Lounsbury Prep

The two boys kept in close touch over the next few months, with Louis updating Zayn on every little thing that happened at Lounsbury Prep. Every time he had a new text with totally pointless information from Louis, Zayn had to smile. It made him incredibly happy that his boyfriend found it so important to stay in contact, even if it was just to tell him that the mashed potatoes had been too lumpy with a frowning face.

When Zayn had first returned home, things were awkward around the house. Secrets never stayed quiet for long in the Malik family, so every member of the household knew about what Doniya had seen during her visit to the academy, and they weren’t entirely comfortable with it. Knowing their son and brother was gay was one thing, but knowing that he was actively pursuing men sexually was another thing to handle.

Soon, though, they settled back into their old routines, and Louis was a thing of the past. Until, of course, June came along, and Louis was home for the summer.

Zayn’s parents had to adjust to the reality all over again, that their son was very gay, that he was in love with Louis Tomlinson, and that the two would be attending Oxford University together in autumn.

Doniya had been ridiculously uncomfortable with Louis the first few times he’d visited, always saying hello to him in passing before hiding up in her room and not showing her face again until he was long gone. But she soon warmed to him, appreciating his humor and everlasting smile, as did the rest of the family.

And, much as Louis had met Zayn’s relatives, Zayn had met Louis’. His mother, much as Louis had expected, adored Zayn and hugged him exceedingly hard every time he visited their home, and his sisters loved to gossip about how hot Zayn was, even though they knew of his sexual orientation.

Just then, the boys were lounging in the Malik garden on a couple of bath towels on one of England’s rare sunny days. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky, which Zayn appreciated, but Louis felt the need to point it out every few seconds.

“It’s just incredible,” he voiced for the fifth time since he’d arrived a half hour earlier. “How could the sky possibly be that clear and, like, blue?”

“Says the future Oxford boy.” Zayn’s laugh sounded loudly, which made Louis lean over and splash some pool water onto his face.

“You know the only reason I ever got into Oxford is because my mother, and her father, went there. Otherwise, they would have thrown out my application immediately.”

Zayn didn’t know what to say to that, so he decided to keep quiet.

“I’m just saying the sky is blue. Because it is. That’s all.”

“The water’s blue, too,” Zayn replied, which got him another splash. “Oh, come on! Now you’ve gotten my shirt all wet.”

“So take it off,” Louis directed easily, a smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. “Do it. Take it off! Take it off! Take it off!”

Zayn struggled not to laugh at Louis’ insane chanting as he shed his shirt and threw it behind him on the grass. The first time he’d revealed his new body to Louis, which was more toned and muscular than his former spindly and skinny torso, he’d narrowed his eyes and asked what Zayn was taking. But it was obvious he liked the new definition, which he reinforced just then by leaning over and running his fingers along Zayn’s chest.

“I could never get used to that,” Louis mumbled, turning onto his side to look at Zayn better, though Zayn settled back down on his back, looking up at the bright sky. “It’s just incredible, that you were able to do so much in six months.”

“Dedication,” was all Zayn had to say to that, and then he picked up Louis’ hand and pressed his lips against it.

Louis sighed lightly. “You know what I think about sometimes?”

“What?”

“That our performance at the end of the year hadn’t sucked so badly.”

Louis had already told Zayn about the disaster that had unfolded: Niall had lost his voice the day before, so his higher notes were incredibly scratchy during the performance, and Harry had managed to trip over Louis during one of the moves where the two lines were supposed to switch. The set would go down in Lounsbury as the most entertaining, hysterical demonstration the school had ever seen, although that had not been their intention in the least.

“Oh, I’m sure it wasn’t that bad,” Zayn soothed, even though he’d seen videos on YouTube and knew that it was much worse than Louis had made it sound. It had certainly made him laugh, though.

“You have no idea.” Louis groaned again, squeezing Zayn’s hand shortly.

Thankfully, the horrendous number hadn't hurt any of them. Harry and Liam were going off to prestigious universities and still kept in touch with the rest of the group. Harry had a girlfriend, whom he loved more than he wanted to admit, and Liam was "relishing his youth while he still had it". Whatever that meant.

Every now and again, Zayn would get a pang of sadness for Niall, who was still stuck at Lounsbury Prep for another year before he was able to go off and study wherever he wanted. Zayn hoped that he'd find a new group of friends who could be decent enough replacements for the ones that left him behind.

“But I’m just glad that I can be with you again, and this time, without having to keep it all a big secret," Louis expressed thoughtfully, tearing Zayn from his thoughts.

“Me, too.” Zayn’s thumb traced small circles on the back of Louis’ hand as he closed his eyes, trying to freeze time in that moment forever. Sure, the future was sure to be incredible, as Zayn and Louis would never be separated again, but it was hard to deny how perfect it felt to have their hands intertwined in the sunlight in the garden of his family home. He felt so completely whole, and he wouldn’t have given the feeling over for the world.

But they were soon interrupted by Zayn’s younger sister yelling, “HEY, DO YOU GUYS WANT SOME LUNCH? MUM’S MAKING TUNA.”

Out of habit, Louis yanked back his hand as quickly as possible while Zayn yelled back, “Yeah, thanks!”

The sliding door slammed shut, and Zayn chuckled at Louis’ frightened expression. “It’s okay. She’s not going to hurt you.”

“She just startled me, that’s all.” But Louis’ feigned nonchalant face just made Zayn laugh harder, and he ended up getting a smack on the chest.

“Ow. I feel like this relationship has turned abusive.”

“Oh, shut up. You like it.” With a mischievous look in his eyes, he leaned over and pressed his lips against Zayn’s quickly, careful not to get caught by his parents, lest they thought the two were starting something much more scandalous.

Zayn was incredibly tempted to pull Louis on top of him with the way his arm was wrapped around his lower back, but he didn’t want to make his mother panic. So he just let Louis settle back onto his own towel, ignoring the way his heart was racing, begging for something more substantial.

“Tuna’s ready!” Doniya’s voice called from the house before shutting the door again with a loud banging noise. Zayn had no idea why it was so impossible for his family to close that thing quietly, but it seemed to be as impossible as finding a spider in his bedroom after the thing had disappeared.

“Let’s go get some food,” Zayn directed as he hopped up to his feet, starting toward the house.

“You might want to put on your shirt. Unless, you know, you want me to get kicked out of and banned from your house.”

Zayn flushed as he picked up his graphic t-shirt from the ground and pulled it over his head. “Okay, so now food?”

“Now food.”

And as the two walked toward the house, Louis snaked his arm around Zayn’s waist and kissed his temple gently. “Do you ever think about how it’s fate, how you went to Lounsbury? Even if it was only for a semester?”

“Louis, babe, don’t get philosophical with me when I’m hungry.”