It always comes back to you

Chapter 8

Harry grabbed Louis' hand, wincing as pressure was applied to his blisters, and began to lead the way, but they made it down only three stairs before Louis was collapsing. "God fucking dammit, you sheep fucker," Harry growled, groaning slightly as he bent down and hefted Louis up into his arms, carrying him bridal style. He had to turn his body so he was leaning against the wall do he could feel where he was going, the smoke now so thick in the stairwell it was like he was staring at a solid wall.

"Louis, stay awake with me. Come on, you don't get to pass out and leave me alone with all this fun," Harry continued to talk to Louis, not being able to look down and see if he was awake or just unable to talk. He was wheezing loudly, their breath intakes almost matching. Come to think of it, Harry was wheezing too, sounding like a smoker who had been smoking a carton a day for the past sixty years. His head was getting foggy and light, and he just wanted to collapse on the floor and have someone carry him too, but he pushed past that and ignored his jelly muscles that began to scream in pain, demanding to be heard as it began to shoot sharp pains throughout his arms, making them shake.

They had just reached the main floor when something exploded above them. The ceiling began to cave, and with the last little bit of oomph, Harry kicked himself into full gear and ran. Louis' head hit against his chest, and he was making odd noises but Harry didn't stop to see if he was okay. Pieces of the ceiling began to fall, and a support beam gave away and the entire part of the ceiling above the front desk caved in and fell, orange flames spurting out and threatening to engulf Harry and Louis if they didn't hurry.

He was on the verge of tears when he pushed through the front doors and inhaled the fresh scent, but he was already gone. He couldn't breathe. He wanted go claw at his chest and his eyes, to to relieve some of the pain. He ran as far as his legs could take him, bright red and blue lights filling the space around him, and finally collapsed a good thirty feet from the door. His kneecaps cracked on the hard cement, and even though he wanted to, he didn't drop Louis. He didn't let go. He kept his arms wrapped firmly around him, keeping him crushed firmly to his chest.

Zayn was already assuming the worst. His friend, pregnant friend, hadn't made it out. Sobbing, he buried face in Liam's shirt, the older man sniffling too upon hearing the other. Niall had been standing next to them, uncomfortable as could be as he didn't care for either of them - especially Zayn, when he suddenly saw movement from the front door.

"Hey look! Its Harry and Louis!"

Zayn and Liam looked up at the same time, seeing the tall surgeon with arms full of Louis. Both pulled away to go charging at their friends at the same time Niall jogged over, having grabbed a medical bag from the ambulance.

Louis smelt the fresh air and tilted head back, nose twitching as he sneezed. Feeling arms around him, he looked up, surprised to see it was Harry. Inwardly smiling, he brought a hand up to push the hair from the dom's face and look it over. "Harry? Are you okay?" Louis wheezed out. Damn his lungs hurt. He gave a hard cough that ended in a gag, leaning over to spit in the grass.

The irritation in Harry's lungs only progressed to his airways swelling closed, the fresh air being blocked off as he tried gasping in air. Tiny little spurts got through, and panic began to set in as he watched people surround him and Louis. "Oxygen," He croaked out, voice raspy and nearly unrecognizable. He made a cup over his face to demonstrate what he wanted, and then the world began to grow foggy, a white cloud like fog surrounding his vision.

His arms around Louis began to loosen, and he was nearly giving into the need to just faint, to give into the pain and screaming of his lungs and just let his mind shut it all off. But Niall seemed to understand what he needed, and a few seconds later a oxygen mask was placed over his mouth and nose, though the air didn't leak into his lungs like they had all been hoping.