#lirry packs

[heflowersuits]

lirry packs 🌹 

♡ headers aren’t mine, open the pictures to see credits

like/reblog or © @lwtgalway on twitter.

[layouts-oned]

- not mine, just put them together

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[eversincechicago]

liam payne x harry styles / louis tomlinson / zayn malik

— like/rt if you save or use <3

[liamfeatcnco]

Ziam Mayne ♥️

[larriedits]

Icons 1D Special: 8 Years Of One Direction

Like if you save or credits for @Iarriedits💕

[gresstuff]

HARRY STYLES + LIAM PAYNE. 🌷🍃🌼

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headers: niamstuffs, liampaynestuff

©itxndehui on twitter

[ladyaj-13]

Welcome to my July 2022 fic rec list!

This month featuring Lilo, Zouiam, OT5, Tomlinshaw and Larry.

Hands up, I’ve had a bit of a nightmare this month. Two trips away and then a full week where it was too hot to boot up my laptop, which means snatched minutes on my phone, which makes it harder to keep a log. And on top of that, my computer crashed so hard - twice - it deleted every version of this list I did manage to put together. So this is definitely not an exhaustive list of the fics I enjoyed this month, and if I read your fic and lost my note of it, I’m very sorry.

Lilo

Dust Off Your Highest Hopes - pukeandcry - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] - T, 13k - American high school AU, drama geek Louis and jock Liam. There’s a reason it’s one of the top kudosed Lilo fics. High school AUs aren't really my thing, so it took me a while to get around to this but it was worth it - I loved the Louis POV and internal monologue.

Stories Stacked Up So Tall - vixalicious - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] - T, 23k - movie AU (While You Were Sleeping), ‘sad orphan Liam’ as the tags put it, which weirdly enough is one of my favourite things. I love (fictional!) Liam being down and lonely and then rescued by impish whirlwind Louis. And this version of it, with one-sided/fake Lirry and misunderstandings (lies, if we’re being uncharitable) making everything more complicated? Yes Please.

Zouiam

Laid Bare - biggrstaffbunch - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] - M, 4k - canon, Zouis circling Liam like hunting cats. Beautifully written. Really inventive, I stopped multiple times just to think ‘that was so well put’. I can’t get the image of Zouis circling like that out of my head now. 

(We're In) Different Places - MissLii - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @pandadepanda - M, 11k - AU, age difference, friends to lovers. Another one with the instigating Zouis and pursued Liam :D I really enjoyed it.

OT5

tales of a love in parts of a whole - words_unravel - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] - E, 26k - coffee shop polyamory AU and I think that says all you need to know to click read, but also girl!Harry, Louis and Niall. I… LOVED this. Like, LOVED it. The Liam POV is excellent (so confused, and understandably so, love), the developing relationships which are all so different from each other, and it ends up poly which is just perfect.

a sunflower soul with rock n’ roll eyes - sideofzemblanity - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] - E, 57k - canon pack fic, not really a beta!Louis, angst, abuse (check the tags!). I can read 101 of these types of fics; if you can too and somehow missed this one, definitely check it out, you won’t regret it.

Tomlinshaw

I'll Be Your Pride - YesIsAWorld - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @louandhazaf - G, 4k - AU, theme parks, fear of heights. SUCH a cute fic, honestly. Bonding over terrifying things! That wonderful snippy Tomlinshaw dynamic! Side Lirry! Loved it.

Larry

Crowd Work - littleroverlouis - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @littleroverlouis - T, 2k - AU, comedian Harry/audience member Louis. Getting picked on at a comedy gig is my worst nightmare but Louis killed his response in this fic and it was wonderful. And the Narry interactions were top notch too.

Can We Start Believing - xogucciblue - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @fearlesslysweetcreature - E, 8k - omega Harry, alpha Louis, nesting, mutual pining. Cute! I loved the premise and it was so well done. The mental picture of Louis pawing through empty drawers as everything he owns ‘mysteriously’ disappears… :D

I know I've got this (because I've had it all along) - we_are_the_same - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @so-why-let-your-voice-be-tamed - T, 16k - girl!Direction, boudoir photography, body image/self esteem issues. I don’t often read girl!Direction but this author is always a safe bet and the fic was so sweet. Louis’ vulnerability is so well done, as is the Lilo friendship support.

