"I just... I just wanted to be their friend." Harry said through heavy sobs.

"I know." Zayn replied and he used a wet soppy washcloth to dab at Harry's bleeding lip.

"So why'd they push me in... in... Push me in the mud and kick my face?"

"Because they're bullies. That's why?"

"But they said they would be my friend. I don't understand Zayn."

Zayn was trying his best to clean Harry's face off so he could take his bath. But Harry was talking and crying and making it nearly impossible. So he gave up for the time being.

"They were just being mean. They like to tease people instead of helping them so they will pretend to be nice to people just to hurt them. But I don't like seeing you get hurt like this. I'll help you meet new friends if you want some. But you have to promise me you won't walk away from me to do that ever again and that if you ever see trouble, you'll go the other way, alright?"

He nodded and wiped his eyes. But Zayn knew that Harry didn't fully understand when there was trouble. He wanted everyone to be friendly like him.

"Okay. Good."

"Zayn." He said as he leaned his head against the back of the tub.

"Yeah?"

"One of the boys that was there said.... He said... I was gay? But I- I don't know what that is? What is that?"

Zayn's brow furrowed and immediately anger zipped through his entire body. It was obvious they were using it as a slur. He wanted nothing more than to find those boys again and do more than just take Harry away from them and threaten them. He was ready to turn those threats into action. But in a effort to keep Harry from panicking, he did his best not to show it.

"Well. It means a couple of things." He said, setting the cloth on the edge of the tub. "Sometimes it can mean that a person is carefree and happy."

Harry pointed to himself. "I'm happy."

"Yes. You are." And he was. Harry was the happiest soul Zayn had ever met.

"And what's the other thing it means?"

He sighed, trying to figure out the simplest way to explain it. "Well, for you it means... It means that you like other boys like yourself. You know how we kiss each other sometimes? Our special kisses that we don't share with anyone else?"

He nodded.

"It's sort of like that."

He smiled and Zayn smiled too, looking at the water that was glistening his eyes. "Alright. Now I need to finish cleaning your face. But you have to stop talking for me to do it."

"Sorry."

"And when we're done, we'll go watch cartoons together, yeah?"

Harry gasped with excitement and fiddled around under the mass of soap bubbles for the wash sponge. Zayn could not help but smile with admiration as he picked up the washcloth once more and began to dab at the cut on his lip.

Soon, when Harry's face was all clean and he was quietly playing with his bath toys, Zayn leaned back against the wall with a sigh. He knew that no matter what, he could never get tired of taking care of Harry the way he had been doing. He loved doing it too much.

Sometimes when he'd work up the courage to talk about Harry to new people, they would start off with so much rage and anger whenever he mentioned the kisses. They always assumed he was talking about an eight year old and even threatened to break his jaw and send him to the hospital. But once he explained that Harry was actually 18 and only one year younger than him, their jaws dropped in awe.

"I'm sorry. I thought you were talking about a child." They would say.

"I know." He'd reply before showing them a picture of him sitting in the middle of the floor, smiling with his elbows digging into his thighs and fists pressed at his cheeks. "That happens all the time."

And it did. Because it was hard not to mistaken him for a child when he talked about Harry. And he couldn't help but sound as if he were taking care of an eight year old because most times, it was like taking care of one.

Harry wasn't like most people his age. He was years behind the age of eighteen when it came to learning. There were many things he couldn't comprehend the way other people could. People often liked to tease him and call him "retarded", "special" and harshly express how much he wasn't "normal". But Zayn never allowed that. Even though he knew it was somewhat true, he never allowed anyone to spitefully say such things about Harry even when Harry wasn't around. But especially when he was.

The first time he ever met Harry was when he saw him walking down one of the neighborhood streets. Harry was only sixteen then. A group of boys were following him and it wasn't hard to tell that they were picking on him. He could hear the distasteful words coming from their mouths as they rudely nudged him in the back of the head.

"What you doing 'round here, retarded boy?"

"Lost your coloring book and crayons or somethin'?"

Right away he sprinted over to them to stop them. He firmly told them to get lost and that if they refused, he'd call the police and have them arrested for assault. As cowardly as Zayn figured they were, they scurried off their separate ways, concluding that leaving well enough alone was much better than any serious trouble with law enforcement.

Zayn didn't even need thirty seconds with Harry to tell there was something different about him. It was obvious. But to Harry, he didn't see anything wrong with himself. And Zayn didn't want to be the one to make him think otherwise.

Harry knew his way back home, but Zayn walked him there anyway, just in case that group of guys may have shown up again. When they reached a white house, there was a lady in the yard who'd been working in the flower bed. She gasped when she looked up and saw Harry walking with Zayn. She rose to her feet and ran over to him.

"Harry! What are you doing outside?! I thought you went back inside an hour ago! How'd you slip past me?!"

"I went out... To walk. And... and I met some other people mummy."

She took him by the hand and gently pulled him away from Zayn. "I can see that. But I told you to stay inside. Something terrible could have happened to you out here. Come on." Ignoring Zayn, she turned around and headed inside the house. Before they went all the way in though, Harry turned around and waved at Zayn. "Bye!"

He nodded in his direction. "Bye Harry. It was nice meeting you."

And it was.