Just like the moon, i come out of phases of emptiness to be full again. Dont forget to vote and comment idk i rly need it rn. Sigh. Also pls read the rant at the end. Thank you to all the people who invest time in reading this. All the love x:')

~

when we collide
13| like the moon

When you were young you'd see the moon from your car window and imagine it moving with you, as if following you around like your loyal pet.

How heartbreaking and revolting was it to know that your childhood imaginations were striked of in a single second by some scientific crap you don't give two shíts about.

That's how Crystal feels.

She stares at Zayn, sadly, as he's muffled in his duvet covering his head and lying there, sniffing.
Crystal always felt Zayn was a strong man, immensely mean if you crossed him and won't think twice to put you in your place.

But now that he lied defeated in his bed, Crystal takes a sigh. Her childhood thinking will not be shattered by a laptop.
After Zayn sent her away, demanding to stay alone and refusing to talk to anyone just to drown in his emotional trauma, Crystal could no more take this.

She knows Zayn has hurt her time and again but he isn't a terrible person. He's lost and he's trying to find himself, maybe Crystal just got hurt in between and she doesn't mind till it's Zayn.

"Zayn?" she says, her voice calm but no one could miss the care in it. "Go away." she hears him say with much difficulty.

"Zayn you do realise there's someone out there trying to cross you and you're lying in your bed like a pathetic baby. Get the fúck up and tell them who's the real boss." she sees him show no difference but she knew he's listening.

She stalls nearer to him and whips the duvet in one shot. Crystal hears Zayn whine, trying to cover his face from her.
"You're crying, Zayn. How pathetic is that. You're a guy, you shouldn't cry. Are you expecting me to say this?" holding his arm she tries pulling him up and somehow manages to make him sit whilst his hands cover his face.

She moves and sits on her knees right in front of him whilst her eyes roam his face sympathetically.
"It's just your bestfriend and you. No rings, no judging." she whispers, taking of her ring and laying it on his lap.

After inhaling and exhaling deeply for a minute, Zayn removes his hands. His cheeks layered with streams of tears and his nose red. "Don't stare, I'm pathetic."

"You are." Zayn glares at Crystal, pushing her away but she holds his hands and chuckles.
"Not because you're crying but because you're lying in your bed like a loser. What is wrong? Where is the àsshole Zayn gone? Or does it make entries only when I'm around."

She hears Zayn mumble a 'shut up' under his breath. Her hands spread on his knees and she tries to find his eyes, but he looks everywhere but her.
"You're not losing hope. Okay? Zayn never loses hope."

"That was three weeks of intense hardwork, Crystal. If I lose this, I lose everywhere. I'll lose my job, I'll lose my dignity, respect. . . I'll lose against dad." he whispers, sniffing lightly as he looks in her eyes.

"I'm not strong, I just try to mask it with sarcasm and witty shít. In reality I'm a loser, Crystal. That's what I am. I got dumped, people at work think I'm bipolar and my father never accepts my work and-and you. . ." sighing he covers his face with his hands and coughs.

"It doesn't matter if five years have passed and whether we've found ourselves new partners but at least we almost had it Zayn. You're not a loser. You're amazing. You're like this knight in shining armour for me, always a call away and ready to fight the world for me,"

"There's a winner in there, Zayn. Bring him out. You need to. We'll find a way, you'll get your hardwork back. You'll do that fúcking presentation and get your promotion. Do you get it?" Crystal whispers-yells, staring at Zayn who nods at her, clearing his tears away.

"Now we think." she whispers, getting up, sliding back her ring and sitting beside Zayn who stares at his feets covered with socks, still burning a little with fever but much better.

That's when it clicks to Crystal. "You have a HR Department right?" she asks, fastly. Jumping up on her feets and looking at Zayn.

"Obviously." he mumbles. "Yeah so they're well versed with computers and technology, do you think you can trust one of them? Then we'll extract the memory from the backup. It's an official laptop right? It gotta have a backup folder."

