The A-hole Next Door (completed)

THIRTY FIVE

Lauren gazed admiringly at the world-famous tower in front of her. She squinted her eyes through the soft rays of sunshine, then looked up to see the full image of the Eiffel Tower.

"It's so beautiful." She said dreamily with that wide smile etched on her face.

"Yeah." Zayn agreed beside her, but he wasn't referring to the tower. His eyes were fixed on Lauren's face, drinking in its small details. How her hair gently swayed with the wind, how her cheeks blushed as she smiled, how her eyes turned to lighter shades of green under the sun's rays. For him, not even the Eiffel Tower could surpass Lauren's beauty and its effect on him.

"It should be the eighth wonder of the world." She muttered, eyes still fixed on the tower.

"Nah." He disagreed.

She turned her head to him. "Why? Do you have something better in mind to be the eighth?" She asked with full curiosity.

He gave her cheek a soft pinch. "You."

Lauren's face turned red and her giggles floated around them. "Cheeky bastard." She chortled while putting her arms around his waist. "You don't have to flatter me much."

"I'm just being honest and outspoken about it." He replied before kissing her forehead. "Let's go up the tower, yeah?"

She nodded happily. They made their way up to the tower. The sun was almost bidding goodbye on the horizon, painting the sky with breathtaking colors of deep orange and purple.

They stopped at the second floor of the tower. Lauren gasped in delight when she saw the panoramic view from where she was stood.

"Paris on our feet." He whispered on her ear, hugging her from behind.

"It's unbelievable." She murmured. "I can't even point the right word to describe it." She added, then pulled her phone to snap a picture of the view. Zayn also let out his phone, but to take a selfie with her.

When the sun completely vanished from the sky, they decided to head to the champagne bar on the top floor. They laughed and talked, Zayn sharing their sick and crazy experiences during the tour and Lauren was so eager to hear it all.

"I've been doing the talking here." He said, watching her as she wiped her tears due to excess laughter. "Tell me how your weeks without me had been."

Lauren emptied her glass of champagne. "It's okay, but lonely." She muttered, deciding not to mention his parents' plans of filing a divorce. Zayn was in a good mood and they were having a good time, she didn't want to spoil it. She didn't want to break down in front of him while sharing her confrontation with her Dad last Friday.

"How's work?" He asked, longing to hear more about her life.

"It's getting more toxic." She sighed, and again, she chose not to tell him that she almost resigned and considered to be his chaperon for the tour. For her, it was already fixed anyway so confessing about it wasn't really necessary.

"You'll be promoted soon. I'm so proud of you."

She smiled. "Thanks. I still can't believe it."

Zayn wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "You're a very talented artist, jaan. Your promotion isn't surprising. I'm so blessed to have a girl who has very, very talented hands."

Lauren narrowed her eyes on him. She didn't fail to catch the sudden change of his tone when he said the last statement. "Just the hands?"

He let out his cheekiest grin. "And mouth." He murmured huskily, his fingers drawing small circles on her bare thigh. She stared at him, and he just gave her an alluring look. His hands were poised to lift her skirt a little when her phone rang.