Chapter Text
PROLOGUE
ZAYN
Zayn had hit rock bottom. He was on way too many drugs and was drinking way too much alcohol. And he didn't know what to do. Well, that's not true. He knew what he needed to do, but he didn't want to do it. He didn't want to text Liam. He knew it would open a can of worms. And that can of worms included the other boys and Zayn's feelings toward Liam. and those were both things that he never wanted to have to think about again. But on the other hand, he missed them all. He hated it, but he did. He regretted leaving from the second he signed his solo contract. It was an even more toxic environment. And he missed his best friends.
So he texted Liam. Because he knew he should. He sent him the song. Good Years. And exactly three minutes and twenty seconds later, his phone started ringing.
An old picture of Liam balancing a cookie on his nose back in 2013 filled up the screen as his phone vibrated and almost fell off the nightstand. Zayn sat up in his way-too-empty bed and picked up the device. By the time he had decided to actually answer, the time to do so was almost up.
"Hey, Liam."
"Where are you?" he asked. And, god, Zayn had no idea he missed Liam's voice that much.
He frowned. "In New York. In my apartment. Why?"
"I'm coming out to see you."
Zayn's breath caught in his throat. "No. No, you don't have to do that."
"I'm already looking up flights."
Zayn stood up and quickly started cleaning up his awfully messy bedroom. "Liam, really. I'm fine, you don't need to worry about me."
"Z, I know you." No one called him Z anymore. "I know you aren't okay. Just give me a few hours and I'll be over there, and we can figure this out."
"I can take care of myself, you know," he tried to argue, but he knew Liam wasn't easily persuaded.
"I'm aware." Zayn could almost hear him nod. "But when you write music like that, I'm not sure being alone is the best idea."
"Liam, come on."
"I just found a flight that takes off in an hour. You still live in the same apartment as last year, right?"
"Yeah."
"I'll be there early tomorrow afternoon."
Zayn sighed in defeat. "Alright."
<•>