Getting Caught in the Rain

Life continues on without any disruption until one day in late September when Zayn announces he's moving out. The six of them are enjoying dinner on Saturday night in silence, too immersed in the food to speak, when Zayn says, "So, I'm moving out next week."

Everyone stops eating (except for Olivia) and stares at him. Zayn has talked about moving out of the apartment he shares with Louis and Liam and moving in with his girlfriend, Perrie, but they've never actually made any solid plans. "What?" Liam says finally.

"Yeah, me and Pez found a really nice flat a few blocks away so we've decided to buy it," Zayn says, shrugging.

"Seriously? Just like that?" Louis asks, sounding incredulous.

Zayn nods. "Yeah. We're gonna try and live together for a bit, and if it goes well then we'll probably just get married." This statement only makes everyone gape even more.

"Zayn, mate . . ." Niall says. "Don't you think this is going a little fast?"

"No," Zayn says. "Perrie and I have been together for nearly two years now. She's finished school and has a job, and I've got mine, and I think we're ready to take the next step. So you can either support me on that or not."

"Of course we support you," Harry says quickly. "This is just a surprise, that's all. So, like . . . you'll need help packing, yeah?"

"Packing?" Olivia looks up from her pasta. "Where you going?"

"I'm moving in with Auntie Perrie," Zayn tells her.

"Is she . . . is she coming here?"

"No, Livs," Zayn says. "She and I are going to live in a different house."

Olivia sits perfectly still for a second before her lip starts to quiver. "You're leaving me?"

All of them stand up, except for Zayn, but Harry gets to her first, practically leaping over a chair. He picks her up and hugs her close, shooting Zayn a pointed look. He looks guilty. "No, kid, of course he's not leaving you," Harry says, trying to soothe her. "Right, Uncle Zayn?"

"No, no," Zayn says quickly. "I'm not leaving you, Livs. Never. Me and Auntie Perrie are just gonna live in a different building a few minutes away. I'll still come over and play with you whenever you want, okay? Does that sound good?"

Olivia sniffles, and Harry can feel the dampness on his neck. "Okay." The boys had known that this was coming for a while, but Olivia, only being four, hadn't, so it's no wonder that she reacted so badly.

Harry sits back down at the table, Olivia on his lap, and pulls her plate over so she can finish her dinner. She leans forward and dutifully begins to eat again, wiping her nose. Louis and Liam are staring daggers at Zayn, who is determinedly focused on his plate. Niall is smartly remaining out of it.

After Olivia goes to bed, the boys all sit in the TV room and have an "adult meeting." As soon as Harry comes in, Zayn's standing up. "Listen, Haz, I'm sorry about what happened. I didn't know it would make her react like that. You know I hate it when she's upset."

His eyes are guilty and worried. Harry shrugs. "It's okay, man. I know."

"We still need to talk about this," Louis says sharply. "Like, for example, where are you moving to?"

"It's that building near the gas station," Zayn says. "The one they finished building several months ago?"

"When did you even go and look at places?" Niall speaks up. "And why didn't you tell us?"

"We've been going whenever we have time," Zayn shrugs. "After work, on weekends, things like that. And I didn't tell you because I didn't want to make any final plans and then have them get taken away. I wanted to make sure the place was actually ours." He looks around at them all. "Look, I know it's not fair for you to find out this soon, but Perrie and I are really looking forward to this, and you four are my best mates. You're my family. I don't wanna do anything unless I have your support."

Liam and Louis are staring at the ground. Harry knows that the two of them are the closest with Zayn, and they're probably taking this worse than he or Niall is. But then he remembers Zayn washing the dishes with him the night they made the ad for Olivia's nanny, strong and steady next to him. Zayn is always there for him, and now it's time for Harry to return the favor.

"Well," he says. "You've got mine."

Zayn's brown eyes widen a little. "Yeah?"

"Of course, mate," Harry nods. "I'm really happy for you and Pez." He looks at the other boys.

Finally, Louis sighs. "Christ, Malik, you make it so hard to stay mad at you. One look into those soulful brown eyes and I'm a goner." That breaks the tension, and they're all laughing again.

"Group hug!" announces Niall, and the five of them shuffle together, hugging and patting each others' backs, before they break apart again.

"So, you think you're gonna propose?" Liam asks.

"Probably," Zayn answers, and only he could look so unfazed by something as daunting as marriage. "We've talked about it before and stuff, and her family gets on really well with mine. Not to mention our mums are both dropping hints all over the place."

There's no surprise there. While both Zayn and Perrie's mothers are lovely women, neither of them have ever been very subtle about anything. "So, what does the place look like?" Louis asks.

Zayn brightens even more at that, and he pulls out his phone and scrolls through his pictures, showing them the different rooms and discussing the light and the windows and the ceiling. Everyone is happy again, and Harry's glad.

