Dedication to @secret_leedle18 for choosing the name of this chapter. Enjoy ;)
Chapter 1: Nervously Awaiting
I impatiently tap my finger against my thigh, watching the clock slowly tick. Can time seriously go any slower? Just five minutes.
"You okay?" My friend, Dustin, asks me. He's obviously taken notice of my jittery movements. I've been like this all day. Could you blame me though? Me best mate is flying out right now just so I can see her get married this weekend.
"Yeah. Just can't wait to get off," I inform. That's when everything clicks for him. I can tell by the way his mouth forms that perfect “O” shape. It’s not really perfect now that I think about it. It’s more of an oval.
"Hunter and Maura are coming out today, right?" He double checks and I nod, wiping down the counter yet again. It sucks being a college student cos there still isn't many jobs you can take. Working at a diner seems the most plausible thing to do.
"Yeah. I can't wait. It's been too long. Plus they're bringing down their son," I smile at the mention of him. I haven’t seen him since he was born. That day was absolutely brilliant.
"I think that they'd want their son for their own wedding," Dustin laughs. I roll my eyes, knowing that he has a point. It’d be dumb if they left their kid.
"You're off Payne," our manager, Austin, tells me. I practically begin jumping with excitement. I drop my dirty rag, disregarding any contact I had with Dustin and hurrying over to the clock out paper. Once I'm done, I bid everyone farewell. I practically run the two blocks to the bus stop. The bus is about to leave until the driver sees me, stopping to let me on.
I thank him and sit near the front so I'm close to the door. I put my headphones in and turn up the familiar tunes of Kanye West, hoping that it'll make the time move faster. I tap my fingers to the beat, singing softly aloud.
I take a look at the faces on the bus, some are familiar, but never try talking to me and I don't with them. I turn away so I can go back to minding my own business when some woman on the bus tries catching my attention. And to be honest, I'm in too good of a mood to even turn her down slightly.
"Hmmm?" I question removing my headphones.
"Are you going back to the university?" The young colored woman asks me. She's pretty attractive if I must say so myself. I might as well keep a conversation going.
"Yeah. You?" I question back.
"No. I'm heading back to the uh daycare. I have a friend who goes there though," she mentions, a smirk growing on her face. She must be really fond of this friend to smile like this. I would never smile about my mates like that, well maybe Maura, but we have history.
"Who is she? Maybe I know her?" I ask thinking of the many girls I meet at the pub with me mates.
"His name is Harry," she tells me making sure I knew that he was definitely a he. I go through all of the names in my head, but not a single Harry comes to mind. I almost feel bad. There’s a lot of people at the University so she couldn’t expect me to know him exactly.
"Oh. Does he work at the daycare with you?" I question. Maybe we can put Ben there while I take Maura and Hunter to the pub as a sort of welcome. Or maybe just Hunter as a bachelor party.
"Yeah. He's great with the kids," she tells me, not bothering to look my way. She’s obviously a lost cause, but a baby sitter is still needed for the weekend and maybe even the following week since I’m watching him while they go on their honeymoon.
"Do you have a card or something? My mates coming out tonight and maybe we can drop of her son," I question and she seems to like the idea.
"Yeah. Here," she says after a moment. She reaches into her bag and pulls out a card, handing it to me which I take gratefully. Soon enough, the bus comes to a stop, my stop. I stand up with my bag, ready to get off. I stop at the door though, making the driver glare at me.
"Oh uh," I say realizing that I never got the woman's name. She puts a piece of her brunette hair behind her ears, looking over at me, gulping.
"Shawny," she says pointing to herself. I nod.
"Liam. It was lovely meeting you. Just make sure you tell Harry that you fancy him soon. He's in UNI and I can guarantee he'll fuck someone else if you don't get him tied down," I smile before jumping off the bus, ignoring the startled gasps from around me. I'm used to this reaction by now with my bold statements.
I quickly make my way to UNI. I take a bit of time to relax, knowing they won't be here for an hour maybe. I walk to the beat of my tunes that fill my ears, smirking at the lasses that walk by, just enjoying the blushes that rise to their cheeks every time. It's quite arousing to be honest. I love knowing that I can get any girl to be this way.
