Recap: "Liam is showing signs, negative and positive, and I'm afraid..."
The doctor sighed, "I'm afraid that he'll have to come back for regular check ups, and if you desire of him. We can go through chemotherapy, his chances are very good if that's the case but it will do a number on his body. Watching it is usually the hardest to go through for loved ones. The choice is up to you as a whole, and Liam."
Niall's mouth was dry, "But... is he okay now? What does this mean? Is he well right now....? I don't under-"
"Niall, hunny. Shh." Karen said, wrapping her arm around his waist and pulling him close to her side. She rubbed his arm in soothing circles. Calming him down a bit before he can have a panic attack. He didn't understand what the doctor was saying. He didn't know if his best bud would be alright... he just wanted to know that things would be okay.
"He's fine now. He'll be ready to go home in a couple days. We just need to take some cautionary tests first." The doctor said calmly, and Niall relaxed. That's all he wanted to hear, was that Payne would be okay. That would be alright because that's how it always was going to be.
"We can see him, right?" Niall asked. His voice was slightly shaky. He was still scared that the doc would turn around and say something that would break Niall's heart.
The doctor nodded, "In fact, you can see him right now." Then he looked at them all carefully, "I will allow you all to go in at once, but you must be very quiet." They all nodded and mumbled their "of course" and followed the doctor to the room that was Liam resided in."
Niall was relieved when he saw Liam. He wasn't hooked up to wires, needles, and machines anymore. Seeing Liam like that almost broke him right then and there. Niall had seen Liam before in the care of doctors but nothing as severe as what had happened just days ago.
Liam gave them all a small smile as he saw them walk into the room one by one. Seeing them was enough to make him stop longing for the comfort of his home and own bed. Instead, he looked up at Niall standing at the side of his bed. They smiled at each other, not needing to speak. Liam could tell that Niall was just happy to see him well and okay, and Liam was just pleased to see that Niall was there. That's all he ever seemed to need for his world to be whole and complete was Niall.
"So your going home in a couple days." Nicole said with a sincere smile, and then sadly, "Just in time to see me off."
Nicole, Liam's sister, was headed off into the big world of college. The Paynes seemed to be close, with some odd feuds here and there. However, the siblings all got along quite well. People who met all the children all at once were perplexed at how their bonds were.
Liam gave her a sheepish smile, "I'm sorry."
Nicole chuckled and waved her hand, "Eh, it's alright little brother. I'm just happy to see those puppy eyes of yours."
Liam smiled shyly and looked down. He always got shy when he was complimented like that, no matter who it was. Niall rubbed his hand on Liam's head and said, "Now we can go finish that game we were playing."
"Did you get any further on it?" Liam asked him curiously.
Niall shrugged, "Nah, ain't the same without you."
Liam grinned from ear to ear; shaking his head, he looked at his mother, "I can't wait to eat normal food. I miss your food." With that, they all burst into laughter.
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Liam bit his lip as he watched Niall trying to build the birdhouse. It had been about, oh, two hours? Nevertheless, he was oddly determined to fix it. Mainly because he accidentally broke the one Liam had built when he was ten. It was no big deal. He didn't attach to the thing, but being Niall, he wouldn't let it go.
Liam cleared his throat, "Are you sure you don't need help there Niall?"
Niall's big blue eyes looked up at him, almost stopping Liam from breathing. What Liam wouldn't give to lean in closer... He mentally smacked himself. He had to stop thinking about Niall like that... Niall sheepishly smiled, "I uh, I think I can do it." Liam stopped himself from snickering. He knew that if it took Niall this long to get three pieces together, he wasn't going to be able to do it himself at all.
"Niall-" Liam began but got cut off when Niall shook his head.
"Liam, I want to do this."
Something in the way he said it tipped Liam over, almost tipping him into heartache and awe. It was like a whisper, soft and caring yet firm and determined. Liam was about to begin to speak when his mother called him. Liam sighed and got up from the chair, walking to the back door and leaving Niall to the birdhouse in the backyard.
Niall watched him walk away, shaking off the feeling of disappointment at watching him go.
He looked back down at the mess in front of him. He vaguely understood what to do. But, even after watching 'how-to videos and reading information on his phone when Liam wasn't looking, Niall still had a hard time grasping what the heck he was doing. It was damned near impossible to get what he was doing. He had thought that maybe it would be easy. How hard could building a birdhouse be? He had thought, and to his dismay, he was wrong. It was very hard. At least it was to Niall.
Niall was just beginning to think about redoing the whole thing when Liam called out his name. A chill ran down his spine just as the wind picked up, or so he would like to believe. Niall pushed back the sensation that happened whenever Liam called out his name. Time and time again, he would make excuses and deep inside, he wondered if he would ever admit it... but he was scared. What if he got hurt?
Niall put his phone in his pocket and went to go eat. Dinner was ready, and Niall felt his stomach growl at the thought of food.
While getting their plates, Niall saw Liam watching him from the corner of his eye. Feeling like he was in the spotlight, he looked down at the floor. He looked up and felt his cheeks flush, heating at the thought of Liam's eyes on him. Niall tried to lose the idea, drop the feelings that came with it and tried desperately not to think of his best friend like that. He glanced over and blinked a few times before looking at his plate. His face burning up.
Oh... did he just... Did Niall just... Was Liam...? Niall's thoughts were jumbled as he thought about it. All through dinner, he kept picturing Liam's curly hair shadowing his face and his deep brown eyes roaming Niall's body. Niall's palms were sweaty, and his heartbeat raced as he thought about it...
"Are ya' alright over there?"
