I parked my car in the ER parking. After being stuck in traffic and my silent cursing, Liam and I slid out of the car, me pressing the button on my keys to lock the doors. Liam waited for me at the front of the car so we could walk side-by-side. Our paces were quick so I could make it in to see Ella. “Do you think they already took her back?”

Liam asked beside me as we approached the sliding doors. My pace quickened slightly, “I really hope not… She’s not good with needles.”

We entered the ER and saw Zayn and Paul, but Niall and Ella were nowhere in sight. We walked over to Zayn and Paul quickly after spotting them. “Did they already take her back,” Liam asked the two of them as soon as they were in ear distance.

Paul nodded and Zayn spoke, “Yeah, about ten minutes ago. Niall went in with her.”

“Damn it,” I mumbled in frustration.

I walked over to the woman behind the desk who looked less than enthused to see me, “Can I help you?”

“Yes, I was wondering if I could go back to be with my sister? She was taken back a few minutes ago for stitches.” The woman flipped through the sign in sheet, “Was it Ella Thatcher?”

“Yes,” I nodded at the same time.

“She was accompanied by your brother, Niall.”

My eyes bugged out a little but I quickly composed myself, “Yes, but I need to see her.”

When the woman spoke, she sounded irritated, “I’m sorry miss, but our policy only allows one family member or guardian in the room.”

My temper flared a little and my tone sounded snippy, “Are you serious? It’s just stitches. It won’t hurt having two other people in the room.”

Apparently my bitchy tone didn’t help my cause because the next time the woman spoke, she was everything but nice, “There is nothing I can do about it. I’m going to have to ask you to sit down or leave.”

I bit down hard on my tongue to prevent myself from saying anything else that would cause me trouble. I turned on my heels, stalking over to where Zayn, Paul, and now Liam sat. It was apparently obvious I was pissed because even before I could sit down, Liam asked me if I was okay. I plopped down in the seat beside him, huffing out loudly, “No. That woman over there won’t let me back to see her.”

Zayn made a face, implying he felt the same way about the situation, “Why?”

I laid my head against the back of the chair, looking up at the white ceiling. I raised both of my hands making the air quotes, “It’s policy,” I mimicked her tone and rolled my eyes in aggravation.

Liam stood up from his seat beside me. Before anyone could ask where he was going, he was half way to the nurse’s desk. The woman glared up at him as he began to speak. We all watched as Liam tried to work his sweet magic. My mouth fell open when the woman smiled a little. Holy hell, it is capable of smiling. A few minutes later, the woman nodded and smiled then stood, going out the door behind her. Liam turned to us with a huge smile on his face. He looked at me and waved me over. I quickly stood up out of my chair and went to stand beside Liam. Before I could say anything, the woman who had been behind the desk had opened the door leading into the ER rooms. I shot Liam a surprised look and he just smiled before walking back to sit with the others. I turned back to the woman, “You may see her.”

The woman’s tone was a little friendlier then before. I didn’t say anything as I walked through the door, following the woman to Ella’s room. She stopped at ER room 3 and opened the door, letting me walk in. I muttered thanks as I passed her. Ella was sitting on the paper covered table with Niall beside her, holding her hand. She winced a little when she looked down at her wound. She had dried tear streaks staining her cheeks.

A doctor was seated in front of her, working away. I walked over to her, grabbing her other hand. Her closed eyes opened in surprise and she smiled a little. I looked over at Niall who was smiling at me, “Hey bro,” I said with humor lacing my voice.

He let out a laugh, which Ella calls a ‘Nialler laugh’. She would always go on about how special his laugh is. It really is something special. His laugh is contagious. “Hey sis,” he replied in an American accent.

I gave him a weird look, not expecting an American accent to come out of a proud Irishman’s mouth. The doctor stood from his chair after finishing bandaging, “All done,” his deep voice rung out.

The doctor looked at the three of us in a scrutinizing way, “Your looks nothing like the two of you.”

Niall got a panicked look on his face and I quickly said the first thing that came to my mind, “He’s adopted.”

Niall nodded in agreement. The doctor’s eyebrows scrunched together, “I see. Well, she needs her bandage changed every day. No submerging it under water, so no swimming or baths, only showers. She will need to come back in a week’s time to get the stitches out, or just make an appointment at a clinic, which would be cheaper. Pain shouldn’t be a problem but if it does, just give her a couple Tylenol, other than that, she’s fine. The nurse will be in here in a just a moment to give Ella a tetanus shot.”

Ella groaned, “Please no more needles.”