* * *

Harry decides to leave work early on Friday and pick Olivia up from school. He texts Caroline letting her know the change in plans and then leaves his office at 2:45 and drives to Olivia's school.

When he arrives, a crowd of parents are waiting outside the door where the Year 1 students come out of. He waves to a cluster of mothers he knows from the park and from playdates, and then goes to stand off to the side and wait for Olivia.

Suddenly, a voice says, "Haz?"

He turns and shit, Cara is standing there staring at him. She's in jeans and a black shirt, but she still looks runway ready, as always. He can't help but grin once he sees her, because although they're both four years older, she's still got that same look on her face, the one she always used to give him whenever he did something she didn't like.

Harry moves forward. "Hey, Cara." He kisses her on the cheek. "How are you? What are you doing here?"

"I could ask the same thing of you."

"I'm here to get Olivia," he explains, slightly confused.

Cara raises her eyebrows. "So am I. It's my weekend, babe, remember?"

Harry pauses, wracking his brains. "Shit. What day is it?"

"The nineteenth."

"Oh, shit, shit, you're right. I completely forgot. Bugger it all." He pulls out his phone to check his calendar and sees a message from Caroline: isn't it Cara's day to get Olivia? Of course. Even his nanny knows his schedule better than he does.

Cara looks amused. "Well, now that you're here you might as well stay and wait for her with me." She rolls her blue eyes.

The two of them never really get to talk one-on-one anymore, so for the next ten minutes or so, they just chat aimlessly. Cara fills him in on the shows she's doing and her travels, and Harry tells her about Zayn moving out and hiring Caroline.

"So you finally got a professional, huh?" Cara says, snorting.

"The boys were great babysitters," Harry says defensively.

"Let's not forget the one time Louis and Zayn tried to make cupcakes and nearly burned your flat down," Cara reminds him.

"That was one time!" Harry says loudly.

Cara laughs, and her face softens. "I know, I know. Look, Haz, in all seriousness, I'm happy you hired this girl. You've got a lot on your plate, and I know I can't be there as much as I'd like to, so . . ."

"Aww, are we having a heart-to-heart?" Harry coos, nudging her. She rolls her eyes again.

"Don't ruin the moment, you twat. What I'm trying to say is, just take it easy, okay? You've been raising Olivia practically on your own for a while now, and I think you should take advantage of the help being provided." She shrugs.

Just then, the school doors open and the Year 1s come filing out, running and hugging their parents. As they wait, Harry asks, "Do you think it's a good idea for me to stay here?"

"Too late now." Sure enough, Olivia comes bounding out with her little blue backpack that has hearts on it. She runs to Cara and gives her a huge hug. "Mummy!"

"Hello, beautiful!" Cara exclaims, bending down and giving Olivia a kiss. "How was school, darling?"

"I drew you a picture today during art, Mama, do you want to see it?"

"Why don't you let me see it when we get home, so I can hang it on the fridge and then everybody can admire your art?" Cara suggests.

Olivia nods enthusiastically. It's then that she notices Harry standing there. "Daddy? What are you doing here?" It makes him a little sad that she's not used to both of her parents standing together, but he makes himself smile.

"I just thought I'd come and say good-bye to my girl," he says.

"You're not - you're not coming with me?" Olivia asks, wide-eyed.

"No, kid, you know that. You're going with Mum for the weekend." Olivia gazes up at him sadly, like a puppy, and Harry feels his heart clench. "You'll see me on Sunday night, bub. And you can call me before you go to bed. It's okay." He doesn't know why it's so different this time; usually she can't wait to go with Cara.

He bends down and she gives him a big hug, tucking her face into his neck, her favorite spot. He kisses her hair a couple times before she pulls back so her can kiss her nose. "You be a good girl for me, okay?"

She nods, so he addresses Cara. "Got everything?"

"Yes, Harry, she's got her own room at my house too, you know," Cara says, raising her eyebrows.

He sticks his tongue out at her before kissing Olivia one last time. "I love you, kid, to infinity and beyond. I'll see you in a few days."

"I love you, too." Olivia nuzzles her nose against his in an Eskimo kiss before she turns to Cara, holding up her arms. Cara picks her up, grunting a little.

"You're getting big, missy." She turns to Harry. "Right, I'll call you tomorrow morning." She kisses his cheek. "Take care of yourself, you."

Now it's his turn to roll his eyes. "Yes, Mum." He waves to Olivia as they walk to Cara's car before he goes back to his own, unlocking his cell and sending a text to the boys, inquiring about a bar night.

He settles back in his seat. He's got a full weekend all to himself. Trouble is, he doesn't exactly remember how to fill it.