Zayn's mouth forms an 'o' shape as he nods. "Woah okay, Watson. He was in the HR Department before he joined to work under me."

"Can you trust him?" Crystal asks, hesitantly. "A one hundred percent." he gets up to run to his car but misbalances. "Careful, you're still down with fever. I'll come with you. Let me drive."

Crystal walks in the huge building. A huge chandelier lining up the ceiling with seating area at the corner. This place was ginormous. Walking to the reception she notices a girl sitting there, typing something on her computer. Crystal waits a minute before she completes her work and then her head moves up and she smiles brightly at Crystal.

"Hello I'm Lacy, welcome to Artsy Enterprise. Can I help you?" no I waited ten minutes to say hi. Crystal bites back the comment and tries smiling.
"Yeah I was wondering if I could meet. . . Watson?"

"Any message, I can deliver?"
"No I'll like to deliver a message on personal level, From Zayn actually. Zayn Malik?" Crystal asks, hesitantly.
"Mr. Malik's message. Just a second." she hears her talk to someone and then keep the receiver back. "He'll be down in a minute. Can I have your name?"

"Uh, Crystal." nodding at her, Lacy turns back to her computer and Crystal takes it as her cue. She waits for a minute and then notices a guy walking down the stairs. His brown locks gelled back as he flaunts a grey suit.

"Called me?"
"Right here, Ms. Crystal wants to share a message." Watson moves his eyes and stares at the girl. "I've seen you in a painting."

Crystal stares at him confusedly then shakes her her head. "Come with me." the lot exits the building oblivious to the call that Lacy dials.

"Hello, Ms. Gonnary?"
"This better be important." Lara whispers, typing ridiculously fast on her laptop. "Mr. Malik's fiancé just came in and took Watson with her saying he had to share something important."

Lara sits up on her chair and bites a nail. "Okay." Hanging up she walks to her window and removes the curtain to stare outside getting a good view of the front entry, definitely noticing Zayn's car.

"Mr. Malik? Aren't you on leave?" Watson questions when he sees Zayn inside the car, sitting with fear spread across his face.
"I need your help," inhaling a deep breath he stares at his last hope. "I lost the presentation."

Watson stares back for a minute or two and then nervously laughs. "You don't mean the Art Gallery tenner presentation, right?"

Zayn sighs, staring at him defeated and nodding. "We need you to get the backup of it. It'll be in the chip." Crystal mumbles showing him the laptop.

"You do realise the presentation is tomorrow and you lost it right now?" Zayn's eyes widen thrice their size in shock. "A day!? Wasn't it two days later."

"It was. But it got preponed. I had informed Ms. Gonnary and she said she'll inform you." A groan escape Zayn's mouth and he bangs his head on the front board. "I hate you so much, Lara." he whispers under his breath.

"See, please get the backup. He really trusts you on this. You have to do this for him." Crystal whispers, her eyes staring at Watson so helplessly that he feels his soul draining out.

"I- I'm no more in that department, I can't get access-"
His eyes catch Zayn, who sits in the passenger seat, his head on the dashboard breathing slowly.

"Alright. I'll get it. But it'll take me the whole day." he demands, brows scrunched together as he says lowly.

"That's too long, Watson. The presentation's tomorrow and if you don't get it I'll be dàmned." Zayn bargains, head leaning out of the car.

"I'm sure the chip has the data. I'll get it. I need this time. It's a long process." he counters, nibbling his lower lip.

"Okay we're fine with it. Just give us a call, we'll get it." Crystal says, passing him a smile and the laptop much to Zayn's disapproval. Watson nods his head and walks back to the building.

"You do realise I don't have that much time? If he won't be able to get it I'll be able to do noth-" Crystal slams the door shut making Zayn roll his eyes in exasperation when she chuckles.

"I hate rambling."
When Watson walks off, Crystal moves behind the steering to drive back home.

