Next To My Heart (Zarry AU)

Part 9

It's Friday evening, and Niall's call is a pleasant surprise. Harry wasn't doing much of anything, just lounging on his sofa with a book lying forgotten in his lap as he watched some television, when his phone started ringing. He had to dig it up from between the couch cushions, but managed to answer it after only a few rings.

''Niall! What's up?''

''I need you to save my evening,'' Niall's voice comes through, sounding somewhat distressed.

Harry places his book down and lowers the volume of the television. ''Why? What happened?''

''You know about my date, right? It was tonight and... well, it was shite. No chemistry, boring, dull, uninteresting, and all the other words I can't come up with right now.''

''Sorry about that. Also, that's a lot of words.'' Harry knows where this is going, so he shuts off the television and gets up.

''Yeah, thanks.'' Niall rambles on some more while Harry hums and ''uh huh's'' in the right places. In the meantime he's going through his closet, picking out a nice outfit. He has no clue where they're going yet, but he wants to dress nicely for a change.

''Hey, I'm almost at your place. You better get ready because we're going out.''

''Already got my outfit ready,'' Harry says, checking his black blouse for any crinkles. There aren't any, which might be because it's a soft and flowy fabric. Slightly see through as well, but only if you look very closely. It's one of the few things he owns that he's proud of, and knows he looks damn good in.

''Already?'' Niall sounds surprised, to which Harry only grins to himself. ''I'll be outside. Don't take too long, okay?''

''Don't worry, I won't.'' Harry hangs up then, and starts getting ready.

Only ten minutes later he's ready, during which most of his time was spent trying to get into his black jeans and deciding what to do with his hair. Most days it's up in a bun, so he figured he could wear it down for once. After haphazardly spritzing on some cologne, he hurries towards his front door, boots clacking against the wooden floor, and finds himself surprised once he opens it.

''Harry!'' He's greeted by a chorus of voices, belonging to Zayn, Liam, and Niall.

''What,'' is all he can say as he stares, dumbfounded. Niall would meet him outside. This isn't outside. Then it dawns on him that one of the other two must have let him in.

''We were just chatting, while you were busy getting pretty.'' Niall claps a hand on his shoulder. Harry just glares at him. ''Jeez Harry. Prettier, okay? That better?''

Zayn coughs. ''You look nice,'' he says. Of course he's just trying to be polite, but Harry can feel his cheeks heat up.

''Great, now that we've fed Harry's ego, I think it's time to leave.''

''What!'' Harry exclaims, pushing Niall's hand off his shoulder. ''You're the one that needed saving.''

''Don't listen to him.'' Niall steers Harry towards the stairwell. ''His ego's gotten too big, doesn't know what he's saying!''

Harry can hear Zayn and Liam's laughs as they retreat down the stairwell. He's sending fake glares in Niall's direction, trying not to grin when his friend makes silly faces. Harry doesn't mind being joked about every once in a while. His mum says it makes you humble, while keeping others entertained. It's really not such a bad thing.

''Hey.'' Niall bumps his shoulder when they set foot outside. ''Just saying, your crush is totally justified. I'm not into blokes, and even I wouldn't say no, you know?''