#niam fluff

Niall was quick to pack his things up at twelve o'clock on Monday, earning him a raised eyebrow from Harry. "You going somewhere?"

"Yeah, um…" Niall chewed his lip, then admitted, "I've kinda got a… a date."

A wide smile spread across Harry's face as he finished packing up his things. "That's great!" he enthused as the two of them headed out of the lecture theatre and into the hallway.

"Thanks," Niall whispered, fighting the grin he could feel trying to force his mouth upwards.

"Who's the lucky guy, then?" Harry teased, lightly knocking Niall with his elbow.

"He's the uncle of Theo's little friend from school," Niall explained, pushing open the door that lead out of the building and towards the carpark.

Harry hummed and nodded his head. "So you've Theo to thank, then."

"Well… no, I mean, I ran into him on the first day, but…" Sighing heavily, Niall supposed, "Theo and Claire being friends has definitely helped, though."

"So, what's this date, then?" Harry asked, the two of them slowing to a stop beside his car.

Shrugging one shoulder, Niall explained, "It's just coffee, really. We're… we're kinda calling it a date, but not… like, officially."

Harry tilted his head to one side questioningly. "Why not?"

"It's… hard for me to maintain any sort of relationship," Niall sighed. "Theo's gotta be my first priority, then uni, then work… Where'm I supposed to fit a boyfriend in around all of that?"

"Well, if you want it bad enough, you'll make the time to fit a boyfriend in," Harry pointed out.

"I guess…"

"Hey."

Niall nearly jumped out of his skin, spinning on his heel so quickly he almost lost his balance. "Liam!"

"Sorry," Liam chuckled, tucking his hands into his pockets casually.

"Christ, you nearly gave me a heart attack," Niall breathed out, pressing a hand to his chest to check his heartrate.

"That's definitely not what I was going for," Liam assured him, reaching out to rub Niall's arm briefly.

After a few moments of silence, Harry piped up, "I'm meeting my sister for lunch, so I'll see you in an hour, Ni."

Niall cleared his throat and nodded to his friend, waving him off as he drove away.

"Who was that?" Liam asked curiously as he directed Niall towards the street.

"Oh, that's Harry," Niall explained. "The guy who lent me his lecture notes while Theo was in hospital."

"I didn't think you guys were that close," Liam commented.

Shrugging one shoulder, Niall nodded, "I think we've kinda got closer since the hospital thing. He checks up on me, always makes sure I'm getting along okay and stuff like that." He glanced to Liam out of the corner of his eye as they wandered down the street. "Why?"

"No reason," Liam dismissed.

Niall snorted. "Are you jealous?" he giggled.

Huffing through his nose, Liam threw Niall a playful glare. "Yeah, okay, you got me," he admitted. "I just… I liked knowing I was the one you were relying on."

"You did a pretty shit job of that, remember?" Niall chuckled. "Besides, I haven't told Harry half as much as I've told you."

"Yeah well… he has a nickname for you though," Liam pointed out.

Contemplating this for a short moment, Niall commented, "He's really the only person that has a nickname for me. He just started calling me 'Ni' and I haven't stopped him." He stepped through the door to the coffee shop that Liam held open for him, then the two of them stood behind the other two people waiting in line. "You can give me a nickname if you want," he shrugged.

"What, though?" Liam half-laughed.

Niall shrugged again. "Use your imagination," he suggested with a slight grin.

"So taxing," Liam sighed dramatically.

"C'mon, it surely won't hurt your head that much," Niall teased, lightly elbowing Liam in the ribs and earning a laugh.

"Well…" Liam frowned in thought. "He calls you Ni, yeah?" When Niall nodded his confirmation, Liam sighed, "I can't really shorten your name then, can I? Unless I'm gonna call you Al."

Niall burst out laughing, slapping a hand over his mouth when people turned to stare at him. "Please don't," he chuckled, biting back more laughter. "Never in my life have I ever been called Al, and I never want to be."

"No problem," Liam grinned. He thought for another few moments. "You'll have to give me time, I think. Rome wasn't built in a day, after all."

"You're not building Rome, though, you're giving me a nickname," Niall snickered.

"Who says your nickname shouldn't have the time devoted to it that Rome did?" Liam asked, earning another laugh from Niall. "What nicknames did you used to get?"

Niall tilted his head as he thought back. "Dad used to call me 'Sport', and still does sometimes. I got things like 'Pumpkin' and 'Sweet Pea' from my Mam," he added, pulling a face.

Snorting, Liam noted, "It's probably a bit much if I call you 'Sweet Pea'."

Shuddering at the thought, Niall explained, "Mam didn't really care if I had friends 'round, she'd still call me that in front of them. So embarrassing."

"One of those mothers, is she?" Liam asked knowingly.

"She used to be."

Liam bit his lip when Niall went quiet. "Tell you what, I'll work something out for next time, yeah?" he suggested. "And I promise it won't be a food."

Blowing out a laugh, Niall nodded gratefully. "Thanks."

 xXx

Niall was stretched out on the couch with Theo watching Thomas the Tank Engine, thinking back on the past week. Monday had been his date with Liam, and inexplicably, so had Wednesday and Thursday. Each date had been more relaxed than the last, although Liam was still yet to find a nickname that he deemed worthy of Niall. But What Niall's thoughts were stuck on, as they had been from 12:57 on Thursday afternoon, was the hug Liam gave him and the quick kiss he had pressed against Niall's cheek just as the blonde had been about to return to his class.

"Daddy?" Theo piped up from where he had his head resting against Niall's chest.

"Hmm?"

"Claire said yesterday that you saw her Uncle Liam at uni," Theo explained. "Did you?"

Smiling slightly, Niall ran his fingers through Theo's hair. "Not quite, bud. He came and met me at the uni, then we went for a coffee."

"When?" Theo asked.

"On Monday," Niall replied. His smile growing, he added, "And Wednesday. And Thursday."

"And Friday?" Theo guessed.

"No, mate. It was Claire's mummy's birthday on Friday, so Liam was with her then."

Theo took a moment to process this. "Why?"

Frowning a little, Niall asked, "Why what?"

"Why did you have coffee with Claire's Uncle Liam?"

"Because I like him," Niall shrugged, feeling his cheek warm. "He makes me happy."

Giggling, Theo poked Niall's cheek. "Daddy, you're blushing."

Niall gasped and grabbed Theo's hand. "No I'm not."

"Yes you are," Theo insisted with a grin.

"Don't you lie, of course I'm not," Niall huffed playfully, tickling Theo's sides.

"No, Daddy!" Theo squealed, trying to squirm away from Niall's hands. "No, no, stop! Stop!" Theo's laughter filled the flat, making Niall laugh along with him. A knock sounded from the door, merely prompting Niall to grab Theo around his middle and carry him upside-down to answer it, both laughing the whole way. "Hello?" Niall half-greeted breathlessly as he pulled the door open with his free hand, eyes widening when he found Liam on the other side with Claire holding his hand.

"Afternoon," Liam chuckled. He tilted his head to look at Theo properly. "What's your daddy doing to you?" he laughed.

Waving his arms madly, Theo giggled, "He was tickling me."

Liam gasped dramatically. "No! Why would he do that?"

"Because I was teasing him," Theo beamed proudly, his face beginning to turn red.

Turning Theo up the right way and standing him on the floor, Niall turned his attention to Liam and asked, "What brings you here?"

"Me and Uncle Liam are going to the park!" Claire exclaimed, a wide grin splitting across her face.

"Just wanted to see if you wanted to join us," Liam shrugged.

Niall bit his lip to hide a smile. "You wanna go to the park, Theo?" he asked knowingly.

"Yes, yes, yes!" With that, Theo ran down the hallway.

"Give us a sec," Niall chuckled. He stepped back from the door to let Liam and Claire in, heading over to the couch to find the television remote. "We've just been watching Thomas."

The sound of feet running down the hallway announced Theo's return. "I've got my hat, Daddy!" he proclaimed.

"Good-o, buddy. Get your shoes on, yeah?" Niall grabbed his jacket from over the back of a chair and made his way over to the door to pull his own shoes on. "We'll take your coat, too, bud. Just in case."

Once they both had their shoes and jackets on, the four stepped out of the flat and paused so Niall could lock up. After reminding the two children to take care on the way down the stairs, the group were finally on their way.

"So," Niall began, "How was Friday?"

Liam grinned widely. "She loved it. I swear, she nearly cried when she saw what we'd done. I'd been in the kitchen with Mum for a good few hours the day before, and Ru was so impressed."

"Impressed by what you'd made, or impressed you'd been in the kitchen at all?" Niall asked teasingly.

"Hey, I cook!" Liam laughed. "I live on my own, I kinda have to."

"You live next door to your sister, though," Niall pointed out. "You could so easily just have her cook for you all the time."

Gently shouldering Niall, Liam huffed, "I don't need my sister to cook for me. I'm a good cook."

"Yeah?" Niall chuckled.

"Yeah. Here, I'll prove it," Liam decided, using one hand to direct Claire through the park gates. "You come 'round tonight and I'll cook something for you."

Niall's eyebrows shot up. After a short pause, he asked quietly, "Are you asking me to dinner?"

With a slight smile, Liam shrugged, "I guess I am."

Niall bit his lip and glanced down at Theo. "I…" He sighed heavily. "Off you go, you two," he encouraged as they approached the play equipment, allowing the two children to race off to play. He and Liam took a seat on a bench to watch the children, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. "I'd love to, Li, but…"

When Niall didn't finish, Liam sighed and nodded his head. "I know, you're right." Smiling slightly, he added, "You can't blame me for trying, though, right?"

"I s'pose…" Niall watched Theo running around with Claire. "It's not that I don't want to, because I do. I really do. But Theo has to come first. He's had enough shit in his life, even if he can't remember any of it."

Liam hummed in understanding. He glanced to Niall and covered one of his hands with his own. "You okay, duck?"

Shaking his head, Niall admitted, "Wednesday will mark two years since the accident. I know he's got school and all that, but… I'm thinking I wanna take Theo back to Ireland."

"Like… permanently?" Liam asked carefully.

"No, no," Niall corrected quickly, shaking his head again. "I can't afford to do that. But just for the week, or a few days. Visit my mam, my dad… take him to see Greg and Denise's graves. It sounds really morbid, but I'm trying to help him understand who his parents really are."

"You told me about the other day," Liam nodded. "Has he asked again?"

"No," Niall sighed, running a hand backwards though his hair. "I mean, it's kinda good, because it means he's not worrying about it, but… he needs to know. I want him to know about my big brother. My best friend." He felt tears gathering in his eyes and sniffed hard, blinking them back. "Jesus Christ," he muttered.

"Hey, it's okay to be upset," Liam assured him, wrapping an arm around Niall's shoulders. "I think you should take him back. You're right, he does need to know."

Niall hummed, then paused in thought. "Hang on… Did you call me 'duck' just now?" he asked with a slight frown.

Smiling slightly, Liam chuckled, "Yeah, I did."

"But… that's you're nickname for me?" Niall laughed disbelievingly.

"I thought it suited," Liam shrugged. "Your hair reminds me of a duckling. All fluffy and soft." He gently played with a few strands of Niall's hair.

"You know I'm not a natural blonde, right?" Niall checked with a raised eyebrow.

"Not all ducklings are yellow," Liam pointed out. "If you don't like it, I can think of something else."

Niall mulled it over for a moment, then shook his head. "No, I think I like it. I can get used to 'duck'." He met Liam's eyes with a smile.

"Okay," Liam grinned, tightening his arm around Niall's shoulders a little. "I've got your nickname."

"Told you you'd manage it," Niall chuckled, poking Liam in the side playfully.

"See, I did just need time to think it over."

Shaking his head, Niall smirked, "At least you're not calling me Rome."

Both men looked to the sudden sounds of crying. "Claire," Liam sighed. He moved to stand, but Niall held his arm.

"Theo's bringing her over," Niall murmured.

Sure enough, Theo had one arm wrapped around his friend's middle, helping her tearfully limp towards them. "Daddy, Claire fell over," he explained when they reached the bench.

"C'mere Claire-Bear," Liam encouraged, lifting the little girl into his lap to inspect her bleeding knee. "Oh dear," he sighed, wiping a few of her tears and tucking her hair behind her ear. "Lucky I'm always prepared, eh?" Liam reached into his pocket and produced two bandages. He peeled them from their packages, revealing the little pictures of firemen and firetrucks that covered the red outside. "There we go," Liam reassured Claire, sticking the two bandages in place over her cut. "Fixed."

"Thank you, Uncle Liam," Claire sniffled, rubbing her eyes with her fist.

"Can Claire come and play again?" Theo asked, looking worriedly up at his friend.

"You'll be alright, won't you, Claire-Bear?" Liam checked. When Claire nodded, he helped her stand on her feet again. "Go on, you're tough."

Claire nodded more firmly, then followed Theo back over to the equipment.

Smirking slightly, Niall commented, "So, you keep fireman bandages in your pocket."

"I'm with Claire a lot," Liam defended, gently shouldering the blonde. "She's got a bit of a thing for firemen."

"Well, I don't blame her," Niall chuckled.

"Why?"

Snorting, Niall pointed out, "It'd be a bit hypocritical of me, wouldn't it?"

Liam glanced to the man beside him with a lopsided smile. "S'pose it would." He curled his hand over one of Niall's, only for the blonde to turn his hand over and link their fingers together. Grinning down at their hands, Liam returned his attention to the two children.

"So… prob'ly won't see you for a few days," Niall commented, rubbing his thumb against the back of Liam's palm. "I'll book flights for me and Theo for Tuesday, I reckon. If I can get them at that late notice, anyway."

"Okay. How long will you stay, d'you reckon?"

"I dunno," Niall sighed. "I want to see my mam and dad… but I don't want to be there too long, y'know? It's gonna be hard enough going back without hanging around and dredging up old memories…"

Squeezing Niall's hand, Liam told him, "You can call me if you need to. And I actually mean it this time."

Niall huffed out a laugh, allowing himself to rest his head on Liam's shoulder. "Thank you."

They sat watching Theo and Claire play for another ten minutes before Liam received a text message from his sister asking they head home. "You can come with us," Liam suggested as he took Claire's hand in the one he wasn't still clinging to Niall with.

"You sure?" Niall asked, eyebrow raised. "Would you sister be okay with that?"

"Well, she's sent me a text saying 'Bring him here if you're that desperate', so I assume so," Liam shrugged.

Biting his lip in a failed attempt to hide a smile, Niall asked, "Desperate to spend time with me?"

"I won't get to see you for about a week, I've got to make the most of you being around," Liam pointed out.

"Fair enough," Niall chuckled. "We'll go over to Claire's place for a little while, Theo. How's that sound?"

Theo's eyes lit up. "We visit Claire?" he asked, bouncing as he walked.

"Yep," Niall grinned, swinging his hand linked with Theo's.

"Yay!" Claire squeaked from beside Liam, the two children beaming at each other around the adults.

"Are you sure she's okay with it?" Niall checked. "I don't want to be a nuisance."

Liam squeezed Niall hand tightly and told him, "It's fine. And if all else fails, I live next door to her."

