Recap: A loud booming sound spun Niall out of his thoughts, and he heard Liam yelling.
In an instant, Niall lost control over the wheel, he tried desperately to slow as soon as he could, but it almost seemed impossible. He reflexively steered away. He looked over at Liam, everything seeming to go in slow motion. Liam's eyes met his, and Niall instantly saw the panic as Liam stretched out his hand towards him. In that instant, everything went black, leaving Niall in an empty abyss.
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Niall wiped his eyes, stop crying, stop crying, don't cry... It didn't work. He cried anyways. If anything, he cried harder. Niall closed his eyes and tensed himself up. He had to stop crying... But it hurt so much, Niall thought. He couldn't believe that he had thought that things would work out. Niall couldn't believe how he liked her and how much he had felt that she wanted him... He shook his head, trying to get her green eyes out of his head. He was such an idiot...
"Niall?" He tensed up more than he thought he could. Blinking his eyes rapidly and wiping his cheeks quickly. He didn't want to let Liam know he was crying... Liam already had so much to worry about. Liam was doing okay now, and Niall wasn't about to ruin that. "I tried texting ya', but you didn't answer... What's up?"
Niall turned around and tried to smile at his friend, but no matter how hard he tried, he wouldn't be able to lie to Liam. So Liam quickly went to sit next to Niall. "What's wrong?" He asked with worried eyes.
"S-she broke up with me..." And as he said it, it kicked in again. He started to cry and hiccup as he tried hard to fight the tears back. Then, finally, he shook his head, "Is there something wrong with me?" He asked, his insecurities hitting hard as he stared down at his hands.
"Niall..." Liam pulled him into a hug, "Of course there's nothing wrong with you. You're one of the most perfect people I know..."
,
"Leave me alone." Niall said firmly, but the boys advanced. The tall one, Blake, sneers at him.
"Or what, Blondie?"
Niall stuttered, his heart beating rapidly. What could he do? What could Niall do to them? He was outnumbered. His chances of survival were slim; they always were. It seemed like he was going home with new cuts and bruises every week. He knew his dad would be furious again, but no matter how much his father tried to prevent him from being bullied, Niall couldn't escape it.
"Leave him alone, Blake." Niall's head snapped in Liam's direction, his heart leaping with joy. Liam had Duke standing next to him, glaring at Blake and his minions.
Blake took a step back and shrugged, but Niall saw the fear in his eyes, "Whatever, he's not worth it." and they left.
Duke looked at Niall, "Are you okay?" Niall nodded, marvelling at how big Duke was. He was the toughest kid in school, and for some odd reason, Liam was the only one who could befriend him. Finally, Duke walked away, and Liam looked into Niall's eyes. Niall smiled, which wiped away Liam's worried look that he had on.
.
Niall watched from the shadows. He watched Liam sit there with his knees to his chest, convulsing every now as he cried. Niall's heart reached out for him, but Niall had no clue what to do. He had been coming over to ask Liam if he wanted to go play ball, but now he wasn't so sure that would be very good.
After a few minutes, he wiped away the few tears that had formed from watching his friend in such a fragile state. He turned on his heels, and he instantly knew what to do. Niall soon returned with the new movies he had just spent his months' savings on and the keychain he had meant to give to Liam but always forgot.
As he approached Liam, he began to get nervous, his palms became sweaty, but he could only hope that Liam wasn't crying anymore. It broke his heart to see him like that. "Liam?" He said in a soft voice, making Liam jump and exclaim, "Niall, jeez, you frightened me!"
Niall smiled sheepishly, "Sorry."
Liam waved it off and wiped his face, and cleared his throat. He looked at the items in Niall's hand, "What do you have there?"
Niall lifted them up and smiled, "Pre-15 birthday present."
Liam raised an eyebrow as Niall handed the Toy Story movies over, along with the turtle keychain. Liam starred down at them for a while and then grinned, "You remembered."
Niall chuckled, "Yeah, I did. I could never forget anything about you, ever."
