Harry eyed Louis carefully as he pushed his food around his plate without eating a single bite. "Lou, you should eat something babe." Harry said as Louis continued to play with his food.
"I'm not hungry." he huffed.
"What's the matter?" Harry asked.
"I'm fine." Louis retorted quickly.
"Louis it's ok to be scared, I'm scared too."
"I'm not scared!" Louis snapped back aggressively.
"Ok, you're not scared, fine." Harry snapped back at him. "Don't put yourself through this alone, we are all facing the same thing you are."
"I'm not scared, I'm mad."
"It's ok to be mad too."
"Good because I'm pretty pissed off." Louis grunted.
"You mad about Liam?"
"No." Louis snapped.
"No?" Harry asked.
"I'm mad at everyone else. I'm mad at myself."
Harry didn't respond as he watched Louis carefully, slowly he reached across the table taking Louis had in his own, but Louis smacked it away.
"Don't try to comfort me, I have the right to be mad."
"You do have that right, but you don't have the right to push away the people who love you most, so let it go."
"How can I lie to them?" Louis asked. "How am I supposed to look Niall in the eyes and tell him everything is going to be ok, when I know it won't?"
"No one is asking you to do that!" Harry yelled. Louis picked up his tray of food throwing it into the wall beside him with a burst of anger. He slumped down against the wall burying his face into his lap. "I'm sorry, I'm just so fucking tired of all of this bullshit. I don't ever want to see this hospital again. How are you able to have faith that this will all work out?" He asked Harry though watery eyes.
"Faith and fear are two things that demand to be felt, but it's your choice what to feel. I choose faith." Harry answered simply.
"You were always better at this than I was." Louis smirked up at him. "When Perrie died, we were all crushed. Then you got cancer and I had to fight you every step of the way. I was constantly mad and angry with God for putting you through this, putting us through this."
"But we made it through that together." Harry whispered sitting down beside him.
"But now Liam is hurt and Niall it's barely holding on. He doesn't have that fight in him, I can see it in his eyes, he is lost without Liam."
"If Niall loves Liam like I love you, then I know for a fact that he will never stop loving him, even if Liam isn't here to be loved."
"I just want everything to be alright." Louis cried.
"I want that too babe." Harry whispered as he pulled Louis in for a hug, his chin resting on top of Louis' head due to their height difference, Harry tried not to cry himself. "More than anything." He added in a hushed tone.
Niall sat beside Liam's bedside watching him eagerly, he had been talking to Liam for a few hours now, but he still remained unconscious. "I wish you were here Li." He whispered as he crawled into the bed next to him. It was evening now, the golden sunrise filling up the room, nobody had been in to bother them since that morning, when Liam seized. Niall forced the thought that they were letting him say a proper goodbye out of his mind.
"When this whole One Direction thing took off my mum was always sad when I had to leave home, we were so young then and everything happened so quickly, she would always come to me and tell me "Niall baby, find the good in goodbye." It helped me out that door every day." Niall whispered talking to Liam. He arched his head looking up at Liam as he rested on his chest, tears welling up in his eyes.
"I'm not saying goodbye Liam, I'm just saying good night. I'll see you in my dreams love." Niall lifted his head pressing his lips against Liam's for his goodnight kiss before settling back down on his chest falling asleep fairly quickly.
Elizabeth sighed as she tapped her fingers while she read Liam's chart, her body slumped against the counter as she read. "So I hear congratulations are in order." A man spoke as she jumped not seeing him appear beside her.
"Oh God, don't scare me like that Tom!" She yelped.
"Sorry, I thought you saw me." Tom said.
"No I didn't, what did you say?"
"Congratulations." Tom said again with a smile on his face. She tilted her head curiously wondering how he heard and if he was being genuine. "Am I not allowed to congratulate you?"
"It is a little weird." Elizabeth observed.
"Only because you're making awkward!" He laughed as he scribbled in one of his charts.
"I'm sorry, it's been a wild week, and I’m so tired." She sighed.
"How is the kid?" Tom asked closing his paperwork and turning to her.
"He still hadn't woken up. Is been four days now. I'm running out of new ideas." Elizabeth confessed.
"Well I'm sure you're going to think of something, you always do. How're the rest of the lads?"
"Harry is good, Zayn is being very supportive and loving obviously," she held up her ring finger showing off the diamond. "Louis is being unusually quiet and Niall despite all odds is holding up as well as can be expected."
“And you?” Tom asked expectantly.
“I’m good.” She said slowly. “Yea, I’m good.” Elizabeth added with a nod and a fake smile. Tom eyed her cautiously for a moment.
