"You can't go!" I sighed, a slight whine to my voice. I knew it was pointless saying anything; my boyfriend was still leaving. It didn't matter what I said, or how much both of us wished he could stay, management had supreme control over everything.
Zayn pulled me close and kissed the top of my head. "I don't want to. God, you have no idea how much I want to stay here with you," he whispered into my hair.
"Then stay," I whispered quietly, burying my face in his shoulder and squeezing my eyes shut as I tried, and failed, to avoid the tears that I knew were emanate.
"You know I can't do that babe," he said with a sad chuckle. I sighed again and he pulled back slightly to look at me. "Hey, no crying. It's only going to be two months, maybe three tops."
I looked up at him, more tears threatening to spill over onto my already damp cheeks. "Easy for you to say. You actually have something to do during those three months."
"Only during the day. The nights are going to be torture," he said softly, and I could see tears starting to form in his eyes. Which only made things worse, because Zayn never cried. Ever.
Blinking back the tears that were starting to obscure my vision, I stood up on my tiptoes, kissing my boyfriend. He kissed me back, his fingers tracing light circles on my back.
Too soon, Zayn pulled away, planting one more quick kiss on my lips. "We've got an early start tomorrow morning; we should probably get to bed." I nodded slowly, knowing he was right but not quite wanting to let go of this moment.
A little while later, we were cuddled up in bed, our legs intertwined, and he was back to tracing circles on my skin. His touch left a burning trail and yet at the same time raised goosebumps on my arms.
"I'm going to miss you," I whispered to him, snuggling closer in the darkness.
Zayn's movements slowed down before coming to a completely stop. "Don't do this now babe, please. Let's just enjoy our last night together and worry about good bye tomorrow."
I sighed shakily, but agreed to his request. His lips found mine in the blackness and he kissed me once more before pulling me close and falling asleep.
The next morning, I woke up before Zayn, giving me a chance to lay and watch him as he slept peacefully. I wanted to memorize every inch of the face that I wouldn't be seeing in person for another three months.
My thoughts caused tears to well up in my eyes and I sniffed quietly, trying not to cry again. Apparently I hadn't been quiet enough because Zayn's eyes fluttered slightly before opening completely.
"Morning beautiful," he said in his gravelly morning voice. I leaned in and kissed him lightly, feeling the blush creep onto my face even after such a small compliment.
He deepened the kiss, his light stubble tickling my face as we kissed. I pulled away slowly, reluctantly, smiling sadly down at him. "We…we should probably get moving…" I said, avoiding his eyes. He nodded and I climbed off of him, both of us getting out of the bed.
The morning was spent in relative silence, just enjoying each other's company, since neither of us wanted to ruin the moment by talking about what was about to happen. We ate breakfast, showered, got dressed, and all the while not one word was passed between us. There was, however; plenty of touching going on, as we brushed hands or shoulders every time we walked by each other.
Finally, there was no avoiding it: it was time to drive to the airport. I drove, promising Zayn I would be alright driving back home afterwards, although I was trying as hard to convince myself as I was him.
I pulled into a parking spot and we both climbed out, walking around to the back to grab his bags. We plodded towards the airport, the bag in each hand preventing us from holding hands.
Once we reached the correct terminal, I could see the rest of the boys standing around waiting for the plane. We dropped off Zayn's bags and walked over to them. I gave them all a smile, not trusting myself to speak quite yet.
The next hour was the longest and yet, at the same time, the shortest hour of my life. I felt like I should be saying something to Zayn, anything really, but the lump in my throat was preventing me from saying much of anything, so I just sat holding his hand tightly.
Too soon, the voice was coming over the loud speaker, stating that it was the last call for the flight. The boys and I stood up, not ready, but needing to say our good byes.
"I'm going to miss you Bre," Liam started, pulling me into a tight hug. "But remember, I've been doing this for two years now. You guys can do it too. I promise."
"Thank you Liam, really. I'm going to miss you too." I said quietly, pulling away from him and moving on to Harry.
"Goodbye Harry," I said, a slight smile on my face as I hugged him quickly. "I'm going to miss you and your many ridiculous compliments."
He nodded, the typical cheeky grin on his face. "Thanks beautiful, I'm going to miss you too." He winked at me, causing me to giggle in spite of the situation.
Louis' goodbye was short and sweet, kind of like the boy giving it. "Bye Boo! I'll be looking forward to our coffee date when you get back." He told me, tickling my sides slightly as he hugged me.
I bit my lip to keep from laughing, squirming away from his embrace. "Really Lou?" I asked, hands on my hips. He just grinned and I shook my head, finishing my thoughts. "Goodbye Boo, I can't wait. And I'll make sure to text you as much as I can."
Turning towards Niall, there were no words as he held his arms out for me. I stepped into his embrace, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck. Aside from Zayn, I had always felt the closest to Niall and he knew that I didn't need any more words right now.
We stood there like that for a minute, him just squeezing me and not saying a word. Finally, we pulled apart and he just looked at me. I nodded slightly, giving him a less than reassuring smile, and he squeezed my arms one last time before letting me go.
And now had come the moment I had been dreading all morning. I turned to my boyfriend, the tears that I had held back successfully so far already threatening to spill over.
"Hey, what did I say about crying?" he said, grinning even as his own tears gathered in his eyes.
I shook my head slightly, biting back a grin. "You're one to talk," I replied, trying to keep the mood light as I stepped closer to him.
A ghost of smile still danced on Zayn's face as he silently pulled me into a hug. My resolve finally broke and I started crying, my shoulders shaking as I clung to him, my face buried in his shoulder.
He held me close, rubbing soothing circles on my back until I calmed down enough to look up at him. Before I could say a word, Zayn spoke up. "I'm going to miss you. So, so much. I know I've been keeping up a calm façade, but the truth is, I'm terrified. Not because I'm worried either of us is going to do anything, but because I don't know how I'm going to handle being away from you," Zayn took a deep breath, obviously trying to hold back tears, before continuing. "I've come to the realization that I'm not all that good at expressing my feelings out loud, but I'm hoping this will do the trick."
I stared at him, slightly confused, until he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. He handed it to me with a small nod, silently telling me to open it. Inside was a delicate, silver infinity ring and I looked up at Zayn, speechless.
He smiled slightly, taking it out of the box and slipping it on my right ring finger, before showing me the more masculine one he had on his own hand. "So that no matter where we are, you can look down and remember that I will always love you," he explained.
"This is amazing, thank you Zayn. I love it," I said, holding out my hand to look at it and then looking back up at him.
"I love you," he said quietly, pulling me close once more. He kissed me passionately, neither of wanting to let go. A minute later though, we separated and I knew it was time for him to go.
He kissed me quickly one more time and we slowly parted, him walking backwards into the terminal. "I love you too Zayn," I whispered as my boyfriend walked out of sight.