You Had Me At Hello || z.m.

Rainy Night

"Ok...ok...ah-ah..." I scroll the "registration form" for the University, checking all the items.

"HAVE YOU QUITE FINISHED?!" Louis's high voice comes up from behind me.

"Stop it, STOP IT!" and Alice's laugh is even louder.

"You two lovebirds, can you please keep it quiet, I'm trying to decide about my future, if you don't mind!" I ask them; they're playing on the sofa like 2 years old children, loudly and stupidly.

"Sorry Irene!" Louis apologizes, slapping Alice's ass and whispering "you're a bad girl!" in her ear.

"God, you two are..." I say, pretending to be retching.

I go on filling my form, while Alice and Louis make subdued noises and squeaks in front of the television.

"DONE!" I scream in triumph. "I'm officially a student of the University of Leeds!". Alice and Louis rejoice with me and jump up from the couch.

"Congrats, my friend!" Alice says while hugging me.

"Ire-ne, Ire-ne!" Louis cheers agitating his fists in the air.

I stand up from the table and turn the computer off. Outside it's heavily raining, but my mood can't be ruined by the shitty weather.

"Now, let's celebrate!!" I suggest. "Liam texted me a few minutes ago, he's at the Walkabout with Niall right now. And probably Harry and Zayn will be joining them soon. I really want to have fun tonight!". My voice sounds enthusiastic, and Louis and Alice are easily influenced by my happiness. I run to the bathroom in order to quickly get ready. Not only I just matriculated: tonight I'll see Zayn. It's been two days since our night together, and I haven't heard from him. No text messages, no messages on facebook, nothing. But, honestly? Tonight I feel positive! I feel like every little thing is going to be fine. Maybe he was just busy or he felt embarrassed or didn't want to disturb me. There must be an explanation. And I can't wait to see him and be able to talk to him.

Alice, Louis and I walk fast down the street with our umbrellas, trying not to get too wet. The Walkabout is a pub really near our flat, just around the corner, no need to use the car. As soon as we reach the big entry, we spot Liam's buzz cut and Niall's blonde hair. They're sitting at a round table on the opposite side of the bar. We reach them and smile at them.

"Hi lads!"

"Hi Lou, how you doin' mate? Hi girls!!" Niall and Liam wave sweetly from behind their big mugs of beer.

We take a seat and order some beer too.

In a matter of seconds Zayn may come in by the door and approach us with a bright smile on his face. Will he kiss me? Will he hug me? Will he act like nothing happened and just smile at me in complicity? My legs are shaking in agitation.

"Are Zayn and Harry going to join us?" Alice asks, taking a sip of her beer.

"No, I don't think so.." Niall shakes his head.

Fuck.

"Wait...huh, Zayn just texted me...he's coming by just to quickly say hi, he'll be here in a minute!" Liam announces looking at his phone.

My heart stars pounding again.

"There he is!"

I turn around and Zayn is there, at the entrance, wet from head to toe 'cause he must have forgotten his umbrella, again. He's wearing a blue shirt and dark jeans, he's incredibly hot, as always. He passes his fingers through his hair and dries his face with his forearm, before walking towards our table. As soon as he lays his eyes on me, his face become deadly serious. He looks astonished, surprised, embarrassed, as if he didn't expected me to be there, and was annoyed by me presence.

"Hi Zayn, are you drinking a beer with us?!" Louis asks, patting his friend's shoulder.

"Hum, no thanks Lou, I'm leaving in a few...Jus-just came by to say hi."

He nervously checks his phone, avoiding my gaze and swallowing hard.

Everybody is noticing that something strange is going on.

Suddenly, Zayn's phone vibrates; he looks at it and says "Ok, I-I have to go now!" stepping away and heading to the door.

Louis turns to face the other boys with a quizzical expression. "What is wrong with him?" he asks, not getting any answer, except for confused looks and raised hands.

From the window, I can see Zayn running outside and crossing the road, while protecting his face from the rain with his hands. He reaches a figure standing on the sidewalk and pats her on the shoulder. As soon as the figure turns around, I can see Zayn leaning in to kiss Perrie on her cheek, and leave with her, holding hands.