Archive of Our Own

“Are you nervous?” Liam asked, returning from Costa and handing Zayn one of the two cups in his hands.

They’d left Wagas after finishing their meal, Liam only agreeing to allow Zayn to pay if he was allowed to reciprocate as soon as Zayn felt up to eating again. The restaurant crowd had become louder, making any type of conversation difficult. When Liam suggested they take a stroll, Zayn had readily agreed. The more time he spent in Liam’s company, the more he found himself attracted to him, and wanting to learn all he could about the charismatic man. Finding a secluded bench, they’d sat talking for the last hour - sharing anecdotes about their work and families.

“A bit.” Zayn admitted. “I’ve never been one to get sick or anything, so the thought of the surgery, the shots, all that - it’s a bit disconcerting. Mostly, though, I don’t like the idea of being whacked out of my head. Promise me you’re not going to film some embarrassing video and post it on the internet or summat.”

“I would never!” Liam looked offended at the mere thought, and Zayn couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped him. “No, seriously. I’m not gonna lie and say I haven’t watched those videos, and laughed my arse off. But, it’s still such a horrible thing to do to someone you supposedly care about. Filming someone in that state seems like such a betrayal of their trust.”

“Good to know my dignity is safe in your responsible hands, then.” Zayn tapped his cup to Liam’s, smiling at him over the top.

“What time do you have to be to the dentist’s office?”

“My appointment’s at nine. It takes about twenty minutes or so to get there on the Metro, so if I -”

Liam waved his hand to stop Zayn, while he swallowed his mouthful of coffee. “No, wait. Uh uh. You’re not taking the train. I’ll pick you up. I need to know where your flat is, anyway, so I can get you back there after your appointment.”

“Are you sure?” Zayn hesitated, his brow furrowed. “I don’t want to put you out. You’re already going above and beyond for someone you barely know.”

“I’m absolutely sure. Besides, we’ve just spent the last -” Liam paused looking at his watch, “three hours together, and I’ve sent you bad memes while you were at work. We’re practically best friends at this point. I don’t mind picking you up. It’s not an imposition to help out, and I get the added benefit of getting to know you.”” Liam rested his hand on Zayn’s, leaning closer, his voice earnest and sincere. “I meant what I said earlier, Zayn. I would like the chance to spend more time with you.” He shrugged. “Preferably when you’re coherent and not in a drug induced stupor, completely dependent on my good nature.”

Zayn laughed out loud. “Fine! I concede! You win.”

Liam straightened, his hand still on Zayn’s. “Eventually you’ll realize it’s futile to argue with me when I’m right. I’ll wear you down with persistence - or a dose of puppy eyes. If the first doesn’t work, the second always does.”

As if to reinforce his argument, Liam tilted his head, his warm brown eyes soft and mournful, his full lips turned down in a sad pout. Fucking hell! Zayn shook his head, fighting off the urge to throw himself in Liam’s lap and do anything possible to cheer him up. “That’s… very persuasive.”

Liam winked, his expression reverting to normal. “Told you.”

“I’m actually a bit terrified that you can do that so easily.”

“It came in handy when I was a kid. I’m the youngest, and my sisters absolutely terrorized me. On the rare occasions I would retaliate, that face and a bit of contrition guaranteed Mum didn’t come down on me too hard. It was almost a survival tactic.” Liam finished his coffee, setting the cup aside. “Other than to convince Harry to order the cabinets I liked over the ones he’d picked, I haven’t employed that particular technique in years, though. Despite my love of comic books and superhero collectibles, I like to pretend I’m an actual adult.”

Liam stood, brushing off his trousers, and looking at his watch again.

“Now that I’ve managed to monopolize your entire evening, I think I should let you get home. One of us has a job that actually does require him to be able to form a coherent thought - and since I primarily swing a hammer, I’m fairly certain it’s not me.”

“I don’t know how you can say you monopolized my evening. I invited you to dinner, remember?” Zayn protested, also standing. With a regretful shake of his head, he grudging agreed. “But you have a point. As enjoyable as tonight has been, I do need to get home and get some sleep.”

