Second to last chapter coming right up :) and TWO UPDATES IN ONE DAY WHATTT
-----
Louis' POV
As I lay in the hospital bed, I feel the warmth of the mid-morning sun on my face while my mind wanders. It ponders over everything that's happened during the band's vacation. There were many awesome memories made; the fun places we went, the growing chemistry between Niall and I, our mums coming for a visit, the webcam we did for our fans.
Then darkness starts to saturate my brain, reminding me of all the awful, painful things that have just recently happened. I shake my head. I will not think of those things now.
I focus on relishing in the good memories again, but suddenly the door opens, breaking my train of thought.
Dr. Jay steps into the room and smiles. "Hello, Louis. How are you feeling?"
"I'm doing alright, right now."
He smiles again. "Good. Good." Then he says, "There's someone here to see you."
My stomach sinks and I immediately think of Richard being here. But common sense kicks in and I know that's not possible. The hospital would never let him in, and the police would be here quicker than the speed of light.
"Who is it?"
"He didn't say. Just that he's sorry he took so long to visit."
Is it Liam? I have to find out because if it is Liam, we need to have a long and important chat.
I nod at Dr. Jay. "You can send him in."
He leaves and a couple minutes later none other than Liam Payne walks through the door.
"Liam."
"Louis." He is stunned and frozen as the door swings shut behind him.
I give him a look over. He looks much older than I remember him being, even if it was only about a week ago that I last saw him. He looks worn out, like he's endured a lot. Seen a lot.
At first glance, he looks presentable but after my intense scrutiny, I notice the dirt in his hair, the grime on his face, that his clothes are disheveled and torn in places. I also notice the white bandages on his knuckles, the bruise that threatens to close his left eye, and the scabbing split on his bottom lip.
"What the hell happened to you?" I ask.
"I could ask you the same thing," he says, almost sadly.
He slowly walks over to my side and takes a seat in a chair. Up close, I can see the detailed swirl of black and blue surrounding his eye. I lift a hand and gently run my finger across it.
"Liam..." I begin.
He lifts his bandaged hand to remove my hand from his face. "Stop, Louis," he says gently. His eyes hold many emotions mixed together, anger and sadness among the strongest.
"What happened?" I ask again, trying to keep at bay my growing concerns.
"You really want to know?"
"Yes."
He takes a deep breath and stands up suddenly. An uneasy silence looms over the room as I wait for him to speak.
His angry voice pierces the silence like a bullet through flesh. "I beat the shit out of them, is what happened."
"Who? Richard and Fred?"
He nods and begins pacing. I'm sure that the scenes from last night are replaying behind his eyes right now. He brings a hand up and runs it through his messy hair. I notice that there is a cast, rather than a bandage, on this hand. One bandage and one cast. He really did beat them.
I remain silent as I try to pull together how I feel. I'm angry that he would do something so vengeful and impulsive. But I'm also relieved and...proud? He delivered to Richard and Fred what they deserved.
"Are you mad?" Liam asks me. I can feel the pain he's holding onto radiating from him, and it is the same pain I feel inside of me. And in this moment, I realize that Liam, being the empathetic person he is, literally feels the same pain I feel. And I can't be mad at him.
I shake my head. "No. I mean at first, yeah. But no, I understand why you did it. I would have, too, if I could."
He sits back down. "I'm so happy you're alive. Otherwise I really would have killed them."
"I don't doubt you."
"My point was to make them feel what they made you feel. Have them understand exactly what you felt."
I don't say anything, sensing that Liam is trying to vent all that he wants to me.
"I don't even remember beating Richard. I just got so angry and all I saw was red and I just went insane." He says this quietly, as if meant for only himself to hear.
"I don't regret it," he declares as his eyes meet mine. I meet his gaze and smile.
"You shouldn't." Because Richard and Fred don't regret what they did to me.
A brief moment passes before I ask, "So how are you now? How do you feel?"
"I feel completely fine, to be honest. As if none of that even happened. I know what I did, and I'm fine with it."
"Good for you, Liam."
Another thought crosses his mind and he chuckles. "Funny thing is, when I arrived at the hospital and went to the desk to ask which room was yours, the lady at the desk refused to tell me until I was seen. I was completely oblivious to the fact that I looked like shit and my fricking knuckles were broken. All I wanted to do was see you."
"Aw, how cute," I remark sarcastically. "So what? They just patched you up without asking questions?"
"Actually yeah. The doctor took x-rays, gave me a cast on one hand, bandaged up the other, without even asking what happened."
"I guess that's good," I say.
"Yeah, I probably looked like I didn't want to be messed with." He makes a face of mock toughness and puffs out his shoulders, causing me to laugh.
"I'm glad you're okay, Li." I say honestly.
"I'm glad you are, too, Louis."
"It'll all be ok." I now fully believe the truth in that phrase.
***
A little while later Niall, Zayn, and Harry walk into the room and are absolutely shocked to find Liam.
"What the hell, Liam!? Where have you been?" Zayn asks, angry, but more so concerned.
Liam shrugs and gives me a sideways glance that says "don't say anything". I remain quiet and let Liam explain.
"I...had some things to take care of."
Niall looks Liam in the eye but remains silent. I see Niall raise an eyebrow and Liam nod his head ever so slightly. It seems that Niall understands what Liam did.
"Some things? What kind of things?" It's Harry's turn to ask a question.
"It's not important anymore," Liam waves off his question. "Look, I'm not really in the mood to talk about it. You'll know eventually, but for now I really don't want to talk about it."
Exhaustion hits Liam and he immediately looks like he could pass out right here and now.
Harry and Zayn nod. "Ok, Li. We understand."
"Thank you," Liam whispers before putting his head on my bed and closing his eyes. "I'm tired."
"Then go to sleep, Liam," I offer.
"Ok..." his voice carries away as he falls into a slumber.
The room is silent, except for the occasional light snore from Liam.
Niall speaks up, careful not to wake Liam, "Well, it's been a hell of a week."
"Right on."
"It's all over. All the chaos," Harry says, looking as relieved as I feel.
"I'm glad for it," I agree. "Lads, I want to thank you. For everything you've done for me. Without you, I might not be here."
Tears prick my eyes as I look around at my best friends. Liam, asleep by my lap after revenging against the people who harmed me. Harry, who's never left my side and cares so much. Zayn, who seems badass but has a heart of gold. And Niall, who I have fallen so helplessly in love with and who ultimately, in getting sick from me, had the biggest lead to finding me.
"I love you guys."
"We love you, too," Niall speaks for all of them.
-----
Second to last chapter's done so you know what that means... LAST CHAPTER IS UP NEXT. I'm excited that I'm going to finish a book because I've always written beginnings but never been able to finish...but it's bittersweet. The last chapter plus an epilogue might take a whole to get put up because I want to make sure they're perfect and that they tie everything up. So until then please read, comment, vote and enjoy!!