Niall wakes with a gasp, heart pounding in his chest and skin soaked in a layer of sweat. For a moment, the weight of the covers over his legs feels like skin on skin and he can't stand it, throwing the duvet away without a seconds thought.
It takes a moment before he takes in his surroundings through the dark. The walls and the posters and the ceiling; all familiar, all the same sight that has greeted him every morning for almost three weeks now.
A quick glance at the bed across from his tells him that Harry is still asleep, chest rising and falling evenly before he mumbles something and rolls over. He watches for a moment before he takes a short breath and lowers his bare feet to the ground, padding quietly out of the room.
He ends up in the living room in the dark. The clinking of paws against wooden flooring greets him as he moves to curl up in the corner of the couch, heart still racing. Tucker climbs up onto the seat beside him, whining and butting his wet nose against his cheek. Niall chokes out a wet laugh before he rises a hand to his cheek and finds it soaked with tears.
The discovery makes his eyes produce more and he wraps his arms around the dog's neck as he cries, trying to stay as quiet as possible. The last thing he wants is for anyone to find him like this, all weak and upset. Nobody wants a broken kid; that's why they all go for the babies instead, the little cute ones without a screwed up past.
The nightmare sits heavy in his mind, the past horrors he's faced feeling so present all over again. He buries his fingers into Tucker's long fur, and presses his face against his neck, muffling his sobs that way instead as the dog licks at his face.
"I'm okay," he whispers in a broken tone. "I'm okay, boy."
He lifts a hand eventually to rubs at his eyes tiredly. The clock on the wall tells him that it's barely three in the morning, but he can't even think about going to sleep again.
It doesn't take long for the tears to slow down and he lets out a small sigh, freezing when he hears footsteps heading down the stairs.
He doesn't know how he feels about this entire situation, this entire place. Zayn and Louis haven't hurt him yet, but he knows that it's inevitable. That it'll happen. And in the day time, he lets himself feel secure, lets his guard down slightly because it's almost easy to fall into the routine they have here. Harry wakes him up and they go down for breakfast, Liam makes him play video games and Louis talks to him about the 'important' things like going back to school when the summer holidays are over (if Sally doesn't come for him before then), and then every night, Zayn tucks him in and Niall says goodnight.
It's the closest thing to safe he's felt for a long time.
But at night, the guard goes back up. Every time he's alone with one of the men, his guard goes back up.
Right now, the guard goes back up as soon as Louis steps into the room.
"Niall?" He questions softly, before flicking the light on.
He winces at the sudden brightness, quickly trying to scrub at his face. He doesn't want to give anyone any sort of leverage over him. The moment they seem him as weak is the moment they try to take what they want without ever asking. He won't let that happen again.
The man moves around to the front of the couch and sits down on the other side of Tucker hesitantly. Niall glances up for long enough to see concerned eyes scanning over his face. He looks down again.
"How long've you been up?" Louis asks quietly after a moment.
Niall sniffles and raises a hand to swipe at the back of his nose. "Dunno," he mumbles. Feels like hours. Probably mere minutes.
YOU ARE READING
With Open Arms
Fanfictionin which a runaway boy finds himself hurtling head first into something he's never had before - a family OR thirteen year old niall has spent the past three years on the streets. louis and zayn have two sons and are pretty content with their little...
