Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/
works/2173110.
  Rating:
      Explicit
  Archive Warning:
      Underage
  Category:
      M/M
  Fandom:
      One_Direction_(Band), X_Factor_RPF
  Relationship:
      Liam_Payne/Louis_Tomlinson
  Character:
      Liam_Payne, Louis_Tomlinson
  Additional Tags:
      x-factor_era, Trapped_In_Elevator
  Collections:
      TROPEGATE_2014
  Stats:
      Published: 2014-08-21 Words: 3940
****** Lift ******
by threeturn
Summary
     Liam and Louis try to get to the fifth floor.
Notes
     This is the first installment of a 10-week/10-trope/10-pairing series
     with my beautiful partner in crime disarm_d. Thank you to Laura for
     making this project happen and making this story better, and to Sam
     lazy_daze for her A+ britpick.
See the end of the work for more notes
The lift doors are half-closed when Liam hears someone yell, "Hold it!" Liam
sighs and presses the open door button. Only a few live shows have aired, but
there's a crowd of fans outside the X-Factor studios every day. He got caught
up taking pictures and he's almost late for vocal rehearsal with Savan. Now
it's going to be even worse.
A body hurls itself through the doors and Liam steps out of the way just in
time. Louis—of course it's Louis—collapses against the back of the lift and
grins at Liam. "Thanks, mate."
"No worries," says Liam, a bit stiffly. He presses the button for the fifth
floor again.
"Nice teddy bear. Very purple."
"From a fan," says Liam, tucking it under his arm.
Louis pushes his glasses up on his nose. "All right?"
"Fine," says Liam, and then, because he can't help it, "I just don't want to be
late."
Louis pulls out his phone. "It's one o'clock. We're on time." He pats Liam's
shoulder.
Liam flinches away. "We'd be on time if we were there already." He knows Louis
is just being friendly, but you don't have to be friendly with your hands, do
you? Or your legs or your shoulder or your head? Like, why would you say hi to
someone by head-butting them in the stomach? That had happened yesterday and
Liam is still trying to figure it out.
"For fuck's sake, Liam—" Louis starts, and then there's a terrible grinding
sound and the lift jolts and stops. The doors don't open. Liam and Louis look
at each other. Liam hits the open button, and then hits it again. Nothing
happens.
"We're stuck?" asks Louis happily. "Oh man. So much for rehearsal. Sorry,
Liam!"
Liam frowns at the button panel. "The alarm button is supposed to be only for
emergencies, but this is an emergency, right? I'm gonna press the alarm
button."
"But then they'll know we're in here," Louis objects.
Liam blinks at him. "That's the idea."
"But Liam," says Louis, and pokes at his side. Liam tries to protect himself
with the teddy bear, but he isn't fast enough. That girl should've given him a
bigger teddy bear. Maybe like a five foot teddy bear to keep between him and
Louis at all times. "This way it's like we've disappeared and they can film
Harry wandering around looking for us. It'll be a laugh!"
"I don't want a laugh," says Liam, as patiently as he can. "I want to
rehearse." He presses the alarm. He can't hear anything. "You try now."
"Well, if the great Liam Payne can't do it, I'm sure I can't." But Louis
presses the button anyway, uselessly. "Hold on." He takes a couple of steps
back, tilts his whole body in some kind of pseudo-karate pose, and kicks the
panel hard with the ball of his foot.
Liam gasps and yanks him away. "What do you think you're doing? You'll break
it!"
"Pretty sure it's already broken," says Louis. He looks down to where Liam's
arms are wrapped around his chest. "Is this a hug? Have you turned into a
hugging person?"
Liam drops his arms. "No," he mumbles. "I mean, what. I hug."
"I'm sure you hug your mum and dad," says Louis, rolling his eyes. He slides
down the side of the lift until he's sitting on the floor. "Just not us."
"Niall," says Liam, thinking. "I hugged Niall this morning. I hugged Zayn two
days ago. Yesterday Harry hugged me, and I let him. Does that count?"
"Oh," says Louis, "so it's just me you don't hug."
Liam looks away from Louis's accusing eyes. He doesn't want to hug Louis, ever,
because what if he blushes or gets sweat on him or runs out of the room? At
least when Louis pokes at him it doesn't look weird when he tries to get away.
"Why would I need to? You're always all over me!"