Liam smiled from ear to ear, "Good."
.
Niall smiled at Liam, watching his face light up as their favourite band, Sons Of The Deviated, began to play. Niall cheered loudly as Harry's voice melted into the melody. They were only a three-man band, the Sons Of The Deviated, but they were so good and much better live. Lou picked up the speed on the drums, and Zayn's voice melted in with Harry's as his fingers flew over the neck of his guitar like a champ. Harry matched the base with the melody, forming a masterpiece.
Niall laughed as he heard Liam singing along with the lyrics. He joined in, singing the songs:
And you came around, just like that
Holding onto those hopes and faded dreams.
You fixed it up and broke it down.
All at once, you were fixing me, building me up
For that downfall, the downfall, downfall.
Fallen, that's what I've done, that's how it goes,
So come back, give me more, I'll give you my breath
I'll give you my love. It's my heart, my heart you've won.
Came in with those blond curls, eyes I'd drown in.
You captured me up, took me in, prettier than a rose.
Came in with those blond curls, eyes I'd drown in.
You captured me up, took me in, prettier than a rose.
But that downfall, the downfall, downfall
More painful than desire, more divine than sin...
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"Oh no, hunny, are you okay? Are you alright? What happened? You're not hurt are you?" Liam pulled away from his mum's fretting hands.
"I'm okay, mum. I'm not hurt." He just had a cut on his forehead and felt a little sore. He was fine. "But..." He shook his head, "Niall mum... he's..." His voice cracked, his mum looked at his father and back at Liam. Pulling him into a motherly embrace as he tried to choke back sobs, his body shaking.
Liam heard his father ask the front office if he could make a call. Liam knew that his dad was going to phone Niall's parents. The people already called. But Liam knew that it would probably be best if they heard it from one of them, but Liam left it to his father. He couldn't do it, not when it felt like his heart was breaking into two.
"Liam hunny, what happened?" His mother asked him, and he felt tired. He didn't want to explain it again, but the way his mum was looking at him... she had to know.
"I- We were driving and... and a truck came speeding around the corner. I guess- Niall tried to swerve out of the way... H-he just... I don't know. Next thing I knew I was being pulled out of the car and they were yelling things... Crowding around Niall." He choked back a sob and looked over at his mother. "He's going to be okay, right mum? Nothing's going to go wrong?"
She caressed his face and gave him a sad smile, "I don't know."
He closed his eyes. The pain inside was overwhelming. He got up and ran to the exit, gasping for air. He stood out there, only thinking about how the feeling was unbearable. Was this how everyone felt when he was in that emergency room?
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It had been a few days, and Niall hadn't woken up yet. So Liam had to go back to get his treatment done once that week. It was horrible. He couldn't stop thinking of Niall. What if something happened while he was gone? What if Niall woke up, and Liam wasn't there? His mind had spun until he felt sick in his stomach. But today, he was sitting next to the bed that he was in.
Niall lay motionless in the scratchy hospital blankets and the gown thing that all the patients seemed to be wearing. His blond hair was a mess, his face seemed almost pale and colourless. The beeping of the machines hooked up to made Liam clench his fists. He never wanted to see Niall hooked up to those. Niall wasn't supposed to be in a hospital. He was too sweet for that. Niall's left arm was bandaged up in a cast and had scratches all over his face, even some on his chest. He had broken ribs as well.
Liam watched him, wishing that Niall would wake up with all his heart. The doctors said that it could be dangerous if he didn't wake up within four weeks. Liam didn't want to hear it. He walked away from the doctor and Niall's parents. Liam wouldn't sit there and listen to them talking about Niall being in danger of death. If he didn't have Niall... who did he have?
Liam began to hum. It was really soft so that he wouldn't disturb Niall. He was in the middle of singing Everything by Sons Of The Deviated when he saw Niall's hand twitch. He stopped and stared at Niall's hand and then Niall's face. He looked back down at his hand. Did he just? He moved...? Niall moved! Liam got up quickly and ran out to find Niall's parents.
