Hi! Hope you enjoyed the last chapter :) this is one of my favourite concepts so far and the song matches so perfectly!

Okay I lowkey snapped with this chapter so I hope you enjoy hehe

200 votes and comments for an update

Harry started running wordlessly, backing away from the warehouse and running towards the forest without so much as a glance back to his friends

"What are you doing?!" Zayn exclaimed, calling after the boss

Harry didn't turn around, just carried on running "Louis!" Was all that he managed to scream in reply, before racing into the woods

The trees cascading above him blocked out all of the light from the sun; embracing him in the sickening darkness

He forgot for a moment that the phone call was still running and Louis was speaking to him on the other end

"Start running" Harry told him, already speeding through the forest himself, blindly chasing hope through the trees

Louis, on the other end, eyed the cameras to see men piling out of the car and walking towards the cabin "I can't they're outside" he replied, eyes flicking between the door and the cameras

"You gotta" Harry told him "Just- fuck, just run" he told the boy breathlessly

Louis nodded wordlessly, eyes taking one final glance to the cameras before he raced through the front door and headed straight to the forest. The reaction from the gang, only about 100 yards away from the cabin, was instantaneous; chasing after Louis rapidly and firing at him

The boy dropped his phone during the commotion, rendering it a slave to the forest and he ran on. Harry cursed when Louis stopped replying on the other end, pushing himself to run impossibly faster

The thing about running in the dark is that it is almost impossible to keep track of where you're going and where you're meant to be. In the vast space, it soon became evident that Harry had no sense of direction whatsoever, running aimlessly though the green

"Louis!" He called suddenly, stopping to try and hear any signs of movement

He was met with silence; whistling wind and lively leaves. No Louis, no hope

Harry tried not to think about the gunshot that he'd heard through the phone, he tried not to think about his boy, lifeless and alone. So he pressed on, running towards nothing and everything all at the same time

The silence was almost more frightening than that of gunshots and screams. Harry wished to hear something, anything, as he pounded through the never ending forest

"Louis!" He shouted

Silence

He heard nothing but a single heartbeat; it was loud, rapid and could have been mistaken for a giant running at a deadly pace. He looked around as he ran through the forest, wiping at the unforeseen beads of sweat now resting on his forehead and pushing back his hair for better sight of the dark

The drumming heartbeat was his own; hammering against his constricting prison of his rib-cage as he gasped for breath, continuing to run

"Louis!" He yelled, his voice being absorbed among the trees

And this time, this blessed time, he heard a distant reply

Just a word. A single name. A divine spark of hope in a never ending cycle of nothingness. A flame of faith in the forest of sorrow. Harry

"Louis!" He called again, chanting the name like a mantra; a ritual; a sacrilegious desire

Now the reply was clearer. Poking through the silence and echoing in his ears. Harry. He followed it like a disciple, chased it like a dream, hunted it like a wolf. The voice, though it filled him with relief, was more nightmarish than beautiful. Breathless and desperate. Alone

"Louis"

"Harry"

Clear as day. A blessed day. Sultry and sticky like summer. A red and white picnic blanket on pollen filled grass. Bumblebees and daisies. Strawberries and cream. Raindrops and roses. Hope

"Louis!" Harry repeated, trailing the voice aimlessly, looking over his shoulders and from left to right until the voice sounded again. Louder, nearer, fiercer

And then there was the sound of leaves beneath exhausted feet, branches being pushed aside, lovers running in the dark. The sound was followed by a sight. The first glimpse of a boy behind the trees; a flash of life behind the still nature

Harry ran towards him, pushing through branches and fighting the forest to get to the boy who was now in sight. The gang leader captured the boy in his arms as soon as the two were close enough to do so. Louis hardly gave Harry the time to embrace him before they were running again, Louis pushing him along after glancing over his shoulder in worry. The sound of gun shots and voices trailing behind them as they made for an escape

"Come one" Harry ushered, taking Louis' hand and pulling the boy along with him, back the way that he'd come

Louis ran with him as fast as he could, not quite able to be as quick as Harry "I can't" the smaller boy panted after a minute or so, knees weak, legs wobbly

The adrenaline had left him now, leaving nothing but raw fear and inevitable exhaustion behind

"Yes you can" Harry told him, tightening his grip on Louis' hand and pulling him forwards to keep their pace

The distance between themselves and the gang trailing them grew father apart, losing sight and sound of them in the darkness. Harry pushed further, the two of them closer to safety than ever before. Within touching distance. The taste of victory on their tongues. The pride before the fall

It wasn't long before a fallen branch blocked their way, tripping Louis up slightly and causing for the boy to catch himself on a tree, scraping at his palms but keeping him upright nonetheless. Louis steadied himself quickly and Harry hauled him along, running again once the boy was steady enough to do so

