Without You - Niam Horayne

Chapter 2 - Pain and Crimson Pools

Harry’s P.O.V.

            The day after the funeral I woke up wrapped in Louis’ arms. I smiled to myself, even though smiles didn’t come easily these days. I sighed deeply, and Louis stirred, slowly yawning and opening his eyes to see me. He gave me a sad smile and then leaned forward, kissing my temple intensely. I grabbed onto his shirt and pulled him closer, hiding my head in his neck. His hand rubbed circles on my back slowly.

            “We should check on Liam,” I said after a few minutes.

            “Your right,” Lou agreed, “He was pretty rough yesterday. Poor Liam doesn’t look like he has slept in ages.”

            I nodded in agreement and untangled myself from Louis slowly. We had been dating secretly for a few months now, trying to hide it from the fans as best as possible. We both decided to keep it private for awhile before making any big announcement. It would be too much, especially with the whole Niall thing going on. I swear, some of the fans claimed that they were more upset than we were—but I don’t truly think that that’s possible. So Louis and I decided to wait

 Louis and I both took showers and dressed, just like a normal day, heading over to Liam’s flat. When we arrived we walked in without knocking, knowing that it would be open and we would be welcome. As soon as I stepped inside I was confused. I smelled food being cooked from the kitchen. Suddenly I had hope that Liam was back to normal, and that he was okay again. But as I walked into the kitchen, my hopes fell. Zayn stood there, wearing only an apron and boxers, making waffles alone.

“Is he upstairs?” Louis asked, sitting at the island counter that doubled as a bar. Zayn nodded and then smiled.

“He is actually asleep,” he said.

“Really?” Louis and I asked in unison, both not believing what he said.

            “Yeah, I came over last night to check on him. The funeral was pretty rough. He was just lying in bed, staring at the ceiling. He said he couldn’t sleep, because every time he closed his eyes he saw Niall,” Zayn said, pulling a waffle from the iron. My heart ached. Poor Liam. Why did this have to happen to him? I suddenly imagined what I would feel like if Louis died. I made myself stop thinking about it right away because it was just so utterly painful.

            “So Liam really loved him?” Lou asked softly.

            “Seems like it,” Zayn replied.

            The three of us then proceeded to sit there and stare at one another, just wanting something to say, but not having the right words. So it remained silent, Louis planting kisses on me every once in awhile, and Zayn stacking up the waffles and setting the table. When all the food was ready I asked Zayn if he wanted me to go wake Liam.

            “No,” He said, “He really needs this sleep.”

            I agreed and then began to eat.

Liam’s P.O.V.

            When I woke up, I could barely believe that I had slept more than twelve hours. I actually felt pretty good—physically, I mean, not emotionally. I was defiantly glad that Zayn had come over last night. Speaking of Zayn, where was he? I looked around for the tan boy, but he wasn’t in my room. Suddenly I caught a whiff of food. He must be making breakfast. I debated on whether I wanted to go down for awhile, but finally, decided I needed to thank Zayn.

            My feet thumped down the steps tiredly, and my body followed suit. Normally, I would have put on more clothes, but today, my sweat pants would be fine. I walked into the kitchen and saw Zayn, Louis, and Harry all eating waffles, their conversation seemingly scarce.