Harry's POV

"Harry, she's still going to be here when you get back."

"What if she starts talking or something? I have to be here. You guys go, you can do it without me," I insist. They all exchange a weird look. "What?"

"Harry, this is important," Louis urges.

"No, Adie getting better is important. She needs me here, I'm not going to a gig right now. I'm sorry, that just doesn't seem important right now."

"Alright we weren't going to tell you this, but I think it's necessary now," Liam says. Louis shakes his head but Liam continues anyway. "There's going to be important people at this gig Harry. This could be a real shot for us."

"A real shot? For what? We don't even have a bloody name, we're not about to be discovered," I spit, a little harsher than I intended. I would love to sing for a living, don't get me wrong, but I just don't think it's realistic for us at this point. Next big boy band? Yeah, I don't think so.

"It's a start," Zayn cuts in. "We all want to do this. But we're not doing it without you."

"But just so you know, we'll be angry forever if you don't come," Niall says. He seems like he's only half joking.

"Guys...I can't just leave her."

"Isn't your mum here?" Louis asks.

"Yeah but-"

"She's not going to hate you if you're not here 24/7," he continues. "You've been by her side this entire time. When she does get better she'll probably be upset that you didn't have your own fun. Don't argue with me, you know I'm right."

I sigh and run my hands through my hair. Another week has gone by and Adie is still just lying in her bed. My mum is starting to freak out. I was at that point a long time ago. She's talking a little bit more, but not much. She's eating one small meal per day, so there definitely is progress. But she's still not there. She's still haunted.

"You're going to go crazy staying here watching her," Liam says. "You've already gone a bit mad."

I laugh humourlessly and look at all of my friends. I know how badly they want to play tonight. Since Christmas we've been practicing a lot and we've had three other gigs. This one is pretty important, apparently. I guess it couldn't hurt...

"What time do we have to be there?" I ask reluctantly. They all smile and high-five each other. "And what songs are we singing?"

"We were thinking Up All Night, Save You Tonight and then one of the covers. Maybe Teenage Dirtbag or something."

"Okay. I just need to shower. Give me ten minutes."

I walk past them all and go straight to Adie's room. She's laying on her back staring up at the ceiling, not covered by the blankets anymore; she's only wearing her mother's sweater and panties. Talk about killing me. She's twisting her ring around on her finger absentmindedly, the only action she seems to be doing repeatedly.

"Hey," I greet quietly. She doesn't respond at all. I walk over and sit on the bed next to her. She flinches a little when my body falls onto the bed. Oops. "So, my mum is still here but I'm going to be gone for a little while. Is that okay?"

She slowly tilts her head towards me and looks at my chest, not at my face. I think I might actually break into little tiny pieces soon. I don't know what to do.

"It'll just be a few hours. Mum will sit with you, okay?" I wait for something, anything. After a few minutes she nods her head once, almost small enough that I wouldn't see it. But she barely moves, so it's the same as if she would have punched me in the face. Hard to miss.

"The boys are here. Do you want to see them?"

She shrugs and I take that as her not caring. After adjusting her blankets so she's covered up again, I walk back out to the boys and tell them to follow me. They've all seen her now; one at a time, though so I'm not really sure how this will go. They all seem hesitant but they come anyway. I walk in first and they follow slowly, each of them peering inside before stepping into the room.

Louis' POV

I step into the room first after Harry. I've probably seen her the most of anyone. It doesn't really freak me out, which is probably why. I just sit and talk endlessly. If the situation didn't suck so much I would love it.

"Hey Ads," Harry says gently. He sits beside her on the bed and she just stares at the ceiling. He looks at us with a sad smile and the rest of the boys file in. "The guys came to see you. I'll be back in a few minutes, okay?"

I watch carefully as she slowly turns her head towards Harry. He smiles gently at her and lightly brushes his thumb along her cheek. She doesn't look in his eyes, though. She's been talking a little more lately, but all of us being here would probably freak her out. She slowly looks in our direction, not raising her eyes high enough to be able to look at anyone's faces. He leans forward a bit; it looks like he was about to kiss her forehead, but he stops and sighs heavily to himself. He gets up and walks towards us and I pat his shoulder as he walks by. I don't understand how he's even functional.

I make the first move and go over to the bed, sitting on the end near her legs instead of in Harry's spot.

"Hey Adie," I chirp. She looks at me. "I finally asked out Eleanor last night. Took forever, but I did."

"He was really embarrassing. Practically shouted in her face," Niall interjects. He pulls a chair towards the bed.

