Niall threw his phone down on the couch in disgust. He felt really hurt but there was nothing he could do about it. He sighed heavily.
"Still not answering you, Ni ?" Harry asked, his voice laced with concern.
"Nope. He isn't answering calls, texts or voice mails. I've been trying for days. All I get is random tweets that he leaves up for a few hours then deletes. He just won't talk to me. Da and Ma have tried but he refuses to talk about it with them" Niall's hurt was seeping into his words and Harry and Louis exchanged glances.
"Mate, maybe he needs time to think it through, like you did. Don't stress about it. He'll come round." Louis said . "He's a stubborn git....like you". He ruffled the hair of the smaller man sitting beside him. "Now, what about the fans? How are we doing this?"
"We?" Niall asked
"Yes, 'we'" Harry said. "You don't think we are letting you face this alone do you. We are here for the long haul so get used to it." Niall gave him one of his beautiful and radiant smiles in response.
"Uncle Si has got an interview lined up for me...well us, if you want to do it with me?" Harry, Liam and Louis nodded assent. "He's set it up for tomorrow"
"Right" Louis instantly took charge " how do you want this to go? Are you getting to see the questions in advance? Anything off topic?"
"No, no pre-planned questions. They've been told that I'll be sharing important news so nobody has a clue, I think. I'll, we, will just have to see how it pans out, I'm scared..." Niall raised his eyes up from his lap and looked at his bandmates.
"I know, bro, but it will be better once the fans know. There may be some hate but it won't be from real fans. Directioners will be with you every step of the way." Liam stated positively " And you have us, your family and our families behind you"
"Except for Greg" Niall said sadly "He's not behind me"
"Bro, give him time" Louis said gently " and if that doesn't work, well you still will have everyone else fighting your corner." Louis was furious with Niall's older brother. He appreciated the shock of hearing one's little brother had MS had probably blindsided Greg but he , Louis , knew if it was one of his own siblings, it would awful, but he'd support them every step of the way. He wondered just what Greg's issues were. Maybe he'd call him and see if he'd talk with him.
"Enough serious talk" Louis chirped. "Let's do something crazy"
"Such as?" Liam questioned warily. He knew the direction that Louis' ideas occasionally went and it wasn't always pretty.
"Remember when we used to disguise ourselves and do stupid things to see how people reacted? I think we should do that again"
"Not today" Niall said quietly "You lads go do it. I want to rest. I'll see you later " . He stood up and walked towards the stairs and his bedroom, the others looking after him in concern.
"I wish Greg would talk to him" Harry watched Niall's retreating figure. " Ni really needs him right now and he's not stepping up"
"I feel bad about it too, Haz, we all do. But Greg is as stubborn as Ni and you know you can't shift Niall once he's got his feet dug in"
"Lads, let's play FIFA. I don't think I want to go out after all" Louis' face had lost it's sparkle and his energy seemed to have suddenly ebbed. The others quickly agreed and they headed to Niall's Games room where any noise they made was unlikely to disturb Niall if he was sleeping. None of them had their minds on the game and they gradually stopped, each of them retreating into their own thoughts as the house became silent.
The next day:
"Good Morning. We have some very special guests on "Sunshine Mornings" today. It's the world's biggest boy band, it's ONE DIRECTION! . Guys, it's great to have you with us today. Now we have been promised that you have some special news to share with us and I know every Directioner is praying that you are not going to say you are breaking up permanently"
"No, no, nothing like that" Liam took initial charge of the conversation " This is really only a break. We've toured almost non stop for five years, made five albums and had a few major hiccups along the way. We need a break to recharge our batteries"
"You mention hiccups? Was Zayn leaving the band one of them? Are you still in contact with him? " Peter, the interviewer asked.
"Well, it was one of them but the group has pulled tighter together as a result. We all wish Zayn well, he'll always be our brother, but things have gone well since and our bonds have strengthened as result" Louis joined the conversation carefully ignoring the final question regarding contact with Zayn. Management must never know about Zayn's involvement with recent events. That was one secret they were all now bound to keep for all their sakes.
"And the big news ?" Peter asked. He saw the boys all glance at each other before Niall shuffled in his seat nervously.
"Yeah, the big news is about me" Niall's voice shook slightly so Liam rubbed his arm gently up and down and Harry wrapped an arm over Niall's shoulder as Louis reached over Liam to pat Niall's knee. Niall drew strength from the comfort they were giving him. " It's not easy to talk about" he paused.
Basically, I was suffering a few health issues and when I got them checked out, I was told I had MS, Multiple Sclerosis." Niall kept his head down as he spoke. It was out, he'd told the fans. Now he had to wait for their response.
"Wow, that is definitely not what I was expecting. And how will this affect the band? Are you leaving?"
"No, nothing like that" Louis took over the conversation again receiving a grateful smile from his younger blond. bandmate. "We are having our break and it will give Niall time to rest up and learn more about his condition.Then we'll be raring to go again at some point."
"Is Niall's illness the reason for the break?" Peter questioned determinedly
""No, definitely not" Harry took his turn to pick up the conversation. "The break was already planned long before we knew Nialler was sick. But it will help us have time to help Ni get sorted. It's a lot to take in, as you can imagine"
"I am sure we all wish you well, Niall, and I know the fans will support you. Apparently you are already trending on' Twitter' with messages of support. There is one more question I would like to ask you, particularly you, Niall. Have you seen today's newspapers, yet?" All four lads shook their heads, puzzled looks on their faces. "Can you tell me about these headlines?" He held up one of the newspapers he had in a pile by his side, carefully holding it so all the boys could read the banner headlines" Four faces went ashen.