Home Is Where The Heart Is

The ten hour long flight from Houston to Heathrow had been hell for Ally. Although she'd been wearing a huge black hat which partially hid her face, she had still received numerous glances at the airport. Her mind being elsewhere, her guard and instincts were down. Years of practice at dodging crowds didn't help today. She didn't have any security so people came coming up to her and ask for photos. She was trying her best to be as polite as she could, but by the time she landed at Heathrow, she was on her last nerve. As she walked towards baggage claim, keeping her head down, she thought over her plan. She would stay for as long as Louis needed her and then leave for Springdale. That was the plan. She kept reminding herself that she was there for Louis and she wasn't going to get side tracked by any other drama. "Ally! Hey over here!" She glanced up, startled, and spotted Niall standing at a corner, waving his arms like crazy. He half walked and half ran towards her, and pulled her into a crushing hug. Ally clutched at his jacket, hugging him back with a small smile and refused to let the tears come. People around them stopped to stare and a few even pulled out their phones to click pictures. Of course Niall wasn't bothered. He was used to all of it. He let her go and with a huge smile splitting his face, he said just as loudly, "God its good to see you Ally!" She had missed Niall so damn much. "What are you doing here?" "I flew in from New York half an hour ago. Asked around for your flight and stayed back for you." Of course he had. "You didn't have to do that." "Like hell. Besides, there are paps outside and you have no security." Ally tensed up. She'd not faced the paparazzi in years and her last encounter had been disastrous at best. "Why are there paps?" Niall glanced at her with a frown. At 23, he somehow looked older than his age. He'd always had a baby face and dyed blonde hair. Now he had a stubble, his hair was its natural brown and his always smiling face had turned grim. "Louis' family released an official statement a couple of hours back. So they are probably expecting us to turn up." She flinched. "Okay." "Don't worry about it." Niall slung an arm around her shoulder and steered her away from the baggage claim. "I have David with me." "My bags," Ally protested. "I have them." David Michaels said, appearing behind them. He had been Niall's security ever since the beginning. Ally sighed in relief at his sight. "Hi Dave." The burly man came forward and gave her a one armed hug. "How are you holding up?" She ducked her head and refrained from lying. "How's Phil?" Philip Woods had been Ally's bodyguard and had later been with both her and Harry when they'd been together. He'd been like her shadow and she'd only realized how indispensable he had been she'd had to do without him. "He's still with Harry." Ally nodded. They'd both been utterly dependant on Phil. "Lets get out of her fast, Dave," Niall said, looking around as if he'd just realized that they were being openly photographed. "Ally might have an ugly hat on, but I don't." Dave nudged Niall forward, who still had his arm slung over Ally's shoulder and steered them towards what looked like a maintenance exit. "Car's out back." Once they were sat in Niall's car, he nudged her with his leg and gave her a sideways glance. "Have you lost weight Ally?" "A bit." She wasn't about to discuss the details of her weight loss with him. "Quite a bit it seems." "I'm fine Nialler," she insisted. "Whats been going on?" "Don't think you'd want to know," he replied sheepishly. "Its been pretty..... ummmm... wellll.... you know.." "Fucked up," Dave said, under his breath, from the front seat. "What?" "I released my solo single two minths back!" Niall exclaimed hastily. "Wow Niall thats great!" She reached out and ruffled his hair. "Congratulations kid!" He blushed a little and hastily changed the subject. "What have you been up to?" Ally shrugged. "Nothing much. Been trying to write a bit." "Hey why don't we sit with your stuff one day?" He perked up. "Maybe we could come up with a duet." "I'm not ready for that yet." "Cummon Ally you're a great writer. I'd love to collab with you." "Really Niall I'm not sure about that." He nodded and patted her hand. "Okay babe. Whenever you're ready." They lapsed into silence after that and in a few minutes they reached Louis' house. "Dammit!" Niall said, looking around the car at the horde of paparazzi. "Ally will you be alright?" She nodded but her stomach took a nosedive. She felt like she was going to be sick. It was utter chaos outside. "Wait till I open your door and then grab my hand." With that, Niall jumped down and slammed the door to his side of the car in a flash. Ally's palms were sweaty even in the cold. She just hoped that she could get to the house without passing out, or worse, throwing up. Niall opened the door for her, took her hand and helped her out. "Just hold on to my hand and keep your head down," he whispered as he started making his way towards the Tomlinson residence. "Niall!" "Allison is that you?" "Niall how was the radio tour?" "Allison!" "Allison are you back for good?" The shouting was deafening. She was clutching Niall's hand so hard that it was sure to leave marks. "It's okay, we're almost there," he said reassuringly. "Where have you been hiding Allison?" Someone shoved a phone right at her face. "Get out of the way sir!" Dave barked, at the same time that Niall shouted, "Back off man!" By the time they were inside the house and were ushered into the living area, Ally felt like she'd been torn in pieces. Before she could register the numerous faces there, she saw a flash of blonde hair and someone was hugging her. "You came Ally!" Charlotte, Louis' younger sister said, sniffling into her shoulder. She looked over Lottie's shoulder as she hugger her, spotting the twins, Daisy and Phoebe, sitting on the couch, next to Harry's mum, Anne. Gemma sat on the other sofa and gave her a smile. Liam was perched on the armrest and spared Ally a glance before turning away to scowl at something on the other side of the room. She followed Liam's gaze to see Zayn standing awkwardly in a corner with Lottie's boyfriend Tommy and shuffling his feet. There were five other people she didn't recognise. One Direction's agent, Oliver Shaw stood with Louis' stepfather, Dan. Then her gaze landed on Harry's tall figure, but before she could register his face, Lottie pulled back. "I'm so sorry Lots," Ally said squeezing her hand. "She missed you so much Ally. She spoke about you everyday." The guilt bubbled up in her stomach like bile. The urge to throw up was so potent that she almost had to force herself from gagging. Her nerves felt frayed. "Where's Louis?" "He's upstairs sorting through mum's stuff. I said I'll do it, but he insisted." Ally looked up and the younger girl gave her a small push. "Go on up. He'd want to see you." She didn't need to be told twice. She climbed the stairs and walked into what she knew had been Jay's bedroom. The door was ajar. Louis sat in the middle of a pile of his mum's clothes and had his head buried in his knees while his fingers clutched his hair. The sight broke her heart. She went up to him, knelt down and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Louis?" He glanced up at her face and blinked twice as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Then a ghost of a smile appeared on his face which turned into a grimace so fast that it scared Ally. "Where were you?" His tone was half accusatory and half desperate. Her heart felt heavy and the lump in her throat grew bigger. "I'm so so sorry Louis," she said, her voice cracking. The tears she'd been holding in broke free. She felt Louis' arms wrap around her tight as he pulled her down on the floor. "Where were you Ally?" Louis said again, burying his face in her shoulder.

Notes