I Love You, Man (Larry Stylinson AU)

Chapter 15: Letting Loose

It's a sunny afternoon.

Harry walks his dog along the Tower Bridge with his leash in hand and Louis by his side. They're an interesting pair to look at — Louis, with his neatly-pressed navy suit and tie and dress shoes, having come straight from the office, and Harry, dressed in a loosely-buttoned flannel, patterned shorts and sheepskin boots, having come from his couch.

There are a bustle of people around them — most walking, some enjoying bicycles or rollerblades — and as if by nature, the human traffic seems to avert them and they walk along comfortably.

"He's a cross between a beagle and a pug," Harry smiles down at his short-haired pet fondly. "The most beautiful dog in the world!"

"He's cute," Louis comments, making sure the burrito in his hand is wrapped tight in his hold. He's consciously trying not to make as much of a fool as he's bound to, today. "What's his name?"

"Anwar Sadat," Harry tells Louis, but Louis doesn't get it, "after Anwar Sadat... former president of Egypt?"

"Right," Louis looks down at the dog, as if that would help, then squints back to Harry, "because you're a fan of his policies, or...?"

Harry chuckles, swinging his own burrito around as he speaks, "No, because they look exactly alike."

Louis looks down at the dog.

The dog looks back at Louis.

Interesting.

"Hey, so how's Cowell coming?" Harry asks, just as Louis is taking a bite. "You got any offers yet?"

"Not yet... no," Louis mumbles around a muffled mouthful of beans, before attempting to chew and swallow. "This guy that I work with, Nick Grimshaw — he wants to, uh, share the listing with me."

"What, and split the commission?" Harry asks with a frown. He wasn't expecting that. "What about the land you told me you wanted to buy?"

"It would put a delay on that, but... I gotta sell the place, you know?" Louis banters as Harry nods, munching away on his wrap. "Nick's a total cheeseball, but he markets himself like crazy. He's on bus-bench ads all over town. You know, he says the place is out of my league."

"Hey, that is bullshit," Harry suddenly points his messy burrito at Louis fiercely. "Alright? That open house was understated, it was classy and elegant. I've been to a million of those things and nobody — nobody! — puts out rosemary flatbread paninis," the taller man raises his chin to Louis as if he just proved a big point in Louis' life. He kind of just did. Harry squats down before Louis has a chance to respond, "Now hold on, my dog needs to shit."

Louis watches Harry squat next to his dog, as he stares at the man in dumbfoundment, "Well, I'm trying to sell the place, believe me, but..."

"Hey, no, Lou- trying is having the intention to fail. You gotta scrap that word from your vocab. Say you're gonna do it and you will," Harry looks up at Louis in the eyes, speaking rather wisely for a man who just let his dog take a dump on the pavement. "Come on, buddy! Good boy!"

"You need a plastic bag, or...?"

"Oh, no, I don't clean up after my dog," Harry stands up, directing the pair to continue walking. "Dog poop is like a compost. It's got a ton of nutrients that enrich the soil."

That doesn't quite compute with Louis, "But we're on pavement."

"God dammit!" a rather large and intimidating running man suddenly roars from behind them. From the looks of it, he has just unluckily tread in Harry's dog's waste. "How about cleaning up after your dog?!"