twenty-three: cafeteria food

"So.... He just bought you a house?" Louis asks me, staring at me in complete disbelief as I pick at my food. Louis and I were currently in the hospital cafeteria, getting a quick lunch between Louis' shifts and waiting patiently for my father to show any signs of waking up which didn't appear to be happening anytime soon. It had been two weeks since the doctors initially told my mother and I that he should be waking up any day now, but with each day that passed, that hope got a little smaller. 

"He didn't buy it, he inherited it from his grandmother." 

"Still, that's huge... You're really going to move out to the country side?" Louis asks, playing with the straw of his drink as he looks at me from across the table. 

"Eventually, yeah. Harry doesn't want us to move in for a few months cause of his promo tour and I don't want to leave Mum on her own until Dad is back to normal." I say, grimacing as I decide I'm done with whatever the hell it was I was eating. I push the tray away from myself, earning an eye roll from Louis. 

"You should eat more than half a salad, Niall. You're eating for three." Louis says and I let out a sigh. 

"Whatever happened to patient confidentiality? First Harry finds out cause my doctor lets it slip and then you find out cause you're a snoopy shithead." 

"I am not a snoopy shithead, I'm a pediatric nurse. Besides, it wasn't like you were going to tell me. You didn't even tell Harry, hell, you haven't even told your own parents. You're starting to show." Louis says, reaching for the stray apple on my tray and taking a bite. 

"It's just not an easy thing to say out loud, you know? I've accepted my circumstances, I'm happy about it, it's just... weird. I never thought I would be in this situation, I never thought I'd have to have the "I'm pregnant" talk with my parents because I never thought I would be here. I'm pretty much a one in a billion statistic..." 

"Well I'm sure your mum always told you that you were special." Louis teases, throwing up his feet as he takes another bite of what used to be my apple. I cringe a little at the sound, but Louis doesn't seem to notice. 

"Yeah, well I don't think this is what she meant by special." I say a little bitterly, letting out a sigh as I stand up from the table. 

"I'm sure she'll be happy, Ni. I mean, they're her grandchildren... and plus, they're gonna be adorable as hell. Perfect mix of you and Harry, lucky bastard." Louis says, chuckling a little before he stands up as well. He grabs both the food trays, tossing the trash into the garbage before placing them on top of the can. We walk out of the cafeteria together, Louis adjusting his scrubs a little while I pulled my sweater down a little further. It was big enough to hide the bump, but I wasn't going to be able to conceal it for much longer. It was already becoming a problem, Mum having made the comment that I needed to start hitting the gym again... I didn't take it personally for she had no idea what was really going on.

"I'll tell her once Dad's awake, that way I can tell both of them..." I say and Louis looks at me for a moment with a very sympathetic expression. 

"Ni... You do realize that with every day that passes and he doesn't wake up... the chances get slimmer." Louis says quietly, biting on his lip as he clearly gauges my reaction. I'm sure he was used to people blowing up at him about the odds, but then again he worked with kids... 

"I know, Lou... But I've gotta hope he does cause what else can I do? I gotta be strong for Mum and for myself." I whisper, looking down at my shoes as I shuffle on my feet a little. Louis pulls me into a half hug, placing a soft kiss to my temple before his watch starts beeping at him. Louis lets out a sigh as he lets go of me, patting my stomach before he takes a step back. 

"I gotta get back to work. Good luck with your appointment today, Liam and I have a poll going on genders. So don't fail me, Horan." Louis teases as he starts to walk away, going backwards for a few steps before slipping around in the right direction. I let out another sigh before I head in the direction of my dad's room as I still had an hour before my own appointment. Harry was to be meeting me here, having called just as he was leaving the studio. I of course wasn't holding out hope that he'd make it, still a bit apprehensive over Harry's promises. 

Mum is sitting by his bed, holding his hand as she plays with his wedding ring. She doesn't even look up when I walk into the room, nor does she acknowledge that I'm even there. I don't want to break the silence, allowing her to stay in her own little world as I sit down in the chair closest to the door. I bite down on my lip as I watch silently, pulling at the ends of my sweater as I simply just waited.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

yooooooooooooooo, it didn't take me three days!

be happy, my friends. 

be happppppy

annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd genders should be revealed next chapter, so cast in those final votes ;)

qotc: how do you guys think niall's parents are going to react to finding out about the babies? 

dedication goes to tinag929

comment

and

vote

connie xx