Niall looked up at Liam, meeting his gaze quickening Niall's already racing heart. Then, finally, Niall smiled, "Yeah, Payne."
But he wasn't... Niall wasn't sure what he was. He was just oh so baffled...
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Niall had been acting strange...
Liam thought as he lay back in bed, pulling the sheets up to his chin. Maybe it was because Liam had an appointment tomorrow? Yeah, that had to be it... Liam thought. What else could it be?
Liam sighed, pulling the blankets closer to himself. He only slept in boxers. It was the only way to go. He began to think about how nice it would be to have someone next to him tonight, especially before tomorrow. He was scared about going to treatment. His mind wandered from there, to his childhood, to Niall...
Niall, he thought. Bloody hell, how long has it been since he actually admitted to himself that he liked Niall? Months...? No, it had to be years... jeez, four years had already passed since that day he admitted to liking him. He closed his eyes, seeing Niall's smile, his deep blue eyes, his wispy blonde hair... the way he laughed, danced, god... even the way he stood close to Liam spiked Liam into almost fainting. He shook his head and tossed the blankets off, feeling a bit warm.
He desperately tried to grasp for something else, anything else that would take his mind away from tomorrow and Niall. His heart was aching, but he couldn't stop thinking. He ended up thinking about the 3rd time they had gone to the Lake House. He smiled, remembering it like it was yesterday.
"It's easy Niall! You just go with it."
Niall fidgeted. "I don't know..."
They were fourteen, and Niall was crushing on a girl at the next cabin over the lake somewhere. She was a redhead with green eyes, and she was frequently at the lake. Liam knew that she was into Niall, the girl called him cute, and Niall being him, adorably got flustered. He was hopeless. It was no wonder girls flocked to him.
Liam sighed, "I'll show you."
Niall looked at Liam, confused as he scooted over next to Niall. He faced Niall's puzzled gaze, "First, either you caress her arm like this..." The realization took over Niall, and he nodded slowly, so Liam continued, "Or you gentle move her hair behind her, either from her forehead or her neck." Liam had no clue where he was saying was coming from. He had minimal experience in this field, but he was basing it on what he'd watched in movies. "Then I guess you'd kind of look her in the eyes for a long time, but not too long." Niall nodded, and Liam continued, "Then you'd slowly lean in, and then," He said quietly, as he did what he was saying to Niall. Then, as his lips were only a mere inch away from Niall's, he whispered, "You'd stay, and she'd move in the rest of the way."
Liam slowly moved away and looked Niall in the eyes. He was shocked, blinking and shaking his head. Niall said, "Ain't you just the pro, mister Payne." Liam laughed and punched him lightly in the arm.
He had come close to kissing Niall that day... Back then, he hadn't even thought about it. Yet now, as he remembered, he realized that his body, at that moment, was begging him to close that bloody little inch. Thinking about it now almost drove Liam mad. Liam took a deep breath, inhaling and exhaling deeply through his nose. He closed his eyes, trying to force himself to relax and, maybe just for once, forget about his Nialler.
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Liam sat in the chair and sipped his water. He watched Niall speed through COD on his PS-Vita like it was nobody's business. Liam's gaze began to roam over his body, and he thought about how he wouldn't mind running his hands through Niall's blond, soft hair.
"Liam Payne?" Liam begrudgingly looked up at the nurse, he forced a smile, and she said, "We're ready for you now."
He got up and shook himself off, "Long wait, ain't it?" He tried to act calm, but in reality, he was scared. This was the first time he would be going through something like this. This was new.
The nurse sighed, "Yes, it is."
Liam looked down at Niall and told him that he could go home, but he hoped he wouldn't. He wanted Niall to stay. If he could, he tried to take Niall everywhere with him. Niall just shook his head and crossed his arms, "No." He said firmly, earning him a big grin. They had been there for a while, a really long time, actually. "Are you sure you don't want me to go in there with you?"
Liam nodded. He wasn't sure what they'd do, so he thought it better if Niall stayed in here. No need to freak him out more. Reluctantly, Niall stayed put.
They took his blood test, and then it was a couple of hours before the nurse came to get Liam for the treatment.
Liam sat down after she showed him around, her name was Julia, and he thought about how that was a pretty name. He picked up a magazine and looked at the front. It was a music magazine. He flipped through it while she began the IV.
It was another hour or so before they were done injecting him with medication, and he could leave. Instead, he found Niall, dutifully waiting for him in the same spot... sleeping. His head was leaning to the side as he was slouched low in the chair. His mouth was wide open, and his shoulder seemed to be used as a pillow.
Liam smiled as he stared down at him. Liam didn't want to wake him up. He kind of just wanted to stay there and watch Niall sleep. He bit down on his lip and brushed his fingers gently across his forehead, moving his blond hair out of his face before reluctantly nudging him. "Niall... Niall, it's time to go home. Get up, mate, you're going to get stuck like that."
Niall jumped up, his eyes looking around hectically before those blue eyes looked up at Liam. Niall wiped away the slobber that had been at the corner of his mouth and goofily greened at him. "Hey." He croaked out. Liam couldn't help but laugh and shake his head. He picked up his stuff and motioned for Niall to get up.
Niall drove. He asked about the therapy and was surprised to find it less gruesome than he initially thought. Other than that, the drive was silent, which was okay because they didn't need to talk. It was a good thing, too, because Niall's mind kept wandering to the dream he had been having. He was in Liam's arms, and honestly? It was the best feeling he could possibly have ever had.
A loud booming sound spun Niall out of his thoughts, and he heard Liam yelling.
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