Smirking slightly, Niall chuckled, "You're really keen to get me to come over."

"Worse?" Liam blurted out, eyes wide. "What did you tell them about me?"

Niall laughed heartily, pressing a kiss to Liam's cheek. "They've exaggerated what I've told them. They're expecting someone with a full-facial tattoo and wearing sets of brass knuckles."

Curling his arms around Niall's shoulders, Liam chuckled, "What did you tell them?"

"That you're a bit punk-y," Niall shrugged, pushing his lilac fringe from his eyes.

"And they got the impression I'm some sort of walking graffiti wall just waiting to pulverise someone?"

"Bearing in mind my parents have very little to do with anything punk," Niall reminded the brunette. "They have a son who wears flower crowns."

"All the more reason for them to be concerned about me."

Niall stopped them and turned Liam to face him. "It'll be fine. Once they're past how you look, they're gonna love you." He grabbed the front of Liam's leather jacket to straighten it out. "You can't judge a book by its cover."

Rolling his eyes, Liam sighed, "My boyfriend talks in hideous clichés."

"Sure do," Niall giggled, popping up on his toes to kiss Liam quickly. "C'mon, it's just up here." Grasping Liam's hand tightly in his own, Niall led his boyfriend past a few more properties, then up the front path of a neatly-kept house.

"Well, this is intimidating," Liam muttered as Niall rang the doorbell.

Shaking his head, Niall murmured, "Don't be so silly."

The door opened before Liam could reply. "Niall!"

"Mam!" Niall beamed, wrapping both arms around the slightly-shorter woman who swept him up into a hug.

"Come in, come in, come in," Niall's mother insisted, ushering Niall into the house. Her expression became a little less eager as her eyes landed on Liam, but she guided him through to the living room all the same. "Bobby!" she called through the house. "Honey, Niall's here!"

"I thought I heard you," Bobby grinned as he stepped into the room, hugging Niall in the same way his mother had. "How are you?"

"I'm good," Niall hummed into his father's shoulder. He pulled back when he noticed Bobby staring over his shoulder at the man behind him.

"Could you introduce us, Ni?" Bobby asked, jaw tense.

Wrapping an arm around Liam's middle, Niall explained, "This's Liam. Li, my mam Maura, and my dad Bobby."

Liam waved briefly before shoving his hands in his pockets. "Hi."

Glancing between his parents, Niall sighed, "You can relax, y'know, he's not gonna hurt anyone."

"Are you sure?" Bobby checked, raising an eyebrow at Liam.

"I told you, Nialler," Liam muttered, dropping his gaze to the floor.

"And I told you they've got an exaggerated idea of you," Niall replied patiently. "You just have to show them that you're not what they think."

"And what do we think?" Maura asked from the living room doorway.

Huffing, Liam rubbed his tattooed hands down his face. "That I'm violent? That I'm rude? That I have no respect for anyone other than myself and my drug dealer?" He rolled his eyes when Maura's mouth dropped open in horror. "I don't have a drug dealer. But the fact that you believed I do is proof enough of what you think of me."

"Liam." Niall turned to the brunette and grabbed both his hands. "Calm down, babe," he murmured. "We were expecting this, remember."

"Doesn't mean it's fun to experience," Liam mumbled.

"No, but first impressions are important. These are my parents, Li, I want them to know you."

Shaking his head, Liam laughed humourlessly, "They don't seem to want to know me."

Niall huffed out a sigh. "Don't be childish."

Liam opened his mouth to reply, but thought better of it and instead lowered his eyes, flicking his tongue bar against his teeth.

"You have to see this from our perspective, Liam," Maura began carefully yet confidently. "We don't want anything to happen to our little boy, and the way you look... It's threatening. We just want to make sure our Niall's safe."

"I know," Liam sighed, rubbing his forehead with his palm. "That doesn't mean it doesn't sting when you look at me like I'm some sort of wild animal about to savage your son. I am a person, y'know. With feelings."

"We're well aware of that," Bobby replied stiffly. "We're also well aware of how fragile Niall's feelings are."

"Dad, I'm not made of glass," Niall sighed.

Niall's comment went ignored as Liam told Bobby, "I think you greatly underestimate your son's strength. He's not a china doll, he can stand up for himself."

Lightly elbowing Liam in the ribs, Niall asked, "You wanna let me, then?"

Liam shut his mouth and nodded.

"I can stand up for myself," Niall repeated. "But I like knowing I've got someone else who will, too. The only reason I met Liam in the first place was because a bunch of guys decided I was an easy target. Liam stepped in and helped me, he's not about to try and hurt me."

"I've gone a bloody long way about it if I was," Liam half-laughed.

Niall cracked a slight smile. "Six months of pretending just to get me where you want me."

"You know I haven't got the patience for that."

Laughing, Niall grabbed Liam's hand and hummed, "You definitely don't."

Maura moved to stand beside her husband, the two watching their son and his boyfriend. "Six months, you say?" Bobby asked.

"Yeah," Niall nodded.

Bobby hummed, his eyes following the way Liam brought Niall's hand to his mouth and kissed his fingers. "Judge a man not by his face, but by his deeds."

Pausing for a moment, Liam asked Niall, "Does all of your family talk in idioms?"

"Yes," Niall giggled. "Where do you think I get it from?"

Liam released a long-suffering sigh that only made Niall laugh more. "I s'pose I have to get used to it, then."

"You wait," Niall grinned, pressing his lips to Liam's cheek. "We'll have you doing it, too, someday."

Liam groaned. "Please no," he whined, earning a chuckle from Maura and Bobby.

Standing up on his toes to wrap his arms around Liam's neck, Niall whispered, "I think they've decided to give you a chance."

"Good," Liam sighed in relief, securing his arms around Niall's waist.

"Come on, then, you two," Maura encouraged, waving them towards the couch. "Broaden our horizons."

 xXx

Niall sat chewing his thumbnail as Liam drove them along the streets, staring silently out the window.

"What's on your mind, love?" Liam asked, petting Niall's knee as he drove. "You're really quiet and I don't like it."

Blowing out a sigh, Niall fretted, "What if they don't like me?"

Liam laughed, giving Niall's knee a fond squeeze. "Sweetheart, they'll be thrilled. I was terrified your parents would burn me at the stake, but they gave me a chance, and I think they liked me in the end. My parents have me for a son; they'll think you're wonderful."

"Surely they're expecting something... tougher," Niall sighed, gnawing on his thumb. "Like, you're all rough-looking and butch, and I spend my free time making flower crowns." He huffed out another sigh. "And my hair's lilac."

"And it's utterly adorable," Liam murmured. "Look, my parents don't want me to have a boyfriend like me. They're not actually that keen on the way I look."

"But you did it anyway?" Niall asked quietly.

"Well, obviously," Liam chuckled. "Look, I don't have quite the same relationship with my parents as you do with yours. Remember, the only reason we're seeing them is because I met your mum and dad. Fair's fair."

Watching his boyfriend silently for a moment, Niall frowned, "Other than when you organised this visit, when was the last time you talked to your parents?"

Liam sighed heavily and chewed his lip in thought. "Well... Christmas, probably. So, four months ago?"

Niall's eyebrows shot up. "Did you tell them much about me?"

"We'd only been together two months," Liam pointed out. "I didn't want to tell them too much because I was still really nervous that you'd work out how weird I am and leave me."

Tilting his head and giving his boyfriend a fond look, Niall cooed, "Your weird makes you special, though. I like your weird."

A slight smile tugged up the corner of Liam's mouth. "I know that now. But I didn't then."

"So... what do they know about me?" Niall asked.

"Your name. How old you are." Liam paused in thought. "That's about it really. They weren't that interested."

Niall felt a twinge in his heart. "Oh."

"It's not because of you, though," Liam rushed out, grasping Niall's hand reassuringly.

"No, no, but... they weren't interested in the fact you've got a boyfriend. Doesn't that... doesn't that sting a little?"

Liam shrugged one shoulder. "Nah. I mean, we don't talk much. They're happy talking to my sisters because they're 'normal', but I don't fit in so they're not sure what to do with me."

Rubbing his thumb along Liam's knuckles, Niall pointed out, "They could try loving you."

Pulling over, Liam killed the engine before turning in his seat and taking both of Niall's hands. "You're the sweetest guy I've ever met. And I think you expect people to be just as sweet, but they're not." Giving Niall a half-smile, Liam murmured, "Your optimism is admirable. You like to see the best in people." He leaned over and kissed Niall's mouth softly. "Which is why they'll love you, no matter how worried you are right now."

Niall sighed and stole a quick peck. "I love you," he murmured.

"I love you, too," Liam whispered with a grin. He straightened Niall's flower crown briefly, then turned to hop out of the car. Leading Niall up to the door, he sent the smaller man a reassuring smile before unlocking the front door and letting them in. "Mum? Dad?" he called out, kicking his shoes off.

"Living room, Liam," came the response.

Liam headed around the corner and into the living room. "Hey."

His parents looked up from the television. "Afternoon." Glancing to his wife briefly, Liam's father asked, "Are you alone, or did you bring someone to see us?"

Turning to look over his shoulder, Liam realised Niall was nowhere to be seen. "Nialler?" He took two steps backwards to see Niall still standing near the door, his thumbnail between his teeth. "Hey, come on." He held his hand out for Niall, who slowly reached out to accept it before stepping up beside Liam.

"Hello," Niall greeted quietly, lifting his free hand shortly and chewing his lip.

Both of Liam's parents sat up quickly, eyes wide and mouths opening slowly.

"Mum, Dad, this is Niall," Liam explained. "Babe, these are my parents, Karen and Geoff."

Karen rose from her seat, her eyes lighting up as she slowly approached the two young men. "Oh..." A bright smile spread across her face as she grasped Niall's free hand in both of her own. "It's... it's lovely to meet you, sweetheart," she gushed. "Gosh, you're adorable!"

Niall felt his cheeks warm and gave Karen a shy smile in return. "Um... thank you."

"Wow..." Karen whispered, finally looking up at her son. "I..." She released Niall's hand and brought both of her hands up to hold Liam's face. "I didn't have enough faith in you," she admitted, stroking his cheekbones with her thumbs.

"Come and sit down, lads," Geoff suggested, gesturing to the couch at a right angle to the one he was sitting on.

Niall followed Liam nervously over to the couch and sat as close to his side as physically possible. He watched Karen retake her place beside Geoff, her hands clasped in front of her mouth.

"Well," Geoff breathed out, breaking the silence that had fallen over them. "You're not what we expected, Niall."

Fingers curling into the side of Liam's shirt, Niall asked, "Is... that good or bad...?"

"Oh, no, honey, it's good," Karen assured him quickly. "We had abysmally low expectations. Expectations for which I think we should apologise."

"Why did you have such low expectations?" Niall asked, tilting his head slightly in curiosity.

When Karen and Geoff didn't answer immediately, Liam sighed, "Because of how I look. Because I like punk music. Because I never grew out of my 'rebellious phase'."

"That's not it, Liam," Karen protested.

"Of course it is," Liam huffed. "You thought I'd bring home someone who looks like me, swears every other word, and beats people up for fun."

"Liam," Niall murmured.

"Do you know what reaction Niall's mum and dad gave me?" Liam asked his parents. "To start, they thought I was brainless and brutish, but they gave me a chance and actually got to know me. They're happy for Niall."

"Liam," Niall repeated slightly louder, this time gaining the brunette's attention. "Calm down, babe," he instructed gently, pressing his lips against Liam's tattooed bicep, which was exposed by his black Iron Maiden T-shirt. "It's alright. Deep breath."

Liam took a slow, deep breath in through his nose, then blew it out in a sigh from his mouth. "Okay," he whispered.

"There, see," Niall murmured, sending Liam a smile.

"Yeah." Liam leaned down and kissed the top of Niall's head, readjusting his flower crown to sit perfectly.

"We've not seen this side of you before, Liam," Karen spoke carefully. "Yes, we expected you to bring someone more like you, but we were wrong to think that. The way you look after Niall... it's sweet. And it's been a long time since I thought something you did was sweet."

"He's always sweet," Niall shrugged. "From the moment we met, he's been the sweetest guy I've ever met."

"That's only because you've never met you," Liam chuckled, wrapping his arm around Niall's middle and rubbing his thumb against his hip.

With a little grin, Niall giggled, "Shut up."

"No." Liam quickly slung his other arm around Niall and pulled him into his lap, nuzzling into the smaller man's neck as he laughed, blue eyes scrunched up in delight. "You're the sweetest little thing," Liam hummed, kissing Niall's jaw.

They both looked to the sudden sound of a sniffle to find Karen wiping tears.

"Mum?" Liam frowned.

"I'm alright," she assured with a slight laugh, blowing out a steadying breath as Geoff rubbed her back soothingly. "Just... the last time you looked at anything the way you look at Niall was when you were eleven. That Woody doll we bought you when you were four." She wiped at her cheeks again as more tears spilled over.

"Liam, mate, let's go have a chat, eh?" Geoff suggested, standing and heading for the door.

"Okay." Liam pulled Niall in for a short but heartfelt kiss, then sat the smaller man on the couch and followed his father from the room.

After a minute of awkward silence, Niall cleared his throat. "Are you okay?" he asked carefully, watching Karen still wiping her eyes.

"Oh, sweetheart," Karen sighed, sniffling. "Come here." She beckoned Niall over to sit beside her, turning to face him when he did. "I haven't seen Liam so happy in a long time," she explained. "He was bullied in primary school, did you know? Always looked so down... And then he got into this punk thing and... and I felt like I lost my little boy." More tears rushed down Karen's face as she grabbed both of Niall's hands in her own. "How did you find him under all that leather and ink?"

Niall shrugged one shoulder. "He saved me from this bunch of guys who thought it'd be fun to beat me up. We went for a coffee, then a couple of dates... I didn't have to look very hard. I just treated him like a person." Watching Karen carefully as yet more tears gathered in her eyes, Niall commented, "I was always told not to judge people by their appearances. Besides, I like how he looks. It was intriguing, because I'd never had much to do with punk, but now it's... it's just my Liam."

Karen let go of one of Niall's hands to grab a tissue from the box on the coffee table, dabbing at her eyes and wiping her nose. "I was just another critic, wasn't I?" she whispered. "Another person judging his choices."

Dropping his eyes to his hands, Niall didn't answer. "Y'know... he's still got that Woody doll. It's sat on the side table on his side of the bed." He fished his phone out of his pocket and found a photo of their bedroom, then zoomed it in on the bed. "See?"

"Oh..." Karen carefully took Niall's phone and cradled it between both hands, starting down at the picture of the doll she had given her boy eighteen years ago. She sobbed, breaking down in full-blown tears.

"Hey..." Niall scooted a little closer and wrapped an arm around Karen's shoulders. "It's okay," he murmured. "Let it out. It's okay."

 xXx

"So," Liam began after a long silence between him and his father, the two of them sitting on the steps of the back porch.

"So," Geoff nodded. He sighed and rubbed his hands down his face. "I've missed you, y'know."

Liam snorted and leaned back on his hands. "Really?"

