitive, sweat beading at the top of her forehead, and mewling noises coming out of her lips. He thought she looked beautiful.

Quickly, she took herself off of him, not able to handle the overstimulating she was feeling in her core and in her brain. She tried not to look at the wet spot she left on his thigh, and directly on his crotch. 

He could tell by the way her eyes averted, and she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear that she was feeling embarrassed, but he didn’t think she should feel so ashamed for feeling good. She should never be ashamed of that. With a gentle finger, he lifted her chin from her downward stare into her lap and whispered softly, “Don’t ever feel embarrassed about that. Do you see how hard you’ve got me?”

Heat flooded her cheeks, warming her skin, and that coil she felt in her lower belly when she first started grinding against the muscles of his thigh stirred in her once more as she eyed his hard cock covered in her wetness. “I don’t get to watch you now because I didn’t wait?”

How could he deny her what she wanted when she was so, so good for him? Listening attentively, asking politely, and being so sweet to him? “I’ll let you watch. We can call it a consolation prize.” 

Heart fluttering, she shifted slightly so she could get a full view of this. His eyes darkened as he slid his sweatpants down just enough to pull his cock out of his boxers. It sprang out, the tip a blissful pink color, and she thinks that her mouth has never watered so badly. He was even bigger than she had been able to realize through his sweatpants, and it all made sense. He was sweet, but calculated and there was a rough edge of confidence laced in the way he speaks. The size of his cock matching the confidence of his personality wasn’t anything that should surprise her.

When Y/N let out a soft, sultry, sweet-coated moan at the sight of his right hand clutching the base of his cock and tugging upwards, Harry realized three things about her that he would dissect later. 

Y/N had an extreme praise kink, thinking back to how she sucked in sharp breaths when he told her what a good girl she was, and how she moaned at the sight of her reward.

Y/N got off on a slight reprimand from him, seeking guidance and his stern words fulfilling something deep in the pit of her gut. 

Y/N might have been crafted just for him, and he, just for her. 

Just the look on her face was enough to make him come on the sight, but she had done so well, he wanted to give her a little bit of a show. With each movement calculated, he lifted his shirt just enough for her to see his abdomen then grabbed the base of himself and stroked upwards, using the precum oozing from the tip as a lubricant for his hand. 

“Would you do me a favor, sweet girl?” He asked her, his eyes remaining fixed on her as he watched how her body reacted to his words and movements.

Eyebrows furrowed, she responded so sweetly and sincerely if his eyes were closed, he would have sworn there were droplets of honey dripping off her lips. “Yes,” she almost begged, “What can I do?”

Harry guided her head with his hand, gripping his fingers around the back of her head and lowering it so she was adjacent to the head of his cock. Eagerly, she thought he was going to let her wrap her lips around his so she moved her head a little closer, and when he realized what she thought he wanted from her. 

“No, baby, not yet. I just want you to spit on it for me, hm? Let me use your spit to work my cock?” He knew the words were filthy, and he knew it sent a shiver down her spine. She opened her mouth, just a little so closely to the tip of his cock that her top lip just swept over it as the wetness from her mouth dripped down him. 

“Fuck, baby,” Harry guided her head back so that she was sitting directly in front of him with a perfect view of how his hand brought him to his own tipping point. 

He leaned his head back against the couch, eyes fixated on hers as her gaze didn’t stutter from his hand. A little bit of drool leaked from her lip, but she quickly caught it, finally breaking her gaze from his hand and looking to see if he saw that. 

“Quite literally drooling over my cock, are you?” It fueled his ego, working his hand harder over himself as he realized what an effect he had on her. 

Finally, he was there, eyes locked on her and reaching his pinnacle. His own sweet spot washed over him, ripping a moan from his throat and filling the living room air. Silky whiteness spurted from the tip of his cock and onto his abdomen, and she had to stop herself from leaning down and tasting him. She just wanted to taste him, but how could she voice that? The combination of wanting to taste him, the way his face contorted with pleasure, and the sound of his deep-provocative moan that gathered in the back of his throat and then filled her ears worked her back into that sweet place with no stimulation from Harry or even herself. As he worked himself down from his own orgasm, guilt washed over her face and he couldn’t help but give her a lazy-half smile. “What?” He asked gently. 

“I think...” She shoved her face in her hands, the bashful person she was shining through what they had just done together, “I reached that spot again when you let that sound out. I just, I just felt so good.”

Eyes fluttering shut, he took in her words. “Baby, I’m so happy you felt so good. When was the last time you felt like that?”

Y/N just shakes her head, the words caught in her throat. “I don’t know if I’ve ever felt like that with anyone else— even... even myself.”

He just smiled, glad that he was able to get her there, and then hooked his hand under the backside of her knee, pulling her close for a sweet and simple kiss compared to what they have just done. While his lips were still pressed against his, he spoke, “I think we should get cleaned up.” 

“I think so too,” Y/N smiled into the kiss, and Harry thought he would give up anything to stay like this with her forever. Talking with their lips pressed together, his hands all over her, and her hands all over him. 

“Would you mind taking a shower with me?” It sounded so intimate rolling off his tongue, but that’s what he wanted with her—intimacy.

“I would love that,” his heart leaped at the realization that she wanted the same things as him. 

____

“I’m a bit of a sore loser, baby, so please tell me you’re good at putt-putt,” Harry said as his hand grasped the steering wheel of the car. He was driving them to putt-putt golf with Mallory and Niall. Niall had decided he would take Mallory out to lunch before the other two joined them to get some one-on-one time together.

Y/N noticed a shift in their relationship after he had made her orgasm twice without doing much, and after she watched him tug away at his cock. She was more comfortable with him, more open to asking him questions, and Harry absolutely loved it. Just a few days ago, she asked him (without Harry having to work the question out of her) when she could taste him, and he told her, in the most gentle way possible, that he wanted to go slowly. He just wanted to make it special for her. 

At first, she was nervous to ask him when she could taste him, not quite sure how she could voice the question, but as a few days passed, she realized that there was never any judgment or harshness in Harry’s tone.

“Well, I’m not very good at putt-putt. And maybe I’d like to see you a little pouty,” she reasoned with him. She always felt like she was the pouty one, maybe it would be a nice change of pace to see him pouting for once. 

“Y/N, you know I could never be pouty around you. You make me too happy.” Harry explained, taking one hand off the steering wheel and linking their fingers together, and bringing her hand to his lap.

Y/N decided she was just going to enjoy the drive, and the simplicity that was her, Harry, Niall, and Mallory enjoying their afternoon together.

As it turns out, Y/N was really good at putt-putt, though she had never played before in her life. Niall and Harry got to talking about how they both liked playing real golf and made plans to go out some weekends together. It made Y/N’s heart turn, just a little to see her best friend getting along with Harry so well. They seemed like they were really hitting off (and not to Y/N’s surprise at all, she knew this would happen, Niall and Mallory were very much enjoying the company of one another). By the end of the night, they were sharing drinks and then spent the night tucked into Harry’s chest.

Y/N was happy. Very happy. 

____

Y/N was not happy.

Harry’s friends were not as nice as he had explained them to be. Well, maybe it was just one friend that left a sour taste in her mouth and made her stomach fizzle with anger; possibly even jealousy.

The evening started off great. She wore a simple, yet elegant, midnight green dress, and Harry (as promised) wore that cream-colored satin shirt with midnight green slacks to match her accordingly. He ogled over her the minute she stepped out of his room wearing that green dress, looking as lovely as ever. 

When Harry was done swooning and gawking over her, he led her out to his car and began driving in the direction of his friend’s house. Y/N noted the beautiful scenery on the way to the house, and when Y/N finally commented on the scenic drive, Harry explained that his friend lived in a winery.

“On a winery?” Y/N questioned, making simple conversation as they drove up a windy road with a narrow pathway, barely able to fit two cars. “Is your friend a vintner?”

Harry nodded in response, throwing over the occasional glance as he drove, though it made Y/N nervous for him to take his eyes off the road ahead of them. She trusted him though and didn’t make any comments about how the drive was making her feel. Part of her didn’t want to say anything because she wasn’t sure if the drive was making her feel a little queasy or if it was the fact that she was going to a party latched onto Harry’s arms. She was about to meet his closest friends, and even though he said they were nice, she knew she would be under a degree of scrutiny. She was coming as his date, of course, they were going to look at her with cautious-watchful eyes, so they could reconvene later in the night and ask one another, what do ya think of Harry’s new girl?

Before Y/N even knew it, they were parked in a round-a-bout driveway, and Harry was helping her out of the car. She must have paled on the drive up, because when he took her hand in his, and lead her up the stairs of the beautiful home, he leaned over and whispered in her ear, pressing his lips against the lobe, “Feeling okay?”

A nod came from her in response, and before she could even respond verbally, the person who was lingering on the other side of the door quickly threw it open. A chill ran down Y/N’s spine as she thought of Harry’s lips against her ear. They hadn’t done anything from when they sat on the couch and Y/N came on his clothed cock. She had brought up how she wanted to taste him, but they haven’t had the chance to yet, and Harry had told her that he wanted to take things a little slow. She understood. How could she argue with that?

“Oh, come on in before you two get cold out there,” the man standing on the opposite side of the door said to them as he noted the chill that racked through Y/N’s body. It wasn’t the cold wind, though the wind was colder than it had been these past couple of Spring days. It was the thought of Harry’s lips against her ear, and when she looked over at Harry and saw the way his lips curved upward in a devilish grin, she knew exactly what his plan was. He did that on purpose, he was trying to work her up.

Like Harry told her, the man lived in a winery and before she even had the chance to learn his name (it was Mitch she found out a few minutes later), he was thrusting a glass of red wine in between her fingers. She took a couple sips, mumbling something about how it was sweet, and without hesitation, Harry leaned and whispered something naughty in her ear, causing heat to flood her face and between her legs, “I bet you taste sweet, baby.”

They mingled, and Y/N who normally felt overwhelmed in situations like these was actually doing alright. It might have been the way the wine was starting to flow through her veins, or how genuinely kind Harry’s friends actually were (not that she doubted him very much, but you never know), but she was actually enjoying her time.

Well, she was enjoying her time until Harry ruined it by whispering the filthiest things she’s ever heard into her ears. In fact, she was beginning to feel flustered, because she wasn’t sure her panties could handle another bout of wetness before it started dripping down her leg. Her dress only hit below her knee, so if it began running down her leg, people were bound to notice and she didn’t think she could handle the shame. 

So, she stood there, with her legs crossed, wine glass in her hand, and pouted. He could tell he got her there; to the point of frustration that she would burst at any second. Her responses to him were becoming short and pointed, bratty even. If there was one thing Harry could teach her, it was how not to be a brat. It was how to ask for what you wanted because all she had to do was say the words and he’d take her right into the bathroom and let her have that release.

When they had finally broken free from the conversation they were having with Mitch and… Well, Y/N actually didn’t grab the other person’s name because of the frustration filling her from head to toe, Harry grabbed her upper arm gently and pulled her so close to him that her chest was pressed against his, “Won’t you tell me why you’re acting like a brat?”

Disappointment donned her features. Was she acting like a brat as he said? If so, she really didn’t mean to, she just couldn’t help it. The words fumbled from her mouth quickly as she straightened her back just a little bit so that her body language didn’t look so dejected, “Sorry. I don’t mean to act like a brat.”

“I didn’t ask for an apology,” he stated and the sternness in his voice made her core ache even more than it already was, “I asked for you to tell me why.”

She gave in to his request, hoping that if she told him why she was acting like a brat, he would tell her what a good girl she was for listening. “I’m so wet, Harry.”

His cock throbbed against his slacks, and he murmured softly against her neck, pressing a soft kiss just under her ear, “So instead of acting like a brat, what should you have done?”

“I should have told you what was bothering me,” she guessed, not quite sure what the actual answer was, but it seemed good enough for him because his response was exactly what she was begging for.

“Good girl,” he pulled away from her, resting his fingers just under her chin, and hummed out, “Now should I take care of you?”

She only nodded.

____

The bathroom of the house was big enough to fit them both in there and when Harry sat her on top of the bathroom counter and hiked her dress out, he grumbled out a “Fuck, Y/N.”

She wasn’t being dramatic when she said she was so wet. If he kept her out there for five more minutes, she would have dripped down her leg, and Harry doesn’t know what it says about him the fact that that turns him on so greatly. For his friends to see just how much of a reaction she has to him. How his words can get her mewling and thrashing and moaning.

Quickly, he tugged her panties off and shoved them into his pocket. She was still up on the counter, watching his movements with lust-filled eyes, and leaking onto his wrist that he had pressed against her center. His hand was gripping the counter, the inside of his wrist pressing against her and when he moved, even slightly, she would let out small, sharp gasps. “Can I touch you?”

“Please,” she responded, and that was all he needed before he began working her to that special spot. His fingers, covered in rings, slipped inside her slowly, so slowly it was agonizing. He didn’t need her to lick his fingers, offering that extra lubricant because she was so wet that she was soaking the counter. He flicked his fingers upward, hitting that soft spot inside her, and when he finally found it, her eyes widened, as she had never been stimulated there before. It only took a few motions in and out of her, before her walls began squeezing around his fingers. Right before she was about to come, about to hit the peak of her orgasm, he pulled his fingers out of her.

Eyebrows furrowed, she questioned his actions, “Why did you do that?”

“I’m not ready for you to orgasm just yet,” he said softly, his green eyes glimmering with want and need.

“Please?” She asked, “I-I need it!” 

Normally, she would feel embarrassed by her begging, but right now she didn’t have it in her to feel embarrassed. The only thing she had in her was that she wanted that orgasm to encompass her, sending her body to that place she went when she was rutting against her thigh.

She was so beautiful and so lovely that he couldn’t deny her of that, and he knew it, so he slipped his fingers back into her with careful precision and stimulated that soft spot inside her once more. She let out soft moans filled with nothing but desire, and she squeezed around his fingers once more before letting her orgasm rip through her. He worked her down with his fingers, and when she looked up at him with a sleepy gaze, he knew she was feeling much better; the frustration completely obliterated from his body.

Although, when he brought his fingers, covered in her wetness to his lips, licked it off with his tongue, and said, “I was right. You do taste sweet,” she thinks she could have gone again.

Harry helped her get her panties back on, and hop off the counter of the bathroom, promising that when they got home he was going to help her shower the stickiness from in between her thighs and take good care of her. She knew she was safe with him, and it was possibly one of her favorite feelings in the entire world.

“Why don’t you go back out there, love? I’ll clean up here and be right out.” He bargained with her, and she followed his instructions because it probably wouldn’t look too good if the both of them slipped from the bathroom at the same time.

Harry’s plan was to clean up, but he had to relieve himself somehow too.

____

Y/N’s eyes searched the room, and she found the girl she was chatting with earlier— Colette was her name, she finally remembered and blamed the sexual frustration on her jumbled brain and her post-orgasmic state on her clarity over Colette’s name.

Across the room, Colette sat with a few other girls, and Y/N thought that the best thing to do while Harry was cleaning up in the bathroom was to make her way over there and hop in the conversation, so that is exactly what she did.

She sat directly next to Colette, and jumped into their conversation a few times, adding a few things here and there to keep herself present in the conversation. It wasn’t until Harry finally slipped from the bathroom, signaling that he was going to get them a drink that she felt a sense of relief.

One of the girls next to Colette’s eyes followed Y/N’s to Harry and when she saw what Y/N was looking at she interjected with a, “Don’t even bother with him. He’s a nice guy, but he’s not the relationship type. He only fucks, but nothing else. Trust me, I’ve tried. Also, the rumor is that he brought a girl with him this time around, and good luck to her, because she doesn’t know what she’s in for.”

Y/N’s mouth dropped open in pure shock, and Colette’s face whitened as she grasped Y/N’s hand, “Emma!” Colette said in a harsh whisper, “Why would you say that?”

Colette helped Y/N up, and Y/N couldn’t even feel mad at the girl— Emma, she guessed— because it was not like she knew that Y/N was the girl Harry brought along with him tonight. Her stomach dropped, feeling icky and displaced as she walked alongside Colette and toward the kitchen where Harry was striking up a conversation with someone, two cans of some liquid Y/N couldn’t quite pinpoint in the palm of one of his hands— his big, big hands.

“Don’t listen to her, she’s just cross because Harry only wanted to be friends with benefits with her. That is not how he is with every girl, I hope you know that,” Colette whispered, guiding her by the small of her back toward Harry.

Did Y/N know that? She didn’t think she did. 

What if that is what Harry wanted from her? What if he felt nothing for her at all? What if she was merely a conquest for him?

Y/N decided not to say anything about what Emma said to her as Y/N and Colette entered the conversation Harry was currently participating in. 

Harry rested one of the drinks on the counter and popped open the other with his fingers, handing it to her, then pressing a soft kiss to her cheek. Was that a good sign?

For the first time since she began studying with Harry, Y/N felt stupid again.

____

Harry was completely oblivious to the internal turmoil Y/N was facing, but how could he have known when she slipped on a mask so well? 

After he had finished up in the bathroom, he couldn’t stop thinking about how Y/N was the only thing that occupied his mind. He filled her thoughts, her scent infiltrated his apartment, and her smile when she walked into his class was the thing that kept him going on days when he was more tired than he should have been.

He thought he made it so obvious how much he cared for her. There was no way she didn’t know how special she was to him.

Y/N, he thinks, was perfect for him. And he was perfect for her.

TAG LIST: @skysladylazarus @sunshinemoonsposts @shamelessfangirl-3 @lovelyharry @tenaciousperfectionunknown @winterrays @kiwilikesmeow @cherieshine @harryssky1 @allannahdaisy @cthwildflwr @grapejuicebluesrry @ppleasingg @ronanthesimp @awwshucks13 @libbyhermione @matildasatellite

(If you wanted to be added or taken off please let me know)

#harry styles smut #harry x reader #harry fic #harry fanfic #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles y/n fanfic #harry styles y/n #hs fanfic #fanfic #harry styles x reader #harry styles au #harry x y/n #y/n #harry styles imagine #harry styles preferences #harry preference #harries #harry styles #professor harry #harry styles x reader smut #prof!harry #prof!harry x y/n #harry styles x reader fluff #harry styles angst #harry styles writing #harry styles masterlist #harry styles one shot #harry styles blurb #harry styles x you

[drarrily-we-row-along]

“Bed, love,” a soft voice murmured, startling Harry where he was not sleeping on his stack of grading he had yet to complete.

“Can’t,” he said, shaking his head and then his hands for good measure. “Too much to do.”

Draco huffed a soft laugh, fingers gently squeezing Harry’s neck and soothing the tension. “You’re just sleeping at the desk.”

He shook his head again and forced his eyes open, “I wasn’t,” he argued, lying through his teeth. “Just resting my eyes. They hurt,” he added as he shoved his glasses up to rub them.

“It’s one in the morning, love, and you’ve been working all day, of course your eyes hurt.”

He groaned, “I’m never gonna finish these,” he said as he dropped his head to the top of the pile of papers.

“Come on,” Draco said. “Stand up. Come to bed.” He leaned down and brushed a kiss over the nape of Harry’s neck, “If not for your sake, then for mine. I don’t sleep well when you’re not there.”

It was a lie and they both knew it. Draco slept like a log as long as Harry was in their flat somewhere. He’d said it before, Harry’s magic permeated the whole space when he was there. “Slytherin,” he accused.

“Yes, yes,” Draco replied as he guided Harry out of his chair. “You can thank me tomorrow.”

Too tired to argue, Harry followed him to their room and let Draco’s magic wash over him, stripping him down to his boxers.

“Bed,” Draco said, nudging him toward the warm, cocoon of space that Draco had been sleeping in before coming to get Harry.

He collapsed onto the mattress, groaning as his spine stretched out from the hunched position it had been in, muscles aching.

“You’re getting old,” Draco said as he climbed in beside Harry, his hand soothing over Harry’s back before he covered them.

He scowled at him, “I’m younger than you are.”

“But listen to the one of us who’s grunting and moaning about laying down.”

“I’ll give you something to grunt and moan about,” he grumbled.

Draco laughed, “I think you’d fall asleep half way through. Hell, I would be surprised if you could even get it up right now.”

“Be nice to me,” he whined.

With a soft laugh, Draco drew him in and wrapped him in his arms, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

“Thanks,” he said, softly, not sure what he would do without someone to tell him to rest, and eat, and exist outside of being a teacher.

Another kiss to the top of his head and Harry was already drifting off. “Sleep well, love you.”

#drarry #love #soft #professor draco #professor harry #fluffy #being a teacher is hard bro #part of the author’s unofficial trauma response fics 😂 #short and sweet #one shot

[petrerpkr]

Post war snarry

#harry potter #severus snape #screaming into the void #snarry #harry x severus #pro severus snape #professor harry #vibes

[reddye23]

#ai pics #mechanic harry #professor harry #boxer harry #tattoo artist harry #ok ai is creepy but also beautiful #october 2023 #credit to the person who made this

[xx-thedarklord-xx]

Poll for Advent Month!

Six days until my Advent Month and I'm so excited! I thought it would be a fun idea to let y'all pick which story gets told first!

#drarry #poll #Drarry Poll #tumblr poll #SO EXCITED #I've never done an advent month before #so so so excited #No worries y'all #if your fic didn't get chosen it's okay #they are all in my advent month #they are all finished stories #they will all be told #Slytherin Harry #Professor Harry #Professor Draco #Soulmates #Came back wrong #Time travel #Coffee shop au

[harrysballerinahouse]

Professor

Prof. Harry x Fem reader

Smut

So much fluff!

University.

One of the scariest places you’ve ever stepped foot into. The same one your willingly going back to after four years.

You had just started your masters degree when you found out you were pregnant. It was going to be way to labour intensive to see it through with a baby, so you did exactly what you didn’t want to and dropped out.

Seven months after you dropped out you gave birth to the most precious little boy and called him Noah. Now little three year old Noah was heading off to day care for the first time while his Mum was heading back to start her Masters all over again.

Dropping Noah off you couldn’t decide if you should feel like a bad Mum going back to University or proud of yourself for being able to do both. You make sure Noah is occupied with some colouring before heading off to your first class. This process occurred for the first few weeks and began working really well for you and Noah. He was learning so much at day care and you were feeling amazing about your Masters.

There was still one thing holding you back in one of your classes. You had had some run ins with one of your professors who you knew from before you had Noah and who you had gone to University with as undergraduates. Harry. You were good friends, for a while, but things broke down when Noah’s Dad fell into the picture. Harry hated him, always said he was wrong for you and up to no good. Which in a way he was right.

******

You were sitting in Harry’s class one day when your phone began to buzz with the daycares number. You quickly sneak out of Harry’s lecture and answer. Your day was being cut short. Poor Noah was vomiting with a temperature, meaning you had no choice but to go and pick him up. You sneak back into class packing your things up quietly before sneaking back out glancing down to the front of the room on the way out to notice Harry already staring at you a wave of confusion covering his face.

You pick Noah up and head straight home. Once arriving at home you get some medicine ready for Noah who you had left laying on the couch. “Baby mummy has some medicine to help you feel better” you say softly kneeling in front of him “mummy feel yucky” he whimpers. You lean over kissing his head softly “I know baby, take this for mummy it will help I promise”. You help him pop the little syringe of liquid in his mouth before passing him his little water bottle to wash it down “mummy’s brave boy” you smile brushing his growing hair from his face “have a little lay down monkey, mummy’s going to sit with you ok?” You ask softly. He just nods pulling his blanket and teddy up closer to his chest.