They walked toward the platforms, Liam eliciting a promise from Zayn to send his address so he could pick him up on Friday morning. Taking the initiative, Zayn leaned into Liam for a hug.

“In case I forgot to say it on Friday, I really do appreciate you doing this for me. Waiting another three weeks would have been miserable.”

Liam pulled him closer. “It’s all good. I’ll call tomorrow?”

Zayn stepped back, his hand lingering on Liam’s waist. “I’d like that.”

The station speaker squawked, a burst of static followed by the announcement for the incoming train.

“That’s me, then.” Liam frowned. He leaned in, brushing a kiss across Zayn’s mouth, before quickly stepping away. “Sleep well. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.” And he was gone, disappearing into the train with a final wave.

Zayn pressed his fingers to his tingling lips, left dazed by the deepening attraction to the man who had kissed him. The evening travelers surged around him, oblivious to his presence in the middle of the corridor. The announcement of his train broke his reverie, startling him back to awareness of his surroundings. He dashed to the opposite platform, barely making it through the doors before they closed. Sinking into an empty seat, Zayn shot off his address to Liam, then leaned his head against the window and closed his eyes, replaying the evening in his mind, all the while wondering if there might come a time when a kiss good night would be followed by a kiss good morning.

*****

Yawning, Zayn settled back in his desk chair. The coffee he’d picked up on the way to the office had long gone cold, but he picked up the cup anyway, wrinkling his nose as he took a sip.

“Figured you’d be due for a refill by now,” Louis said, entering Zayn’s office with two cups in hand.

“Bless.” Zayn accepted the cup with a grateful smile, taking a careful sip to keep from burning his mouth. The warmth felt good on his aching teeth though, reminding him he hadn’t taken any of his medication. “What time is it?”

“Nearly half one.”

“Damn it! I got so bogged down in working out the proposed changes for the Carruthers campaign that I lost track of time.” Standing, Zayn stretched, twisting to ease the tightness in his back from being hunched over the desk for so long. “I need to grab some soup or something, so I can take these horse pills from the dentist. “I’m headed down to Pret. Care to join me?”

“Sounds good. I’ll even treat if you spill the details about snogging Liam last night.”

“Wait, what?” Zayn stopped short, the warmth of a blush suffusing his cheeks. “How’d you even-”

“I didn’t know for sure until now, so ta! thanks for confirming Harry’s suspicions.” Louis winked. “You’re pretty slick, Malik. We find you a nursemaid, and you manage to seduce him - even before he gave you a sponge bath.”

Zayn flipped off his friend, brushing past him to walk to the lift. “It wasn’t like that.”

“So then, what was it like?”

Rolling his eyes, Zayn entered the lift, waiting for the doors to close before continuing. “I am not having this conversation with you.”

“Awww! C’mon, Zayn. Harry and I are an old married couple, it’s our sworn duty to live vicariously through fixing up our single friends.”

“There’s nothing to tell. We went to dinner, talked over coffee, and then we both went home - alone.”

“So when did you snog? Don’t even bother denying it happened - the blush already gave you away.”

“Why are you bothering me about this? Ask your husband to fill in the details.”

“No can do. You’ve already told me more than he was able to get out of Liam.” Louis stepped aside to allow Zayn to lead the way out of the lift, across the lobby, and out onto the street. “Despite Liam walking around the workroom, smiling to himself and singing, he’s refused to answer any of Harry’s questions.”

“There’s your answer, then. If we thought you two needed to know, we’d have already told you. Now leave off. I want to take this damn medicine, finish the work on my desk, and go home.”

Louis pursed his lips, clearly holding back whatever he’d initially planned to say. He shrugged, huffing loudly. “Fine. Keep your secrets.”

“There are no secrets, Louis! I swear you gossip more than my sister and her friends.”

I’m offended by that insinuation!” Zayn leveled a withering glare in Louis’ direction, prompting Louis to hold his hands up in mock surrender, laughing as he did so. “Alright! Alright! I’ll drop it.”

Their orders were quickly prepared and handed over. Louis looked around the cafe for an empty table, but Zayn shook his head.

