It's not even a fair fight, when you look at me with those eyes

I get weak in the knees, and I'm begging you please;

Let it be the real thing.

When I ask your name, the fire burns

Bright eyes, come a little closer now

Let's burn on through the night.

- "Air" || FMLYBND

________

"Hey? Thought you were going out tonight, mate."

"Guess not," shrugs Zayn from the couch.

Niall raises a brow, taking in the way his friend is lounging on the couch, eyes glued to the game on the television. "Y'alright?"

Zayn frowns. "Yeah, mate. I'm fine. Why?"

Niall shrugs. "No reason, I guess..."

"Anais left, Niall," Louis says at once. "She's left Zayn to hang out with her other friends."

Niall nods.

Now, it makes sense.

____

Anais sits with her legs tucked beneath her in the living room of Chanel and Jourdan's flat.

She's beside Joan on the gigantic couch the girls have, and she's so comfortable and also a bit sleepy and very very hungry.

"Eew, what the hell is this?" Cara exclaims from the kitchen.

Chanel frowns. "Uh, cookies," she replies.

Cara wrinkles her nose at the box on the counter before her. "These are not cookies," is her response. "These are rocks," she says, lifting one and banging it against the counter. "Or like, bricks."

Joan laughs. "Cara!"

"They're gluten free!"

"Chanel, you can eat gluten," Magdalena exclaims. "Why do you keep buying food without it?"

"Yeah, and Jourdan's like, a chef," Cara says, throwing the cookie back into the box. "Have her make you a salad and get a real fucking cookie."

"I like Whole Foods, okay? Thanks. Get off my dick."

Daphne laughed, pulling out a box of popcorn. "What are we doing tonight, ladies?"

"What are we eating for dinner?" Anais exclaims over the yelling, because she woke up on Zayn's couch only to find that she'd fallen asleep on him and it was nearly 8:30 when she shook him awake.

"Shit," she'd exclaimed, because they'd talked, and then Liam came over and they talked more until Niall came home too and they talked more until eventually, Anais passed out and took like, a three hour nap on Zayn's chest.

"Whoa, what?" He'd asked groggily, rubbing his eyes as she searched around for her things. "What's the matter, Anais?"

"I've got to go," she said at once. "Holy shit, Chanel's gonna be so pissed if I'm late."

"It's like, a sleepover, no?" He asked, rising with a stretch. "Honestly, like, how mad can she be?"

"Um, I'm not trying to push it," was her response, as she grabbed for her coat and her bag and her phone. She had thirty minutes to get home and change and get to Chanel's. Anais rushed to the door. "Bye, Zayn!"

He stared confusedly after her. "Uh, okay? Bye, Anai -"

And she was out the door before he could finish the statement, the door closing heavily behind her.

And he stared after her, stunned.

Then, the door opened again.

"I'm so sorry," she said, out of breath.

He smirked. "You're back?"

"I'm back," she grinned, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him quickly on the lips.

His fingers grasped for her waist, and she laughed, wiggling from his grip.

"I have to go, Zayn," she said.

"Do you, though?"

"Yes," and she kissed him again.

This time, Zayn walked her to the door, watching as she threw a wave and a smile over her shoulder. "Call me later, yeah?"

"Of course, love."

And then, Anais had rushed home.

"I'm like, starving," she sighs. "I'm literally so hungry I could eat anything, like, one of those awful cookies."

Soo giggles. "Zayn doesn't feed you?"

"Sorry," she slaps her with a couch pillow, "He's not Louis."

"Yay, boys!" Daphne exclaims, jumping up and down excitedly.

"No, boys," sighs Joan. "Eew, boys."

"Pizza, anyone?" Calls Chanel. She holds up her phone, shaking it around.

"Yes!" Anais screams.

"Jeez, someone get this girl something to eat," Joan laughs.

"Here," Jourdan rises from the floor, patting her leg, "I've got something for you while we wait."

"Get a vegetarian pizza, please," begs Daphne.

"And something simple, like cheese," adds Magdalena.

Chanel nods as Jourdan returns to the living room with two bottles of wine and plastic cups.

She tosses Anais a red Solo cup.

"Red?" She asks, holding up one of the bottles . "Or white?"

And Anais gets really tipsy drinking on an empty stomach.

By the time the pizzas arrive, the girls are giggling, having plugged Chanel's laptop to the television, they scroll through various social media sites, gossiping.

"Shit-That's him," says Magdalena.

They're scrolling through Harry Styles' Instagram and they're laughing at his captions, until Mags stops on one particular picture of him flanked by two of his friends.

Joan chokes on the wine in her cup. "Harry?"