"I am not," Louis says. "Why would you say that? I'm definitely not."
"Fine," says Liam. He checks his phone, but there's no signal. Louis is
probably right. Probably he only assaults Liam an ordinary number of times and
it just feels like more because somehow Louis's presence turns Liam into an
advanced satellite tracking system. He sits down in a corner of the lift and
hugs the teddy bear closer.
"I mean it," insists Louis. He kicks the bottom of Liam's trainer from his side
of the lift, and Liam jerks his foot away. "I touch the other boys just as much
as I touch you."
"You're keeping track?" asks Liam. He thought he was the only one.
"Of course not, what kind of weirdo do you think I am?" Louis looks up at the
ceiling of the lift. "Help, help! I'm stuck in a lift with Boring
McBoringHead!"
Liam squeezes the teddy bear to try to calm down and reminds himself that Louis
is a member of his band. Simon might not let them be a group anymore if Liam
pushes Louis down the shaft of the lift. And Louis is fit, which is an
important aspect of building a fanbase. The audience has to want you to be
their boyfriend, and anyone who saw Louis sitting there in that soft thin blue
shirt with his hair flopping sideways would definitely want him to be their
boyfriend, unless obviously they knew how annoying Louis was, and Liam does,
Liam knows.
"Maybe we can use this time to rehearse," Liam suggests. "I know you don't have
any solos this week but—"
"CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?" Louis shouts again. "I'M STUCK HERE WITH THE BOY WONDER
SOMEONE HELP ME!"
"I thought you didn't want to be rescued," Liam snaps.
"I changed my mind," says Louis. He bangs his head against the side of the
lift. It makes a hollow sort of rattling sound.
"They'll wonder where we are," Liam says, trying to be reassuring. "Savan knows
it's not like me to be late. He'll come looking, and then we'll be rescued."
"Are you talking to me or to your teddy bear?" Louis asks.
Liam realises he's been rocking the teddy bear back and forth. He sets it down
on the floor next to him, embarrassed.
"Oh, give me that thing," says Louis, but he reaches over to grab it before
Liam can hand it over. Then he makes a face. "It smells."
"Give it back then," says Liam.
"Nope. I'm keeping it."
"You are not. It was a present to me."
"Who cares?" says Louis, smiling sweetly. "Come and get it."
"No," says Liam. He's not going to fight over a stupid teddy bear. He'd have to
lunge over and grab Louis's narrow, fragile-looking wrists first in order to
protect himself, and then Louis would probably fight him with his head or his
legs, and Liam might have to sit on him or something. Louis probably still
wouldn't give up, because Louis never gives up, and Liam would feel him
squirming underneath him, and—
Basically, he just doesn't want the teddy bear that much.
"Yeah, better not," says Louis. He puffs up his cheeks and then blows his
breath out dramatically. "You're not half the fighter I am."
"What?" says Liam.
"Nope," says Louis. "Just cause you've had boxing lessons and your arms are
like that. Doesn't mean you can fight."
"Like what?" Liam asks, interested.
"Nothing," says Louis. "Shut up. It's too hot in here. I feel poorly. I think
your voice is making me poorly."
"I think your face is making me poorly," says Liam, but he's lying. It's not
Louis's face. It's the way Louis is sitting there three feet away, leaning
against the side of the lift with one knee dropped open. It's the way his
inseam is tight against his thigh.
Louis makes a horrible grimace, sticking out his tongue at Liam. Liam is
definitely not feeling right either, because it's like his entire field of
vision narrows down to Louis's pink tongue. He rips his eyes away and wedges
his fingers in the crack of the lift doors and pulls. It's hopeless. He can
feel a bead of sweat dripping down his forehead.
"Ooh, look at me, I'm Liam Payne, I'm going to rip the doors apart with my own
bare hands," sing-songs Louis, holding the teddy bear up in front of his face
and making it dance.
"Well, as long as you're covering your face," says Liam. He slumps back against
the wall of the lift.
"My face is the best face," says Louis, and then lunges forward, shoving his
cheek against Liam's nose.
"Mmmrmghg," says Liam.
"Still poorly?" says Louis, and rubs his face all over Liam's face. Liam tries
not to breathe. Louis's cheek is smooth and his lips drag accidentally across
Liam's nose and he's using one hand to press Liam's shoulder to the wall.
