Happily Ever After?? (Third in the Through The Dark And Free series)

Chapter 32

Jaime had just pulled into Harry and Julie's driveway when he heard his phone ring. He had stopped at the hospital and when Niall and Amanda arrived, he'd agreed to go back to the house and look for Harry. Apparently, Harry still hadn't found a way to charge his phone, and it was almost noon. He took Julie's key and the alarm code and left Niall, Amanda, and Marcus with Julie. They'd tried to get Marcus to go home and get some sleep, but he wouldn't leave, not with Harry still MIA and things still up in the air with Julie. Jaime answered Amanda's call and told her he'd just gotten to the house and as soon as he knew anything he would let her know. He hung up as he unlocked the door and went inside. It was weird going in there alone when it was so quiet. He turned the alarm off and walked into the hall and saw keys on the floor. He looked in a little further and saw a wallet and then a phone like little bread crumbs leading towards the couch.

Jaime sighed as he made his way further into the house. He recognized the signs all to well and knew he was going to find either a passed out Harry or a still inebriated one on the couch. Or possibly both. As much as he understood, he was also a bit perturbed at his friend. Harry's wife was probably much more scared than she was letting on, stuck in the hospital and not sure what was happening with the baby. When he made it to the couch, he saw Harry sprawled out with one leg on the floor, half sitting up, shirt fully unbuttoned and one boot still on while the other had somehow managed to end up upright on the coffee table. Oh, how he thought this would be a welcome sight on any other day, or in any other situation for that matter. He shook his head and contemplated a few different ways to wake Harry's drunk ass up.

He had many, many evil ways that he could do it, and Harry probably deserved every one in this moment, but he also needed to try and sober him up enough to go see Julie in the hospital, so before he could put any plan into action, he went and put on a pot of coffee. Strong coffee. He probably needed to get him in a cold shower too. Maybe it could be his excuse to finally get the answers to the burning questions he's had since he'd first learned his friend dated Harry Styles. If only Julie wasn't lying in a hospital bed trying not to give birth right this moment. Jaime wasn't exactly being quiet as he went about making the pot of coffee, but as he walked back into the living room, he found Harry hadn't moved. He picked up the keys and wallet, setting them on the table before picking up Harry's cell phone. As he did, he could feel the cracks in the screen before he even turned it over. The once smooth surface was shattered. He imagined even if the phone was charged, that there was no way it would work. For the hell of it, he tried the power button but nothing even flickered. He shook his head and sighed before tossing it onto the table next to Harry's keys and wallet.

Jaime stood over the couch peering down at an unmoving Harry Styles. He wanted to knock Harry's ass off the couch to wake him up, but he decided to check with Amanda first. Maybe he should let him sleep it off a little before taking him to Julie. He wasn't sure how much of a help Harry would be at the moment. The strong smell of alcohol was still radiating off of this man, and as much as he should be with his wife right now, Jaime wasn't quite sure if a husband in this state was better than no husband at all for Julie. Especially now that Amanda and Niall were there, too. He texted Amanda to call him when she could get away for a minute. Jaime didn't really want Julie hearing everything right away either. He could let Amanda determine how to break it to her. He turned his ringer up and sat on the chair nearest Harry's head while he waited for Amanda to call back. When she called about 10 minutes later, he even let his phone ring, loudly, near Harry to see if it would wake him, but Harry didn't even budge. "Hey, Amanda, thanks for calling me. He's at home. But, I'm not sure what I should do with him."

Amanda peeked back into the room at Marcus and Niall talking to Julie. "Um, I'm not sure how to take that, Jaime." She said as she turned and walked down the hallway to the waiting room.