Chapter forty-two :)

After another round of sleep Harry was able to remember them again It had been just the first shock the doctors said. Louis just spent the next days taking care of Harry as often as possible. "Lou." He whispered his voice was almost unhearable. He noticed Louis' hand being intertwined with his right. He was sleeping. Head resting on the bedside next to his leg.

He looked exhausted, a slight shine beneath his eyes. Tears? Harry squeezed Louis' cold hand which made him growl and rub his eyes with the back of his free hand. "How are you feeling?" He yawned. Good was the first word that shot into Harry's mind, it had always been the easiest to say. But he wasn't good, his head was pounding, the cuts in his face still burning when he talked and his throat felt like it gets ripped apart with every coughing attack.

But he was alive and that was all that matters. "Better." Was his final answer, lifting his hand to wipe the tear off of Louis' cheek "Don't cry." He whispered, didn't hurt as much as when he actually used his voice. Louis shouldn't feel bad he couldn't have averted it anyways. "Do you want some water?" Harry nodded. Louis had been such great support the last couple of days.

Anne had visited a few times too, and it always went the same way. Awkward small talk until she finally left. Harry had learned to get along with her, which didn't mean he forgave her. He can't stop her from coming anyway. No matter how often he had told her not to, she always did. And she always took care of him when Louis left for university.

"I've spoken to the doctor." She said, "And?" Harry asked uninterested probably more tests or something else like the last few weeks. There was still a huge white cast on his leg but the rest was almost gone, well the cuts were still slightly visible, but the headaches had stopped and his chest wasn't hurting with every cough anymore.

"You can go home." Showing her perfect white teeth with a wide smile. "Really?" Harry raised his eyebrows they kept him there for weeks, all he wanted was to finally go home to Louis again and now it was time. Finally. He bent his legs over the edge of the bed to stand up, walking was only possible with crutches. Ugh, hopefully they will take the cast off him soon.

It took him about a whole of two hours to get all of his stuff together, meanwhile, Anne was paying all the bills. "I'll pay you back," Harry promised, hobbling down the hall. "No, you don't have to, it's all my fault anyway," Anne next to him carrying the huge bag stuffed with all the clothes that Louis had brought him. She insisted on driving him over, he had no choice because unfortunately, he couldn't drive himself whit that stupid cast.

"I know you don't want me around." she started 'oh really? How do you come to this?' Harry thought sarcastically, spinning a ring around his finger. She was right, he didn't even want to see her. "But I need you to know that I still love you and I will always be there for you." Always there. Always there?! Only a few more minutes then she's gone. Harry tried himself to calm down. He really didn't want to start a fight at the moment.

So he just kept quiet the whole ride. It was the familiar smell of the apartment that made Harry feel so fucking happy. He couldn't wait for Louis to finally arrive, it felt like ages since he was at the apartment the last time. And now everything was over. The whole situation with Charly was finally over. Well, almost. Harry didn't know what exactly happened to him after he and Anne had started an indictment but the police officers told him they don't need to come to the law court because of his injuries.

And that they probably have enough evidence against him so it wasn't necessary to meet up again. It turned out that Harry wasn't the only one Charly had done this to.

He and Anne will receive a letter or call in the foreseeable future on how it went. But to be honest, it didn't care him what exactly happened to Charly now, it was enough to know he would never see him again in his whole life. And this time really. Everything was good, well except for the relationship with Anne. A clicking sound interrupted him.

"Don't push me." Louis laughed

"It wasn't me, it was Niall."

"Yes sure Lee," The four boys stumbling through the entrance door. "Hey H!" Zayn tousled Harry's hair and hugged him tightly. Harry was so happy to see them all here, the last weeks had been really quiet and boring without them being around most of the time. "I'm happy to see you all again too." He smiled as the other three joined their hug, jumping excitedly.

"Louis told us you'd be home today soooo," Niall raised a bag stuffed with candy and smirked. "And we also ordered pizza, it should arrive in about 20 mins," Zayn said checking the time on his phone. God how he missed had them. And their movie nights, when none of them was able to breathe of laughter. Louis and Harry cuddled up in the corner of the couch, Liam sitting on the other side and Zayn and Niall on the mattress leaning against the sofa, almost empty pizza cartons on their laps.

