Guys I am so, so sorry, I thought I updated on the fifteenth. I just now realized I hadn't pressed the published button 🤦🏻♀️. And here I was wondering why no one was reading the new chapter😬. Don't worry, I'll make it up to you by posting another update as scheduled for today 😊.
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So last time I didn't ask, because well . . . I thought I'd play nice for while. Today, Vote. Comment.If you don't comment a thousand comments, I'll be upset like this.
Don't make me pout :P unless you want me to beat down one of you faves :P
Enjoy the fights x'D
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The bulky blond was taken by surprise and lost his footing. He fell heavily over the fancy food that he had ordered for himself and Clair.
There was a lot of commotion. While half the dining hall screamed in panic. Zayn's managers both jumped in to restrain him. Niall took the opportunity to help Claire move out of the way.
"Mr. Harris, what are you doing!"
"Zayn, that's enough!" Niall glared at Zayn who was struggling against the managers, his eyes burning holes into Derek's skull.
It was only when Claire gasped did Niall saw Derek's bleeding mouth. He straightened up, wiping himself off with a napkin, an eerily smug smirk plastered on his bloody lips.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the bitch, hims-"
Zayn lunged at him again but before either of them reach the other, Claire jumped in between. Derek shoved her away roughly in an attempt to get to Zayn
"Ricky!" she cried in alarm, pushing Derek away. "Rick, please stop!"
An unfamiliar emotion clawed at Niall's insides. He was not sure what was worse, the fact that Clair's palms were pressed against Derek's chest, or that she was already on a nick-name basis with him.
Derek glowered at Zayn for a few seconds, before he met Claire's pleading gaze. Nodding at her slightly, Niall swore he taunted Zayn with a smirk before putting an arm around Clair's waist, drawing her close.
Clair attempted to resist, eyeing Zayn with terrified eyes, but Derek ignored her.
"Put your filthy hands off of her!" Zayn shrugged the managers off and lunged again.
Niall knew his first priority should have been to restraint Zayn, but he was too overwhelmed by the maddening rage building up inside him to contemplate his actions. Advancing towards Derek before Zayn could, he socked him and pried Claire out of his grasp.
Caught off guard by Niall's sudden attack, Derek soon found himself getting showered by blows coming his way from a very fuming, very strong, and a very protective brother.
"Zayn, stop!" Claire screamed at her brother, struggling in Niall's hold. While Niall held on to her protectively, she reached and grabbed her brother's stretched arm who was about to throw another punch at her date.
"Get her to into the car!" Zayn roared, roughly pulling his arm out of her reach.
Claire was shocked by the amount of venom in his tone. Niall's lips parted in surprise. Zayn was not even looking at sister when he instructed him to escort her to the car. Before Claire or Niall could get a word in, the blond, bloodied vermin decided to provoke Zayn more.
"Stop treating her like a child!" Derek seethed. "She is grown up, intelligent woman who can –"
"SHUT YOUR TRAP!" Zayn thundered, proceeding to aim kick at him that he luckily dodged.
"Zayn!"
"In the car, Claire! I said, in the car!" He drowned Claire's voice, "NOW!"
Niall started pulling Claire away. He wanted Zayn out of dinning hall before them, but he knew that was less likely to happen with Claire inside the room. Much to their bad luck, Derek spat blood and to Niall's disgust, it landed on his shirt.
"RICK!" Claire gasped, shocked by his insult, but Derek chose to ignore her protest again.
"Uh Oh," Derek taunted Zayn, a slowly smirk spreading on his lips, "Did I just spit on your boyfriend?"
In an instant of confusing events, Niall saw Derek getting floored, Zayn climbing on top of him beating him to pulp and the security, together with the managers diving after him to break those two apart.
***
"Move!" He heard Zayn growl just as he turned towards the side-hall.
Niall had just exited the manager's office, dealing with the hotel security and the pap they had caught earlier. He had left Claire in a restroom to clean up but apparently, she had run into Zayn again.
"Let go!" Clair struggled against Zayn. She was looking massively annoyed.
"Shut up and move!" Zayn snapped at her, dragging her along.
Claire blinked tears back. She, like Niall was too shocked to form a coherent word as Zayn fixed her with a very intimidating glare. No matter how angry Zayn was or what kind of situation they were in, he had never been so harsh with Clair.
