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Part VII - H.S.

Thanks to Kendall's super fast car and her extremely reckless driver, we arrive at the hotel in six and a half minutes (not that I was counting, of course). I quickly sprint up to Liam's room and push open the door, surprised to find it unlocked. Liam looks like a fucking mess. His hair is all over the place and his bloodshot eyes are filled with concern.

"Oh my god, Harry, thank goodness you're here. We were just having a good time at the bar, and at some point, he went outside with the barista and I didn't think much of it, but he came back inside about twenty minutes later, having a full-blown panic attack. It wasn't like any of the panic attacks he's had before, he was sobbing really hard and he couldn't breathe and I was so fucking scared and he's asleep now but I'm really worried...Should we take him to the hospital?"

I gently put a hand on his shoulder to shut him up. I understood about three percent of his word vomit, but that's enough to worry me.

"I called you because I didn't know what to do, but what if...what if you being here makes it worse..."

What if you were was the reason for his panic attack in the first place.

He doesn't say that, but it's pretty obviously implied. And it hurts even more because it's probably true.

Liam walks over to the bed and gently shakes Louis' shoulder.

"Hey, mate. Wake up."

He stirs slightly and mumbles something.

"What?"

"Mmph...Harry..."

"Harry?"

"Want my Hazza..."

Liam looks at me and shrugs.

I walk over and take a seat next to him. Before I can think better of it, I wrap my arms around Louis and pull him into a tight hug. Almost instinctively, he curls up into a ball and buries his face in my chest, his shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." he chokes out over and over again.

I gently press a kiss to the top of his head and rub his back.

"Shh, hey, it's okay, Lou. Just breathe, love. I'm here. I'm here."

After a few more minutes of small kisses and comforting whispers, he finally calms down and pulls away.

"What happened, Lou?"

He sighs and gets to his feet.

"I don't want to talk about that right now. I'm gonna go get some fresh air."

Liam immediately stands up and follows him.

"I'm coming with you. You know, just in case..."

Louis rolls his eyes, but he doesn't object.

After they've both left, I lean back and close my eyes. What could have possibly happened to him?

Liam said something about him going outside with the barista, and I can't help but feel a twinge of jealousy. I didn't even know he liked women. What if she made him do something? But no, that can't be right. He was apologizing for something. What if he did something he regretted?

Before I can think about that further, I hear a buzzing sound. It's Louis' phone. I really shouldn't invade his privacy, but I can't help but quickly take a peek.

The contact name says Briana. I wasn't planning on reading the message, but now my curiosity's got the best of me.

Briana: had a gr8 time tn, hopefully I'll see u again soon😘