"You happy now?" Crystal asks, smiling at Zayn who looks slightly better.

"Yeah, I hope he gets it," biting his lower lip he turns to Crystal. "Uhm- Can you drive to the shopping centre nearby?"

Furrowing her brows in confusion she nods, turning the steering to the opposite side. "Why?"

"Uh- it's December. Our organisation has this official party every year and it's really huge. You can buy a gown? I don't know." Zayn utters, smiling lightly at Crystal.

"So I'm your date?" Crystal asks, smiling lightly at Zayn when she notices his cheeks tint pink.
He gulps in. "You are my fiancé, wouldn't look good if I'll take someone else y'know?"

Crystal laughs at his comment, making him laugh too. "Who'd want to date a feverish twenty five year old cry baby like you?"
Crystal asks, parking the car in the parking lot.

"You." Zayn says, his cheeky smile returning to his face. Crystal smiles but nevertheless rolls her eyes and exits.
"Are you sure you can walk? You still have light fever. You took the medicine in the morning right?"

"Yes, mother." Zayn says, walking towards the entry with Crystal beside her. "Let's search."

"No searching, I know specific shops." Zayn smiles, walking with her to the opposite side of the shopping centre and staring at the huge board saying 'The Milan's'

The lot enters in and Zayn talks to the manager whilst Crystal's eyes move around. This place looks magnificent and huge and expensive. She turns to see the manager out to call someone and Zayn staring at a suit.

Walking nearer she checks the suit too. It looks magnificent with the grey jacket and pants and the white crisp shirt with a black tie. She notices Zayn looking at it with so much admiration.

"You like it?"
Zayn turns to glance at her and smiles. "This is my dream suit y'know." he says, moving his fingers down the fabric slowly.

"Why don't you buy it then?"
Zayn glances at her nervously, biting his lip and smiling awkwardly "I don't have much money on me right now."

Furrowing her brows together she stares at Zayn. "Why?"
Zayn moves to stare at the suit and then looks back at her.
"Uh- made some investments. Come on let's check for you." he walks to the manager who was smiling at them.

Crystal looks down, her mind going haywire with questions.
What is going on with him? He's been out so late, been lying that he's at work and says he's little weak at the money side right now when he was perfectly fine a little while back.

Glancing at the price of the suit, Crystal visibly chokes. 110 british pounds. She walks away immediately because this shop screamed expensive. They could probably buy her seven hundred times in that price.

It was around eight when Watson switches off the laptop and turns to his computer staring at Zayn's presentation in front of him. A smile covers his lips as he sits there triumphantly.
Shooting a quick message to Zayn to get his presentation he starts moving it to a pendrive.

"Watson?" Goosebumps crawl down his skin when he turns and stares at Lara with Lacy behind him, eyes narrowed at him. He feels like a seven year old caught by his mother trying to steal cookies.

"Ms. Gonnary." he replies back hesitantly. "I assume you're not supposed to be in this department. May I know what you're upto?" She says, voice intimidatingly low that scares Watson to huge levels.

"Mr. Malik had lost his presentation and I was trying to reextract it for him." Lara passes him an impressed look and walks nearer, scrolling down the presentation and nodding to herself.

"He wanted me to extract it for him and I did- HOLY SHÎT!" he stares at Lara dumbstruck as she presses the delete button and the presentation vanishes.

It vanished. It's gone.

Turning to face Watson with a sly smile she says, "Now it's gone again."

"Why did you do that?" Watson asks frustratedly as his eyes move between the blank screen and Lara. "You do realise I can fire you by telling them you were in the wrong department using the official computers?"

Watson stares at Lara emotionlessly, creating a to-do list in his mind of adding extensive experience in dealing with morons to his resume because that got to be some marketable skill.

"I-"
"Zayn really treats you like the dumbest person to exist. You're more like a maid than an assistant. Why are you even helping him?"

Taking in a deep breath Watson stares at the floor. "He does what's right, not what's easy and he might treat me like a maid but he'll still have more respect than you'll ever get."

