Why Don't We // Sickfics

Zach // Claustrophobia

Claustrophobia. The fear of confined spaces. Zach has been claustrophobic for as long as he can remember. He never told the boys about his phobia as he knew the boys would baby him and he didn't like being the reminded he was the youngest of the group. He simply kept it to himself as he figured he could handle it on his own.

The first time he realised he was claustrophobic was when he was around 7. He and his friends were chasing each other around the house during a game of hide and seek and Zach decided to hide in his bathroom. He waited for ages to be found but no one ever searched for him. He attempted to open the door to try and find his friends but it wouldn't open. His mind went into panic mode and he began to freak out. He tried to scream for help but every time he opened his mouth only quiet muffled sobs could be heard. After his friends eventually figured out he was stuck, they got his dad to try and get him out and after what felt like hours, he was free. Ever since that day Zach had been terrified of small spaces. He always felt as though the wall were closing in on him and he hated the thought of not being able to escape.

As part of his job he became used to the idea of having to go in multiple elevators to go up to radio stations and interviews. Although, he never liked the idea. The 45 seconds he was in there always felt like the longest minute of his life, but as long as the doors opened seconds after, he would be fine.

It wasn't until one day when the boys had a radio interview on the 20th floor of a building when Zach began to panic. The group had just got out of the cars and headed to the reception to greet everybody. Zach had a nervous feeling, almost like butterflies in his stomach and he felt as though something bad was going to happen; but, he brushed it off as a side effect of jetlag and constant touring. They headed towards the small elevator and crammed in at once. There wasn't too many people there. Only the boys, their manager and Eben, but it was enough of them to feel cramped in the small, sweaty space.

All was going well until the elevator came to a sudden halt. It stopped moving and the boys shared confused glances at each other. They looked over at the little light by the celing and realised they were only on the 11th floor. The doors refused to open and Tyler attempted to press the button for assistance. Only seconds later the lights went out and the boys were left in complete darkness.

Zach's mind began to fill with unwanted thoughts and worries about what was hap0pening. Without realising, he slipped to the floor in panic, desperate to get out of the cramped space. The others were unable to see their youngest band mate as the lights were out and they were unaware of the boys whereabouts until they heard quiet sobs coming from the floor.

"Zach, what's up buddy?" Daniel said, being the first one to notice his overwhelmed bandmate sat on the floor. He bent down as put one arm around the boy, giving him a soft squeeze of reassurance. Quickly, the other boys caught on to what was happening.

"Deep breaths, that's it. Nice and slow. You're doing great." Jonah said calmly as he went into protective dad mode, in an attempt to help out his bandmate.

Before long, all the boys, minus Tyler who was still trying to get a hold of help, were sat on the floor surrounding the panic-stricken boy.

"Guys, there is too many people. Give him space to breathe." Corbyn said to the others. They all took a few steps back apart from Jack and Jonah who continued to try and get the boy to slow down his breathing. After a couple of minutes, help was on its way. The elevator doors began to open slowly ad the boys slowly helped Zach onto two legs and supported him walking out into the open. He quickly took in the fresh air and the boys helped him sit down on the carpet, close to an open window to relax his breathing. Jack and Eben went to find him some water while Tyler, Corbyn and Jack went to talk to the radio station about cancelling the interview. Jonah and Daniel stayed by Zach's side. Jonah held Zach's hand up to his heart in order to help him take deep breaths. Meanwhile, Daniel ran his fingers through the boy's soft, brown hair. Jack and Eben returned shortly after with some water and slowly, the boys helped him take small sips.

After they sorted out the interview, the boys thought it best to head back to the hotel and let Zach rest as they knew he wouldn't be able to the interview in his distressed state. The interview was re-scheduled to three days later.

In the car ride back to the hotel, Tyler drove while Eben sat in the front seat. Jack and Daniel sat in the middle row and Jonah and Corbyn sat in the back while Zach laid across them both, his head resting in the eldest's lap. After the short car journey, the boys took Zach back up to his room and tucked him into his bed after helping him change into comfy clothes. He sat up straight and the other four boys decided it was the right time to ask him what had happened earlier on.

"So what happened bubs?" Jonah asked the youngest.

"I don't really know. Just another anxiety attack I think. I guess it just freaked me out. I'm really sorry." He responded quietly, still quite shaken up from the previous events earlier on in the day.

"It's ok Z. Don't worry about it. It's not your fault. You just scared us all a little bit, that's it. Please know you can tell us anything bubs. We are all here for you and you don't have to hide anything from us. You know just how much we love you and we hate to see you like that." Daniel said as he gave the youngest a small smile.

Zach simply nodded his head and proceeded to fall asleep. He was so sleepy from the tiring day and decided it to be best if he fell asleep. The other four boys spent the evening and the next few days looking after Zach. They continued to look out for him and although Zach didn't like it when his bandmates babied, he thought he'd let it slip. Just this once. He had so much love for these boys and he couldn't even imagine the amount of love these boys had for him.

A/N WORD COUNT: 1149

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