"I wasn't that bad. The point is, she said yes. So I'm going to need some help planning that date. Zayn over here has the most boring relationship on the planet so he has zero good suggestions."

"Hey!" Zayn yells. Adie jumps and looks at him. I turn and glare at him. "Sorry," he mumbles. So dumb.

"We're playing tonight," Liam announces, changing the subject. Adie relaxes a little.

"Okay, I'm ready," Harry says, coming back into the room. He pushes through the guys.

"That was fast," I observe. Harry ignores me and sits beside me again. Man, he's got it bad.

"Are you going to be okay?" he asks quietly. Whenever he even looks at her I feel like I'm intruding on something really personal and intimate. The way he talks to her, the way he looks at her. It's hard to describe. The guys all step out of the room and I follow so that he can have a moment with her. We have time before we need to leave, anyway.

"Take your time, mate," I tell Harry, closing the door a bit.

Harry's POV

When all the boys are gone I turn back to Adie. I don't like this, I really don't like the thought of leaving her. Not by choice. My mum forces me to go to school, so I don't really have a choice in the matter. Right now I do, though, and it's killing me to choose to leave.

"I'm sorry," I whisper. "I don't want to leave."

She stops twirling her ring and slowly tilts her face up to mines. In one of the few moments this happens she looks into my eyes. I freeze in my spot and she brings one of her hands over to mine.

"Go," she says quietly. My eyes go wide in surprise before I regain my composure. She wants me to go...

"Are you sure?"

She nods once and the smallest trace of a smile plays on her lips. Wow. Now that there's this kind of progress I couldn't possible leave now. I need to be with her.

"I'm staying," I mumble, laying down next to her. She shakes her head ever so slightly in disagreement. "I don't want to go anyway. They can do it without me."

"No," she whispers. "Go."

I sigh and tighten my grip on her hand. She looks back up at the ceiling and I move closer, desperate for her. I miss being able to hold her and cuddle her and just be with her. I mean I'm with her right now, but she's not really here. I don't make sense. I just miss her.

"I don't want to leave you," I mumble. She turns her head towards mine and presses our foreheads together. I miss her so much.

There's a knock on the door and I don't move for whoever it is. The person comes and stands behind me and as soon as the hand is on my shoulder I know it's my mother.

"The boys told me, Harry. You've been in this house too much. You should go."

"I can't," I mumble, not moving an inch.

"Harry, come on."

"I'll be right back," I tell Adie. She goes back to her usual position and I slowly get up and follow my mother into the hallway. I shut the door and she walks me to the end of the hall. "I can't leave. She just talked to me. I'm not going anywhere."

"You need to do this, Harry. Adie wouldn't want you to stop living your life for her. Go out, have some fun with your friends. I'll stay here with her. It's a Friday night, go do something a teenager would do."

"Mum-"

"I'm not asking, darling. Go." She smiles and points down the hall. I sigh and nod my head in agreement. "Say goodbye to her. Make it quick."

I walk back to Adie's bed and move to stand on her other side so I don't get tempted to sit down. Damn it. I really don't want to leave.

"Okay, I'm going," I whisper, gently pushing her hair away from her face. She sighs and looks at me again. Twice in one night? Bonus. "I'll be back soon, I promise."

She nods once and I gently run my thumb along her jaw. She closes her eyes and I take that chance to leave the room before I change my mind again. When I get to the front of the house the boys all give me sad smiles.

"Let's just go before I change my mind," I mumble, getting my coat and walking out before they can say anything.

---

"That was sick!" Zayn yells. "We smashed it!"

"There were so many people, did you see that!" Niall shouts. I just laugh and give the high fives being offered to me. That's such a rush. Being on stage and having people cheer for you. Everything is just so exciting when you're on stage. We've never performed in front of so many people, either.

"I really need to get home," I shout over the screams. The boys all roll their eyes at me but I really don't care.

"Let's just watch the main act," Louis suggests. I shake my head. "Harry, come on. She'll probably be asleep by now anyway."

"I just need to make sure she's okay."

"She's fine, your mum is there."

"I just want to go home, Louis! Fuck, just let me go!"

They all stare at me and I storm out of there and start walking away. It'll take me forever to walk home, but I don't care. I should have taken my car. I knew that was a mistake. I know I'm being a little obsessive about this but I can't help it. If it was Perrie, Zayn would be acting the same as me. I love her, I need to be next to her. She needs me. Well, maybe not. But I know that I need her.

