Warrior

Chapter Thirty Five

Satey

When I finally did find Liam, I expected to be angry because I was angry with him. I wanted to kick and scream at him for making me worry, for making me think I had done something so horribly wrong that he had wanted to escape.

But when that hotel door slammed open and he was standing there with his hair going in different directions and his eyes with a crazy glint in them and his body drenched in melted snow, all of the resentment I had against him flew out of my mind as I leaped up and ran to him.

I wasn't the only one surprised when I threw my arms around him and buried my face in his neck, breathing in his familiar scent; the room had gotten eerily quiet and it took a moment for Liam to embrace me, his arms wrapping around my waist and hugging me tightly against him.

"Never do that to me again," I mumbled. I wanted to sound harsh and demanding, but instead my voice was weak with relief.

I felt his lips press to the top of my head over and over, and I was glad I wasn't the only one showing how vulnerable I became when it came to the person in my arms. Liam shivered against me, if it was from the cold I wasn't sure, but he gripped me tighter before placing kisses into the crook of my neck and collarbone.

"I'm sorry," he whispered into my ear, lips against it comfortingly.

Someone in the room behind us cleared their throat awkwardly and I rotated in Liam's arms (he wasn't about to let go of me, I figured out) to address them. Louis was standing by Harry now, his arms wrapped around the latter's waist as he observed our embrace fondly.

When Liam got sight of Zayn, he allowed me to slip out of his grasp to hug his old friend before finding me and wrapping his arms around me once more.

"How've you been?" Zayn asked, finally breaking the silence.

I could feel Liam's smile as he kissed the top of my head again. "Never better," he replied and Zayn smiled, rolling his eyes.

"I think we're gonna go," Liam announced, "it's pretty late."

I took his arm and looked at the watch on his wrist before I grimaced at how late I had arrived at their hotel room.

"Thank you, Harry," I said quietly, weaving an apology into my gratitude, "for everything."

"Yeah," Liam agreed, mumbling into my hair, "thanks for keeping her safe."

The curly-haired lad didn't say anything, just nodded at us before kissing Louis' cheek as he yawned.

"Call me if anything happens," was Liam's last request as we left, shutting the door much more softly than it had been opened.

*****

There we were again, laying in bed. Liam was curled around me like before, lips resting on my neck as he played with my fingers. Yet, even with how close we were, I felt more distant from him than ever.

"Liam," I whispered into the dark and his fingers froze during their fiddling with mine.

"Hmm?" he hummed his reply, lips tickling my neck.

"I think we should talk," I said gently.

Liam heaved a sigh, detaching from me and rolling over. "I don't want to," he protested softly.

I rotated to face him and he didn't meet my gaze, staring intently at the ceiling as if what he wanted to say was written up there.

"But I do."

He looked at me then, my weak request sparking something inside him. He turned on his side, reaching over to trace a thumb over my jawline. I watched his eyes as his gaze intently followed the path of his finger; up under my eyes, outlining my nose before resting on my lips and tugging the lower one open.

"You're so beautiful," he mumbled absentmindedly.

"Liam."

"I'm gonna count all your freckles one day," he decided, emphasizing it by resting his pointer finger on my nose.

"Liam," I said again, pushing his hand away, "I'm serious."

"I am too."

I stared at him in disbelief, hoping my silent frustration was evident on my face. He stared back, a certain sadness etched onto his features. It looked like he felt defeated, like he had given up on something and I realized I much preferred avoiding the discussion if he was going to look so wounded.

"I've tried to tell you what you mean to me," he whispered finally, his hand searching for mine until he found it and intertwined our fingers. "But I don't even understand it myself."

Somehow, his words weren't comforting.

"I don't understand love. I-," his voice broke, "I've never...," he trailed off, voice wavering as I tightened my grip on his hand.

"I care for you," he said, like he always said, "you mean so much to me. But I-," he choked off again and it was becoming just as painful for me to watch as it was for him to speak. "I don't know what it is I feel for you. Because love is... The love I've seen..."

His hand was shaking in my own and his vulnerability seemed to be killing us both. I pulled myself close to him, releasing his hand so I could wrap my arms around his waist and bury my face in his chest. His heart was racing, but, somehow, the sound made me smile.

"I would, will, protect you with my life," he said softly, fingers tracing my spine up and down. "I will do anything for you... And I hope that means something."

"It does," I promised, tightening my grip on him so I could burrow farther into his warm embrace. "It does."

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EARLY FLUFF BECAUSE I LUB YOU ALL. no really i lub you guys with all my heart. just like liam loves satey, he just won't admit it cos he's an idiot and stupid. UPDATE by NEXT WEEKEND I have a lot coming up so I figured I'd post this and not leave you hanging on a cliff ^_^ ILYSM (especially MeganAutumn and julz112998 bc their comments always make me smile xx)
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