A/N: Update for Wingman, yaaay! I changed Waliyha to Doniya, cause Waliyha is only 15 which is really young lool. Anyway, this chapter is kind of if-y with me, hope you like it though :).
Enjoy x.
Zayn examines himself in his bathroom mirror and can't help but notice his red-rimmed eyes from the lack of sleep, his disheveled hair from just waking up, and... Holy crap, is that a black eye?
He touches his eye and hisses at the pain from the contact; it's practically swallowed up his whole eye. He looks like a freaking—
"Whoa, didn't know we had raccoons," Liam says, finishing his thought as he reaches around Zayn and grabs his toothbrush.
Zayn ignores him and heads to his room, while Liam shouts 'it's just a joke!' from behind. He shuts his door quietly and throws on his clothes, getting ready for work. For the first time in his life, he really doesn't feel like dealing with Liam, not after staying awake until early in the morning due to being forced to listen to Liam's soft cries through the thin walls, a sound he can't bear, let alone fall asleep to. There's also his bruised eye, which was also caused by Liam and his inability to get over Sophia. Something inside of him tells him he doesn't want to deal with Liam due to the fact that he has yet to get over Sophia, but for now, he'll focus on the little things.
So, he heads out without so much as a goodbye, and he pretends he doesn't notice, out of the corner of his eye, Liam looking at him solemnly as he exits their apartment.
He sees his boss, Seth, and Louis chatting by the register before they see him; they seem to be in a heated discussion, as his boss disciplines Louis. The hell did Louis do this time?
Louis notices him first, which then causes his boss to turn around and set his eyes on Zayn, his frown turning into a scowl.
Oh, shit, what did he do this time?
"Oi, Zayn, so nice of you to join us," Seth begins, "Or are you planning on leaving mid-shift today as well?"
Dammit.
"I thought Louis told you—"
"Yeah, 'family emergency', but you and I both know that's not true. I've been working with you for a while now, Zayn, don't try to pull those shit excuses on me." He takes a moment to examine Zayn before his eyes set on Zayn's black-eye; he furrows his eyebrows. "I have a feeling that black-eye only seems to prove my point."
Zayn sighs and shuts his eyes in embarrassment, no use in lying now. He's ready to receive a lecture, but Seth merely nods his head and begins speaking in a calm voice, "You know better than this. I have no choice but to suspend you for three weeks, no pay."
Louis gasps, and Zayn's eyes widen at the punishment. Something Seth's never even given Louis for his countless acts of recklessness. "B-But Seth!" Zayn protests; he's been saving up to go to university in the fall and finish a few classes in order to finally get his degree in business. He needs that money.
"Or would you rather I fire you, Mr. Malik?" Seth replies, narrowing his eyes at Zayn.
Zayn finally gives in and hangs his head in defeat. "No, sir," he mutters.
"Good. See you in twenty-one days, Malik." His boss motions towards the exit, forcing Zayn to leave.
Zayn bites his lip to fight back tears before storming out of the store, leaving a speechless Louis. He runs into Niall as soon as he turns a corner, no doubt Niall going to visit him. He tries to push passed him, but Niall's quick to grab his arm and stop him.
"Hey, hey, what's wrong?" Niall asks, his voice laced with concern.
"Nothing!" Zayn shouts, all too suddenly, he calms his breathing down and lowers his voice before answering again. "N-Nothing, I... I just have a lot on my mind, alright?"
"You don't want to talk about—"
"For fuck's sake, Niall, no! I really don't!" Zayn exclaims, yanking his arm away from Niall's grip. He shakes his head before running off.
And where else can he run to other than his apartment? Forced to be with someone he really doesn't want to see at the moment? It's not like he can hang out at Louis's and wait until Louis gets off from work; that'll just let the realization that he currently has no work sink in.
He's surprised to see his sister Doniya seated in his living room, Liam right next to her smiling and touching her wrist. They both turn to look at him in the doorway. "Doniya? Thought you were coming later. Something up?" he asks, what used to be anger replaced with concern.
She shakes her head and immediately gets up, embracing Zayn in a hug. "Not to worry, little brother. Just wanted to spend more time with you," she says as she pulls away from Zayn.
"I wish you'd have told me, would've prepared something for you." Zayn frowns, thinking of how long it'll take to make some chicken.
"Not to worry!" Liam shouts, interrupting the recipe going through Zayn's head. "I've ordered a pizza already. What are you doing home so early, though? Hoped it would just be me and Doniya for a while," Liam says, sending a wink towards Doniya.
Okay, was that flirting? Nah. Zayn's gone mad already.
Doniya merely ignores the wink and turns towards Zayn. "You worked today?"
"Yeah, but I... I asked to come home early. Wasn't really feelin' all too well," he lies, avoiding Doniya's concerned gaze.
"Do you need—"
"No, no. I'm fine now, promise." He smiles as soon as the buzz for their door captures all of their attention.
Liam lets the pizza delivery guy up and pays him before grabbing the single box and shutting the door. "Let's dig in, shall we?"
