bitter || zarry stylik

seventy-four

Zayn looks completely blank. Harry fights the urge to nudge him as one of Waliyha's friends begins talking about a fond memory of the two of them together. "Zayn," he mouths.

Zayn nods, and continues to stare blankly at a flickering candle on Wali's alter. "I'm Emma. Wali was my best friend in the whole world. Once, we went to my gran's house in Cornwall and she practically lived in the lake near the house. Her hair was wet the entire time. We actually brought the meals down to the water just for her."

Everyone laughs a bit, and Emma smiles. "She was such a good friend. And a good sister, and a good daughter. You could just tell. She was -is- a lovely person."

Zayn looks positively ghostly. His mouth is turned down into what seems to be a permanent grimace and his eyes are squinted with focus on that candle. His skin is a pale, colourless off-white, and his brown eyes are looking more and more grey. Harry rubs his thumb back and forth on Zayn's knee, and blinks back tears. His baby, his favourite person in the world, his muse, the reason he wakes up, is in pain.

Zayn places his hand on top of Harry's, and a single tear falls down his cheek. He wipes it away quickly, and squeezes Harry's hand firmly. "I'll miss you, Wali. You left too soon. Thank you."

Emma goes back to her seat and holds her Mum's hand. Trisha walks up to the podium, and clears her throat to keep herself from crying. "Thank you, Emma, for reminding us how sweet my Waliyha was. And thank you, everyone, for coming. It means the world to us that you took the time out of your busy schedules to remember my baby girl."

Zayn smiles a bit, and makes eye contact with Trisha. He nods encouragingly, and she takes a deep breath. "When Wali was about three, her favourite dress was a nice purple, and she wore the hell out of that thing. Well, I had left the kids with our babysitter at the time, Nina, to go shopping. When I got back, Waliyha was crying and screaming because she'd spilled chocolate milk on her dress. She was convinced the stain wouldn't come out in the wash, and surprisingly enough, it wasn't me who calmed her down and cleaned her up. It was my Zayn. He wiped her tears, changed her into dry clothes, and took her to the laundromat down the street. Needless to say, she got many more uses out of that purple dress."

Zayn blushes, and stops squeezing Harry's hand so hard. Harry grins at Zayn, and pecks his cheek. "Love you," he murmurs.

Everyone laughs a bit, and Harry can almost feel the mood lighten. Trisha breathes out a little, and smiles. "Waliyha and her siblings have always been very close. Her and Zayn were best friends growing up. Although their friendship was hard for some kids to grasp, it was amazing to watch. They helped each other grow, and both were there for each other when times got tough. It was truly remarkable. I guess, I'm trying to say that I'll miss watching Wali grow. Now I don't want any crying. Wali would have wanted us to remember her smiling and laughing and enjoying life, and she'd want you to do the same. Thank you all for coming."

Zayn wipes away another tear, and stands up. Harry gets up and puts his hand on the small of Zayn's back to comfort him. "You're doing great, love. You've been so strong today, Zayn."

Zayn smiles slightly, and they hang back a bit as people filter out of the hall. Trisha, Safaa, and Doniya approach them, all with somber expressions. "We're going to get dinner. Would you two like to join?"

Harry looks to Zayn, who nods after a second. He wraps his arms around Trisha, and buries his face in her black silk blouse. After a minute of her rubbing his back and whispering something in his ear, he pulls away and straightens up. "Harry and I will take Saf, if that's alright."

Saf smiles and winks at Harry, who grins back at her. Trisha nods. "Of course. Where would you guys like to go?"

Safaa thinks for a second, before raising her eyebrows. "Can we get Chinese? From that place I like, mummy?"

Trisha looks round at everyone, before nodding. "Sure, love. We'll meet there."