Reason To Be (A Zouis Family AU)

Part Four, Chapter Ten

Zayn scrubs his hands down his face roughly as he sits on the edge of his and Louis' bed, eyes tired and mind whirring - he knows that sleep won't be an option for the remainder of the night, and judging by the expression on his husbands face as he moves to sit beside him, he feels the exact same.

The shorter man rests a hand atop of his own that rests in his knee over the material of his trousers, thumb grazing back and forth over his skin. He flips his hand around so that it's palm up, interlacing their fingers, neither of them looking up.

He blows out a soft breath. It's been a long day - perhaps one of the longest he's ever lived. First with Niall seemingly going missing; they'd searched the house and then the streets for the kid, called everyone they could think of from Liam and Emily to his school friends and even a few of the teachers that they knew of. When it had reached the evening hours with no reports of seeing the kid, they'd called the police, who had claimed that they wouldn't be able to set up a formal search for him for at least another few hours because of their guidelines.

Zayn had felt as if he was going out of his mind with worry within an hour of their youngest son being gone. Especially after he'd picked him up from school the previous week in such a state and he hadn't spoken about it since, keeping it all inside in a way that made him feel helpless. Both his and Louis' minds had automatically jumped to the worst kind of conclusion, which involved the kid never coming home for one reason or another.

Then there had been the call from Harry at almost midnight. Louis had put him on loud speaker at first and Zayn had instantly picked up on the pain in the eighteen year olds voice; at first there had been relief that Niall was with his brother, only for such relief to be short lived and replaced by further worry for both of their sons.

When Louis has returned home with both boys in the car, Zayn had already been waiting in the November cold by the front door for them; wasting no time in hurrying out. Niall had been fast asleep in the back, Harry looking close to falling to sleep himself in the passenger seat. The curly haired boy hadn't said much to him, just thrown his arms around him in a tight hug and mumbled against his shoulder that he just wants to sleep tonight.

Zayn hadn't seen the bruises, vicious and stark against his pale cheek and eye socket, and the sore split in his lip until they had broken the embrace, and the worry that instantly embedded itself in his gut only doubled when the kid had looked at him with teary eyes and told him he was too tired to talk tonight and that he simply wanted to go to bed.

Louis had trailed behind the boy, told Zayn to carry Niall up to bed, and he had. That worry had doubled yet again when he had seen the tear stains on their youngest's face, the furrow in his brow even in sleep. He'd settled the kid in his bed and slipped his shoes off of his feet, taking the time to tug the covers over him and tuck him in in a way he hadn't in so long.

Louis had left Harry's room quietly, face drawn with his own concern, and now here they are.

Eventually, he breaks the silence. "I called Liam," he murmurs.

Louis nods with a small grimace. Zayn knows he's wondering whether their eldest has been hiding something elsewhere, if there's more of the bad stuff that they've somehow missed. "He okay?"

"Yeah," he answers quietly, accompanied by a short nod. "Yeah, sounded tired but otherwise okay. Said he's going to come over the day after next to see his little brothers."

This time when his husband nods, he stays silent.

Zayn can't handle it. "Harry's asleep?" He asks, voice just above a whisper.

His husband gives a short nod. "Yeah. Out like a light before he'd even taken his shoes off. You know, he still looks like a baby when he sleeps? I don't - I don't understand how anyone could ever want to hurt him - or anyone at all - but Harry? He's the most loving, kind, selfless kid there is alongside his brothers. I just can't -" he breaks off with a shake of his head.