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Liam was going to kill Zayn. He had already planned at least three different scenarios with various contingencies in case something went wrong. Really, everything was in place, and all Liam had to do was follow through.
“Mmm, Zayn you really did snatch yourself up a good one, yeah?”
Liam suppressed a full body shiver as one of Zayn’s aunts groped his bicep, leaning forward into his space. It was too fucking close; almost as close as Liam was to losing his damn mind. He’d been putting up with the various women in Zayn’s family practically feeling him up for the better part of two hours and he could feel his carefully controlled calm slipping away.
Really, these women were more than any sane person was equipped to handle. And Zayn, the bastard, has just been laughing at Liam with no hint of remorse. Liam was here as a favor to Zayn. He had agreed to come to this wedding to relieve some of the pressure Zayn would’ve faced had he shown up alone.
This was the last time Liam was pretending to be his boyfriend, that’s for damn sure.
Zayn giggled from his spot next to Liam, the spot on the opposite side of miss touchy feely. Honestly, hadn’t she groped Liam enough. He would quite like his arm back at some point tonight, thanks.
“I did, didn’t I?” Zayn answered, his too bright eyes swinging up to meet Liam’s. Liam felt his own narrow in response at the amusement playing out in Zayn’s eyes. He really was a bastard.
“Yes,” one of the aunts began. At least, Liam was pretty sure it was one of the aunts—he stopped paying close attention after the third one had placed her hand somewhere that was decidedly not Liam’s bicep. “He is quite the…catch.”
Liam watched as she let her eyes drift down his body, catching on spots that she particularly liked, and this time Liam couldn’t stop the full body shudder that raked through him. These women were vultures, jesus.
Zayn snickered beside him, and when Liam turned to face him he had a hand covering his mouth to stop most of the noise. Liam added another strategy to his “Ways to Kill Zayn” list. You know, just in case the first seven failed.
There were several murmurs of agreement from the ladies surrounding them. Not for the first time that night—hell, not for the first time in the last five minutes—Liam thought about running for the door. Zayn was lucky Liam fucking liked him.
“Zayn!”
Both Liam and Zayn turned at the voice, watching as Doniya approached. “Zayn, mum’s been looking everywhere for you. She wants a picture of us all before you and Liam decide to disappear in some dark corner.”
Liam felt a blush rise up his neck at Doniya’s words because, god did he want to find a dark corner alone with Zayn, but they weren’t actually dating. Everyone just thought they were. Liam thought that made everything so much worse.
Zayn shifted beside Liam, drawing the man’s attention. Liam was surprised to find a faint dusting of red covering Zayn’s own cheeks. “Yeah, okay,” Zayn squeaked out. Apparently he was just as effected by Doniya’s words as Liam was, but Liam couldn’t tell if it was because he—like Liam—liked the thought of a dark corner or because he hated it. Liam wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer. Zayn turned to face him, squeezing his hand quickly before dropping it. “I’ll be right back, yeah? Should just be a couple moments.”
Liam felt panic rise in his throat at Zayn’s words because no, Zayn couldn’t leave him alone. These women would devour him the moment Zayn started walking away.
Liam reached out, gripping Zayn’s arm just a hair too tightly in his panic. He relaxed his grip slightly as Zayn turned to look at him, concern written plainly on his features.
“Li?”
“Don’t leave me here, please. I’m begging you.”
Zayn’s concern turned to confusion for a few seconds before his face morphed into an amused grin. “What, afraid of a couple older ladies, Liam?”
Liam narrowed his eyes at Zayn once again, tempted to wipe that smug grin off his face. “Zayn,” Liam warned. Zayn only grinned wider, slowly pulling his arm away from Liam. He stepped up into Liam’s space, leaning forward until his breath was ghosting over Liam’s lips and his chest was pressed tightly against Liam’s.
“I promise they don’t bite, Liam. Well, not usually. You do seem to be bringing out a surprisingly animalistic side of them.” Liam felt Zayn drift his finger across and up his arm until he was able to wrap them around Liam’s bicep, an action eerily similar to the one his aunt had done. “Can’t say I blame them, though. I mean, this suit looks really good on you, Li.” He punctuated his statement with an eyebrow waggle before starting to pull away again.
