Zayn

Zayn's been beating himself up ever since that first meeting with Liana because who the fuck says shit like, "isn't it a little early to get my measurements?"

Good going, jackass.

He doesn't even know where that came from. For the first time in his life, he's considering what someone else may think of him. He doesn't know why, but he is, and he can't stop.

He's wondering what her first impression of him is--if she is just as affected by his presence as he is. She was flustered, yes, he knew that much, hell, he was flustered too in her presence. There is just something about her, something that makes him short of breath and his skin tingle.

Zayn isn't sure if it's a figment of his imagination or if all of that really happened. All he knows is that he felt something, which is enough to convince him that it was real. And he wants to feel it again. He hasn't felt something like this in so long.

It sounds crazy, he knows. But when their hands touched, he felt this sense of deja vu that he couldn't quite put his finger on. But not only that, the crazier thing is that when he took her hand, it was like she had pulled him out of the darkness that was his life, and brought him into light. It sounds absolutely fucking insane. He doesn't know if it's all the weed he smokes that's making him delusional or if it's just her. But this is exactly why he wants to be around her again. To know exactly what it is that she does to him.

She's beautiful. God, she's absolutely gorgeous. However, he doubts Liana is going to be friendly with him after his unprofessional behavior. It was like his mouth had completely disconnected from his brain in front of her. And Zayn had forgotten how to act. He'd even gotten his fair share of scolding from Leah over his stupidity.

"This is a really serious project, Zayn," she said, "You can't just go around saying stuff like that. You have to be more professional. You made her uncomfortable. You made me uncomfortable with that lame ass joke. What are you, 5? I'm sure she overlooked it because she really likes you for her campaign. But you need a filter, for the love of God."

He had apologized to Leah because she was right: this is a serious project. He can't go messing things up. He needs to think rationally, not instinctively which is what he tends to do more of.

Which is why he's waiting to see Liana so he can apologize to her as well. He hadn't seen her at the fitting. She'd been busy that day. But today is the day of the photoshoot which will be taking place in an outdoor set for the most part and some indoor. Zayn's already dressed in his first outfit and is currently getting his hair and makeup done.

They were set up in a room that lead to the balcony, which is where the shoot would begin. Zayn sits in a chair while the woman whose name he learned is Dana, does the final touches.

"All done, love," She says with a sweet smile.

Finally.

Zayn thanks her and walks over to where his accessories have been laid out for him. He's grown accustomed to always wearing something on his hands. He slides a few rings on and then some bracelets. He gives himself a final look in the mirror, examining himself and making sure everything looks fine. Once he's done, he gives himself a thumbs up.

"Well don't you look handsome." Leah compliments. Zayn hadn't even noticed that she'd walked over. He rolls his eyes in response but a hint of a smile can be seen.

"Where's Liana?" Zayn asks her. He has been here a while and he still hasn't seen her. His anxiety is currently impeding.

"I think she stepped out to get something. She should be here soon."

Zayn's focus is diverted when the photographer comes to greet him.

"Mr. Malik." He puts his hand out which Zayn shakes.

"Please, call me Zayn." He hates it when people call him Mr. Malik. Especially if they're older than him which the photographer appears to be.

"Of course. Nice to meet you, Zayn. I'm Wael. Everything is set up so we're ready when you are."

Zayn nods and follows the photographer out to the balcony. Then he hears her voice.

"Coffee!"

Zayn turns and sees Liana walk inside. She has a tray of Starbucks coffee in her hands as she walks over to some of the crew members and hands out their drinks. She's wearing a long green jacket that is zipped up all the way, hiding her figure and making her seem tinier than she actually is.

Once she's done handing out the coffee, she looks over and catches Zayn watching her. And Zayn, being the awkward individual that he is, just waves at her with a smile.

To Zayn's relief, she smiles back. She begins to walk out onto the balcony, her arms are crossed and as she gets closer Zayn notices that her nose and cheeks are pink. She must be cold.

"Ana!" Wael yells. "Where you been girl?"

Liana looks over Zayn's shoulder towards Wael. "Wael!" She yells back while laughing. "I was getting coffee. Yours is inside."

"Well, thank God you're here now. You can make sure Zayn's good to go for the shoot."

She nods before turning to face Zayn.

"Hi!" She greets, her lips stretching out into that beautiful smile of hers. The kind where her perfect teeth are on full display and makes it feel like the day has gotten brighter. "How are you?"

"Hey," He greets back, trying to be polite although he hates small talk. "Just hoping this shoot goes well," He says with a shrug.

"Of course it will." She then takes him in from head to toe, doing what Wael had told her. And he notices the way her eyes linger. He's wearing one of the kurta's she designed, a traditional Pakistani top. It's black with gold print. Additionally, he's wearing black jeans and black loafers.

"I knew you were perfect for this shoot. I also apologize for not being able to make it to the fitting but I'm sure my tailors took great care of you. Since the clothes seem to fit really well."

Zayn feels a bit bashful all of a sudden. "Thanks."

"Well, I'll leave you to it then. Wael, don't mess with him too much."

"Yeah, yeah." Wael waves her off.

Zayn has so much more he wants to say to her. But now isn't the time since they've got a shoot to get through. He honestly wishes he could forget about the shoot and just talk to her.

Maybe afterwards, he hopes.

Wael directs Zayn on where to stand and how to pose and then starts taking pictures.

