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Zayn looked down at his watch for the fifth time this past minute and groaned. The seconds ticked on by as he paced up and down his driveway, his backpack slung over his right shoulder and his binder clutched to his chest. The chill of late October caused shivers to go down his spine, and he tried to pull the sleeves to his boyfriend’s sweater down, even though they were just reaching his fingertips.
School was going to start soon and Liam had promised to get him there on time. Usually he would just walk or catch a ride with Harry, but Liam had gotten his new motorcycle and insisted Zayn be the first to ride with him. Just when he was about to give up and go inside, the sound of an engine roared through the neighborhood, echoing against the houses as he drove past them. He rolled his eyes at Liam’s entrance, knowing his neighbors would probably complain about him disturbing their peaceful morning or something later on.
Liam rolled up with his new bike and-ok, this was fine with him. There, sat on his new, black Yamaha, was his stunning boyfriend. Shades covered his dark brown eyes, and to match the look, he wore a plain white shirt with a sleeveless denim vest, ripped jeans and sneakers to complete the outfit. His hair was styled up and ruffled from riding, his fingerless gloved hands gripped the handle bars tightly where a helmet dangled under his fingers’ grip. He smirked when he caught the smaller boy staring, clearly enjoying the attention he was receiving.
Zayn blushed and headed down the driveway, his hold on his binder tightening as he got closer to the metal death trap. Though Liam did look hot on it, the way he looked so confident and rebellious made Zayn swoon, the idea of riding his motorcycle made him want to be sick. Liam let go of the handles and pulled Zayn in by the waist for a quick kiss, smiling when he could feel Zayn shaking in his grip.
“It’s alright, babe, I’ve brought you this.” Liam pushed his shades up as he handed Zayn the helmet, helping him fit it over his large glasses. Liam cooed when it was in place, laughing when it only earned him a punch to the arm. Zayn was about to sit behind him when Liam grabbed his arm, pulling him back to the front of the bike.
“I’d feel better if you were in front of me.” And though Liam himself was the epitome of danger and recklessness, when it came to Zayn, he took every precaution he could. The way he said it left no room for arguments, so Zayn only shrugged and slipped in front of Liam. He smiled slightly when Liam’s arms went around him to hold the handle bars, securing him in place. Liam revved the engine loudly before they were speeding out of Zayn’s usually quiet neighborhood and to school.
xxx
“See, I told you we’d get here on time.” Liam smiled as he parked his bike, flexing his fingers since he kept a tight grip on the handle the whole time. He had made sure that the drive would be quick and cautious to ensure Zayn’s safety (more for his sake than Zayn’s). Zayn hopped off of the bike, almost tripping on his own feet until Liam caught him by the hips.
“You alright there?” Zayn pulled off his helmet, his hair disheveled and his glasses crooked. Liam smirked, about to make a comment on his looks, but Zayn just shoved his helmet into Liam’s arms, snapping,” I don’t want to hear it,” before walking away.
Liam laughed and easily caught up with Zayn, taking the large binder in his arms and holding Zayn’s left hand with his right. Like they did every morning, they walked over towards building 700, where their first class would be. Though Liam did hate being in school so early (or just being in school in general) he didn’t mind it as long as Zayn was with him, right by his side. They usually cuddled up in the corner of the hallway, sometimes Liam would coax Zayn into a quick make out session, and sometimes he would kiss at his neck until it left marks that claimed Zayn as his.
Most times, though, it would be Zayn writing down a new idea for a story or burying his face in a new book. Liam would usually just hold Zayn to his chest and doze off until the bell rang.
“Well aren’t you two just adorable.” Zayn looked behind them and smiled when he saw it was Louis, Liam’s best mate. The older boy, whose hair was ruffled and pushed to the side, tattoos scattered over both his arms, jogged over until he was walking next to them, fist bumping Liam with a smirk. “Where’s that curly friend of yours, huh?”
