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Liam Payne moved as fast as his uncomfortable work pants could take him. His right hand clutching tightly the handle of his briefcase. His breath was heavy and loud, the people that walked pat him gave him strange looks, due to his strange breathing and facial expression. He was tired. Very, very tired. But the worst part of all was that he had to go home and finish an assignment he had for work, which was for tomorrow. The stress was coming all up in his chest, invading his brain and making his arms and legs tense. It was pure torture.
The sky was grey, which meant that it wouldn't be long until it would begin to rain. It was around 5pm, probably the earliest time Liam can leave work, (sometimes even leaving at 1am). He was the vice president of one of London's biggest financial companies. It seemed like a big spot, and it was, but sometimes the pressure was a little bit too much for him to handle. He was good at working under pressure, believe him when he says he is, but there's a limit to everything, and he's reached that limit various times before.
Rude people would pass one another, roughly bumping shoulders and avoiding apologies. Others would step on the back of his shoe. If he weren't so stressed, he would've stopped to scowl at one of them. But then again, he was in the city of London, too many people too little that cared. With a heavy sigh, he had decided walk away from the crowd and enter the small coffee shop. He wouldn't even take more than five minutes ordering a black coffee and a muffin. As he walked away, he quietly apologized to the people who he had stepped on or pushed, but they didn't seem to be bothered.
When he entered the shop, the line wasn't long, about 3 people. He patiently waited, recognizing the song that was playing softly in the background. The line had moved quickly, and he was now ordering. The man behind the counter immediately came back with his order. Liam traded the money he had in his hands for his order, thanking the worker and left. Once he had entered the busy streets, the few peace he had left was gone. He angrily sipped his coffee, holding the chocolate muffin in its paper bag.
As he made his way down the side walk, he couldn't help but pull over to the side. About four paintings were on display on the ground of an alleyway. They were all strangely beautiful, colors mixed together in a way that Liam never really imagined before. They weren't to far in to alley, just a few feet back so that the people wouldn't step on them. He stood there, examining them. They was one that seemed to sort of catch his eye; a black landscape, with a purple sky. The silhouettes of the trees were dreary, dark and scary, like the ones in horror movies. The sky wasn't dark, nor was it light. It was purple, darker on the bottom, lighter on top, mixing in with the black. White was used to make the moon, surrounded by foggy clouds. The painting was haunting, but it brought fascination to him.
He scratched his scruff as his eyes wandered on to the other three paintings, all different and unique. He hadn't noticed that someone was watching him until his eyes met with a young man sitting right next to the last painting. Knees pulled in, chin on top of them as his big brown eyes stared at Liam. He had a big, dirty coat on him, messy hair and ripped jeans (not the ripped jeans that someone would actually buy in stores, but ripped jeans). Liam smiled at him, noticing that he was skinny and pale. He was homeless obviously, which made Liam feel pity towards the young boy. He was awfully young to be on the streets, already broke and shelter less when he has a whole life ahead of him. He noticed that in the far back of the alley, there was a dirty pillow and blanket, which he supposed was his bed. He brought his gaze back over to the paintings.
''Did you paint these?'' He asked, impressed by his skills.
He nodded a small and shy smile on his face.
Liam wanted to buy one, he really did. But right now he was really on a hurry and the idea of taking the painting all the way back home didn't seem appealing right now. He looked back at the boy and decided to hand him his muffin for now, knowing due to the unhealthy visibleness of his cheeks and jaw line that he was starving. He smiled once more ''I'll be sure to come back tomorrow and buy one''
He smiled back, unsure of taking the bag from Liam's hands.
''Here, just take it'' He said kindly and the boy did what he was told. Liam warmly winked at him (not in a flirty way), and walked away, feeling a bit good about himself.
When he was almost close to home, small droplets started to fall from the sky. It wasn't pouring rain, but it wasn't too long until it would be. When he finally entered the building, he entered the elevator, clicking on the button of the last floor. With a sigh, he made his way out of the awfully tiny space. Now in his home, a luxurious penthouse that was too big for just one man, he removed his jacket and placed the brief case on the floor next to the entrance. He stood in front of the large window that reached the very top of his home and the floor. He placed his hand on it, the other holding his coffee. He watched the rain roll down the glass, the city blurred by it. It was an amazing view; few penthouses's had this in London. But that didn't make Liam feel any more special than the others; it wasn't a priority, but just a luxury. He felt grateful, because he knew that not many people had what he had, but sometimes he wishes that he were humble. To live in a small town or a small house, how it would feel to wake up every day and actually battle for a meal.
It all reminded him about the homeless boy he had met.
Silent, yet intriguing. He was beautiful, honestly, even with all that dirt on his face. Liam couldn't help but feel guilty, knowing that he should've just bought the painting instead of being lazy, not wanting to bring it all the way home. The money he would've handed him could've bought him another meal or some more art supplies. Either way, it would've helped him.
It was now pouring and the thought of the boy huddled in the corner of the alley way, trying to protect the paintings with his bare hands broke Liam's heart.
There were so many homeless people in London, but this one was really just stuck on Liam's mind for some reason. He didn't even speak a word and that was already enough for Liam to stare out in to London, wondering where he was.
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Second chapter, vote if you enjoyed :)
Lots of love ♥
-Nessa
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paint · ziam au
Fanfiction[COMPLETED] ❝What are you going to paint?❞ ❝You.❞ -_-_- The one where Zayn is a homeless street artist and Liam is a successful business man. Zayn decides to color his life outside the lines. And while he does that, Liam finds out that there's more...