For Better, Worse And Mischief (I'm All Yours) - RedOrchid - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @actuallyredorchid - E, 37k - canon, fake marriage, very platonic sex (as the tags say). I know I’ve read this before, I may even have recced it before, but it is worth all the re-reads. Wonderful.

kiss me on the mouth (and set me free) - tempolarriefics - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @tempolarriefix - M, 47k - friends to lovers, fake marriage (yes, another one), university AU. GUYS. Fake relationship is basically one of my fave tropes and this one was sooo good! The mutual pining. The fluff. The obliviousness. And Niall was wonderful :)

For the Right Reasons - juliusschmidt - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @juliusschmidt - E, 106k - The Bachelor AU, mutual pining, friends to lovers, angst. Well. I was just blown away by this fic. It’s a must read.

The Greatest Thing - infinitelymint - One Direction (Band) [Archive of Our Own] @infinitelymint - E, 164k - canon, fake relationship (oh look, a third!), married in Vegas. Instant classic? Yep. Quite possibly all my favourite things thrown into one wonderful melting pot.

[subhlibrary]

under 10k sub/bottom!h fics

hike up your skirt a little more by shuttermutt ♡ (3k) ot5/lirry

Liam chuckles a bit as well, but he gets the sudden image of Harry in nothing but those black, lacy knickers. It makes him flush, but it's easy to play off as being from laughter.

When they leave the studio that night, Liam decides on the fly to slide the envelope into his messenger bag, not letting himself question why.

Morning Glory by BottomHarryGivesMeLife ♡ (941) harry/louis

Harry likes to be used for Louis’ pleasure. Louis enjoys using him.

Beach Day by orphan_account ♡ (9k) harry/louis

Harry is done with the school semester and wants to go to the beach. Louis hates the beach but he loves his baby.

A Slippery Slope by sulkingroom ♡ (4k) harry/ben winston

A Slippery Slope by sulkingroom ♡ (4k) harry/ben winston

A Slippery Slope by sulkingroom ♡ (4k) harry/ben winston

“I won’t be able to help myself.” He presses his palm flat to Harry’s stomach, feeling his pulse rabbiting just beneath the skin. He kneads firm circles into the taut skin below Harry’s belly button before switching to caressing his whole belly with long reverent strokes. “I won’t be able to stop myself coming in here… Getting you pregnant...”

dripping like a saturated sunrise (spilling like an overflowing sink) by orphan_account ♡ (4k) abo, only harry

This is shameless 4K of omega Harry being ‘too’ wet and in heat and using his extensive collection of sex toys literally that’s it.

Man Seeking Wolf by rosemarianthyme ♡ (5k) harry/derek hale

In which Harry is desperate to be pregnant and there's only one werewolf for the job

bottom!Harry ft braided hair by lovebites ♡ (2k) harry/louis

Braided Harry smut drabbles.

Tiny by pacifyharry ♡ (2k) harry/niall

Drabble in which Harry wants to be small and Niall would give him the world if he could

Boy I adore you by babybraids ♡ (5k) harry/louis

Harry likes panties, stuffies and Louis’ cock. Louis loves his baby.

Sugar Me Good by orphan_account ♡ (5k) harry/louis, harry/liam, harry/ben winston

Sometimes there are those that gets what they want, sometimes there are those who don't want everything they can have, and sometimes there'll be dirty deeds done for the pleasure of one. Let's just say a little sugar baby wants a certain Daddy to play some games with him, even if he's hard to get.

Boys Workin' On Empty, Is That The Kind Of Way To Face The Burning Heat? by 2queer4here ♡ (4k) harry/1d, harry/nick grimshaw

Harry likes to flirt and they all catch feelings.

SantaCum by littleroverlouis ♡ (1k) harry/louis

Christmas comes early for Harry. Louis comes right on time in Harry.

