Animal

26

"I can't take it here."

Louis' eyes sting from the salt on his hot skin but that's not pain. Pain is losing the only person you trust, watching them being taken away.

"I-It's not healthy." Louis swallows and Harry's shirt rips at the seam a little. "I want our Bean to be healthy and Harry, I don't trust these people. What are those things outside?"

"Look at me, sweetheart. Good boy." Harry praises. "Tomorrow there's a storm coming and the men who were here today are coming back to deal with what they left behind. I promise we'll be walking out those gates tomorrow."

Louis shouldn't feel like all the hope in the word is lifting his shoulders and all will be well after tomorrow. He should be guarded because if these people got him here, they can bloody keep him here.

"Okay. I trust you." But Louis' always one for a gamble.

"How's my baby doing?" Harry goes for a subject change.

"Fine." Louis sounds tired, emotionally unsatisfied and physically drained.

"And mommy?"

There's a soft smile that makes it to Louis' lips but the dead, broken look in his eyes overshadows it.

"I'm so proud of you, princess." Harry knows how much Louis loves praise, needs it most when he feels like everything is caving in. "You've kept our baby healthy even through this. You're so strong, my dove."

"You took care of us, Haz. I'd never be able to do it on my own."

They hadn't showered in two days and Harry gave every bit of a meal opportunity to Louis because he knows Louis needs it more, that he's eating for two.

"You need to be in bed now, okay?" Harry says it and immediately Louis starts to fuss. "I'll be right here with you the whole time. I promise."

"Help Zayn!" Louis couldn't sleep when one of the two people here who had his best interests at heart, was struggling to breathe on the ground. "Help him please."

There was a fine-tuned and well understated burn now being driven up Harry's nervous system to the pit of his mind where it will linger, fester until he's ready to exact revenge upon the motive. He nodded beside that burn, that crippling disposition, and helped Louis onto the bed first.

"Rest here, my lovely dove." Harry cradles both sides of Louis' face, pressing a firm kiss to his forehead.

Thankfully the traumatising noises from the without surroundings, has been muted by their heavy door. Just the glass pane allows a quick glimpse out into what they'd be apart of had that door not been there. It should end soon, if Harry's previous single observation of it lasting just a half hour is correct.

Harry hauls Zayn onto a mattress on the floor at the foot of the bunk beds. Zayn stays unconscious, even when Louis wipes the blood from his mouth and eyebrow.

"Come here, darling." Harry opens his arms for Louis to settle between.

Louis puts his head in his hands against Harry's torso, closing his eyes and just letting the darkness of a strong slumber take over him.

*HARRY'S POV* (It's been so long)

There are those who are built to survive. They are few, but that's exactly why they are survivors. Whenever there's a threat, something about to wipe out all that they love, there's a fire ignited within them that is powerful enough to keep them going and others, through the pain and devastation.

Then there were those who hesitated and got themselves hurt. They needed protection and very rarely did they end up in the arms of said suitor. They would succumb to the cruelty of this world, of the black innovation of this generation, and die alone.