Single Father (Ziall Horlik) AU

Chapter 8

Niall's POV

It was around one in the morning when I heard the faint cries of a baby through the thin walls of my flat. I sat up in bed and debated if I should go see if Zayn needed anything. The crying didn't die down after two minutes, so I got out of bed and walked over to the other room. I knocked, then I poked my head in to see Zayn was pouring water from a water bottle into a baby bottle that looked like it had formula in it. I went over and picked up Laila and held her while Zayn made the bottle.

"I hope she didn't wake you. I didn't know where the bathroom was for water." Zayn told me sleepily. He gave the bottle a good couple of shakes then came over to me. I took the bottle and put it in Laila's mouth. She stopped crying and latched on the the bottle. Zayn went and sat back on the bed so I went to sit next to him. He rubbed his eyes and messed up his already messed up hair.

"You can go back to sleep. I've got her." I whispered to him. He shook his head, so I knew there was no point in forcing him to do anything. He's an over protective, stubborn man. However, I don't really mind that too much because it shows just how much his little girl means to him. Both of us sat back on the bed while Laila ate. I looked at the little girl I'm my arms and looked over her features. She was sleeping as she ate, but I could pick out a few things that looked like Zayn. Her eye shape, her hair, her skin color all belonged to him. Her cheeks did too in the way they were cubby but I could still see her unique cheek bones. Her nose wasn't his and her lips weren't like his either.

"I don't mean to ask if it's not my place, but where is her mother?" I asked Zayn quietly. I looked at him and saw his tired brown eyes were looking down at the tattoo on his hand that covered the whole back of it.

"She didn't want anything to do with Laila after she was born. She didn't hold her after she gave birth to her. She drank and smoked when she was pregnant, which is why Laila was so small. I took full custody of her instead of her going up for adoption." Zayn told me sadly. Laila finished her bottle and burped on her own. I put her back in her bed then sat back down on the bed with Zayn.

"Well Laila only deserves the best and her mother wasn't the best so it's better she's not in her life. The same goes for you. Laila is the best thing in your life, so you both deserve each other." I told Zayn. He smiled at me like he was really wanting to believe that, but I saw he wasn't going to. He had been damaged in a way that I've seen too often at the shelter. It's mostly women that have been left by their husbands. They could care less about the man leaving them, it's the fact he left their children that hurts them the most. It breaks their hearts in a way that will never be mended. They hurt for their children because they don't understand. That hurt tears down confidence and self esteem for the parent before it will ever do that for their child. I've seen it too much, but it actually caused me pain when I see it in Zayn.

"Perrie and I never dated. We got together once and made a baby. After that, she hinted she wanted a relationship then she found out she was pregnant and wanted nothing to do with me. When Laila was born, I was stupid enough to tell Perrie we could make it work and I wanted to have a family with her. It's funny that over three weeks I've aged in common sense ten years more than I was then." Zayn told me. The name he mentioned made me sit up straighter and look at him. I remember the name from that waiter at the restaurant.

"Perrie is the woman the waiter asked me if I knew her or was related to her. He said he had some business to take care of with her or something." I said quickly. Zayn looked at me like I had gone crazy, which I definitely have not. Then a look of slow realization crossed his face.

"Louis Tomlinson was your waiter I'm guessing at some point at the Little Italiano place." He pointed out to me. I nodded and scoot closer to Zayn like a child wanting to hear a story. That whole situation had been bothering me since it happened and I wanted to know the answers to it. Zayn slipped under the blankets and laid back on the bed. I moved closer to him until he finally just lifted the blankets for me to get in next to him.