One Direction Preferences

Childhood Promises- Part 3

Zayn:
It had been four days since Zayn and Perrie had visited, it was a brief visit and yet had been on your mind nearly every waking moment. Returning from the shops, you try to juggle the heavy bags, nearly losing the lot when you noticed the man sitting on your porch. Zayn looks up before standing. “Zayn’ you half greet, half query his presence. “Do you, uh, need a hand?” he asks, taking the shopping bag from you. Unlocking the front door, he follows you into the warmth. “What are you doing here?” you ask, putting the bags down on the bench. “I’ve been thinking, ” he answers simply before gesturing to the diamond on your finger and adding, “you’re engaged?” “So are you” you reply. The silence is full and you’re still not exactly sure why he was here. “God” he laughs, shaking his head, “I was so sure this would be our future. That would be my ring on your finger” and his confession isn’t unfamiliar to you, you once believed that same thing. “Would you pick that?” you ask. And he’s silent for a long time. “Some days I know I would, without a doubt. Some days I crave it. The quiet life, in the cottage we grew up. Loving each other and getting by.” He tells you, “an ordinary life” you tell him. “No an extraordinary life. God y/n I was head over heels for you, still might be” he lets out a nervous laugh, “you’ve always had this ability to just, muddle me up and I don’t know, I think you’re extraordinary” he confesses, and each words makes you fall a little in love, not with this man but with the idea of that life, that possibility. “But it didn’t end up that way” you shrug. “No, it didn’t” he agrees. The two of you watching each other, try and work out each other’s thoughts. “Are you happy?” he asks, and you nod, because yes, you really are. Moving forward and cupping your cheek he places a sweet, unexpected kiss to your lips, his forehead pressed against yours when he pulled back. “I’m sorry, for the broken promise. I’m sorry we never got to live that life, but I’m glad you’re living this one y/n” he admits, placing another sweet kiss before taking his jacket and leaving the room.

 Louis:
He’s staring at you, just plain staring. You mumble a quick hello to his mum and sisters, anything to avoid his gaze on yours, but eventually, it’s inevitable. “y/n” he smiles. “Louis” you reply and he pulls you into a tight hug, smelling of sweat and grass. “I never would have though you would be here!” he tells you. “Well I promised I’d come see at least one of your games” you laugh, “I believe you promised to come to all of them” he counters, the typical Louis teasing ever present. “I think you were the one who said that” you tell him with a gentle shove to his shoulder, the both of you ignoring the other part of the promise. “Let me get cleaned up and we’ll chat!” he tells you. You wait outside the change room for Louis to come out and finally, when he does; he has a smile lighting up his face. “it feels like forever that I was last here” you admit. “Let me take you onto the field” he smiles; you follow him out onto the now deserted field and stadium. “Yep, definitely a long time” you laugh; he bumps his shoulder into yours.  “I never thought you’d come” he admits into the silence, “not that I didn’t think about it a lot, about you a lot” he continues and you honestly don’t know what to say, “after we broke up, I used to dream that one day you’d come see me play and I’d send a kiss out to the crowd, just for you… like I promised”. “You did, for Eleanor” you tell him and he nods, simple, your thing was theirs now. But his lips are so close to yours and there’s a second where they touch, and you feel like that 17-year-old girl again, kissing Louis in an empty stadium when he was yours, but you’re not that girl. You place your hands on his chest and push him off gently. “Louis…” you start. But he interrupts you, “I promised y/n, that I’d do this, even if it’s just once. I promised.”

