I Loved And Got Lost In The Moment

Part 4

Liam stood by the entrance to the Movie Hall and leaned against the door, silently observing all the kids seated in a semicircle in front of Niall as he played his guitar and entertained the kids with, 'Old McDonald had a farm'. He watched his animated little girl sitting at the back of the crowd, next to a tiny, young dark-haired girl, trying to get her to clap along with the rest. She couldn't have been older than a year. He also observed a slightly older boy, perhaps around 5 or 6, hovering around them restlessly, not sitting, but with a slight smile. He was dark-haired as well and the resemblance between the two was quite remarkable. They were both slight and tan skinned with dark hair. The girl had her hair pulled back in a pink tie and was wearing pink tights and pastel yellow unicorn top. The boy was dressed smartly in a red plaid shirt neatly tucked into his denim shorts. Perhaps they were siblings or cousins.

As Liam continued to observe, he reminisced fondly how Nadira had tugged at their heart strings from the first minute they spotted her. She was around 15 months and had been absorbed into the orphanage a few weeks earlier. Her huge amber-colored doe eyes resembled Zayn's so much, not to mention her soft, thick, dark hair. Her soft chubby cheeks and plump lips had reminded Zayn of the younger version of Liam from their X-Factor days. She had settled into Zayn's arms as if she was born there. It was uncanny how, to an outsider, it might look as if she shared genes from both her dads, however biologically impossible it was!

Liam's attention had wandered slightly to smile at Niall and the enraptured kids around him. As he turned his gaze towards the back again, the cute little girl seemed to lose interest in the music and to Liam's amazement, just put her head on Nadira's little lap and closed her eyes. Liam bit his lip anxiously wondering how his daughter would react to this sudden move, but he also wanted to give her time to process it. He was ready to jump in if needed.

Nadira seemed to freeze for an instant before looking up at her unca Ni. Niall smiled at the new development and nodded encouragingly at his beautiful goddaughter. She still hadn't noticed her papa silently observing the entire scene. Nadira tentatively placed a hand on the little one's stomach, patting lightly, like she would when laying with their pets. Liam saw her biting her bottom lip in concentration, unblinkingly focussed on her new playmate.

The young boy who had silently witnessed the entire scene between the girls, left the room for a minute and returned with a soft-looking faded baby blanket. He draped it gently on the sleeping baby, smiling at the surprised Nadz. He looked up suddenly and noticed Liam observing them. His brows scrunched up in a slight frown and he sat down, almost protectively, next to the peacefully sleeping little girl. Nadira, bless her heart, raised a finger to her lips silently admonishing the boy to be silent and not wake up the little one.

"Jaan, the boys are signing up with Chelsea now. they'll come back next week to meet the kids. Is Nadz ok and ... ... ..." Zayn left the remainder of that question unfinished as his hubby turned to shush him, "C'mere babe. Just watch. She hasn't seen me yet."

Liam wrapped an arm around Zayn's tiny waist and cuddled him into his side, as Zayn's gaze followed Liam's finger pointing towards the adorable scene at the back of the room. He barely held in a gasp noticing several things at once.

Nadz was perfectly fine.

She had made new friends, or at least one tiny friend.

There was a little girl with a head of dark hair peacefully asleep on his daughter's lap.

There was a young dark-haired boy seated next to them who didn't seem very pleased with the two adults watching them fondly.

"So, beti found her baby on the first visit huh!" exclaimed Zayn.

Liam turned suspiciously glistening eyes towards his hubby and whispered softly, "Looks like it luv. They already look like sisters. Can we please keep her? Please Zee."

"Who's the little bodyguard though?" Zayn wondered aloud, gently rubbing liam's lower back with one hand, grounding him as he observed their precious (yes, that's what her name meant in urdu, Nadira meant precious) daughter handling the sleeping baby delicately with the utmost focus.

"He does worry me a little too, Zaynie. Let's check with Chelsea first. Nadz seems more than okay for now." Liam caught Niall's attention and silently motioned for him to keep an eye on Nadira.

The husbands walked back quickly towards the main office room. Chelsea was seated at her desk, going through a file, whilst Louis and Harry sat on the couch filling out some paperwork.

"Chelsea sorry to interrupt you but could you please come with us for a moment?" Zayn requested politely.

"Of course, of course. Don't tell me you've already found your new addition?" She sounded surprised and was just as eager to see which child had the Payne-Maliks so excited.

Chelsea halted before entering and noticed the endearing scene at the back of the hall in an instant. Her face seemed to fall slightly as she took in a sharp breath. None of the children had noticed them. She retreated quickly and turned towards her office, beckoning the boys. Liam began to worry, shaking nervously, and Zayn had to stop him for a moment in the corridor before following behind Chelsea.

"Jaan, look at me." He gently pushed his husband against the pastel pink wall and held his face between his palms. "Calm down for me please babe. Let's find out what Chelsea has to say first, okay?" Liam nodded slowly, eyes filled with worry. He had already gotten attached to the little girl with his daughter and he hadn't even met her yet.

Zayn held his hubby in his arms for a moment longer and pecked his lips soothingly, "Okay?"

Liam took in a deep breath and took his husband's hand as they walked in and sat down at the desk with Chelsea.