Purge (Larry Stylinson au)

Chapter 24

The explosion rocks the ground and sends a fiery wave of heat and shrapnel bursting at Harry and Louis, nearly engulfing them in flames. 

The blast sends troopers flying off their feet. Harry braces his arms against the pillar, pressing his body against Louis's to shield him from the worst of the explosion.

The heat and fire sears his back, burning the fabric of his uniform and scorching his skin. He screams in agony as the blaze torches the back of his body. It feels like the skin on his back is melting; everything feels white-hot, but he doesn't move. He stays there, protecting Louis from the worst of the blast, shielding him with his body. 

He smells burning hair and as the heat dies down and the explosion finishes, he reaches back, wincing at his burning skin, to feel the back of his head. When he does, he discovers that a large portion of his long hair has been completely charred and disintegrated, the strands crumbling to ash in his hand. 

All hell has broken loose around them. The base is a huge pile of ash and rubble. Smoke fills the air and debris and tiny pieces of metal float around as concrete crumbles and troopers shout to each other, trying to regroup. 

"Harry," Louis says, looking up and pulling Harry into a tight hug, gripping his back tightly.

Harry hisses in pain and immediately pulls away. He's sure he's covered in burns from the explosion, and they're bad. But Louis is safe, and that's what he had wanted when he went to protect him. 

"I'm sorry," Louis says, panicked. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's okay," Harry says, wincing. "I'm okay. We have to get out of here."

Louis nods, gripping his bicep with his hand again, clearly trying to apply pressure to the bullet wound there. 

"Wrap this around it," Harry says, pulling a roll of bandages out of his pocket. "I don't want you to bleed out."

"Thanks, Haz." Louis smiles slightly, taking the bandage roll and wrapping it quickly around his arm, making sure it's tight enough. It takes him only a few seconds and then he's ready. 

"Let's go," Harry says. He pulls out his pistols, trying to ignore the searing pain in the skin of the entire back of his body. The fabric of the uniform is irritating the very sensitive skin and he winces in pain every time he moves.

They peek out from behind the pillar and find the Purge ranks in complete disarray. They're shouting to each other and running around and tending to wounded and it's just a mess.

But of course, as soon as Harry and Louis duck out from behind the pillar, they're spotted.

"There! Resistance!" someone shouts.

They immediately dodge around a particularly distracted group of troopers and start to run towards the forest, but the Purge seems to get their act together then and they open fire on Harry and Louis, who are forced to duck behind a large slab of concrete, destroyed in the explosion. 

"Where are you guys?" Harry calls into his radio. "We need backup now."

"We're on our way," Zayn responds almost immediately. "Where are you?"

"Still by the entrance. We're pinned down," Harry says. "We can't get out."

"We're coming, hang on," Zayn assures, and then the radio falls silent.

"They're on their way," Harry tells Louis.

"I know," Louis says. "I heard."

"We're gonna get out of here, Lou," Harry says.