Mr. Malik

Katherine woke up to the sound of machines beeping and the feeling of being so incredibly tired that a part of her didn’t even want to open her eyes. But when she did, she realized she was waking up in a dim hospital room, hooked up to all sorts of weird machines monitoring her vitals. When she turned her head to look around, she noticed Zayn sitting in a chair by the bed, looking contently at the screen of his cell phone.

“Hi,” she croaked, feeling her heart skip a beat at the sight of him. Zayn sat up immediately, all his attention on her.

“Katherine. How are you feeling?” He asked. She smiled weakly at the way her name sounded so breathless falling from his lips, like he’d been worried sick about her.

“Um, tired. What happened? Why am I in the hospital?” She asked, feeling a bit out of it.

“You collapsed in the kitchen this morning… uh, let me… I’ll get the doctor,” Zayn said, standing up quickly and going out the door before she had time to stop him.

It didn’t take long for Zayn to return, letting her know a doctor was coming.

“You brought me to the hospital?” She asked him quietly.

“An ambulance brought you to the hospital,” he corrected as his eyes watched her.

“You called?” She asked.

“Higgins,” he answered.

“Oh…” She said, noticeably sounding disappointed.

“I couldn’t quite call when I had you passed out in my arms, Miss Mason,” Zayn added in and for some reason it lifted her spirits and she could tell he knew it might.

“Thank you,” she said quietly just as the doctor came into the room.

“Miss Mason, how are you feeling?” The doctor asked, breaking her and Zayn from their moment.

“Tired,” she said quietly, finally breaking her eyes away from Mr. Malik.

“I can imagine. You were quite dehydrated,” the doctor went on to say.

“Is that why… is that why I passed out?” She asked, looking between Zayn and the Doctor.

“One of the reasons. Uh, Miss Mason, can I speak to you in private?” The Doctor asked, looking over at Mr. Malik quickly and then at her again.

“No. It’s okay. He’s okay,” she said, shrugging it off.

“Alright, well. I’m afraid it’s not good news,” the Doctor began.

“What… what is it?” She asked, feeling terrified almost immediately.

“You’ve suffered a miscarriage. It looks like you were about six weeks along,” the Doctor informed her and immediately she could feel Mr. Malik’s eyes boring into her.

“Oh… oh my god,” she breathed as the panic subsided in her chest, only to be replaced with aching sadness.

She didn’t even know she was pregnant, but one could not be prepared for terrible news like that. Tears pooled in her eyes at the thought of her baby dying inside of her. What did she do so carelessly wrong to make something like that happen?

“I’m sorry for your loss,” the Doctor said before stepping out of the room.

“Jesus,” Katherine said under her breath as the tears streaked down her face.

Before she could even put two and two together, she noticed Zayn’s distraught look as he sat with his hands steepled in front of his face. Shit. The baby was his. It had to be. There was no other option.

“Zayn,” Katherine breathed. His eyes met with hers – his eyes that were filled with questions and betrayal.

“Zayn, I’m sorry,” she said, unable to think of anything else to say.

“I need to get some air,” he said, and without another word, he was out the door too.

Zayn was gone for upwards of a half an hour. Katherine almost thought he wasn’t going to come back, but surprised her when he did. As he walked back into the room, she quickly wiped away the tears that streaked down her cheeks as she laid there feeling sorry.

Zayn was silent for a long time as he stood near the door, his eyes glued to the floor. And Katherine didn’t saying anything either just in case she said something to set him off. But then he let out a huff and began to speak as she sucked in a breath and held it, waiting for the consequences of the situation to hit her.

“I-I thought you were on birth control,” he said, his words coming out as more of a growl.

“I was. I am. I have been,” she stammered, knowing now that birth control wasn’t effective right after it’s been administered the first time or if it lapsed in any way – which looking back in hindsight, she realized it did lapse between the old birth control and the new.

“Was this your plan all along?” He snapped, his eyes narrowing angrily at her.

“My plan?” She asked him with a scoff, narrowing her eyes back at him.

“To get pregnant? To have the billionaire’s baby?” He continued, and her jaw dropped opened at his accusation.

“Did you—are you—are you seriously asking me that right now?” She choked out, looking at him incredulously.

“Yes. I am,” he said sternly, his hands on his hips looking over at her.

“YOU—” She choked out, unable to even find the correct words to express the anger and betrayal she was feeling.

“You seduced me, Zayn. YOU. Do not get this fucking twisted. I cannot—I can’t even…” She breathed heavily, her chest rising and falling with ragged breaths, feeling as if she could throw up.

“It seems rather convenient,” he seethed.

“Convenient? For who? I just—I just miscarried a child I didn’t even know I was carrying and you’re going to turn this around and make it about you? I knew you were a megalomaniac, but Jesus Christ, how twisted is your ego?” She snapped at him.

“How can I even trust you after this?” He threw back at her.

