After The End: Book 2

51. Different Ways to React

Naomis POV

We were sitting on the sofa in the living room in almost complete silence when Louis called the second time. This time, we both flinched when the ringtone cut through the silence. He rang Niall instead of me, which made sense after the sobbing that had engulfed my entire body in the wake of his last phone call. I felt silly sitting in an empty flat with just Niall and the baby. Blue streamers adorned the walls and little balloons floated at the ceiling. Snacks were set out that would likely go uneaten into the night. The birthday cake would never arrive.

Oliver was going back and forth between wiggling to be set down onto the floor and crying out to be picked up m. He understood that something had happened. I was wrecked. He couldn't not notice. He didn't know how to react any more than I did. I'd never had a friend die.

The more I tried the not think about it, the more I couldn't stop. My closest friend was dead. My closest friend had died on her wedding anniversary... my sons birthday. What was I supposed to do about that? How was I supposed to process that horrific fact?

Niall looked at me with a look of defeat before answering. He'd been sitting at my side trying to comfort me, but it hadn't accomplished much. I was fairly certain he'd never come to another party at Louis. Apparently it posed an emotional hazard.

He rose from the sofa looking weary before pulling the phone up to his ear. "Hey mate, anything new? How is Harry?....fucking hell..." Nialls face went from concern to horror in just a split second. He looked down at Oliver and cringed before turning around to stop facing us. "Louis, I'm so sorry," he said softly.

I stiffened at what could have possibly worsened. Before I could ask, Nialls shoulders slumped as if whatever Louis was saying was just a trail of bad and worse news.

"Jesus Christ, no... You think he'll come back here?" Niall asked him. There was a long pause while Louis spoke and Niall nodded along. "We'll check," he said with finality. "Louis mate, I'm so sorry. Just... I can't even imagine."

He said his goodbyes and then returned to the sofa and clasped my hand.

"What's happened?" I sniffled, wiping my eyes, where more tears had gathered preemptively in the anticipation of bad news.

"Jay," Niall said softly. "She had... they didn't see it before, but..." he trailed off blinking hard down at the floor. I saw his eyes were damp and he didn't need to finish for me. Jay was gone. He'd known her just as long as Harry and although she hadn't meant what she had to Louis and him, Jay was a mum to him too. She was everyone's mum.

The day was filled with so much loss. I had woken up so happy and optimistic and joyful and now the entire day was marred by horrific tragedy. I felt my chest cracking in two. I wanted to scream and cry and lay on the floor and never get up.

Nialls grief was evident but he took a deep breath and composed his quivering to speak again.

"Harry's left the hospital," Niall added tensely. "It was a little while ago. Louis can't leave yet, but he's ignoring his calls. He wants us to check his flat to see if he came home and he told me to be ready to find something ugly. "

I felt silly for not having thought much about Harry's reaction to everything until that moment. Harry was now the sole survivor of the car. He had just witnessed the death of the most important person in his life. He probably felt like he was being skinned alive and I was sitting there feeling sorry for myself. I remembered the day Harry had made me take him to Doncaster. It felt far away, but I remembered that in his struggle the only person he wanted to find solace in was Jay. With Lux gone, she would have been the person he clung too. If I felt pain in any of this, Harry would be in absolute excruciating agony.