"It Just Hurts"|| z.m

[124]

124-Zayn

Three months later..

"Good night, Osaka!" Liam yelled into the microphone. The fans screamed loudly and Zayn smiled tiredly, waving good night. As soon as they got backstage, he collapsed on the couch, his entire body sweaty. The boys were all over him and Louis even checked if he had a temperature.

"I'm fine," Zayn mumbled as he lifted his head up. "It's my sixth concert, I'll make it guys."

Liam sat down beside him and nudged him gently. "Come on, keep yourself hydrated." He handed him a water bottle and a towel. Zayn thanked him under his breath and sat up, his head spinning and stars appearing in front of his eyes. He blinked them away and downed the entire bottle.

Harry was studying him from across the room. "Am I the only one who finds it suspicious that everything's been going this smoothly?"

Zayn sent him a look. "Gee, Haz, thanks for the vote of confidence."

"I'm proud of ya," Niall said softly, plopping down beside him. Zayn smiled at him and leaned back against the chair. He'd been talking to Dr. Tee over the phone ever since the tour had started, and the old man was helping him maintain a sleeping routine. The past month Zayn had achieved seven hours of sleep sleep every day. He had also started working out with Liam before he slept, exhausting himself out and stretching after every session. He'd learned his lesson after the first few concerts when he'd fallen asleep immediately, dreamt the entire time, woken up with a horrible mood, and then had been paranoid the entire day, which led to him not eating a thing because of lack of appetite and then he'd become jumpy again at every scream of his name. It was all connected.

Liam smiled proudly at him. "We all are. You've managed both things."

"Well, I suppose some things can be fought for," Zayn said, a content feeling in his stomach despite how tired he was.

"Let's go grab dinner before you two hit the gym," Louis said, munching on a protein bar and throwing them all one each. "The rest of us will hit the studio."

"I have some ideas for lyrics," Liam informed him. "I'll send them to you."

"Hey no, you can go to the studio with them," Zayn told him, not wanting to hold him back. Liam was great at writing songs, and he enjoyed it quite well too.

"Oh no, it's fine," Liam assured him quickly. "I'm not leaving you."

Zayn frowned. "I can do my workout alone, Li. It's fine."

Liam hesitated, but then shook his head. "Nope, we're doing it together."

"I can do it with Paddy," Zayn said stubbornly. Liam sent him a look, which Zayn returned. "I'm getting better, Liam, trust me. It's not like I can't live without you guys."

Louis frowned. "I thought it was exactly like that."

Zayn threw his towel at him and Louis laughed. "I'm kidding, bro. Relax, Liam, he'll be fine alone. But you go with him just in case, I'll look over the lyrics."

"Guys, seriously," Zayn whined. He turned to Liam. "How about this, you can drop me off at the gym and then pick me up, and Paddy can be with me all the time?"

Niall shrugged. "Sounds okay." Liam exchanged a look with him and the two seemed to come to an agreement. Harry and Louis exchanged looks and seemed to come to an agreement too.

Zayn exchanged pleading looks with Liam, and the other boy sighed. They had come to an agreement as well.

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