Larry Stylinson ~ Poor Little Rich Boy AU

11.

Chapter Eleven:

“Well, I thought I was bad at chatting people up,” Niall commented as he tapped the ball with his golf club, focusing intently on the game, “but really, Louis, that takes the cake. Knocking someone down the stairs!” He tutted.

Louis was almost ashamed of the flaming grin on his face. “Well, it worked, didn’t it?”

“God knows how. Maybe you knocked something loose inside the kid’s head. I know if some nutter sprained his ankle by making a himself look like a dick prancing around in front of me in a tutu and then chucked me down three flights of stairs, I wouldn’t be asking him out on a date – I’d be getting a restraining order on him!” Niall turned around and started dragging the bag of golf clubs behind him in the direction he’d hit the ball; their all expenses paid holiday turned out not to quite stretch to the expenses of a caddy. “The guy must be mad.”

“He’ll suit me quite well, then.”

“How’d you do it, man? Come on, tell me your secret. It’s official; you can get anyone. I need to know how you can do it so I can work some magic on Hannah.”

Amused, Louis shook his head and clapped Niall on the back as they settled at their next spot and he selected a club in readiness to make the next shot. “Ah, I don’t think even I can help you there, man. She’s an enigma. Don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re wasting your time.”

He shook his head emphatically. “If there’s one thing you’ve taught me, it’s that no one is unattainable. The right words, the right chat-up line…you got that totally uptight posh kid eating right out of your hand. Work a little of your magic on me! Make me desirable. What’s your secret, Lou? C’mon!”

“No secret. Just persistence, and a lot of luck.”

“Nah, you’re bullshitting me. I’m not having any of that. You didn’t get that guy just by stalking him. That only works in Twilight. There must be something you did. Did you drug him? Make him sniff glue or ram a needle into his arm or something? I won’t call the cops as long as you give me some of whatever you gave him so I can use it on Hannah. Was it drugs?”

Louis laughed in spite of himself. “No.”

“Did you threaten him?”

Again, he laughed. “No.”

“Bribery?”

Quite embarrassingly, Louis literally snorted with laughter, such a revoltingly pig-like sound that he clapped his hand instantly over his mouth to stifle it. “That kid’s so rich he could afford to sew fifty pound notes into a duvet and sleep under it; you really think I could offer any kind of substantial bribe to him? He’d laugh in my face! Fifty quid to us is probably like spare change to him. Besides, Harry’s not like that.”

Niall didn’t look sure. “So…no bribes?”

“No bribes,” Louis promised, grinning broadly.

“How’d you do it, Lou?” Niall whined, and Louis completely flunked his shot, barely knocking the ball at all and yet it veered wildly off course, turning weirdly to one side away from where he had intended it to go.

Rolling his eyes, Louis followed the stray ball, and Niall stayed hot on his heels like a puppy, eagerly awaiting the apparent answer to attracting anyone you wanted which he seemed to think was in Louis’ possession and would soon fall from his lips if only Niall begged hard enough. “Is it so hard to believe that he was just won over by my great hair and natural charm?”