“Oh, don’t act like you don’t know his name. You’re obsessed with Harry.” Liam teased as they reached their usual corner of the hallway, just a few feet away from their first hour room. Louis blushed but didn’t bother to argue since, yeah, maybe he was a little obsessed with Harry, the taller, slightly awkward boy who always had a horrible joke up his sleeve and free hugs to give around. He was Zayn’s only friend when the smaller, quiet boy had first come to school this year. He was the only one who could get Zayn to say more than five words without hiding his face in his book out of shyness. That was, of course, until he met Liam. The Wolverhampton boy had pursued him endlessly, mesmerized by Zayn’s beautiful, hazel eyes, by the way he spoke so softly and carefully choose his words, by the way his entire face would turn scarlet at the slightest hint of a compliment. It was Liam’s fifth time asking him out that Zayn had agreed, and it’s only been getting better and better since that first date.
“He said he was picking up Starbucks with Niall before school so he’ll probably be late.” Zayn informed him quietly as he cuddled up to Liam’s chest and opening his binder to find a story he started a few days ago. He smiled when he found it in the mess he called a binder, tuning everything around him out as he reviewed whatever was written down, leaving reality and entering whatever fantasy world he had created.
The rest of their morning was uneventful, with Liam and Louis arguing over which football team had the best kicker until Zayn politely told them to shut up. First hour passed by quickly, with Zayn trying to copy the notes as Liam whispered what he wanted to do when they got home, which made his face permanently red for the entire hour. Louis was pelting Harry with spitballs, smiling innocently when the taller boy would turn to him with an amused, but unimpressed, look on his face.
“I just don’t understand how Ms. Treager expects us to analyze all these stories. I don’t think the color of the girl’s dress in that first one really symbolized anything; it just showed that she’s tacky.” Louis rambled as the bell rang, shoving everything into his bag messily. Zayn rolled his eyes at the older boy’s whining, just walking out of the door when a shoulder bumped into his roughly. He nearly dropped his binder from the force and flinched when he heard the guy curse at him for getting in the way.
It all happened so fast. One second Liam was next to him, making sure he was fine, and the next, he was shoving the stranger into the row of lockers, one hand gripping onto the front of the guy’s shirt. Liam had his jaw clenched tightly, his other hand in a tight fist, stopped in front of the guy’s face intimidatingly.
“Liam, stop! Liam, it was just an accident!” Zayn rushed to the boys before Liam could put a dent in the poor guy’s face. A crowd was quickly growing around them, obviously interested since this fight involved Liam, as in Liam Payne, the one guy in this school you don’t want to mess with. Zayn thinks he saw Louis drag Harry away, but most of his attention was focused on stopping Liam.
“C’mon, let’s just go to class, please? Li, let him go!” Liam hesitated before stepping back from the guy, who was visibly shaking, his back pressed tightly to the lockers to get more space from Liam. Zayn gestured for him to leave, and he sprinted down the hall, trying to leave as quickly as possible. Liam turned around to see a few others staying behind to see if anything else would happen.
“Fuck off.” He cursed at them, smirking when everyone scurried off to class with their heads down, clearly trying not to draw attention to themselves. Zayn noticed a few teachers were standing by their doors but knew none of them would say anything. Liam’s father was head of the school’s district, which basically gave Liam a ‘get out of jail’ card. He grabbed Zayn’s hand and led them to Zayn’s second hour, grumbling angrily under his breath, his eyebrows furrowed in anger. Liam gave him a quick kiss before he headed to his class across the hall, his hands still in fists at his sides.
Zayn sat down next to Niall, a boy with lilac dyed hair and an eyebrow piercing. He was one of Liam’s bestfriends, though he was surprisingly optimistic towards...everything. Niall looked up and smirked when he saw it was Zayn.
“Some kids came in talking about Payno almost killing Jackson. Know anything about that?” Zayn rolled his eyes as opened his binder, pulling out all the necessary papers for class. “He accidentally walked into me and Liam thought that was a good enough reason to punch him.”