"Yes." Staring out across the garden, Geoff sighed again. "You're my only son. The only idea I ever had about us was that I'd teach you things as you grew up. That we'd have a thing going where we'd watch the match together with a beer when you got old enough, we'd talk girls, we'd go down the pub together... I never got any of those things." Staring down at his hands clasped between his knees, Geoff admitted, "I felt a bit like I'd been robbed of something. I never got the chance to bond with you."

"We never would've talked girls, Dad," Liam pointed out, lying on his back and staring up at the sky, hands folded on his stomach.

"Then we could've talked guys," Geoff shrugged. "Point is, I never got to do that sort of thing with you. I felt like... I feel like I don't know you." Returning his gaze across the garden, he explained, "I was never introduced to this Liam, he just appeared and ignored me. I tried to talk to him, but he never wanted to spend time with me or have a chat... Did you know this is the first proper chat we've had since you were ten?"

Liam had to smirk. "So you're not including when you gave me the sex talk."

Shaking his head, Geoff knocked his elbow against Liam's knee. "No I'm not. You didn't really listen to that." Finally glancing back at his son's face, he mumbled, "You knew by then, didn't you? That you're gay."

"Yeah, I knew." Liam kept his eyes on the clouds. "You wanted me to be something I wasn't. You wanted me to talk to you about sex and girls and boobs... I didn't want that. I don't want that. No matter how feminine Niall can be, he's a man. No boobs, no cunt-"

"Liam," Geoff hissed.

"-no risk of getting pregnant," Liam continued, ignoring his father's protests. "He's a man. And I love him."

Looking away from Liam's face, Geoff sighed, "That's something else I always wanted to do with you." He turned to face the garden once again. "To give you dad advice."

Liam finally lifted his head. "You still can."

"It's not quite the same," Geoff smiled sadly, eyes directed towards his hands.

Sitting himself up again, Liam pointed out, "I can adopt kids. Me and Niall have talked about it before. Obviously we won't yet, but we were talking about our future together... We'll still have kids."

"Yeah." Geoff didn't move.

"Is that really what this is about? Why you didn't want to talk about Niall at Christmas? Because I can't give you biological grandkids?" Liam asked incredulously.

"No, of course not," Geoff sighed. "It's... That's part of it, I guess, but only the tiniest bit. It's an accumulation of things. But mostly..." Rubbing his hands down his face, Geoff finished quietly, "Mostly it's because I can't give you advice. That's what I always wanted to do, I wanted you to know you could come to me with anything and I could help." He shrugged one shoulder. "But I can't."

A long silence stretched between them. "You can," Liam shrugged. "I mean... You might not know much about dating a guy, but you know what it's like to be in love."

Geoff huffed out a small laugh. "Yeah, I know about that." Turning his head to watch Liam's profile, he asked, "Would you come to me with things like that?"

Liam shrugged one shoulder. "I think you're probably the best person to ask when I decide to propose to Niall." He looked to his father, their eyes meeting for the first time since they sat down.

"When you decide?" Geoff asked with a raised eyebrow and slight smirk.

"Well... I'm pretty set on marrying him someday," Liam shrugged, one side of his mouth turning upwards. "One day... And then you can have your grandchild."

Rolling his eyes, Geoff snickered, "If he says yes."

Liam shoved his father with his shoulder. "Piss off." The statement would have sounded harsh had it not been for the slightest note of fondness.

"C'mon," Geoff laughed, jerking his head towards the door. "We should go check on our better halves."

Liam felt a smile spread across his face as he stood with his father. "Niall's definitely the better half."

"Don't be so sure," Geoff replied, patting his son's shoulder solidly before leading him back into the house. The two of them came to a stop in the living room doorway. "Everything alright in here?" Geoff frowned.

Looking up from the woman crying into his shoulder, Niall nodded his head. "All good."

 xXx

"Who're you texting?" Niall asked as he snuggled down beside Liam in their bed.

"My dad," Liam replied easily, snorting at the latest message.

Grinning up at the brunette, Niall murmured, "I'm so damn happy you talk to your parents again."

Liam laughed and set his phone aside before wrapping both arms around the smaller man. "Me too." He kissed the top of Niall's head, holding him close. "I've spoken more to them in the past month than I did in ten years. And it's all thanks to you."

"How so?" Niall chuckled, pressing his face into Liam's bare chest and tracing his tattoos with his fingertips.

"Well, you absolutely melted my mum," Liam laughed, fiddling with the hair at the back of Niall's head. "She was sobbing. And just having you there started the conversation I really needed to have with my dad."

"What did you guys talk about, again?" Niall smirked.

"Oh, nothing much," Liam replied airily. "Just how much I love you."

Niall made a tisk noise with his mouth. "Was that all?"

"No, we talked about how I plan to marry you someday, too."

Niall stopped. "You... Really?" he breathed.

"Well, he's the most appropriate person to tell that sort of thing-"

"No, no." Niall shuffled so that he and Liam were at eye level. "You're that serious?"

"Well, yeah," Liam chuckled. "Why...? Aren't you?" he suddenly frowned.

"No, of course I am!" Niall blurted out. "I just... You told your dad that? As one of the first things you two really talked about in years?"

Holding Niall's face between both of his hands, Liam murmured, "Sweetheart, I never want to let you go. Seeing you was what got my dad talking to me at all; I wanted him to really know how I feel about you."

Niall felt tears stinging his eyes. "I..." He swallowed hard. "You're too good for this world," he whispered.

"No, babe, that's you," Liam grinned, leaning in and kissing him. "The most perfect person on the planet," he hummed, dripping his tongue between Niall's lips as he slid his hands to the smaller man's waist.

"You shouldn't talk about yourself like that when you kiss me," Niall giggled, a tiny breathless noise leaving him when Liam suddenly pinned him on his back to the bed.

"Shut up," Liam mumbled absently, preoccupied with memorising the shapes of Niall's mouth with his tongue.

Humming, Niall pushed Liam back gently. "You know what your mum said to me that afternoon?"

Liam sighed and rolled his eyes, but shook his head.

"Opposites attract."

"Niall!" Liam groaned, rolling off his boyfriend as Niall laughed loudly. "Fuck's sake… Why does everyone talk in stupid clichés?"

"They're called 'sayings' for a reason," Niall giggled, pressing into Liam's side. "Because people say them."

Liam huffed, then looked to the man beside him. "Why do I love you so much?"

"Because I'm irresistible," Niall grinned.

"And the Payne Train wins! This is incredible, the Payne Train is headed to the finals for the forth year in a row!"

"But will he make his first national win?"

"We'll see it all here in two weeks time!"

Niall ignored the voices booming over the sound system in favour of stretching up on his toes as he searched for his boyfriend through all the people around the ring. His face split into a grin when he finally saw the strong-built brunette heading his way and he jumped at him, flinging his arms around his neck. "Liam," he beamed.

"Whoa, hey," Liam laughed, wrapping his arms around the smaller man's waist to hold him tightly.

Once Liam had set him back on the floor, Niall whispered, "Congratulations 'Payne Train'."

Liam rolled his eyes and ducked to kiss the blonde, whose head didn't even reach Liam's shoulder. "Thank you, beautiful," he murmured, rubbing a hand down Niall's back.

"Liam."

Turning his head to find a pretty young woman with a microphone and a man holding a television camera, Liam tucked Niall into his side. "Hello, Kelsey," he grinned.

"How're you feeling about your big win?" Lesley asked him, extending the microphone towards him for his answer.

"Well, obviously it's a huge honour," Liam explained. "This'll be my forth consecutive national final, but I've not won one yet, so I'm hopeful."

"Niall, what do you think about his achievement?"

"I'm so proud of him," Niall grinned up at Liam. Turning his attention to Kelsey, he told her, "He's been training really hard for this, so it's amazing to watch him achieving everything he's been working for."

"It must be a bit scary watching him train sometimes," Kelsey commented. "He's so much bigger than you, does that ever worry you?"

Niall snorted. "No, I know he'd never hit me." He pressed a little closer to Liam, who rubbed his shoulders comfortingly. "Actually, I love watching him train. It's weirdly relaxing."

Turning back to Liam, Kelsey asked, "Does he often watch you train? I can imagine having your lovely little boyfriend around would be distracting."

"He's not distracting," Liam shrugged, ducking to kiss to top of Niall's head. "Most of the time, anyway."

"Hey!" Niall protested playfully, elbowing the brunette.

With a laugh in her voice, Kelsey turned to the camera and recited her closing piece, prompting Liam to lead Niall off towards the changing rooms.

"I'm not distracting," Niall pouted up at the brunette as they reached Liam's changing room.

"You are when you come up behind me and kiss my back," Liam told him as he stripped off his top and wiped himself down with a towel.

Niall smirked and bit his lip. "Yeah, okay then," he giggled.

Shaking his head, Liam redressed himself in a T-shirt and sweatpants. "How about we go celebrate my win?" he suggested, wrapping his arms around Niall's middle.

"Hmm..." Niall hummed as though he was considering it, resting his hands against Liam's chest. "I suppose we can," he grinned.

 xXx

"Think you're ready for the final, Li?"

Liam glanced to his left to see Tony, another boxer, heading up to him as he made his way over to Niall. "I hope so," he chuckled. "I've just finished a two-hour session, so I'm not short on training."

"Here you go, Li," Niall grinned at him, handing the taller man his water bottle.

"Thanks, love." Liam leaned down and stole a quick kiss from the blonde before accepting the bottle.

Watching the exchange, Tony commented, "Must get a bit scary sometimes, Niall."

Niall frowned in confusion. "What would?"

"Dating Liam. He's so much bigger than you, isn't it intimidating?"

Shaking his head slowly, Niall explained, "I know he can protect me. He's not gonna hurt me."

"I know," Tony assured him. "But surely you've wondered."

Niall snorted through his nose. "No."

Ruffling Niall's hair to settle him, Liam told Tony, "I'd never have any reason to hurt him, there's no need for him to ever worry about it."

Tony raised his hands in surrender. "Sorry, sorry. I just know it's something people wonder a lot with you two."

"Liam's not actually a violent person," Niall huffed. "He's a boxer, not a monster."

"Hey, I know," Tony assured him.

"We'll see you later, Tony," Liam dismissed, grabbing his jacket in one hand and wrapping his other arm around Niall. He led the blonde out of the gym and to their car.

"Why do people think that?" Niall mumbled, folding his arms as Liam started the car.

"Because they want something to gossip about," Liam sighed. "If they can speculate about you being scared of me, the media has something to write about."

Niall sighed and dropped his head back against the seat. "I s'pose."

"We know better, though," Liam murmured, patting Niall's knee.

With another sigh, Niall pointed out, "We also know my last boyfriend did hit me."

"And if anyone touches you again, I'll hit them," Liam stated firmly.

A tiny smile quirked up the corner of Niall's mouth. "I know." He covered Liam's hand on his knee. "Oh, my mam texted me before. She wants to know when we can go see her."

"When the season's over," Liam nodded. "I'm in the final, so another week and a half at least... And there'll be press stuff for about a week after that."

Niall hummed. "I'll just have to let her know in advance, is all."

"Sure," Liam smiled.

 xXx

Niall looked up from cooking dinner when he heard Liam return home. "Hey," he grinned as Liam appeared in the living room. "How was training?"

"Long," Liam sighed, dropping his bag down beside the couch and heading over to lean against the island bench separating the living room from the kitchen. "How were things here?"

"Quiet," Niall shrugged, returning his focus to the pot on the stove. "Oh, I've booked our flights to Ireland, too."

Rubbing his eyes, Liam hummed, "When?"

"1pm on the 11th. I figured we could give ourselves a sleep-in since-"

"The 11th?" Liam interrupted with a frown. "I've still got press stuff then."

Niall glanced over his shoulder at him. "What? No you don't."

"Yes I do," Liam replied slowly, as though he was talking to a child.

Shaking his head, Niall protested, "You said you finished on the 10th."

"I don't finish until the 20th, Niall," Liam huffed.

"No, I texted you," Niall pressed, turning to face Liam. "You said the 10th."

"No, I said the 20th," Liam insisted, frustration seeping into his voice.

"You didn't."

"I did. You just read it wrong," Liam snapped.

Niall's mouth dropped open. "Are you saying I can't read a text message?" he asked disbelievingly, turning the stove down and abandoning it in favour of heading over to his boyfriend.

"I guess you can't, can you?"

"How dumb do you think I am?" Niall asked, offended.

Snorting, Liam replied, "Dumb enough to misread a clear text message."

"I didn't misread it; you said the 10th!" Niall insisted.

"I did not say the 10th!" Liam shouted.

"You did!"

"For fuck's sake, I can't go to Ireland on the 11th!" Liam yelled. "I don't care what you thought, I've got stuff to do!"

"I've told my mam that's when we'd be there," Niall huffed.

"I don't care! It's not happening!"

Folding his arms, Niall spat, "Stop shouting at me."

"Don't be such a fucking child," Liam scoffed.

"I'm not a child!"

"For fuck's sake, shut up!" Liam brought his arm back, hand clenched tightly in a fist.

Niall's eyes instantly widened and he scrambled backwards, stumbling on his own feet and falling flat on his butt. He backed himself right up against the kitchen bench, eyes filled with terror.

It took all of two seconds before Liam's face filled with realisation and horror, dropping his arm instantly. "Niall-"

"You were going to hit me." Niall's voice shook horribly, eyes filling with tears.

"I..." Liam backed away two steps, running his shaking hands through his hair. "Oh god..."

"You were going to punch me," Niall accused.

Liam covered his face with both hands, taking slow, deep breaths. "God, no..." He braced his hands against the island bench, head down as he continued his deep breaths. A sob left his mouth. "No, no, no, no, no..."

Niall shuddered on the kitchen floor, curling up in a tight ball. "You promised."

"Fuck, I'm so sorry, sweetheart." Liam straightened up and wiped the tears on his face, heading over to Niall. When the blonde shrank back from him, he slowly knelt to the floor and inched closer in the way one would approach a frightened animal. "Niall, I'm so sorry." Liam gently laid a hand on Niall's shoulder, blowing out a long, shaky breath before moving it up to cup his cheek. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, beautiful."

Sniffing, Niall demanded, "What the hell was that about?"

"It's been a really long day," Liam explained as calmly as he could, more tears threatening to fall. "My coach's new technique to get me fired up is to shout at me. All day, he's been shouting at me and I've been punching." Releasing a soothing breath, he whispered, "I'm so, so sorry, Niall. You didn't deserve that, not even the threat."

Swallowing hard, Niall slowly brought a hand up to cover Liam's against his cheek. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

"I almost hit you, Niall, I should be asking you that," Liam sniffled, holding Niall's face between his hands.

"No..." Rubbing Liam's hand, Niall realised, "You're really not okay, Liam." He slowly shifted onto his knees and looked up into Liam's eyes, brushing his slight curls from his face. "You were gone before I got up at seven, and you've been yelled at all day."

Blowing out a sigh, Liam whispered, "I never wanted to hit you, Niall."

"And you didn't," Niall assured him. "Babe, I've never seen you this stressed before." Settling his hands on Liam's broad shoulders, he leaned in to press a kiss against the brunette's forehead.