Louis's fingers are digging into his shoulder. One of his knees is pressed
against Liam's thigh.
"Yeah." Liam manages to pull his face at least an inch away from Louis's.
"Worst nightmare," he grits out, and tries to scoot his arse further back
against the wall so that his bits aren't so close to Louis.
"Me too," says Louis, and drops his mouth firmly onto Liam's mouth as if
that'll help confirm how terrible everything is. Liam's so mad at him, and also
dizzy from how hot and open Louis's mouth turns out to be. Louis pushes in his
tongue and makes little noises, as if he likes what he's doing, as if he likes
Liam. Hesitantly, Liam puts his hand on the back of Louis's head. Louis
promptly squawks in pure outrage, pushes away from Liam, and drops back against
the opposite side of the lift, breathing hard.
Liam stares at him. Louis's mouth is all red. "I'm sorry," says Liam.
"Shut up," says Louis. "This isn't right."
"It's okay," says Liam. Louis is the third boy he's kissed in his life, so he's
heard this before. "I won't tell anyone. Was that the first—"
"That's not the point." Louis's eyes are glancing up and down Liam's body.
"That wasn't me, I don't know what made me do that. It's really hot in here. Do
you think I'm having a heat reaction?"
Liam sighs and unbuttons his shirt another button.
"Why are you always doing that?" Louis practically shrieks.
"It's hot in here," says Liam.
"That's what I'm saying! What does a heatstroke feel like? I might be having
one."
"You do seem kind of upset," says Liam. Louis's fingers are twitching on his
thigh and his trackies are—Liam can't help checking—bulging noticeably in a
certain place.
"Of course I'm not upset," snaps Louis. "Just because I'm stuck in an
overheated metal cage with a teddy bear and an exhibitionist, why should I be
upset?" He waves his hand for emphasis and then puts it in his lap. And Liam's
not staring, he's not, but it looks like Louis's kind of—pressing down.
"Louis," says Liam.
Louis takes his hand away from his crotch and slams his palm flat against the
wall. "Is it just me?" he asks, very quietly.
Liam opens his mouth and closes it. He wants to grab Louis up and drop him back
on his lap. Shove Louis down against his dick and watch his face when he feels
it. "No," Liam says, and Louis closes his eyes for a moment, eyelashes dark
against his cheek. It looks like relief.
"If you want," says Liam, "if you want, we could—"
"Don't finish the sentence," Louis says, struggling to his feet. "We need to
get out of here."
Now Louis's crotch is at Liam's eye level. He gets up on his knees, swaying a
bit. It would be so easy to just lean forward, put his mouth there. But it's
important to focus on escaping and not licking. "Help!" Liam calls out, but not
very loudly. He definitely wants to be rescued, but maybe not for at least ten
more minutes. Fifteen tops.
"Help!" Louis echoes, even more quietly. He steps back and trips over the teddy
bear. "Oh my god. That's it."
"What?" says Liam, scrambling up. "What is it?"
"The teddy bear," says Louis. "It's poisoned."
"Louis," says Liam. "The teddy bear was given me by an eleven-year-old girl
with I LOVE 1D written on her t-shirt in orange glitter glue. What are you
talking about?"
"There's sex poison in it," hisses Louis. "I told you it smelt weird. Why else
would I be kissing you?"
"Excuse me then," says Liam, annoyed. "I'm sorry it was so awful. I didn't ask
you to throw yourself at me."
"It wasn't me! I told you, it was the teddy bear!"
"No," says Liam thoughtfully. "I'm pretty sure I wasn't kissing the teddy
bear."
"I hate you," says Louis. "I don't care if you take your whole shirt off, I'm
gonna properly murder you."
"Let me get this straight. You want me to strip, but it's the teddy bear's
fault."
Louis glares at him, arms folded. "Something like that."
"Wow," says Liam. Louis is leaning against the wall of the lift. He's fiddling
with the hem of his shirt so that every three seconds Liam can see a patch of
his skin. Liam's dick is so hard in his jeans. "Um, am I supposed to take my
shirt off now?" It could be awkward if they get rescued suddenly.
"You're supposed to not talk," says Louis. His eyes are closed again. "I need
to not hear you or see you or touch you or I'll probably die."
"You don't have to be mean about it," says Liam. He's not sure what's going on,
but he knows the teddy bear isn't sex-cursed, because he doesn't feel any
different. He feels the same way he always does around Louis, except more so.
