Lost

Chapter 73: On the Loose

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Zayn slipped his hands under her slim frame and gently picked her up. She was light, he realized, too light.

He headed towards the stairs to carry her to his room when a thought occurred and it hit him like a ton of bricks. He halted mid-step at the foot of the stairs.

She'd hate to wake up in his bed, he realized. Zayn bit his lip, turning to the sleeping ninja in his arms. Even if he only wanted her to rest properly, he knew something about her sleeping in his bed would cause her discomfort.

Maybe he should take her to Claire's room? Zayn considered. Quite surprisingly, he found the idea of her sleeping on Claire's bed when his was available quite annoying. Of course, he did not mean anything and he only wanted her to rest properly, right?

"Damn it!" Zayn sighed in exasperation, and turned back to the couch. He settled her down carefully, and raced upstairs to his room to grab a pillow.

Slipping an arm under her shoulders, Zayn lifted her to place the pillow under her head. The movement made her shift in her sleep. She made a grab for the pillow, balled up, and somehow, much to Zayn's misfortune, ended up trapping his arm in the process. Zayn stiffened, watching helplessly as she hugged his arm instead of the pillow.

Really? Zayn blinked, sink to his knees beside the couch, amused by her sleepy claim on his forelimb. He could feel her warm breath on his arm as she continued her slumber. Biting his lip, Zayn tried to free himself. As if to taunt him, Salma tightened her hold around his arm, preventing him from pulling it out.

Zayn closed his eyes, trying all he could to not register the quickening of his pulse.

"Don't tempt me, Bee." Zayn breathed out, blindly trying to wriggle her arm free. "I might just end up kidnapping you right now."

He opened his eyes with a sigh, only to find his proximity to her closer than he had anticipated. It almost felt natural as he grabbed her face with his hand that was still partially stuck and leaned over to kiss her forehead.

Until, his rational mind caught up with his impulse. With his lips just an inch from her forehead, Zayn clenched his jaw, wishing his subconscious would just go to sleep for a second. A voice in his head told him to back off, but a stronger force kept leaning him in.

I earned it, he argued with himself, glaring at fabric of her scarf. I'm in this dilemma is her fault, anyway.

Earned it? You're really gonna be this freaking, stinking low?

Zayn clenched his teeth harder. He let out a frustrated breath as he let go of the sleepy-head and pulled his hand back.

"I'm so kidnapping you, you pesky, little pest!"

Jumping to his feet, Zayn turned his back on her. He clenched and unclenched his fists, feeling extremely agitated both at his inability to stop himself, and at the fact that she was so within reach and yet so unapproachable.

"I'm going to hell." Zayn let out a resigned sigh as he picked up the first aid box and the tray with the bloodied cotton swabs.

Three hours earlier, after realizing Salma was hurt, Zayn had wanted to take her to see a doctor. He called Alex to ask which hospital was the safest for her under the given circumstance, but she had advised him against taking her out for medical attention.

"I still need to sort out with the police, Zayn," Alex had replied sounding tired, "The biker's life is hanging by a thread. He's critical. It's a serious issue. You could be charged with a –"