It was silent as Louis led me down the hall towards the elevator. As he held his arm over the door to make sure it didn’t close on me, I noticed his t-shirt was stained a little, and it looked a lot like dried blood.

“Oh god, I didn’t stain your shirt did I?” I questioned, as I pointed to his chest.

“Huh? Oh, it must have happened while I was carrying you. Don’t worry about it,” Louis responded, as he shrugged and brushed a little of the blood off.

“What? No, blood stains, Louis. I ruined your shirt.” I said, inwardly groaning at how shitty my night was going. Louis gave me a small smile.

“Dahlia, really, its alright. I’ve too many t-shirts anyways.”

We reached the lobby and I could see the street through the large glass windows on the façade of the apartment building. I could feel panic starting to grow in my stomach. We had yet to run into anyone in the hallways but what about the doorman and what if there are people on the street? What are they going to say to me? I know I look horrendous. What are they going to think of me? Oh god, I think I’m hyperventilating, is this what a panic attack feels like?

“Dahlia? Are you okay? You look like you’re gonna pass out,” Louis said nervously, stopping in his tracks and putting his hands on my shoulder. I shook my head and tried to steady my breathing. After I few minutes, my breathing slowed to a more normal pace and I could speak. The whole while Louis stared at me with wide eyes.

“Panic attack,” I whispered, still attempting to catch my breath. He nodded but still looked at me with those wide eyes, like I might explode at any second.

“You sure you’re okay? You’ve just been through a lot tonight,” Louis asked.

I nodded, thoroughly ready to be done with this night and go home. I started walking towards the door again, Louis at my side. I moved as fast as I could, trying to ignore how sore my body was. The cool air was soothing on my burning skin. An obnoxious ringtone interrupted my sigh of relief. It rang four more times before I looked over to Louis questioningly. He seemed determined to ignore his phone call.

“Sorry,” He muttered to me after the ringing continued incessantly, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

“Hey El…Yeah, no sorry, I couldn’t find my phone… What? Now?... I’m a little busy…Eleanor I can’t right now, I’m too busy… Oh c’mon you know that’s not true… Fine… Yeah, see you in a bit.” Louis hung up and shoved his phone back into his pocket, a slightly sour look on his face.

“Sorry about that. Sometimes my girlfriend thinks the world revolves around her,” Louis said, sighing. I shrugged, it wasn’t any of my business. We rounded the corner and I could see Amira waiting patiently outside of the bar we were at that night. It seemed like a million years ago.

“Dahlia! Oh thank goodness!” Amira shouted, having spotted us. She ran towards Louis and me but stopped short when she got close enough to see how unpleasant I looked.

“Dahlia, oh my god,” was all she could manage to say. Her mouth was agape and she looked horrified.

“I know. Can we talk about it once we get back to my place?” I murmured, twisting my hands together anxiously. She nodded and looked towards Louis, who was standing awkwardly beside me.

“Amira, this is Louis. He and his friends, uh, helped me out tonight.”

Amira extended her hand to Louis and she introduced herself to him, thanking him immensely, even though she didn’t know the whole picture yet. I yawned, the events of the night catching up with me.

“Come on Dahlia, let’s get you back home and into bed.” Amira said in a motherly tone. I nodded, rubbing my eyes sluggishly and turned to Louis.

“Thank you so much, I don’t know what would’ve happened if Zayn didn’t go outside.” I said to him, unable to fully convey my gratitude.

“Can I…?” Louis asked, motioning that he wanted to hug me. I nodded and he took me gently into his arms, not wanting to disturb my bruised skin any more than it already was. I rested my head against his chest and grasped him back tightly. If I couldn’t put my gratitude into words maybe I could communicate it through touch. I knew that if I weren’t as empty as I was, tears probably would have started to run down my cheeks. Louis and his friends truly saved my life.

“You’ll be okay, Dahlia. I promise.”