United We Live

One

Thump.

Thump. Thump.

Thud.

BANG.

Harry grumbled in his sleep, turning over as the noises suddenly ceased to exist just as he went to address them. Slowly, the tour bus had become unnaturally silent. He waited for the odd dreaded feeling in his mind to go away as sleep tempted him once more.

He couldn't fight the curiosity of what all the ruckus had been.

Pulling the curtain to his bunk back a tad, he glanced around in the dark to see if anything out of the ordinary stood out to him. The moonlight cascaded over the aisle, casting long shadows over the rest of the boy's designated sleeping areas. Yet nothing stirred, and that left Harry somewhat confused as to what all the banging had been.

He reached out and tugged the curtain back more, noticing that no one else seemed interested or awake to investigate with him.

Sliding out, his feet came into contact with the cold bus flooring. Glancing about, he still couldn't make out anything. Could it be possible he had been dreaming it all? Was it one of the boys tossing in their sleep?

That's when he heard a low rumble of thunder far off in the distance and the light pattering of rain. His sleep state must have been so accustomed he hadn't realized that it was raining, much less storming.

The lights of a passing car illuminated the bus for a moment before darkness crept back in, and that's when the singer finally noticed it.

Niall's bunk was open.

And empty.

"Niall?" Harry whispered into the dark, still hovering over by his own bunk. He hadn't started to worry quite yet, assuming the young Irish blonde could be somewhere close by like the bathroom.

Sliding is hand along the wall; he went to check to see if the light was shining under the door.

It wasn't.

BANG!

Harry jumped, turning to see what caused the same noise he had heard before. Once more, everything was still and no one was moving about.

Wind whistled, crying into the night as the storm continued to brew outside. There was no lightning yet, but the distant rumbling of thunder continued. He wondered if there was a possibility Niall just couldn't sleep with the noise of the storm outside.

The singer frowned, heading into the next room where there was a television. There was still no Niall in sight. Turning on the screen, the international star dropped the volume and switched to the local weather channel. The radar was currently playing; showing a large yellow and red storm heading in their direction.

That's when the broadcast stopped entirely, a multicolored banner crossed the screen and an eerie screech began to sound from the television.

"This is not a drill. An emergency broadcast has been called for the following areas-"

Harry listened intently, only to feel his stomach clench when the very area they were in was mentioned amongst all the surrounding locations.

"-severe thunderstorm warning has been declared. Locals are advised to stay indoors."

Turning off the television so he didn't disturb the other's still sleeping, the curly haired teen continued to search the bus for the missing blonde. When he finally got to the very front of the bus, Harry felt his blood run cold.