Zayne Mahone sat in a diner, his body shaking as he waited for the man he'd invited to appear. He wasn't ready for this, God he wasn't, but every moment he thought of giving away his life he knew that this was right.
The waitress at the counter stared at him worriedly. He couldn't blame her. Ever since he'd walked in he'd been shivering and he probably looked like a scared little boy. He sat up and tried not to seem so afraid. He was graduating this year.
He was a man.
The bell rang as the door opened and Keith walked in, a man at his side. Refraining from rolling his eyes at the fact that a bodyguard was present, Zayne leaned back and watched the man sit across him. He looked clean, betraying the twisted heart hidden in his chest.
"Zayne," He sat down and chuckled, "You called?"
There was an edge in his voice that suggested that he wasn't happy at being called by one of his henchmen. Zayne grinned, surprised by the sudden confidence that had overtaken him. The bodyguard didn't crack a smile.
"Yes I did," Zayne answered, "I wanted to talk about Italy."
Keith shook his head, "We talked about this Zayne. You lost the bet. You come to Italy with me."
Zayne nodded quickly. "Yeah I know. I know. 3 years in your service," He leaned forward, lowering his voice, "Only 3 years. After that I'm free. Max and I are free."
The older man chuckled bitterly, crossing his arms over his chest. He gave Zayne a long look before he chuckled again. "You think you can call the shots?" He asked, "Boy. I'm the reason you're not in prison."
"And I could be the reason you aren't either," Zayne shot back, narrowing his eyes, "I was a minor back then. I had no idea what I was doing was wrong. But now I know what's wrong. I've seen everything you've done Keith-"
The older man growled at the sound of his name but Zayne persisted.
"I know what's right and what's wrong. A word from me and we both go down."
The bodyguard took a step towards Zayne and he didn't even flinch. Instead his eyes went to the waitress by the counter who put her hand in her pocket. Keith followed his eyes before returning to Zayne. "You brought someone with you?" He asked.
Zayne nodded, "My daddy's rich. I can afford a bodyguard too."
He smiled and Keith turned red with anger. His composure was slipping, Zayne could tell. Instead of snapping, he took in a deep breath and sat back, "What makes you so sure I can't kill you in Italy?"
"There's two of us remember?" Zayne answered immediately, "Kill me and Max takes the information."
He was bluffing. He didn't think Max would do this for him. In fact he'd call him stupid. But of course Keith didn't know that.
And he didn't need to know that.
"You're a fucking twat you know that?"Keith shook his head. His face had lost its anger and he slumped back into his chair, "You really thought this through huh?"
Zayne remained silent. Keith chuckled again. He seemed to do that alot today.
"We'll done Mahone," He stood up, "I'm proud of you. Now excuse me while I go look for a loophole."
The two men walked out together, leaving Zayne releasing his breath as he sat back. The air around him was cooler and even though his freedom was 3 years away, he could taste it.
He stood up and walked to the door, nodding to the waitress who took off her apron and walked to the back of the building. Zayne stepped out and walked towards his car, his mind spinning with thoughts of Tris.
He pulled his phone out and as expected there were a million messages from her. She had been trying to spend as much time with him as possible ever since finding out he was leaving. As much as he enjoyed her hovering, he had to mute her just for this meeting.
As if she sensed that he'd switched on his phone, his phone began to ring and he answered. "I'm sorry for hovering," She said guiltily on the other side, "I was just wondering if you wanted to meet up for a movie tonight. We can go to our spot."
Zayne smiled, entering the car. He looked around and saw that the black car Keith had pulled up in was gone. Releasing a breath of relief, he sat back. "I'd love that," He answered.
He tried to ignore the fact that he was leaving the next day. He'd gone around saying goodbye to his friends. Only Max had known the real reason Zayne was leaving so he hadn't been such a pain this last week.
He'd pushed saying goodbye to Tris to the last minute. There was so much he had wanted to tell her but he couldn't release the words, too guilt ridden. For some time he'd been thinking about the fact that the reason they'd even started talking wasn't because he was genuinely interested in her- it had been because of a bet.
But then he got to know her. He got to fall for her. And now he was leaving her.
Sighing, he started the car as she spoke again. "Great," He could practically hear her smile on the other side. "I'll pick the movie."
"Nothing too girly eh?" Zayne smiled, flicking through his options on the radio. She chuckled.
