When We're Alone, It Could Be Home | Zarry

Part 1

That was when Niall called him in an afternoon. Liam would be moving out to live with his girl, Sophia, and Niall's poor salary could barely support him to live in the fancy apartment all by himself, which suggested that he needed a new partner to fill Liam's absence as soon as possible. Niall's place was a nice spot, locating at the edge of the urban area that could maintain its convenience and tranquillity at the same time. Zayn's family lived far away from the downtown, and it took him at least two hours to commute from home to his company. Being Niall's roommate could easily solve this problem.

So it only took Zayn less than one week to prepare his stuffs and move into his new home. The antique building had been renewed a while ago, but the interior still kept the old style from the last century. The narrow stairway only allowed one person to pass through every time. Whilst carrying his suitcases upstairs, someone interrupted Niall's nagging about the broken lift.

"Ah, Harry! Meet our new flat mate Zayn. Zayn, this is Harry. He lives downstairs."

If Harry was not chanting, then his first word to Zayn was a very rhythmical "Hiiiiiii". The slope might give Zayn a wrong perspective, but Harry was really tall, and somehow everything seemed longer on his body as well. His long messy hair curled unevenly above his shoulders; slim fingers slid down the handrail as he stepped down the stairs in those tight jeans. Zayn's suitcases occupied nearly the entire staircases and there was barely a space for Harry to squeeze his long skinny legs through. Even so Harry still managed to make himself a way with his elbow rubbing against Zayn's arm. Zayn needed to take a deep breath to hold back the urge of rolling his eyes.

Asshole. That was the first word coming up in his mind. Couldn't tell whether it was a complaint or compliment.

On the other hand, Niall was in fact a responsible roommate who kept a rather regular life than what it seemed to be. He's a hard working guy, despite the fact he had dropped out from college before. Niall was trying to get a Bachelor's degree anyway. He went to tutoring school in the morning and finished his job at the coffee shop by eight, bought some eggs and milk on his way home and arrived by nine. If there was any time left, he could finish some easy housework before going to bed. Zayn loved Niall. He's not only a perfect roommate but also an awesome friend. Sometimes it made Zayn a bit guilty. Even though they both understood it wasn't easy for him to execute his daily routine.

Zayn worked in a commercial company that offered him a fair pay that was better than average, especially for a fresh graduate like him. Zayn, though, didn't win everything by luck. It was his extraordinary college grades and endless efforts that brought him here. Regardless of some unfriendly jokes he had received, Zayn did enjoy his job—at least so far he did.

Zayn's team was a branch under the Account Executive of the company. His boss was a young guy called Louis, who's only a year older than Zayn. Actually, Louis was not really a boss of any employee. But this nickname still obtained and only grew stronger with the gossips in the office. Even the staff of the cafeteria knew his infamous alias - "Tomlinson the Executioner".

"He'll cook the clients who don't get along with him." Sandy, a guy from the Personnel Department, once told Zayn at the files room. "And he will bury any co-worker who doesn't obey his orders. ALIVE. You notice those small mounds in the courtyard garden? 10 bucks they are the poor victims' graves."

"S'TRUE." Another guy named Josh stuck out his head behind the copy machine, when he heard Zayn laughing recklessly at Sandy's fallacies. "San, remember Max from the Marketing? We've never seen him since his fight with Louis at a meeting." His shoulders shivered while Sandy nodded aggressively in agreement, "Newbie, you need to be careful. DON'T LET HIM CATCH YOU. He'll push you into a boiling pot and ship your ashes to Alaska."