She had her reasons for being at the club, but she couldn't tell Zayne the truth. He'd lose his mind if he ever found out why she went. So she did the only thing that felt safe, she lied. Even knowing it might destroy them if he found out. Hopefully not, she thought. But a lie still felt better than the ugly truth.
She stared down at her hands, heart pounding. He was still waiting for an answer, eyes fixed on her like he could read every thought she tried to bury.
"I just… needed to get out," she said finally. "Everything's been too much lately. The noise, the pressure... it felt easier to drown it out than sit alone with my thoughts."
Zayne's jaw tightened. "So you went to a club full of strangers to 'clear your head'?"
"I wasn't thinking," she admitted, her voice small. "I just wanted to feel normal for a few hours."
He studied her for a long moment, the silence stretching. Then he sighed, leaning back slightly. "You could've called me."
She forced a smile, thin and shaky. "You were the last person I wanted to worry."
That part wasn't a lie.
"But you said you weren't feeling well when I came to check up on you," Zayne said, his tone even but heavy. "And then I find out you're at a club?"
Her stomach sank. The words hit harder than she expected. She opened her mouth, then closed it again. Nothing came out.
It wasn't that she couldn't answer she just didn't have the courage to build another lie on top of the first. Shame crept up her throat, burning hotter than the hangover.
Zayne watched her in silence, his eyes searching her face for something—an explanation, maybe honesty. When she didn't speak, he shook his head and looked away.
"Right," he muttered quietly. "Got it."
The air between them shifted no yelling, no accusations, just that heavy, disappointed quiet that hurt more than anger ever could.
A random thought popped out of her mind. She was way too focused on lying to Zayne that she didn't think about the fact that he found him without her telling her where she was and it became very suspicious of him. She decided to flip the script and pin him down.
"Wait a minute… how did you know where I was?" she asked, eyes narrowing, a mix of suspicion and curiosity dancing in her gaze.
Zayne leaned casually against the wall, his usual calm aura intact. A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
"Let's just say I pay attention," he replied smoothly, voice low enough to make her pulse skip. "You're not as hard to find as you think."
"That's… not very reassuring," she said, crossing her arms. "I never told you I was going out, let alone a whole club."
He tilted his head slightly, his gaze softening just enough to disarm her. "I didn't need to be told. I just… knew."
Her brow furrowed. "Knew?. That sounds… stalkerish." she said with a confused look on her face as if trying to piece in the puzzle
"Only if I told you how," he said, the faintest teasing glint in his eyes. "But I won't. Let's just say… I like knowing you're safe."
She felt her heart betray her, fluttering in a way she wasn't ready to admit. She immediately stopped trying to play detective with him. There was danger in his calm, but also… a strange, thrilling kind of trust.
Her phone buzzed, cutting the tension. She glanced at the screen. "Caleb…" she muttered under her breath, irritation flickering across her face.
Without another word, she pushed tried getting out of bed but her head buzzed from hungover. "I need some air," she said, voice sharp.
Zayne immediately saw her reaction and got out of bed to hold her up, "Hey, be careful.....you need to eat first then take medicine...okay?", he said reaching for her temple to check her temperature.
She paused mid-step, frowning, caught between rolling her eyes and feeling that familiar, stubborn pull she always got around him.
She felt like she was back to being babysat by her boyfriend and she didn't need that right now, now that she thought about it she did need to eat first before rushing into other stuff. She hated how right her boyfriend was, all sweet and gentle that she forgot to relax. She didn't fight too much but obeyed him.
"Fine, what are planning to make for breakfast?", she asked as she said she went back to sitting on the bed.
"Toasted bread, eggs and beacon", he said while reaching his hand out as a form of gesture to help me get up. "I didn't add tomato cause you don't like it", he chuckled while I took his hand and got up. she just kept quiet while he lead me downstairs and t the kitchen counter. She sat om the stool, and he placed the plate in front of her and for a moment, she only stared at him.
Apart of her felt guilty, another part of her ached for someone she hadn't let go of.
Caleb.
Her mind drifted off into flashbacks of him....of them together, being happy and silly. 'What went wrong?', She asked herself. The question lingered, heavy and unanswered and for some reason, she couldn't stop thinking about the random girl's voice, the one that still echoed in her head.
Zayne noticed her distance stare, he waved a hand in front of her face, pulling her out of her trance.
"You're somewhere else", he said while leaning against the counter, his eyes studying her closely.
"It's nothing", she replied, brushing it off as she looked down at her food. The smell of eggs suddenly made her stomach churn, her breathing hitched, nausea rising fast. She pushed herself off the stool and rushed towards the bathroom.
The bathroom door slammed behind her, echoing like a heartbeat she could not control. She leaned over the sink, gripping the edge, taking a deep breathe but unable to focus on the breathing, everything felt odd. The smell of the eggs still clung to her senses, bur it wasn't just that, it was the swirl of guilt, confusion, and longing that made her stomach twist. The thought of Caleb being with another girl, felt unreal and sickening.
She splashed cold water on her face, trying to ground herself. "Focus. Breathe. Not him", she whispered to herself in the bathroom.
A soft knock came at the door and it froze her mid-motion.
"Hey....you doing okay in there?"
Zayne's voice was calm, patient, but there was that weight behind it and the kind that made her spine tighten without realizing.
"I'm fine, Zayne", she responded, her voice sharper than she intended.
"Mind if I come in?"
Her chest tightened again, part of her wanted to say yes, part of her wanted to disappear into the tiles.
Eventually, she whispered, "it's okay...just...give me a minute."
She turned on the tap again, water running over her hands, over the trembling that she couldn't quite hide. 'Why does everything feel like it's spinning?'
Outside, Zayne's quiet presence lingered, a steady anchor she wasn't sure she deserved or wanted and for some reason, she knew, deep down that whatever she felt for Caleb or whatever had been left unsaid, wasn't ready to leave her mind just yet.