Have I forgotten how to love; remind me once again

Chapter Three

The stream of personnel rushing into Harry's room had alarmed Niall, Liam and Zayn, the three of them following in time to see an awake Harry and the muttering mess that is Louis muttering over and over, "No, no, no. It's yours, darling. Already yours".

Unfortunately, they get there in time to hear Harry's heartbreaking words of, "I'm sorry. You seem familiar, but I can't really place you" too, and the wave of shock it sends through Louis emits the room in an eerie silence when the gravity of the situation dawns on them.

A doctor begins to say something about possible amnesia - short or long term - but something clicked inside of Louis with Harry's words, wringing out the desperation built on days and days of agony and fear. "Louis! It's... I'm Louis. Lou. Loulou. It's me. Love, it's me!" For a second Louis looks about ready to shake his fiancé violently, coercing his memory back, but Liam is by his side in a second, holding him close, eyes wide and mind working overtime, trying to process the entire situation.

Several nurses and a doctor ruffles around Harry, talking to him softly and inspecting every single part of him from his pupils to the stiches in his side and the cast around his leg, and all the while his friends stand by silently, Louis' hand no longer cradling his fiancé's, as Harry had pulled away.

It seems like forever before they're addressed again, the doctor speaking more so to Liam than Louis, as the latter has been staring blankly at his hands since he last spoke, and even though his face isn't visible, his body alone shows how close he is to the breaking point.

"I will give you the good news first; Mister Styles is awake and physically well. His vitals are strong, and his wounds are healing nicely." She takes a brief break then - not for dramatic purposes or anything like that, more than anything to let then focus on the bright side for a second before she crushes their every dream. Unfortunately, she doesn't keep quiet for long.

"It seems, however, that Mister Styles is experiencing a rather extensive case of amnesia. We don't know yet just how extensive it is, nor whether it is permanent. Only further examination and time will tell. For now, I will have to ask you all to leave Mister Styles alone, as he is in desperate need of calm and quiet". She moves her professional glare to Louis and continues, "And that means all of you. Riling him up can prove critical for his recovery and though I understand your desire to be with your fiancé, I cannot allow jeopardization of his recovery".

Everyone seems surprised when Louis simply nods and stands up, leaving the room with only one single look back at Harry before he disappears down the hall. The three other boys quickly follow, all of them wishing Harry a good rest and covering up the hurt when he smiles back indifferently safe for confusion as to why these four people are crying over a bed that isn't even his.

***

It takes more than two hours to find Louis - mostly because the other boys didn't start searching for about an hour, knowing Louis needs a bit of time to process everything, as all of them do. Eventually though, worry for Louis overtook respect for his need for alone time, and the three of them had split up and searched the hospital, certain that Louis wouldn't leave under any circumstance, not with his baby still in a bed here, anyway.

Liam had just started stressing about his missing friend when a text from Zayn ticks in.

From Zayn: Calm your tits, love. I found him.

Liam smiles at the text - mostly because the whereabouts of Louis are once again known, but the text itself makes him smile a bit too, and he calls Niall and tells him to come back to the waiting room before he answers.

To Zayn: My tits are perfectly calm, thank you.
To Zayn: Call me if you need anything.

***