Vulnerable (Zayn Malik AU)

Chapter 33

"Dinner's ready!" Zayn's mom called from the hall.

"Do you want to just stay in here? You don't have to go." Zayn was sitting at the end of his bed while I was curled up at the top. My silence was definitely killing him, but I didn't have the energy to speak. "I'll tell her you aren't up for it." He walked to the door.

"No! She worked so hard on the food." I sat up, trying to convince myself I was ok.

"Babe, she'll understand."

"Zayn. Let's go." I walked up to him, and allowed him to link our arms together before we walked out to the dining room.

The smell of the house was even more substantial as we entered the hall. Zayn's mother had obviously worked hard to prepare the large meal, and duplicate the same feel that my mom used to. Once we entered the dining room, it was apparent that the word 'feast' would better suit what was awaiting our arrival.

"Wow, Trish. This looks incredible."

"She's right, mum. Everthing smells great." Zayn loosened our arms and slid his hand into mine while he leaned to hug his mom with his only free arm. It was a vast contrast from the way he usually acted toward his mother...it was nice to see him treating her so sweetly.

"Go ahead and have a seat, you two." We followed instructions and sat down at the table full of food. I let go of Zayn's hand to arrange my plate and utinsils, and his left hand immediately found my knee - like he couldn't go a moment without contact. "I wasn't sure what meat you like, Daisy. So I made a turkey, a ham, and a chicken...just to be safe."

"That's so unnecesarry!" I laughed, half-heartedly. "I would've eaten anything you were nice enough to cook for me."

"Well...now you have options. I also made three kinds of potatoes, and I got wheat rolls and white rolls... basically there's at least two of everything. You don't have to eat everything, though."

"Really, Trish. You didn't have to do all of this." I could feel tears welling up at the gesture. All my life I'd never known anyone that was so thoughtful, and in that room I was accompanied by a woman who was willing to spend probably her whole paycheck just on one meal; and next to me was her son, the boy who spent weeks planning a trip to a city I'd never even thought of visiting to just so we could get away.

"Everyone deserves a nice meal on Thanksgiving, dear." Zayn closed his eyes and nodded, showing they had some unspoken agreement. "Go ahead and eat up."

And we did just that. Zayn seemed to stay away from certain foods, but I tried every single thing that was on that table, until I was stuffed beyond repair. Only I was full too early - because there was pie. Four different types of pie, actually. She'd bought pumpkin, chocolate, apple, and some type of cobbler. Peach, I believe. I ended up just eating a sliver of pumpkin pie. I wasn't able to try them all due to my impending stomach eruption.

"The food was great, mum." Zayn said, throwing his napkin onto his plate. "I'm actually really tired, though."

"It's the turkey. It'll do that to ya." Trish laughed. "Where would you like to sleep, Daisy? Do you need me to set you up a bed somewhere?" I looked to Zayn nervously. Is his mom not aware of all the times we've slept in the same bed?

"Mum. She'll sleep in my bed. Come on, Dais." I hesitated to see how his mother would respond, making sure he wasn't back to being rude to her.

"Alrighty. If you need anything, like extra blankets, you know where they are." Zayn nodded and stood up, pulling me with him by hand. "Goodnight, love." She said before he leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Night, Daisy." She smiled and stood to hug me. It was almost awkward, but she was so nice that I realized it was me that was making the moment weird.