"No honestly, if I were her I wouldn't go with him. He's a jerk." Niall tried to catch the popcorn with his mouth and had failed once again. He was really eating pizza and popcorn at the same time.... gross, it made Harry chuckle. "He isn't, you'll see." Harry snuggled his head even more into Louis' chest, he had missed that smell of coconut mixed with sweat and Louis typical smell. Sure he had been in the hospital almost every day but it wasn't the same.

"Welcome back" Louis chuckled quietly into Harry's hair, placing a slight kiss on his scalp. 

****

"Finally. You have no idea how much I hated this thing." Harry said sitting in the passenger seat of Louis car looking down at his leg. The cast was finally gone, his leg felt so light now almost like a feather. "Actually, I do, you have told me at least a thousand times." The wind streaming through the car from outside. It blew Harry's curls behind his ears. "No, I didn't." Louis laughed at that and started imitating him.

"Lou, my leg itches. Ughhhhhh, how I hate that stupid cast. Sun it won't stop itching" Louis joked letting his voice sound slow and deep. "Okay, Okay" Harry laughed blushing, maybe he had told him one or two times. "How is it going with Mark?" Harry didn't know if he should ask him that but since his dad had kicked Sabrina out the contact between them got better.

And to be honest Louis seemed happier. He just smiled straight ahead one hand around the starring wheel the other tight in Harry's, like always. The promise ring exactly between the '28' tattoo Louis had, something Harry had never noticed before. "Good, yeah it's going good." Somehow it made Harry think of Anne and how much she tried to fix terms between them.

She regrets what she had done and she was trying really hard. And to be honest Harry slowly started to understand why she did what she did. She had talked about it a lot at the hospital, and the last weeks as well. That she never wanted him to feel that pain. She just tried to make his life as usual as possible, by simply avoiding the truth that it was not.

She couldn't handle it any more than he could. The last weeks had sown Harry how much she still cared about him and that she was really, really deeply sorry for what she had done. And as crazy it may sound Harry believed her. Pretty ironic huh? Louis seemed to notice him stuck in his thoughts. "Do you want to talk to her" Somehow Louis always knew exactly what Harry was thinking. One of his special features.

Harry just nodded and Louis turned the car. He seemed happy that Harry seriously wanted to talk to her. And he didn't change his mind on the way as usual. The car stopped. The house of his mom, his old home, looked so strange and familiar at the same time. He hadn't been here in a long time, well a few weeks maybe months but it felt like forever.

The car was standing in the driveway so Anne was at home. Okay, Harry took a deep breath in. Louis nodded, a slight smile on his face. Then he got out of the car and slowly walked towards the door. Should he use his key or knock? It was such a strange situation. On the one hand, it was his home but it was not, he hadn't spent a whole day in there in a good year.

Now he was there, the door in front of him just waiting for him to knock. Harry turned his head and looked over to Louis in the car who showed his thumbs up. Harry lifted his hand ready to knock but it opened just before his knuckles met the wood. Anne looked wide-eyed at him "Harry? What are you doing here?"

She looked about to leave, holding a letter in her hand. "I uhm-" God stop stuttering. "I came to talk but when you are about to leave I can come back later." He really didn't want to stop her from wherever she was about to go. "I was actually about to come over to show you something." She lifted the hand with the paper. It was in fact a letter.

"Is it from the lawyer?"

She nodded.

"What does it say?"

"I- I don't know I haven't read it yet."

Harry took it and slowly ripped it open. This letter would probably determine his life. It will tell him either if they won and could live happily (whatever happily exactly meant) or if Charly won which means he is free. And angry. And that would be the worst that could ever happen. Harry's heartbeat got faster as he pulled out the folded piece of paper.

He unfolded it, fingertips sweaty. The fear in Anne's eyes only made him more nervous. It was dead silent for a few seconds. The first few lines were enough for Harry to know the exact answer. He looked up again and met Anne's eyes, her look, asking she died wanting to know what the letter says. "We did it." Harry breathed unbelievingly.

"We did it!" He jumped excitedly wrapping his arms tightly around his mom. She realized it a little late, she was just standing there frozen for seconds until she closed her arms behind Harry's back. They did it, Charly wouldn't come back. Ever. It was over.

Harry didn't know how to feel. And goddammit when was the last time he and Anne hugged? He tightened his arms around her burying his face in her shoulder. Just enjoying it. "We did it," She whispered. "Yes, mom we did."