Infinity //1D AU ✓

Chapter 20

~Oh, baby, I was there for you,

All I ever wanted was the truth, yeah, yeah~

"Is Niall here?" Zayn screamed above the chaos.

"Yeah!" Harry yelled at him, pushing against the crowd in the hallway. "I drove him. He went to Starbucks. He's getting you your drink, do not worry!"

Harry finally reached Zayn, and Zayn eyed him distastefully. "I may not be the happiest with you at the moment..." He started. "But I still want you guys here. Where's the L's?"

Harry made a panicked face. "I haven't heard from them today."

"Find them!" Zayn said, then returned to his room to finish getting ready.

Harry walked down to the lobby to await Niall's return, and to call his boyfriend, who was hopefully on his way with Liam. "Where are you?" He yelled when Louis answered the phone.

"At the library." Louis said calmly. "I just can't be there for the ceremony, Harry. I can't do it."

"But you'll come for the food, later?" Harry said with a clipped tone.

"I-i don't know. Do you realize how hard it was for me to confess all of that last night? I didn't stop crying until two in the morning, and I look terrible. Tell Zayn I love him to death, but I just can't do it."

"Louis. You have to be here." Harry begged. Louis hung up the phone instead, and Harry tried to call Liam instead. That one went straight to voicemail, and Harry screamed at the ground.

"Hot chocolate?" Niall asked, handing him the cup.

Harry took the cup angrily, and then drank some. "Thanks, Niall. You're the bestest." Niall hugged Harry, knowing that something was bothering him, and then he took a sip of his iced coffee.

If only he knew that it would be his last one for a long long time.

---

I should not be here, Liam told himself, shuffling around awkwardly in Zayn's closet. He could hear him out there, singing to himself, getting ready. He sounded happy. This may be the worst idea I've ever had.

When he heard Zayn leave for a moment, he ducked out, leaving a letter on his desk, and then zoomed back into the closet to watch him read it when it came back. Late is better than never right?

He stood there, trying to control his breathing. But he feared that nothing would. Liam just wanted to be home - he didn't really have one but he wanted to be somewhere that felt like home.

The only place that he could think of was back at their headquarters, watching a movie.

When Zayn came back, Liam shrank into the closet even farther, and he seemed confused when he saw the letter. But he opened it anyways, and he read it. Word for word.

Dear Zayn,

I know that you hate me.

It's probably better that you do.

I was wrong to hurt you - to hit your head on that shelf, and whatever ways I did it, as well.

I shouldn't have kissed you.

I was confused, and you didn't deserve to be on the other side of that.

But I'm not confused now.

And I know that you don't care.

I love you, Zayn Malik.

But I won't wait for you.

Have a nice life with Luke, and know that I'm happy for you, whatever you do.

Sincerely, Liam.

Zayn threw the letter in the trash, and went off to his wedding. Liam knew that he shouldn't have stayed to watch, because now his heart was broken - because Zayn didn't even care enough to keep the letter.

Liam walked out of the closet, out of the room, down the hallway, into the elevator, out the lobby, and down the street to the library, where Louis was waiting for him. Louis was sitting in an armchair, looking at an atlas. "Planning your getaway?" Liam teased him, wiping away a single tear of his own.

"I'm planning all the places that I want to take my daughter to see." He smiled and said. "I want her to see the world."

Liam smiled back. "That sounds wonderful, Lou."

Louis looked up at the blank look in his eyes, and he simply stood up, and gave his friend a hug.