Climbing the Walls (a Niall Horan love story)

Chapter 26

Chapter 26






*Haley's P.O.V.*

I loved Louis. Even though he had told Niall I was scared and stubborn, I knew it was the truth. Besides, I needed Louis. He helped me get through it all, made everything so much easier for me.

He checked up on me hourly, like he promised, bringing me some sort of snack every other hour. He was exactly what I needed at the moment: a best friend. Yes, I had Dani, and she came with ice cream once, but I think she could sense I would only have a real conversation with Louis. He was the only one who was welcome. I mean I loved everyone else around me, but I felt absolutely horrible and I wanted to be alone. Louis' just special.

At the moment, he was lying next to me under the blankets. He was holding me like a big brother would hold his little sister. That's pretty much what we were to each other.

"Can you tell me a story please?" I requested, needing to get my mind off of Niall. I was sure Louis would come up with a pretty entertaining tale.

"Of course," he smiled. I smiled back, getting into a Story Time position and looking at him expectantly.

"Once upon a time, there was a pigeon named Kevin. He was a very lonely pigeon, and he lived alone on the streets of London. One day, well Kevin was scaring away poor, innocent children for fun, a damn sexy boy in stripes and suspenders came along. Kevin stopped, plotting how to scare away the visitor. But the sexy beast was out of his mind. So he took Kevin as a pet and gave him something Kevin had never had before: love. Suspenders took Kevin to meet his friends, as he was late to film a video diary. They ran, making it just in time. Suspenders introduced Kevin to Curly, Daddy, Mirror, and Cookie Monster. They all got along so well and all, but Kevin had his boundaries. So he stayed on Suspenders' shoulder the entire time. He was a bit scared with Cookie Monster sitting next to him, fearing he would be eaten, but Cookie Monster behaved. Kevin whispered in Suspenders' ear, 'Mirror is a pretty lovely guy.' Suspenders smiled and agreed, 'That's right Kevin, Mirror is a lovely guy.' The diary went swell, up until the very end when Kevin died of shock at Suspenders' sexiness. The end."

He finished with a proud smile, and by then I was actually laughing. Laughing. Who knew I could do that?

"I like that story," I commented. He smiled and I hugged him, squeezing the air out of his lungs as I constricted his torso like a boa constrictor.

"Thanks love, but I can't breathe," he gasped. I giggled and apologized as I let go of him. He wrapped his arms around me and I leaned my head on his chest.

"Thank you," I said after a few moments of peaceful silence. "For putting up with me, and being here for me, and feeding me, and listening to me rant, and making me laugh when I think all I can do is cry. You're the only one who can do that, ya know." I smiled up at me, and he was already staring down at me, smiling sadly.

"Thank you for letting me. You know everyone misses you terribly. They're all very jealous that I get to see you all the time," he informed me. I smiled, but there was a pain in my chest. I missed all of them, too. Were they really jealous of him? I wondered.

"Well, maybe I'll go downstairs for a bit..." I said, still unsure. But when Louis flashed me a huge grin, I simply couldn't say no. He got up and helped me out of bed. I had been wearing Niall's sweatshirt again, but I took it off before heading down to see everyone. Louis was the only one I would let know I had been wearing Niall's sweatshirt. I mean Niall knew I had it, but he didn't have to know that I was wearing it.

It comforted me, kept me sane while Louis wasn't there. But I was being brave now, facing everybody. I saw that it was already around eight when I checked the clock. We descended the staircase, my legs still a bit wobbly from only standing up once that day.

I was in Harry's arms before I even reached the bottom step. How long had he been watching the stairs for? I smiled into the embrace, feeling guilty that I hadn't talked to my own cousin, the boy who was giving me shelter.

"Nice to see you, too," I giggled. He backed his face up and flashed me his winning smile, his green eyes full of joy.

"So you're going to talk to me now?" He teased, keeping a grip on my shoulders.

"If you want me to," I replied with a smile. As he was about to reply, I was ripped away from his grasp.
"She's alive!" Derek cried, pulling me into a big bear hug. Zayn added himself, and I gave the Bradford Bad Boi his own hug one Derek let go of the embrace.

I hugged Sydney next, then even Michelle. Dani attacked me last, both of us landing on the floor and laughing like crazy.

