Echo Of Us • Zarry

TS 3

Later that night, or early next morning more like, they're finally in bed. Too tired to do anything more than share some tender kisses, they're lying in an embrace, limb over limb to the point where they're just a big pile of bodies. Harry feels warm and content, being in his favourite place in this world which is, despite his answers of LA, New York and many other cities, Zayn's arms. He could stay like this together, even if they were to die and go through all five stages of decay together until they were just bones and dust.

Despite that, Harry can't keep the nagging words of his mum off his mind. They keep coming back and pester him, make him paranoid and restless. What if she's right? What if he gets terrified by their relationship and will be the one to run away in the dead of night this time? What if he isn't made for a long-term relationship in spite of his friends always saying he doesn't need any more domesticating? That's all just a habit after all. Just because he likes to stay in sometimes, loves to bake and loves babies, it doesn't mean he can be good at creating a life with a person he loves. That requires completely different qualities.

"Zayn?" Harry asks quietly.

"Hmm?"

Harry turns in Zayn's arms and finds him with his eyes closed.

"Zayn," Harry says louder this time.

Zayn cracks his eyes open, sighing and pulling Harry closer to his chest. "Sleep, babe. We'll talk in the morning."

"I can't sleep until I get this off my chest," Harry argues, pulling away from Zayn so he can see his face again.

Zayn sighs one more time and manages to keep his eyes open for longer than two seconds. "What is it?"

"Mum and Gemma don't think our relationship is a good idea." Letting the troublesome thought out and sharing it with someone makes Harry feel easier already.

Zayn frowns, rubbing his eyes and blinking a few times. Perhaps sleeping and talking in the morning was really the better idea.

"Why?" he asks simply.

Harry takes an exasperated breath. "They think I'm... I don't know, too immature for a relationship. That I don't know what a long-term relationship obtains."

Zayn nods to himself. "Why would they think that?"

"I don't know," Harry groans. Zayn quirks an eyebrow at him, making Harry groan again and sigh. "They said because I've never been in a proper relationship before, I don't know what to want out of a relationship. Which is bollocks cause I told them that I just want mutual love and support. That's what the basis of a good relationship should be, yeah?"

Zayn takes a deep breath and turns to lie on his back. He stares at the ceiling for a while, the silence making Harry anxious.

"I mean, yeah. Not just that but something has to be the foundation of it," he says after a moment.

"Fuck," Harry blurts out, suddenly realizing that his mum's words weren't just about feelings and the simple question of 'are we dating/are we not?'. "They meant stuff like marriage and kids, right? They probably thought we want different things and I'd inevitably fuck everything up with my commitment issues."

Zayn turns his head to look at Harry. "You have commitment issues?"

"It was because of you, that's not an issue now since I am with you. Don't worry about it," Harry rolls his eyes.