Claire sobbed, stubbornly trying to wretch her arm free, and not giving in.
"Don't test me, Claire!" Zayn seethed when she resisted.
He pulled at her arm, but she firmly planted her feet on the floor, resisting his control.
"Claire!" Zayn threatened, through gritted teeth.
Niall was not sure who he was more mad at. However, the odds were heavily in favor or Zayn receiving his wrath. Annoyed, he roughly grabbed at Zayn's shoulder, catching his attention.
"Let go, Zayn," he told him calmly, a silent warning of an incoming blow not going amiss by his friend.
Not shifting his glare from Claire, who was now crying bitterly, Zayn let go of her arm and stormed away. Niall gently took her hand into his own and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"Come on," he said softly.
Clair followed his lead, wiping at her tears silently.
***
Zayn was having trouble falling asleep, and when he finally did sleep he was haunted by nightmares and dreams he wished would leave him alone. His nightmares from the past together with fears of future kept tormenting his peace. Exhausted, but wide awake, Zayn sat up by the edge of his bed, rubbing his face with his hands.
Apart from his nightmares, he was worried about Claire. The moment they reached home, Claire ran up to her room and shut herself away. Zayn regretted being so hard on her. The image of her crying bitterly swam before his eyes. She had looked at him with terrified eyes as if he was some beast, not her brother.
Overwhelmed by guilt, Zayn jumped to his feet. He walked down the hall to Claire's room. Opening the door ever so slightly, he tip-toed to see her sleeping with the pillow clutched to her chest. Zayn felt his heart stab to see the moisture around her eyes and on the pillow, into which she had probably been crying. She was still in her beautiful black dress. Hating himself for mishandling the situation, he took off her high-heeled shoes and gently shifted her to lie in a more comfortable position.
"I'm sorry, sis," Zayn muttered, covering her with the blanket. "I wish I could tell you what you were getting yourself into."
Kissing her hair, he left, shutting the door behind him softly.
"I was only protecting her," Zayn said out of the blue, still solidly facing the door.
"You were very rough on her," He heard Niall's nonchalant reply.
The indifference in Niall's tone spoke volumes. Zayn sighed, before turning around to face his friend.
"I didn't mean to," Zayn attempted to reason with him.
There was pause in which neither of them said anything. Niall stared at his dark haired friend, as if trying to sort him out.
"On one hand, I am selfishly pleased that you are protective of Claire," Niall began, "but on the other hand, I am massively disappointed. Whatever the reason, Zayn, I can not justify your behavior with her even if I try. How does your anger towards Derek account for how you treated Claire later? You were manhandling her man! And she was not even aware who Derek Hilton was! To her, he was Rick Michelson, a young Californian businessman, looking to open up new branch around! You should have at least heard her out!"
Zayn chewed on the inside of his cheek, staying silent.
"I mean, I get it. Even I thought 'Rick' was a nickname she'd chosen for him. Thank God, that's not the case!" Niall sighed.
Zayn raised a brow, throwing his friend a side-glance out of the corner of his eye. If he wasn't feeling so horrible, he would have asked why Niall sounded so massively comforted to know Claire was not on a nickname basis with Hilton.
"You know you've messed up, man." Niall shrugged. "Yet you still expected me to be understanding. You just want me to believe that you meant well, and not ask questions. For once, I am not so sure I am up for such blind loyalty, Zayn. I'm sorry."
Zayn turned away from his friend, feeling defeated.
"Will you at least look after her?" he requested.
Niall almost laughed out loud.
"Isn't that your job?" He quirked a brow.
"I'm clearly shit at it," Zayn admitted bitterly. "She'll definitely go to him just to spite me. She's just too hardheaded to --"
Niall snorted. Zayn rubbed his temples. He was tired, exhausted. He wanted a freaking break. Without any clue, his mind drifted off to Salma. How he wished he could just get lost into some wild forest with his Bee that very instant.
"Will you?" Zayn repeated, shaking those thoughts away.
"Tell me why?" Niall demanded, "You weren't just angry in there, Zayn. You went crazy. You were literally shouting at her while dragging her out. And you knew she was clueless!"
Zayn hesitated. He was not sure if Niall would understand how scared he was when he saw Claire with Derek. It totally drove him nuts. Zayn was not even aware of half the things he did in his fear and anger.
"Tell me why, and I will do as you ask." Niall pushed him on.
