Forever My Father

Chapter Three

Zayn has not let go of his father since he arrived home. Like seriously he has refused to allow his father to put him on the ground because he feels that if he does then he'll disappear. So now the two are seated on the couch, across from Harry and Liam, discussing everything that's happened in the past week.

"How did you get them to sign you off, Baba?" Zayn asks from upon the man's lap.

"Well I proved my case and I told them I was seeing you one way or another, so they just decided to sign me a very short leave," Yaser answers while pushing the hair out of Zayn's face. "We need to get you a haircut. A nice buzz would look good," the man then says.

"When did you find out you could come? Did Liam know?" Harry asks this time around.

"I found out two days ago, and then when I landed this morning I needed someone to pick me up and you weren't answering so I called Liam. I was initially planning on surprising Zayn at school, but he got home before I could. Speaking of which, why are you home so early, bubba?" Yaser asks, shifting his gaze to the young boy.

"I was overreacting to something a teacher said and I had a panic attack," Zayn says with his head down and Yaser just coos before kissing the boy's head.

"I'm sure you weren't overreacting, it's alright to be scared sometimes, babe." The four go on to talk a bit more before Zayn thinks back to something his father had said.

"You said a short leave," Zayn says quietly but Yaser hears.

"What was that, bubba?" The man asks.

"You said they signed you off for a short leave. How short is short?" And Yaser sighs. And Zayn knows that sigh. He hates that sigh.

"I leave tomorrow Wednesday morning," Yaser says regretfully.

"Baba that's barely two days!" Zayn exclaims while jumping off his father's lap.

"It was either that or nothing Zayn. I know you wish it was longer, and so do I, but sometimes we don't get what we want." And Zayn has a mouthful of words he would like to reply to that statement but he holds them back, and instead just nods his head before resting it on the man's shoulder. 

"Since you're home early, though, I have a few birthday plans for us today, so why don't you go dress into some comfier clothes?" And with that Zayn is off the couch in an instant and running up the stairs, leaving the three adults alone. 

"Just give it to us straight," Harry says with a sigh.

"What do you me-"

"Oh don't play dumb with me Yaser! I know you traded in your long release to get these few days off. So after Wednesday, when will we be seeing you again?" Harry says in a serious voice that dared anyone to argue against him.

"I don't have a return date yet. It's too far in advance for them to tell me anything, but I think this one is over a year," Yaser finally answers and Harry just shakes his head.

"You're missing him grow up every time you leave. You don't need to do this anymore Yaser, you don't need to go on these long deployments still! It's starting to mentally effect the boy. This is the fourth time I've had to pick him up early from school this school year because he's had a panic attack over something someone said."

"Well stop picking him up early then! I don't want my son growing up to be some wuss who thinks the minute he starts crying everyone will drop everything to look after him!"

"Maybe that's not how you would raise him but right now me and Liam are raising him, and you cannot tell us to do it differently! You never had to deal with him asking about his mum because he was too young to understand what had happened at that point. You don't have to see the look on his face every father's day when he refuses to go out with us because he feels that "Niall and Louis deserve their fathers' attention". If you consider waking up at four in the morning so that boy upstairs can talk to you for five minutes being a wuss, then by all means he's is the biggest wuss out there! But in my eyes, and everyone's in his school, he is the bravest person out there," Harry says, never once dropping eye contact.