Heat, quickly becoming unbearable. It beat down on my face in waves of discomfort, my unopened eyes ached from the bright light that accompanied it. The one eye I cracked open was quickly closed when the glare of the sun on the window met my wavering gaze. Grumbles and moans escaped my mouth; I tried to shift position but something was tangled up in my legs, strong arms wrapped tightly around my waist. My eyes flashed open, I didn't move but I had become overly aware of the body pressed against my back. My surroundings swirled into place, the balcony wide open, curtains bellowing in the unusually warm morning breeze; dishes clinking from the direction of the kitchen, mixing with soft voices and quiet laughter. The blanket sprawled out on the carpet shifted and messy black hair peeked out, a stifled snore followed. Zayn. Slowly I tried to remove the arm from my body but it tightened and a deep grunt met my ear, soft curls tickling my cheek. The gentle rise and fall against my back told me he was asleep once more. This time around I moved quickly, pulling away from Harry's strong grasp and stood. He shifted but remained comatose, the space on the couch quickly swallowed up by his long limbs. My head was a jumble of confusion, I couldn't remember finishing the movie last night, I couldn't remember falling asleep beside Harry. Liam and Louis were sitting beside me if I remembered correctly. I shoved my questions to the back of my head, gingerly stepping over Zayn I made my way to the kitchen, following the mouthwatering scent of cooking food.
"That smells delicious! What is it?" I hopped up on the island beside Darcy's booster seat, kissing her messy bed-head. She must have woken and one of the boys had brought her from her room. I didn't like being asleep while the boys were with Darcy, I'm protective of my little girl, but I trusted Liam. He stood before the stove as things sizzled and popped, glancing over his broad shoulder to give me a grin.
"Bacon, eggs, and sausage." Liam dumped the eggs he was frying onto one of the serving plates, setting it beside a few others full of bacon, sausage, fruit, bagels, donuts, and a bunch of other pastries. "Tea is ready if you'd like a cup." Looking at the empty coffee pot I frowned, it was basically my lifeline. Caffeine in any form was my weakness really, I had to have coffee in the morning or that day wouldn't be very nice, I get cranky and agitated. I'd bet money coffee ran through my veins.
"Come on Lili, where's the coffee? You know I'm not a tea drinker." I complained, sliding off the counter and shuffling over to my beloved coffee pot. He shot me a glare after I called him by his pet name, passing me a mug. The machine started up with a cough and the water I had poured inside bubbled up and streamed out, the strong scent instantly filled the space around me.
"This isn't America Danni, we drink tea in the morning, plus coffee rots your teeth." He leaned against the island, settling a pile of plates beside the heaps of food. "Well don't just stand there drooling over everything, dig in." You never had to tell me twice. I grabbed a plate and scooped on a mound of fluffy eggs, bacon situated around it like an army standing guard. Peaches, strawberries, and blueberries sprinkled around to give some color. A bagel with strawberry cream cheese balanced precariously on the top. I placed my plate beside Niall's, amazed at how much food he could situate on one dinner plate. And he was filling up a second! Don't get me wrong, I eat a lot, but he seemed never to get full. I waited for him to finish piling on his fill, so I could start to make a plate for Darcy. To my surprise the Irishman set the second overflowing plate in front of my daughter, a big smile grew on her face.
"Really Niall, do you honestly think Darcy is going to eat all that?" My little girl watched Niall take a big bite of his eggs, then looked at her own plate. She grabbed a handful and proceeded to shove it in her mouth, cheeks bulging like a chipmunk. I heard laughs break out and glanced up to see Louis had appeared, Niall joining in with his unique chuckles. Liam held a wide grin on his face. I shook my head and chowed down on my own breakfast.
As we ate Louis went over to Zayn and yanked the blanket off of him. Zayn groaned and lifted the front of his black t-shirt over his face, trying to block out the bright sunlight. I couldn't help but stare at the bronzed muscular torso, tattoos inked all over. I felt my face go warm as I shifted my gaze quickly to my daughter, glad none of the boys seemed to notice my staring. Darcy had begun to fidget in her chair so I let her down, pointedly looking at her still full plate. Niall caught my gaze and gave me a guilty grin. As soon as Darcy was on her feet she ran over to Louis, standing beside him with her eyes on Zayn's sleeping form. I could see Louis' mind churning as he looked down at her, an idea flashing across his blue eyes. He crouched down to her level, whispering something in her ear. A smile lit up her face and she nodded, agreeing to whatever Louis had just proposed. Darcy went over to Zayn's side and looked back at Louis, who nodded to her. Her little fingers pressed into Zayn's stomach as she began to tickle him.
Zayn buckled and pushed his shirt off his face, anger was clear in his gaze until he noticed it was a little blond who was the tickler. His brown eyes instantly brightened with amusement. Reaching his thickly tattooed arms around her, he pulled my giggling daughter over his stomach onto her back. Her squealing laughter heightened as he tickled her, she kicked out but he held her tightly. At the sound of high pitched laughter the boy on the couch shifted and sat up, rubbing his eyes he ran a hand through his thick curls. As Harry stood and made his way over to where the food steamed Darcy loosened Zayn's grip and ran over to hide behind Liam's legs. She still wore a smile but her cheeks were red and she was still giggling slightly, peering around Liam to steal a glance at Zayn as he slowly got to his feet.
"Morning." Louis smiled at the curly haired brit before he went back to eating, a sleepy looking Harry returned it with a deep grunt, pulled out a chair and filled a plate. He gave another grunt while he plunged his fork into his eggs, sticking them in his mouth. Louis frowned but shrugged it off quickly, getting to his feet to place his dish in the sink. Liam picked Darcy up and began tickling her, the laughs brought my attention back to the people around me and not just my food. Liam charged into the living room with her in his arms, Zayn taking over in the tickling with Liam. I smiled and turned back to my plate, Harry's intense stare making me jump.
"Can I do something for you?" I didn't dare glance at his face, I already knew he would be wearing the look of saddness and longing that would tear my heart to shreds. Instead I pushed my eggs around with my fork, appetite completely lost now that tension was crisp in the air around me.
"Yes, there is something. You can let me be a father." Harry's words hurt more then any look he could have given me. I pushed my stool from the counter with a loud squeak, gathered my plate and briskly plopped it into the sink. I turned to see six pairs of eyes on me, a mix of surprise and confusion.
"Sorry, my legs were cramping." I lied with a bright smile. "I should really get Darcy dressed, stuff to do today." I tried to sound cheery as I shuffled around the island and scooped my daughter out of Zayn's arms, ignoring her cries of protest. "You all should go, you must be busy. We'll catch up with you later." I wisked away down the hall and into Darcy's room before they could speak a word. I leaned against the door till I heard the front door open and shut then silence. I shook my head and hugged Darcy close to me, kissing her forehead softly. "Just me and you babe, right?" I whispered to her.
She looked me square in the eye with her wide hazel gaze. "Right babe." She put her little arms around my neck and hugged me back, a single tear slipping from my eyes and vanished into her golden locks.
"Always."
