Assault With a Deadly Weapon || N.H / 1D

75.

Song recommendation: New York City Christmas by Rob Thomas
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The voices were gone. They'd been gone for a while now, but neither Niall, nor I wanted to break the silence. I couldn't tell if it was because we were scared of other people still being in the basement, or if the pure shock had left us frozen in time.

My breathing was shaky. I took short breaths because any long, drawn out inhales or exhales could make a noise that would blow our cover. My heart pounded in my head, in my chest, in my stomach, and my legs. I felt like I needed to run somewhere, I wasn't sure exactly where, but I needed to run. It was the adrenaline, which was one of the most uncomfortable feelings in the world. It was like lighting a firework, then trapping it in a bulletproof safe, restricting it from flying and bursting. Katy Perry was correct, I am in fact a firework.

I don't know how long I remained pressed up against Niall, but eventually my heart rate slowed, my muscles relaxed, and I felt ridiculously tired. Once I figured the coast was clear for sure, I dropped my arm from my chest, and searched for Niall's hand. When I found it, he was shaking, and sweating. He had mentioned before that he wasn't a fan of tight spaces. Niall was incredibly claustrophobic.

"Phil..." He whispered in a staggering voice. "That was..."

"Tomlinson." I nodded. "I know."

"He's here."

"I know."

"We need to get out of this closet." He shifted his weight, unintentionally pushing me forward against the door.

"We need to talk to Harry." I sighed.

"And Gorilla." Niall added.

His comment made me furrow my eyebrows and shake my head in confusion, and shock.

"Not him." I whispered.

"We have to." He protested. "He's the only one who's got inside anonymous links."

"Niall we don't even know who he-"

"Just give it a chance." He pleaded.

"We'll talk about this upstairs." I shook my head before holding a finger up to my lips, and silently opening the closet door.

The lights of the basement were shut off, leaving Niall and I in absolute darkness. I could feel his presence behind me, but I couldn't hear him, nor could I see him. No matter how connected Niall and I were, there was no way I was going to lose him in this basement. I felt out for the nearest wall and began to tap out a word in morse code.

L-I-G-H-T

I waited for a moment, hoping that he heard me. Then, there was a faint tapping on a wall not far away.

U-S-U-R-E

Are you sure?

He was being cautious, which was nice, but unfortunately for him, I can't see in the fucking dark.

Y-E-S

Moments later, the room lit up dimly. I looked for the source of the light and found Niall with his phone flashlight throwing off the light. I couldn't read his face very well, but I knew he could at least see me, and I at least knew where he was. I pointed to the door that led to the stairs, then motioned for him to walk softly, and be quiet. He rolled his eyes at me like a child. I flashed him a classy middle finger, then proceeded to the stairs.

The stairwell was silent as we climbed up the stairs. I wanted to let out a deep sigh, because I was now fully aware that I was holding a breath in my lungs. It was sitting uncomfortably in my chest, but if I made a single sound, it could blow our cover. Niall followed closely behind me with the flashlight, holding it low enough to see where we were stepping, but not high enough for someone to obviously spot us.