"I hope this stays between us, sweetie. Your secret is safe with me and mine with you." Saying that, Lara smiles sarcastically and rolling her eyes, exits the room. Lacy hot on her heels.

Watson's eyes move to the computer as he checks the chip, the official system. Everything for a possible backup but when he's left empty handed his heart breaks. His eyes move to his phone noticing 'Malik Sir calling' on the screen and he swallows the lump that formed somewhere between his life crisis.

He takes the laptop and walks down the building, shoulders slumped in defeat. This world is a fúcked up place. That was no more just a tumblr quote for him.

Exiting he notices Zayn, wrapped in a shawl he saw Crystal wearing before, standing outside the car with a huge smile. He sees Crystal trying to get him inside the car. Zayn's smile piercing holes in him.

"Thank you so much, Watson. I knew I can count on you, you saved my-"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Malik." Zayn smile falters slowly but it remains. His eyes moving between Watson's eyes but upon seeing the defeat in them Zayn slouches, his smile completely wavering off.

"B-but you said-" inhaling in he closes his eyes tightly. His words were aimlessly flying in the sky, they couldn't get his hardwork back. He was losing his job and nothing could change that.

Watson passes him the laptop and Zayn holds it, his hands shivering lightly due to the cold outside him and tsunami going inside him.

"I did, but this world is a fúcked up place, Mr. Malik and our world is this organisation," breathing in lightly he looks up at Crystal who's staring back at him sadly.

"I'm sorry." Taking his cue, he walks back in the building to retrieve his things and go home.
Zayn stares at him till he disappears in the building. His blood fuming in frustration and anger. Crystal touches Zayn's shoulder in motivation but backs off almost screaming when he throws the laptop on the ground in anger.

"Zayn-"
"Fúck this!" he yells, covering his eyes and panting. Crystal holds his shoulder in motivation and sighs. "Let's go home." she whispers, helping him sit and turning around but her eyes catch someone staring at them from a window. She narrows her eyes but the curtains immediately close off.

She had to get to the bottom of this. And soon.

Almost immediately when they reach their place, Zayn sprints inside to walk to his room. Crystal locks the car, trying to catch his pace as he bangs open the main door.

"Zayn what's wrong?"
"Everything is wrong, Crystal. I don't understand why people try to test me and bring me down when I don't fück with them."
Zayn pants, exhaling deep breaths and sighing.

"Zayn this isn't you. Where's the rebel in you? Remember in highschool when some people ruined your homework? You were crying but you were remaking it too." Crystal utters, walking slightly closer, staring sympathetically at him.

"Remember my sixteenth birthday, when the music was off? I was literally crying because my party was ruined and you worked it. You never accept defeat Zayn, what's up-"

"That was highschool Crystal!" Zayn yells, his brows furrowing together in frustration. "This is reality, and this is way meaner, ruder and selfish. Right now I'm nothing but a loser," Zayn whispers the last word, staring in Crystal's eyes as if challenging her to fight him.

"Now you may allow me so I could go cry in my room on what a disappointment of a life I have and how I'll be jobless tomorrow." Zayn cries in irritation, taking a deep breath and turning to start climbing the stairs.

"You are not a loser because you did everything on your part to win this. But you'll definitely be a loser if you let the person who crossed you slide away like that." Crystal whispers angrily, her hands raising in air in exasperation.

"I know who did this," Zayn whispers back, a visible river of pain flowing in his eyes. "And I don't want to cross them."

"Good enough then, Zayn. If this is how you love someone, then let me tell you, your love is toxic as fúck." Zayn glares back at Crystal, rolling his eyes and starting to climb the stairs and that's when Crystal decides, someone needs to put some facts in his thick skull.

And that someone is so her.

"You need to understand that you're more than being someone's 'sometime', Zayn." she walks behind Zayn who ignores her walking to his room.
"You're giving her way more than you gave yourself. Do you realise in this loyalty of yours you give to her you're not loyal to your own self?"

