Take Me Home

“Pura vi--”

“Bloody hell, enough with the saying already.”

Clearly someone wasn’t happy with their morning. “Oh, Kayla. I promise I’ll take you with me next time.”

Kayla looked up from her tea I served. Although three months had passed since the holiday with Zayn, I couldn’t help but shout out “pura vida” every so often. Perhaps too often for Kayla’s sake.

My smile faded as I reminded myself that Zayn had gone to tour with the rest of the lads. “I miss him.” I pouted.

“Aw, Dee, don’t worry he’ll be back before you know it.”

I nodded but it already felt like forever, and it was only two months into the tour.

“I need to speak to you.” She motioned for me to sit down next to her on the couch.

I gasped dramatically. “You’re pregnant.”

“I’m serious, Diana.” She gestured at the seat once more. This time I sat down. “Things are getting rather serious with Patrick and I think I want to live with him soon.”

“That’s great news!”

“But his flat is so small. It is barely made for one person could you imagine two?”

“Why don’t you ask him to move in here?” She blinked at my question. Possibly trying to figure out how three people - one being with child, which would count as twenty by how massive I had gotten - could possibly live in this flat when it was only made for two. “Now before you say anything, I’ve been thinking a lot about the baby and how it would make much more sense if I lived with Zayn.”

“But you hate the thought of living in a big home by yourself whenever he’s gone.”

“I know, which is why I’ll need my best mate to come round and visit as much as she possibly can, yeah?” I flashed her a smile and she laughed.

“I feel like I’m kicking you out.”

“Don’t you see it that way.”

She put her hand on my massive stomach. “Is it foolish of me for believing that you would actually stay here with the baby and all?”

“No,” I shook my head for emphasis. “I was actually hoping I could get away with living here for a while longer.”

We shared a laugh. “When are you telling Zayn?”

“He hasn’t had a full day to himself yet, so I’ll just wait--”

“Oh god, no! Do it now. I’m absolutely tired of hearing ‘I’ll just wait’ from you.” She handed me my phone and gave me a look that meant business.

I sighed in defeat and hit his name from my contact list.

On the fifth tone he picked up. “Hello?”

“Hey, babe!” I sat up in excitement, his voice making me miss him more. Kayla motioned for me to hit the speaker button and I rolled my eyes before I obliged.

“Hello?” His voice was louder this time.

“Zayn? Can you hear me?”

“Barely, babe!” There was so much background noise, probably rehearsals.

“Can you run off for a moment?”

I could hear a distant call for his name. “Ah, I have to go. Sorry!”

“Oh, okay. Give me a ring when you can, yeah? Love you.”

He hung up the second I finished my sentence. Kayla didn’t look too pleased. “The fucking nerve!”

I kept my eyes down on the screen to keep from crying - damn hormones - and shrugged. “He’s busy, what can I do?”

“That bloke is lucky he’s miles away.” That did it. I burst into tears, wetting the fabric of my dress. Poor Kayla, feeling guilty for what she said, she rubbed circles against my aching back. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean it. Don’t cry!”

“I know, I just can’t control anything anymore.” Anything meaning bodily fluids of all kinds. No one knows how embarrassing that can be.

“You’ll be alright, I promise.”

I let out a few more tears before trying to calm myself down. “I’m an idiot. I should’ve moved in with Zayn the minute he asked me.”

“You know it’s never too late. He’ll still be thrilled that you want to now.”

“What should I do?” I would be lost without Kayla.

She thought for a moment. “Do you want to go to the bakery? Get your mind off of things?”

I shook my head. “It’ll all just come back later on.” We sat in silence, waiting for an idea to come. “What if I move in now?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan, Dee.”

“I mean actually moving in right now to surprise him when he gets back.”

“Are you sure you want to do that? You know no one is going to be there.”

“I have to get used to that feeling anyway.” She nodded and I squinted my eyes. “Why are you trying to give me a fright?”

“I didn’t want you to leave so soon.”

“Listen, the faster I leave, the faster your lovely Patrick can move in.” I winked and it was settled. We headed outside to get boxes in various sizes in order to begin the mission to move out.

* * *

The process of figuring out what I wanted to take with me and leave behind took longer than expected. After a few days, the boxes were finally sealed with my things and hauled into John’s truck in sets of three. If we were to use moving trucks the news would surely be sent straight to Zayn, ruining the surprise.

“How many boxes are left?” John asked when he returned from Kayla’s flat.

“Just two.” Patrick replied as he set down what seemed to be a heavy box. I almost cried when Kayla mentioned Patrick coming over to help. It was such a nice gesture.

Or maybe he wanted me to move out that much quicker..

“I like how you say ‘just two’ as if they don’t weigh a ton.” John huffed as he placed the last box on the floor and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

“I wish I could help.” I lied. I enjoyed just sitting around eating a biscuit whilst watching John, Kayla, and Patrick do most of the work. However, when I heard one of the three approaching I would move around the boxes or pretend to read the writing on them.

“Oh you’re gonna help, c’mon.” He gestured for me to follow him.

When I was outside, John was already sat in the driver’s seat of his truck. I made my way to the nearside door and climbed in. He didn’t say a word as he drove off.

I remained in the car while John went inside Kayla’s flat for the last two boxes. I looked at the building and smiled, fighting back tears. I took in a deep breath, lifting my shoulders in the process and calmly let out the air. John poked his head out of the building’s double doors to call me inside.

