Escaped

Chapter 16

Escaped: Chapter 16

My blood turned to ice. I was frozen in my seat while everyone around was rushing about.

Harry hurried up to me.
"Where's Perrie? Eleanor?"

I shook my head and Louis said, "Still gone, mate."

"Damn!"
Harry grabbed my shoulder.
"Charlotte, I need you to get a bucket of hot water. Do you understand?" He asked urgently.

"Y-yeah."

"Good. And get a pair if scissors from the kitchen drawer. There should be a small black bag in there too."

I nodded frantically but still my legs wouldn't move.

"Now!" Zayn called from the living room.
I looked over and saw Liam on the couch, bleeding out.

That's all I needed.

I ran to the kitchen and began fumbling with the tap until steaming water emerged.

I scrambled for a bowl, looking in all the cabinets.
Finally a found a green plastic bucket under the sink. I set it under the faucet and ran for the scissors.

I dashed back into the living room with the bucket in hand and the other supplies tucked under my arm.

Niall took the scissors from me and began cutting Liam's shirt off while Zayn started to clean his wound which was on the upper left side of his chest.

After a while, I realized there wasn't anything I could do anymore. So I sat on the edge of the counter, in the kitchen, watching, my eyes wide in horror.

"Char, get in here!" Louis called.

I immediately obeyed.

"Grab his hand," Harry instructed me. I did so.

I looked over and saw that Liam had his shirt in his mouth.

'Was that sanitary?' I wondered.

But after a minute, I understood why.

Zayn had a long, thick pair of tweezers and was about to remove the bullet.

What happened next would stick in my head for the rest of my life.

Liam grasped my hand so tightly, his fingernails dug into my skin until I bled. His whole body went rigid. Stiff as a board. His jaw was clenched so tightly that, had it not been for his shirt, I'm sure he would've broken a few teeth. Then he started to yell into the cloth. Tears leaking out of the sides of his eyes.

I didn't know what to do. Everyone else kept working like this was expected. As for me, I'd never seen anything like this before.
The whole sight of it made me want to pass out. But I wasn't going to. I was going to stay strong. The last thing anybody here needed was to have to deal with my unconscious body on top of everything else.
No, I had to do this. For Liam.

I ran my fingers through his sweaty hair.
"Shh," I said. "It's going to be alright."
And he stopped screaming. His grip on my hand and his jaw were still tight as ever, but he made no sound.

Niall looked confused, but then looked up at me.

"That's good," he said. "Keep doing that."

So I did.

"Liam," I told him. "Everything's going to be okay. I promise.."

"I'm here," I said.

Zayn dropped the crumpled bullet into a plastic cup that was on the coffee table.

Liam opened his eyes for just a second, looking into mine, before he passed out.