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The boys come back to the building they had rented for their five day stay in the country. Five rooms with three spares, a hall, a living room, gym, night club, garage, the likes.
The interview had not been anything unlike their usual interviews. Questions about the ending of their tour, their upcoming premiere, a little movie promotion combined with their idiocy as they sat and pretended to laugh and smile like nothing had changed. When in real, everything had.
They hadn’t talked on their way back either. Anger was painted over Liam, and a stony expression all over Zayn. The three other boys had no idea what to say. But certain things are never left unsaid, eventually, they come out. They are said, you just have to talk.
So, before Zayn and Liam can abandon the boys in the hall and silently make their way to their rooms (room), Louis stops them again. This time not with a sentence poorly phrased, but physically. Which might have not been the best thing to do considering Liam’s heavy build and Louis' small physique compared to it, but well, Louis is taking his chances.
“Silent treatment will not do any of us any good,” Louis blocks Liam’s path causing Liam to abruptly halt in his steps, “We have to sit and talk.”
“There’s nothing to talk about Louis, get out of my way,” Liam snaps.
“No,” Louis is resolute; Zayn knows how he is trying to be so brave when actually he isn’t feeling like that at all.
“Louis, listen to him,” Zayn says from where he is standing behind Liam. He makes his voice sound as warning-like as possible. Louis doesn’t waver.
“I really want to see what he is going to do,” Louis says, a glint of challenge in his eye and he really shouldn’t have.
Because Liam’s fist is on his jaw like a flash of light, so fast and hard, that Zayn doesn’t even get enough time to let a proper gasp out. He doesn’t know what’s happening, but suddenly there is screaming and shouting all around him and he wants to take Liam’s hand and run away from this mess, run away before they break something else, run away before something else crashes down.
When he gets his mind to work properly again, he sees Harry holding a crouched Louis, who is rubbing his jaw with his hand that is covered in something crimson, the sight of which makes Zayn’s stomach clench painfully. That isn’t all, Louis’ left eyes is turning a shade of purple-blue by the second, and Zayn knows make up wouldn’t be able to cover the result of all this. A small part of him, a very small one, wants to step forward and prevent Liam from inflicting further damage onto his best mate, but Zayn just lets the events unroll in front of his eyes. (also a part of him is assured that liam would not hurt louis more because niall is standing between them and liam would never lay a hand on niall, never.)
“Please Li, sit down, we can talk this out,” Niall is saying, Louis is sniffing into Harry’s sleeve who is staring daggers at Liam. Zayn wonders if he would hit Harry if Harry as much as touched Liam. He decides he doesn’t want to think about the answer.
“I don’t want to talk Niall, why can’t you all just let us be alone while we can? Don’t you think you have done enough damage?” Liam says, through gritted teeth.
“Look, we didn’t mean to-“
“You didn’t mean to what?” and Zayn is speaking now, he doesn’t know how but he is, “You didn’t mean to tell on us? It just happened by accident? Oh wait, you must have accidentally let it slip-“
“It did happen by accident actually Zayn,” Harry cuts him off.
Zayn shifts his eyes to him, “What do you mean? How in the world could it have happened by accident?”
“We were talking about you two, and he heard us. We didn’t know he was there until he interfered, when he did do that, he had already heard too much,” Harry explains, hand rubbing over Louis’ eye.
“I had no choice then, I had to tell him everything,” Louis’ small voice interrupts.
“You didn’t have a fucking choice?” Liam towers above him, still shouting, “You could have kept your trap shut when he asked you about us and you didn’t have a fucking choice?”
Liam moves ahead to launch himself on Louis again only that Niall blocks him with his chest, strong hands gripping his shoulders.
“You don’t know the entire story Liam,” Niall tries, “He knew you and Zayn were sleeping together when he came to us and so Louis just said it wasn’t fucking, it was real and that you both are figuring it out. All of us are figuring it out, and it will be fine. He said what you told us-“
“You guys are so fucking funny,” Liam says humorlessly, “You told him we were in a fucking relationship? Even when you knew what the consequences might be?”
“You did break the rules, none of us even dared, but you were supposed to be the sensible one and you did,” Louis has the audacity to say. “Do you even know how much trouble we could get in if this doesn’t stop now?”
“Maybe, I don’t,” Liam says, not bothering to reach Louis now, he looks straight into his eyes when he speaks though, “But you know what I know? I know that if you and Harry suddenly see the light and stop running away from your god damn feelings and eventually start to fuck, I would never tell on you. Not even if the alternative is death!”
That hushes everyone down for a very long time. During that time, Niall just looks back and forth between Louis and Harry with an astonished expression on his face while the above mentioned lads look directly into each other’s eyes, Louis still encompassed in Harry’s arms. Liam still has his fists clenched as Zayn is standing still behind him, now touching.
“And there is one other thing you all should know,” Liam starts again, when the atmosphere has been standing still for too much time, “its because of your big ass mouths that Zayn is going to have to get engaged to somebody who is not me! People are going to know about it, people are going to believe in it and guess what I am gonna do? I am going to sit here, despising them and hating every single one of you!”
“Eng- engaged, what?” Harry asks, his attention diverting from Louis to Zayn immediately.
“They are going to pull another publicity stunt, oh not to forget, I will soon be introducing you all to another stranger woman, who will be all over me as long as she wants and I will let her because I have to. So congratulations Louis, you are not the only one now, you must be so glad,” Liam screams some more, before he loses patience and shoves Niall away, making a beeline for the stairs. He knows if he stays here any longer, he might break a few noses and jaws.
When Zayn is left alone with them, wanting more than anything to follow Liam but giving in to the urge that is keeping him here, Harry asks, “You are getting engaged?”
“Apparently,” Zayn gulps, it hurts every time.
“They can’t make you do that,” Niall says.
“They can,” Zayn answers, “And they are.”
“I am sorry,” Louis mutters in a small voice. “I didn’t know it would be this bad.”
Zayn has to put himself really really really really up there in order to not snort in response. But he can’t help himself when he says, “You should have thought about it before.”
Harry opens his mouth to say something that Zayn doesn't want to listen to, so he walks past Niall and up the stairs, to check on Liam.
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