One Night (Book 1) - Zayn Malik

Chapter 42

"Lesson one, always have the upper hand." He smirks at me in the dark. I nod at his advice and follow him towards one of the towers.

"Is this safe?" I ask glancing around.

"Well you're over 16, you did sign that liability form." He reminds me with a wink as we rush across a bridge.

"So people get hurt?" I laugh.

"Well, sometimes." He shrugs. "I'll keep you safe." He smirks, reaching over and touching my arm lightly. "I promise." I slow down and stare at Harry, stopping in my tracks. Our eyes connect and I know he can see the worry and surprise in my eyes.

He watches me with worry, "I didn't mean it like - I didn't-" he stumbles over his words.

"No it's okay." I assure quietly. I glance down at the ground and force a smile onto my lips. I wasn't going to think about Lindsay or Zayn today - even if that made me a bad friend to Lindsay, I needed some fun.

~ ~ ~

I'm not sure how it happened, but by the end of the first round I had come in second right behind Louis. I'm sure Harry had given me a few shots he could've taken but I couldn't stop smiling while reading the score. Louis and I were in the top five scores out of everyone who played.

"Beginners luck." Louis shoots at me with a smile on his lips. "Let's play another round and I'll whoop your ass." He laughs. I glance at Eleanor who rolls her eyes, a smile on her lips as I turn to Harry who nods.

"Sure." He agrees. I agree as well, the game was fun, it got my adrenaline pumping and it got my mind off of things.

Going in for another round Harry tells me we are no longer a team and that he's coming after me. He gives me a wink before disappearing into the maze of walls and lights. I quickly find a spot and stay hidden up above like Harry had taught me.

I got some good shots in, laughing and running around the structure while taking shots at everyone and anyone I spotted. I enjoyed the fake shooting noises the guns would make when you shot at someone's vest and how it would light up to show that you hit your target.

When the lights turn on in the arena to signal our times up I find Louis and Harry laughing, pushing each other as we walk towards the screen. Eleanor smiles at me, reaching us with ease.

"Did you whoop his bum?" She asks in a low tone. I give her a smile of confusion and she notices. "Louis thinks he's the king of games, time for a girl to take him down some pegs. I don't have the heart." She explains, smiling fondly after Louis.

"Well I sure hope I did." I laugh lightly as we reach the screens. I see my name above Louis and my mouth drops into a smile.

"No!" Louis shouts next to us with knitted eyebrows. "Not possible, you cheated!" He turns to me with angry and playful eyes.

"And how would I do that?" I smile at him.

"I don't know, you probably got Harry to hack the system or something!" Louis claims with distaste. "I know I didn't lose." He pouts.

"Don't pout Lou, let's go get some food?" Eleanor laughs, rubbing his back.

"Don't be a sore loser Louis. Come on!" Harry laughs wrapping an arm around my shoulders and tightly squeezing me to his chest. "Good job." He smiles at me as Eleanor leads Louis away from the arena towards the main room which connects to the rest of the activites.

The main room has plum colored walls, the carpet soft and colorful - most likely the colors were chosen in thoughts of families and kids. There are large windows that allow light to come in - making the small building seem larger than it really was.