"No promises. See you."
She hung up and he slipped his phone into his pocket. After a moment of contemplation he began to drive. He had something he needed to clear up.
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Rachel Grey opened the door and blinked at Zayne Mahone. He blinked back and she stepped back, eyebrow raised. "You're here for Max?" She asked quizically, "I thought you hated him."
"Why would you assume I'm here for your brother?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.
The girl snorted, "You're obviously not here for me."
Zayne remained silent as he stepped inside. Rachel shouted for Max and led Zayne to their large living room. He sat on one of the custard coloured couches and she sat on another one, eyeing him skeptically.
The living room was large. Three custard yellow couches surrounded a custard yellow rug and the tv practically towered over them. He remembered then that the Grey's were rich.
"I take it you lost the bet?" She asked suddenly. Eyes wide, Zayne looked up at her and she rolled her eyes. Her dark hair was tied into a high ponytail and her grey eyes were on her sweatpants. Her attire looked calm but he could see anger in her posture.
"How do you know?" He asked simply.
She gave him an unimpressed look. "Max is my brother. I've known about Keith this whole time."
There was silence for a moment before she spoke again.
"Just know that I'm happy you lost the bet," Her eyes finally met his, "I can't lose my brother."
Those words should have hurt him but Zayne felt nothing. He just tilted his head at her. "Funny how you call yourself Tris' best friend and you can't tell her about this bet," He raised an eyebrow, "Did you even try to warn her?"
"I did!" Rachel seethed, insulted, standing up, "I told her to stay away from both of you but you twisted your way into her life and got what you wanted. And now you're leaving!"
Zayne opened his mouth but she cut him off. "Do you know how much like a lovesick puppy she's acting?" She screamed, "She calls me every night crying because you're leaving her Zayne. You're fucking leaving her like I knew you would and I wish I could tell her that you're just a scumbag but it'll ruin her. It'll-"
"Rachel!" Max walked into the room, looking angry, "Leave."
An awkward silence crept into the room before Rachel huffed and walked away.
Max sat in the spot she'd been in and sighed, running a hand through his hair. He looked at Zayne expectantly and from his attire of just sweatpants, it was obvious that he hadn't been planning to see anyone that day.
"What can I do for you?" He asked.
Zayne rubbed his hands on his legs and let out a deep breath. "I came to tell you that once we leave you'll be completely free," He said, "I talked to Keith and told him my three years with him is the last time ever."
Max's eyes widened, "You're kidding."
Zayne shook his head and for just a moment, he remembered how it had been when him and Max had actually been friends. It seemed like decades ago but it was just two years ago. When they had been stupid 16 years old entering high school.
"It's a long story. I just want you to know that if anything happens to me, all the evidence is underneath my bed. You can remove any that puts you in the picture," He said. Max nodded and relief was evident on his face.
"Damn Zayne," He paused, not sure what to say, "Thank you. Thank you so much."
And now to the hard part.
"I'm telling Tris about the bet," Zayne continued. He had thought about it the whole way and Rachel's words had just solidified his decision. He couldn't leave her waiting for him while he knew he didn't deserve her.
"What?" Max's face paled. "Zayne, you'll destroy her."
"You don't care about her," Zayne snapped, "You're just scared for your reputation."
The grey eyed boy stood up and the blonde haired boy stood up in response, daring him. "You'll put her in danger Zayne. Nobody should know about Keith," Max tried to reason.
A scoff left Zayne's mouth and he looked around. "You told Rachel about Keith," He shot back, "Blood is thicker than water Max.You should be more worried about her safety. "
Scrunching his hands into fists, Max stepped forward intimidatingly. Zayne stared back, unimpressed.
"Zayne," Max said, sounding weaker than he looked, "You can afford not to care about your reputation. You're leaving. You can't leave me like this."
There it was. What he was really afraid of. And Zayne understood. Being a king was everything in high school. The fame they had made them giants. Respected. The ones people talked about- the ones people wanted to be. And that mattered to Zayne.
Well it had, at some point.
"I'm sorry Max," Zayne answered, "I can't leave her thinking I deserve her when I've been lying to her.... I wish you could understand."
Max didn't say anything as Zayne left the house.
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Hey hey!
Thank you so much for reading this chapter x
I hope you enjoyed and I'd really appreciate feedback
love
Musawa