Eleanor and Louis : together.

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

*2 days later*

Louis swallowed the lump in his throat as he ran his thumb slowly and meticulously over Eleanor's knuckles on her left hand.

He felt so guilty...

The tears wouldn't stay back.

He traced over her soft profile with his eyes, not letting his teardrops hit her skin. He remembered everything with startling clarity and wondered if that was normal.

Normal. Louis almost laughed at the word; normal.

As if anything in his life was normal anymore, he thought bitterly.

His eyes started at her chest, the expanse and bare flash of skin almost at her neck, prickled with goosebumps that never seemed to fade. He noticed her dark brown hair spilled around the pillow, her dark lashes framing her closed eyes.

He willed himself to look up at the bald spot on the crown of Eleanor's head where the doctors had stitched up the fatal gash that was so, so big and so heart wrenching..

Louis remembered. Feeling weary, exhausted, and sick, he remembered.

_____________________

The second Louis heard Eleanor's scream, his heart dropped to his knees. His stomach felt like it was going to fly out of his mouth... It was so hard to describe. He felt sickness and sadness and yearning all at once, and Eleanor...

Eleanor had called his name. That made it ten times worse.

Imagine someone you love calling your name in a scream as they've just been--

Louis stood riveted in place for almost a full minute as he waited for the land rover to stop. Somehow, before it even didn't, he knew it wasn't going to. He was in too much of a surreal haze to even think to record the license plate number.

"Louis," Eleanor begged weakly from across the street.

The crack of her bones was on harsh replay in his mind, over and over again.

Louis dialed Liam's number and let it ring as he ran to Eleanor's side, deliberately not answering in the hopes that Liam would know something was wrong and come quickly.

"Eleanor," he whispered, his eyes taking in her blank expression.

He crouched on the ground, oblivious that his hands were becoming stained red.

He brushed the hair out of her face and watched her lip quiver.

"Eleanor, can you hear me?"

Eleanor's eyes stayed open, shining.

The whole thing felt so surreal, Louis didn't lose it, not yet. He felt as if he were floating through a dream. As if in slow motion, he watched Liam come running up, dialing his phone in one hand and cursing.

"What the fuck did you do?" Liam yelled.

"Liam, I.."

"Hello? Yes, my friend's girlfriend... She got hit by a-- a-"

Louis squeezed his eyes shut and felt himself fall apart.

AT THE HOSPITAL, 1 HR LATER

"Mrs. Calder," the doctor cleared his throat as Eleanor's mother, Deborah, swiped again at her runny nose and red eyes between sending murderous glances Louis's way.

Louis, Liam, and Deborah sat tensely waiting for the news.

"Eleanor has broken three bones in her spine. One more bone up, and she's be long gone by now. She suffered head trauma and has broken bones in her left arm and hand, plus swelling of her brain. She'll have to undergo extensive surgery. She may have lost some of her short and long- term cognitive memory. I-- I'm sorry."

Eleanor's mom nodded once, "Thank you," her lip trembled, "now, if you don't mind, I'm just going to excuse Louis and myself outside for a little bit."

Louis gulped.

Deborah roughly pulled Louis outside the door.

"What the HELL?" she cried, "Louis if I could slap you across the head right now and get away with it you know I would. What have you.. I can't--" She sputtered.

"Eleanor and I got into a fight," Louis rushed, "over something really stupid. She stormed out and I went looking for her-- and-"

"Do you realize that she could very well die right now because you didn't have the good sense to take care of her right!"

Louis looked at her. The colors swam, and he realized he'd started crying again. Would he ever stop?

Deborah huffed and said something about talking to a nurse while Louis went back and say down on the sticky, cracked vinyl sofa in the corner of the room, burying his face in his hands.

He looked up again to stare at Eleanor's hair spread across the pillow, the way her eyelashes cast tiny shadows across her face.

He slipped his hand into hers.

"Eleanor, I love you," he said softy, "and I'm so sorry.."

Louis almost had a heart attack as Eleanor's grip around his hand tightened.