Tales of the Hearts

F̆̈Ĭ̈F̆̈T̆̈Ĕ̈Ĕ̈N̆̈✨

The next morning the sound of Mae's car horn snapped Zayn out of his daze. Zayn ate the last bite of his cereal before putting the bowl in the sink and heading for the door.

"Have a good day, sweetie." his mom said, sitting at the table with her computer.

"Thanks, mom. You too." Zayn responded.

"And don't forget to bring the car back tonight." she smiled. Zayn nodded as Zayn put the keys in his backpack before heading outside.

"Morning." Mae greeted him, handing him a coffee cup.

"Did you leave early to get this?" Zayn asked. She nodded.

"I figured you might need it." she said, offering him a soft smile.

"Thank you." Zayn said, taking a sip.

"How's Lou doing?" Mae asked, pulling out of the driveway.

"He's okay. He can't go to school for at least the next week, so I'm sure he'll be bouncing off the walls by the end of the week." Zayn said, making Mae laugh.

"Oh boy. I  hope your mom's ready for that." she added, making Zayn laugh too. "Was he at the hospital alone? Wasn't your mom at a conference last week?" she asked.

"Yeah, she was. Liam left the game and picked me up. My mom was able to make it back before we were allowed to see him though, so it worked out."

"Wait, Liam left the game?" Mae asked, looking over at Zayn with her mouth gaping.

"Yeah!" Zayn confirmed.

"Whoa. Are you guys better friends than you're letting on?" Mae asked, poking his arm. Zayn felt his cheeks heat up.

"What? No, what makes you think that?" Zayn trailed off, looking out the window to try and hide the blush creeping up on his cheeks as Mae parked the car near the back of the lot.

"Zayn Malik look at me." Mae said, turning the car off. Zayn slowly met her gaze.

"Are you guys more than friends?" she softly asked.

Zayn dropped her gaze, looking down at his hands in his lap.

"No, of course not. He-he's straight. It's not like that." Zayn replied, feeling his throat tighten as Zayn said those words. Mae reached over and laid her hand on top of his.

"Do you want to be more than friends?" she asked. Zayn shook his head.

"It doesn't matter what I want. It wouldn't ever happen, even if I did." Zayn said, a sinking feeling in his chest.

"Zaynie, it's okay to feel what you do. You know that, right?" Mae asked, concern on her face. Zayn nodded, feeling tears prickle his eyes.

"It just can't happen." Zayn choked out.

Mae reached over and hugged him, as Zayn let those tears roll down his cheeks. Zayn hugged her back, taking a deep breath.

"It's been a long weekend." Zayn said, letting out a low laugh. Mae nodded and laughed with him.

"I'm sure it was. And we're not done talking about this, just so you know. You aren't off the hook with me just yet." Mae joked. Zayn nodded, wiping the tears away.

"I figured." Zayn laughed.

"Do you want to hang out after school today? Maybe talk some things out?" she asked. Zayn nodded.

"Yeah. I'd like that." Zayn said.

"Great. Do you want to just meet at mine? I know you need to get your car" she said. Zayn nodded.