Terminal Four (Z.M)

f i v e .

C A D E N L A U R E N S M I T H

Okay, first of all, this was a women's restroom.

Caden watched with widened eyes as Zayn walked in, his eyes swiftly taking in his surroundings before they landed on her. She stared at him, taking in his rugged appearance- he was beautiful. He was beautiful in a different sort of way, like a mixture of a scruffy puppy and a gorgeous black stallion. Caden hoped he wouldn't be offended if he found out that she compared his looks to those of an animal, but it was clear with the way that he walked with that air of confidence that he knew he was goddamn sexy and he didn't give a shit about it.

"You're coming with me, apparently."

Caden blinked, snapping out of her daze as his words processed into her head. "Um, what?"

He let out an annoyed sigh, by raising his hand into the air which had a metal handcuff hanging off it. "See these handcuffs? They've been clipped onto my hands because of you. Now go back to your bodyguards and let me continue living my life in peace."

Caden cautiously moved back, so the edge of the countertop was digging into her back. "What?"

Zayn rolled his eyes extremely slowly, clearly not wanting to repeat himself. "Your bodyguards mistook me for your boyfriend that you're eloping with. Just go tell them that I'm not the right guy, and then we both can be on our separate ways."

"What?!"

Shock rang through her voice as she straightened up, her hands running through her hair in irritation. "Are you kidding me? Is that what they think? Is that what my parents think?! I can't believe they're so stupid!"

Caden didn't care that she was ranting in front of a complete stranger in a ladies restroom. She didn't care about anything except the fact that her parents didn't understand that she had run away from home because she didn't want to get married. Not because she was in love with some other guy that she wanted to run away and then get married to.

"I just... Oh my god," Caden's voice cracked with frustration, as she tried not to break out into tears. "I don't want to marry him. I just don't. They just don't understand! I'm only eighteen years old, goddamn it! They've already ruined my life by locking me up in that goddamn house and not letting me attend school like a normal kid! They've just-"

"Hey," Zayn look panicked and uncomfortable, reaching over and awkwardly taking her hands into his. "Shh. Don't cry. Please don't, because then you'll expect me to comfort you and I'm not good at comforting crying teenage girls."

Caden laughed shakily as he let go of her hands, before she wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. "Sorry, I'll try not to c-cry."

Zayn leaned back and watched her for a few seconds as Caden tried to regain her composure. She had so much anger, frustration and desperation bottled up inside her. She didn't know how to let it out. No matter how many times she had cried before, it wasn't released. It was a prisoner to her body, and it would always be a prisoner until she escaped this situation. And she couldn't escape this situation by herself and she knew it.

"So," said Zayn as he watched her with an indescribable emotion. "Care to explain?"

"I think you should explain first," Caden responded, wiping away the slightly smudged mascara on her face. "I mean, why did my bodyguards get hold of you, out of all people?"

"Long story, I really don't get it myself. All of a sudden a bodyguard had snapped a pair of handcuffs over my wrists and dragged me along to Forever 21 where he asked me to go and lure my supposed girlfriend out of the bathroom where she's hiding." Zayn ran a hand through his hair, glancing at Caden's shoes for a second. "And here I am."