Crush by momentofclarity ♡ (5k) harry/louis

To Louis it doesn’t matter if Harry wears misfitting cardigans and has rosy cherub cheeks or if he’s the well-dressed, drop dead gorgeous, author of today—Louis has adored him through it all and will continue to do so for as long as he lives.

Put a Tag Around Your Neck and Keep You by LittleMousling ♡ (3k) harry/louis

Louis sees something he likes, and Harry's game for it.

when you're lonely by orphan_account ♡ (2k) harry/louis

harry riding louis while louis pretends to be indifferent

plant new seeds by girlfriendrry ♡ (1k) harry/louis

harry and louis and some sweet baby makin’ (my fav author rn!)

Waking up beside you... by Valentia ♡ (1k) harry/louis

Inspired by Harry with plushies and Harry saying "Kissy", because those two concepts fit perfectly with sub Harry.

The Viagra Prank by bashfulwalrus ♡ (6k) harry/louis

Louis has always loved getting a rise out of Harry. So when he impulsively buys a pack of Viagra online and sneakily gives it to Harry an hour before their interview, he figures like it'll be just like all the other times he pulled pranks or pushed Harry's buttons.

But as the Viagra kicks in, Louis quickly realizes he didn't know what he was in for.

please ignore the fact that some of these have 2 descriptions it glitches every time i try to save it 😭

[lixorectionicons]

like

[larrydoinglaundry]

Got any good omega Harry fic recommendations. Not enough people appreciate it.

Hi! Omega Harry is such a beautiful thing but people are too hung up on his 'big size' and think he can't be a cute omega :( I wonder how does it feel to be wrong. I have one short omega harry rec list here, for personal favorites.

Let's do a couple more, with more recent ones or recently found for me. As always, read tags before you read. 🔒 means you need an AO3 account to read.

The Money Mark by @brightgolden (52K, E)

Where Louis is Harry’s first sugar daddy who dumped him over text and their paths cross, seven years later.

Loved this. Simple as. It has wonderful a/b/o dynamics, where their inner "wolves" can sometimes react questionably or even make the chracacter embarrassed by how their bodies work. It also has one of my fave tropes which is 'exes to lovers'.

Make me dizzy (rest it in my fingertips) by stretchmybones (1K, E)

"So pretty for me, princess,” Louis cooed, kneeling in between Harry’s legs, spread wide with the help of the spreader bar attached to his ankles, “All laid out for me to see."

Short but gold. Little bit of feminization, light BDSM. Just Louis appreciating his pretty omega, in all of his large wonderfulness.

Keep me closer by @zanniscaramouche (18K,T)

Louis expects Harry to react poorly, maybe even file a formal complaint and that’s gonna suck ass but Louis won’t say shit cause he knows he deserves it, so he prepares an apology before Harry’s even turned around. What he doesn’t expect is Harry to fucking drop.

Touch starvation is one of my favorite topics in a/b/o and this captured so well. I look away from GA and T rated fics toooo often because I feel like they are too tame for me (not just the lack of smut, but in general) but this was so perfect.

Stumbling into your arms by @sunshineandthemoonlight (6K, M)

Louis and Harry are university students heading home for the holidays. Harry quickly becomes enraptured by the attractive alpha standing across from him in the train carriage, who has a heavenly scent and a gentle smile.

Oi oi, I'm weak for meeting strangers in trains and tubes and what not, and then being so blissfully pained as their body is brushing against you. I'm an absolute hoe for how instincts and scents work in this verse. I believe this is a series that is still unfinished. I need to know what happens next!! Nudge, nudge, author.

I kiss you (across hundreds of seperating years) by @hlpdf (36K, M)

The stars and two amused boys are playing cupid, and there are one too many coded love letters and a duck plushie that smells like home.

Ok, ok, hear me out. This is not exactly omega Harry but it's not really an alpha Harry either, so this is where I'll put it for now. Maybe some day I'll do a rec list of non-traditional fics. Basically, Harry is an alpha but he's struggling with the gender and things that come with it. If you want and love soft Harry, I really wish you'll give this a chance.

