Run From the Demons 2 (Sequel)

Chapter Forty Nine

“Mmph,” I hear someone groan.

My eyes drift downward to see Louis’ face scrunched up in pain. He moves around in the bed a little before he stops and places his hand on his abdomen again, letting out a wince. I delicately pull his hand away from his abdomen and hold it tightly in my own, giving it a squeeze. Louis lets out a whine and moves impossibly closer to me, laying his head on my chest.

“Hey Lou,” I say softly, pressing a kiss to the side of his temple. Louis cracks his eyes open and looks up at me with dull eyes. They’re red rimmed from all the crying he did earlier. He blinks a few times before burying his face into my chest, letting out a shaky breath.

“Hurts,” Louis mumbles for probably the fifth time tonight. I sigh and let my hand travel under his nightgown before slowly rubbing his stomach, making sure I don’t touch his bandages. Louis sucks in a breath before he relaxes into my touch. My arms tighten around him and I kiss the top of his head again. “Love you.”

“I love you too,” I mumble into his hair.

Louis sniffles and looks up at me with glassy eyes. “M’ sorry.”

“Louis,” I say, “stop. I know you are. It’s okay.”

“N-No it’s not,” Louis whimpers, sitting up slightly, but wincing at the sudden movement. His hand – which still had some dried blood on it – leaves mine and moves to his abdomen, clutching it carefully. After taking a few deep breaths, his hand returns to mine and I give his a squeeze. “I was being mean and-”

“Shh,” I say softly, cutting him off and rubbing his cheek with my thumb. His lower lip wobbles and more tears gather up in his eyes. God, he looks so broken.

“I-I killed that man,” Louis says suddenly, looking down at his hands and squeezing his eyes shut. “He’s dead because of me.” Tears continuously pour down his cheeks, turning them a light shade of pink. A sob racks his body and he collapses into me, curling into my side. I feel his other hand fisting the back of my shirt, tugging at the thin fabric and letting the cool air of the hospital hit the exposed skin of my neck. I shush him and start playing with his hair, hoping to calm him down a little.

“Louis,” Liam says from the other side of the bed, making my head snap up. I almost forgot that he was sitting there.

A moment later, Louis turns over and looks up at Liam, sniffling pathetically. “What?”

“It’s not your fault,” Liam says softly. Louis shakes his head, turning his back to Liam and burying himself into my side once again.

“You weren’t the one who actually killed someone, Liam. You don’t know how it feels,” Louis manages to say between the sobs. I feel his tears wetting my shirt again, and I start rubbing his back comfortingly. “I-I killed him…H-He’s dead now.”

“Shh,” I say softly, kissing the top of his head. While doing so I notice how greasy it is. Has he showered since I left?

“I-I didn’t mean to,” Louis says softly, his sobs dying down slightly. He lifts his head up and gazes at me. “I-I tried to stop him. I tried so hard; b-but he was too strong.” He sniffles and lays his head down on my chest again, closing his eyes. He takes deep breaths, probably trying to calm down.

“I know you didn’t mean to, Lou. And we know that you tried to fight,” I whisper, lifting his chin up with my index finger. Tears are rapidly falling from his dull eyes and spilling down his blotchy red cheeks. “You have to remember that it was the demon’s fault, not yours.”

Louis sniffles again and nods, looking down at my stomach. “Y-Yeah…I guess…B-But still-” I cut him off by shushing him.

“It wasn’t your fault, okay?” I repeat, cupping his face in my hands.