Inefficient || Niam [BoyxBoy]

Chapter 12

For the next few weeks, Niall was treated with immense care and attention by everyone. Liam, Perrie, and Zayn took care of the more personal objectives while Harry, Louis, and Josh took care of his house when they weren't working shifts. With time passing by, Niall couldn't see his life getting anywhere near slow like beforehand when this group of people hadn't entered his life just yet. Would they stay forever?

Once Liam got a job at the same coffee, working for Niall, Louis took the time to get to know him better since Harry and Zayn worked a similar shift. He and Perrie take care of the Irishman's every need while Josh kept his position in the living room.

“I owe you all so much for helping me these past few weeks.” Niall sat up in his bed to get comfortable, maneuvering himself against the headboard. “You've given me enough care and attention for the rest of my life and I don't know how to repay you all.”

Perrie shrugs and hands him a bowl of sliced fruits, wearing a soft smile. “I think you should just relax and take it easy, Niall.” Zayn nods, agreeing with her. “We can handle ourselves and you at the same time, so there's nothing to worry about.”

Niall sighs softly. “But I feel... worthless when it comes to you guys taking care of me.” His arms cross while looking down at his bowl of fruit. “I don't want to be bedridden for days on end when I'm vulnerable and susceptible to anything. It's not worth it.”

Zayn purses his lips a little and ruffles his friend's hair a little bit, knowing what he meant. “I get where you're coming from, but you shouldn't feel obligated to take care of us when we've been doing it ourselves for years. You have given us friendship and more hospitality than anyone else has for years.” He gets Niall to look up at him. “So there's no need to feel worthless or inefficient, if you will, in the slightest. I am sure that every single one of us can handle whatever comes our way. It'll just take some time for you to get back on your feet, but not too long.”

Niall doesn't want to wait for that, though. He wants to help everybody as he has for years, but Isaac ruined that for him, not Liam who felt guilty since that incident happened. He would never blame Liam for such a thing because neither of them knew that the other alpha would do that particular action. The Irishman earned a lasting indentation on his arm for a little while though, and he'd have to deal with it.

“Will I be able to help you stop Isaac from doing anything ever again?” The question made Perrie and Zayn frown, both growing confused over it.

“What do you mean?” Perrie sits up after laying down for a few moments. “We aren't going to try and get the jump on him if that's what you're suggesting. It isn't the best course of action right now because others may suspect that we're doing something wrong in the pack.” She holds a tone of worry and resilience in her voice that makes Niall curious to know more about this guy.

“Why does he want to go after Liam?” He sets his bowl down on the bedside table. “Liam doesn't seem like the person to go around and hurt people, anybody for that matter, so why?”

Perrie and Zayn sigh in sync, looking at each other before the tatted male speaks up. “Liam's sisters were the reason for Isaac's parents' deaths.” He clears his throat, continuing even though Niall was already in shock. “They knew something that nobody else did, and nobody figured out how they pieced it together. Ruth and Nicola, Liam's sisters, apparently saw their parents get murdered by Isaac's, and they didn't do anything about it until a few days later. Liam doesn't know about this because everyone presumed that it would only cause more of an outroar than necessary.” He scratches at his beard, remembering more than he thought when getting told about this months ago. “In the end, Ruth and Nicola retreated from the pack and were never seen again since then. Nobody has seen them, but they couldn't have gotten far. This makes Liam and the people he cares about easier targets.”

Niall sits there in complete shock, not expecting to hear a gruesome story. Why do people still have to resort to violence? There are other options that are humane and easier to handle, the Irishman thought.

“So there's a target on all of our backs because of what Liam's sisters did?” The pair nod. “I guess I can't blame them too much since their parents got murdered, but I don't like the idea of violence. It's too dangerous.”

The couple nod in agreement. “We never liked the idea of violence either, a push or shove here and there may be viable but hurting someone has always been a huge no for us.” Perrie stands up from the bed and paces around the room a little. “The fact that people assume werewolves are nothing but harmful creatures pisses me off because we're actually really kind and thoughtful when it comes to interacting with people. Stereotypes are so ignorant.” Niall and Zayn chuckle lightly, agreeing with her completely.

“I hear ya.” A small smile tugs at Niall's lips. “I've always either talked with the person or walked away when it got too hectic. There's nothing wrong doing that, but we need to take care of Isaac when he comes around, don't we, Pez?”

The tatted woman swallows the eventual lump in her throat, trying to think of different solutions when that time would come. Nothing came up. “I think that will be the only solution. He's going to hold nothing back the next time he tries to come here, so we'll have to do whatever it takes to make him scared or bring him down completely. You will have no part in that.”

Niall understands her and lets out a long sigh, going back to eating his fruits that were still cold since his bedroom remained cool for a few days now.

Meanwhile, Liam was almost done with his shift until he noticed a pair of familiar looking girls walk inside. He peers up at them and frowns, trying to figure out who they were until their facial features blossomed.

“Ruth... Nicola... What are you doing here? Where have you two been?” A huge smile spreads across his face while he brings them into a small group hug, feeling their arms hold him back.

Ruth sighs, biting her bottom lip. “We had to leave the lack behind for good reasons.” She glances at her sister. “Do you have time to talk?”

After Liam finished his shift, he sat down with them at one of the booth seats. A smile was still spread across his face because he hadn't seen them for a while.

“We did something horrific right before leaving, Liam, and you need to trust our every word.” His smile falters a little until he nods and listens intently. “I am sure you still know about Isaac and his family?” Liam rolls his eyes and nods, letting them continue. “Well...” Ruth sighs shakily. “We are the reason for his parents' deaths in the woods.” Liam's eyes grew wide, severely shocked by her words.

“Wh-What? How were you capable of doing that? Was it because of what happened to our parents? They weren't even involved with that.”

His sisters shake their heads. “No, Liam, they were. They murdered our parents and we couldn't stand by and watch them get away with it.” Liam's hands have clenched in anger, his facial expression remaining calm. “We had to get revenge then leave right away because neither of us wanted to face any type of punishment, which is why we look so different.”

Before, they were both brunettes and had no tattoos. Now, they had tattoos along their arms and blonde hair that flowed down to the middle of their backs. He wouldn't be able to recognize them from afar.

“Is this the reason why Isaac is so hostile? Trying to get back at me from what you two did?” They nod, exhaling unevenly due to their continuous anxiety.

He bites his lower lip this time and fights back the urge to throw the sugar packet, that was near him, across the coffee shop.

“You two are the reason for his attack on Niall... I can't believe this.” His jaw clenches while he sits back against the leather booth seat.

They frowned. “Who is Niall, Liam?”

The alpha lets a small smile slip, trying his best to avoid any more anger that'd pour through him when thinking about the Irish human.

“He's the human that I've imprinted. He means the whole world to me and to see him get hurt again... I wouldn't be able to control myself.”

~*~

Author's Note: Oooh, family drama! I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter, thank you for reading, and I love you all x