Strong [h.s]

Confession

H a r r y

"Calm down, Harry, everything will be okay."

I spin on my heel to look at Aideen, who's reclining in one of the waiting room chairs. "You can't possibly know that. She could be dying in there for all I know!" A woman in a chair across the room gazes at me with pitiful eyes; it's the third time I've caught her staring at me. It probably isn't easy to ignore me, since I'm pacing back and forth in a nervous frenzy.

Niall rests his hand on Aideen's knee and shakes his head. "I don't know, mate, but you can't just assume the worst. The doctors know what they're doing."

Why didn't I know? Why didn't I at least question it? I should have known. I lift my inhaler to my mouth, press down and breathe it in. Once again, I look down the hall for any sign of Isis. A part of me wonders if she's even okay, because I didn't consider the fact that she would be driving herself down here. If I'm this terrified, she has to be a complete wreck.

"Harry!" It's Louis' voice, coming from just down the hall. In just second, Louis appears in the room with an arm around Isis. He begins to lead her towards me, but she pulls herself away and rushes to the counter.

"Where's my daughter?" I hear her ask, "Randie Sparrow. I'm her mother, Isis." The woman behind the counter says something back and Isis shakes her head. "I need to see her!" I want to run over to her and envelope her in my arms, but my feet are stuck to the ground and won't move. I can't bring myself to do anything but just stand there, watching Isis turn around in defeat. I think for a moment that she's walking over to me, but Aideen is the one who meets her halfway and pulls her close.

"What happened?" It's Louis, suddenly by my side.

"Randie has a severe nut allergy," I explain, watching Aideen and Isis pull away. The moment that Isis sees me, she takes a few steps backwards and in a flash is gone down the hall and out of the children's ward.

Niall, Louis, Aideen and the woman all stare at me for a few seconds before Niall speaks. "Well, are ya' gonna' go or not?"

It's all I need to push my feet into motion, chasing down the way Isis went. I look around as I run to find her, dodging doctors, nurses, patients and visitors. If I know Isis, she'll go for the place where she can be the most alone and have the most space. My legs carry me down numerous flights of stairs until I reach the ground floor, where I rush through the automatic doors. Just as expected, I see Isis leaning against the brick of the building.

I slow down when I near her, but by the scuffle of my shoes on the pavement she knows I'm here. "I can't do this right now," She squeaks, "Just leave me alone." Her face is hidden, so I take another step closer.

"I'm so sorry," I manage to say.

"I can't lose her," She cries, "I have lost nearly everyone in my life who means anything to me; I can't lose her too! Do you know how many people die from anaphylactic shock?"

"I didn't know," I say quietly. "I had no idea that she would be allergic to nuts. How could I know?" Isis only shakes her head, so I continue. "She doesn't know, and you've never said a word to me about it!"

I finally get a look at her face when she suddenly looks up at me. Her beautiful brown eyes are puffy around the edges, her cute nose is tinged a shade of red, and her cheeks are flushed from a mixture of the cold and her emotions.

She brings her bottom lip between her teeth and sighs heavily. "Damnit, I know this isn't your fault! I just-- I need to blame somebody, okay?! Because if I don't and something happens to her, it'll be my fault. I didn't even tell her I love her this morning," She adds, pushing her hands into her hair and tugging on it just as she did the night I kissed her.