Silence (Ziall Horlik) AU

Chapter 9

Zayn's POV

After watching the cab drive off with that boy in it the next morning, I may have done a stupid happy dance that he was gone. I'm not a jealous person, but I guess knowing I messed up and there's someone that could take my Niall from me; it kind turned me into one.

I jumped off my window seat before running down the stairs and out of my house. Maura went inside when she saw me walking over towards their house. Niall saw me too and tired to follow her, but the door shut and she must have locked it on him so he couldn't go anywhere. I would have laughed, but at the moment I was afraid this wouldn't be enough to get even a friendship back with Niall. It's been over a week of us ignoring each other, I'm not sure how he feels about me even though I know how I feel about him.

Niall slowly turned around to face me after he gave up on trying to unlock the door. I went and sat on the porch step, then pat the spot next to me. He came over to me and looked in my eyes for the first time since this stupid, whatever this is. I wouldn't say it's a fight, but I wouldn't say it's us getting along too well either. I saw in his blue eyes that he was scared, and I didn't like to see that. I wanted to protect him and be the one to take away any of his fears, not be the source of them.

I lifted my hands and signed I'm sorry to him, then waited. Niall looked like he was having a mix of emotions and he was trying to choose which one. I guess after a few minutes of him being confused he chose to break down crying and jump into my arms. I held him tightly and closed my eyes because I was just realizing how horrible it was to not have his squishy little body in my arms.

"Don't ever leave me!" Niall cried into my neck, making me pull him onto my lap. His legs ended up straddling me but at the moment of just being able to hold each other, I don't think either of us gave a fuck. My hands ran up and down his back to get him to calm down for me while his hands ended up on the back of my neck and head to hold me as close as humanly possible. When he calmed down enough to look at me, I lifted one hand and signed the word Harry told me I should know which was the word, 'promise'. I wasn't leaving him ever again. We're in this for the long run and I want him to know when I promise on things, I keep them.

"You don't have to sign to me. I like looking at your lips better." He giggled through his tears. I wiped them as I smiled back to the small boy on my lap. I leaned up and kissed his cheek, hoping we could start things where we left off. Niall seemed to be on the same page as me because he was blushing just the same as he was the first time I did that. We just ended up in another tight hug, but that was broken by someone yelling at us from the front of my house. I pulled away from Niall to see my mum was giving my a thumbs up before going back inside. Niall climbed off my lap and sat next to me, but our shoulders were pressed together tightly.

"So you had a guest this past week?" I asked Niall when he was looking at me. His cheeks turned pink before he looked down at my tattooed hand. I reached over and got his hand in mine, lacing our fingers together tightly.

"That was Liam. We've been best friends for years now, but recently he's discovered something more that I don't want." Niall told me like he was extremely embarrassed about this. When Niall looked down at my tattooed hand, I let out a chuckle because damn right Niall doesn't want him. Niall looked at me, and I willed my smile away so he didn't see how happy I was about this.

"You and Perrie seem to be friendly." Niall mumbled to me, then hid his face in my arm. I smiled at him and placed a kiss on his hair line before he looked up at my lips like he was waiting for me to talk.

"She just came over to make me feel better, but it didn't really work. We're seriously just friends. I kind of like someone, but I didn't want to make it a thing until he can maybe forgive me for being a piece of shit." I told him slowly, then bit my lip nervously. He seemed to understand I was talking about him and blushed before sending me a shy smile.