The Comic Book Store (z.m)

Chapter 19

I can't write lol srry but hey, did my best 🙃

~Years Later~

Zayn was already standing outside the comic book store trying to calm his anxiety when Liam showed up. He didn't even notice he'd come by until the cigarette in his lips was pulled out suddenly. With a stomp, the flame was put out and Zayn prepared to yell at the idiot who'd grabbed his shit out of nowhere, pausing when he found himself face-to-face with Liam.

Zayn had a small beard grown in and had bleached his hair. Liam, on the other hand had let his hair grow out enough to touch his shoulders and he'd let his facial hair grow out, too. He looked older. They both did. Had it really been just two years? Because from the changes, it certainly seemed like it had been longer than that.

Glancing him over, Zayn noticed he had tattoos now and arched a brow in silent surprise and approval before meeting his eyes. Liam still couldn't hide his emotions but there were too many swirling around for Zayn to pinpoint anything. He picked out the three he could catch; nervousness, fear and hurt, before he stopped himself from staring. Maybe if he'd let himself look a little longer and a little harder, with clear eyes that weren't just searching for negative reactions, he might've noticed the longing, relief and definite desire on his face as well.

"My hero," he muttered drily with a blank stare at his crushed nicotine. "Guess someone's not scared of fire, anymore?"

"Considering I go to war with them every day? Still am but not nearly as much. It's... Good to see you."

"Yeah. You too. You look well." And by that, Zayn meant he looked like a total daddy and he wanted to fuck and be fucked by him but perhaps that was too much for their first meeting in so long. There was an awkward silence, then both spoke at once, pausing afterwards. "Sorry. You go first, Liam."

Hearing Zayn say his name made him do a double take and he cursed when he found himself tearing up, clearing his throat. "Just wanted to know when you started smoking actual cigarettes. Or cancer sticks, as one can also call them."

"Hilarious. Well... Anything to keep it quiet in here, ya know? Don't worry, I haven't let myself do anything harder. My mom and dad would kill me for that." Liam smiled slightly. They might not have parted in the best way but it was good to know things were better with his parents. Zayn smirked and gave his shoulder a little shove. "Now, my turn. Whaddaya mean by saying you fight fires?"

"Oh. Umm... Kind of re-evaluated my life a while back. Put in the work and now I'm a firefighter. I work at the local station right here." Zayn gave a quiet nod, wondering what Liam looked like in his uniform, then snapping out of it because for fuck's sake, a man had died and he had no right to be so focused on Liam when he'd only come back for Stanley's sake.

Stanley's lawyer was a blue-eyed silver fox but his dead serious expression made it a bit hard to take him seriously. It was almost like he was the one who'd lost a friend and not them. Zayn caught Liam's eyes and gave him a knowing look, both well-aware that whatever he wanted them to come for, Stan would've wanted a lighter atmosphere in his store.

It still looked the exact same, Zayn marvelled, snapping back into reality when lawyer guy cleared his throat. Liam gave a light chuckle and Zayn rolled his eyes at both, resisting the urge to take out another cigarette. Clearly, Liam wasn't a fan. Maybe sticking to weed was a better option- then he stopped that train of thought because he hadn't seen Liam in years and there was no reason for the brunette to still have any power over his decisions.

"Well, the first thing I was instructed to do after scheduling this meeting with both of you, here, is to give you this letter he wrote to you. You could call it his last words before he passed."