Normally when Louis gets to be a bit much Liam can just do calisthenics to calm
down but there really isn't room for press-ups in a lift. He thinks of how
Louis had bit at his mouth and reaches down to unbutton a couple more buttons
of his shirt. The tips of his fingers feel hot against his chest, and he can't
help making a little noise. "If you want to—take care of yourself, you can. I
won't look. Or listen," he adds, remembering the sounds Louis made when he was
kissing him.
"Oh god," says Louis, fists clenched. "Oh god shut up."
"Or I could, I could do it," says Liam. Louis's looking at him again, looking
at his mouth. Liam presses his hands to his cheeks to keep them off his dick.
"No big deal, it doesn't make you gay—" because that had seemed important
somehow to the last two boys he'd kissed, and he thinks it might make Louis
feel better.
Louis's still shaking his head, but Liam steps closer anyway. Louis's hand
shoots out the way it always does when he's going to pull Liam's hair or tweak
his nipples but this time his fingers just end up on Liam's throat. Very
carefully, Liam reaches out to remove Louis's glasses.
"So you can't see me," he says shakily.
"I don't know," says Louis, a bit wildly. "I don't know, I just—"
"It's okay," says Liam, and then, inspired, "It's just the bear, right?"
Louis's eyes go wide. "Yes," he says, "yes, yes."
"You're so fit," Liam blurts out, and sees something in Louis's eyes that looks
like fear. "I mean," he says, "I've been poisoned to think you're fit."
Louis nods violently. "We can't help it."
"Nope," says Liam, and puts Louis's glasses in his back pocket.
"If you break my glasses I'll put rats in your bunk," says Louis. He's already
running his hands over Liam's shoulders.
"I know," says Liam, "come on," and he bends his head and finds Louis's mouth.
Louis is still for a moment, his lips hot under Liam's, and then his whole body
seems to buckle, going loose in Liam's arms. Liam's known for ages that Louis's
body makes his body stupid and that he can't ever let Louis close enough to
find that out. The way Louis is clinging to him now though, sliding his hands
up Liam's back under his shirt, makes Liam feel like it's okay after all, being
like this. Wanting Louis like this. He gets a leg between Louis's thighs so he
can move in even closer, pushing his hips against Louis's until he's jammed up
against the wall. Liam can't believe how Louis's letting him rub up against
him, how he's making sounds so raw and desperate Liam's almost ready to believe
in that sex curse after all.
"Liam," Louis gasps out, "Can I, can I just," and he's fumbling Liam's flies
open, looking straight at him, mouth in a defiant line like he expects Liam to
tell him no. Liam stares right back and jerks Louis's trackies down over his
arse. Then he pulls Louis in again, gently at first, just to see what it's
like, Louis's hard cock against his. It's a lot. It makes Liam thrust his whole
needy, wanting body against Louis while Louis clutches at his back and moans.
"Louis," says Liam, "I have to, I'm gonna—"
"And you never even let me touch you," Louis mutters, and gets his hand between
them.
"I am now," Liam tries to say, but he's coming already, right into the twist of
Louis's hot, impatient hand. He thinks Louis might laugh at him for how soon it
was, how he didn't even try to hold out, but Louis just groans and moves his
hand to his own dick. "No," says Liam, jealous suddenly, because it's not fair
that Louis's going to try to come without him, even when Louis's cock is
already smeared with Liam's come, and he drops to his knees so he can get in
Louis's way.
"Put it—put it in your mouth," says Louis. "Liam, Liam, please." His legs are
shaking and when Liam gets a grip on his thighs and his mouth on Louis's cock,
Louis jolts forward and comes in seconds. His cry echoes in the small space.
Liam gags, swallows. He wants to take it as if he's done it before.
There's a hand on his shoulder. "Liam," says Louis, but when Liam looks up,
Louis just shakes his head.
"Everything's fine," says Liam. He wipes his mouth. "I'm fine."
"Good for you, then," says Louis, sounding a bit more like himself. "Have you
got a tissue?"
"I think so," says Liam, and stumbles to his feet. His jeans are still sagging
open. He tucks his dick back into his boxers so he doesn't look so silly, and
finds a couple of crumpled tissues in one of his pockets.
