The Girl In The Dirty Shirt Noel Version

Chapter 116

The next week recording came to a complete standstill. Liam, Noel, and Paul spent twenty four hours a day at the hospital in shifts.

I wished I could be there with Noel like Nicole was for Liam, but being pregnant I couldn't sleep in a plastic chair anymore.

Peggy had gotten worse the last few days and Noel was on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

It was Noel's shift at the hospital and he had disappeared leaving me in the room with Peggy; she was sleeping so I just flipped through a magazine.

I looked up as the door opened and Liam came in.

He frowned walking over and helped me stand up "Where's Noel?" He asked quietly.

I shrugged "I don't know, he said he had to get away about an hour ago; I've been waiting for you"

"Did he leave?"

I shook my head "I don't think so"

"How's Mam?" He asked looking over at her sleeping in the bed.

"Nothing's changed since Paul left this morning"

"She's still sick?"

I nodded and his face fell.

"Where's Nic?" I asked quietly

"She's workin'" he practically whispered

"Do you want me to stay?"

He shook his head "Nah, it's fine, go find Noel"

"Are you sure?" I asked again "It doesn't bother me to stay, Liam"

"I'll be alright"

I nodded "Alright, call if anything changes okay?"

He nodded and I wrapped my arms around him in a hug. He squeezed me a lot tighter than I expected him to.

I hugged him back just as tightly until he finally let me go.

"You're sure you'll be okay?" I asked brushing his hair back

"Y'gonna make me feel better if I'm not?" He smiled

"I'll try" I smiled "I still care about you, Liam; we're still family, I still love you"

He smiled "I love you too, Ly"

"Call if you need anything okay?"

He nodded and I let myself out and went to find Noel.

It didn't take me long, I found him downstairs in the cafeteria cramped in the corner with a pen and paper and green Jell-O.

I sat across from him and he looked up with a weak smile "Oh, hi love"

"Hi yourself stranger, have you been down here the whole time?"

He nodded not really paying attention to me as he wrote something on a piece of paper.

I picked up the half-eaten Jell-O cup and took a bite.

"Red Jell-O is better", I smiled. "Everybody knows."

He glanced up at me with a half-smile. "I liked its green-ness" He went back to his writing.

"Hey," I reached across the table and took Noel's face in my hand tilting his chin to look at me. "She's gonna be okay sweetheart, I promise"

"I need 'er t'be okay Ly;" he sighed "I can't be in a world without my Mam"

"You're not going to have to be, she's going to pull through; she's a Gallagher" I dropped my hand "You told me once she's the strongest person you know, when did that change?"

"It hasn't"

"Exactly," I nodded "She's going to be fine"

He was quiet for a minute and then looked at me across the table. “My Dad came t’see Liam an’ me”

I blinked with surprise Noel and Liam hadn’t seen their dad for more years than I had “What happened?”

He shook his head “Nothin’…it was when we were on tour last…he jus’ wanted money; told the press Liam almost kicked ‘is ‘ead in”

“Did he?”

He shook his head again “He walked away, I told ‘im t’get the fuck out an’ security threw ‘im out I guess, I ain’t really sure, I went up t’my room after”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there” I said quietly

He just shrugged “It’s fine, it’s done an’ over with now”

After that he fell quiet again and I sat with him for over an hour and watched him write and scratch out and rewrite while I ate the rest of his green Jell-O and had a bad cup of coffee.

He was never very good at expressing his feelings, not face to face anyway; he always wrote.

We finally went home around midnight and Noel was still a mess.

We were lying in bed, I couldn't sleep and I knew he was still awake.

"Noel?" I asked quietly and waited

After a minute of silence he finally answered. "Hmm?"

"There's no point in laying here if we're not going to sleep"

"I can't sleep Ly, I can't stop thinkin' about Mam"

"Come here, help me up"

Noel got up from his side of the bed and came around to my side and took both of my hands pulling me up to my feet.

"Play me the song you were writing earlier"

He shook his head "I don't want to"

"Please?" I asked

It took a little more prying on my part, but I finally convinced him to play for me; we sat on the couch together and he tuned his guitar before he started to play.

Cold and frosty morning - there's not a lot to say
About the things caught in my mind.
And as the day was dawning my plane flew away
With all the things caught in my mind.

And I wanna be there when you're coming down
And I wanna be there when you hit the ground

So don't go away,
Say what you say
Say that you'll stay
Forever and a day
In the time of my life
'cause I need more time,
Yes, I need more time
Just to make things right

Damn my situation and the games I have to play
With all the things caught in my mind.
Damn my education - I can't find the words to say
With all the things caught in my mind.

And I wanna be there when you're coming down
And I wanna be there when you hit the ground

So don't go away,
Say what you say
Say that you'll stay
Forever and a day
In the time of my life
'cause I need more time,
Yes, I need more time
Just to make things right

Me and you - what's going on?
All we seem to know is how to show
The feelings that are wrong.

[x2]
So don't go away,
Say what you say
Say that you'll stay
Forever and a day
In the time of my life
'cause I need more time,
Yes, I need more time
Just to make things right

Yes, I need more time
Just to make things right

Yes, I need more time
Just to make things right

So don't go away.

I sat and just stared at him, that song was so obviously about Peggy.

He put his guitar down and I climbed into his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"I love you, Noel" I whispered kissing his neck. I wished I could say more, but I couldn't.

He hugged me tightly against him and kissed me back. "I love you too, Lyla"