"Pete's just really set on me winning the final this year and doesn't seem to care what the training does to my mental health," Liam mumbled.

"I care." Stroking the back of Liam's head, Niall murmured, "I'm here for you, okay?"

Liam nodded and let himself take a few more deep breaths to calm down. "'M sorry I yelled."

"Me too." Niall kissed Liam's nose and sighed, "I can change the flights, it's not that big of a deal. I just... I swear you said the 10th."

Liam reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, then opened his messages with Niall.

'Babe what date does all your stuff finish? Mam's nagging me - Niall'

'10th :) - Liam'

'Thank yooooooooou xx - Niall'

"Shit," Liam whispered, eyes filling with tears again.

"Hey, it's okay," Niall cooed, wrapping his arms around Liam's neck. "It's okay, babe."

Squeezing his arms tightly around Niall's middle, Liam breathed out, "I nearly punched you over a typo. That I made."

"Ssh, ssh..." Niall pressed his lips against Liam's neck, stroking his fingers through the brunette's hair. "I'm not blaming you, okay? If anything, I'm sorry I got so worked up about it. You'd know when your stuff finishes better than I do."

"I'm sorry," Liam mumbled. "I'd never hit you, Niall, I'd never do that. Not ever. Not to you."

"Stop apologising," Niall instructed, rubbing Liam's back. "Let's have our dinner, then have a lie down, yeah?"

Liam blew out a breath, then nodded and pushed himself to his feet. "Okay."

Standing up himself, Niall sighed and wrapped his arms around Liam's middle, leaning his cheek against Liam's chest. "My Liam," he murmured.

 xXx

"...and he's done it! The Payne Train's first national title!"

Niall didn't wait in his usual way as the booming voices echoed through the arena. He pushed through the people to reach his boyfriend as he stepped out of the ring, finding himself swept up in Liam's arms and his breath kissed out of him. Pulling back to breathe, he squealed, "You did it!"

Beaming at the blonde, Liam lifted him off the ground and span him around once. "Christ," he panted, still puffing from his match.

"You did it, Liam, you won," Niall giggled.

Liam just grinned, pulling the blonde into a tight hug.

"Liam!"

Turning his attention to Kelsey as she approached them, Liam held Niall against his chest with a hand cradling the back of his head. "Kelsey," he acknowledged, his smile permanently stuck to his face.

"How does it feel to have won your first ever national title?" Kelsey asked, her own excitement obvious.

"It's amazing, I... I don't really have words to describe it," Liam admitted.

"Is there anyone you want to thank?"

Liam blew out a laugh. "Pete, my trainer, obviously, who's been pushing me through the past two weeks' worth of training relentlessly. The extra push he gave me was what I really needed. And my Niall, here, my rock," he grinned, stroking Niall's hair as the smaller man squeezed his arms around him. "I wouldn't've made it through the past two weeks without him keeping me sane and taking care of me."

"Do you have anything to say to the previous champ, who you just blew out of the water in the ring?"

"Good fight, man," Liam said seriously. "Really, great match."

"Give it up, everyone, for our new champion; The Payne Train!" Kelsey cheered. "UK number one!"

 xXx

When they finally dragged themselves into bed that night, Liam yawned, "I'm exhausted."

Niall cuddled into the brunette's chest, draping one arm over his waist. "My champion," Niall giggled, kissing Liam's shoulder. "You've had a huge evening."

"Yeah." Kissing Niall's hair, Liam murmured, "I was serious, y'know. When I said I couldn't've done that without you."

"I'm your rock?" Niall asked quietly.

"You sure are. The one person who's always looking out for me." Pulling Niall up enough so they were face to face, Liam smiled, "My tiny little Niall rock."

Niall pouted. "I'm not tiny."

"Look at you," Liam laughed, rolling onto his back and pulling Niall with him so the blonde was straddling him. "Light as a feather. My tiny Niall." He tugged Niall into a long kiss, his arms coiled tightly around the smaller man.

Shrugging, Niall hummed, "You love me."

Moving to sit on Liam's desk, Jeremy asked, "Will you be going alone?"

Liam felt a warmth settle in his stomach. "Um, no, actually. I'm bringing someone with me."

Jeremy's eyebrows shot up. "Oh really?" He squared his shoulders and headed for the lift. "I'll see you tonight, Mr Payne."

The second Jeremy was gone, Louis blurted out, "You didn't tell me you had a date!"

"I didn't want to make a big deal about it," Liam shrugged, eyes down.

"But it's the guy from last week, yeah?" Louis pressed, interest glimmering in his eyes.

"Yeah," Liam murmured, unable to fight his smile. "I don't know how well it'll go down with Jeremy, though."

"Why?"

Liam chewed his lip. "It's hard to explain."

"Alright then," Louis nodded firmly. "I'll just have to see for myself tonight."

Liam's eyes widened. "Y'mean... I've actually found a way to get you to come along to a work function?" He grinned at Louis' glare. "I have! Yes!" Liam spun around in his chair and punched the air.

"If you don't shut it, I'll find a way to embarrass you in front of your date," Louis threatened.

"I do that enough myself, I doubt you could make it worse," liam snorted.

Louis sent him a smirk. "Challenge accepted."

 xXx

"Maybe this isn't a good idea," Liam mumbled as he parked his car outside the hall of the function.

Niall reached across and squeezed Liam's hand. "We'll be fine. What can he do in front of all your workmates and your rival company?"

Taking a deep breath, Liam nodded his head. "You're right." He glanced to the blonde and sighed. "You look gorgeous," he murmured.

"Of course I do," Niall grinned. Leaning over to kiss Liam's mouth, he whispered, "You look pretty amazing yourself."

Kissing Niall softly once more, Liam smiled, "Never as good as you."

"Shut up," Niall giggled, leaning back to open his door.

"What, are you telling me I can't complement my boyfriend?" Liam asked as he walked around the car to Niall's side and wrapped his arm around the smaller man.

"Not in public," Niall chuckled. "Wait 'til I can get you somewhere private and kiss you senseless before you say things like that."

Liam laughed and started them towards the hall "Okay." He showed the man at the door his work ID, then led Niall through to where people in suits and posh dresses were gathered.

"Liam!" Louis greeted with his arms extended for a hug, drawing a little more attention than Liam was entirely comfortable with.

"Hey, Lou," Liam smiled, hugging his workmate briefly. "On the drink already, I see."

"How else am I going to get through this thing?" Louis snorted. His attention moved on to Niall, who had both arms wrapped loosely around one of Liam's. "And who would you be?" he asked with hints of a smirk.

Liam rolled his eyes. "Lou, this's Niall," he explained, patting Niall's hand on his arm. "Niall, this loudmouth here is Louis. I work in the same office as him."

"Very pleased to meet you, Niall," Louis grinned, sticking his hand out to shake and gripping Niall's hand firmly when he accepted. "I recognise you from somewhere..." His eyes widened. "Hang on, you've come to the office before. You were in the lift the other day."

Offering Louis a polite smile, Niall replied, "I've been to a few of these functions before, too. How come I've never seen you at these before?"

Louis snorted again. "These things are dead boring. The only reason I came this time was to meet the mysterious date Liam was bringing."

"Opinion?" Niall asked cheekily.

A smirk formed on Louis' face. "So far, I approve."

"Nice to know," Liam added sarcastically.

"Hey, it's nice to know your friends like me," Niall pointed out, nudging Liam's shoulder with his head.

Face melting into an adoring smile, Liam supposed, "That's fair enough."

"Liam, Louis, how are you?"

Liam turned to find Jeremy standing behind them. "Fine, thank you."

Jeremy's eyes opened wide when they fell on Niall. "I..." He looked to Liam in shock, then quickly composed himself. "Niall," he greeted stiffly.

"Evening, Jeremy," Niall replied lightly, only Liam noticing his grip on his arm tighten. "How nice to see you."

"And you." The slow glare Jeremy gave Liam could cut glass with its intensity. "Do enjoy yourselves, won't you?" he added coldly before stalking away.

"That could've gone smoother," Liam commented quietly.

Nodding once, Niall reminded him, "He can't do anything, though."

The night was filled with speeches and mingling and smalltalk, culminating in couples making the most of the music on the wide floor.

Taking a sip of their expensive champagne, Niall sighed, "I've never had the chance to do that properly," nodding towards the dancing couples. "I've only done it with guys grabbing my arse or giving me hickeys."

Gazing at the blonde for a moment, Liam suddenly sat his glass down on the table they were standing beside. "Well then, my darling, would you do me the honour of this dance?" he asked, offering his hand.

Niall grinned widely and accepted, abandoning his champagne in favour of following Liam onto the floor. He clasped his hands behind Liam's neck as the brunette held his hips and began to sway them to the music. "Thank you," he beamed.

"Well, I brought you along, I want you to enjoy yourself," Liam murmured, lightly bumping their noses together.

"How are you so perfect?" Niall whispered, tears gathering in his eyes.

"I'm not perfect, sweetheart," Liam assured him. "But I'm trying my best for you."

Niall sniffled and leaned into the taller man, resting his cheek on Liam's shoulder as he was gently pulled closer by his hips. "I don't even know how to thank you for all this," he mumbled into Liam's neck.

"Then don't, yeah? Just let me do it."

Letting a few tears fall, Niall slid one hand to hold Liam's cheek, then leaned up enough to kiss him. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," he whispered between long, intimate presses of lips.

With one last kiss, Liam pulled away with a smile. "Wait 'til we're home, yeah, babe?"

Niall nodded and leaned his cheek against Liam's chest, letting the brunette wrap both arms around hum tightly and kiss the top of his head.

Liam sighed and squeezed the smaller man tightly. His eyes met Louis'.

"Happy for you," Louis mouthed with a grin and subtle thumbs-up.

Liam merely smiled in return. As the song came to an end, he pulled away from Niall enough to see his face. "Let's go, eh?"

"Yeah," Niall agreed quietly, giving Liam's cheek a peck.

 xXx

'I'm just looking out for you babe. We spent the whole weekend cuddling, I want to know you're alright after this  - Liam'

Niall smiled down at his phone as he stepped into the lift at Liam's workplace.

'I'll text you as soon as I'm out. Promise - Niall'

'You better xx - Liam'

Shaking his head, Niall slipped his phone into his jacket pocket and zipped it shut, bracing himself as the lift doors opened. He blew out a deep breath as he approached Jeremy's office, then knocked lightly on the open door. "Hello, Daddy."

Jeremy lifted his head. "Hello, baby." He stood from his desk and walked around to lean against the front of it, arms folded. "How are you?"

"I'm good," Niall replied innocently, slinking over to the desk to stand between Jeremy's legs. "How's your day been?" he asked, sliding his thumbs through the older man's belt loops.

"Same old," Jeremy shrugged, not moving to touch Niall at all.

Feeling a knot of nerves settle in his chest, Niall continued, "Bossing people around." He slid his hands up Jeremy's chest, asking, "Being all big and powerful?"

Jeremy suddenly grabbed Niall's wrists. "No, but I'm about to be," he stated coldly. He suddenly spun them around, pushing Niall down so his back hit the desk. "How's it feel so far, baby?"

Niall opened his mouth to speak, then swallowed hard when nothing came.

"Well?" Jeremy slammed Niall's hands down on the desk by his shoulders.

"Ow," Niall mumbled softly.

Jeremy pouted over-dramatically at him. "Aw, does that hurt, baby?" His face went hard and he grabbed Niall's shoulders, lifting and slamming him against the desk.

Shaking his head, Niall stated, "That's not okay." He tried to push Jeremy back, but the man grabbed both of his wrists in one hand. "That's not okay," Niall repeated firmly. He let out a pained yelp when Jeremy grabbed him by the hair and yanked his head up.

"Did you have fun with Payne?" Jeremy spat. "I saw you two. Kissing in front of everyone, not caring about the fact that people know you'd been there with me."

"Let me go," Niall demanded, but the quiver in his voice took away the edge.

Jeremy snorted. "And let Payne get his hands on you again? I don't think so." He smacked Niall's head back against the desk, then hauled him upright before shoving him roughly into the side wall of the room. "How dare you do that to me?" He growled, marching over and yanking Niall back up by his shoulders. "How fucking dare you?!"

"Get off me!" Niall tried again to shove the man back.

"Fuck you, slut." Jeremy gripped Niall's wrists one-handed again and started unfastening the blonde's jeans.

Struggling against his grip, Niall shouted, "Get off! Get off me!"

"It's your job, though, slut," Jeremy replied patronisingly, starting to tug Niall's jeans off bit by bit.

"I'm not a slut."

"Bullshit. You'll take whatever's going."

Niall spat directly in Jeremy's face.

Fuming, Jeremy yelled, "You little bitch!" and landed his fist against Niall's nose.

Briefly disoriented, Niall kicked and caught Jeremy in the knee, giving himself enough time to fight free and bolt for the lift.

"Fuck you, slut!" Jeremy screamed after him.

Once he was safely in the lift, Niall felt tears rush down his face, pulling off his jacket to bundle it up under his nose, which was gushing blood. He dug his phone out of its pocket and sent Liam a shaky text message, smearing blood across his phone screen.

'Lobby please now - Niall'

 xXx

Liam glanced to his phone when it buzzed, frowning in confusion. "That was fast," he muttered, opening the message from Niall. His frown deepened when he read it. "Back in a sec, Lou."

"Alright," Louis replied absently, gaze fixed on his computer screen.

Liam quickly hopped in the lift, chewing his thumbnail as he watched the glowing red numbers descend, his frown still present. When the lift dinged, he stepped out and looked around.

"Liam..." croaked a shaky yet familiar voice from behind him.

Liam spun around, jaw dropping in horror when he found Niall curled up on the floor beside the lift, back against the wall. His face was wet with tears and blood, a bruise already forming around his left eye. "Niall!" Liam fell to his knees beside the blonde, instantly wrapping one arm around his back. "Niall, Niall, no, no, no..." He gently moved the jacket away from Niall's face to inspect the damage before letting him press it back again. "God, sweetheart, what's he done to you?"

"He was really mad," Niall hiccupped, voice muffled slightly by the jacket. "At first he just pushed me a bit, b-but he just got r-rougher and he tried to get my jeans off, so I spat at him and he punched me." More tears rushed to his eyes. "God, Liam, he was so mad," he sobbed.

"Ssh," Liam cooed, stroking Niall's cheek. "I've got you, sweetheart, I've got you." Pressing a kiss to Niall's forehead, he murmured, "We're gonna go up to my floor so I can get my keys, and then we're going to the hospital, okay?"

"Okay," Niall nodded meekly. He let him help him to his feet and into the lift, leaning into the brunette during their journey.

"Liam, what's the-? Oh my god, what happened?!" Louis blurted out, cutting himself off mid-question when he saw Liam and Niall step out of the lift.

Shaking his head, Liam dismissed, "It's a long story, I just need my keys." He snatched them up off his desk and started Niall back towards the lift.

"Can I do anything?" Louis asked quickly. "Call the police or something?"

"No," Niall said suddenly.

