With A Touch Of Magic (Larry Version)

19. Own Worst Enemy

A dull and steady beeping made his head throb. Groaning at the growing headache, Louis blinked his tired eyes open, squinting against the bright white light at the ceiling. His limbs felt heavy and his throat was hurting as dry as it was. The more he woke up, the more he realised how warm it was in the room. Maybe his brain was only overheating because his mouth tasted like puke and his stomach felt bloody empty, almost painfully so. Glancing around the room, he felt his racing heart slow down a little when he realised he was in a hospital. Now some things made sense.

That thought slowly brought his memories back and reminded him why he was here in the first place. That bloody soy cake. Now cake had truly been his downfall. In his anger and disappointment, he hadn't noticed his symptoms earlier and it made him think. It might have been an accident but he was in the hospital because of Harry, more or less. This couldn't happen again.

Before he could decipher what that realisation meant, the door opened and a nurse came inside. "Hello, Mr. Tomlinson. My name is Annabelle and I'm glad to see that you're awake. How are you feeling? Any pain?".

"My head aches a little bit and my throat's dry as fuck but other than that, I'm not sure" Louis answered her truthfully. "I can talk normally again without gasping for air and I'm starving".

"You've been out for a few hours. It was pretty bad but you've been brought in right in time to prevent the worst" she let him know while checking his values on the monitor by his bed.

Scrunching up his face, Louis tried to remember how he had ended up here but he could only remember the feeling of slowly suffocating. Then there was a fleeting memory of a touch and a voice. Harry's voice. Eyeing Annabelle a bit closer, Louis swore she had the same green eyes and the same curls and the same nose and the same dimples. She literally looked just like ...

"Shit" Louis blurted out mindlessly, earning a raised eyebrow from her in amusement. "Sorry, I just ... You're Harry's mother, aren't you?".

"I am, dear" Annabelle confirmed unfazed. "He brought you here and has been pacing up and down the hall outside this door for hours. He's feeling pretty guilty, which ... I get, to be honest".

"Yeah, same" Louis wanted to solely blame Harry for this mess but it wasn't only on him. Maybe he had labelled the boxes wrong and poisoned him by accident but in his right mind, Louis would've questioned the unusual nutty taste of the chocolate cake. But he hadn't because he'd been blinded by his rage and anger. "It was an accident though, so nothing to feel sorry for. It can always happen and ...".

"It shouldn't have" Annabelle just looked at him, which made him shut up for some reason. Probably the power of a mother. "It looks like you're as good as new but they're gonna keep you for a few more hours to make sure you're really fine. You should maybe eat something or at least drink some water".

"I would if I had anything" Louis pointed out the obvious lack of anything to eat or drink in his proximity.

"I make sure you'll get something" Annabelle smiled at him.

"But you're not gonna wipe my memory, right?" Louis wanted to joke but his attempt fell horribly flat, making him wince.

Pausing at the door to look at him, Annabelle actually looked amused and winked at him. "No, not yet".

With his jaw on the floor, he gaped after her. That woman had the best sense of humour but he had no time to think more about this because his own mother walked right into the room with worry written all over her face. Feeling bad for making her fear the worst, he offered her a weak smile before looking down.

"Oh, Buttercup. I was so worried. Aria called me and told me what happened. How are you feeling?" his mother Jasmine sat down in a chair right by his bed, making him wonder how Aria had found out about what had happened. She hadn't been there.