She couldn’t even believe him. She couldn’t even respond. She just stared at him slack-jawed, feeling absolutely appalled. They were both silent for a long time, until Mr. Malik turned to leave the hospital room.

“It’s moments like right now I wish I never met you – that you never happened to me,” Katherine seethed, hoping the words ate at him like his words did to her.

Zayn stopped in his tracks for a moment, his back still to her, but then continued on, opening the door and leaving without a word. The loud sound the door made when it closed rang out through the hospital room, echoing against the walls and reverberating in her heart.

The anguish and tears hit her hard. Why did she ever get involved with that man? She knew it wasn’t a good idea. She knew she would just get hurt in the end. And there she was. In a hospital room with a broken heart and an empty womb. She cried herself to sleep thinking only of Zayn and the baby they would never know.

When she woke-up she was being discharged into the care of Mr. Higgins.

“Zayn sent you?” Katherine asked him as she sat up in bed.

“Yes, ma’am, he did,” Mr. Higgins said with a curt nod.

“He couldn’t even face me himself?” She asked bitterly. Mr. Higgins’ face looked puzzled, which she figured was a good sign, realizing Zayn didn’t tell him all the horrible details.

“Mr. Malik is very busy. He is deeply sorry he couldn’t be here, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins said, sounding more like a robot than anything.

“Yeah, I’m sure he is,” she spat bitterly as she slid out of the bed and stepped onto the cool floor.

“Careful, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins said, reaching out to grip her arm as she nearly lost her balance on her wobbly feet.

“I’m fine,” she snapped at him, feeling guilty almost immediately for yelling at him.

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly as she steadied herself with her hands against the mattress.

“It’s all right, Miss. I brought you some clean clothes at Mr. Malik’s request,” Mr. Higgins said, setting a bag down on the bed next to where she stood.

“Thank you,” she said, giving him a sympathetic look.

“You’re welcome, Miss Mason,” he said with a small smile.

“Could you… uh, I need to get dressed. Could you step out?” Katherine asked him.

“I’ve been instructed not to leave your side, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins informed her, which sent a shiver of annoyance up her spine.

“Of course you have. That megalomaniac son-of-a-bitch,” she grumbled under her breath as her fingers gripped tightly against the blankets on the bed.

“I’m sorry, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins said quietly.

“It’s not your fault,” she said, taking a deep cleansing breath.

“Could you at least turn around so I can change?” She asked him, trying to keep up a polite tone.

“Yes. Of course, ma’am,” Mr. Higgins said as he turned toward the corner of the room.

She had to take another deep breath just to keep the annoyance at bay. No, Mr. Malik couldn’t be there, how convenient, but he could send his right-hand man with instructions of never leaving her side.

“What if I have to go to the bathroom? Will you come in with me?” Katherine asked Mr. Higgins, letting the annoyance take over.

“Ma’am?” He questioned.

“Never mind,” she grumbled as she slipped her clean shirt over her head.

“You can turn around now,” she told him as she sat down on the bed to put her socks and shoes on.

Mr. Higgins wheeled her down to the car in a wheel-chair, which really wasn’t necessary, but was welcomed. Her whole body felt sore and put through the ringer, along with her mental state. They rode in silence all the way back to the apartment – the last place she wanted to be.

Mr. Higgins helped her out of the car and helped her walk to the elevator, even though she could do it herself. He finally let her go when they got into the lift.

“I’m sorry for everything he makes you do,” Katherine told Mr. Higgins.

“I’m sorry?” Mr. Higgins asked, turning to look at her after he put in the code for the top floor apartment.

“I know you’ve seen things you don’t want to see and done things you don’t want to do,” she went on to say.

“I take pride in my job,” Mr. Higgins said, looking away from her as he stood next to her.

“Like erasing the footage of Mr. Malik fucking me in every room in the apartment?” She grumbled, not entirely sure why she was being so blunt with him.

Mr. Higgins just cleared his throat and ignored her words as the elevator dinged and the doors opened to the foyer. The apartment was quiet, which wasn’t a surprise. Mr. Malik was probably out of the house anyway, too much of a coward to face her himself.

“I’ve been instructed to get you into bed and make sure you rest,” Mr. Higgins informed her as he gently took hold of her arm to help her out of the elevator.

“I can walk by myself. Thank you,” she said, shaking him off.

“I’ve changed your bedding, so you have clean sheets to sleep on,” Mr. Higgins told her and she felt her cheeks heat up with blush, knowing there were bloodstains on them the morning she collapsed. She had every intention of throwing them in the wash that morning.

“He’s got you doing the housekeeping duties now? You should ask for more pay,” Katherine quipped bitterly as she continued on toward her room.

She shut the bedroom door behind her and leaned her back up against it. She didn’t want to be there. She didn’t want to be anywhere near Mr. Malik. Not after the way he made her feel. But what could she do? Where would she even go?

After taking a deep breath, Katherine moved toward the cleanly made bed and pulled back the covers. At least she could do one thing right and get some sleep. It would be welcomed.

