Skeletons in the Closet (Zarry Fanfic)

Chapter 1

*Zayn’s POV*

I watched the door impatiently.

It’s already two in the afternoon, shouldn’t they be here?

“Zayn, mate, they’ll be back soon,” Niall eyed me. He opened his mouth to say more, but the boys finally walked in.

Liam and Louis came in first, Harry trailing behind slowly. He stood in the doorway and looked around hesitantly. I gave him a weak smile, before running up and embracing the taller boy. Harry looked at me, shocked, before relaxing and wrapping his arms around me.

He started to shake in my arms. I looked up just in time to see Harry’s face crumble. His eyes were puffy and swollen, circles of rich plum lining the bottoms. His face was pale, close to transparent, and much thinner than last month. His cheek bones showed more, giving him a gaunt, hollow appearance. The boy’s chocolate curls shadowed his face, tears beginning to fall relentlessly. I pulled him closer to me, rubbing circles into his back. The other boys joined us, all our arms building a barrier around Harry, as though the four of us could somehow shield him from the world. If only. I sighed quietly. We all were in tears now, rocking and hugging and letting out sobs we had all held in, just waiting for this moment.

Louis was whispering something to Harry, but I couldn’t make out what it was. We all were muttering sorry’s and I love you’s, but none of us paid much attention. Our minds were elsewhere, reaching for some sort of comfort. My own mind, however, was replaying the last time Harry was here.

The other boys and I had been relaxing in our flat when Harry’s mom had called. He had stepped out onto the balcony to talk, but hadn’t shut the door. He was whispering fervently into the phone, a pained expression on his face.

“But Mum, he has to be getting better,” he whined into the phone.

A reply from the other end. A gasp from Harry. More whispering.

What is going on? I thought to myself.

“What? No, Mum, that can’t be,” Harry choked through a sob. Watching him made my heart ache. I wanted to let him know I was there, but he couldn’t know I was eavesdropping.

More whispering, more sobs. After a few long moments, Harry fell to his knees, screaming. The other boys ran up as I made my way to Harry. I pulled him into my arms, squeezing him reassuringly. He looked at me quizzically, until he realized I had heard the whole conversation. He let his head fall to my chest, and I rocked him gently, quietly hushing him. After a few moments, he pulled away, wiping his tear stained cheeks.

“Hazza, what’s wrong?” Lou asked from behind us.

“We’re here for you, mate, whatever it is,” Liam added.

Harry had just stood up, his eyes somewhat wild, and walked away from us. After twenty or so minutes, he came down from his room, carrying several suitcases. He made his way to the door, loaded his car, and just left. No goodbye, no I’ll be back’s, no nothing. We had no clue where he was going. He just… Left.

The other boys stood there, dumbfounded. None of us had the sense to go after him. It was like nothing had happened. We just stared at the door. After ten or so minutes, Liam finally snapped out of it and called Simon. They talked on the phone for a few minutes, Liam pacing and nodding, as usual. Niall made his way to the kitchen, eating anything in sight. Louis sat on the couch, rocking back and forth.

I, however, had a completely different reaction. I started to giggle, which turned to chuckling, into a full blown laughing fit. The other guys’ heads snapped to me. Before I knew it, I was on the ground, rolling with laughter. I laughed until tears streamed down my face. I clutched my sides, gasping for breath. Soon, though, the laughter turned to sobs. I was worried, God, I was so worried. Harry doesn’t just storm out like that.

:”Zayn, love, let’s take you upstairs, yeah?” Louis had said. I could see he had been crying, too.

I nodded at the older boy, as he gently lead me to my bed, where I drifted off to a fretful sleep.

For almost two weeks after that incident, we didn’t hear from Harry. Anne called once to let us know that he’d be visiting home for a bit. She hadn’t sounded like herself. Her voice had lost its loving, cheery ring. Simon called, as well, saying that Harry just needed a bit of space. Obviously he had spoken to him.

We other boys did hardly anything. We didn’t eat or sleep for days on end, even Niall. All of us just sat around, hoping for some sort of communication from Harry. Louis definitely was the worst. Him being so close to Haz, it didn’t surprise us when he sat in Harry’s room for hours, or talked to himself about Haz. It became normal. Routine, even.

 Finally, three weeks to the day Harry had left, he sent me a single text. I laid the phone on the table, where we all gathered around it. We all wanted to see it, but we we’re cowards, afraid of what it might say. After not having spoken to him for weeks, this one text was like the Holy Grail. We wanted so badly to touch it, but we were so afraid to break it. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Louis reached over and grabbed my phone. He made a big show of pulling the message up, before finally reading it. His face fell as he tossed the phone onto the table. Liam took it next, reading and rereading the words for minutes. Then Niall snatched it from him. A confused look spread across his face. Finally, it was my turn to read it. When I reopened the message, I nearly choked. It had two words, but they sent a chill down my spine.

From: Hazzabear

He’s dead.