'Til everything changes by lovelarry10 (57K,E)

Harry’s an Omega who has been alone for too long. Louis’ an Alpha who is scared to find love again. Thanks to the meddling of Harry’s teenage daughter and her boyfriend, the two seem destined to meet, and it might just change everything they thought they knew about their lives.

A treasure I once skipped because I wasn't a fan of older larry but I gave it a chance and fell in love. I loved the kids and what they brought into the story. Def recommend.

Lunch Break by purpleeyesstelllies (3K, E)

Harry decides to bring his alpha lunch at work and surprise him with a visit from him and their baby daughter. Louis gets more than one surprise.

This is a wonderful combination of sweetness and smut. End of story. Just... Phew.

Through the wire 🔒 By Awriterwrites (10K, E)

Harry goes in heat while Louis is away. Lucky for them both, Liam is a good friend.

Ok, so. Be aware that this fic features lirry. It's a larry fic, but in order to help Harry through his heat, Liam jumps in and follows Louis' instructions via phone. The dynamic is so great, with Harry being heat-hazy and Liam fighting between his insticts as an alpha and staying loyal to his friend. One of my favorites now.

This chemistry like candy to me by @larrydoinglaundry (19K, E)

Harry is 8 months pregnant with a poor balance and traitorous nipples. Unfortunately for him, that is precisely when he meets a beautiful alpha in a packed London Tube. Fortunately for him, the said alpha might just be the best thing he has ever come across.

Yeah, okay, this one is mine and I can't really rec it or give review. If you haven't read it yet, maybe you should.

[onedirectionstuffs]

liam payne and harry styles twitter packs

like or reblog; give credits on twitter “payneironic”  ♥

[ferryboatpeak]

So after many years I've been getting the itch to write fic again. I never wrote 1D, though. I'm gonna rewatch tons of interviews to try and get the voices right but I'm wondering if you have any opinion on the boys' characterizations (especially Harry's obvs)?

yay for more fic! but might I encourage you to try some solo harry fic rather than 1D? hazoff, hitch, winstyles, and xarry all give us regular new content to work with. (plus universal adapter plug harry styles routinely gifts us more new ships like he’s a tomcat proudly presenting us with a series of doomed fieldmice). and I generally agree with valencing’s take that fic has to be animated by possibility, not nostalgia.

that said, if you are set on diving into ot5 territory, I would encourage you to direct questions of this nature to @dearmrsawyer and @dinoflangellate, who are both writing solid 1d fic in the current era. but since you asked, obviously i can’t resist also giving you my own (very brief) opinions on the other four and a whole extensive lot of opinions on harry characterization......

niall: the vintage 1D characterization, which I’m not really a fan of, is “happy-go-lucky Irishman who likes to eat a lot.” i think it’s far more interesting to work with what we know from the solo era: anxious, driven by the constant worry that he’s about to fail, a pack animal who prioritizes being surrounded by his bros, always constantly shirtless.

liam: the vintage 1D characterization was “responsible Daddy Direction” and WOW did everybody blow that one. meghan nailed it recently with the observation that “the moniker of ‘the responsible one’ was thrust upon him mostly because their handlers confused obedience with responsibility.” liam is far too compliant –as @lunarrua says, he just wants someone to tell him how to be good – and that’s a really dangerous trait when he does not seem to have a lot of people around him who are looking out for his best interests professionally or personally. could be great for fic!

louis: always characterized as the bad boy/mischief-maker, and there’s some truth there, but it’s not always balanced well with what I find far more salient to his characterization, which is the intense level of responsibility he’s had to shoulder for a very large family that has been through some very difficult circumstances in recent years. also key to his characterization is that he’s a natural leader; one fic that nails this trait well is jibrailis’s shall never be saved by half.

zayn: he’s not the mysterious one so much as he’s someone who’s smart enough to keep his mouth shut (a trait he shares with harry). In the solo era, it doesn’t seem like there’s anyone in zayn’s life who tells him no, which I think needs to impact his characterization in an interesting way.