After around half an hour Noah had fallen asleep. You decide to take this opportunity to try and catch up on the things you missed in class today which meant emailing your professor for the notes. You open your laptop going to your emails to see a couple of unread ones including one from Harry from that afternoon.

To your surprise he had taken the time from his day to email you the notes from class today with a message attached.

‘Hi Y/N,

I noticed you slipped out of class today, I just wanted to check in and ensure everything is ok?

No need to go into detail, but please don’t hesitate to reach out if you need anything.

Please find attached the rest of the notes from the lecture today, feel free to contact me with questions or queries,

Kind regards,

Prof. H Styles.’

You quickly glance through the notes before looking at the time seeing it was still only early, Harry would still be at work, you figured it was best to offer some sort of explanation.

‘Hi Professor,

Thank you for reaching out and for the notes they have been very helpful.

I’m sorry I had to sneak out, unfortunately my son fell sick and I had to bring him home,

I’m hoping to be back in class tomorrow.

Thanks again,

Y/N Y/L/N.’

You never got a reply from Harry after that. Not that you expected one. You got through the rest of your day hanging out on the couch with Noah in between his vomits and temperatures, you managed to get the lecture notes revised and yourself up to date with your classes, as well as Noah fed and tucked into bed a little earlier than normal to get the extra rest he needed.

****

The next morning Noah had stopped vomiting but was still having temperatures on and off. You had called your Mum the night before to see if she could look after Noah so you could to go to your classes. She was more than accomodating coming over to your place extra early and assuring you that there was no need to rush home that he would be ok with his Grandma for a day.

You head off to your classes for the day and try to get as much done as you can to be able to give Noah your undivided attention once you arrived home. Your last class for the day was with Harry. Things went well. You had a great grasp on what was going on in his class at the moment. Once the class was over everyone started to file out, you were packing your bag getting ready to go yourself when Harry called you out “Y/N?” you turn your head in his direction “is everything ok?” He asks “I just wanted to check in” he explains.

You continue to pack your things as Harry makes his way toward you. “Yeah everything’s fine, Noah’s feeling a little better” you smile softly glancing at him. “Ok, well let me know if you need anything” he nods toward you before walking back down to the front of the classroom.

“Professor” you say softly to catch Harry’s attention as he was walking away. He looks up glaring a little “Y/N we’ve known each other for a long time, you don’t have to call me that” he snaps a little. Nodding, you glance at your feet “sorry” you whisper “I uh, just wanted to say thank you, for checking in” you look up a little at his now softened expression before walking away.

******

A few weeks had passed since Noah had been sick, he had made a full recovery and was as energetic as ever. You had planned with Noah’s dad for Noah to spend a few days with him over the weekend. You were planning on dropping Noah off at your Mums for his Dad, Ryan to come and pick him up. You’d had a rough separation from Ryan, he was incredibly possessive and manipulative, he caused you so much stress during your pregnancy that Noah was almost 10 weeks premature.

You dropped Noah off on Thursday morning to your Mums for Ryan to pick him up that afternoon after he finished work. You were heading towards your first deadline for an assignment in Harry’s class meaning it was good timing to be able to have the extra time to study. You were in the library studying a little after five PM when your phone began to ring, Ryan’s contact shining on your screen. You sigh a little before standing up to make your way outside to take the call.

“Hello” you chine putting on your best ‘nice voice’ on.

“Hey, are you busy?” Ryan asks not bothering to ask how you were or if it was a good time to talk.

“I’m studying, so a little, why?” You ask not liking where the conversation was going.

“I have bad news” he sighs dramatically causing you to roll your eyes “I can’t have Noah this weekend, something came up I have to cancel sorry”. You audibly groan pinching the bridge of your nose.

“Are you shitting me right now? You’ve been asking for this for months and when I say yes you cancel, what do I tell Noah?” You snap becoming frustrated at how unreliable this man was.

“I don’t know, tell him I’m sick or something it’s not my problem” he grumbles.

“He’s your son Ryan! You can’t just pop in and out as you please, you either need to be part of his life or give it up” you yell causing people to look your direction.

“Whatever, if your going to be a bitch then I’m not talking to you” he says bluntly.

“Ryan I’m done with this crap. Your not going to see Noah anymore, you can’t just jump in and out of his life it’s not fair on him” you explain.

Before you knew it the line went dead, indicating Ryan had hung up. You groan loudly gripping your phone tightly you look around to see a number of people looking between you and what they were doing, including Harry who was now making his way towards you.

You sigh a little beginning to pack up your belongings trying to slip away from talking to Harry. To your dismay Harry’s long strides caught up to you “Y/N” Harry says softly reaching the desk you were working from. “Why don’t you come to my office?” He asks reluctantly. You sigh shaking your head “no it’s ok I should get home and finish this”.

Harry didn’t move away from you, instead coming to sit next to you “Y/N, please?” Harry asks softly. You look up at him seeing his soft expression “at least just talk to me a little, I heard you…on the phone, is everything ok?” He asks you sigh sitting back into the chair allowing Harry to lean against the desk.

“Do you need an extension for this paper? I’m more than happy to try and make things a little more flexible for you?” Harry asks, clearly sympathising with you. You quickly shake your head “no no no, it’s Ryan he’s being an idiot, nothing to do with class work, just him being him” you sigh.

“Oh you’re still together, I understand” Harry says softly seeming disappointed. You begin shaking your head laughing “no we are not…. We started having problems while I was pregnant with Noah, he left the day I went into labour I called him while he was at work to tell him I needed to go to the hospital and he just never showed. Noah and I came home three weeks later and all of his stuff was gone. It took almost a year for him to decide he deserved to be a part of Noah’s life and I honestly hate it. He cancels last minute almost every visit and he pushes me for visits. I’m just exhausted by it Harry….” You sigh placing your chin in your hands “I’m sorry I offloaded all that onto you” you say shaking your head pushing your hair from your face.

Harry just stares at you for a minute “I’m glad” he says softly “I’m glad your not with him, I know I used to give you a hard time about it but you really do deserve better. I’m sorry I wasn’t a better friend back then” Harry adds looking at his hands.

You shake your head “don’t be silly, you were a great friend, I was naive and just happened to end up pregnant” you start before pausing for a moment “But I wouldn’t change Noah for the world he’s the sweetest kid and even though he doesn’t understand why I’m gone a lot at the moment he hasn’t complained once”

Harry simply smiles in your direction “he sounds like his Mum” he chuckles a little. You smile glancing at Harry. “Would you like to come to my office? The library will be closing soon, I’ll be here for a little while yet, I can make us some tea?” Harry offers.

You think on his offer for a moment before nodding “that sounds great, thank you” you smile softly beginning to gather your things.

Walking to Harry’s office the campus had become relatively empty in the last half hour. Footpaths that we’re lined with groups of students were now empty and several buildings were now locked for the night.

You make it to Harry’s office he unlocks the door and lets you in before him “make yourself comfortable I’ll just be marking some papers” he smiles. You nod a little and find a seat in his surprisingly large office, getting to work.

*****

The pair work in silence for a couple of hours before you notice the time “crap” you mumble quickly trying to pack your things up again “everything ok?” Harry asks, you nod “yeah, just need to go and pick Noah up, his bedtime is 8, I didn’t realise it was already 7:30.” You sigh.

Harry stands to come and help you collecting some papers into a pile for you “You should have this, I’ll be giving them out in class tomorrow but have yours now” he says softly “but you didn’t get it from me” he smirks placing one of your freshly marked assessments under a pile of your papers “grading is on the last page, you’re doing great Y/N” Harry adds causing you to smile “thank you Harry and thank you for this, it was really helpful” you smile softly swinging your bag onto your shoulder “see you tomorrow” you say softly before slipping out of the room.

Your drive to pick Noah up was brief, you called your Mum to let her know what you were on your way, not that she was worried. She was however pissed that Noah’s father hadn’t arrived to collect him, arguably angrier than you were.

You arrive and let yourself in seeing Noah almost asleep on the couch, he sees you and smiles widely, sliding off the couch “Mummy!” He yells running towards you “Hi baby!” You smile kneeling down as he runs into your arms, you hug him tightly kissing his head “Did you have a good day with Grandma?” You ask picking him up carrying him to the kitchen where your Mum was cleaning up “Grandma let me have chicken nuggies for dinner Mummy!” he tells excitedly you giggle rubbing his back “you’re very spoilt buddy” your Mum looks towards you “he is very spoilt” she smiles.

“Thank you for looking after him Mum” you smile “I’m sorry” you pout a little. Noah snuggles into your chest wrapping his arms around you. “How was your day?” Your mum asks finishing up some dishes “it was ok, I spent the afternoon studying” you say softly rocking Noah a little “anything from….him?” Your mum asks you just shake your head.

“He called me to tell me, I lost it. I don’t want him to see us anymore” you sigh a little not going into detail in front of Noah. “I’m sorry sweetheart” your Mum says moving to hug your side to not disturb Noah. “Should get him home” she says softly you nod “I’ll grab his bag” you say before walking to the living room picking up Noah’s backpack you had out together for the weekend “thank you for looking after him mum I appreciate it so much” you smile, giving her a hug.

You make it out to the car and buckle a now sleeping Noah into his car seat. Heading home you manage to get Noah into his pyjamas and tucked into bed without waking him too much. You smile a little watching Noah for a while before heading off to your own room. You grab your papers from your bag wanting to look over your paper from Harry.

There we’re still some areas you wanted to improve on. You make it to the final page and see your mark, sliding in with a high distinction, better than you thought you were going to do. You smile a little proud of how you were going so far and being incredibly grateful for the support you had.

Looking a little further down at Harry’s comments you were a little taken back. Instead of leaving a detailed comment on your paper and areas to improve he had simply written;

‘Beautiful work, I’ve missed reading your papers and I’m glad you came back, text me, hopefully you still have my number - H’

You look at the time seeing it was almost 9pm. You pace your room for a moment before dropping the paper on your dresser grabbing your phone instead. You pace the room again looking at Harry’s contact for a good few minutes before finally opening a new text to him.

‘Thanks for the paper, and thank you for letting me study in your office today. I really appreciate all your help���

You send the message setting your phone down on the charger and getting yourself ready for bed knowing that Noah would probably be up early.

*****

You managed to wake up before Noah and drag yourself out of bed. You head out to the kitchen and go to put on some soft music when you notice that Harry had replied to your text last night at around midnight.

‘You’re very welcome, I’m sorry things have been rough for you, please let me know if I can do anything’

You giggle to yourself a little at how sweet Harry was being while also being professional.

You start putting breakfast together for you and Noah before heading upstairs to wake him. You sneak into his room and sit on the edge of his bed brushing through his hair a little. You smile noticing the little bit of curl it was starting to get you kiss his head softly “Noah” you whisper softly causing him to stir “it’s time to wake up sweet boy” he stirs more rolling over to face you “Mummy” he whimpers rubbing his eyes. “Hey buddy” you smile Noah reaches up to you wth his smalls hands.

You pick him up carrying him to the kitchen as he wakes up. “Did you sleep well bud?” You ask. He nods into your neck causing you to giggle “are you excited for day care?” You ask. Noah kicks his feet out a little bit showing how excited he was “yes!” You smile putting him down to go and find his seat. “Are you hungry?” You ask. Noah runs to his seat sitting up ready for breakfast “yes please Mummy” he says. “Ok let’s get organised then” you smile getting breakfast.

*****

Heading into uni for the day to drop Noah at day care you were running early which meant you had time to let Noah walk his way into the campus and look around a little more than usual.

On your way in Noah sees the big grass quad and runs off across it. You smile watching him, very little worry in your mind due to the very little number of people around. Noah goes to make his way back to you when he accidentally steps out in front of none other than Harry.

He instantly stops in his tracks looking up at Harry, he takes a few small steps back as you begin to make your way over to him “Noah” you call out. Harry looks up seeing you and smiles. You finally make your way to them picking him up “Hey buddy, you ok?” You ask. He looks at you just nodding. “Noah this is one of Mummy’s teachers, his name is Harry” Noah looks at you then at Harry “like my teachers Mummy?” Noah asks. You shrug “a little” you smile.

“Good morning” Harry says softly “Hi Noah, it’s nice to meet you” Harry adds holding his hand out for Noah little one to shake which Noah gladly takes. “You say hello to Harry” you whisper to Noah he nods say hello to Harry before squirming to get out of your arms.

You let him go but he stays relatively close to you and Harry. “He looks so much like you, where do the curls come from though?” Harry asks. You shrug a little “I had curly hair as a kid, he’ll probably grow out of it, they look cute though” you smile watching as Noah runs on the grass “Hey um, I was thinking we should catch up properly if it seems ok?” Harry asks “we could go for coffee? Noah could come I don’t mind” he says softly “it’s entirely up to you” you smile a little

“I would actually love that Harry thank you” you say as Noah comes back to you holding your “would the University be ok with it? I mean technically I am one of your students” you were a little anxious about the idea but not against it at all.

Harry shrugs “I think it’s more of a coincidence that your my student than an inconvenience, we were friends as undergraduates, I’m just catching up with a friend” he says matter of factly causing you to consider his idea of things as well but still seeing things from the university’s perspective. Eventually you give in and nod “why don’t we get coffee over the weekend?” You ask, almost surprising yourself with your bold request.

Harry glances at his feet and smiles “I would love that” he says softly pushing his glasses back up his nose. You hadn’t seen him wear them in so long, but they still made him look as sweet as he did 4 years ago. “Great, I’ll text you?” You ask to which Harry nods “I better get Noah to day care” you smile before calling out to him. He comes running over grabbing your leg with his small hands “Mummy I found a butterfly!” He shouts causing you and Harry to laugh. You pick him up resting him on your hip “that’s so cool sweetie! Should we go to day care and tell them all about it?” You ask Noah nods before looking at Harry.

You smile a little just watching them look at one another for a while “Noah, would you like to come with Mummy for a hot chocolate with Harry on the weekend?” You ask him softly only loud enough that Harry could hear as well. Noah claps his hands “yes please Mummy! Can we go to the park too?” He asks his little eyes gleaming.

“I’m sure my puppy would love to meet you Noah” Harry smiles Noah’s head flys in Harry’s direction. “What your puppy’s name?” Noah asks “his name is Ned, he’s only very little” Harry explains his full attention on your son. “I didn’t know you had a puppy” you say softly. Harry looks at you and nods “only had him a few weeks, sweetest thing, he’s a Lab, only 10 weeks old” he smiles.

“He’s sounds adorable Harry, I look forward to seeing him.” You grins “me too” he chuckles “anyway I’ll let you go, don’t want to be late, I’ll see you in class?” He asks you nod before Harry begins to head off squeezing your arm and waving at Noah as he does so.

*****

Saturday morning you were woken by the sound and movement of Noah crawling into bed next to you you roll over towards him opening your eyes a little “y’ok sweetheart?” You ask softly helping him the rest of the way in “Mummy cuddle” he whimpers you smile a little and open your arms for him to fall into.

You hold him close rubbing Noah’s back for a while before he begins to squirm “you ready to get up bud?” You ask “I’m hungry please Mummy” you giggle a little “alright come on let’s get some breakfast.”

You get Noah organised and sat down for his breakfast “Are you excited to see Harry today Noah?” You ask, Noah begins clapping his hands causing you to giggle “Mummy do I get to see the puppy?!” He asks excitedly “I hope so baby” you smile.

You sit with Noah to have some breakfast and text Harry while Noah works through the strawberries you added to his plate.

‘Noah’s so excited to see you and Ned today’

You send before setting your phone down. You get Noah’s dressed his hair done and teeth brushed before getting yourself organised pulling on some light wash jeans and a floral sweater. You head back to the kitchen to grab your phone seeing Harry had texted back.

‘I’m really looking forward to it, what time suits you?’

You smile a little, you were a little uneasy about this weird feeling you were having toward Harry, but it’s harmless he’s just a friend. Right?

‘Noah’s dressed and ready, should we meet at the coffee shop near the University? There’s a park across the road?’

You take your phone into the bathroom while you put just a little bit of makeup on.

‘Sounds great, see you in about half an hour?’

You smile a little at Harry’s message and head to Noah’s room to pack him a bag before reply

‘Perfect! See you soon’

You get Noah buckled into the car and head towards the University Noah keeps himself occupied in the back seat singing along with the music you had playing.

You park and head towards the cafe holding Noah’s hand on one side and his little bag on the other. You look up and see Harry waiting for you in black skinny jeans and a white t shirt under his sweater. This was the Harry you knew like the back of your hand. Beside him was Ned trying to chew his leash as Harry tried to stop him.

“Hey” you smile as you get closer “Hi” Harry smiles “Hi Noah” Harry waves kneeling down to Noah “Noah this is Ned” Harry says softly as Ned moves to sniff Noah causing him to giggle. He licks Noah’s chin before Harry calls him back “Hi Harry! Hi Ned!” Noah yells excitedly.

Noah leans over to pet Ned, he brushes over Neds soft fur before smiling at Harry. “Do you want me to go and order?” You ask softly, Harry smiles “that’d be great” he says softly “Noah do you want to come with Mummy?” You ask, he shakes his head “I stay with Ned?” He asks causing you to smile “is that ok?” You ask Harry, he simply nods smiling widely “yeah of course”.

You quickly race in ordering for you and Harry, you get a little juice for Noah and a cookie knowing he would get hungry at the park. You head back out with both yours and Harry’s coffees and something to eat for you both.

“Thank you so much” Harry smiles as you pass his coffee “I got you something to eat as well, I remember the carrot cake here was your favourite” he sighs a little “thank you” he says “you ok?” You ask softly noticing the sigh and slight drop in Harry’s face “yeah, I um, guess I forgot how well you know me” he smiles a little.

You head across the road to the park, Noah holding Harry’s hand wanting to be close to Ned “that is so cute” you smile watching them both.

Noah’s little legs were trying their best to keep up with Ned, Harry tying to hold Ned back a little so Noah wouldn’t topple. You find a quiet spot on the grass where Harry was able to let Ned off his leash letting Noah play with him properly. “Noah make sure you’re gentle please” you say as he starts running with Ned.

“I forgot how good their carrot cake was” Harry smiles “thank you for this” he says glancing over at you “anytime” you smile a little “I’ve missed hanging out with you” Harry’s says under his breath “this is a long way from going to parties together and getting as drunk as we could, but I missed hanging out with you too” you say softly laying back on the grass as Noah comes back over sitting between you and Harry with Ned.

Eventually, Harry lays back and Noah lays on your chest Ned snuggling into Noah. “Mummy” Noah says softly climbing you a little “yeah babe” you say wrapping your arm around him to stop him from falling back. “Can we keep Ned?” He asks curiously, you pout a little “I’m sorry baby, Ned is Harry’s puppy, we can’t keep him” Noah begins to fuss and you could feel a tantrum coming.

Harry noticed the change in Noah behaviour and rolls onto his front to look at Noah “Noah” he says softly “c’mere”. Noah pushes off you and walks to Harry. He leans over to Noah’s ear and whispers into it. Noah then runs back towards you kissing your cheek sloppily causing you to laugh hugging him tightly “what was that for?” You ask him giggling “it was from Harry!” Noah exclaims.

You look up at Harry who was already looking up you smiling nervously. You simply smile at him as Noah settled between you both again “I think we should do this more often” you say softly. Harry’s smile turns into more of a beam, “I’d love that” he says softly moving a little closer to you and Noah.

After a little while of Noah and Ned playing in between you and Harry, they both fell asleep. You brush Noah’s hair from his face a little kissing his head a little “you’re a great Mum” Harry says softly. You blush softly and lay your head on your arm “I think I just got lucky, Noah is an amazing kid” you say softly.

Harry smiles softly pushing your hair from your face. “Does he ever ask questions, about Ryan?” Harry asks. You shake your head a little “Ryan hasn’t spent time with him for a while, Noah probably doesn’t even know who he is anymore, he’s never asked why his Mum and Dad don’t live together and I don’t know what I would tell him if he did ask.”

“Y’know I’m here if you need anything, if you ever need someone to look after Noah so you can study, or if you want a night out, or just some time for you, I’m happy to help” Harry smiles a little. You giggle moving closer Ned moving over a little to Harry. You lean over the top of Noah and Ned who had settled again and place a soft kiss to Harry’s cheek “thank you H”

******

Three weeks had passed since you’d been to the park with Harry. In that three weeks you had been texting on and off, chatting after class and even studying in his office while he did admin work.

Tonight was one of those nights. Noah was staying with your Mum for the night while you were proof reading a paper due for one of your other classes for what felt like the fourteenth time.

You sigh a little sitting back in your chair. Harry glances up at you “y’ok?” He asks softly peering over the top of his glasses. You nod saving your document ensuring to not lose your work “yeah, I think it’s finally finished” you smile a little. Harry grins “good, I’m glad, you’ve worked really hard on it” he says starting to pack up his things “thank you for letting me use your office H” you add beginning to pack your own things “my pleasure” he smiles.

“Hey what are you doing tomorrow night? Noah’s been asking when he’s going to see Harry and Ned again” you giggle a little. Harry grins pushing his hands into his pockets “umm nothing, did you have something in mind?” He asks, you nod “Pizza and movies? At my place like we used to, but with Noah and you can bring Ned” you ask a little shy. Harry begins to nod “I’ll bring snacks” he smiles “text me your address?” He asks. You nod “yeah of course”.

You get organised and head home, you submit your paper online before heading to bed. You only had a morning class tomorrow which meant you could pick Noah up at lunch time. You slept like a log and accidentally slept through your alarm. You get yourself up and out the door in a rush meaning you didn’t look your best and the closest thing you got to breakfast was an iced coffee. Your morning, considering it’s hectic start dragged a little.

Leaving class you texted Harry your address before swinging around to your Mums to pick Noah up. “Noah James Mummy’s here!” You call out walking into your mums place he comes running out from the living room towards you “Mummy I missed you!” He yells latching himself onto your legs. You giggle hoisting him up into your arms “I missed you too buddy, did you have fun with grandma?” You ask Noah nods hugging you “so much fun! Grandma got me a new truck!” He smiles “wow, I hope you said thank you” you say softly as Noah begins to nod “Mummy has some fun news” you say softly walking off towards your Mums living room to find her “We are going to have dinner and movies at our place, with Harry and Ned” you smile as Noah to squirms in your arms clapping his hands.

“Who’s Harry?” Your mum asks inquisitively, Noah pipes up “Mummy’s teacher!” He yells giggling. You smile a little kissing his cheek “we were undergraduates together and really good friends, and now he’s my professor for one of my classes this semester” your Mum simply nods giving you a little bit of side eye “alright Mum that’s enough” you smile shaking your head “we better get going, can you go and get your bag please babe” you say putting Noah down.

You head home and get organised for the night giving the house a quick clean and lighting a few candles in the living room. You had given Noah a bath before getting him settled downstairs. Soon enough there was a knock on the door, you smile heading over opening the door seeing Harry standing there with a grocery bag of snacks in one hand and pizzas in the other “Hey…” you smile “I was happy to order the pizzas” you giggle letting Harry in. He shrugs “I figured I’d make things easier for you, I don’t mind” Harry smiles kissing your cheek softly moving past you Ned following behind him “oh my goodness Harry he’s getting so big” you laugh softly.