“Not surprised, Li’s very protective over what belongs to him.” Zayn felt his face go red and he narrowed his eyes at the Irish boy when he laughed, earning a dirty look from Mr. Jenson, their history teacher. “Mr. Horan, I won’t have any disturbances from you in my class, you hear me?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Niall shrugged him off before pulling out his phone to chat up Josh, his one night stand that accidentally became his boyfriend. Zayn sighed before pulling out his pencil and continuing his story, easily blocking out whatever Mr. Jenson was droning on about. How could he be expected to learn about the Black Plague when he had a story to finish?
xxx
The insistent foot steps that followed Zayn through the hallway were beginning to get on his nerves. At first, he hadn’t even noticed it, too far into his book to even give it much focus. It was around where Augustus was explaining the ‘it’s a metaphor’ (his favorite part, if he was being honest) when he noticed someone was following him. Uncomfortably close actually.
Out of curiosity he took a sharp left, the exact opposite way from the library, where he was headed for study hall. He bit his lip when whoever was behind him easily followed his sudden change of course, staying at a distance of maybe five feet. It was like this for another few minutes, taking random paths and going down hallways he’s never seen before. Whoever was behind him was determined to follow him, and Zayn was ready to snap.
He stopped, suddenly, in the middle of the hallway, biting his lip when he heard the person behind him had stopped too. He turned around to see...Alex Newman? You’d be stupid not to know Alex; he was the quarterback of the school, and apparently one of the best in their part of Europe. He’s got the perfect body and the perfect face and the perfect personality, at least according to those girls in his sixth hour. He was the player of the school, the guy everyone wanted to have or to be...so why was he following Zayn?
“Hey, it’s Zayn, right?” Alex asked with a smile that seemed a little too sinister to be considered sweet. Zayn hesitantly nodded, looking down at the tiled floor of the hallway. He knew all too well why someone like Alex Newman would be following him around. The school’s jock following the nerd only meant that Alex either needed his homework done, or maybe he just wanted a new punching bag. Zayn’s been in both positions before, and neither of them were enjoyable.
“We have history together, I think. You always sit in the back with your face in a book.” Zayn could feel his face heat up slightly, though there was nothing he was actually embarrassed about. Maybe it was just the idea of being noticed or just all of the attention Alex was focusing on him. The way he would bite his lip, the way his eyes would look him up and down, as if he were his prey...all he knew was that he didn’t like it.
“Uh- yeah, I like reading.” Zayn spoke timidly, his voice quiet but loud enough for Alex to hear. The older boy nodded his head, but it was obvious that he had his mind on other things. He probably didn’t even acknowledge what Zayn had said. Alex took a sudden step forward and Zayn flinched back but stayed where he was, and the older boy must’ve taken that as a good sign, as he got closer to Zayn.
Zayn felt like he was paralyzed to the spot, recognizing that glint in Alex’s eyes. He could feel his heart beating against his chest as Alex’s hands gripped his hips, pushing him back until he was roughly pushed into the lockers behind him. When his hands started to move towards his arse he was almost shocked back to life and started to fight. His fist came to contact with Alex’s jaw, forcing the quarterback’s face to the right. Alex hissed in pain, taking his hands off of Zayn for a moment before slamming them against the locker’s next to Zayn’s head.
“You’re going to regret that, Malik.” His voice was as cold as steel and Zayn pushed himself further against the lockers, trying to get some space between him and the furious jock. Alex grabbed his wrists, keeping them in a tight grip above his head while his other hand was easily pinning his hips to the lockers. Zayn struggled to get out of Alex’s grip, his breathing erratic as panic began to overtake him.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing with my boyfriend?” Alex was suddenly pulled off of him, and Zayn dropped to the ground, his legs too shaky to support himself. He tried to muffle out Alex’s cries and Liam’s practical growl as his fist relentlessly slammed into Alex. It was only a few minutes later when it finally stopped, Liam cursing out something along the lines of “he’s mine” and “don’t think this is over” as Alex bolted out as soon as the punching stopped.
