International Love. ✈ z.h.

thirteen ~ ❝first dates.❞ ✈

Niall

I'd reactivated my all of my social media after I'd healed from the accident, and in this present moment I'd never regretted something so fast. I was sent DM after DM, mentioned on many different timelines, the negative outweighing the positive. I don't know why I decided to look tonight, of all nights in my life to read the negative things people had to say about Zayn and I; this was our first date.

I should be happy, excited, and I was. I really was. But it was hard to maintain such an attitude when so many people were against it. Some were accusing me of stealing Zayn away from Perrie, other's calling Zayn trash for dumping his girlfriend for me. Some had even attacked Louis and Harry; as if they were even part of our relationship. We hadn't even announced anything or made anything official; I just couldn't comprehend where all of these haters crawled out from.

The sound of the doorbell brought me out of my trance, causing me to quickly close the app and get up to answer the front door. I grinned when I saw Zayn standing there, his hair nicely done while he wore a simple black shirt with black skinny jeans. He furrowed his brows when he saw my phone lighting up, and I couldn't help but instinctively hide it when he reached for it.

"What's the matter? Is everything okay?" I didn't want him to know that I'd been reading hateful tweets about us, but at the same time I didn't want to keep it a secret. How were we supposed to build a good foundation for our relationship if I started off by lying to him? So I handed him my cell phone, watching as he frowned at the mean things that were directed towards us.

"If they want to be that way, then let's give them something to talk about." I raised an eyebrow. Watching as he put on the camera and faced it towards us, kissing my cheek while I started to grin uncontrollably. He snapped the photo and sent it to himself, putting it on his twitter instead of mine and tagging me in the photo.

Something you guys can talk about x

He turned off his phone and did the same for me, shoving it into my back pocket as he smiled.

"There, now we can enjoy our night. Just you and me." I knew there was a reason why I liked him so much, and this was a perfect example. He took my hand in his as we walked towards the elevator and rode all the way down, about to exit the lobby until we saw all of the vans and cameras ready to take out photo. I swallowed, nervous until he squeezed my hand in reassurance.

"It's okay; no matter what happens I'll protect you." I nodded as I kissed his cheek back, smiling at the small blush that graced his face as he took a deep breath before leading me towards the doors and opening them wide. Immediately we were faced with flashing lights, Zayn whispering for me to keep my head down as he led me towards his car.

"Niall, did you turn Zayn gay?"

"How do you feel about ruining his and Perrie's relationship?" I ignored each question, thanking Zayn when he opened the car door for me and helped me inside. He hurriedly made his way over and climbed in, starting it up and slowly driving out of the crowd and onto the streets of L.A.

"Yikes," Was all I could manage to say, never having been this popular. I guess that's the price to pay when you date somebody as famous as Zayn. "So where are we going?" He shrugged, a small smirk on his face as I groaned when I realized what he meant.

"I don't know."

"Nah you do know, you just don't want to tell me." I pouted, crossing my arms as I stared out the window.

"You're so cute when you pout," I blushed at his words, biting my lip to keep my smile under control. "And when you blush."

"Stop!" I couldn't help how red my face got, and he only laughed at my face as he reached over and grabbed my hand and placed a small kiss on my fingertips. The drive didn't last very long; to me at least. I stared at the stars as he drove towards the rural part of Los Angeles, soon coming to a large field. He pulled over, making me furrow my brows as I looked over towards him.

"This is our last stop?" He simply nodded, getting out of the car and stopping to look at me.

"Don't get out of the car until I say so! And close your eyes." I felt giddy as I did as I was told, hearing him rummage around the trunk of his car as I sat patiently. What was all the way out here that he'd set up? Was there like, an abandoned farm or something? Or maybe a secluded night club that only celebrities went to? God, I had to pull myself together; of course nothing like that existed all the way out here.

Just as I was getting a little antsy I finally heard him open the door, tapping on my hands as I slowly opened my eyes to look into his.

"You can look now." And I'm so happy that it wasn't some abandoned farm, nor a secluded night club. Because right in front of me was a blanket with a basket filled to the brim with food and candles surrounding the area, even more blankets folded in the corner in case things got a little too chilly. I was in absolute awe; there weren't any streetlights nearby, but that's what made the sky light up even more. The amount of stars and how bright the moon shone was what made this entire night the most perfect date I had ever been on.

I looked over to Zayn, noticing that he was wringing his hands together with a sheepish look as he watched my reaction to everything that he'd set up. I couldn't stop the affection that I felt flooding through my brain, wanting to cry at how much effort he'd put into it as he cleared his throat.

"Do you like it?" I gave him his answer by throwing my arms around him, almost jumping into his lap as I pressed my lips to his in a rushed kiss. I pulled back, happy to see that he'd felt relieved as I leaned my forehead against his.

"I love it." For the next few hours we drank cheap wine and ate burgers; a strange combination, Zayn thought (since he wanted to make the date somewhat normal and not too extravagant) but I was absolutely in love with it. I'd always thought that I was just a simple soul, that nothing about me was absolutely mesmerizing or different to the world. But tonight Zayn made me feel the exact opposite, and that's when I knew deep in my heart that he was just as different as I was.

+

I don't remember who fell asleep first, but I was the first to wake up, the vibrant rays of the sun shining over us like a warm blanket as I went to stretch. But my arms were restricted by another's, his soft breaths hitting against my neck as I smiled at the memories of last night. I would stay in this moment for forever if I could, but I had work and he was my ride. So reluctantly I woke him, smiling as he stirred and gave me a tired smile.

"Good morning, beautiful." I blushed at his words, nuzzling his nose with mine before I looked back up towards the blue sky. We lie there for another hour until I'd realized that I was cutting it close with time, and he stood while I helped him put everything away. The entire car ride back to my apartment we held hands, a small smile on my face while he ran his thumb over my palm.

Last night couldn't have been more perfect, and I hope he knew that as he pulled up to my complex and walked me up to my apartment. We stood there for the next five minutes, not sure what to do as I unlocked my door and turned to say goodbye. But before I could say a word he slowly leaned in, pressing his lips to mine as I opened my eyes wide in shock.

It's not that I haven't kissed him before, but this one was a lot more...meaningful. His hands were pressed against my face while mine rested on his hands, both of our eyes closed as we put everything we felt into that one kiss. He was the first to pull away, slowly lowering his hands as he smiled.

"I'll see you later, Niall." All I could do was nod as he walked away, and when he was gone I entered the apartment door and slowly shut it. And as I rushed around my apartment to get ready for work I couldn't help but touch my lips as I did every action, the feeling of Zayn's lips still lingering against mine.

a.n.

i love ziall so much save m e

m xx