When the time comes for Zayn to change to his next outfit, he walks back inside. Being something that's apart of the routine, he begins to take off his outfit. He slips out of the jacket he had put on later through the shoot, followed by the kurta. Both of which Leah takes from him. He's glad he can keep the same pants on.

When he looks over at the rack of clothing he sees that Liana is already standing there, and her eyes are on him. Zayn walks closer, and notices that she's in some sort of trance. Her eyes are lingering on his shirtless torso as if she's taking in every detail. He clears his throat which snaps her out of it.

"I um..." she shakes her head and blinks rapidly as if she is collecting herself. "Your next outfit, right." She turns towards the rack and grabs a white kurta off of a hanger. She holds it out to him, her eyes no longer meeting his. But when his hand brushes hers as he takes the shirt from her, she immediately looks up. He can swear that he hears her breath hitch, sees her eyes widen, and he definitely notices the way her mouth parts.

Zayn feels a bit smug in this moment because he's gotten the answer to his earlier question of whether she was affected by his presence the way he was by hers—she most definitely is. Because the way she's looking up at him is making him want to do unspeakable things to her. She may not even realize the way she's looking at him. But Zayn has experience in reading girls. And he knows what this particular one wants even if she may not know it herself.

And because he's enjoying this way too much, he makes sure to keep making some kind of contact with her throughout the rest of the shoot. Every time she has to help him get dressed, Zayn is extremely amused by the way she gets flustered.

By the time the shoot comes to an end, it's dark out and the temperature has dropped even more. Zayn is slipping into his coat as everyone packs up their things. Liana is standing with Wael, both of them conversing inaudibly as they look through the camera at the pictures from the shoot. She must be checking how they turned out.

Zayn's feeling a bit self-conscious. He hopes they've turned out how she wanted them to. This, again, is a new feeling for Zayn. He hasn't felt this anxious or self-conscious about himself in while. Fuck, why is he so worried about what she thinks? What makes her so different from every other girl? Zayn has yet to figure that out.

He hasn't even gotten the chance to talk to her properly because of how hectic everything was today. He hopes he can talk to her now. How can he possibly get to know more about her if they're both so busy.

"Zayn, the car is here. You want to head out?" Leah asks him, loud enough for Liana to hear because she looks up from the camera and over at both of them.

"Erm, you go on. I'll be down in a bit." He says without even looking at her.

"Alright. Don't do anything stupid. I'm begging you." She mutters as she walks away.

This makes Zayn turn to her. "Fuck off, yeah?"

Leah, whose back was to him, raises her middle finger in his direction, which makes Zayn chuckle. The thing Zayn loves about Leah is that they have more of a friendship than a professional relationship.

His attention is back on Liana who is now grabbing her things and preparing to head out. He slips his hands into his pockets as he walks over to her. Wael reaches Zayn first, however, and holds his hand out for a handshake.

"It was really great to work with you, Zayn."

"Pleasure was all mine," Zayn responds earnestly as he returns his handshake. "Have a good night, man."

"You too," Wael responds as he heads out.

Finally, he makes it to Liana. She brought a small backpack with her which she had zipped up and was now putting over one of her shoulders. She looks up as Zayn approaches. She's wearing sneakers today rather than heels which makes her quite shorter him.

"Hey," she gives him a tired smile. "I thought you left."

"Nah, I had something to take care of first."

"Yeah?" Her eyebrows raise. "What's that?"

"I didn't really get a chance to apologize for the other day." Zayn starts off nervously, scratching the back of his neck. "I have a habit of saying things without thinking. I don't want you to be uncomfortable with me."

"Oh, that?" She says as if it's no big deal. "Don't worry about it. I'm a big girl. I can handle a joke."

Zayn lets out a relieved sigh. "Really?" He can't help smiling at this point.

"Mhm, no apology necessary."

"Thanks." Zayn is actually a bit shocked by how nonchalant she is. "You weren't at the fitting so I assumed you didn't want anything to do with me after that."

"I wasn't at the fitting because I had a prior scheduled meeting. Otherwise, I definitely would have been there. Who would pass up the opportunity to see your measurements?"

Zayn laughs hysterically. He likes this girl. Perhaps he more than likes her, actually. She's also laughing and Zayn realizes that she's got a cute laugh.

"You're something else, you know that?" Zayn remarks.

He notices a flicker of something in her eyes. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?" She asks lowly.

Zayn hadn't realized before, but she'd gotten closer to him somehow while they were talking. And now he feels as if he can't quite breathe with her being this close. "I'm still trying to figure that out myself."

"Well," She says, breaking their eye contact as she starts to leave. She walks around him and Zayn turns his head slightly to watch her. "Let me know when you do."

Fuck, this girl will drive him mad. Does she even realize what she's doing to him?

As she's about to walk out the door, Zayn remembers that he hasn't gotten her number like he's intended to all fucking day.

"Wait!" He yells after her.

She turns slowly, her eyebrows raised questioningly.

"How am I supposed to let you know?" He asks. "You haven't given me your number."

"I'm not that easy, Zayn. You've got to work for it. I'll see you later."

And with that, she walks out the door and leaves Zayn completely and utterly bewildered for the second time since they'd met.

***

A/N:

Hey everyone! It's been a while, I know. As I'd said before, I may be quite slow with updates because of how busy I am. So please just be patient with me.

I hope you're liking the story so far even if it's a bit slow. Obviously it's still the beginning so it won't pick up much until a few more chapters.

Btw, check out the Zayn moodboard I made that I've attached at the beginning of the chapter!

Please give your feedback! Comment and vote xx

-E