Neon Red [Order The eBook] [Zayn]

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(DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. It's important to remember this is all totally fabricated, embellished, and exaggerated for entertainment purposes.)

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Look how far we've come, my baby...

Shania Twain | Still The One

June 2018

Madison Square Garden

New York, New York

"Ready?" he stuck his head into the car when I arrived at the rear entrance to the arena before the show. My stomach knotted uncontrollably, but I couldn't have been more ready.

"As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose."

"Good, love to hear it!" he jutted a hand into the car, and despite wearing only part of his stage gear, which consisted of royal blue trousers with pink accents and a white tank top, every ring was precisely in place, including the large rose I'd given him last year. I marveled at the fact that he was still wearing it, putting it on every single day without fail, as devoutly as a wedding ring.

Uncaring of how we might've appeared to others, I took his hand and allowed him to help me out of the car. The sun was still out, promising the evening would be long and balmy. Weather quintessential to summer memories and summer lovemaking. He grabbed my backpack off the seat for me then shut the door. I stuck to my usual protocol for meetups like this: dark Ray Bans in place, along with my black hoodie, black beanie, and the black crew tee he'd lent me for the night. Now I stood there watching my surroundings, hair bristling like a caged cat, waiting on further instructions. Few people were around at the rear door, mostly crew members of the venue who were busy preparing for the show and couldn't care less about who I was or why I was with the man of the hour. Haz stepped before me now, a strange smirk on his face.

"What?" I chuckled.

"Oh nothing..."

"Sure, likely story. It's sumthin, alright. Why youh lookin' at me like that, huh?"

"Nothing, nothing...it's just that...uh, mate, the idea was to look inconspicuous. You look like you're ready to rob a freaking bank. Like the Hamburglar!" I cracked up at that.

"True, true. Maybe I did goh a bit overboard with the black, but I wanted to make sure I blended into the shadows quite well. Hey, better to be safe than sorry, yeah?"

"I guess so."

Things were awkward because we couldn't kiss or hug. We simply watched one another through my glasses a while longer, before he finally led me inside to a massive freight elevator. The doors created a ruckus when they closed, and it smelled like a garage. Even inside this enclosed space, we were careful not to touch or converse. The narrative was that I was a close friend. Old mates. No lover action allowed. No conversation because we might slip up with the endearments and say something questionable. Still, as the elevator loudly made its way up to the top floor of the building, he inched closer to me until our knuckles were brushing. It was difficult not to be physical when we were near each other. It just was. Couldn't explain it for the life of me. And my heart betrayed me completely, pounding out of my chest, desperate to be pulled into his arms.

"You've gotta behave, babe..." I uttered, eyes nearly fluttering shut as our fingers brushed back and forth so tenderly. So defiantly. All of my insides tingled perversely, and a fire pooled in my belly, spilling down into my groin. I could feel my heart rising into my throat with the inherent danger. Now his fingertips stroked up the inside of my palm and inner wrist and I swallowed thickly, mouth watering. God we couldn't even go twenty minutes without pawing each other. Hands always wandering. Always discovering. It's like we were still pubescent schoolboys looking to get off at the merest suggestion of bare skin. Unable to control the hormones that drove us to taste, touch, penetrate. Eight whole years now and still not bored of each other. This was a curse. Why wasn't I disenchanted with him by now? With any of this? When would I ever be?