larry smut

the promotion

https://archiveofourown.org/works/23902864

hey besties i apologize for being MIA  so i'm gifting y'all with a bunch tonight so enjoy!

~✰~

Flute glasses of Moët & Chandon champagne are handed around. The sound of his colleagues' laughter blends with ambient jazz music. The penthouse is large enough to not make him feel claustrophobic. It might be a little too large to host only seven people but his boss has always been known for being exuberant.

"What do you think he has planned?" Harry asks in a hushed tone of voice and looks around for any eavesdroppers. No one's paying attention to them, they're all busy joking with each other and getting hammered.

"I'm not sure," Jason frowns. He looks out the balcony and downs his glass of champagne. "But whatever it is, you better keep your cool and go with the flow. You heard what happened to Bill last year."

Harry raises his brows and nods. He thought he was done with hazing back in college, but here he is, awaiting whatever rite of passing his boss chose for tonight.

Harry sips on his glass reservedly. He watched when the champagne was poured straight from the bottle, but the fear of being drugged is still there.

He shakes his head. The paranoia that brims in his veins is far worse than whatever Henry has in store for him tonight, the suspense. He wants it to be over already. But he knows he must remain cool and collected, this party is only an excuse for an assessment. Tonight is his opportunity to prove to all the powerful men in the room that he's got what it takes to swim with the big fish.

Harry wants to ask Jason another question, but he's interrupted when a meaty hand falls on his shoulder. "Having fun, gentlemen?" Henry asks from behind. He's the same height as Harry but has at least twenty pounds of muscle on him.

"Of course, boss," Jason responds easily. "This place is beautiful."

"What about you, Harry?" Henry squeezes his shoulder. "You're a bit quiet tonight."

Harry laughs. "I'm just enjoying the view." He gestures to the city landscape that can be seen perfectly from above. The building lights look like a constellation of stars.

Henry smiles sideways, a glint in his eye. "And the entertainment hasn't even arrived yet." He squeezes their shoulders one last time and wanders away. He walks over to where Richard and Kit are playing an impromptu game of beer pong with the champagne cork and glasses on the kitchen island.

A few minutes later, the sound of glass clinking wakes Harry out of his reverie, as Henry taps a fork against the glass he's holding and motions for everyone to gather around.

They all form a half-circle around the kitchen island and the music volume is lowered.

"Gentlemen, thank you all for coming tonight," Henry begins. He's an imposing man but also charming like no other. Whenever he starts a speech everyone shuts up and hangs onto his every word and this time is no different. "As you all know, we're all gathered here to celebrate our boy Harry for going from the third floor to the tenth floor, it's well deserved. Let's raise our glasses to Harry." His colleagues cheer and clap for him. Some of them slap his back. Henry holds up the glass to him with a smile. "Congratulations Harry, for becoming a man."

Harry returns the smile and holds up his half-empty glass of champagne. "Thanks, everyone, it's a real pleasure."

The music is turned up again and everyone disperses. It's all a blur of men dressed in thousand-dollar suits and gold watches, hanging out in a luxurious penthouse in one of Manhattan's hottest hotels. Harry chats idly with everyone in the room, he laughs at their unfunny jokes and nods his head to their ridiculous stories. This goes on for a while.