harry: oh let’s GO. There are several varieties of vintage characterization that I despise… first of all, I dislike leaning too much into Clumsy Harry when in fact he has spectacular hand-eye coordination (it’s just his foot-floor coordination that is occasionally and memorably off.) what’s more interesting/important to me from a physical standpoint is that he seems to have an unusually high level of comfort in his own body.

i also dislike it when people make harry too much of a yoga/green juice hippie when he is in fact a foul-mouthed sex-obsessed Packers fan cheeseburger-eating bro. similarly, I think a lot of writers also write harry in a way that’s overly precious or fussy. (if your harry is regularly calling his partner Nicholas or Jeffrey, you’re probably in that territory.) but he’s gotta be a little bit of a weirdo who buys people cacti and ties bows in his hoodie strings and hates halloween, and it’s tough to nail that without it tipping into overly precious.

in my opinion, the most important bit of new canon we got this promo cycle was the interview where harry said he’ll try pretty much anything anybody recommends to him. i like a harry characterization that leans into him being open-minded/easily bored/always seeking something new. i think a current era harry characterization also has to acknowledge the emotional openness he’s talked about recently: being willing to be vulnerable and to build relationships by opening himself up to people. long have we characterized harry as a sex pest who will physically make the first move (a characterization i love and which absolutely deserves to endure until we are all dust) but that’s gotta be balanced with him also being more likely to make the first emotional move.

harry gives us so much to work with that you gotta figure out how to focus somehow. he exudes sex at all times, yet he is also baby. he’s a ruthless perfectionist, but he also insists on making space for all ideas during a writing session. he craves the feeling of being settled but obtains that by surfing from family to family rather than creating a home for himself. i was always very fond of kate’s harry characterizations, and one neat trick she had was focusing in on one harry trait per fic to center her characterization around: let’s start right now focuses on his perfectionism, her wimbledon lirry fic [OH SHIT IT’S GONE????]  focuses on the impacts of success at a young age and treatment by the media, her regency werewolf fic [OH SHIT IT’S ALSO GONE???] focused on his need to be of service to others. for a good but definitely darker characterization, threeturn’s real for me is unparalleled. oh also rilla’s dancing on my own has this lovely quiet way of building harry’s characterization by repeating the phrase “harry likes...” wow this got long and off-track, hope i answered your question somehow in there!

[liamfeatcnco]

Icons LIAM PAYNE

[larriedits]

Lockscreen One direction

Like if you save or credits for @Iarrystuffx on twitter if you use 💕

don’t repost

[crinkle-eyed-boo]

3 and please answer for each fic thank youu

3) favorite line/scene you wrote this year

You’re really gonna make me do this, aren’t you? Rude. 

OBVIOUSLY my favorite scene for You Be Stunning, Baby, I’ll Be Stunned is the anatomy study session because I STILL am not sure where it came from. (DORSAL VEIN)

Harry winks at him, nipping at his finger and then sliding down further, rucking Louis’ (his) shirt up, exposing his toned yet soft stomach. He noses against the golden skin, breathing Louis in as he presses a delicate kiss right above his belly button. Grinning wickedly up at Louis, Harry blows a raspberry on his tummy.“Harry!” Louis cackles, writhing underneath him. “That tickles!”“Renal artery.”Harry licks along the dent of Louis’ hip; Louis’ cackle turns into a moan.“Iliac vein.”Harry appreciatively takes in how Louis’ cock is straining against the thin cotton of his boxer briefs, a wet patch darkening the blue fabric, but he bypasses it completely, instead scooting down further between his thighs. A plaintive whine escapes Louis’ lips.“Patience, baby,” Harry murmurs against the soft skin of his thigh. “You told me to study. I’m studying.”

ASKING ME TO PICK A FAVE FOR OWN THE SCARS IS TERRIBLE. Do I pick the first Lirry scene in chapter 4 because it was the first time I really branched out from my original script and it started to take on a life of its own and I was SO JAZZED after that I locked myself out of my apartment when I went to smoke a celebratory cigarette? Do I choose Chapter 10′s Spa Night/Louis’ birthday because it REALLY started to sing there? Chapter 13 when Louis comes to Harry’s after the break-up will always be a personal fave too. 