Again shaking his head, Liam told his workmate, "No, Lou, it's fine. Thanks though." He helped Niall back into the lift, then out and into his car. "How could he do this to you?" Liam muttered, starting the car and pulling out onto the road. "How dare he?"

Niall reached a shaky, blood-coated hand over to cover Liam's on the gearstick. "Please don't talk about it," he whispered.

So the drive to the hospital was silent, bar the occasional comment from Liam about the quality of others' driving. Once they arrived, Liam jumped out and helped Niall towards Accident and Emergency. The woman behind the desk took one look at the blood and was quick to usher them through to see a nurse.

"What's your name?" asked a kindly thirty-something nurse as she approached the bed Liam had helped Niall onto.

"Niall."

The nurse scrawled his name down on a clipboard. "What happened here, then?"

"I was abused by a client," Niall replied softly.

The woman gave him a look from head to toe, then pulled the curtain around the bed. "Client?" she pressed gently, carefully removing the jacket from Niall's face.

"I'm an escort," Niall explained, keeping his voice down.

"What did your client do?" the nurse asked as she inspected Niall's nose and eye.

"He was... he was angry because he'd seen me with another client. He started shoving me against things and punched me when I tried to fight back." Swallowing hard, Niall added, "He also tried to take my jeans off, but he was only using one hand so he didn't get far."

As she continued to work, the nurse asked gently, "If he had been able, do you believe he would have raped you?"

"Absolutely," Niall breathed out.

"And how're you feeling?"

"Scared," Niall whispered, feeling Liam wrap his arm tightly around his waist. "And... and dizzy."

Patting Niall's knee, the nurse assured him, "That will pass. You lost a lot of blood, that's why you feel dizzy. And it could also be from shock."

Niall carefully nodded his head. "What about my nose?"

"Miraculously, it's not broken. But it will be tender for a day or so, and the bleeding will probably start again if you blow your nose too hard," the nurse explained. "I will test you for concussion, though."

"Okay."

Liam stayed silent throughout the test and verdict that Niall did indeed have a slight concussion. He watched the nurse fill out a form, which she then gave to Niall.

"Do you have an agency?" she checked. When Niall nodded, the nurse told him, "Give that to them. I don't want you working for at least a week. Come back on Friday and I'll give you another look, okay? Bring this with you." She filled in another form, then folded it in half and scrawled 'Hospital Friday' on the back. "Just so you remember the difference," she smiled.

"Thanks," Niall said softly.

"With your concussion, I don't want you on your own, okay? Is there someone who can stay with you to make sure you're alright?"

"I can," Liam finally spoke up, pressing a kiss against Niall's temple.

The nurse nodded. "Wake him up every couple of hours of a night and ask him these questions," she instructed, handing Liam a sheet of paper. "If he gets five more wrong than he did this time, bring him back."

Rubbing a hand up and down Niall's back, Liam confirmed, "I will."

Smiling, the nurse told them, "Alright, I'm going to get you some cloths so you can clean your face up."

"Thank you." Once the nurse had disappeared behind the curtain again, Niall mumbled, "'M sorry for dragging you into this."

Liam shook his head. "It's not your fault. If anything, it's my fault for taking you to the function on Friday." Brushing Niall's hair from his forehead, he supposed, "But I wouldn't know you if it wasn't for Jeremy. So it's entirely his fault."

Niall managed a weak little smile. "At least I'll never work with him again." At Liam's questioning look, he explained, "He'll be barred for that."

The nurse returned with cloths. "Here we go," she smiled.

"Thank you," Niall said whole-heartedly.

"It's my job," the woman shrugged.

Liam grabbed a cloth and started wiping the drying blood off Niall's chin. "We'll clean you up, then head to your agency, yeah?"

"Yeah," Niall sighed. He sat still and let Liam clean his face and neck, then grabbed a cloth to wipe his own hands on. "My head feels like it's about to explode," he mumbled, pressing the heel of his hand against his forehead.

"That's hardly surprising. I'll get you some painkillers for that," the nurse assured him, disappearing again.

Shifting a little, Niall whispered, "Can you help me up, Li?"

Liam instantly wrapped his other arm around the blonde. "Course I can." He gently aided Niall to stand on the floor, holding him up against his side.

"Here," the nurse said upon her return, offering Niall a plastic cup of water and a pill. "No more than two of those every four hours," she instructed Liam as she handed him a small box.

"Right. Thank you," he sighed gratefully.

The nurse offered them a final smile. "No problem at all."

 xXx

Once Liam finally pulled into his driveway, he blew out a long sigh and glanced to Niall. The blonde was fidgeting in his lap, eyes down. "Hey," Liam murmured, reaching over to grasp both of Niall's hands with one of his own. "You feeling okay?"

Niall sighed through his nose, then gave Liam a small smile. "I will once we're cuddled up watching a movie."

A fond look filled Liam's features. "Let's get inside, yeah?"

"Yeah," Niall nodded. He waited for Liam to come around the car and help him out of his seat, then leaned against the brunette for support as they made their way inside.

"So..." Liam stopped, then sighed. "I know you're probably not up for talking about it, but I need to check because I didn't quite get my head around it before."

Carefully settling himself on Liam's couch, Niall assured him, "If you're only gonna be worrying about it, we can talk about it."

"Well... I was just wondering what happens with Jeremy," Liam admitted as he sat beside the blonde. "I mean, I know he's been barred, but... what does that mean?"

Niall grabbed Liam's hand and began to play with his fingers. "Well, he's banned from business with me. And because of that, I doubt any of the others will take him on. I know I've rejected a few guys that the others have had barred. But the agency's got the police involved in this one." He glanced up at Liam. "Because of what he did to me and why, my agency reckoned it was probably best if the police were informed."

"Are you going to press charges?" Liam asked.

"I... I don't know. The agency's telling me I should, for my own safety and for others, but I don't know if I want to get all tangled up in a legal battle."

"But there wouldn't be a battle," Liam half-laughed. "He has no excuse for what he did."

"I... I s'pose..." He kept his eyes on their hands.

Scooting a little closer, Liam asked quietly, "What's wrong, babe?"

Niall clung onto Liam's hand tightly. "It wasn't that I'd gone with you. It was that we were kissing in public. A lot of your rivals know that I've been to functions with Jeremy, and he was furious that we so publically... well, embarrassed him, I suppose."

"That doesn't give him the right to nearly break your nose," Liam stated firmly. "There was no intention to embarrass him. Make him jealous, sure, but not embarrassed. And kissing you..." Liam shook his head. "There was no malicious intent behind that at all. I wasn't thinking about Jeremy, I was thinking about you."

"You didn't start it, though," Niall whispered.

"Well, you weren't thinking about him either... Were you?"

Niall snorted and shook his head. "I was too busy thinking about how amazingly sweet you are. I couldn't give a fuck about Jeremy; we were dancing and I was just so genuinely happy." Sighing heavily, he mumbled, "And look where that got me."

"It got you here, with me, about to watch Back To The Future," Liam murmured. He beamed when Niall cracked a smile, leaning in and kissing him.

"Ow," Niall squeaked when their noses bumped.

"Sorry." Gently kissing Niall's nose, Liam gave him another smile before hopping up to organise the movie.

 xXx

"So, tell us what happened yesterday afternoon."

Niall shuffled closer to Liam's side, watching Jeremy being questioned through a one-way mirror. He glanced to the police officer in the small side-room with them, then back at Jeremy.

"Nothing," Jeremy replied, leaning back in the chair his hands were cuffed behind.

"Nothing?" the investigating officer sat opposite Jeremy asked, raising her eyebrow. "No work, then?"

Jeremy smirked slightly. "I was working, obviously."

"And you didn't have any visitors?"

"No."

The officer sighed, then produced a few photographs from the file in front of her. "The security cameras at your office suggest otherwise."

Jeremy's eyes narrowed. "He wasn't a visitor."

"What was he there for?"

"What's it to you?" Jeremy retorted.

"I'd like you to explain to me why Mr Horan left your office running with blood all over his face," the officer told Jeremy, folding her hands on the desk between them.

Snorting, Jeremy spat, "Because he's a little slut who can't keep his hands to himself."

The officer raised her eyebrow again. "As an escort, Mr Horan has many clients. You are but one. What business is it of yours if he's with another client?"

Leaning across the table with a glare, Jeremy growled, "It's my business because the fucker he was with works for me."

"Your relationship to Mr Horan's clients doesn't impact the fact that their exchanges are none of your business." Sitting up straighter, the officer asked him, "What did you do to him?"

"I treated him the way he deserves."

The officer tilted her head challengingly. "And what would you say if I told you we have enough evidence to charge you for attempted rape?"

"It's not rape if I pay him for it," Jeremy spat back.

"If Mr Horan was unwilling, then it's rape, regardless of what you give him for it."

"He was there for sex!" Jeremy protested.

"That was before you started physically abusing him," the officer very nearly snapped in return. Composing herself, she asked, "Did you punch Niall Horan in the nose?"

"Yes," Jeremy smirked, sending the officer his own challenging stare. "Because the little slut deserved it."

"And would you have had sex with him after punching him?"

"Gladly."

Pushing herself to her feet, the officer stated, "Jeremy Short, I'm arresting you for the assault and attempted rape of Niall Horan. You do not have to say anything. Anything you do say may later be used as evidence against you in court."

Niall watched from the little room as two officers grabbed Jeremy and took him from sight. He glanced up at Liam, who kissed his forehead and held him close.

"Are you satisfied with the charges, Niall?" asked the officer in the room with them.

"Assault and attempted rape... Yeah." Nodding his head, Niall blew out a shaky sigh. "Yeah, that covers it."

"What are you hoping to achieve?" the man asked.

"Justice." Wrapping both arms around Liam for support, Niall told the officer, "I want to feel safe, knowing he can't do that to me or anyone else again."

The officer nodded in understanding. "You can both go, now," he assured them. "And no matter the final verdict, you can feel safe knowing, for now, he's in custody."

"Thank you."

With a hand in the small of Niall's back, Liam led him out to the car. "We should do something," he spoke up. "Like, go for a walk, or find a café and have a cuppa."

Niall frowned slightly. "Why?"

"Why not?" Liam shrugged. "We've been spending all our time together shut in at my place. We should get out and do something."

After a moment's thought, Niall dropped his eyes and mumbled, "But my nose..."

Liam kissed the top of the blonde's head. "You look fine, babe," he assured him, lightly running his finger down the bridge of Niall's nose.

Staring at Liam blankly, Niall stated, "It's fucking purple, Liam."

Holding Niall's face in both hands, Liam murmured, "If it would make you feel more comfortable, we can go back to mine and watch some TV instead."

Niall thought for a moment, then sighed and closed his eyes. "Can we go back to yours?" he whispered.

"Of course we can, babe," Liam assured him, pecking Niall's lips. He let Niall into the car, then headed around to the driver's side and hopped in.

Once they were on their way to Liam's, Niall mumbled, "You don't want to go home."

Liam opened his mouth to speak, then sighed heavily. "It's okay."

"It's not, you want to go out and I'm being a miserable sod."

Reaching over and grabbing Niall's hands in one of his own, Liam assured him, "It's alright. We can do this slowly. You've nearly had your nose broken and you're feeling self-conscious about it. That's perfectly okay."

Niall heaved a sigh and stared silently out the window for a while. "Surely I should be doing something for you. That's what a relationship is, isn't it?"

"Maybe," Liam shrugged, giving Niall's hands a squeeze. "But I want to look after you, so technically you're doing something for me by letting me baby you."

Shaking his head with a slight smile, Niall returned his gaze to the window.

 xXx

"This show's weird."

Niall glanced up at Liam from where his head was resting in the brunette's lap. "Hm?"

"This show," Liam repeated, nodding to the screen, "is weird."

"When I was at school, people were always like, 'You need to watch Misfits!' And I always thought it'd be a waste of time, but it's actually a lot better than I expected."

Slowly shaking his head, Liam frowned, "There's so much random sex. And isn't that the creepy guy from Game of Thrones?"

Niall rolled his eyes. "This is older than the Game of Thrones TV show, so technically he's from this. But yeah, it is Ramsay Snow."

Shaking his head some more, Liam maintained, "There's so much sex, though."

"Story of my life," Niall chuckled. He sighed when Liam looked away from him. "You can't keep doing that."

"It's just... I don't like thinking about it," Liam told him, distinct notes of distress in his voice. "And you bring it up so casually."

"It's my job." Sitting himself up, Niall pulled himself over to straddle Liam's lap. "It doesn't mean anything other than money. I don't have any feelings about what I do with my clients, it's just what I do to earn." He angled Liam's face up towards his own. "I have a lot of feelings for you, though," he murmured, leaning into a kiss.

Liam sighed through his nose, relaxing under Niall and losing himself in their kisses, hands settling on the smaller man's hips. He sucked a breath in when Niall pushed himself closer so they were chest to chest, their hips pressed close together. It was when Niall started to slowly roll his crotch down on his and unbutton his shirt that Liam pulled away. "Stop," he breathed out, gripping Niall's hips tightly to keep him still.

Niall grazed his lips along Liam's jaw. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want you to think I only want you around for sex," Liam sighed.

"I know you don't." Pulling back, Niall studied Liam's face for a moment before rolling his eyes and sitting himself back on the brunette's thighs. Folding his arms, he huffed, "So this is going to be a completely sexless relationship."

Rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands, Liam shook his head. "This isn't easy for me to get my head around, Niall. Anything we do together, you will have done with someone else."

"With absolutely no attachment to that person. Liam, I hardly pay attention when someone's fucking me. I hope to actually participate when I'm with you." When Liam didn't move, Niall huffed again and climbed off him before heading for the hallway.

"Niall?" Liam called out before the blonde could disappear. "Where're you going?"

"To the bathroom," Niall muttered.

Watching the blonde leave, Liam bit his lip, then lurched up out of his seat and hurried after him. "Niall." He wrapped his arms around the smaller man from behind just as Niall reached the bathroom doorway. "I'm sorry," he mumbled into the blonde's neck.

Pressing his palm against his forehead, Niall mumbled, "The first time in ages someone gets me horny, and he doesn't want me."

"No one said that," Liam half-laughed. He held the blonde close, pressing kisses from Niall's shoulder up to behind his ear. "I do want you."

Pressing himself back against Liam's body, Niall hummed, "Then do something about it."

Liam moved his hands back to Niall's hips, then slowly brought them up his sides. "Can we go lie down?" he whispered.

Turning his head around enough to steal a quick kiss, Niall grasped both of Liam's hands. "Sure we can." He let Liam guide him the rest of the way down the hall, smiling slightly at him when the brunette pushed the bedroom door shut behind them. "No one's here to see, y'know," he murmured as Liam helped him stretch out on his back on the bed.

"I know, just..." Liam shrugged one shoulder, situating himself between Niall's legs and leaning over him, bracing himself on his hands either side of the blonde's head. "It would feel weird. 'S like how I shut the door when I go to bed of a night. Feels like shutting the world out for a while."

Niall shook his head fondly. "You're getting distracted."