“Enjoy yourself, babe,” Zayn said. He tried to make a quick escape, but Liam caught him around the waist before he could, hauling him to his chest once more in a mirror to their previous position.
“Zayn.” Liam’s voice was calm, the tone belying the next words out of his mouth. “I'm gonna kill you if you leave me by myself.”
A laugh erupted from Zayn’s throat, and he was still pressed so close to Liam. Liam hated the way his heart skipped a beat at the way his breath rushed over Liam’s cheek.
“I’m serious, Zayn,” Liam continued. “I’ve already planned your murder eleven times over now. If you leave me here by myself, you might as well write your fucking will while you’re away.”
Zayn’s only response was to laugh again, and Liam tried to keep his stony expression, he really did, but Zayn was so fucking beautiful when he laughed like that. Liam was a lot in love with him. He felt a smile steal over his lips, not as bright as the one on Zayn’s, but slowly working its way there.
“And to think my mother loves you. What would she think about her son’s boyfriend planning his murder, hmm, Liam?”
Once again, Liam’s traitorous heart skipped a beat because the word boyfriend rolled off Zayn’s tongue so easily and Liam absolutely ached with wanting. He tried his hardest to push the feeling down like he always did.
“I reckon she’d feel about it almost the same way she’d feel about said son throwing his boyfriend to the wolves back there. I don’t know if you know this, Zaynie, but she’s incredibly fond of me. Don’t think she’d take too kindly to you just betraying me like that.”
Liam watched as the edges of Zayn’s eyes went soft, his smile forming into something incredibly fond. This wasn’t the first time he’d looked at Liam like that, but it was the first time he’d been this close while looking at Liam like that. It fucked with his head a lot.
“She does really love you. Sometimes I’m pretty sure she likes you more than she likes me.” Zayn was still looking up at Liam with those soft eyes and, fuck, Liam couldn’t concentrate.
“What c’n I say? ‘S part of my charm.” Liam felt his breath catch in his throat as Zayn’s head drifted impossibly closer. His warm breath was fanning against Liam’s lips and it took all of his will power to not push forward the last few millimeters separating them.
“Like I said,” Doniya called. “Before you guys find a dark corner please.”
Her words were like a bucket of ice water thrown on the pair, and both quickly pulled back while refusing to meet the others’ eyes. They had almost fucking kissed. They probably would have, too, if Doniya hadn’t interrupted them. Liam was ashamed to admit his disappointment at the interruption.
“Right, um,” Zayn began. He took another step back from Liam, shyly bringing his eyes up to Liam’s. Liam watched him hesitate for a moment before, “Will, um, will you actually be okay here with…” He swung his eyes to the group of women standing behind Liam, and one corner of his mouth quirked up. He met Liam’s gaze again, most of the awkwardness disappearing as humor took over. “With your biggest fans? Or will I have to send a rescue team halfway through my family photo?”
Liam felt a grin tug on his own lips. “Yeah, laugh it up now. You won’t be laughing so much when I carry out plan number fifty-three on my ‘Ways to Murder Zayn’ list.” Zayn’s responding laugh was bright, the smile that stole over his lips taking Liam’s breath away. He was so fucked over this boy, and the worst part? Liam was helpless to do anything about it. Honestly, he didn’t think he wanted to if it meant Zayn would keep smiling at him like that.
“Nah, you love me too much for that, Leeyum.” Zayn sent Liam a wink—and fuck if Liam’s heart didn’t skip a beat—before Doniya let out an impatient huff behind him.
“As fun as it is to sit here and watch the two of you shamelessly flirt, mum is waiting for us…” Doniya quirked up an eyebrow, obviously eager to get the picture over with.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m coming,” Zayn said. He reached a hand forward, drifting it down Liam’ arm before wrapping his finger’s around Liam’s. “Wait for me, yeah?”
The smile on Liam’s face softened as he squeezed the fingers inter locked with his own. “Yeah, Zed. Always.”