“Nah, mate. It’s packed.Let’s just head back. We can eat in the lounge, or even in one of our offices. Besides, the sooner I get this file squared away, the sooner I can get out of there. I’m not looking to work late tonight.”

“Same. We're planning to leave for Anne’s as soon as the traffic settles down this evening. Should be in no later than ten.” They re-entered the office building, heading to Zayn’s office by unspoken consent. “I know you’ve got Liam coming over, but truly, don’t hesitate to call if there’s an emergency. We’ll come back to the city if you need us.”

“I’ll be fine. Susette, the dentist’s assistant, already called and went over everything with me for tomorrow. It’s pretty routine. The ‘no smoking’ part is an absolute bitch, given I’m anxious as fuck.” Zayn settled behind his desk, pulling the antibiotics and pain meds from his desk. “By this time tomorrow, I’ll be too doped up to care, and if I’m lucky, the craving will be gone by the time I could even consider having a smoke. Mum’ll be thrilled. She’s been on me to quit for years.”

Zayn’s phone vibrated across his desk with an incoming text. He glanced down at the screen, smiling when he saw Liam’s name.

“Interesting.”

What?” Zayn glanced up to meet Louis’ scrutiny as he vacated his seat and headed toward the door. “What?” Zayn repeated, bothered by the smirky smile curving Louis’ lips.

“Nothing mate. I’m just thinking it must have been one helluva kiss. You’ve gone from terrorized anticipation to dopey lovesick smiles in a day.” The door closed behind him, Louis’ amused laughter coming from the other side when Zayn’s stapler hit it.

Fuck Louis and his innuendo. The kiss had been nothing more than a friendly gesture, right? The casualness of the kiss hadn’t stopped Zayn from dwelling on it, though, and hoping he wasn’t misconstruing Liam’s hints at being interested in him, too.

His phone vibrated again and Zayn swiped it open. Two more messages arrived while he read the first one.

Rather than type out a response, Zayn tapped on the screen to dial Liam’s number.

“Hey!” Zayn felt the warmth in Liam’s voice through the phone. “I thought you were working today. I didn’t expect you to reply immediately.”

“I’m almost done. I’ll be leaving around five or so. And I would love to try this soup that’s so delicious it warrants a son’s disloyalty to his mother’s cooking.”

“I meant it - I will absolutely deny I ever said that.” Liam laughed, and Zayn closed his eyes, picturing the way Liam’s eyes crinkled.

Well, unfortunately for you, my friend, screenshots are forever.” Zayn was certain he was pushing his luck, but he thrived on sarcasm and banter. Better to know now if Liam could deal with it. “You never know when you’ll need blackmail material.”

I’ve already agreed to a weekend of servitude!” Liam protested, amusement still present in his voice. So far, so good. “What more could you want?”

“The possibilities are limitless, with the right motivation.”

“I’m pretty amenable to just about anything, so give it your best shot. I can be enticed with the right persuasion.” Liam’s voice deepened, the husky tone reinforcing the innuendo Zayn heard in his words.

Zayn spluttered, wiping the spit coffee off his desk before it reached the documents in the file he’d left open earlier. Maybe not JUST a friendly gesture, after all. Liam continued as if he hadn’t noticed Zayn’s reaction, his voice returning to its normal tone.

“I was thinking I could come to yours, that way you can just chill after work and not worry about getting home after. Or if you prefer, we could meet somewhere.”

He may have meant it as a statement, but Zayn could hear the question in Liam’s voice. He replied quickly, afraid Liam might retract the offer altogether. “No, no! My place is fine. Around six - six thirty? That work for you?”

“Absolutely. I’ll drive over. It’ll be faster than waiting on the right trains, and I won’t have to worry about the schedules when I leave.”

“Or…” Zayn hesitated.

“If you want to take a pass, it’s fine, Zee. Tomorrow’s going to be a lot.”

“No, it’s not that.”

Zayn’s mouth hurt. He felt like hammered shit. But… he liked Liam. A lot. He wanted to spend time with him, see if there was more to it than physical attraction.

“I was just thinking - if you’re going to be at my place all weekend anyway, you could just go ahead and bring your stuff, stay tonight. No sense in having to leave, just to come back early tomorrow morning.”