Zayn stops and starts breathing, his eyes shut. Turning around he stares at Crystal, fatigue visible in his expression.
"What do you want me to do then? Somehow reproduce a presentation with my sorrow? Or maybe sit close to some holy place and worship till morning for god to drop the presentation in my lap like an apple and I'll suddenly find gravity?" he comments, crossing his arms to look stronger.

"You'll find your confidence and your spirit that someone stole from you when they broke you." Zayn's strong expression falter lightly as he stares at Crystal.

"And you're not alone. I'm here right beside you ready to help you to cut anyone who tries crossing you. You won't do it alone. We'll do it together, as a team? We are a team right?" Zayn visibly breathes. No one had really supported him for the past months. All he felt was lonely. Silence surrounding him.

It was like Crystal is trying to scream. Scream so hard that the walls of silence break.

"And if it means you'll get that presentation back, I'll sit the whole damn night with a laptop for you." Crystal feels her cheeks tinting pink when she accidentally slips the 'for you' but when Zayn smiles at her, she stares back confusedly.

"You give good advises." he whispers, eyes faltering between hers making her insecure.
"I know."

"Maybe you should start taking it too." Crystal stares in his hazel eyes, mind deep in thought as to what he uttered.

"What?"
"I mean you always call people beautiful, strong, courageous, genuinely meaning it. How is it possible for you to not realise that you, yourself are all of those and more."

Zayn couldn't stop staring. It was annoying every cell in his brain but he just couldn't stop staring because it suddenly strikes him how beautiful Crystal is. Her blonde hair appearing like light in the darkness of the room, rich and gorgeous.

He almost raises his hand when he feels a weird impulse and urge to touch it, check if it was really soft like it appears to him.

And it's beyond him as to how he never noticed her eyes. They were the most amazing shade of brown. Like sand dunes combining together.

Crystal sips on the wine she had placed for the both of them as she types in her computer after Zayn instructed her on the font size, patterns, drafts.

She had managed a total of thirty one slides whilst Zayn was working on the laptop she asked from Martha. He was still stuck on twelfth. Stuck.

She bites on the doritos and chuckles lightly when she notices a weird painting by one of the artists. Her laughter ringing in Zayn's ear. Her laughter sounds amazing to his ear. He knew he could hear it everyday and never get bored.

They had been friends for so long and it was beyond him as to how he never noticed her. He stares at her, in desperate want to know and learn more.

Why did she care when all he did was hurt her? Why was she so beautiful in those micky mouse pjs and headband? Is she photoshopped?

"What are you staring at?" she asks, bringing him out of his trance. Zayn tries finding his tongue but he finds himself voiceless, nervous.

Why is she making him nervous? Friends aren't supposed to make you nervous.

"Uh, you had something in your hair." Zayn manages to stutter, almost reaching out for her hair but stopping. Are friends supposed to touch each others hair? He suddenly was illiterate.

He watches her shake her head in order to jerk away the non existent 'something' in her hair.
"Gone now?" yes. Gone. Zayn was so gone. Gone. Gone. Gone for her.

"Yes." Zayn whispers, voice sounding like he inhaled helium. Noticing the pitch he tries to bring back the masculinity that vanished somewhere but when Crystal smiles lightly at him as her bun tumbles down due to the weak wrapping of hairtie he sees his masculinity fly out of the window. "Yeah, it's all good now." it so wasn't.

He decides that it's probably just the night. The night where he really saw Crystal. Maybe tomorrow he'll wake up and she'll be his best friend again. Not a girl who made him nervous and made it hard for him to breathe.

But the clock ticks. Time moves and it strikes four in the morning. Crystal's head lying on Zayn's lap and her eyes are fluttered closed. Zayn being just five slides away from completing something he lost. Crystal did his fifty slides and he did the rest.

