Color My Senses Cherry Red

Chapter 2

Back in his dorm room, thinking about his afternoon, Zayn suddenly finds the whole thing pretty surreal. Moments before, everything seemed perfectly plausible to him, but now he finds himself doubting his sanity. Did he really go to an interview to audition for a part in a pornographic film? Did he get an incredible blowjob from a ridiculously attractive guy he'd never seen before? Or did he fall asleep in the library and dream about it?

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone, scrolling down until he finds Louis' number, and only then does he believe that it's actually happened. He doesn't know anyone else by the name of Louis, so it has to be him.

His thumb hovers over the 'call' button for a minute or two as he contemplates calling him right away.

Before he can make up his mind, however, he's interrupted by the arrival of his rather loud roommate and best friend.

"Where the fuck have you been, you cunt?" Niall exclaims when he sees him, coming over to flop down on his bed and pat his shoulder. "I've been looking for you everywhere."

Zayn can't stop the blush from creeping into his cheeks, and hopes that the slightly guilty expression on his face doesn't give him away. "I was just… around," he explains lamely, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably when it begins to prickle, the way it always does when he's not being completely truthful. He wonders if Niall suspects something, but one look at the other boy's face tells him that he's being paranoid.

"Why were you looking for me?" he asks after a moment.

"To ask if you fancy a drink at the pub tonight," Niall says, shrugging. "It's not urgent, but I figured you'd want to know as soon as possible, in case you wanted to invite someone. Of course you can find your shag for the night at the pub, but…"

Zayn rolls his eyes and shakes his head. "I'll pass," he murmurs. "I'm quite knackered, so I think I'll do some homework and go to sleep early."

"Boring," Niall sighs, shaking his head. "You've been slacking, mate. When was the last time you got laid?"

Zayn bites back his retort – saying 'this afternoon' would be a bad idea. It would only make Niall ask incessant questions about who he was with, whether Niall knows "her", and Zayn doesn't particularly feel like lying more than he has to. So he just shrugs. "A while, but I'm fine. Really, you go have fun, and if possible, go to her place. I don't think I can listen to you moaning all night again."

Niall smirks, knowing fairly well that he's exceptionally loud in bed. He shrugs and gets off the bed. "Fine, have it your way. I'm gonna go have dinner with the lads and probably won't come back before tomorrow morning then. You'll be fine, yeah?"

Zayn nods. "Sure, sure. Go, have fun, get laid, whatever. Don't worry about me."

"As if," Niall huffs and tugs his t-shirt off to replace it with a new one. Zayn watches his friend for a moment, then averts his eyes, realising that Niall would probably be uncomfortable if he knew he's being checked out by his gay best friend.

Not that Zayn is really checking him out – Niall isn't really his type. Skinny and blond has never done anything for him, whether it's a girl or a boy, so Niall's safe.

Zayn waves when his friend leaves, then settles back and stares up at the ceiling.

He hates this. He hates feeling like he does. For a long time, he didn't even acknowledge the fact that he's obviously gay or bisexual. He doesn't know anyone else who is, and most of his friends have given him the impression that they're quite homophobic, so he's never had the courage to bring it up. He isn't sure about Niall, to be honest, and has a feeling that maybe, he wouldn't make a big deal out of it. But until he's completely sure, he can't tell anyone. Not his family, not his friends.