The Romantic & the Cynic

The next day, Sky awoke with a groan, her mind tired from the energy expended the previous day and night. Rob had dropped her off and called himself a cab to pick up his own car from the studio, leaving his phone number in case she had any problems during the night. He had told her he would be outside at eight in the morning to make sure that she got to the studio safely. When she had asked him why that was necessary, he merely half-smiled at her and said that what Zayn had done would only extend the story even more.

She didn’t try to tell herself he was wrong. She was naive but not stupid and knew that the scene outside the studio was going to be an even bigger story than the one from the club because Zayn had acted exactly like a jealous boyfriend. Her phone rang several times with calls from both Jake and Jessica but she ignored them both. She didn’t want to talk about it. She also didn’t want to read about it so she avoided looking at the blogs and sites she had visited the day before. Instead, she immersed herself in the photos, the reason she was here to begin with. She was here to capture the recording process for them and that was it. The rest of it was a distraction she had to get over.

So that was how she spent the night. Her laptop in front of her, flipping through the photos from the day. Harry texting one of the girls he had met from the club, Niall strumming on his guitar, Louis on the phone with Eleanor who was coming to L.A. in two weeks for a visit, Liam intent on the soundboard as he tried to get just the right levels from the tracks that Zayn had just recorded.

Zayn. The name bounced around her head as much as she tried to kick it out. The moment in the studio when he had taken her hand had been so simple and sweet. The energy they had created between them in that moment had felt so honest to her. She hadn’t missed the looks that they had gotten from the others but at that time, it hadn’t mattered. She was connecting with him in a way that she hadn’t with anyone. Ever. She always talked about her steadfast belief in the truth of love but had yet to experience it beyond the familial bonds. She was not a virgin and had been in a couple of semi-serious relationships but nothing had pulled at her like his coffee eyes had. Not that she was in love with the dark-haired man but she could feel something simmering that she had always wished for.

That night, she had finally allowed the fantasies to rule her dreams. Part of them at least. It was almost like her professional side would let her dabble but not dunk fully in. But there were tender moments, soft touches and sweet kisses in her dreams that could leave her just as buzzed as she had been on the dance floor Saturday night.

And that was why she woke with the tired groan leaving her lips. A groan and a mental slap to her head. Her professional side had kicked the romantic one out of her mind on to the street. What had she been thinking indulging in the dreams she had? She was working for him and as sweet and broken and mysterious as he was, she had to remember that.

And that was how she greeted Rob in the lobby. Firmly and staunchly in the work frame of mind. Rob had insisted on driving her that morning, saying that he had already seen a couple of photographers hunkered down outside and he didn’t want Sky driving in case they were followed. She tiredly agreed but insisted that they drive her/Jake’s car before slinging her bags over her shoulder and guiding him down the stairs and in to the parking garage where the car was kept. Rob followed behind, his presence unsettling only because of what it represented. He insisted on the top being up which was fine with Sky since it was a gray day looking to explode with rain any moment.

They pulled the car out of the garage and out on to the street, seeing the photographers lounging against their motorbikes across the street. Upon seeing her and Rob, they immediately piled on and started to follow them to the now well-known route to the studio. The drive remained relatively calm but that was because of Rob. He would allow the photographers to get close but was able to stop them from getting their shots without running them or the car he was driving off the road. If it had of been Sky driving, she would have been in tears in the nearest parking lot with them swarming her for the next sensational headline. Instead, they arrived at the studio with only minimal delay where Rob pulled up front and Paul was there to meet her and help her get inside. After they did, she smiled up at him appreciatively.

“Thanks for arranging for Rob. I guess he’s going to be a pretty regular accessory for me.”

Paul smiled with a hint of pity. “After yesterday, I definitely think it’s safer. And now that they know where you are staying, it will only get worse for the next couple of days. I was actually thinking that maybe you could stay at the beach house for a few days. I know that the guys and I would worry less if you were somewhere a bit more secure.”

