Anchor Grind (H.S. / A.U.)

Chapter 34

I try to bring myself to shimmy out of bed, but my body tells me no. My legs felt like jell-o and my head was about to burst open. I think the dehydration mixed with all liquids leaving my body in the form of tears and vomit from the bathroom floor made me a mess of a person.

I wanted to just down some alcohol and make my life disappear right now, but that wasn't in the cards obviously. I needed to either get up and shower or try to eat something because right now I was a waste of space it seemed.

I swing my legs over the side of the bed and try to steady myself, bracing for the headrush that will come with finally getting out of bed and being a person again. I use each of my hands to hold me steady, and one collides with something small and soft on my bed, my eyes catch a small stuffy, gray.

It was Heaven's little elephant she had the night of the sleepover...

The night I found out.

The night everything changed.

She probably left it because she thought I needed something to cuddle, but right now it was a reminder. I picked it up to chuck across the room but instead of hearing it thud lightly against a wall or something I hear a brisk and curt "what the fuck" from a groggy voice.

My brain instantly went straight to assuming it was Harry, despite the fact that the voice, accent, and demeanor didn't actually match. Instead when my eyes met with the sterling blue ones across from me I was still relieved to find a familiar face. "Oh. Hi Niall." I croak out, not realizing how hoarse my own voice was going to be.

Niall uses the heel of his hand to rub his temple and yawns before stretching out both legs in his sweatpants and tank top combo, "hey kiddo. You're awake. Poppy had to go to work for some training, and Heather had a shift, but so far no one had left you alone. So I took up the shift. We didn't expect you to be up and all that. You need something?" He started rushing to my side at the end of his sentence, checking water, tissues, and a tylenol bottle.

Honestly, I hadn't noticed all these things next to me, their constant refilling despite usage, and the fact that someone was staying here with me nonstop. But, now that I think back on it, I feel like every so often I remember seeing someone sitting in the chair in the corner of my room napping with a blanket wrapped around them. I guess I didn't notice how much I was ignoring by mentally checking out the past few days.

I reach for the cup and Niall mimics my moves, holding it steady for me and holding it at the base while I drink, in case my motor skills decide to give up or whatever he thought was going to happen. Quickly he set the cup down and opened the bottle of tylenol, asking me to hold out my hand to put two pills in and then picking up the water cup again. "Take those, then let's get some food in you. You're starting to look like a paper doll from Kat's old play stuff."

I go to roll my eyes but my head is throbbing so much I instead just groan audibly and divert my attention to the bathroom door, "I need to shower first. Is it weird if I like... ask you to wait till I'm done and then we eat and stuff? I know that's weird but I kinda' feel a little off... and like..." I felt stupid asking but if I fell or passed out from lack of food and water I didn't honestly think mom or dad would hear me.

It was probably too stupid or weird to ask. I don't even know why I did it.

"Sure." Niall instantly perks up and doesn't skip a beat. He acts like it was the more normal thing, like I asked him to run to the gas station to grab me a sprite or something. 

"You jump in, don't do it too hot though, the steam might make you all loopy and stuffs," he taps the side of my head while holding a hand out to help me up and walk me into the bathroom. "I'll even get your shit ready, it's like I would do for Kat so it's not weird and shit. Uhm, I'll set it on the toilet lid and then I'll go ask your mom if she is hungry. I can make sandwiches or like... mac and cheese... grilled cheese? Anything sound good to you?" I shook my head and he scratched at his bleachy blonde hair. It was flat today, not normal for him but he was just sleeping in a chair quite uncomfortably.