"I'm definitely not," Liam breathed out, his lips contacting with Niall's neck. He worked Niall's T-shirt up, pulling back enough to aid him in tugging the shirt over his head and tossing it over the side of the bed. Sparing a moment to graze his fingertips over the few bruises on Niall's ribs and stomach, Liam moved in to press slow kisses down the blonde's neck and chest. "Gorgeous," he mumbled into Niall's skin.

"Liam," Niall breathed out, letting the fingers of his left hand tangle in Liam's hair.

Quickly unbuttoning his shirt and tugging it off, Liam continued pressing kisses against Niall's skin and started to pull the blonde's sweatpants down. "You okay up there?" he checked, glancing up at Niall.

Cheeks and chest flushed, Niall tore his gaze from the ceiling to meet Liam's eyes and panted, "Yeah, good."

"Good." Kissing at Niall's tummy as he slid the blonde's boxers off, Liam murmured, "You're so lovely." He smoothed his hands from Niall's thighs to his waist and back again, then wrapped his lips around the head of his cock.

"Fuck, Liam," Niall gasped, his fingers in Liam's hair tightening sharply. His hips jerked upwards, Liam holding him down with one hand as he started to bob his head slowly. "Ugh... shit..." Glancing down at Liam briefly, Niall found the brunette watching him, noticing how he had shoved a hand down his own pants to bring himself off. "Fuck..." Niall groaned, head dropping back on the pillow as Liam increased the pressure on his dick.

Liam hummed, letting his eyes close for a moment before focussing on holding himself up using his core and sliding his free hand up Niall's stomach, stroking his skin.

Back slowly arching more and more, Niall tugged on Liam's hair as the taller man started moving faster, his tongue creating the perfect pressure against his cock. "Liam, I'm... fuck..."

Jerking himself off faster, Liam felt himself coming in his pants. He released a groan around Niall's cock, swallowing when the blonde's hips lurched up as he came with a short cry. Pulling his head up, Liam removed his hand from his pants to brace himself on the bed, his forehead pressed against Niall's hipbone as he panted for breath.

"Whoa..." Niall breathed out, chest still heaving. He released Liam's hair, then grasped the taller man's hand against his tummy in both of his own and held it to his chest. "Liam."

Liam lifted his head, then pulled himself up to stretch out beside Niall, his hand still in the blonde's grasp. "You good?" he checked again, wiping his free hand quickly on his jeans before brushing Niall's hair from his face.

"Yeah," Niall breathed out. He closed his eyes for a moment, then met Liam's gaze. "Thank you," he whispered.

"Any time," Liam chuckled, kissing Niall's forehead. He smiled when Niall leaned in to kiss him before he could pull away. "Better?"

"Definitely," Niall grinned. Rolling onto his side, he curled into Liam's chest. "You've done that before," he commented.

Snorting, Liam half-laughed, "I have some experience, yeah."

"Must've had a good teacher," Niall hummed, pressing his lips against Liam's sternum.

"Not really," Liam muttered. "He was a real dick. Never gave me anything to go off, so I just had to assume what I was doing was good."

"And didn't give back?" Niall guessed.

"No... How'd you know?" Liam frowned.

Smirking, Niall murmured, "Because you were getting yourself off while you were down there." Stroking his fingers down Liam's side, he added, "You didn't have to. I could've returned the favour."

Liam shook his head, then kissed Niall's hair. "This was about you. Besides, I don't know if I'd want you giving head when your nose isn't healed yet."

"Oh yeah." Laughing into Liam's chest, Niall hummed, "I'd forgotten all about it."

"Good."

After a prolonged silence, Niall felt Liam moving, glancing up at him as the brunette sat up. "What're you doing?"

Liam stood and stripped himself of his jeans, then scooped Niall up off the bed. "We're gonna go have a shower, and then have some dinner." Catching Niall's lips in a kiss, he mumbled, "And then we're gonna cuddle because you're just right for cuddling."

"Thanks," Niall laughed, wrapping his arms around Liam's neck as the brunette carried him towards the bathroom.

 xXx

"Hey, is Niall okay?" Louis asked as Liam arrived at work the following Monday.

Setting his bag down beside his desk, Liam assured his workmate, "He's fine. All dealt with, nothing to worry about. How's things been here?"

Louis frowned at that. "Well, Jeremy's been arrested. Assault, apparently. They're having a board meeting tonight to replace him, since no one wants that kind of reputation attached to the company."

Nodding his head, Liam supposed, "He won't be creeping us out anymore."

"Yeah..." Louis tilted his head curiously as Liam sat himself down. "You don't seem surprised to hear any of this."

Liam sighed heavily. "I'm not." He turned his chair so he was facing his workmate. "I should probably explain. Niall's an escort."

Louis' eyebrows shot up. "You've been paying for an escort?"

"No, just hear me out, yeah?" Once Louis nodded, Liam continued, "The other week when you sent me up to take a file to Jeremy, I walked in on him fucking Niall on the desk. I caught up to Niall in the lift, he gave me his number... It'sa bit more complicated than that, but we kinda started seeing each other." Sighing, Liam ran a hand backwards through his hair. "Jeremy usually hires Niall for functions. I knew he'd hired him for the last one, so I booked Niall first. By the time we went to the function we were together, so it was less of a business thing and more of a date thing. Anyway, Jeremy got really mad about it. He booked Niall to meet him in his office, which he'd apparently been doing for the past two months or so, but he started shoving him and hitting him because he thought me and Niall had been trying to embarrass him at the function."

Louis nodded slowly as he took this in. "So... that's why Niall was bleeding last week? Because Jeremy hit him?"

"Yeah, punched him in the nose," Liam confirmed. "Nothing broken, but Niall's agency got the police involved. That's why Jeremy was arrested. For assault and attempted rape."

Slumping back in his seat, Louis merely muttered, "Mate..."

Liam shrugged one shoulder. "I took last week off to look after Niall. He had a minor concussion and needed someone with him at all times."

Louis shook his head in disbelief. "Well, fuck me." He blew out a humourless laugh. "At least we know that office gossip is relatively accurate."

Liam snorted. "I s'pose so."

"So... where's Niall?"

"Back at work," Liam shrugged, setting up his laptop.

"Being an escort?" Louis asked dubiously.

"Yep."

After a moment's silence, Louis noted, "You're not happy about it."

Liam chewed his lip, then pointed out, "My boyfriend has sex for money. It's just a bit... I'm still getting my head around it."

"Is he gonna stop?" Louis asked.

"I have no idea," Liam sighed. "But I don't want him to quit his job for me. That's his decision. Besides, nothing he does with any of his clients has even half the meaning of what he does with me."

Louis nodded. "And you're okay with that?"

Liam thought for a moment. "Yeah, I think I am." He gave his workmate a slight smile. "No one else gets to spend the night with him." Laughing, he amended, "Not unless they're willing to spend the £200 an hour for it."

Louis' eyes nearly bulged out of his head. "Man, you've got yourself a good one!"

"I know," Liam grinned.

Both men looked to the lift when the doors opened. "Niall?" Louis' eyes widened in surprise.

"You okay, babe?" Liam asked as Niall approached him, wrapping an arm around the blonde's hips when he was close enough.

"Yeah," Niall assured him with a smile. "Just wanted to show you this." He handed Liam a piece of paper.

Skimming through the text, Liam's mouth dropped open. "A job offer?"

"Yeah," Niall grinned, combing his fingers through Liam's hair. "At the café just down the street. I need to call them for confirmations, but I should be starting Monday next week."

Liam's mouth opened and closed silently, then he looked up at the blonde. "How...? When did-? But-"

"Shut up," Niall laughed, leaning down to kiss Liam's stuttering lips. "I told you, when I find the right guy, I'll quit my other job."

Liam was silent for a few more moments, then blew out a laugh and pulled Niall down into his lap. "You're so precious," he whispered, kissing the blonde wholeheartedly.

"Thank you," Niall grinned.

"Congrats, Niall," Louis piped up.

"Thanks, Louis." Hopping up off Liam's lap, Niall chuckled, "I should probably head home and let you get some work done. Just wanted to show you that."

"Alright. I'll see you tonight?" Liam checked as Niall headed for the lift.

"Of course you will," Niall replied with a wink before disappearing into the lift.

"Well," Louis started after a few minutes stunned silence. "It's been an eventful day already, and its only 9:15."

"Let's pray to god that we don't get any more excitement for the day, eh?" Liam laughed breathlessly. Grinning to himself as he checked his emails, he found himself feeling glad that Louis had insisted on him going up to their boss' office those weeks ago.

"Liam, can you take this up to Jeremy?"

Glancing up at his co-worker, Liam frowned, "Just ring him, Louis."

"Phones aren't working," Louis shrugged, waving a file at Liam. "Go on, you know he'll be out of here at five on the dot."

"Why don't you take it?" Liam huffed as he opened yet another email about the impending function the office had to attend.

"Because I'm older than you."

Liam groaned and thumped his forehead against his desk before pushing himself to his feet and snatching the file from Louis' outstretched hand. "You won't be able to use that excuse forever, y'know," he grumbled, then headed for the lift to the sounds of Louis snickering behind him.

As he stood in the lift waiting for it to take him to his boss' floor, Liam heaved out a sigh and stretched his neck. He watched the glowing red numbers as they slowly counted up, the metal box finally creaking to a stop. Taking a deep breath, Liam stepped out onto the floor.

It was then that he heard it.

There were definite moans filtering into the short hallway from the open door at the end, followed by, "C'mon, take it, baby."

Eyes open wide, Liam slowly approached the sounds, stopping in the open doorway. The sight before him consisted of a naked blonde man on his hands and knees on the desk, legs spread so wide his stomach almost touched the tabletop, with Liam's boss stood by the end of the desk balls-deep in him.

"So big, Daddy," the blonde panted high and airily, a sound that didn't seem to match the slight grimace on his face. "Can feel you in my tummy."

Liam's boss groaned and grabbed the blonde by his hips, yanking him back onto him in short, harsh jolts. "Yes," he groaned, tugging the blonde towards him twice more before stopping, chest heaving and a satisfied smirk plastered across his face.

Liam's mind went blank. "Um..."

Both men looked to him, the blonde turning a deep shade of red and quickly turning away while Liam's boss just smirked more. "Liam," he drawled, pulling out of the blonde on the desk and patting his bum twice. "What can I do for you?"

"I, um..." Liam trailed off, distracted by the blonde scrambling to collect his boxers and tug them on. Shaking his head quickly, he returned his focus to his boss. "Jeremy. Um, Louis wanted me to give you this." He held out the file.

Once he had disposed of his condom and tucked himself back into his pants, Jeremy took the file from Liam's hand. "One second, Liam." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet, then handed the now jean-clad blonde a handful of cash.

"Thank you, Daddy," the blonde whispered, stuffing the money in his pocket as he gathered his shoes and shirt up in a bundle against his chest.

"Is that everything, Liam?" Jeremy asked as the blonde hurried past Liam and towards the lift.

Nodding once, Liam spared his boss one last look before jogging after the blonde and quickly jumping into the lift behind him. "Hey, um... are you okay?"

The blonde stood facing the back wall of the lift silently as he pulled on his socks and shoes.

"I, uh..." Chewing his lip, Liam asked, "Do you come here often?"

The blonde looked at him over his shoulder with a deadpanned expression.

"Oh, no, that wasn't supposed to be..." Liam cringed as the blonde returned to tying his shoes. "I'm sorry, I just-"

"Stop rambling; yes, he pays me for sex," the blonde huffed.

"I... How often?"

"None of your business," the blonde snapped.

"I... No." Reaching to his side, Liam paused the lift. "You looked really uncomfortable, though. How often does he make you do that?"

Finally turning to Liam the blonde folded his arms and stated, "Due to client confidentiality, I can't tell you that."

Liam nodded once. "But are you okay?" he asked quietly.

"Look, this is my job," the blonde sighed.

"So, you're a... prostitute?"

The blonde rolled his eyes. "I'm an escort. I do more than just sex."

Pausing for a moment, Liam realised, "Jeremy's brought you to work functions before."

"He has." The blonde gave Liam a look up and down. "Why do you care about all this?"

Liam opened his mouth, then closed it again to consider his choice of words. Eventually, he gave up and stated, "Jeremy's a real creep. I remember worrying about you when he brought you along to things, but you looked so uncomfortable in his office just now. There was nothing in that for you, it was just him... him using you."

The blonde shrugged one shoulder, eyes dropping to the floor. "That's what he wants, that's what he pays for." He snorted slightly. "That's all anyone ever pays for."

After a moment of silence, Liam asked again, "Are you okay?"

The blonde heaved a sigh. "I'll be fine. 'M a bit sore, but I get that a lot. 'S normal."

"It shouldn't be."

Glancing up at Liam's face, the blonde slowly extended a hand towards him. "Niall."

"Liam." Shaking Niall's hand, Liam asked, "Is there anything I can do?"

Niall shook his head with a rueful smile, letting their hands drop. "Here." He pulled a card from his pocket and handed it to Liam.

'Niall, the Luscious Leprechaun

You can ride this rainbow for a pot of gold.'

"Your business card?" Liam asked, shifting his hold on it so he could read the mobile number he had covered with his thumb.

"It'd be nice to get a little business from someone sweet," Niall shrugged, reaching past Liam to un-pause the lift. "Who knows," he added impishly as he pulled on his T-shirt, then met Liam's eyes with an intense stare. "If you're good enough, I might not even charge you."

The lift dinged, leaving Liam no opportunity to respond before Niall stepped out and headed through the lobby. Swallowing once, he pressed the button for his floor.

 xXx

Liam chewed on his lip, sitting on his couch and staring at the crisp white card with the gold trim and emerald lettering that provided him with a way of contacting Niall. He flipped it over to find it blank bar a little gold shamrock in the centre. Flipping it back, he ran his finger along the mobile number.

The sudden sound of his phone ringing made Liam jump, taking a moment to recompose himself before answering it. "Hey, Louis."

"Hi, Liam. What date is that function?"

Blinking once, Liam half-laughed, "Why? Are you planning on actually attending this one?"

"Liam," Louis said seriously.

"Two week's time, I think it's Friday so people can drink to their hearts' content," Liam replied, setting the card aside on the coffee table. "Why?"

Louis huffed out a sigh. "Jeremy keeps nagging me about it. Says he needs to know in advance."

"It's..." Liam thought for a moment, glancing to the business card on his coffee table. "Let me grab my laptop so I can check what date I locked in with the venue."

"Okay."

Keeping his phone pressed to his ear with his shoulder, Liam grabbed his laptop and settled himself on the couch with it. He sorted through his emails until he found the right one. "Yeah, Friday the 28th," he confirmed.

"Thank you," Louis breathed out. "Right, I need to ring Jeremy and let him know."

Feeling his heart rate picking up a little, Liam asked, "Hey, Lou? Why's he wanna know so early?"

Louis snorted through his nose. "No idea. I think he said something about letting his date know, but he was also talking about catering and budgeting, too."

"Okay." Glancing back to the card, Liam muttered, "See you tomorrow, Lou," before hanging up and snatching the card up off the table. "He's going to book you," he whispered, eyes trained on Niall's name. His focus flicked between his phone and the card. Huffing out a breath, he put the card down, then stood to put his laptop away.