He placed everything on the kitchen counter before letting Ned off his leash. You unpacks the snacks as you watch smiling to yourself. You hear Noah yell from the living room “Mummy! Ned’s here!” You giggle a little taking the pizzas to the living room “I know baby, you know who else is here” you say softly sitting next to him on the couch “Harry’s here” you smile as Harry walks into the living room with snacks and a drink for you both. “Hi Harry!” Noah grins sitting up properly on the couch as you put some pizza on one of his little plates for him. “Here you go babe, eat up and we’ll watch a movie”

You eat dinner together watching a movie that Noah picked. It felt nice to have the structure of a family and that it was with Harry, but it also felt odd that you were having all these feelings about Harry.

Soon enough you had finished up with dinner and Noah was laying on your chest fighting off sleep as his movie continued to play. Ned had snuggled up at the end of the couch next to Harry’s feet looking very comfortable. “This is nice” Harry says softly glancing over at you. “Quite mundane to what we used to do” you say softly kissing Noah’s head.

Harry glances over at you and Noah “do you need to put him to bed?” He asks softly. You shake your head beginning to rub his back “No it’s ok, if I’m honest I like it when he falls asleep on me, I know it won’t last forever so I try and cherish it when it happens” you say softly. Eventually Noah fell asleep as his movie finished prompting you and Harry to pick something else.

Harry ended up picking a Marvel film knowing you would love it. By the time you were halfway through the film you and Harry were shoulder to shoulder with a throw over you both to keep warm. Eventually Noah’s steady breathing as well as the warmth from the blanket and the warmth radiating from Harry’s body caused you to become sleepy.

You yawn sitting up a little hugging Noah to your body “I’ll be right back, I’ll just put him to bed” you say softly. While you were up Harry took Ned out for a wee before you both got settled on the couch again. You sat closer to Harry before your head was resting on his shoulder. He shuffled down a little further so that you were laying on his chest instead, he wraps an arm around you rubbing your back a little.

“Thank you” you mumbles softly as Harry pulls the throw up a little more to keep you all warm. “What for?” He asks softly, you shrug a little “just for being here, I missed you….a lot H. Noah loves hanging out with you” you add backing up at him.

You sit with Harry in silence for a while as the TV kept playing the movie. “Can I ask something” he says softly. You nod lightly looking up at Harry “What happened to us?” He asks letting out a breath that he seemed to be holding in. You shrug a little “I guess we grew apart, we slowly stopped talking to one another when Ryan and I got together and next thing I knew I had a baby….I wish I hadn’t let him rule my life as much as he did” you say quietly.

Harry squeezes your shoulder before pulling you closer to him sad he places a kiss to your head causing you to blush. “Your doing an amazing job Y’know, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise” Harry says softly as you snuggle into him a little more “thank you” you whisper.

You sit in silence for around twenty minutes before you speak up “sometimes I wish I’d done things differently” you say softly “like what?” Harry asks, you shrug a little “well imagine what my life would be like if someone else was Noah’s Dad, or if I had finished my Masters while I was pregnant, or if I hadn’t gotten pregnant at all” you glance up at Harry who was pouting at you “c’mon you love being a mum” Harry says softly “I do, but sometimes I wish I could give Noah a normal family dynamic instead of just me” you say softly.

Harry hugs you tighter sighing a little bit not knowing what else to say. You sat together in silence for a while before you hear a whimper from the living room door you look up and see Noah standing in the doorway rubbing his eyes his bottom lip trembling “Noah, what’s wrong sweetheart?” You ask sitting up a little holding your arms open for him. He rushes over hugging you tightly, you lift him back onto the couch letting him snuggle into you as you lay back into Harry’s side. “Talk to Mummy what’s wrong bud?” You ask softly kissing his head as Noah’s tears begin to fall onto your shirt.

“I-I had a bad dream Mummy” he sniffles his little arms wrapped around your neck “do you want to talk to Mummy about it?” You ask softly rubbing his back “I had a dream that….I didn’t see Ned or Harry again, it makes me sad Mummy” he whimpers fresh tears falling from his little face. Harry glances at you “may I?” He asks softly, you nod “Noah” Harry says softly, Noah looks up at him with his red eyes “Ned and I really like spending time with you and Mummy, we’re going to be here as long as you and Mummy want us here, I promise”

You look up at Harry, tears stinging your own eyes. Noah looks up at him before shuffling across to give him a cuddle without saying anything. Harry hugs him tightly pulling you in closer simultaneously “thank you H” you whisper softly kissing his cheek. Harry looks down at you moving to rest his forehead to yours snuggling the three of you up together.

In that moment you knew this was what you wanted.

Noah stayed snuggled up on Harry’s chest. You snuggled yourself back into Harry’s side as he pressed play on the movie you were watching, turning the volume down slightly. After a mere ten minutes Noah was out like a light. “Want me to take him?” You whisper softly, Harry simply shakes his head “I got it” he smiles leaning over a little to kiss your forehead softly.

You move over a little allowing Harry to get up he tucks Noah’s legs either side of his torso, Noah’s delicate arms still around Harry’s neck. He got him tucked in before returning to the living room “I just left his door open a little I hope that’s ok?” Harry asks. You nod smiling “thank you so much”. Harry resumes his previous position next to you “anytime” he smiles lightly.

You snuggle back into Harry’s side as he wraps an arm around you again. You sit in silence for a while consumed by your own thoughts you sigh softly sitting up a little “H….are we going to get ourselves into trouble?” You ask turning to look at him. Harry’s brow creases “How so?” He whispers turning to face you. “This is only the second time we’ve hung out in four years and we’re snuggled up on my couch”.

Harry simply grins at you. He knew what you were asking.

“You think if we get caught hanging out things will go south?” He asks. You nod slightly “why are you smiling about this I’m serious H” you shove his shoulder a little.

“I know, I know, I’m sorry” he pouts “but….it’s only a semester, then after that I’m not your professor anymore, I’m your friend Harry” he explains softly trying to make light of the situation “Exams are in a few weeks and you’ll have a few weeks off we can hang out more before second semester”

Reaching over for the tv remote you pause the movie again “what are you getting at here Harry” you grumble a little. He sighs softly picking at his shirt. “I….just want to get through the semester, and see where things go, I like spending time with you and Noah, Ned and Noah are almost inseparable” he says softly not wanting to give anything else away.

You both settle back down into the couch, finishing the movie in an eerie, awkward silence. Once the movie had come to an end Harry helped you to clean up, Ned following you both to the kitchen. “I um, I should get going, thank you for having me….and Ned” Harry adds cause you to giggle “you’re both welcome anytime Harry, thank you for coming over it was really nice and thank you….for everything” you smile a little leaning up to kiss his cheek softly.

As you pull away you notice Harrys cheeks had gone a little red “text me when your home? So I know you got there?” You ask. Harry simply nods before responding “of course” he chuckles. He leans over giving you a quick hug which you gladly reciprocate.

You see Harry out before cleaning up a little more getting ready to head to bed yourself. You get tucked in and await Harry’s text which you soon received.

‘Home safe, Neds already passed out for the night, I had a great time, thank you again for having me x’

You smile reading his message before responding.

‘Thank you for tonight, Noah and I needed it, hopefully we can do it again soon. Goodnight H xx’

You set your phone down before quickly drifting off to sleep.

*****

Exams were heading your way…and fast.

Your final exam for the semester was today and it was the class you were most worried about, Harry’s.

You weren’t sure if you were worried about failing or if you were worried that your answers were going to be read and graded by Harry. Noah had been staying with your Mum for the week while you sat all your exams. You were really starting to miss him, you couldn’t have been more excited to be able to go and pick him up after your exam.

You got dressed and started packing your bag to head off when there was a knock at your door. You quickly scoot over and open it to a flower delivery man.

He reads out your name before handing you a beautiful bunch of mixed coloured blooms a little card poking out the top. You take them into the kitchen placing them on the counter. You open the card and smile widely,

‘Good luck today, we know you’ll do great, we’re so proud of you, all our love. Harry, Noah & Ned xxx’

You take a quick snap of the card and flowers sending it to Harry.

‘Thank you for the flowers they’re gorgeous, you boys are too sweet to me’

You send off the text quickly before heading out the door.

*****

Your final exam was the fastest three hours of your life, but you’d never felt better about an exam. Everything just seemed to flow well. You walked out feeling confident and satisfied that you had done everything you could.

You were heading to your car to go and get Noah when you notice Harry walking towards you “Hey” he says softly as he gets closer “come with me” he smirks. You give him a little side eye before obliging following him towards his office “what are we doing Harry?” You ask giggling softly.

“Just do as your told” Harry chuckles coming to a stop outside his office door “close your eyes” he smiles standing closer behind you his chest bumping your back as he was leaning over to open the door “watch your step” he whispers guiding your waist up to his office.

You step into Harry’s office your eyes still shut, you hear Harry close the door behind you “shuffle to your left a little” he whispers softly, you do as Harry asked before he steadies you in your spot “ok, stay there a second” he says before kissing your cheek softly. You blush and nod a little hearing Harry walk away from you.

“Alright, open” Harry calls out.

You open your eyes to see Noah on Harry’s hip holding yet another bunch of flowers. Lettering balloons spelling out ‘Congrats’ above the pair. You smile widely “oh my goodness, you two!” You giggle walking towards them “yay Mummy!” Noah yells kicking his feet out.

Harry chuckles smiling at Noah “give Mummy her flowers” Harry says to him quietly Noah quickly leans forward to hand you your flowers “thank you baby, can Mum have a kiss?” You ask softly leaning down to kiss his cheek, Noah returning it.

“How did you do all this?” You ask Harry playing with Noah’s hair. “Your mum, she was a huge help….she’s actually insisting that we go over there for dinner, all of us” Harry says softly “but if your not comfortable with me going I don’t have to it ok” you giggle a little at Harry rambling on “H….H, it’s ok, I want you to be there, please” you smile “plus, it’s the end of the semester, we said we would talk” you say biting your lip a little looking up at Harry a smirk covering his lips.

“I love the sound of that” Harry smiles. You kiss his cheek once more before Noah starts pushing at you “Mummy! Mummy! Can we go back to Grandmas now?” Noah asks. You nods “of course baby, would you like to carry Mummy’s flowers?” You ask as Harry lowers Noah to the ground who then runs off with your flowers to collect his other belongings.

While Noah is gone Harry places his hand on your waist pulling you closer to him “I’m so proud of you” Harry whispers leaning his forehead against yours before kissing your head you blush leaning further into Harry’s hold “couldn’t have done it without you H” you whisper wrapping your arms around him hugging him tightly as Noah came back.

You and Harry get yourselves and Noah organised making your way to your Mums in seperate cars.

You let yourself in Harry and Noah trailing along behind you. Your mum greets you with one of the biggest hugs you’d ever had “he’s very sweet, and very attractive” she whispers to you quiet enough that Harry couldn’t hear. Pulling away you glare at her ���behave” you warn knowing what she was thinking. She shrugs “Noah loves him, he clearly likes you silly girl” she complains. You groan a little simply walking away “love you Mum” you smile as you walk off.

*****

After dinner your mum offered to give Noah a bath giving you an opportunity to just wind down. You sit down with a glass of wine in the sun room under the night sky.

Your mind finally feeling as though it was at peace.

A few minutes pass, you could hear your Mum and Noah laughing from the bathroom. You smile a little relaxing back into your seat.

“Y’ok?” Harry asks causing you to jump a little before nodding “yeah I’m great” you smile. Harry comes to sit next to you “sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you”.

You hum acknowledging Harry’s apology. “I know we said we’d talk” you start before Harry takes your hand “it’s ok, you’re exhausted” Harry says softly “besides I only have one question” he adds “Y/N I would love to take you on a date, if that’s something that you would like?” Harry asks softly.

You look up at him turning your body a little “like a proper date?” You ask a little surprised. Harry simply nods “yeah like we’ll go to dinner and a movie or bowling or mini golf or we could do all of it” he smiles as you rest your head on his shoulder.

You reach over taking Harry’s hand playing with his fingers “I like mini golf” you smile a little looking up at Harry, he grins pulling you closer “H, what about Noah?” You asks softly. He shrugs a little “we may have accidentally already talked about it” Harry says looking at you a little worried. “What do you mean?” You asks softly turning to face Harry a little more.

“When I picked Noah up today, he started asking questions about…us, he took it really well, wanted to know if you and I were ‘boyfriend and girlfriend’ I asked him how he would feel if we were to date and hang out more, he got really excited about it. I hope that’s ok, I should have asked you first I’m sorry.” Harry says softly squeezing your hand.

You look up at him pouting “Harry….” You whimper softly “that’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard” as you were about to lean over to peck the corner of Harry’s lips Noah came running in, his little body covered in his Spider-Man pyjamas, he jumps up to climb into yours and Harry’s lap “Mummy, I’m all clean” he says squishing between you both causing you to giggle. You ruffle his still damp hair before kissing his head “you smell so fresh and clean dude” he smiles giving you a hug before whispering in your ear “can I cuddle with you and Harry?” He asks softly you sigh happily nodding “of course babe” he settles between you both Harry’s arm still around you his other one coming to rest on Noah’s back, yours brushing through Noah’s hair.

“Y’know this is everything I’ve ever wanted” Harry whispers, you hum snuggling into him more “me too….I like the idea of this being our family, you me Noah and Ned” you say looking up at Harry.

“My god your perfect” he sighs leaning down nudging your nose with his before kissing your softly, his tender lips matching perfectly to your own being as gentle as he could with you as to not disturb Noah.

You hum and giggle a little against Harry’s lips feeling like a teenager sneaking around not only your son but your mum as well.

*****

A few weeks had passed since your final exam and you had been essentially inseparable from Harry since. You had been spending a lot of time together with Noah and alone and making things work in between your busy holiday work schedule and between Harry preparing for his new students the coming semester.

You had become incredibly trusting of Harry with a lot of things, including caring for Noah. You had been working a lot lately which meant you couldn’t always rely on your Mum to look after Noah, which meant Harry had offered to step up.

You were apprehensive at first but after leaving them together for a few hours one afternoon to come home to the pair cooking dinner and dancing around the kitchen to Noah’s favourite songs. You knew then you could trust Harry with anything, it made you feel safe.

*****

You were snuggled up with Harry on his couch one night Noah already in the spare bed asleep. “I could really get used to this” you whisper softly glancing up at Harry.

He smiles down at you kissing your forehead “me too” he smiles gently. You giggle a little “you’ve got a real Daddy vibe happening at the moment” you blurt out without thinking. Harry moves to look at you a little surprised “y’think so?” He asks, you simply nod “Noah loves it, and honestly I kinda do too, it’s really attractive” you smirk biting your lip a little.

Harry chuckles a little connecting his lips with your own in a needy kiss as you hoist your leg up over his lap causing Harry to reach down grabbing at your ass to pull you into his lap. You giggle as your tongues and teeth clash in what had turned out to be a messy make out, eventually without realising Harry had started grinding up into your core as he pulled and tugged at your bottom lip with hip teeth and nibbled at the skin of your neck.

“Should we go upstairs?” Harry mumbles against you as you tug his shirt over his head and throw it off to the side not caring where it landed.

“I’m fine here” you pant as Harry’s hands make their way up to your chest under the t-shirt of his you had borrowed to wear as pyjamas.

“Good because so am I” Harry smirks picking you up laying you on your back on the couch. You giggle, Harry placing his lips against yours once more as you wrap your legs around him.

Harry continued to grind into you before he began kissing down your neck. He glances up at you for a moment smirking moving down your body to your thighs. He kisses the inside of each thigh before kissing your cloth covered clit causing you to moan out softly. Harry pushed your shirt up slowly with his nose as he kisses up your torso.

“Gunna let me taste you?” Harry mumbles as he makes it to your lips. You nod running your hands through Harry’s hair “please” you whimper pecking his lips several times.

Harry grips your thighs kissing back down your body until he makes it to your panty line. Harry slowly pulls your panties down your thighs tossing them to the floor “so needy for me baby” Harry mumbles placing a kiss to your clit, you whimper softly placing your hand on Harry’s on your hip.

Harry kisses down to your entrance before flattening his tongue against you. You sigh at the feeling of Harry against you as he laps you up his tongue making it back to your clit before he started alternating between licking and sucking. You let your knees drop further relaxing into Harry’s touch.

He soon adds to your stimulation slipping two fingers inside you curling them slightly causing you to roll your hips meeting Harry’s motions. You bring your fist to your mouth trying to stifle the loud moans trying to escape as to not wake Noah.

You soon felt a familiar knot beginning to form in your lower belly, your breathing picked up as you grabbed for Harry’s free hand. You whimper softly as Harry’s movements quicken sensing your were close to the edge. “Harry I’m going to…” you take in a sharp breath ready to finish your sentence when Harry removes his fingers abruptly before removing his mouth from your now drenched and throbbing pussy.

You let out a frustrated moan sitting up a little to look at Harry “what the hell?” You plead as he smirks kissing your thighs. He quickly moves back to encapsulate your lips in his own for a few moments before pulling away a little “edging” he murmurs causing you to huff and push his chest lightly “fucking tease” you whisper pecking his lips lightly “but two can play that game” you smirk against him before untucking yourself from his hold and walking away to the master bedroom and attached ensuite.

There was no way you were letting Harry get away with this, but you wanted to test him to see how far he would go.

You leave both Harry’s bedroom door and the ensuite door ajar not wanting to send Harry the wrong message. You turn the shower on getting the bathroom nice and steamy before stepping in you kept your back to the shower door for a few minutes before you head someone clear their throat behind you. You spin around and see Harry gawking at you from the doorway, still naked and definitely still aroused.

You giggle a little biting your lip softly “Yes, Professor Styles?” You ask softly tilting your head back a little letting the water run over your naked body. You notice Harry’s hands twitch as he makes his way to the shower.

He slips in behind you your back still facing him his cold finger tips grazing your hips “y’think you can tease me?” He murmurs into your neck nibbling at a few spots before kissing over them as one of his hands reaches down your torso to your hip before cupping your heat “do you think that was a good idea baby?” He asks softly before surprising you plunging two fingers back into you as he had done on the couch.

You gasp at the feeling your heels leaving the ground for a moment your tip toes holding you up. “You’re so beautiful” Harry whispers holding you closer to him “gunna let me fuck you baby?” He asks kissing your neck again. You nod against him weak at the knees for him again like you hadn’t walked away from this tease of a man a mere five minutes ago.

Harry turns you pushing you against the bathroom wall bending you over a little to keep you steady, “ready sweet girl?” Harry asks positioning himself at your entrance he pushes one of your legs out a little more to help him gain better access to what he desired most.

You whimper at the feeling of the cold tile against your chest before a gasp and an unexpected moan escapes your lips as Harry plunged himself into you, Harry grips your hips tightly groaning softly at the feeling of your soft walls clenching around him. He places some soft delicate kisses up your spine “so tight for me baby” Harry whispers kissing your jaw you lean back in his hold a little humming.

His hands begin to wander to your front cupping your breasts giving deep, slow thrusts where you were connected. A soft moan escapes your lips as Harry draws your ass back into him. Harry runs a hand up your spine nibbling at your neck before he bends you over gripping your hip “H…” you pant softly “fuck me hard H… please” you beg clenching around Harry causing him to groan.

Harry bends down to your ear kissing just under it “want me to destroy that tight little pussy baby?” Harry mumbles into your ear. You open your mouth to respond when Harry gives a single hard thrust causing your knees to become weak and a whimper to escape your lips.

“Fuck Harry” you moan “don’t tease me H” you mumble. You hear Harry chuckle behind you kissing your shoulder “y’sure about that?” Harry asks massaging your ass as he goes back to slow pumps causing the tension to build in your tummy again.

“I’m sure” you respond clenching around Harry again causing him to groan “fuck sweetheart, you feel fuckin’amazing” Harry moans as he delivers another hard thrust before slowing down again. You smirk clenching him again. You hear an snigger leave Harry’s lips before his hands came to grip your waist “I warned you” he whispers into your ear before kissing your jaw smirking against your skin.

Harry grips your hips with both hands as he begins to thrust into you hard. “So fucking good H” you pant, he pulls you into him until your ass was flush with his hips, cock buried deep inside you, you gasp a little whimpering.

Harry rubs your hips kissing your back “c’mere” Harry mumbles pulling out abruptly pushing your hips to turn you around to face him. “Why’d you stop again?” You whine causing Harry to smirk “just wanted to look at you” he smiles. Harry reaches over turning the shower off before reaching down picking you up to wrap your legs around his torso.

Harry moves from the shower out to the bathroom counter sitting you on the edge before he smirks at you “let me finish what we started?” Harry asks. You giggle and nod “if you don’t you’ll be in trouble” you smirk pulling him towards you connecting your lips to his.

You pull away kissing down his neck just under his ear “make me cum H” you whisper in his ear. Harry moans softly “so needy for me” he smirks. Harry guides himself back to your entrance. You sigh as Harry pushes himself back into your entrance and wastes no time in fucking into you mercilessly.

Harry had edged you so much that it took near on no time for you to be clenching around Harry trying to hold off your own orgasm “H I’m so close, fucking me so well babe” you moan. Harry grips your thigh with one hand and moves to rub your clit with the thumb of his other hand. “Let go for me baby, cum on my cock please” he begs nibbling at your neck.

Your toes begin to curl and your legs begin to shake at Harry’s request you grip the edge of the bathroom counter as you begin to unravel “Harry…..” you whimper rolling your hips into him “fuck!” You moan out as one of the strongest orgasms you’d ever had washed over your body you clench and pulse around Harry who three pumps later was filling you with his cum “babe, such fucking good pussy” Harry moans holding your left hip like his life depends on it.

Harry stills inside you panting into your neck. He slowly moves his face to connect his lips with yours you wrap your hands in Harry’s hair “so good to me” he mumbles on your lips you hum smiling “you’re so amazing H” you whisper kissing him again.

******

Harry eventually gets you cleaned up and carried you off to his bed tucking you both in. You were chatting away the door still just ajar when you hear a little voice coming from the hallway “Mummy” Noah whimpers “yeah baby, come here” you respond. He rushes through the door towards you, you pick him up from the side of the bed pulling him into your chest “y’ok bud?” You ask softly rubbing his back a little his tired eyes looking up at you “I want to cuddle with Daddy” he whimpers softly.

You glance at Harry for a moment before looking back at Noah, he’d never really brought up his Dad until now and if you were honest you were a little shocked by it “what do you mean sweetheart?” You ask, Noah looked at you then at Harry. He squirms from your arms into Harry’s arms “Cuddle with Daddy” Noah whispers snuggling into Harry’s chest.

That’s when it dawned on you Noah was calling Harry, Daddy. Your jaw drops as you look at Harry who was seeming having the same realisation, tears stinging his eyes. You look at Noah kissing his head softly “baby, did you just call Harry Daddy?”, Noah look up at you with his wide eyes and nods “Stella at daycare said that Daddy’s spend time with Mummy’s and…and spend time with kids and…and Harry does that for me, did I do something wrong mummy?” He asks his little bottom lip beginning to tremble.

You and Harry glance at each other before Harry shakes his head “not at all Noah it’s ok….I’d love to be your Dad bud” Harry says softly pushing Noah’s hair from his face. Noah looks up and nods “yes please”.

In that very moment you felt yourself becoming anxious, your heart knew that this was everything you wanted, but your mind was racing with everything that could go wrong with this happening. What if Ryan found out. What if Noah eventually worked out Harry wasn’t his Dad. What if Ryan contested for full custody.

You let Noah settle trying to play off your own anxieties before kissing Harry’s cheek “I just need some water” you say softly sliding out of bed. You head out to the kitchen before heading out into Harry’s small backyard to check on Ned.

