Obvious Truth, Oblivious Mind {ZIAM}

Ch. 11: Downpour

❝

Dear Liam,

I had never seen you so sad. And even though I hated to see you so heartbroken, I selfishly felt thankful for what Dani did. I was happy that you spent more time with me, but you really liked her, maybe even loved. I never did ask you if you loved her, I didn't ask because I would never be able to forgive myself if  you did. I tried to tell myself that it was a coincidence and this wasn't my fault, but she never really gave you an explanation as to why you two broke up. Liam, she didn't tell you why you broke up because you were boring or unattractive like you thought. She did it for me. I'm sorry. I tried to talk to her about it once a couple months ago. I asked her why she broke up with you and she tried to lie and say that things weren't working out, but I asked her to stop there... Actually I told her to cut the bullshit. Sorry about that. She told me... She told me, and I know this sounds cheesy, that she had never seen someone so in love with another person before. And that she owed it to you to let me make a move, because she said that you might feel something too. She said that their was this "strange tension" around us always, like an omen or an aura. But one thing you can always count on... I will never try to get together with you because I can't live without you and I can't risk you leaving me.

❞

I knew something was wrong when I didn't see Liam or Dani in music class. Neither one to be found and I saw Danielle hanging out with her friends before school, neither one of them were the type to ditch class. I pulled out my phone in the middle of class to text Liam.

"Where r u mate?"

I got a reply ten minutes later.

"Sorry, but I can't go to class. I can't see Dani."

Anxious dread coursed through my body.

"What happened?"

"Dani ended it."

I rose my hand and Mrs. Brendan drone wearily, "What?"

"May I be excused?"

"Sure," She said before staring back at her computer.

I walked to the front of the school, knowing Liam wants to leave but is too good to actually do it.

He was sitting outside on a bench in the shade. It was cold just having stopped raining. The frigid wind tore my jacket open, closing it as quckly as possibly I jogged over to my distraught friend.

"Liam, it's too cold. Come inside," I pleaded.

"No," He said simply, staring at his shaking hands. He put them over his face, spine curving in the most dejected way I've ever seen. His buzzed hair was growing out a bit more, and tuffs of his natural curls were growing more on the top. How could someone so beautiful be so sad?

"I can't, Zayn. She didn't even give me a reason."

"She's not in school either, just please come inside. She's not worth your time."
Jealousy and anger was behind the last sentence. How could she break up with him for no reason? How could she do that to someone so innocent and perfect?

"School is the last place I want to be right now."
"Let's leave then," I said, not sure how to comfort the boy.

"You might get in trouble for ditching."
"You know I don't care about that," I stated, he chuckled and for just a second it looked like the old Liam was back, the one who smiled with his eyes until they squinted and all you saw in between was glistening brown.

"Okay," He said, we picked up our backpacks and went to his car. We saw a few teachers outside of school but they looked at us without interest. We both had the same thought...

We should do this more often.

Two hours later we were at my house, my parents were at work and the girls were at school. I knew they would be mad at me for ditching, but they would understand the reason why.

We were playing Mario Kart when Liam's character starting slowing down and running into the race track walls for seconds on end. I looked at Liam and saw he was staring at the window as rain came crashing down from the heavens onto glass windows.

I put my hand on his shoulder and he turned to me as started as if I screamed in his ear.

"I'm really sorry."
He shrugged, voice low and melancholy, "You didn't do anything."

"I know. But she's stupid for ending things. You're the best person I know."

"Thanks Zayn," He said softly.

Shit was that too much?

"I should go see my family. Thanks for everything Zayn," He said, giving me a hug. I wrapped my arms around him and pleaded silently that he would stay just a bit longer. But he didn't. Without turning back, he walked into the downpour.