Where I Am Without You [L.S]

Chapter Twenty One

It's well into the early hours of the morning and Harry is drunk. Needs to be after the day he's had. Niall is jumping around beside him, glass raised in the air as he sloppily sings along to a song Harry feels he should know but doesn't Zayn and Gigi are sat in corner booth chatting with friends but from the content way Zayn is leaning into Gigi he's rather out of it too. Liam decided not to join them tonight, perhaps for the first time in a while but he'd said he had other things he needed to do. Harry figured he was sleeping. And Louis was nowhere to be found. After several shots he'd finally gone clumsily around the dimly lit night club in search of him, looking back now, slightly less plastered than he had been an hour ago he's very thankful he didn't find Louis. Instead he'd returned to the bar and asked for a bottle of water.

He's still not entirely thinking straight, his vision only a bit blurry now but he's slowly sobering up, the water helping keep the inevitable headache at bay. Niall is still clumsily wailing to whatever song is playing when Harry slips away from him towards the stairs of the club needing some fresh air. The roof top is far less crowded than the club downstairs. It's a sizeable space up here, decked out in high end outdoor seating areas and several fireplaces despite the much warmer night than London is at this time of the year. There's perhaps two dozen people up here, milling around and chatting whilst quiet music plays in the background.

"A little birdie told me that you were talking about me today." A familiar, American accent says from behind him and he turns to find Kendall coming to a stop beside him near the railing.

            "Who me? Sorry I think you must have the wrong guy."

"Very fun." She says playfully tapping his arm.

            "How are you?" He asks, having not seen her in a few months. They had never been particularly close but he definitely called her a friend, even if her different upbringing and sometimes obnoxious attitude got the better of her, she was still mostly alright.

"Not too bad, same old. Saw you're getting the band back together, I'll have to come to a show."

            "Think that was Niall's doing, I'm only along for the ride." He teases back and looks out over the lights of the city.

"Sure, whatever you say. Your album is fantastic by the way."

            "Thanks Kendall."

"How long are you in LA for?"

            "Only a week, then it's back to the UK and then onto the rest of Europe for the promotional side of it all, though I'm not sure why we're going considering the tour is already sold out."

"You know I..."

            "Harry!" He hears a voice call out from behind him, drawing the attention of a few of the people nearby. He turns to find Niall making his way towards them. "You might want to come with me."

He doesn't even question it, instead head straight for Niall, sending a parting wave to Kendall and hurriedly follows him back down the stairs into the club.

"Niall what's wrong?" He says noting that Zayn is no longer sat with Gigi in the corner booth.

            "Come on." Is the only thing Niall says and he follows him through a narrow corridor to a back room of the club near the bathrooms.

He sees Zayn leaning against a door, looking tired as his mouth moves whilst he speaks quietly enough for Harry not to hear over the music still loudly playing from the club behind them.

"He won't listen to me." Zayn says to them as he and Niall come to a stop before the door and Harry's heart drops when he realizes what's happening.

            "I'll get him home, you guys both go." Gesturing towards the door, his head seems to clear up immensely as he says so.