When no one's watching

Chapter 12

Zayn's pov:

As I woke up I could immediately smell the soft scent of a variety of flowers.
I straightened up in uncertainty of where I was.
When I looked to my right, I could see a fondly smiling Liam who was staring at me, laying there.
I had totally forgotten that we had been here and what I had also totally forgotten was, that I had been sleeping on Liam.
I had seriously slept on top of his shoulder and I guessed that I even scooted closer while sleeping.
Oh no that was embarrassing.

"Sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable by laying so close, you could've just put me away."
As hard as I tried to prevent that stupid blush that crept over my cheeks, it just didn't work and Liam's smile just increased by that.

"Nuh, you're a pretty sleeper, I was all fine." He chuckled lightly and smiled again, immediately making me smile like an idiot as well.
"We should probably get back soon since it's quite a long ride and it's already 7pm."
I was shocked that it was already that late and stood up.

I then stretched out my hand to help Liam stand up and he took it gladly.
As I swung him up, for a few moments we just stood there very, very, very close and there was a tense silence between us.

I somehow knew that he also felt what I was feeling, because there was something.
Like an energy or a fire between us, something inexplicably and unseeable.
Only we could feel it and I just couldn't explain what it was.

After Liam cleared his throat, he took my hand and pulled me towards the path.
It had already become a habit for us that we would hold hands if we walked so neither of us questioned it and it wasn't awkward at all.

Also when he was holding my hand, there was something like energy that was coming from his body.
His warm, soft hands in mine made my own hands tingle magically.
Again that weird but amazing feeling which I just couldn't get rid of, nor deny it.

I shrugged it off and just walked besides Liam.
The silence between us wasn't even awkward anymore since we both knew that we, if we were our real selves, liked the silence and just enjoyed each other's presence quietly.

Also in the car we stayed silent, both of us being in thought.
A song came up in the quietly playing radio and Liam started humming along. I guessed he didn't even realize he was humming and it was adorable.
I couldn't stop myself from looking at him and smile lovingly at this beautiful scenery.

After some time I was just staring at him and enjoying the situation. Then, the humming stopped and as I looked into his eyes, they met mine. A huge grin was plastered on his face, he had caught me staring and I blushed once again.

"You look beautiful like that, Zaynie."
He smiled at me preciously and his eyes, with those unfamiliar but beautiful, warm sparks were showing that he meant it.
I had discovered that his eyes would always sparkle if he was happy. And it made me feel good to know that he was happy around me and wasn't hiding himself.
I had never seen those sparks in school. For me Liam in school was a stranger.
This was the Liam I loved, the Liam I accidentally fell in love with.

How much I just wanted to hug him right now, to just hug him forever and never let go.
But I couldn't because that wasn't was 'mates' were supposed to do and probably Liam wouldn't like it either. Also was he driving so it was out of mind.

After a short silence of me thinking of how to reply properly I said a normal "Thank you, Li.".
My smile was giving it away anyway. It wasn't even a smile, I was literally grinning like a Cheshire cat and I couldn't even stop it.

The more I was with Liam, the more I had to admit to myself that he made me feel so happy and giddy on the inside.
It was a weird feeling that I had never had before but it made me feel like I belonged, and I had never felt like I actually belonged.

In was so lost in thought that I didn't realize that we had already parked in front of my house.
Liam didn't even tell me, he was just grinning at me.
"You could've just told me instead of grinning stupidly, idiot!"
A cute idiot.
Instead of saying that out loud I just remained quiet and smiled at Liam.

We then got out of the car and he walked over to my side.
We both didn't really know what to do because we didn't know what the other was tolerating.
A weird hug?
A weird hand-shake?
Or just an even weirder wave?

Before I could think too much, Liam pulled me in a hug, almost crushing my bones.
It was a warm-hearted hug and I could feel how he smiled into my shoulder.
After an eternity we let go and just stood there smiling.
His hands were still on my arms, making small tingles arise, and he looked me in the eyes.

"Thank you, Zayn. Thank you for everything."
His smile stayed the same but his eyes had a shade of sadness all of the sudden.
I wondered what was going through his mind and why he thanked me but I just went with it.

"Nothing to thank me for, Li. Thank you for the nice day, I loved it."
I hugged him again but only for a few seconds before I let go and walked up the driveway.

He waved and didn't get into the car until the door shut behind me.

"Zayn Javadd Malik!"
Oh no, that was my mom, probably because it was 9pm and because she had found out that I hadn't been in school once again.

"Why are you grinning from ear to ear? Maybe a good explanation why you skipped school?"
My mom had her hands on her hips but her expression made me exhale.

She had a tint of a smile on her lips. I guessed because she had been so worried about me lately because I wasn't that happy and now I was finally smiling.
She even wanted to have a 'deep mother and son talk'. Thank god I could always get away before she started.

"I was just over at a friend's house, you know. Uhh, he was sick and I went to kind of take care of him, I guess?"
I never was the best at lying, especially not if my mom was scanning me with her piercing looks.

But to my surprise she didn't give her usual lecture about skipping school.

"Alright, just try to avoid it."
She smiled before disappearing in the kitchen again.

"Are you hungry, Zain? We have leftovers from dinner!"
"No thanks mom, I'm not hungry."

After I had said that, I could hear her angry steps coming closer again.

"You are coming with me! You haven't eaten properly for so long, you don't eat anymore, kid! Into the kitchen with you, no talking back!

I just sighed and followed her into the kitchen. If I would leave she would probably run behind me and drag me back,  so there was no way to get around it anyways.

After a complete menu of food I went up into my room and laid down on my bed.
I replayed all the events of the day and smiled to myself. It was one of the best days I had ever had.

Before I eventually fell asleep, I thought about Liam.
There was still so much to fix, so fucking much.