I saw Niall squeeze her hand from the corner of my eye. Ella’s cheeks turned a little red, but relaxed. I thanked the doctor before he left, leaving Ella, Niall and I to wait. Niall had let go of Ella’s hand but I still held on, “El, I am soooo sorry I didn’t get here soon enough. There was traffic and we took too lo-.”

Ella interrupted me, “V, it’s okay,” she looked at Niall and then back at me, “Niall helped me.”

I smiled at Niall who grinned back, showing his white braces, “It wasn’t a problem,” his Irish accent returning.

All our heads turned to the door that cracked open. An older nurse came in with a tray. Ella became nervous again and Niall’s hand took hers again. Ella was limping as all three of us made it back to the ER waiting room. We emerged into the waiting room to see Zayn curled up in a chair asleep and Liam and Paul quietly chatting to each other. Liam glanced over at us and began to stand. Paul nudged Zayn to wake up. Niall and I helped Ella over to the others. Zayn had risen to a sitting position beside Paul, and Liam stood with a hand in his pocket, “You okay babe?”

Ella smiled a little but she was clearly exhausted. Hell, after the crazy day she had and how late it was, I don’t blame her. “She’ll be just fine, thanks to our brother,” I grinned over at Niall.

Niall became a little red in the face but shrugged his shoulders, “A mans gotta do what a mans gotta do.”

Ella began to laugh and Paul stood and smiled at Ella, “I’m glad you’re okay,” he turned to the boys, “boys, I think it’s best we get you back to the hotel, got a long day tomorrow.”

They all three nodded and Zayn rose to his feet. He took Ella in his arms in a quick hug. Ella was frozen at first but soon melted at his touch. I laughed to myself, wondering if she was ever going to get used it. “Glad you’re okay, sweet cheeks. We’ll be seeing you tomorrow, yeah?”

Ella shyly nodded as he pulled away. Niall was the next to give her a hug as Zayn gave me a quick half hug. Liam took her in his arms last, a little more careful than the others. Niall gave me the same hug he gave Ella, two arms wrapped around me and squeezed tightly to his chest. That’s just a Horan hug for you. He pulled away, grinning, “See ya later, sis.”

I grinned and rolled my eyes. Liam took me in his arms next, gently wrapping his arms around me. His face rested in the crook of my neck, his hot breath making goose bumps appear all over my skin. The hug felt a little more intimate than the other two had but I pushed the thought away, blaming it on my tendency to look into things too much. He pulled away, one of his hands resting in my arms. He leaned in and shyly kissed me on the cheek. When I spoke, it was only loud enough for the two of us to hear, “Thank you again, Liam. For everything.”

He smiled at me slightly, “Anytime, babe. See you tomorrow.”

Nobody really seemed to notice mine and Liam’s little encounter. We all walked out of the ER doors together and flashes invaded our view. Paparazzi had gathered outside the doors, waiting to get a glimpse of 3/5 of One Direction. My car was a few spaces down from the boys’ van, so Niall helped me get Ella safely to the car. He shut the door when Ella was all the way in after telling her goodbye again. He turned to me as a few paps lingered nearby, “We’ll be seeing you both tomorrow night, right?”

I nodded, “Yeah, sure. How do we get in?”

“We’ll have a car to pick you two up about 5:30. Write down your address and I’ll give it to Paul.” I

reached in my car, finding a napkin and a pen. I scribbled down my address and handed it to him. A few more flashes erupted. “You know, they’re probably going to say I gave you my number, or something,” I snickered.

He laughed, “That’s my life. Things are always made into something bigger. I’ll see ya tomorrow.”

“See ya,” I said before slipping into my car and slamming the door.

I turned to look at Ella who was wide eyed, “Did today really happen, V? Or am I going to wake up soon?”

I smiled a little, “Yeah, it really happened.”

We were quiet for a second before the biggest grin I had ever seen crossed her lips, “This has been the greatest day of my life. I don’t care if I got stitches, it was still amazing.”

Her eyes were watering with happy tears as she reached over the console and gave me a hug, “Thank you soooo much, Victoria. Thank you, thank you, thank you."

I laughed and left a light feathery kiss on her head. Who would have thought the night would have turned out like this? I had a feeling a higher power had intervened tonight, two higher powers actually. They were Ella and I’s guardian angels, and for the first time in over five months, I felt not only a little piece of me come back to life, but I felt truly happy and I no longer felt so alone. I didn’t know if it was the fact I had finally opened up a little about the accident or just the thought that my parents may actually be around. I just hoped it would last.