United We Live

Nine

The next day, Harry was, for lack of a better word, grumpy.

It was to be expected of the singer who was recovering from stepping in a bear trap of all things, but his current predicament was especially taking its toll on him.

"What do you mean he's refusing to settle this out of court?" Harry complained. "What man in his right mind would want to go to court?"

Liam looked at the youngest band member in sympathy as his mother shook her head.

"I'm sorry, honey. I know you don't want to make a spectacle, but he does. He believes going to court gives him a better advantage of persuading the judge to lessen the sentence than the two of you coming to an agreement."

Harry slumped back into his pillows in defeat at Anne's words. It had been quite the trying day for him. Just as he seemed to find a solution he liked, something was standing in his way again. The court case had become a rather trying affair, and every step Harry took to closing it, this man seemed to be there to refuse.

"Don't worry Hazza, there's still time to convince him. He is after all being detained in jail as we speak. No matter how this goes down he still has to pay for having an illegal trap set in the first place," Liam attempted to put him at ease.

"I don't particularly feel like going through the hassle of a court case," Harry frowned. "I'm still thinking it might be best to just drop the charges."

"No one wants to, Harry," Anne softly spoke, leaning forward as she addressed him. "Right now it would make us all feel better if you focused you efforts on getting better first; then looking into this mess. You know we're here to help you handle this, you've never had to deal with the court over an issue as unique as this case."

"I suppose I'll need to see my lawyer," Harry sighed.

Anne reached over and ran her hand through his hair with another smile.

"I'll see what I can do, try to get some rest. The doctor should be back in an hour or so for his daily routine."

As she walked out of the room, Liam and Harry looked at each other.

"Don't worry about this Haz, you're mother is right, focus on getting better," Liam advised, pulling his chair close to the bed for better conversation.

"This is the least of my concerns," The young singer admitted. "I'm more worried about Niall. None of us have heard anything and it's been days. The whole world is in an uproar."

And he was right.

As soon as the news broke about their missing companion, it hit the media like a storm. Questions had been flying left and right, and the teens had been bombarded with concerns from millions.

"Maura and Bobby are going to arrive tomorrow, they have a plane booked for this evening," Liam announced.

He looked over his shoulder and noted that for once the blinds on the windows had been opened and a soft golden glow was filling the room.

"There's a mob of people outside the hospital holding a candle light vigil," Liam informed him. "They started to gather this morning. People are also beginning to spread over twitter with signs looking for him. If Niall even so much as pops a finger into the public eye, we'll find him."

Harry nodded in silence.

"We've been trying to be quiet about you though. The quieter we can keep this whole business with the bear trap under wraps the smoother we're all hoping this court case will go."