Abducted By Styles [IN RE-EDITING]

• T W E L V E •

"I know, Harry. Isn't it exciting?" Mother Queen laughed, asking both Niall and me.

"Yeah!" We shouted out enthusiastically and in sync, falling to the ground in pure laughter.

For the past week, Mother Queen, Niall and I were making preparations for Leila's surprise birthday party at the hospital. She wasn't in good condition, so she had to stay in bed. Her hair was all gone due to chemo, skin very pale, swollen and clammy.

Mother Queen and I would visit and stay there for hours playing with her.

"Make sure to have sprinkle donuts at the party. Leila LOVES them!" Niall reminded Mother Queen for the a hundredth time.

"Yes Niall, I won't forget." Mother Queen chuckled, pulling him into a warm hug.

"Hey how about me, mum?" I asked, pouting and Mother Queen pulled me in with her free hand. Niall and I were each rewarded with a kiss on the head.

"Ew mum! We are men!" I stated, causing Mother Queen to giggle.

"Yeah! We are strong men!" Niall agreed, puffing his chest out as far as he could.

"Oh really n-" Suddenly, the phone rang. Mother Queen answered it.

"Hello? Queen Melissa speaking." I heard her say, "Pardon me? Okay, we'll be right there." Mother Queen's voice trembled nervously, which made Niall and I lock gazes at once.

Mother Queen's hands shook hard from the grip she had on us. "It's about Leila. She's not doing too well. We have to go to the hospital."

"Now?" I remember Niall ask with such a tiny, insecure voice.

"Now." Mother Queen replied.

~•~

We rushed quickly to the hospital. "Where is Leila Horan's room?" Mother Queen asked the person at the front desk. The person, more specifically a slim, dark haired woman, typed frantically at the computer keyboard in front of her.

"She's in the Special Care Centre, so you must let the nurses know before entering her room." She said quietly and Mother Queen nodded. "She's on floor eight."

Hand in hand, Mother Queen led Niall and me to floor 8 and in front of a large room, Niall's mum and dad were standing impatiently. Niall's mum was crying into her husband's chest, and Niall rushed to their side.

"Why are you crying, mum? What happened?" He asked, tugging at his mum's skirt. With quivering lips, she knelt down to his level and kissed him all over.

"We don't know yet, sweetie." She told him truthfully, holding back sobs and whimpers. Mother Queen hugged Niall's mum in effort to try and comfort her.

I stood on my tippy toes, squinting into the peephole of the room where nurses were constantly walking in and out. All I could see was white; almost like what I thought heaven would look like, even though the place where you could possibly take your last breath wasn't heaven at all.

After a few minutes, all the nurses piled out with their material and the doctor emerged from the doorway as well. "Is my baby alright, Doctor?" Niall dad asked with such great hope in his voice but it was deflated immediately; just the simple gesture where the doctor puts his hand on Mr. Horan's shoulder.

"Mr and Mrs Horan, we tried our very best to save her. We're very sorry, but Leila has lost the battle." The doctor said with a sympathetic look and walked off. It took some time to process the words of the doctor, but once we did, it was like the world came crashing down on us and that God had failed to save someone as kind and innocent as Leila Clare Horan.

Niall's mum was horrified, her wails echoing through the hospital hallways. She collapsed into Mother Queen's arms, who had tears streaming down her emotionless face.

"What happened, Harry? What did the doctor mean by 'lost the battle''?" Niall asked me, his eyebrows furrowed but eyes misty.

"Leila is gone." I said quietly, and before I knew it, tears started to spill from my eyes nonstop. Niall's eyes widen for a second before he bursted out into tears as well.

"No! They're lying! You're lying to me, Harry! Come on, let's go see how she's doing. She might want us to play dolls with her." It was truly heartbreaking to see Niall in such a vulnerable state where nothing else was as important and where he denied the fact that his little sister was no longer around. And so he tried to push the door open.

Mr. Horan, holds Niall back, wiping his swollen eyes. "No! I want to go see Leila, dad. I want to give her another kiss goodnight!" Niall's mum sobbed harder than ever.

"Niall, oh honey, Leila has passed away." Mrs. Horan choked out, wrapping Niall into a tight embrace.

"No, she didn't, mum. She may be gone, but her heart is still with me." Niall said, pointing to his chest and looking down at it. But that didn't stop him from having a complete emotional breakdown. The whole Horan family did.

I hugged onto Mother Queen, engulfing myself into her sweet lilac scent. "I'll miss Leila, mum."

"We all will." Mother Queen kissed the top of my head and rested her chin on it, trying to hold back the tears that threatened to spill again. We were left outside the hospital room that day, crying our hearts out and hearing Leila's sweet, contagious laugh in our heads from every day onwards.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

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C A R O L I N E

After taking a long, warm shower, my senses are aroused by the smell of warm cinnamon rolls. "Good morning, Princess. Did you like your sweets?" Harry is standing outside my door with a plate of cinnamon rolls and a takeout coffee cup. His eyes are slightly swollen and red.

"Thanks Harry, I loved them." I smile and walk over to him in my grey jumper.

"Oh, these are for you, by the way." Harry says and hands me the plate and takeout coffee cup.

"Thanks, but you really shouldn't have." I invite him into my room and take a large bite of the cinnamon roll. The heavenly spices and sweet glaze sing hallelujah inside my mouth.

"Woah, someone's hungry this morning." Harry chuckles and my cheeks flush.

"I just really love cinnamon rolls." I say quietly. Harry has his eyes on me for a really long time. "Do I have any glaze on my face?"

"No, you just look really pretty when you're hungry." Harry states. "And you've got something here." He says and motions to his own lips.

I try to find the spot, but Harry shakes his head. "No love, here." Like that, the pad of his thumb slowly ghosts across my lips. His touch is warm and it causes a weird sensation in the pit of my stomach.

Harry still has his thumb on my lip, and when I look up at him, he removes it slowly. "There, it's gone." He whispers, and I swear it leaves me dazed in a way I've never been before.

•••••••••••••

I dedicate this chapter to everyone who has lost a loved one to cancer. x. M