Status Single (One Direction)

The Mall

Chapter Twelve

Natalie's POV

"Okay, meet back here in two hours?" Louis suggested, and Zayn and I nodded.

Everyone went their separate ways, and the two of us hailed down a taxi. We got inside, and the driver turned to look back at us for instructions.

"Can you...take us...to the mall?" Zayn asked slowly and loudly, using a lot of hand gestures.

The driver raised an eyebrow, not understanding a word.

"The mall?" Zayn tried again, "Shopping?"

The man still had no idea what he was saying, and I let out a sigh.

"Pouvez-vous s'il vous plaît nous emmener au centre commercial? Je suis désolé pour mon ami. Il ne parle pas français," I said, giving the man an apologetic smile. He nodded in understanding and relief, and turned back around in his seat.

"You speak French?" Zayn questioned incredulously.

"I'm fluent in five languages," I shrugged, "English, French, Spanish, German, and Italian."

"That's incredible. How do you remember all of it?"

"It's a talent, I guess."

The driver took us to the mall, and I paid him generously.

"Merci," I said, and he smiled as he drove away.

"Okay, a French mall," Zayn sighed, "Where to first?"

I shrugged, "I'm not sure. Let's see what's open at midnight and go from there?"

Zayn smiled and followed me inside. Wow, how wasn't I expecting that?

The aisles were almost completely empty, but the stores were lit up. Everything was covered in cobwebs and fake ghosts for Halloween, which was coming up in a couple weeks.

"I guess this place is really ready for Halloween," I said with a nervous laugh.

Zayn frowned, "You don't seem happy about that."

I shook my head, "It's nothing. Just some childhood things. This place looks like its going to close pretty quick here. Where do you want to go first?"

Zayn looked at me quizzically, but didn't ask. He doesn't need to know about my mother. He doesn't need to know about her crazy beliefs and traditions. That stuff is personal; so personal, only Callie knows about it. Why would I tell Zayn? Zayn Malik, who I'm supposed to hate, but somehow feel drawn to?

No, I can't tell Zayn. I can't tell anybody.

***

I laughed as I put the big hat on Zayn's head. We've been here for about an hour, and so far, we haven't seen anybody else.

"That hat looks amazing," I teased, and Zayn laughed with me.

"I could make this work," he said, strutting through the store.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang, followed by the lights shutting off. My eyes widened, and I immediately grabbed Zayn's arm.

"What just happened?" I cried, and I felt Zayn shrug his shoulders.

"I don't know. Maybe the power went out?"

"There would be backup generators," I stated, "Zayn, what if the mall closed?"

"People saw us in here," he said, but he sounded as if he was trying to convince himself more than me, "It's not like we sneaked in here."

"I don't know," I whispered, "Have YOU seen anybody since we arrived?"

Zayn didn't reply, but that was enough for me.

I let go of his arm and started to run, panic quickly setting in. I ran to the doors and pushed on them, but they wouldn't budge. I pounded on the plastic glass, letting out a desperate yelp.

"Natalie! Nat!" Zayn cried, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me away from the door. I felt warm tears drip down my face, and I clutched Zayn with shaking hands.

"It's alright, Nat. We're going to be fine," he whispered, and I tried to control my breathing.

"What are we going to do, Zayn? How are we going to get out of here?" I sobbed, feeling trapped already. I was panicking, and I didn't want to. I could feel my heart beating like a hummingbird in my chest, and I couldn't stop shaking.

"The mall should open in about six hours. I don't think we can call anybody without getting in serious trouble. Why don't we just stay here for the rest of the night?"

I hesitated, but nodded eventually. Zayn was right; there's nothing else we can do.

I shivered in my black tank top, and unfortunately, Zayn noticed. I didn't want to seem like a damsel in distress, especially not around Zayn. I know nothing about him, and yet whenever I'm around him, I feel like a helpless little girl.

"Are you cold?" Zayn questioned, and I blinked, taking a few seconds to comprehend the question.

"Uh, ya, I guess," I murmured, and Zayn handed me his jacket. I put it on hesitantly, and went to sit down on a nearby bench. I put my head in my hands, and Zayn came to sit with me. He didn't say anything, and neither did I.

"Why do you hate me?" he asked after a long silence, "We were having a lot of fun, and then you went back to hating me."

"I don't hate you, Zayn," I said, and he gave me a look of disbelief.

"I don't!" I assured him, "I'm just a bit competitive, just like the rest of the girls. We're trying to beat you to the #1 spot on iTunes. So far, we're ahead of you by one spot, at #3."

Zayn nodded, "I know. But you don't hate me, right? I really don't want you to hate me, Natalie."

I smiled, "Well, I don't, so you don't have to worry."

The black haired boy grinned, and he looked at ease. I don't know why, but I was slightly put at ease as well. I'm glad, out of all the boys, I was stuck in here with Zayn. He knew how to keep me calm, and I was thankful for that. But every time I looked at him, there was always one thing that crossed my mind, and I knew it was true.

There's a lot more than meets the eye with Zayn Malik.

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Hey guys! thanks for reading! i really appreciate it :)

SO, i've decided to start writing some ONE SHOTS, and i'm taking requests, so if anybody wants me to write a one shot about them, check it out and it it will probably happen. Also, (if requested) i'd be willing to write extra Louis/Paris moments, or other little extras about this story, but they will all be there. Since I've already finished this story, I would be happy to :)

Thank you for the comments on the last chapter :) i was really interested in reading where y'all are from :P its really cool that we've all joined this (CANADIAN MADE...*go canucks!*) website.

Anyways, thank you for reading and i hope you enjoyed it!

Vote, comment, fan!

-KitCat x