Oscillation | [H.S]

Chapter 14

"How are you feeling?" Willow asked me after a while. She was seated on the closed lid of the toilet and had left me alone for about half an hour. The bubbles on the surface of the tub had disappeared during that time. 

"Better." I sighed, opening my eyes. Now that I was laying in the bath I could see my exposed and bruised body. There wasn't much of my own skin left. I felt like a discoloured rainbow with only hints of black, blue, purple and green. There were also some small scrapes and cuts all over my body. I hadn't looked in the mirror on purpose when undressing. I knew I looked terrible. My body looked very thin too with almost all of my chubbiness gone. I had an almost flat stomach now and my legs had never been this thin. 

"May I ask you what part of England you're from? You have a bit of an accent." I still wasn't totally in the mood for a conversation with her but it was the least I could do for her being so helpful. At least she convinced Niall to give me morphine which was doing a lot for me. 

"I'm from France, originally." I spoke, making her eyes go wide. A small silence hung in the air and I knew she wanted me to continue. A soft sigh left my mouth. 

"We..." A sting went through my body at the thought of my parents. "We moved to London when I was 5. I don't remember much from the French language." Willow nodded.

"How old are you now?" She continued firing questions at me. 

"I'm nineteen." I spoke, making her mouth open and close. Her eyes looked thoughtful and clouded a bit. "What about you?" I might as well get to know something about her too. Maybe she'd even spill some stuff about Harry or the others. Who they were and how she ended up being with them. It could all lead to an escape. 

"I'm twenty-four." She smiled shyly at me. I would have guessed her younger. Her face didn't seem fully developed yet, some chubbiness sitting on her cheeks even though her body was thin.

Another silence hung in the air. The water in the bath started to become lukewarm and I knew I would have to ask Willow to help me wash my hair soon as I couldn't lift my arm past my shoulder yet.

"Are you together with Louis?" I prompted. The picture of her leaning towards him and listening intently to him in the dining room hadn't left my head. 

"Yes" She nodded, smiling a bit at the thought of him. I scowled at the thought. 

"Why?" It was hard to cover up my disgust. She seemed to notice, looking at my face and hesitating to answer. 

"It's complicated. I don't know how much I'm allowed.." She shook her head a bit to correct herself. "How much I can tell you. It's not all my story to tell." 

I ignored it, waiting for her to eventually start speaking about it anyway. She didn't. Instead, she helped me was my hair and dress me in a large T-shirt and some loose boxers before helping me in bed again. 

The sheets had been cleaned and a plate with a piece of buttered toast stood beside my bed. I ate it quickly, only noticing then how hungry I was. Willow said goodbye and pressed that she would come by again tomorrow. I fell asleep not long after finishing the toast. 

•  •  •

I woke up screaming. Only when I was sitting straight and I had opened my eyes to see I wasn't being killed over and over again, I could stop. My sore body was shaking violently and my lungs were gasping for air. The dream had felt so real. My heart was pounding against my sore ribs.

The door of the bedroom burst open, colliding against the wall behind it with so much force that the handle fell on the floor with a loud clanking sound. 

I was looking straight into the barrel of a gun. 

Harry was clothed in only a pair of black boxers, his long curls hanging wildly around his head and his eyes thick with sleep. The gun was clasped tight in his hands and he was scanning the room quickly. My breath had stopped in my throat. The only sound in the room was his heavy breathing. It took him about four seconds to lower his gun, his dark eyes now focussing on me.