“Make sure you didn’t leave anything.” He said when I caught up with him.

Going into what now was a plain room with bed, I looked around. Nothing seemed to have been left behind, but before I closed the door I noticed something peeking out from under the bed. I crouched down to pick it up with a groan that would be made by an elderly woman. I stared at the crinkled picture of Zayn right before he was going on stage at the X Factor to audition. He had given it to me the day I was sent home as a way to cheer me up. He hated the picture, claiming that he looked odd but I always loved it.

I placed the picture flat on my stomach and whispered, “That’s your daddy.”

John leaned into the room, holding the door for support asking if I was ready to go. Before he even finished his sentence, the baby fluttered inside.

I was silent throughout the car ride back to Zayn’s. When John shut off the engine, he turned to look at me. I kept my eyes straight ahead, pretending that I saw something interesting.

“Are you okay?”

“Fine.” What an interesting tree Zayn had.

“You’ve been quiet the whole time.”

He really should have trimmed those bushes.

“Diana.” He waved his hand in front of my face.

“What?” I finally turned to look at him.

He sighed and took a moment before he spoke. “So you finally decided to move in with him.”

“Yeah, I thought it was best for the baby.”

“But what about you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you actually want to live here with him?”

“Of course I do.” I stuttered, suddenly feeling cornered.

“I find that a bit hard to believe.”

“Well I’m sorry for you, but I do. I really really do. I love him and I won’t be afraid to live there.”

“Okay.” His tone seemed as if he was not convinced.

“It’s best for the baby anyway.”

“You said that.”

I squinted my eyes as I glared at him. “I’m not lying.”

He shrugged. “I didn’t say you were.”

I turned my back from him to open the car door but it was locked. “You were still giving me that look.”

“I’m just making sure you want to do this. I worry about you, okay?”

“I want to live with him and that’s that. I appreciate you caring for me, but I don’t need you questioning me on my actions. If you don’t mind I’d like to go inside my house so unlock this bloody thing.” The sound of unlocking gave me relief. I thought he was going to keep me in there. I quickly got out of the car and into the house.

“Be careful!” I heard him say behind me when he saw me trip before driving away.

* * *

There was a buzz sound, indicating that someone was at the front gate. I waddled over to the screen on the wall and looked to find Kayla who couldn’t seem to keep her balance. When I opened the door, she stumbled in and cried on my shoulder.

“What’s wrong? How did you get here? How many drinks did you have?” As if she was able to answer any of them in her fragile/drunken state.

“I miss you so much!”

“But I’ve only been gone for a few hours.” I replied in a shaky voice. It was bad enough that I was hormonal, but to add insult to injury, whenever I saw someone cry I couldn’t help myself but cry as well.

“Your room is empty!”

“I’ll visit when I can.”

“I’m gonna live with a boy!” She cried.

“It won’t be so bad, Kayla. You’ll see.” By the time I finished my sentence, I was already crying heavily onto her shoulder. I was going to live with a boy myself and I didn’t like the sound of it.

I made her shower, put on one of my pyjamas, and eat something that didn’t involve liquor. She was beginning to sober up after I forced her to drink as much water as she possibly could.

“I love you loads. You know that, right?”

I watched her drink her cup of water. “I love you, too.”

She was nodding off whilst finally answering my questions from the time she stumbled inside. I guided her to what was now Zayn and I’s bedroom and tucked her in.

“You’re going to be a great mummy.” She whispered before drifting to sleep.

I sat on the edge of the bed and decided to video call Zayn, hoping he wasn’t busy like he said he had been in the past hours. After a few rings, he picked up and his sleepy face appeared on my screen. He smiled at me as he adjusted his beanie. I badly wanted to lay right next to him and fall asleep in his arms. When he raised his phone to a farther angle from his face, I could see that he was in his bunk on the tour bus.

“I’m sorry I haven’t called. I fell asleep the second they let me free.”

I chuckled. “How was your day?”

“Busy, funny…,” He closed his eyes but continued. “Harry fell on stage today. I had to hold back from laughing during my solo. How was your day?”

“Busy as well. A lot of moving and eating...” I trailed off as I watched Zayn. I realised that he was on the verge of sleeping when I saw the phone slowly going down from his original angle. Every time it reached a certain spot, he would wake up and bring the phone back to its position.

He cleared his throat and looked up into the camera. “What are you doing now?”

“Guess where I am.” I lifted my arm and stretched it as far away from me as possible.

“You are…” He furrowed his eyebrows and scoped my surroundings. “Is that my room?” I nodded with a grin and he flashed a smile. “Is this what I think it means?”

“If what you think is me moving in with you, then yes.”

“Finally,” A smile was stuck on his sleepy face. “You finally gave in. I love you.”

“What is that behind you?” I whipped my head round, afraid of what I would find behind me. “Is that Kayla?”

I let out a quiet laugh. “Yeah. She came here smashed and in hysterics.”

“I’m sorry, I just can’t stop thinking about the fact that you live with me now.” His smile still evident.

When I opened my mouth to speak, the screen went black. I groaned, forgetting that my battery was dangerously low throughout our conversation. By the time I found my charger, wobbled over to the power point, and called him back, Zayn had already fallen asleep.