For the first month it was always "Niall come check your sugar levels." "Niall come get your insulin shot." "Niall are you okay?" and as much as Niall hated the circumstances he really loved the attention. That first month passed by and then another, the second month Niall finally received his medical alert bracelet. Liam and Louis had backed off a little since Niall knew how to handle things pretty well now. However by the third month Niall felt completely neglected. Harry had been acting up a lot lately and they even had to take him to the ER because he tried to scratch out his eyes. Liam and Louis figured that Niall would be okay to watch himself most of the time. He knew when to eat and how to administer his own medication so they stopped giving him attention.
Niall was at his footie match that Liam had just dropped him off at then left because he said "Papa needs help at home with Harry." Niall was sad that no one was there to cheer for him but he still played his best and his team won 4-0. He had forgotten to check his blood sugar level before the match because he was distracted but he figured that'd it'd been awhile since breakfast so he was okay to eat the snack they gave out at the end. Niall said thank you for the biscuits and juice and ate them as he waited for his dada to pick him up. He felt a bit weird but just shrugged it off, he was just tired. Liam arrived five minutes later and Niall excitedly told him all about the match and that he'd even scored a goal. Liam beamed at Niall and told him that if Harry behaved they'd all be there next week. When they got home Niall noticed the freshly baked cake on the table.
"Papa where'd the cake come from?"
"It's from Marcel's bakery, he dropped it off on his lunch break. How was your match bug?"
"Great, we won 4-0. Can I have a piece of cake?"
"How's your blood sugar? Did you already have sweets today?" Niall didn't know his blood sugar since he hadn't checked and he knew he already had sweets and shouldn't eat cake but he really wanted it. His six year old brain couldn't process that this might be a bad idea.
"No papa, and it's a little low." He lied. Louis told him to sit down and handed him a slice of cake. Niall scarfed it down and when Louis and Liam were busy with Harry he also sneakily drank another cup of juice. He went up to the play room and took out his action figures and began playing with them but eventually his stomach started to hurt. At first he thought he just ate too much but this felt a little different. All of a sudden he was very hot and dizzy and his vision was blurry. He felt like he was going to be sick and he was scared. he quickly got up and ran in the direction he thought the door was in, luckily he was right. He stumbled down the hallway trying to listen for his dads but there was a slight ringing in his ears. Out of nowhere his stomach lurched and he bent over and threw up on the floor. He heard a voice calling out what sounded like his name but it was too late, the last thing he felt was himself hitting the ground.
"Liam how could I be such a horrible parent?! I left our six year old to medically care for himself!" Louis sobbed. Liam comforted his husband as they sat in the waiting room in the ER.
"It was me too Louis, we both messed up this time. This makes me realize how closely we have to watch Niall. We can't just watch Harry closely. They both need our constant attention."
"This is so hard Li... I just want our boys healthy. I don't want to worry about Harry killing himself or about Niall forgetting to check his blood sugar and next thing you know he's in a coma. I want to be able to take them places and just worry about having fun!" Louis said as he broke down again. Liam just held Louis as he cried. After bringing Niall to the ER Liam had dropped Harry off at Zayn and Marcel's quickly explaining what was going on. Liam and Louis had yet to find out the exact situation though, they didn't know if the blood sugar was too high or too low."
"Niall Paylinson?" Liam and Louis jumped up.
"Follow me." The doctor said in a sweet voice. they entered her office and sat down.
"Is he okay?" Louis asked.
