One Night With Zayn & Nine Months With His Baby

Chapter Six: Take Care of You

        I woke the following morning to knocking on the front door of my apartment. I sat up slowly from bed and walked toward it, opening just a crack to see who it was.

        "Zayn, what're you doing here?" I asked looking down to make sure I was decent. I was in shorts and a tank top. Nothing he hasn't seen before.

        He smiled. "I said I'd take care of you, didn't I? I mean, I can't do this every day but I'm going to try to come over as often as I can. I brought you breakfast."

        I opened the door so that he could come in, smiling at how nice a gesture it was.

        Zayn came into my apartment and shut the door behind him. "Did I wake you?" He leaned down and kissed the side of my head the way he'd done before.

        "It's fine. It's already late, I think, so if you hadn't, my stomach would have," I explained.

        He walked into the kitchen and set down the bag he'd brought with him. "Around what time do you usually feel sick?"

        I leaned against the door frame that led to the kitchen. "Around eleven or twelve."

        "Well it's already eleven," he said.

        "So maybe it's not such a good idea for me to eat yet," I said, sitting on the stool by the counter.

        He took the bag in his hand again. "I'll put it in the fridge and later you can heat it up when you're feeling better, alright?"

        I watched as he opened the refrigerator. He set down the bag and looked back at me. "Riley, there's hardly anything in here." He shut the door and began to rip open my cabinets to expose a single box if soda crackers. "What the hell? Do you even eat?"

        "I do. It's alright, Zayn. You don't need to freak out."

        "The hell I do. You have nothing to eat here."

        I felt the nausea start to kick in and set my head down on the tiled counter. Closing my eyes, I tried to ignore the fact that Zayn had just scolded me. Scolded me.

        He must have noticed my sudden change because his hand found my shoulder. "I'm sorry. Hey, do you need to go to the bathroom?"

        I nodded slowly and just as I had, his arms slipped underneath me and lifted me from the stool I'd been sitting on. He took me to the bathroom and sat me on the ground. I felt him kneel behind me, take my right hand in his, and slip off the hair tie I'd kept there.

        Before I knew it he was tying my hair in a long ponytail and rubbing circles along my back. It had been by far the most caring gesture I'd ever received in my life, even if it was the most unpractical moment.

        About two minutes later he was carrying me out into the living room and sitting me on the sofa.

        "It's kind of dark in here," he said as he walked over to the window on the far side of the room to pull open the curtain.

        Once he was done he came over to sit by me. I kept my eyes glued to my hands. "I'm sorry you had to see that."

        He turned to see me. "Don't be. It's not your fault. But," he paused, "I do want to talk about the food situation here. What happened?"

        "Nothing happened."

        "Please. You said it was okay for me to help you. I need you to help me do that."

        I sighed. "I used the money to pay rent and I'm going to use what's left over for groceries when it's absolutely necessary."

        "How much is left over?" he questioned.

        I thought for a moment. He just wants to help. "About forty dollars."

        Zayn sucked in a breath. "Jesus... Were you planning on saying anything?"

        I shook my head to both sides. "Not really. I thought I could handle it."

        He cocked his head to the side and rested it on the backside of the sofa. "You should've told me. I don't want to upset you, Riley, but you need to stop keeping things from me."

        I bit my lip and looked at him. He always looked so sincere. He actually cared. He wanted to take responsibility for his actions.

        "I wasn't about to tell you I was broke. I told you yesterday that I didn't want you thinking the only reason I contacted you was to get something from you."

        "I know that. I believe you don't want to use me. But I also understand you need me. There's nothing that I want more than for you to be okay," Zayn told me.

        I wasn't sure what I was supposed to say. I felt bad needing him. I didn't want to need him. I didn't want his money. I didn't even know if I wanted his help in any way.

        "I got fired because I kept calling in sick to work," I explained.

        He nodded. "That's alright. We can work this out." He thought for a moment. "Do you have a specific diet? Things you can't or won't eat?"

        "I don't really eat anything too heavy. Meat is not an option for me anymore. It makes me nauseous," I replied, squinting my eyes against the brightening light coming in from the window.

        Zayn saw this and stood to shut the curtains just enough for the sunlight not to reach my face. "Alright. Thanks for letting me know," he smiled. "You look tired."

        "Yeah. I get tired more often," I said.

        I watched as Zayn held his hand out for me. I took it and he pulled me up gently. "You should sleep a while."

        I followed him into my room and he made sure I was in bed. Looking up at him, it felt like I was seeing him all over again. He was so beautiful. He was so sweet.

        Just as he turned around to walk away, I cleared my throat. "Hey Zayn?"

        He looked back at me. "Yeah?"

        "Will you still be here when I wake up?"

        He smiled once more, making something inside me tingle. "I'm not going anywhere."

        I smiled back, something that felt strange to me. I was letting him in. I was letting him take care of me.

        Of all the men I could have had sex with, what were the odds I'd have done it with him?