Sky pondered the offer for a moment. She knew herself to be an independent woman but she was in a situation that was way out of her comfort zone which made the offer tempting. But by staying there, she would only put herself in another uncomfortable situation. A situation involving Zayn and closeness and dreams that needed to go away.

“Can we just see how today goes,” she asked. She wasn’t stupid and the idea of having the guys to hang out with sounded fun. And she could use the time to review the photos with them, get the feedback that she always liked to hear. “If there are any out there tonight, I might just take you up on it. They guys won’t mind the company?”

“They’ll thank me for it,” Paul said as he chuckled. “They already adore you and they have all been worried the situation will get out of hand so believe me, the subject has already come up. Now go on, they’re waiting for you.”

Sky nodded before saying goodbye to Paul and heading up the stairs and in to the studio. When she came in, she did so quietly with her camera already in her hand. She loved capturing the moments when they didn’t know she was shooting and today was no exception. They were all huddled around the low coffee table with Niall strumming on his guitar. They seemed to be working on a new song and bits of words and notes were making their way on to the paper that Louis was scratching on.

“No man, I really think we need to go this way,” This was Niall speaking, his voice bright with excitement. As he softly sang the notes that were being plucked from the guitar, Sky found herself loving what was being created.


I can see the weight there in your eyes

I can feel the thought in your sigh

Your knuckles are bruised from a losing fight

One way down a dead end street
Broken glass underneath your feet
You think the day won't break the sunless night


The sun will rise
The sun will rise
When you've lost your lights

The sun will rise

It'll be alright

It'll be alright


The words were simple and sweet and tugged at her heart because she was pretty sure that Zayn was at the heart of them. She was able to get off a couple of pictures before they realized that she had entered the room. Liam was the first one to greet her, a radical change from the first day she had walked in. He wrapped his arms around her in a hug and squeezed gently.

“Everything okay,” he asked as he pulled away, a reassuring rub on her arm. “Rob called and told us that they were waiting for you this morning.” She didn’t have to ask who they were. He was referring to the photographers.

She shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah, it was fine. Rob seems pretty used to this stuff and I am really glad he insisted on driving.”

“Good. Look, anything we can do to make sure you are safe, we will do. Just let us know, okay?”

“Thanks.” The moment was too heavy for Sky and she took a step back before holding up her camera and taking a quick snapshot. “Now, can we just go back to normal?”

The group readily agreed and the mood returned to one that facilitated the creative spirits that were in it. Sky heard bits and pieces of the song she had walked in on that morning, scraps of words and notes that in the end would make a cohesive song. Zayn seemed to be the one who drove the writing of it and she was glad to see that he was involved in a song that spoke so directly to the pain that he seemed to be most recently have suffered.

She noticed as well that he seemed more distant to her today, not as quick to come to her side or share a sweet smile in her direction. He was nowhere near the complete ass he had been the first week but it was as if he had set up an invisible barricade around her that he was not allowed to cross. She tried to talk to him and he didn’t rebuff her but he seemed to try to end the conversation as quick as possible before they fell into their too familiar habit of touching on intimate conversations that were beyond employee and employer. She should have been happy after her discussion with herself that morning but instead, it annoyed her. She was in the middle of having a sulk about it in the afternoon when he finally approached her, his eyes downcast as he did so, his hands held behind his back.

“Rob’s gonna take you home after we’re done?” The words were half statement and half question. “I heard about what happened this morning and Paul said that they are still hanging out downstairs.”

Sky kept herself calm before she spoke, resisting the urge to reach out towards his hand as a way to comfort herself. “I didn’t think they would be polite and leave me alone tonight.” She didn’t mean for her voice to sound bitter but there was definitely a shade of it as she spoke. “But I have complete trust that Rob will get me home safe.”
She hadn’t forgotten about Paul’s offer but she wasn’t sure yet. She still liked the idea of having her own space separate from the world that she was becoming too comfortable in. The move wouldn’t happen until it was absolutely necessary. Or until it was spoken by one of the boys and specifically Zayn. Not because she wanted him to flatter with the invitation but because after his behavior today, she was pretty sure that he was feeling the same confusion she was.

