Rising Up From Ruin - Ziam (AU)

Chapter 5 - New Year's Eve

Liam’s P.O.V.

5:00 P.M.—December 31—2012

            It was dinner time on New Year’s Eve. Harry, Louis, Niall, Zayn, and I were all sitting at our normal dinner table, eating over disjointed conversations. People kept looking at us weird, but it was something we had all started to get used to as Zayn hung out with us more and more. Zayn had only been here a few days, but he had done enough to earn himself a reputation. Rumors spread about him like wild fire.

            “Did you meet to new guy, Zayn? I heard his parents dumped him here because they thought he was crazy,”

            “Zayn isn’t actually an orphan, he just was deemed too unpredictable in everyday life, so they sent him here to be monitored.”

            “I heard that the Malik boy killed his own parents, and then got sent here,”

            The last one was the worst of all, because when Zayn heard that, he would break down crying and run away from us. Not even I could comfort him when that happened. Zayn and I had forged a special bond, unlike anything I had ever experienced before, but I liked it all the same.

            Since today was New Year’s Eve, we were allowed to head into town. There was a teen party going on at the recreation center, and they were sending us there to meet other kids, dance, and have a good time. I had been a few times before, but for some reason, I really didn’t want to go tonight. The book that Niall gave me for Christmas had just started to get good and I was in no mood to socialize.

            “I’m so excited to get out of this place,” Louis said after he had finished his dinner, which consisted of a hot dog, some chips, and a cup of carrots.

            “Me too,” Harry smiled, running his hands through his curls.

            “Where exactly are we going?” Zayn asked.

            “The recreation center,” Louis explained, “We all go to the teen party there to dance and meet kids from the school around that area. Some of them are alright I guess, but we mainly stick with our own kind,”

            The way Louis explained it, it seemed like orphans were a different race of people than kids with parents. My stomach twisted.

            “It sounds fun,” Zayn gave a small smile, “Does everyone go?”

            “No,” Niall said, “You can stay here if you want, but no one ever does. Not even Liam,” I felt a hand on my back and I glanced up from the table.

            “You’re going, right?” Zayn asked. I wanted to tell him that I would rather read. I wanted to tell him that I would rather stay here. But his eyes widened in almost a begging way, and there was something about Zayn that made me want to spend time with him. So I simply nodded. I guess I was going to a party tonight.