.

.

Katherine woke up just before dinner time and slid out of bed. She quickly cleaned herself up and made her way out of the bedroom to begin making dinner. As she began taking out ingredients for the meal, she noticed she was still wearing her hospital bracelet and her situation hit her once again. She gripped onto the bracelet and tried to rip if off, but it wouldn’t budge. She let out a loud huff before reaching for the kitchen shears and cutting it off. She tossed it in the garbage can and stood with her palms against the side of the countertop trying to settle herself down. Inhale. Exhale.

“Mr. Malik won’t be home for dinner,” she heard Mr. Higgins say from behind her. She let out a scoff. It figures.

“You should be in bed, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins said, taking a step toward her.

“I’m fine,” she grumbled, turning to face him.

“Mr. Malik told me…” Mr. Higgins began.

“I don’t give a shit what Mr. Malik told you, okay?” She snapped. Mr. Higgins stood there staring at her, seemingly unphased by her outburst. Yet, still she felt guilty.

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

“It’s no problem, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins replied.

“I’ll just clean this up…” She said quietly, quickly reaching for the ingredients she got out for dinner.

“I can take care of it, if you’d like, Miss Mason,” Mr. Higgins told her.

She took a deep breath, trying her best not to snap on him. She conceded, giving him a nod of her head before walking out of the kitchen.

.

.

For a whole day, every time she went to the kitchen to begin making Mr. Malik his meals, Mr. Higgins would come out to tell her that Mr. Malik would not be eating at the house. It frustrated her, but she did her best to shrug it off. She hadn’t seen Zayn since he walked out of her hospital room, but even that didn’t surprise her. It pissed her off, but it didn’t surprise her.

The next day, she received a memo that Mr. Malik would be out of the house for the rest of the week on a business trip and to do her best during that time to rest. Even Mr. Higgins was gone. Katherine was left alone in the house with Mr. Bates, Higgins’ security back-up.

It wasn’t until Saturday morning that she heard stirrings of other people in the house. She heard Mr. Higgins talking to Mr. Bates and she immediately wondered if Mr. Malik was home. It annoyed her that she felt hopeful for the first time in a week. And when she heard Zayn’s voice coming from his office, she was almost elated. She stood outside the door listening for a moment, appreciating the sound of his lovely British accent as he took a business call. She had to take a deep breath and force the smile off her face as she made her way to the kitchen to make Mr. Malik’s breakfast.

Once she was finished with his meal, she walked back toward his office to inform him it was ready. But instead, she was stopped by Mr. Higgins.

“Mr. Malik has no need for breakfast this morning, Miss Mason. We will be leaving shortly for the office,” Mr. Higgins said curtly before walking away, leaving her feeling stunned.

Her breathing heightened as the anger boiled up inside of her. Mother fucker. She took another step toward the office door and stopped in her tracks, cursing Mr. Malik under her breath. Fuck him. FUCK him. Without another rational thought, she threw open his office door and bombarded her way inside. Zayn’s head snapped in her direction.

“I’ll call you back when I get into the office. No, no. I’ll call you back,” he said before hanging up the phone.

“Miss Mason,” he said evenly, his eyes watching her.

“You’re not going to eat breakfast?” She snapped at him.

“I have an early meeting. No time this morning,” he said as his eyes dropped away from her and he began straightening out the papers on his desk.

“Just do it, Zayn. Just be a man and do it,” she snapped at him.

“Do what, Miss Mason?” He asked, looking at her with an even expression.

“Just let me go! Why am I even here? Why am I still here?” She yelled at him.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he said evenly.

“It’s been a week and a half, Zayn! What am I doing here?” She yelled back at him.

“I’ve been out of town on business,” he told her.

“How convenient!” She growled.

“I don’t know what you mean,” he said, quirking a passive eyebrow at her.

“God. Fuck,” she growled, angrily running her fingers through her hair.

“Miss Mason?” He questioned.

“I-I’m done. I’m done with this,” she told him.

“Ahem, Mr. Malik. It’s time,” Mr. Higgins said from the doorway.

“Thank you,” he said as he shoved the papers from his desk into his briefcase.

Katherine stood slack-jawed, staring at him. It didn’t even phase him – whether she was there or not. It didn’t matter.

“Miss Mason, I have to get to work. Can we talk about this later?” Mr. Malik said, sounding entirely too professional for the matter at hand.

“No,” she said quietly as the tears threatened to fall from her eyes.

His eyes narrowed at her and she knew that look. He wanted to punish her. But she also knew he wouldn’t. Not after everything that happened.

“I quit,” she said quietly, but firmly. And finally she saw a spark in his eyes. A flame of anger or betrayal or something. But it quickly went out.

“If that’s what you want,” he said indifferently.

“It’s what I want,” she choked out.

Mr. Malik gave her one last look and then a nod before he disappeared out of his office. And she was left there to fall apart.

Notes