heartbeat // zayn malik AU

chapter one

"It seems no one can help me now,

I'm in too deep, there's no way out."

- Soul Asylum [Runaway Train]

At first, I wasn't sure what had woken me. A quick glance around my room revealed nothing out of the ordinary, other than the fact that I had an entire wall covered with pictures of tigers. But then again, that was just the usual for me; I had a strange obsession with them, and-

Focus, Valarie. You heard something. That's what woke you up.

"Got it. Thanks, Inner Conscious Voice thing," I said out loud. Talking to myself was a bit strange, yes, but it helped reassure me as I stood up and began walking around in complete darkness.

"Hello?" I whispered into the unyielding blackness.

Nothing, no reply. 

This was ridiculous. It was 1:00 A.M. and I was busy talking to nonexistant visitors instead of being fast asleep like I should be.

About to crawl back into bed, I threw a casual glance over my shoulder, towards the open glass door that led out to my bedroom's tiny balcony.

And just about had a heart attack.

There was a man on the railing.

I blinked twice, then three times, sure I was hallucinating. It was late, after all; my mind had a habit of playing tricks on me.

But no matter how many times I cleared my vision, the sight remained the same. A tall, lanky young man with black hair, dressed in dark clothing that nearly blended in with the night sky outside.

One more thing. He had wings. Freaking wings. And they looked so real...

Through the glass, our eyes connected. His were a sort of brilliant gold, reflecting a thousand moonbeams, more intense than any gaze I'd ever seen before.

"Wings," I whispered. 

That was the last thing I remembered, saying that simple word, before I hit the floor in a dead faint.

I'd love to say that I woke up to some sexy guy whispering my name while he ran his fingers lovingly through my hair. Or even that I woke up in my mother's arms, that she would hold me and tell me everything was okay, and that I was an idiot for being awake in the first place at this time of night.

I didn't wake up to either of those.

Instead, I woke up to a string of colorful curses, some of them directed at me, others directed at no one in particular.

"Fucking bloody hell... I'm going to be arrested... This is just wonderful. Way to go, Zayn..."

My eyelids fluttered as I fought to open them. "Who's Zayn?" I mumbled.

A loud sigh of relief sounded, as the stranger whose lap my head was resting in bent down to peer at me closely. "I'm Zayn. Thank God you're not dead."

"Of course I'm not dead." 

Pulling myself into a sitting position, I blinked at the man--this so-called Zayn.

My heart seemed to stop beating. I froze, cold sweat breaking out over my body.

It was him. It was the guy from my balcony, who was the reason I'd fainted in the first place.

"Where are your wings?"

Probably not the first question I should've asked. First of all, I should've asked him how the heck he'd gotten into my bedroom. Actually, no, scratch that. I shouldn't have been asking questions; I should've karate-chopped him in the unmentionables and called the cops. But hey, I'd just fainted, and it was the middle of the night. My mind wasn't working properly.