Zayn jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder but quickly relaxed when he looked up to see Liam. His fists were red and scraped up, but his main concern was Zayn. The smaller boy instantly cuddled into his boyfriend’s open arms, smiling at how carefully Liam held him, as if he were made of fine china. Liam’s hands moved softly over his body to comfort him or to check for any injuries; or maybe both. Once Liam was assured that Zayn was safe he pulled back to so he could look at Zayn, noticing the fear in his eyes from what Alex had done, from what he could’ve done had Liam not been there.
He was kicked out of class for telling his teacher to simply ‘fuck off’, which he doesn’t think was that big of a deal, but whatever. He had gone to the library at first since he knew Zayn would most likely be there, though he would be disappointed to see Liam being kicked out of class again. He was confused when he couldn’t find his boyfriend anywhere and ended up walking aimlessly through the halls until he heard ‘you’re going to regret that, Malik’. Finding Zayn helplessly pinned against a locker, by Alex Newman no less, made him see red as he shoved Alex off and repeatedly punched Alex until he could get his breathing back under control. He doesn’t really know how many times his fist came in contact with Alex’s face, and he doesn’t really care. The only thing he could think of was how vulnerable and scared Zayn was, how Zayn needed him.
“Hey, it’s alright love, he’s gone. He won’t do that again, nobody will, I’m here. I’ll protect you, you’re safe with me.” Liam whispered encouragingly, sighing as he felt Zayn shaking in his arms, still frightened. He tightened his arms around the smaller boy, hushing him when he could hear the boy whimpering into the crook of his neck.
“You’re safe, I’m here. Shush, it’s all okay now, alright? Let’s go back to my place, yeah? We can watch some of those Disney movies you like, cuddle on my sofa for a bit, hm?” When he felt Zayn nod he sighed with relief, easily standing up with the boy cradled safely in his arms.
The rest of the day was spent at Liam’s, curled up on the sofa and Liam singing every song to get that smile back on Zayn’s face. And when Zayn finally fell asleep (after Liam’s wonderful cover of Let It Go) Liam took the time to really think about what happened in school. The idea of Alex made him unintentionally pull Zayn closer, stopping when the smaller boy began to stir.
xxx
Zayn’s never ran so hard in his life; pathetic but true.
He had slept in late thanks to Liam accidentally, on purpose, knocked his alarm off his drawer with his football. His parents were already gone when he was awake, which meant no ride from them, and he saw that school started five minutes ago. The small panic attack he had didn’t help with time either. His phone was full of missed calls from Liam, and a few concerned texts from Harry (one that included asking if Louis happened to have a liking towards men, him in particular).
By the time he got to school he was thirty minutes late, and he knew Liam was probably waiting for him in first hour. He texted him that he finally made it, trying to type while moving around the campus to 700 building. He tripped a few times when running to his locker, and he dropped his beloved binder more than once. He kept screwing up the combination several times until he finally slowed down. He almost tore the locker door open, looking around for his literature book for class. He was just about to reach in and grab it, where it was stacked under his math book,
when the locker door was slammed shut.
He jumped back and saw a group of boys he didn’t recognize, but they looked to be around his age. The one closest to him, with pitch black hair and an intimidating smirk, seemed to be the ‘leader’. The tattoos on his arms and collar bone reminded Zayn of Louis, and he wondered if these were friends of his.
The other two that were behind him looked similar. One was a dirty blonde with a tank top that showed his bulky arms while the other had dark brown hair that just reached his shoulders. The three of them together, with their daunting looks and menacing smiles made Zayn gulp. These were most definitely not any friends of Louis.
“What have we got here? A pretty boy, all on his own,” The boy with black hair sneered, ripping the binder out of Zayn’s hands and flipping through it with boredom,” and what, a binder full of shit? How adorable.” He threw the binder onto the ground and Zayn watched as his papers flew out and scattered all over the floor. He gasped, about to grab at them when he felt one of them punch him right in the jaw. He stepped back, trying to put space between him and them, but it was useless. More fists came at him, attacking his face, his chest, his stomach. Whatever they could get at.
