Heartstrings ➳ z.m.

eleven - zayn

Chapter Eleven – Zayn

This being his and Skylar’s legs tangled impossibly together, one of her hands threading through his hair, the other lightly tracing the outline of invisible shapes onto his shoulder.

            This being the way that her face was pressed into the curve of his shoulder, the feeling of her lashes against his skin, the way that she watched him draw with such innocent curiosity.

            This.

            Zayn likes this. It’s everything and nothing that he wanted, and yet he still can’t find the willpower in him to move from her, and take away the perfection of her body sculpted into his.

            This isn’t right for many, many reasons—for one, he’s not even supposed to let her get close, though that plan has turned to crap. Two, there’s the problem that Skylar fancies Louis, and the even bigger obstacle that Louis fancies her back, and quite obviously, too. Then there’s the thing about Skylar having no interest in him at all, and how his touches probably don’t send her mind into a frenzy like she does to him.

            Yet, he doesn’t care. Because right now, in this moment, it’s him and her, and she and him, and Zayn and Skylar and that’s all that really matters.

            The pair of them fitting together like the final pieces of a puzzle; jaggedly imperfection and beauty into one.

            “Zayn,” Skylar starts, and she moves back to see his face properly. “Who taught you how to draw?”

            He shoots a glance at her, and gives a leisurely half-shrug in response. Nobody taught Zayn how to draw. It was something that he had just always loved to do—same with singing—and he just mostly taught himself.

            Skylar releases her hand from his hair, then, which makes him want to pout, and she sits up to grab her tea. “I’m taking that as you’re self-taught, then. Which is impressive. I can’t draw at all; it’s embarrassing. S’why I like to watch you… You make it look easy and all, and you get this determined look on your face.”

            He shrugs again, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, the thought of watching her draw already seeming humorous, and the fact that she admitted to liking to watch him warming his tummy.

            He’s going to have to thank her for that, one day. Getting him to smile again.

            Not that he missed it, but having somebody to shrug to, and nod at, and smile with is nice, is all. The boys never really did talk to him, and though he knows it’s his own fault, he still would’ve liked if they had tried a bit harder, or something.

            “Alright,” Skylar sighs, untangling their legs. Zayn actually does pout that time, and she sends him an amused smirk, poking his cheek. “You’re cute. Anyway, I’m actually really hungry now, and I know you don’t eat for like,” she checked the clock, “like ten minutes, but I’m starving. So I’ll probably just stay out there until you join me.”

            He nods and resumes his work. Though it doesn’t quite feel the same without Skylar next to him, and he’s glad when the seven minutes are finally up, and he’s finally able to join her in the kitchen.

            When he does reach the kitchen, everything is laid out, just like normal. Skylar, however, is in the next room over, crunching on a bag of crisps, and dipping her hand in Louis’ popcorn bowl. She’s got her feet on his lap, and her head in Harry’s, and she doesn’t even notice when Zayn comes into the room.

            She doesn’t even lift her head as he eats in the kitchen by himself, and she doesn’t acknowledge him at all as he shuffles back to his room and closes the door.

            He doesn’t know why he actually expected her to stay.

            They never do.

            “You’re mad at me.” It’s two days later, a Monday, and Zayn has yet to respond to her. All he wants is to go to dinner—which Liam had invited the rest of the boys, Skylar, and Trinity over for. Apparently eating with just Zayn while he was in such a ‘lousy funk’—Liam’s words, not Zayn’s—was just annoying, and whether Zayn liked it or not—he didn’t—Liam was inviting everyone over.

            “I really didn’t mean to forget about you,” she tries again, and Zayn successfully pushes past her, into the kitchen and to the table. It’s a tight squeeze for seven people, but they make it work.

            Skylar takes the empty seat next to Niall, and sighs at Zayn from across the table. “And you have no right to be mad, besides. You could’ve come and watched the movie if you wanted to.”

            “How do you even know he’s mad?” Trinity asks genuinely from the other side of her friend. “I can’t tell the difference.”

            Zayn snorts a little under his breath at that, and Skylar shrugs. “Because he’s not talking to me and—”

            “But he doesn’t talk anyway.”

            Skylar shrugs once more. “I don’t mean ‘talk’.”

            Her friend only gives her a blank look, and Zayn doesn’t add to the conversation.

            He just stares at his food and wonders when his headache is going to come on, because his heart definitely feels the sting, and he’s just waiting for his mind to, too.

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This is probably the earliest I've ever uploaded.

I've noticed that my author's notes are pretty much a synopsis of the chapters, lol, ready?

First Zayn chapter with actual quotation marks! it's because he's actually responding to people (aka Skylar) and so now they get quotes areound their words.

Poor Zayn can't ever catch a break, having a crush, and then her totally blowing him off, awh