“Are you sure you want to go home?” He still didn’t look at her, his eyes focused on his hands crossed in his lap. “They know where you live now and they’re not going to stop following you for the next few days. I know that we can have Rob with you but something might still happen.”

And here it came, at least she was pretty sure that it was. ‘I can’t exactly camp out in the studio. At least I don’t think that the receptionist would let me. I have to have some place to stay.”
An awkward pause as Zayn continued to stare at his hands, his fingers picking a minuscule piece of lint of of the dark jeans he was wearing. The rest of the boys were hanging back but quiet and sneaking subtle looks at them as if this had already been planned. That Zayn would be the one to broach the question with her. She turned to face him, wanting to make him look at her, so that she could read his face. He finally did.

“Come stay at the beach house. We have tons of room and you’ll be safer there. At least until this blows over.”

“Are you sure,” she asked knowing that he understood just what she was asking. There was room and they all got along but would he be comfortable with her there. Would they be able to walk the line they had both seem to have set during the night?

“Yeah,” he said as his eyes clouded over and left her unable to read them. “You can crash there as long as you want. The lads and I already talked about it this morning and they are cool with it.”
Sky paused before she answered. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking but his voice seemed even and calm and assured. She took it at face value and nodded.

“I guess you just got a new roomie.”



Forty-five minutes later and Sky was on her way to Malibu. The boys had eagerly agreed that she should come stay with them, so much so that she was sure that the original invitation from Paul had really been from them. The photographers were still there when they left but this time they were ignored as the expanded group made their ways to the van that was waiting for them. Paul had rented it earlier in the day and it would be used to take everybody back and forth from now on. Rob had been given the key to the apartment were he would grab a few clothes and toiletries for Sky and bring them back with him. Sky had argued that he wouldn’t know what to bring at first but he had insisted that this was hardly the first time he had done this and she tended to believe him. She grudgingly gave him the key and sent him on his way.

The ride back to the house was surprisingly quiet. Combined with the day in the studio and the frustration of dealing with the paps, everyone was tired. The arrival at the house was happily received and everybody piled out into the driveway and into the house.

“You can use the last room on the left,” Liam said he gestured down the hall. From the tour the first night she was here, she knew that there was one spare room there with a view to the ocean through sliding glass doors. “And you can stay as long as you want. Don’t worry about anything. This is now your home."

Sky felt the genuineness in the words and was happy to hear it. She didn't want to feel like a bother when she was here.

The rest of the night was spent quietly. Zayn and Harry continued to work on the same song they had been at the studio, Louis and Niall played video games on the television in the family room and Sky and Liam went through photos on the deck as the sun set. There was a brief break for a pizza and beer dinner before everyone went their separate ways again. Finally, as the night sky went inky black and people started to settle down for the night, it was only Sky left awake and trying to settle her mind from the continual thoughts that wouldn't stop bubbling up. L.A., Zayn, paparazzi, the anniversary coming up. All of it was there and wouldn't leave her alone. After midnight, she decided to set her head on the comfy pillow that lay on her new bed and see if that would allow her to get her mind to rest.

Three hours later and she was no closer to the sleep that she desperately needed. She decided to get herself a glass of water and sit on the deck for a few minutes to see if that helped and pushed her weary body out of bed. She walked out of the guest room and down the dark hall and saw a light in the kitchen as a body stood in front of the open fridge. It was tall and lean and Sky immediately recognized it as Zayn. She turned around and was about to return to her room when she heard her name being called. Called by a soft and sleepy voice that warmed her fingers and toes and other parts of her body that had no business having that feeling.