Zayn paced back and forth as if contemplating how much to reveal.
"Derek is bad news," Zayn said quietly, coming to a halt in front of Niall, "Just look at what he was doing, being Rick freakhelson and trying to woo my sister. He's already engaged to someone else, that fu - freaking hound!"
Niall seemed pleasantly aware of Zayn censuring his curse words.
"And the fact that he's a massive buffoon justifies how you treated her?" Niall pointed towards Claire's door.
"No, of course not!" Zayn exclaimed, exhausted.
Niall did not look convinced. Zayn sighed. He knew this was coming. After a moment's thought, he decided to tell Niall why he was so worried.
"Listen Brownie, I know nothing justifies how I handled the situation, especially around Claire, but I was barely thinking when I saw them together. You, her. Both of you think I'm over reacting to see my sister on a date with the rival guy, but you have no idea the dangerous game Claire was getting into. She's just a tool to him."
"A tool to get to you," Niall guessed, and quite accurately too.
"Why else do you think he's here?" Zayn replied, "He obviously came to know about my 'normal' life here. It just scares me to know that instead of blackmailing me by threatening to blow my cover, that manipulative bitch stayed in the dark and targeted Claire. He's into all sorts of things with girls, drugs, abuse, blackmail, you name it. Remember Tyson's girl, Brownie? That was Derek's doing. Who knows what he had planned for Claire . . ."
Zayn trailed off, his eyes straying onto the door behind him. His features were etched into a hard frown. The worry and anxiety were radiating off of him in waves. Niall took in a deep breath, visibly shaken by Zayn's reply. He definitely knew what happened to Tyson's girl, but it was obvious he had trouble believing it.
"Hilton did that?" he asked in a shocked whisper.
Zayn nodded solemnly.
Tyson was Zayn's team mate, one of the best goal keepers in MLS. During the previous season, he was proving to be a real annoyance for the opponent teams. His clean-sheets were one of the main reasons why the Galaxy flew to the top of the table without a single defeat. Their opponents for title-winning game were none other than the bitter rivals, Atlanta United. Everyone was really charged to see the two giants of league clash for the top position.
However, minutes before the kickoff, Tyson received a message. A video of his fiancee. Unclothed and uncovered, she was in bed with another man.
The revelation shattered him. He had a complete nervous breakdown. Everyone on the team knew her. She was like Tyson's shadow, someone he had known ever since he was five.
They were planning on getting married by the end of the year and she cheated on him?
Feeling betrayed and ashamed of her lack of loyalty, Tyson kept the information to himself. He stepped on the pitch, a shattered man. Throughout the game, he appeared frustrated. In the first half alone, he conceded five goals. Everyone was confused by his performance. They were losing by two points. By the end of the half he broke down on the pitch, crying bitterly.
Alarmed, the Galaxy's manager, Zayn's Grandpa, sent for his fiancee. They thought she could soothe his nerves like always. It was only when he screamed at her the moment she entered the dressing room, did they realize there was trouble in paradise. The team was bewildered. Just before the match he had sent her to the top box with a loving kiss and a hug. What could have changed in an hour's time?
Tyson refused to talk. Zayn's grandpa switched him off the field.
Although Zayn and the rest of the attack scored three goals to equalize the score, the Galaxy lost by one point. Without Tyson, they did not have much hope in the penalties. The new goalie was under pressure. Atlanta United would proceed to winning the trophy.
"How? Zayn – What do you mean Hilton did that?!" Niall struggled with the words.
Zayn turned to him. His eyes were dull as the memory flashed past his mind.
"No one would have guessed Hilton's involvement in the whole affair had he not taken a dig at a distressed Tyson after the game," Zayn replied quietly.
Hilton's taunts rang through Zayn's ears as if it had happened only a few hours ago.
"Hope you don't get cheated on for the bronze." He had smirked, throwing a knowing glance at his fiancee who was sobbing hysterically a little further away.
"Tyson almost attacked him," Zayn continued. "Putting two and two together, I took Tyson aside and drilled him till he told me about the message."
Niall gaped Zayn. He could not believe his ears.
"Turns out, his fiancee was drugged before she was assaulted and videotaped. She later revealed that she was continuously blackmailed for weeks over it. The man did not rape her so she had no forensic evidence to report him with. They had drugged her, removed her clothes and made a video. This was all Hilton needed. A weapon that could deliver but one that could not be tracked back to him."
