Save Me (Harry Styles FanFic)

Chapter 59

Allison's POV

I slowly make my way closer, she remains forward but I can see the side of her face is stained with tears. "Barbara?" I almost whisper as I reach my hand out to touch her shoulder. Still no word, no eye contact, no movement whatsoever. I sit next to her and put my arm around her shoulder, and rub her arm. "Barbara what's wrong?" I'm about to cry just from looking her her. This older woman with tear stained cheeks, who looks completely lost. My words make her blink a few times, finally breaking the trance she was stuck in. She looks from the fountain and finally to me. Her bottom lip is shaking, she grabs her purse tighter and looks back to the fountain. Tears drip from her eyes and follow the path the tears before them had travelled, dropping off her chin and land on her lap. I'm starting to really worry, she's acting weird. We've sat in comfortable silence many times, but this is anything but comfortable. It's the complete opposite of comfortable and I don't like it one bit. I continue to stare at her for what feels like hours, waiting and hoping for some kind of communication. "Barbara, please....please talk to me....what's going on?" A stray tear drips out of my eye, I catch it before it falls completely. I hear her take a deep breath, one you'd take right before you're about to speak.

"It-it's Robert...." She gasps for air as if she's been holding it in forever. ".....he's gone...." She cries as she covers her mouth with both hands. I knew it. I knew it the second I saw her. I've never had anyone I know pass away, I don't know what you're supposed to do or say to someone to comfort them. My heart is breaking for her, and I join her and cry.

"Gone? Like.....gone gone?" She keeps her focus forward and I keep mine on her. I'm speechless. She slowly nods and tears stream down her cheeks, one after another.

She tries to catch her breath and get it together. "Yesterday. After our walk? I went home and he was asleep in our bed." She pauses a moment and looks at the ground. "I didn't want to wake him, so I went to make dinner.....not 30 minutes passed and I went to wake him to eat. I called his name....and he didn't answer." Now she's crying harder, which makes it difficult to understand her. My crying hardens when I see the awful pain in her eyes. "So I sat beside him on the bed and said his name again. I couldn't hear him breathing. I was too late." Her hands cover her face as she leans her elbows on her knees. She's sobbing. I cover my mouth hushing my own sobs and put my arm around her shoulder, squeezing her close to me. "I should have woken him up. Why didn't I wake him up??" I make 'shh' sounds and run my hand over her hair.

She surprises me when she abruptly stops her crying. Wiping the stains off her cheeks and scooting slightly away from me. I wipe my own cheeks and take a few deep breaths. Normally I'd be so embarrassed crying in public, as people are walking past us. Most of them try to ignore is, a few have slowed their pace and stare at us. But I don't care. My friend is heart broken and I could give a shit less of what anyone thinks. Barbara stands to her feet, I look at her and my brows pull together. She's silent, still no eye contact, and I'm not sure what's going on. She walks forward towards the fountain, I stand and and slowly follow her, a few feet behind her trying to figure out what she's doing. She stops right infront of the fountain. I stand next to her, my eyes focused on hers. I see her reach into her her purse that now hangs in her shoulder, pulling out a little plastic container filled with coins. I don't say a word, I just watch and wait. Her eyes squeeze shut tightly, as she reaches in the container held in one hand and grabs a coin. Her mouth moves but no sounds comes out, and her hand throws a the coin in. My eyes follow the coin from her hand as it splashes into the fountain. She didn't toss it, she threw it...threw it hard. Her fingers grab another coin, she rubs it between her fingers as her eyes remain screwed shut, lips mumbling before she forcefully throws it in again. I remain shocked and silent as one coin goes in after the other. After a minute of that, she's grabbing multiple coins at a time. I'm trying to read her lips but I can't make it out. The entire time, she doesn't make a peep, her eyes are shut so hard tears are barely escaping. My hands cover my mouth as I watch coin after coin splash hard into the fountain. I feel like I should do or say something, but I have no idea what that something is. I wish Harry was here, I bet he would know what to do.