Blindfolded- Louis Tomlinson fanfic

Chapter 9: Red Blood, Blue Tears

*Louis' POV*

All I could do was try to run, though. In hindsight, it wasn't a good idea, considering that I was on crutches. And yes, I used 'hindsight' again. I'm damn fancy. Anyways, I stopped right outside of the hospital, and thought things through for a short while. Maybe I just needed to procrastinate. I don't know. The million-dollar question was "Why?"

Why did I run away?

Why did I do all those things Niall talked about?

Why did I ever let any of this happen?

I stopped myself. "I couldn't have helped it." I thought, "It wasn't my plan to have Banner text me and set me up with Ariel, and it wasn't my plan to get the train blown up and Harry..." It made sense when I realized what had happened.

"Harry is dead." I whispered, but then I almost laughed. Of course he wasn't dead. Harry Styles wouldn't die in there, like that. No.

"Harry is dead," I repeated. That was when the truth hit me. Yes, he was. Harry died right in front of me, and I was too self-centered and worked up by Niall to even notice. I couldn't help but sit on the curb, where the ambulances would drive by the A&E. I ran away because I didn't want to face the truth of everything. I didn't want to face Harry's death or the shame of everything I had done that Niall listed.

That's when I realized the thing about Niall. He was one way for the public, the fans, the boys, his family, and everyone; but around Ariel, Banner, the Network, and I, he was a dark soul. I supposed that Niall could only stay clean for so long before he had to turn to the Network to get his fix. His fix of darkness, drama, and trouble.

I hoisted myself up so that my crutches were in the right place and left silently, as the tears from earlier came back and spilled down my face. I stopped the first person I saw walking by, a lady who looked about my age, with a dark purple sweater over a yellow-green top. That's all that stood out to me until I looked at her face. She wasn't pretty. 'Pretty' was an understatement. This lady was beautiful, with long brown hair, tied to one side and laying on her shoulder. Her eyes were the clearest shade of blue I'd ever seen, and they seemed to have a sort of fire in them that made you feel like a friend.

"Oh, hi, sorry, can you, um... Can you tell me how to get to Clayborn Lane?" I stammered before I blushed, feeling flustered.

"Are you sure you want to go there?" she asked, smiling at me curiously, "The place is a wreck. They're tearin' down the last house there tonight. And it's with these new methods, too. Apparently, this new company 'as said they're gonna tear it down and then burn it, 'cause it's good for the environment. So I'm all for that." After she noticed me staring at her, dumbstruck, she giggled and said, "I'm Red, by the way. Well, actually, my name is Juniper Redford, but all my friends call me Red." I still stared at her. How could one person change the topic so many times from just one question?"

"Um, yeah, I'm meeting a friend there." I wasn't lying, though. It was only 'blanketing' the truth. I was technically meeting Ariel at Clayborn Lane, but she wouldn't be meeting me, if that makes sense.

"Interesting friend." Red replied, raising her eyebrows. At that point she grabbed the strap of her messenger bag and looked down the road. "Yeah, you're gonna want to go right down there, take the second left, the fourth right, and then it's a really short bus ride on number sixty-one. After that, turn left off the bus and take the first right, the first left, and then the third right, then you'll be at Clayborn Lane." She grabbed a biro and a pad of paper from her bag, then quickly scribbled.

"Here, just follow this. And there's my number." she grinned, tucking hair behind her ear in a typical fashion.

"You must know the city really well." I replied plainly, my eyes barely reading every word.