Coalesce

ELEVEN

Zayn does the rounds of checking in on the boys a few nights later when Louis falls to sleep early after what Zayn can only guess has been a long day of work at the café. He really hates his boyfriend having to work at that place with a boss who knows no boundaries, and lately it's been getting to him more and more, he can tell — Louis will come back from work exhausted, pick at a dinner and then drop into bed and be out for the count for the rest of the night.

So he doesn't wake the man, simply tugs the covers up over him in the same way he does for their boys, dims the lights and closes the door silently before padding out bare footed into the hallway towards Harry's room.

He smiles when he pokes his head around the door and sees the boy already in bed beneath the covers, lights still on. He picks up the toys left scattered across the carpet on his way over to the bed, quietly setting them down in the toy box in the corner before he moves to sit on the side of the boy's mattress. He tugs the duvet down so he can see his face slightly, letting out a quiet laugh when two green eyes blink up at him.

"Hey you. It's late. Didn't you want the lights turned out?" He asks, tucking the quilt beneath his chin and brushing his fingers over his forehead, curls moving aside.

Harry shrugs. "Was waitin' for you to do it," he says, then yawns, smacking his lips afterwards. "And I wanted to ask you a question," he adds, voice matter-of-fact.

Zayn smiles again, raising a brow at his nine year old. "Oh yeah? And what would that be?"

"Are you and Louis gonna get married?"

He splutters a second then, breath catching in his throat and forcing him to cough until he's able to breathe again. He blinks at the boy and gives a small, hopefully casual shrug. "Well, it's not really something we've,uh, we've talked about yet, Curly. That's a...pretty big thing."

Harry frowns. "S'not that big. It's like you're married already," he states.

That makes his heart flutter in his chest and a laugh burst from him. "Yeah — yeah, I guess so. But this is sorta a grown up thing, buddy, someday you'll get it."

That makes the kid pout. "You always say that. I'm not a baby," he whines.

"Oh, I know," Zayn assures with a nod, then his shoulders slump and he sighs. "I wish you were though. You're growing up way too quickly." He brushes his fingers through the boys curls again, eyes softening as he takes in the way that his cheeks are less rounded and his freckles faded.

Harry shrugs. "I'm not as big as Liam yet. Nearly as big as Ni though," he whispers, yawning again, eyes fluttering shut. "I think you should marry Louis. He's already my Dad anyway."

Zayn smiles, swallowing the lump in his throat as he nods. "He certainly is," he agrees softly, before letting out a breath and leaning down to press a kiss to the boys forehead. "Get some sleep, honey. I'll see you in the morning."

He stands from the bed and stops when he reaches the light switch, watching the boy roll over until he's comfy before he flicks the switch and the room grows dark, leaving the door open slightly as he steps out so that it isn't pitch black in there.

Liam's out of it when he gets to the sixteen year old's room, sprawled out on his bed with his duvet bunched up around his waist, one arm hanging off the bed and his head tipped back, snoring lightly. His other hand is on his chest, phone clutched loosely there.

He huffs a quiet laugh to himself, tiptoeing across the dark room and gently prying the device from his limp fingers. The boy mumbles something, eyes cracking open for a moment. Zayn smiles at him.