Niall shivered, looking disturbed. Zayn knew he was aware of Hilton's sick psychological games outside the pitch to win the games on the pitch, but he had no idea the man would stoop so low.
"And you won't tell Claire about it?" Niall asked.
Zayn swallowed uneasily, before looking away. It was clear Niall still believed Zayn's behavior with Claire was uncalled for, but now, at least he understood his panic.
"I don't want to scare her," Zayn admitted quietly. "She was already attacked a few weeks ago, and now this happens. . ."
Zayn hated not being completely honest with his best friend, but he could not bring himself to confess his insecurities. He was worried how Claire would react if she realized her freedom and safety were threatened by simply being related to him. What if she realized that the only way for her to have a normal life was by cutting Zayn out of it completely? What if she totally boycotted him like before?
Niall eyed Zayn curiously, as if he could sense his friend was holding something back. However, Zayn did not think it was important for him to know everything. He just had to know enough to be convinced to keep an eye on Claire, and he was.
"I can see her diving headfirst into that dog's trap to spite you." He sighed, "And I don't want that to happen. I'll keep an eye on her."
"Thanks Brownie," Zayn muttered, sounding massively relieved.
Clapping Niall on the back gratefully, he headed back to his room.
***
Salma's P.O.V.
"Well, this is it, I believe," she muttered, swiping her finger across the screen, checking the different layers of Zayn's drawing. "Let's see . . . The legs, the wings, the mouth-parts, antennas, spiracles. . . and yes, we did the abdomen and its segments. So all that's left is the effects you were talking about."
Zayn hummed in response, too engrossed in his work to work out more than a nod. Salma smiled to herself. He wasn't so bad when he wasn't being such a nuisance. She pushed the keys away.
"I'm done for the day," she said, putting her head down on her folded arms. "Wake me up if you hit a dead end."
Zayn smiled, his eyes still fixed on the screen, his pen moving in swift motions.
"I'm good. You can rest," he said. "Sweet dreams."
Salma chuckled, twisting her neck to ease the painful knot there. A frown creased her brow when she noticed Jason stealthily throwing side-glances at her. He pretended to be peering into the microscope but he was more focused on reading the paper in his hands, continuously chewing on his lip as if contemplating.
Salma sat up straight. What was the curly redhead up to?
Jason risked another quick look. Meeting her eye, he hastily gave her his back and glued his eyes to the eyepiece of the microscope. Salma laughed quietly. Really?
"I'll be right back," she muttered at Zayn as she got up.
"What?" Zayn asked, turning his full attention to her. "Where're you going?"
"Dude. Easy!" Salma laughed. "Just going to check up on him. It's not like I'm running away, leaving you with vague drawings and no way out."
Zayn's eyes turned darker as they shifted to the junior who still had his back to them.
"Just let me know if something's unclear," Salma called over her shoulder.
Jason jumped when Salma took a seat next to him.
"I was only --!" he cut short abruptly, realizing it was her. "Oh! . . . it's you."
"Disappointed much?" Salma joked, raising a brow. Jason swallowed, shaking his head quickly. "So, you were only what?"
Jason threw a scared look over his shoulder. Seeing Zayn boring holes into his skull with his glare, he flinched.
"It's alright," the junior whispered. "You do your work first. I can wait."
"I'm free right now," Salma replied, throwing a dirty look at Zayn for being a jerk. "Do you need help?"
Jason hesitated. He attempted looking over his shoulder without actually turning his head.
"Am I to take it that you need my help but his approval?" Salma asked, jerking a thumb in Zayn's direction. Jason shook his head. Salma turned her tone softer. "Don't worry about him. He's nothing that can't be handled. Now . . ?"
Salma smiled, trying to ease the junior's nerves. He gave her a weary smile, slowly reaching out to hand her the list he had been reading.
"These species are in the restricted --"
"No problem!" Salma jumped to her feet before he could complete his request. She paused midway and reached for the bottle of water on the counter. "Have a drink," she offered it to Jason. "You look like you're about to faint."
Jason let out an embarrassed laugh, accepting the bottle. Salma shook her head in amusement.
Scaredy cat! she thought to herself, but could she blame him? Zayn was still trying to burn him alive with his fiery glare.
Author's Note:
Looks like we're headed for yet another eruption
Lots of love,
J