"Sounds like a charming fellow!" my grandma smiled, taking another sip of coffee.

"He is. You would like him. I'll have to have him over some time, to meet you."

"Hmp. There's still only one boy I approve of until I meet this 'Zayn' you keep talking about."

"Niall and I had an issue." I spat out before I could think of keeping it in.

"Oh? And what was that?" he raised an eyebrow, clearly interested.

"It's personal, Grandpa. Long story short, we-"

"No, I want to know what he said or did to my granddaughter. You know I won't tolerate that behavior from someone who has earned my respect!" his voice started to raise. I knew he really liked Niall, we all did at one point, and I hated to tell him that he would no longer be visiting.

"Now Jude, she wouldn't keep it from us if it was important. Let her tell her story." my grandma spoke up, calming him down.

"All that really happened is that a situation came up, and it took a while to resolve it. Even when we reasoned, it just didn't turn out well. You know how things happen."

"I'm sorry to hear that, sweetie." my grandma looked at me reassuringly, while my grandpa just stayed quiet.

I tried my best to change the subject, and thankfully they went along with it. It wasn't brought up for the rest of that day, probably for the best.

~~

"I knew it, I knew it, I kneeew it!!!" Louis shouted from behind, making me jump.

"I told you! I knew you and Zayn would fall in love! I knew it! And you tried to hide it from me? Did you think I wouldn't find out?" he blabbed on, as I just shook my head and continued getting my books for my class.

"Are you going to ignore me or tell me how you two got on? I asked Zayn, but he's a guy, and I sure he left out details."

"My stars, Louis. You are such a girl sometimes." I groaned.

"Just tell me! Let me be happy for two of my best friends!"

"All that happened was, for our date we went out to dinner, then we took a walk, and he told me that he knew I liked him and then said he felt the same way."

"How romantic. Have you two kissed yet?"

"Lou!"

"What? It's just me, I'm not going to run off and tell!"

"Either way, it's none of your business."

"So you have?"

"I never said that."

"So you haven't?"

"Just let it go, goodness."

Of course, he didn't, and was pestering me all day about it. I think I saw him more than I saw my actual boyfriend (it still feels weird to say that). At lunchtime, Zayn slid in the bench beside me, closer than usual. He kissed my cheek, which never failed to make my face go red, as usual.

"How's the prettiest girl on the planet?" he asked, grinning.

"I'm fine, thank you. How is the greatest guy on the planet?"

"Couldn't be happier. How are you, Louis?"

"That's all I get? Louis? Not a cute little reference?"

"Take it or leave it whiny. You don't have to be jealous."

"Well, in that case, I'm very jealous. Thanks for asking." he flipped his invisible hair, taking another bite of his sandwich.

"Right. Anyhow, how do you want to come over to my place tonight? I know you have work, but we could just talk for a little bit. I'll drive you there." he suggested.

"Sounds good."

"Hello, third wheel over here." Louis waved.

"Sorry. What's been going on?" I giggled, trying my best to include Louis into our conversation. Lunch was good, but I couldn't help but notice that Harry wasn't there. I don't recall him being there Friday, either.

"What's become of Harry?" I wondered aloud, Zayn by my side on my way to another class.

"You know, he said he wasn't feeling well, but he seemed fine this weekend. I think he's just playing hooky. Probably with Jen." he rolled his eyes.

"Jen wouldn't play hooky. At least I hope not."

"Do you think playing hooky is bad?" he asked.

"Well, I certainly wouldn't do it. I don't raelly have a reason to, nothing to do at home."

"I'll have to change your mind about that."

"Zayn, no... I don't like that idea."

"Come on, just one day. We'd have loads of fun. Go anywhere you like. I promise you won't miss anything, and if you do, you can blame me all you like." he was convincing, and I really had no argument against it.

"I don't know..." I bit my lip.

"What would I have to do to get you to agree with me?" he asked, stopping in front of me.

"Prove to me it wasn't looked down on by society?"

"Well, let's say the Queen played hooky all the time when she was in our grade. It was ok in the dark ages, and it's still ok now, as long as you don't do it all the time." this made me giggle, and brought a smile to his face.

"How about you think about it, and let me know for sure?"

"Alright... I'll consider it." I finally gave in, causing a wide grin from Zayn.

"You're the best. Has anyone ever told you that you're really cute when you're thinking hard?"

"You already got me to think about it, don't push it." I kept walking, knowing if we didn't hurry up, we would be late for class.

"I know. Just thought I'd let you know."

~~

"Welcome to the Malik Residence, enjoy your stay, no matter how short it may be." Zayn made a wide gesture with his arms after opening the door.

"Wow. Your house is huge." I said, for lack of better term.

"I know. I don't even know if I've seen all the rooms yet."

"Where are your parents?"

"They're at work a lot, I usually only see them on the weekends. Late at night, if I'm lucky."

"We have more in common than I thought." I noted, although he didn't pay attention. We went up to his room, and we made sure to keep track of time while we talked and talked.

"I know we just got together, but it seems like I already know so much about you." he stated, his eyes sparkling.

"Same goes for me. I'm really glad Louis has a big mouth sometimes."

"Is it too early to say that I love you?" he asked, as if he needed permission.

"Maybe... I really wouldn't know..." I mumbled, flashing back to the night I belived I really was in love.

"Well then, I really, really, really, really like you."

"I really, really, really, really like you too." I giggled, not being able to get over the fact that the guy I had always obsessed over was telling me how much he liked me.

"Come here, I want to give you a hug." he smiled, so I scooted closer to him. Never having hugged him before, at least not with this mindset, I inhaled his spicy cologne scent as I wrapped my arms around him. My head rested just below his shoulder, making me feel safe against his bigger stature. I looked up to say something, but suddenly lost my train of thought when a pair of lips met mine.

The foreign feeling gave me goosebumps, and only persuaded me to continue. My arms travelled up to his neck, pulling him closer. I felt his hands roam my sides, sending tingles down my spine. His lips were smooth, moreso than mine. I felt like I was "in love" again, forgetting everything but Zayn. My breathing was getting rough, as I was caught up in him. This was temporarily relieved when my mouth opened, much to his joy. His tongue slid in my mouth, something I still wasn't used to, but didn't refuse. His touch turned into a slight grip, pulling my waist closer to him. His hands found the hem of my shirt, playing with it for a moment or two. One slipped up my shirt, without warning. His cold fingers against my warm stomach made me gasp, which he found a turn on. Warning bells went off in my head, but were silenced as I heard him groan in pleasure. I melted at the sound of his voice. I was in absolute heaven until I felt his fingers toy at my bra lining, then my clasp.

I pulled back suddenly, gasping for breath. This scared him a little, and he immediately jumped away. I didn't say anything, but I feared what would've happened if I hadn't done anything. Unwanted memories flooded my mind, threatening tears in my emotional state. Zayn must have noticed my hurt expression, because he started to apologize and assure me repeatedly.

"Oh baby, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done that, I'm sorry. It's ok, I won't do that to you again, don't cry." he leaned back over, hugging me. I didn't let myself cry, even though it was hard. He didn't mean it, he didn't know what had happened, heck, he's probably more confused than I am right now.

"No, no it's alright. It's me... I'm just not ready. I'm sorry." I felt embarrassed.

"Don't be sorry. That was inconsiderate of me, I would never push you to do something you don't want to do. Just let me know if I ever go too far again. I'm so sorry."

Looking over at his nightstand, I noticed that I had ten minutes until my shift at work started, and with that, we hurried out without another word.