The gunshots sounded again, further away than before, but there nonetheless

"C'mon, almost there" Harry said loudly, not letting the boy stop for breath when he tried to

Louis strained for breath "M'so tired" he forced out, lungs tightening

"You can do it" Harry promised "Look, there" he added, pointing out a ray of sunlight only a few meters ahead "Almost there" he promised, taking most of Louis' weight and pulling the boy along

Louis wondered briefly if the light was a mirage, in which the thing you want most becomes visible, within reach. A dream like illusion. A phantasmagoria

It wasn't until he felt it, until the sun engulfed him and kissed his broken skin with it's summer lips, that he truly believed it was there, welcoming them

The rest of the boys were in view once Louis and Harry exited the forest; their weapons at the ready as they paced around in worry. Zayn being the closest to them, visible before they'd even left the woods due to how near he was

"What the fuck happen-" he started, but the gang leader cut him of

"Blow it up!" Harry demanded, screaming the words at Zayn who was quick to grab the explosives they'd had in reserve and light them up

It was fortunate, how fast acting Zayn had been and how quickly Harry had rushed out of the way. The dark haired genius tossed the explosives into the woods, launching them a couple of meters deep into the trees

Liam pulled Zayn back from the danger zone, turning and wrapping his arms around his friend to cover him from the backlash of the blow

Harry dove forwards with Louis in his arms, knocking Niall over to safety in the process and covering the both of them. The three of them a few meters further away from the woods than Zayn and Liam had been

The bombs went off in an instance and the entire forest lit up in flames; burning trees, sparkling soil, orange leaves, melting bodies. A blast of hot wind encased them, waves of energy pushing against them with magnificent force; the backlash was just as fierce. Splinters of hot wood and shrapnel raining from the sky like bullets, quick and dangerous. Dynamite and disaster

The sound left a high pitched ringing in Louis' ears, muting the world and silencing his friends for a moment. He was left with nothing but the horrific imagery of ash falling from the sky and the world set on fire

When his ears finally obeyed him, the first thing he heard was Harry trying to speak to him, shaking him lightly and cupping his face with his hands

"Louis?" He repeated for what could have been the second or third time

The blue eyed boy blinked at him, still breathless from all of the running "I'm okay" he managed, choking out the words with the remaining air in his lungs

The second thing he heard was Zayn shouting, gaining the attention of the other two boys alongside him. They turned to see the doctor by Liam's side, blood on his hands and pure agony on his face

"Harry, can you-" Zayn called, hardly finishing his words before Harry was by his side, kneeling down next to Liam and looking the man over "We need to- we-" Zayn choked out

Harry nodded wordlessly, swallowing before managing a soft "Yeah"

Zayn struggled for breath "Can you-" he started, choking on his words

"Niall" Harry called, summoning the boy that was checking Louis over

The blonde rushed over "Fuck" he muttered, looking the scene over "What happened!" He shouted, a little harsher than intended "I thought you were right next to us"

Zayn bit back a sob, shaking his head as he looked down at Liam, hands shaking "We need to-" he tried again

"We got it" Harry promised, nodding over to Niall "You, sit down" he ordered, looking at Zayn

The doctor shook his head again "I need-"

"Louis!" Harry cut him off, fumbling to pick Liam up with the help of Niall

Louis seemed to understand what Harry needed without the man even telling him what to do; the blue eyed boy held Zayn back, keeping the distance as Harry and Niall carried Liam over to the car, struggling slightly as they did so

Zayn was shaking as Louis tried his best to calm the man down, promising that it was all fine, despite not knowing anything about the current state that Liam was in

After the injured man was safely in the car, Louis walked Zayn over to the vehicle, helping the doctor into the passengers seat and getting into the back himself, besides Niall and Liam's body

"Checked his pulse" Harry assured, as soon as Zayn was in the car "He's okay" he promised "We just need to get him back home so that you can work your magic" he explained "The only bleeding is coming from his limbs, nowhere else was hit" he stated, the words soothing Zayn just a little bit

There was silence for a couple of seconds before the doctor spoke up "He stopped it from hitting me" he muttered, just before passing out

***

It was Niall who ended up being the one to nurse both Liam and Zayn; the latter's injuries significantly less brutal than the former's

Zayn woke up ten minutes after they'd arrived back at their house, the first words from his lips being 'Liam', muttered in a groggy tone

It took a few hours to rouse Liam, Zayn being the one to do so

It was the blast that had completely knocked the hit man out, and exhausted Zayn, who was thankfully hardly hit