I think my fave line/exchange is ODDLY this one, because I love my Niall SO MUCH. 

“A very wise woman once said to me,” Niall says sagely. “These walls were not built to shut out problems. You have to face them.”“You’re quoting The Sound of Music, Niall,” Louis says with amusement.“Do you not think the Reverend Mother is a wise woman, Louis?”Louis rolls his eyes. “The wisest.”“Climb every mountain, Bender. Pack every sweater. Zip every suitcase. You’ve got this.”

As for There’s Such a Lot of World to See, I think the last chapter with Louis and Old Harry was my fave to write because I had seen that scene SO CLEARLY in my head from the very beginning and it just felt like it worked SO WELL. 

“Now you, Haz,” Louis says, picking up a blue crown and walking over to him. “You have to be a king too.”Harry giggles again, bowing his head as Louis fits the paper crown over his white curls.“There we go,” Louis says as he carefully adjusts the crown on Harry’s head. “What a feeling to be a king beside you, eh?”Harry looks up at him and the breath is knocked entirely out of Louis’ chest as he sees the boy he loved beaming up at him, his chocolate curls spilling around his shoulders, his skin smooth and unwrinkled, bright green eyes sparkling.“Do I really not look any different to you?” Harry asks with an amused smile.“Harry Styles,” Louis murmurs, delicately tracing the shape of Harry’s jaw, his skin papery thin under his fingertips. “You’ll never look any different to me.”Harry gazes at him in awe, his smile widening as he scrunches his nose. Deep smile lines form at the corners of his mouth and eyes.“You’re full of shit,” Harry says after a long moment.

Fanfic End of Year Asks!

[mildlymaddy]

Lirry, Save the Whales AU, PG.

Harry surveyed the street from under his umbrella, trying not to think about his wet feet. It had rained all afternoon, turning the usual happy loitering crowd into a handful of disgruntled people seeking shelter. Not good weather for fundraising, that.

A youngish man was hurrying his way, his shirt and jeans soaked through. Mid-20s, nicely built, and handsome as fuck. Harry grinned. Who said you couldn’t mix work and pleasure?

"Good evening, sir!” he called out, falling into stride with the stranger, making sure his umbrella was covering him a little. Sometimes people stopped just for the relief of not being rained on for a second or two. “Do you-"

"No, sorry,” the man said, throwing him a worried glance through his rain-covered glasses and walking ever-so-slightly faster in the direction of the nearby train station.

"-have the time to talk about the whales?" Harry continued, undeterred.

"I have a train to catch, but good luck!" the man said again with the kind of frantic smile Harry had become accustomed to in the past month and a half.

"Oh it'll only take a second," Harry lied with a smile of his own. It turned into a grin when the crossing light in their path turned red, trapping his hapless victim on his side of the street.

Most of his colleagues gave up and moved on to another target as soon as people blew them off, but Harry knew how to play the long game. He stood next to the man, as if he too was waiting for the light to turn green, and tipped his head to look at him. Fuck, he was handsome. “Ah, well, it seems you have a few seconds after all.”

The man’s shoulders sagged. “No, I don’t. I can’t-” He stopped himself with a shaky breath and didn’t say anything more.

“Um. Are you alright?” Harry asked. In profile, he could see behind the stranger’s glasses, and the dark bags under his eyes didn’t spell anything good.

“I’m alright,” the man said, but his voice was strangled. “God, I’m pathetic,” he added in a whisper.

“Hey, no need of that,” Harry said, frowning. “I’m Harry,” he added, extending his free hand. He didn’t usually bother introducing himself (most people could not have cared less), but these were clearly exceptional circumstances.

The stranger blinked at him, and for a second Harry thought he’d spooked him off, but he eventually shook Harry’s hand. “I’m Liam.” He took off his glasses to wipe them with a corner of his soaked shirt, only making things worse. 

