𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲 ( 𝐳𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 )

'𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐢 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞

Harry had been acting strange. Zayn was aware that this might all be in his head but he felt pretty certain that Harry's behaviour over the past week wasn't normal. It wasn't like he was acting weirdly towards him, that wasn't it at all. He was actually just as nice as he'd always been but it was the being out of home for hours on end during a fucking pandemic that was beginning to freak Zayn out.

He would always come back from these trips excited, nearly bounding off of the walls. He had asked but Harry just smiled cheekily and then did something to distract him, Zayn rolled his eyes at that; curse fucking Harry for having fucking magical hands. He was out again and Zayn's mind was running wild with possibilities but all of the scenarios were dismissed nearly as soon as his mind conjured them up cause he was certain if Harry Styles was jumping off of cliffs or planes somewhere it would be on the news and thus far he'd seen nothing.

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It was nearly 6 PM amd Zayn was sick with worry, Harry had been back by 3 whenever he had gone out this past week but he still wasn't back. Zayn didn't know if he had the right to be mad at this but he was, he paced back and forth in the hall terrified of turning the television off just in case there was news of a freak accident somewhere. He didn't understand his feelings at the moment, there was frustration for sure but the stronger feeling was that of a sinking helplessness. He kept looking at the door what must have been every thirty seconds hoping against hope Harry would walk in.

It was nearly 6:45 when he finally did and Zayn didn't know what he wanted to do more, run up to him and hug him or scream at him letting all of his very volatile emotions out but he was so overwhelmed he did nothing, just stood there dumbly in the hall as Harry walked towards him with a massive smile on his face which faltered a little on seeing the expression on Zayn's face. " Babe, what's wrong? You've got a weird look on your face there." Zayn cleared his throat a little before saying, " You were out, like you have been constantly this past week but you were so late today and I didn't know what had happened and I was just - I was just so fucking worried Harry." Harry's smile instantly dropped and he placed the box covered with a blanket he was holding in his right hand down which is the first time Zayn noticed the box was even there and rushed over to him, " I am so sorry I had you worried like that love that wasn't my intention at all. I just wanted this to be a surprise so I might have come across a little elusive." He said while hugging him tightly to his chest.

After a while of hugging Harry placed a kiss on the top of Zayn's head before speaking, " Want to see what I was up to?" Zayn nodded with his head still on his chest after which Harry pulled back to take him by the hand and lead him to the blanketed box still on the middle of their hall floor. Harry crouched down next to the box and removed the blanket from around what Zayn now realised was a pet carrier before sitting down and motion-ing for Zayn to sit next to him on the floor. He then opened the tiny door and Zayn peered in and gasped, inside was the most precious, chocolate brown chow-chow puppy who was napping at the moment.

Zayn felt his eyes fill with tears as he looked back up at Harry, " What?- Who?- What???" Harry chuckled, running his hand gently over Zayn's cheeks wiping away the tears that had escaped his eyes, " I noticed how much you loved hanging out with Eric and Adylyn's little guys so I was looking into adoption options around here and I got a call a week ago about this little guy who was abandoned by the side of a back road because he had a dodgy back leg. I'd been going to see him this past week because he had some things at the vet that needed caring for and I was there to just make sure it all went well. I was out a little longer today because as of today he's ours but obviously adopting in another country has a little more paperwork so that stuff took some time . So umm surprise ??" Harry ended slightly unsure. Zayn instantly hugged him with so much force that he was pushed backwards and they were a weird sniffling heap on the floor.

The puppy had woken up at some point during this all and was meekly poking his head out of the little carrier and looking up at Zayn and Harry. Zayn quickly bent down to take him into his arms and cuddled him to his chest making little cooing noises at him as Harry enquired what he wanted to name him. Zayn shrugged, unsure still very overwhelmed with just the presence of the little angel.

After they had put away the little carrier he came in and they were sure he was full and he had had a little bit of water they cuddled up in the couch again, Zayn learnt that the problem with the back leg had forced the vets to amputate that leg up to the joint which reduced the pain the limb caused the little guy but the lack of which made it so that he couldn't move very much without help. Zayn knew he would help him through that though, build him up to the strongest little puppy in the world.

That is how they spent the rest of the evening, doting over the furry little angel that seemed to have quite a feisty streak despite coming across meek at first. It felt to Zayn like a family, a family he'd been missing. Here with this man he was certain he was already in love with and their own little guy in a town straight out of a fairytale.