"Thanks," says Louis, and when he takes one their fingers brush together. Liam
represses a sudden urge to hang on to Louis's hand and dabs at himself with the
other tissue instead. He's still kind of sticky, but he zips himself up anyway.
He'll have a shower later.
Louis's still wiping at himself where Liam came on him. His face is kind of red
and he's not looking at Liam. He still hasn't pulled his trackies back up, and
there's one splotch that he's missing completely. "Do you want me to help?"
Liam asks.
"No, Liam," says Louis, "I can wipe up your jizz all by myself." He balls up
the tissue and throws it in a corner of the lift. Liam kind of wants to get it,
because he doesn't think they should leave jizz rags on a semi-public lift, but
if he does it might look like he's criticizing Louis's cleaning skills.
"I didn't mean to get it on your shirt," says Liam.
"That's all right. Wasn't your fault."
"Right," says Liam, nodding. "It was the teddy bear."
"Um," says Louis, pulling up his trackies. "Yeah, cause otherwise we wouldn't,
right? We don't even get on."
"Mmmm," says Liam noncommittally. "Are you gonna keep on not liking me? It's
fine, I'd just like to know."
"I never didn't like you," says Louis. He looks extremely sulky for someone
who's just had his dick sucked, or like, almost sucked, because Liam hadn't
really had time.
"Well, I never didn't like you either," says Liam, but before Louis can say
anything else the button panel buzzes into life.
"Boys? You in there?"
"Yes!" Liam yells into the intercom. "Yes, yes, we're stuck!"
"Just hang on then, we've got someone on the way."
"Thank god," Louis says loudly. "We're missing rehearsal, I can't miss
rehearsal."
 
*
 
As it turns out, Liam and Louis are only 45 minutes late. Niall hugs them as
intensely as if they're astronauts returning from a dangerous space mission.
Liam apologises. Louis doesn't, because he's offended that Savan went on with
rehearsal instead of organizing an all-band search party.
"I hope you at least did your lip trills in the lift," says Savan.
"Well, of course," says Louis. His arm twitches as if he's about to elbow Liam,
but he doesn't. They take their places around the piano.
"Lookin' out a dirty old window," sings Liam, doing his best to sound depressed
but also romantic. Louis's standing right next to him, with at least a foot of
space between them.
The song goes smoothly until Zayn and Harry's verse, when Savan stops them
because he wants to work on Harry's breath control. Liam bites his lip and
shuffles sideways so he can speak very quietly and not at all disruptively into
Louis's ear. "Louis. You know how before we were feeling kind of, um—"
"—poorly—" Louis supplies.
"Right, poorly." Liam pauses, not sure how to go on.
"We agreed it was a weird teddy bear poison curse drug thing," Louis whispers.
"It's gone now, right?"
"I suppose so," says Liam. Louis had binned the poor innocent teddy bear down
in the basement before Liam could stop him, so Liam's obviously going to have
to think up another excuse if he's ever going to suck Louis off properly. "Do
you think it's, like, flushed from our system then?"
"Dunno," says Louis thoughtfully, and the whole room seems to tilt for a
moment.
Savan's voice rings out sharply. "Liam? Louis? You with us?"
"Yes, Savan," says Liam. "Sorry."
"Then be ready for the chorus, please," says Savan. Everyone sings that they're
kids in America who live for the music around. Louis sounds particularly
enthusiastic. Then it's Liam's verse and it must be all right because Savan
doesn't stop him.
When Niall starts singing, Liam turns to Louis again. "You don't still feel it,
do you?" he whispers hopefully. "Don't some drugs give you flashbacks? You
never know."
"Yeah, I've heard of that," says Louis, and he's still nodding his head when he
chimes in with Niall. "You know life is cruel," they sing. "Life is never
kind." Then Louis punches Liam's hip.
Liam takes a deep breath and stays right where he is.
"Aren't you gonna try to get away?" Louis whispers. He spreads his fist out,
until his hand is gripping Liam's hip instead.
"Do you want me to?" Liam whispers back. He touches the back of Louis's hand,
just for a moment.
There's a jangle of piano keys, and a deep sigh from Savan, because apparently
they've missed another cue. "Okay. Let's just start it again from the top. You
two ready?"
"Yes," says Louis, and he slings his arm around the back of Liam's neck without
looking at him. "Now we are."
End Notes
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