Harry fished a pack of handkerchiefs from one of his coat pockets and handed it to Liam. “Here, that might work better.”

Liam hesitated, as if accepting anything from Harry might mean he’d have to donate, then took the proffered handkerchief. His eyes were bloodshot like he’d been trying not to cry for a long time.

"Um, I know we don’t know each other, but... d’you wanna talk, maybe?" Harry said, gently laying one hand on Liam's arm.

From one second to the next, Liam seemed to crumble down in front of Harry's eyes, and before Harry knew it he had an armful of a very fit, very depressed man, sobbing against his shoulder.

"Hey, hey," Harry said, awkwardly patting Liam on the back and flipping off the people grumbling about them being in the way. His umbrella was trapped between their bodies, tipped backwards so that Liam’s back was getting soaked all over again.

Harry didn’t know what to do, so he just waited, his awkward pats turning into slow strokes as Liam gradually stopped shaking against him.

"Fuck, sorry," Liam gasped out at last, straightening up and rubbing at his eyes, his glasses still dangling between his fingers. "Sorry. Fuck. I can't believe I did that."

"Hey, it's alright," Harry said, trying and failing to catch Liam's eye. "I'm a world-class hugger, always glad to be of service."

That got a tiny watery smile from Liam, at least, and when he pushed his glasses back on his nose he didn't look like he was about to crumble down again. “Look I don’t... I don’t have any money to donate. Whales scare me, anyway. I’m not sure I want to give them my money.”

“Screw the whales,” Harry said, smiling when Liam threw him a disconcerted look. “You look like you could use a friend. Or a warm bath. Preferably both.”

“I...” Liam trailed off, then shook himself, seemingly realizing where he was standing, and started crossing the street. Harry followed, still covering them both as best as he could with his umbrella. “I’m fine. Just had a bay day, that’s all. Or... a lot of them.”

“I know all about bad days,” Harry said, conversationally. “Two months ago I got home to find my boyfriend fucking my boss over our kitchen counter. He didn’t even wipe it clean afterwards.”

That stopped Liam dead in his tracks, at least. “... that is a bad day.”

“Told you,” Harry said cheerfully. Truth was, he’d gotten over that much faster than he’d expected. He’d also quit his job and started volunteering, which had done wonders for his mental health and his dating life, so all in all, it wasn’t so bad. “What’s your story?”

A car honked angrily as traffic resumed around them, and they both hurried to the pavement, but Liam stopped again once they reached it, properly looking Harry in the eyes for the first time. “Nothing quite as bad as all that, I guess. Just... stupid work stuff.”

“Work stuff’s not stupid if it makes you look like that,” Harry said. “If you haven’t had at least two people come by your desk today just to accidentally-on-purpose spill their coffee over your shirt in the hopes you’d take it off then I say ditch your workplace immediately, they don’t deserve you.”

Liam gaped at him. Harry shrugged. “That’s what I’d do,” he said, just in case he hadn’t been clear enough. It was always better to make sure.

“I... um... I...” Liam said, very eloquently. Harry wasn’t sure but he thought he might be blushing. “Oh,” Liam said, looking down at his wach. “I’ve missed my train.”

“Shit, sorry,” Harry said, and to his credit he really tried to mean it. “When’s the next one?”

“Half an hour. I hope.” Liam rubbed his forehead, deflating further.

This wouldn’t do at all.

“Half an hour’s perfect,” Harry said brightly, hooking an arm into Liam’s and striding forward in the direction of the train station. There was bound to be some kind of bar in there.

“What... no, I’m sorry, I told you I don’t like whales,” Liam said, stumbling after him.

“Has a street fundraiser ever bought you a drink, Liam?” Harry asked, not slowing down.

“Um, no, can’t say that’s ever happened.”

“Well, I’m buying you a drink. So we’re probably not going to talk about the whales,” Harry said, glancing at him.

Liam’s lips twitched, then he smiled. The fucker had a smile like literal sunshine, and Harry felt even more determined to make him smile more.

The whales could probably take care of themselves for half an hour longer, anyway.