Perhaps, Maybe, I Dunno (boyxboy)

Chapter 5

When Harry finishes his breakfast, he jumps up from the table.

“Alright, Zayn. Let’s go,” he says. Zayn looks up from his barely eaten toast and stares at Harry, and then back at his food. Harry sighs and slouches back into his chair.

“I’ll be patient,” he says, giving his nan a pointed look. She raises her hands in surrender.

“I didn’t even say anything, Harry dear,” she says, chuckling to herself.

“Yeah, but you were gonna,” Harry mumbles to himself, fixing his eyes on the tablecloth. He thinks of his parents for the first time since he’s arrived at his grandmother’s house, and it makes him feel inexplicably tired. Harry hasn’t seen them in months, and he that makes him sadder than he thought it would. They’d sent him away to boarding school when he was eleven, even after he’d pleaded with them not to. He’d wanted to stay with his sister, he’d told them, but they hadn’t even listened to him. Harry knew that they hadn’t sent him to Eton College simply to get him a better education. Everytime they’d have a conversation with one of their many friends, at one of their many parties, they would simply have to introduce them to their bright boy, Harry, who, by the way, would be attending Eton College in the coming fall. The friends would look shocked in an effort to mask their jealousy, and Harry would stand in the middle of all of the people, smiling his wide smile. As time went on, Harry’s smile shrunk, and his parents’ itch to get rid of him grew. Suddenly, his bags were packed, and he was in the back of a taxi while Gemma and his parents waved to him from the door. We decided to take the early move option, sweetheart, his mother had said, So you can adjust faster, of course. But Harry was every bit the bright boy they displayed him to be, and he had known right away that his value had finally expired. He was no longer the pet that his parents could proudly show off to their friends. He had turned into sullen pre-teen, and sullen didn’t sell. As the cab pulled out of his winding driveway, Harry fixed his eyes on his pig-tailed little sister, clutching her father’s leg and waving religiously. Harry smiled, even though he knew that he wouldn’t see her like that for a long time.

“Harry,” a voice says softly, and a hand nudges his shoulder. Harry turns abruptly, hitting his head on the chair’s backing in the process.

“I’m so sorry,” Zayn says, sitting down and holding the back of Harry’s head.

“S’al…” Harry starts to say that it’s all right, but he is interrupted by Zayn’s hand rubbing against his head. Harry has to work to fight the urge to lean into Zayn’s hand and hum contentedly, like a cat.

‘Don’t be a cat, Harry,’ he tells himself, but the thought of curling up into Zayn like a cat doesn’t sound too bad to him.

“Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Oh, shit.” Harry hears Zayn repeating, over and over again. Harry smiles to himself, but quickly conceals it when Zayn tips his chin up to check his face.

“S’alright, Zayn,” he says, finishing his earlier thought. Zayn sighs with audible relief, and he stands back up.

“I was just saying that we could go now, you know, around the neighbourhood.” Harry smiles reassuringly and nods at Zayn, standing up as well. Zayn leads the way out the door and to his car, an old Ford pick-up truck with rust around its doors. Once Harry gets outside, Zayn immediately begins to apologize.

“My car isn’t that great, I’m sorry. I’ve been trying and trying to…” Harry stops him.

“I love it,” he says, telling the truth, “I could help you fix it up, you know. Do a bit of a paint job, maybe.” Zayns eyes light up, and he nods enthusiastically.

“Yeah,” he says, “I’d like that.” Harry nods and climbs into the passenger seat, and Zayn follows suit. Zayn puts the key into the ignition and turns it, and the car lets out a sputter.

“Sometimes it takes a bit for it to get started,” Zayn explains, flustered. Harry leans back into the chair and puts his hands behind his head.

“I’ve got time.” A quick smile flashes across Zayn’s face and he continues to try the key. After about five or six goes, the car is started and ready to go. Zayn lets out a small breath of relief and pulls out of the driveway.

“Is that why you brought your bike last time?” Harry asks, sitting up and buckling his seatbelt.

“Sorry?”

“Did you bring your bike last time because your car wouldn’t work?” Harry repeats.

“Oh, no. My sister needed it to get to some friend or another’s house,” Zayn replies, keeping his eyes fixed on the road. Harry stares at the way that his brow scrunches in concentration, as though he is intent on getting it right, even if it is just driving. It’s foreign to Harry because he can never quite concentrate on anything. Being distracted is exhausting at times, and Harry wonders what it’d be like to be that focused.

“Did I skip a red light or something?” Zayn asks, turning around and looking at Harry with a worried face. Harry is startled and he almost jumps out of his seat.

“Oh, no. It’s just … You have a sister?” he says, switching the subject around. Zayn runs a hand through his hair and turns back toward the road.

“Yes and no,” he responds, “Try three.” Harry whistles low and shakes his head.

“That’s gotta be rough,” he tells Zayn. Zayn shrugs.

“I guess. We love each other, though.” This makes Harry feel sad and a bit angry at Zayn. Lucky you, he thinks. Harry didn’t even know his sister anymore. The last time they’d spoken, she’d been cold and hostile to him. He knew that she was judging him for not going to Uni, especially after graduating from Eton. Just like his parents did.

All of a sudden, the car screeches to a halt.

“Why’d we stop?” Harry asks, glancing around the area. “Where are we going?”

“Somewhere fun,” Zayn says cryptically. He turns around to smile at Harry before turning off the engine and hopping out of the car. Harry is left sitting in the car alone and bewildered. What did Zayn mean? And since when was he the teasing one? Harry shrugs to no one and hops out of the car to follow Zayn.
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Where's Zayn taking Harry...?

Also huge thanks to everyone who's taking the time to read & vote & leave really kind comments for me. It's a great motivation to me & I appreciate it so so much.