Almost twenty minutes pass and you still hadn’t returned to bed, leading Harry to go and tuck a now sleeping Noah back into bed before moving out to the kitchen. Still not being able to find you Harry ventures outside when he sees the door slightly cracked open.

He comes to settle next to you on the patio a glass of water in one of your hands the other petting Ned who had settled at your side. “Love, what are y’doing out here?” Harry asks softly. You sigh a little “I don’t know, just got a little overwhelmed I think” you say softly. Harry reaches out to tuck some loose hair behind your ear “Should we talk about it?” He asks. You shrug a little “I love that your willing to take on a parent role for Noah, but I’m also scared, what if Noah finds out your not his biological Dad, what if Ryan try’s to get full custody….what if we don’t work out?” You begin to ramble your anxieties coming to light, your body begins to shake your breathing begins to quicken and tears begin to build in your eyes.

Harry noticed instantly and wrapped an arm around you pulling you into his chest “Hey, c’mon babe I’m here everything’s ok” he whispers kissing your temple as you rest your head in the crook of his neck “we should have talked about it first I’m sorry” Harry whispers rubbing your shoulder “But, I’m not going anywhere, you and Noah mean the world to me Y/N, it’s us and our boys” Harry says softly pulling you closer to kiss you softly. You couldn’t help but smile a little on his lips “our boys” you whisper resting your head to Harry’s.

Hearing Harry talk about being a family settled your anxiety enough for you to head back up to bed, but there was still going to be plenty to navigate.

Eventually Harry got you snuggled into his chest just the way he liked.

You woke the next morning to find an empty space next to you. You hum softly rolling over grabbing Harry’s pillow pulling it towards you.

Taking in his scent you couldn’t help but smile, you wrap your arms around it pulling it to your chest closing your eyes listening out for any other signs that Harry was awake.

Within a few minutes you could hear Harry trying to softly pad his way back to bed to his failure the weight of his large feet giving him away.

“You’re not as quiet as you think Styles” you mumble your face still half buried in his pillow, eyes still closed.

He lets out a breathy chuckle “thought you were asleep” he says softly leaning over to kiss your temple. You giggle a little shaking your head eyes still closed before whining a little “why do you have to smell so good, I never want to leave this bed” you open one eye to glance at Harry who was kneeling at the side of the bed smirking back at you.

“You don’t ever have to if you don’t want to, I’d wait on you hand and foot until we’re old and grey if that’s what you wanted” Harry smiles, you hide your face further into the pillow to conceal your blushing cheeks from Harry, who instead grabbed your chin tilting your face towards him before kissing you softly.

You hum against his warm, plump lips, you would never get over this feeling, this feeling of being loved by someone you truely loved as well. It was something mundane to you but wouldn’t trade it for anything. You had an indescribable amount of love, affection and passion for the man in front of you.

Pulling away slowly and a little reluctantly, you scan Harry’s face caressing his cheek lightly before smiling a little as he places little kisses to the insides of your palms. You stare at him a little while longer before revealing your biggest secret “Harry…” he looks up at you at the mention of his name, you smile a little continuing to caress his cheeks “I love you”.

Harry stares at you for a moment before he breaks out in a wide smile and red cheeks that he tried to hide behind your hands. He leans closer so his forehead was resting to yours he places two of the softest yet most passionate kisses to your lips before looking you dead in the eye and responding.

“I love you…and Noah, I’m so happy with you both in my life” he whispers before connecting his lips to yours once more.

You pull Harry’s arms signalling to him to climb up on the bed with you. The passion and love you felt towards this man right now had no right to be contained.

You had morning breath, your hair an absolute mess and had Harry’s t-shirt from last night covering your torso and no panties. But none of that mattered just words couldn’t describe how you felt about Harry.

You needed him, and by his next course of action he needed you as well. Harry’s lips never left yours he managed to push his shorts off leaving his fresh hoodie on and pulling your t-shirt up to enable access to what you both needed.

You bring your knees up and let them drop for Harry to shuffle up in between them. He grabs the covers behind him and pulls them up over you both, the back of his mind still aware that there is a child in the house who is as unpredictable as his mother.

Harry slowly pulls away to position himself at your entrance gliding into you with ease. A satisfied moan leaves your lips as you relax back into the pillows around you. One hand making it’s way to the back of Harry’s neck pulling him in to kiss you once again.

Harry kisses you a few times before whispering in your ear “you are music to my ears sweet girl”. He begins delivering deep but gentle thrusts to you wanting to savour every single second with you.

You tilt your head back grinding into Harry’s thrusts. His public bone was meeting with your clit in perfect time and creating the perfect feeling to you. Harry’s forehead meets yours as he continues to thrust into you.

It really wasn’t very long before your toes were beginning to curl trying to hold off on your orgasm, the passion in the room mixed with Harry’s talents had you both trying to hold onto the inevitable mix of fluids.

You open your eyes and see the crease in Harry’s brow his mouth agape eyes squeezed shut. You move your hands to his cheeks directing his lips to yours as you wrap your arms around him pulling him closer to you. Your arms slowly make their way down his back where you push down at his belt line enabling you to grind your hips into his even more causing Harry to groan on your lips.

He reluctantly pulls away from the kiss resting his head to your own once more. “I….you….Jesus fuck” he pants as his thrusts become a little sloppier and your grip becomes tighter as your body threatens to burst.

Your eyes meet Harry’s and he simply nods. You scan his face once more as Harry delivered the thrust to end it all. You begin to squirm under him as the middle of your back leaves the mattress your legs come to squeeze at Harry’s hips this seemingly sending him to the peak of his own high.

He grabs at your hip delivering another few deep thrusts before moaning out your name in pure bliss as you both shake and whimper tangled in each other Harry’s body collapses onto your own his hot breath covering your neck.

You both lay in silence for a few minutes your hands rubbing through Harry’s hair as he rubs circles into your thigh.

Harry slowly moves to hover over you once more leaning down kissing you with the utmost tenderness he slowly pulls away not even opening his eyes “you…you are everything” he whispers kissing both of your cheeks opening his eyes to look down at you.

Your eyes meet his and you both smile “I’m your everything H” you whisper pecking his lips again. You wanted to stay wrapped up like this forever especially considering how intimate the entire moment had been. Harry went back to laying on your chest as he softened inside of you you rub your hands through his hair a while but before long Noah was calling for his Mummy.

You sigh softly and giggle a little “at least he didn’t let himself in I guess” you comment causing Harry to laugh kissing at your neck “I’ll go get him” he mumbles into your skin kissing your jaw then your lips before slowly pulling himself away from and out of you simultaneously.

You gasp a little at the now empty feeling. Harry places a final kiss to your forehead before pulling his shorts on walking out of the room to the spare room which Harry had insisted now be Noah’s room when you stayed over.

You wait a few minutes expecting Harry to simply bring him back to you for the three of you to cuddle in bed for a while. When almost five minutes pass you get up find a pair of panties and shuffle over to the ensuite to clean up before heading downstairs legs exposed to the cool morning air. Harry’s shirt still covering your frame.

You walk into the kitchen to find Harry and Noah making an absolute mess, but it was the cutest mess you had ever seen. “Hi my loves, what on earth is happening here?” You giggle a little moving to the kitchen island where they were situated. You place a kiss to Noah’s cheek “Mummy! We’re making breakfast!” Noah yells excitedly.

You look up at Harry who was already staring down at you, his hand finds your waist and his lips find yours his hand moving down your back to your bum giving it a light squeeze.

“Thank you for getting him up and organising breakfast” you smile up at Harry. He simply shrugs “no hassle at all, I’ve got you babe” he winks causing you to giggle a little “he needed a wee and said he was hungry so I figured there was no better time to get up and make breakfast” Harry adds smiling.

“You…are the absolute best” you say softly pecking Harry’s cheek “not at all sweetheart, I’m just a man who adores having you both here” Harry smirks. You blush and hug his side ruffling Noah’s hair “can I do anything to help?” You ask softly “noooo Mummy, we don’t need help I big boy!” Noah butts in causing you to laugh “yes chef” you smile and move to sit on the other side of the island.

Harry hands you a cup of coffee which you gladly take “thank you” you smile. You watch the pair in awe as they continue to make a mess.

You help Noah to set the table while Harry cooks some eggs and pancakes the kitchen beginning to smell of the bacon that Harry had in the oven.

You sat down together as a family and ate breakfast. Noah still making a mess. You sit back watching him for a while smiling to yourself. “Hey” Harry says softly wrapping his hand around yours “you ok?” He asks a crease in his brow. You nod smiling “I’m amazing” you squeeze his hand in return.

You sit in silence for a little while longer before Harry speaks up again “Uni goes back soon” you glance over at him and nod “yeah only a week to go” you smile “y’nervous?” Harry asks softly “your last semester ever” he teases.

You raise an eyebrow in his direction “I’m excited to have more time for you and Noah” you say softly leaning over to kiss Harry’s cheek. “Would you be upset if I tell the University about us? I don’t really want to hide us”.

You sit thinking on Harry’s words for a moment the only background noise being Noah playing with Ned “I think we should tell them, better to disclose the relationship we have now rather than get caught up with it somehow…..I don’t know about you but I don’t really have intentions of keeping my hands to myself now that you’re not my professor anymore”

Harry simply chuckles pulling you into his lap “I’ll always be your professor” he winks kissing your cheek causing you to giggle and smile nestling your head into his side “I hope so, because that’s all I want” you say softly pecking his lips.

****

The first week back had begun and Tuesday mornings you had an early lecture at 7:30 which meant a 6am start for you. Harry had been amazing and offered to organise Noah in the mornings and then drop in at day care before he started his own busy schedule.

You had both been staying with each other on and off and even having a few nights alone here and there. You’d even made space in your wardrobe for Harry which was apparently a big move that Harry appreciated and worshipped you for.

Pulling yourself from the shower you dry off a little before shuffling to your wardrobe to grab some clothes. You glance over at Harry who was still asleep his curls covered half of his face you smile a little to yourself before turning you attention back to your clothes.

Pulling a sweater over your head you spot a pair of strong, tattooed arms sneaking their way around you. You hum as Harry snuggles his head into your neck kissing your jaw “good morning” Harry mumbles the rasp in his voice evident “good morning baby” you smile softly rubbing your hands through his hair, “y’smell s’good” Harry groans.

You giggle and smile kissing the side of Harrys head “thank you…” you just stand together for a moment Harry rocking you from side to side a little “I need to shower” Harry grumbles, you giggle turning in Harry’s grip “I’ll go and make Noah’s lunch, want some breakfast?” You ask softly “yes please” Harry smirks.

He slowly lets you go pecking your lips a few times “I love you” Harry whispers against your lips. “I love you too H” you wrap your arms around him kissing him softly “meet you in the kitchen” you smile on his lips. He gives you a final squeeze before letting you go.

****

You make your way to the kitchen quickly pulling together Noah’s lunch before moving onto yours and Harry’s while also making breakfast for everyone. Harry soon appears dressed and ready for his day just missing his blazer his hair still damp. He puts some coffee on kissing your cheek lightly “can I grab the little man?” He asks softly.

You smile and nod “yes please that would be a huge help thank you Harry” you look up at him with a smile, he winks back at you heading down to Noah’s room. He was only gone a few seconds before he was calling out to you “Babe…Y/N!, fuck quickly!”

When Harry called out for you, you file hear the urgency in his voice you drop what you were doing and run to Noah’s room. You immediately notice Noah’s hair wet with sweat and his little body pale in colour.

“What happened?!” You ask frantically coming to Harry’s side as he tried to wake Noah “he was just like this, what do we do?” Harry was panicking, you could hear it, but you didn’t have time for him to have a meltdown right now.

“Call an ambulance Harry” you say going to pick Noah up, as soon as your face is near him you hear a gurgle and wheeze with his breathing. You squeeze his little hand “Noah” you say firmly in an attempt to wake him. You shake his shoulder a little and he begins to cough, vomit sputtering from him mouth “Harry hurry up!” You yell pulling Noah from his bed laying him across you in an attempt to help him clear his chest.

He begins frantically coughing causing another vomit. Harry races back in his phone to his ear as he spoke to the operator. Noah continues to struggle and before you knew it the unthinkable happened, his coughing and vomiting stopped his eyes rolled back in his head “no…no, Harry tell them to hurry!” You yell as Noah’s lips turned blue and he began to seize in your arm.

Harry had become frantic on the phone yelling at the operator to hurry as you placed Noah on the carpet to try and support his breathing better, tears began to fall down your cheeks as your son convulsed on the floor in front of you. You support him on his side to maintain his airway as his seizure comes to an end. You look up to see Harry gone, he soon returned with two paramedics following behind him.

They started to throw around a heap of words and terms you nor Harry understood. They begin to ready Noah to go to hospital briefly talking to you about where they were going and what they had done so far but not much more than that. You look at Harry concern covering both his and your own face, “go with him” Harry says softly “I’ll follow behind” he adds kissing your head softly.

They load Noah up into the ambulance and you clamber in with him. Harry quickly grabbed the essentials including a change of clothes for you to replace your vomit covered ones before getting in his car heading off to the hospital. By the time Harry arrived they had Noah in a paediatric room in the emergency department.

“How’s he doing?” Harry asks softly placing the bag he brought with him down. You shrug a little “I don’t really know, they think he has meningitis” you sigh resting your head in your hands. “C’mere” Harry whispers pulling you into his chest “he’s gunna be ok” Harry says softly kissing your hair, “should I call your Mum?” Harry asks softly rubbing your back.

You shake your head a little tucking yourself into Harry’s hold “I’ll call her” you whimper a little. Harry gives you a squeeze before letting you go kissing your forehead.

You step out to call your mum, halfway through your call Harry sticks his head out of the room “y/n…he’s waking up” Harry says softly. You quickly end the call to your mum stepping back into the room seeing Noah looking quiet groggy but awake looking around at his unusual surroundings.

“Hi baby” you whisper softly “how y’feeling?” You ask softly. “Mummy” he whimpers you lean over and kiss his forehead. You sit with Noah for a while as he rests Harry watching you both.

Soon enough the doctor knocks on the door before stepping in “Miss y/l/n, we have Noah’s results….it is meningitis, but it’s bacterial….at this stage he’s had a prophylactic dose of IV antibiotics which he will no longer require. We’ll keep the fluids going and keep his temperature at bay, all going well you’ll be able to take Noah home this afternoon, he’ll just need the rest of the week to rest, I understand Noah goes to daycare?” The doctor asks glancing between you and Harry.

You nod “yeah he goes to the day care at the University” you say softly “it’s most likely that’s were the infection has originated” the doctor explains. You nod a little “what about the seizure? Do we need to worry?” You ask Noah snuggling into you. “No, we’re confident the seizure was due to his temperature provided he has regular paracetamol to keep his temp down he’ll make a full recovery” you nod “thank you so much”.

The doctor smiles before walking out you glance over at Harry letting out a breath you felt like you’d be holding in since this morning Harry moves kissing your head and Noah’s “oh my goodness” you sigh “y’did so well buddy” Harry whispers softly. “Mummy and Daddy love you so much” he adds. You look up at him a pout on your lips “I love you” you whimper, Harry cups your face with his hands kissing you passionately “I love you sweetheart, you’ve done so so well” Harry says softly shuffling you both across the little hospital bed pulling you both into his chest “and your so brave little man”

You all snuggle up for the day you and Harry taking turns keeping an eye on Noah. Eventually at 8pm that night almost 14 hours since the ordeal began you were heading home. Noah was tired. You were all tired. You all needed a good night sleep.

After discussing with Harry and Harry being adamant that it would work, he decided he would stay home with Noah the days you had classes so you wouldn’t miss anything and the days that you had off Harry would go to work instead. You get Noah in the bath and ready for bed, both you and Harry being too anxious to let him sleep in his own room you decide to let him sleep in your bed Harry opting to sleep in Noah’s bed to give you enough room.

You tuck Noah into your bed him quickly falling asleep. You head off to shower with Harry who already had the bathroom steamed up you smile softly seeing him waiting for you towel wrapped about his waist loosely.

“Hey you” he smiles softly “y’doing ok sweetheart?”Harry asks pulling you into his chest. You nod softly resting your head on Harry’s chest “yeah H, I’m ok, what about you?” You ask he nods kissing your head. You look up at him wrapping your arms around his shoulders “thank you….for being the best Dad to Noah H, it means everything to me”.

Harry hums “This is our family babe, you don’t have to thank me….speaking of family, Mum and Gemma have been asking when they get to see you” Harry smiles pushing your hair behind your ear.

You giggle placing some small kisses to Harry’s neck, “why don’t we go for a weekend when Noah’s better?” You ask looking up at Harry who was smiling down at you “you’d really want to go for a weekend?” He asks softly.

You nod pulling him to the shower “I’d love to Harry, plus it’d be nice for the three of us to get out of the city for a weekend, take Ned with us, I think we need it” you say as you undress, Harry doesn’t say a word causing you to look up at him “Harry?” You ask giggling a little his eyes move to meet yours a smirk on his lips “sorry I didn’t hear anything after you took your shirt off” you laugh continuing to undress Harry’s eyes glued to you.

You stand in front of him the shower still going “coming in?” You ask tugging on Harry’s towel causing it to fall to the floor, he simply nods eyeing you up and down as you step under the water you turn your back to him and he wraps his around around your waist pulling you to his chest placing kisses across your right shoulder.

Harry begins to slowly sway barely just enough for you to feel the movement but also enough for you to relax into his hold. “Who would have thought that you being my professor would have gotten us to here” you say softly Harry’s thumbs rubbing circles at your sides before turning you to face him.

He places a kiss to your forehead then your nose before pausing at your lips “I’ll always be your professor m’love” Harry replies before placing his lips to yours. You kiss back softly smiling against him. You slowly pull away resting your forehead to Harry’s before looking up at him.

“This is everything” Harry hums pulling you closer “it really is” you smile before placing your lips to Harry’s onceonce more.

Harry was right. This was absolutely everything.

*****

A/n - this was a super dooper long one, but if you stuck around to the end, thank you, I hope you enjoyed it!

#harry styles #harry fluff #harry angst #harry smut #harrys house #harry fanfic #harry styles smut #harry #one direction #professor harry #Harry professor #Harry x fem reader #mum reader

[luendland]

Chapter 2 of Day by Day is now on AO3 💖

If you enjoy my work, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi☕️ or ✨Patreon✨

#snarry #harry potter #severus x harry #fanart #severus snape #severusxharry #snape fanart #webcomic #hpss #professor severus snape #hp fanart #professor harry potter #professor harry #postwarau

[mxssingmemories]

That Just Happened

Pairing: Professor! Harry Styles x daughter-figure! reader

Summary: You've known Harry since you've been in high school-little does he know that you see him as a father figure. After a really rough day, you accidentally call him dad. Love ensues.

Warnings: Dead parent, mention of SH tendencies, crying, comfort

Word Count: 1k

A/N: this is my first Harry fic, so i hope y'all love it :) have a good night, loves!

You'd known Harry for the four years you'd been in high school. To others, he was just Mr.Styles- but you and him had a father-daughter relationship. He thought of you as his kid, and with your absence of a father figure, he took on the role easily.

He was friends with your mom even before you'd started the 9th grade, so she trusted him with you 100%. She knew that he was a positive male figure in your life; she'd never do anything to end that.

"Hey Mr. Styles!" your friend, Alex, smiled as they walked with you into his room. It'd become your safe space at this hellhole of a school, and having Alex here made it even better.

"Hi Alex, hey Y/N," he smiled, greeting you with a side hug. As you sat down, you immediately zoned out-today had been rough. It was the day your birth father had passed away, and it hit you big time every year.

Of course Alex and Harry knew this, and since Harry was busy teaching, Alex took over. They rubbed your shoulder, letting you know that they were there. The gesture gave you some confidence to take out your notebook and a pen, opening to the next titled page. He was teaching a topic you were very familiar with today (you had a sneaking suspicion he did this on purpose, but knew he'd never admit it.)

You did your best to take notes, even with your hands shaking. Your foot tapped almost rhythmically against the tile, the cold metal of the desk keeping you grounded in reality as you took deep breaths to keep the panic at bay. It worked for a while; Harry keeping the class interested with constant jokes about the math formulas he was writing on the board. He sent glances your way almost every time he looked up from the board, obvious concern written on his face. You tried to signal to him that he shouldn't panic, but it was tough to do that when you were trying to tell yourself the same thing. Alex's hand ran discreetly through your hair, the other writing your notes for you.

You only zoned back in when Harry dismissed the class, choruses of "See you tomorrow, Mr S!" and "Have a good day, sir," echoed in the small room. When the room finally cleared out, Harry walked over to your desk, his face finally tensing up to match the emotions he was feeling inside. Alex cleared their throat, and you waved your arms haphazardly letting them know it was okay to leave. With a drawn out hug, they walked out of the classroom, shutting the door behind them.

You sat on the floor heavily, leaning into Harry as he matched your position.

"I'm sorry, Haz," you apologized, burying your face in his chest.

"None of that, lovie. You have nothing to apologize for, and I thought we banned the s-word?" he attempted to tease, the smile falling off his face as his reassurance caused you to finally lose it, sharp sobs shaking your body. You bawled into his chest, all the feelings you'd been keeping cooped up coming out. Harry noticed the second you started scratching your arms roughly, grabbing your hands and holding them instead. He wouldn't let you hurt yourself, no matter what happened. He just held you tighter, shushing you softly and muttering reassurances into your ears as the emotions crashed through you. Harry felt his shirt getting soaked, but he honestly didn't care. All he wanted to do was keep you safe, and if that meant safe from yourself? Then he would cross that bridge when he got to it.

You fell asleep quickly after that, the crying exhausting your already sleep-deprived body. Harry gently picked you up in his arms and carried you out to his car. With anyone else, this would've raised a LOT of questions, but the staff knew about your familial relationship with the kind-hearted teacher, & your mom had signed a contract.

He laid you gently across the back seat, shutting the door as quietly as possible. You hadn't woken up the whole ride back to his house, but you eventually yawned and opened your eyes at Harry's house.

"What..Where am I?" you mumbled, rubbing sleep from your eyes in a feeble attempt to understand what was possibly happening right now.

"You're at my house, kiddo," were the only words that relaxed you enough to go limp in your father figure's arms. He easily took on your weight, carrying you bride-style up the steps and onto the couch. He tried to set you down and move to get you some water, but you clung onto him like a koala. A small smile came onto his face as he watched you attempt to bring him down onto the couch. He gave in a second later, shifting you next to him in an attempt to get himself comfortable. He gave up on that the second you shifted onto his chest, his fatherly instincts taking over to comfort.

"Y'gonna be alright, sweetheart," he assured you quietly, thinking you were asleep.

"Love you, Dad." you muttered, & seconds later, sleep took you for the final time that night. His eyes widened as he processed the statement, but he couldn't deny that it felt right.

Well shit, he thought, that just happened. He didn't want to overreact as he so often did with you, but he couldn't help the huge smile on his face. He loved you more than you knew.

The next morning was...awkward, to say the least. You had no idea what you'd said, so when your mother texted you and asked you about it, you freaked out. Jumping off the couch the minute you read the message, you startled Harry.

He flinched hard enough to roll off the couch, and your dog that he'd been keeping for you, Harley, jumped right on top of him. It was safe to say by the pained groan he let out that 90 pounds of puppy didn't feel good on a stomach, but he laughed it off. When you both had finally calmed down a little bit, you asked the million dollar question.

"Are we going to talk about this..?"

"Whenever you're ready, kiddo," he smiled, his mind going 100 miles a minute with happy thoughts-he was happy you thought of him like that. God knows he'd been feeling the same way.

