Lights, Camera, Action [N.H]

34

i feel so horrible for taking so long to update, and it's a short one too, sorry guys :( uni is taking up so much of my time, but good news is here!! my last exam for the semester is soon! i'm also struggling a bit with the 'filler' chapters/current pacing, so please try not to hate me if i do some time jumps to ease some of my writers block. tysm for all your patience <3

The hours that followed my awakening were nothing short of overwhelming and stressful. My brain was quieter, but my body reaped the consequences of all the stress. I was exhausted, poked and prodded for a couple of hours until everybody around me cleared me and decided I was okay.

Niall was insistent they run more tests, he even spoke to me in angry tones about finding out where it came from and who did it, but I kept dismissing him in exhaustion. Claire was even waiting in the room in an uncomfortable looking chair when I woke up, they waited at my every move like a pair of stressed-out parents like their baby had a fever.

The moment I was cleared, I got changed into more comfortable clothes Claire had grabbed from the hotel room. Using my teeth, I ripped the hospital wristband and threw it in a bin on the way out.

There was something unsettling about the way I disregarded this whole situation. My unassuming attitude was being questioned, but truthfully, I wasn't sure what me stressing out would do to help.

We didn't know who it was, even if we found out, I was unsettled to even understand or know why it happened.

Was I being targeted?

Why me?

Was it because I was with Niall?

Was it someone I knew?

These were all questions that horrified me, none of which I needed answers. Usually I would want to know, but my skin shivered when the thought crossed my mind. I worried even more when I wondered if Niall would find out. He was one of those people — knowing would help him. But it would hurt me.

This incident just added to the list of things that made our relationship so complicated. While girls being drugged on a night out was unfortunately not an uncommon occurrence, would it have happened if Niall wasn't my date? I mean, it was a high-end restaurant, you'd think it wouldn't be very common. With everything so expensive, their security would be tighter than normal. You wouldn't expect it. This made me all the more stressed. It felt purposeful, and that scared the hell out of me.

I was already sure Niall was going to overthink this, and somehow wrap it up in the singular assumption that it was his fault. Regardless of how silly that was. A part of my subconscious, deep down, thought that me being with Niall potentially exposed me to this situation. But I would never speak that thought, it would derail our relationship.

Overall, I was tired, and out of questions. I wanted to sleep for a whole day. I wanted to drink nothing but stale water and recover. I felt like being drugged had sucked the life from me, despite being rehydrated as the IV slit through my veins. The visual made me gag, when I woke up and noticed it I almost threw up what I ate for dinner.

When we arrived back at the hotel, Niall and Claire wouldn't leave my side. I was a precious little unhatched baby egg, they did everything but carry me.

"Okay... I'll uh, cook dinner I suppose." Claire sliced through the silence.

Niall just hummed quietly in response, I slogged around in my track pants silently until my ass hit the couch. Words didn't string together, I was at a complete loss. The energy it would take to form meaningful conversations didn't feel possible at this moment, so I kept quiet until Niall turned the TV on next to me. Without any conversation, he put on our show and played it while the homely sounds of Claire cooking erupted behind us. Pots, pans, the stovetop and hood fan distracted me in a calming way.