electric youth - ziam au

n i n e t e e n

( unedited, shitty, and short, yucky... come on kayleigh )

Zayn's tears stopped for a little while, and it worries him.

Harry constantly tells Zayn that he's probably just getting over it, and that he's proud of that, but Zayn knows he's wrong.

He's not getting over Liam. His body may be, maybe he just ran out of tears, but his brain surely isn't.

He still hurt as much as the first day Liam left, and it makes him so damn angry at the world.

Worst of all, Zayn didn't understand why he had to spend Liam's birthday without him, and then Christmas, his own birthday, graduation.

Zayn had graduated, riding on ten months without a single word from Liam. A year and one month since they were last together.

A fucking long time, that is.

He couldn't even enjoy his own graduation, dammit. All he could do was imagine running off the stage into Liam's arms, like you'd see in the movies.

He made a pact with himself that he would be there at Liam's graduation, arms open and ready for his love.

It didn't happen, though, and as another year passed, so did the opportunity to be there.

Zayn had taken a gap year, spending it searching for a dream career and college, since he wasn't all that good at that in high school.

He also spent much too long trying any way possible to reach Liam, but that's not to be said. Especially not to Harry.

Louis and Harry had both gone off to America for school, and once Zayn had retaken enough classes to pursue an acting career, he set off to Chicago.

As for Niall, he and Wesley began dating over a year ago, and since Wesley was only just now starting senior year and still had to stay at the hospital, Niall applied to university in London, so they'd be close.

Zayn was surrounded by happy couples not only in life, but on the very day he guessed Liam would be graduating. He sat in a coffee shop, eating an awful Chicago scone and pretending to read the newspaper articles about elections and shootings, as he drifted off to the thought of Liam.

Then it reached three years, then three and a half, nearly four, and Zayn lost all hope. He was done with his third year of college now, and it was on his 23rd birthday when he cried for the first time in years.

"Why?" Zayn simply asked the silence around his tears. "Why us?"

He spent the entire night in bed, thinking of Liam, skipping the party Harry, Louis, and the new neighbors Wesley and Niall had planned to stay in bed, ignore calls, and sob.

What got him the most, was when seventeen year old Liam's face popped up in him mind. How did Liam look now? He'd be 21 that year, he must have grown... He'd probably be perfect, beautiful, and Zayn would never see it.

Zayn himself had changed so much. His face hung tired and sad, but he was still as handsome as before- if not more. Although, his eighteen year old self really had no chance against himself today.

But he was right, Liam looked awfully different. Beaten, really. Stuck in eternal pain. Over the past few years, they had moved over fifty times and beaten what had to be 400+, he supposed. He didn't really keep track, but it sure felt like it.

He went to school, yes, graduating somehow since he spent each month at different place. Although, he was put into bad schools, ones that literally didn't have a single computer or calendar, for that matter, so he guessed it didn't matter to them.

They no longer used airlines to travel, too, but a series of unmarked transportations, which unfortunately informed Liam of how his parents knew much more about what they were doing than he had thought. They were basically criminals, and it scared Liam beyond belief.

Even with their old age creeping up right on top of them, they kept their son moving.

It was on the same day of Zayn's meltdown when Liam was carted through a subway station of New York. There were people around, so his mother had spent extra time coating the poor boys face with foundation. He was so mangled, it took seven of the bottles to really get him normal looking. And since they were out, they shoved him into a long sleeve coat and jeans to cover everywhere else.

The pushed him through the platforms, up to a train and on. Liam, squeezed into the seat, saw a mans phone on that subway.

Honestly, it wouldn't be too big of a deal, just a little happiness for Liam, considering he hadn't seen a phone in over a year, but it was a big deal.

It was a huge deal.

Liam saw the date on that phone, plastered against the screensaver of a smiling couple, and his stomach nearly exploded.

He almost began to cry, but held back.

Not only was it his Zayns birthday, but it had been three years. He was 20, and he didn't even know it. Zayn was 23 and Liam was missing it. He was missing Zayns life.

He closed his eyes, breathing in sharply and deciding that today, today was the day he'd be free, once again.

And so, nine pm, now positioned in what Liam luckily discovered was New York, Liam ran. His parents were drunk, blacked out on the floor. He was home free.

He succeeded, reaching the police office and turning his parents in. Much wasier than he had ever expected, and he now knew why his parent kept him from everyday things, because it would drive him to leave.

He was finally safe, though. He was finally okay. The police opened up a shelter room for him, telling him to wash up and sleep, so that they could continue in the morning.

He took his first warm shower of three and a half years, sleeping in a bed, something he has missed for too long.

There was a nurse there who patched Liam up and laid him into bed for one of the most amazing nights of his life.

"Happy birthday, Zayn.." Liam laughed sadly and happily, all at once, talking to the dark. "I love you," he smiled, closing his eyes sweetly, because everything was suddenly getting better.

"Liam, I miss you," Zayn sobbed heavily and longingly, all at once, staring through the dark. "I love you," he frowned, because everything was suddenly getting worse.