"This time he got very lucky. Medically he should not have survived this but he did. he had what is called Diabetic Ketoacidosis. Diabetic Ketoacidosis is a life-threatening condition that develops when cells in the body are unable to get the sugar they need for energy because there is not enough insulin. When the sugar cannot get into the cells, it stays in the blood . The kidneys filter some of the sugar from the blood and remove it from the body through urine. Because the cells cannot receive sugar for energy, the body begins to break down fat and muscle for energy. When this happens,ketones, or fatty acids, are produced and enter the bloodstream, causing the chemical imbalance called Diabetic Ketoacidosis. Ketoacidosis can be caused by not getting enough insulin, having a severe infection or other illness, becoming severely dehydrated , or some combination of these things. It can occur in people who have little or no insulin their bodies especially children with Type 1 like Niall when their sugar levels are too high." Louis and Liam both broke down, Niall survived this time but what if they weren't so lucky. They were all at fault, they were so focused on Harry that they left Niall in the shadows again to take care of himself with a life-threatening disease. They realized just how serious this was now. Niall had been doing so well the past few months but they realized they had been doing everything for him which they should have continued to do because he's only six years old. They forget that Harry isn't the youngest sometimes. Neither of the boys needed more help than the other per say. They needed different types of help but they couldn't choose just one to constantly nurse.
"How high was his blood sugar?"
"Normal is 90-180. Niall was at 690. I honestly am baffled by how he survived. We administered multiple insulin shots that we spaced out and he is down to 260 which is high but it's way better than where he was earlier. We're still working on getting it back to normal and then he should wake up. He may be a little confused at first but he'll come around. You're allowed to go to the room now if you want but we're going to have to keep him for at least a week for observation." Liam and Louis thanked her and walked to Niall's room with tears streaming down their faces. They entered and saw Niall looking extremely pale and fragile. Louis hugged him gently and stroked his cheek as he cried.
"Papa and dada are here bug. We're so sorry we put that responsibility on you. We forget how little you still are because you act like such a big boy. We love you so much Niall, we're going to always make sure everything is okay from now on. We're so sorry." Louis kissed his cheek and Liam pushed Niall's hair out of his face.
"We've finally gotten his blood sugar down to a normal level, he should be waking up soon." The nurse said and then she left the room to give them privacy. Niall slowly opened his eyes but immediately shut them again and groaned. Liam quickly shut off the lights.
"Open your eyes bug, it's okay." Niall slowly let his eyes open again and he looked around the room and began to cry.
"W-why am I h-here? wan' h-home." Louis rushed and picked him up trying to avoid messing with all the wires attached to Niall's tiny body. Louis sat down with him in a chair next to the bed and tried to calm him down but Niall kept sobbing.
"Li I don't know what to do, poor thing is terrified." Louis said as his eyes filled with tears again.
"Remember that song we wrote when he was first diagnosed? Let's sing it to him, he loves it." Louis nodded and wiped his eyes as Liam gave him a look. They began singing together in harmony.
"Got the news today doctor said I had to stay
A little bit longer and you'll be fine
When I thought it'd all been done
When I thought it'd all been said
A little bit longer and you'll be fine
But you don't know what you got until it's gone
And you don't know what it's like to feel so low
And every time you smile, you laugh, you glow
You don't even know, know, know
You don't even know
All this time goes by, still no reason why
A little bit longer and you'll be fine
Waiting on a cure but none of them are sure
A little bit longer and you'll be fine
But you don't know what you got until it's gone
And you don't know what it's like to feel so low
And every time you smile, you laugh, you glow
You don't even know, know, know
You don't even know, know, know
You don't even know, know, know
So wait 'til kingdom come
all the highs and lows are gone
a little bit longer and you'll be fine
you'll be fine"
They finished singing and Niall had calmed down and had fallen asleep in Louis' arms with his thumb in his mouth. Louis gently stroked Niall's hand which had an IV attached to it and then kissed his forehead. Liam came over and kissed Niall's cheek before pecking Louis' lips. He pulled up a chair next to them and sat down. they stayed there for awhile until Louis and Liam eventually fell asleep too, both of them dreaming about a life where their kids didn't have to suffer daily.
Okay that was depressing, I didn't mean for it to be that sad. Yes I used Jonas Brothers lyrics because tbh I still listen to their music. <3 Plus the song fits because Nick Jonas actually wrote the song about his struggle with Type 1 diabetes. Thank you to ilangel1 and paige_originalzz1D for the prompt ideas.
QOTC: This book is faaaarrrrrr from over but when it does end I will be starting another book. Majority wins so what couple do you want to be the main couple in that book? The choices are: Larry, Narry, Ziam, Lilo, and Niam.