A car pulls up beside me and Liam rolls his window down.

"Get in. I'll take you back."

I jog around to the passenger side and get in the car.

"Thanks, man. I know I'm being crazy but-"

"It's fine, Harry. I get it. We can all tell that you care about her a lot. We just don't want you to stop like...living your own life, you know? I don't think Adie would want that for you," he says. Like he knows what Adie would want. We stay quiet the rest of the way and when we get to my house I practically run to the house, shouting thanks to Liam on the way up the steps. He pulls out and I run down the hall.

"Harry! Shoes!" my mother scolds as I disappear down the hall. I kick off my boots and take my usual seat next to Adie, being careful not to wake her. Damn. I was hoping I'd be back before she fell asleep. My mum appears in the doorway, leaning against the frame.

"How was it?" she asks quietly.

"Fun. It was great."

"You're back earlier than I thought you'd be."

I shrug. "I wanted to get back."

"Harry..."

"I know, mum. The boys talked to me. I can't help it." I gently push the hair away from her eyes and gently press my lips to her forehead. This is the only chance I get for those things. I get up and walk out into my own bedroom. "Maybe we should get a doctor in here. It's been two weeks and she's not getting any better."

"I already called one. A friend of mine, a psychiatrist."

"A shrink? Mum, she's not crazy!" I protest.

"I don't think she is either, Harry. I just think she would be the best suited for this kind of situation. Adie is struggling with grief, a physician won't be able to help with that."

"I guess. I just don't want her to think we think she's insane or something."

"I know, love. She won't. This is what she needs. Dr. Stanson is coming tomorrow for a home visit. She said any time in the morning, just so you know. If you wanted to be here."

"Okay."

---

"She's been like this for how long?" the doctor asks, coming out of Adie's room. She's been in there forever and she insisted on being in there alone. I don't like that.

"Two weeks," I answer quickly. She nods and writes something down. Is she going to tell me something?

"What do you think?" mum asks. She leads us down the hallway, probably so Adie can't overhear. I follow and we stop in the dining room.

"It's hard to say from what I know right now, but it's clear that she's really struggling. She didn't say much to me, which I assume has become patterned behaviour. I'll come back some time next week to see if there's any progress but I think she just needs time. If she doesn't get better sometime soon then I could prescribe some medication, but she's just going to need to work through her grief. This is an extreme reaction, but it does happen."

"So she'll get better?" I ask. She looks at me and smiles while nodding.

"She will."

"When?"

"It's hard to say. It's different in every case. Some people feel better after a day or two, some take months. Others take years of therapy before they're able to move on with their lives," she explains. I don't know if this is good news or not.

"She'll be okay, Harry." She puts her hand on my arm and I try to smile, but it probably looks pained at best. "She just needs some time. These things are hard to predict. I'll come back sometime next week, alright? Anne you have my number. We can arrange a time."

"Of course. Thanks so much for coming, Andrea." They walk to the front door and I just stay where I am. How long is she going to be like this? That didn't help anything! My phone starts vibrating and I feel slightly annoyed by Lou's name on the screen.

"I can't talk right now Lou."

"Hello to you too," he says sarcastically. "I have some news."

"What is it?"

"Someone called us about our performance last night. They want to meet with us. We have an appointment with a manager guy next week sometime. Liam has the details, but isn't that fantastic!"

"Wow." That's all I can manage right now. I never thought this would happen to us. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. Nothing is for sure, but it's something right? Just thought I'd let you know. How is she?"

"The same. We had a doctor come today. Look, I'll text you. I gotta go."

With that I hang up and head back to Adie's room. She looks at me when I come in and I smile softly at her. I wonder if she's freaked out by that lady. I sit down beside her and she continues staring at my face.

"Am I leaving?" she asks quietly.

"What? No, no of course not! You're not going anywhere and neither am I. We're going to get you through this, Ads. You're going to be okay, I promise."

I take a chance and put my arm around her shoulders, hugging her against my body. She leans against my chest and I rub her back. I don't know how much longer i can take seeing her like this. She needs to get better. She has to.

Notes

so the boys arent going to go on x-factor...they already know each other so i just feel like doing it differently. will they get famous? WHO KNOWS. what are the chances, right ;)

anywho. i got the update in :D now im actually leaving :P
I LOVE YOU GUYS!!! thank so much for the reaction :) you guys are da best.

recommend the story to others while im gone! people gotta keep readin ;)
lemme know what you think. ill love to read the comments when i get home :)