Silent Cries (Niam)

Chapter 16

"Why did you leave me?" Niall forved the words out of his mouth, biting his lip as he waited for the response.

Grant stepped away, his face softening. "I didn't leave you Niall, I was sitting on the park bench. I didn't want you to wake up next to a stranger and panic. You looked busy on your phone and I didn't want to interrupt, but then you started running away and I had to chase you. And now you're crying and I'm so confused."

It was in that moment that Niall relized that Grant really didn't understand at all. He may have provided temporary relief or seemed understanding in that moment, but he didn't know Nialls secret. He didn't know how much he hated hinself, and if he did he would probably hate Niall just as much as the blond boy hated himself. Grant was a good person, and he was obviously trying to be nice, but he didn't know Niall. And Niall relized that he could never really rely on someone like Grant until his problems were fixed. He need someone who knew, someone who understood.

Someone like Liam.

Niall pushed Grant out of the way. "M sorry, I have to go, a friend is waiting for me."

Before Niall vould make it very far, Grant grabbed his wrist and stopped him. "Wait, Niall."

Niall looked back at Grant. He may not understand, But for someone who didn't know him at all, he was good at phishing against his walls. Niall had always wanted someone who would do that. Someone who would push against his truths. But now He relized that it wasn't really what he wanted. He didn't want someone to deny him, He wanted someone to know him. He wanted to be someone worth knowing. Nevertheless, he owed it to Grant to hear him out for a minute.

"You really like him, don't you?" Grants face was soft, and he was smiling. "I don't know who it is, but you really like him, don't you? I can see it in your eyes."

Niall didn't know how to respond to that. He disnt know what the truth was, but he found himself nodding. "I really do."

Grant's smile was half dissapointed, but he dropped Nialls arm."I can give you a ride if you need one."

Niall was shocked at how nice Grant was being. He had expected Grant to be mad at Niall for leading him on. But instead, he was being offered a ride. He nodded slowly and Grant smiled, leading him to a nondescript car.

"What's his address?" Grant asked as Niall climbed into the car, buckling his seatbelt.

"555 55th street." Niall responded, his voice soft. He didn't know how Liam would react when he showed up, but he hoped he wouldn't be angry. He was only hoing to see Liam on a whim. He didn't know why he wanted those e him so bad. He knew he wanted to cut, and het rather than heading home to get his razor he was accepting Grants ride to Liam's. It didn't make sense, but he felt a deep burning in his soul that he needed to see Liam.

"He was the reason you were so upset last night." Grant stated it rather than asking, but Niall nodded anyways."Does he treat you right?"

"We aren't dating." Niall spoke the words softly. She words felt heavy in his mouth, almost as if he wished it wasn't true, but how could that possibly be? He pushed the thought aside.

"I didn't say you were," Grant pointed out. "I asked how he treats you."

Niall swallowed, considering the question. How did Liam treat him? He thought back to the first time Liam had met him, to the time he had held him as he slept, to how he had rushed to the hospital the second Niall had asked. Liam treated him better than he ever could have expected, better than he could have asked for, better than He relized. He felt the tears welling up. In such a short time, Liam had done so much for him, and all he had done for Liam was pain and trouble him. He blinked the tears away, not wanting Grant to see him cry.

"He treats me perfectly." Nialls voice cracked at the end and Grant stopped the car, shutting the engine off before turning to look at Niall.

"Then I hope things work out. But if they don't, feel free to call me any time you need a friend." Grant handed Niall a slip of paper with a number scrawled across it. Niall folded the paper and put it in his pocket. Grant reached across the seats to hug Niall. It felt nice, but Niall really craved Liam s embrace. He was almost relieved when Grant pulled away.

"Thank you," the words were so simple, but Niall was thanking Grant for everything he had done for him, and Grant seemed to relize it.

"You're welcome," Grant sounded sincere. "And as much as I like you, I hope you never have to use that number."

Niall opened the door and stepped outside, looking up at Liam s house in front of him. Grant gave him a small smile as if wishing him luck before driving away. Hesitantly, Niall followed the sidewalk up to Liam s front door. He knocked lightly, his hands trembling. He disnt want to face Liam, to deal wuth his reaction. He had half a mind to turn around and walk home. But before he could take a step, the door swung open to reveal Liam.

Niall didn't know what he expected. Maybe for Liam to slam the door in his face. Maybe for Liam to yell at him for running off and scaring him. Maybe for Liam to be fed up and hav3 stopped caring. Maybe for Liam to invite him inside awkwardly, or ask him where he was. But instead, Liam did something that meant the world to Niall. He stepped outside and wrapped his arms tightly around the blond boy.

"I'm so sorry Niall" Liam whispered, his mouth close to his ear. He felt one of Liam s tears slip and fall on his sholder. He didn't respond to Liam s apology. Instead, he pulled Liam closer and held him jist as tight as he was being held. Through this hug, Niall knew that he was okay, that Liam wasn't mad. He knew that Liam cared for him and that he cared for Liam. By Niall didn't think about that. He cherished the feeling of Liam s embrace and let all other sensations slip away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~(a/n)~~~~~~~~~

I got 1000 reads! Oh my gosh, I'm so proud of you guys! I know that I don't always update really quickly on this story, and I'm sorry about that. I really love you guys and you don't know how much it made my day when I say that I got 1k reads. This is the most reads I've ever had on a work still in progress and it means so much to me. Every comment and every vote means the world to me, and to all of you silent readers, you make me so happy Just by reading my writing. So thank you thank you thank you for all that you do!

Because I'm in such a good mood, I'm going to give you anything you want. Comment with anything you want to happen, or anything I can do to make this more enjoyable to read. If you want me to update more, I can do that too. Just tell me what you want and I'll give it to you. :)