"Not Harry, Joan. God."

Daphne frowns. "Matty?"

Because despite obviously not being in Design, Matty was often asked to do the A/V at fashion shows. He was, as the girls often called him, 'The Music Man,' and apparently he hooked up with Daphne once but since no one talks about it, neither does Anais.

"No, Daphne! The last one, okay? Jesse, alright?"

Cara laughs. "Rutherford?"

"Yes," Magdalena sighs. "God, he's just so fuckin' hot I just wanna lick his tattoos like an ice cream cone..."

"Graphic much?" Anais snorts, lifting her cup. She motions towards the tattooed boy besides their friends. "Why don't you talk to him when you've got the chance, then?"

Magdalena rolls her eyes. "Because he's in a band and he's majoring in music and what the hell do I do? Nothing in comparison. Really, it's like everyone else in Tisch is so much cooler and more talented and I can kind of draw and model sometimes," she deadpans. "He's probably got a girlfriend, anyway."

"He doesn't."

"How do you know, Daph?"

"Because I do," is her response.

"Which is code for, 'because I fuck Matty on occasion,'" replies Joan, who takes a pillow to the face for that one.

Anais gasps as the girls around her break out into a fit of laughter.

"I thought that was a one-time thing!" She screams.

"Yeah," Joan exclaims, "I did too, until I came home one morning and he was leaving!"

The little apartment erupts with noise.

"What?" Magdalena exclaims. "Since, since when?"

"No," Jourdan laughs, "for how long?"

"I-"

Soo wiggles her eyebrows. "You like him, Daphne?"

"I never said that!"

"You're blushing! OMG," Soo throws her head back and laughs aloud, "You like him!"

"I didn't-Stop!" She exclaims, covering her face with her hands. "You're being mean, you bitches!"

Anais laughs so hard she can't catch her breath. "It's what you get, you instigator!"

Cara snorts. "Anais would know. She catches enough shit for fucking Za-"

"Don't," Anais glares. "Just, don't even say it, Cara."

"What? Did you forget the hickeys he gave you?"

"Can we please get off this?" Exclaims Anais. "Why are we always discussing my love life?"

"Oh," Cara smirks, "so you're in love, now, Anais? This is new."

"Shut up, Cara! Did you forget that I'm not having sex with him?"

Chanel chokes on a laugh. "Not like Daphne, apparently!"

And that makes the place grow loud again.

Magdalena grabs Daphne's hand. "Introduce me, Daph. C'mon, please?"

"To who?"

"Jesse," she rolls her eyes. "Duh."

"Well, isn't this great," Chanel laughs shortly. "All of you finding boys that like you while I'm single and lonely," she throws up her hands. "Hooray!"

Anais grabs her hand. "Want to get set up?"

"Oh my fucking god, yes," exclaims Soo. "We can totally set you up! Louis' got like, a billion friends and-"

"Do not set me up with Harry," she says.

"Obviously not since he's not your type," scoffs Soo.

Jourdan turns to Cara. "Didn't you hook up with him?"

She shrugs carelessly. "Eh. Maybe."

Anais snorts, rolling her eyes.

"No, but seriously, Chanel," Soo continues, grabbing her forearm and bouncing on the pillows. "Please let me set you up? We can double date - No," she sends me a sly grin, "we can triple."

Chanel turns to me. "You're his girlfriend, now, Ana?"

"No," she says quickly, because she doesn't want her friends to get the wrong idea and for that news to get back to Zayn would just be mortifying. "And please don't say that, like at all."

"He's not your boyfriend?" Jourdan asks, surprised.

"No," is her response. "Why'd you think that?"

Cara laughs. "Really, Ana? 'Cause everyone does."

"Who the fuck is 'everyone?'"

Cara rolls her eyes. "Um, us."

Jourdan snorts. "Pretty much everyone who matters."

Anais pulls a face. "So, okay. Great. My friends think I have a boyfriend. I don't. That's fun."

Daphne throws her arm around Anais' shoulder. "It's okay, Ana. You won't be the only one with a bad boy once Magdalena hooks up with Jesse."

"Um, if I hook up with Jesse."

"Zayn isn't a bad boy," Anais sighs. "Can we get over that, please?"

"Well, I'd know if you ever introduced us to your boyfriend," scoffs Daphne.

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Yet, Anais," says Soo. "Okay? He's not your boyfriend, yet."

-~*~-

Yay more couples means maybe Anais' friends will stop making fun of #Zanais now...?

Maybe.

Hah probably not.

I love you guyssss. 7k reads I am crying hot tears of joy.

Comment and vote! xx

Also pic of Chanel Iman aka my spirit animal.