Friendship Never Ends (One Direction)

Chapter 26

"Because it needed to be done," she said.

"Speaking of that, I haven't even seen my dad yet. You're not taking me until I've seen him."

She sighed again. "If only you knew what happened."

Wait, what?

"What do you mean?" I questioned. 

"Even if you went to see him, he wouldn't know who you are. Sweetie, he has dementia. He's lost a lot of his memory and he gets everything mixed up," she explained.

"Y-you're lying," I declared, my breaths getting heavy and I began seeing stars.

"I'm not lying, Steph," she replied, chuckling a little. "Go see him for yourself, if you can handle your own dad not remembering you."

I could barely make out what she was saying on the phone before I saw black and hit the floor, hard.

Rachel's P.O.V.

"What was that noise?" I asked, looking around at everybody in the living room. I swore I heard a loud thud from one of the bedrooms. I looked at Niall with wide eyes and he glanced at me in the same way. Harry even eyed me, too, and he was the first one to rush into the bedroom. Niall helped me into my wheelchair and zoomed into the bedroom, too.

"Oh, my God," Harry exclaimed, dropping to the floor to where Stephanie was lying. My heart was beating fast as the first thing I saw was Steph and I had no idea what happened. 

"Is she still breathing?" I asked, very scared. Harry felt her wrist and her neck, breathing a sigh of relief.

"I have a pulse, so she must have just fainted or something," he replied.

"Hello? Stephanie?" a mumbled voice called out. It tried saying something again, but I couldn't make it out. Then I saw a phone in Stephanie's hand and I understood. Bending down, I reached for the phone and grabbed it, putting it to my ear.

"Hello?" I cautiously questioned.

"Hello? Who is this?" the woman on the other end demanded. She sounded so familiar.

"This is Rachel," I said.

"Oh! Hi, Rachel! This is Stephanie's mum," she greeted.

"Hi," I replied, not enthusiastic like her. "What did you do to Stephanie?" 

"What do you mean?" 

"Well, she just fainted," I told her.

"Oh, oops," she responded, as if she was shaking it off. Harsh much?

"What just happened? I'm so confused," I questioned.

"I don't know, but as long as I've got you on the phone, I can tell you, too. Your mother and I are coming to England to pick you girls up. Your mother is very worried about your broken foot and wants you back home," she explained.

"Excuse me?" I spoke.

"Don't use that tone with me, young lady. We are your mothers and we decide what to do with you," she stated.

I had enough of this conversation so I simply tapped the "End" button. I don't like swearing, but Steph's mum is a bitch. How could my mom even be on board with this?!

Chucking the phone on the bed, I sat back in my wheelchair and sighed. Stephanie finally woke up and was now leaning on Harry drinking some water. Niall and Liam were sitting on the bed and I guess Louis and Zayn were still in the living room.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"Our moms want us back home, so they're coming out here to get us," I responded. "Tomorrow."

"What?" Niall exclaimed.

"Yeah," I nodded.

"That's not even the worst of it," Stephanie jumped in. "My mum also told me what happened with my dad."

"Are you serious?" Harry shouted. Steph shook her head and I could see a tear coming down her face. 

"She said it in such a horrible way, too," she sniffed. "'Even if you went to see him, he wouldn't know who you are.'"

"She said that?" I asked. 

"Yeah," Steph confirmed.

"We're not letting them take you away," Harry claimed. "You're staying here, with us."

"There's no way that's happening, Harry. They're coming tomorrow," Steph sighed.

"We have to do something, though. You guys have only been here for a week! Not even!" Niall complained.

"I know, but what can we do?" I replied.

"You feeling okay now?" Harry asked Steph.

"Yeah. I should probably pack now, shouldn't I?" she responded.

"No, you shouldn't," Harry pouted, keeping her by his side.

"Harry," she whined, looking at him. They're so adorable. How could you ruin young love, anyways?

That night was a depressing time for us as we tried to think of ways Stephanie and I could stay here, but everything we came up with was impossible for us to do. I didn't know if I should pack or not and everyone's vote was no, because then we would miss our plane. But I don't want our moms to be even more mad with us for being stubborn children. Trust me, that's what Steph's mum already called me.

Suddenly, Anne bursted through the door of our cottage and she was pissed. Her face looked scary and I was almost afraid. 

"I don't know that woman anymore," she declared, sitting on the sofa. 

"What do you mean?" Harry asked her.

"Helen's not the same woman I remember her to be," she sighed.

"My mum?" Stephanie questioned.

"Well, your adopted mum," Anne said. "She said she already talked to you, but she's coming here to pick you girls up and told me I couldn't do anything about it. She's gotten a lot more aggressive since she lived here."

"Do you think it's America that might have changed her?" Harry suggested.

"Probably not because Stephanie seems just like she's always been," Anne contradicted him. "That's a good thing, honey. I mean, you, not your mum."

"Actually, I think she's always been like this, but she's never shown it to you," Stephanie recalled. Her face twisted up and she asked a question I never thought she would actually ask. "How much do you know about my family? My real family?" 

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Compared to last chapter, this is probably very short for you guys and I do feel bad for that, but things are getting very interesting!

Very sorry for the really long wait! I promise it will never be that long again!

Rachel and Stephanie :)