Liam watched as Zayn walked away, a familiar ache starting up in his chest. He was so gone on this boy that, despite his previous words, he really didn’t mind too much staying behind to charm some of his aunts. Not that he had to do much more in the charming department, they were all pretty much convinced already.
“Oh, Liam, sweetie.”
Liam closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before opening and turning back around to the group of women. Getting groped for a few more minutes was a price he was more than willing to pay if it meant he got to hold Zayn’s hand later. Liam was aware of the fact that he was more than a little pathetic over Zayn, but he’d accepted it. If he was going to be this pathetic over anyone, he was glad it was Zayn.
Liam stepped forward, joining the group of women once more. He was hoping they had calmed down a little; he hoped that being exposed to Liam for as long as they had meant that his newness had worn off. He was so, so wrong, though. If anything, they’d gotten more relentless with Zayn’s absence. It was going to be the longest minutes of Liam’s life.
Liam had just fended off his fifth pair of hands when he felt a set of arms wind around his waist. He immediately stiffened, shocked that on of the women was that bold, before he realized who the familiar arms belonged to. He relaxed back into Zayn’s embrace just as quickly as he’d tensed, relief washing over him at his rescue.
“Sorry, ladies, but I think I’m going to steal Liam away from you for the night. It’s my turn to swoon over how strong he is.” Liam turned his head to face Zayn just in time to see him wink at the group of women, and Liam had to physically prevent his knees from giving out. Zayn was so fucking attractive, and Liam found it really inconvenient.
Zayn unwound his arms, sliding one of his hands down Liam’s side until he was able to reach his hand. He interwove their fingers, and Liam was once again assaulted with how in love with this boy he was. Zayn grinned up at him, humor still dancing in those deep brown eyes, and Liam should pretend to be angry. He should keep up the teasing game they’ve had going on for most of the night, but he couldn’t. They were at a wedding, couples were acting all lovey dovey, the lights were twinkling and making Zayn’ practically glow, and Liam was overwhelmed with his feelings. He knew he should keep the atmosphere between them light, but it was too difficult for him in this moment. Sometime in between Zayn winking and him interlocking their fingers, Liam had developed tunnel vision. All the could think about was Zayn; how he looked in his navy suit—fitted perfectly to show off his lean frame—the way he was smiling up at Liam—eyes soft and fond under the gleaming lights. Being anything but obvious about his feelings was impossible for Liam right now.
“Dance with me, Z.” Hesitation danced in Zayn’s eyes like Liam knew it would. He figured it was a long shot—Zayn was a lot of things, but a good dancer was not one of them and they both knew it. That was okay, though, Liam didn’t think he would need that many skills for the type of dance he had in mind. Liam reached forward, taking Zayn’s other hand in his before leading him out to the dancefloor.
“Li,” Zayn began, but Liam wasn’t going to take no for an answer.
“C’mon, Zed,” Liam said. “You owe me after leaving me to be devoured. Plus, it’s just slow dancing. We’ve done it a thousand times.” Zayn was still doubtful, but he relented and slowly relaxed as Liam pulled him forward into his arms. Zayn wound his own arms around Liam’s neck, leaning forward until their faces were inches away.
“Aww, c’mon, Liam, what ‘dya expect? Their a bunch of old women who haven’t seen a body like this up close in years.” Zayn pressed a little closer to emphasis his point, and Liam felt his breath leave him in a rush. Holding Zayn this close was really starting to mess with his head. “Really, how did you except them to behave themselves?” Liam rolled his eyes, trying so hard to feign exasperation when all he really felt was dizzy—dizzy with Zayn’s scent clogging his nose, sweet and spicy and so familiar; dizzy with the heat of his body pressed along Liam’s; dizzy with thoughts of leaning forward the scant few inches and just taking what he’d been dreaming of for so long. He wouldn’t, though, and he knew it. He respected Zayn too much, valued the friendship they’d built up over the many years. He wouldn’t do anything to ruin it, no matter how much he just wanted. He would take whatever Zayn was willing to offer, and as far as Liam could tell that was simply this.