Liam had shrapnel and wood splintered into his limbs, causing bleeding and incisions on both his arms and legs; his back was also hit a little

Zayn had doped him up on medication after composing himself, hopefully preventing any infections or complications. He'd removed the shrapnel and splinters from both of his arms, and was set to do the same with Liam's legs within the week

Because of the speed at which the bullet like structures were travelling, the indentations made weren't severe and, with most of the open wounds being made by wood rather than metal, Liam wouldn't have to go through major surgery or a long course of treatment

Either way, Zayn seemed to be glued to his side; the doctor feeling naturally guilty about Liam's condition, did whatever he could for his friend and Liam, being the man that he was, took advantage of this

"I'm sure you can fill the bath yourself" Zayn grumbled, half to himself as he filled up the tub with warm water and soap for the younger man

Liam, from his bedroom, called right back "You're the one who asked what you could do to help" he pointed out, the amusement not hidden in his tone

Zayn scoffed lightly "Thought you'd want food or something" he replied "Maybe a joint rolling" he added "You know, for the pain, of course" he clarified

"Oh, of course" Liam agreed immediately "Wouldn't use it for anything else" he promised

Zayn bit back a smile as he finished filling the bathtub. He brushed the hair back from his face before standing up from where he was knelt and walking back into Liam's bedroom

He was met with a lopsided smile from the hit man, an undertone to his smirk that Zayn couldn't quite put his finger on

"Alright, it's ready" the doctor informed, toying with his rolled up sleeves habitually

Liam raised a brows "Alright" he echoed softly, making his way up from the bed

Zayn was quick on his feet, stepping forwards to offer the man a hand and gracefully pulling him up when the hand was accepted "You good?" He asked gently

Liam smiled "Am now" he answered, tone just as soft

Zayn steadied him when Liam's legs almost gave way "What?" The doctor quizzed when Liam eyed him "Want me to carry you or something?" He asked

Liam grinned "Wouldn't be able to if you tried" he shot back, hardly a bite in his words, every syllable was tender

Zayn rolled his eyes "Think that blow made you lose a couple of brain cells" he teased, helping the man to the en suite without even having to be asked

Liam laughed at this, wincing slightly as he did so, letting Zayn help him towards the bath and smiling "Thanks" he muttered after a couple of seconds, steadying himself on the rim of the bathtub when Zayn let him go and took a step beck

The doctor nodded curtly, half shy "No problem" he replied, offering the man a smile before turning his head to look away "I should-"

He started at the same time Liam began to speak. The hit man stopped himself, nodding for Zayn to continue

"I should go" the genius said lowly, almost like it was more of an obligation to leave rather than his own wished; an underlying rule that he had to stick

Liam stilled at this, brows furrowing "You're gonna leave?" He quizzed

Zayn almost spluttered "You're taking a bath" he nearly choked out, face pink

Liam raised a brow "Can't you stay professional, doctor?" He questioned

Zayn gaped, not even trying to mask his inevitable shock "Can you?" He quizzed

Liam smiled "Help me out of this and we can find out" he replied, tugging uselessly at his shirt

Zayn blinked before he composed himself, taking it as a challenge "Fine" he told the man sharply, stepping forwards and letting out a short sigh before helping Liam unbutton his shirt

Liam bit back a grin, letting Zayn undress him and place the shirt on the side "Thanks" he said finally

Zayn raised an eyebrow "What, you want me to take these off too?" He questioned, eyeing the man's trousers

Liam shrugged "I'll let you off" he said softly

Zayn looked away as Liam undressed himself fully and stepped into the tub, lower himself into the warm water and letting it encase his broken body

The doctor coughed after a couple of seconds "You good?" He asked, still a little flustered at the thought of Liam being naked just a foot or so behind him

Liam smiled to himself, waiting a couple of seconds before answered "Yeah" he said gently, relaxing in the water

Zayn turned at this, eyeing Liam for a couple of seconds before walking over "I suppose you want me to wash you too?" He quizzed

Liam raised a brow, the smile evident in his voice "I mean, you do owe it to me" he replied "I did save your life and all" he reminded

Zayn rolled his eyes, kneeling at the side of the bathtub "Never going to let me live that down, are you?" He quizzed

"Never" Liam told him

Zayn scoffed slightly, picking up a sponge and dipping it into the bath water "In that case, I have to remind you that I save your life too yesterday" he said

Liam hummed softly, closing his eyes as Zayn washed him down "How could I ever forget" he replied

And he couldn't, not when his guardian angel was knelt right in front of him, reminding him of it with each touch

Question:

Did the outcome surprise you?

Thoughts on Ziam?

Vote? Comment? Ilygsm. Mwah x