Hidden Beneath Brown Eyes (A Zayn Malik Fanfiction)

Chapter 12 - Scrambled Eggs

He eased out of the driveway and pulled out onto the tiny road that Liam's house sat on. The car was so silent that I could hear my own heart beating, and it was beating fast. He was still as a statue, and I wondered if I made him feel the same way that he made me feel. If I did, he seemed to be a good enough actor so I would never know.

What does he want to talk about? Why is he even with me if he's not going to say a word? Where the hell are we going? Suddenly, the car was filled with the sound of Led Zeppelin. I turned to him, my jaw wide open. This man never fails to surprise me.

"I didn't see you as being a Zephead." I raised my eyebrows.

A small smile appeared on his lips. "Yeah. Everybody knows that I enjoy R&B, but my secret is that I'm a huge rock fan as well."

Led Zeppelin reminded me of home, and of the first night I ever saw Zayn. It was strange to be sitting there with him, listening to a band that we both liked, when just a few months ago, he didn't know I even existed. We were strangers to each other, from two different walks of life. Now we were in his car together, going out for coffee.

The rest of the ride was mostly a comfortable silence, with occasional small talk in between.

I hadn't asked Zayn where we were going, but I found out when we pulled up to a small cafe in a quiet part of the city. We walked inside and Zayn headed straight for a table in the back, I assumed so the paparazzi wouldn't see us if they happened to show up. Or anyone for that matter.

He looked away as he pulled my chair out for me and I sat down. My eyes shot around the room, awkwardly avoiding eye contact. He seemed so relaxed, while I sat there, a nervous wreck. My eyes mistakenly met his, and in that instant he took it as his queue to speak.

"Why do you hate me Ada?"

Why am I so shocked by this? I knew he was going to ask since he didn't get his answer yesterday. What am I going to say?

"Good afternoon. What would you both like to drink?" I let out a large breath of relief when I realized that the waitress had saved me.

"I'll have a beer." Zayn stated in his deep, husky voice.

"I'll have an iced tea. Please." I said shyly, sinking down in my chair.

"And anything to eat?"

"Scrambled eggs with a croissant." His tone was usually so cold.

"Same" I said when the waitress turned towards me. She jotted down our orders and then skipped away to the kitchen.

Zayn let out a low chuckle and smiled at me with his tongue between his teeth. That's how you could tell if he was genuinely smiling, and it was a beautiful thing to witness.

"Someone always interrupts us. It's almost like something doesn't want me to have an answer to my question." He was somewhat joking, but of course behind every joke, there is a little bit of truth.

"So, can you answer for me before someone else comes along?" His eyes were locked on mine and it was impossible for me to break away. I could feel my palms sweat and I knew that if I spoke, it would come out as jibberish. I thought for sure that if I took too long to answer, that he would say something, but he didn't. He just continued his assault on my eyes.

I knew that I had to say something eventually, so I calmed myself down just enough to force a smile and take his hand in mine.

"I don't hate you Zayn. We just got off on the wrong foot is all."

He seemed surprised by my answer, as if he had expected something completely different.

"We can start over. Hi my name is Ada Carraway, nice to meet you." I said, shaking his hand.