But the image of Niall looking so uncomfortable, so used, so resigned to what was happening to him made Liam stop. He suddenly scrambled over and snatched up the card, dialling the number before he could psych himself out.

"What can I do you for?" came a surprisingly sultry voice.

Swallowing hard, Liam checked, "Niall?"

"The Luscious Leprechaun at your service."

"It's... it's Liam. From the lift."

There was a moment of silence. "I wasn't expecting to hear from you so soon," Niall commented, the sultry voice replaced by pleasant surprise.

"Yeah, I..." Liam took a deep breath in. "Um, there's a function on for work in two weeks. I was wondering if... if I could..."

"If you could book me for the evening?" Niall guessed.

Liam cringed. "I don't like how that sounds, but yeah. For the 28th."

The sound of Niall chuckling made Liam relax a little. "I'm free then. I'd be delighted to accompany you to your work function."

"Great," Liam found himself grinning. "I'm so glad I got to you first."

"First?" Niall asked curiously.

"I... Jeremy was asking about the function. He's probably going to call you about it, but... I don't want you near him. He's always made my skin crawl."

"So... you booked me so he couldn't?"

"Kinda," Liam nodded. "But... also kinda because I want to see you again."

"Okay." After a few moment's pause, Niall asked, "You wouldn't want to book an evening before then, would you? I mean, the better I know you, the smoother our evening at the function will be."

Liam noticed a slightly flirty tone in Niall's question. "I... Yeah, I'd like that," he hummed, a squirmy feeling in his stomach.

"Sick," came Niall's warm response.

 xXx

"Whoa, Liam, slow down," Louis laughed as Liam slammed straight into the back of him. "Lift's on its way, man, chill out."

"Sorry," Liam mumbled, a slight blush warming his cheeks.

Louis raised an eyebrow at him. "Keen to get home?"

"Yeah, um..." Scratching the back of his head, Liam admitted, "Got someone coming over, so..."

"Ooooooo." Louis knocked his elbow into Liam's ribs teasingly as the lift arrived. "Get some," he whispered cheekily.

Liam's cheeks flushed a shade darker. "No, it's not like that."

Raising an eyebrow as he pressed the button for the ground floor, Louis stated, "I've never seen you blush like that over anything else."

"It's... it's more than that, Louis," Liam mumbled, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt.

"Mm... alright then," Louis smirked. "Get a selfie tonight, yeah? Let me see who's got you all flustered."

"I dunno, Lou... He might not want that," Liam replied, chewing his lip.

"Pics or it didn't happen," Louis sang as the lift dinged and let them out.

Sighing, Liam shook his head as he followed his colleague out of the building. "Then you can think nothing's happened. I don't wanna be telling people anything until he's comfortable."

"Okay then," Louis chuckled, raising his hands in surrender. "Do I at least get his name?"

Stopping beside their cars, Liam snorted, "No. Besides, I doubt you know him."

Louis groaned and let his shoulders sag. "You're such a child," he complained.

"Says you," Liam smirked. "Look, I'll see you tomorrow." He hopped into his car and pulled out of his parking space, sticking his tongue out at Louis when the older man gave him the finger.

Throughout the drive, Liam found himself chewing his lip nervously, his arms and shoulders tensing. The music on the radio was just noise, so he turned it off.

"How'm I s'posed to act?" he asked himself. "I don't wanna be aloof and overpowering, that'd make me no better than Jeremy. But I don't want him to think I'm soft..."

Eventually pulling into his driveway, Liam turned off the engine and climbed out of his car, heading inside before loosening his tie. He ran his hands backwards through his hair with a heavy sigh, glancing to his watch.

5:32pm.

The doorbell ringing made him jump slightly. Taking a deep breath, he pulled it open.

"Hey there."

Liam's jaw dropped, his eyes scanning down Niall's body from his neatly quiffed hair to his tight-fitting button-up shirt and black skinny jeans. "H-hi."

Chuckling at Liam's expression, Niall asked, "Can I come in?"

"Oh, yeah, um..." Liam stepped back from the door to let Niall past him and closed it behind him.

Once he had stepped out of his shoes and waited for Liam to do the same, Niall stepped right up in the brunette's space, wrapping his hand around Liam's loosened tie to keep him from backing away. "So... what kind of an evening is this?" he murmured, their noses just centimetres apart.

Liam's brain chose that moment to switch off. "U-um... I... I-I..."

A slow smile spread across Niall's face. "You've been worrying about how to act, haven't you? What to say, how cool to be..." Leaning up, Niall pressed a small kiss to the tip of Liam's nose. "Just be yourself," he murmured. "Like you were in the lift. Take a deep breath."

Liam did as he wad told, closing his eyes at the same time.

"Let it out," Niall continued patiently.

Again, Liam obeyed. Fluttering his eyes open, he asked, "Do you want something to drink?"

Niall grinned widely at him. "That'd be nice, yeah." He released Liam's tie, then followed the taller man towards the kitchen.

"What would you like?" Liam asked as he headed to a cupboard. "Water, juice, beer... tea, coffee...?" He glanced back at Niall.

"Tea would be good," Niall nodded with an easy smile. "Milk, two sugars. Normally have at least five a day, but I've been out all day so I haven't had one since this morning."

"Where were you?" Liam asked curiously as he grabbed two mugs from the cupboard and started the kettle boiling.

Sighing heavily, Niall explained, "Because of what I do, I have to get a checkup every couple of weeks to make sure everything's the way it should be. Basically, I spent half my day at the doctors'."

Liam frowned and turned to him. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Niall chuckled. "Always am. Just takes it out of me, y'know? Spending all day being checked over and having to socialise. I'm big on me-time. Normally don't make appointments on days I've had a checkup."

Pouring the now-boiling water over the teabags in their mugs, Liam asked, "Why'd you suggest today?"

Niall shrugged one shoulder. "'M busy the rest of the week."

"But..." Liam frowned deeply. "If you need your time to yourself-"

"Hey, calm down," Niall chuckled. "I wanted to come see you. I feel like I don't have to pretend around you."

Handing Niall his tea, Liam asked slowly, "Is that a good thing?"

"It's a very good thing," Niall assured him.

Liam nodded once. "You wanna watch a movie?"

Another grin spread across Niall's face. "Sure."

 xXx

Liam couldn't help but grin as the Captain America movie on the screen came to an end. Niall had been slowly but surely moving closer to him, and by halfway through the movie was pressed to his side with his blonde head on Liam's shoulder. Eventually, Liam leaned his cheek against Niall's hair, and the two hadn't moved since.

"You're really great, y'know."

"Hmm?" Liam half-asked.

"You're great," Niall hummed. "I've been here two and a half hours and you've been nothing but sweet. It's nice to be treated as more than just a sex object."

Carefully wrapping his arm around Niall's middle without jolting the blonde off his shoulder, Liam asked, "Do you like your job?"

Niall nodded his head, shifting to lean more against Liam's chest. "I like going along to fancy functions and family dinners and stuff like that, and I like making my clients feel a little less lonely for a while. And, to be fair, the sex isn't bad all the time." He gently brushed his fingers over Liam's hand on his hip. "Just most of the time."

"So... when was the last time you...? I mean, does having a partner work?" Liam frowned curiously.

"Don't know," Niall shrugged. "My last boyfriend was when I was still in high school." He thought for a moment. "I think I'll stop when I find the right guy. It'd be weird for me. But I know other escorts who're married and their partners are fine with it."

A silence fell over the two of them as the movie credits continued to roll. "How're you feeling?" Liam asked eventually, lightly patting Niall's hip.

"Comfy," Niall sighed happily. He glanced up at Liam and grinned.

Smiling back, Liam suggested, "I can order some pizza. I don't have much food in the house at the moment."

"Sounds great," Niall hummed.

As he ordered the pizza, Liam carded his fingers through Niall's hair, feeling his tummy go warm when the blonde gave him a lazy smile. "I like you relaxed," Liam chuckled as he set his phone down. "You go all gooey when you're relaxed."

"I like you relaxed, too," Niall murmured. He curled up and shifted closer, his knees propped on Liam's thigh and face pressed into his neck. "You stop worrying about what I might think of everything you do. I'm just a person, I don't expect you to be perfect."

"You're more than just a person," Liam replied quietly, holding Niall against him with a hand on his hip and bringing his free hand up to stroke his hair.

Niall giggled and pressed his lips against Liam's collarbone. "If you say so." He shifted up a bit, lightly holding Liam's face between his hands and meeting his eyes. "I'm gonna kiss you now, okay?"

"Okay," Liam whispered.

Smiling up at him, Niall brought their lips together. The kiss was really only three long presses of lips, but Liam felt his insides melt pleasantly all the same. "There," Niall breathed, their faces so close their noses were touching.

Liam threaded his fingers through Niall's hair and gently pulled him in for another kiss, humming when the blonde shifted to straddle his thighs, a knee either side of his hips. He slid his hands down to Niall's waist and just held him there as their mouths worked slowly together, Niall's hands resting on Liam's shoulders.

They stayed kissing for a long while, sinking into the easy comfort of it together, only pulling away when the doorbell rang. "That's the pizza," Liam panted slightly.

"Yeah," Niall breathed out. He giggled when Liam moved him to lie on his back on the couch, the brunette kissing him again before climbing to his feet and heading for the door.

After dealing quickly with the pizza boy at the door, Liam brought the food into the living room and found Niall still on his back gazing up at the ceiling. "You okay?" Liam checked, setting the pizza down on the coffee table and patting Niall's thigh.

Niall sat himself up and nodded his head. "'M fine," he smiled. He accepted the slice of pizza Liam offered him and took a bite. "So, are you always sophisticated, or just when you have company?"

Frowning, Liam asked, "How do you mean?"

"Well, anyone who orders olives on their pizza has at least a little bit of class in their blood," Niall chuckled.

"Oh... well, I didn't think I was, but..."

"Hey." Niall leaned closer and pressed a greasy kiss to Liam's cheek. "I don't have a problem with it. Just most of the guys I've ever had pizza with bought boring ones with next to no toppings, or asked for pineapple. I think you can tell a bit about a person by their pizza order."

Liam couldn't smother his laugh. "Okay, what's this say about me, then?"

"Well, some level of class with the olives," Niall nodded seriously, "and you got parmesan, also says you're classy. Chicken makes me think you're relatively healthy, so does the spinach leaves. Mushroom, tomato, and bacon, you appreciate the simple things..." Considering his evaluation for a moment as he chewed another bite, Niall nodded his head again. "That sounds about right."

Laughing again, Liam shook his head. "You made that up."

"No, I genuinely judge people based on their pizza orders," Niall chuckled. "You can't tell me you've never seen someone eating a plain cheese pizza and thought they've got no sense of adventure."

"I have to say, I have seen people eat pizza with a knife and fork and thought they're too posh for their own good," Liam supposed.

"Isn't that weird?" Niall agreed. "It's designed to be eaten with your hands, why would you use a knife and fork?"

Lightly nudging Niall with his elbow, Liam told him, "I wish they were serving pizza at the function next Friday, we could judge people all night."

Niall laughed slightly, but his face fell.

"What's wrong?" Liam frowned, grabbing one of the paper napkins that came with the pizza to wipe his fingers.

Sighing, Niall explained, "I feel like it's going to be weird. I mean, Jeremy's a client, and he's definitely going to be at this thing." He chewed his lip briefly. "You were right, he did call me about it. About five minutes after you did."

Wrapping his arm around Niall's middle, Liam asked, "What'd you tell him?"

"I said I was sorry but I'm busy that night." Glancing up at Liam, Niall admitted, "He wasn't very happy with me. But he calmed down pretty quickly because he knows it's my job and I book in the first person that rings for a certain time."

"Calmed down...? He got angry with you?" Liam asked incredulously.

"I've never had to turn him down before," Niall pointed out. "He always calls in advance." Gently bumping his nose against Liam's, he whispered, "Thanks for getting me out of another night with him."

Rubbing his thumb along Niall's hip, Liam sighed, "Why do you keep him as a client if you don't like him?"

Niall shrugged one shoulder. "He pays me. And at least I know what to expect when I'm with him. If I stopped accepting his business, I'd need to fill the loss with someone else, and they could be worse."

"Or better," Liam pointed out.

Giving Liam a sad smile, Niall told him, "I don't want to risk it. I might not like Jeremy, but I know what he wants. I never have to worry about him springing something new on me."

Liam sighed, but nodded in understanding. "How many others do you...?"

"Service?" Niall kissed Liam's cheek again when he cringed at the term. "I've got five or six regulars, including Jeremy, and about ten others that call from time to time. Other than that, there's been heaps of guys I've done one night with and never seen again."

Liam's grip on Niall's hip tightened. "Do you have sex with all of them?" he asked quietly.

"Not all of them. But most," Niall nodded. He sighed and wiped his hands and mouth on a napkin. Squeezing Liam's thigh, he assured him, "It's not that bad, I promise."

"I just... I just don't like thinking about all those guys touching you," Liam admitted.

"None of them ever saw this side of me," Niall supplied hopefully. After a moment, he sighed, "Look, Liam, if you spend all you time thinking about what other guys have done with me, you'll make yourself miserable. It makes me miserable. But spending time with you is different from that, okay? Anything we do is different."

"Why?" Liam asked, looking to Niall hopelessly.

"Because the first thing you ever said to me was to check if I was okay. Because you didn't try anything on me in that lift. Because you booked me for that function before your creepy boss could so I didn't have to be near him." Leaning closed and pecking Liam's lips, Niall whispered, "Because we were kissing for ages before and you didn't try to get in my pants. You were happy to just sit and kiss me. You make me feel like a person, not a commodity."

Liam sighed and brought his free hand up to hold the back of Niall's head as he kissed him softly. "You want another cup of tea?" he asked, rubbing his thumb through Niall's hair.

Grinning, Niall murmured, "Yes please."

 xXx

Eventually, the awful moment of Niall leaving arrived. He pulled his shoes back on as Liam watched him, hands shoved in his pockets to keep from fidgeting.

When Niall straightened up, he sighed and gave Liam a half-smile. "I should be heading."

"Yeah. Thanks for tonight," Liam said genuinely. "I, um..." He glanced to his wallet on the hallway table beside them. Picking it up, he sighed, "I did make an appointment..."

There was a moment of silence, then Niall grabbed the wallet and tossed it down the hallway. "There is no way," he muttered, wrapping his arms around Liam's neck, "I'm letting you pay for tonight." He pressed their lips together, sighing into Liam's mouth when the brunette curled his arms around Niall's waist and deepened the kiss.

When he finally pulled away, Liam panted, "Stay here. I don't even want this to go anywhere else tonight, just... sleep next to me. Be there when I wake up in the morning."

A helpless smile spread across Niall's face and he laughed, pressing another kiss to Liam's mouth as he kicked his shoes off again. "With pleasure."

 xXx

Liam could feel a source of extra heat to his right as he woke, blinking his eyes open to find Niall watching him. "Mornin'," he croaked sleepily, rubbing at his eyes before rolling onto his side to face the blonde.

"Morning," Niall whispered. He scooted closer and pressed his face into Liam's bare chest, hands on his waist.

