Unstable (Sequel to Twisted)

Chapter 5

"Who are those people?" Walter asked as he walked through the door. I gently pushed him fully out of the door way, my hand back on the knob, ready to close it.

"They're my...guests."

"I didn't know you associated with rough-looking people like that."

"Yeah well, looks aren't everything, are they?" I asked, forcing a chuckle when I realized what I said. I cleared my throat and began to close the door, mumbling a goodbye. The last thing I saw was Walter walking off with his short strides, his blue robe getting smaller and smaller as he walked farther away.

"Very good girl, Claire," Harry commended me as soon as I closed the door. I felt his arms wrap around my middle from behind, his lips brushing against my ear. "Too bad the man has such a pitiable existence. If not, I would've killed him just for talking to me like that."

"You don't know anything about him," I mumbled, scrunching my eyebrows in deep thought.

Harry chuckled under his breath behind me, his arms turning around so I faced him. "I can read people. I could immediately tell that man thought he owned the place. He truly did believe this fucking shithole belongs to him. I find that amusing because I can also tell he lives a pathetic life, and uses all his spare time putting his fucking nose in everyone else's business." His voice raised a little, his cuss words increasing as he let go of me and stormed back into the living room.

"I'm so sick of fucking hiding like this," Zayn added angrily, leaning back against the wall. His hands were pulling at a pack of cigarettes, and I wasted no time in rushing forward.

"You can't smoke in here," I told him, without thinking. "It's against the-"

I was looking at Zayn's dark eyes one moment, and the next, I was on the ground. My head felt like it had shut down for a moment, and a metallic taste rushed into my mouth. I shook my head a little, my arms reaching forward, clawing at the carpeted floor.

"You don't ever tell me what to do." I heard Zayn sneer somewhere above me.

"Don't touch her!" Perrie's voice rang out, and I could hear people fighting. Chaos erupted all around me.

Chaos.

Instability.

I gingerly touched my chin and felt my skin throbbing underneath me. Zayn didn't slap me-he punched me. I felt like he hit me with a bat or something. Blood was seeping in my mouth, since I probably bit the inside of my cheek from the hit. I moved my jaw around, letting out a low grown when it hurt like hell.

"Shut the hell up." A raspy, eerily calm voice stated. Harry's voice was barely above a whisper, but everyone grew completely silent from it. I brought my eyes up, seeing Zayn holding Perrie's blonde hair; she was on her knees, her face twisted in pain. But both of them were frozen, looking at Harry.

I whimpered a little when I felt someone-probably Harry-pull me up. Unwilling tears were streaming down my cheeks from the raw, overwhelming pain. A headache was already approaching, and my entire right face felt like it was twice its original size.

I was then staring into Harry's green eyes; his large hands cupped both of my cheeks, and his eyes were narrowed as his hand gently stroked my injured cheek. I couldn't quite read his expression, but I could feel my tears dampening his palms as he cradled my cheek.

"I-It hurts," I whispered without thinking, moving forward to push myself in his arms. With Harry, I was safe. He may have been a bad guy, but I knew Zayn would never fight against Harry. I didn't know anyone who would.

"Niall," Harry said, shocking me by pushing me into the blonde's arms unexpectedly, "keep her from falling."

Niall fumbled with me, holding my tired body from falling to the floor. I turned around in the blonde's grasp, seeing Harry walk in front of Zayn. Zayn released Perrie, who immediately crawled away from him, and the dark-haired male shoved his hands in his pocket. A cigarette was hanging from his mouth, light smoke coming from it.