At one point he had tripped over one of his papers and fell to the floor, curling into a ball when the boy with blonde hair kicked his back. He could feel himself shaking but he bit his lip to stop
himself from crying. He just stayed there on the floor, listening to them cursing at him, calling him worthless, pathetic, waste of space, taking the beating in silence. He could hear the sounds of paper being ripped, and it felt like his heart alone was taking every hit when he realized those were his stories. The ones he had spent on for weeks, months even, the ones that he had put his heart and mind into. And these boys were ripping them, shredding them into pieces that he knew would never fit back together again.
When it grew quiet and the hits stopped Zayn wondered if they had left. He took a deep breath, trying to wipe the tears from his eyes as he lifted his head and looked around. He saw that the three boys were still there, but they were all staring at something behind him, obviously afraid of whatever or whoever it was.
His first assumption was the principal or a teacher, but that was before he heard him speak.
“You’re going to fucking wish you didn’t leave home.”
Though he hated violence, especially at this moment, he couldn’t find it in himself to even bother stopping him. He slowly stood up, picking up as much of his stories as he could and throwing them messily into his binder. He looked back to the three boys, all of them faltering under the glare of the Liam Payne. It was almost tempting to smirk at them, maybe say something snarky that would make Louis proud, but he could only pity them. Liam’s reputation was something he’s earned over years of showing everybody what happens when you mess with him.
“I’ll see you in first hour, yeah?” Liam glanced over to him, obviously concerned about Zayn’s injuries. His fury only intensified when he saw the bruises that covered Zayn’s body, and he shook his head as he scowled at the boys, all of them too shocked to move. “I’ll be seeing you in the clinic, where you should be, yeah?”
Zayn sighed but nodded his head, sparing one more glance at the others before limping off to the clinic.
xxx
“You hear what Payne did today?”
“Brendan’s nose was broken, did you see him?”
“I saw Richard limping out of the clinic.”
“Payne slammed Evan right into my locker and now it’s got this huge dent in it.”
Everyone in the school was talking about the fight, if you could call it that. It was a three against one fight, but it was also a three against Liam fight. The three boys, who were apparently Brendan, Evan, and Richard, had no chance against him. Years of boxing and MMA is what helped Liam, basically, kick all of their asses.
“I’ve got to hand it to you, mate, this is probably the most bad ass thing you’ve ever done. Don’t think anybody’s going to forget about this one for a long time.” Louis laughed into his phone as he walked with Harry to the cafeteria. Word of the fight had gotten to him easily considering Payne was his best friend, and he had instantly called the younger boy when it was lunch. He heard Liam chuckle, but it was clear that he wasn’t as amused as Louis.
“How’s Zayn doing?”
“Other then some bruises he should be okay, but Lou, they ripped up all of his stuff. You know how he is with his writing, this is killing him inside.” Louis nodded, though Liam couldn’t see him, as he and Curly got their lunch and sat down at their table in the corner where Niall was already scarfing down his food.
“But he’s alright. I’m guessing you guys are going home?” Liam looked up from his seat next to one of the beds in the clinic, staring at the bathroom door that Zayn had escaped into ten minutes
ago. After his constant coddling and worrying Zayn had excused himself and Liam was patiently waiting for him to be ready.
“Yeah, he’s just cleaning up since my mum’s still home and he doesn’t want her to worry.” Louis nodded again, blushing when he saw that Harry was staring at him. The taller boy looked away when he saw he had been caught, pretending to be interested in his pizza as Louis finished his conversation with Liam.