After sixty four worldwars between him and Crystal, sarcastic remarks, laughing on paintings, refilled glasses of wine and seven packets of doritos

he did it. He managed to win this. He's no more a loser.
But that isn't the problem. The problem is him.

He finds himself unable to look away as he brushes his hand down her hair in a comforting way feeling helpless because he just couldn't erase the memory of her laughing to something on his laptop.

And her hair is so soft he wanted to scream.

He breathes lightly, sliding his leg slowly and putting her head on a pillow, covering her with a duvet and walking to the livingroom.

It's five in the morning as he sits on the couch trying to understand why the héll wasn't he sleeping when he's supposed to give a presentation tomorrow at morning ten.

His eyes catch the photoframes and he gets up, brushing his hands on the back of it and turning it around to reveal a picture of him and Lara from one of their official office party.

He unknowingly picks up all the frames, sliding them in a bag and walking outside to the backyard. Cold wind flowing recklessly around him which makes he shiver but the flame burning in his eyes is much stronger.

He puts down the pictures, taking them out of the frames and throwing the frames in the bag. Taking out his lighter he stares at the picture for a second and then lights one corner.

And something just stops. Stops. He throws the the burning picture of him and Lara in the cluster of others and watches them burn. Every memory, every word, every feeling burning slowly. Giving up to the flames.

He never felt this alive.
"You left me to teach a lesson that no matter how much you do for someone, they'll always find something better. That's when the pain entered." he whispers, eyes staring blankly at the burning photos.

"And the pain will leave soon too, just like you did, when it's done teaching me about the amount of me I should give out to the world."

He scrapes the ashes, finger slightly burning as he picks the ashes and puts them on a paper.
"And to people like you, the only part of me you ever deserved was my middle finger."

Standing up Zayn walks back to his room, feeling stronger than ever. He enters his room and takes out the 'secret box' he had made for Crystal and him.

They read it, they knew it, but they'll never mention what they read. Perfect for him. He puts the ashes slowly in the box and rips a paper from a register.

And i feel like the moon.
just like it goes in and
out of numerous phases
of emptiness to feel full
again.

i feel full again, crys.
i feel full. and i've never
been prouder. here's the
ashes from my past as a
gift to my future.

including me, everything
is yours, all yours.
love,
z x

____

IM ABOUT TO HIT 6K!? YALL TF???

:')))))

holy SHIT! I know you love me, and I also know you hate me. BHOOM SHAKA LAKA. HAH

I WANT YOUR FEEDBACK AND OPINIONS though.

Also, WHAT DO YOU THINK IS UP WITH ZAYN? WHAT'S UP WITH HIM AND HIS LIES?

WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN NOW? Honestly how fúcking amazing is Crystal? A total babe.

Character questions (inline here) x

LAST CHAPTER CHARACTER QUESTIONS
CRYSTAL-
Q. Crisi or Crys? What do you prefer more?
Since my parents named me Crystal, i prefer the name queen. *giggles*

TRISHA AND CECILE-
Q. What do you think is happening between Zrystal? Isn't that name cute?
Omg that's the cutest thing ive heard, if you all really like them together that means they're happy *laughs* we did talk to Crystal and she said everything is smooth. We've planned the wedding and we're so excited!

A name suggestion for Zrystals kid?

▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀

Now a small rant, that i mentioned above. You can skip it, if you don't thank you.

So recently an account (not taking name) pm-ed me about how my story is cliché and i could do much better than this and all that jazz. Honestly i dont give a flying fk about what you think. I've worked hard on this and seen my writing get better over time.

The argument accelerated sm that she accused me of copying it from movies and how it's unoriginal and no ones gonna read it. Even tho i dont give a fk it rly hurt me cos i work hard for this book and seeing it receive bad comments hurts me. That's why this update took longer than it should've.

I might take a step back from updating idk. I rly think there might be some loopholes and things that are cringy idk.
I love you all x

Until whenever i update next. Thank you for the support x