#harry styles x daughter!reader #harry styles #harry styles comfort #professor harry #father-daughter relationship #my writing

[soupy-george]

It's (nearly) the Weekend WIP

Thanks for the tag @squintclover

*Working title*

Read it here

The Professors in Their 30's Fic

  DRACO MALFOY - AUROR (technically) A Quick Summary of the Last Decade:

2003- Achieved Auror Qualification.  Note: Slight delay in training start date due to my own imprisonment, and dying father, general inconvenience.

2004 - Potions Specialist Certification, top marks.  Note: Cheers Severus, you taught me well

2005- Discovered loathing of field work.  Note: Bad guys thought I was on their side too often

2006 - Auror Office, cyphers and intelligence desk.  Note: Much better, useful contribution to society, repayment of past debts etc, no nightmare stake-outs or duelling friendly/related bad guys

2013 - (The Unpleasant Present) - Sent undercover as a Professor at Hogwarts.  Note: minding my own business, life ruined by dreadful turn of events. 

Assessment of The Dreadful Turn of Events: Undercover. (Field work- hideous) As a Professor. (Children/Teenagers- also hideous) At Hogwarts. (Where Potter works - not hideous, therein lies the problem) 

Note: Potter is DADA professor, a job he took out of the blue after I graduated from Auror training. His departure happened to coincide with a momentary lapse in judgement when we may have kissed, drunkenly … (and heatedly) against a wall.

One time. 

Awkward? Yes. 

Reason to abandon whole career? Apparently.  A Hogwarts Murder Mystery. 

#fanfiction #drarry in their 30s #drarry #harry potter #professors au #professor harry #auror draco #hogwarts

[gumballavocadoharry]

First lesson; wit:

*This is Yn's POV*

The tall stone building seemed to collapse around me. I was standing in front of the castle like university in front of me, my legs trembling in discomfort, heart pounding out of my chest and stomach turning like I saw a billion maggots sliter under my shoes. My backpack was slung around me, and my suitcase full of my clothes and other things were tightly gripped into my hand. Any minute, I could tumble over and it would be the first embarrassment of my new school as luck would have all my classmates see the clumsy schmuck fall onto the hard pavement of concrete mixed in stone.

This was my first choice. I never had to face the despair of not being accepted into the school of my dreams, considering how much work I would have to put in to be a exceptional author. This was one of the best schools that was a recommendation from high school once I graduated. A chill crept down my spine before I carefully opened the large green tinted doors and walked into something so futuristic, that it shouldn't be exposed to the public now. Like Black Panther type technology. I swallowed my breath and managed to make it into the main office where I was given a number to my dorm room and and passes to the cafeteria, the library, gym, special classes and of course my main class. I was also handed three sheets of paper; one with the list of classes I had, the second was the classes I took and the third was a mini map of the entire school.

"I'm Mrs. Beachem, just let me know if you need anything." The older lady flashed a kind smile, which I courteously reciprocated. "Thank you very much." I gasped before darting off the elevators and taking the bridge to the dorms. 825, My room. A solo room; no roommates or anyone, just me. I laid out some cheap lavender sheets with a plum quilt over the mattress and started adding pictures on my walls. The frames complimented the room decor I was going for and the aesthetic. Lavender, plum purple, blue and gray were all the colors that took my plain white dorm to the next level. Classes didn't start until tomorrow, so that left me plenty of time to scan the different classrooms and shortcuts on how to get to them.  

I sat on my bed and looked at the first paper that was stapled to the other two of my classes. My homeroom teacher- main class I took- was directed by Mr. Styles. He was one of the new professors on campus, only starting here three years before I did. I had heard about him from other students who went here and said he was one of the best teachers and that he was very resourceful in his knowledge of writing. The other two classes were taught by Mrs. Campbell and Mrs. Vincent. I grew nervous just thinking about the morning ahead of me tomorrow. The thick river of vile held me at knife-point to spill up from my stomach in complete fussiness.

Maybe it was just my stomach gurgling in hunger. I checked the map again and practically uprooted myself from the soft mattress and walked to the cafeteria. 

After filling my belly with banana pudding, a chicken burrito, diet coke and a bag of fritos, I promptly started walking through corridors to find the complex classes I was destined to take. I found Mrs. Vincent's class first. It had this cozy, quell aroma to it. The room was a piece of Mrs. Vincent, making the class as relaxing and educational as possible. Next was Mrs. Campbell's room which looked like any classroom. But with elfin traces of friendliness. Last was Mr. Styles's class. Entering it was like entering a lecture hall from a movie. This was nothing like some little kiddie high school classroom, but something from a movie. The class was the size of an auditorium with seats that has tables attached to them in rows. It wasn't stadium huge, but big enough to feel overwhelmed by it all. 

I ventured back to my dorm across the bridge and settled into bed for the night as the sky was turning it's dark navy blue color with faint glint twinkles spotting around in the background. I took one last look around the room, darting my eyes all over the walls of my brand new shelter for the next year or so. I crawled into bed and rubbed my eyes hard enough to fall asleep.

I awoke to the sound of my blaring alarm and the morning birds chirping their usual matinal melodies. My first class, Mrs. Campbell's, started around 9:30. It was 8:30 now, so I didn't hesitate to rush into the shower, change clothes and run across the bridge to the cafeteria for a small bowl of cereal. I scanned my pass, grabbed a tray and plopped a bowl, a carton of milk and a small buffet box of cereal onto my tray and picked a random table by the window. I consumed my breakfast before grabbing a small cup of coffee and leaving straight after for class. Upon entering the first classroom of the day, I was greeted with cheerful smiles and the smell of cake.

My eyebrows pinched themselves together wondering where that smell was coming from until I realized it was a lit candle that was blooming on Mrs. Campbell's desk. I took my seat towards the back and unpacked my yellow notebook with a pattern of daisies and hearts. I assigned this particular one to the English class because it had a springtime theme to it, while my teddy bear one was assigned to Mrs. Vincent and a stone royal blue was to Mr. Styles. "Hello class." She walked in; floral print dress, beige cardigan and black flats with the most cheerful smile and professional demeanor. She took her stance at her chalkboard, writing her name and introducing herself to everyone.

"I'm Mrs. Ann Campbell, but you can all call me Mrs. Campbell." She sat perfectly ladylike at her desk, shining off the top layer of it for any dust particles that may have collected. Her perky tone in describing the basics of English literature made it seem anything but a dull pointless subject. At least, not to the credits who predicted that English was a key point in writing......which was correct. I jotted down as many notes as I possibly could before the bell rung and the class was dismissed. I slung my bag over my shoulder and followed the stream of students pouring out of the door. My next was Mr. Styles.

I entered the classroom-styled lecture hall- and took my seat towards the middle. A slew of students crammed themselves into the large hall, taking their seats just as the young teacher entered the class. He wore this white dress shirt tucked into some black slacks with a thick black watch almost riveting up his entire wrist. "Hello, I'm Mr. Styles," He wrote his name slickly across the chalkboard in a tight pinched manner. "And this is creative writing." His voice almost had this monotone echo that snapped all eyes in his direction. He was nothing like Mrs. Campbell, and her warm cheerful smile and cake scented classroom. No, this was a rigid college class that expected...demanded full attention and the best of your intelligence. And Mr. Styles fit that description perfectly.

The man's chalk sketched across the green board with speed; not stopping to take a breather in for even a slight pause for the sake of his wrist. "Mark Twain was a famous author; famous for writing short humoristic stories about his character's misadven-" Mr. Styles paused to see a boy in his front row giggling from a note he passed. He didn't hesitate to snatch the note, rip it up and slam the pieces of it back on the boy's desk. 

"Young man, your first day of kindergarten is over. This is a complex class that details writing, its history of it and knowledge to be a writer," He leaned in closer, eyes squinting only a little, "You can come to this class fully prepared or not at all to this class, this school, this university. But don't think for a minute I'll tolerate anything in between!" He sneered spitefully, before gathering back over to the chalkboard and continuing the lesson. 

He cleared his throat and continued his Mark Twain lesson, despite leaving the boy in such engrossed humiliation that tears torrent over. But no one was watching him....they were all focused on Mr. Styles and his very comprehensive speech of how Mark Twain's writing influenced how much nuance writers used to this day. The class was of a quiet echo; only Mr. Styles's voice was heard throughout the class. I looked down at the royal blue notebook on my desk.....Yep. The notebook matched the class's theme perfectly; straight to the point, no nonsense, and solid. If there were any mistakes, there would be a whip across the back....if not a flat out execution.

The bell had rung, stripping everyone's cast iron focus on Mr. Styles to their bags and books. I scampered out with everyone else, only glancing back to see Mr. Styles looking upon his pupils in a now deserted lecture hall.

I took a breath in, trying hard to release the pent up tension from the suffocating walls of Mr. Styles class. I've had strict and unruly teachers before....but this was something singular. With the snap of his fingers, Mr. Styles could make the universe look into his aloof, stolid eyes. A chill quivered through my body like a snake slithering against its tree. It was lunch time, and then next would be Mrs. Vincent's class. 

I managed to make it to the cafeteria where it seemed like everyone was on the dot. I grabbed a tray and plopped a couple sandwiches, a bottle of gatorade, doritos and blueberry yogurt onto my tray before snatching a table by the back windows. My neighbor was no other than the boy who had his handed to him by Mr. Styles. We were both diffident, reserving our eyes to our plates that we somehow had a hard time manipulating into moving the food into our mouths untouched.

"That's some class?" I finally broke the ice, showing the boy that I wasn't a snoot who blindly agreed with Mr. Styles harsh correction. "Yeah," He gave a soft chuckle, still in shame from the latter incident, "The guy seems to be fond of Mark Twain right?"

I giggled, "Yeah. He described him so vividly and passionately, that I was beginning to wonder if he was there with him in person and had a personal conversation with him." The boy laughed, "Yeah....." He was still unsure of my interaction, so I had to let my cards fall onto his lap. "Look, what happened in class....I didn't agree with. Mr. Styles seems like one of those teachers and you seem really nice. I'm Yn by the way." The boy finally gave a full beam. "I'm Lucus." I returned the smile and suddenly stuffed my sandwich into my mouth, finally enjoying the savoring flavor of a mitigate stomach. And I think Lucus did too.

I remembered my shortcut across the way to Mrs. Vincent's class. The motherly like class that had the aura of protection, yet didn't slack in education. But I knew this would be the easiest class. It was nice break from the parky dry institution that was to be Mr. Styles class. Speaking of the devil, on my way to Mrs. Vincent's class, Mr. Styles walked past me; skimming a tight lipped smile with quiescent intractable eyes. But even his polite expression was dry. There was no real passion inside of it. But yet, the very presence of this man demanded obedience and austere behaviour. The aura of his presence still haunted me as I took shattered steps into Mrs. Vincent's cozy haven. "Good afternoon class!" She squealed with such warm sugary vocals.

"I'm Mrs. Vincent. And this is American literature," She wrote it on her whiteboard, easing the eardrums of the brash blackboard sounds of the chalk against a chalkboard. "Before we start, does anyone have any questions?" I held back from anything as I just wanted to get this class over with so I could squirm back into my dorm and bury my head in my studies. Mrs. Vincent started the class and from I learned so far- her class was the easiest. Not too much homework, nor too much fast talking and just an overall laxed mien in the environment. I took notes and once I finished my last page, class was over. The bell rang and we were dismissed. 

I followed the wave of students out of Mrs. Vincent's classroom before breaking off independently onto the bridge. It was like a glass tunnel where you could see everyone on campus walking around with their schoolbags and their schedules. I made it back to my dorm where solitude surrounded me. There was no chatting or yelling among students, teachers, or staff members....just peace. In exhaustion, I flopped onto my bed after dropping my bag on the floor. I circled face up and stared at the ceiling. Can I do this? Is this worth it? Two classes are amazing and the other....no....I took his class to challenge myself. He's one of the best professors on campus....give it a chance. Besides....you didn't screw up with him...yet. 

Those thoughts raced through my head like a hamster on a wheel. But my mind couldn't help but ruminate over Mr. Styles. He's a demanding to please....but what about everyone else? Was he married? Did he have kids? I bet he's a total sweetheart to them; giving them big hugs and using a more soothing reserved tone, never daring to speak one harsh critical word to them.  I uprooted myself from the bed and glued myself to the cotton swivel chair at my desk and took out my first book of creative writing. After all, Mr. Styles said either "come to the class prepared or not all" but he will refuse to "tolerate anything in between." Out of sheer fear, I swallowed as much information about Mark Twain that I could cram into my brain.

I almost missed dinner. I sped down to the cafeteria and grabbed leftover lasagna with a glass of lemonade and salad. I figured I needed the brain food. The cafeteria was mostly empty except for the last few people trying to gather in the last traces of their meal. I ate quickly before taking my tray up to the counter and returning to my dorm. "Yn!" I turned to see Lucus heading towards me on the bridge. "Hey," He caught his breath a little, "I just wanted to say thank you again for being so nice to me. It was a rough day but.....I appreciate your kindness," I smiled, "You're welcome Lucas....I know....I took Mr. Styles class for the challenge. I knew he was an excellent teacher and very detailed in teaching creative writing....if you can ignore his style of teaching that is....you'll make it."

Lucas swallowed hard, "You're right. I shouldn't have passed that note in class," "That doesn't excuse Mr. Styles of course, but.....you seem really smart. My point is- don't let that get to you or ruin the class. Give yourself a chance to rise up to the challenge and make it worth your while."

Lucas looked at me like I was some all knowing elder. "Thank you again Yn...you're so wise." I knew it. I smiled and gave Lucas a pat on the shoulder. I watched as he walked away to the left side of the dorm area. I turned right to mine and locked myself in for the night. My studies continued until I fell asleep after barely taking off my clothes.

I arose to the freckled spots of sun hitting my face. I rung into the shower, got dressed, grabbed my backpack and headed to the cafeteria. Everyone seemed to be celebrating Friday. I guess me and Lucas weren't the only ones who had a grueling first day. Tomorrow would be the weekend and that meant I was free to visit friends, family go to the movies or even just study. I know how it sounded. I didn't want to be one of those book dependent people where you only ever just studied and totally shut out life itself. But it was just creative writing. The thought of it made my heart beat faster and my stomach twist itself into my throat. Even if I wasn't the one getting scolded, just the thought of some clown deliberately testing the waters with Mr. Styles made my legs ping.

That man could stare Satan in the eyes and make the devil himself shudder in terror. The hand-me-down feeling of watching someone get punished by him was different than some uptight high school teacher letting one of her students have it. They usually deserved it. But the slightest offense in Mr. Styles class would be a lesson that one would learn very quickly: Your second chance is sitting in that chair and still being able to finish the class. Not taps on the wrist, no timeouts. Nothing. Either you sink or swim.

This chapter is sooooo long that I figured I'd make a part two...

#harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles and yn #professor harry #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fic #harry styles one shot #harry styles blurb #harry styles imagines #harry one shot #harry styles fanfictions #harry styles oneshot #harry styles love #harry and yn #harry x yn #harry x reader

[novelistrry]

She looked at the drink in her hand, suddenly feeling demure and childish holding a drink the bartender told her was called Sex on the Beach after she asked for something that doesn’t take like alcohol. He noticed her hesitation and the way her eyes flickered between his drink and her own. “Would you like to try it?”

She nodded her head yes, letting him know that she did want to try it. So badly, she wanted to try it. Not because she wanted to taste the tequila, she was sure it wasn’t very good, but because she wanted to taste where his lips pressed against the glass. She could see the subtle fog where he was placing his lips every time he would take a sip. So, he handed her his drink and when she turned the glass and pressed her lips against where they both knew his lips had once been, he murmured a small, “Christ, Y/N.”

Or

Harry is a young professor and Y/N has never felt this kind of attraction before

Disclaimer: I didn't do a lot of editing to this, and it is also part one out of at least three!

Word Count: 14k+

Y/N was always one that was good at school work. She was punctual for class, thorough with her assignments, and would spend way more time than the average person studying for exams that she knew she would ace regardless. She flew through her undergraduate program, enjoying the learning component of school so much that she decided she would attend a graduate program.

She thought she would fly through it like she always had.

Y/N was wrong.

It was her first day in a teaching position as a graduate student, and the professor she was assisting for the semester only taught advanced level psychology classes. She thought that maybe assisting a professor in the class she was struggling most with — even though he was not her direct professor— might be helpful with bumping up her grade and understanding the content of the course. 

Although Y/N was not new to this program, she was struggling with one psychology course in particular. As the opportunity arose for her to TA (the pay was minimal, but she would take anything at this point), she jumped at the offer when she realized it was a position for a class she was nearly pulling her eyelashes out over. Of course she went over it with her guidance counselor to make sure the school didn’t qualify that as an unfair advantage. She didn’t want to be scolded for thinking it was appropriate to TA for a class she was concurrently taking, but her guidance counselor quickly reassured her that as long as she didn’t TA for the professor she was taking the course with, she had absolutely nothing to worry about. 

To say she was nervous was an understatement. The professor she was assisting was one she had never heard of before. With much frustration, she scoured the internet trying to find any inkling of information regarding him. There were no reviews on his teaching, no rating on how hard his course was, and the only thing she managed to find was his name (not even a picture) on the faculty website. Typically, Y/N could look up faculty and find a rating on some college website to let potential students know how hard their class was on a scale from one to five, how heavy the course load was, and if the student rating them would take a class with that professor on another occasion.

There she was, outside of his room, fifteen minutes earlier than she needed to be because she was always stressing over minuscule things (to her, five minutes early might as well be ten minutes late). Stress oozed from her pores, and she felt the tension build in her shoulders as it began sinking in that she knew nothing of the man who she would be spending quite some time with. She let out a small breath, trying to ease some of the tension in her shoulders and the way butterflies were infiltrating her brain and stomach. Y/N was in what she would call, a stress pocket. Like she had picked herself from the world and tucked herself away in a separate dimension that was only filled with stress. No happiness, no laughter, no sorrow, no anger. Simply stress. She could view the outside world from the clear stress pocket, but she couldn’t quite find a way to crawl out of it.

With one more breath and a copy of his course schedule in her hand, she flicked her gaze down and scanned it over once more preparing herself. As far as she was concerned, he had no class during this time slot and she could easily rasp her knuckles against the oak door, but a fizzle in her stomach stopped her from doing so. 

What if he didn’t know he was given a TA by the school? Is that possible? She went over a few practice lines in her head to make sure she had the words flowing through her brain before she worked up the courage to knock. It was somewhat of a habit of hers. When she ordered food for takeout, she spent a few minutes rehearsing her order so the words slipped out of her mouth nicely. Otherwise, her brain became flustered, her face would heat, and her eyes would gaze down at her shoes. 

Before she had the chance to rehearse what she was going to say, the door unlatched and popped right open revealing who she believed was Professor Styles. A satin shirt laid across his chest, slightly showing the tips of a tattoo she couldn’t quite make out. Long dark blue slacks covered his leg, flaring at the bottom and possibly made him look taller than he actually was. 

“Thought I saw a shadow lingering outside the door,” he murmured, stepping to the side to allow space for her to walk in. “What’re you doing standing out there for so long?”

It took her brain a couple seconds to compose her thoughts. This is exactly why she always prepared what she would say in advance, because her brain was becoming foggy as he held her gaze. She couldn’t help but scan his face a little more intensely than she probably should have, noting the slight pink color to his cheeks that matches his lips, the way his green eyes had a sort of sultry look to them, and the way he brought his hand up to his jaw, scratching at the stubble growing in as he looked at her. She had to avert her eyes, otherwise she may have never been able to get the words out— his beauty was a little too intense and overwhelmingly unexpected. 

Y/N doesn’t think she had ever seen anyone quite as beautiful as him. It was like an angel carved him from stone and decided the world needed a little more beauty. They planted him in the soil and grew him with the clearest spring water they could find, the sun nurturing his cheekbones and the soft brown curls that wrapped around the frame of his face so well. He was not accidental, he was planned by the Gods. Beauty that was a gift to the world.

“Sorry,” she managed to squeak out, her eyes plastered to the wall behind her as she cleared her throat to avoid any voice cracking. “I didn’t knock because I was a little early. I didn’t know if I would have been interrupting something.” 

His fingers pushed the door closed once more, then turned away from her and strode to his desk with long steps. Y/N took a chance to look at him once more, familiarizing herself with his features. She could tell by the way his eyebrows furrowed and his lips curved upward that he was sure of himself. “Mmm,” the hum coming from his vocal chord raised an octave up as he looked over a piece of paper on his desk. “You wouldn’t have been interrupting anything. How can I help you?”

She glanced down at the paper in between her fingers, and realized she was gripping it a lot harder than she processed. An indentation was made in the paper where her forefinger and thumb were straining it. In a few steps, she made it to his desk and slid the paper over to him, a slight shake of her hand as she gently pushed it across the desk. He looked up at her as he noticed the tremble in her hand, but chose not to say anything about it. 

“I’m your new TA for the class that’s starting in about ten minutes.” She spoke clearly, quickly removing her hand from the wood of his desk, and shoving it into her coat pocket. Y/N shifted on the backs of her heels, a tendency she had developed to self soothe in tense situations. 

His face lit up in realization, a look of understanding washing across his features like he finally put the pieces together as to why a random student, (certainly not one of his own because he’s great with names and faces), was nervously standing outside of his door. Her shy gaze faltering slightly as he asked why she was lingering behind the door suddenly made sense, and the nervous hand trembling was completely understandable when he realized she was reporting for her teacher’s assistant duties for the first time ever. She was just a little nervous, and he was determined to make her warm up to the new atmosphere around her. 

“Yes,” he smiled down at her, trying to make her feel welcome and comfortable. “Y/N, right? If I’m being completely honest, I forgot that I was getting an assistant today, but I’m happy you’re here!” He reached out his palm, encasing her hand in his with a firm shake. 

Her hand was delicate in his, the firmness of his made her feel small and she simply wanted to melt into a puddle against the tile as she took in his excitement. He wasn’t going to be so excited when he realized that she was actually very, very bad at abnormal psychology and couldn’t, for the life of her, remember any of the terms she was supposed to. A quick heat crept up her neck and infiltrated her cheeks at the thought of him thinking she was stupid. 

Y/N was not stupid. Y/N was anything but, and her greatest pet peeve was being belittled or ridiculed for her lack of knowledge because she spent a great deal of time intaking the material her professor’s provided her with. Hell, that’s how she got into grad school. It was just that abnormal psychology wasn’t her strongest course, and she couldn’t be faulted for that. She spent a lot of time studying for it, but her test scores were suffering more than she would like to admit. It could be because of her bashfulness, or maybe it was just her ego, but she couldn’t bring herself to visit her professor during office hours or even show up to the tutoring center. On the other hand, it also could have been because her professor was not the most approachable human being to exist and quickly made it known if you were inconveniencing him in any way.

When she didn’t say anything back, he sucked his bottom lip in between his teeth and motioned for her to follow him. Inside his classroom was a medium sized personal office tucked in the corner. Walls and a chestnut colored door separated it from the actual learning portion of the classroom. His fingers gently tapped against the door with the red undertone as he hooked his long fingers in the door knob and pressed it down. The door swung open, revealing another girl probably the same age as Y/N sitting behind one of the two desks. 

“Hi,” the girl behind the desk chirped. Her eyes were kind, and she sported big chunky glasses that suited her face well. One of the first things Y/N noticed was the subtle glow to her skin, and if she thinks a person could embody sunshine, it might just be this girl behind the desk.