When he saw them, he could barely contain his excitement, "Mrs. Gallager! Mr. Horan!"
They turned around and quickly hushed him, "What is it son?" Niall's father asked in a gruff, tired voice.
Liam shook his head while his body vibrated with joy with a smile from ear to ear. "Niall... Niall, he moved. He moved! He moved his hand! He's waking up!"
They looked at him, a dazed look coming over their faces. Then, they quickly followed him to where Niall was, explaining what had happened to them. They watched their son on the bed, Liam desperately hoping that he would move again. But he did not.
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A soft melody played through his head and constantly ambushed his mind. Their gruff voices. He felt something stir inside him, someone begging him to get up inside. Someone pushed him to open his eyes, and there was the overwhelming need to speak... to sing. The need grew stronger and stronger until he heard someone's voice. It was soft...melodic....crescendoing. It's disappearing, he thought, oh god, come back! The feeling was gone, and he slipped back into that emptiness, back into nothing, a darkness that he couldn't escape. He no longer knew who he was anymore...
...There it was again. Except now, it was more robust, pushing its way into him, engulfing him in tune. It wasn't like last time, not soft and a lullaby. Instead, it was like a crescendo, building its way up. Starting with a beating drum, a strumming guitar... The voices blurred together, mixing in and out, weaving past each other in a beautiful, breaking song.
I'll keep you safe (Hold me tight)
I'll be there for you, (for you) day and night (for you)
Accept me now (never let go)
Keep this in mind (keep me now)
This song is yours (for you)
Remember me, never let go (remember me)
Remember me, never let go (let go)
He began to feel heavy. He felt tired and in pain. Then he felt the breath entering his lungs and the pain that breathing inflicted. His mouth felt dry, and his body ached. Slowly, he opened his eyes. The light hurt, though, so he closed them. Opening and closed his eyes, adjusting to the light around him. He listened to the words, the sound that was softly playing on the table next to him. He looked around, taking it all in. There were needles in his arms, his left arm was bandaged up. He tried to move but a pain shot through his upper body, causing him to stay lying still in shock. There were tubes In him, and tubes where they shouldn't be, he thought silently. That's when he realized that he wasn't alone. Off to the side was a boy with brown hair, wearing sweats. He was slumped in a chair, slowly breathing in and out. Sleeping.
He bit his lip, wondering if he should wake him up. Finally, he came to a conclusion, "Pardon me?" He said in a moderate voice. Biting his lip again, he tried once more, "Excuse me." He looked around, and with his good hand, he reached for a pen on the table and chucked it at the boy.
Liam stirred, hearing a soft "Excuse me." It was silent for a few more seconds. He was about to dive back into unconsciousness when he felt something hard hit his cheek. "Hello?" There it was again, slowly his mind started to turn on, "Can you wake up?"
Liam opened his eyes and around, landing his eyes on Niall's bed. His heart stopped as he stared - shocked. "N-Niall?"
"Who?" Niall's face contorted into confusion.
Liam couldn't help the laugh that rumbled out of him, "Already at the games, are we?"
Niall blinked a couple of times, and when Liam calmed down a bit, Niall began. "Where am I?"
Liam shook his head, instantly serious and filled with a hollowed-out feeling. "We're at the hospital..." Niall looked even more confused as he looked around. Then, finally, Liam got up, "I'm going to go phone your parents; they're going to want to know that you're up. They went to go get some brunch."
Liam was almost to the door when Niall cleared his throat, "Uh, w-who are you, exactly?"
Liam stopped in his tracks. Niall took this joke of his too far... He turned around and looked at Niall lying in the hospital bed. A look of total confusion was still there, but as Liam observed closer, he noticed something was different. Niall was wary. Suddenly, he wasn't sure if Niall was pretending anymore. Niall looked back at him, apprehensive and quiet. "W-what do you mean?"
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