Louis' POV-
I was sitting on the table in the recording studio, going over the final versions of Midnight Memories for the tour. I was so excited about the songs, they really did showcase a new side of us. Between rock, grunge, indie, and pop, we had an entirely new sound. It was amazing. I looked over at Liam and grinned.

"This is amazing man! I can't wait for the tour! Strong sounds great mate!" He beamed.

It was really nice that I had the opportunity to write my own songs. Strong was definitely my favorite. I wrote it right after Perrie passed away. Sophia was my inspiration. How strong she's been through all of this, it's unbelievable. I couldn't imagine being happy all the time after everything she's been through.

"Thanks mate! I can't wait to start the tour already." I said, shaking my head.

My phone buzzed and I looked at the caller ID, Brielle. That's odd.

"Hey Bri! How's Haz treating ya?" I said, sarcastically.

"Louis Sophia's on her way to the hospital." She said, frantically.

My heart stopped, "What happened?"

I grabbed all of my stuff as Liam gave me a worried look.

"She's fine. It's not her. It's her brother and Nathan. They were in a car accident."

"Jesus... Are they alright?" I asked.

"I'm not sure. Sophia just told me to call you. She's on her way now but she's freaking out. I think you should meet her there."

"I'm on my way now."

I ended the call and looked at Liam and our recording team, "I'm sorry guys but I have to run."

"Everything alright?" Liam asked.

"Max and Nathan were in a car accident. I need to go to the hospital and meet Soph."

He nodded, "Hope everything's alright. Send her my love!"

---

I got up the elevator to the floor Max and Nathan were on and turned the corner to see Jay, Siva, and Tom standing there pacing. It was crazy to think that a few weeks prior, this was us with Zayn. I didn't see Sophia so I walked up to Tom.

"Hey mate, how're they doing?" I asked with concern.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He shot back.

I was completely taken aback, "Sophia asked me to meet her here.."

"This is for family only and until you two are family, you should leave!"

I saw Ms. George and she walked over to the argument, putting her arm around Tom maternally, "Sweetheart, Louis is going to be family very soon. They're engaged. And you'll be happy to know that Max gave Louis his blessing."

Tom's eyes softened and I could see the pain he was in, "Sorry mate.."

I smiled and patted his shoulder, "It's alright. This is a crazy day I imagine. Where's my girl?"

He pointed over to the nurses station where Sophia was curled up in a chair with her face in her hands. She was bawling. I walked over and put my arm around her, pulling her into my chest. She must have known somehow that it was me because she clutched onto me for dear life. I noticed the ring on her finger and smiled. She was going to be my wife. That's insane.

"Babe everything's going to be alright. I'm sorry I couldn't be here sooner." I whispered.

She just nuzzled further into my chest and whimpered. This was killing her. All of this. All of the death, sickness, accidents. Four of the people she's closest to have either been hospitalized or died in the last year. Her bestfriend passed away. Her bestfriends fiancé was hospitalized and she blamed herself. Now her brother and first love have been in an accident. It was a mess.

Ms. George walked over to us and smiled sympathetically. She'd been crying. Sophia told me she had never seen her mother cry before. It wasn't something she did. She was a 'woman of high society', much like my mum. They don't cry. They take something to numb the pain and go shopping.

"How are you darling?" She asked, kissing both of my cheeks.

"I'm alright Ms. George, how are they?" I asked.

"They're going to be okay. The amount of damage done to Nathan's neck was significant, so they're going to have to postpone their tour. His vocal cords could be completely shot. They aren't sure if he'll ever be able to talk, let alone sing, again."

At that moment, I felt a shiver go through my entire body. As an artist, your voice is your lively hood. Not being able to sing was the nail in your coffin for your career. I couldn't imagine.

Sophia looked up and her eyes were filled with rage, "What did the tox screen say."

Her mother sighed, "He had been drinking."

Sophie stood up and punched the brick wall. She was absolutely furious.

"Babe, calm down." I said, trying to reason with her.

"WHAT AN ASSHOLE! HE COULD HAVE KILLED THEM BOTH!" She screamed.

I had no idea what was going on. I walked over to Jay and shook my head.

"What happened! I'm so confused.."

He sighed and pushed his fingers through his hair, "Apparently Nathan and Max were out together and Max told him about the engagement. Nathan flipped out when he heard that Max gave you his blessing. He wanted to go home but Max didn't want him to drive. He wouldn't listen..." He whispered.

I groaned, "Max was in the car?! Why?!"

"If Niall got wasted and told you he was going with or without you, what would you have done?"

He was right. Nathan is Max's brother. I wouldn't have let him leave alone either. Even if all I could do was watch the road and say a prayer, I couldn't live with myself if something happened and he was alone.

The doctor walked over to us and smiled, "Max is awake if you'd like to see him."

Jay patted my shoulder and walked away towards the hospital room, with Sophia right behind him. All I could think about was how Nathan must be feeling. As crazy as that sounds. He was hurt and fucked up. His mistake could have cost him not only his own life, but the life of his best friend as well. Taking Max away from Sophia? It would kill her. But Nathan acted out of passion. He couldn't have known if he was that drunk. All I knew was that Sophia wanted Nathan dead right now and that is the last thing anyone needed.

Notes