“Y/N, this is my other TA, Mallory,” Professor Styles motioned toward the girl, Mallory, sitting behind the desk with a bright smile across her face. “She is also one of my TA’s for abnormal psych, but she is here with me in the mornings. I only teach abnormal psych this semester, so a couple TA’s will help me balance the workload. Sometimes your schedules may overlap for about twenty minutes or so, but whatever you’re falling behind on let Mallory know and she can pick up the following morning.” He glanced between the two girls, a smile spreading across his rose colored lips, “Same thing goes for Mallory. Whatever she needs help with, you’ll continue the task in the afternoon.”

Mallory motioned for Y/N to step inside the office, so she took the cue and walked inside. As she looked around, she noted that the office was decorated beautifully, like whoever designed the workspace must be keen on interior design. It felt more like a home than an office, really.

A green sofa with orange throw pillows flushed against the wall, as what she assumed was a comfortable area for students when they visit Professor Styles during office hours. Two fully wooden desks, side by side, though one was more cluttered which she assumed was Professor Styles’ workspace. A faux leather swivel chair was placed directly parallel with his desk for students to sit at while he chatted with them, or maybe even his colleague friends that visited him for lunch. The walls were decorated with paintings, mostly paintings with sage green and a burnt orange color to match the same vibe as the couch, and when she cocked her head to the side, she saw a small bench next to the door that held papers with community resources so students could tear off the contact information they needed.

“Mallory, do you think you could get Y/N familiar with the desk and the space? My next class starts in a few minutes and I just want to prepare a couple things. After that, you’re free to go.”

Mallory simply nodded as Professor Styles strode out of the doorway and back over to his main desk in the classroom. Y/N tore her gaze from him, trying not to ogle too much to the point where it becomes increasingly more noticeable. She made her way closer to the desk, where Mallory began showing her where all the supplies were. The top drawer of the desk was for pens and pencils, the second drawer was for extra sheets of blank paper, and the third drawer in the desk held an organized filing system which held all the answer keys for the tests he gave throughout the semester. 

“These are the tests I’m currently grading. I was able to get through his first two classes and part of his third class, but there are two more classes of 60 people that need to be graded plus the one that I didn’t finish all the way through.” Mallory pointed at the stack of tests that needed to be graded, and next to it was the hefty stack she had already worked through this morning.

Y/N looked down at the answer key displayed, and realized it was the same exact test she had taken just last week in her abnormal psychology class. “This is the same exact test I took last week,” she picked up the answer key and scanned it, noting the same wording on each question, same multiple choice answers, and same write-in questions.

Mallory nodded, a warm smile across her face as her voice chirped out, “Yeah, you’re in Professor Smith’s class with me. I recognize you. I sit behind you. Smith’s class is one week ahead of Harry’s which is why we’re able to TA for him, because we’re taking the same tests but a whole week before Harry gives them to his students,” she shrugs her shoulders up and down, “It makes it fair.”

It took Y/N a minute before she realized who Mallory was talking about. The name Harry got lost in her brain as she tried to understand who Mallory was talking about until she realized that Mallory was Professor Styles’ first name, and she knew that due to her deep Google searches on the young professor.

“I see,” Y/N nodded her head and placed the answer key back on the desk, not quite sure what else to say to Mallory. It seemed pretty straight forward, and if she finished before her time was up for the day, she was sure Professor Styles would give her something else to do for the remainder of the time.

“If there’s anything that you need, you can just ask me. My contact information is on that little piece of paper taped to the desk,” Mallory pointed at the corner, and Y/N read her full name, phone number, and email address, “But everything is pretty straight-forward.”

Y/N nodded, mumbling out an appreciative “thank you” as Mallory began gathering her stuff. Right before she exited the door, Y/N cleared her throat as she worked up the courage to get Mallory’s attention. 

Mallory turned her head slightly, her eyebrows raised as she held the edge of the doorway with her fingers, waiting for Y/N to say something.

“I was just wondering if…” Y/N trailed off momentarily, her eyes drifting to where Professor Styles stood as he greeted the students that were flooding in his room in large groups, “I was wondering if you liked assisting Professor Styles.” 

Mallory’s smile grew larger as she understood the nervous gulp Y/N gave in between words as she spoke. If Mallory was being completely truthful, she was skeptical of him at first too. She couldn’t find any ratings as this was his first year teaching and sometimes you truly don’t understand a professor’s temperament until you get to know them. “He’s great, I promise you.” Her eyes glanced behind her and she lowered her voice, “He’s nothing like Professor Smith… And he’s easy on the eyes.”

Mallory sent a wink toward Y/N, and Y/N felt that familiar heat crawl up her neck once more.

___________

By the end of the day, she had nearly finished the stack. With a glance toward the clock, she realized she only had a few minutes left and wouldn’t be able to crank out the thirty or so tests that needed grading. Her fingers drummed against the desk as she contemplated how to let Mallory know she didn’t completely finish. 

Y/N could send her an email as her contact information was taped to the corner of her desk, but it didn’t feel like a good enough reason to email her and she really, really didn’t want to bug her. Y/N thinks if she were in Mallory’s shoes, an email letting her know she didn’t finish felt unnecessary.

Multiple shoes clicking on the floor in the main classroom rang in her ears, the sound of nonchalant talking as the students shuffled out the classroom, and the sound of papers rifling in backpacks signaled that Professor Styles’ class had ended, concluding his classes for the day. 

It was only a few minutes before the last student finally made their way out the door, the familiar sound of the door clicking closed told her that he had finally completed his work day.

Like he was anticipating the end of his day, he gently tapped his knuckles upon the door of the office and before she could even mumble a small “come in,” the door was flying open. Y/N realized then that the tapping against the door wasn’t necessarily permission for him, but a courteous way of letting her know that he would be entering the room. 

He stood in the doorway, his lean shoulders pressing against the frame. The satin top that exposed just the tips of his tattoos taunted her, almost as if they were  looking back at her while she tried to decipher what might lay under his shirt. 

With hard eyes, he glanced down at what she was staring at and when he realized where her gaze was studying, he brought his nimble fingers to the top button and securely covered it so that the tattoos were no longer in sight. He cleared his throat and she swallowed hard, glancing around the room to try and play off her wandering eyes.

“How was your first day?” He asked, giving her a somewhat hopeful look. The kind of look that told her he must have had a TA at one point that had a terrible first day, and ran out of his abnormal psych class screaming, never to be seen again. 

If she was honest, the subject in itself was something she might have had trouble mastering, but the assistant duties weren’t that terrible. All she had to do was review an answer key, mark in red pen if they got the answer wrong, and total up the number of points they got on their test. It didn’t get much simpler than that. 

“It was good, Professor Styles,” she tried to make her voice sound as chipper and friendly as possible. She wanted him to know that she was happy to help him out and liked doing it. 

He shook his head slightly, a small smile forming across his lips to indicate amusement. It was almost as if she could see his eyes shine a little brighter than they were before as he brought his hand up to his neck and rubbed in a comforting way like. He searched the air, trying to find the same words he used for Mallory when she began assisting him. 

“I like to be called Harry if that’s something you’re comfortable with. I want you to feel like we’re on the same level, almost like we’re colleagues. You don’t need to address me as ‘professor’ because I’m not your professor,” he began the same spiel he told Mallory, letting her know that they were equals and it made Y/N’s insides warm a little bit. “For example, if one day you told me you wanted to teach the lesson, I would absolutely trust you to do so.”

Her eyebrows scrunched and her tongue flicked against her lower lip, the eyes that were previously locked with him now analyzing the pattern of the wooden desk as she shook her head in a gentle way. Giving a lesson was definitely not something she wanted to do. Maybe Mallory was the kind of TA that wanted interaction with the class, but not Y/N. No, that wasn’t Y/N at all. 

Y/N considered herself to be a simple person. She didn’t mind sneaking into the office he had tucked away in his room with the door closed as she graded papers. She didn’t mind the silently working alone, reading through answers, trying to decipher sloppy handwriting, but she did not want to teach a lesson,

Maybe Mallory was her polar opposite, balancing out his two TA’s. Mallory was talkative enough when she met Y/N. She seemed like the kind of girl that could discuss a topic as bland as oranges for thirty minutes by constantly adding new components to the conversation. Mallory and Y/N might be a yin and yang ordeal, opposites that balance each other out just enough that it works together.

“I appreciate that, but I don’t want to teach a class,” she explained. It took a second for her to calm the thoughts that were picking at her brain. Maybe the idea of teaching a class sounded some sort of internal alarm that forced her shoulders to tense up, her knees to lock, and her mouth to produce more saliva than necessary because she physically felt her body constrict at the idea.

“No, you don’t have to,” he shifted against the doorframe, sensing how uncomfortable she was and silently cursing at himself for putting her in such an awkward position on her first day. “I was just trying to explain that I want us to be equals.”

She simply nodded, not quite sure what else to say. She could confirm that she was comfortable calling him Harry, but she thinks he probably already knew she would if that is what he was requesting. She settled on two words that expressed her gratitude, “Thank you.”

He gestured his hand as if to say don’t even worry about it, but a puzzled look formed on his face as he did so. “Do you mind telling me why you don’t want to teach a class? Mallory nearly fell out of her seat with excitement when I told her she could if she really, really wanted to.” 

There it was: confirmation that Mallory was her opposite. A sense of relief washed through her veins as she realized it was perfectly okay for her to be the quiet one, as long as Mallory was outgoing.

Her eyes narrowed and Harry could tell she was trying to find the words to explain how she felt about the idea. She was very thoughtful, and in the short three hours he had known her, he appreciated that quality about her. Y/N couldn’t tell him she sucked at abnormal psychology and was almost failing her class. She couldn’t tell him that she would pretty much be setting his students up for failure if she taught the class, but she could tell him that she was uncomfortable in big groups of people. That was true. As soon as the group exceeded five or so people, she realized she never wanted to participate in the conversation as she felt like she never had anything good enough to say. Y/N was more of a listener, and sometimes even then, five people in her friend group was overwhelming. 

“I’m not a good public speaker,” as the reason slipped from her lips, she suddenly felt like that was such a silly reason to make a fuss over it. It was true though, public speaking was not really her element. 

“We could always work on that if that’s something you’re interested in?” He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. If she refused the offer it wouldn’t really bother him, but he wanted to give her the option anyway, just in case it’s a goal she wants to work toward.

Y/N didn’t know what possessed her because even though working on public speaking would be helpful in its own way, she really didn’t want to. She had already taken the most basic required public speaking course and did not plan to take any other communication class, but she nodded her head in agreement with his proposition and mumbled out, “That would be great.”

Harry could tell by the lack of enthusiasm in her response, and by the way her shoulders slumped forward and her nose scrunched up that she didn’t actually mean it. It was more that she was trying to be polite than anything, and he thinks that maybe if he were her, his reaction would be the same. He used to be a people pleaser too, and at first it was a harmless personality trait that slowly morphed into something that was no longer harmless, he was absolutely taken advantage of (covering shifts for coworkers when he didn’t want to, staying out too late with friends because they wanted to even though his warm bed was calling) and became a difficult thing to shake. 

He glanced down at his watch, reading the time carefully. It hadn’t felt like 15 minutes of interacting with her until he realized just how long his, now numb, shoulder was pressed against the door frame. “It’s probably time you head out, hm?” 

“Yes,” she breathed out, finding her voice. She knew they hadn’t been talking for too long, but she didn’t want to overstay her welcome. Not that she was itching to stay and grade papers. No matter how mindless the activity was, she did want to go home. It was at that moment she realized the question she wanted to ask him hadn’t come up yet, and it was the first thing she wanted to ask when she heard the shuffling of footsteps as he wrapped up his last class of the day. “I have about thirty tests left to grade. How can I let Mallory know?” 

He wasn’t looking at her as she spoke, but she knew that she had his undivided attention. With hesitation, she gulped as she watched his long fingers rake down his throat, his index and middle finger touching the skin ever so gently, just avoiding his Adam's apple. It only took a couple steps for him before his long legs were at his desk in the office, and he was sifting through the disorganized pile he must have dumped on there in between classes. “Why don’t you just leave her a little note that she can read when she comes in tomorrow morning? Should be fine.” 

It didn’t take too long for her to grab a blank piece of paper from the second drawer. She scribbled out a note as quickly as possible, letting Mallory know how far she got the day before and thanking her for picking up where she left off. As soon as she was done writing the note, she began gathering her things. Y/N was more than ready to get back to her flat, have a small discussion with her flatmate (who also happened to be her best friend), and climb into the comfort of her bed. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she said softly. 

He gave her one of those sweet smiles that he must have kept tucked away in his utility belt of charm, and waved her a simple goodbye. 

She thought of him the whole way home even though she tried not to. 

___________

“So how was it?” Her roommate and best friend from her undergraduate days, Niall, asked from the other side of the kitchen. She had been home for a total of ten minutes and he was already interrogating her, but she didn’t expect anything less from him. With a short glance over to where she stood at the counter, he gave his attention back to the refrigerator where he was rummaging to find the strawberry kiwi flavored juice he loved so much. 

“It was fine,” she shrugged her shoulders. As soon as she started speaking, his eyes fixated back toward her as his hand finally grasped the strawberry kiwi juice he was looking for. Instead of holding eye contact, she let her gaze flicker to the floor.

Eye contact was one of Y/N’s telling traits; Niall knew that when she couldn’t hold eye contact with him, she was either lying or holding out on giving him information. A smirk danced across his lips as he shut the fridge, then leaned his body against it slowly. “You’re either lying or holding out on me. Which is it?”

“Holding out on you,” amusement twirled throughout her eyes, and her lips curved to match the same smirk Niall was giving her.

“Won’t you tell me?” He clutched his chest, feigning heart pain as if she had stabbed him by telling him she was holding out.

“He’s really…” She trailed off, not quite sure how to say what she wanted to say appropriately. It felt wrong to say it out loud. She wasn’t concerned that Niall would judge her, but if she was being honest, she was judging herself for being so attracted to the professor she was supposed to be working for. She decided to put it as bluntly as possible, “Attractive.”

In a matter of seconds, Niall’s smirk turned into a full blown smile, teeth showing and all. It wasn’t common for Y/N to talk about when she found someone attractive. She always kept to herself. In fact, she kept to herself so much that when Niall invited her out with his other friends, he was always a little worried that she was feeling overwhelmed. It’s not that she couldn’t take care of herself or regulate her own emotions, she absolutely could and he knew that, but he always worried that she was forcing herself to be around his friends just because she wanted Niall to know she cared about spending time with him. “Is he now?”

“Yes,” her smile turned into a sheepish one, her ears feeling hot right at the tips.

“Have you told him that you suck at abnormal psychology?” Niall didn’t mean this in a mean way, he knew Y/N was struggling with her abnormal psych class because she had come home on multiple occasions, kicked her shoes off, buried her face into the couch cushion and screamed at the top of her lungs. When Niall asked her why she was being so dramatic, she told him that she was failing her first class, and even he was slightly taken aback by the news. Y/N had better grades than anyone he knew. 

“That’s not the plan anymore,” she explained, her fingers rubbing against the countertop just enough to feel the smooth coating. She was waiting for him to scold her. She was actually anticipating it on the car ride when she decided that she absolutely, for certain, was not going to tell Professor Styles—Harry— that she was failing her abnormal psychology class. When the opportunity came for her to TA, she had talked about it with Niall. He knew she was a naturally shy being, but he explained that if she was still struggling in a couple weeks when the TA position started, she could tell the professor and maybe they would offer her some extra help or some extra worksheets that would get her back on track.

“What do you mean?” Niall furrowed his eyebrows, taking a swig of the strawberry kiwi juice he had forgotten he was holding in his hand.

She simply shrugged her shoulders up and down, staring at her pink polkadot socks as she wiggled her toes to distract herself.

“Why? Because you think he’s attractive?” Niall tried to understand, pressing the topic further. If she didn’t want to give him anymore information regarding it then he would stop pestering her, but his job as her best friend was to pester her anyway.

She simply nodded, still not looking up.

“Sheesh, Y/N.” Niall brought his thumb and forefinger to the bridge of his nose and pressed it together in order to relieve some of the tension building in his head. He wasn’t going to tell her it was a bad idea or shame her for finding him attractive. Hell, he was putting himself in her shoes and decided that if he found one of his professor’s attractive, he would probably leave out information like that too.

“I know,” was all she said, a tinge of shame ringing in her tone but he waved her off.

“So,” he said, not wanting her to feel too badly, “Indian for dinner?”

She gazed back up at him, a grin shining in his direction as she said, “You know me so well.”

________

Days had passed of Y/N working in the office located in Harry’s classroom. They didn’t talk very much, but sometimes he would come into the office and sit with her. While he did work on his computer and she graded papers, he would make small talk. He would ask her things about why she chose to major in psychology, what undergraduate school she went to, where she was from. Normal things like that. Sometimes she wanted to ask him questions too, but she could never work up the courage to until today (it only took her a few weeks).

“Do you have a favorite color?” It was the most mundane question she could ask him, but she was actually asking for a reason. Typically, she graded the papers in the red pen Mallory left behind, because it was cohesive with Mallory’s work.

“I like green. Why do you ask?” He glanced up from his laptop, closing the lid just slightly so he could get a better view of her face. 

“I grade with a red pen. I was wondering if there was a preference you had,” she suddenly felt childish for asking, and was mentally banging her head against the wall. 

“You can keep grading with red. That color is better for grading anyway.” His eyes tore from her and he was back to scrolling through something on his laptop. Her eyes remained fixated on him, and she wanted to keep the conversation going, but there was no way she would have been able to work up the courage to speak to him again. Like he was reading her thoughts, he looked back at her and concluded with, “Thanks for asking, sweet girl.”

Sweet girl. 

Her heart nearly exploded in her chest.

After that day, her and Harry spent a lot of time talking. Possibly too much time talking.

___________

Mallory decided that since she and Y/N both TA’d for Harry, it was an unspoken rule that they should start sitting together in Professor Smith’s class. The day after Mallory met Y/N, she packed her bag up from the other side of the classroom, and moved to the back desk in the seat parallel to Y/N.

Their seats already weren’t too far away, even though Mallory originally sat on the opposite side. Actually, Y/N hadn’t ever realized before but the classroom was small, sterile, and unwelcoming. It wasn’t the way Harry’s classroom was set up with paintings hanging on the wall, informative sheets placed on a vintage waist level bookcase that was filled with leatherback classics. Professor Smith’s class was that of a doctor’s office. No color except gray, tile that constantly smelt of lemon floor cleaner. Y/N didn’t always catch the fine details, but when comparing Professor Smith’s class to Harry’s, she realized just how much Harry went out of his way to make the environment feel like home. 

So Y/N was a little grateful when Mallory took a seat beside her, the atmosphere feeling a little less cold and dark. They would work together on in-class projects, and Y/N realized that Mallory was really, really good at understanding the fundamentals to abnormal psychology. She was actually really grateful she met Mallory, because the more Mallory helped her, the better her grades were looking. She still wasn’t passing the class at a satisfactory level, but she was definitely getting better. 

Mallory liked to talk a lot, which was good, because Y/N liked to listen. She never had much to say, but Mallory always did. Like today, for example, she was telling Y/N that she and her boyfriend were going to some dive bar on the East side with tickets to a comedy show on Friday, and she really wanted Y/N to come. Her other friend and her friend’s boyfriend bailed, but Mallory had already purchased two extra tickets for the comedy show and she would hate for them to be wasted. Y/N was hesitant at first, but she decided there was no harm in going. She liked Mallory a lot, and she was excited to meet Mallory’s boyfriend because she had heard so much about him.

“Are you going to bring your boyfriend? If you don’t then we’re going to have that one extra ticket,” Mallory explained.

Her boyfriend? When had Y/N ever said that she had a boyfriend? Mallory wasn’t the type of person to assume either, so she tried to replay the past conversations in her head dating back to when Mallory and her first started conversing about a month and a half ago. They had talked about all kinds of things, but Y/N had never mentioned a boyfriend. As if the puzzle pieces clicked together, she realized just how often she talked about Niall when she felt she had something interesting enough to add to the conversation.

“Do you mean Niall?” Y/N questioned, her eyebrows raised just a smidge.

“Yes,” Mallory confirmed, confusion laced in her tone and present on her features. “Is he not your boyfriend?”

“No,” Y/N started to laugh, the kind of laugh that made your nose scrunch. Niall was handsome, sure, but they would only ever be best friends. They definitely were not each other’s types. Y/N had seen Niall’s type at nights when he would escort her to small gatherings to play board games. The girls (sometimes even guys, she thinks, though she’s never asked) would be twirling their hair in the corner as he charmed them with that dazzling smile. “Niall is my best friend! He’s also my roommate which might be why you’re confused. I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Oh,” Mallory said, a smile spreading across her face as she clapped her hands together. “Well, why don’t you bring him then if he’s your best friend. I would love to meet him!”

“I think…” Y/N trailed off, trying to think if this is something Niall would say yes to. He was such a social butterfly, he usually never said no to going out, so she didn’t see why agreeing for him would be a problem. “I think that would be a lovely idea.”

When Y/N got home that night, she asked Niall and to no surprise of her own, he excitedly agreed and said he was excited to meet Mallory.

___________

Harry dismissed his class early that day. Mallory didn’t show up to grade papers in the morning because she had a doctor's appointment she already arranged with Harry. He decided that since there was not much left on the chapter his class was going over, he would help Y/N grade the test his class took two days ago since she was grading by herself. 

He popped his head through the door to tell Y/N that he dismissed class early and was going to step out for a few minutes. She gave him a nod in confirmation and heard his heels click as he walked out of the classroom.

Just like he said, he was back in a few minutes but with two coffees in hand. She eyed the coffee with the whipped cream on top, and a devilish smile spread across his lips, his eyes sparkling. Was that other coffee for her? If so, how did he know she liked whipped cream on the top?

“I got us a treat,” he set the two coffees down on her desk and pushed the one with whipped cream, then grabbed his swivel chair that was tucked into the desk he normally sat at in the office and placed it directly next to hers. When he sat, he was so close that she could feel his knee brush against hers.

“Thank you,” she expressed her gratitude and picked up the coffee, eyeing the whipped cream once more. “How did you know I liked whipped cream?”

He paused and looked at her. The look on his face was teetering on the edge of wariness, like he didn’t want to say anything to cross the fine line of a boundary they had constructed. As he searched for the right words to say, he drank in her appearance and she couldn’t help but want to melt away as his eyes danced from her own eyes then back down to her lips then back up to her eyes. “When you come in looking especially tired, you always have a coffee with you, and every single time you’ve had a coffee with you, it has whipped cream on the top.”

Her heart thumped in her chest. Did he notice her that often? Surely he didn’t notice her the way that she’s noticed him. She notices how his tongue darts out and swiftly moved across his bottom lip when he’s concentrated, how he clicks his pen to the beat of the song when they’re playing music in the office, and how he rakes his forefinger and middle finger up and down his throat when he’s really listening to what she has to say.

“I was thinking that we could share this answer key,” he tapped the answer key she had toward the top of the desk, “To grade these papers together. It’s Friday night, I’m sure you wanna get out of here a little early.”

She decided that he was maybe the most thoughtful person she had ever met. There was absolutely no reason that he needed to help her, he could have let her do it all on her own. He didn’t need to get her a coffee either. Maybe she just wasn’t so used to random acts of kindness, or maybe it was the fact that every single day, her attraction to him grew and grew like a plant flourishing in the sunlight. “Did you want me to make a copy?”