And Liam knew, deep down, that’s why he hadn’t refused Zayn when he’d first brought this daft idea up to Liam. He could lie to himself all he wanted and pretend that it was because Zayn looked so scared—so panicked at the thought of the prying questions and countless blind dates Zayn knew his family would try and set him up with—but Liam knew his own reasons for agreeing were much more selfish. He wanted a chance to touch Zayn in a way that went past friendly; a chance to hold Zayn against his side and nuzzle into him without the questioning looks and worried glances from their friends who knew his feelings. He wanted to pretend that Zayn was his—even if it was pretend, even if it was just for a night. He knew it was daft on both their parts—the aftermath of their little scheme would no doubt be messy despite Zayn’s assurances of the opposite. Even if Zayn’s family was as understanding as Zayn was sure they’d be, Liam wouldn’t be the same. Fighting his feelings before were bad enough, but after having actually held Zayn? After not having to hide his emotions away and being able to openly tell Zayn he loved him? It was heady, and Liam doubted he’d be able to stop himself after tonight.
“Li?” Zayn whispered, and Liam felt his attention focus back onto Zayn’s worried face. He had no idea how long he was lost in his own thoughts, but it was obviously long enough to worry Zayn. “Were they really that awful?” Liam was momentarily confused until he recalled what they were talking about.
Liam let out a soft laugh, removing one of his hands from Zayn’s waist to cup his face. “Nah,” Liam said. He stroked his thumb over the bone of Zayn’s cheek. He knew his eyes probably betrayed his feelings in that moment—not to mention the more than sappy curve of his mouth—but Liam couldn’t be bothered to care. He was feeling more than a little reckless in that moment. “And even if they were, it’s a sacrifice I’d be more than willing to make for you.”
Liam watched as Zayn’s eyes widened a fraction, understanding exactly what Liam was implying. Logically, Liam knew he should be panicking—he had essentially just revealed how he felt about Zayn—but he wasn’t. He was high on the romance in the air, the feeling of Zayn pressed against him.
“Liam,” Zayn breathed, and Liam understood. He was feeling more than a little breathless right now, too. Liam watched as Zayn practically melted forward into Liam, rushing up and sealing his lips over Liam’s. Liam’s breath caught in his throat as shock worked it’s way into his brain.
Zayn’s lips were against his. Zayn was kissing him. He was kissing Zayn. Holy fuck.
Liam pressed himself forward into Zayn, tightening his arm around Zayn’s waist and tilting his head back with the hand pressed against his cheek. He deepened the kiss, darting his tongue forward to slide over Zayn’s lips. Zayn let out a soft groan, pressing himself impossibly closer to Liam. They let their lips linger for a few beats longer before Zayn wrenched himself away, tightening his arms around Liam’s neck to keep him close.
“It was dumb of me to ask you to pretend to be my boyfriend, Liam. So, so stupid.” Liam’s initial reaction was to be hurt because—what? But he didn’t have time to fully process Zayn’s words before the boy was continuing. “Especially when my feelings for you are anything other than pretend. They’re so fucking real, Li.”
Liam let out a small gasp, shock once again flooding his system. He wasn’t entirely convinced this wasn’t a dream. Zayn had feelings for him?
“Zayn,” Liam whispered before leaning in again to slot their lips together. He kept this one chaste, knowing he had something to say. When he pulled away, he leaned his forehead against Zayn’s. “You’re right, it was dumb of you to ask, but it was dumb of me to say yes, especially knowing how much I love you. Because I do, Zed, so fucking much I ache with it.” Zayn grinned up at Liam, his eye glowing bright and happy.
“Liam,” Zayn said. He pressed forward once again, unable to keep his own lips away from Liam’s for too long, not now that he knew he didn’t have to. Zayn broke away much to quickly for Liam’s liking, but he didn’t go far at all. “I love you, too, Li. I think I always have, if ‘m being honest.”
Liam felt his lips stretch into a blinding smile because this was real. He was sitting here in a room full of people kissing his best friend because he could. Because Zayn wanted to kiss him, too. Zayn loved him, and Liam didn’t think anything else would ever matter to him as much as hearing Zayn say those three words. He leaned forward again, ghosting a ‘me, too, Zayn, me, too’ over his lips before closing the small space between them for the fourth time that night.