Uneasy Hearts Weigh the Most {Niam}

*Warning; super long prologue (4,600+ words wth) that shouldn't even be a prologue but is anyways & slight, slight incestual themes (unless cousins count then yeah there's that oops but it's still fairly easy to pretend that Niall and Liam aren't cousins okay i'm rambling). also if you wanna know what our darling Mitch looks like take a look at what Rob Lowe looked like as Sodapop Curtis in The Outsiders. lots of love.x

It was late that night, the night of the biggest storm Niall had ever witnessed.

He lay in his crib, completely still, and wrung his little fingers. His blanket, soft and blue, was curled around his trembling body – yet the boy could not get warm. His fingers wrapped around the soft material, and he attempted to pull in impossibly tighter around his racking torso.

Blue eyes drifted towards the window, where a bolt of lightning that nearly resembled a spider’s web was striking across the darkened sky. It was followed quickly by a clap of thunder. Niall shivered.

His mouth found his blanket, and his tongue ran across the stitching, though there wasn’t much to taste. He made a face, and instead pulled it close to his body.

As more thunder met his ears, the little boy sat up – a bit drowsily, as the storm had woken him from a previous peaceful slumber. He found his bottle lying across the crib, and his little hand shot out to reach for it. He was unsuccessful in this, though it didn’t matter much once he realized that the bottle was empty, aside from the milk still clinging to the inside.

He grabbed the railing on the crib, and shook it a bit – almost hoping for some form of a reaction. He shook harder, but couldn’t make much noise. He slowly stood himself up, clutching his crib for support, and let out a low mumbling sound.

Exhausted, the toddler fell to his bum, and laid back down – sprawled out like a starfish.

He waited a few minutes, padding his hands and feet, sucking in and out with his mouth. One of his hands found his teddy, and he grabbed the bear harshly to hold it to his chest.

The door to his nursery opens, and the lights flick on – not too bright, thanks to the dimmer. Niall sits up, and his eyes meet his daddy’s. He doesn’t know it, but a smile comes to his face.

“Hey, buddy,” Zayn whispers, and walks closer to the crib. Niall’s arms shoot out, wanting to be picked up, and Zayn complies. He shifts his weight, and kisses Niall on the cheek. “Couldn’t sleep either, huh? Poor baby…”

Niall’s little hands curl around the collar of Zayn’s shirt, and he rests his head on his daddy’s shoulder. He doesn’t know how he warms Zayn’s heart.

“You hungry, buddy?” Zayn mutters into Niall’s ear, and the blonde is old enough to know what his daddy is saying. He grips him tighter as a response. “Thought so…”

He carries the toddler into the kitchen, and gently sets him on top of the counter while he goes to find something for Niall. Niall reaches over, and finds his teething ring on the counter beside him. He grabs it, brings it to his mouth, and patiently chews while he waits to be fed.

Zayn comes back to him with a bottle full of warm milk, and Niall is grateful as he sucks it down. Zayn pats his back gently, “Easy, bud. I don’t want you getting sick.”

A door opens from the end of the hallway, and Harry emerges from his and Zayn’s shared bedroom. He peers into the nursery and a quick jolt of panic surges through his body as he rushes for the kitchen. His heart beat slows, however, once he sees that Zayn has their child.

“What are you doing up?” he slurs, voice dizzy with sleep, and Zayn’s eyes dart towards him.

“Couldn’t sleep,” he shrugged, and picked up Niall, who was still going to work on his bottle. “Nialler was awake when I went to check on him.”