The Truth

twenty three

*Alexia*

"Alexia, please think about this," Charlie says as he follows me around the apartment. I ignore him and continue gathering my things and throwing them into boxes. "Ali, please just stop!" He grabs both my hands, making me drop what I was holding. "You can't just run off like this."

"I can, I am, and there is nothing you can do to stop me," I reply, jerking away from his grip. "Besides, you weren't exactly into the idea of me letting Niall meet Riley in the first place."

"Maybe I've changed my mind," he replies. "Riley is happy. He likes being around Niall and the others. You're going to take that away from him. It's one thing to never let him have that, but this is another thing entirely. You gave both of them false hope, and now you're taking it away. You think Niall won't fight you on this? Take you to court."

"Yeah? He's gonna have to track me down first. And in America, with unmarried parents, courts almost always find in favor of the mother," I reply. "Him not even being a citizen certainly helps."

"Riley was born here," Charlie says. "And he has way more money and lawyers than you. You said you wanted to keep Riley from the spotlight. A very public custody battle is not the way to do that."

"You don't know about the courts in America. I do. First, they have to prove paternity, investigate both parents' living and work situations. It'll be at least a year before we even start to come to a settlement. In the meantime, I'm not going to make it any easier," I say. "Are you going to help me or not?"

"I don't feel right about this," he says. "But I told you I'd help. I bought the tickets like you asked."

"I'll wire the money back to you as soon as I can," I reply. "Thank you, Charlie."

"Finish packing. The cab will be here in an hour," he says and leaves me alone. I only throw enough of my things to last a few weeks. I know Charlie will have the rest shipped to me when he can. With the last bit of time, I decide to do one last good deed. Maybe it will help me justify myself to Niall. So, I sit on my bed, and I type out a letter to Harry. And I tell him everything.

*Niall*

"It's been hours, Louis," I say quietly. "She wouldn't just leave him like this for this long. And now Liam is gone too."

"Has he asked about her?" he asks.

"It's all he's asked about since he woke up. Zayn and Greg are with him," I sigh. "Has Harry heard from her?"

"No," he sighs. "I sent him home. He's a wreck."

"Poor baby," I say, mocking pity.

"He loves her too, you know? Try to understand. He loved her back when Ali was pining after you, and you were too blind to notice," he says. "Don't let your anger tear us apart."

"Louis, the band is falling apart with or without my help," I reply. "The sooner we all accept that, the better."

"Lexia still gone?" Liam says walking over to the two of us.

"Where have you been?" Louis demands.

"I went looking for her. We argued, and she just took off," he replies.

"What the hell did you say?!" I demand loudly.

"Calm down," Louis says, pulling me back away from Liam.

"All I said was that she broke your heart, and she couldn't care less. And she was making the band fall apart," he says, holding up his hands in defense. "She got in a cab and left."