Chapter Text
things you said when you were on top of the world
“oh, fuck. i think i’m dying.”
harry hides his panting with bravado, dismissing zayn’s winging for now to get his breathing back to normal. he won’t show even a sliver of exhaustion. his thighs might be burning and his heart is pounding so fast like it’s trying to get out and roll down the mountain back to the flat land, but harry has to act like everything’s fine because this was his idea and if he admits it wasn’t the best way to spend their anniversary, zayn will start sulking and the rest of their weekend in wales will be even more shit than it’s already is.
“stop acting like a little baby. you’re not dying,” harry scoffs when his breathing is mostly back to normal.
zayn glares at him from the little patch of grass where he’s lying down, starfished with his chest heaving. “we’re like… on the top of the fucking world and i’m gonna die here. my mum’s gonna kill you when she finds out you took me here.”
“this is cadair idris, not mount everest, love. people live in higher altitudes than this,” harry remarks as he sits down next to zayn.
“when you suggested we spend our anniversary in wales, i was thinking more like seeing a castle or two and fucking in our airbnb all weekend. not you attempting to murder me by hiking.”
“baby,” harry drawls as he lies down, leaning on his elbow so he’s looking down at zayn. he’s so fucking beautiful, harry still can’t believe they’re together sometimes. he had the worst crush on zayn, a very badly concealed one but harry never even dared to hope zayn would notice him. zayn always reminded him of ancient statues, with his sharp jawline and mildly bored look in his eyes. so harry watched him from a distance, in the two classes they shared and anytime he noticed him around campus or the bars around their uni. just before their freshman year ended, during the last big party before exams season, harry felt like icarus flying too close to the sun when he found himself talking to zayn, aided by liquid courage. it turns out zayn wasn’t an ancient statue, just a very attractive boy that was sometimes too quiet and a contagious laughter that lit up his eyes with happiness, burning away that faraway look harry once admired.
it didn’t take them to long to kiss like they’ve known each other for years and to also bring in the “boyfriend” label. they fell in love, hard and fast but it felt like coming home. It’s been a year since then and while harry loves being cheesy, he’s still waiting for the right moment to say “i feel like this will last forever.”. because he knows it will. since it’s forever, he still has time.
“was yesterday so bad?” harry asks, grinning like the minx he is.
zayn rolls his eyes. “i’m convinced that if it hadn’t rained, you would’ve forced me to climb another mountain. you’re lucky i love you so much because if it were anyone else, i would’ve told them to fuck off and stayed in bed all day.”
“aw, don’t be so grumpy,” harry pouts exaggaratedly. “but maybe this will give you some motivation to finally stop smoking. then we can start hiking all the hills and mountains in the country.”
“you’re insane, haz,” zayn laughs as he sits up. he’s silent for a while as harry stares at his back, admittedly too lazy and tired to sit up himself.
“i hate to say this, but the view is kinda pretty up here,” zayn says. harry finally sits up, laughing before he wraps his arms around zayn’s shoulders and starts kissing his face. he’s a bit sweaty but it doesn’t stop harry from attacking him with affection until they’re both breathless with laughter.
“i won’t say ‘i told you so’ because i love you and it’s our anniversary. so appreciate that exquisite that gift,” harry mumbles between kisses. zayn turns his head then and finally kisses harry on the mouth, bringing his hand up and clutching harry’s cheek. they kiss for a few minutes, this lazy languid movement that feels like heaven. when they pull away, they stay close, leaning their foreheads against each other.
“i love you so much,” zayn whispers. they’re so close they don’t need loudness. “even if you drag me out of bed to hike instead of having amazing sex, even if we fight about stupid shit sometimes, i wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else.”
“i love you too,” harry says, kissing zayn gently. it’s short, sweet, tender. it’s everything love should be.
it’s been just a year but harry wants so much more. the idea of it might be scary, knowing you want to spend the rest of your life with someone at just twenty but when it feels right, you hold on. you don’t let something so fucking good slip through your fingers. he knows there’s more for them. making love in their airbnb later tonight. moving in together in september. graduating university. harry wants to believe there’s more. amazing adventures together, planes taking them all over the globe. maybe matching rings on their left hands one day.
right now, they’re on top of the fucking world and they’re in love. at the end of the day, it’s all that matters. however long it lasts, every single day is worth it.