Impeccable (Zayn Malik AU)

xxxvi. Menswear

Six months later

♡ Odette's POV ♡

It was a clear summer day over the Manor, June having just started. The weather was nice, the heat not yet arriving and scorching the land. A few clouds were scattered about in the sky, but all of them airy and white, not showing any foreshadowing of rain.

I would know, I was staring out of the window in my room, Falene claiming I couldn't leave at all. I knew she had good intentions (even if I thought they were a bit superstitious), but I hadn't been let out all morning, and it was starting to drive me crazy.

I huffed as I walked over to my plush bed that hadn't been slept in since I got back from the hospital. There really was no need for me to have my own room anymore, and as a result, this room was going to be completely torn apart and re-purposed. I fell back on the ivory and grey covers, mindful of the curled hair Falene had labored over for hours. I didn't want to ruin her masterpiece, she had done it special for today anyways.

Today. I couldn't stop the smile from forming on my face as I thought about everything that would happen. My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would break out of my chest and fly free, excitement only encouraging it on.

I heard the door open, my head turning to see Falene and her platoon of beauticians following in line. More accurately: my mother, Ivy, Erica, and Lady Malik. Ivy was lugging a black dress bag over her shoulder, lying the expensive gown down carefully on my covers once I had gotten off the bed.

"He didn't see?" Falene asked Ivy, her superstitious beliefs getting the better of her.

"I thought he wasn't allowed to see Odette in it, not just the dress." Ivy said, rolling her eyes teasingly as she unzipped the bag. "But, no. He didn't see it. I hid it in the Elite training center."

Falene sighed in relief, while I sucked in a breath of anticipation. I had only tried it on once, and I hadn't seen it in months. My mother gripped my hand tightly, a peek of white fabric making my heart race faster.

Ivy pulled the gown out of the bag, ruffles and lace complementing the jewels that had been sewn in. It was most definitely fit for a queen, the skirt one like a ball gown. Lace flowers seemed to cascade down the bodice, the dress looking like one I had wanted since I was a little girl.

I had wanted to get in it immediatly, Ivy making some joking comments to me about how I must have gained a few pounds since the last fitting as she was zipping me up, but it didn't matter to me. After I had gotten home since being hospitalized, Zayn had done everything in his power to make sure I was back to 100% again. And if that meant I had to eat a bit more and gain a little weight, then that was fine. I personally would rather be healthy than horridly thin and frail. I had learned my lesson.

As I stared in the mirror, I was speechless. I didn't recognize the girl in the mirror.

She was a bride, healthy and glowing, beautiful and loved for who she was. She wasn't Odette Carlton, the only thing that made us seem similar was the identical sizeable scar on her right shoulder, still slightly discolored and stretched from the incident long ago. My fingers instictively reached to pull up my off-the-shoulder sleeve to hide the hideous mark, someone's fingers lightly slapping them away. I turned to see Erica smiling at me.

"Leave it. Let it remind him of how strong you really are."

♚ Zayn's POV ♚

I was freaking out.

Eli was the only one managing to keep me calm in my bedroom, helping me dress in my official Empire uniform. My fingers were shaking too much to button the stupid jacket, my lip becoming the subject of torture as my teeth kept biting it. Falene had told me if I dared to run a distressed hand through my hair she had spent all of forty-five minutes doing, that she would personally kill me before I stepped foot on the altar.