“I’m always here if you need anything Liz.” He said softly as he stepped forward hugging her, she relaxed slightly at his touch, he always did make her feel safe. They broke apart but Tom still had a hold of her shoulder as she smiled thanking him, a light cough got her attention as she looked past him seeing Zayn standing there watching them, his hands in his pockets.
“Zayn.” Tom nodded politely addressing him as he walked up to them.
“Tom.” Zayn returned the greeting curtly, Elizabeth tried not to smile at their less than subtle exchange of male dominance.
“I was just telling Elizabeth congratulations on your engagement. That really is something wonderful.” Tom spoke explaining their behavior.
“Well thank you.” Zayn said kindly as he slipped his hand into Elizabeth’s. “I couldn’t be happier.” He added smiling at her, she smiled back winking at him.
“Well you certainly have a good one mate.” Tom said holding out his hand for Zayn to shake, he did so.
“Good to see you again Tom.”
“Right, I best be off. Liz, let me know if you think of something.”
“Oh, I will. Thank you.” She said.
Tom left them behind, Zayn turned to kiss her the moment he was out of sight. “What are you supposed to let him know about?” Zayn asked as they broke their lips apart.
“How Liam is. He seems genuinely interesting in his wellbeing.”
“Oh I’m sure that’s what he is interested in.” Zayn answered snarkily.
Elizabeth smiled watching him talk. “Is somebody a tad bit jealous Malik?”
“Of your ex-boyfriend? No!” Zayn laughed.
“Well you seem slightly jealous Z.” She teased him some more.
“Well I already have you babe so there is nothing to be jealous about is there?”
“Good answer slick!” She laughed as he kissed her again. Her pager buzzed between them as they both looked down to find the source, sighing she slipped it off her belt and read the message.
“Everything ok?” Zayn asked trying not to sound too worried. She smiled at him kissing his nose.
“Yes, it’s just time to go check on Liam. You should go get some sleep, it is the middle of the night babe.”
“I’ll go with you, I’m not even tired.” As if on cue he yawned a big childlike yawn making her smile.
“Sure you aren’t.”
“Ok, maybe a little.” He grinned.
“You go find a bed, I’ll find you after I’m done with Liam, it shouldn’t be too long.” Elizabeth said kissing him on the cheek.
“Ok, fine. But don’t forget about me.”
“Forget about you Malik? How could I?” She laughed pushing him away as he tried to steal another kiss. “Go, before you fall asleep standing up!”
He begrudgingly left her in search of a bed as she pulled her hair up into a messy bun, slipping her glasses on while she made her way to Liam’s room again. Reaching his door she took the dry erase marker down erasing day 4 with day 5 on his door. Stretching her neck and back as she cracked her bones readjusting herself from the long day before she went inside.
Pushing the door in she stepped inside the dark room only lit by the lights surrounding the bed, Niall was asleep on Liam’s chest as she approached trying to walk quietly so as to not wake him up.
She read his monitors checking his stats for a while as she listened to him breathe. Luckily since his stroke Liam’s breathing tube hadn’t needed to be replaced with nothing more than an oxygen mask. She watched as his breath fogged up the plastic mouth cover with each exhale he took, he was breathing on his own, a positive sign for sure. His head was angled towards her, his hair getting longer now as she reached up and brushed his bangs off his forehead, suddenly the faintest flicker crossed his face. Stunned Elizabeth froze willing him to keep moving but he didn’t, she groaned silently scolding her mind from playing tricks on her, her hand hanging motionless above Liam’s head still.
She let her hand rest on top of his head for a moment as she watched him with Niall sound asleep on his chest. Liam stirred again as she gasped watching him move, actually move not just imagining him to do so, in the darkness a flicker of eyelids pulled open as she looked down at his big brown eyes for the first time in almost a week.
“Liam?” She gasped unbelieving of this moment.
He nodded slowly holding his right hand up to the oxygen mask, his index finger raised shhhing her, she fell silent. Slowly he pulled the oxygen mask off his lips as he tried to speak.
“It’s ok Liam, you’re ok. You’re in the hospital.” She said calmly holding on to his hand.
He nodded softly but put his index finger back up to his lips silencing Elizabeth once more.
“Let him sleep.” Liam whispered so softly that she wasn’t sure she heard him correctly until he pointed at Niall who was still resting on his chest.
“He has been worried sick Liam, I’m sure he’d want to see you now.” Elizabeth whispered back.
“I just want him to sleep while I hold him, it’s been so long since I’ve held him.” Liam whimpered in the dark. He looked so weak but Elizabeth nodded kissing his forehead.
“I will be back to check on you in the morning love, both of you.” She whispered as she made her way to the door quietly. Looking back over her shoulder she smiled as Liam closed his eyes with a smile on his lips.