Kick, Push

Competition Day: +10

"Like this?"

"No, hold it higher. Your fingers are too close to the middle."

"I just had them higher and you said it was too high."

"Well yeah, you can't put them on the ends. You'd be better off stabbing the roll, which is what got us here in the first place."

Now that Zayn was familiar with Liam's Tokyo bucket list, he decides not to waste any time in helping him start to check off items, starting with conveyor belt sushi.

He knows that he wasn't required to, but Zayn got up early that morning to head over to the venue and watch the women's park competition. Like the men's, he knows a lot of the competitors from hanging around Louis, since it's rare that park and street skaters are in the same contest space at the same time. The silver medalist met him for the Finals after having done several interviews for various outlets early in the morning, with Harry at his side.

Zayn wanted to make some sarcastic comment on how they're practically conjoined at the hip at that point, but he kept the thought to himself until he and Louis were alone.

He got quite a lot of romantic attention being surrounded by so many women involved in the same sport, many he's eyed himself over the years, but Zayn only flirted generously with whoever sauntered up to him. In the back of his mind he knew he was allowed to do whatever he wanted, but there was something that nagged at him when he saw Liam in the corner of his eye as a particularly fit Brazilian offered for Zayn to join her for lunch. He didn't owe Liam anything, the man said it himself that as long as they were working together, nothing could go on between the two of them, but Zayn still declined the offer, telling the girl that he was going to take the afternoon to practice on the street side of the venue.

It wasn't a complete lie, he did need to train, but they both knew he could have spared an hour or two to eat and then some. She slipped him her number for another day, and as she walked away, Zayn stared after her thinking that it couldn't hurt to store the number just in case.

"Let me watch you one more time," Liam pleads, eyes zoned in on the black sticks that are laying in Zayn's right palm.

Niall had picked up Zayn's refusals for the afternoon, and apparently into the evening, so it was just the four of them for dinner - Liam to Zayn's left, Louis to his right, and Harry to the right of him. Louis had aptly called the night a double date while they were getting ready, but Zayn was quick to deny the label, not knowing what Liam would think if he had heard it himself.

"Fingers at the top so you have more control," Zayn instructs, holding out his hand for Liam to take note of. "Use your middle finger to push it back and forth like a claw."

"Like a crab claw," Liam nods once, mirroring the movements with thin air. "Alright."

It's hard for Zayn not to be charmed by the twenty six year old's mechanics comparison, but whatever it takes for him to memorize the movements.

He watches as Liam tries to pick up the tuna roll on the small plate in front of him, full of focus. "Not too tight," Zayn cautions, laughing straight after when Liam panics and rushes to shove the roll into his mouth before it falls. "You're getting there."

"So Zayn..."

The boy turns his head to look away from where Liam's ridding himself of any disappointment to focus on the taste of the food, and towards where Harry's sitting.

"Louis says you've known him since you were eight and he was nine," the boy says, leaning forward so he can look at Zayn clearly.

Staring at Louis for a split second, Zayn tries to figure out where this was going. "Uh huh..."