They all gather around the small kitchen table and begin to eat. Liam has completely kept his focus on Doniya and Doniya only, even going as far as to asking if she was seeing someone at the moment. And through it all, Zayn kept convincing himself that it was just Liam being his kind-hearted self; the part he adored about Liam finally showing up after weeks of its disappearance.
Doniya was barely responding to the questions being asked, being more keen on asking Zayn questions and wondering what he had been up to so far.
After they finish, Doniya excuses herself to the bathroom to freshen up. Zayn takes the time to clean up the dishes and put away any leftovers.
Liam stands next to him as Zayn passes him every dish to dry and put away. "Hey, Zee..." he mutters, voice barely audible.
"What's up, Li?" Zayn asks, gaze remained on the dish he's currently washing.
"You can completely say no to this; I won't blame you if you do... but..." Liam trails off and turns away from Zayn to put something away before continuing. "You think you could... I dunno... Put in a good word for me with your sister?"
Zayn immediately stiffens, he turns to Liam, mouth agape. "...Sorry?"
"She just seems really cool, yeah? And I was hoping, possibly... To just have a chance with her? Does it sound that silly?" Liam asks; of all things to ask, asking if it sounds silly.
He drops the plate he was holding and it shatters against the floor just as Doniya re-enters the room. She seems to notice the tension between the two starting to develop and looks back and forth between them. "I should go..."
Zayn turns to her quickly and frowns. "But you just got here."
"I know, I know. I promised mum I'd be back in time to take her and the girls to this spa we've been eyeballing." She smiles reassuringly before embracing her brother in another hug. "Take care, Zaynie. I'll see you soon. I'll tell mum, Walihya, and Safaa that you say hey."
He follows her to their door of their apartment before kissing her cheek and hugging her one last time. He closes the door softly as soon as she's out of sight.
Liam's seated quietly on the couch. "Are you mad?"
"Mad would be quite the understatement," Zayn mutters, rubbing his forehead as he begins to think about all of the events that took place on this horrid day.
"Oh c'mon, mate, it wasn't that bad—"
"Wasn't that bad?!" Zayn exclaims, feeling completely livid, "You tried to make a pass at my bloody sister, Liam. What the fuck kind of shit is that?!"
"Okay, okay. I'll admit that was a bit wrong... But it wouldn't be the worst thing, would it? I mean, I'm a fantastic lad, if I do say so myself."
Zayn grabs the nearest lamp and throws it at the wall, watching as it shatters to pieces. Liam flinches at the contact and remains quiet.
"I am sick and tired of you, Liam."
Liam freezes and frowns. "That's pretty big, considering all I did was try to go out with Doniya... It's not like I did it without your consent..."
"Look. I get it. You've gone through a rough patch ever since things ended with Sophia on a sour note, but that doesn't give you the right to walk all over me, Liam." Zayn begins to even out his breathing, as he tries to take a more soothing approach; Liam gets up and tries to walk towards him, but Zayn only walks further away from him. Zayn continues, "And if you can't even see what you're doing, then... That's pretty shit, mate."
Liam nods his head. "That's a fair statement, but I can't think of anything I've done that has affected you in the least, Zayn. All of it has been between me and... well, you know who."
"It hasn't affected me?!" Zayn exclaims. "Not when I'm knocking on your door everyday begging you to eat and to get out of your room, worried that you're going to die in there? Not when I'm trying my hardest to be a wing-man for you just so you can be a bit happier? And it's definitely not when Sophia calls me in the middle of work, crying, because you're out there getting into some shit fight with some random lad? Not when I'm trying to stop you from getting hurt, only to get punched in the fucking face? Not when I get suspended from work for three fucking weeks because I ditched work for you?!"
"You... You were.... Suspended?"
Zayn finally realizes he's shaking from pure rage; his cheeks are wet with tears of frustration, and his breathing is labored. "Y-Yes... I was," he says, voice cracking as he finally comes to terms with the fact he won't be making any income. "A-And I don't even know if I'm going to be able to make enough money for Uni this autumn..."
"I... I didn't... You were trying to go back to uni?"
"Yes, Liam." Zayn closes his eyes before speaking, unable to bear the look Liam would possibly give him from his spiteful words. "And if you were half of the friend that I have been to you, then you'd know that. You've become a horrible and shitty person, Liam."
He opens his eyes again and ignores Liam, heading to his room and filling a duffle bag with clothes and shoes. He finds Liam in the living room, eyes downcast and brimmed with tears, as if he's forcing them not to fall. His head shoots up when he hears Zayn walk in, eyes immediately going to the duffle bag. "Where are y-you going...?"
"Think it's best if I stay with Louis for a bit. I don't think I can be around you right now..." Zayn leaves their apartment and stays behind long enough to hear Liam's heart-wrenching sob.
A/N: Aww that was so sad :(. Again, sorry if this chapter sucks. I kinda dragged it too long, didn't I? Eek I hope you guys didn't absolutely, positively hate it.
But oh no! Trouble in Ziam friendship. Was Liam really a butthole? Or were Zayn's words way too harsh? Who's at fault here? Hmmmm
But yeah, comment, vote, share, feedback is really needed since I want to know what you guys thought of this crappy chapter.
I love you all <333333333 xxx