"Hey, where're Liam and Niall?" I asked, noticing their absence. I tried to ignore the fact that my heart ached at merely saying his name.

"They're up in Liam's room," Zayn answered, sounding a bit sad.
"Oh," I replied. I thought it was best not to bother them, so I just sat down on the loveseat. It was a bit haunting, the lack of Niall next to me, like there was a missing puzzle piece. Louis came and sat next to me, which made it better, but it wasn't nearly the same.


*Niall's P.O.V.*

I sobbed into Liam's strong shoulder. He kept a firm, comforting grip on me and soothed me in a fatherly way. "Shh," he cooed. I knew he hated seeing me cry, but I couldn't help it. I missed Haley more than I miss good food when I'm on airplanes. (Which is saying something.)

I loved how Liam was always there for me. He could be downstairs, laughing with everybody else, but he was sacrificing his time to try to make me feel better. And just knowing that made me the slightest bit happier.

"What am I supposed to do?" I wailed, trying to be strong. I didn't want to cause him pain by making him watch me cry my heart out. He was always so wonderful to me, treating me like I was royalty or something. The least I could do was make his job easier. His brown eyes stared into mine as I awaited an answer.

"Well, if you love someone, leave. If they follow you, then they're yours. If they don't, then they never were," he advised. He always knew what to say, even if sometimes it was in riddles. I looked at him doubtfully.

"But I'm scared..." I admitted as he rubbed circles on the back of my hand with his thumb. It calmed me a bit and quelled my sobs a bit. "W-what if she doesn't come back?" I could barely speak, and my lip was trembling like it was having a seizure or something. I couldn't stand the thought of never holding Haley again, never kissing her sweet lips, hearing the most beautiful voice in the world say, "I love you." I don't know what I would do without her...

Suddenly, everything came together. I barely heard Liam's reassuring words as my mind raced, planning everything. I added Liam's advice to my worrisome thoughts and suddenly it all became clear. "I've got it!" I exclaimed. Liam looked at me like I was crazy. I just smiled back.
"Got what?" he asked curiously.
"A plan." It was a bit farfetched, but it was worth a shot. "Thanks for everything, you're the best friend a lad could have," I said, squishing Liam's face between my hands and smacking my lips against his forehead. He sat there, smiling in a daze as I bolted out of his room and one door down to mine. I shut the door and fetched my notebook, scribbling down Plan C. I had recorded Plans A and B, not wanting a repeat. I needed to keep record in case, God forbid, a Plan Z or further was needed. Then I got my laptop and researched the music I needed.


*Haley's P.O.V.*

"I think I'm going to go head upstairs," I mumbled, trying to sneak away as inconspicuously as possible. But, of course, everyone's eyes had been flickering to me the entire time. What was I, a little kid who needed supervision? I mentally sighed, knowing that they were just looking out for me. I appreciated their concern, but they didn't need to be worried just because I was going upstairs to my room. I mean it wasn't like I was bulimic again...

But only Louis and Niall knew about that anyway, so no one else would be likely to assume that. Not even Dani. I mean I was heartbroken and all, but that wasn't something to be so cautious about, I mean really.

I sat back down on my bed, slipping on Niall's purple sweatshirt, smiling sadly as I was engulfed by what had become my favorite scent. I sat on top of the sheets and plugged my IPod into the IHome, smirking as Should've Said No by Taylor Swift came on. But soon there were tears brimming once again as the words dawned on me and cut into my heart harshly.

"Strange to think the songs we used to sing, the smiles, the flowers, everything is gone. Yesterday I found out about you. Even now just looking at you feels wrong."

I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath to calm myself. People who aren't members of The Taylor Nation have no idea how much her words mean to us, how we relate, and how we go to her music as a sort of shoulder to cry on. No one who wasn't a fan would ever understand the connection Taylor and her fans have.

"You say that you'd take it all back, given one chance. It was a moment of weakness and you said yes. But you should've said no. You should've gone home. Should've thought twice before you let it all go. You should've known the word. But what you did with her? Get back to me, get back to me. And I should've been there in the back of your mind. I shouldn't be asking myself, 'why?' You shouldn't be begging for forgiveness at my feet. You should've said no, baby and you might still have me."

I let a few tears slide, knowing he'd always have me.






A/N***

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