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Do The Stars Shine Out For You?

Chapter Twelve

When my senses came back to me, I immediately knew I was in a hospital. The distinct stench of disinfectant made a home in my nose. I hadn’t opened my eyes yet, but I could already tell it was bright. The lights shone through my eyelids, turning them an orange-ish red color. I could hear voices, murmurs back and forth that sounded tired.

I shifted around a little bit, and there was silence. I missed the comforting weight of my ear buds.

“Carly? Are you awake?” There was a slight pressure on my left hand, and I squeezed back. My right wrist was burning a little; I could feel a tiny insertion needle taped to it. Why was I in the hospital again?

My eyes fluttered open, and I kept them open instead of blinking away the bright light. The room was stereotypical hospital. White walls and white tiled floors, thrown off by a beige couch with stuffing sticking out of the fake leather seams. Corner tables and random coffee tables were everywhere, and white plastic chairs that seemed to sag with sadness themselves were pulled up beside my bed. Intricate plastic vases filled with fake perfumed flowers sat idly, amid the steady, gentle beeping of my heart monitor.

I focused on the faces of the people in the chairs next. Harry was sitting beside me looking haggard, his emerald eyes dulled. Carah was passed out on the couch, Niall sitting beside her with his own eyes drooping, an arm thrown haphazardly around her waist. I made a mental note to ask about that later.

Zayn was watching me intently, sitting in a chair at the foot of my bed. Louis and Liam were next to him, each respectively holding their equally worried girlfriends. I was shocked for a moment, Danielle and Eleanor were as just, if not more, busy as the boys, and I’d been certain they weren’t even in the country. Why were they here?

“Carly?” Harry urged again, squeezing my hand and pulling my attention back to him.

Then I remembered why I was here. The picture, the dripping red ink, the O just beneath it.

My eyes began to fill with tears, brimming with the salty liquid. “He found me, Harry,” I squeaked out, the words grating against my throat. It was sore, and I wonder exactly how much I screamed. “He found me, he’s here. He’s not supposed to be here.” My throat felt tight, thick with tears. I felt a few roll down my cheeks. “He’s going to kill me.”

Immediately Harry pushed his chair back into the wall, causing a large crashing noise that stirred Carah and Niall awake with a jump. He cupped my face in his hands, his voice rough with emotion before he spoke. “He is not going to kill you. I won’t let him. I won’t. I’ll keep you safe, Carly.” Harry kissed me softly, and the heart monitor’s beeping sped up.

Louis chuckled. “A bit early to start making her heart race, yeah mate?” Harry pulled away and my face turned red.

“Oh Linnie thank God you’re alright,” Carah breathed, launching herself off the couch and out of Niall’s grip onto me.

“What happened?” I asked quietly, very aware of Harry’s eyes on me

“You passed out. You saw the note and started screaming, and then you couldn’t breathe and you fell and hit your head on the ground.” I lifted my hand up to touch a tender spot on my skull and winced. “You stopped breathing for two minutes, Lin. Another minute and you would have died. You were turning blue.” Carah’s voice stopped suddenly, catching on air. She quickly got up and turned to bury her face into Niall’s chest. He was soothingly rubbing a hand up and down her back.

“Why am I attached to an IV?”

Danielle answered this question. “You woke up three times before this, mad with panic. It’s medication to keep you calm.”

My mouth twisted downward, into a grimace. I didn’t want to be put on medication, I didn’t want to have to rely on something artificial to make me feel normal. “When can I leave?”

“Not sure,” she replied. “Harry sort of… made a scene downstairs. I wouldn’t be surprised if all of London knows that we’re here for you. There are hoards of fans and paparazzi outside.”

“Here for me?” I echoed, confused. My gaze drifted over to Harry.

“He went off the handle,” Zayn said quietly. “Screamed at the nurse to let us in to see you.” Despite himself, he chuckled a little bit. My eyes widened slightly.

“I was out of my mind,” Harry mumbled. “Doctor said you were dying.” His breathing went a little unsteady for a moment, but he regained control. “I can’t lose you.”

My eyes filled with tears again at that, and I pulled him close to me. We didn’t kiss, we just held each other, because that’s what he needed. He needed to be able to feel that I was alive.

--

A day later, I was released. The doctor wanted to place me in a mental ward and keep me on medication for bit, for observation or something, but I fought him so hard on that that there was no choice but to let me go.

I walked out the back entrance of the hospital, Harry close beside me with a protective arm wrapped around my waist. The sun felt warm against my numb skin, and the air smelled fresh. Natural. Anything was better than the combination of perfumed flowers and disinfectant the hospital strangled you with.

The sun hung in the middle of a perfectly blue sky, every once in a while a flock of birds would fly across, black smudges against the yellow sun. The whole atmosphere reminded me of something out of book. Briefly, I thought of story to go along with it. Would it be a sad or happy story? How many happy things could you attach to a hospital?

“Carly, come on.” Harry snapped me out of my day dream, holding open the passenger door of his car. I climbed in, pulling the seatbelt over my body and pushing it into the clip.

Carah was at the flat with Niall, gathering some of my things into a suitcase. I wasn’t ready to go back into the flat. The police had said there was no evidence of break-in, but the fact that Owen had even gotten that close made me feel violated. Everything I thought I left behind was following me across an ocean.

This wasn’t even the worst of it.

“You alright?” Harry asked quietly, glancing over at me before focusing back on the road.

“I will be.” I leaned my head against the window, the glass cold despite the temperature outside. I watched the dashes on the pavement run by as he drove.

“Do you want to talk about it?” He was concerned, and I knew it, but I wasn't ready to talk about this yet. I needed time.

“Not right now.” He opened his mouth to say something, but I cut him off. “I’m not trying to hide anything from you, Harry,” I snapped. “I just need some time to think before I talk about this, alright? I’m not planning to jump off a bridge any time soon, so don’t fucking worry about it.” We were both surprised at the anger in my voice. Harry and I never argued, not seriously. Never anything that a kiss couldn’t fix.

His hands tightened on the steering wheel, knuckles turning white, but he said nothing. Neither did I. We let the tense silence hang in the air between us, creating a fissure that would eventually widen into a chasm. Miles and miles of empty space.

I knew it, then. Things were only just getting started.

Notes

ooooooh, hi guys! I've started laying the groundwork for what's to come. The plot should start hurrying up a bit. Any guesses? :)

Comments

Please update! This is a story that is literally killing me!
Okay this is another one of my favorite stories! Please update!
I'm so sad, i'm just now knowing you've updated, ahhh, seriously, my favourite story on here... your other story is really good too!!!!
HOLY SHOT YOU UPDATED! YEAHH!
PLEASE Updat!!!!!!!!!!