𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚟𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎 ✓

t-w-e-n-t-y--t-h-r-e-e

 ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶«̶ ̶̶̶ ̶　　 ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ ̶̶̶ ̶»̶ ̶̶̶ ̶ ̶ 

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While Niall anxiously awaits word from Zayn, and does all he can to avoid Harry at every moment of every day, Zayn continues to think about all that has happened.

How he and Niall fell in love.

How he and Niall even started sleeping together in the first place.

How Harry has weaseled his way into Niall's world in a matter of weeks, whereas it took a year and a half for Zayn to get in.

How Niall looked when he said what had happened.

How Harry looks with his broken nose and black eyes.

Zayn has got to admit, he felt awful for hitting Harry, but it was also oddly satisfying to see him like that - to know he did that sort of damage.

And Harry?

Well, let's just say that Harry is officially second guessing everything he's done in the last three months since arriving in London with his two best friends, who are no longer even speaking to him.

Liam and Louis, on the other hand, have been spending an awful lot of time with Niall, who has been nothing but an anxious, sad mess in the past week and a half since he told Zayn what happened.

It's already been eleven days.

Eleven days.

They have been apart, not interacting at all, for eleven days.

Niall's family couldn't be more pleased, couldn't be happier. They all saw Niall and Harry kiss at the wedding, they're ecstatic. Niall, in their eyes, has finally left Zayn.

And Niall, well, let's just say that Niall isn't exactly fighting them anymore. They talk, they scold, they instruct, they brag about Greg, they do all the things they've always done, and yet Niall is no longer arguing. He has lost his drive.

And with each passing day, it becomes more and more clear that maybe, just maybe, he may have also lost Zayn.

He hasn't even spoken to Harry since it happened, hasn't been able to look him in the eye.

He can honestly say he never thought this day would come, but here he is - sitting on the shoulder of the road, looking out over a wide expanse of land with a small lake right in front of him. He's driven out of town, needing to get some space for his mind to think. It's Saturday, he can afford to spend a little time away from everyone and everything.

He leans against the tire of his car, taking a deep breath and sighing as he looks out over the land.

It's peaceful, Niall thinks.

There aren't very many cars, and it's quiet. He's far enough away from London that he can't hear the horns beeping and the buses whirring and the people conversing at deafening volumes. The air is clearer, as weird as that is. London is nice, it's a nice place to live, but the air always has this tinge to it that Niall has grown used to. The short weekend trip Niall and Zayn took to the cabin reminded him of just how fresh air can smell, and now he can sort of smell that freshness once more.