Let Me Love You : (Cheryl & Liam)

Chapter 3 - 2AM

QUICKLY JUST WANT TO SAY: I'm so sorry I've been MIA after I had just promised to update soon. You wouldn't believe the last month I had. I've been dealing with a lot of personal things. On top of working retail during the holiday. I'm still dealing with a lot but I want to push forward and continue to write. My goal is to update every Friday. I hope to reach that. - So without further ado.. here's chapter 3.

"Cheryl? Is everything alright?" Liam answers the phone, quite surprised to be honest. The last person he expected to be calling him at 2 in the morning was Cheryl. "Liam" she sniffles. "I need your help" she barely gets out before another sob breaks out. she's hyperventilating.  "okay love, what's going on? Is it your side? Are you in pain?" Liam frantically asked her whilst putting on some sweatpants and grabbing his car keys. "Yeah... I can't move." The sound of Cheryl sobbing suddenly made Liam very aware of just how much she was hurting as from the last 5 years of him knowing her, Liam was very aware of her ability to hide her pain extremely well, not wanting sympathy from anybody. "it hurts so bad" she sobbed into the phone. Helpless. Liam felt helpless. How much pain must she be in for her to openly cry out for help. Especially to Liam, someone she wasn't really close with, at all. "I'm on my way. Hang tight love. Breathe with me okay?"

Cheryl kept clutching her side in pain, she couldn't believe she called Liam asking him for help. They barely knew eachother. But at the same time she knew Liam was the only person that had any indication in the slightest about the pain she was feeling. Better him, a technical stranger know than somebody she was actually tight with. Right? Cheryl knew what was wrong. She knew exactly why she was in excruciating pain. She just couldn't have people knowing why. At least not people that were in her inner circle. She had too much pride.

Liam sped so fast to Cheryl's house, worried of course, but also confused. What was wrong with her? Why did she call him of all people? Pulling up to her gate he couldn't turn the car off fast enough as he ran inside looking for her. "Cheryl?!" "Chez babe where are you?!?" No Answer. Liam made his was upstairs searching for her bedroom. She had to be there. He opens her door to find her sobbing into her pillow, with a heating pad pressed directly to her side. Liam swiftly made his way to her fragile body, sitting down of the edge of the bed and stoking her arm lightly; "hey love what's going on? Huh? Talk to me. I'm worried sick here." Cheryl looks up at Liam's puzzled face. "I can't move. It's too much. The pain is too much Liam help please" Her cries pinched at his heart. Cheryl had such a precious soul and she was one of those people that had THAT face, the face that made you smile when she was smiling, .. but when she was crying, it made you want to cry. Liam gently; almost barely grabs the end of Cheryl's loose v-neck shirt to pull it up to have a look, stopping in his tracks, he looks up to meet Cheryl's eyes to make sure she was okay with his movement. Her glossy eyes gave him reassurance as he resumed lifting it up. Liam was shocked at what he saw.

Massive purple and blue bruise was clear as day right there on Cheryl's side. His eyes widened. He was shocked. Completely and utterly shocked at what he saw. What does he say to her? What does he ask her? "Chez.." The atmosphere surrounding them noticeably changed. Cheryl avoiding eye contact at all times. "What happened?" he mumbles, fearing the answer. "I fell... in the shower. Remember? You were there. I just slipped and now I can't move." Liam slowly takes hold of Cheryl's hand, lacing his fingers with hers to get her to look at him. "Love, this isn't a bruise that one sustains from a slip in the shower." Cheryl pulls her hand away abruptly placing his back into her chest slightly offended at his statement but knowingly panicked at his words. " I just fell Liam. Please are you going to help me or not?" Cheryl didn't mean to sound so bitchy. Especially to Liam, after all he did answer her call in the middle of the night and did rush over there. But she can't help it. She's tired, she's in pain, and most of all, she's scared. "Of course love" Liam slowly pulls her shirt back down before picking her up bridal style and carries her downstairs to put her in the car to go to the hospital. Cheryl protested going and actually seeing someone but understood no other doctor would take a home visit as they're all probably sleeping in the comforts of their own homes right now. The drive was silent. The only sound was a soft whimper from Cheryl every once and a while grabbing at her side. Liam remembers that morning so well; the bang, the frantic refusal from Cheryl to let him in the bathroom that morning after he stayed over to make sure she was alright. Maybe she was telling the truth. Maybe this was a fall. But right now, that's what he had to believe because she obviously wasn't willing to talk about it and she needed him right now.

London Hospital in the middle of the night was bound to be a nightmare. Liam and Cheryl were taken into a small, private, waiting room as the nurses were very polite in understanding, as the pair were very public figures that didn't want to be stared at, or secretly photographed during a very vulnerable moment. - "How are you doing?" Liam whispers into Cheryl's hair as she drowsily leans her head unto his shoulder. Before Cheryl could answer, the doctor appears to take her back. "We're gonna take her back for X- Rays and a few scans. If you'll just wait right here Mr. Payne, I'll let you know how it goes." Liam hesitates to answer before locking eyes with Cheryl, receiving a simple nod from her tear stained face letting him know she'd be fine. He sits back down nodding to himself more than anybody to reassure himself that he was making a bigger deal out of this than it probably really was. Liam is a natural protector. He wants, no needs to be there for Cheryl. He needs to see for himself, every step. That's just in his nature.

5 am - Liam had been waiting for quite sometime. How long did a couple X- Rays take? He dozed off into a gentle sleep right there in the private waiting room with a full cup of black coffee in his hand that he originally grabbed to keep himself awake. Before the coffee could get into his system, he was out like a light. Fair enough as he didn't sleep. Spending the middle of the night in the ER mixed with the constant worry of Cheryl's state, it was safe to say Liam was exhausted.
The gentle shoving of the shoulder jolted Liam awake. "Sorry didn't mean to scare you" Cheryl's doctor expressed before stepping back allowing Liam space to adjust to his surroundings. It didn't take long for him to remember the events from just a small time ago, quickly standing to his feet, eager to finally be updated on the nations sweetheart. "How is she? Everything okay? How did it go?" Liam mumbled over his own words.

"You may want to sit back down Mr. Payne."