“What? Am I sitting too close to you?” He teased, brushing his leg up against hers. She sucked in a small gasp as she felt his knee against hers once more, and maybe it was because she was so touch starved, but she wanted him to do it again and again and again.

“No, no. Not at all,” Y/N said a little too frantically. A little too eagerly.

“Hush, pet. I’m just kidding with you.” Harry spoke softly, letting her know that he was only teasing her. 

They worked in silence for a little while until Y/N rested her back against the chair. She was beginning to cramp up from the way she was sitting. Her fingers were beginning to hurt with each stroke of the pen. Her eyes were getting a little blurry from looking at the same thing over and over again, so she used her left hand (the one that wasn’t cramping up) and grabbed her coffee, taking a swig and underestimating the strength of her left hand, causing whipped cream to coat her upper lip.

Harry laughed gently, then used his fingers to wipe the whip cream off her mouth. He grabbed her lips in between his fingers, then wiped the whipped cream onto his pants. She shuddered softly, almost unnoticeably when she felt his fingers so gently across her lips. Though this was not professor and TA behavior she would deem normal, he said nothing about it, and she was beginning to think that maybe she was overthinking the whole thing because she found him so attractive. With one swift sentence, he pulled her from her thoughts.

“Are you doing anything tonight?” He asked her, making subtle conversation as his pen marked a few things on the test he was grading. Like Y/N, Harry wondered what Y/N did in her free time although he never found a way to weasel that into their conversations. While their conversations were mostly made up of random tidbits of their lives, he had never figured out how to ask how she would spend her weekends.

Y/N was about to tell him that she was seeing a comedy show with Niall and Mallory (and Mallory’s boyfriend of course), but she wasn’t sure if Mallory had told Harry they became quick friends. What if Mallory didn’t want him to know? Y/N couldn’t understand why Mallory would think that way, but just in case, she decided she wouldn’t tell him anything about it. “I don’t think so,” she lied plainly, “What about you? Are you doing anything special?”

Harry casually looked up, clicking the pen a few times before replying. “I am doing something tonight. My friends planned it. If I’m being honest, though, I’m not quite sure what we’re doing. They have told me a few times, but it’s gone over my head. At this point, they’re going to swing by my flat and pick me up just so they are certain I’ll actually show up. Not that I don’t want to see them and don’t care about the plans, I’ve just been so busy.”

“Oh,” Y/N tightens and a sudden realization sweeps through her mind. What if he has a girlfriend? She pushed the thought from her head and buried it, “I’m like that too, I think.”

The sudden realization she tried to bury put her in a somewhat sour mood. Harry notices right away, but he doesn’t ask her why she’s suddenly so adrift from their conversation in an attempt to not push her. If something was bothering her and she wanted to talk about it, she would.

They spent the rest of the time grading papers, and before she left for the night, he told her to have a great weekend, and she told him to have the same, the sullen feeling still weighing on her chest.

___________

The bar was very crowded, very noisy, and not usually Y/N’s scene at all. When her and Niall arrived, she quickly introduced him to Mallory, and Mallory introduced her boyfriend—Josh— to them quickly. The comedy show didn’t last too long, and Y/N could have sworn that Mallory said it was a dive bar when she was trying to convince her to come. The atmosphere was that of a nightclub, as the show finished people shuffled to the dance floor and began dancing.

Mallory grabbed Y/N by the arm and ushered her over to the bar, and Y/N was guessing that she could feel the tension radiating from her. “I think a drink will loosen you up. Do you want a drink?” Mallory asked.

“I don’t drink very often,” Y/N said, unsure of what to order. There is one thing that Y/N does know about drinking, and it is that she hates the taste of alcohol. The bar was crowded, and Mallory shoved in between two people sitting in barstools, making room for Y/N. Her fingers brushed against the counter, feeling a cold liquid under her hand. It took everything in her to not scrunch up her nose as she wiped the mystery liquid against the bottom of her satin dress.

“That’s okay,” Mallory said, “Just ask the bartender what he thinks you’ll like.”

Y/N didn’t know how the bartender would know what she likes if she didn’t even know what she liked herself. Mallory ordered something red, but Y/N didn’t know the name of it. She knew immediately that she wasn’t going to get that though, because the smell of vodka coming from Mallory’s drink was strong. Mallory took a strong swig of the drink, not making a face and giving her a thumbs up. It was at that moment that Y/N decided she really liked Mallory’s carefree personality. She really enjoyed Mallory, even if the bar was a little too loud than she would normally like, Y/N decided it was worth it to spend time with Mallory and Niall.

“What can I get for you?” The bartender turned and looked at Y/N after watching Mallory take a sip of her drink to make sure it was made to her satisfaction. 

Y/N hesitated, “Something that doesn’t taste like alcohol, I think.”

“I’ve got the perfect drink for you,” he yelled over the music and people talking then reached for a glass from under the counter. He added a few juices to the glass and a steep amount of alcohol. Y/N wasn’t sure if he misheard her and thought she asked for something that did taste like alcohol based on the amount he put it. After the glass was full to the brim, he popped in a little umbrella and slid it over to her. “Let me know if you don’t like it. It’s called Sex on the Beach.”

Sex on the Beach was such a crude name for a beverage, but who was she to judge the name. Maybe it really did taste like sex on the beach. She sipped through the straw and was surprised when it tasted like an assortment of juice and none of the alcohol he had heavily poured into the glass. She murmured a soft thank you, and though he didn’t actually hear her, he knew she was expressing gratitude.

It only took a couple seconds to find out where Niall and Josh had moved. Mallory and Y/N walked over to them with drinks in hand, and even with the one sip Y/N took, she already felt much looser. They found their way to a booth, facing the door.

By the time an hour passed, Y/N and Mallory finished their drinks and Y/N was feeling exceptional. They made their way back to the bar and the bartender winked at her, fixing up another Sex on the Beach and Mallory ordered something different this time.

As they walked back toward the booth, Mallory nudged Y/N with her elbow and pointed toward the door. Y/N watched Harry walk in with a couple of his friends, his eyes locking with hers and then flickering over to Mallory. A grin spread across his face and his hand came up in a slow wave. Mallory quickly waved back and Y/N just stood there, shocked that these were the plans his friends had made with him. 

He approached them, leaving his friends to saunter to the bar without him. The three of them exchanged hellos, then he shifted his body to face Y/N. “I thought you weren’t doing anything?” Harry yelled over the music, smoke clouding around the three of them.

“I forgot,” she lied, and Mallory quickly turned her head to look at Y/N as if to say how did you forget when we’ve been talking about it all week.

To Y/N’s misfortune, Mallory said just that. “We’ve been talking about it all week, Y/N. How did you forget?”

Harry’s face sparked with amusement as if she had caught her red handed, her tongue twisting in the shape of the lie that she had so easily told him earlier in the day. Y/N rolled her eyes at Mallory and laughed a little, the alcohol pumping through her veins at an alarmingly fast rate.

“I’ll meet you back at the booth,” Mallory was grinning as she turned her body and walked back over to where Josh and Niall sat, waiting for them to return. Y/N realized that she really needed to explain herself to Mallory, the conversation with Harry probably seemed a little more intimate than it actually was.

“I’m going to go get a drink,” Harry eyed her drink, her Sex on the Beach. Oh, she would love to have that with Harry. Y/N’s tipsy brain was much more scandalous than her sober brain. “Maybe we can talk later.”

Y/N really wanted to spend more time with him. She wanted to sit with him, and meet his friends. It wasn’t going to happen, but she so desperately wanted to. It took a second for her to tear her gaze from his body as he walked away from her and toward the bar to meet his friends. She took this as her cue to not stand in the middle of the dance floor like an idiot and found her way back to the booth where her friends waited for her. Niall looked at her suspiciously but she shrugged her shoulders in response, directing her attention to Josh as he talked about a movie trailer he recently saw and how much he wants to go see the movie in the theater. Y/N knew exactly what movie he was talking about, and said that she wants to see it too, so the four of them made plans to go see the movie next Friday.

Throughout the night, Y/N glanced at Harry and more often than not, they made eye contact with one another. Thirty minutes had passed from the time he walked in the door with his friends, and finally, the last time they locked eye contact, he subtly nodded toward the hall that led to the Billiards room and the bathroom. Immediately, Y/N knew that he was telling her to meet him there. 

“I’m going to go to the bathroom,” she said, the drink still in her hand. 

Mallory and Josh thought nothing of it, nodding at her to confirm they heard her, but Niall eyed the drink she sported in between her fingers and gave her a knowing look, a twinkle shining in his eye. Oh, he was definitely going to be asking her about this later.

She staggered toward the hallway, moving through the crowd of people, trying not to spill her drink on herself, the floor, or the people near her. As she made her way to the hall, she felt Harry come up behind her, knowing it was him by the minty citrus scent of his cologne.

Y/N flipped around and the hallway was so crowded with people that they didn’t have much room between them. Her back was slightly pressed against the wall, his thigh placed in between her legs, rubbing her gently. She was suddenly hyper aware of how he felt, how he smelled, and how he looked.

He wore jeans that flare at the bottom, a black sweater tucked into the tops of the jeans. The sneakers he had on matched his outfit perfectly, and it took her until this very moment to realize that he was fairly fashionable. His outfits always looked put together, but they weren’t trendy. They were always timeless and fitted to his lean stature.

“I’ve been looking at you all night,” his tone was soft and his eyes searched hers thoroughly. “You look so cute, y’know?”

Harry took the fabric of her satin dress in between his fingers and felt it, his index finger slowly rubbing against the soft part of her thigh. 

“Thank you,” was all she managed to squeak out. He dropped the fabric from his fingers, and she wanted to protest because she wanted to feel his fingers against her. She hadn’t realized how much you could crave someone until you’re one Sex on the Beach in, and then the realization that he knew just how much she ogled him in his office kicked in. 

“You didn’t tell me you were coming here tonight because you didn’t want me to know you were with your boyfriend?” His tone was teasing, but she thought just for a second that’s how he was playing it off. Like he wanted confirmation that wasn’t actually the reason and he was fishing for the information. 

She held his gaze momentarily before sputtering out, “I don’t have a boyfriend.” She wanted him to know. No, she needed him to know.

“Then who is that blonde bloke you’ve been snuggling up to?” He questioned, knowing she was telling the truth but he wanted to see her squirm just a little bit. She knew it, too. She could tell by the way his voice sounded that he was just messing with her, he wanted a bit of cat and mouse.

“My friend. We’re best friends, actually, and roommates.” Y/N explained, though her brain was a little bit foggy. Not because of the alcohol, no. Actually, she felt like she was sobered up, and needed a little bit more of her drink to get her back to the floaty place she was at when she was sitting in the booth.

He used his right hand to keep himself sturdy, then checked his surroundings and asked her, “Are you feeling okay?”

“Yes,” she breathed out. It was loud, but she felt just fine here with him.

The atmosphere was so wild with smoke filtering through the air, that now they really had no room except practically chest to chest as they spoke. The drink he was sporting in his hand was dark tequila on the rocks, and it made so much sense that he could drink hard liquor as is. He exuded that kind of dominance, the kind that says I enjoy the burn in my throat because it feels nice.

She looked at the drink in her hand, suddenly feeling demure and childish holding a drink the bartender told her was called Sex on the Beach after she asked for something that doesn’t take like alcohol. He noticed her hesitation and the way her eyes flickered between his drink and her own. “Would you like to try it?”

She nodded her head yes, letting him know that she did want to try it. So badly, she wanted to try it. Not because she wanted to taste the tequila, she was sure it wasn’t very good, but because she wanted to taste where his lips pressed against the glass. She could see the subtle fog where he was placing his lips every time he would take a sip. So, he handed her his drink and when she turned the glass and pressed her lips against where they both knew his lips had once been, he murmured a small, “Christ, Y/N.”

The tequila dribbled down her chin, and he used his finger to wipe it up, and as she lowered the drink from her lips, he grazed his index finger over her lips, beckoning for her to open and lick the whiskey she spilled. He didn’t need to coax her, didn’t need to tell her what he wanted, she simply just knew. Her tongue darted out, licking the whiskey from the base of his finger to the tip. He was never really into voyeurism, but he thinks he could take her right here and right now. How did he go from helping her grade papers earlier in the day to pressing her against the wall of a bar with his thigh tense between her legs. They were crossing so many lines, he was crossing so many lines.

“Why are you always cleaning up my face?” She gave him a lazy smile, and her eyes were so innocent.

“Why are you always spilling?” He countered.

He breathed her in, smelling the taste of his whiskey against her lips. He was so close, so close that he could taste her if he really wanted to, so close that she could feel his breath against her face. He decided that he spent too much time thinking about her mouth. About the way her lips parted then closed when she had something to say, but decided not to say anything at all. God, that was so frustrating. He spent so much time thinking about her lips, and the noises that would come from them if he truly could have her that he should just kiss her, right here, right now. “I want to. I really want to,” his voice was low and thick, sultry even.

“Me too,” her voice was small, and once again he was all too aware of the way her legs squeezed his thigh. 

Before he could make a choice he couldn’t take back, he pushed himself away, leaving a foot of space between the pair. “You should go back to your friends,” he didn’t want to sound too harsh, so he gently brushed his fingers against his cheek and grasped the glass of tequila with the palm of his hands. “I’ll see you Monday, Y/N.”

Without a word, she made her way back to her friends, feigning the frustration that was building in his chest. For the rest of the night, she glanced in his direction but he never glanced back at her. Maybe he was feeling guilty. Maybe he thought he was making a big mistake.

When they finally got home, Niall didn’t ask her anything like she thought he would and she was grateful.

___________

It started with an ache low in her belly, then slowly spread to her lower back. As she sat in her second hour of Professor Smith’s class, she laid her head against the coolness of the desk. Y/N was trying not to think of her encounter with Harry the Friday before. Nothing had actually happened so it was fine, there was nothing to worry about. Mallory gave her a sympathetic smile, and once more held out the pamprin pills but Y/N shook her head as she had already taken some just an hour before class started. 

It was almost like she could feel the color draining from her face, nausea turning in her stomach. She wasn’t expecting her period to come this morning after she had stepped foot on campus. There were no signs as she was greeting ready in the morning. No signs when she stepped out of her apartment. The first sign happened when she was walking from the opposite side of campus to Professor Smith’s class. The dull ache weaseled its way into her lower abdomen, causing subtle pain with each step she took. As she continued to walk, her hand found its way to her abdomen, applying warmth and pressure to rid her of the ache but it wasn’t working.

Quickly, she found a bathroom and slipped into a stall, realizing that her period had come sooner than she was expecting it. With a hurried hand, she rummaged through her bag, pulling out an emergency bottle of pamprin and shuffled the pills past her lips, chugging it down with the water bottle tucked into the side pocket of her backpack. 

As soon as she saw Mallory, it was like Mallory could tell she was in an immense amount of pain, because she slung her backpack off of her shoulder and pulled out a bottle of the same pills tucked into a specific pocket of her backpack. Y/N just shook her head, struggling to muster up the words to tell her she had already taken some.

“I think you should leave class a little early. Go to Harry’s class and lay on the couch in the office. There’s no point in staying here, it’s not like you’re able to absorb any of the information while you’re in pain,” Mallory began reasoning with her. As far as she was concerned Mallory didn’t know that Harry and Y/N were so close to kissing at the bar that she could still feel her lips tingling three days later. She didn’t want to go to Harry, and she didn’t want Harry to think she was being dramatic. Y/N wasn’t worried that it would be awkward between her and Harry today, because he was so charming it would have been like Friday never happened, but she was still hesitant. Before she had a chance to think twice another cramp ripped through her, and she was already packing up her backpack and lifting herself from her seat, the dull ache turning into something more sharp and painful as she stood.

It was her intention to slip out the back door, to be as inconspicuous as possible, but her plan to do that was ruined when Professor Smith cleared his throat and called out her name. “Where are you going?”

Y/N didn’t know what to say, she wasn’t keen on telling the whole class that her uterus might fall out of her body if she stayed hunched over in an uncomfortable chair, with the coolness of the desk being the only thing that could soothe her, or that the nausea was building with each second and she might be so low on iron that she vomits all over the floor of the classroom.

The words tumbled out of her mouth like a squeal, “I’m sorry, I’m not feeling too well.”

Professor Smith’s expression remained stoic, not showing any sign of annoyance or even sympathy for the girl standing in pain at the back of the class. Not that she was expecting sympathy, although she was definitely not expecting the next words to fly out of his mouth in front of her silent classmates viewing the exchange between them, “Really, you should stay unless you plan on getting another D on the next test.”

Y/N tried not to look as horrified as she felt, avoiding eye contact with Mallory completely. She failed to mention to her new friend that she was flunking Professor Smith’s class out of sheer embarrassment and the idea that it might get back to Harry, which would be mortifying in itself. 

“I’ll be fine,” was all she managed to say as she slipped from the back door of the classroom. Y/N managed to keep her tears at bay until she heard the door latch behind her, then let the silent tears create warm streams down her cheeks. In one swift motion, she lifted her hood up, concealing her face from the other students as she walked toward Harry’s classroom. 

It wasn’t a far walk, him being in the same department as Smith and all. She contemplated just sitting in a bathroom stall, the sharp pain in her abdomen and lower back was still going strong and the nausea stirring in her belly was still persistent, but the public humiliation she endured was definitely worse. She decided that the couch in the office was the better option, and if she was going to be sad and in pain, she might as well do it comfortably. 

The plan she concocted was this: She would walk into the room with her eyes glued to the floor and her hood up, ask Harry if it was okay if she laid down for a moment, and without making eye contact with him, she would quickly walk to the room then bury her face in the cushions.

So that is exactly what she did, barely peeking up from her hood.

“Is it okay if I lay down on the couch in the office?” she asked, internally grateful that the sob building in her throat hasn’t raked its way through her body. Another silent tear slid down her cheek, but because she was looking straight down, it splattered against his desk, causing him to cock an eyebrow that she couldn’t actually see. 

It seemed gravity was against her.

“Yeah, yeah. Of course,” his voice was softer than normal, and she heard the sound of his fingers tapping against the desk. 

Without another word, she turned on her heels and bolted toward the office door. Shutting it quickly behind her, she tore off her backpack and curled up into a ball on the couch. 

He didn’t even bother knocking like he normally did. Usually his knuckles would tap against the door, signifying he was about to answer. Not necessarily for permission, but just to give her, or Mallory, a heads up that he would be entering. 

The door locked behind him, but she didn’t look up as she heard the click of his dress shoes against the tile floor. “What’s going on?” He took a seat at the end of the couch she wasn’t occupying, near her head. 

With gentle and delicate fingers, he began to pull her limbs from the ball she had coerced herself into. “Hmmm.. Look at me, darling.” 

And how could she not? When he was asking so sweetly? The sound of his voice was like molten chocolate, or honey dripping straight from the pot. He was wearing her favorite shirt. The satin shirt that exposes his tattoos just a little bit. The same shirt he wore the first time she ever met him, when he caught her staring at his chest a little too much that he buttoned another button and gave her a somewhat disapproving but playful look. She thinks maybe if she could just run her hand over his chest she would forget about the terrible day she was having, but that was inappropriate and she shouldn’t think like that. 

“Oh, sweet thing you are,” his hand brushed a tear that fell from her cheek, “Come on, sit up for me now.”

She obliged, like she always does. As a child she never took a reprimand well, which must have bled into her adult life because she always did what she was told. It was something Harry picked up on rather quickly, she aimed to please, and the psychologist in him really wanted to get to the bottom of it, but the empath in him never wanted to make her uncomfortable by pointing it out. Sometimes he had to make a mental note that she was so receptive to the people around her, he had to choose his words carefully. 

She made a simple noise, between a yelp and a cry before wiping her nose with the back of her sleeve. “In pain,” was all she said.

He reached over, pulling a couple tissues from the end table next to the couch. Harry wrinkled his nose, realizing that it’s not uncommon for students to shed tears in this office, whether it be a student overwhelmed with the course load, or something else. Typically, he’s able to get to the bottom of it, but now he’s got his TA in here with tears streaming like Niagara Falls, and she only says she’s in pain, except he doesn’t believe that’s the full truth. 

Her legs were tucked to the side bunched up, and she leaned on her left arm to support herself up. He didn’t want to pry, or tell her he didn’t think she was being completely honest, because that wouldn’t accomplish anything. Instead, he decided he wouldn’t treat her like a patient, because that’s not what she was to him. She is a graduate student, and he was in her same position just a little under two years ago. He once told her that he wanted her to call him Harry because she felt more like a colleague than a student, so instead, he would treat her like a friend. 

“Let me help you, hm?” His fingers grazed her arm that was supporting her up, his eyes locking with her red rimmed ones. “How can I help?”

And it was almost like she knew if her request crossed a line, he would still grant it because her voice was small but sure when she said, “I just want someone to hold me.”

So, that’s what he did. He pulled her up onto his lap, and grasped her in his arms. Her face nuzzled into the crook of his neck, and he could feel the slow breaths she was taking as the tears finally came to a halt. It was almost like he was holding her back together. If they were crossing lines, he might as well cross one more, “Are you gonna be honest with me now, hm?”

She nodded her head, deciding now was the time to come clean. A weight that was pushing down on her shoulders was about to be lifted and even though she would have a hard time stomaching the embarrassment that came with it, or the look he would give her that might indicate she was stupid, it was time that she just told him. Before Mallory beat her to it, even if she was sure in the deep pit of her gut that Mallory would simply never bring it up. 

Y/N lets out a slow, shaky breath before she begins explaining. “I wasn’t feeling too great when I got to school, and during my second hour of abnormal psych, Mallory told me I should come lay down because the pain was getting really intense, so I decided to slip out the backdoor…” She trailed off, not quite sure how to tell him the rest without having to relieve the situation. Some might say she was being a little dramatic, but she had every right to be upset. He stroked her sides as if to tell her “go on” without explicitly saying the words. 

“As I was walking out Professor Smith asked where I was going and I told him that I wasn’t feeling too well,” the tears pricked once more, “So he said that I should probably stay if I didn’t want to get a D on another test in front of everyone.”

The smooth stroking against her arm came to a halt, and she realized then that he was probably going to chastise her for leaving class too, but his voice was soft when he said, “He said that to you?”

She nodded, even though she could tell the question was rhetorical. Her eyes fluttered closed again, the tips of her eyelashes gently grazing against the crook of his neck.

“I’m sorry, Sweetheart. That is never something you say to a student, especially in front of such a public audience.” His words flowed out, and she sensed the psychologist in him poking out.

“It was really, really embarrassing.” Y/N mumbled into the crook of his neck, and the feel of her lips against his neck made his body slightly tense up.

“Why didn't you tell me you got a D? I probably could have helped you work something out with him.” He reasoned with her, relaxing once more into the back of the couch. The encounter she was having with him right now was so much different than the encounter she had with him on Friday night, but neither of them brought it up.

She shook her head, nuzzling into him further and even though she knew it was inappropriate, she just wanted to breathe him in. They had already crossed those lines.

He wasn’t having it. He hooked his fingers below her chin, and pulled her face from his neck. “Hm? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t tell you because I’ve been flunking his tests all semester. There isn’t one test I got a decent grade on… And I was embarrassed, and I felt like a huge fraud sitting in this room, grading tests and not even understanding the content of them. And I just felt stupid. I didn’t want you to think I was stupid.”

“I would never think you’re stupid, Y/N. Surely you know that. I just wish you would have told me. There’s still time to turn your grade around, you and I will work together so that you start understanding the concepts. We’ll set up tutoring. Sweetheart, you’re so smart.” She knew he tacked on that last part for a little extra validation.