Liam looked up when the bathroom door opened, smiling softly when he saw Zayn come out. He had a dark purple bruise on the right side of his jaw, and his glasses were crooked, but he still was okay. Liam hung up on Louis immediately, standing up and pulling Zayn into his arms. He was mindful of his injuries, making sure to be gentle as he held the smaller boy. Zayn sighed heavily as he melted into Liam’s embrace, his arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
“Hey.” Liam’s voice was just as soft as his hold on Zayn and the smaller boy smiled into his chest. He felt Liam step back before quickly snaking his arm around Zayn’s waist and pulling him close to his side. They walked out of the small clinic together, going through the back door so they wouldn’t run into the boys who Liam practically mauled. Liam knew that a fight to that extent would probably land him in suspension, even with his father in such a high position for the school’s district. However, he couldn’t possibly care about that now when his Zaynie, so fragile and breakable, had been beaten. For no reason.
The ride to Liam’s house wasn’t as quiet as Zayn had wanted considering they had taken Liam’s bike, but the feeling of the wind rustling his hair and Liam’s sturdy chest behind him helped clear his mind. Liam’s mother wasn’t home at the time, and Liam figured she must be running errands. They settled in Liam’s room upstairs, curled up on the bed together. Zayn using Liam’s chest
as a pillow as they sat in silence.
Liam was just waiting for it to happen. He knew everything about Zayn; how his favorite color was green, how he had a secret stash of comic books hidden under a small pile of clothes, how he loved it when it stormed and watch the lightning fill the dark sky with it’s bright flashes. And he knew how it took time for Zayn to register things; the death of his grandfather didn’t hit him until a few days later, and he has never looked so broken as he clutched to Liam like he was his lifeline.
Zayn was strong, but he knew eventually he would let his walls down. It was just who Zayn was, it was what he did. Liam just had to wait for it to come so he could immediately comfort Zayn and let him know that he was here, he will always be here.
“L-Li?” And there it was. Zayn’s voice was quiet and hesitant, just like it was when they had first met. He unconsciously tightened his grip on Zayn, humming quietly. “It’s okay, Z.” What Zayn needed at times like these were constant touches and reassurances that Liam wouldn’t leave him and that things were going to be okay, because things were always okay when it was LiamandZayn.
“I-I’m so-sorry, I-“
“No, babe,” Liam hushed him tenderly, rubbing soothing circles into his back,” you don’t have to apologize, you didn’t do anything wrong. Those pricks were just looking for someone to pick on, you don’t need to be sorry.”
Still, Zayn’s body shook against his as the tears began to flow from his eyes, Liam’s shirt getting wet from it. Liam reached down and carefully took off Zayn’s glasses, placing them on the table next to his bed as he comforted his distressed lover.
“They-They ripped my stories, they said I was p-pathetic. Li-Liam.” Zayn’s voice broke several times and Liam sat up suddenly, bringing Zayn up so he was straddling Liam’s hips and facing him. “Zayn, I need you to look at me, please.” Zayn wiped the tears off his face as he finally looked Liam in the eyes, almost taken aback by the sudden ferocity in them.
“You are not pathetic, you aren’t even close. You’re a smart, talented, and beautiful person who I’m lucky to call my boyfriend. Don’t you dare believe a word they’ve said, they’re just a group of twats who thought it would be fun to gang up on you.” Liam’s hands were on his hips, rubbing small circles on the skin exposed with his shirt raised up from being moved suddenly.
“I promise you now that nobody will ever do anything like that again. You’re an amazing person and you don’t deserve the bullshit you’ve gone through, okay? I’ll always be right here for you, and I know you’re always going to be here for me too. Right?”
Zayn nodded, a smile forming on his face as he let Liam’s words settle in. Liam smiled when he saw Zayn had accepted what he said, leaning up and pecking his lips. “I love you.” Which earned him another kiss, where he could feel Zayn’s smile against his lips.
“I love you too.” Zayn sighed happily, wiping his face on his sleeve to get rid of the tears. And with his face flushed bright red, his hair rustled and his body covered with dark, purple bruises, he still looked beautiful. Liam couldn’t stop himself for leaning in for another kiss, almost intoxicated by the taste that was just pure Zayn.