[12] - Comfortable

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by fxckthat

by fxckthat

“It’s bloody hot.” Liam pants, readjusting his position in the patio chair so the shade given by the roof of his house covers him. He sits at a ninety-degree angle from Zayn, as he faces the lake and Zayn faces the backyard of their next-door neighbors, albeit, the two homes aren’t that close to one another, “I think I know why you’re so skinny.” Liam teases, raising his glass of lemonade to Zayn with a smirk.

“Why’s that?” Zayn speaks, squinting as the sun hits his eyes directly.

“Because all you ever wear are skinny jeans,” Liam laughs lightly to himself, “Even in the heat like this. You must sweat off all the fat on your bones!” Liam can’t help but to laugh at his own joke. Zayn, himself, lets an airy laugh out, adding his own special smirk to the end of it. Zayn looks away from Liam and down to the lake and it’s beauty. I wish I could swim in it. Zayn can’t help but to feel silly, almost ashamed, that he can’t swim like Liam. Or like any of his friends for that matter. He’d learn. He’d learn for Liam. For all of them, and then he’d be able to hang out with them properly and do all the things they do. Maybe they’d accept him then?

“I have a question.” Liam speaks, breaking their comfortable silence. Zayn turns back over to Liam, waiting for what he assumes to be all hell to break loose. How’d you lose your parents? How many times have you been moved around? How have you coped for so long? Zayn plays out all the questions Liam could ask him in his head, preparing himself for the worst, “Now that you’re talking to me, tell me, what do you honestly think of my sandwiches?”

Zayn gives Liam a blank stare; almost certain he misheard his question. Liam is looking at Zayn with his straw in his mouth and this look on his face that dripped with self-confidence. Liam knew his sandwiches were kick ass; he didn’t need Zayn’s approval.

“They’re good. Really good.” Zayn nods, letting out another genuine laugh. Zayn’s surprised by how happy and open he is when he’s around Liam. However, it also terrifies him. How can someone, someone he just met, be so trusting? Zayn doesn’t understand why Liam is so accepting of him, even after he pushed him into the lake just last night.

Zayn’s head drifts back over to the lake, but this time he’s not thinking about it’s beauty, but of him pushing Liam into it and then walking away, simply not caring of his actions. He didn’t care at the time, but now, now Zayn’s nothing but sorry for what he did. But should I trust him? Is he really not like the others? On the inside, Zayn feels as if he’s at war with himself, but on the outside, he’s smiling. He feels really twofaced.

“I’m…” Zayn quietly says, not bothering to look at Liam. In fact, he doesn’t want to look at Liam because he knows that if he looks into Liam’s brown eyes that he has grown to love so much, every thought and feeling he has ever had would just spill out of him. And Zayn didn’t want that. He didn’t want that at all, but he comes pretty close when he hears Liam hum, waiting to hear what Zayn has to say, “I’m just so sorry.”

“For what?” Zayn hears Liam lean forward, maybe placing his elbows onto his knees. Zayn isn’t sure though because he isn’t looking at Liam. He can’t. He just can’t. “You haven’t done anything.” Liam lies, and Zayn knows it. He knows Liam’s lying, and he knows that Liam knows himself that he had just lied to Zayn, but it still puts a smile on Zayn’s face.

“For everything. I’m a monster. Don’t deny it.” Zayn twirls his straw with his fingers, not sure as to how he feels. He’s comfortable with what he’s saying, but at the same time, he’s unsure of everything. “It’s just so, for lack of a better word, sucky, to not be able to trust anyone, including myself.”

“Oh.” Liam bites his tongue, not daring to say I understand or I feel you because he doesn’t want Zayn to explode again. Maybe Liam could understand though, if Zayn let him. Liam would listen, and then he’d understand. Second hand, of course.

“Want to know something funny?” Zayn chuckles, now confidently looking over to Liam, who did in fact have his elbows on his knees, “I’m so used to not talking that I almost forgot what my voice sounded like. It’s strange for me, this talking thing.” Zayn watches as Liam smiles at him, and it was a lovely smile. Everything about Liam was lovely, actually. Why was that? Why is Liam so lovely? Zayn suddenly confuses himself, but simply shakes the thoughts out of his head and slowly stands.

“Where you going?” Liam asks, standing himself.

“It’s hot. I’m going to put on a pair of shorts.” Zayn nods.

“Wow. I’m shocked.” Liam gasps. He creeps towards Zayn and places the back of his hand onto his forehead.

“What are you doing?” Zayn stands still with his arms at his sides.

“Testing for a fever. Are you sick?” Liam laughs and falls back into his chair, smiling as Zayn grins and walks back into the house. Zayn feels the sweat drip down his back and also down his forehead. The cool air in the house is such a nice contrast to the heat outside where Liam is. Zayn runs up the stairs and as he passes Liam’s door, he freezes. He leans on Liam’s door and walks in, searching for a change of clothes from Liam’s wardrobe instead of his own. After a few minutes of searching, Zayn grabs a pair of beat up denim shorts and a loose fitting tank top.

He takes it to the washroom and strips down, even taking off his briefs. Once again, the cool air feels good on his naked body. Thinking back to the heat and how uncomfortable it is, Zayn puts on Liam’s denim shorts without putting his briefs back on, and then throws on Liam’s tank top. Before heading back outside, Zayn brings his dirty clothes downstairs for later washing, and helps himself to more lemonade.

Stepping outside, he’s hit with the heat and pants almost immediately. Liam is now leaning on the porch railing, looking out to the lake. Zayn walks up to his side and leans with him. His arm brushes against Liam’s and for some reason Zayn feels his insides heat up, but not exactly sure why. Does Liam feel this? Zayn bites his lip as he stares out to the horizon, but he’s distracted when he feels Liam tug on the tank top he’s wearing.

“These are my clothes.” Liam pulls on the bottom seam of the tank top and Zayn moves to directly face Liam.

“I know.” Zayn smiles, watching Liam inspect his clothes on Zayn, or maybe he’s inspecting Zayn in his clothes. Zayn isn’t sure of which, and of which one he wishes Liam is doing.

“They’re kind of big?” Liam forms this as a question, but it’s a rhetorical one. Zayn knows this because Liam answers himself, “But you look comfortable.” Liam lets go on his own tank top and it falls back onto Zayn’s perfectly tanned skin. Zayn feels himself blushing and wants to hide, but he can’t bring himself to run away from this perfect moment. Zayn looks up to Liam and opens his mouth to speak.

“I am comfortable, Liam.”

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Written by fxckthat

So, what do you think? Zayn's starting to really open up to Liam, yeah? Zayn is so awkwardly cute, don't you think? ^_^

Ali and I love this story, and the feedback from this story is amazing! Thank you so so much!!

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