Potion / z.h

Chapter 7

A pair of hands gently caressed my face and wiped away my tears with their thumb. My eyes were still closed and I instinctively leaned into their touch. Their arms felt like home.

I began to cry even more when I finally opened my eyes to be met with Zayn's beautiful hazel ones as they roamed my face with concern. He didn't say anything as he continued to wipe my tears away and replace them with soft gentle kisses. His hand brushed through my hair while the other intertwined with my hand.

"Love, what happened?" 

His voice was gentle and warm which only brought fresh tears to weld up in my eyes due to the thought that I would soon lose him.

"Zayn, do you love me?" 

As dumb as the question sounded, i needed to reassure myself.

"Yes. With all my heart" He stroked my cheek with his thumb and kissed my forehead softly. 

"Why do you ask?" 

I frowned sadly already feeling my heart sink.

"In case you don't remember me, I need to know that you once loved me" I breathed out.

"I can assure you that won't happen. I love you too much to forget you"

He never asked me what I meant about forgetting him, but instead embraced me as I cried into his chest. I couldn't stop sobbing because I knew that it had to be done. I needed to let the most amazing and wonderful person go in order to do the right thing. 

"I love you so much, Zayn. I love you in a way I've never loved anyone before. You have made me a better person without even knowing it and as much as it will pain me to do this, I just need you to know that I will always love you"

He looked confused but it quickly went away as he still held me in his arms. 

He spent the night with me and reassured me that everything would turn out alright although deep down, I knew it wouldn't.

We laid down on my bed, my eyes fluttering every so often as he ran his fingertips up and down my skin while occasionally stopping to kiss spots on my upper back.

He talked to me soothingly about anything in hopes that it would distract me from my thoughts. He talked about his family and how he couldn't wait for them to meet me. I smiled at how enthusiastic he got while talking about things and people that were dear to him. He talked on about his sisters and how they would fight when they were smaller and would laugh as he retold me some of the funnier things that happened to them when they were younger. 

He was prepped up on his elbow while the other hand kept rubbing in circular motions around my back. I watched his eyes and how they would light up with every word he said. I knew then that I loved him even more than I could have ever loved anyone else and being closer to him made me realize just how much I would really miss him.

"Oh, Liam also said that  I can come in to work tomorrow!" He exclaimed while his fingertips continued to gently graze my skin. 

"That's great. I'm glad that everything's working out" 

I was happy that he was getting his life back together because it put a smile on his face, a simple expression that I could never get tired of.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I didn't realize that I had drifted off to sleep when I awoke to the rays of sunlight shining through my window, illuminating the room. With my eyes still closed, I reached my arm out beside me, where I thought Zayn would be, but all I touched was a cold and empty spot. 

I sat up, clearly worried as to where he could have gone but felt a bit of relief when I saw a green post-it note on the foot of the bed.

Lovely,

I went into work today and won't be out until 9. I'll be back when my shift is over. Have a great day, I love you. 

I held the note to my chest, treasuring that someone actually cared enough about me to let me know where they were, and that they were coming back to me. 

I glanced at the clock seeing that it was a little past noon and decided to take a well deserved shower. I finished sort of quickly and got dressed in a blue t-shirt and black jeans. I looked in the full length mirror that was hung in my room and felt that I looked decent enough to face the world. As I walked out of my crammed apartment and into the hallway, I made the immediate decision that I would cook Zayn dinner tonight. It would be a great way to sort of celebrate that he had gotten his job back. It might not be a big deal to him, but I just wanted to do something simple and nice. I got in my car and mentally thanked Zayn for bringing it back after the whole fiasco at the hospital happened. I put the car into gear and smiled, making my way to the nearest grocery store.