Finally I see the door to the building that leads to my dorm. I open it, allowing the warm air to comfort me as I make my way down the corridors. I climb up the stairs until I reach my floor. I walk down the hall, stopping in front of my door. I unlock it, knowing that my roommate wouldn't be home yet.
As I open the door, I know that I'm correct. I'm a bit disappointed to see that he trashed our room before he left though. Asshole. Books are opened and splattered along the floor, along with his discarded clothing. His book bag is lying across his bed. He must’ve had a date after school or some shit. Who knows? This is disgusting though and I’m going to chew his ass out later ‘cos he knows just how important today is for me.
I get to work on cleaning everything, putting stuff in its right full place, blasting my tunes again. I mumble profanities between lyrics as I am extremely angry at Zayn. I check the time too often as I go along, probably every five to three minutes. I really need help.
I finally finish with the room and I look at the time, knowing that their plane has already landed and they should he here soon. I quickly shoot them a text, asking how their flight was, but receive no response. Their phones are probably still off. Yeah. That must be it.
I lie in bed, watching the time pass by slowly. First five minutes, then eight, and before I even know it an hour has passed. No response. Not a word. They'll be here any minute. They have to be. Right?
What can I do to pass the time ‘til they get here?
I go through all the endless possibilities of options I have, but they get limited quickly when I realize that I need to stay in my bedroom. I groan, only coming up with one sad option that I'd rather die before doing, but do it anyway.
Homework.
I honestly don't understand the point of doing it when I don't understand it. I don't know what I want to do after college though, so I really do need to pass every single one of my classes. Besides, I don't think I could bear the disappointment that would come from not only my family, but Maura also if I failed a class in college. I tend to surprise myself with how much I care at times.
I take out my notes for my science hour and begin studying for the test that we're having tomorrow, something that I never do. I groan, still checking the time every other minute, removing my eyes from my notes. Before I even know it, another two hours has passed, making it about nine.
"This is ridiculous," I shout to no one in particular. I pick up my phone and scroll through my messages, stopping on my conversation with Maura. I slide her name over and put the phone to my ear. I wait to hear a ring, but one doesn't come. Instead, I'm greeted by her lame, "hey. This is Maura. I'm so sorry I couldn't get to the phone. Leave me a comment at the beep. Beep."
I throw my phone at the bed and open my laptop. I Google the plane times and see that theirs did in fact land three hours ago. I slam my laptop shut and run my fingers through my hair, angry that they're ignoring me.
I look to the door as I hear laughter, only to see my best mate stumbling through the door, waving goodbye to one of his friends that he was out with today.
"Hey. I'm Zayn, Liam's roommate. You must be.....where are they?" He asks me. His face kind of drops, confusions masking his tan skin. I don’t know what it was, but I just blew up.
"The hell if I know. It's not like the called to let me know or anything. Fuck," I practically yell in frustration, almost dispersing my notes across the room.
"They probably have jet lag and went straight to a hotel. It's norm - were you studying?" He obviously loses track of his thoughts easily. Something that comes in handy, but is a bloody nightmare at times.
"Yeah. I didn't know what to do while waiting for them to show up," I inform while running my fingers through my hair.
"Calm down mate. I'm sure they'll call you soon and explain. Have a beer. You need to calm your nerves," he says handing me the beverage. I accept it, quickly opening it and taking a swig. This is how the rest of the night goes too, me drinking away my worries with my best mate.
“Where were you anyways?” I ask taking a swig of the beverage in my hands.
“Some lass wanted to go for a cup of tea. Lame ass date if I say so myself. She was fit though,” Zayn comments, laying down on his duvet that I happened to make for him during my cleaning process.
“Did you at least get some?” I question.
“Nah. She has some stupid five date rule or some shit. Not worth it,” he shrugs.
“No late night call with Hazel again?” I ask, looking over at my best mate only to find that not even the mention of his best mate could keep him awake. I sigh and set my alcohol aside, sliding under my own duvet. I try to sleep, but uneasy thoughts at Maura, Hunter and Ben just keep invading my mind.
~~
A/N: poor liam! He's such an asshole, but I love him and he cares so much and ugh. Zayn’s an ass too to be honest. They’ll get better along with this book. It’s kind of misleading at first, but you’ll get it.
Please vote and comment and shit. I love you♡
Alex xx