"Hey," Liam chuckled, wrapping his arms around the smaller man. "You alright?"

Niall hummed, pressing a kiss against Liam's sternum. "'M fine."

"Good," Liam nodded, kissing Niall's hair.

Sighing through his nose, Niall murmured, "I could do this every morning."

Liam hummed a laugh. "You're welcome to."

"Dunno that you'd appreciate it some nights," Niall pointed out with a snicker in his voice.

"I'll always appreciate your company."

Niall wrapped his arms tightly around Liam's middle. "You're too sweet for you own good."

Just as Liam found himself almost falling asleep again, the sound of a phone ringing caught his attention.

"Sorry, that's mine," Niall sighed, reluctantly pulling himself from Liam's arms to reach for his phone on the nightstand. "Jeremy," he muttered before answering and pressing the phone to his ear. "Morning, Daddy," he greeted in that weirdly airy tone.

"Morning, baby," Liam could hear Jeremy reply, making the brunette's skin crawl. "Are you free for a bit of fun tonight, my angel?"

Liam was shaking his head frantically before he could register it, pleading Niall with his eyes.

"Oh... Sorry, not tonight, Daddy," Niall told the man on the other end, biting his lip.

A huff came through the speaker. "Okay." A long silence followed. "Well, how about you come meet me in my office on Monday to make it up to me."

"Of course, Daddy," Niall replied sweetly, giving Liam an apologetic look. "When do you want me?"

"Hmm... Four o'clock," Jeremy decided, seeming much happier with this. "I'll see you then, baby."

"Thank you, Daddy." Niall hung up and set his phone aside with a sigh. Glancing to Liam, he mumbled, "I'm sorry."

Liam gave the blonde a half-smile and pulled him into a hug. "I know, it's your job." After a moment, he asked, "Why do you call him that?"

Another sigh left Niall's lips. "He wants me to. He gets off on being called 'Daddy'. He's not the first client I've had to do that for, but he is my only regular that insists on it."

Thinking for a moment, Liam asked, "If he talks to us at the function... will you use his name?"

"Hmm... Well, he won't be my client. Technically, you're my client that night, so yeah, I'll have to call him Jeremy." Snorting, Niall chuckled, "I can't rightly go along to a function with you and call someone else 'Daddy', can I?"

Liam bit his lip to hide a smile. "He's gonna hate that," he whispered.

Grinning up at him, Niall whispered back, "I know." He face fell slightly. "It'll be bad for business, though..."

"Will it, though?" Liam asked. "Surely he'll book you as much as he can afterwards to spite me."

"I don't know," Niall replied, shaking his head. "I honestly don't know."

The two laid quietly together for a while, just listening to one another breathe.

"So, what're your plans for today?" Niall asked eventually.

"Don't know," Liam shrugged. "I don't normally do anything at all on Saturdays. Why?"

"Well, I assumed your saving me from Jeremy meant you wanted me around for a bit longer," Niall smiled cheekily, pressing a kiss against Liam's shoulder. "I mean... if that's not what you meant, I don't mind-"

"No, no," Liam interrupted quickly, earning himself another smile. "I'd love to have you around."

Niall laughed lightly and leaned in for a kiss. "Jeremy usually calls me on a Saturday, so I was expecting to be busy tonight, but I guess I can hang around."

"When aren't you with Jeremy?" Liam asked incredulously.

"I'm with other guys all week," Niall chuckled. "Even tomorrow. Jeremy's really the only one who wants me during the day, though."

"At the office?" Liam checked. When Niall nodded, he asked, "How often does he do that?"

Niall gave him a look. "You know I can't tell you that, Liam."

"No, I know, but..." Liam sighed heavily. "I'm just wondering how many times he's been having sex in his office while we've all been busy just a few floors down doing some actual work."

"Well, I will tell you it's been at least once every week for the past two months."

Liam's eyes nearly fell out of his head. "Two months?" he blurted out.

"He's really into it," Niall shrugged. "Plus, he pays me extra for it."

"Fuck me, how had none of us realised?" Liam exclaimed.

Smirking, Niall chuckled, "I bet you guys think the phones don't work, eh?"

"You... you mean they do?"

"Of course they do," Niall laughed. "He just doesn't answer it."

Mouth hanging open, Liam gasped, "Sneaky shit!"

Niall laughed loudly, throwing his head back. "You poor thing." He learned in close and kissed Liam wholeheartedly. "I answer when you call me," he murmured.

Humming, Liam replied, "Well, that's all that matters, then." Kissing Niall again, he asked, "Are you okay with staying in bed all day?"

Niall just grinned and whispered, "You bet."

 xXx

"Thank god that's over," Louis sighed as he and Liam waited for the lift. "I think my brain's melted."

"It's only Monday, Louis," Liam snickered, elbowing his workmate. "What're you gonna be like on Friday?"

"Drunk, hopefully."

Liam laughed as the lift doors opened, stopping short when he saw Niall in there already. "Drunk at the function, or drunk in your own time?" he asked Louis, shooting Niall a quick smile.

"Free time, obviously. You think I'm gonna waste my time with this dinner-dance?" Louis scoffed.

"I wouldn't call it wasting," Liam replied.

"Well, I do. Christ, who wants to be stuck in a room with coworkers, rivals, and the boss?" Louis asked incredulously. "No thank you."

Liam hummed. "I s'pose that's one way of putting it."

The lift doors opened again, Louis moving to step out before patting his pocket and cursing. "God damn it," he hissed. "See you later, Li. Left my keys."

Liam snorted and headed out, Niall silently stepping out behind him. "See you, Lou." Once the doors had closed and Louis was out of sight, Liam turned to Niall and led him out if the building. "Are you feeling alright?" he checked, a hand in the small of Niall's back.

"'M fine," Niall assured him. "He wasn't too bad today."

Sighing, Liam muttered, "I was checking emails while he was upstairs using you."

"But you knew it was going to happen," Niall pointed out, lightly knocking his shoulder into Liam.

"Yeah... And I suppose you're a bit richer now," Liam half-smiled.

"£250 richer, yeah," Niall chuckled.

Liam's jaw dropped as they came to a stop beside his car. "How much?"

"You heard me," Niall replied, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Holy... For an hour?" Liam asked disbelievingly as he let them into the car. "£250 an hour?"

Settling himself in his seat, Niall sighed, "This is how I pay my bills, Liam."

"No, I know, but... whoa." Liam blinked a few times. "That's incredible."

"He pays me extra to service him at work, remember," Niall pointed out as Liam started the car and pulled out onto the road. "It's only £200 an hour for most people."

Snorting, Liam repeated, "Only?"

"Bearing in mind that I have to give my agency a cut as well." Smirking when Liam gave him a confused look, Niall asked, "You didn't think I did this without people to protect me, did you?"

"I..." Liam paused. "I hadn't even thought about it."

Nodding, Niall explained, "All my calls to my work phone are directed through my agency. If I'm with a client, I don't pick up the phone, so the caller is sent through to an operator at the agency to leave a message or whatever. They're also the ones I go to if I need to bar someone or I get hurt or something. They keep me safe, basically."

Liam considered this for a moment, then nodded once. "Well, I'm glad to know there's someone making sure you're safe."

"Me too," Niall laughed.

Chewing his lip, Liam asked, "Have you ever had to bar someone before?"

Niall shook his head and patted Liam's knee reassuringly. "Not personally. I know a few of the others have, but I've been lucky so far."

Liam hummed in agreement. "So, where from here?" he asked as they approached an intersection.

Directing him, Niall sighed, "Thanks for this."

"Taxis are expensive. What's the point in going to work if you spend a chunk of it on a taxi to and from?" Liam pointed out. "Remember, text me if you're going to be there so I can give you a lift home."

Niall watched the taller man in silence for a while, then told him, "You're too good for this world."

 xXx

"This's my flat," Niall announced as he let them into his home, dropping his keys in the bowl by the door and kicking his shoes off.

Liam stared around himself in amazement. "It's... so tidy."

Raising an eyebrow at him, Niall asked, "What were you expecting?"

"I don't know," Liam admitted, slowly following Niall into the open-plan kitchen-living area. "It's nice."

"Thanks," Niall grinned. "I'm pretty house-proud, so..." He shrugged innocently at Liam's surprise. "I like everything having a place."

"How did you cope being at my place?" Liam laughed disbelievingly, sitting himself on the couch Niall gestured to.

Shaking his head, Niall assured him, "I've seen worse." He headed to the fridge and grabbed two bottles of beer. "One guy's place I went to, every surface was sticky and I felt disgusting by the time I finally left. That's why I like my place to be clean and organised."

"I suppose it's nice to know you have everything how you want it," Liam nodded, accepting the bottle Niall handed him. Watching the blonde sit and take a swig of his own beer, he asked, "Do you have a job tonight?"

Niall hummed in confirmation. "I don't have to be there 'til seven, though."

With a quick glance at his watch, Liam sighed, "So I only get another hour or so with you."

Niall's face went soft. "Hey, at least we get to see each other at all," he pointed out gently, patting Liam's thigh.

"Yeah, I know." Squeezing Niall's hand, Liam blew out a long breath. "I won't see you 'til Friday, huh?"

"No." Niall scooted closer to Liam's side and kissed his cheek. "D'you have a pen?"

Liam lifted his head, then pulled a pen from his shirt pocket. "Always."

Accepting the pen, Niall grabbed Liam's hand and carefully wrote a number across the back of his palm. "That," he murmured, tucking the pen back into Liam's pocket, "is my personal mobile number."

A smile worked its way up Liam's face. "Thank you." He sat his beer aside and wound both arms around Niall's middle.

"I figured it's silly for you to call me on my work phone," Niall shrugged, grinning up at Liam before settling his head on the brunette's shoulder. "Only seven other people in the world have my personal number."

"Who?" Liam asked, guiding his finger up and down Niall's spine.

"Dad, Mam, Mam's husband, my brother, my brother's wife, and my two friends in Ireland, Sean and Eoghan." Sighing, Niall supposed, "Theo will have my number, too, in a few years."

Kissing Niall's hair, Liam hummed, "Who's Theo?"

"My brother's kid." Niall sighed again, burying his face in Liam's neck. "Greg's married with a son, and I've not had a proper relationship since I was seventeen."

Liam stayed silent, tightening his arms around the blonde.

"I guess... I guess this is a relationship, though," Niall continued quietly. "Kinda..."

Pushing the blonde back enough to see his face, Liam pressed, "Kinda?"

"I mean... if- if you want it to be...?"

Liam had to smile slightly at Niall's pinking cheeks. "Are you nervous?"

Huffing and trying to hide his blush with a pout, Niall replied, "You would be, too."

"Yeah." Pulling Niall in for a kiss, Liam murmured, "It'd make me really happy if this was a proper relationship."

"It's still early," Niall whispered against Liam's lips, "but this is a thing, yeah?"

"A really good thing," Liam chuckled. "Let's put a movie on, yeah? Just have some quiet time before I take you to work."

"You're an angel," Niall sighed adoringly. "An honest to god angel."

"Hi," Liam murmured, stroking Niall's cheek adoringly. "You're so cute," he sighed fondly.

"Shut up," Niall giggled, clasping his hands behind Liam's neck and kissing him. He opened his mouth when Liam gently prodded, sighing through his nose as he found his mouth filled with the older boy's tongue.

Loud knocking on the door made both boys jump, foreheads and teeth knocking together awkwardly. "Niall?" a voice asked through the door.

"Shit!" Niall hissed. He hurried Liam off the bed, pushing him into his closet with an apologetic look and closing the door. "Yeah, Mam?" Niall called through the door in answer, jumping onto his bed and grabbing his phone to make it look as though he had been there the whole time.

Niall's bedroom door opened, Maura, his mother, poking her head through. "Hey, sweetie."

"Hey," Niall greeted vaguely, hoping his rouse was working.

"I was hoping we could talk," Maura extended, entering the room and closing the door. She sat on Niall's bed beside him, prompting him to sit up and tuck his phone into his pocket.

"What about?" Niall asked with a small shrug.

Maura sighed a little. "Well… I'd been hoping you might come to me with this, and I don't want to pressure you into telling me anything you're not comfortable about, but I feel like I need to know."

Shifting uncomfortably, Niall asked carefully, "What did you wanna know?"

"Something about your sexuality, love," Maura explained gently, grasping Niall's hand supportively.

"Oh," Niall laughed breathlessly. "That's…" He had to stop and laugh again. "Oh, wow. Um… I'm fairly sure I'm gay," he told his mother. "Like, I dunno, there might be a girl out there somewhere who can make me swing the other way as well, but I'm pretty sure it's just guys for me." He paused for a moment, then glanced to Maura from the corner of his eye. "That's okay, right?"

"Of course it's okay," Maura chuckled, wrapping an arm around Niall's shoulders and kissing the top of his head. "I just wanted to know, love."

"Well, there you go," Niall half-laughed, glancing quickly to the closet that Liam was still shut in.

"Well then," Maura began, settling a little more comfortably, "was there someone in particular that helped you come to this conclusion?" She raised her eyebrows suggestively.

"Uh…" Niall blushed a little and cleared his throat. "Well, I've kinda known for a while, but there's a guy I fancy, if that's what you mean."

Liam, who was starting to feel incredibly squashed in the tiny closet he had been crammed into, suppressed a sigh. He had the nagging feeling that Maura was settling in for a long conversation with her son, which meant Liam was going to be spending a while in the squashy, uncomfortable confines of Niall's wardrobe.

"There's a guy at work that I'm pretty close to," he heard Niall say, smiling a little to himself.

"Ooo, what's his name?" Maura asked, making Niall giggle slightly.

"Liam," Niall explained. "He's… like, he's built like a jock, but he's seriously the nicest person I've ever met. He's a gym nut, the weirdo, but he's suggested I go along with him for a couple of sessions and I think I might just to watch him."

"Is this just a watching from the sidelines crush, or…?" Maura prompted.

"It's… a bit more involved than that," Niall admitted, and Liam could imagine the way his cheeks would be turning pink. "He's a really good kisser," Niall confessed quietly.

"I see," Maura replied, her smile audible. "So, is it just kissing, or is it boyfriends…?"

"Kind of… kind of boyfriends. Like, we haven't said we are, but we practically are."

The urge to step out and tell Niall he wanted to be the one to marry him nearly had Liam falling through the wardrobe door. 'Keep it together,' he mentally scolded himself.

"So, how long has this been going on?" Maura asked.

"Well… we met when I first started working, so about four months ago, and we've been kinda flirting constantly…" Niall's lips curved up into a smile at the memory. "But I think it was about a month ago, we went out for lunch and… yeah, here we are."

Maura ruffled her son's hair. "Well, thanks for telling me," she smiled. "Now, next step is you bring him here so I can meet him."

Niall half-laughed as Maura headed for the door. "Yeah." Once she had disappeared and closed the door, Niall flopped onto his back with a heavy sigh. He waited until his mother's footsteps had faded off downstairs before heading over and pulling his closer door open.

Liam stepped out and took a few deep breaths of fresh air. "I'm so glad I came out as soon as I realised I was gay; being closeted sure is stuffy."