Now that she’s talked it out, she feels a little silly for letting so many tears spill over it. He was right, she wasn’t stupid. She just needed a little extra help, and he was willing to give it. She suddenly felt all too aware of her presence on his lap, and began to move herself off of it. Her eyes catching his lips as she shifted just a little, and the overwhelming urge to kiss him took over once more. If she could, she would grab his face then and there and plant one on him, but it felt demure and childish to lust in that way, even with Friday night playing in the back of her mind.

As if he could read the thoughts swimming through her brain, he brought his fingers to her lips and gently tugged at the pout. His fingers trailed down her jaw, and caressed an area of her neck. Her breathing began to pick up as her heart thumped against her ribcage. Sure, he would touch her every now and again when she was working alongside him, and as much as she wanted it to be intimate, it was never like this. She was almost halfway off his lap when he brought his lips— so soft, so gentle, and so pink— against her cool ones, leaving a slight tingling sensation behind. 

He gently pulled away, a sultry look dancing across his features. She felt the heat on her cheeks as she stared down into his lap, finally shifting herself completely off of his lap. When she looked up at him, she could tell the flush in his cheeks was not the same as the flush in hers. It was more desire than anything.

“I shouldn’t have done that,” he breathed, his eyes fluttering closed with the end of his sentence.

No, no. Y/N didn’t want him to feel that way. He may have been a professor, but he wasn’t actually her professor, and they were so close in age. Surely if they were doing something wrong, it would have felt wrong. Last Friday would have felt wrong too, but it didn’t. If this wasn’t okay then it wouldn’t have felt so right, like his lips were made just for her and only her. “I wanted it.”

“I know you did,” he explained. “It was a vulnerable moment. It can’t happen again.”

She simply nodded in agreement, although she wanted to argue with him, even if it wasn’t in her nature to be so combative. Something washed over her because in that moment, the ache that was stabbing in her lower back didn’t matter, she just wanted to stomp her foot on the ground and tell him that wasn’t fair, but the worst part about it is that he would agree with her. That they had already beat the boundary down with a baseball bat. The moment he slipped his thigh in between her legs and pressed her against the wall of a bar, the boundary had vanished. When he brought his finger to her lips and she licked so slowly, so sensually, the boundary had been gone completely. How can they decide to put it back now? How could she when she finally knew what he tasted like. He knew it wasn’t fair to do that, but it shifted her feelings from sadness over her poor grades and the hostile situation she had just come from to placing her frustration toward him, and that was something he could deal with.

He stood up, a sudden aloofness filling the room. It was almost as if the tension was so thick it was banging on the doors and pushing at the windows to find its way out. Like he could feel its desperation to exit the room, he hooked his finger in the door knob and flung it open, cool air infiltrating the room and brushing over Y/N’s body.

“How are you feeling?” He asked, swiveling the chair near his desk around to face her. She knew he wasn’t talking about the kiss, the ever-so-soft-he-probably-didn't-mean-it-an unfriendly-way-kiss, he was talking about her cramps.

She held her lower belly, his eyes averting from how her hand slipped down her stomach and held, “Better. I think the pamprin is finally kicking in.”

“Good,” he offered a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes, and she wanted to pull her eyelashes out if the tension between them was going to cause a drift in their relationship, er? Friendship?

Y/N didn’t know what else to say, she didn’t want to make things more awkward than they already felt for her. Without looking at him directly, she gestured toward her shared desk with Mallory and made a slight shrugging motion with her shoulders. “Since I’m here I should probably just start working on what I’ll be starting in an hour anyway.”

He got up from the chair, and nodded in agreement. The aloofness was beginning to dissipate, as he offered up a grin that finally met his green eyes again. That’s the grin she looked forward to every single afternoon, though she didn't think she would ever be able to work up the courage to tell him. If there is one thing Harry picked up on in the short two months of her assisting him, she worked off of praise. The simplest thing, even just neatly organizing her and Mallory’s pens in a cup was something he would recognize and give her a thumbs up or mumble an appreciative wow, it looks great, Y/N, so that is what he was going to continue to do.

“You’re so efficient,” he praised, “But I don’t want you to start if you’re not feeling completely better yet. Why don’t you just take an hour or so to lay down, hm?”

Even though she wanted to start her work right away, she knew he was right and was only looking out for her, so she mumbled a small “okay” in a very reluctant tone.

He took a few steps in the direction toward the classroom and out of the office before quickly turning around and asking her a question he did not want to forget, “When are you available for tutoring?”

She wanted to tell him to just forget about it, and that she didn’t need his help as the pride twisted and turned in her brain, but she had a strong feeling that he was going to be disappointed in her if she said, forget it, and Y/N didn’t know if she could handle much more disappointment from the people around her in one day.

“Every day after I finish here, I’m free,” her words were small and slow as they fell from her lips.

“That’s perfect, after school we can either sit in here and work or the library, or even my flat if you’re not feeling comfortable in the library,” he listed quite a few options, then finally walked out of the office and shut the door behind him, leaving Y/N to her thoughts.

Her fingers slowly touched her lips, trying to remember the feeling of his lips against hers. She didn’t want to forget any details. His woodsy cologne filled her nostrils, and she could almost see that alluring look swimming in his eyes.

To put it plainly, she just wanted to scream in frustration.

___________

Harry was so screwed and he knew it from the second she stepped foot in the door of his classroom. The way her eyes averted from his and toward the plain wall behind him, the way she marveled at the tattoos that peaked from the tops of shirts (which he realized he would show them off more now, just so he could catch her lingering gaze and watch her quickly look away in embarrassment. Maybe it said something about him, but he loved to watch her become flustered), or the way her hand trembled just barely as she handed him the paper which confirmed she was his assistant that first day.

When he saw her at the bar on Friday night and the way her body responded to him, the way she was just so eager to please, he knew the thoughts he was having weren’t just one-sided. It was hard to get her off of his mind, he hadn’t experienced this kind of attraction in a long while. The psychologist in him tried to reason that it was because it felt somewhat forbidden— even though the school rules didn’t go completely against it, she just couldn’t TA for him anymore or ever take a class with him as her professor— he knew it was much more than that.

She spoke eloquently, her walk was captivating, her smile was innocent, and she just felt good to him. He thinks maybe whoever created the flowers that grew in the crevices of sidewalk, creating beauty in the most absurd places, possibly made her too. She was just like that, a captivating flower amongst the mundane world around her, blooming to the best of her ability and relying on the sunshine that sometimes came and went.

She was just special to him.

#harry styles smut #harry x reader #harry fic #harry fanfic #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles y/n fanfic #harry styles y/n #hs fanfic #fanfic #harry styles x reader #harry styles au #harry x y/n #y/n #harry styles imagine #harry styles preferences #harry preference #harries #harry styles #professor harry #harry styles x reader smut #prof!harry #prof!harry x y/n #harry styles x reader fluff #harry styles angst #harry styles writing #harry styles masterlist #harry styles one shot #harry styles blurb #harry styles x you

[drarrily-we-row-along]

Titan Arum

It wasn’t Harry’s fault.

Their relationship had always been about competition, from the very start, from 11 years old when they’d despised each other. And some habits died harder than others. It hadn’t been intentional that their dating was a bit like a competition, it had sort of just happened.

Planning alternating date night activities, giving the most heartfelt gifts, being liked by the other’s friend group, even who could give who the most orgasms… It all just sort of happened.

And the same was true with the flowers. Harry had sent Draco a bouquet their first valentines together (3 weeks after they started dating) and periodically they’d send each other random bouquets since. That those arrangements happened to get bigger and more elaborate each time was no one’s fault. The competitive spirit kept their relationship interesting and very focused on the other’s happiness.

It wasn’t Harry’s fault.

Maybe their competitive natures were to blame.

Maybe it was Draco’s fault for sending that ostentatiously loud bouquet to Harry’s classroom when he had the fourth years.

Or maybe it was Hermione’s fault for informing Harry that the largest flower on earth was the Amorphophallus titanum when he’d been idly wondering aloud about where he could find a really big, impressive flower.

Maybe it was that he trusted Hermione to tell him any extra information he might need to know. He hadn’t even bothered to look at the flower before he placed the order for delivery.

Or maybe it was the fact that the flower’s name had both the words amor and phallus in it. And frankly, Harry found the thought of sending Draco a flower that looked like a dick amusing.

But no matter the case; it wasn’t Harry’s fault.

At least, that was the line he’d be using when he arrived in Draco’s office after a furious patronus.

“What. The. Actual. Fuck?” Draco ground out.

Harry couldn’t even see him around the giant plant in the room; standing at least 8 feet tall and several feet wide, it took up almost all of the space in the room.

But as distracting as the sight of such a flower was, that wasn’t the thing that captured Harry’s attention. He’d never in his life smelled something as unpleasant as this flower. It smelled like dead, rotting animals, and Harry had to bury his nose in his sweater. “Err…” he started.

“Don’t you bloody well ‘err’ me, Harry James Potter,” Draco spit. “Why are you sending me a fucking corpse flower? What is wrong with you?”

“It’s the biggest flower in the world,” he said weakly. “And it’s called amorphallus, which seemed funny. Unlike the name corpse flower.”

“Amorphophallus,” Draco corrected. “And that still doesn’t explain why you would send something like this to someone you love.”

And there was just a little twinge of hurt to his voice, Harry could never stand that. He braved his way deeper into the office giving the plant as wide a berth as the small office allowed. “I’m sorry, darling. It wasn’t my fault.”

Draco raised an accusatory eyebrow at him.

“Hermione told me about it!” The eyebrow arched further. “And it was easy to order once I knew who to talk to.” He grinned at Draco, “and the name was pretty funny, you have to admit.”

“I have to do no such thing,” he replied with a haughty sniff.

“How would you feel if I said that you won the flower contest?”

Draco perked up at that “admitting defeat?”

“This is the most ghastly plant I’ve ever seen.”

“Venomous tentacula,” Draco offered with a grin.

“Still better than that,” he said, nodded to the flower.

“It’s a good thing I know you love me,” he said, leaning over to kiss Harry’s cheek.

He nudged him with his nose, “I do love you.”

“I know,” he repeated with a grin. Then, “dinner?”

Harry nodded, “what about the plant?”

Draco shooed him out, “I’ll deal with it later.”

————

Six weeks later, as luck would have it, when the flower opened in the green house, Harry happened to be there collecting some harvested mandrakes.

Draco also was there, and as Harry watched, he harvested several pollen pods from the titan arum.

He cleared his throat and Draco whipped around, “does this mean I won after all?”

——————————

Thanks for the prompt, nonnie! Sorry it’s been an eternity in my inbox.

Read more of my fics here

#drarry #love #fluff #silly #competitive drarry #professor draco #professor harry #short and sweet

[gurugirl]

Don't Stand So Close Masterlist

~series~ COMPLETED SERIES

~ In which Anna has a crush on her best friend's author-dad, Harry Styles, and one day he realizes he feels the same. Nothing good can come of a secret relationship, but nothing good can come from telling everyone the truth either.

Tropes: Best friend's dad / Age gap (20+ years) / Writer & Professor Harry / Student mc

Warnings: NSFW, smut, extreme age gap (all consenting adults), angst, daddy kink

Total Word Count: 150k words

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5*

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8*

Chapter 9*

Chapter 10

Chapter 11*

Chapter 12*

Chapter 13*

Chapter 14*

Chapter 15

Chapter 16*

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19*

Chapter 20*

Chapter 21*

Chapter 22*

Chapter 23*

Chapter 24*

Chapter 25* (October 28)

Blurbs & Extras

#requested - a Xmas check-in* (2.3k words)

Cat Man - a Halloween Extra* (3.8k words)

Read on Wattpad

Into this series? Tip my ko-fi? 😘

Main masterlist here

#harry fic #harry styles #harry smut #harry styles smut #harry styles fan fiction #harry styles fanfic #best friend's dad #best friend's dad harry #professor harry #professor!harry #author!harry #bfd!harry

[exhaustedcatte]

Grimmauld Place

“Yes, yes,” Draco huffed. “Tell Kathleen to ask Robbards instead, I’m only a mere banker, he’s the auror!”

Draco put the receiver down with force, fuming at the audacity of some clients. Even after cleaning up his act, absolutely spotless might he add, some people still found ways to poke through his defences.

Their newest target was Harry Potter, or also known as Draco’s fiancé.

Gringgotts had kindly offered him a spot fresh out of school, after Draco had submitted a letter of referral from both the Headmistress and Arithmancy professor of Hogwarts. It helped that he had vast knowledge about the kind of money that was sent here for safekeeping.

It was only a couple months in that Harry had turned up at his office, with a huge sum left behind by a certain Sirius Black. One thing led to another and Draco promised him a coffee. Now, almost eight years later, Draco was going to be promising him the rest of his life.

“Alright Malfoy,” Pillai strode into his cabin, closing the door behind her with her pencil heel. “What’s wrong?”

“I want to run away,” Draco dropped his head on the table, groaning.

“I bet. Well, your little hunk is out there being sniffed by Skeeter’s rats.”

When Draco lifted his forehead to see Malavika tuck her saree pallu into her skirt, she smiled sinisterly. “Go get your man.”

Draco pulled on his coat and let his glasses drop by the chain around his neck. A quick swipe of his wand and his messenger bag was packed up and ready to go.

“Be a dear for once and tell Cecily I’m clocking out early?” He kissed Malavika’s cheek, in an attempt to disarm her while being sincere with his love.

“I’m always a dear,” she said heatedly to his retreating back, obviously flustered, still unused to being subjected to physical affection.

Harry Potter, as it turned out, had a few tricks up his sleeve. He’d finally learnt to sneak out of the paws of those terrible paps, who still to this day stalked him. It obviously didn’t help that Draco was involved. It made Harry Potter more of a spectacle than ever.

When Draco walked past the camera flashlights unnoticed, he heard a whisper behind his ear-shell telling him to keep going and to take the fire escape out the building. Draco heeded the advice obediently, thrilled at the turn of events.

He felt around him for a solid body after they’d safely exited the lobby and stumbled into the stairwell. Harry pulled the invisibility cloak off to wrap Draco in a hug.

“They were about to raise hell out here and I knew you’d get nasty if they did,” he explained cheekily, mouthing at Draco’s earlobe.

“Damn right,” he murmured, hands settling on the Professor’s waist.

It was still a little disorienting how well they knew each other – Draco was self-aware, it was obvious they’d kept some rather strong tabs on each other but he’d never imagined a reality where’s they’d use the information they’d gleaned for loveable motives.

It made his heart beat loud in his temple, as if a prayer he had memorised.

“So,” Harry continued, “I snuck into the washroom and hid in my cloak. Then stood behind those godawful gnome statues till I heard Pillai shove you out.”

“Good job, Potter, colour me impressed,” Draco nodded, feeling delighted at the steady rise of red up Harry’s throat at the compliment.

“Why did you come anyway?”

“Oh, right! Hermione mentioned there’s a nice thrift store a few blocks from here so I thought we could go look at furniture.”

Harry had disposed most of Grimmauld Place’s rotten furniture. The wood had begun to splinter off, nails popping into the cushions of the chairs, wallpaper peeling away. The whole scene.

Draco, when he had come around, had donated (given as a placeholder in place of– well, himself) his own things from the Manor. Beautiful pieces he couldn’t part with. He never imagined Harry would want to do away with those as well.

“Furniture?”

“Ah, well,” Harry cleared his throat. He sounded much more nervous now.

Draco squeezed his hand, a silent hey, it’s okay.

“Right, um. Since we’re getting married and all,” Harry said quickly, “I thought we could get some new things for around the house. Like a new chapter? Something to start afresh? Just a few things here and there to add on to your collection…”

Harry Potter was a child who was always given hand-me-downs. Very rarely did he use his money to get something for himself either. Draco wanted to smack himself in the head. To think he wanted to build something with Draco? Of course he would agree.

“Lead the way, Potter,” Draco smiled, sweet, all teeth showing.

Obviously relieved, his fiancé whisked him away in a blur of magic to the furniture store.

An adequately well-curated collection stood pristine in the small building. Draco let go of Harry to let him shop while he did some browsing.

Draco, who had been an absolute wizard at Charms (hah! wizard), had picked up a few fun tricks while squatting around in the library, the one place Harry Potter hated entering, searching for ways to one-up the Gryffindor.

In his search, he found a rather curious spell – one that allowed him to see whose belongings were what, to see who last used it and such.

Draco cast the spell on a hat-pin first.

Owner – Candace Higgins. Last Used – Jemma Jones.

Maybe they were mother and daughter or sisters or best friends. Or maybe they were unrelated.

He looked behind, but Harry was in the other end of the room, near the beds, talking to a salesman about prices and such.

Draco picked up a hand-mirror.

Owner – Lucia Phyllis. Last Used – Felipa Phyllis.

It was definitely a collectible, maybe an heirloom. Gold gilded and shiny. He put it back down reverently. Lucia had good taste, whoever she was.

Feeling a bit bold, Draco spelled a bookcase.

Owner – Gideon Bones. Last Used – Susan Bones.

Draco jumped back at the familiar name.

“Excuse me, sir? How far back do these pieces date?”

The salesman looked around the room. “Well, we have some pretty vintage things here – some that we don’t use anymore. We have stuff from the 80s and then more recent things from few years to a few months ago.”

“I see,” Draco said. Harry furrowed his brow in question but Draco smiled to reassure him.

He then began spelling away. Flatware, silk bedclothes (which okay, kind of ew), tables, stools, hats and scarves. All the sort.

Harry Potter was still shuffling around looking at stuff like vases and ink pots. Poor thing had no idea where to begin. But Draco wanted Harry to pick something out for himself by himself, like a present.

But then.

He saw a pair of identical slipper-chairs, a velveteen red, and decided that would go well with the green rug in the salon.

Spell.

Owner – James Potter and Lily Potter. Last Used – Harry Potter.

Draco stopped in his tracks suddenly like he was hit by a Colloshoo.

There was no way. Absolutely one in a million chance.

He spelled it again. Once, twice, thrice, four tim–

“Malfoy,” Harry hissed. “Don’t be spelling things in front of muggles!”

“Harry,” he said, dazed. “Tell me what you see, okay?”

He cast the charm again.

Once again, gooey letters formed over the two soft chairs.

“What the fuck?” Harry muttered. “What?”

“It’s a spell that tells you the owner and the person who had it last. Um.” Draco’s throat felt sticky.

Harry reached over to smooth the fabric. “This is? Mine? My parents’?”

Draco nodded dumbly. “Seems so. Isn’t that lovely?”

“I… yeah. Yeah. But how?”

“I’m guessing someone donated it after…”

Harry ducked his head mutely, overcome by emotion. Draco pet his hair, trying to offer comfort.

“Hello? Good sir, we’d like to buy these here, please!”

The salesman, or owner, by the looks of it, he was the only one in here anyway, ambled to where they were stood. “The chairs? I’m afraid it’s been booked.”

Harry wilted under Draco’s palm. Like flowers drooping under the harsh sun.

“I can pay you double. Please. This belongs to him.” And as a last ditch attempt, “It’s a family heirloom.”

The man raised his eyebrows below his thick hair, finding the heirloom thing ridiculous. But he only replied with, “How can you prove it?”

Harry stood up and put a restraining hand on Draco’s shoulder. “Hey, it’s alright.”

“No no,” Draco frowned. “Listen, sir? Douglas?” he read the name-tag. “We can pay full amount right now. Please?” Draco wasn’t one to beg or plead, but he would grovel for Harry Potter if he had to.

The man shrugged. “Sorry, can’t do nothin’, well, unless the other guys don’t turn up for payment.”

Draco stood away, eyeing the chairs while Harry booked something for the house. He’d already known what he’d wanted apparently.

“Home?”

“Yeah,” Harry said quietly. “Home.”

Draco remained patient till dinner, trying not to pry, but then again, he couldn’t let Harry drown in his head. When they sat down on their leather chesterfield with a glass of red, Draco decided to open the can of worms.

“Potter? Are you alright?”

Harry looked at him for a minute over the rim of his glass while downing his wine. Draco sat nervously still, not backing down.

“Thank you,” he said finally, after polishing it off, shy.

Draco felt his heart melt. “Oh, Harry. Oh, sweetheart.” He set his glass down, and tugged Harry closer.

“No, really, thank you so much.”

Draco blushed. “I didn’t even do anything. We didn’t get the chairs,” he pointed out uselessly.

Harry shook his head, wayward curls flying with his movements. “You tried.”

Then, reminded by the failure of the chair situation he sighed, dejected. Draco hated seeing Harry like that, like an abandoned pup on the curb-side on a rainy day inside a soggy cardboard box.

“Hey, I’m sure if I dig around I’ll find a charm that can play memories from objects, you do own some old things of theirs, right?”

Harry, who was absolute pants at Charms, perked up at that. “You’d do that for me?”

“I would burn the world to keep you warm, Harry Potter,” Draco said seriously, but still laughingly.

He finally cracked a smile.

“Thanks Malfoy.”

“Stop thanking me, I’m not God –although I could be.”

“No,” Harry agreed, smile lines crinkling the skin around his eyes. “You’re too disgusting, too potty-mouthed for that.”

“Pot calling kettle,” Draco sniffed. “I might even venture to say you seem to quite enjoy it.”

“You might have to remind me,” Harry blinked slowly, eyes turning into liquid fire. Draco loved when Harry got like this – all coy and blithe.

“Oh?”

“Mhm,” he inched closer. “Bought us a new bedframe.”

“Oh.”

“Want to test its quality?”

“You’re so on.”

Three weeks later, on Christmas day, after Draco kissed Harry pink for the novelty glass chess-kit, Harry opened Draco’s present. His very enormous and neatly wrapped gift.

Two red slipper chairs which read James, Lily and Harry Potter when spelled.

Draco saw Harry’s lashes lower over his eyes, in an attempt to blink his tears away. Draco let him.

“How?” his voice was tight, strained with emotion.

“Went back to the store,” Draco grinned proudly. “They put it on sale again because it wasn’t paid for, only marked by a couple who never turned up even after a month. So I snatched it up. Scourgified it and well, here it is!”

Harry fisted Draco’s emerald green Weasley sweater in his hands and kissed him roughly, but still sweet, still kind, still grateful.

“Thank you, Draco.”

“Think it’ll read Last Used by Harry and Draco Potter someday?” He asked with a smile, looking at the red chairs.

Harry squeezed his hand. “Stick around and find out for yourself.”

#sorry idk how to end fics #i hope its kinda good but im too sleepy to revise it #drarry #draco lucius malfoy #harry james potter #draco malfoy #harry potter #harry x draco #drarry fanfic #drarry fic #drarry being lovely #just pure feels #fluff #post hogwarts #draco x harry #professor harry

[xx-thedarklord-xx]

Predicting the Present

Malfoy—of all people—was the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, and Harry didn’t like it. He didn’t like it one bit. “Professor Malfoy said we’ll be learning the basics on how to cast a Patronus!” Oh really? That, Harry had to see.

Read on Ao3

#drarry #Draco Malfoy #Harry Potter #Professor Harry #Professor Draco #Drarry Professors #XxTheDarkLordxX Writes #Advent Month #Advent Day three

[renqwq77]

(inaccurate translation) excerpt from "Anonymous Reality" ( this is not a call for violence or anything like that!!!!! Don’t block!!)

#dreamcore #art #my comic #anonymous world #professor harry #comic art #mini comic