What Are The Odds?

thirteen

"Harry talked to me earlier," Louis said as he and Zayn were seated on a couple of the chairs in Louis' room.

"I figured. He talked to me, too," Zayn said while looking between his controller and the TV, still trying to figure out where everything was and what they did. "What'd he tell you?" Zayn then asks, assuming the older man told him how gentle and fragile Zayn really was.

"What are the odds you already know?" Louis replies with a smirk that has Zayn looking over to him with a blushing smile.

"Oh, shut up. It's a silly game we made when I was basically a toddler," Zayn muttered before scoring a goal in the FIFA match they were playing which caused him to smile even brighter.

"I think it's cool. We can probably even elaborate on it more if we wanted to. Maybe teach it to Liam."

"Teach what to Liam?" A new voice said from behind the two boys, and just as Louis and Zayn turn around they find themselves locking eyes with none other than Liam Styles.

"A game, we'll tell you about it later," Louis says as he gets up from his seat and limps towards his friend.

As Liam sees his best friend limp over to him, he can't help but release a small, sympathetic smile because this is the first time he's actually seeing Louis in a vulnerable way. However, the puppy eyed boy doesn't say anything and rather gives his friend a hug hello before waving over at Zayn which causes the boy to wave back a bit more excited.

The three stayed talking for a bit, but after a couple minutes of silence Zayn could tell Louis wanted a moment alone with Liam and quickly excused himself to go find Ashton. So now it was only Liam and Louis in the room, and Liam could hardly think of something to say because it was typically Louis doing the talking. He always had something to say. But today- today Louis just looked so lost.

"I'm suppose to get surgery next week," Louis finally speaks as he moves over to his bed to sit down. "S'like, they said there's an eighty percent survival rate with the surgery."

"That's great! You'll get the surgery, do your few weeks of recovery, and then we'll be back in action causing havoc wherever we stand," Liam says with a beaming obviously happy about his friend being able to be cancer free, however, his happy demeanor changes when he sees the tears beginning to fall from Louis' eyes. "Hey, hey what's wrong? I-I thought you wanted to leave?"

"I do," Louis cries, looking up with red eyes to meet Liam's concerned ones. "I want to leave so bad, Liam. I want to be home with my mum and dad. I want to be able to go outside and kick around a football whenever I want. I want to have to lock the door when I shower so I can sneak in a wank because god only knows that's my only time of privacy. I just- I just want my life back to how it used to be."

"And it will, Louis. Once the surgery's done, you'll get to go back to nor-"

"No I won't!" Louis is quick to cut off as he chokes on a sob. "The only reason the surgery is so successful is because they amputate the part of the body where cancer cells are spreading."

Louis chokes on another sob.

"They-they're gonna cut my l-leg off, and- and I'll never be able to play foot- football again, or carry my sisters, or-"

Louis can't even continue because he's crying so hard at the point, and it was only then did everything finally click in Liam's mind just how serious this all was. Up until now Louis was still the same. He was still the same funny, immature, obnoxious seventeen year old who told inappropriate jokes at the worst of times but still made everyone laugh. But now, right now he finally let his guard down and allowed Liam to see him vulnerable. He allowed Liam to see how sick he actually was.