Ditched (a Harry Styles love story)

Chapter 36

***Harry's P.O.V.***

When I woke up, after Elizabeth had helped me, my throat still burned. I stumbled out of my warm bed around mid day and found my way towards Elizabeth's room. I heard talking and I cocked my head to the side as I approached the door quietly. I figured that she was only talking to Carson and I was about to just walk in politely and ask her to help me out. I was having trouble getting around and I could use someone to lean on. Then I heard her words and my who body froze.

''Yeah, I'm coming back to you guys soon...'' she started and my brain tried to process what she was talking about. I couldn't come up with much in my hazy mind. ''no, he probably wont notice... no, I'll just, you know, go when him and Louis are recording... they wont mind... I haven't told them about it... they don't need to know... no, mom... well, it is a sin, but I'm technically not lying to them... okay, I'll be there in a few more days... I love you too.''

Once she hung up I stumbled into the room and she jumped in surprise, ''you're leaving.'' There was a boat load of hurt in my voice when I implied it and she looked at me with the face of a deer caught in the headlights.

''Harry, it's just... I'm not-,'' she started but I interrupted her.

''You said on the phone that you were going to leave while we were recording,'' I protested, ''did I say something? Did I do something?''

''No, you didn't do anything,'' she assured me but it didn't make me anymore confused.

''Then why are you leaving?'' I wondered.

''I-I cant tell you,'' she stuttered. I walked closer to where she sat in the bed and se gulped as she looked up at me.

''You can tell me anything, Elizabeth,'' I insisted.

''It's a little bit more complicated than that, really, Harry,'' she shook her head and went to go to her bathroom but I grabbed her wrist to stop her.

''Just tell me,'' I persisted, ''if you're afraid that I'm going to judge you or something; I wont.''

''It's not that,'' she replied.

''Then what is it?''

''I'm going to a funeral, Harry,'' she caved, flopping onto the bed and putting her head in her hands as if it was the worst thing in the world. Well, I guess in a way it was, but it wasn't as if it was that big. After all, people die all the time.

''Who's is it?'' I hesitantly asked.

''My sister's,'' she relinquished the information with a heavy sigh and then shook her head at her own words.

''I'm sor-,'' she stopped me before I could continue.

''Don't say it, I am sick and tired of hearing those words,'' she told me. I sat beside her on the bed and she just slumped her shoulders glumly.

''What happened?'' I pried. I didn't want to push her too much but I was curious about it.

''She had cancer, stage four Leukemia,'' she informed me sadly. She was starring at the wall as she spoke; almost looking as if she was in another world completely. Numbly ,it looked like, she pulled something from her pocket and showed it to me. It was a photo of a little girl with bright blue eyes and a bald head. I almost thought I was starring at a younger version of Elizabeth as I gazed down at the small child in the picture. A smile as bright as the sun rested on the girls small lips while she looked at the camera. She couldn't have been anymore than four years old in the picture.

''Oh God,'' I mumbled while looking down at the picture and realizing where this was ultimately going.

''She was almost five years old when she passed away, Little Liberty,'' she smiled as the nickname slipped from her tongue. A tear rolled down her cheek and landed on the small picture as I gave it back to her.

''No treatment?'' I wondered.

''It didn't work,'' she corrected, ''her body rejected it and she died soon after she was diagnosed. That was almost a year ago.''

''Why have a funeral a year after?'' I questioned.

''My parents didn't want Carson's family to pay for the funeral because it wasn't their daughter. We couldn't afford it until now, so I'm going back for the funeral,'' she explained with a shrug. "Her body was buried after she died, but this is just a bit... Symbolic, you know? Because we never got to do anything really big?" She sighed after those added words, slumping her shoulder noticeably.

I didn't need her to tell me that she needed it, or even deny that she did, I pulled her into a hug that was tight enough to make anyone forget their troubles and be worried about breathing instead. For the first time since she had come back, she hugged me back. ''Do you want someone to come with you? I could go explain to management what's going on, I'm sure they'll be lenient enough,'' I proposed.

She looked as if she was going to reject the offer, and then she paused before answering, ''actually, I could go for a friendly face besides my parents...''

''Then I'll go,'' I smiled into the hug, not wanting this moment to end bcause somehow, some way, I had done something right and she was finally letting me back in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hey, so that is what they have been hiding! I knew this way before, but what do you guys think about it? I hope I did well, I wanted to get this out there by tonight but now I have to go to bed. Goodnight.

-cow_queen