Equilibrium (Vexxieverse Series - Part 5)

In the Wild (H)

Harry
February

Harry got the evening off while the other actors were stuck on set with Niall because Phillip was about to take a detour from the group to gain new powers. Since they were just filming talking head scenes, Zayn was off the hook too, so they left work together some time after 8pm. The other boys had a late night, but Harry was glad he got to go home early this time. It was his turn! His mind and body both needed a break.

Zayn took the motorcycle to work that day since he went in early with Niall and it was faster to weave through morning LA traffic than sit in the SUV and get nowhere fast. Harry loved it when he got to ride with Zayn (which didn't happen a lot) because he'd always slow down next to the cars with Vexxie bumper stickers for Harry so he could see what their fans looked like. He loved doing that. Sometimes they even caught on when they saw his curls poking out from the bottom of the helmet if his wrist tattoo was showing. They could never get a camera out in time, but Harry always gave them a little wave of confirmation and hoped it made their day.

They'd already had dinner from catering at work, so the night was theirs. Zayn grabbed himself a beer and Harry a raspberry seltzer in the rec room for a game of 8-Ball pool. As usual, Zayn wasn't saying a word while Harry racked the balls. The silence gave Harry too much room to over analyze the energy between them. Since they were on the motorcycle for the commute, they' hadn't spoken the whole drive back, but now what was their excuse?

Maybe they were both just tired, but usually Harry just got more chatty and goofy when he was worn down from working long hours. As much as he hated to admit it, Harry could never read Zayn. He should be able to read his own boyfriend. But Zayn was a quiet observer who never started conversations. Especially if he was pissed. Or tired. Or horny. Or sad. Sigh.

"Been a while since we had the place to ourselves," Harry said as he broke. Harry was OK at pool but he had no chance at actually beating Zayn. But that was OK because Zayn looked hot when he played, and Harry got to watch his cute little bum when he bent over. Maybe all Harry would get out of their rare time alone was some broody eye candy. That wasn't so bad. But if there was something wrong, Harry wanted to fix it.

Zayn opened the French doors leading to the patio to let the fresh night air in while he lit a cigarette.

The rec room was the only place inside he and Lou were allowed to smoke. It was like their own little nightclub, just for the five of them. Thanks to their fame, they couldn't just go out to one in public without a lot of preparation beforehand, and sometimes they just wanted to unwind with a drink and a game of pool or darts. Harry compromised on letting them smoke since Louis had a state-of-the-art air filter put in and made sure the doors into the hallway had quality seals so none of it would seep into their home.

The rec room had become Harry's favorite decorating project. Anytime they traveled somewhere new, he'd search for a new vintage poster for different alcohol brands to put on display on the walls. It'd become his favorite tourist activity to dress incognito and comb through dusty antique stores. Zayn was usually his shopping date for those excursions because he'd look for items to rescue and give new life to. One of Z's favorite things to find was old, fancy bottles to turn into lighting on the tops of the bar shelves.

"You gonna tell me why you and Liam were acting weird the other day?" Zayn said, as he lit his cigarette and planned his first shot without looking up at Harry. Not a good sign.

He'd been quiet ever since the day of the letter, so Harry wasn't even surprised Zayn was going to ruin their alone time with this crap. He should be asking Liam why he was upset, not Harry! Also.. shit. Harry was a terrible liar and being put on the spot was dangerous territory if he was going to keep Liam's secret. But he had to. He promised.