Harry: 
The clock on the wall told you it was nearly 8.30pm and yet here you were, curled on the couch, watching a blank TV screen as you battled with your thoughts. The knock came not much later; you’d been expecting Harry sooner. You answer the door, Harry standing there with a slightly relieved, slightly confused look “y/n I thought something had happened! Something hasn’t happened, has it?” he asks, worried. “No Harry, nothings happened” you tell him. “We had dinner plans for 7.” “Couldn’t do it” you tell him simply,  “We were best friends,” you remind him, a confused look coming over his face. “ We were best friend and you just left, never calling, texting, emailing, anything!” you shove at his chest, the anger getting the better of you. “It really fucking sucked to explain to people that I didn’t even know how you were because you pretty much ceased contact!” “Y/n, contact was really limited in the x-factor house” he tries to reason. “What about after, Harry, what about the past 2 years yeah?” and he’s silent, caught up in your words. “You’ve hurt me too many time Harry Styles!” you threaten, trying to keep the tears in and his face is a contortion of grief. “I’m sorry” he says simply, his eyes watering. “I’m sorry, but you don’t think I realise this! Why do you think I’m here now? I’m here because I need to make things right with you, because you were the best thing I ever had” he admits, tears falling and you’re scared its going to make yours follow suit. “And no amount of words are going to make up for that y/n, nothing will, but I’m trying and please let me try. Let me try to be apart of your world, your life. Whether that be as a friend or everything else we imagined when we were children” and he’s begging and he’s so bloody genuine like he always has been and you melt at his words, “all I can do is try and I need you to do that, I need you” he begs.

 Liam:
You nervously rub your hands together as you sit beside Liam in the passenger seat of his car, the headlights illuminating the familiar road to the unforgettable tree where you buried the box. It had been all silence since you left the restaurant, both of you reverting to thoughts. “It  was six steps” you adamantly tell him, the two of you standing in front of the incredible oak. “I’m sure it was only four” he argues. Eventually he walks out the six and shrugging off his suit jacket gets down on his knees to start scooping away the dirt. And you’re carried back to that moment in your childhood, the chilly air, Liam’s jagged breathing. “ I thought about this last year you know” you tell him as he continues digging. “Why didn’t you dig it up?” he asks. “Didn’t seem right without you” and that ends the conversation. He continues digging until eventually he’s hauling a metal box from the ground, the flashlight from your phone illuminating the smile on his face. You get down on your knees next to him as he dusts it off and opens the creaking lid. And the contents really are nothing but stupid children’s memento’s; a toy racing car, a mood ring, letters to each other and a plastic buzz light-year, but they bring around a new surge of nostalgia. “We’ll be together…” he speaks out into the dark. “What?” you question. “That’s what I told you. I said we’d be together in 10 years time and we weren’t. I broke the biggest promise I ever made y/n” he tells you, dread and guilt filling his voice. “Liam… we’re together now”. “Not the way I meant 11 years ago” he tells you and that’s enough to bring back the silence. “What do we do now?” you ask. “Bury it again” he shrugs, placing it back in the hole and starts to fill the dirk back in.  you watch until he’s done, and he picks himself up from the ground and brushes off the dirt before placing his hands on your waist. “We’re going to dig it up in another 11 years ok?” he tells you. “And whys that?” you ask after a short laugh. “It might be another empty promise, but because we’ll be together” he repeats the words from the last time you stood where you are now and places a long overdue kiss to your lips.

Niall: 
You shove past Greg and towards the kitchen, focussed on getting your coat and getting out. “Y/n” Niall demands your attention, following you. Not even sparing a look you grab your coat and turn, bumping into Niall’s chest. “Just leave me alone” you yell, shoving past him. “Please y/n!” he begs. A sucker for this boy even after all this time, you turn around, trying to suppress your anger. “I’m sorry y/n!” he tells you, rubbing a hand through his messy hair. “Sorry for leaving and only making contact when you could be bothered?” you ask, spitting the words at him. “It was hard ok? You wouldn’t understand. Knowing that no matter how hard I tried I wouldn’t be able to be there for you all the time, I was never going to be the same person after everything that happened, I wasn’t the friend I used to be. So I thought it would be easier if I just gave up. Not being your friend would be better than being a shit one… but I guess I was wrong.” And the anger is gone, leaving you with the hollow feeling of heartache. “You left Niall, You were my best friend and you left and I was so lonely” you cry, letting the tears fall and not giving a single care about it. He gingerly places a hand on your shoulder and when you don’t retreat he pulls you into his arms. Tucking you into his chest and resting his head on yours. “I left y/n but don’t you think for one minute I forgot. You were my best friend too, you helped me get to where I am today and please just let me make this up yeah? Let me… let me be your best friend.” He begs.